The village chief asked sternly, "Do you two want a toast or a penalty drink?"
The two militiamen had long been impatient, so they pulled out their belts and started whipping themselves.
The tall man screamed, "Stop smoking! I'll confess!"
The short man shouted, "Brother, we can't force a confession out of us!"
The village chief waved his hand and said to the tall man, "Since you are willing to confess, I will let you go. However, you have to write a confession, detailing in detail how you kidnapped the girl."
The tall man said in a panic, "Village chief, I...I can't write it because I didn't do it."
The village chief sneered, "So you were just faking it all. Keep whipping me, whip me hard."
The belt fell on the two men again, and the tall man yelled, "I'll write, I'll write, I'll write whatever you tell me to write."
The village chief said, "Untie him, take him inside, and make him write a confession."
The short man cried and said, "Brother, you can't write it down! If it's written down in black and white, the kidnapping case will be confirmed!"
“Brother, I have to write it. We’re not in the city, we’re in this remote, desolate place. The village chief is like a local tyrant. If he wants us dead, we have no choice but to die.”
The village chief frowned and said to a militiaman, "It seems this little dwarf is determined to die rather than submit. Well then, I'll grant his wish. Take a shovel, go to the back hill, dig a pit, beat him to death, and throw him in the pit."
The militiaman took a shovel and walked out of the yard.
The tall man pleaded earnestly, "Brother, saving our lives is the most important thing right now."
The short man was a little scared and asked, "Village chief, if we write a confession, will you let us go?"
"Hehe... It's not enough for you two to just write confessions; you also need to give this kidnapped girl some compensation."
The tall man promised, "Village chief, I will give her ten thousand yuan in compensation."
The village chief shrugged, glanced at the yams in the yard, and said, "I think we should use the yams in the yard to offset the compensation."
The tall man was startled and said in a panic, "Village chief, we collected 100,000 catties of yams. Are we going to use them all to compensate that girl?"
"Heh... Do you think 100,000 catties of yams is a lot? Let me tell you, that girl was kidnapped by you and she's been so frightened that she's become mentally impaired. Tell me, her life is ruined. Is it too much for you to compensate her with some yams?"
The tall man had already figured out that the girl bound by ropes was an idiot.
"Village chief, you...you can't be so dark."
The village chief said angrily, "I'll give you two five minutes to discuss this properly. Either you compensate that girl with these yams and write a confession, and I'll let you go. If you don't, tonight will be the anniversary of your deaths, and I'll have to avenge that girl."
After the village chief finished speaking, he turned to a militiaman and said, "Go to the back mountain and dig another pit. It seems that these two are misers who would rather lose their lives than their money."
The tall man gave in and said meekly, "Village chief, I agree. I will give all the yams in the yard to that girl as compensation."
The short man said with tears in his eyes, "Brother, how did we end up in such a terrible mess? God, please open your eyes and let it snow in June!"
The village chief said sternly, "What are you yelling about? Discuss it quickly and give me an answer."
The village chief took out a cigarette, lit it, took a deep drag, and said as if talking to himself, "People should think more openly. As the saying goes, money is just an external thing. You can't take it with you when you die. Why be a miser? I'm a kind-hearted person and I can't bear to kill you two. I want to give you a way out. The problem is: if you two don't know what's good for you, there's nothing I can do."
Several militiamen shouted together, "Village chief, stop wasting words with them and just bury them alive. Once they're dead, the yams in this yard can be used to compensate the victims."
The village chief nodded and said, "Yes, that makes sense. Let's take them to the back mountain and bury them alive in the pit."
Upon hearing this, the tall man pleaded, "Village chief, I agree to your terms. I will give all these yams to that girl as compensation, and I will write a confession to express my deep remorse."
The short man was still a little unwilling and pleaded, "Village chief, we spent 50,000 yuan to buy these yams. This is all I have. If I lose these yams, I will be penniless."
The tall man stamped his foot and said, "Brother, why are you so stubborn? You're about to die, and you still can't let go of that stinking money. If you want to die, there's nothing I can do."
The tall man said to the village chief, "Quickly untie my ropes, I want to write a confession."
The short man sighed and said, "Village chief, I also want to write a confession."
The militiamen untied the two men, brought them into the house, and gave each of them a piece of paper and a pen.
The short man said with difficulty, "Brother, how do I write this confession? I... I don't even know how to write a letter. Asking me to write a confession is like asking me to die."
"Brother, I'll write it first, and then you can copy it."
The tall man thought for a moment and then began writing a confession.
In less than half an hour, a lengthy confession was written.
The village chief looked at it and said with satisfaction, "Hehe...you're quite talented, kid. It seems you must be a college student."
The tall man bowed and scraped, saying, "Village chief, you have a discerning eye. I am indeed a college student, majoring in economics."
The village chief asked, "What is your educational level, brother?"
"He is a primary school student and has never liked studying since he was a child."
The village chief slammed the confession in front of the short man and ordered, "You can't write, but you can at least copy, can you?"
"I...I can copy it."
The short man leaned over the table and began copying down the text, word by word.
The village chief glanced at his handwriting and said disdainfully, "Kid, your handwriting looks like chicken claws, it's really ugly."
“I…I didn’t study much, I…I rarely write.”
After the two men finished writing their confessions, the village chief had them sign them and affix their fingerprints.
The village chief tucked the confession into his pocket and asked, "What time is it now?"
A militiaman wearing a watch replied, "It's past three in the morning."
The village chief stretched and said, "Tie them both to the tree first, and when it's light, take him to..."
"Go to the long-distance bus station in town and put them on the bus."
The two men were tied to the tree again.
The short man said aggrievedly, "Brother, tell me, isn't this a disaster that just fell from the sky? Why are we so unlucky?"
The tall man sighed and said, "We've been set up. This is a conspiracy to seize the yams we bought and drive us out of Qinglong Town."
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