There is a god in the sky

Chapter 28 The Yicun Murder Case 10

"Ah..." Village Chief Li screamed, and the handkerchief in his hand fell to the ground.

Wei Lanxiang took the opportunity to kick him in the stomach, but Village Chief Li nimbly dodged it.

His eyes flashed with malice, and he gritted his teeth as he said, "You little wench, you actually have some skills!"

"Hmph, I didn't expect Village Chief Li to be so agile at his age."

"I'm a man who's escaped death hundreds of times on the battlefield, you're asking for it!"

Village Chief Li picked up his cane from the ground and swung it at Wei Lanxiang with one hand.

He had a limp in one leg, but it didn't affect his jumping at all; every move he made was aimed at Wei Lanxiang's vital points.

Wei Lanxiang has persisted in practicing martial arts over the years. Her fist and foot skills are only average, but she has mastered light footwork and has deeply inherited the true teachings of Master Wei.

After trying a hundred times, Village Chief Li still couldn't touch Wei Lanxiang's clothes.

He was furious and clearly exhausted, panting heavily.

Wei Lanxiang held a thin needle between each of her five fingers, and sneered, "My turn!"

The fine needle silently pierced into Village Chief Li's body in the darkness. He collapsed to the ground, watching helplessly as Wei Lanxiang approached his body.

"Ah..." Another scream rang out.

Wei Lanxiang also severed the Achilles tendon in his normal foot.

She squatted down next to Village Chief Li and said coldly, "With your crippled body, all you can do is bully weak women."

"You...you dare to kill me?"

"Are you surprised?" Wei Lanxiang replaced the knife with a needle and stuck it into several acupoints on his body, instantly causing Village Chief Li to convulse all over his body.

"Don't worry, given your crimes, you'll definitely be sentenced to death by slow slicing. Killing you now would be too easy for you."

"..." Village Chief Li was in so much pain that he couldn't speak, his eyes bloodshot as he glared at Wei Lanxiang.

Wei Lanxiang picked up a handkerchief from the ground and stuffed it into his mouth. After a while, he was drugged and passed out.

Seeing the motionless Village Chief Li, Wei Lanxiang then remembered the issue of what to do afterward; she couldn't just leave him there.

The rooster began to crow. Wei Lanxiang quickly treated the wounds on Village Chief Li's hands and feet, then carried him to the village chief's house.

Village Chief Li enjoys high prestige in Baiyi Village and is undoubtedly the head of his household.

Wei Lanxiang sneaked in through the window, threw the person onto the bed, and covered them with a blanket.

In a fit of anger, I severed his tendons in his hands and feet. I wonder if that will affect the authorities' judgment.

That old lecher deserves to die, but Wei Lanxiang must make him face trial openly and honestly before she can get her godfather out of prison.

She left through the window, unaware that someone had entered Village Chief Li's house after she left.

Xiao Ji didn't sleep all night.

Upon returning to the county town, he immediately summoned County Magistrate Sun, ordered his yamen runners, and they rushed to Baiyi Village.

The investigation is at its most critical stage; if the evidence is destroyed by the murderer, all the hard work of last night will have been in vain.

County Magistrate Sun dared not speak out against his anger, and had no choice but to obediently lead his men to investigate the case early in the morning.

Xiao Ji stood in the Wang family's courtyard, deep in thought.

There was indeed moss and duckweed in the water vat, but that wasn't what puzzled him. What puzzled him was the messy footprints near the vat.

"My lord, there's blood here," Suiying called out.

Xiao Ji walked over and saw bloodstains that had not yet dried in the cracks of the bluestone. These were definitely not left the night before.

County Magistrate Sun searched the Wang family's house thoroughly, inside and out, and found only a piggy bank buried under the stove, with a total of a little over five taels of silver.

He cautiously asked, "Lord Xiao, may I ask what you have sent me here to search for?"

Xiao Ji instructed him: "Go and call all the adult men in the village. Those who are over seven feet tall should line up."

County Magistrate Sun was puzzled, but the matter was easy to handle. He immediately led his constables to knock on doors and call for help from each household.

Baiyi Village has a large population, with one or two hundred adult men. They were called to line up early in the morning and were all whispering and discussing among themselves.

"Are you looking for the murderer who killed Granny Wang?"

"It wasn't Old Taoist Wei who killed him?"

"I guess not. Old Master Wei is quite old, and Granny Wang is very strong."

"That's true. I heard that Wang Daniu still hasn't been found. Maybe he killed him. I heard from my uncle in the county that the kid has become addicted to gambling."

"That would be terrible. Once you get involved in gambling, you'll lose everything, no matter how much you have in your family."

County Magistrate Sun led his yamen runners to screen people, and there were more than a hundred people who were over seven feet tall.

He ran off excitedly to tell Xiao Ji, "Sir, all the villagers have been gathered."

As Xiao Ji looked around, he saw a series of simple, honest faces filled with fear. When they saw him come out, they all fell silent.

He asked Magistrate Sun, "Are you sure everyone is here?"

"Yes, yes... Oh right, there's also Village Chief Li. His daughter-in-law said he drank too much last night and is still asleep. I thought he was too old and had difficulty walking, so I didn't bring him along."

Xiao Ji didn't say anything, but stepped forward and said to the villagers, "I've invited everyone here to cooperate with the investigation. You'll all come forward to give your statements later, and then you can go back."

The group felt a little relieved.

Xiao Ji pressed County Magistrate Sun down into a chair, and placed a table in front of him with writing brush, ink, paper, and inkstone on it.

Clearly, this statement had to be recorded by County Magistrate Sun himself.

He bowed his head and gave a few instructions, ignoring Sun County Lieutenant's doubts, telling him to keep a close watch on things, and then left with his men.

Helpless, County Magistrate Sun picked up his pen and called out, "First one, come over here... What's your name? Where do you live? Put your hands out..."

While taking notes, he muttered to himself: What kind of riddle is this Lord Xiao playing? A person who is over seven feet five inches tall and has scratches on the back of their hands or arms. Could it be that he can find the murderer just like that?

Xiao Ji strolled around the village with his hands behind his back and two attendants by his side.

Sui Feng kicked at the stone at his feet and asked, "Sir, isn't this inspection too slow?"

"It's alright, let Magistrate Sun ask around."

"That's right. This County Magistrate Sun is too casual in his investigations. I wonder if he has any wrongful convictions or miscarriages of justice on his hands."

When Xiao Ji arrived at the village chief's house, he saw that the gate was open and went straight in.

A young woman was hanging out the laundry when she saw a strange man enter. Startled, she hid to the side and asked, "Who are you? Why are you barging into my home without permission?"

Xiao Ji asked politely, "Is Village Chief Li home?"

The young woman's expression changed slightly, and she lowered her head, saying, "Yes... Father-in-law is here."

"We are from the government office. We would like to ask Village Chief Li to come out and say a few words."

The young woman hesitated, saying only, "My father-in-law is still sleeping; it's not good to wake him."

Xiao Ji looked up at the sky. It was almost noon, and he was still sleeping?

He gave Sui Feng a wink, and the latter rushed into the house and found the immobilized Village Chief Li.

After a moment, he ran out in a panic and whispered something in Xiao Ji's ear.

Xiao Ji frowned. "Bring the person out."

This time, Sui Feng and Sui Ying went in together, and soon carried Village Chief Li out.

He had injuries on his hands and feet, which were bandaged, but were clearly fresh, and he was unconscious.

"My lord, look! There are scratches on the back of his hand."

After checking everything, Xiao Ji called over Li Village Chief's daughter-in-law and asked, "Did the village chief go out the night before last?"

The young woman shook her head hesitantly: "I...I don't know."

Her eyes flickered, clearly hiding something.

Xiao Ji then asked, "What about last night? Did you see anyone?"

“I…I went to bed early and didn’t see my father-in-law leave.”

Where is the rest of the family?

“My mother-in-law took my sister-in-law to visit relatives. My husband is studying in the county town and only comes back once every ten days.” The woman nervously tugged at the hem of her clothes, her eyes reddening.

Village Chief Li's son was one of the few educated people in the village and was always highly respected by the villagers.

As for Village Chief Li, he had served in the army when he was young, and his leg was injured on the battlefield.

He has always been seen as an upright and generous person by the villagers, and because of his leg problems, the villagers are happy to help him with the farm work.

Xiao Ji instructed Sui Feng to wake the village chief up and then examined his wounds again.

The tendons in their hands and feet were severed; the perpetrator had a sharp weapon and struck with great precision.