Liaozhai Great Sage

Li Xiuyuan said, "Oh, it's him? But the one called Xi'er was a man disguised as a woman, a fake. I was there at the time, and many people wanted to buy him, but Mr. Fang bought it. Where is he now?"

"Yes, in the backyard." Fang said.

"That's right, the murderer has been arrested, and I can make a decision, but why did the wife of the murderer hide it for him?" Li Xiuyuan narrowed his eyes: "This maid was only bought for a few days, and the relationship between the maid and the wife is not yet clear. It’s not that deep.”

Fang lowered her head and wept, but said nothing.

Li Xiuyuan said: "Unless... Madam has an affair with him?"

7 Chapter Twenty

The context of the matter is very clear.

Li Xiuyuan roughly guessed the reason of the matter, and also knew why this Fang family had been unwilling to reveal the murderer, and was even willing to do everything possible to bribe himself for this.

It turned out that the problem was her.

She had an affair with that person named Xi'er, so she naturally didn't want the case to be solved out of concern for her reputation.

Once this matter is found out, Fang's fate will be very tragic.

Collaborating with an adulterer to murder her husband, there are only two ways for her to face such a crime, either hang herself, or be imprisoned for trial... But both of them can't escape death, and the latter will suffer an extra sentence. Penalties.

"My lord, my lord, it's not like this, it's not like this. It was Xi'er who deliberately seduced me that night. I didn't intend to follow him, but he threatened my reputation, so I couldn't agree to him. In the yamen office, my concubine just took off her clothes when my husband happened to bump into me...it was him, he killed my husband, and taught my concubine to see it and blame it on the Wutong Jiao demon."

"My lord, please save my concubine. When I was in Xiangguo Temple, my concubine looked down on others. I had a little entanglement with my lord. I apologized and kowtowed to my lord. Please let my lord let me go this time, my lord." I don’t want to go to the yamen, and if this matter gets out, I can’t forgive myself even if I kill myself, how can the parents and children of the concubine look up to me in the future?”

Fang knelt on the ground, kowtowed, and begged, her face was full of despair, she only hoped that Li Xiuyuan would be extrajudicial and forgive her.

There is no other way.

If Li Xiuyuan was determined to do business, she really could only ask for death.

Li Xiuyuan rubbed his head at this moment, feeling a headache.

If this is the case, the crime is not enough to kill Fang, but then again, once the case is solved, Fang Shengyu's family will be considered ruined, and his wife and children will be separated. Even if the yamen does not sentence her to death, she guesses They will also hang themselves, and their children and parents will also feel ashamed.

It's hard to say whether he will commit suicide afterward.

This is ancient times, for the sake of fame, there are many people who commit suicide.

It is indeed too much to destroy a family in a case that is not enough to sentence the death penalty.

It can only be seen from this case that the crimes committed by Fang Shengyu before his death have begun to harm his children and grandchildren... Without a life and death record in hand, God knows how much Fang Shengyu has suffered, and his whole family will be affected if he dies.

"I, Li Xiuyuan, don't even bat an eyelid to kill demons, ghosts, and bandits, but I really can't kill women, children, and children." Li Xiuyuan, who was smart since he was a child, was caught in a difficult situation by this case.

To judge, or not to judge?

Sentence is to let Fang Shengyu's family be ruined, which is equivalent to murder, and not to sentence is to bend the law for personal gain.

"Stop kowtowing and don't cry. People who don't know think I'm bullying you, a widow, here. I already know the facts of your case, but I have to think carefully about how to make a decision." Li Xiuyuan felt The head is a bit big, so he often laughs at himself, he is not born to be an official.

The heart is still not hard enough.

"Since the murderer named Xi'er is in the backyard, I will arrest him first, and I will give you an answer tomorrow on how to judge him."

Li Xiuyuan hadn't thought of it yet, and the conversation had been going on for a long time. This lonely man and widow were in the same room, so if it continued to drag on, it would inevitably be criticized.

Immediately, he turned and left the house.

"My lord." Cui Wei outside the door clasped his fists and saluted.

Li Xiuyuan glanced at the people in the yard at this moment and said: "I have just asked Mrs. Fang about the case, and I have deduced who the murderer is. The murderer is the person in Mr. Fang's house. The murderer is still at the mansion, Cui Wei, immediately take someone with me to the backyard to arrest him, we must not let him escape."

But at this time, those guests in the yard who came to express their condolences and pay homage became suspicious.

"What? Master Fang was killed by a servant girl in the house? How is this possible? It wasn't the work of the Wutong Sect demon."

"This dog official must not be able to find out that the murderer deliberately arrested a person in the house to make up for the crime, and then recorded a statement, and the case will be closed if the torture is done."

"It must be so. He didn't dare to catch the demon of the Wutong Sect, but he bullied the family members of Mr. Fang's house here. I must impeach him."

Li Xiuyuan didn't bother to pay attention to those people's gossip. These people were purely full and had nothing to do, so they made trouble on purpose.

"Search, bring out all the maids and servants in the backyard, and don't leave a single one behind." He immediately gave an order after arriving in the backyard.

Cui Wei led a group of headhunters who were like wolves and tigers and immediately broke into the door to arrest people. After a while, five or six servant girls and three or four servants were arrested.

"My lord, all the servants in the backyard are here, without missing a single one."

Li Xiuyuan glanced at it, and immediately pointed to a petite and beautiful maid and said, "Catch this person."

Immediately, the two headhunters put their knives on the girl's neck and saw her pinned to the ground.

"Old butler, do you recognize this person?" Li Xiuyuan asked.

The steward of the Fang family said: "If you tell the adults, the villain will recognize it. This is a maid bought by the master on the day of the Shangyuan Festival. Her name is Xi'er. She has only been in the house for a few days. favorite."

"If I say that this maid is the murderer of Mr. Fang, do you believe it?" Li Xiuyuan asked.

"This, this..." The old housekeeper became embarrassed.

But the guest who followed behind said loudly: "Master Li, how could this woman be a murderer? She is weak and doesn't look like she can hold a sword. It's so difficult for Mr. Li to even have such a charming and charming woman in order to solve the case." Do you want to persecute all the girls? Or is it because Mr. Li took a fancy to Mr. Fang's former maid, so he wanted to steal it?"

"Is that so? No way."

"This, this dog official dares to be so vicious, I, I must go to the official's house to impeach him."

Li Xiuyuan's eyes moved slightly, and he immediately said: "Who is the person who said that? Stand up."

"It's what I said, what's the matter? It's so difficult that Master Li became angry and wanted to persecute you because what I said hit your wolf ambition?" At this time, a man stood up and said with a face of fear: "But I don't know what to do. He is a scholar, and the Song Dynasty established the law in the early years, and the crime of speech is not a crime. If you want to persecute me, you must first get the fame of your subordinate."

"Scholar?" Li Xiuyuan said indifferently: "The imperial court does not criminalize speech, it doesn't mean that you willfully slander others, and your words must be well-founded. How did you get admitted as a scholar? Have you forgotten the way of a gentleman? Although I am not a stingy person, if you continue to slander, I have reason to suspect that you know the murderer, and may even want to acquit the murderer."

"I don't know the murderer, but I can be sure that the girl you are talking about is definitely not the murderer." The scholar said.

"Guarantee? Do you dare to say your name and write down the guarantee document? If you dare, if there is even the slightest slander, I am willing to resign." Li Xiuyuan said.

"Why don't you dare, let me say what you say." The scholar said humanely, and immediately took a pen and ink, and wrote down the proof: "My lord, Sun Yue, please remember my name, I just hope that my lord will not say anything. If this girl If it’s not the murderer, you should resign from office.”

After speaking, he said to the crowd: "Master Fang's family members, please rest assured. I have been under the care of Mr. Fang for many years. Even if I risk my life today, I will keep Mr. Fang's family safe. I will never let this dog mess around."

"Okay, Brother Sun is really a righteous man, not as good as me."

"Fight to the end with this dog official, if Brother Sun needs help, I am willing to help."

Among the people who came to worship, there were quite a few scholars. It seems that Fang Shengyu had a lot of contacts in his lifetime. Some scholars jumped out full of righteous indignation and wanted to fight Li Xiuyuan to the end.