Chapter 041: Wanping County Husband-Killing Incident (Part 1)
Although it is a little difficult to understand her way of thinking that values fame over life.
But the truth still needs to be clarified, so Sun Shaozong said: "Zhang Li, if you want to prove that you didn't cheat, you must first prove that you didn't murder your husband! Since you keep saying that the murderer was someone else, why don't you quickly tell us the details of what happened?!"
As he said that, he ordered Zhang Dalong and others to untie the ropes on her first.
Although Zhang Dalong and the others were reluctant, they dared not disobey Sun Shaozong due to his reputation as a "magician", and they had to hurriedly untie Li.
Li regained her freedom and quickly knelt at Sun Shaozong's feet like everyone else. She raised her head, revealing her slender and delicate neck, and said in a loud voice: "Master, please understand. Because of rumors that I am not faithful to my husband, I don't know where they came from, and my husband became suspicious. He has been taking it out on me these days. I have explained everything, but he just doesn't believe it! This evening..."
Although the woman was covered in blood and bruises, upon closer inspection, it was not difficult to find that she had a slim figure and a pretty appearance, especially her eyes and eyebrows, which exuded a seductive charm. It was no wonder that rumors were spread about her.
Stop talking nonsense.
From what Li said, she did have a conflict with Zhang Erhu in the evening, and was kicked in the abdomen by Zhang Erhu. She was in so much pain that she was sweating all over. She dared not say anything, so she could only shrink into the inner room and sob.
Faintly, she heard another quarrel in the yard, as if Zhang Erhu was quarreling with someone again. Just as she was hesitating whether to go out to take a look, she heard Zhang Erhu's shrill scream!
Li was startled and went out to see what was happening. She saw the door was still swaying, but Zhang Erhu had already fallen in a pool of blood.
She went forward to check and found that Zhang Erhu was silent. She did not have time to think too much and chased after him desperately, wanting to catch the murderer. But when she reached the next door, she was stopped by her brother and sister-in-law, who insisted that she had murdered her husband. They also asked the neighbors to tie her up, saying that they were going to throw her into the pond and put her in a pig cage!
When Sun Shaozong heard this, he already had some guesses in his mind, but he had to see the scene to be sure of the details.
Just at this moment, a patrol officer from Wanping County arrived upon hearing the news. Upon hearing that the magistrate of the mansion was there, he hurried forward to pay his respects.
Sun Shaozong was worried that he couldn't control so many people, fearing that the thieves would escape by accident, and these bailiffs arrived at the right time.
Therefore, he did not hesitate and directly ordered the yamen runners to keep a watch on both sides, and drove this group of people back to the crime scene like driving sheep - Sun Shaozong originally wanted Ruan Rong to return home first, but Ruan Rong loved to watch him solve cases the most, so how could she be willing to leave at this time?
She had no choice but to cover herself with a woolen cloak and half of her face with a silk scarf, and followed Sun Shaozong openly.
However, when he arrived at the door of Zhang Erhu's house, Sun Shaozong was not in a hurry to go in. Instead, he first measured the terrain of the alley with his eyes.
This alley is a dead end, with only about a dozen wealthy families living in it. Zhang Erhu's house is near the end of the alley, and there are only two families further inside. In order to enter or exit the alley, one must pass by Zhang Dalong's house.
When entering the alley, Sun Shaozong also took a special look. It was a busy area outside, especially there was a dried fruit stall near the entrance of the alley. The owner of the dried fruit stall was also in the group of people being put into the pig cage. According to her, she did not see anyone rushing out of the alley at that time.
This is also one of the important reasons why Zhang Dalong and his wife firmly believe that Li is the murderer.
Taking into account the whole situation, Sun Shaozong glanced back and forth in front of the doors of Zhang Dalong and Zhang Erhu's houses with an eagle-like gaze, and then stepped into Zhang Erhu's yard.
As soon as he stepped over the threshold, he saw a male corpse lying on his back in the middle of the yard, with his eyes wide open and a look of disbelief on his face. The neighbors in the yard who were responsible for guarding the corpse had also received the news long ago, and they all knelt on the ground to welcome the great lord.
Sun Shaozong asked a few simple questions and made sure that they did not disturb the corpse and the furnishings in the yard. Then he waved his hand and told them to wait outside the door for a while.
After clearing the area, Sun Shaozong squatted beside the corpse and observed it carefully.
There is no doubt that the deceased's fatal injury was caused by the sharp kitchen knife that had not yet been pulled out of his chest.
This knife was just an ordinary kitchen knife, and there was no blood groove on the side, so there was almost no splattered blood on the ground, only a large area spreading along the chest.
There were a few obvious bloody fingerprints on the knife handle, but judging by the marks, they were probably left there by the deceased using his last bit of strength, and not by the murderer. If there were advanced equipment , perhaps more obvious fingerprints could be extracted. But now, we can only give up using fingerprints to catch the murderer.
but……
This kitchen knife still reveals an important message!
"The murderer must be someone else."
Sun Shaozong wrapped the handle of the knife with a handkerchief, carefully pulled it out, held it in his palm, and explained to Ruan Rong: "Based on the width, length, and insertion posture of this knife, it should have been forced in between two ribs - to do this, at least one rib must be cut or broken. Li is so weak, I'm afraid she doesn't have that much strength."
As he spoke, he inserted his fingers into the wound, stirred it up and down a few times, and then said clearly: "The fourth rib on the top was broken by the back of the knife. This requires more strength."
Li and Zhang Dalong were not far behind the two of them. Upon hearing this, one was ecstatic and the other was dissatisfied and indignant.
Li kept saying, "The great Lord of Heaven sees everything clearly." Zhang Dalong endured it for a long time, but seeing her infinite joy, he finally couldn't hold back and protested, "Master! This vicious woman usually carries water and firewood, what can't she do? How come she doesn't have enough strength?!"
Sun Shaozong smiled when he heard this, but he was not in a hurry to argue with him. He first carefully examined the body from top to bottom, and then looked around the house twice. Then he said to Zhang Dalong: "Since you think this evidence is not sufficient, let's verify your testimony first."
"Verify...verify the testimony?"
"Yes, let's reenact the scene you described in your testimony."
Sun Shaozong pointed to the next room and said, "Take off your coat first, go back to your bed and lie down. When Li breaks open the door and flees, put on your clothes and go out to stop her. Do you understand?"
Although Zhang Dalong didn't understand the point of doing this, he had to obey the order from the magistrate.
But he was accompanied by two yamen runners to his own bedroom next door. He took off his coat rather shyly and climbed onto the bed stupidly. He suddenly felt a little shy for no reason and quickly wrapped his body with the quilt.
He is just a rough guy, what's so good about him?
After he was ready, the two yamen runners sent one of them to report to the next door. Not long after, they heard the sound of the door of the next door being slammed open again!
"Hurry, hurry, hurry up!"
The bailiff urged at first, then remembered Sun Shaozong's instructions and quickly changed his words: "You don't have to go too fast, just follow your speed at that time!"
Being urged by him both fast and slow, Zhang Dalong was immediately at a loss as to what to do, which was similar to the first time he heard the scream.
But when Zhang Dalong hurriedly put on his clothes and rushed out of his house, the scene he saw made him stand there in a daze!
