After Sanniang came out of the pig cage, she stood timidly in front of them. Suddenly, she knelt down towards Bei Yutang.
"Please, Mr. Xiang, help me. I was wronged. I did not seduce anyone, and I did not commit adultery." Sanniang cried out for justice.
The village chief shouted, "Sanniang, stop being so unreasonable. You seduced a man and were caught red-handed, yet you're crying foul? Deceiving the township lord is an even greater crime."
Sanniang sobbed, silently wiping away the tears from her eyes. She said to the village chief, "I'm about to be thrown into a pig cage, so what if my crime is even more serious? Even if I die, I absolutely cannot die in such humiliation. Please, Mr. Xiang, help me and clear my name."
Bei Yutang helped her up, "Get up and talk."
"Sanniang, tell me everything clearly."
"Yes." Sanniang received the order and began to recount what happened the night before.
"That night, I went to bed early. Around midnight, I heard some noise outside. Fearing it might be a thief, I walked out, club in hand, daringly. I saw a dark figure on the other side of the firewood pile. I chased after it, but it disappeared. As I was returning, someone knocked me down with a club."
"When I woke up, I was surrounded by Aunt Lin and Aunt Wu from next door, and my clothes were all messed up. Aunt Wu and Aunt Lin insisted that I had cheated on my partner, and I had no way to defend myself. I was truly wronged. I didn't cheat."
"Who are Aunt Lin and Aunt Wu?" Bei Yutang looked at the villagers.
Two middle-aged women came out, one of them was the middle-aged woman with a sarcastic look.
"I'm Lin." the man said.
Another plump woman said, "I'm Wu."
"Which of you two discovered her first?"
"It was me," Aunt Lin spoke first. "When I got up this morning to feed the chickens, I saw this woman lying on the firewood pile with her clothes disheveled. I screamed in shock, and just then, Mrs. Wu came over."
Aunt Wu nodded repeatedly. "That's right. I happened to be nearby when I heard her yelling and cursing, so I rushed over. I saw Sanniang lying on the pile of firewood."
Bei Yutang asked Sanniang, "Did you feel unwell after you woke up that day?"
Aunt Lin spoke up first, "County Master, you don't need to ask her. She said that day that she hadn't committed adultery. Someone from the clan has already checked her body, and it's true that she had."
Bei Yutang looked at Sanniang, "Is it like they said? Is there anything wrong with your body?"
Sanniang nodded. "But, but, I definitely didn't do anything like that. The thief must have knocked me unconscious and took advantage of me to do that."
Bei Yutang felt that her guess was about 80% correct, "Come here."
Sanniang walked forward, and Bei Yutang checked the part of her collar that was pulled open, and saw a deep bruise on the back of her neck.
"I believe you." Bei Yutang said.
Aunt Lin was unconvinced. "My dear, you can't just take her one-sided story. This vixen is used to seducing people. Who knows? Maybe after doing what she did that day, she was so tired that she fell asleep on the firewood pile, and I happened to see her."
Bei Yutang was too lazy to waste time arguing with her. "I have evidence to prove that she is not lying."
Bei Yutang directly called a few women and asked them to go into the house to check the bruises on the back of her neck one by one.
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