There is a happy inn in the capital.

Chapter 13 Two Dogs Go to Jail

Inside the yamen

升堂

"Majestic!"

The county magistrate, wearing his official hat, sat at the head of the table, exuding an inexplicable air of authority.

Magistrate: "Who in the audience will state their name?"

Aunt Zhang knelt on the ground and calmly replied, "This humble woman, Zhang Rou, greets Your Excellency."

Magistrate: "What brings you here, sir?"

Aunt Zhang: "Sir, I beg you to do me justice! I want to divorce Wang Ergou, but he refuses."

He clearly gave me two taels of silver as a betrothal gift, but he's demanding ten taels from me. He's already spent all ten taels of silver that was part of my dowry.”

Magistrate: "Where is Wang Ergou?"

Aunt Zhang: "In Ping'an Lane"

Magistrate: "Someone come and get it!"

A short while later, Wang Ergou rushed in, his legs still trembling.

Wang Ergou glided to his knees, his voice filled with fear: "This humble subject, Wang Ergou, pays his respects to Your Honor."

The magistrate's expression remained unchanged: "Wang Ergou, Zhang wanted a divorce from you, but you refused. You not only spent all ten taels of her dowry, but you also want back two taels of the betrothal money. Is this true?"

Wang Ergou cried out, "Your Honor, I am truly wronged! Zhang has been married to me for three years, and she hasn't given me a single child!"

Logically, he should divorce her. She married into the family because she was a commoner, and her money belonged to him. It was only right that he spend her dowry.

"Divorce is possible, but a peaceful separation is not. I paid money to marry her, so she must return the betrothal gifts to me so that I can afford to marry someone else."

Wang Ergou became more and more confident as he spoke, and more and more convinced that he was right.

Li Shuchen could see that the magistrate's expression grew increasingly grave as he listened, and she was furious too. What kind of utter nonsense was this?

The people outside the gate were talking about it.

Princess Changning's carriage slowly passed by.

Hearing the commotion, Princess Changning felt irritated and said in a lazy and impatient voice, "Jadeite, go see what's going on up ahead. This noise is giving me a headache."

Emerald craned her neck to look around: "It looks like the county magistrate is hearing a case, and Li Shuchen, the one who wouldn't let me order snacks, is in it."

Princess Changning smiled slightly upon hearing this: "Oh~, I haven't even caused her any trouble yet, and she's already running into problems."

Emerald, being quite perceptive, had the carriage stopped; she wanted to see how Li Shuchen would embarrass himself.

The magistrate, his face contorted with rage, shouted at Wang Ergou, "Insolence! How dare you dictate the laws of our dynasty! Article 99 of the Purple Star Dynasty's laws stipulates that a man can only divorce his wife if the following conditions are met!"

1. Disobeying parents;

Second, he had no children;

Third, lust;

Fourth, prone to jealousy;

Fifth, suffering from a serious illness;

6. Talkative;

VII. Theft

"If a wife has no children, she can only be divorced after fifty years of being homeless, but Zhang has only been married to you for three years."

Suddenly, the registrar whispered something in the magistrate's ear.

The magistrate said, "Ms. Zhang has no relatives or friends now, and she cannot be divorced. As for the betrothal gifts..." He trailed off, clearly waiting for something.

Li Shuchen stepped forward and bowed respectfully: "This humble subject, Li Shuchen, greets Your Excellency the County Magistrate. I have something to say..."

"Your Excellency, please forgive this humble subject for interrupting you. You are a magnanimous man and will surely not hold a grudge against a nobody like me."

Li Shuchen knew in his heart that the magistrate would not pursue the crime of interrupting him.

He then added, "Sir, you may not know this, but in the three years since Zhang married Wang Ergou, Wang Ergou has repeatedly beaten her. Zhang's body is covered in old and new injuries, and all the neighbors present can testify to this."

An older woman said, "Yes, sir, I've seen Wang Ergou beat and scold Zhang Shi many times."

The man in gray said, "Yes, sir, I've seen it too."

The county magistrate gave a signal to the side, and a doctor came over to take Aunt Zhang's pulse.

Aunt Zhang raised her arm, revealing a still-healing wound on her wrist, which was quite noticeable.

Everyone present could see it for a moment.

Doctor: "Your Honor, the situation is true. Zhang has multiple injuries, and they occurred some time ago."

The magistrate slammed his gavel: "Wang Ergou, do you plead guilty?"

The gavel startled Wang Ergou, nearly knocking his soul out of his body. He trembled and cowered on the ground, pleading, "This humble citizen confesses my guilt."

The young man in blue said, "He actually beat and scolded his wife, and even spent her dowry. How shameless!"

An old man said, "This is a disgrace to us men."

A man in blue said angrily, "A man who beats and abuses his wife and squanders her dowry cannot be called a man."

The crowd echoed, "Yes!"

If the occasion weren't so inappropriate, Li Shuchen would have applauded the man in blue, thinking, "If you can talk, then talk more!"

Hearing what the people outside were saying, Wang Ergou lowered his head further and further, not daring to look at anyone.

Li Shuchen stood tall and straight, neither humble nor arrogant, his voice booming: "Article 100 of our dynasty's law stipulates that anyone who repeatedly assaults another person or intentionally injures another person shall be punished with twenty strokes of the cane and imprisoned for one month."

Princess Changning chuckled upon hearing this, "This Li Shuchen is quite interesting; he actually knows these things. Finally, someone in the capital isn't so bored anymore. Emerald, let's go back."

Princess Changning's carriage slowly drove away.

Li Shuchen thought to himself, "Her voice was so loud, everyone must have heard it. Let's see who dares to hit someone again, especially those who beat their wives."

It is also hoped that young women who become wives will know some laws and protect their rights.

The magistrate looked at Li Shuchen; this young woman was remarkably well-versed in the law, and a hint of admiration crossed his eyes.

Magistrate: "Miss Li, you are right. Our dynasty does indeed have such a law."

Therefore, considering Zhang's hard work and toil over the past three years, the betrothal gifts will not be returned.

"Wang Ergou, I hereby order you to immediately write a divorce agreement, return Zhang's dowry of ten taels of silver, and give Zhang an additional five taels of silver for her medical treatment."

The decision was made. Wang Ergou was practically crawling on the ground, writing the divorce papers. After finishing, he handed them to the county magistrate for review.

After confirming that everything is correct

Aunt Zhang's fingers trembled as she pressed her red fingerprint onto her name. Looking at the divorce agreement, she gripped it tightly, tears welling in her eyes. She was finally herself.

Your Excellency, Magistrate: "Wang Ergou has been abusing his wife for the past three years. According to the laws of our dynasty, he should be given 20 strokes of the cane and imprisoned for 15 days."

Guards, carry out the execution!

Wang Ergou cried out, "Sir, spare my life! Sir, I was wrong! I'll turn over a new leaf and never dare to do it again, never again, sir!"

A crowd gathered around to watch the officials carry out the execution.

The heavy paddle fell on Wang Ergou without mercy, making him grimace and cry out for his parents.

The howl was earth-shattering

Grape: "Miss, you were so cool just now! How did you know the laws of our Purple Star Dynasty?"

Li Shuchen smiled and said, "I heard it from someone else and remembered it."

Actually, she bought the book from Xiao Jizi and would read it for half an hour every night.

No matter where you go, you must read books. Understanding a dynasty will help you handle things more effectively.

Grape looked at Li Shuchen with starry eyes; she thought, "He's a genius! My young lady must be a genius!"