It seems that this is an extremely possessive woman, who does not allow her man to have any extraneous desires, although this external desire was reasonable in that era, but it does not correspond to her exclusive desires, and when the third aunt appears in her life and tries to share her husband with him, she is immediately regarded as an enemy, and almost unscrupulous against her, so to speak, to death and then quickly. Such a woman is simply terrifying.

Because "jealousy" belongs to the "seven outs" reason for divorce, ancient women generally did not dare to show their jealousy, but there are many famous ones.

For example, the great poet Su Dongpo had a friend named Chen Jichang, and his wife Liu was a very jealous woman. Afterwards, Su Dongpo borrowed the lion's roar as a metaphor for his wife's angry scolding, and wrote a long poem entitled "Sending Wu Deren and Jian Chen Jichang", two of which were: "Suddenly heard the roar of the lion in Hedong, and the palm of his hand was at a loss. ”

Here, "Hedong" is borrowed from the Tang Dynasty poet Du Fu's poem about "Hedong's daughter surnamed Liu" as a metaphor for Chen's wife Liu, and later people took "Hedong Lion's Roar" as a synonym for jealous wives and fierce women. It can be seen that there are still such vinegar jars in ancient times. However, it is still very rare to find a vicious woman like Yang Qingshui's wife, Zhou.

Song Tongzhi heard Zhou's scolding viciously, and shouted: "Above the lobby, you must not speak filthy words, otherwise you will slap your mouth." ”

Only then did Zhou shut up.

According to Zhou's proof, Yang Qingshui was indeed beaten by Mrs. Yang for being too prominent for the third aunt.

After Yang Qiuchi asked Zhou to go down, he re-interrogated Yang Qingshui.

Yang Qingshui didn't know why he was interrogated again, he was very nervous, and when he entered the small attic, he saw that Yang Qiuchi, Song Tongzhi, and Luo Xiancheng were all as heavy as water, and they were even more frightened, sitting crookedly on the chair, but they didn't dare to ask.

Yang Qiuchi asked: "You just said that on the night of the third aunt's death, you were always at home, and your lady and maid servants testified, is this the case?" ”

When Yang Qingshui heard this, he chuckled in his heart, and guessed that there was probably something wrong with this, so he lowered his head and snorted.

Song Tongzhi slapped the table and shouted, "Nonsense! You, your mother-in-law Zhou's night, was chatting at the second aunt's place, talking about the third aunt's ugly things during the day, and how can I testify with you? ”

Yang Qingshui's face suddenly turned pale, and he didn't know how to answer.

There was no surprise in this temporary lobby, Song Tongzhi had no choice but to slap the table again, his palms were a little painful, and shouted: "Make the annihilation slippery, come here, drag me out and beat the thirty boards!" ”

The crowd quickly agreed in unison, and they wanted to drag Yang Qingshui when they stepped forward.

Yang Qingshui was so frightened that he slipped off the chair, knelt on the ground, and shouted repeatedly: "My lord, forgive me!" I say, I say. I went out over the wall that night. ”

Song Tongzhi asked: "If you don't go through the main gate, go out over the wall?" Either annihilate or steal, say! Did you come to the small attic to kill the third aunt? ”

"No, no, I didn't kill the third aunt, what I said before is true, although I was angry that she was treacherous and married my father, but it was only a moment of anger, and then I accepted my fate, if I hated her, I wouldn't help her speak, and I was beaten by my father, and I couldn't get out of bed for more than a month."

This is the truth, if he hates the third aunt, he won't care about the third aunt's affairs at all, and he can even borrow a knife to kill people, let the second aunt and a few of them deal with the third aunt, and sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, wouldn't it be happy.

Yang Qiuchi asked, "Then what are you doing going out over the wall?" Isn't it to the little attic? ”

Yang Qingshui lowered his head, a little sad: "That's right, I'm here to the small attic." Because I'm worried about the third aunt, she won't be able to think about it if something so big happens. ”

Yang Qiuchi became interested when he heard this, and asked, "When did you come?" ”

"It's almost four watches."

Yang Qiuchi's heart jumped suddenly, four more? Isn't that the estimated time when the third aunt was killed? Hurriedly asked, "Where were you then?" What do you see? ”

"I was at the gate of the courtyard of the small attic, I didn't go in, I just looked at it and left."

"Isn't the courtyard door of the little attic locked from the outside?"

"It was on when I went."

Yang Qiuchi was taken aback: "What? Is the small yard door open? Who drove it? ”

Yang Qingshui hesitated slightly, and said in a low voice: "I don't know. ”

He knows for sure! It's just that he can't say this person, Yang Qiuchi's heart is bright, he thought about it slightly, and immediately remembered someone, however, Yang Qiuchi was not in a hurry to ask this question, first gently bypassed the topic, and asked instead: "Who locked the door of the small courtyard from the outside, you should know this, right?" ”

"It was the old lady who asked Steward Pang to lock it." Yang Qingshui thought for a while, and added: "But the key is in the ...... In my father's hands. ”

"How long have you been outside the little attic?"

"I turned around and went back." Yang Qingshui said very carefully, and his voice was very low.

"Aren't you going to come and see if the third aunt is okay? Why did you just go back when you arrived? Yang Qiuchi asked, "Did you see someone in the small attic?" ”

Song Tongzhi heard the taste, if Yang Qingshui saw someone appear in the small attic at that time, that person was likely to be the murderer! Seeing that there was going to be a major breakthrough, he couldn't help but beat faster, and shouted: "Say it quickly!" You, who do you see? ”

Yang Qingshui's expression was even more flustered: "No, I didn't see anyone." ”

Song Tongzhi was about to be executed with a wave of his hand, but Yang Qiuchi waved his hand to stop it. asked Yang Qingshui: "You deliberately came to see the third aunt, the courtyard door was originally locked, but now it is open, didn't you say that you cared about her very much, and even prepared to hide her in the golden house?" Why don't you even see who went into the little attic and left? It doesn't seem to match what you said earlier. ”

Yang Qingshui's face was red and white for a while, and he didn't know how to answer.

Yang Qiuchi smiled and said: "Actually, I know that you are very embarrassed, because this person appeared at this time, it is obvious that he is too unfavorable to the third aunt, and at this moment, the person who hates the third aunt the most, except for the four people in the second aunt's room, I am afraid that there is only the old lady." ”

"Only the old lady can let you see it, and then hurry away like a mouse seeing a cat, and don't dare to stay for a moment. Because if you let the old lady know that you ran to the third aunt's small attic at night, I'm afraid it won't be a matter of not being able to get out of bed for a month. Am I right? ”

Yang Qingshui was stunned, how could this cousin know everything, as if nothing could be hidden from him.

From Yang Qingshui's facial expression, Song Tongzhi and Song Yun'er already knew that Yang Qiuchi's guess was accurate, and they couldn't help but be stunned, could it be that after a long time, it was the old lady who killed the third aunt?

Quite possibly! Mrs. Yang is very fond of the third aunt, if he doesn't like the third aunt too much, he won't compete with his son for a concubine. But the third aunt was too nymphomaniac and embarrassed, ruining the Yang family's style, after the old lady Yang calmed down, she felt very embarrassed about the handling of this matter, and after thinking about it, only the third aunt committed suicide could barely get back a little face.

So Mrs. Yang came to the small attic late at night, first charmed the nurse Lu Shi and the maid Zhichun with incense, and then sneaked into the room through the window, strangled the third aunt, and hanged herself in disguise.

Now when it comes to Old Lady Yang, it's a little troublesome. Song Tongzhi leaned over and asked Yang Qiuchi in a low voice: "Virtuous nephew, how is it now?" Catch Old Lady Yang and ask? ”

Mrs. Yang was at the scene of the murder at the time of the crime, and she had a motive for the murder, so she was suspected of a major crime. However, how to conduct the interrogation, this stumped Yang Qiuchi.

It stands to reason that Yang Qiuchi is a member of the Yang family, and it is no longer appropriate for him to try the murder of the patriarch's concubine, but fortunately, he was entrusted by Song Tongzhi to assist Song Tongzhi in investigating the case, so he can interrogate the Yang family's peers or juniors, and even the quasi-elders whose identity as the concubines like his second aunt are barely reasonable, he dares to interrogate the eldest grandmother or even the old lady Yang, but it is a big rebellion. Even if Old Lady Yang is guilty, it will not be his turn to interrogate Yang Qiuchi.

Therefore, how to deal with this problem has to think carefully. After coming to the Ming Dynasty, he began to learn to think about problems with the thinking of the Ming Dynasty.

It's not appropriate to let Song Tongzhi and them come to trial, Song Tongzhi is the same year as him, besides, if it can be confirmed that Mrs. Yang is the murderer, it doesn't hurt, but if you are mistaken, it is just a suspicion, after this trial, don't expect to spend the New Year in Yangjia Village, and don't expect to enter the ancestral hall to worship your ancestors, 12% will be driven out of Yangjia Village immediately. That's a big shame.

After thinking about it, I still can't take this risk, first check it from the side, and if it is determined that it was Mrs. Yang who committed the crime, I will talk about it.

Yang Qiuchi asked Yang Qingshui to step down, interrogated the second aunt, and verified Yang Aixiao and Zhou's statements, and the four of them did talk about the third aunt's nymphomaniac together that night, and they kept talking about the fifth watch. In addition, that night, the grandmother asked Steward Pang to be waiting all the time, and on the fifth watch, everyone went back to sleep after eating the supper arranged by Steward Pang.

Yang Qiuchi and Song Tongzhi knew that they had been interrogated all day except for a simple meal at noon, and it was already evening by now.

After discussing with Song Tongzhi, Yang Qiuchi decided to interrogate Steward Pang again to check, and then have dinner. As for how to investigate Mrs. Yang and Grandma, Song Tongzhi also thinks that you have to think about it and can't act hastily.

After Steward Pang was brought up, he smiled and nodded everywhere.

Yang Qiuchi thought to himself, this housekeeper is very good, and he treats people very measuredly. If Yang Qiuchi knew that the Yang Stone he replaced had been bullied by this housekeeper before, he would definitely have to find an opportunity to ask Yang Shishi to vent his anger.

After Steward Pang sat down, Yang Qiuchi asked, "Steward Pang, where were you on the night the third aunt died?" ”

"Master Hui Bing: I serve the eldest grandmother in the second aunt's room and the four of them are chatting." What did the housekeeper say, but he didn't hide it.

"Tell me about it."

"Yes, after the third aunt was sent back to the small attic that day, I had to arrange for a servant to invite Lang Zhong in the village to prepare to treat the third aunt, but the old lady said no, so Lang Zhong just helped me bandage my fingers and left."

"Bandaging your fingers? What's wrong with your fingers? ”

"That day, the third aunt was too nymphomaniac, and after hugging the eldest young master and being pulled away, she was going to hug me again, and I fell when I dodged, and knocked off the flower pot on the flower shelf in the yard, and the broken porcelain piece scratched my hand."

"Your hand hurts? What did it hurt? ”

Steward Pang raised his right hand: "Palm, but the wound is relatively shallow," paused, and added: "I also injured my middle finger, the wound was a little deep, and I shed a lot of blood." ”

Yang Qiuchi nodded and motioned for Steward Pang to continue.

Steward Pang continued: "After dinner, the old lady went to the second aunt's room to talk, passed by me, and asked me to go with me by the way, saying that the third aunt had such a big thing, and the old lady was very unhappy, so let's think about a way to see what to do." ”

Yang Qiuchi thought to himself, this old lady was clearly asking everyone to get together to gloat and laugh at the third aunt, and she also found such a good excuse.

Steward Pang continued: "The old lady has an order, how dare I disobey, so I went with her." I remember that there were four people: the old lady, the second aunt, the eldest young master's daughter-in-law, Zhou, and Miss Yang Aixiao. ”

Yang Qiuchi asked with some curiosity, "What about your old lady?" Why didn't he go? ”

"The third aunt is going to have this incident, the old lady is sad, how can she still have the heart to tinker with this."

"Isn't the old lady very angry, and he wants to punish the third aunt, how can he be sad?" Yang Qiuchi asked knowingly.

"Why don't you be sad!" Steward Pang sighed, "Since the old lady accepted this concubine, her love is really like a pearl in her palm, but she is really afraid of losing it in her hand, and she is afraid of melting in her mouth, and she likes it like something." revolves around the third aunt every day. ”

"In that case, how could the old lady let the third aunt be bullied?"

"Being bullied? Nope! Steward Pang's eyes widened, and he looked very dazed.

Yang Qiuchi said: "Steward Pang, I know that you are very embarrassed, and you dare not offend the old lady and them. However, when the third aunt was pregnant, they kicked the third aunt's stomach with their feet, and it was you who took the old lady to catch her, and the old lady was angry, so they reined in, and Shan'er's child was finally saved. You are still a hero of the Yang family. Isn't that the thing? ”

Seeing that he was pretending to be stupid and being exposed, Steward Pang's old face turned slightly red, nodded, and sighed again, he couldn't say anything about this kind of thing.

Yang Qiuchi continued to ask: "The old lady is sad that the third aunt has such a thing, what was he doing that night?" ”

Steward Pang thought for a while and said, "After the old lady asked me to lock the courtyard door, he took the key from my hand and went back to his room, I want to follow and serve, but the old lady said no." Later, I went to the second aunt's room to serve the old lady. Until the fifth watch, I prepared a supper, and everyone ate before they dispersed. ”

"Has anyone ever gone out on the way? The kind that takes a long time? ”

"No, I don't remember."

"Are you sure? Have you been there? ”

"Well, I've been waiting for you."

Yang Qiuchi sighed: "Steward Pang really has nothing to say to my Yang family. Looking at Steward Pang's gray hair, he walked over, stretched out his hand and plucked a few gray hairs on Steward Pang's head, twisted them between his fingers, snorted twice, and said, "Look, Steward Pang's hair is gray from hard work." It can really be described as brave and loyal, and hard work is high. Song Tongzhi and the others all nodded yes.

Yang Qiuchi praised him like this, and Steward Pang was really a little grateful, and he didn't even dare to say it.

Yang Qiuchi asked casually: "Steward Pang, do we fight more in Yangjia Village?" ”

Steward Pang was still quiet in the happiness that was praised by Yang Qiuchi just now, and replied: "Just one, called Yang Niu, all call him Lao Niutou, when he was young, his leg was lame, and he couldn't do heavy work, so the old lady arranged for him to work on the shift, and for many years, he lived in our outer house, and it was also very hard." ”

Yang Qiuchi praised again: "Steward Pang really didn't say anything to his subordinates, this is even more rare." ”

Steward Pang was so happy that his face was about to laugh.

Now, only Mrs. Yang and Mrs. Yang are left without investigation. It seems that in order to find out the truth, I can't say it, so I have to touch the tiger's butt.

At this moment, a maid came up to report: "Our old lady said that you have worked hard to try the case, and you have prepared a banquet, please go to the front hall to attend the banquet." ”

Yang Qiuchi and the others got up and went to the front hall. On the way, Yang Qiuchi called Nangong Xiong to his side and muttered in a low voice for a while, Nangong Xiong nodded and left, and then everyone came to the hall.

At this moment, it is late, the living room is brightly lit, several large pots of charcoal are burning vigorously, although the cold wind outside is biting, the house is warm like spring.

The entire Yang family attended the banquet. After everyone took their seats, after a few polite greetings, they ate and drank with their heads bored, and after a while, Mrs. Yang finally broke the silence and asked Yang Qiuchi: "Nephew, how is the investigation of the case progressing?" ”

Yang Qiuchi glanced at Song Tongzhi, and then replied: "Old lady, we found out that on the night of the third aunt's death, on the fourth watch, there was a person who went to the small attic. ”

Old lady Yang sighed lightly: "That person is me." ”

Yang Qiuchi and Song Tongzhi were very surprised, and before they asked, this old lady Yang herself admitted it first. However, from this point of view, it is very likely that Mrs. Yang is not the murderer, because if the matter is not finally revealed, no murderer will honestly admit that he has been to the scene.

Old lady Yang continued: "The third aunt was fine, how could it be like that suddenly, I was very angry at the time, and after I calmed down, I felt very strange, I wanted to go to the third aunt to ask what happened." ”

Yang Qiuchi asked cautiously, "What did the third aunt say?" ”

Old lady Yang shook his head: "I didn't see her, I arrived at the door, and I didn't know what to say when I met, so I didn't call, just stood by the window and listened, heard her snoring slightly, knew that she was asleep, and didn't want to disturb her, so I decided to ask her again the next day, and then I went back." ”

"Alas~!" Old lady Yang sighed, "I never thought that after I left, she died." I knew this earlier, I ......, alas~! ”

(To be continued)