Don't You Fucking Say It Anymore!

Everyone says that a fall into the pit is a gain in wisdom.

But Li Nuo was someone who fell into the pit, and then fell into it again.

He never expected that even children in ancient times had such deep schemes. He, a university student with a higher education, had been toyed with by a six-year-old girl twice.

Song Mu'er was well-behaved and sensible. She stopped being angry after a while and waved her little hand, saying, "Forget it. It's all Song Ninger's fault for being too cunning. Let's change the secret code. Don't let her trick you again next time..."

As for Li Nuo, explaining homework to Song Ninger wasn't a big deal.

He wasn't a three-year-old child. How could he hold a grudge because Song Ninger didn't let him play with the rattan ball last time? His heart wasn't that small, and besides, he didn't even remember that incident at all.

It was just that Song Mu'er cared a lot about this matter. It was like what often happens between children: if you don't get along with someone, you don't want your friend to get along with them. They were just sisters, after all.

After careful consideration, Li Nuo discovered a pattern.

Song Mu'er usually appeared with Song Jiaren, and his wife clearly preferred Mu'er. This could be considered following his wife's lead.

As for Song Ninger, she always came with the maids from the Song Manor. It was just that she had made her personal maid hide just now and had preempted the secret code. Otherwise, Li Nuo wouldn't have been so unsuspecting.

The two sisters had the same math tutor, and their homework assignments were also the same. Song Mu'er came to ask him the same question. Song Ninger seized the opportunity, understood the problem, made a face at Song Mu'er, and ran off. Li Nuo had no choice but to comfort her, saying, "It's good to explain it to Song Ninger first. When I explain it to you, there won't be any mistakes..."

Only then did Song Mu'er become happy. She tilted her small face up and asked, "Then, Li Nuo Gege, are you better to me than Song Ninger?"

Li Nuo didn't even need to think about this question. He said, "Of course. Song Ninger isn't as well-behaved as you, nor is she as polite. After I explain the problem to her, she doesn't even say thank you..."

Song Mu'er didn't feel angry at all now. So what if Song Ninger ran over first? Li Nuo Gege still liked her better. Although he was a bit slow, he still understood her good points...

Li Nuo's words weren't entirely for comfort. By explaining to Song Ninger, he could get a good grasp of their math levels. When explaining to Mu'er, she wouldn't have to ask "why" anymore. Li Nuo would start from the very basics, and Song Mu'er would let out exclamations from time to time.

"So that's how it is!"

"Teacher never taught it like this..."

"If Teacher had explained it this way, I would have understood long ago..."

"If Li Nuo Gege taught math, he would definitely be the best math teacher!"

Song Jiaren stood aside and quietly glanced at Li Nuo, fully agreeing with Mu'er's words.

She had hired several math tutors for her before, but she just couldn't understand math. As a result, for more than ten years, she had always felt that math was the most difficult thing in the world.

But now, math, in her eyes, was nothing special...

Li Nuo smiled at Mu'er's flattery and didn't say anything. Her words weren't an exaggeration. After all, Li Nuo had studied modern mathematics through the system. The problems in the Great Xia Calculations Classic were completely child's play to him; they were the kind of questions that gave away points in regular exams.

Song Mu'er's math tutor might have already thoroughly studied the Calculations Classic, but they couldn't teach like Li Nuo.

After all, he had only been teaching math for a few decades at most. The methods Li Nuo used in his teaching were the crystallization of the wisdom of countless top-tier math teachers from later generations. They were more systematic and scientific, the derivation process was simple and easy to understand, and they were more suitable for young children.

It wasn't Li Nuo who was better than Song Mu'er's math tutor, but Newton, Gauss, Euler... and countless math masters from another world.

When Song Mu'er understood the problem, her bright, intelligent eyes darted around, and she said to Li Nuo, "You made me angry just now. I sentence you to dress me up beautifully..."

Li Nuo didn't have that ability now. This skill had to be earned with his life. He found an excuse and said, "I can't. I swore a few days ago that I can only dress up my wife from now on..."

"Is that so? Then, alright..."

Song Mu'er was very sensible. Hearing this, she didn't force Li Nuo anymore and went to the courtyard to play by herself.

Li Nuo continued to study the Great Xia Codex. Although he had judged quite a few cases these past few days, they were all the most common civil cases, only involving a few parts of the Great Xia Codex such as the Marriage Law, Theft Law, Dispute Law, and Judgment Law.

Besides these, the Great Xia Codex also included the Security Law, which protected the emperor's safety and maintained national sovereignty and border security; the Official System Law, which concerned the establishment, selection, duties of national officials, and the punishment of corrupt officials who perverted justice; and the Unauthorized Levy Law, which dealt with the conscription of soldiers, troop movements, the duties of generals, military supplies, and the control of corvée labor.

Although these laws were also part of the Great Xia Codex, they did not fall under the jurisdiction of the Chang'an County Office, so Li Nuo had not encountered them in the past few days.

When he saw a supplementary clause after the Official System Law, Li Nuo's expression froze, and then a look of confusion appeared on his face.

This clause was about the Redemption Penalty. The so-called Redemption Penalty was the atonement of a crime with money, replacing punishment with silver.

Every tael of silver could reduce ten strokes of caning. For one hundred strokes of caning, one only needed to pay ten taels of silver to be exempted.

Beating was more expensive; one tael of silver could only reduce one stroke of beating. For one hundred strokes of beating, one hundred taels of silver could exempt it.

Imprisonment was even more expensive; one year of imprisonment required one hundred taels of silver.

As for exile and death, they could not be redeemed with silver.

Of course, not everyone could redeem their guilt with silver. This law applied only to officials, dignitaries, and their relatives, and it was used to maintain the privileges of the bureaucratic and aristocratic class.

What confused Li Nuo was that the Director of the Ministry of Personnel's Examination Department was a fifth-rank official, a position that was not low. His son was also within the scope of the Redemption Penalty. Facing three years of imprisonment, he only needed to pay three hundred taels of silver to be completely exempted.

Three hundred taels of silver was nothing to a fifth-rank official.

Although Li Nuo felt this was unfair, the Great Xia laws were indeed stipulated this way.

It was unreasonable, but legal.

But why didn't the Wang family use it?

Did they not know?

Li Nuo thought that he had not yet thoroughly studied the Great Xia laws, and perhaps there were other restrictions on the Redemption Penalty that Wang Yue could not use. As a rigorous legal person, he had to clarify this issue, so Li Nuo called for Steward Wu.

Steward Wu hurried in from outside and asked, "Young Master, what are your orders?"

"There's nothing specific I need to instruct, but I saw the section on Redemption Penalties in the Great Xia Codex and realized that Wang Yue's crime could be expiated with silver. However, the Wang family didn't use it. Are there some restrictions on Redemption Penalties that I'm unaware of?"

"Uh, well..."

Steward Wu looked up at the sky, trying to hide his troubled expression from the Young Master.

Redemption Penalties had no restrictions, but the problem was that the Wang family didn't dare to use it!

A few years ago, the son of another official committed a similar crime to Wang Yue. That official used the Redemption Penalty, easily buying his son's freedom with silver, and he didn't spend a single day in jail.

The result? A month later, that official was dismissed from his post, his family's assets were confiscated by the Court of Judicial Review and turned over to the national treasury. Every male descendant in the direct line was executed without exception, collateral relatives were exiled, and the female members of the family were made official slaves...

Since then, no one dared to use the Redemption Penalty for any case involving the Court of Judicial Review.

At worst, you'd serve a few years in prison without it. With it, you'd be waiting for your whole family to die. The officials in Chang'an could still do the math on that.

A moment later, Steward Wu lowered his head and said, "Redemption Penalties can certainly be used, but perhaps the Wang family was unwilling to part with the three hundred taels of silver, or perhaps the Director of the Ministry of Personnel's Examination Department had a pang of conscience and didn't want to use money to redeem his son's sins. If Young Master truly wants to know, perhaps this old servant could go ask the Wang family?"

Li Nuo waved his hand, "Never mind, never mind..."

He just needed to know that there were no restrictions on the Redemption Penalty.

His only son had just been beaten a hundred times and sentenced to three years of imprisonment. It would be too inhumane to go pestering someone else's family.

Of course, Li Nuo didn't know at that moment that the Wang family had left Chang'an en masse early that morning. Their residence was empty, leaving only Wang Yue to wail in the dungeon of the Chang'an County Office.

The next morning, after breakfast, Li Nuo went to the Chang'an County Office for work as usual.

The county office was still bustling today.

But compared to the chaos of yesterday, today's liveliness was orderly.

Li Nuo got off his carriage and saw Pei Zhe already waiting for him at the entrance. Unlike the previous two days, a stout man in official robes stood beside him today.

Seeing Li Nuo, the man hurried forward with his bulky body, bowed, and said with a fawning expression, "Your subordinate, Assistant Magistrate Zhang Yue of Chang'an, greets Young Master..."

Li Nuo also cupped his fist in return and smiled, "So it's Assistant Magistrate Zhang. I've heard so much about you."

This "heard so much about you" made Assistant Magistrate Zhang's heart pound. He thought, had Magistrate Pei been badmouthing him to this Young Master in his absence? Otherwise, how would he know him?

While he was feeling anxious, a sedan chair stopped at the county office entrance, and a man emerged after lifting the curtain.

Seeing the chaos at the county office entrance, the man was slightly stunned, then frowned and looked at Pei Zhe by the entrance. "Lord Pei, I've only been away from the county office for a few days with Assistant Magistrate Zhang, and you've turned it into a mess. You've turned this solemn and dignified yamen into a marketplace..."

Before the man could finish speaking, Assistant Magistrate Zhang quickly stepped forward and stopped him. Sweat beaded on his forehead as he said, "Lord Wang is ignorant. This subordinate apologizes to Young Master and Lord Pei on his behalf..."

Lieutenant Wang was taken aback. His lips moved, and he seemed about to say something else, but Assistant Magistrate Zhang covered his mouth and glared at him fiercely, gritting his teeth in his ear, "Don't you dare say another damn word..."