The Yamen of Kaifeng Prefecture is connected to the magistrate's hall and the second hall.
Similar to Zhong Yu's reaction, Xue Yuanpeng's expression also changed after hearing Sun Tu's report, showing a look of uncertainty: "How is this possible? Sun Tu, this is a serious matter, don't talk nonsense!" He was so shocked that he no longer called Sun Tu's cousin Qianli.
Sun Tu looked at his boss calmly, with a serious expression: "How dare you talk nonsense on such a big matter? It's really because some evidence has been found." As he said, he told what he had brought with him a few days ago. The story of the capture of Huang Qi and the other two people in Maojia Lane and the previous finding that the fire started in Zhang Laosi's home were all told.
Xue Yuanpeng's expression changed several times, but he still said: "Even so, it is not enough to conclude that this is what Huang Qi and the other three did. Although they have been expelled from the yamen by me, they will not commit such crimes knowingly and illegally. Something happened!" If this fire was man-made, the crime would be too serious. If Huang Qi and the others were really responsible, the entire Kaifeng Mansion might be implicated.
Sun Tu did not forcefully argue with his boss, but remained silent. This made Xue Tongjian calm down: "Although the two seem to be related, more evidence and clues are needed to confirm this matter. Qianli, I know that you are eager to make meritorious deeds, and you have been with them several times." There is suspicion, but we shouldn't make such a reckless assertion." At the same time, he was thinking quickly in his mind, thinking about how to bring Huang Qi and the others back to the Yamen for detailed questioning without causing too much impact.
But at this moment, Sun Fu ran over nervously: "Tongjian, soldiers and horses from the Street Department suddenly escorted Huang Qi, You Laoba, Yan Huan and others to the front of the government office, saying that they had committed a serious crime. It needs to be handed over to Tong Fan and Sun Dutou."
"What?" Xue Yuanpeng almost jumped up from his seat, and then his eyes fell on Sun Tu. Did he arrange all this? How brave he is, to collude with other yamen directly without consulting his superior for such a big matter...
Sun Tu calmly responded to his somewhat angry look and said calmly: "Tongjian, I also thought of using means to force them to reveal their flaws because they knew they couldn't produce conclusive evidence. Now it seems that they You have a guilty conscience!"
It turns out that what Sun Tu asked Zhong Yu to do was to send people to guard near the residence of Huang Qi and the others. Once they found that the three families wanted to escape, the people from the Street Department immediately took action to capture them. But now it seems that everything happened just as he predicted.
After listening to Sun Tu's explanation, Xue Yuanpeng was completely speechless. After a moment of silence, he could only sigh: "Bring in all the relevant people, I will ask the case face to face!" From his wording, it was clear that he had accepted Sun Tu's previous statement.
It’s impossible not to accept it. This matter has already been related to the people of the Street Department, and the Street Department is connected to the Imperial City Department behind the scenes. This matter cannot be reduced to a major issue anyway, so we can only handle it in a business-like manner. I hope it won’t be a big deal. It will involve yourself.
Sun Tu also noticed this, and the corner of his mouth curled up. His response really worked. The reason why he took the risk of offending Xue Tongpan, and even the entire Kaifeng Mansion, to ask Zhong Yu to take action was precisely because he was concerned about the current officialdom's tendency to keep things under wraps and turn big things into trivial matters. Only when the case cannot be controlled within the Kaifeng Prefecture, Xue Tongpan will not cover up or conceal it.
After experiencing the fire last night, seeing the tragic experience of those innocent people, and knowing the result of more than 30 people being killed in the fire, Sun Tu was filled with resentment towards these arsonists, and just wanted to take them down and let them do their work. Pay the price for what you do. For this reason, even if it offends his superiors and colleagues, he doesn't care even if it affects his own future.
After a while, more than a dozen panic-looking men and women were brought into the hall by the guards. Seeing the gloomy-looking Xue Tongpan, Huang Qi and the other two knelt down first and shouted: "Xue Tongpan!" , I have been wronged..." In addition to Huang Qi and the others, the three people who were brought to court this time were also their family members who were preparing to leave with them, as well as three Yamen helpers like Bai Jiu who had tipped off the news.
"Unjustly accused? How dare you say this? Aren't you afraid that the innocent souls of the innocent people who died in the fire last night will come to you and demand their lives?" Sun Tushen said.
These words made Huang Qi and the others tremble suddenly, lowering their heads and not daring to make any comment. When Xue Tongpan saw this, his heart became even colder. It seemed that this matter was really related to them. He immediately slapped the table and said: "If you guys still have a trace of conscience, you will commit the crime you have committed." The crime must be confessed honestly. Otherwise, I will definitely serve you with severe punishment!" As he spoke, the officers threw all kinds of torture instruments on the ground with a crash, making everyone tremble even more, with fear on their faces.
Seeing that they still refused to speak, Sun Tu added, "Tell me, did you set the fire in Changxingfang last night? Do you know how many people died and how many people were destroyed because of this fire?"
"What a small injustice. I know it clearly. Even if we had the courage, we would not dare to do such a thing..." Huang Qi reacted the fastest. This old official has vaguely noticed that the other party does not seem to have any substance. There was evidence of sexual intercourse, so I suppressed the fear in my heart and cried out for injustice again.
After he opened his mouth, You Laoba and Yan Huan also cried out: "What an injustice, Sun Dutou. Although we have some grudges against you, you can't imprison such a serious crime just because of this." It's on top of us." They understood the purpose of muddying the waters, so they simply pointed out the contradiction between the two sides. Afterwards, several people, together with their family members, kowtowed to Xue Yuanpeng vigorously and cried out for injustice, as if they were refusing to admit it.
This really put Xue Yuanpeng in a bit of a dilemma, because he really didn't have any evidence to prove that it was the three of them who set the fire. Of course, if other people were suspected, Xue Tongpuan could torture them at this time, but with these three people, he could not forcefully investigate the case because of his concerns.
Sun Tu's face darkened, and he immediately said: "It seems that the three of you have stopped crying without seeing the coffin. Bai Jiu, why were the three of you brought here? But because you went to three other houses to report the news, let them escape as soon as possible. Tokyo, why was it captured together? Who asked you to report the letter, and what did he say? If there is a false statement, it is the accomplice of the three of them!" He quickly found a new breakthrough and put the pressure on It fell on Bai Jiu and the three gang members.
As the yamen with the most complex affairs in Tokyo, the total number of officials and servants in Kaifeng Mansion is less than 200, especially the number of people who handle errands is only a hundred or so. Naturally, it is impossible to do everything with just this few manpower, so it is necessary to find someone to help, and this is the person who is free in front of the Yamen. Although they were also considered members of the Kaifeng Mansion, they were not on the list of officials, and even had a lower status than the temporary workers of later generations. They could only earn a few hard-earned money by being smart and capable.
Bai Jiu and the others were like this. They relied on making good friends with the policemen and policemen to give themselves some status and power, so as to obtain more benefits. Now that they were frightened by Sun Tu's words, the three gangsters all showed panic. They had nothing to do with this case. They were just entrusted to report the news. How could they dare to cover up for Huang Qi and others now.
After only a moment's hesitation, Bai Jiu spoke: "Tongjian spare my life, Dutou spare my life... I did go to see Huang... Huang Qi at the request of Mr. Xu... Xu Fei. What he asked me to say was, The truth about the fire last night has been found out by Sun Dutou. I am afraid that the government will arrest them and bring them to justice soon... "
As soon as these words came out, the faces of Huang Qi and the other two people suddenly turned pale. It was good that there was no evidence in the first place, but because of his guilty conscience, the charges were confirmed.
This was exactly Sun Tu's trick. He expected that Huang Qi and others would have friends in the yamen who would pass on the news, so he deliberately asked Cui Lueshang to ask him about the relevant results on the way, and then used this to lure the snake out of the hole and force them to reveal themselves. Come on.
Now, even if there is conclusive evidence. After all, this is not the future, where a perfect chain of evidence is needed to convict a person. For today's government, as long as there is some evidence, the person can be sentenced to death for interrogation!
It was only at this time that many people suddenly realized that Sun Tu had planned this game early in the morning and was only waiting for Huang Qi and the others to jump down!