Rebirth: From being expelled from the imperial court to becoming a high-ranking official

The clerk quickly found the case files from that year.

That old case happened seventeen years ago.

The case file shows that 17 years ago, Han Fang wanted to take the county exam, but was reported as the son of a police official. The county magistrate at the time conducted extensive investigations and determined that Han Fang was the son of a police official, so he was not allowed to take the county exam, and his descendants were not allowed to take the imperial examinations in the future.

Magistrate Lu saw that Qin Yunhe had almost finished his investigation and said, "Sir, I really feel that the Magistrate's judgment back then was biased and should not be taken as the standard."

Qin Yunhe raised his eyes and looked at County Magistrate Lu: "County Magistrate Lu, have you ever checked the case file of Han Fang before?"

"Uh... Your Excellency, I didn't know about Han Fang's accusation at first. After I heard about it, I immediately asked him in detail about how Han Fang was accused.

But I thought that I couldn't just decide someone's life or death based on the verdict that year, after all, the imperial examination was a big deal. So I checked the records again, asked someone to investigate, and called in Han's neighbors to confirm that Han Fang was adopted. "

Magistrate Lu was unsure what Qin Yunhe meant. Was there something fishy in the case file?

"Sir, as to why Han Yang's name is not in the register, I really don't know."

"So Lord Lu has never seen the case files from that year?"

"Your humble servant... I really didn't look at it carefully." Magistrate Lu broke out in a sweat at that time. What on earth was in this case file?

"Sir, is there anything wrong with this case file?"

Qin Yunhe put the case file aside and said, "Nothing."

It's not that I didn't look carefully, I'm afraid I didn't look at all.

Soon, the witness was brought in, and Han Lin's father Han Fang was also brought in.

Qin Yunhe first asked Han Fang and his son and Liu Mao to be brought to the hall.

"Han Fang, tell me about the situation back then."

"Yes, sir. Seventeen years ago, when I applied for the county examination, my former classmates reported me and said that I was a police officer and should not take the examination.

The county magistrate at that time called me to ask questions, and I explained the situation of adoption to him. However, that classmate called me adopted, but in fact I just wanted to pretend to have a changed nationality to participate in the imperial examination.

I also told the county magistrate that I was actually adopted when I was seven or eight years old, and my uncle, my biological father, was not yet a police official at that time. How could I have known that he would become a police official in the future and I would take the imperial examination?

The magistrate immediately called the village head to inquire about the situation. However, the village head at that time did not know the truth, so he said that when I was a child, I always called my father Han Ting "big father", and only changed the name in recent years.

Actually, I got used to calling him that when I was little, so I always called him wrong. Later, as I grew older and became more sensible, I realized that calling him that way was inappropriate, so I stopped calling him that way.

However, the village elder who had witnessed our adoption was no longer around, and the county magistrate refused to listen to my explanation and was unwilling to ask other neighbors. He concluded that I was pretending to be a good citizen to take part in the county examination.

Afterwards, the county magistrate ordered me not to take the exam, nor to allow my descendants to take the exam. I felt really wronged and had no way to appeal. "

Qin Yunhe listened to Han Fang's story. The story was basically the same as the case file of that year, and the narrative was clear and organized. He couldn't help but believe his statement more.

If what is said is true, it is indeed a pity to lose the opportunity to take the exam just because of hasty identity identification.

"Since the previous magistrate did not allow you and your descendants to take the exam, why did you allow your son to take the exam again?"

"Your Excellency, please allow me to report this. I can't take the exam myself, but I really can't bear to delay my son's future. In the past few years, I have seen Han Lin's academic performance improve, and I also feel that the current county magistrate is indeed wise and benevolent, so I let Han Lin sign up for the county exam with the intention of giving it a try.

Although I was reported again this time, fortunately the county magistrate was wise and after much investigation confirmed that I was adopted by Han Ting, he agreed to let my son Han Lin take the exam. "

As he spoke, Han Fang seemed to remember something and said, "Oh, sir. This time I have also found the village head who testified back then. He is now willing to testify for me."

Qin Yunhe had read the case file and knew the name of the village head.

"Hu Xiaoyi is here too?"

"That's right. Hu Xiaoyi is now our local elder. He heard that Han Lin was reported for taking the exam again, so he volunteered to come here."

Qin Yunhe asked someone to bring Hu Xiaoyi over.

An old man in his fifties or sixties was brought in: "Sir, I am Hu Xiaoyi."

"Hu Xiaoyi, weren't you the one who testified that Han Fang wasn't really adopted? Why are you changing your words now?"

"My Lord, I really didn't know whether Han Fang was adopted or not. And I didn't know the truth at that time, but I often heard Han Fang call Han Ting "Daddy".

But in recent years, I have watched Han Fang take care of Han Ting, wear mourning clothes to his funeral, and hold memorial services during the New Year holidays, and only then did I know that Han Fang was really adopted by Han Ting. In recent years, I always feel that I was too careless and caused the magistrate to misunderstand me, which delayed Han Fang's exam. I feel very guilty..."

Unexpectedly, Liu Mao suddenly said, "Hu Lilao, you are my elder and I shouldn't say no, but you said you changed your mind because you felt guilty. It's better to say you did it because you got some benefits."

Hu Xiaoyi frowned and said, "Liu Mao, what do you mean? I have gained nothing from it. Please don't slander me."

"I can't say whether it's beneficial or not, but it's true that the Han family has been visiting your family frequently in recent years and they always visit during festivals, right? And then you changed your words, how can this not make people wonder?"

"Liu Mao, don't deliberately confuse the facts. Uncle Hu is the village elder and the senior. What's wrong with me visiting him during festivals? Besides, even if Uncle Hu doesn't testify, there are other villagers who can testify for me."

Qin Yunhe also planned to listen to what others had to say, so he asked Han Fang, Liu Mao and others to leave first, and invited the current head of the village to come in.

"Do you think the adoption by Han Fang is true?"

"Sir, Han Fang was indeed adopted by Han Ting. My family is relatively close to the Han family, so I have always known about this. Han Fang and I are about the same age. I remember that I was about six or seven years old when Han Fang was adopted, and I went to join in the fun.

Later, we spoke up for Han Fang because he was not allowed to take the exam due to his unclean family background. Unfortunately, the county magistrate at that time did not believe the testimonies of the neighbors.

"Since your two families are relatively close, do you know that Han Fang used to call Han Ting "Daddy"? What do you think of this?"

"Hey, I just got used to it. I didn't always call him Big Daddy, sometimes I called him Daddy, and then I got used to it and just called him Daddy. I also gradually changed the way I addressed his biological father. But I remember clearly that I changed to calling him Second Daddy on the day he was adopted."

Qin Yunhe asked him to leave and called other neighbors of the Han family in to question them.

".…..When Han Ting passed away, the Han family wore heavy mourning clothes, beat banners and smashed pots. He must have been adopted. All our neighbors know about it..."

"...Han Fang rarely went out during those years of mourning, and the family only had simple meals..."

"…The Liu family just can't stand the Han family living a better life than theirs. Originally, Liu Mao passed the imperial examination and surpassed the Han family, but now Han Lin is also going to take the exam and their family is not happy about it..."

After listening to the stories of Han Lin's neighbors, Qin Yunhe nodded and came to a conclusion in his mind.