Ch 52: Those Who Don’t Kneel Before Officials Are Exempt From Punishment
“Don’t even mention your life; even including your entire family, and even all the people in your Hongnong Prefecture Prefectural Yamen, those who don’t apologize by kneeling to my wife will sooner or later not escape death.”
Having said that, Sun Jian turned to the father and daughter and said, “This has nothing to do with you. It’s a personal grievance between me and him. Go back. Don’t worry, he won’t bother you again in the future.”
“Because he definitely won’t see tomorrow’s sun.”
Hearing these words, the father and daughter kowtowed three times to Sun Jian and then ran away in a panic.
The passersby pointed at Sun Jian, but no one was willing to go up and seek justice for Li Jian.
For so many years in this area, who doesn’t know Li Jian? Who doesn’t know him?
He’s said to be the Prefect’s son, but every year he disregards human life, bullies men and women, and there are hundreds, if not thousands, of innocent young women he has harmed.
People could be said to gnash their teeth at him, wishing they could flay his skin and extract his tendons.
Except for the government officials, almost no one would care about Li Jian’s affairs.
With no one stopping him, this also made things easy for Sun Jian.
First, he forcibly twisted Li Jian’s limbs, ignoring Li Jian’s heart-wrenching screams, and dragged him like a dead dog towards the Prefectural Yamen gate.
Li Jian was still left with a breath by Sun Jian. Every time he fainted from pain, he would be repeatedly awakened by the friction of the ground, and the blood he bled created a long trail.
“Spare me…spare me…”
“As long as you let me go, I’ll give you anything… anything, money, grain, women.”
Li Jian held his breath and said these words of begging intermittently.
“When you seized my three wives, didn’t you think about this moment?”
“Slap!”
“When you massacred the Sun Family Village villagers, didn’t you think about sparing them?”
“Slap!”
With every sentence Sun Jian said, a crisp slap landed on Li Jian’s face, which was already swollen like a pig’s head.
At this moment, Li Jian not only had blood flowing from his lower body, mouth, and limbs, but blood was also starting to come out of his nostrils and ears. He was a bloody mess.
Even his expensive clothes were soaked with blood. In this state, even Li Jian’s father, Li Yi’gou, probably wouldn’t recognize his own son.
“Save…”
Li Jian fainted again from the pain. Being tortured like this, even his breathing became weak.
Sun Jian, regardless, continued to drag Li Jian’s blood-soaked body to the front of the Prefectural Yamen, picked up a drumstick, and began to beat the grievance drum fiercely.
Dong! Dong! Dong!
The grievance drum was beaten, breaking the silence of the Prefectural Yamen. People began to put down their official documents and gather towards the Yamen hall.
Sun Jian didn’t bother with other procedures. He carried Li Jian and strode inside. He only knew that once the grievance drum was sounded, the Yamen had to hold court.
Upon entering the hall, Yamen Runners were already standing on both sides. Prefect Li Yi’gou was slowly walking from the backyard and took his seat on the main hall.
When everyone saw that the person who beat the drum was carrying a bloody person, they were startled.
“This…”
“Is this person here to appeal or to confess?”
Prefect Li Yi’gou’s eyes widened in anger.
“Audacious!”
“This is the prefectural court. You injured someone and dared to break into the Yamen, openly challenging the Great Qian Law! Bring this person down!”
“We will decide after apprehending him!”
“Wait!”
Seeing the Yamen Runners charging forward to capture him, Sun Jian immediately raised his hand and shouted loudly.
“I am the plaintiff. Why, when a plaintiff has a grievance and beats the drum to report to the officials, does the Prefect want to arrest the plaintiff?”
Sun Jian casually threw the bloody Li Jian to the ground, looking calm and composed.
“You are the plaintiff?”
“You scoundrel, you’ve injured someone to this extent, their face is unrecognizable, and you dare to distort the facts!”
Sun Jian helplessly shook his head and smiled wryly.
Yes, the face is indeed unrecognizable. His own father didn’t recognize him as his son.
Sun Jian took a step forward and said loudly, “When did the Great Qian Law stipulate that the plaintiff and defendant are determined by the extent of injuries inflicted?”
“If a villain breaks into a house to commit murder, and the murder fails and the homeowner is injured, and the case is brought to the Prefectural Yamen, according to your words, wouldn’t the homeowner become the defendant, a scoundrel?”
“I beat the grievance drum. You say I’m distorting the facts, but you don’t listen to my grievance, but instead want to arrest the plaintiff first. Who is challenging the Great Qian Law?”
“This…”
“You…”
In a few words, Prefect Li Yi’gou was speechless, his face red with anger, but helpless.
The Yamen Runners standing on both sides also nodded in agreement, and even the Legal Clerk standing beside him stroked his beard and sighed that Sun Jian’s words were reasonable.
The Prefect repeatedly lost face to Sun Jian, and was already furious. “Audacious! You…since you are the plaintiff, why don’t you kneel when you see this official? Isn’t this contempt of court? Arrest him! Give him twenty lashes first, then listen to his grievance!”
“Yes!”
Seeing the Yamen Runners rush forward to press him to the ground, Sun Jian immediately raised his hand, clasped his hands above his head, and shouted, “I have merit, according to the Great Qian Law, I am a disciple of the Emperor, so officials are not required to kneel and are exempt from corporal punishment. I’ll see who dares to inflict corporal punishment on me!”
As soon as these words came out, the Yamen Runners looked at each other, hesitant, and turned their eyes back to the Prefect.
Prefect Li Yi’gou’s face turned purple with anger. He gnashed his teeth and said, “Merit? What year is your merit from, and where is your origin?”
“My name is Sun Jian, I live in Sun Family Village, Liu Town, Hongnong County, Hongnong Prefecture. I was a scholar in the seventh year of Qianwu. Your Excellency can investigate this.” Sun Jian remained unmoved.
“Bring someone to verify this!”
Sun Jian shrugged indifferently.
Verify it then. In the end, it will only delay Li Jian’s injuries; you can take your time verifying.
After a stick of incense, the Legal Clerk, with the roster, had successfully verified it. He whispered to the Prefect, “Your Excellency, this person is indeed a scholar, with merit. According to the Great Qian Law, officials do not kneel and are exempt from corporal punishment.”
“Confirmed?”
Li Yi’gou, with a dark face, repeatedly confirmed with the Legal Clerk, but the answer remained the same.
Seeing this situation, Li Yi’gou could only swallow his anger, struck the sounding block, and said loudly, “Sun Jian, what grievance do you have to report? Did you injure the man down there?”
Sun Jian was confident. The arguments he had thought up on the way were now smoothly delivered.
“Your Excellency, I have five charges against this person.”
“First, committing crimes. This person committed adultery and robbery, bullying men and women for several years, ruining countless people’s wives and daughters. There is evidence and witnesses.”
“Second, murder. This person murdered innocent people…Third: Rebellion…Fourth: Immorality, Fifth: Wickedness…”
Sun Jian spoke eloquently, almost in one breath.
Each charge was detailed according to the articles of the Great Qian Law, every word precise.
Li Yi’gou and the Legal Clerk were stunned.
Even the Yamen Runners standing on both sides were so angry after hearing this that they blew their beards and stared, wishing they could tear Li Jian, covered in blood and with a deformed face, to pieces on the spot.
