Re-embroidering life

As the plaintiffs, the Zhao family and the Chen family did not appear in the court. Only the family manager came.

The prime minister was sitting high up at the head of the table, feeling bored, when he saw a man and a woman walk in, his eyes lit up.

The man is handsome, dignified, and elegant. The woman is pretty, calm, and graceful. They are a perfect match.

Everyone loves to look at beauties. The chancellor was in high spirits and asked solemnly, "Who is this person in the hall? Why don't you kneel before the official?"

Ji Zimo bowed deeply and said, "I am Ji Zimo, from Yuquan Town, Echeng County, Jiangxia Prefecture, and I have the honor of being a successful candidate. This is my wife Shui."

The prefect felt that the name Ji Zimo was very familiar, but he just couldn't remember it for the moment. Logically speaking, the candidate didn't have to kneel, but Shui should kneel. The prefect thought that such an outstanding man might serve as an official in the same court one day, so it wouldn't hurt to give him some face.

No longer entangled in the question of whether to kneel or not, the prefect asked again: "Shui, someone sued you for kidnapping a decent girl, do you plead guilty?"

"I don't admit it!" Shui Qinghua said in a strong tone. She asked back, "I was saving people, how can I kidnap them?"

"How can you talk about saving people?" The Zhao family's steward said angrily, "Chen is my young mistress. You deceived my wife and said you would take her home to serve my grandmother. But my wife went to the Chen family to ask, and found out that the grandmother of the Chen family has not returned to Beijing at all!"

"That's right! You forcibly took my young lady away, causing my lady and my wife to be separated. My lady misses my young lady so much that she cries every day!" The Chen family's steward wiped his eyes as he spoke, which was very touching.

"Shui," the chancellor asked, "why did you take Chen away from the Zhao family? Why didn't you send her back to the Chen family?"

"Your Excellency, please allow me to report." Shui Qinghua then told the whole story again, "Your Excellency can ask the doctor who came to the Ji family to see the patient these days and we will know the answer after asking him."

"You're talking nonsense! My wife treats the young mistress like her own daughter, and the young master is a humble gentleman. Who in the mansion doesn't know that?" The Zhao family's steward refused to admit it.

"That's right! The Chen family is a medical family. The young lady is seriously injured and in critical condition. How could Madam not see it? You, woman, are exaggerating and sensationalizing!" The Chen family's steward argued confidently.

The prefect ignored what they said and summoned the doctor to the court. The doctor was on a medical visit when he was forcibly pulled over by the yamen runners. When he heard that it was for the woman who had miraculously escaped death, he immediately explained everything.

Seeing that the serious injury was not something he could get away with, the Zhao family’s steward changed his excuse: “Even if the young mistress was injured, it was not caused by the Zhao family. Maybe she just bumped into it by accident!”

The doctor couldn't stand it any longer and said angrily, "I have been practicing medicine for more than 30 years. I can tell clearly whether it was a collision or a human injury!"

The Chen family steward was smart enough not to dwell on the serious injury: "No matter what, this is a family affair between the Zhao and Chen families. The young lady was injured, and the elders of both families have the final say. Why did the Shui family, an outsider, take the young lady away? Master, we are suing the Shui family for kidnapping!"

The prefect nodded. The official had hit the nail on the head. According to the law, if a husband beats his wife, the wife must file a lawsuit herself, otherwise the government doesn't have to deal with it. Shui saw injustice and acted chivalrously, but it was not legally tenable.

The prefect thought about what the prefect had said, and after a moment's thought, he was about to make a verdict when the prosecutor came in and said, "Sir, there is a woman named Chen outside the door, who would like to testify for Shui."

The chancellor glanced at the beautiful couple standing in the hall and said, "Please come up."

When the woman came into the classroom, everyone was shocked!

Chen Jinlan looked pale, his breath was weak, and he was as limp as cotton. He was supported by Lan Xin and moved in step by step.

"Jinlan!" Shui Qinghua felt as if her heart was pierced by needles. "What are you doing here? Do you want to die?"

The doctor was also heartbroken: "You finally survived, you must cherish your life!"

Jin Lan was about to kneel, but the prime minister stopped her hastily and ordered someone to bring a chair for her to sit on. After all, she was a daughter of an official family, and losing her life in court would be a huge trouble.

"Sir," Jin Lan's voice was as soft as a mosquito's buzz, "Mrs. Shui is my master to whom I have performed great ceremonies. She did not abduct me. I begged her to take me away."

She spoke very slowly, enunciating each word. Miraculously, the two stewards did not stop quarreling. The steward of the Chen family, who had watched her grow up, closed his eyes, frowned, and bowed his head in silence.

"I want to sue Zhao Jun, the son of the Minister of the Imperial Household Department, for beating my wife and severely injuring her. I ask Your Excellency to grant me a divorce." After saying this, she seemed to have used up all her strength, her head tilted, and she fainted in Lan Xin's arms.

Shui Qinghua rushed forward and called out Jinlan's name loudly. The doctor, who had not yet left the court, immediately stepped forward to give acupuncture and treatment, causing chaos in the court.

The chancellor stroked his forehead and sighed, "Saving lives is the most important thing. We will adjourn the court today and wait until Chen's condition stabilizes before resuming the trial on another day!"

As soon as the prefect left the court, the prosecutor immediately followed him and said, "Sir, something happened during the morning court today that was related to the Zhao family, the secretary of the Imperial Household Department."

"What's the matter?" asked the prime minister.

"Someone from the Censorate impeached that the Zhao family relied on their ancestors' merits to be arrogant and domineering, bullying the people in the village, and not educating their children well. They said that the Zhao family had encroached on farmland and treated tenants harshly, and some tenants could not stand the exploitation and hanged themselves. The Zhao family's brother-in-law forcibly abducted women, causing several women to die one after another. His son Zhao Jun was a glutton, a whore, a gambler, and a bad person. He beat his wife until she was seriously injured."

"What is the attitude of the Holy One?"

"I was furious and demanded a thorough investigation."

The chancellor stopped and suddenly asked, "Are you familiar with the name Ji Zimo?"

"Never heard of it." The magistrate shook his head.

The prime minister said nothing and walked away.

Ji Zimo and Shui Qinghua brought Chen Jinlan back home, settled everything, and Ji Zimo went out again.

Jin Lan fell into a coma. Shui Qinghua sighed and picked up Ya Jing's palace skirt and started to embroider. Because of Jin Lan's matter, she wasted a lot of time. She definitely had no time to do the complicated embroidery. She had to think of another way to please her. In the evening, Lan Xin came in on tiptoe and whispered in her ear: "Third Madam, I just came back from the street. Guess what? People on the street are talking about it. They say that the Zhao family is going to fall."

Lan Xin was the gossiper of the third house when she was in Jiangxia, and now she is in Beijing, she is like a fish in water. She shuttled between the vegetable market and the restaurant, and heard a lot of rumors. People said that the Zhao family's children in recent generations were mediocre and had no merits for the country. It was because the emperor was nostalgic that the Zhao family was able to continue the ancestral influence and be granted official positions. Not only were the Zhao family members ungrateful, but they were also tyrannical, oppressing the people and trampling on the emperor's painstaking efforts.

Shui Qinghua was surprised. A husband beating his wife was a very common civil dispute, but according to rumors outside, it had already shaken the foundation of the Zhao family.

That night, Shui Qinghua asked Ji Zimo: "Have you heard the rumors outside? The timing is too coincidental. Did the Zhao family offend someone?"

Ji Zimo replied: "The Zhao family has offended you."

"Me?" Shui Qinghua couldn't believe it.

"Yes, if anyone dares to touch you, I will fight to the death. My eldest brother once taught me a trick: if the skin is gone, where will the hair be attached? The hateful one is not Zhao Jun, but the Zhao family who supports him." Ji Zimo replied.