Chapter 52 Customs and Law

Chapter 52 Customs and Law

Xie Wanniang was stunned. "This is outrageous!"

“Who says otherwise!” Wang Xiaozhi slapped her thigh. “Luckily, their family is well-liked. The neighbors couldn’t stand it and helped them drive away those heartless bastards.”

"You wouldn't believe it, her mother even took out a kitchen knife, saying she was going to chop those bastards up so they wouldn't come back to harm her family in the future."

Xie Wanniang frowned, "What about her father?"

Wang Xiaozhi's eyes sparkled, and her eyebrows almost flew up. "Her father snatched the kitchen knife from her mother's hand and said, 'I'll do it!'"

Xie Wanniang immediately smiled, "Then it seems her father is quite good too."

Wang Xiaozhi nodded vigorously. As an only child herself, she could understand all too well the hardships that family had gone through in this matter.

Xie Wanniang then asked, "So how come this Miss Feng ended up going to a nunnery to become a nun?"

Wang Xiaozhi sighed, "She insisted on going herself. But you can't blame her for this; she's just too scared by what she's experienced before."

“I heard from her neighbors that her parents are already looking for buyers. Once they sell all their farmland and shops, they will take the girl to start over somewhere else.”

She winked at Xie Wanniang, "Otherwise, she wouldn't just be waiting for the day she would shave her head and become a nun; she would have already had her head shaved and had no chance to back out."

The idea that one must choose an auspicious day to shave one's head is actually a well-intentioned lie told by the abbot of the nunnery.

"And the other one?"

"You mean Miss Tang? She's in an even worse situation."

"Her father died on the battlefield, her mother was married off to another family by her grandparents in exchange for dowry, and her brother was also sold by her grandparents to a mountain hunter who had no sons."

"She was ten years old at the time and already able to work, so her grandparents sent her to the embroidery workshop. It was a ten-year long-term contract, and those two old bastards took all her wages."

"This October, she finally made it to the expiration of the contract, but her heartless grandparents sold her to an old widower who had already beaten two of his wives to death."

"She didn't want to, so she secretly ran away from home."

Xie Wanniang stared in disbelief. "What about her clansmen, maternal grandfather, and uncle? Isn't anyone going to step forward and do something about it?"

Wang Xiaozhi sighed, "I heard from their neighbors that they fled from other places and are the only family here."

"As for her maternal family, I heard that her maternal grandparents have long since passed away, but her uncle and aunt have jumped out and taken two taels of silver back with them."

At that time, it was a time of war and chaos, and the county government might not even have anyone working. Even if the village head in their area was on duty and had a good heart, he would not be able to stand up for this poor mother and her two children without the backing of the government.

Xie Wanniang didn't know how to comment on the girl's group of heartless relatives. She asked Wang Xiaozhi, "Then hiding in the nunnery probably won't do any good, right?"

Wang Xiaozhi nodded, "It was useless before, but now our county magistrate knows about it."

The county magistrate was a man of good reputation, while his mother was a devout Buddhist and a philanthropist. When the old lady went to the only temple in the county to worship Buddha, she happened to run into the girl's heartless relative who was causing a ruckus at the temple.

After learning the details of what happened, the old lady, whose Buddhist pilgrimage had been disrupted, was so angry that she immediately called her son over.

The magistrate not only punished those people for barging into the nunnery and causing trouble, but also ordered them to pay compensation. He also educated them on the laws of the time, telling them that even if they were the girl's grandparents, uncles, or great-uncles, selling the girl was still illegal.

Although the new dynasty has only been unified for a short time, it has already formulated its own laws based on the laws of previous dynasties. The laws of this dynasty stipulate:

“Those who plunder or sell people, and those who become slaves, shall be hanged; those who become servants shall be exiled three thousand li; those who become wives, concubines, children, or grandchildren shall be sentenced to three years of penal servitude. Those who seduce shall each be punished one degree less.”

This means that anyone who sells someone into slavery through violence, coercion, or other improper means shall be sentenced to hanging; anyone who sells someone into private service shall be exiled three thousand li; and anyone who sells someone into marriage, concubines, or children shall be sentenced to three years of imprisonment. If the sale is consensual between the seller and the sold, the punishment shall be reduced by one degree.

Of course, the prerequisite for reducing the punishment by one degree is that the person being sold is over ten years old. If the person is under ten years old, the sale will be treated as involuntary regardless of whether the person was selling them voluntarily or not.

As for the family's excuses, such as that they were the girl's grandparents, uncles, aunts, etc., the county magistrate had the law to answer them.

“Those who sell their relatives or lower-ranking children into slavery shall be punished in the same way as those who fight and kill each other; the same shall apply to those who are not in mourning. Those who sell their relatives shall be punished one degree less. Those who sell their other relatives shall be punished in accordance with the law for ordinary people who sell their relatives.”

The translation is:

If someone abducts and sells a person of lower generation or younger age into slavery, regardless of whether the person is related to the person being sold, the government will punish the perpetrator as a criminal for causing death by fighting.

If the sale is conducted voluntarily by both parties and the person being sold is over ten years old, the government will reduce the punishment for the offender by one degree.

If the sale involves other relatives not included in the above categories, it shall be handled in accordance with the legal provisions for the sale of persons by ordinary people, which is the same provision that the county magistrate mentioned at the beginning.

In other words, if that family really took the girl back and sold her to the old widower, the magistrate could sentence them to three years in prison.

The family was naturally indignant. After all, selling their own children to brokers or wealthy families as slaves or maids, or exchanging their daughters for betrothal gifts under the guise of marriage, was commonplace in their minds. It was simply a matter of course and a matter of course.

Why can others sell their products, but they can't?

In response to their question, the county magistrate replied, "If the people do not report it, the officials will not investigate."

Moreover, no one else dared to go to the temple to vandalize and cause trouble like they did, directly handing over their own incriminating evidence to the county magistrate.

What the magistrate didn't say was that what they should be most grateful for was that they only smashed some ordinary objects and did not deliberately go to damage the Buddha statue. Otherwise, based on this alone, the magistrate could have easily sentenced them to three years of penal servitude.

As for the matter of selling off people.

Throughout history, the sale of people has been considered illegal. Similarly, throughout history, the imperial court's supervision of local areas has been inadequate.

Not only in villages and towns, but even in the county seats, where the county government is located, officials and yamen runners could not usually manage other people's homes.

Furthermore, although the law prohibits elders from selling their children and grandchildren, it stipulates that parents and other legally respected elders are the officiants for their children and juniors at weddings, thus legally clarifying the elders' right to officiate at weddings. This provides many elders with the opportunity to sell their own children and grandchildren under the guise of "arranging weddings for younger generations."