Bringing the Railway to Daming

Chapter 308: Want to severely punish the human traffickers, and become Lao Zhu's granddaughter [Please subscribe]

Lu Sanqi said, "Send someone in to check and you'll know."

Song Zhong nodded and immediately began to arrange manpower.

Of course, he did not forget to arrange another group of patrolmen to block all the exits connected to this section of the culvert.

China has a long history of building large cities. Large cities like the capital (Nanjing) often leave sufficient drainage ditches when they are built.

There are both open channels and underground channels. The open channels are relatively small, while the underground channels are larger and can even accommodate people walking in them.

There is less rain in Yingtian Prefecture in winter, so there is not much water in the culverts. Under the arrangement of police officers such as Song Zhong, the patrolmen were divided into several teams and entered the culverts from multiple entrances at the same time to conduct inspections.

The special police dogs of the Six Gates were also brought in by the bronze-medal constable to lead the way.

In just half an hour, the two sides worked together to capture a group of human traffickers hiding in a den in a culvert and rescued the seven missing children.

Fang Xiaoru and Li, as the parents of the lost children, naturally did not go back. Instead, they came to the nearby area after hearing the news and waited anxiously. Even the ten-year-old Fang Zhongxian was there - he believed that he was mainly to blame for his sister's disappearance, and because of the guilt in his heart, he was not sleepy at all.

When Fang Mingshu was carried out of the culvert by the patrolman, her face was dirty and her hair was disheveled. Even her silk cotton jacket had been replaced by the human traffickers to avoid attracting attention during the transfer, making Fang Mingshu look like a little beggar.

"Shu'er!"

Seeing her daughter, Li cried out and rushed over, taking Fang Mingshu from the patrolman's arms.

"Mother, wuwuwu, I've been captured by bad guys. I'm so scared."

Fang Mingshu originally just pouted, but when she saw her mother, she could no longer hold back and burst into tears.

Fang Xiaoru walked over and hugged his wife and daughter in his arms, his eyes also red - it was really thrilling, his daughter was almost abducted by human traffickers!

Fang Zhongxian also came over and took Fang Mingshu's hand, still blaming himself, "It's all my fault. If I hadn't bought the things, my sister wouldn't have been lost."

Fang Mingshu seemed to have become much more sensible. She wiped her tears and said, "Don't blame my brother. I was too stupid and got tricked by the bad guy. The bad guy first used a beautiful rabbit lantern to lure me away, and then said that Daddy was waiting for me in the alley, so I was fooled."

Perhaps because she felt that she was too stupid, Fang Mingshu looked embarrassed when she said this.

Fang Xiaoru said, "Shu'er, every failure is a lesson learned. Don't follow strangers again in the future."

"Yeah." Fang Mingshu nodded repeatedly.

At the same time, the parents of other lost children were crying with joy as they hugged their found children.

Fortunately, the traffickers probably treated the abducted children as merchandise and did not harm them, and the patrol officers were very successful in their arrest. The seven children were basically safe and sound, with only minor injuries at most.

Despite this, Fang Zhongxian thought about how he almost lost his sister and would live in self-blame and regret for the rest of his life, and he hated these human traffickers in his heart.

He looked at the human traffickers who were tied up and dragged out of the culvert by the patrolmen. He saw that there were some wealthy people wearing satin cotton jackets and with wealthy looks. He felt even more hatred in his heart, thinking that these people must not have committed crimes for the first time.

"Dad, how will the government punish these human traffickers?"

Fang Xiaoru had memorized the Great Ming Code and hated these human traffickers. Upon hearing this, he said, "According to the Great Ming Code before the amendment, anyone who abducts or sells Ming women and children will be punished with 100 strokes of the cane, exiled for at least 3,000 miles, or sentenced to three years in prison."

"And in the process of trafficking, anyone who abuses women and children, causing injury or death, will be executed by slow slicing!"

Fang Zhongxian had long noticed that the rescued children were fine, and he couldn't help but wonder, "Doesn't this mean that these human traffickers can get away with just three years in prison?"

Exile and imprisonment are actually the same thing, which means that the prisoners are escorted to a certain place to work for the country for a number of years without pay, basically farming and grazing in the frontier.

Therefore, a three-year sentence of exile three thousand miles away is not that scary as long as you can make it to the destination and hold out for another three years.

Fang Xiaoru said, "After being beaten with the cane a hundred times, even with some treatment, it would be difficult for these people to survive until they reached the border."

"Also, according to the court's latest revision of the Ming Dynasty Law, these human traffickers should be exiled to Southeast Asia or America."

Fang Zhongxian's brows furrowed even more tightly. "My son heard that Southeast Asia and America are good places. Wouldn't it be a bargain for these people to be exiled there?"

Fang Xiaoru also felt that these human traffickers had gotten away with it, and said, "I will petition the court to amend this law so that these evildoers will receive the punishment they deserve."

When saying this, Fang Xiaoru's tone was calm but firm.

On the other hand, Liu Kuan, who was already on guard in the mansion, was concerned about this matter, so he asked A Rong to inquire outside.

Therefore, not long after the children were rescued, he learned about this matter. He couldn't help but ask Zhu Huilan, who was keeping watch with him, "Madam, according to the Ming Dynasty Law, what will be the sentence for these human traffickers?"

Zhu Huilan said, "One hundred strokes of the cane, exile three thousand miles away, or a minimum of three years in prison. If anyone is injured or killed, they will be executed by slow slicing."

After hearing this, Liu Kuan couldn't help but mutter, "Why does it feel like the Ming Dynasty Code is similar to later generations? The punishment for human traffickers isn't severe enough?"

Because the trafficking of women and children has always been a social concern in later generations, Liu Kuan also learned about the relevant laws.

As far as I remember, it seems to be a prison sentence of at least five to ten years. The more serious the circumstances, the longer the sentence. In particularly serious cases, the sentence may be life imprisonment or even the death penalty.

The death penalty was already the most severe punishment in the later Xin Dynasty, and it was impossible to use lingchi (death by slicing) as practiced in the Ming Dynasty—which was also the most severe punishment for an individual in the Ming Dynasty. As for the term "yi," human traffickers are often inhumane and may not care about their relatives. Furthermore, the relatives of traffickers may not be aware of their actions, so the term "yi" was not used by the ancients to describe human traffickers.

But if it was just exile, Liu Kuan felt it was too light a sentence.

In particular, these people are very likely to be exiled to America or Southeast Asia. Who knows, after being released from prison a few years later, they may even make a fortune overseas and become tycoons. Thinking of this, Liu Kuan felt uncomfortable.

He is now the father of two children.

If Ruoxue and Ping'an were kidnapped and could never be found again, he would go crazy.

"Maybe I should talk to Lao Zhu about increasing the penalties for human traffickers. Oh, and Lao Zhu's family is going to the movies on the second day of the Lunar New Year, so I might as well find a related movie for Lao Zhu to watch."

Liu Kuan had already prepared the videos and movies to be shown on the second day of the Lunar New Year. Now that he had decided to change, he went to get his laptop and searched for suitable movies or videos while keeping watch...

···
Say goodbye to the old and welcome the new.

In the blink of an eye, it was the second day of the first lunar month of the twentieth year of Hongwu.

That day, Liu Kuan brought Zhu Huilan, Su Caiwei and their two children to the palace to attend the Zhu family's movie viewing lunch.

I don’t know if it was because everyone else was looking forward to watching the movie, but most of them arrived at Dashan Hall very early, so Liu Kuan’s family was the last to arrive.

He brought his family to pay his respects to Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma, and to wish them a happy new year.

"Your Majesty and the Empress wish you all the best, good health and happiness!"

Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei were mentioned together with Liu Kuan, but they were addressed differently.

Then came Liu Ruoxu and Liu Ping'an.

I saw two children wearing festive red satin cotton coats. Because they were too thick and round, they looked like two festive little buns when they knelt down.

"Happy New Year to His Majesty (Grandpa) and Her Majesty the Queen (Grandma), wishing you good health and happiness!"

"Hey, these two kids are so well-behaved, they look so smart." Zhu Yuanzhang smiled happily, as if he was happier than receiving New Year's greetings from his own grandchildren. "Ping An, come up and let grandpa hug you."

Liu Ping'an glanced at Zhu Huilan, and when he saw Zhu Huilan nod, he stood up and went up.

Empress Ma smiled and said, "Ruoxue, come here."

Su Caiwei said hurriedly, "I dare not let Ruoxue bother the Queen."

Empress Ma said, "Why should I be so daring? After all, you entered the palace at the age of twelve and grew up by my side. You are half my daughter. Now you and Huilan are sisters. Ruoxue is no different from my granddaughter."

Su Caiwei wanted to say something else, but Liu Kuan spoke first, "Ruoxue, the Queen has recognized you as her granddaughter. Why don't you thank her quickly?"

Ruoxue was very clever and listened to Liu Kuan very well. She immediately bowed and said, "Grandma, your granddaughter Ruoxue thanks you for your grace!"

Old Zhu and Empress Ma were stunned for a moment, then they both burst into laughter. Empress Ma then waved to Liu Ruoxue, "Ruoxue, come to Grandma quickly."

Old Zhu said, "There's no way to prove this with just words. When the Hanlin Academy and the Ministry of Rites open their offices, we'll have them draft an imperial edict and prepare the imperial edict to confer the title of Princess Ruoxue, officially recognizing her as his granddaughter."

Liu Kuan immediately pulled Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei together to express his gratitude, "Thank you, Your Majesty, Your Majesty, for your grace!"

He was actually playing a trick just now.

Liu Ruoxue was born to Su Caiwei. At home, there was no difference between her and Liu Ping'an. But when they went out and grew up, the difference was huge - not only was there a difference between legitimate and illegitimate children, but more importantly, one had the blood of the Zhu family, while the other did not.

Liu Kuan came from later generations and doted on his daughter, so he naturally couldn't bear to see the gap between his daughter and son grow bigger and bigger.

If he had just boldly captured Empress Ma, he could have asked for a better identity for Liu Ruoxue.

After Liu Kuan, Zhu Huilan and Su Caiwei took their seats, Old Zhu ordered the banquet to begin.

As the palace servants served the dishes, he said, "Liu Kuan, shouldn't you prepare a song video this time? We want to watch it with our grandson and granddaughter."

At this moment, there are more than a dozen of Lao Zhu's grandsons, granddaughters, grandsons-in-law and granddaughters in the hall.

Liu Ruoxu and Liu Ping'an were given the honor of sitting (actually standing) with Zhu Yuanzhang and Empress Ma, which naturally made their peers envious.

Liu Kuan was also very happy to see this.

Hearing Lao Zhu's question, he stood up and said, "Your Majesty, we have indeed prepared a video collection of six songs this time."

After saying that, he readily handed the tablet over.

　Second update.

　　Good night~
　　
　
(End of this chapter)