Poet Immortal, Poet Sage, Duke of the State!

Wannian County Government Office

Chen Chang'an sued Zhao Wan'er for slander, claiming that the Chen family maid had spread rumors. This attracted a large crowd of onlookers, crowding the entrance to the county government office and even causing many people to squeeze into the courtyard.

In the courtroom.

Chen Chang'an and Zhao Wan'er sat on chairs, with three maids dressed as servants of the Chen family kneeling beside them.

Liu Yuan sat upright under the "bright and just" banner, his forehead already covered with a fine layer of cold sweat.

The Chen family, the Zhao family, Chen Chang'an, Xiao Qingshuang... none of them are people that a mere county magistrate like him can afford to offend.

How should he rule on this case?

In the end, he had no choice but to steel himself and look at the three maids first, saying, "Tell me, what exactly happened that Young Master Chen molested and harassed you...?"

A maid raised her head, pointed at Chen Chang'an, and said, "My lord, when Chen Chang'an was in the Chen residence, he often touched me inappropriately. Once, he even dragged me into the woodshed, sob sob..."

As she spoke, tears began to fall from her eyes.

Chen Chang'an sat in a chair, holding a cup of tea, and blew on the foam on top of it, his expression calm.

He vaguely remembered this maid.

She was one of Zhao's trusted maids. Zhao looked down on the original owner of the body from the bottom of her heart. Her maids didn't even look at her properly. How could she possibly molest her?

At this moment, the other two maids from the Zhao family's courtyard also pointed at Chen Chang'an and spoke.

"The young master once pounced on me and pushed me onto the bed..."

"The young master once said he'd take me to see goldfish, but... well, the goldfish were... sob sob... I can't face anyone now!"

……

Chen Chang'an sat there, his expression still calm, and asked, "When were you talking about? Did anyone see it? Why didn't you call for help?"

Zhao's trusted maid said, "You are the young master of this mansion, and we are just maids. What use would it be for us to call for help?"

Chen Chang'an smirked and said, "In the Chen family, I'm not even as good as a servant. My stepmother, Zhao, can't stand me and makes me live in the woodshed, eating and sleeping with the servants. She'd love to get rid of me. You're one of her closest maids. If I were to molest you, wouldn't she use it as an excuse to make trouble?"

The maid opened her mouth, but couldn't say anything for a moment.

The people outside were also talking about it.

"Young Master Chen is right. His stepmother is so cruel; after what happened, how could she possibly tolerate him?"

"Even a fool would know that's impossible!"

"They've already kicked them out of the house, but they still won't let them go. There's nothing you can do with a father and stepmother like that..."

……

Liu Yuan sat behind his desk, picking up and putting down the gavel repeatedly.

They say that if you committed sins in your past life, you'll be a county magistrate in the capital in this life.

This statement is absolutely true. He has truly experienced it now. As the county magistrate, he can't afford to offend either the accuser or the defendant. How can he handle cases like this...?

Just then, the crowd outside suddenly parted to make way for them.

A series of heavy footsteps came from outside the courtroom.

The next moment, several figures dressed in armor strode in from outside the door.

The leader, with a resolute face and upright posture, was none other than Yun Zhan, the commander of the Imperial Guards. Behind him followed four Imperial Guards, each with a long sword at their waist and an expressionless face.

When Qing Shuang saw Yun Zhan, a smile appeared on her lips.

She knew that Yun Zhan's arrival must be because of the princess.

Chen Chang'an also looked at Qing Shuang, who leaned closer and whispered, "I've had someone inform His Majesty. Don't worry, His Majesty will stand up for you..."

Liu Yuan hurriedly stood up, went to the center of the courtroom, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "This humble official greets Commander Yun!"

Yun Zhan glanced at the kneeling men below, took out a bright yellow scroll from his sleeve, handed it to Liu Yuan, and said calmly, "His Majesty has decreed that this case be handled by the Secret Guard. You have no objections, do you?"

Liu Yuan hurriedly accepted the imperial edict, letting out a long sigh of relief, and nodded repeatedly, saying, "No, no, Commander Yun, please proceed..."

Yun Zhan turned around, his gaze falling on the three maids, and said calmly, "I'll ask you one more time, did Chen Chang'an assault you or not? Think it through before you speak. If you can't explain it here, I'll take you back to the Dark Guard's prison to discuss it slowly..."

Upon hearing this, the three maids' faces turned deathly pale.

They all came from prominent families and naturally knew about the secret guards. Not to mention them, even their own master would be severely injured if he were imprisoned by the secret guards.

If they were in the right, it would be better, but the problem is that they themselves know that they are making false accusations against Chen Chang'an.

If he were to enter the Dark Guard's prison, he probably wouldn't be able to leave alive.

Zhao's trusted maid trembled and immediately burst into tears, collapsing to the ground and stammering, "I'll talk, I'll talk! Madam told us to say that! The young master has never touched us! Madam said that as long as we stick to our story, we can splash dirty water on him, and she said she'd give each of us a hundred taels of silver after it's done..."

Even Zhao's confidants admitted it, and the other two ordinary maids were so frightened that they kowtowed repeatedly.

"It was Madam who told us to do it this way, it has nothing to do with us!"

"If we don't listen to Madam, she'll beat us to death!"

"My lord, spare my life!"

……

Clearly, they were more afraid of the secret guards than the Zhao family.

The crowd gathered at the entrance immediately erupted in uproar.

"It was that stepmother who did it!"

"Her mind is so malicious. And this is the Grand Tutor's daughter! How did the Grand Tutor raise his daughter...?"

"It's not easy for Young Master Chen to grow up in the Chen family so big..."

……

Yun Zhan glanced at the three maids and said in a deep voice, "You three, using your lowly status as maids, have spread rumors and falsely accused the sons of officials. Your crimes are heinous. From this moment on, you will be sent to the brothel to atone for your sins. Take them away..."

Several more guards entered from outside and took away the three maids who had been so frightened they wet their pants.

Yun Zhan then turned to Zhao Wan'er and asked, "Miss Zhao, why don't you reconsider whether Young Master Chen did anything indecent to you?"

Zhao Wan'er sat there, her face pale, her mind filled with the scene of the three maids being taken away.

She glanced up at Yun Zhan, then quickly looked down again, trembling as she said, "Well... I had a few drinks that day. It was very dark, and there were no lights in the room. I couldn't see the face of the person who assaulted me. Now that I think about it, that person's build was very different from Chen Chang'an's. It shouldn't be him..."

That was all she could say. She was terrified that she would be caught and imprisoned in the secret guards' dungeon, and sentenced to be sent to the brothel...

Yun Zhan nodded slightly and said, "It seems this is all a misunderstanding. Since it's a misunderstanding, you should apologize to Young Master Chen in court, and that will settle the matter. How about that?"

Zhao Wan'er's father was only a sixth-rank official.

But her grandfather was the Grand Tutor of the court, so he couldn't really do anything to Zhao Wan'er.

Having found a way out, Zhao Wan'er immediately turned to Chen Chang'an and said repeatedly, "Chen Chang'an, I'm sorry, I misunderstood you. I hope you can forgive me..."

Chen Chang'an looked at Yun Zhan, and Yun Zhan nodded slightly to him.

This is what he meant by letting him settle things peacefully.

Although Chen Chang'an didn't want to let Zhao Wan'er off the hook, he also knew that this matter needed to be stopped at the right time. His stain on his record had already been cleared, and if things continued to escalate, it would be beyond his control...

He didn't even glance at Zhao Wan'er, but turned to Qing Shuang and said, "Let's go..."

Before leaving, Chen Chang'an clasped his hands in a fist salute to Yun Zhan and said, "Thank you, sir, for clearing my name."

Yun Zhan nodded, a slight smile appearing on his usually serious face, and said, "You're welcome. His Majesty said you are a meritorious official of Da Ning, a national hero, and cannot be falsely accused..."