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

These past few days, Qin Yunhe has been reviewing the case files of the Tuiguan Yamen and Fuguo County.

It has to be said that the Changde Prefecture's Procuratorate's Office was very methodical in both case adjudication and case file organization, without any major problems.

On this day, Qin Yunhe called Chen Lou to inquire about the reasons behind the verdict of a case.

"…In this case of Liu Xiaoer beating his wife, Liu Xiaoer used an object to cause his wife to suffer broken bones, and his uncle also used an object to injure Liu Xiaoer, also causing broken bones. The verdict was that Liu Xiaoer and his uncle were both to be flogged 40 times.

Liu Xiaoer had bruises on his head and face and lumps on his back, so the decision was to flog his uncle forty times, which was fine.

Liu Xiaoer's wife also had her head and face broken and her hair pulled out to the point of being over an inch square. If she were an ordinary person, she would be flogged fifty times. However, a husband beating his wife is two levels less than an ordinary person, so why was the sentence of forty lashes decided? "

Qin Yunhe did not think that Chen Lou would use the wrong law in such a simple case, not to mention that the law was clearly cited above and there was no mistake. Qin Yunhe was a little puzzled that Liu Xiaoer was sentenced to 40 strokes of the cane because his wife was "severely injured".

"Your Excellency, please forgive me. Your humble servant, your humble servant, this sentence has not yet been executed. If Your Excellency has any doubts..."

Qin Yunhe sighed, "Mr. Chen, I'm not questioning your bias in your judgment. You've been a judge for several years, and you must be very familiar with judging matters. You must have a reason for making such a judgment, just tell me."

"Your Excellency, I will report this. I did feel compassion at the time, so I made this judgment... According to the law, a husband beating his wife should be reduced by two levels, and Liu's wife did not suffer internal injuries or vomit blood. If she is reduced by two levels, she will only be flogged twenty times.

However, when Liu's wife came to court, her head and face were so badly injured that I and everyone else in the court could not bear to look at her. I was filled with righteous indignation, so I sentenced her to 40 strokes of the cane because of the severity of her injuries.

"What is the specific condition of Liu's wife's injuries?"

The crime must be very serious for a prosecutor to make such a judgment.

"Her cheekbones were fractured and her face was ruined. I heard that she had been beaten for years, not just one day. If Liu Xiaoer's uncle hadn't lost his patience and beat her up, I'm afraid Liu's wife would have endured it for many more years."

Qin Yunhe was silent for a moment.

"So, you haven't broken off the marriage yet?"

Chen Lou smiled bitterly: "I specifically reminded Liu's wife that if she wanted, they could end the marriage. But she refused to do so because her young son was still young."

Qin Yunhe was silent again, and after a while he said, "...Please give a detailed description of Liu's wife's injuries and her experiences."

This case was Liu Xiaoer suing his uncle, and the complaint was written from Liu Xiaoer's perspective. If the situation of Liu's wife was not described in detail, it would seem that Chen Lou favored Liu Xiaoer's uncle.

Qin Yunhe brought some other judgments that he had some doubts about to ask Chen Lou. Although Chen Lou was very nervous every time he was asked, in fact, all the judgments were reasonable and well-founded.

In Qin Yunhe's opinion, Chen Lou's ability to solve cases is indeed quite reliable, so his attitude towards him has changed a little.

Perhaps Chen Lou was encouraged by the change in the prosecutor's attitude towards him. A few days later, he invited Qin Yunhe to attend the trial again.

Qin Yunhe listened to another undisputed trial.

He probably understood Chen Lou's intention.

The quickest and most promising way to get promoted is to go to the capital for examination. The easiest way to go for examination is to be appreciated and recommended by the inspector.

It's a pity that although Chen Lou's solution of cases is methodical, it is not particularly outstanding compared to the prosecutors and county magistrates Qin Yunhe met along the way.

Qin Yunhe stayed in Changde Prefecture for more than half a month and left only after reviewing all the case files.

There are many reports of cheating in exams in various places, but only half of them are confirmed. The most troublesome part is identification.

Some county officials are careful and will investigate and distinguish carefully to avoid making wrong judgments and ruining other people's future.

Some careless or overly harsh county officials would be hastily stripped of their titles and honors when they were reported to have caused unrest and affected their own future in order to avoid trouble.

This will inevitably lead to a misjudgment of injustice, and Qin Yunhe will inevitably have to stop and listen to what he has to say and redress his injustice.

As he patrolled along the way, Qin Yunhe would examine those who followed the name and held them accountable for their deeds and encourage them. He would also rebuke those who were just getting by and admonish them.

It was not until the twelfth lunar month that the group finally arrived at the Inspectorate's Office in Kaifeng Prefecture.

After the group settled down in the Xingtai, Qin Yunhe went to pay a visit to the governor, the superintendent of education and others one by one, and then took charge of the affairs of the Xingtai.

It has been verified that Tongyang County incited scholars to boycott the exam, and it was indeed done by the scholars Liu Mao and Yang Huo who reported Han Fang at the time.

Magistrate Lu stripped the two men of their honors and sentenced each to eighty strokes of the cane.

As for Xue Hai, the case file did not mention Meng Xiancheng at all, only stating that Xue Hai fabricated evidence and made a random accusation. Not long after Qin Yunhe left Tongyang County, Xue Hai was caned and sent to Qiaoyang to repair the city wall.

Qin Yunhe nodded. It seemed that Lu Qing was quite receptive to advice and not too stubborn.

Looking at the case files of Tongyang County over the past six months, there has indeed been a lot of progress. I guess Lu Qing has already found a legal advisor, or... maybe he has received assistance from County Magistrate Meng.

I hope these two enemies can really resolve their misunderstandings and work together. In this way, the people of Tongyang County will be blessed.

What surprised Qin Yunhe was that the governor also received a letter from Zhang Yu.

Originally, such a letter would not be delivered to the inspector, but this letter was delivered by the postman along with the official documents of Qi County, so it reached Qin Yunhe's hands.

Zhang Yu took part in this year's college entrance examination and passed the examination to become a scholar again.

In the letter, Zhang Yu thanked Qin Yunhe again and attached an article he had written, which specifically focused on the issue of cheating in the exam and expressed his thoughts and opinions.

Qin Yunhe knew that after this incident, he would be able to write an essay on this topic. This meant that he had really figured it out, and he felt even more relieved.

It is still unclear how the former Pingyin County Magistrate Tian Zongyao was convicted, but a new magistrate has arrived. As the previous magistrate had just gotten into trouble, the new Pingyin County Magistrate would not dare to blatantly take bribes and abuse the law to bully the people. I hope the people of Pingyin County can have a better life.

The Chinese New Year is coming soon. Qin Yunhe felt sad when he thought that he would not be able to reunite with his family during the Chinese New Year. He also missed his teacher even more because he had not been back home for several years and did not know how he was doing.

I can’t even write a letter this year, and I don’t know if Yuru will remember to ask someone to send a holiday gift to the teacher…

------

This chapter refers to the regulations during the Ming and Qing dynasties. If a husband beats his wife, he will be punished two levels lower than an ordinary person if there is no injury.

However, if a wife beats her husband, she should be beaten with a stick 100 times even if no injuries are caused. If injuries are caused, she should be beaten three levels more severely than an ordinary person.

It's quite unfair, so I never dared to write about domestic violence, for fear that people would be angry after reading it. In the article, Qin Yunhe's question was only based on his identity as an inspector and his doubts based on the law. It doesn't mean that he personally thinks that a husband beating his wife should be reduced to the second level.

However, there is no need to be angry and think it is unfair. In this kind of fight between husband and wife, there is no crime if there is no complaint, so this rule is not completely unfair.

After all, in ancient times, even if a wife beat her husband, the husband would not sue her, as it was embarrassing. If he did sue her, it was probably because the beating was too severe, so the punishment was not unfair.