After traveling through time, I was raised by a little brat

After all the burial objects were properly stored, Tang Qi immediately dispatched a borrowed force of 10,000 soldiers to escort these precious items back to the capital. As for the tomb of Princess Wen, he meticulously arranged for it to be sealed securely.

Not only that, even the cellar beneath the threshing floor was not spared and was sealed. Even the sacrificial pillar that originally came from the mausoleum and stood on the threshing floor was buried deep underground - after all, it originally belonged to the mausoleum.

At the same time, all the grain had been gathered and neatly stacked in the county government's granary. The county government had already posted notices, instructing each village to send representatives to witness the final verdict on the bandits. They would also distribute relief grain to villages that had been plundered. However, unexpectedly, when the day of the trial arrived, a huge crowd of villagers arrived.

Due to the overwhelming number of people, the county government had no choice but to allow only the village chiefs into the hall to attend the trial, while the rest of the villagers could only wait patiently outside the county government office for further information. Even Village Chief Qian, who had previously been released, was no exception this time. He slowly arrived, supported by two enthusiastic villagers. This elderly man probably never imagined that in his advanced age, he would be traveling back and forth to the county government office so frequently.

Tang Qi sat in the hall, dressed in the solemn and dignified uniform of a county magistrate, his official uniform gleaming softly in the sunlight. Tang Wenshu, also wearing a small, exquisite official uniform, sat obediently to Tang Qi's left.

In the hall, two rows of tall, majestic yamen runners stood in uniform, like two steel Great Walls. At this moment, a pair of men and women stood out in the crowd, their figures dazzling and eye-catching amidst the bustling crowd.

Tang Wenshu spotted them immediately, his eyes flashing with surprise. He was about to stand up and run towards them. However, at that moment, the man in disguise swiftly made a hushed gesture and gently pointed at the solemn-looking yamen runners. Tang Wenshu nodded in understanding, then beckoned over to Ada, leaning over and whispering something in his ear. Ada quickly walked over to the couple and quietly led them into the hall to watch.

Time ticked by, and as the hour drew to a close, Tang Qi slammed the gavel before him, uttering a resounding, clear voice: "Bring the bandits up!" Following his command, several yamen runners rushed to the prison like arrows from a bowstring, and soon escorted Liang Qiushi and several other bandits to the main hall. Upon arriving, the bandits showed no fear at all, standing tall and straight, as if they were the stars of this grand county hall.

"Why don't you kneel before the County Magistrate?" A yamen runner, enraged, kicked Liang Qiushi hard in the knee. With a dull thud, Liang Qiushi fell to his knees, caught off guard. Even so, he showed no sign of kowtow to the County Magistrate, Tang Qi, for mercy.

Tang Qi's face was as gloomy as water, and he stared at the people in the hall with sharp eyes. He shouted, "Who is kneeling in the hall? Tell me your name quickly!" His voice echoed in the hall like a loud bell, full of unquestionable majesty.

"Liang Qiushi." He was seen kneeling on the ground, with his head held high and chest puffed out, staring straight at the county magistrate sitting high in the hall in front of him, his eyes full of contempt.

"Tell me in detail how you became a bandit? Also, what evil deeds did you do after becoming a bandit?" Tang Qi, who was sitting behind the desk, asked in a cold voice with a gloomy face.

However, upon hearing this, Liang Qiushi's lips curled slightly, and he sneered, "Hmph, do I have to answer whatever you ask?" Clearly, he held these so-called officials in the dark, especially the two from Liu County—the county magistrate and the ridiculously young county magistrate. In his view, these two men had reached their current positions solely through connections. Especially the county magistrate, who looked only a few years old, a child still wet behind the ears. He actually dared to act as a judge and interrogate a criminal here. It was simply ridiculous.

"Someone, come here, drag him away and give him twenty lashes first!" Seeing Liang Qiushi so arrogant and refusing to cooperate, Tang Qi was furious. He slammed the table and shouted loudly.

"I don't accept it! I don't accept it! Your Excellency the County Magistrate, you are clearly trying to force me to confess!" When Liang Qiushi heard that he was going to be beaten, he immediately panicked and shouted at the top of his voice.

At this moment, Tang Wenshu, who had been standing silently aside, finally couldn't help but speak: "You are such a bold lunatic, how dare you disrespect the county magistrate! From the moment you stepped into this court, you have never behaved with any courtesy. Now I only give you a punishment of twenty strokes of the cane, which is too easy for you!" After that, she glared fiercely at Liang Qiushi who was kneeling on the ground.

When Liang Qiushi finally finished his beating, he collapsed in the hall like a puddle of mud. The horrific wound on his back continued to ooze blood, quickly staining his once pristine white clothes crimson. Yet, despite the excruciating pain, Liang Qiushi gritted his teeth, forcing himself to suppress even a single sound.

At this time, the trial did not stop because of Liang Qiushi's miserable condition. Tang Qi looked at the other bandits kneeling in the hall with an expressionless face and said coldly: "From left to right, you tell me in detail one by one!" So, these bandits began to tell their own experiences one by one.

Originally, they were ordinary people from Yingtian Prefecture, living their simple lives in a down-to-earth manner. But the corrupt officials of Yingtian Prefecture exploited the people, imposing heavy taxes and levies on them. This drove them to desperation, forcing them to flee their homeland and become bandits, struggling to survive in the deep mountains. There, they lived in constant fear and uncertainty.

One day, by chance, they robbed Liang Qiushi, who was passing through the area. Seeing their desperate situation, Liang Qiushi felt compassion and decided to lead them out of the mountains and head to Liu County, Yangzhou, in search of a new path. However, upon arriving in Liu County, they discovered that the limited farmland in Liangjia Village simply couldn't support so many people working simultaneously.

In order to survive, they had no choice but to return to their old ways and continue to rob nearby villages. Of course, some villagers who originally lived in Liangjia Village also joined their group, but there were still some villagers who refused to join them. For those villagers who were unwilling to participate in the robbery, they only gave them a small amount of food to ensure that they would not starve to death.

As everyone finished their stories, Tang Qi's expression darkened. He carefully compared their confessions with Liang Qiushi's earlier accounts and found no discrepancies. He then ordered his officers to record every village looted in recent years and roughly estimate the amount of food stolen. After this, he waited for the final judgment...