CHAPTER 395: CHAPTER 395: CAST ASIDE

Old Master Lu was terrified, staring at Old Man Xue, deeply puzzled in his heart. Who on earth was Xue Mingyu? How did he know about this rule of the Linglong Painting Boat?

Branding the servants on their back shoulders was a secret of the Linglong Painting Boat, something outsiders couldn’t possibly know.

Seeing the confusion of Old Master Lu, Old Man Xue decided to let him die understanding: "I have two names; the first was given by my parents and is Xue Mingyu; the other was given by Grandmaster Fu, calling me Fu Fusheng, and the Fu Family resides in Jinling Prefecture."

He went on: "The matter of the Linglong Painting Boat branding servants on their back shoulders was originally a secret. However, after something happened on the Linglong Painting Boat, it ceased to be a secret. You weren’t the only one who escaped that year. The government officers of the Prefecture Government Office once searched in Jinling City for half a month for runaway slaves branded on their back shoulders."

Upon hearing this, Steward Tian quickly addressed County Magistrate Xu, "Lord, let’s verify this in court."

County Magistrate Xu nodded and ordered pointing to Old Master Lu: "Come here, strip off Lu Xiangfu’s clothes, and see if there are scars on his back shoulders?"

"Yes." Luo Wu and Constable Yang stepped forward; one held Old Master Lu down while the other used his waist knife to slice open the clothes on Old Master Lu’s back; with a hiss, they tore off a piece of the clothing, revealing... a scar covering half of his back.

Upon seeing this, Constable Yang turned pale with fright, quickly releasing his hold on Old Master Lu and pointing at his back, he said: "L-Lord... there are many scars."

Seeing this, Luo Wu frowned, turned Old Master Lu around completely, allowing the County Magistrate to see Old Master Lu’s back.

County Magistrate Xu, Steward Tian, and County Captain Jiang all saw Old Master Lu’s back covered with scars, furrowing their brows in unison... This Lu Xiangfu is a ruthless man, he actually damaged half of his back to cover up the three characters branded on his back shoulder; without real ruthlessness, one couldn’t do such a thing.

County Magistrate Xu was furiously shaking, pointing at Old Master Lu and demanding: "Lu Xiangfu, what’s with the injuries on your back?"

Old Master Lu cried out: "Lord Old Master, please champion my cause, I am truly not a runaway slave from the Linglong Painting Boat, the injuries on my back were caused when I was out earning my living and crossed paths with bandits who tied up my hands and feet, dragging me behind a mule, if you don’t believe me, I can have someone examine the wounds on the spot."

There are forensic doctors in the government office, but now there was no need to call for an examination; no matter how much they inspected, the three branded characters on his back shoulders were gone, leaving only a large patch of scars.

County Magistrate Xu was so angry that his hands trembled, but after all, he was no fool. He slammed the gavel and said directly: "Lu Xiangfu, people have accused you of being a runaway slave, and they have also given evidence of branding on your back shoulders. Even though the branding on your back shoulders has now vanished, the scars covering half of your back are enough to suspect that you have destroyed evidence of your slavery. To ensure justice is served in this case, I am temporarily detaining you and your entire family until the Slave Registration Book from Jinling Prefecture arrives, then we will perform fingerprint and pattern comparison."

Old Master Lu was startled and hastily said, "Lord, you don’t have evidence to prove that I am a runaway slave; you cannot detain me!"

Slap!

"Presumptuous!" County Magistrate Xu slammed the gavel, saying furiously, "Now there are witnesses accusing you of being a runaway slave, with personal testimony present, only lacking physical evidence, I have the right to detain you. If you dare to prattle one more word, I will serve you with severe punishment!"

Old Master Lu’s heart chilled, but for the sake of his grandchildren, he had no choice but to continue pleading: "My lord, you may imprison me, but you cannot imprison my innocent children and grandchildren!"

"Phooey, innocent?" Village Chief He, kneeling not far away, couldn’t help bursting out upon hearing Old Master Lu’s repeated evasions. Pointing at him, he reproached: "Someone has accused you of being an escaped slave—escaped slave, do you understand what that means? Not only does an escaped slave deserve death, but their offspring and grandchildren must also be registered as slaves. Since they are your descendants, what’s wrong with them being detained with you?"

Village Chief He squinted at Old Master Lu, chuckling coldly: "Or is it that, you’re stalling for time, hoping they can take the Lu family’s wealth and flee?"

Village Chief He truly despised Old Master Lu and now, knowing that Old Master Lu might be an escaped slave, he would never let the Lu family turn the tide; he was determined to crush Old Master Lu’s family!

"My lord, Lu Zhudan is extremely cunning, please don’t let the other members of the Lu family go. If you release them now, they could escape Tianfu County before dawn. The Northwest is still not secure, with many disaster victims there. If they pose as victims and flee to the Northwest, they might just escape this calamity!"

Hearing this, County Magistrate Xu regarded Village Chief He with new respect, not finding the old man completely useless, as his words had exposed Old Master Lu’s scheme.

Clearing his throat seriously, County Magistrate Xu nodded in agreement: "Village Chief He is sensible. To prevent the descendants of Lu Xiangfu from absconding, I have decided to detain all members of the Lu family, including the children born to the Lu family’s females."

With that said, he looked towards County Magistrate Zou, whose face was pale with anger, and asked with a smile: "Lord Zou, you have no objections, do you? I am merely acting in accordance with the law."

According to the Great Chu Criminal Law, to prevent escaped slaves from fleeing again, their offspring can be temporarily detained until the evidence is conclusive, at which point a verdict can be pronounced.

County Magistrate Zou was so furious he was biting his lip until it bled... When he first received the news, he thought Old Master Lu might be innocent because Great Chu maintains strict household registration for its citizens. Even if you escape from your master, once you return to your hometown, others can track you down through the household registration provided at the time of selling oneself into service.

Escape would be futile.

Who knew, Old Master Lu acted as a ragged beggar without parents or a household registration and went directly to Linglong Painting Boat. Thus, even if Old Master Lu fled back to his hometown, Linglong Painting Boat would have no record of his residence, making it difficult to track him down.

Another point, the scar on Old Master Lu’s back... a scar covering half his back, did he think everyone else was a fool? At the moment Xue Mingyu revealed that Old Master Lu had markings on his shoulder, he produced a scar across half his back, which made it obvious to anyone that it was intentional!

County Magistrate Zou wanted to help Old Master Lu for Zou Yuzhen’s sake, but how could he help now?

Steward Shao was already speaking on the side: "Lord County Magistrate is the most impartial in handling the case. My Eastern Master will have no objection."

He continued, "Lord County Magistrate, my Eastern Master has been unwell recently and should not overexert himself. We will take our leave now."

The testimony, the attempt to escape by water, and the deliberately inflicted scar on his back had all proven Old Master Lu to be an escaped slave. Now that the Lord County Magistrate had dispatched people to Jinling Prefecture to fetch the Slave Registration Book, in just ten more days, once the book arrived, the Lu Family People would have to be enrolled as slaves. This was as good as settled; County Magistrate Zou could not save them. Better to leave quickly to avoid being implicated by the Lu family.

County Magistrate Xu smiled and said: "It is normal for Lord Zou to be unwell at an older age. You should return and rest early. Don’t worry about the matters of the county government office; there are many capable clerks here, all very competent, and they will surely handle the official business for Lord Zou properly."