Zhang Jun glanced at the guard and ordered: "Open it!"

  The guard responded with a sound, drew his sword and cut open a sack of grain, "rustling" snow-white rice spilled all over the ground, the guard grabbed a handful and examined it carefully.

  "Look, sir!"

  The guard's hand spread out in front of Zhang Jun, causing his eyes to shrink instantly. All he saw was white rice mixed with many white grains, which were all sand.

  "Open another bag!"

  Zhang Jun ordered the guards again.

  The guard then opened the second bag, the third bag……, and found that all the rice bags were filled with half sand and half white rice.

  "Scoundrels, Wang An and Shen You!"

  Zhang Jun angrily said: "You two, explain to this official, why are there so many sand grains in this grain sack?"

  "Desist, good sir!"

  Wang An thudded to the ground on his knees, trembling with fear, and said: "Your subordinate is innocent, this must be Shen You's doing, it has nothing to do with your subordinate!"

  "Lord Wang, you can't just spout nonsense. Captain Zhao brought the grain, we've never touched it. How can you say it's our doing?"

  Shen You's face turned red with anger as he shouted at Wang An.

  "Hmph!"

  Wang An let out a cold snort, gritted his teeth and said: "You're not willing to hand over the official salt business, harboring resentment in your heart, privately taking revenge on this mansion is still unknown!"

  In ancient times, if someone deliberately destroyed disaster relief grain funds, it was a serious crime. The lighter punishment was dismissal from office, and the heavier one was exile to the border or beheading.

  Wang Ankang didn't want to bring disaster upon himself by giving away the relief grain, so he had to push it off, even if Shen You was his distant relative; a person who doesn't look out for themselves will be destroyed by heaven and earth.

  "You..."

  Shen You pointed at Wang An, his chest heaving constantly.

  "Shut up!"

  Zhang Jun said in a cold voice: "Go and bring Zhao Huo here, I have something to ask him!"

  Zhang Jun's guard responded with a sound and left the Shen family warehouse.

  Zhang Jun's guard arrived at the forest outside Gangzi Village and shouted loudly to the refugees: "The imperial envoy has an order, and the adults will personally investigate the disaster relief grain mixed with sand case and give everyone an account!"

  Zhang Jun did not leave the Shen family but instead set up a public hall directly in the Shen family's large courtyard to thoroughly investigate the case of mixing sand with disaster relief grain.

  In the Shen family's grand mansion, Zhang Jun wore a Qilin-patterned military officer robe, with a long-winged black hat on his head, and sat solemnly in the main hall.

  On both sides of him were his two personal bodyguards and attendants, with soldiers from Zhang Jun's army on one side and yamen runners from Jiaxing Prefecture on the other.

  Wang An and Zhao Tou stood separately under the hall, He Shenyou

  "Slap"

  Zhang Jun slapped the wooden table and looked at Zhao Daotou, asking: "Zhao Daotou, did you personally escort the disaster relief grain to the Shen family last night?"

  "Reporting to Your Excellency," Zhao hastily replied, "last night I followed the orders of Lord Wang and personally escorted a shipment of disaster relief grain, totaling 100,000 dan, which was delivered to the Shen family."

  "It was Lord God who personally brought people to receive it, and I have proof here."

  Captain Zhao said, taking out a note from his bosom, Zhang Jun's guard took it and presented it to Zhang Jun.

  Zhang Jun took over the bill and looked at it carefully. On it was indeed Shen You's personal signature, and there was also a seal.

  Zhang Jun waved the IOU in front of Shen You and said: "Shen You, what else do you have to say now?"

  Splashing sound

  Shen You knelt on the ground and shouted: "Your Honor, I am innocent!"

  "The common people gave up selling official salt, just to let the wealthy households of Jiaxing Prefecture donate money and grain for disaster relief."

  Moreover, in order to relieve the victims, the common people took out all the grain stored at home and even spent money to buy medicine to prevent the spread of plague.

  "It's unreasonable for a humble commoner like me to mix sand into the relief grain, I implore you, sir, to see reason!"

  Zhang Jun furrowed his brow and said, "What you say also makes some sense, but the relief grain was for the accident that happened at your Shen family's place. Even if it wasn't your doing, you can't escape being related to it!"

  "Zhao captain, as a human being, you should act with a clear conscience. Are you certain that the white rice you brought is undamaged?"

  "Captain Zhao replied, 'Director Shen, I guarantee with my own life and family that when we took the disaster relief grain, it was all inspected and confirmed to be good white rice. There are other yamen runners who can testify to this!'"

  "You..."

  Shen You pointed at Zhao Tou, his face turned red, and then with a "pu" sound, he spat out a mouthful of blood, his body swaying unsteadily.

  "What else can you say for yourself, Shen You?"

  Zhang Jun slapped the shock wood and shouted: "Don't you confess yet? Otherwise, you will suffer torture!"

  Shen You sat paralyzed on the ground, pointing at Zhang Jun, Wang An and Zhao Daotou, sighed: "Two mouths with official words, officials shielding each other, I have nothing to say!"

  "Slap"

  Zhang Jun slammed his gavel again and shouted, "Shen You, this official sees that you won't shed tears until you see a coffin. Since that's the case, this official will fulfill your wish!"

  Zhang Jun said, grabbing the token next to him and throwing it out: "Give this official thirty slaps first!"

  Upon receiving Zhang Jun's order, the yamen runners did not slack off and set up Shen You to press him to the ground.

  "Oh, great heavens! This is an injustice!"

  "Innocent!"

  Suddenly, a shout came from below, it was Shen You's mother Zou Shi and Shen You's wife Lin Mei'e as well as Yang Chengye's mother Wu Ruolan shouting in the hall.

  "Your Excellency, Shen Da is a good man, I beg Your Honor to show mercy!"

  "Yes, Your Excellency, we were lucky to have Mr. Shen brew medicinal soup for us and provide us with congee, which saved us from starving on the streets. Please, Your Excellency, take note of this!"

  At this time, the refugees who came to watch also begged for mercy and knelt down on the ground with a "hula" sound.

  "Hum, disturbing the court, add one more crime, beat him for this official!"

  Zhang Jun banged his gavel again and gave an order.

  After hearing Zhang Jun's order, the bailiffs had to raise their batons, although they also knew that Shen You was a good person, but they were on the government payroll and had to follow orders.

  "Slap"

  "Stop!"

  Just as the yamen runner's club was about to land on Shen You's buttocks, the club in the yamen runner's hand suddenly broke off and fell to the ground, accompanied by a loud shout.

  Everyone looked up and saw a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy walking into the courtyard with Fu Bo, which was also the public hall set by Zhang Jun.

  The person who came was Yang Chengye, and he happened to meet Fu Bo, who had come to find him, on his way back to the Shen family.

  Fu Bo told Yang Chengye about what had happened and then hurried back.

  "Who comes?"

  Zhang Jun stared at Yang Chengye and asked.

  Yang Chengye stepped onto the main hall and stood still, his expression calm as he said: "I am Yang Chengye, Shen You is my sworn brother, I am his adopted younger brother."

  Upon hearing this, Zhang Jun coldly said: "Even if you are Shen You's sworn brother, you cannot barge into the court, what crime should you be punished for?"

  Hahaha

  Yang Chengye burst out laughing: "I've never heard of a great philanthropist who donated all the grain in his household to relieve refugees, spent tens of thousands of taels of silver to buy medicine to treat the refugees' diseases, being detained by the government and subjected to severe punishment."

  "This......"

  Yang Chengye's words left Zhang Jun speechless and at a loss for how to respond.

  Yang Chengye!

  Seeing Zhang Jun's difficulty, Wang An suddenly shouted: "Even if Shen You spends money and grain to rescue the refugees, but mixes sand into the relief grain, this is not allowed by national law and should be severely punished!"