One of the round-faced maids spoke nervously in a low voice, "Have you heard? A particularly horrific murder occurred in the city last night. A family of three was dismembered and their bodies were hidden in different places."
As she spoke, her eyes widened and her face was full of horror, as if the bloody scene was appearing before her eyes.
Another maid with twin ponytails covered her mouth in fear, her eyes wide as bells, her voice trembling with fear: "Ah? So horrible! Has the murderer been caught?"
Her body trembled slightly, as if she was frightened by the news, and the cloth in her hand slipped unconsciously.
The round-faced maid shook her head and continued, "Not yet, but I heard that the last person seen leaving that family last night was the county magistrate's nephew, Zhang Yi."
As she spoke, she glanced around cautiously, afraid of being overheard. She even leaned closer to the other maids and added in a low voice, "I heard that family died a horrible death. The man's head was chopped off and thrown into a mass grave outside the city. The wound on his neck was jagged, as if it had been slashed several times with a blunt knife. His eyes were still wide open, as if he died with his eyes wide open."
When the maid with twin ponytails heard this, her face turned pale instantly and she almost cried out. She quickly covered her mouth with her hands, tears welling up in her eyes.
The round-faced maid swallowed and continued, "The mistress's body was even worse. It was cut into eight pieces, and the limbs were hidden in different alleys. Her stomach was also cut open, and her organs were spilled all over the ground. The ground was covered with blood, which had dried up and turned black. The scene is enough to make one's scalp tingle just thinking about it."
The older maid frowned and said, "This matter is not that simple. Will the county magistrate's nephew be convicted so easily? Who knows, it might just be another farce of officials protecting each other."
Her tone was full of worry and dissatisfaction. She sighed softly, her eyes full of helplessness.
The maid with twin ponytails curled her lips and said angrily, "If he really did it, but he got away with it just because he's the county magistrate's nephew, that's too unfair! How unjustly did that family of three die."
Her eyes revealed indignation, and her hands were clenched into fists, as if she wanted to vent all the anger in her heart through these clenched fists.
The round-faced maid sighed and said helplessly, "We ordinary people can only talk here. What else can we do? We just hope that the county magistrate can handle this matter impartially and give an explanation to the deceased."
When Su Huaiyue heard these words, her heart tightened and she couldn't help but stop.
If such cases are not handled properly, they will definitely cause public outrage.
But a commoner could not do anything. She sighed silently in her heart and just hoped that the greedy county magistrate could really give an explanation to the people of Youzhou.
The county government office was in chaos at the moment. Many relatives and family members of the victims had come, filling the lobby.
The sultry air was filled with depression and grief, and the cries of the crowd and their cries for justice intertwined together, like a tragic elegy.
A gray-haired old man knelt tremblingly at the front of the hall, his face wrinkled with pain. Tears streamed down his weathered cheeks and dripped onto the cold ground.
His hands trembled constantly as he stretched them out to the county magistrate sitting in the hall, crying out at the top of his lungs: "My Lord, you must help us! My son, daughter-in-law, and grandson died tragically! They were all good people, what sins did they commit to deserve such cruel treatment! You must make sure that beast Zhang Yi receives the punishment he deserves!"
When he got excited, the old man kept knocking his head against the ground. The dull thud made everyone present feel anxious.
Others echoed, their voices rising one after another: "Yes, County Magistrate, you can't be partial to him! That family died tragically, we want justice!"
In the crowd, some women collapsed to the ground crying, and were supported by others, still sobbing; some young people had angry faces, clenched their fists tightly, and flames of anger burning in their eyes.
Zhang Yi stood aside, his face as gloomy as the dark clouds before a storm.
His eyes dodged, but he pretended to be calm and retorted loudly, "I didn't kill anyone! Don't accuse me! I just went to their house last night to borrow some things, and they were fine when I left! You can't assume I'm the murderer just because I was the last one to leave! This is ridiculous!"
As he spoke, he waved his arms, trying to defend himself, his voice sharp and a little piercing.
At this moment, a young man rushed out from the group of family members, pointing his finger at Zhang Yi, shaking with anger. "You're talking nonsense! My brother and his family have always been kind to others and never made enemies. Who else could it be but you? You've always relied on your uncle being the county magistrate to bully people in the city. It must have been you who did this!"
Zhang Yi's eyes widened, he took a step forward, and responded viciously, "Don't slander me! I'm not a saint, but I'm not someone who would kill. I went to his house to borrow something, which is a common thing between neighbors. How can it be used as a reason for murder? If you can't produce any evidence, don't slander me here!"
Both sides insisted on their own opinions and neither was willing to give in.
The families of the victims were very emotional and kept listing Zhang Yi's daily evil deeds, believing that he was the murderer and demanding that the county magistrate punish him severely. However, Zhang Yi refused to plead guilty and insisted that he was just borrowing things normally and had nothing to do with the murder. He also accused the families of deliberately framing him.
It turned out that Zhang Yi was called to the yamen because he was the last person to leave the victim's home when the accident happened.
After the incident, a neighbor beat drums at the government office to protest, saying that he had seen Zhang Yi hurriedly leaving the victim's home on the night of the incident, and that not long afterward, the family suffered a tragic disaster.
But this is just the one-sided statement of the eyewitness, and there is no conclusive evidence to prove that Zhang Yi is the murderer.
Neither side could produce conclusive evidence, and the court was deadlocked.
The county magistrate sat in the hall with a frown on his face, flipping through the files in his hands, trying to find a clue, but in the end he found nothing.
Looking at the two parties arguing fiercely below, the county magistrate sighed helplessly, slammed the gavel, and announced: "There is insufficient evidence today, so this case will be adjourned for now. We will resume the trial after new evidence is found. Court is adjourned!"
After saying that, he stood up tiredly and slowly left the lobby under the gaze of everyone.
When the family members heard the news of the adjournment of the trial, they cried even louder. They were unwilling to let the murderer go unpunished. Zhang Yi snorted coldly, straightened his clothes, and prepared to leave in a swagger.
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