There is a god in the sky

Chapter 30 The Yicun Murder Case 12

The whispers of the crowd made the Chen mother and daughter feel ashamed.

The two of them clearly knew something.

Magistrate Fang noticed something amiss. He ordered, "Guards, take Chen away for questioning alone."

Li Changhe was stubborn, but his wife looked guilty, so he would probably confess if he was scared.

As for Li Changhe, Magistrate Fang showed no mercy, issuing a decree: "Li Changhe refuses to confess, give him twenty strokes of the cane!"

At this moment, a yamen runner dragged a man in; it was Wang Daniu, who had been missing for two days.

"Reporting to Your Excellency, Wang Daniu has been brought here. He has been in the gambling den for the past two days and has not gone out."

Wang Daniu's eyes were bloodshot from lack of sleep as he stared blankly at everyone.

Magistrate Fang frowned and asked, "Wang Daniu, do you know that your mother died at home the night before last?"

"What? My mother is dead? How did she die? Did those bastards from the gambling den come to my house to collect debts?"

The onlookers despised him.

This man was seen gambling on the very first day after his wife's death, not even returning home; he was clearly no good.

"Bang!" Magistrate Fang slammed his fist on the table. "Silence!... Wang Daniu, are you aware that your wife, Guihua, has been assaulted?"

Instead of answering the question, Wang Daniu asked, "My mother is dead, so what about our family's money? Has it been taken?"

"You insolent fool! Answer my question!"

Wang Daniu yawned and said disdainfully, "That hen that didn't lay eggs was also unfaithful. She's dead, so what? Why are you investigating this?"

Wei Lanxiang's hands were itching; she really wanted to cut off his tongue.

Xiao Ji had his attendant deliver a note inside. After Magistrate Fang read it, he immediately asked, "On the night Guihua died, did you share a room with her?"

"What a joke! I feel like throwing up just looking at her gloomy face. How could I possibly touch her? She's not even worth a finger of Xiao Xiangling."

Wei Lanxiang stopped reading here; the outcome of these two cases was practically certain.

She walked out and went straight to the prison gate to wait for Wei Laodao to be released.

They waited until dark, when yamen runners brought Li Changhe over and released the innocent Wei Laodao.

When Wei Laodao came out, he still felt a little unreal.

"Lanlan, I'm out of prison so soon?"

Wei Lanxiang asked with amusement, "Otherwise, are you planning to spend the New Year in jail?"

"Hey, I know you're smart, but I didn't expect you to find the murderer in just two days. Was the village chief Li who just went in the other room the murderer?"

Wei Lanxiang nodded, "He killed Guihua and Granny Wang, but it wasn't entirely my doing."

Li Changhe had been committing crimes for many years without incident. He probably never expected that someone would report him to the authorities this time, let alone that Wei Lanxiang was an expert in autopsies.

"Come on, let's go get some wine. My daughter and I will have a good drink when we get back to get rid of the bad luck."

Wei Lanxiang followed him into the bustling city center and heard people discussing the case everywhere they went.

"Heaven has eyes! That old man was so wicked; he killed several women."

"He doesn't even spare his own daughter-in-law, which shows how black-hearted he is."

"Our Aoki County hasn't had a case like this for several years. The magistrate is really capable, catching the real culprit so quickly."

"I heard that it was an official from the prefectural government who helped solve the case."

"I see. No wonder Magistrate Fang and County Lieutenant Sun were so enthusiastic."

As Wei Lanxiang walked and listened, she had a bad feeling when she heard that Village Chief Li didn't even spare his daughter-in-law.

They were overtaken by the wind as they left the city.

"Master Wei, Miss Wei, my master would like to invite you both to a meal to express his gratitude."

Wei Lanxiang wanted to refuse; she went to perform the autopsy only to help her godfather get away with it.

But Old Wei spoke even faster, asking, "Is there any wine to drink?"

"Haha, of course! What kind of wine do you like to drink? I'll go buy it right away!"

"No need, no need, any kind of wine is fine."

The two walked back arm in arm.

Wei Lanxiang shook her head secretly and hurriedly followed.

Xiao Ji's rented courtyard was not far from the county government office. It was a two-courtyard house, quiet and elegant.

Sui Feng knew what the adults were planning. He secretly glanced at Wei Lanxiang and asked, "What does Miss Wei think of this house?"

"pretty good."

Old Master Wei nodded in agreement, “Straight to the point, it’s a rare and auspicious feng shui. The homeowner is a man of discernment.”

"This is the house where Lord Liu used to live. He didn't sell it after he was promoted. He left two old servants to look after the house. This time, he only rented it to us at a low price because he heard that our lord wanted to live there."

Wei Lanxiang paused slightly, and asked suspiciously, "Which Lord Liu?"

Sui Feng explained, "Miss Wei was too young to know back then. Ten years ago, Lord Liu was the magistrate of Qingmu County, and now he's about to be promoted to Vice Minister of Revenue."

Liu Engui, a name Wei Lanxiang would remember until her death.

She clenched her fists, controlling her emotions, and asked, "Has Aoki Prefecture ever produced such a prominent figure?"

Sui Feng knew she didn't understand court affairs, so he didn't explain too much to her, but Liu Engui had powerful backers.

"We've arrived. Please come in, both of you."

Xiao Ji stood at the entrance of the flower hall to greet them. Even Fu Qingyan, who was recuperating from his injuries, was sitting inside the flower hall, looking much better.

"Seeing that it was getting late, I decided to invite you two to have a simple meal together, mainly to thank you for saving my cousin."

Xiao Ji was polite and courteous, and Fu Qingyan was a rare handsome young man.

Wei Lanxiang thoroughly enjoyed the meal, finding it delicious and visually appealing; it was clear that considerable effort had been put into preparing the dishes.

When Wei Laodao inquired about the murder case in Baiyi Village, Xiao Ji told him the information he had obtained from the interrogation that day.

That night, Guihua was beaten and, unable to bear it, ran away from the Wang family. She ended up meeting Li Changhe in the grove.

Guihua had been married into the Wang family for several years but had not given birth to any children. Granny Wang had long been dissatisfied with her, so she began to use Guihua's body to make money.

Li Changhe had followed Guihua out and raped her despite her resistance.

He had a penchant for torturing people, and when Guihua scratched him, he flew into a rage and strangled her to death.

The next night, Granny Wang came to him demanding money, asking for one hundred taels, or she would report him to the authorities.

Granny Wang dared to ask for an exorbitant price because she had witnessed Li Changhe mistreating his daughter-in-law.

She threatened to tell Li Changhe's son and see if he could accept his own father abusing his wife.

Li Changhe had served in the army in his early years and was strong and healthy. The little injury on his leg didn't affect him at all. He immediately pushed Wang Pozi into the water vat and drowned her.

Not satisfied with killing him, he threw him into a cesspool.

Later, upon hearing that Wei Laodao had entered the Wang family, he deliberately brought people over and bumped into Wei Laodao and the dead Wang Pozi, framing him for the crime.

Old Master Wei slammed his hand on the table. "I never imagined Li Changhe was so wicked. I really misjudged him!"

Xiao Ji raised his wine glass to toast him, "It's all thanks to Miss Lanxiang's exquisite autopsy skills that we found the murderer's flaws. It's all thanks to Master Wei's excellent upbringing."

"No, no, she..."

Wei Lanxiang picked up a piece of food with her chopsticks and stuffed it into Wei Laodao's mouth.

Old Master Wei swallowed his food and said with a forced smile, "Lord Xiao, you flatter me. My daughter is quite clever."