The Jin Yiwei did not hide anything. He bowed first and then said, "Sir, no other murder weapons were found at the scene, but there were footprints. We have extracted them as physical evidence."
Hearing such an answer, Tang Jianqiu was very satisfied. He nodded and said, "That's great! You guys go and find out which family nearby can make such a knife. The other brothers follow me!" "
"yes!"
Although I don't know why Fang Ziteng's mother-in-law threw dirty water on him, it is certain that the relationship between the two is not very good.
When a husband and wife get along, no matter how good they are, the person next to them is always the most suspicious.
It might be understandable if it was caused by being too hasty and careless, but it would be troublesome if it was done intentionally.
In order to confirm his suspicion, Tang Jianqiu led people to Fang Ziteng's home to find out the facts. Unexpectedly, Fang Ziteng's mother-in-law was particularly excited when she saw Tang Jianqiu, and ran towards him as if she had seen a god.
"My lord, you have to make the decision for me!"
As she was talking, she knelt down towards Tang Jianqiu. Seeing this, Tang Jianqiu quickly asked her to get up and reply: "Old woman, please don't get excited. I will definitely restore his innocence after I find out the truth."
Even if it is known that Fang Ziteng's wife stole a man's life first, it is still a human life and cannot be ignored.
After hearing this, the old woman's mood improved a little.
She was very excited and didn't care how dirty her clothes were at the moment, so she quickly bowed and thanked him.
"Thank you, sir! Thank you so much, sir! Please take a seat, sir!"
"Thank you for your kindness. I will not sit down now, old man. In this case, I will tell you directly. It is better not to jump to conclusions before the truth is found out."
Tang Jianqiu said some secret words, which made the old woman confused and even what to do.
"I'm a little confused. I don't know what you mean by this."
Since the other party didn't understand, there was no need for Tang Jianqiu to play charades with the other party. He simply said truthfully: "I believe that the murderer may be someone else, not another son-in-law."
"This is impossible!"
The old woman shouted out almost subconsciously. Her performance was particularly intense, as if she had been stimulated by something.
A trace of surprise flashed in Ah Fei's eyes at the old woman's various performances, but he quickly reacted and put down the emotion.
It wasn't that she was suspicious, but that the old man might be too extreme. To be precise, she was too excited.
Seemingly realizing that his behavior might be inappropriate, the old woman came up with an explanation:
"To be honest, in my impression, Fang Ziteng is indeed a rare and good son-in-law.
But a few days ago, I heard someone talk about my girl. After hearing this, I felt ashamed and tried to persuade her many times.
Besides, this matter would be too embarrassing and would make people laugh if it spread. It would be hard to tell my son-in-law, but who would have thought that my daughter would be infatuated with that man! I also feel ashamed. "
As she was talking, the old woman couldn't help but sigh. It was a bit painful to think about it, who had allowed this kind of thing to happen to their family.
"So you know that?"
Tang Jianqiu was not surprised by such a result. In his previous life, he did not accept this case because he did not go out on patrol at that time and did not encounter the rabbit with the grass crown.
At this point, the old woman didn't care so much anymore, so she could only nod and admit.
"Exactly, I don't dare to deceive you, sir."
"Your relationship with Fang Ziteng is pretty good, right?"
It can be judged from what the old lady said just now. In this way, the previous judgment was wrong.
"Yes, it is precisely because of this old age that I dare not shame this person." The old woman was so ashamed that she did not dare to look at him.
"If I tell you that the murderer is not Fang Ziteng, will you be willing to bear witness for him?" Tang Jianqiu asked her in a hypothetical way. If it were more direct, it might be difficult for her to compromise, so she came up with this reason.
At first, the old woman was still a little resistant. After some ideological struggle, she agreed. She hunched her back and nodded solemnly: "Since you need me to be a witness, just do it."
To say that the Jin Yiwei's work efficiency was pretty good, he soon found out the whereabouts of the murder weapon. It was said that the knife was made by a blacksmith from a neighboring village.
In addition, there is an obscure character on the knife that cannot be seen without looking carefully, and this character is the last name of the knife maker.
Now that there are the blacksmith and the old woman as witnesses, as well as the villagers and elders, the existence of this knife and even the shoe prints must have further confirmed the adulterer's accusation.
As for who the adulterer is, just ask a random villager and ask him. No matter how prominent his identity is, it is useless. The local people are afraid of the majesty of the officers and soldiers and have to answer honestly to avoid being reprimanded.
After a series of searches for witnesses, physical evidence and the murderer, the local county government began interrogation on the spot.
"Snapped!"
The sound of the county magistrate beating the gavel was enough to shock people's hearts. The officers and soldiers standing on both sides had expressionless faces, holding water and fire sticks, like towering wooden stakes.
"Bring the criminal Fang Ziteng to court!"
The restraining order showed the attitude that a county master should have, and the person who was interrogating was not Tang Jianqiu.
The Beizhen Fusi did a good job in taking over the case, but because the case was still small, they could not interfere. They could only sit in the courtroom in the name of hearing and watch the county magistrate decide the case.
Not long after, he saw Fang Ziteng, who was unkempt and covered in bloodstains, walking over. His feet were forcibly tied with anklets to restrict his movement, but he still knelt down obediently.
"Fang Ziteng, a common man, bows to the great master Qingtian!"
"Without courtesy, Fang Ziteng, this case will be heard by Mr. Tang, the governor of Beizhen Fusi. Don't be restrained. Just answer truthfully whatever the county asks you!"
"Yes, please tell me, Lord Magistrate."
Fang Ziteng naturally did not dare to neglect, this may be his only chance to redress.
The county magistrate said: "Fang Ziteng, you said before that you were not the one who killed Wu, is that true or not?"
"Yes, Cao Min and his wife are very loving, so how could they commit such a murderous act? Then the murderer is someone else!"
As a result, Fang Ziteng told the county magistrate about his previous experience. As he was talking, he was still a little sad. After hearing this, the county magistrate slapped his face angrily and his face turned red with anger.
"Damn it! This is really unreasonable! If this county summons him to court, will you recognize him?"
"Even the gray grass people will recognize it!"
Fang Ziteng was categorical, he hated that person with all his heart.
"Okay! Someone is here! Bring Hu Jiu to court!"
"Password to Hu Jiu to come to court!"
A relatively handsome man was forced to go to court under the summons of the county magistrate.
I don't know whether it was out of fear or some other reason that caused his legs to tremble and he delayed kneeling down.
Tang Jianqiu killed him with just one look, which made Hu Jiu terrified. He had never seen such fierce eagle eyes before, as if just one look could make people fall into the world of Jiuyou!
Tang Jianqiu's gloomy eyes and the county magistrate's shock gave him no choice but to kneel down no matter how unwilling he was.
"Hu Jiu, a grass-roots citizen, come and greet the two adults!"
"Hu Jiu, someone accused you of having an affair with Mr. Hu, but is it wrong?"
When Huba heard this, he knelt down on the spot and shouted that he was wronged:
"Sir! I'm wronged, my lord! I usually abide by my words and deeds and read poetry and books, so how could I do such a sloppy thing?"
The county magistrate seemed very embarrassed. He glared at Hu Jiu with disgust, and his words were full of displeasure:
"Shut up! If there is no evidence, how can this county question you? Humph! You have to admit it even if you don't admit it! Someone is here! Pass the witness certificate!"
"Passenger's Certificate——"
As previously arranged, the old woman, the blacksmith, and several people from the same village came to testify.
When he saw several people appearing at the same time, Fang Ziteng's eyes were full of fear, fearing that they would say his name together.
"The grassroots (people's women) bow to the Lord Qingtian."
"How many of you recognize the two people in the audience?"
Just as everyone turned their attention to the two of them, Fang Ziteng winked, as if to warn them not to betray themselves, but who would have thought that it would be such a small move that Tang Jianqiu would discover and expose in public.
"Hu Jiu, are your eyes very uncomfortable?"
Hu Jiu's body froze. He knew Tang Jianqiu's intention but had to pretend to be confused.
"The common people don't understand what your lord means."
"Why would you be frowning if you weren't feeling uncomfortable?"
As soon as these words came out, everyone understood instantly. Anyone who is not stupid will understand.
The county magistrate was furious. In his anger, he did not forget to slap the gavel on the table:
"How dare you Hu Jiu! How dare you make trouble in front of this county! Could it be that you want this county to give you twenty killing sticks?"
Huba was so horrified that he knelt on the ground like a quail, and had to kowtow several times in order to be forgiven.
"My lord, have mercy on me! My lord, please have mercy on me! The common people will never dare to do this again!"
How can the county magistrate care? He just snorted coldly, "You guys answer truthfully, you need to speak up for this guy, otherwise the county will label you as an accomplice!"
"Yes, sir, the common people do know that Wu is Fang Ziteng's wife, so Hu Jiu usually goes in when Fang Ziteng is not around.
Although the two of them were closed inside the door, they could occasionally see the gap that was hidden, and sometimes they could even see Wu going out to greet them. The two behaved very intimately, like lovers.
When she came out, she was even blushing, but Wu looked a little shy. It was hard for a man and a woman to live together in the same room, and it was hard to imagine that this had not happened between them. "
Hu Jiu was trembling with anger. He had already been wronged because of this matter, but how could he bear it now that the other party had announced his crime?
"You old man, don't talk nonsense!"
"Bold! Fang Ziteng, be careful that I will punish you for the crime of roaring in court!"
The county magistrate tried his best to tolerate it. Normally, he would have asked people to beat him dozens of times, but now he did not punish him severely because of Tang Jianqiu's face.
Hu Jiu no longer dared to say anything, so she could only kneel down obediently.
"Since the two of them committed adultery, who among you saw Hu Jiu running out of Fang Ziteng's room?" The county magistrate asked again, and one of the thinner young men spoke;
"Master County, the common people couldn't sleep in the middle of the night. They were planning to go out for a walk to relax. They vaguely heard movement coming from Fang Ziteng's house. Out of curiosity, he saw it.
Not long after Fang Ziteng ran out, he saw Hu Jiu coming out. He was very panicked at the time, but Cao Min didn't pay attention. Unexpectedly, he threatened him afterwards. He said that if he dared to speak out, Cao Min would look good. "
"you!"
Hu Jiu was about to open his mouth to retaliate, but what he received in response was Tang Jianqiu's cold eyes, which scared him so much that he had to swallow what he wanted to say.
"Sir, the common people are not convinced! These people must have made arrangements in advance to put the blame on the common people. I beg you to make the decision!"
Hu Jiu refused to admit it until he died. He believed that as long as there was no physical evidence, there was no way to convict him.
The county magistrate guessed that he would say this, and at Tang Jianqiu's signal, he ordered someone to deliver the physical evidence.
"Do you recognize this knife?"
When Hu Jiu saw this, he quickly shook his head and denied it. Even if it was his own, he still couldn't admit it.
"You answer the question."
The county magistrate was too lazy to listen to Hu Jiu's nonsense. Now that Tang Jianqiu was in the courtroom, he had to behave well.
"Sir, this knife was forged by the common people. Hu Jiu asked the common people to make it. At first, the common people also thought there was something wrong. They asked him what it was used for but refused to tell him. He just let the common people do it.
The grass-roots people didn't dare to ask more questions. They built it according to the diagram he gave. If they knew that he used a weapon to kill people, they wouldn't even dare to give the grass-roots a hundred courages! "
He was also afraid that the restriction order would be misunderstood, so he added a sentence.
When the county magistrate saw this, he comforted him: "The county understands what you mean, and I can't blame you for this."
"Sir! It's unfair, sir! It's all because they colluded to accuse this villain!"
Hu Jiu was very excited. If there was no one around here, he would definitely hold on to his spiritual legs, but now this situation is relatively special.
How could the county magistrate listen? He angrily denounced his behavior on the spot: "Shut up! You only want to complain that you are wronged. If there is evidence to prove your innocence, you should provide counter-evidence!"
This county boldly speculates that either your identity is too special or you have connections in this area. Otherwise, how could there be so many people in the village who would not report it? "
Hearing this, Hu Jiu suddenly choked up. He was about to open his mouth to brew something, but he hesitated and couldn't explain the reason. He had to show his cards, but who would have thought that he would point the finger of the whole matter at Fang Ziteng.
"Now that things have happened, I won't pretend anymore! Fang Ziteng, why was it that she was the one who died instead of you! Otherwise, I could have been a pair of twins with her!"
Although Fang Ziteng was an honest man, he couldn't stand such an insult. He became angry at that time: "You robbed my wife and brutally killed her and you want me to forgive you? I beg the county magistrate to punish this person!"
"This case has been settled. This county will naturally return your innocence to you. Fang Ziteng, you have suffered. Come here! Untie him and have Hu Jiu sign a bond and take him into the big boss. After the fall, he will be beheaded!"
Hu Jiu was shocked. It was so sudden that he couldn't speak for a long time. When he was about to open his mouth to say something, he found that his throat seemed to be blocked and he stared numbly at the complaint presented to him.
After pressing his fingerprints, he was taken away from left to right, and Fang Ziteng expressed his gratitude to the two saviors: "Fang Ziteng, a common man, thanks Mr. Qingtian! The Governor is really a god! Thank you very much, Mr. Governor Qingtian. Give the common people their innocence!"
"You're welcome, you should thank A Fei."
Although it was Tang Jianqiu's rule to strictly prohibit anyone from sentencing criminals to death today, the person who really saved him was Ah Fei. Some things should be distinguished clearly, even if he was the governor of the town.
"Yes! No matter what you say, the grass people still have to thank you! The grass people are willing to repay each other for the cattle and horses in the next life!"
