Zhang Laoliu knelt on the ground, sobbing uncontrollably. The more he heard the voices around him, the more he cried.

Then suddenly, he heard cheers from the crowd and quickly raised his head.

Fang Zheng was already sitting behind the judicial desk. Zhang Laoliu’s face lit up with joy, but he quickly lowered his head and continued to sob, saying, “Your Honor! This commoner has been wronged! Today I want to accuse the county… the county yamen…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Fang Zheng was already fuming.

“Accuse the county yamen? How dare you!” he shouted.

“I haven’t disciplined you troublemakers for a few days, and now you come and dump your troubles on me?”

He slammed the gavel. “Silence! Who dares to accuse the magistrate in court?!”

The crowd burst into laughter.

“Bang! Bang! Bang!” He pounded the gavel several times.

“Order in the court! One more outburst and I’ll have you dragged in here for ten strokes of the rod!”

The whole place fell silent, with adults muffling any children who had been watching.

Emperor Jing frowned as he watched this ridiculous scene, full of disappointment.

This is the Taoyuan County magistrate? He looks like an incompetent official! No dignity in his bearing at all!

Additionally, he appears only half-awake. How does such a man command such high prestige?

Guo Tianyang whispered to him, “Your Majesty, this person is simply rude and unreasonable.”

“Shut up! Let’s keep watching!”

Zhang Laoliu knelt there, at a loss for words. “I’m not accusing you, Your Honor. I want to accuse the county yamen guard Lu Fa!”

Fang Zheng’s face turned red. “Alright, alright! Next time, don’t pant so much when you speak.”

“Speak! What do you want to accuse Lu Fa of?”

“Your Honor, this humble one runs a restaurant in the north of the city. Lu Fa has dined there multiple times without paying, and he even smashed two jars of my good wine. The mediation official has tried to reason with him several times, but he still hasn’t paid back the money!”

“He owes a total of thirty-seven silver coins and two copper coins! Until now, he hasn’t paid, so this humble one had no choice but to trouble Your Honor.”

Fang Zheng’s expression softened. As long as it didn’t involve loss of life, such a trivial matter was no big deal.

The person standing next to Zhang Laoliu was Lu Fa, whom Fang Zheng naturally recognized.

So he sternly said, “Lu Fa! Is it true that you owe money and haven’t paid back?!”

Seeing Fang Zheng’s anger, Lu Fa knew that hiding wouldn’t help, so he knelt down and cried, “Your Honor! I truly have no money. I smashed Old Liu’s wine jars that day because I was drunk and in a bad mood.”

“It’s not that I’m intentionally avoiding him. I still owe the gambling den ten silver coins now.”

Fang Zheng was truly angry this time, sneering, “What Lu Fa? You should be dubbed the ‘Law Offender’ for your blatant disregard! I’ve repeatedly ordered that officials are not allowed to enter gambling dens, nor harass the common people. You haven’t listened to a word of it.”

“Guards! Give him twenty lashes first!”

Before the bailiffs could step forward, Lu Fa gritted his teeth, then rolled up his sleeves, and lay obediently on the ground.

Thud! Thud! Thud!…

After twenty lashes, Lu Fa’s buttocks were already a bloody mess.

Weakly, he said, “Your Honor, this humble one knows his mistake.”

Emperor Jing watched this scene in astonishment.

The prestige of this county magistrate is obviously already at its peak! The defendant has no intention of resisting at all.

And the law is strict. This kind of judgment is truly unprecedented!

Guo Tianyang also watched in bewilderment. Rarely have I seen my grandchildren so obedient. This county magistrate indeed has some skills. I should learn from him!

After the punishment was over, Fang Zheng’s tone softened. “Considering this is your first offense, your monthly salary will be halved for this month, and you will have to volunteer to sweep the streets for three months before coming back!”

“If there’s another offense, you’ll be expelled from Taoyuan County!”

Lu Fa’s pale lips revealed a smile. “Thank you for your mercy, Your Honor.”

“Take him to the doctor!”

Zhang Laoliu, seeing his miserable state, also felt some fear.

Although they had a falling out, Taoyuan County was so small that they were almost like neighbors. Can’t this be avoided? Why was he punished so severely when he didn’t even get his money back?

So he hesitantly said, “Your Honor… my money…”

Fang Zheng spread his hands helplessly. “You see, he has no money.”

“Huh?” Zhang Laoliu was dumbfounded.

Offending someone and not getting his money back was a significant loss!

Zhang Laoliu felt heartbroken and began to put on a look of having lost his dear father.

Fang Zheng narrowed his eyes and sighed, “But, I can’t let good people suffer.”

“So, what’s your restaurant called? Tonight, I’ll go to your restaurant and drink three cups of wine as compensation. That’s settled, court adjourned!”

“It’s called Laoliu Restaurant!” Zhang Laoliu was overjoyed, kowtowing three times loudly. “Thank you, Your Honor! Thank you, Your Honor!”

After speaking, he hurried out of the court.

Before leaving, Fang Zheng glanced at Emperor Jing and Guo Tianyang outside the hall.

Although Taoyuan County was densely populated, Fang Zheng had managed to become familiar with almost everyone over the years.

The regular merchants had established fixed channels, and since there were hardly any newcomers to Taoyuan County, these two people were undoubtedly new merchants from out of town.

The crowd gradually dispersed.

Emperor Jing and Guo Tianyang stood in place, completely dumbfounded.

Is that it? What’s going on? I don’t understand! There’s no rhyme or reason to this case, and the people of Taoyuan County aren’t normal!

Guo Tianyang scratched his head, unable to make sense of anything. “Your Majesty, I feel like there’s something strange going on here!”

“Why don’t we speak openly and directly to the county magistrate?” suggested Emperor Jing.

“Not so fast, let’s see. He said he’s going to Laoliu Restaurant for drinks tonight. Let’s go too!”

…

The two of them left the yamen and strolled around the streets for a while.

Seeing so many things, Emperor Jing was afraid of missing out, so he ordered Guo Tianyang to take out pen and paper and jot down everything they saw along the way.

Before they knew it, it was already evening.

They happened to be in the north of the city, so they started asking around for Laoliu Restaurant.

With a little guidance from passersby, they found it easily.

It wasn’t crowded yet as it hadn’t opened for customers, but there were already quite a few people gathered outside Laoliu Restaurant, noticeably more than at other shops.

Emperor Jing looked up and was speechless.

There was a huge red banner hanging on the second floor of the restaurant.

【Welcome the County Magistrate to our restaurant to taste our new dish: Angelica Stewed Chicken!】

“So that’s how it is. The county magistrate is helping Laoliu attract business,” Emperor Jing quickly realized.

But Guo Tianyang began to whisper in his ear again, “Your Majesty, this man’s behavior is outrageous. How can officials and merchants collude like this?”

Emperor Jing also felt uneasy.

The mixing of government officials and private businessmen was somewhat inappropriate and violated etiquette and law.

“Let’s go in and take a look.”

At this moment, Fang Zheng had not yet arrived.

The two of them went straight to the second floor and found a seat near the staircase. They ordered two servings of wine and food, quietly sitting down.

Before long, there was a commotion downstairs.

Fang Zheng, accompanied by Zhang Biao, Xiao Tao, and others, ascended to the second floor, and his eyes immediately fell on Emperor Jing sitting at the staircase.

Then, he walked past the two of them and sat down at the central table.

Zhang Laoliu eagerly said, “Magistrate, the food and wine have long been prepared for you. Shall we serve them now?”