Chapter 225 - The Verdict

After Ji Xin’s speech, Xu Ke announced the end of the trial. Then, Xu Ke gave a one-hour explanation of the key legal points. This explanation was drafted by the Law Society over several nights, aiming to be as easy to understand as possible. It explained the details of the case and the applicable legal articles. For the Arbitration Tribunal, which was trying a case using a modern judicial system for the first time, it was very necessary to explain the case and the trial process.

Unexpectedly, everyone did not find the explanation process boring, but rather listened with great interest. After the trial procedure just now, many people wanted to understand why the Australians did things this way, and Xu Ke’s explanation happened to satisfy their curiosity. Although most people only half-understood, they gained a preliminary understanding of the modern judicial system.

After the entire explanation was finished, the clerk announced for everyone to rise:

“The verdict will now be announced!”

Xu Ke stood up and struck the gavel:

“The defendant is found guilty of ‘undermining a military marriage’!”

A sigh and a murmur of discussion rose from the public gallery.

“In the name of the Council of Elders and the people: the defendant is sentenced to seven years of hard labor and one year of supervision!” Xu Ke announced.

The so-called supervision meant that after release, the person had to wear a special mark on their clothing to be constantly monitored. This not only imposed many restrictions but was also a very humiliating mark.

A huge wave of discussion immediately erupted in the public gallery—the severity of the sentence surprised everyone. In the judicial practice of the Ming Dynasty, sentences of imprisonment were rare. And for cases involving adultery, the usual practice was to give the adulterer a few dozen strokes of the cane, and then, in the name of “rectifying public morals,” give the adulteress a few dozen strokes as well. If there was a public display in the cangue, it would be a much-welcomed spectacle. No one expected the Australians to hand down such a heavy sentence for “undermining a military marriage.”

Everyone knew what the Australians’ so-called “hard labor” meant. It meant falling into the hands of Fu Youdi. That ghost place was feared throughout Lin’gao. Everyone suspected that the unlucky “adulterer” would have no chance of coming back alive from the labor camp.

That messing with a soldier’s wife would lead to such a fate was a surprise to everyone. The Australians’ way of thinking was truly different. In the 17th century, the profession of a soldier, whether in China or abroad, was considered a job for “scum.” No one thought it was a big deal if a soldier’s wife was cuckolded.

With another strike of Xu Ke’s gavel, the first trial conducted according to the newly compiled procedural law came to an end. Everyone rose, and the judge was the first to leave. The crowd then slowly dispersed under the guidance of the police. In the emptying public gallery, two people remained seated. They only stood up when the gallery was almost empty, leaving only a mess of benches. The man in the lead was dressed in luxurious clothes, clearly a person of status from the Ming Dynasty. He was accompanied by a young man. The two walked slowly towards the door. The young man occasionally moved the long benches that were still left in the aisle.

When they reached the door, several men in short jackets immediately came forward to greet them and escorted them to a waiting carriage.

Li Luoyou closed his eyes and rested for a moment. Gu Baocheng opened the beverage box in the carriage, took out a small thermos, poured him a cup of tea, and handed it to him.

Li Luoyou took a sip. The tea was high-quality Wuyi Mountain tea from Fujian. He hadn’t been here for a few months, and the Australians’ enjoyment had become even more refined. In the past, when he came, there was only hot water, and the tea was of poor quality.

The carriage shuddered slightly and started to move slowly. The Mongolian horses were not strong or fast, but they were good at walking. The roads in Lin’gao were smooth, and the carriage moved steadily. After drinking two cups of tea, Li Luoyou calmed his breath a little. Sitting on the hard wooden backrest for over an hour was quite tiring, not to mention the crowded room. If the weather hadn’t been cool and the ventilation good, he probably wouldn’t have been able to sit through it.

It was Gu Baocheng’s suggestion to come to East Gate Market to watch the trial. This case, sparked by a love affair, had become a hot topic on the streets of Lin’gao under the vigorous promotion of the Propaganda Department, and naturally, it had also reached the Qionghai, Li Luoyou’s residence in Lin’gao. Li Luoyou had been very interested in Lin’gao’s justice system last time. This time, hearing that a case was to be tried publicly according to the “Law of Ao-Song,” his interest was piqued. He asked Gu Baocheng to collect all the relevant newspaper materials for him to read.

Li Luoyou, tasked with rescuing the remnants of He Rubin’s forces, had been in Lin’gao for more than ten days since arriving from Macau. Because the Council of Elders needed to hold a meeting to discuss how to deal with the remnants of the Ming army trapped in Qiongshan, Li Luoyou could only wait in boredom at the Qionghai. Sometimes, Liu San or some other Elders he knew would come to chat with him, but most of the time, he could only pass the time by reading the newspapers and books from Lin’gao that Gu Baocheng had collected.

Gu Baocheng had been in Lin’gao for some time and had come to understand the Australians’ way of thinking to some extent. They would explicitly or implicitly reveal many things in their newspapers. Reading the Lin’gao Times and the various books printed locally was the best window to understand their thoughts.

Li Luoyou was very interested in his nephew’s views—of course, this was not some profound insight, just as he regularly read the court gazettes. The court gazettes also revealed many trends in the court.

But the content of the Lin’gao Times was much broader and the format much more lively. Many of the forms were new to him, such as this case of undermining a military marriage. The newspaper not only reported on the cause and effect of the case but also provided a so-called “background introduction” to the “Law of Ao-Song,” especially the concept and practice of “undermining a military marriage,” with long articles. Li Luoyou carefully read the articles in the newspaper and soon understood that the Australians were going to implement the “Law of Ao-Song” in Lin’gao. He was shocked.

Implementing a new law was an important feature of a new dynasty. The public discussion of the Law of Ao-Song in the newspaper was a clear sign that they were preparing to raise their flag and establish their own territory. Li Luoyou felt a wave of loneliness—it seemed that this prefecture of Qiongzhou would soon no longer belong to the Great Ming! Strangely, he was very calm about this reality, completely different from the grief and indignation he had felt when he heard of the fall of Shenyang. At the very least, these people still called themselves descendants of Huaxia and did not treat the common people like slaves or dogs. They had done many things to benefit the local people. The lives of the common people under the rule of the Ao-Song people were much better than under the rule of the Jianzhou Jurchens—even better than under the Great Ming. The Great Ming was also not merciful to its people. The officials only cared about their own glory and wealth and were indifferent to the lives of the people and the territory of the country.

Now, the officials who ruled the people of the Great Ming had sent him here to reach an agreement that would cover up the disastrous defeat they had suffered after rashly provoking a war. Whenever Li Luoyou thought of this, he felt despair for this dynasty. He had heard that the emperor was a diligent man who hoped to revive the Great Ming, but with such a group of people as officials, even if the founding emperor were to be resurrected, he would probably be helpless.

Seeing his great interest in this case, Gu Baocheng suggested that he go and listen to the trial. Li Luoyou had long been very interested in the Australians’ judicial system. During his last visit to East Gate Market, he had noticed that their judicial system and laws had similarities to those of the Europeans. But his stay was short at that time, and he didn’t have a chance to see a trial. Now that there was such an important case, he could not miss this opportunity under any circumstances.

Li Luoyou’s request to watch the trial was, of course, a special case. He played a crucial role in the next phase of the Planning and Development Commission’s plan. Under the instructions of the General Office, Ma Jia immediately took two tickets from the “reserved tickets” and gave them to them.

The entire trial process was both surprising and reasonable to him. He realized that his previous thoughts were correct: the Australians’ legal system was deeply influenced by the European legal system, including the form of interrogation. However, they had also made innovations on the European system. For example, this “undermining a military marriage” was something he had never heard of before. He felt that even European laws would not have such a strange article.

“The Australians are trying to win the hearts of the soldiers. I’m afraid their ambitions are not small,” Gu Baocheng said in a low voice in the carriage.

“If he can’t win the hearts of the people, how can he defeat He Zhen’s entire army? Is it just because of their sharp firearms?” Li Luoyou said. “In terms of sharp firearms, the firearms of the Guanning army and the capital garrison are not unsharp, but they are still beaten by the Jianzhou Jurchens to the point where they dare not step out of the city gates, hiding inside and watching them kill and burn!”

Gu Baocheng knew that his uncle was talking about the Jianzhou Jurchens’ invasion. The news from the north was very bad. The Jianzhou Jurchens had killed and plundered dozens of prefectures and counties, looted countless treasures, and captured more than a hundred thousand people.

In Gu Baocheng’s view, besides their sharp firearms and winning the hearts of the people, the Australians were superior to the government in many other aspects. But he did not dare to argue, only agreeing, “Uncle is right.”

The carriage arrived at the entrance of the Qionghai. The business occupied a large area, but the building itself was not large, and the storefront was not prominent. Unlike other merchants who tried to make their storefronts as magnificent as possible, the Qionghai’s storefront was very simple, with a three-bay facade. Both the decoration and the style were that of a traditional old business.

The Qionghai did some retail business at the storefront, selling various local products from the mainland. This was not its main business. Its main business was large-scale trade. The Qionghai transported various bulk goods needed by the Australians from the mainland, especially goods from Liaodong and the northern border, particularly various kinds of hides. Horsehide, deerskin, and sheepskin were all urgently needed equipment materials for the Lin’gao industrial system. In addition, it also transported various industrial raw materials such as raw lacquer, tung oil, and silk, which were abundant in Guangdong and other places.