The county lieutenant thought Xuanci's calmness was just a pretense. He smiled faintly and said, "Master Xuanci, don't be impatient. I will summon the witness first."

After he finished speaking, he nodded slightly to his subordinates, and soon an old woman was brought over.

Suddenly, a cry of surprise came from the crowd: "Isn't this Aunt Wang?"

"Sister-in-law, please tell me about your relationship with the Liu family and anything else you know."

The old woman felt a little embarrassed under the gaze of so many people, and couldn't help but look at the county lieutenant.

The county lieutenant encouraged and smiled.

In the hearts of the common people, they feel more secure when an official makes the decision. The old woman said, "I have been a neighbor of the Liu family for decades. I watched Liu Sheng's mother get married. His parents have been married for more than ten years without having children. I have seen them quarrel many times..."

The old woman fell into recollection: "I never thought that Liu Sheng's mother gave birth to Liu Sheng when she was over 30 years old. At that time, I was very happy for them, but later I found that something was wrong——"

"What's wrong?" the county lieutenant asked at the right time.

The old woman sighed a little: "In the first half year after Liu Sheng was born, the couple was as sweet as honey. But one day, Liu Sheng's father beat his mother very badly. Later, Liu Sheng's mother was beaten frequently. As a result, one day, the old woman saw Liu Sheng's mother and his second uncle..."

The old woman shook her head: "You tell me, how could he not be beaten? Later, Liu Sheng's father passed away, and his mother was no longer beaten, and she even smiled. I understood when I saw how well Liu Sheng's uncle treated him, but I thought that if she made a fuss, Liu Sheng's mother would have no way to live, so I never mentioned it to anyone."

At this point, the old woman sighed: "Now that the person is gone and still can't have a good end, I feel that I can't keep it a secret. I can't let him be a confused ghost, right?"

"It turns out that Liu Sheng is really his second uncle's son!" The people watching the excitement exclaimed.

The county commander looked at Xuanci with a gloomy face.

Xuanci still maintained a calm expression: "Even if Liu Sheng is the son of his second uncle, and the poor monk had a long history with his second uncle and had said that he would revive Lingwu Temple, Your Excellency cannot say that Liu Sheng was killed by the poor monk."

"Haha, Master Xuanci really won't cry until he sees the coffin." The county lieutenant suddenly stepped forward and approached Xuanci.

Xuanci finally looked a little more alert.

The county lieutenant reached out his hand almost at lightning speed, grabbed Xuanci's right sleeve and lifted it up.

"What are you doing!" Sihai roared, his eyes inadvertently fell on Xuanci's arm, and he was stunned.

The courtyard was brightly lit, and the several deep bloodstains on Xuanci's arms were particularly conspicuous.

"What's that?" The onlookers looked around curiously because they couldn't see clearly because of the distance.

"I noticed that Master Xuanci has been turning the Buddhist beads with his left hand." The county lieutenant's voice was a little cold in the night. "Sijie is left-handed, and Master Xuanci is also left-handed. Such coincidences do exist, but they are rare. In comparison, I believe in my own speculation more. Liu Sheng scratched your right hand when he struggled desperately!"

"Amitābha, you have misunderstood. The poor monk's hand was scratched by a wild cat."

"Master Xuanci is so patient!" The county lieutenant stretched out his hand and asked with a sneer, "What about this?"

He held a Buddhist bead in his hand, but this small bead made Xuanci's expression change instantly.

The county lieutenant smiled and said, "This kind of red sandalwood Buddhist beads are not used by ordinary monks. I have observed for a long time and found that among the monks present, only Master Xuanci's Buddhist beads are red sandalwood."

After hearing what the county lieutenant said, everyone couldn't help but look at the Buddhist beads hanging on Xuanci's body. They were indeed the finest red sandalwood Buddhist beads.

The county lieutenant raised the beads in his hand high and said in a loud voice: "This bead was found by an official near the well. It is definitely not owned by ordinary monks who would go to the well to draw water. Master Xuanci, it is said that there is a certain number of beads. I estimate that the beads on your body should be 108!"

Xuan Ci kept his face sullen and said nothing, while his left hand turned the Buddhist beads even faster.

"Someone, take down Master Xuanci's Buddhist beads and count them!"

"Amitābha Buddha, I am the temporary abbot. How can you insult me ​​with just a bead? Do you have a prejudice against Lingwu Temple? Otherwise, why would you appear here?"

"Don't insult Uncle Master Xuanci!" Several monks shouted loudly, especially Sihai who had the loudest voice, but some monks remained silent.

"I have no grudges against your temple. I have even been to your temple to burn incense. How could I intentionally insult you? Now all the clues point to Master Xuanci. If Master Xuanci has a clear conscience, this is a good opportunity to prove his innocence. Why are you blocking him in every way?" The county lieutenant waved his hand, "What are you still standing there for? Take down Xuanci's Buddhist beads!"

Soon, a subordinate with a bulging temple held down Xuanci, took the Buddhist beads and handed them to the county lieutenant. This time, the monks did not say a word.

The county lieutenant carefully stroked the beads for a while, then handed them to Li Zheng: "Li Zheng, you will be the one to count the number of beads."

Li Zheng's face flushed: "This old man doesn't know how to count..."

"Ahem..." The calm and composed county commander suddenly choked.

"Sir, let Erdan come. This boy is very smart." Li Zheng pointed at the young man beside him.

What else could the county lieutenant say? He just nodded.

The young man who was entrusted with this important task was very excited. He carefully took the beads and counted them aloud: "One, two... one hundred and seven."

When he finished counting and said "one hundred and seven", you could hear a pin drop in the courtyard.

"Is there anyone who can count? Let someone else count again."

Immediately someone volunteered to step forward, and in the end the total was still 107.

"Master Xuanci, do you have anything else to say?"

"The Buddhist beads were lost earlier, and the poor monk had no idea why they appeared next to the well." Xuan Ci glanced at the monk sweeping the floor and said meaningfully, "Perhaps a fellow disciple framed him. The poor monk went from being the most insignificant disciple to the interim abbot today, so it's possible that his fellow disciples were jealous."

Xuan An had been a very peaceful person after more than ten years of career as a sweeper. He just chanted a Buddhist name when he heard this.

The county lieutenant laughed: "This is really an eye-opener for me. You still refuse to plead guilty even at this point! Then how do you explain the blood stains on the string of the Buddhist beads?"

The county lieutenant spread out the Buddhist beads to reveal the white rope: "These bloodstains are still dark red, and it can be seen that they were stained with blood not long ago. There are Buddhist beads left at the scene, there are shameful activities in the past, and there is a trusted disciple who appeared in Liu Sheng's house and killed Liu Sheng's mother...Xuan Ci, you should confess your guilt and don't treat the world as a fool!"

Xuan Ci stumbled back and finally admitted his crime.

What impressed everyone was that the county lieutenant's speculation was exactly the same as Xuanci's statement.

Most of the night had passed, Xuanci was taken to the woodshed for guarding, and the people who were watching the excitement left in a groaning and anger. I believe that there will be a storm tomorrow when the news spreads.

The monks knew that the days ahead would be difficult, so they dispersed listlessly.

Before going into the house to rest, the county lieutenant found Jiang Si and bowed to her: "Thank you for your help, young lady."

Jiang Zhan was shocked.

How come he doesn’t know what Fourth Sister did?