readytorunbook Chapter 124 Severe Torture
Chapter 124 Severe Torture
Chapter 124 Severe Torture
"Torture?" Wang Wenhua glanced at Wang Wenzhou with disdain. Silly Xiao Wu was too arrogant!
"My lord! You mustn't!" Clerk Li hurriedly stepped forward to plead, saying that torture should not be used against even scholars with the title of Xiucai, let alone officials of the imperial court.
Wang Wenzhou smiled and said in a low voice, "I'm not stupid, how could I not understand? I just want to deflate Wang Wenhua's arrogance."
At this moment, Ma Bantou and the others returned to the main hall.
"Reporting to Your Excellency, Ma Deyun and the others have arrived!" Ma Bantou reported, clasping his hands in a fist salute.
"Bang!" Wang Wenzhou slammed his gavel and asked, "Ma Deyun, Yang Shan... do you know your crimes?"
Ma Deyun said disdainfully, "I wonder what you mean by that, sir?"
"How dare you!" Wang Wenzhou said viciously, "What is the punishment for not kneeling before an official in court?"
"My lord, all of us students hold the title of Xiucai (a degree in the imperial examination system)." Ma Deyun said calmly.
"Haha..." Wang Wenhua laughed loudly, thinking about his silly little Wu, whose brain was sometimes good and sometimes bad.
"Is that so? I will strip you of your academic titles right now! Guards, take these four men away and give each of them thirty strokes of the cane!" Wang Wenzhou sneered.
"Why? You idiot Wang, why do you strip us of our academic titles?" Ma Deyun asked, cursing.
In the Ming Dynasty, if a scholar committed a crime, the county magistrate could, according to the law, strip him of his academic title. Wang Wenzhou had long ago prepared a trap for the four great scholars, ready to smear them at any time.
"Don't be in such a hurry!" Wang Wenzhou laughed. "Guards, take them out and give them a beating first. After that, I'll give these four bastards an explanation."
"Wang the Fool! You're abusing your power for personal gain and retaliating against others!" Ma Deyun cursed.
"You idiot Wang, I'm not done with you yet!" Yang Shan was dragged out by two constables.
"Slap slap slap..." The sound of a cane being struck could be heard from outside the hall.
The four talented scholars wailed repeatedly. They had never been beaten like this in their lives. Each blow of the paddle hurt their very flesh.
"Hmph!" Wang Wenhua snorted coldly. "Silly Xiao Wu, I think you've really made a fool of yourself today! You stripped four scholars of their titles for no reason and even tortured them. Let's see how you clean up this mess!"
In no time, the four talented scholars were dragged into the main hall by the yamen runners.
Ma Deyun's buttocks were badly bruised and his pants were torn; the bloodstains on his buttocks could be seen from afar.
"Wang the Fool! I'm not done with you yet!" Ma Deyun slumped to the ground, pointing at Wang Wenzhou and cursing him.
"How dare you! Insulting an official of the imperial court in public! Guards, take him out and give him thirty strokes of the cane!" Wang Wenzhou ordered.
Two constables rushed over and dragged Ma Deyun, who was swearing, out of the hall.
Wang Wenzhou smiled and asked, "Yang Shan, Sun Feng, Lin Qing, I ask you, do you plead guilty?"
"Damn it..." Lin Qing was about to curse when Yang Shan grabbed him.
Yang Shan lay on the ground and whispered, "Brother Lin, don't act rashly! When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Let him be arrogant for now! He'll have his turn to suffer later!"
Lin Qing was also lying on the ground. It wasn't that he didn't want to stand up, but his buttocks had been slapped so badly that he couldn't stand up at all.
Sun Feng, fearing Lin Qing might suffer, advised, "Brother Lin, Brother Ma has already suffered enough, so please bear with it for now! Once we get out, we'll definitely sue Wang the Fool for abusing his power and retaliating! Even if the case goes all the way to the imperial court, I'll bring Wang the Fool down!"
Lin Qing thought about it and realized it made sense; a spanking really hurt! He'd swallow his anger for now! Wang Shazi, just you wait!
"Speak up!" Wang Wenzhou asked with a smile, "I'm asking you, do you plead guilty or not!"
"Hmph!" Yang Shan snorted coldly, cupped his hands to the onlookers outside the gate, and said aggrievedly, "Fellow villagers, many of you know the four of us. Hanshan County is not a big town. Although the four of us may occasionally be mischievous, we have never done anything immoral!"
Yang Shan truly lived up to his reputation as the most intelligent of the Four Great Talents; his words resonated with many of the common people.
Yang Shan continued pitifully, "I would like to ask my fellow villagers to judge this matter. We are scholars with the title of Xiucai! Lord Wang, without saying a word, stripped us of our titles! Isn't this an abuse of power? We studied hard through the cold winter to pass the Xiucai exam. Was it easy for us?"
"Lord Wang, why did you strip them of their academic titles?"
"Although they are now defendants, there is only the killer's testimony and no other evidence to prove that they were the masterminds behind your assassination!"
Several ordinary people who usually had a good relationship with the Four Great Talents spoke up to defend them.
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou smiled slightly and said, "Bring the plaintiff to the court!"
A short while later, an old woman in her sixties, with a wrinkled face, short and fat, covered her mouth with her hand, sobbing and trembling as she walked into the hall.
"Wang Qingtian, you have to do justice for me! I have no face to live anymore!" The old woman cried and sobbed, then banged her head against a pillar in the main hall.
The constable, Old Wu, reacted quickly and grabbed the old woman.
"Bang!" Wang Wenzhou slammed the gavel and asked sternly, "This woman, Cui Ying, is not allowed to roar in court!"
Upon hearing this, Cui Ying was so frightened that she immediately knelt down on the ground.
Wang Wenzhou asked, "Cui Ying, I ask you, what grievances have you suffered? Tell me everything. Rest assured, I will definitely seek justice for you!"
After Wang Wenzhou finished speaking, Aunt Cui Ying started crying again, with snot and tears streaming down her face.
Cui Ying recounted her tragic and sorrowful experiences with tears streaming down her face.
It was a dark and moonless night. The village beauty, old lady Cui Ying, was walking alone on a country path. Suddenly, four people on four horses sped past, leaving not a single wildflower behind.
Grandma Cui Ying burst into a tirade: "How could you ride a horse like that? You almost hit someone!"
But the four men returned.
Cui Ying could smell the strong stench of alcohol emanating from the four people from afar.
Cui Ying was somewhat frightened and did not want to pursue the four people's "dangerous driving" mistake.
Who would have thought that these four men were utterly despicable! They actually pounced on Old Mrs. Cui and committed such a vile act...
"My lord! You must do justice for me! I've been insulted by these four damned bastards! I have no face to live on... Waaah..." Cui Ying cried out, her voice filled with sorrow, a sight that would move anyone who heard it to tears.
"Fuck your mother!" Lin Qing couldn't hold back any longer and pointed at Cui Ying, cursing, "You old bitch! Don't you even look at yourself? Your face is covered in pockmarks! Your waist is thicker than your chest! You're only 1.55 meters tall and weigh 280 pounds. We'd rather fuck a pig than go after you!"
"How dare you! How dare you roar in court! Guards! Drag him out and give him thirty strokes of the cane!" Wang Wenzhou said, pointing at Lin Qing.
"You idiot Wang! I'm not done with you yet!" Lin Qing was grabbed by the hair and dragged out.
Ma Deyun had just been punished with a cane when the two happened to meet.
"Brother Ma! That idiot Wang is trying to smear us! Let's fight him!" Lin Qing said, cursing.
Ma Deyun cursed weakly, "Yes! We're not done with him! This is an irreconcilable feud!"
“Him! And him!” Cui Ying said, pointing at Ma Deyun, who had just been pulled in.
"Haha..." Wang Wenzhou suppressed his laughter and asked, "Yang Shan, Ma Deyun, Sun Feng, I have stripped you of your academic titles. Do you still dare to complain?"