Yin San was not arrested because he violated the clan rules, nor was his mother-in-law imprisoned for being unruly, but the reason for everything was the fifteen thousand taels of silver that Yin San brought back.
The clan leader Yin Fugui and several clan elders somehow heard the news and knew that Yin San had a huge sum of money in his hands, and then they began to plan to kill and seize the wealth!
Everything went perfectly before. Yin San was already notorious, and his daughter-in-law was also a talkative, so her reputation in Yinjiazhuang was not very good.
The patriarch Yin Fugui and the clan elders just used a little trick. They sent a few green-skinned gangsters from the village to hang around Yin San's house for a few days, so that the villagers could see Yin San's daughter-in-law confronting them. They would be charged with "not abiding by women's morals".
That's it.
When Yin San secretly went home to visit his wife and children, the clan leader and several clan elders got the news and took action boldly. They immediately caught Yin San and took away his wife and children as well.
The next method was cruel. They planned to kill Yin San's wife, Shen Tang, first, and then, after the news subsided, they would call Yin San and his son "died of illness" one by one.
The perfect plan fell short because the big boss arrived in time with a big ticket, and then didn't give them a chance to make small moves or run away. The true colors of the clan leader and clan elders were exposed.
Regarding the matter of harming Yin San's family, all the parties involved were present and had sufficient motives. The patriarch Yin Fugui and several clan elders confessed and admitted all of them.
Shock!
The hundreds of people of the Yin family, young and old, who gathered in front of the Yinjiazhuang ancestral hall were all shocked, and then burst into a collective uproar. They never expected that the "highly virtuous and respected" patriarch and elders could be such vicious people.
The elder said that these are not enough!
The more than 30,000 taels of silver notes found in the homes of Yin Fugui and several clan members, as well as where the land deeds came from, and how many people's innocent blood and tears were contained in them, must all be investigated.
"It's getting late, sir. Do you want to eat first before continuing?"
The local magistrate, who had been following the elder, looked at the sun in the sky and reminded him in a low voice: "It's already noon!"
"Then ask the villagers who specialize in weddings and weddings to prepare meals. The yamen will pay for the villagers to eat together. I'm afraid they will have to squat here and continue to listen to the interrogation in the afternoon!"
The elder thought for a while and then directly ordered: "Remember, all the ingredients for the meals have to be paid for. I am not short of the few dollars. I don't want to cause fierce dissatisfaction among the villagers at this time!"
The local magistrate nodded in agreement. He did not want to provoke the fierce villagers in Yinjiazhuang. Besides, it was an important moment for the trial of a major case. It would be unlucky if something went wrong during the meal.
A fragrant and rich meal slowly restored the mood of the Yinjiazhuang villagers squatting on the small flat ground of the ancestral hall. The food was not something else they could care about at the moment.
The eldest man didn't mind that the food was rough, so he took two large bowls and ate it in just a few bites. He smiled and looked at Yin Fugui and several clan elders who were attracted by the tempting smell of the food and swallowed their saliva. Their stomachs growled, and their hearts were filled with joy.
Killing intent.
Sinners don't get any benefits. They can eat if they want. Please explain clearly everything you have done before!
It's just a pity that both Yin Fugui and several clan elders are as smelly and hard as the stones in the pit. They don't talk about anything else at all, as if the only thing they have committed is to harm Yin San's family.
How can it be?
His methods were so skillful that the ruthless old policeman named Zhouya couldn't help but feel chills. He remained calm in the face of the two major officials, the prefect and the county magistrate. How did he get such a psychological quality?
The elder can clearly feel the faint evil energy emanating from their bodies. These guys have countless lives on their hands. How can they be so calm when they are not accustomed to seeing blood?
Even in modern times with advanced information technology, ordinary people are a little at a loss when they see a township chief. Officials in the feudal era were much more prestigious. The village chief and clan elders of a small and closed place like Yinjiazhuang had such a calm attitude after meeting the official.
It's really admirable.
After a brief lunch, the interrogation continued on Xiaopingdi in front of the ancestral hall.
"Where did this money come from?"
“It’s all accumulated over the years!”
"Who believes it? Ask the villagers over there whether they believe it. According to the information we know, you and your family were also suffering twenty years ago!"
"We have also done business outside these years and made some money!"
"Haha, where do you do business and what kind of business do you do? Don't try to fool people, we can find out all of this!"
"..."
When asked and answered, Yin Fugui and several clan elders were very tight-lipped, and they couldn't ask any detailed questions.
Time passed slowly, and soon the sun was setting in the sky. Both the interrogating officials and the villagers who had been forced to stay in the microcosm were a little impatient.
"Sir, why don't we go ahead and punish them? These old guys must not have such strong bones!"
The head catcher in charge of the interrogation had his mouth dry, and he cautiously suggested while taking a few sips of tea.
"No need to go to such trouble!"
The elder waved his hand and said with a sneer: "Are the facts obvious? Looking at the skillful way they tricked Yin San's family, it's obvious that they have done it many times before!"
The words were not loud, but they were clearly heard by the villagers who were forced to watch, causing a small commotion.
These words were so instructive that some villagers seemed to have thought of something, and their expressions suddenly changed and they felt bad.
The elder's words continued: "How many orphans and widows were drowned in the pond before? Where have their houses, fields and family property gone?"
At this time, even the villagers who were not very smart reacted, and their faces became quite frightened.
"Also, in the twenty years since Yin Fugui became the village chief, how many villagers have lost their lives inexplicably? Where are their houses, property and land deeds?"
The elder sneered repeatedly, looked at Yin Fugui and several clan elders whose expressions became extremely ugly, and said disdainfully: "If you don't want others to know, you can't do anything except yourself, please explain all these things clearly!"
However, what greeted him was still silence, as if he was laughing at the elder's ignorance.
The elder was not angry, and his eyes slowly swept over the hundreds of villagers who had been forcibly detained, but no one dared to look at him, and all of them were guilty and short of breath, lowering their heads and saying nothing.
The atmosphere suddenly became weird and depressing.
"Sir, why are you being so polite to these unruly people? Just pull them back and beat them severely. I don't believe they are unwilling to recruit them honestly!"
The local county magistrate also felt chills in his heart after hearing this, and became very angry when he saw the depressing scene in front of him.
However, Yin Fugui and several clan elders were like clay sculptures and did not react at all.
The villagers who were forced to watch were a little commotion. The words of the local magistrate were too hateful. Even though they knew that the village chief and the elders were guilty, they couldn't help but feel angry. This was the result of the ruling class and the ruled.
The natural oppositional stance of classes.
"No need to go to such trouble!"
The elder waved his hand and said confidently: "Come here, take Yin Fugui and a few clan elders to the pond and kneel down. We will wait for them until they let go. As for dinner, the yamen will still take out the wallet!"
As soon as these words came out, it was like a cold wind whistling past. Everyone present, including the official officials, the villagers of Yinjiazhuang, and the local county magistrate, trembled and were frightened.
Cruel! So cruel!
Everyone looked at the eldest master with awe in their eyes. This lord Zhizhou was called ruthless.
Knowing that there was something strange in the pond, and that the rumored ghost might even be in it, the eldest master wanted to take Yin Fugui and several clan elders, whose hands were stained with blood, to kneel by the pond. Didn't he force these people to die?
The expressions of Yin Fugui and several clan elders changed wildly, but after a few changes they remained silent, obviously intending to fight to the end.
"Why are you still standing there in a daze? Bringing people to the edge of the pond to kneel down. Do you want me to do it myself?"
The elder shouted loudly, waking up the frightened state government official. He could only forcefully escort the people to the pond, wait for them to kneel down, and then retreat as if they were avoiding the plague.
"Look at your potential, so many people are here, even if there is a ghost, it is afraid of people!"
The eldest man led hundreds of officials and almost all the villagers in the village to the large pond in the center of the village, sat down on a bench brought by his confidant, and sat there waiting.
Hundreds of people gathered in the grain drying field not far from the pond, but no one dared to hum, and the silence for a while was breathtaking.
As the sun sets further to the west, the light gradually begins to dim.
It was the weather in late summer and early autumn, and the proverbial autumn tiger had not passed yet, so the temperature should have been unbearable if we were sitting there without any cover or cover, but the fact was that there was no sign of high temperature around us.
As the light gradually dimmed, a bone-chilling coldness swept through. Everyone present except the elder shuddered, with deep fear and uneasiness rising in their hearts. There was a child who couldn't stand such an atmosphere and atmosphere.
It was cold and cold, and I suddenly burst into tears in my mother's arms.
The atmosphere seems to be getting weirder and weirder!
When the setting sun finally disappeared from the horizon and the sky had not completely darkened, the originally calm pond suddenly started to ripple, and the already cold atmosphere became deeper. Yin Fugui and several clan elders who were kneeling by the pond did not know what was happening.
It wasn't because of his physical condition, but he was still frightened. He shivered for a while and then almost collapsed.
"Hahaha, you are all going to die, you are all going to die..."
At this moment, a crazy man with disheveled hair suddenly ran out from the slope opposite the pond, laughing wildly, his eyes full of irresolvable hatred and madness.
"No, no, no, I don't want to die. Please help me. I can do anything!"
At the same time, Yin Fugui, who had always been stubborn and refused to confess, was frightened by something unknown. He suddenly let out a frightened scream and shouted repeatedly. His already shaky body suddenly jumped forward and rolled a few times and was about to roll down the pond.
The same goes for the other kneeling clan elders. They seemed to be deeply attracted by the pond, and one by one they rolled towards the pond regardless of their own safety.
Suddenly, the officials and villagers who had just been alarmed seemed to hear a miserable howl, as if a woman was screaming for help, and there was a crying child beside her.
Looking at the pond again, I don't know when a black mist rose up and rolled away, as if something terrible was about to come out of it.
Vaguely, everyone seemed to see a graceful female figure in the black mist, holding a child about three or four years old on her hand.
The original cold atmosphere became even stronger, almost making people suspect that it was the twelfth lunar month of winter, and a bone-chilling chill arose in my heart.
"Ghost..."
I don't know who made a shrill wail, and all the hundreds of people sitting around the pond were immediately confused, and they were so frightened that they lost their minds by the terrifying scene in front of them.