Previously, Meng Tianchu conducted a microscopic observation of the green bricks, and found a fragment of the scalp of the person adhered to the combat plane, and on the reverse side, a relatively complete handprint palm print was extracted, although this green brick was used for stepping feet, because there was no water in the water tank, and the drinking water was in the kitchen, so no one came to the backyard in the past few days, so it did not cause much damage to the palm print traces on this green brick.

Meng Tianchu went to the mourning hall and poured a cup of tea for Lin Ruofan, the main purpose was to extract her fingerprints, of course, to express his condolences by the way, but unexpectedly Lin Ruofan was grateful, and his heart was very uncomfortable.

extracted the fingerprints on the teacup, and after comparing them with the fingerprints on the green bricks, they were determined to be the same, proving that the fingerprints on the green bricks were Lin Ruofan's, that is to say, it was Lin Ruofan who used the green bricks to knock out the Fujunhai pillar.

After Lin Ruofan heard that Meng Tianchu found out that he was the real murderer of Haizhu, his body went limp, leaned on the osmanthus tree, and slowly slid on the ground, as if the muscles and bones of his whole body had been sucked away.

When Hai Dashan heard this, he immediately panicked, stood up, looked at Lin Ruofan under the osmanthus tree, and then slowly withdrew his gaze, walked tremblingly in front of Meng Tianchu, and fell to his knees with a plop, his cloudy old eyes were full of sadness: "Master... Please..., don't ask her again, I did it, don't you just want a guilty person? Just catch me! It's me who is angry with this disobedient son, and I killed him in a moment of anger, it really has nothing to do with the daughter-in-law of the pillar, please, let her go, arrest me away, if you want to kill or chop it all down on me, please..."

Meng Tianchu hardened his heart and did not support. A pair of eyes stared at Lin Ruofan, who was paralyzed under the osmanthus tree, and said coldly: "Mrs. Hai, can you bear to watch your father-in-law take the blame and send you to death?" ”

Lin Ruofan's body trembled, slowly raised his head, and looked at Meng Tianchu, at this moment, Mingyue had quietly hidden in a cloud at some point, the backyard dimmed, the lantern in Meng Tianchu's hand was hidden behind the water tank, although Lin Ruofan's figure was curled up in the shadows. But Meng Tianchu still clearly felt her gaze, and that sad and helpless gaze was slowly becoming firm.

Lin Ruofan stood up with the osmanthus tree. walked in front of Meng Tianchu and helped Hai Dashan up. He said softly: "Father-in-law, my daughter-in-law will not be able to serve your old man in the future, you have to take care of yourself." Then, he turned around and said to Meng Tianchu: "I killed my husband Junhai Zhuzi, it has nothing to do with my father-in-law, you can arrest me..."

Hai Dashan pulled Lin Ruofan behind him. said to Meng Tianchu in a panic: "No, no." She's talking nonsense, it's not her. I killed it! ”

Meng Tianchu said: "What I need to know is the truth of the case, Uncle Hai, you don't have to do it all." I have already found out that your son Haizhuzi was not killed by you, but by your daughter-in-law Lin Ruofan who knocked him unconscious and fell into a water tank and drowned. So if you do this again, not only will you not be able to save your daughter-in-law, but you will be involved in prison for making false testimony! ”

Hai Dashan was stunned, as if he had reached the end of the road, only to know that it was a cliff.

Lin Ruofan smiled sadly and said to Hai Dashan: "Father-in-law, this is fate, it is destined that I can't leave incense for your Hai family..."

"Incense?" Meng Tianchu felt an inexplicable sour feeling in his heart, looked at Lin Ruofan, who was beautiful and dusty, and asked bitterly, "You... Pregnant with the Hai family's... Flesh and blood? ”

When Hai Dashan heard this, his lips trembled, his knees weakened, he knelt down to the ground with a grunt, kowtowed to Meng Tianchu and said: "Master, the villain knows that you are a kind person, Master, the daughter-in-law of the pillar has already conceived the child of the pillar, and now the pillar is dead, but I expect the child in the belly to inherit the incense of our Hai family, please, raise your noble hand, and let the villain die instead of the daughter-in-law of the pillar."

Please. “

Meng Tianchu ignored the sea and the mountains, still looked at Lin Ruofan, and said with a wry smile: "You are pregnant with your husband's child, does your husband know?" ”

"I know, just a few days ago, my husband took me to the city to see Lang Zhong and found out, it's been almost four months."

"Then he still can't bear to beat you? Bear to sell you to Huang Shihu and their beasts? ”

"He..., so my father-in-law felt sorry for me, and he thought about the flesh and blood of the Hai family in my belly, that's why... forced me to promise that once the matter was revealed, let him take the blame..."Lin Ruofan's tears fell like pearls on the ground.

I see! Only then did Meng Tianchu understand that there was such a hidden story, and the bitterness in his heart made him almost want to turn around and leave, but the sense of mission to find out the truth still made him stabilize his mind, and in order to ask the truth, he continued to force Lin Ruofan with words: "You can't bear to see your father-in-law die for you?" ”

Lin Ruofan shook his head desperately, sobbed and said: "If I don't agree, my father-in-law will seek death, I have no choice, and I think about the child in my belly..., my father-in-law saved my life before, and now he is dying for me, so I decided to raise the child of the Hai family**, and after repaying his great kindness, I will commit suicide to apologize..."

"What's going on? How did you beat your husband to death? Meng Tianchu didn't want to hear this, he just wanted to find out the truth and leave.

Lin Ruofan raised his teary eyes and asked sadly: "Master, if I say it, can you wait for me to give birth to this child and then behead me?" ”

"According to the law of Da Ming, a pregnant woman has committed a capital crime, and she will not be beheaded until she breastfeeds for a year after giving birth, don't worry, your child will not die with you."

"Really?" Lin Ruofan and Hai Dashan asked in unison.

Meng Tianchu remembered the soft and pure image of Lin Ruofan that lingered in his mind when he was warm with Zuo Jiayin before, and the sourness in his heart burst into his heart, nodded, and smiled reluctantly: "Yes, besides, killing people does not necessarily have to pay for life, but also depends on the specific situation, and moreover, if you want to be sentenced to death, you still need to report it layer by layer, until the emperor's royal pen personally approves it." I know that you killed your husband as a last resort, and perhaps it was excusable, and that the sin would not lead to death, so you two will tell me what to do first, and let me decide what to do—remember, you must tell the truth, and if you want to hide anything, I don't care about it. ”

Lin Ruofan was already ecstatic when he heard that his child could save his life, but he didn't think much about whether his life could be saved, and listened to Meng Tianchu's words. He nodded and said, "Okay, I said, I will tell the truth." ”

Meng Tianchu said to Hai Dashan again: "I know, the body was carried to the pond by you and thrown into the water, and besides, you drank a lot of wine that night, and now I already know that the vomit by the pond was not your son who vomited on the ground - he was already dead at that time, and the vomit was vomited by you." Right? ”

Hai Dashan looked at Meng Tianchu in disbelief. He didn't know how this young master knew so accurately.

Meng Tianchu saw his doubts: "I conducted a detailed examination of the vomit and found that there was a lot of rice bran in it. This reminds me of Hai Lizheng's words - your son took most of the family's white rice and sold it for money, lost playing pai gow, and he ate the rest of the white rice himself. Let the two of you eat rice bran, and Lin Ruofan is single and weak, and she can't carry the sea pillar with a high body and a heavy body, besides, she is pregnant, and it is impossible for her to drink and vomit so. This vomit is actually what you vomited. ”

Hai Dashan smiled sadly: "Master is like a god. The villain didn't dare to hide it, so he must tell the truth. ”

Meng Tianchu nodded. He said to Hai Dashan: "You go out first, and I will question the two of you separately, and then compare the confessions." ”

Hai Dashan agreed. Pushed open the kitchen door and went out, only Meng Tianchu and Lin Ruofan were left in the backyard.

Meng Tianchu adjusted his thoughts and looked at Lin Ruofan: "Say it." ”

Lin Ruofan said: "Around the same night as soon as my husband came home, and forced me to agree to repay the debt and sell it to Huang Shihu and them, I still desperately didn't comply, my husband beat me, my father-in-law couldn't look at it, came to dissuade him, and was also beaten by him, and then pushed my father-in-law out of the door, and said that he was not allowed to come back tonight, otherwise he would be killed." After my father-in-law left, my husband took a pot of wine and drank it alone, and continued to grind and brew hard to get me to agree, I didn't dare to talk back, just hid in the room and didn't speak. It wasn't until my husband drank up the big pot of wine that I still didn't agree, and he began to beat me, and then found a rope to tie me up and forcibly sent me to Huang Shihu and them. I freaked out and ran into the backyard..."

"What time was it?"

"About three watches, I ran into the backyard, it was dark and I couldn't see clearly, I fell down by the water tank, he came up and pressed me, tied me with a rope, I struggled desperately, hated and feared, grabbed a brick and slapped him on the head, he snorted and let go of me, I got up and ran again, he grabbed me, I struggled hard but couldn't break free, so I turned around and slapped him with a brick, he fell into the water tank, fluttered in the water tank, I ran through the kitchen with the green brick, entered the hall to the wing room and closed the door, plugged in the latch, and pressed the door with my body, I was afraid that he would rush in, but after waiting for a long time and not hearing any movement outside, I had the courage to open the door and come out, check in the backyard, and find... I found that my husband had died in the water tank..."

Meng Tianchu looked around the backyard, the fence wall was very high, he had carefully checked, and there was no trace of outsiders getting in, and asked, "Did you have anyone else in your house at that time?" ”

"Nope."

"Is the main door of the living room open?"

"It's closed, and the ground is closed when the husband pushes his father-in-law out."

"What happened when you found out that your husband was dead?"

"I dragged my husband out of the water tank, and when I found him dead, I collapsed on the ground in fright, not knowing what to do. At this time, I heard my father-in-law calling the door outside the door, I hurriedly opened the door to let him in, and my father-in-law was full of alcohol, saying that he couldn't bear it anymore and wanted to fight with his husband.

Only then did I tell him that I had killed my husband and asked my father-in-law if he had reported to the official. My father-in-law stayed for a long time, saying that he couldn't report to the official, I had the flesh and blood of the Hai family in my stomach, and this incense couldn't be broken, and said that he carried the body to the edge of the village and threw it into the pond, pretending to lose his footing and drown. With that, he carried the body away.

He came back after disposing of the corpse, for fear that something was missing in the water tank and left a clue, so he overturned the water tank and poured all the water, and did not find anything unusual, so he was relieved. Then, the bus said on my behalf that if the matter was revealed, he would be responsible for the crime, and I didn't agree, and my father-in-law was going to die, and I also thought about the flesh and blood of the Hai family in my stomach, so I had to agree. “

After asking, Meng Tianchu asked Lin Ruofan to go out, called Hai Dashan in, and asked about the experience alone, which was consistent with what Lin Ruofan said.

At that time, after Hai Dashan went out, he stayed for two hours in the cowshed next to his field, which had a simple dwelling on it, which was used to watch the water in the fields or to guard the rice, and there was a pot of wine on weekdays. Hai Dashan thought about holding his breath, so he drank all the pot of wine, and the more he thought about it, the more angry he became. decided to come back and theorize with his son Hai Zhuzi, if Hai Zhuzi insisted on using his daughter-in-law to pay off his debts, he would sue him for disobedience and send him to the official for punishment, and only when he came back did he know that his son was dead, so he faked the scene.

After the matter was clarified, Hai Dashan began to beg Meng Tianchu again to let him take the blame for Lin Ruofan, no matter what, to keep the flesh and blood of the Hai family, Lin Ruofan heard Meng Tianchu say that he could wait until a year after giving birth to the child before asking for beheading, so he didn't agree to his father-in-law to take the blame for himself anyway.

Meng Tianchu waved his hand to stop them and looked at Lin Ruofan. Said slowly: "Mrs. Hai, your husband doesn't care about your Hai family's flesh and blood. Not only did they beat you, but they also insisted on using you to pay off their debts. There is no husband and wife affection, and in the end, I use force to tie you up and send you to the tiger's mouth, you resist desperately for chastity, accidentally injure your husband, and accidentally fall into the water tank to death. Pardonable. In order to show his chastity and virtue, this master has decided not to pursue your sins. ”

Lin Ruofan and Hai Dashan were stunned. Glancing at each other, Hai Dashan asked, "Master... Don't you ask the pillar daughter-in-law about the sin? ”

Meng Tianchu nodded: "Although I didn't know the specific process of this case before, I came before tonight." I have already known the important joints in it, and I have come here just to inquire about the truth and the truth of the crime, and I am not going to investigate it, not to mention that Mrs. Hai's behavior is at most a crime of negligence causing death, and at most it is only a punishment of a rod, and it is not necessary to be tempted to redeem the punishment according to the law. The reason why I only called the two of you to the backyard was to cover up the fact that no one knew about it, so I would still close the case with a sea pillar falling into the pond and drowning. Don't worry. ”

Lin Ruofan and Hai Dashan were overjoyed, and knelt down and kowtowed to Meng Tianchu.

The corners of Meng Tianchu's mouth showed a wry smile, according to people in his dreams, he is not only a wife, but also a mother.

Meng Tianchu waved his hand and turned around to go out. Suddenly, Lin Ruofan behind him whispered: "Master, please stay, the woman has something to say." ”

Meng Tianchu stopped and turned around and looked at Lin Ruofan.

Lin Ruofan whispered to Hai Dashan: "Father-in-law, please go to the mourning hall outside to take care of it first, and your daughter-in-law and master will come when they say a word, okay?" ”

Hai Dashan hurriedly agreed, got up and bowed to Meng Tianchu again to thank him, and then went into the kitchen to the front hall to take care of the funeral.

In a moment, the sound of suona, which had been suspended during the investigation of the case, sounded tactfully and poignantly, floating in the night sky of the mountain village.

Lin Ruofan stood up, slowly walked in front of Meng Tianchu, hesitated for a moment, then raised his head, looked at Meng Tianchu without dodging, and said in a soft voice: "Master Meng, thank you..."

Meng Tianchu noticed the change in her title, and smiled reluctantly: "Is this the case?" ”

Lin Ruofan bit his lip lightly with snow-white little teeth, looked at Meng Tianchu's lonely eyes intently, plucked up his courage, took half a step forward, stood on his toes, and kissed Meng Tianchu lightly on his lips.

"Mrs. Hai, you..." Meng Tianchu was stunned, a little at a loss, only to feel that Lin Ruofan's cold red lips were so soft, and before he had time to reminisce, Lin Ruofan had already retreated, but the girl's fragrance between the red lips remained between Meng Tianchu's lips.

Lin Ruofan still looked at Meng Tianchu, and a sad smile appeared on the corner of his mouth: "Master Meng, Ruofan knows... You have Ruofan in your heart..., in fact, Ruofan in your heart... There is also Meng Ye..., it's just..., it's just that if you are already pregnant with the flesh and blood of the Hai family, I'm afraid that you won't have anything to do with Meng Ye in this life..., I just hope that in the next life, I can repay Meng Ye for his pity for Ruofan..."

It turned out that Lin Ruofan knew that Meng Tianchu fell in love with her at first sight, but she also liked this young, handsome and kind-hearted criminal master in her heart, she married Hai Zhuzi, just to repay Hai Dashan's life-saving kindness, but she had no feelings for Hai Zhuzi, especially after being treated ruthlessly by Hai Zhuzi, and after using her to pay off gambling debts, she was even more cold. And Meng Tianchu's love for her evoked her silent emotions, although it was only a few days, but she experienced more ups and downs than in a few years, after this experience, she couldn't help but feel entangled in Meng Tianchu. At this moment, seeing Meng Tianchu's eyes full of loss, she couldn't bear it, she was a person who dared to say and do, and under the agitation and guilt in her heart, she mustered up the courage to kiss Meng Tianchu and showed her heart.

Meng Tianchu listened to Lin Ruofan's confession, his heart was warm, and he stepped forward to hug her.

Lin Ruofan took two steps back, her beautiful eyes were full of tears, and she said mournfully: "Master Meng, please don't embarrass Ruofan!" Ruofan is already pregnant with the flesh and blood of the Hai family, and he has no chance with Meng Ye in this life, just now... That has violated women's morals, but I am grateful for Meng Ye's mercy, and there can be nothing else..."

"Ruofan...!" Meng Tianchu took a step forward and wanted to hug her again, but after seeing the indescribable sadness and helplessness in Lin Ruofan's eyes, he froze, he knew that it was impossible for him to convince her to convince this stubborn Ming Dynasty girl who had been living under the deep influence of traditional Gangchang ethics.

Lin Ruofan sobbed and said, "Master Meng... How precious..., Ruofan will always pray to heaven to bless Meng Ye with peace and blessings in his life..."

Lin Ruofan burst into tears, all of them were as clear as pearls, and he glanced at Meng Tianchu deeply, with indescribable sorrow and helplessness, he turned around and hurried away in broken steps.

Meng Tianchu stood under the osmanthus tree in a daze, watching Lin Ruofan's pretty back disappear, leaving only a faint fragrance, I don't know if it was the withered osmanthus on the top of his head, or Lin Ruofan's faint body fragrance.

After staying for a long time, Meng Tianchu slowly walked out of the backyard and came to the front hall, where Lin Ruofan was no longer visible. It turned out that Lin Ruofan couldn't bear to see Meng Tianchu's desperate eyes again, and hid in the boudoir.

Meng Tianchu's heart was sour, and he had no intention of staying, so he decided to return to the city.

Meng Tianchu told Hai Lizheng that Hai Zhuzi's case had been investigated, and he still fell into the pond and drowned, which had nothing to do with Hai Dashan and Lin Ruofan, and lifted their monitoring.

Before leaving, Meng Tianchu took out fifty taels of silver, stuffed it to Hai Dashan, and told him to take care of his daughter-in-law Lin Ruofan, and if there was anything, he could go directly to the county government to find him to solve it.

Hai Dashan was grateful, kowtowed again and again, and Hai Lizheng and others kept sending Meng Tianchu to the entrance of the village, and then waved goodbye.

Walking out of the distance, in the dark of night, Meng Tianchu suddenly looked back, only to see that under the light in front of the Haijiatang house, Lin Ruofan stood up and looked at them from afar, the pretty figure was so beautiful and refined, the night breeze blew, and the snow-white clothes and belts fluttered gently, like a slender hand, beckoning to him to say goodbye.