Xue Rui said he was going to inquire about the trial of the Thai Heng Chamber of Commerce case. That night, a bailiff from the yamen came to inform her to prepare for the trial the next day. Yu Shu readily agreed.
Both Yu Xiaoxiu and Jing Chen were very concerned about the case. The former was afraid that Bi Qing and Qiu Biao would be released again, while the latter wanted to accompany Yu Shu to the court for the trial.
"I'll go. I heard from Young Master Xue that Bi Qing and Qiu Biao pushed the case of hijacking the ship onto the people who were rescued midway. Isn't that talking about you? The less trouble, the better. It's best if you don't show up before the case is over."
Yu Shu dismissed the idea of accompanying Jing Chen. Then, she recalled to Yu Xiaoxiu how they were forced to jump into the river to save themselves on the ship. She hated Qiu Biao and Qiu Biao so much that her teeth itched. She just wanted them to be executed the next day.
After dinner, they went back to their rooms to rest. Yu Shu was too excited to sleep because she was going to the court the next day. After lying down for a while, she simply got up to do some calculations.
In the past few days, she had been preparing for the exam. She had put aside the algorithm for finding the Yellowfrost Stone as soon as she made some progress. Tonight, she picked it up and continued to study it. She calculated a very strange phenomenon. "Strange. How can I calculate it like this? The stone should be right beside me. It was clearly lost …"
Yu Shu touched her chin. After thinking about it, she could only say that she had calculated the wrong steps again. This method wouldn't work, so she had to find another way.
Sighing to herself in pity, Yu Shu casually put aside the results she had calculated for most of the time. She pulled out a piece of paper and listed out all the numbers related to the Yellow Frost Stone. She then used the algebra incantations of the eight gates of life and death to find a suitable formula to reverse deduce it.
Yu Shu slept in the middle of the night and woke up before the rooster crowed the next day. She was simply too excited to sleep, so she packed up and waited for the yamen to call her.
Not long after, an official came to the door. The court for the trial was located in the yamen in the south of the city. It wasn't far and took less than an hour to get there. As soon as she entered the door, she heard a shout. "Your Excellency, the witness of Yiyang, Yu Shu, has been brought!"
Yu Shu was still wondering if Xue Rui would come today. The moment she arrived at the entrance of the main hall, she looked inside. She saw a capital official wearing a black veil on his head sitting behind the official's desk, and there was a wooden table that was purposely placed at the side. The person sitting behind the table was Xue Rui who was dressed in a vermillion official's robe.
It wasn't the first time Yu Shu had seen him dressed in official robes, but every time she saw him in this robe, it was as if he was a different person. He was meticulous and proper, and he looked quite dignified.
Seeing him present, Yu Shu unconsciously felt a little more at ease. Presumably, there wouldn't be any accidents with this case, and it would be settled.
When Xue Rui saw Yu Shu being brought in, he nodded slightly to her without anyone noticing. He turned to the official behind the table and said, "Your Excellency Xu, it's this person. When the merchant ship of the Thai Heng Chamber of Commerce was robbed in July, he was lucky enough to escape. He also witnessed Bi Qiu and the others working with the water bandits to rob and murder."
Only then did Yu Shu's line of sight fall on the few people kneeling on the ground in prison uniforms with disheveled hair. These few people were also turning their heads to look at her. It wasn't difficult to recognize the bearded Qiu Biao, and the other long-faced man who was staring at her unwaveringly must be Bi Qing.
They had obviously been tortured in prison. All of their faces had scars, and the shackles on their hands and feet were bloody. However, after being locked up for a few days, their faces were sallow and their bodies emaciated from hunger. This was how it should be. Without the support of the Thai Heng Chamber of Commerce, how could felons like them have an easy time in prison?
After so many days, seeing this old enemy again, Yu Shu felt nothing but joy. She wasn't afraid of Bi Qing and Qiu Biao's evil eyes, and sneered, "Boss Bi, you didn't expect this, did you? That night when I jumped into the river to escape from the ship, I ate the wind and dew in the forest, ate sparrow meat for half a month, and still managed to survive."
Bi Qing thought that he still had a trace of desire to live, so he didn't retort under Yu Shu's provocation. He bit his lips and endured it.
"Pa!"
"Are you Yi Yang's Yu Shu?"
Hearing the sound of the wooden block, Yu Shu stepped forward and bowed, like a commoner, "Reporting to Sir, it is me."
"Do you recognize these few people kneeling?"
"I'd recognize them even if they turned into ashes." Yu Shu used a classic line and pointed at Bi Qing and Qiu Biao. She raised her head and put on an indignant expression. "It's these two people who secretly poached the merchants' goods and colluded with the bandits to murder the lives of all the passengers on the ship! I was lucky to escape and hid in the capital. Not long ago, I ran into them again. They were afraid that I would expose their evil deeds, so not only did they sneak into my house in the middle of the night to harm me, they even hired assassins to kill me! "
Yu Shu's face flushed red. She cupped her hands towards Xue Rui and said gratefully, "It is all thanks to Xue daren's keen eyes that captured these villains on the spot. Otherwise, I would have died sooner or later and they would have gotten away scot-free."
Xue Rui looked at Yu Shu's performance and almost couldn't hold back his laughter. He suppressed the corner of his mouth and nodded. He said to Xu daren, "The Thai Heng Chamber of Commerce has thoroughly investigated Bi Qing. Xu daren has looked over the accounts just now. The accomplices have all confessed, proving that the robbery case in July and the other robbery case that happened in the southwest three years ago were all led by Bi and Qiu. Now that the witnesses and material evidence are here, Xu daren, please convict them."
Before Yu Shu came, the trial of the case was almost over. Before the trial began, all the confessions had been collected. Her coming was just a formality. Other than her, there were two other stewards from the Thai Heng Chamber of Commerce present. They were sent by their masters to provide material evidence and listen to the trial. And the reason why Xue Rui was here to listen to the trial was because there was a clear provision in the law. If a person was sentenced to death, they must have the approval of the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Justice. Moreover, the officials of the two ministries must be present. Therefore, for this case, Xue Rui had put in a lot of effort to apply for the approval from the higher-ups before the trial began. Once the sentence was sentenced, the sentence could be directly pronounced and the report would be repeated later.
"Pa!"
"This court is Yiyang County's Bi Qing, Qiu Biao, Xu Liu, Friday, and the others. Due to robbing a merchant ship in Kaifeng County's Shang Jiang Gorge in the seventh month of the seventh month, embezzlement, murder, murder, and gain wealth, resulting in the death of twenty-six people and embezzlement of tens of thousands of yuan. After investigation, it has been proven that this is a heinous crime. Therefore, this official decrees that all of you will be stripped of your family's wealth. Bi Qing, Qiu Biao, Xu Liu, and Friday will be executed at noon on the third day of the twelfth month of the twelfth month!"
"Pa!"
"Guards, drag them away and throw them into the death row!"
The judge in the court, Lord Xu, threw the match. Only then did Bi Qiu and the others know that they could not escape their doom. Some of them immediately wailed like ghosts and howled like wolves, loudly begging for mercy. Qiu Biao's face was ashen. On the other hand, Bi Qing, seeing that the situation was hopeless, finally showed signs of madness. Panting heavily, he was caught off guard and turned to face Yu Shu. He thought that half of his life's savings, painstakingly managed to fall into the hands of such a nobody. He was filled with regret and hatred. His eyes were bloodshot, he raised the heavy shackles in his hands and smashed them towards her head.
"Even if I die, I will drag you down with me!"
The bailiffs on both sides were not in a hurry to stop him. They only saw him pouncing towards Yu Shu. Xue Rui turned pale with fright. Without much time to think, he grabbed the jade paper paperweight on the table and was about to throw it towards Bi Qing's hands in an attempt to stop him. However, someone was faster than him.
"Hmph!"
Yu Shu had gone out this morning to do her divination. She was already prepared for any accidents. She had been watching Qiu Biao and Bi Qing. When she saw that Bi Qing was about to attack, her eyes revealed a ruthless look. When he raised his hand to knock, she raised her leg and kicked the other's chest and abdomen with her thick soles with all her strength!
"Thud!"
Bi Qing had suffered in prison for a few days. How could he compare to her who worked every day and was full of energy? When she kicked him, he let out a muffled groan and fell to the ground. His head hit the ground hard and a mouthful of blood gushed out of his mouth. His eyes rolled back and he fainted.
When everyone present saw this scene, including Xue Rui, they were all dumbfounded. Who would have thought that a witness would kick a criminal to the point of vomiting blood in a public court? After a moment, Xue Rui was the first to regain his senses. He sternly said, "Hurry and drag the criminal away!"
Yu Shu lightly stamped her numb legs and lowered her head. She smiled coldly at Qiu Biao, who was staring at her dumbfoundedly from a few steps away. Qiu Biao immediately shuddered and watched as Bi Qing was dragged away by the arm. His legs went soft as he was dragged away by the yamen runners, and he did not struggle at all.
Xue Rui just happened to see Yu Shu's expression. His eyes flashed. He knew that she was already prepared. That kick just now was probably because she had been accumulating strength for a long time. Therefore, when she saw danger, she did not dodge and counterattack. He was both angry and happy at her guts. He did not show any expression on his face. He gently put the paperweight in his hand back on the table. He smoothed his sleeves and said to Xu Daren, "Xu Daren is wise. I will return to the Supreme Court to record the case. Please send someone to Kaifeng prefecture to inform me."
"Xue Daren, rest assured. This official will handle it properly."
Xue Rui took a copy of the statement from the advisor and left with the two yamen runners. When he passed by Yu Shu, he paused and said in a low voice, "I will settle the score with you after this."
Yu Shu was immersed in the pleasure of venting her anger with that kick, and when this sentence entered her ears, her brows twitched. She turned her head around in bewilderment and looked at Xue Rui who was leaving with large strides, and she was puzzled. What's the deal?
Among the few spectators outside the yamen, a manservant saw that the case had been settled. He turned around and trotted away. He stopped at the corner of the street and climbed onto a horse carriage. He whispered to the window, "Second Master, the case has been closed. The person has been sentenced to death."
The person in the horse carriage seemed to let out a long sigh, "Mm, let's go."
No matter what, the hijacking of the ship was over. Bi Qing and Qiu Biao deserved their punishment. Yu Shu happily returned home. As soon as she opened the door, she told the good news to Jing Chen.
"On the third day of the twelfth month, it's a good day. I don't have to take an exam that day, so I can go and watch." Yu Shu pulled Jing Chen's sleeve and entered his room. Coincidentally, there was a ready-made brush and ink on the table. She picked up the brush and wrote "on the third day of the twelfth month" on the paper and drew a circle.
Jing Chen looked at the circle, thought for a moment, and asked, "Can I go?"
Yu Shu tilted her head, "You also want to watch a murder? Aren't you afraid of seeing blood and heads fall?"
Jing Chen asked, "Aren't you afraid?"
Yu Shu stopped smiling and said in a deep voice, "Of course I'm afraid. But no matter how scary it is, it can't be scarier than the bloody scene we saw when we escaped. However, I want to see how they die with my own eyes."
It was to let her remember the painful lesson of the shipwreck and not to trust others easily.
She turned her head and asked Jing Chen, "Do you also want to see how these two evil people get their retribution?"
Jing Chen shook his head and said honestly, "I just want to accompany you." If she was afraid, at least there was someone beside her.
Yu Shu blinked her eyes and smiled knowingly, "Okay, then let's go together. When the time comes, we can find a high place to watch the execution. I heard that there are many people watching the execution."
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