In the novel "Joy of Life," the protagonist wakes up at Li Chengze's residence.

Those nearby craned their necks to look, and a knowledgeable minister stroked his beard and chimed in, "Yes, Young Master Fan's words are all true."

Xu Wangzhou snatched the two pieces of paper. After crying at home for two days and his mind was still a bit muddled, his mind suddenly cleared up when he saw this.

He knew from the beginning that Baoyue Tower was a restaurant, but since everyone said that it had many girls, he naturally assumed that it was a place that was all show and no substance.

It's the kind of place that's rumored to be a place for showing off one's refined tastes, but in reality, it's still a place for prostitution.

But this official document cannot be faked. It is not a contract of servitude, which means that Qian Ling is not a slave, but a legitimate citizen with personal freedom.

Xu Wangzhou cursed inwardly, cursing Fan Sizhe for being so unconventional.

He also scolded himself for being so preoccupied with the grief of losing his son that he didn't even bother to investigate Qian Ling's identity.

Seeing his buddy get the short end of the stick, official Jiang Wen came up with a dirty trick within three seconds.

He stepped forward to confront Fan Sizhe, angrily retorting, "Even if what you say is true, if this woman was unwilling, she could have resisted. Why did you have to resort to such cruelty as stabbing her to death with a hairpin?"

"In my opinion, this case must have been a premeditated murder!"

"You...you're talking nonsense!" Fan Sizhe turned around and pointed at the official, his mind blank for a moment.

Yes, resistance is all that's needed, but if someone actually kills someone, how can they get away with it?

Seeing that his brother was stammering and unable to give a coherent answer, Fan Xian stepped in to speak for him, "Minister Jiang, she is a weak woman. How could she have escaped if she hadn't fought to the death?"

Hearing his brother speak up for him, Fan Sizhe felt relieved. He gave Qian Ling, who was utterly shocked, a wink and whispered something in her ear.

"Don't worry, my brother said that with him and the Grand Preceptor protecting us, we definitely won't die."

The latter felt flattered and overwhelmed, and his mind couldn't process it.

She came from humble beginnings, yet she killed the youngest son of a high-ranking official.

Even with a thousand grievances, she could never win against them.

Qian Ling had already sentenced herself to death.

Yesterday, while she was in prison, she was thinking that she had lived for fifteen years, and killing the son of a high-ranking official to keep her company on the road to the underworld was not a bad thing.

But now... she didn't understand, and mustered her courage to ask, "Boss, why?"

Just as Fan Sizhe was about to chirp, Fu Zhiming whispered a reminder, "Quiet."

The two immediately fell silent.

On the other side, when Vice Minister Jiang ran out of answers to Fan Xian's question, another official surnamed Liu stepped in to take the blame for him.

"Your Excellency, I believe there is no need for a desperate resistance; this woman can simply push people away."

He spoke with an air of certainty, as if nothing was a big deal to him.

Fan Xian looked at her from below as if she were a lunatic. "I already said, she's weak and can't push her away."

Is this official a liar?

How can such an idiot be an official?

"She can also shout for help, and someone will hear her and come to her rescue!"

"What if you can't make a sound when your neck is being choked?" Putting aside everything else, Fan Xian really wanted to strangle him right now.

"This..." The official surnamed Liu was at a loss for words. Seeing that he couldn't answer either, he turned to look at his colleagues.

The law clearly states that anyone who rapes a married woman shall be put to death.

Anyone who rapes a woman who is unmarried or over ten years old shall be punished with 170 strokes of the cane.

Anyone who rapes a minor girl shall be executed.

However, under these laws, a woman or her family can only be sentenced after the crime has been confirmed and the woman or her family reports it to the authorities.

In reality, even though there are laws regulating rape, very few people actually report it to the authorities.

Most of them would keep their shameful deeds to themselves, and the parents of the victims would simply marry their daughters to the perpetrators in order to save face and seek reconciliation.

This suspect killed someone in self-defense... how should he be convicted? There doesn't seem to be any relevant law.

"Then...they shouldn't have been killed!"

The minister couldn't say anything, only repeatedly emphasizing that killing should never be done under any circumstances.

Upon hearing this, Tao Jingyang let out a sneer. She stood up, reached out and lifted the screen to walk outside. "As you say, what should she do?"

"Of course...of course..." Official Liu stammered for a long time before finally flicking his sleeve.

He sighed and returned to his original position.

As soon as Tao Jingyang stepped out from behind the screen, someone brought over a grand master's chair inlaid with precious stones and cloud patterns.

She sat upon it, with court officials in front of her and the emperor's throne behind her.

He alone stood between the ministers in front and the emperor behind.

She glanced around at the court officials, then finally fixed her gaze on the few who had been wronged.

"Judging a case requires evidence. Xu Wangzhou, do you admit that your son, Xu Zijing, forcibly abducted a woman first?"

"This humble official... admits it." Xu Wangzhou wanted to bite the bullet and say he didn't admit it, but having been an official for many years, how could he not see the current situation?

Officials who were on good terms with him have all fallen silent, and the ministers who had promised to help him bring down the Fan family are now completely silent.

He even felt a bit resentful towards those who had encouraged him to report the matter to His Majesty the other day.

"In that case, what do you gentlemen think should be the verdict in this case?" Tao Jingyang bypassed the parties involved and looked at the crowd.

Fu Zhiming stepped forward first and answered, “The law clearly states that if a bandit is killed while robbing someone, it is because the person acted in self-defense and should not be convicted of crimes, and should be found not guilty.”

"In my opinion, Xu Zijing's actions are no different from those of bandits who kill people, therefore Qian Ling should also be found not guilty."

As soon as he finished speaking, many people stepped forward from behind him, cupped their hands, and said, "Your Majesty, I second your opinion."

Xu Wangzhou kept his eyes closed. His son was being called no different from a bandit, which was an injustice he had never suffered in his life.

He gritted his teeth, determined to make one last gamble, and struggled to his feet. “I have served in the court for thirty-four years, during which time I have worked diligently and conscientiously, and not a single case I have judged has been a miscarriage of justice.”

He even removed his official hat, bent down and held it between his eyebrows, saying, "Today my son died unjustly. If Your Majesty still listens to the words of the Imperial Advisor and sentences the murderer to no culpability, this old minister would rather resign his post and never serve as an official in court again!"

Xu Wangzhou's words placed Tao Jingyang on the opposite side.

The phrase "listen to the words of the imperial advisor" implies that the imperial advisor's words were untrue and places her in the position of a treacherous minister.

His Majesty said something earlier,

The late emperor died a violent death, and the new emperor must observe three years of mourning to allow the late emperor's spirit to rest in peace.

Therefore, His Majesty has not had a single concubine to this day.

At that time, some court officials said that His Majesty's refusal to take concubines was inappropriate, to which His Majesty retorted with a question.

"Are you all so eager for me to take concubines now? Do you think I won't even live past these three years?"

After that, no one dared to mention the matter again.

After a while, everyone stopped daring to cause trouble for the emperor and instead started picking on Tao Jingyang's faults.

As a result, these people either died from sudden illness or disappeared without a trace.

Furthermore, some were found guilty of wrongdoing and demoted to local posts, and gradually, no one dared to mention the matter anymore.

Some persistent civil officials still thought:

Three years it is. If His Majesty still hasn't chosen a concubine after these three years, they'll simply smash their heads against a pillar in the main hall and die.

Then, by hurling a few more insults at the nation, he might just earn a place in history.

However, no one dares to offend the Imperial Advisor nowadays, mainly because most civil officials admire her governance policies.

As a result, when Xu Wangzhou said this, not only was no one willing to help him criticize the Grand Preceptor, but he was even criticized by other officials.

The first to bear the brunt are the spicy ingredients.

He looked left and right, pondered for a moment, and then spoke up, "Lord Xu, don't try to act like an old man. It's clearly your youngest son who was in the wrong first."

Before Xin Qiwu could finish speaking, His Majesty also stepped out from behind the screen.

Li Chengze walked casually to Tao Jingyang's side, draped his arm over the back of the chair, and looked at Xu Wangzhou with indifferent eyes. "You're resigning?"