Qingyu Case: Female Minister of Dali Temple

"I deserve to die. I can't speak." Hearing her laughter, Shopkeeper Shen slapped himself in panic and begged for mercy. "Please have mercy, my lord. I didn't mean that. I, I..."

He started banging his head again, and after only a few kowtows, blood appeared on the ground.

Chen Shao squatted down, pinched his chin, and lifted his face up. While admiring his fake fear slowly turning into real fear, he pondered his purpose:

It was the people from Fenglong Trading Company who instigated the people who had been helped by Shi Xing to come and ask for mercy.

The rumor that she accepted bribes was also spread by people from Hong Leong Commercial Bank.

If they wanted to save Shi Xing, they could have continued to instigate the people to cause trouble. But they didn't, and they even fought with Liu Deming's father.

Also arrested on the same day as Shi Xing were Zhang Boshan, Gao Han and Luo Zhengxin.

So, he is one of them?

Looking at the trembling Shopkeeper Shen, Chen Shao asked with a half-smile, "Shopkeeper Shen, don't you think I don't have a temper?"

Shopkeeper Shen propped himself up with his hands, trying to hold on as best he could, and begged for mercy in a panic, "Master, please spare my life. I know I was wrong."

Chen Shao was calm and composed: "Tell me, what's wrong?"

Shopkeeper Shen said in a trembling voice, "Wrong, wrong, wrong. I shouldn't have given you the filial silver, and then I felt reluctant to part with it, so I resorted to such tricks in an attempt to force you to return the silver to me."

Chen Shao laughed twice, "So, you weren't ordered by someone?"

Shopkeeper Shen's pupils shrank suddenly, and he begged frantically, "I don't have any..."

"You didn't receive any instructions from anyone, but you are the one who wants to destroy my reputation. You are so brave!" Chen Shao let go of him, stood up and took the handkerchief handed to him by Chan Yi. While wiping his fingers, he ordered Ding Lisheng, "Immediately seal up Fenglong Company and bring all the people in the company back to the prefect's mansion! In addition, ask if there are any drug stores in the county city willing to take over the individual traders of medicinal materials from Fenglong Company. If there are, bring them to the prefect's mansion to see me!"

"Please be merciful, sir. I know I was wrong. I really know I was wrong," Shopkeeper Shen kowtowed vigorously, one head heavier than the other, "Please forgive me this time. I will never do it again."

Chen Shao ignored him and turned to look at the person who had questioned her about her fault among the fourteen people. She replied calmly, "I did accept bribes from Fenglong Company, but I can accept it but you can't pass it on. Is this reason enough?"

Without waiting for the man to answer, she ordered: "Take them back and give them 40 lashes each first, then interrogate who the mastermind is!"

It was the first time that Li Tianliu saw her so strong. He raised his eyebrows and signaled the Yulin Guards who followed him: "Take her away!"

The Yulin Guards stepped forward quickly, each picking up one, just like they were carrying chicks, and walked away.

"I'll tell you, I'll tell you now," a coward among the gangsters and gamblers immediately confessed, "It was Tao Hong from Fenglong Commercial Bank. He told me that the master is soft-hearted and will not punish others easily. If I tell others that the master accepted bribes, I can get one tael of silver. What I said is absolutely true. Ma San and Zhang Ka can testify for me."

The local hooligans named Ma San and Zhang Ka immediately agreed: "He was the one who found us."

"And Ren Yuchun," someone started, and the others followed suit, "He also told us the same thing."

"And Lu Tianli..."

"And Yang Chunrong..."

When the hooligans and gamblers saw that they were going to be beaten, they all rushed to confess. Four people were confessed, all of whom were from Fenglong Trading Company.

Shopkeeper Shen was terrified and kowtowed even harder than before, "Please have mercy on me, sir. Please have mercy on me, sir. I know I was wrong. I shouldn't have been reluctant to give up the silver. I gave it to you and now want it back. I won't dare to do that again. Please forgive me this time."

"Take him away!" Chen Shao said coldly.

After the Imperial Guards dragged him away, Chen Shao turned to the fourteen ruffians and gamblers and said, "From today on, you will maintain order and clean up the place in front of the prefectural government. This will end when the people who come here to sell goods are full of praise."

He then looked at Ding Lisheng who was standing there in a daze, "Give them all the dirty and tiring work that needs to be done in the prefect's mansion recently."

Ding Lisheng responded repeatedly and asked tentatively, "Then I will go and seal up Fenglong Commercial Bank right now?"

Chen Shao said 'hmm'.

After Ding Lisheng left, Chen Shao went to the people who had been injured in the fight with the hooligans to protect her. After checking their injuries one by one and telling the doctors who came to treat them not to worry about the medical expenses, he stood up and stepped back a few steps, bowed deeply to everyone and said, "Chen Zhao thanks all the elders for your protection!"

Liu Deming and other common people quickly stood up to return the greeting, but Chen Shao hurried forward to stop them. After calming everyone down, he went to the shed set up by Juxian Building, which provided free breakfast every day, and said to the busy waiter, "Go and tell your shopkeeper to prepare a few tables for me at noon."

The waiter glanced at the people who were receiving treatment and asked politely, "Are you here to thank them, sir?"

Chen Shao said 'hmm'.

The waiter smiled and said, "If you want to thank them, don't worry. Someone has just gone back to report to the shopkeeper, and the shopkeeper has said that everyone who has protected you today will be a guest of honor at Juxian Building in the future. No matter when they go to Juxian Building, it will be free."

"Then please thank your boss for me." Chen Shao agreed calmly and turned to Fu Jiu and said, "You can arrange for them to have lunch at Juxianlou at noon."

Fu Jiu agreed.

Chen Shao remembered that he had arranged for him to search Hu Lilan's yard today, so he asked, "Can you handle it?"

Fu Jiu said, "I asked Xu Guang to bring three yamen runners and three Yulin soldiers to search Hu Lilan's yard."

"Xu Guang?" Chen Shao was surprised.

Fu Jiu chuckled, "Didn't you praise him for being meticulous before? I thought he had nothing to do anyway, so I told him to go."

Chen Shao didn't say anything else. He talked to Liu Deming's father and others for a while. When he turned around to go back to the prefect's mansion, a group of people suddenly came over. After being stopped by the Yulin Army, they knelt on the ground and cried, "Please, sir, make a decision for us."

Li Tianliu said, "It was the Luo family and the Wang family that I drove away last night."

Chen Shao glanced at them and said leniently, "Get up first and go back to the prefect's mansion to talk about it."

The two families supported each other and followed her into the hall of the prefectural government. Before hearing their case, Chen Shao whispered to Li Tianliu, "Go to the prison and ask Shi Xing and Hu Lilan to write their confessions. Ask them about Gao Han and Luo Zhengxin."

Li Tianliu arranged several Yulin guards to guard her before he went about his business.

"Everyone, get up, Chanyi, and ask the yamen runners to bring some stools over." Chen Shao ordered. After the yamen runners brought the stools and asked them to sit down, Chen Shao continued, "I heard Xue Wanqing mention something about your two families a few days ago. I need you to explain the details."

Miss Luo’s name is Luo Tingyu, her father is Luo Shurong and her mother is Miao.

The second son of the Wang family was named Wang Mingli, his elder brother was named Wang Zongqun, his father was named Wang Zhouli, and his mother was surnamed Zhu.