Chapter 309: Counter-charge
“Your Excellency, the owner of Heng Can Glazed Ware, Li Xi’er, is beating the drum outside to demand explanation, causing a sensation and attracting crowds of people to watch!”
In the Xuanwu Prefectural Yamen, Prefect Fang was lowering his head to write the complaint when a yamen servant came forward to report!
“What? Outrageous! This official went to arrest this Li Xi’er but couldn’t find her, and now she dares to come to the doorway personally to make trouble. This official wants to see what play she is putting on?”
Actually, at the beginning when this glazed ware lamp became popular, his manor madam and young lady had personally seen that seven-colored glazed jade ruyi at Marquis Zhenbei’s Mansion, described by them as exquisitely beautiful, so he wanted to collect one!
Unfortunately, he always couldn’t get one; the production quantity was too small, so that he recently went to great pains to obtain one, spending a large sum of silver, only to find out after all that it was poisoned?
It left him unable to smash it or not smash it; when he returned to the manor at noon for something, he actually saw the madam still playing with it like a treasure, and thinking of that Yao Dingyuan’s face turning black and blue with blood flowing from all seven orifices that he had seen, he was so scared that he immediately had someone smash it!
From his investigation and the evidence he obtained, this Li Xi’er was actually not ordinary; he originally thought she was just a small merchant who suddenly popped up!
Merchants value benefit over separation, using any means for profit, and after Magistrate Ma’s reminder and the submitted evidence, he knew this person’s character indeed had problems!
That street child previously singing was about him, causing an extremely bad social atmosphere!
In his understanding, no matter what, how could a towering upright man do such a thing that insults dignity and personality? It must be that he seduced the prince!
Relying on the God of War Prince’s favor to act lawlessly, such a person should not stay by the God of War Prince’s side! Now, for sky-high silver, he caused a death, and still wants to settle it how?
That poisoned Yao Dingyuan already died with blood flowing from all seven orifices, and was examined by the coroner; precise evidence obtained just a moment ago.
In the morning, the family came to report the case, and he immediately sent people to invite them for confrontation; his subordinate Dong Wen did catch him, but he had no shadow at all!
Now, quite a few people who bought his glazed ware lamps are holding the products and coming to the yamen demanding he give an explanation!
By his experience, he thought this Li Xi’er must have found a scapegoat and slipped away, finding backing from the God of War Prince to clean up for her!
With both human and material evidence present, just preparing to request instructions from the superior Fengjing Prefect to directly conclude the case, arrest her, and since it caused a death, directly sentence to death!
After all, since it involves the God of War Prince, he still needed to request instructions from superiors for this matter!
“Bring him in, notify Yao Dingyuan’s family, and the crowd outside; this official is now going to formally hold court for the case of Yao Dingyuan being poisoned!”
Li Xi’er was invited inside by the yamen bailiffs, followed by many commoners squeezing in to watch.
For a moment, discussions buzzed, some watching the show, some scolding, very lively!
Half a hour later,
“Silence!”
Prefect Fang coldly glanced at the hall, picked up the gavel and struck it, and the Xuanwu yamen immediately quieted down.
“Is the criminal below Li Xi’er? Do you know your crime?”
Below the hall stood a calm and composed young man with clear and handsome features, clean and simple, exuding confident radiance all over; his eyes seemed to have a mysterious strength drawing one’s thoughts in.
He was such a person?
In his imagination, he should be someone neither male nor female, with a fawning and affected posture.
“Your Excellency, I am called Li Xi’er, owner of Heng Can Glazed Ware. I am innocent, my Heng Can Glazed Ware is wronged! Therefore, I beat the drum to demand explanation!”
“Oh? Wronged? Criminal Li Xi’er, do you know that for that monstrous benefit you caused a death? However, you came to the prefectural yamen to turn yourself in?”
“Since it’s turning yourself in, why did you deliberately flee when this official sent people to invite you this morning?”
Li Xi’er calmly said: “Your Excellency, I did not flee, but recently my Glazed Ware Company had a traitor, causing my destroyed defective products to be stolen out, greatly affecting our Glazed Ware Company’s reputation. That morning I had just heard who that person was, so I went out to handle it!”
“Fine, even if you were unaware and went to handle Glazed Ware Company private matters, now that you know what happened, your Heng Can Glazed Ware caused a death and made those buyers lose large sums of silver; do you know your crime?”
The people outside demanding explanation, many holding glazed ware lamps, faces and bodies covered tightly fearing being poisoned to death!
“Your Excellency, I came this time precisely to report the case; our Heng Can Glazed Ware’s products were counterfeited by someone, passing fake as real, harming commoners’ lives, massive wealth, and greatly damaging our Heng Can Glazed Ware’s reputation. Therefore, please Your Excellency take charge for my Heng Can Glazed Ware and catch the real culprit!”
“What?” Prefect Fang never thought the matter would reverse, turning into her filing the complaint?
“By your saying, this Yao Dingyuan being poisoned to death has nothing to do with you, but was harmed by that fake and inferior glazed ware lamp?”
“Exactly!”
“But, according to the evidence submitted by Assistant Magistrate Ma, that glazed ware lamp indeed came from your Heng Can Glazed Ware; Yao Dingyuan’s madam can prove it, he used your family’s glazed ware lamp to hold soup, and was poisoned after he ate it!”
“Our coroner also examined it; that glazed ware lamp does emit a poisonous substance when heated, consistent with the toxin in Yao Dingyuan’s stomach. How do you explain?”
“Your Excellency, this lowly one has a few words, not sure if I should say?” Magistrate Ma stepped forward.
“Speak!”
“This seven-colored glazed ware was never seen before; such exquisitely beautiful colors are inherently strange. Your Heng Can Glazed Ware suddenly produced such a thing. This lowly one wants to ask you, Owner Li, did you personally test your product before marketing to ensure it could be used by people?”
“Yeah, alas, luckily we have no money, can’t afford such luxury goods!” Someone was already chiming in!
“Originally thought it was a rare treasure, didn’t expect it would cause death!”
“You say, could he have known it was poisonous and deliberately marketed it?”
“For benefit, what can’t he do? Think about it, that’s huge benefit!”
“Damn, really wicked!”
In a moment, Li Xi’er was denounced by thousands, and the hall filled again with discussions of indignation.
On this point, she indeed had not tested it, because she knew these iron, copper, aluminum and such were trace elements needed by the human body and would not poison, but them bringing it up would also draw everyone’s attention.
She also didn’t expect that this Meng clan, Wang Zhangsong could really poison their friend to death.
That Yao Dingyuan was a fairly wealthy merchant, indulging in eating, drinking, whoring, gambling; Bu Wei investigated, they were wine-and-meat friends with some usual interaction.
“Your Excellency, has the poison in Yao Dingyuan been identified specifically as what?” Li Xi’er said unhurriedly.
“Hmph! You brat, beating around the bush, you caused a death and always try to scheme, golden cicada shedding shell; this won’t work on you, our Prefect Fang judges cases like a god, not something you can easily escape?” Assistant Magistrate Ma angrily said.
“Magistrate Ma, I am just requesting the yamen to inform if there is evidence proving the poison in him came from my glazed ware lamp. What do you mean beating around the bush? Is requesting evidence violating the trial process?”
“You!” Magistrate Ma was at a loss.
