I'm really not doing business

Chapter 666 Who is the devil?
"No, no, Your Majesty, there is no difficulty." He Liu was a little panicked, and then immediately waved his hands, with some guilt in his panic.

Zhu Yijun looked at He Liu's wife next to him. Beside He Liu stood a son and a daughter. According to Zhao Mengyou's investigation, after He Liu returned from Suiyuan injured, the children in the family changed their surname to He. In other words, He Liu was no longer a son-in-law, but the pillar of the family.

He Liu received full compensation. The blue brick and tile house where the emperor lived had its origins in the blue brick and tile house. Because the wood ordered was not delivered on time, He Liu paid a large sum of money as compensation, but he was still able to live. In other words, if He Liu had not been injured by the flogging, he could still support the family even if he was physically disabled.

And all of this was ruined by the young lady from the Zhang family in Hejian.

The three whips hit He Liu's back and the emperor's face. The three bloody whips not only hit the emperor's face, but also pierced the hearts of the soldiers who were "reporting to the emperor and saving the people."

This matter cannot be left uninvestigated as He Liu wanted, it must be investigated thoroughly! He Liu did not want to cause trouble, but Zhu Yijun insisted on investigating.

The reason why He Liu did not report to the police was simply out of inertia. He thought it was just a minor injury and not a big deal, he could just hold on and it would go away. The Zhang family in Hejian was a wealthy and powerful family and they should not be messed with. It was just He Liu's own bad luck.

In fact, in He Liu's own opinion, the whole thing was that a poor coolie with a disabled body had caused trouble outside, and the hemp rope would break at the thinnest point. If he reported it to the authorities, he would be in even more trouble.

"Don't worry." Zhu Yijun said with a smile: "Just rest assured and recuperate. I will take care of this matter."

Zhu Yijun stood up and went to the provincial government office. Zhao Mengyou had already brought all the prisoners to the provincial government office.

The Tianjin Prefecture Government Office was extremely quiet, with everyone kneeling in silence.

"Prefect Zhang, if anything happens to He Liu's family, I want you to be buried with him." Zhu Yijun showed another side of him, the side where he killed Chen Youren with his own hands. The country and the revival of the Ming Dynasty were indeed shackles and golden hoops, but this golden hoop could not stop Zhu Yijun's actions at all.

Zhu Yijun could certainly clean up the Hejian Zhang family, or even uproot the entire Zhang family, but what would happen next? There was a tacit understanding among the carnivores that He Liu would inevitably be retaliated against. At this time, someone was needed to protect He Liu, and Zhang Youxin was a good fit.

The investigation is nearing its end, and there is really no connection between Zhang Youxin, the prefect of Hejian, and Zhang Youxin has no idea what happened. This is indeed an unexpected disaster. As an official, Zhang Youxin managed everything inside and outside the province in an orderly manner. The emperor saw the development of Tianjin Prefecture, and he made careful preparations and did his best to receive the emperor during his southern tour.

As a result, this kind of thing happened.

"I thank the emperor for his grace." Zhang Youxin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He knew that he had gotten away with it.

"Your Majesty, I have investigated some new information. Please allow me to report it." Zhao Mengyou walked into the hall with the gait of a dragon and a tiger, carrying an embroidered spring sword, and said with full energy.

"speak."

Zhao Mengyou glanced at the current head of the Zhang family, Zhang Pingshan, who was the criminal in the middle of the case, and sighed before saying with full energy, "The old man of the Zhang family died in the first month of the year. He died at the hands of his eldest son, not from a sudden illness."

When the criminal heard this, he immediately raised his head and looked at Zhao Mengyou in horror, his face full of fear and anxiety.

As soon as this statement came out, there was an uproar.

The Zhang family of Hejian has a very early origin. In the early Western Zhou Dynasty, Duke Yu came to Hejian Prefecture and began to multiply and establish the State of Zhang. Gradually they became nobles and were respected in Hejian. From then on, they became the name of the county. Dynasties changed, but the Zhang family continued to exist. This is truly a thousand-year-old family.

"Son killed father?" Zhu Yijun's brows were twisted into knots. He frowned and said, "Is there any solid evidence?"

"All the evidence, including witnesses, physical evidence and documents, is here." Zhao Mengyou said with his head down. With all three pieces of evidence, it was as solid as a mountain. Zhao Mengyou certainly didn't dare to deceive the emperor. When Zhao Mengyou investigated the case, his jaw almost dropped.

"Tell me in detail." Zhu Yijun knocked on the table, signaling everyone to be quiet and let Zhao Mengyou speak in person.

The matter is very simple. These aristocratic families that have lasted for thousands of years have extremely strict family education. To have survived for so long, they naturally have their own family rules, and these rules are very strict. Zhang Pingshan, who grew up under these family rules, is the carefully cultivated heir to the family. On the surface, Zhang Pingshan is well-educated, polite, and gentle, a well-known virtuous man. Although he failed to pass the imperial examinations, he also did good deeds and built bridges and roads everywhere.

As Zhang Pingshan grew up, Grandpa Zhang handed over all the household affairs to Zhang Pingshan and only kept the financial power.

To outsiders, this was a very harmonious family with a loving father, filial sons, friendly brothers and respectful younger brothers. In addition, the wind of opening up the sea blew to Tianjin, and the Zhang family's business grew bigger and bigger. They became extremely wealthy, and everything was full of vitality and prosperity.

Old Master Zhang was sixty-three years old. He passed away in the first month of the thirteenth year of the Wanli reign. Zhang Pingshan made a grand arrangement for the funeral, cried heartbreakingly, and vowed to observe mourning for three years.

But after careful investigation, Zhao Mengyou confirmed that Mr. Zhang was killed by his own son. There were seven witnesses in total, all of whom were family members, servants, and slaves of the Zhang family. The evidence was the murder weapon and the blood-stained clothes. The written evidence was the silver notes given by Zhang Pingshan. In order to shut up those who knew the truth, Zhang Pingshan spent a lot of silver.

As witnesses and evidence continued to appear, Zhang Pingshan collapsed to the ground. He knew that he was finished. He was completely finished, to the point where he would not even be included in the family tree after his death.

The Zhang family is not his, Zhang Pingshan's, Zhang family. It has been passed down for thousands of years and has a large fortune. There is solid evidence that Zhang Pingshan has committed murder, and it is a son killing his father, which is even more heinous.

Now that Zhang Pingshan is dead, it's over for their whole family.

Not counting the side branches, just talking about the main family, Zhang Pingshan has three uncles, and none of these three uncles is easy to deal with.

"Is there any fundamental contradiction? Mr. Zhang holds the financial power, and Zhang Pingshan is becoming more and more dissatisfied and resentful?" Zhu Yijun said solemnly. He had planned to ask Zhang Pingshan directly, but Zhang Pingshan was shaking like a sieve and even his teeth were chattering after the biggest secret in his heart and the worst case were exposed.

Zhao Mengyou shook his head and said, "No, Mr. Zhang said he controlled the financial power, but in fact, it was just for show. Zhang Pingshan was in charge of all the family affairs, and there was no conflict. At the time of the crime, it was Zhang Pingshan who was taking opium and was caught by Mr. Zhang. Zhang Pingshan had just finished taking opium and was scolded. Maybe he was so angry that he killed someone."

The occurrence of this case was extremely strange. After Zhao Mengyou investigated it, he still couldn't understand Zhang Pingshan's motive for committing the crime.

Zhang Pingshan has been scolded since he was a child. The family rules are strict and he has long been accustomed to being scolded. In this era when beatings can produce filial sons, it can be said that Zhang Pingshan has been beaten since he was a child. It is common for him to not be able to eat and kneel in the ancestral hall. Not to mention Zhang Pingshan, even Emperor Wanli was dragged to the Taimiao by Empress Dowager Li to cry and admit his mistakes.

Therefore, Zhao Mengyou characterized it as a crime of passion killing, as opium amplified his emotions and caused him to lose his rationality.

"It's not like that, it's not like that. I didn't know that was my father. I... I couldn't tell who was who at the time. I just thought he was noisy, so I pushed him hard, then picked up a copper lamp on the left and smashed it. He kept shouting, and I kept smashing it. I didn't know anything at all. I didn't know anything at the time..." Zhang Pingshan shouted loudly, with tears and snot coming out. Afterwards, he realized what he had done.

Zhu Yijun couldn't tell whether what Zhang Pingshan said was true or false, because he was completely averse to opium and had never touched it.

"Chief Physician." Zhu Yijun looked at Pang Xian.

"Your Majesty, the Institute of Public Health believes that in addition to being analgesic and addictive, opium is also hallucinogenic. They are all poisons. Wormwood, ayahuasca, Yunnan mushrooms, and opium all have certain hallucinogenic properties. If you take opium for a long time, you may experience various hallucinations, and it is really hard to tell them apart. Judging from the oral statements of the specimens in the Institute of Public Health, opium is very hallucinogenic." Pang Xian briefly explained the characteristics of opioids.

"Master believes that after taking opium, people will find it difficult to control their behavior, and a false will will appear, replacing the person. This false will will gradually strengthen as they continue to take opium, and eventually replace the person. The user's delusion is that the person will harm him. Once this belief appears, it will gradually strengthen. In order to avoid being killed, the user will take the initiative and eventually hurt the person."

"Master said that taking opium will definitely create a demon in your heart."

"In short, it's not surprising that opioid addicts do anything."

Pang Xian analyzed the whole incident from the perspective of Jie Ku Yuan's research on opium. For a long time, Zhang Pingshan's strict father was identified by the inner demon as the person who wanted to kill him, and finally he took the initiative.

The addiction and psychological obsession of opium is the understanding of opium by the Jiekuyuan during the Wanli period. The theory is very sufficient and is supported by detailed data.

"Huh." Zhu Yijun understood what Pang Xian was saying. He looked at Zhang Pingshan and exhaled a breath of foul air. This man had been addicted to poisons such as opium. He was really neither human nor ghost.

"Speaking of which, Zhang Pingshan's addiction to opium can be traced back to his concubine, the one who ordered the servants to beat He Danghun three times with a whip." Zhao Mengyou continued to report the results of the investigation.

Zhang Pingshan is the heir educated by a traditional aristocratic family. He has been under extremely strict discipline since childhood. After taking over the family business, he also started socializing and inevitably went to such romantic places. Zhang Pingshan, who was bound by the rules, could not stop after entering such romantic places. He was rich and powerful, so those brothel girls naturally used all means to please him.

After a few visits, Zhang Pingshan got to know Zhang. Zhang's nickname was Yingying, and her real name was Cuixi. She was the most beautiful girl in the Changfu troupe.

The world of fireworks is full of drunkenness and dreams, and it is a natural match with opium. In fact, most of the spread of opium in the Ming Dynasty took place in the world of fireworks, and Zhang Pingshan and Zhang Yingying were living a life of drunkenness and dreams, and he even brought Zhang Yingying back home.

Zhang Yingying was born a prostitute in the world of fireworks. Once she gained power, she naturally became arrogant and unscrupulous. With the connivance of Zhang Pingshan, Zhang Yingying became even more unscrupulous. He Danghun was just an individual case. Zhang Yingying was a villain who had gained power. She would hurt people over twenty times if she disagreed with someone.

He Liu did not die but was beaten three times. Zhu Yijun was determined to seek justice for He Liu, but the responsibility he could hold was limited. At most, he could hold Zhang Pingshan accountable, and he could not kill Zhang Pingshan. Zhu Yijun originally planned to use his power to be willful for once and hang Zhang Pingshan's head over the Haihe River on the charge of committing evil and condoning servants to oppress the good people.

As a result, Zhang Pingshan killed his own father, and now Zhu Yijun no longer had to act on his own will.

"Zhang Pingshan not only smoked opium himself, but also set up a private market forty miles north of Tianjin Port to transport and sell opium." Zhao Mengyou reported another fact that he had found out: Zhang operated a small wharf and transported and sold opium for profit.

The four charges of son killing father, trafficking opium, and setting up a private market are all capital crimes, especially setting up a private market for trafficking, which is a third-level crime, starting with the death penalty and up to the extermination of the entire family.

Zhu Yijun said solemnly, "No one doubted that Fan Yingqi would rise to the top, because he was the top scholar in the 44th year of Jiajing, a direct disciple of the Jin Party, and the successor of Ge Shouli. He took opium because of toothache. Now, I have let him go, but he won't let himself go and hides in the Li Kui Courtyard, fearing that he can't control his addiction."

"I, the emperor, am worth a ton of gold. I saw Fan Yingqi's painful lesson and would rather take a small risk to knock out his wisdom tooth. But the accident happened quietly. Even though I almost lost my life afterwards, I still have no regrets. If I were to choose again today, I would make the same choice even though I know the danger."

"I have warned you several times about the dangers of opium, but it seems that not enough has been done."

"Write down the entire case of Zhang Pingshan in detail in an issue of the court gazette so that all people will know the harm it causes." "I obey your order." Wan Shihe accepted the order. He was the editor-in-chief of the court gazette and was in charge of the court gazette. This issue was not a front-page headline, but a special edition and article introducing the harm of opium.

There is no need to continue interrogating Zhang Pingshan. This guy has already started to become addicted to drugs. If it weren't for the Tiqi holding him back, he would have started to show his fangs and claws long ago.

"The concubine will be taken outside the yamen, and after being severely whipped thirty times, she will be sentenced to death together with Zhang Pingshan." Zhu Yijun read out his verdict after looking through the files. He looked at Wang Chonggu and asked, "Grand Minister of Justice, do you have any different opinions?"

“Why don’t you just beat this evildoer to death?” Wang Chonggu looked at Zhang Yingying, who was kneeling on the ground and having a seizure, and said, “Your Majesty, this person is not a human being anymore. Just beat him to death.”

Wang Chonggu believed that the revision of the Ming Dynasty law regarding opium completely expelled traffickers and users from the human race, making them even lower than barbarians. Since they were not human beings, couldn't they be dealt with at will? Was there any need to ask the Ministry of Justice for its opinion? The Ministry of Justice's opinion was that they could just be beaten to death.

Zhu Yijun shook his head and said, "The country has its own laws."

"I obey your command." Wang Chonggu reserved his opinion of beating the evildoer to death directly. Sometimes, Your Majesty is too kind-hearted. It's death anyway. Your Majesty really wants to beat the evildoer to death directly, but for the sake of the strict national law, he still chooses to punish him according to the national law.

Zhu Yijun looked at Zhao Mengyou and his tone became cold. He said sternly: "General Ti, listen to my order. From now on, we will strictly investigate the Zhang family's private market for trafficking opium. We will investigate it thoroughly and execute anyone involved in the case immediately without pardon!"

"I obey your order!" Zhao Mengyou bowed his head and accepted the order.

Zhao Mengyou arrested more than 700 people on his first day in Tianjin Prefecture. They were all drug dealers and a link in the profit chain. This was only the first day. When His Majesty continued his southern tour, Zhao Mengyou left behind a thousand-householder chief of justice and two hundred imperial guards to continue handling the matter.

"Feng Daban, why do I feel like I'm being used?" After Zhu Yijun returned to Yanzheng Tower and drank a sip of water, he was suddenly stunned and said to Feng Bao.

"Why do you say that, Your Majesty?" Feng Bao asked with a puzzled look on his face.

"Feng Daban, do you remember that when Lin Fucheng went to Baoding Prefecture, the local officials of Baoding used Lin Fucheng, a fifth-rank doctor of the Five Classics, to treat pus-filled ulcers?" Zhu Yijun said uncertainly.

"I remember that the Travel Notes of Baoding Prefecture was Lin Fucheng's famous work at that time. Although Lin Fucheng had been used all the time, he could probably guess something, but he was willing to do so. Later, when they arrived at the grassland, Madam Zhongshun also took advantage of Lin Fucheng and his group." Feng Bao said hurriedly.

"I am just like Lin Fucheng, being used by this guy Zhang Youxin! I won't believe that my sister-in-law could get in front of the emperor if it wasn't arranged by Zhang Youxin!" Zhu Yijun slammed the table, he was fooled by the local officials!

Zhang Youxin kowtowed the whole time and seemed respectful, but Zhu Yijun finally came to his senses when he returned to Yanzheng Tower!
"That seems to be the case..." Feng Bao also discovered the suspicious point in a trance!

You know, the emperor's itinerary is publicized, but the specific places he inspected are not posted. How did He Danghun's wife know when the emperor passed by? And how did she kneel down in front of the guard of honor? He Liu's wife was obviously instructed by someone.

"Your Majesty, Marshal Ti's speed in investigating the case is so fast that the evidence seemed to appear on its own." Feng Bao confirmed His Majesty's guess that it was this guy Zhang Youxin, the prefect of Hejian Prefecture.

The most outrageous thing is the investigation of the Tiqi. The Tiqi is not a god who is good at investigating cases, nor is he able to predict everything. How can he investigate all these things so clearly in one day? The evidence is like it was delivered to the Tiqi!
"The case is not fake, Zhang Youxin, ah Zhang Youxin, this guy is very cunning!" Zhu Yijun smiled and didn't bother with Zhang Youxin. Wasn't he the emperor to lend power to these officials? As long as it was for the collective interests of the Ming Dynasty, it didn't matter if he was used.

The private market really exists. Zhang Pingshan and his concubine Zhang Yingying became addicted to drugs in court. A huge opium industry chain also exists. Since it is beneficial to the collective interests of the Ming Dynasty, it will not be pursued.

Of course, Zhang Youxin did this mostly for his official hat and for advancement.

If you really think about this problem from Zhang Youxin's perspective, the Hejian Zhang family is an absolute behemoth, and Zhang Youxin can't deal with it, but he wants to do it. If he reports it directly to the court, he can't uproot it completely, and he might get into trouble. Taking advantage of the emperor's transit, uprooting it completely! It became Zhang Youxin's best choice.

Zhu Yijun's southern tour continued, and a major drug trafficking case in Tianjin Prefecture resulted in the bringing of more than 700 prisoners to Beijing. Zhu Yiliu, the governor of the Northern Yamen, was horrified.

Zhu Yiliu looked at the newspaper in his hand and said in astonishment, "No, I spent so much effort to catch forty-six death row prisoners, and my brother just went out and caught seven hundred and thirty-two people and brought them back to the capital?!"

Who is the devil in the world?

Zhu Yiliu captured quite a few people, but most of them were tortured. Only forty-six were actually beheaded. There was one who got rid of suspicion because he was just an opinionated person and was sent from the death row to an ordinary cell.

Li Yougong had a calm face. When His Majesty was making a big fuss in the capital and was executing the entire clan, Zhu Yiliu, the little devil, was still following His Majesty's ass, happily playing with urine and mud.

"Your Majesty has a letter." Li Yougong once again presented a letter from His Majesty on his southern tour.

Zhu Yiliu opened it and stood up suddenly. There were only four words on it. That's it? That's it?
These four words are extremely humiliating, because in comparison, the noise Zhu Yiliu made was really too small.

"How is the construction of the public trial hall in the Meridian Gate going? Once it's built, we will prepare for the public trial. We can't let my brother always think that I'm just a child playing tricks!" Zhu Yiliu was trying to save face. His Majesty only wrote two letters and two words when he came to Beijing. That's all?

"It will be completed tomorrow." Li Yougong said respectfully, "Your Highness, do you want to preside over it yourself, or let Junior Minister of Justice Lu Guangzu preside over it?"

"I can't judge the case, so let Lu Guangzu interrogate it. But I have to go there in person. I am also a part of the Ming Dynasty, and of course a part of the public!" Zhu Yiliu did not understand the provisions of the Ming Dynasty laws, and he could not do this job, but he also had to participate and be responsible for the fairness of the final review and judgment.

"If those who deserve to die don't die, I will let them die together!" Zhu Yiliu thought this was a kind of fairness, fairness for the evil.

"I obey your command." Li Yougong bowed his head and accepted the order, accompanying Zhu Yiliu to review memorials.

What’s interesting is that those memorials asking His Majesty to return had already reached Zhu Yiliu’s hands, and he stamped a seal of “I know” on all of them without pursuing the matter any further. Zhu Yiliu actually had a very simple personality. He would not care what the censors said as long as what they said was true.

The memorials from these ministers stated that everything Zhu Yiliu did in the capital was true, so Zhu Yiliu did not take it to heart.

"Interesting." Zhu Yiliu suddenly picked up a memorial, took out the seal of 'Sent to His Majesty for His Majesty's Perusal on the Southern Tour', and stamped it on it.

The memorial came from Xu Wei of the Nagasaki Governor-General's Office. Xu Wei once again reported the news that Oda Nobunaga had been assassinated. Unlike the last time when he was stabbed by a palace maid, this assassination was an explosion that overturned Oda Nobunaga's carriage. Oda Nobunaga was blown to pieces, but because the carriage was specially made and the gunpowder was not powerful enough, Oda Nobunaga escaped again.

The assassination of Oda Nobunaga was not a big deal. He was assassinated every day, and people would open a bet to bet on when Oda Nobunaga, the regent, would be killed.

Zhu Yiliu said it was interesting because something happened in Japan, where opium was rampant.

"Opium is rampant in Japan. According to the investigation conducted by the Nagasaki Gyodosu and the Osaka Bay Guards, in the 237th year of the Wanli reign, more than 237 boxes and bags of opium were seized, with a total weight of more than million kilograms, which is enough for million people to smoke for a year. There are only more than million people in Japan in total." Zhu Yiliu looked at the memorial and said in amazement.

This is not to say that the amount of opium flowing into Japan was as much as 237 million kilograms. Japan did not have such a strong consumption capacity. A large part of it was in transit. The sailing ships of the red-haired foreigners that docked in Osaka Bay and followed the ocean currents to the New World would also be confiscated. More than half of the 237 million kilograms were in transit and were discovered by the coastal defense inspectors of Osaka Bay. According to the iron law of the Emperor of the Ming Dynasty, those found to be pirates would be directly beheaded and displayed to the public.

Zhu Yiliu looked at the memorial and said to Li Yougong, "The actual amount of opium destined for Japan is only 370,000 kilograms, but this means that there are nearly 370,000 people in Japan who use opium. Tsk tsk, the Ming Dynasty's special search department in Kyoto, Japan, is also conducting a search. The opium is flowing into Japan, not into the Ming Dynasty."

"Your Highness, if law enforcement is not strict, it is better not to do anything. Drug control is a war that will not end until one is dead." Li Yougong explained that this was not to protect Japan, but to prevent opium from flowing into the Ming Dynasty.

Zhu Yiliu smiled and said, "I know, I know. It's just that these Japanese pirates got the upper hand. The Ming coastal defense inspectors went to great lengths to search and confiscate the property, but in the end, the Japanese benefited."

The bastard is not stupid. Zhu Yiliu is well aware of the importance of banning smoking. He has seen the monsters and demons in Jiekuyuan with his own eyes.

Drug control is a war that will never end.

The next morning, the sun was shining brightly. The governor of the Northern Court of the Ming Dynasty, Prince Lu, rushed to the open-air execution hall outside the Meridian Gate in the morning sun. The weather was fine, and the public trial could be held smoothly as scheduled.

Zhu Yiliu was not sitting in the middle. The person sitting in the middle was Zhu Zaiyu, the Prince of De, the Regent of Ming Dynasty. This elusive Prince of De, the Regent of Ming Dynasty, showed up in public mainly for a case, which was about stealing important confidential cases of the Royal Academy of Gewu.

"Imperial uncle." Zhu Yiliu greeted him. If it weren't for the case of stealing confidential information, this imperial uncle would never leave the Royal Academy of Sciences.

"The theft was shocking, so I had to come out and take a look. After the case was resolved, I went back." Zhu Zaiyu was actually not used to being in public places with so many people. There weren't so many people in the Prince Zheng's Mansion before. He felt a little uneasy, but he didn't show it so obviously.

"Uncle, rest assured. The first case is to not delay your time." Zhu Yiliu said to Lu Guangzu, "Hurry up. The new 48-horsepower iron horse needs to be tested today. Your uncle is short of time. Don't delay your time."

Zhu Yiliu learned from his royal brother that the power that was enough to change the world was the common people, but the specific explanation was extremely complicated, and the power of production was an important part of it.

Zhu Zaiyu has a big project to inspect today, the test run of a 48-horsepower steam engine, which involves productivity.

"Bring the prisoners!" Lu Guangzu led all the prisoners from Lianyun Bookstore to the Wumen Grand Execution Hall. Lianyun Bookstore was the bookstore that was bombed several times by Zhu Yiliu.

"There are thirteen criminals. They bribed the doctor of the Five Classics, secretly colluded with the Japanese, and secretly took water and fertilizer for research. According to the law, they should be executed immediately." Lu Guangzu read out the cause of action, and then sent a yamen runner to begin explaining the case.

The whole case was clear and conclusive, with solid evidence, and all the personal and material evidence, as well as the confessions with fingerprints, were displayed to the onlookers.

"Are you willing to plead guilty?" Lu Guangzu looked at the prisoner kneeling on the ground and asked sternly.

The public trial has begun.

(End of this chapter)