During the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty , the censor Zhang Chuanshan was an honest official and did not follow personal favours. He served as the Laizhou magistrate. One day he sat on the court to interrogate the Wang Xiaoshan murder case reported in Jimo County.
Wang Xiaoshan was only in his early twenties, wearing shabby clothes and a Confucian scarf. He was a frail scholar. He didn't look like a murderer at first glance, so he couldn't help but become suspicious. But no matter how you ask, he always says that he killed someone.
It wasn't until his wife came to visit him in prison that he told the truth.
It turns out that Qu Peiqiu, a salt merchant from Jimo, has a rich family and a cunning and vicious man. He is over fifty years old and has an only son named Jiye. One day, Qu Jiye took two slaves to the beach for a stroll. When he saw Qiaoniang, the daughter of boat owner Li Er, she was very beautiful, he stepped forward to do something with her. While
was entangled, Li Er rushed to him and saw that he was a well-groomed playboy. He dared not mess with him, but he only tried to persuade him nicely. Unexpectedly, dogs don't know how to respect people, so he scolded Li Er for not knowing how to show respect, and kicked Li Er to death on the boat. Qu Jiye saw that things were not good, so he walked away. Qiao Niang was advised by someone to report her to the Jimo County Yamen.
Dian Shi Tang Rusong, after receiving the petition, immediately brought three squads of government officials, six office clerks, and other staff to the scene for autopsy. After the examination, he hypocritically told Qiao Niang that he must catch the murderer and avenge your father. You can wait at home. Seeing that her father died and she was left alone, Qiao Niang decided to go to her aunt's house in the countryside temporarily.
Tang Rusong, a classic scholar, was originally a civil servant, but his family was not wealthy. He had been waiting in Beijing for two years without getting any official position. He had no choice but to come to Jimo to study history. He planned to get money and then go to Beijing to seek high-ranking officials and generous salaries. He treated the case as a business, picking up cakes with nothing, fishing with nothing, and making profits without any capital. However, Qiao Zhixian was also a character with dark eyes and no money. The two worked together and did many bad things. Today, Qiao Niang sued Qu Jiye for beating his father to death, which can be said to be a fat pig.
Tang Rusong did not sit in court to arrest the prisoner, but first came to Qu's house in a sedan chair. When he saw Qu Peiqiu, he said that his son had beaten someone to death and was sued. When he heard it, he felt like vermicelli soaked in hot water, and his whole body became soft. I was at a loss for a while and kept pleading: "Master, you are so kind. As long as you make me live, I will spend more or less money."
This is what Tang Rusong wants. Immediately he said: "Open the skylight, let's not talk secretly, let's be honest with you. You have to die to save your son in this matter. I will handle the situation with the county magistrate. You should quickly think of a way to call the murderer to surrender. This matter should be done sooner rather than later. The night is long and the dream is long." After that, he took it away with him.
Qu Peiqiu gave him two thousand taels of silver. He gave a thousand taels to the county magistrate Huo Qingzheng, but he left a thousand taels behind.
has laid out a trap, waiting to be tricked and killed. There was a servant in the Qu family, Wang Guilin, who was both good at drinking and gambling. He was a good-for-nothing with a broken backbone. Qu Pei, his master and the housekeeper made a poisonous plan and asked a few people to seduce Wang Guilin, first by drinking and then by gambling. After going back and forth, the drunken Wang Guilin lost more than a hundred taels of silver after a few games. He originally owed Qu Peiqiu dozens of taels of silver, and now he owed even more. Qu Peiqiu immediately chased him to pay back the money, which frightened him to the point of leaving his body. He knelt down and begged for mercy, saying that he would be obedient and work hard in the future.
At this time, the master, the housekeeper, some pretending to be masters, and some pretending to be ghosts all persuaded him to ask his son Wang Xiaoshan to go and fight against the murderer. If he agrees, the debt owed to the Qu family will be written off, and another two hundred taels of silver will be given to him for his life. Only then did Wang Guilin realize that he had fallen into someone else's trap. He couldn't help but tremble all over. No matter how stupid or stupid he was, he couldn't bear to ask his only son to risk his life for someone else's murderer. He remained silent for a while, unable to resist the temptation of Qu Peiqiu and a few accomplices. After being poured a few glasses of wine, he muddleheadedly pressed his fingerprints on the documents they had prepared.
Wang Guilin was so drunk that he returned home with the receipt, and his family immediately burst into tears. My son, Wang Xiaoshan, was a scholar. He thought about it and said, "Whether I have been fooled or deceived, now that I have reached this point, it is useless to say anything else. I will just fulfill my filial piety for my father.""After saying that, regardless of the obstruction of his family, he went to the county government office to surrender. According to the confession he had prepared, Tang Dianshi did not ask any questions and ordered the government officials to put him in jail.
Zhang Chuanshan was determined to avenge Wang Xiaoshan, who had been wronged. In order to solve the case, he wrote to the provincial prosecutor to request a retrial of the case. At the same time, he searched for people to inquire about the whereabouts of the boat owner's daughter Qiao Niang. Unexpectedly, both attempts did not go well. Qiao Niang was abducted two days ago. The prosecutor's office approved the report again, saying that the criminal was already If he confesses, he does not need to be retried. He will be beheaded immediately as soon as the approval from the Ministry of Punishment arrives.
Zhang Chuanshan knew that he was in trouble, and someone must have manipulated him. It seemed that Qu Peiqiu was wealthy and capable, and he had bribed the province. He can do anything, he must have deceived this beautiful lady! But where does this gap open? He thought about it for a long time and came up with an idea. He sent a message to Huo Qingzheng, the magistrate of Jimo County. , He said that he would like to borrow the help of Tang Rusong, the official from the government office. Huo Zhixian was unwilling, but he didn't dare to say no. As the saying goes, it is better to be an official than to be in charge. How could he dare not agree and go back to the Yamen to discuss with Tang Rusong.
Tang Rusong said: "This is the prefect's plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain. If you don't go, you won't be afraid. With my cleverness, I probably won't make any mistakes. It's better to go and talk about it later. "
When Tang Rusong arrived at the government office, Zhang Chuanshan was not in a hurry to ask him anything, but he could not see that Magistrate Zhang had any ill intentions towards him. In his spare time, Magistrate Zhang came to his residence to chat with him, talking about everything from astronomy, geography, customs and people, and he lived a leisurely life every day. Because he had something in his heart. Ghost, I feel uneasy all the time.
One day, while he was sitting there reading, Magistrate Zhang came to tell him: "An official document has arrived from Jiangzhou, Shaanxi Province, saying that a case has been discovered there, and the clue is in Jimo, Shandong Province. The case has been filed with the Ministry of Punishment. Now the Ministry of Punishment is pressing and has to send someone to deal with it. How about sending you there? Set off the day after tomorrow. "
Tang Rusong was shocked when he heard this. He knew this case clearly, and it was Qu Jiye, the treasure, who did it. Qu Peiqiu wanted a reliable person to take care of the business in Shaanxi. Secondly, he also wanted his son to go out to avoid the limelight. A dog that doesn't want to eat shit will not see shit there, so when he arrived Jiangzhou hung out with a group of dandy boys there, who only cared about drinking and having fun, and did not care about the smuggling business. He accidentally showed his flaws and was caught by local officials. I went to the higher authorities to investigate, and Qu Peiqiu spent money to fool him, and Tang Hesong naturally benefited. Now Magistrate Zhang mentioned this case again, what does it mean? But it's no good if he doesn't go. Firstly, this matter involves him, and secondly, it's not difficult to do this favor. He immediately wrote a letter to Qu Peiqiu, telling him that there was no news about Wang Xiaoshan's case at the moment, but the Ministry of Punishment had approved the sale of illegal salt, and Magistrate Zhang ordered an investigation. Fortunately, I was entrusted with it. You can ask someone to handle it as soon as possible, and the big problem will be reduced to a trivial matter.
After the letter was written, he did not dare to ask the government to send someone to deliver it, so he delivered it quietly himself. Qu Peiqiu told them to rush to Jimo County at the pawn shop opened by in Laizhou Prefecture.
Unexpectedly, the next day the guy who delivered the letter in the pawn shop in Jimo was caught by the prefect's official outside the city. The letter was found, and Tang Rusong was imprisoned that same day. On the third day of Tang Rusong's imprisonment, Qu Jiye was also escorted from Jiangzhou to Laizhou Prefecture by capable personnel sent by Magistrate Zhang.
On this day, Qu Peiqiu was frightened, and he hurriedly went to Huozhi County. Huozhi County was also worried day and night about Tang Rusongxia being imprisoned. Thinking about how to exonerate myself, take a pot of shit Tang Rusong was pissed all over, and when he saw Qu Peiqiu, he was furious. He spoke in an official tone, accusing him of being lax in educating his children and not following the laws of the country. He was a carpenter who wore the shackles and suffered for himself. Qu Peiqiu didn't expect that he would turn his face and deny anyone, Zhang Fei and Guan Gong . He didn't miss the old feelings, just like beans overnight, full of anger, how could he not bow his head under the roof of others. I said in my heart, okay, a gentleman's revenge is never too late in ten years. When I get this lawsuit out of the way, we can settle the score.
He returned home and discussed with his masters. All of these people were good at rhetoric. Qu Peiqiu immediately brought a capable housekeeper to Laizhou.
One day, Zhang Chuanshan was sitting in his mansion. Qu Peiqiu's housekeeper led people to bring twelve pots of precious chrysanthemums. He knelt and said, "I heard that adults like chrysanthemums. The young master Qu Peiqiu asked me to send a few pots. These flowers are not a rare thing. The soil in the pots to grow flowers is rare."
What kind of person is Zhang Chuanshan? How could he not hear the hidden meaning in his words, so he ordered his family to accept them.
The housekeeper said: "Go back and tell your master that I appreciate it, and I will ask for mercy another day."
The prosecutor has always refused to approve the re-examination of Wang Xiaoshan's murder case. Obviously, there is privacy, and it will inevitably change over time. Zhang Chuanshan pressed him several times, but the superiors just shied away, saying that they could not listen to Wang Xiaoshan's confession. Zhang Chuanshan worried about this day and night. One day, he suddenly remembered a person. He wore casual clothes and came to the door of a small courtyard on Xiaobei Street to find Li Kun, an old agent. He was a well-known litigator, and the pleadings he wrote were all about pleading for the grievances of the poor people. They were not only well-written and well-reasoned, but his compassion for the elderly and the poor could be seen between the lines.
Li Kun heard that the visitor was Zhang Chuanshan, the current prefect, and quickly let him into the room. When he talked about Qu Jiye's murder and the fact that the case had not been settled for a long time, Li Kun twirled his goatee and said, "I want to falsely accuse the upright officials."
Zhang Chuanshan heard this and wondered what kind of medicine he had in the gourd. Li Kun said: "Two days ago, Qu Peiqiu came to ask me to write a petition. If I can sue you, Prefect Zhang, I would like to pay you a thousand taels of silver. I can distinguish between good and bad people, so I didn't agree at the time. Why don't we come up with a plan today? Let me write the complaint against you, saying that you are not an official, and using the threat of overturning the case to defraud the Qu family's money may make the case worse and settle it quickly."
Zhang Chuanshan thought about it, gritted his teeth and said, "I am a fourth-grade prefect who claims to be incorruptible. In order to solve the case, It’s really ridiculous to be the defendant for once. Come on, I’ll be the defendant for once!”
Qu Peiqiu spent a thousand taels of silver to ask Li Kun to write a petition against Zhang Chuanshan and send it to the provincial capital Inspector Yamen. When the inspector saw the petition, he couldn't help but smile and said: "What an upright official Zhang Chuanshan, I didn't expect that you are also a paper-tied tiger. The white lady ate realgar wine and showed her true colors."
The inspector came to Laizhou Mansion majestically and sat in the lobby. When Zhang Chuanshan came to meet him, he saw the inspector with a straight face and shouted: "Zhang Chuanshan, do you know your crime!"
Zhang Chuanshan ate fireflies in his belly, and his heart was clear. He asked knowingly: "I don't know where the crime comes from?"
The inspector smiled coldly: "If you want people to know, you have to stop doing it. You want to be an upright official and make a fortune. You will take advantage of all the cheap things in the world! It's not that easy. Yi, please hand over the stolen goods first, and then wait and see what happens! "
Zhang Chuanshan pretended to be surprised and said: "I don't understand what you are saying. Where is the stolen goods?
Huo Zhixian, who was standing aside, became more energetic at this time and sneered: "Master Zhang, do you still want Qu Peiqiu to testify in court?" "
Zhang Chuanshan saw Huo Qingzheng's complacency and deliberately stood there without saying a word. The inspector thought that Zhang Chuanshan's power had been suppressed, so he said again: "Okay, you go down and stay for now. You are not allowed to meet anyone."
Zhang Chuanshan did not expect that Zhang Chuanshan was pressed. The inspector actually put a fourth-grade magistrate under house arrest without the approval of his superiors, causing him to lose his freedom of movement and unable to understand the outside situation. He couldn't help but feel uneasy. Even though it was a fake show, he was not afraid of ten thousand, but just in case. If he was not careful, the fake would become real.
Xu Wenbo, the imperial censor of Zuodu, was a good friend of Zhang Chuanshan and an upright man. He received two reports from the Laizhou Prefecture and the Shandong Provincial Envoy at the same time. Zhang Chuanshan reported the truth about Wang Xiaoshan’s murder case and Jimo County canon Tang Rusong, and the county magistrate Huo Qingzheng was embezzled. The fact that he had violated the law required the Ministry of Punishment and Zuodu Yushi to quickly send people to investigate and punish him. The inspector reported that Zhang Chuanshan had taken the opportunity to extort money and misjudge the lawsuit. Xu Wenbo read the two official documents over and over again and felt that there was much in them, so he immediately reported it to the court and was allowed to leave the capital.
Emperor Qianlong also gave him Shang Fang Sword , which can be chopped first and played later. He brought some of his entourage, and when he came to Laizhou Mansion to hear the case a few days ago, the lobby was filled with officials at all levels, who looked very high-sounding. Zhang Chuanshan, an official of the imperial court, is still here, and Hai Qingzheng, a seventh-rank official, is sitting below him.
According to the instructions of the Imperial Envoy, this case was interrogated by the Inspector. He slapped the case and asked: "Zhang Chuanshan, as an official of the imperial court, you are corrupt and perverting the law. What crime should you be guilty of?"
Zhang Chuanshan stared at him when he saw him blowing his beard. , couldn't help but sneered twice and said: "Yes, corruption and perverting the law are not tolerated by the king's law. Since Huo Qingzheng knows it, why not quickly hand over the money Qu Peiqiu gave you and Tang Rusong so that the real culprit can be brought to justice, so that I can ask the imperial envoy to give you a lenient sentence."
After hearing this, the inspector said, It really didn't suit his taste, so he slapped the public case loudly and yelled: "Shut up! Now I'm interrogating you. To bite someone else in the face is to add guilt to the crime. Don't you understand?"
Zhang Chuanshan asked calmly: "Please tell me, Sir, do you have any evidence for saying that you are low-ranking, corrupt and perverting the law?"
The inspector laughed and said, "Let me ask you, are the chrysanthemums that Qu Peiqiu gave you still in your house?"
Zhang Chuanshan also laughed and said, "I don't think it's a big deal. If the chrysanthemums are evidence for handling the case, of course they are still in the house." After that, ask someone to bring those chrysanthemums.
When everyone took a look, the pots and basins were all sealed with the seal of Laizhou Prefecture, and the original ones were not touched at all. Zhang Chuanshan immediately opened the seal, and the pots of soil were filled with golden gold bars. Not only the inspector and Huo Qingzheng were stunned, but all the officials were also astonished. The inspector was stunned for a long time before he hesitated and said: "This, this, what does this mean?"
Before Zhang Chuanshan could answer, the imperial envoy couldn't help but added: "Affixed the official seal, The original thing has not been moved, how can you say that a bribe has been taken and it has become evidence of corruption?"
Zhang Chuanshan said confidently at this time: "My lords, these chrysanthemums were given by Jimo salt merchant Qu Peiqiu. Why did he hide the gold? I can only ask the Jimo County Magistrate and Dian Shitang. Rusong knew it clearly."
The imperial envoy Xu Wenbo nodded and asked, "Huo Zhixian, what is going on?"
Huo Qingzheng did not expect that the imperial envoy suddenly asked him. Although he was smart, he was panicked. He was speechless for a moment and couldn't explain what was going on. It took him a long time to say: "Not long after I took office, I have to ask Tang Rusong about this matter."
Tang Rusong was escorted up. Ruyun had been so frightened that he wet his crotch, but he was cunning and cunning after all. He thought of the news that Qu Peiqiu secretly sent yesterday, and issued a message to the inspector that Zhang Chuanshan must be brought down. Not only would he be acquitted, but he would also be promoted. At this time, he got bold again. He kowtowed several times and shouted that he was innocent, saying that Wang Xiaoshan, the real culprit who killed the boatman Li Er, confessed himself, and that Magistrate Zhang was trying to extort money from the Qu family...
Before he could finish his words, he heard someone beating drums outside. Wang Xiaoshan's wife Lanfang came to the lobby shouting that he was innocent. The imperial envoy asked her to complain, and she told the whole story. The imperial envoy asked someone to bring Wang Xiaoshan to the lobby. He told his wife exactly the same story.
At this time, another beautiful but frail woman came to the lobby, it was Funato's daughter Qiaojie. That day, she was deceived by two servants disguised as Qu's family at her aunt's house. When she walked to the beach, the two men actually threw her into the sea. Fortunately, she was rescued and ended up here.
I am afraid of three to six confrontations, and I am afraid of digging up the roots and pulling out the vines. This murder case was interrogated by the imperial envoy Xu Wenbo. Mixed with tofu with spring onions , it was all clear.The real murderer, Qu Jiye, was beheaded. Tang Rusong was punished with two hundred sticks and was exiled for three thousand miles. Huo County Magistrate was dismissed from his post and served a sentence. Qu Peiqiu spent a lot of money to settle Qiao Niang and Wang Xiaoshan, and managed to buy them a pardon. The inspector realized that his face was disgraced and returned to the provincial capital in despair. He was soon dismissed from his post.
