The truth is revealed
"It was Zhao Dahu who forced my mother to do this." Seeing that the two of them were arguing more and more fiercely, Zhuang Wenqing almost revealed all the secrets. The others were easy to solve, but that one... Zhuang Wenqing was anxious and quickly used Zhao Dahu as a shield.
"We've apprehended Zhao Dahu." The leading bailiff interrupted the chaotic scene and shouted, "As for you... just come with me to the county government office."
As he spoke, his men rushed forward, tied them up, and put them in the iron cage on the carriage at the door. As they left, Zhuang Xianming was still crying, "I was forced to do this, my lord, please understand!"
The man snorted coldly, spat a few times in disgust, and then ordered his men to remove his shoes and socks and stuff them into his mouth.
In addition, the girls hiding in the dark came out one after another when they saw the murderer caught, and accused these men of crimes. Zhuang Xianming wanted to break free from his restraints to silence them, but was slapped hard by the yamen runners.
"Tsk, what a scumbag."
"I just feel so embarrassed to say it's unfair."
For a time, the dealer became a rat crossing the street that everyone wanted to beat.
Seeing that the situation was not good, Zhuang Xianming and his son had no choice but to swallow their anger and stay in the iron cage obediently, staring at Shen Ru fiercely in secret. If this crazy woman had not suddenly broken in, how could this have happened.
"You also need to come with me so I can question you."
The girls had no objection, and Ruan Yunsheng was also among them. If they wanted to put the banker to death, it would not be enough to just charge him with trafficking in women. They had to find evidence that they had harmed these people.
Inside the county jail, the damp and cold stone walls were hung with torture instruments. The charcoal fire in the brazier crackled, casting distorted figures like ghosts.
Zhuang Wenqing was chained to the rack, his feet dangling in the air, his wrists already bloodied from the rough iron rings. His face was pale, his lips chapped, his forehead dripping with sweat, and his eyes filled with fear.
"explain!"
The yamen runner whipped his legs, tearing his skin and flesh. "Were those women kidnapped and sold by you and your son in collusion with Zhao Dahu?"
"ah--!"
Zhuang Wenqing screamed in pain, tears and snot all over her face. "I, I just... I just bit a few people... But the kidnapping was all done by Zhao Dahu! He forced us to do it!"
The bailiff sneered: "Force you?"
"Really!" Zhuang Wenqing's voice trembled. "He, he threatened us, saying that if we didn't take care of his business, he would tell others about us..."
Suddenly, Zhao Dahu's roar came from the torture room next door.
"Bullshit!"
Zhao Dahu's voice rang through the stone wall. "It was clearly that old bastard Zhuang Xianming who came to our door himself! All that gold was stolen from his wife to pay off gambling debts!"
Zhuang Wenqing trembled all over, and the fear in his eyes became even more intense.
The bailiff narrowed his eyes and whispered in his ear, "Zhao Dahu has told you everything... If you don't tell the truth, the next lash won't be a leg lash."
He deliberately shook the red-hot iron in his hand.
Zhuang Wenqing was so frightened that his soul was about to be shattered. His mouth was instantly wet. "I, I'm telling you! It was us...we and Zhao Dahu who conspired together..."
The bailiff nodded with satisfaction and was about to record it when the prison door was suddenly pushed open and the county magistrate walked in with his hands behind his back.
His face was solemn, his eyes like knives, and he slowly walked up to Zhuang Wenqing: "Master Zhuang, I have one more question for you."
Zhuang Wenqing nodded shyly.
"Those unidentified female corpses buried in the mass grave..." The county magistrate's voice suddenly dropped. "Did you do that?"
Zhuang Wenqing's pupils suddenly shrank, and his face turned pale as paper: "I, I don't know what mass grave is..."
The county magistrate sneered and waved his hand toward the door.
Suddenly, Zhao Dahu's heart-wrenching screams came from the torture room next door!
“Ah!!! Spare me—spare me—!!”
The sound was so shrill that it didn't sound like a human voice, as if someone was suffering from the pain of being skinned and having cramps pulled.
Zhuang Wenqing was trembling all over, his teeth chattering, but he still bit his lips tightly and shook his head desperately: "I, I really don't know..."
Who the hell told this to anyone? How did they find out? Could it be Zhao Dahu? No way! He checked into the room next to mine. How could he not know if there was any movement? Could it be my mother?
The more Zhuang Wenqing thought about it, the more likely it seemed. After all, they had already fallen out before, but wasn't she afraid of getting herself into trouble and involving An Yue's affairs?
The county magistrate narrowed his eyes and saw that he was being stubborn. He slowly took out a piece of paper from his sleeve, on which were written many names.
"You must know those people, right?"
Zhuang Wenqing took a look and knew that this was the woman who had died before. He hurriedly shook his head: "No, I don't recognize her! This was all done by Zhao Dahu! It has nothing to do with us!"
Zhao Dahu, who was in the cell next door and was chained to a wooden stake, started to struggle upon hearing this: "Bullshit! Sir, don't believe this villain's lies!"
The county magistrate raised his hand to signal for silence, and ordered someone to bring up a wooden box. When the lid was opened, there were several mud-covered shovels, hemp ropes and worn sacks inside.
"This was dug out from the ravine at the mass grave," the county magistrate said coldly. "It's exactly the same as the tools in your inn's cellar. What else do you have to explain?"
Zhao Dahu was suddenly speechless, with cold sweat oozing from his forehead.
Seeing this, Zhuang Wenqing thought there was still hope, so he quickly forced a flattering smile and said, "Your Excellency, County Magistrate, I was simply confused for a moment and raped a few women... My crime doesn't deserve the death penalty!"
He lowered his voice and said, "My mother has a past relationship with the wife of the current general's mansion. If you can show some mercy..."
"How dare you!" the county magistrate interrupted harshly, a cold glint flashing in his eyes. "Does this county government belong to your family? You're trying to bribe an official from beneath the Emperor's feet."
Seeing that the situation was not favorable, Zhao Dahu shouted, "Sir! I have something else to report!"
"Half a year ago, my men saw them burying bodies in a mass grave! The woman was covered in blood; it was obvious they had tortured her to death!"
Zhuang Wenqing's pupils suddenly shrank, and his lips trembled: "You, you are slandering me!"
"You're slandering me?" Zhao Dahu sneered. "That woman was wearing a green skirt and a silver hairpin in her hair. How dare you say it had nothing to do with you?"
Zhuang Wenqing was struck by lightning, his face turned pale, his heart was pounding like a drum, and he frantically thought about how to deal with it.
The county magistrate narrowed his eyes and slowly took out a small cloth bag from his bosom. He opened it layer by layer and found a blood-stained silver hairpin with half a broken nail hanging on the tip.
It does match.
The county magistrate grabbed Zhuang Wenqing's right hand, pinched his broken index fingernail, and sneered, "Master Zhuang, how do you explain this nail?"
Zhuang Wenqing's face turned pale, but he still tried to argue: "I accidentally knocked it off while working a few days ago..."
"Your Excellency, he's lying," the coroner interrupted sharply. "The wound has already scabbed over and turned black. It hasn't healed in at least six months! The nail has damaged the root and won't grow back!"
The county magistrate's eyes were like knives, and he pressed on: "These evidences were found in the secret compartment of your Zhuang family's ancestral hall. What else do you have to say?"
Zhuang Wenqing shuddered. How could this be? Could it really be his mother? He pondered over it. There were only four people present, one dead, two in jail. Who else could it be?
A trace of resentment flashed in his eyes: "It was... that bitch Shen Ru who killed her. She despised me!" He suddenly laughed like crazy, "Okay! Since you are so unkind, don't blame me for being unjust!"
Zhuang Wenqing raised his head suddenly, his eyes bloodshot. "That woman's name is An Yue, she's a musician at Mingkefang. That night, I saw her drunk, so my father and I took her back to the village. We originally planned to play with her for a few days and then let her go..."
"Who knew Chen Ru would see us!" Zhuang Wenqing's voice was hoarse. "She beat An Yue like crazy. In the process of pushing and shoving, An Yue's head hit the incense burner... and she died on the spot!"
The county magistrate frowned: "And then?"
"Then?" Zhuang Wenqing laughed bitterly. "We wanted to report it to the police, but Chen Ru was like a demon possessed. She dug out An Yue's eyes with a pair of scissors and cut open her stomach..."
He trembled all over: "We saw the bodies were so horrible that we had no choice but to throw them into a mass grave overnight..."
The cruel means made everyone present frown. How could there be such a cruel person in this world? Unexpectedly, the wife of the banker was not a good person either.
Suddenly a shrill scream came from outside the prison door!
Everyone turned around and saw Shen Ru standing at the prison door without them noticing. She was clutching a pair of blood-stained scissors in her hand, her face as ferocious as a demon. "Zhuang Wenqing! You beast! It was clearly you and your son who tortured An Yue to death, yet you dared to frame me!"
She rushed in like crazy, stabbing Zhuang Wenqing with scissors: "I'm going to kill you!"
The bailiffs rushed forward and pushed the frantic Shen Ru to the ground. Her hair was disheveled, but a ferocious smile stretched across her lips. "Zhuang Wenqing! You heartless beast! Do you have any evidence? You're trying to frame me with nothing but empty words."
Suddenly, a "puff" sound was heard from the cell next door.
Zhuang Xianming finally spat out the stinky socks stuffed in his mouth. He gasped for breath and shouted hoarsely, "There's evidence! It's under the plum tree in front of the Zhuang family's door!"
The county magistrate's eyes flashed, and he immediately waved his hand: "Come here! Go dig under the plum tree at Zhuang's house!"
Half an hour later.
The bailiffs came back with a dirt-covered iron box. When they opened the lid, a strong smell of blood immediately filled the entire cell.
Inside the box were: a pair of rusty scissors with dried flesh and blood still clinging to the blades, and a handkerchief half soaked in blood with the words "An Yue" embroidered crookedly on it.
The most terrifying thing is——
Two cloudy eyeballs were soaked in a palm-sized ceramic bottle!
“Chen Ru!”
The county magistrate slammed the table and stood up: "What else do you want to say?"
Shen Ru suddenly quieted down. She straightened her messy hair and revealed a strange smile: "Yes, I killed An Yue."
She stroked her belly gently, her tone strange: "Who made her... pregnant with my husband's child?"
The whole audience was in an uproar!
The coroner trembled as he picked up the ceramic bottle and suddenly cried out, "Sir, there's something in here."
Seeing that the object was hidden at the bottom of the bottle and difficult to take out, the coroner simply smashed the ceramic bottle to the ground. With a loud noise, the remains of the unborn child fell out along with the eyeball!
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