"How dare the thief get up and walk away!"
After Zhu Ping'an finished his stern shout, all the suspects stood where they were except for one suspect who knelt on the ground with a plop. He was like a chicken among a flock of cranes, extremely conspicuous and it was impossible not to attract attention.
it goes without saying!
Confess without being asked!
There is no doubt, no doubt that the thief of this serial theft case is the suspect kneeling down!
At this moment, County Magistrate Zhang, who had laughed at Zhu Ping'an the whole time, was stunned. The thick mockery on his face instantly withered, and his eyes widened as wide as a cow's eyes. His face was full of disbelief and shock, as if he had seen a ghost in broad daylight. The corners of his mouth twitched, and he murmured in a trembling voice: "No way, can you judge a case like this?!!"
Yao Zhubu was also completely stunned. He stood there like a half-stumped log. He looked at the suspect kneeling on the ground with unfocused pupils, and then looked at Zhu Ping'an in the lobby, whom he had never formally looked at. He felt as if his IQ had been rubbed to the ground a hundred times. He had always prided himself on being extremely smart and having the highest IQ in Jingnan, but at this moment, his confidence, arrogance and sense of superiority were gone in an instant.
The clerks in the six rooms were all stunned, their mouths opened so wide that an egg could be stuffed in, their throats were dry, and they could hear the sound of swallowing saliva.
"Zhang Mazi, damn it, it turned out that you stole it!"
"So it's Zhang Mazi, you son of a bitch! I was wondering why you eat so much delicious food every other day..."
The other suspects were equally shocked. They looked at the suspect Zhang Mazi kneeling on the ground and started cursing him one by one.
"It's not me, it's not me..."
The suspect, who was kneeling on the ground, reacted as soon as he knelt down. His face turned pale in an instant, cold sweat broke out on his forehead, and he shook his head repeatedly. He pressed on the ground and tried to get up, but his knees had just left the ground. Bang! The gavel sounded again, and the suspect knelt down again in fear.
"Zhang Mazi! Why don't you tell me the truth?" Zhu Ping'an slammed the gavel and shouted sternly.
"Reply, reply to the magistrate, I, I... I am not a thief, I just felt numb in my legs..."
Zhang Mazi was sweating profusely and his face was pale. He opened his mouth several times before he uttered a weak and feeble defense.
"Zhang Mazi, you are now like lice on a bald head - it's obvious. Even at this point, you are still denying it. Are you trying to deceive me because my instruments of torture are not strong enough? Come on, take him away and give him forty lashes with the cane!"
As Zhu Ping'an spoke, he pulled out a stick from the stick bucket and threw it heavily on the ground. The stick bounced twice and landed at Zhang Mazi's feet.
"Yes, sir!"
Two burly yamen runners came out in response, holding water and fire sticks, and walked towards Zhang Mazi with ferocious faces. They stretched out their big hands with palm-leaf fans to press Zhang Mazi's shoulders, and lifted him up all at once, just like lifting a chicken.
"Don't, don't, don't, don't hit me, I confess, I confess, I confess everything..."
Zhang Mazi was so frightened by the scene that he peed his pants and begged for mercy. He was a timid person and had seen executions in the county court from afar before. The sight of skin torn and blood all over the place and the screams had traumatized him even when he went back to sleep. Now that he heard that he was going to be sentenced to forty lashes with the cane, how could he withstand it
"I dare not hide it from the magistrate. I did steal the cows, sheep, donkeys, pigs and chickens, but, but I... I was also bewitched by Butcher Zhang! It was Butcher Zhang who bewitched me to steal! He bewitched me to steal chickens and dogs, and he also kept watch for me. He killed and sold the stolen animals, and gave me some money for wine and meat."
Zhang Mazi was so scared that he confessed with tears and snot, and finally he dragged someone else to take the blame and exposed and reported Zhang the Butcher among the suspects.
"What nonsense! When did I ever deceive you? I think you are tired of living!"
Among the suspects, Zhang the Butcher had been feeling uneasy since the moment Zhang Mazi knelt down. When he heard that Zhang Mazi had indeed reported him, he could not help but sweat profusely and became furious. He glared at Zhang Mazi fiercely, raised his fist as big as a bowl, and hit him hard, as if he was about to inflict some inhumane physical harm on Zhang Mazi.
Liu Dadao was quick-eyed and quick-handed. He took a step forward and grabbed Zhang the Butcher's fist effortlessly. He then turned his hand and kicked Zhang the Butcher's leg, easily forcing him to kneel on the ground.
"Don't be so presumptuous in the court!!"
Zhu Ping'an slammed the gavel, then pulled a stick out of the stick tube and threw it on the ground. "Zhang the Butcher has disrespected the court, ignored the law, and interfered with the trial. He will be severely punished with ten strokes of the cane as a warning to others. Zhang Mazi, you can truthfully confess your crimes and report your accomplices. If the report is true, I can reduce your punishment at my discretion."
There is a saying in "The Art of War" that "a general should be wise, trustworthy, benevolent, brave and strict". A general should be both benevolent and strict, which means to pay equal attention to kindness and authority. The same is true for a county magistrate. Zhu Ping'an is not a pedantic person and agrees with this.
Butcher Zhang dared to injure people in court. If he is not dealt with seriously, where will the dignity of the court be in the future
Soon, Butcher Zhang was pulled down, and screams of pain rang out one after another.
Zhang Mazi trembled all over when he heard this in the court, and he didn't dare to have any idea of hiding anything.
After the beating, Butcher Zhang was dragged into the court.
Butcher Zhang was considered to be in good physical condition. He was beaten with ten heavy boards and his buttocks were covered with blood, but he was still able to kneel.
"My Lord, County Magistrate, I am innocent. I am an honest butcher in the village, a well-known honest man. I never cheat on the weight of meat I sell. Folks in the surrounding villages all know about it and they all take good care of my business. I live a happy life, so how could I possibly steal? Only someone like Zhang Mazi, who has no food to eat every day, would steal for a living. I hope my Lord, County Magistrate, can see clearly. Please don't believe the one-sided words of this thief, Zhang Mazi. He is lying and slandering me intentionally." Butcher Zhang held on and refused to admit his guilt. He instead accused Zhang Mazi of biting people like a mad dog.
"My Lord, I'm not lying. I have evidence. It's against the law to slaughter oxen, and beef can't be sold openly. Butcher Zhang hasn't found a buyer yet, and hasn't had time to deal with the ox yet. It's in Xilipo, in a grass field at Butcher Zhang's house. There's a cowshed inside, and the old yellow ox that I stole from Zhang Erniu's house is hidden inside. Butcher Zhang has always carried the key to the cowshed with him. My Lord, my Lord, won't believe me. Just search and you'll know that I'm not lying."
Zhang Mazi knelt on the ground anxiously, kowtowed, and revealed all of Zhang the Butcher's past.
"Zhang Mazi, you are..."
Butcher Zhang gritted his teeth and couldn't help but want to punch Zhang Mazi again, but every time he moved, he would tear his wound and grimaced in pain.
"search!"
Zhu Ping'an ordered the bailiffs to search Zhang the Butcher's body, and soon found the key that Zhang the Butcher had tied to his trouser waistband.
Next, Zhu Ping'an brought a group of county officials, including Liu Mu, Liu Dadao and more than ten other yamen runners, who escorted the two suspects, Zhang Mazi and Zhang the Butcher, and rushed to Xilipo Caodangzi in a mighty procession surrounded by a group of villagers who had heard the news.
Sure enough, they saw a cowshed in the grass, with a large iron chain on the cowshed. Liu Dadao walked forward and used the key he found from Zhang the Butcher to open the lock of the cowshed, and then he saw the old ox inside.
"It's my cow, it's my cow. There is a scar as long as a finger on the butt of my cow. That was when the cow was still young," the owner Zhang Erniu recognized his own old ox at a glance and presented evidence.
In this way, the truth came to light and the serial theft case was solved.
"It took the county magistrate less than a day to solve such a complicated serial theft case."
"The county magistrate is truly the reincarnation of Justice Bao!"
"The county magistrate solved the case as if he had divine help. He is truly an upright magistrate."
…
At this moment, Zhu Ping'an's back in the sunset was radiant in the eyes of the people present, and they were full of praise for him.
Zhu Ping'an blushed when he heard this.
Of course, County Magistrate Zhang and Chief Clerk Yao, who were standing by, had faces as gloomy as water and as dark as the bottom of a pot as they listened to the people's overwhelming praise for Zhu Ping'an.