"oh?"
Commander Liu Jingyi nodded and looked at the others, asking, "Is that so?"
The others looked at each other without saying anything, they just nodded.
After all, Zhang Xiuzhu was right.
Seeing these people nod in acknowledgment of the Zhang family's involvement, Wang Lan couldn't hold back any longer and gritted her teeth as she stepped forward:
"Sir, although her house was burned down, it's still uncertain whether anything was stolen. On the contrary, our belongings were found in her house. Please make a decision, sir!"
Upon hearing this, Madam Zhang immediately stood up and spat, "What do you mean, 'found from my house'? It's clear that thieves took things from your house and then came to my house to steal. They found that my things were better than yours, so they threw the inferior things into my house. What does that have to do with my family?"
Shi was also furious and retorted, "Have you ever seen a thief carrying a table to steal from another house? Besides, my cabinet is made of rosewood, while yours is just poplar. How could a thief steal my cabinet and take yours?"
"You are clearly the thieves! And you're still crying 'stop thief' here!"
Shi knocked loudly on the cabinet that had been found behind him.
He had heard from Wang Dalang's father that this rosewood cabinet was more valuable than ordinary cabinets.
The other villagers exchanged glances. Although they didn't recognize the famous type of wood, the wooden cabinet in the Wang family's house was part of Wang Dalang's father's dowry.
I heard he was the illegitimate son of a demoted official, which made him somewhat better off than others.
"Sir, please don't listen to their nonsense. If my house were burglarized, why would they leave behind only tattered clothes and worthless tables and chests instead of the good cabinets they mentioned? Besides, I have nothing else in my house besides these. Please, sir, see the truth!"
Zhang Xiuzhu was no pushover either, and her answer was well-reasoned and supported by evidence.
“Sir, the things in my house were indeed stolen by that woman and her two accomplices. They must have planned how to divide them!” Wang Lan said, pointing to Yunniang by the cabinet.
Liu Jingyi looked closely and realized it was Wang Lan, and immediately frowned:
"You don't even care whether your own son lives or dies, I really find it hard to believe you."
After all, it's rare to see a mother who sold her son multiple times and drove him to jump into a river.
Seeing that the official indeed had a problem with her, Wang Lan gritted her teeth and swore, "If you don't believe me, you can come to my house and see for yourself. If I've uttered even half a lie this time, may I be struck by lightning."
She really lost everything, so why doesn't anyone believe it?
Wang Fang was pinched by her father, and quickly stepped forward:
"Yes...it really is an adult. When we woke up, there was a fire being put out outside, but my door was open, and even the pots and pans were stolen."
Then Shi also stepped forward, pointing to the cabinet behind her and then to the Zhang family:
"Sir, the thief brought back my wardrobe. My clothes, trunks, and dining table were found at the Zhang family's house where the fire started."
Liu Jingyi raised an eyebrow and looked at Zhang Xiuzhu.
Seeing this, Zhang Xiuzhu also defended herself again:
"Sir, my pots and pans are also gone. As for her things, I really don't know how they ended up in my house. You can search them yourself, sir."
Upon seeing this, Yunniang quickly stepped forward and bowed to express her innocence: "My lord, I am innocent! Sanniang and I were helping to put out the fire and fetch water. We saw this cabinet on the way and thought it was nice, so we wanted to take it back. Who would have thought that this cabinet belonged to the Wang family? I really didn't steal anything from them."
"Sir, we really didn't steal anything! The water buckets we were using to fetch water to put out the fire are still here!" Third Sister cried out, trembling as she pleaded her innocence.
"Hmph, this bucket might even belong to my family," Wang Erlang said with a sneer.
“This bucket belongs to my family and Yunniang’s family. There are marks on it. Don’t try to make false accusations,” San Niang retorted.
After listening to these people, Liu Jingyi had a headache because she couldn't understand why things were like this.
What kind of thief steals things like this?
Just then, the squad leader of another team returned with his men:
"Reporting to Commander Liu, we have discovered the executed thief and some of the missing gold and silver in the first courtyard at the entrance of the village."
"real?"
Upon hearing this news, Liu Jingyi finally relaxed and looked at everyone:
“I am aware of your situation. I am Liu Jingyi, a commander under Commander Zhou of Yuncheng. I am here on the orders of the Commander to investigate a group of ruthless thieves. It is true that thieves broke into your village, and your belongings must have been stolen by them.”
"A thief broke in?"
"A thief broke in?"
"Oh no, have my things been stolen?"
"Yes, I need to go home and check on things!"
The others looked at each other in bewilderment, and then decided to go home to check if anything was missing.
Upon seeing this, Liu Jingyi immediately reprimanded:
"You must stop here for now. The thief is vicious and a ruthless killer. We need to confirm whether he has any accomplices. You will have to stay here for now!"
After saying that, she immediately ordered her subordinates to start confirming the person and then begin the search.
After giving these instructions, she followed the captain to the site that Fang Yuan had set up.
"Commander Liu, when we arrived, we found that all the thieves were dead. It seems they died because of a dispute over the loot."
The squad leader watched as Liu Jingyi carefully examined the body, and she stepped forward to answer.
"Is everything here?" Liu Jingyi asked after looking around.
These people did indeed die not long ago; they died tonight.
only······
"Probably not. There are only two boxes of jewelry here; the rest is unknown."
At this point, the squad leader scratched his head and pointed to the cellar where the treasure was hidden:
"This place, which is supposed to hold gold and silver treasures, is also filled with pickle jars, pots and pans, and even water vats. They look like they were used recently, but this family has everything they need."
Hearing this, Liu Jingyi laughed: "Hmph, these things belong to other people in this village. We'll have them returned after this case is closed."
She had already realized that these people died suspiciously, and she was almost certain that a lot of the treasures had been taken away, but she hadn't found any clues.
Fortunately, she caught the culprit, so she should be able to go back and explain herself without any problems.
Liu Jingyi's side, on the other hand, is progressing smoothly.
Meanwhile, a group of villagers waited anxiously in the village as the officials and their wives inspected their home.
Things are most likely to be stolen during these kinds of spot checks by government officials.
But when they realized that important things in their homes weren't out in the open, and that these people were only looking for thieves, they felt relieved and started discussing it.
"So thieves really did break into our village?"
"Yeah, that's terrifying."
"Haven't you heard they're ruthless killers? Not long ago, we heard that several wealthy families were wiped out. I never expected these people to come here."
"That's right, our Kaoshan Village is dirt poor, what are we going to rob here? We might as well rob the landlords!"
"Hey~ Don't talk nonsense, or I won't rent your land to farm this year!"
The person speaking was interrupted by someone next to her, who gestured for her to look at Tian Qing beside her.
I don't know if he heard me, but he kept his head down!
"·····"
Since a real villain had entered the village, the Wang and Zhang families stopped making a fuss, since there were still people guarding the area!
They were just worried about how much of their own property they could get back.
I don't know if there will be any compensation.
But both families knew that this time they would have to suffer in silence.
As dawn approached, there was a knock on Fang Yuan's door.
Because her house was located at the very back, it was almost always the last place to be explored.
"Who is it? So early in the morning!"
Liu Yun went to bed early last night, and his room was the east room closest to the main entrance. He got up and opened the door after hearing the noise.
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