Chapter 74 Interrogation Methods
He Zhenhu didn't know how the police found him. When he was taken away from home, Li Xiangyun and his mother cried and asked him what he had done wrong, but he couldn't answer.
After thinking about it, He Zhenhu guessed that it might be related to the burning of Liu Mingan's house.
But what he did was to take in Coach Zhao and sit at home for an afternoon, and he went to the bamboo forest to inform Monkey. Even if something happened, it shouldn't be blamed on him, right?
Thinking of this, He Zhenhu felt a little more at ease. When he went to the court, he saw that Sixth Master, Monkey, Liu Mingan and the woman who knocked him out were all there, and He Zhenhu knew that he guessed right.
Jiang Ning noticed that Song Ming moved his body after He Zhenhu entered the courtroom. His originally upright sitting posture changed, with one hand on the armrest and his body tilted. He looked less serious and more casual.
"I am He Zhenhu, a humble servant. Nice to meet you, Lord Song!" He Zhenhu bowed and saluted. He could feel several eyes on him, and his heart began to beat.
Song Ming picked up the teacup with one hand, took a sip, and then smiled and said: "Zhenhu, this name sounds domineering. You were not born in the year of the tiger, were you?"
He Zhenhu was stunned. This question was beyond his expectation, but he still answered honestly: "Yes."
"Isn't this a coincidence? I was also born in the year of the tiger." Song Ming laughed, and seemed very excited, and asked: "What month were you born?"
"September."
"Oh, then I am one month older than you. I was born in August. Are you married?"
...
He Zhenhu was a little confused about the situation. Why didn't this county magistrate ask him about any case, but chat with him about family matters?
Not only He Zhenhu, but also Hu Laoliu, Monkey, and Liu Mingan were confused. Why did the county magistrate look so easy-going now, without any official airs?
Only Jiang Ning curled her lips slowly, she knew this interrogation method too well.
Interrogation is an important part of investigating a case. In the long history of development, due to the increasingly perfect legal system and the increasing attention paid to human rights by countries around the world, in order to avoid "confessions under torture" to the greatest extent, the traditional interrogation method that causes physical and physiological damage to suspects has gradually been eliminated.
Later, the process of obtaining accurate testimony from suspects became more and more difficult, so the interrogation process emphasized the research and application of psychological methods.
In modern interrogation theory, the interrogator's questioning skills and the guessing of the psychological activities of the interrogated person have the same important position.
And Song Ming's words and deeds adopted the simplest technique to lower the psychological defense line of the interrogated person.
When He Zhenhu showed up in court, he was expecting to be questioned by the county magistrate, so he was alert, on guard, and defensive. In this case, any answer he gave was a well-thought-out answer after weighing the pros and cons.
Therefore, before He Zhenhu came in, Song Ming relaxed his body, sat sideways, and weakened his "official authority."
Afterwards, Song Ming no longer called himself "this official" when talking, but "I", which reduced the gap between "official" and "civilian", blurred the gap between their identities, and then smiled and chatted with He Zhenhu, letting him relax a little bit.
And in this seemingly casual chat, there are also skills in speaking.
If you just blindly ask questions such as "How old are you?" "Are you married?" and "How old are your children?", the person being interrogated will feel weird, and it will be easy to detect that the interrogator is trying to get close, and the result is likely to be counterproductive.
Song Ming did this very well. He not only asked, but also talked about his own situation after asking. This will make He Zhenhu slowly realize that this official is a person just like him. He is alive and has his own joys and sorrows. It is no big deal.
As for why Song Ming only used this psychological attack and defense technique on He Zhenhu and not on Monkey and Hu Laoliu, Jiang Ning thought about it. It should be because it can be inferred from Zhao Qiang's confession that Monkey and Hu Laoliu themselves are scheming people.
Hu Laoliu and Monkey worked together to lure Zhao Qiang into the trap. The connection between them must be much deeper than that with He Zhenhu.
He Zhenhu is more like the last link in their plan. The biggest reason why he was chosen to participate in this matter is because he is from Lotus Village.
Because of this, if one of the three people is to be chosen as a breakthrough for the confession, it must be He Zhenhu.
This young county magistrate is really a bit resourceful. Although the application is rather stiff and deliberate, it should be enough for He Zhenhu, Jiang Ning thought.
The result was just as Jiang Ning expected. He Zhenhu suspected that the county magistrate had taken the wrong medicine at first, and he was very nervous. But after a while, he found that they were talking about family matters, and the county magistrate was very approachable. He would listen carefully to what he said, and the two of them had a very good chat. He Zhenhu gradually forgot that this was a court, and his courage grew.
When Jiang Ning saw that He Zhenhu no longer hunched his shoulders, dared to look directly at Song Ming when he spoke, and his feet unconsciously adjusted to his most comfortable standing position, she knew that the interrogation should end.
"... Did your wife come to Lotus Village before you got married?"
"She came several times, and I went to pick her up. She looked very well-behaved at that time. Who knew she would become so nagging now." He Zhenhu replied with a frown, obviously remembering something that made him unhappy.
"Oh, I see," Song Ming said without changing his tone, and continued, "Has the monkey been to Lotus Village?"
"Yes!" He Zhenhu answered without thinking.
Jiang Ning looked towards Monkey and Hu Laoliu, only to see their faces change greatly, especially Monkey, whose eyes dimmed, and he didn't care about the occasion anymore, and shouted directly at He Zhenhu: "What are you talking about? When have I been to Lotus Village?"
He Zhenhu suddenly came back to his senses, and was surprised that he had let the cat out of the bag. He immediately waved his hands in panic at Song Ming and said: "No, no, no... Sir, I remembered it wrong, Monkey has never been to Lotus Village, I--"
"Bang!"
The sound of the alarm clock blocked the second half of He Zhenhu's words in his throat. He found that Song Ming had changed. There was no smile on his face just now. It was clearly the serious and intimidating face of an official.
"Hou Zehua, how can you be so presumptuous in the court?" Song Ming frowned and shouted at Monkey.
"Sir Song, I was wrongly accused. I am in a hurry. Please investigate!" Monkey said anxiously.
"Oh! Wronged..." Song Ming looked at the panicked He Zhenhu and asked, "He Zhenhu, I want to ask you, is what you just said about Hou Zehua going to Lotus Village true or false?"
He Zhenhu thought of what Hu Laoliu and Monkey had told him, and he wanted to deny it, but just after he said "yes", he heard Song Ming say quietly, "I remind you, if what you said is a lie, then you are falsely testifying to deceive me, and at the same time framing others, which is aggravated. According to the law, you will be punished with 50 strokes of the cane and imprisoned for six months."
He Zhenhu's forehead was covered with sweat, his lips were trembling, and his face was a little pale.
"Also, the day before yesterday, Liu Ming'an's house was burned down. Someone intended to set the fire and commit murder. You didn't go home for many days, but you went back the day before yesterday. I think you are very suspicious."
Song Ming spoke again. For He Zhenhu, this was the last straw that broke the camel's back.
The people present saw He Zhenhu bend his knees and kneel straight in front of Song Ming, and then said: "I am not lying. Monkey... came to Lotus Village! Just the day before yesterday!"
Monkey's face turned blue-gray, his fists were clenched tightly at his sides, veins on his arms bulged, and the hatred in his eyes made people shudder.