Chapter 551: Solve the case safely (2)
"Ms. Zhang, please continue."
After seeing the scene quieten down a little, the magistrate of Chun'an nodded towards the young woman and signaled her Go on.
"Uuuu. Master Qingtian, my master told me three days ago that he hired the boatman Wang Gui and said he would go to Yingtian Mansion to purchase goods this morning. The agreed departure time is a quarter past nine o'clock. My family The master packed up his gifts and took Xinruan out at four o'clock this morning."
The young woman Zhang Wang sobbed and told the story of the incident while wiping her tears.
"After my master went out this morning, about an hour later, the maid Bi'er reported back to me that she heard someone knocking on the door, knocking very fast, and shouting, 'Mrs. Zhang, Mrs. Zhang, open the door quickly.' I walked to the yard. I heard such a shout, so I asked the maid Bi'er to open the door, and then I found the boatman Wang Gui outside the door. I asked Wang Gui why he was so anxious and what happened. "
"Wang Gui asked anxiously, 'Mrs. Zhang, it's getting late, why hasn't Mr. Zhang boarded the boat yet?'. I was surprised when I heard this. My master has been out for an hour. Why? You haven't boarded the boat yet? Then you felt panicked, so you took your maid and asked your family to follow the boatman to the riverside to find my master. On the way, they met acquaintances and they said they saw my family. The master took a shortcut to the riverside and walked down the river to the pier. When we arrived at the riverside, there was only one boat on the riverside and there was no sign of my master. The slave family was worried and followed Wang Gui to the county government to report the case. . ”
“My master is a good man, helping his neighbors and doing many good things by building bridges and roads. My master is known for keeping his promises. Everything you have done will be done, and you will arrive at the time you say you will. If you don’t rush there at the appointed time, something must have happened. Mr. Qingtian, you have to make the decisions for my family and my master. "< br>
The young woman held back her tears and finished speaking. She could no longer hold back her words. The sobbing at the beginning turned into heartbreaking. She knelt on the ground and begged the magistrate of Chun'an to make the decision for her.
There was a buzzing sound around, like countless flies flying. Because there were official officials nearby, people did not dare to speak loudly, but the whispering was continuous, especially when the young woman was talking. .
Due to official duties, people just whispered to each other and expressed their opinions.
"Mr. Zhang only went out with her front legs. If someone knocked on the back door, she would open the door. What does this mean? She is really used to being easygoing."
"That's right. I really feel sorry for Mr. Zhang. It’s worth it.”
“Hey, I’ve heard for a long time that this woman is unruly. You call me a decent person? My daughter-in-law, who opened the door for a man so early in the morning, she might have thought that the boatman was her concubine."
"How can I not keep my shoes wet when I often walk by the river? , you can take shortcuts, but you have to pay attention to safety. It rained last night and the riverside is the most slippery."
Compared to people talking in low voices, Zhu Pingan listened very carefully when the young woman knelt down to tell. Halfway through, Zhu Pingan's eyebrows moved slightly and raised slightly, like a closed room. It's like opening a door.
Looking at the young woman kneeling at the feet of the magistrate of Chun'an, and then glancing at the boatman Wang Gui who was standing next to him waiting for a reply, Zhu Pingan turned his attention to the magistrate.
Let’s see how the magistrate handles it first.
"You get up first. As a parent official, I will naturally make decisions for the people." The magistrate raised his hand and asked someone to pull the young woman up. Then he looked at the boatman Wang Gui aside and asked him to Tell the story again.
“Back to Mr. Qingtian, the younger one’s name is Wang Gui. His ancestors have lived by the Yangtze River for generations, and so has the younger one. Three days ago, Mr. Zhang asked someone to find me and made an appointment to go to Yingtian Mansion to purchase goods at 15:00 today. It's on this riverside, waiting for him to set sail in Mao. When the time came, the younger one went to the riverside to wait for Mr. Zhang, but at a quarter of a hour, Mr. Zhang still hadn’t come. For half an hour, Mr. Zhang didn’t come.”
"The time has been arranged in advance. When we arrive at Yingtian Mansion, we have to pick up Shaodong's family from Li Ji Tea Shop. Mr. Zhang is already almost half an hour late and hasn't come to board the boat. If he misses to pick up Li Shaodong's family, The little one can't afford the punishment. , I hurriedly went to Mr. Zhang’s house to ask him why he didn’t get on the boat.”
“When I arrived at Mr. Zhang’s house, I hurriedly knocked on the door and asked Mrs. Zhang to open the door. Since I was in such a hurry, I asked and said it was not too early. Why didn't Mr. Zhang get on the boat? Then Mrs. Zhang was surprised and said that Mr. Zhang had gone out early in the morning. Then a group of us came to the river again, and there was indeed no trace of Mr. Zhang. You're out, why not go up? Where is the boat? Then I felt something was wrong, so I advised Mrs. Zhang to report the case quickly.”
What the boatman Wang Gui said was consistent with what the young woman Zhang Wang said. Just the angle is different, but the content is the same.
After listening to what boatman Wang Gui said, the people around him began to exchange their opinions in a low voice. Some say that the young woman Zhang Wang colluded with her concubine to kill Mr. Zhang. Some say that Mr. Zhang took a shortcut and fell into the Yangtze River and met with an accident. Some say that Mr. Zhang might have been killed while walking along the river to the dock.
After hearing what the boatman Wang Gui said, the magistrate of Chun'an frowned slightly and fell into deep thought. What boatman Wang Gui and Zhang Wang said are generally consistent, and there is no difference.
After thinking for a moment, Magistrate Chun'an slightly stretched his eyebrows. He looked at the young woman Zhang Wang and asked, "As you just said, you met an acquaintance on the way to the riverside. The acquaintance said that Mr. Zhang was coming from a small road. The road goes to the riverside. Whose last name is this acquaintance? "
In the eyes of the magistrate of Chun'an, the acquaintance mentioned by Zhang Wang is the key. Whether Mr. Zhang has walked to the riverside is related to the location of the search and the case. It's also very helpful.
"Yes" the young woman hesitated slightly.
“Who is it?” Magistrate Chun’an cast his eyes on the young woman, the eyes under his eyebrows were very deep.
"Sir, I am a son of my maiden family, Murakami, who works at the wharf, and is the second son of the old Zhao family in the east of the village." The young woman Zhang Wangshi replied under the gaze of the magistrate of Chun'an.
After the young woman Zhang Wang finished her reply, people's whispering reached a climax. Even if there were servants nearby, the sound was buzzing, and it seemed that people were very excited.
“The Erlang of the old Zhao family, wasn’t she her sweetheart before she married Mr. Zhang?”
“It turned out to be Erlang Zhao, I have to say it with shame, tsk tsk, Zhao Erlang is not a student. Are you preparing for the exam? Why did you suddenly go to the dock to carry goods? "
"Hey, poor Mr. Zhang, hey, hey, he is an adulterer and a silver woman!"
Listening to the answer of the young woman Zhang Wangshi, people pointed at the young woman even more , many people also had many pictures in their minds, and then sighs and scorn came one after another.
"Come here, tell Zhao Erlang to come. I have a few questions that I would like to ask you for advice." The magistrate of Chun'an summoned four officers and ordered them to "invite" Zhao Erlang.
Pass on Zhao Erlang?
Well, how long does this round trip take! The journey alone will take at least half an hour, plus the magistrate's inquiries and so on, I don't know how long it will take. Moreover, there is no need to go to such trouble.
Zhu Pingan looked at the haggard and precarious sick old man and his worried son not far away, as well as the scholar who stood on tiptoe and looked in the direction of Yingtian Mansion. Who else was rubbing their hands and looking in the direction from time to time? A first-time father in the direction of home.
The sun and the moon are passing away, and the years are not with me.
Forget it, I'll do it myself once more.
So, a clear voice suddenly sounded, and a simple and honest young man crossed the crowd, pointed at the boatman Wang Gui, and looked up at the magistrate of Chun'an.
"Please, sir, arrest this murderer." (End of Chapter)