"Sir, it can't be said that it's just for nothing. We have heard people say that they are secret prostitutes. Flies don't bite cracked eggs. Why don't people say anything about others, but only about them? So, I think they are secret prostitutes..."
Han Laosan still refused to accept it and said with his neck stiff.
"Shut up! Words are not enough. Without evidence, it's nothing!" Zhu Ping'an scolded sternly, then turned to the village head and several headmen and village elders of the neighboring villages and bowed and asked, "Village head and all the headmen, you are the hosts here. You can't hide the big and small things in the village. May I ask if the victim is a prostitute?"
"Sir, they are all from good families, all pitiful people, how could they be secret prostitutes! We watched them grow up, they abide by the rules everywhere, and have never done anything frivolous! I can guarantee it with my head!" Zhuang Lao Li Zheng stood up and said, then sighed and said slowly, "Alas, as the saying goes, there are many rumors in front of a widow, and Xiu'er and the others are no exception, especially Xiu'er. Zhuang Mazi, who is lazy and greedy in our village, once asked someone to ask Xiu'er for marriage, but Xiu'er refused. Zhuang Mazi spread rumors about Xiu'er. For this reason, we specially opened the ancestral hall to punish Zhuang Mazi and clarified it to the villagers. However, Xiu'er has a hot-tempered personality and often quarrels with the talkative women and children in the village over trivial matters. Her mouth grows on other people, and sometimes there are festivals or other times, and it is hard to guarantee that there will be some rumors. However, Hehua is kind to others everywhere, and she is filial to her parents-in-law after her husband's death, but there are no rumors at all."
"Is Zhuang Mazi here?" Zhu Ping'an asked the audience, intending to find Zhuang Mazi to confirm.
"Yes, he's here." Several villagers pushed the dodging Zhuang Mazi out.
"Zhuang Mazi, don't worry. Since your village has already punished you for spreading rumors, I will not pursue you. I just want to verify with you whether what the old village head Zhuang said is true?" Zhu Ping'an asked him for confirmation.
"Sir... Sir, what Mr. Zhuang said is true. I was a toad who wanted to eat swan meat, but I was angry when I failed, so I threw dirty water on them on purpose. They are an innocent family!" Zhuang Mazi said frankly.
"Okay, I understand. Go down." Zhu Ping'an nodded.
"Zhuang Mazi, I'll treat you like a man for a moment."
"Zhuang Mazi, I didn't expect you to be such a man. We underestimated you..."
The young and old men in Zhuangjia Village rarely praised Zhuang Mazi, but instead they made Zhuang Mazi blush and feel embarrassed.
"Sir, they are talking nonsense. There is no such thing as a secret prostitute! There is no wall that is impenetrable in our villages. If there really is a secret prostitute in Zhuangjia Village, it would be impossible to hide it. But there really is no such thing!"
"No."
"No, they are not secret prostitutes, they are all decent women."
The village heads from the surrounding villages all shook their heads and spoke one after another to defend the two victims.
"Master, we are their neighbors and we know them best. They are an honest family, not a secret prostitute. If they were secret prostitutes, there would definitely be a lot of men coming to their house, but their yard is very deserted. Not to mention men, even women rarely come to their house. It's almost like a dead door. They are both widows, so they have more contact with each other."
"Master, I had a quarrel with Zhang Xiu'er. I wished that she would be in trouble. I stared at her family every day, trying to find faults with her. But to be honest, although she has a foul mouth, she is a really honest person."
The villagers of Zhuangjia Village also testified for them, and even those who had had conflicts with them in the past proved their innocence.
"The villagers testified, and I also had people check the victims' homes, and found nothing frivolous. This is enough to prove that the two victims were from honest families and decent women. Han Laosan, Liu Gouzi, and Zhang Tiedan, the three of you must stop slandering the two victims, or you will be guilty of an even greater crime!"
Zhu Ping'an glared at Han Laosan and the other three, and spoke sternly.
The two victims were certified as "good women" by Zhu Ping'an and couldn't help but hug each other.
"Here, I will explain the Ming Dynasty Law. What is rape? It means forcing the victim to have sex against her will by means of threats of violence or harm! No matter who the victim is, a decent woman or a prostitute, as long as the other party is unwilling, and she is forced to have sex with him by means of threats of violence or harm, it is rape! The identity of the victim does not affect the composition of the crime of rape!"
Zhu Ping'an took this opportunity to popularize the "Great Ming Law" to everyone to prevent any villagers from going astray.
Next, Zhu Pingan interviewed several villagers from Zhuangjia Village who reported the case. The villagers described the scene in which they heard the two victims calling for help, and then found that Han Laosan, Liu Gouzi and Zhang Tiedan had broken into Xiuer's home and were raping the two. The villagers surrounded the yard and shouted at the three, but were threatened by Han Laosan and the other two...
"Han Laosan, Liu Gouzi, Zhang Tiedan, did the three of you use violence or other means to force the victim to have sex?"
Zhu Ping'an interrogated Han Laosan and three others.
"We beat them, held them down, and did nothing with them." Liu Gouzi and the other two confessed.
"However, we did give them silver, they just didn't want it..." Han Lao San defended.
"Okay, now the facts of the case have been clarified. Han Laosan, Liu Gouzi, and Zhang Tiedan violated military discipline, left the barracks without permission, broke into a civilian house, and raped two civilian women by means of violent beatings. The facts are true and the evidence is conclusive! Han Laosan, Liu Gouzi, and Zhang Tiedan are guilty of leaving the barracks without permission, breaking into a civilian house, and raping civilian women."
After Zhu Ping'an investigated the case thoroughly, he announced the crimes committed by Han Laosan and three others in public.
Han Laosan and the other two were like boiled crabs, with their heads hung low, unable to utter a word.
"Han Laosan, Liu Gouzi, Zhang Tiedan, do you still remember the four iron laws and eighteen executions of the Zhejiang Army's military discipline?"
Zhu Pingan asked.
Han Laosan and the other three nodded.
"Back!" Zhu Ping'an said expressionlessly.
"Four iron laws: follow orders in all actions; do not take even a needle or thread from the masses; turn over all captured goods to the public; do not demolish houses even if you freeze to death, and do not plunder even if you starve to death. Eighteen beheadings: those who do not show up after three drum beats when selecting the generals will be beheaded; those who do not advance when the drum is beaten, do not stop when the gong is sounded, do not raise the flag, and do not lower the flag when it is pressed will be beheaded; those who pretend to be sick in battle will be beheaded; those who abandon weapons in battle will be beheaded; those who disobey their superiors and do not stop despite orders will be beheaded; those who kill civilians to claim credit and rape women will be beheaded..." Han Laosan and the other three recited subconsciously.
When they carried the rapist to be beheaded, they reacted immediately, and then they were scared to death, their faces turned pale, and they broke out in cold sweat. They kowtowed to Zhu Pingan in panic and begged for mercy, "Sir, please spare our lives, spare our lives, because this is our first time, please spare our lives."