Chapter 1888: Guo Zheng's Hidden Card

Chapter 1888: Guo Zheng's Hidden Card

Qi Lie looked at the papers in his hand, a bit puzzled, and raised his head to ask, "These are..."

"Sir, Chen Bing claimed that Zhou Tiedong embezzled Chen's ancestral treasure, a jade pot worth three hundred taels. This accusation led to Zhou Tiedong's imprisonment. Furthermore, the Zhou family was ordered to compensate with money, and Zhou Tiedong was sentenced to three years in prison."

Qi Lie nodded, acknowledging that he was aware of these details. During the confrontation between Chen Bing and Zhou Tiedong earlier, these matters had been discussed.

Guo Zheng continued, "However, the Chen family never possessed such an ancestral treasure. The so-called jade pot was purchased during my second year as the accountant. While its price wasn't low, it was far from being worth three hundred taels. In fact, it was seventy taels of silver. The evidence you hold in your hands is the original receipt from the purchase of the jade pot. It describes the appearance, material, price, and unique characteristics of the pot in detail."

"At the time of the purchase, Chen Bing was quite fond of the jade pot, but seventy taels wasn't a small sum for the Chen family. Madame Chen wouldn't have agreed to buy an overpriced, useless jade pot. To keep it a secret from her, Chen Bing asked me to inspect the authenticity privately. Once we purchased the jade pot, I kept this receipt in the accounting room temporarily until an appropriate explanation was found for Madame Chen. Chen Bing also instructed me to maintain balanced accounts to prevent Madame Chen from noticing anything unusual."

Outside the door, Pan Shi widened her eyes, disbelief written all over her face, as she stared at Chen Bing.

"However, two years later, Chen Bing's younger daughter, Chen Qiu, took a liking to the jade pot and accidentally broke it. Chen Bing was heartbroken, and Madame Chen, unaware of the actual value of the pot, thought it was a counterfeit. When Chen Bing lost his temper and had a quarrel with Madame Chen, she was furious."

"The jade pot was broken beyond repair, rendering the original purchase receipt useless. Chen Bing instructed me to burn the receipt, as I had worked as the accountant at the Chen household for four years by then. However, I had seen through Chen Bing's true nature beyond his superficial appearance. I sensed that he wasn't as kind as he appeared, so I secretly kept a copy of the receipt."

Guo Zheng had intended to leave himself a way out, wary that Chen Bing might use this against him.

While Chen Bing did criticize him before he was let go, he didn't use the jade pot as an excuse. The accusations from Constable Li alone were enough to torment Guo Zheng.

Guo Zheng was older and more experienced than Zhou Tiedong, knowing not to retaliate once he realized that Constable Li and Chen Bing were in cahoots. Even if he possessed evidence against Chen Bing, he wouldn't easily reveal it.

Unexpectedly, after several years, this jade pot had finally become instrumental in exposing Zhou Tiedong's innocence.

Guo Zheng took a deep breath. "Sir, that's the sequence of events. The jade pot that Chen Bing accused Zhou Tiedong of embezzling had actually been broken long ago. The evidence I've presented includes not only the receipt for the original purchase of the jade pot but also a statement from the master at the jade shop, attesting that the pot couldn't be repaired. I ask for your discernment, sir."

The onlookers began whispering among themselves. After examining the documents closely, Qi Lie nodded in confirmation and turned to Chen Bing. "Do you have anything else to say?"

Chen Bing had never anticipated that Guo Zheng had such an unexpected trump card. He realized he had underestimated Guo Zheng's capabilities.

He raised his head, panic-stricken, and said, "Sir, it's true that I did buy a jade pot before. After it broke, I bought another one, which was worth three hundred taels. Zhou Tiedong indeed embezzled it."