Chapter Seventy: Astonishing Change

  Situ Jun's hand trembled and the knife almost fell to the ground. He looked at Yang Yunqiu in surprise, his face also greatly changed.

  This young man looks like a weak and timid gentleman, but just now when he spoke, his voice was not loud, yet it was deafening, as if it had stunned him for a moment.

  Yang Yunqiu coughed and said with a smile, "Director Situ doesn't believe his wife would wrong him. All of you are so confident that you saw the whole thing happen, each thinking you're absolutely right. But now Director Situ has the upper hand, and if he's not convinced, it'll be bad luck for all of you. How about this? Let's recreate the scene from the day of the incident. If someone makes a mistake or lies, we'll do it again, and there will definitely be flaws. If there are no flaws, even if Director Situ doesn't want to admit it, he won't have any choice."

  This method is quite fresh, a group of people looked at each other and didn't object.

  Li Shanshan couldn't help but laugh - it seemed that Teacher Yang had watched a lot of crime dramas, and she remembered how in some Japanese and American TV shows, detectives would often re-examine the case and discover inconsistencies, successfully helping to clear people's names or catch the real culprit. At the time, Li Shanshan had thought to herself, "I wonder if this really happens in real life?" She never expected to see it happen in ancient times.

  Situ Jun put away his long knife and looked at Yang Yunqiu, his eyes slightly hesitant.

  Yang Yunqiu lost his smile: "You came this time, isn't it just to clarify the truth of the matter? If your wife was really wronged, would you be willing for her to bear a bad reputation and die without peace?"

  "Fine, anyway, the town of Tian Shui is surrounded by water on all sides, hence its name. Now that it's stormy and windy, I've destroyed all the bridges over the river, and hidden the only two boats there were. You won't be able to find them for a while, so don't even think about escaping. Let's just see what you have to say, not that it matters."

  As soon as he said this, Jin Xiūcái was so angry that he puffed out his cheeks and glared: "No wonder Ah Shan's family boat disappeared, it was you who did it!"

  Yang Yunqiu clapped her hands, drawing everyone's attention: "Alright, let's thoroughly restore the Tianquan Building to its original state on the day of the incident last year. Take a look from the courtyard to the house, are all the decorations consistent?"

  "Must you be so serious?"

  But although it's scary, this thing is actually quite fun. A group of people are moving around and adjusting the position of the tables and chairs.

  Xiao Li thought for a moment: "I remember that day, the little beggar on the street made trouble and broke all three lanterns in our courtyard. It was quite late at that time, so we didn't replace them."

  Yang Yunqiu nodded and casually picked up a handful of stones, immediately extinguishing the three oil lamps in the courtyard.

  Another check was made because it had only been a year, the case was big again, and the people present had a deep impression, so they quickly restored the situation before the case occurred, without any unclear places.

  Moreover, Situ Jun obviously made up his mind to investigate the truth thoroughly. He stole all the case files at that time and threw them into a wooden box now.

  Yang Yunqiu picked it up and took a glance, the doll swept all the case files into it, and even made a 3D structure diagram for him to see. Apparently, the doll found it more interesting than its own master.

  Everything returned to normal, Yang Yunqiu pushed the doll aside, and after a moment of contemplation, she said: "Alright, I'd like to hear you guys talk about the case again. Since the county magistrate who presided over this case is here, why don't we ask him to tell us how it went?"

  The county magistrate was still not very willing, but when he saw the knife in Sutu Jun's hand, and thought about how he had been caught off guard and tied up, his courage suddenly disappeared.

  "I remember this case clearly. It was on the fifteenth of August last year, a night with a full moon. I had already gone to sleep when the police rushed over and knocked on my door, saying that a major homicide case had occurred at the Tianquan Building."

  The county magistrate shook his head, "Our Tianshui Town is not big, with only over a hundred people, everyone is neighbors, and outsiders are rare. The surrounding rivers are surrounded by mountains, far from the official road, it's a closed place. Not to mention murder, even if there were thefts, we would know who to look for among those habitual thieves... Now the prison only has one person locked up, who likes to steal chickens and dogs..."

  "That's enough, what's the point of saying so much nonsense! What we want to know is about the case of that outsider being killed."

  Situ Jun furrowed his brow and let out a loud roar, causing the county magistrate to fall silent instantly.

  Yang Yunqiu smiled and pushed Sutu Jun away, pushing him to sit down on the chair: "It's been a year already, it doesn't matter if it's one day or half a day later, let County Master say slowly."

  The county magistrate frowned: "That day I personally brought the catcher to Tianquan Building, and at that time the outsider who claimed to be buying wine was already dead, just fell here." He walked over and pointed to a guest room on the east side of the first floor.

  "The murderer... your wife is no longer at the scene." After a moment of contemplation, the county magistrate looked around at these few people and said, "At that time, everyone present saw your wife rushing out of the guest room in a fluster, her clothes disheveled. The shopkeeper saw him stealing and let out a shout, but unexpectedly your wife went mad and charged towards him with scissors, the guests in the main hall heard the commotion and surrounded her, but your wife's strength was unusually great, she actually broke through the encirclement and escaped, everyone was in chaos, it wasn't until they came to their senses that they discovered the outsider had already fallen to the ground dead."

  Jin Xiuciai and others also nodded in agreement.

  "We all saw it, your wife was caught cheating, and in a fit of rage, she killed someone and ran away." The shopkeeper grew angrier as he spoke, "That's the truth, what are you doing coming to us now?"

  Jin Xiuciai nodded: "Think about it, your home is not far from the Tianquan Building, just a one-hour walk. If your wife wasn't having an affair, what was she doing at the Tianquan Building? You should know that she stayed in a guest room on the first floor, which costs five silver coins per night, enough for your wife's expenses for a month. County Magistrate asked the landlady at the time, and that guest room was rented by a couple, a man and a woman, who covered their heads and faces, hiding from view. The landlady thought it strange that during that period, when it wasn't even the wine-selling season, there were always strangers coming to town, so she remembered it very clearly."

  "Moreover, Boss Zhao was painting in the room on the second floor for the entire evening. As he has a habit of opening windows while painting, he personally saw your wife sneaking into that guest room through the back door at night and then lowering the curtains."

  "Every month, my husband likes to come alone to the Tianquan Building and stay for a day or two. He likes the quietness here and also enjoys looking at the scenery of Qixia Mountain behind." - Mei Shi, Zhao's wife

  Mei obviously thought that her husband, although a businessman, was also good at writing and painting, and his calligraphy was excellent, which made her very proud.

  Yang Yunqiu listened and turned to look at Jin Xiucan: "I read the case files, you testified that on that day you were drinking here and saw Madame Sutu come to the wine house with heavy makeup and ordered a pot of real Yu Bai wine. You also said she had a flirtatious smile on her face, and you secretly scolded her for being indecent?"

  Jin Xiucan frowned and nodded: "Although it's not good to casually talk about others' right and wrong, I really did see it. I guess that wine must have been for her lover, otherwise the Situ family is so poor, she usually only gives her father-in-law the worst wine, how could she afford 'Yu Bai'"?

  County Magistrate sighed: "I led people to search your house at that time, and the result was that your wife was soaking in a water bucket for bathing. Your mother was arguing with her. I let my maid go in and take a look. The dirt and scars on your wife's body were still visible. Moreover, we found the scissors she discarded in your family's courtyard, which was used by Tianquan Building, and there was blood on it. There is both human evidence and material evidence. Your wife cannot escape. I sentenced her to beheading, and after the Ministry of Punishment reviewed the case, who knew that she had not yet been executed according to law, but hanged herself instead? It can also be considered as leaving a complete body. You should be content."

  As he listened to them one by one, Situ Jun's whole person changed from a state of furious anger to a daze, and he almost believed that his wife Ah Xiu was killed because she was discovered cheating, and his parents were also driven to death by the shame. He stared blankly at the ground, his expression dull.

  Yang Yunqiu walked around the Tianquan Building, went to each of the places that had been mentioned by the people there, and took out the case files to review them repeatedly, shaking her head after finishing.

  "I'll say two words." He walked over and stood in front of Old Zhao, "Old Zhao, you said you were painting at the window on the second floor all night? Did you see with your own eyes Madam Sito sneaking into the wine shop from the backyard stealthily?"

  Mr. Zhao nodded.

  Yang Yunqiu smiled: "I've read the case files and also went upstairs to take a look. At that time, it was raining heavily and the sky was overcast with thick clouds. The lights in the courtyard were also extinguished, so it's impossible to see the backyard clearly from the second-floor room."

  Situ Jun suddenly lifted his head.

  Old Zhao's face stiffened, his lips twitching: "I... indeed saw it."

  Yang Yunqiu smiled again: "I looked at the case files, and on that night, your clothes weren't even wet. If you were really in front of the window on the second floor at that time, your hem wouldn't have been dry."

  Situ Jun's expression changed greatly: "You're lying?"

  "Old Zhao shook his head desperately: "No, I really saw your wife, but it was in the northwest corner room on the first floor, not on the second floor, I, I..."

  Yang Yunqiu smelled the smell on Zhao's body and took out a medicine box from his bag: "This is opium, Zhao probably hid in the room to smoke this drug, after smoking he will be dizzy, your testimony is not credible."

  A group of people looked at each other in dismay.

  Yang Yunqiu looked at Jin Xiucan again: "When you mentioned Lady Situ earlier, although your words were contemptuous, your face seemed to have a hint of color. Your confession is likely to be tainted with the emotions of the dead and cannot be trusted."

  Jin Xiuciai suddenly became furious, his face twisted: "Nonsense!"

  Just by looking at his trembling hands, flushed face and flickering eyes, everyone could tell that this old scholar had ulterior motives.

  Li Shanshan shook her head, lowering her voice to whisper: "People of this era are indeed too naive." If they were in the 21st century, it probably wouldn't be so easy to reveal their flaws with just one sentence.

  It's actually because of Yang Yunqiu's strong spiritual power that every sentence she says is convincing.

  Situ Jun first glared at Jin Xiucan, then suddenly became spirited, staring unwaveringly at Yang Yunqiu without blinking.

  Yang Yunqiu stopped selling Guanzi and continued: "You all said that you saw Mrs. Situ holding scissors rushing out of the room, killing the outsider guest. Now we are re-enacting the case, I will play the role of the outsider guest, Situ Jun, you play your wife, and everyone else will do the same actions as before."

  Although these people were a bit reluctant, they still came obediently. Sutou Jun pretended to hold scissors and rushed forward, surrounded by a large crowd, then he squeezed through the crowd and walked away.

  Done, Yang Yunqiu waved her hand and coldly looked at the county magistrate, saying: "Can you see it now?"

  These people are still in a daze.

  Li Shanshan stamped her foot and said angrily, "Are you really stupid or pretending to be? I can see that the autopsy report clearly states that the deceased was stabbed in the lower back and died from excessive bleeding. If that's the case, how could Lady Sutu, with all four limbs held by you people, possibly have a hand long enough to reach around to the deceased's lower back to stab him?"

  The county magistrate was speechless.

  The entire wine house fell silent at once.

  Situ Jun gazed coldly around, and those whose eyes met his couldn't help but turn their heads away. After a long while, Situ Jun finally burst out laughing in a hoarse voice: "Forget it, forget it! It's you people, all of you in the entire town of Tianshui, who drove my wife to death, drove my father and mother to death, and even the child in my wife's belly! I won't let you off, absolutely not!"

  A group of people were so scared that they were trembling with fear.

  Yang Yunqiu sighed and helped Li Shanshan sit down beside her, pressing her brow: "Trouble's come."

  "Sorry to have implicated you innocent people, but I had no choice. If one doesn't take care of oneself, heaven and earth will be destroyed. You can only consider yourselves unlucky."

  The county magistrate was so anxious that he broke out in a cold sweat and shouted loudly: "Situ Jun, what do you want to do... Don't be afraid, everyone. He's just one person. We don't want to die at his hands, let's fight him together. There are so many of us, why should we fear him?"

  These people should be.

  "When day breaks, the county government will also send people, we're not afraid of them!"

  Situ Jun sneered and put down the knife in his hand: "Do you think I want to kill you with one knife? That's also too cheap for you, my parents suffered before they died, you can't die too quickly."

  Yang Yunqiu sat down and let Zhou Dali pour tea for himself: "I'd like to remind you that if Situ Bao really just wanted to kill you, he wouldn't need to hide any ships or cut off the bridge to seal off the entire town of Tianshui. After all, his kung fu is good, and you can't escape from him even if you want to. Why would he go to so much trouble? He's probably planning to bury the whole town with him."

  The county magistrate was taken aback: "How is this possible?"

  Situ Jun looked at Yang Yunqiu and sighed, "Indeed, a true scholar is someone with a keen eye for observation and intelligence. If I had another life, I would definitely study hard and provide a better life for Ah Xiu in the future. Young Master spoke correctly, I have long discovered that there are white ants building nests on the embankment of the river, and many places have already shown signs of collapse. However, the county magistrate is an idiot and a lazy ghost, and the people in the county government are the same. Every time they repair the embankment, they cut corners and reduce costs, who would think that there might be a danger of breaching? Although I am just a bodyguard, I still have some understanding of these things. According to this year's heavy rainfall and water level, it is likely that within two days, or even one day, the river embankment will burst, and when that happens, the entire Tian Shui Town will become a thing of the past."

  The county magistrate's forehead was sweating profusely.

  Others simply did not want to believe it, yet their faces turned pale with fear.

  Yang Yunqiu took off her coat, rolled up her sleeves, and picked up the lantern to head outside. As she walked, she shouted back at Li Shanshan: "Cousin, you immediately split up and lead people to inform the town's residents, and bring them as much as possible to the top of the wine building on the east side. That place is the highest. Dali, you come with me. We'll drive over to take a look at the river embankment and see if we can make any repairs."

  As he spoke, he took Zhou Dali out the door. Before leaving, he turned his head and shouted to the county magistrate: "Rather than wasting energy and time forcing Sutu Jun to reveal where he hid the boat, it's better to organize as many people as possible to build some wooden rafts. After all, there are plenty of wooden houses in Tian Shui Town, just dismantle them and use them."