The blazing afternoon sun shone on Qufu County, and it was extremely hot.

But squatting in the shadow of the alley outside the Confucian Mansion, Wang Zhizhou, who was dressed like a beggar, couldn't feel the slightest warmth, his heart and body were completely frozen because of what happened to him.

That night, he thought that the plague was over, but unexpectedly, it was only the beginning.

Kong Wenhe acted very decisively, and took his family and Kong Shida back to the county seat overnight, and sent them directly to the county office.

Several officials of the county government also had a kind attitude towards Wang Zhizhou, and while listening carefully to his narration, they settled him in a room, saying only that after dawn tomorrow, the county magistrate would give him an explanation and justice.

At that time, Wang Zhizhou was really full of joy and admiration, the Confucian family really deserved to be a family of culture and education, and it was really the most upright and selfless!

Now that he thinks about it, he really regrets it, he knew that this was the result, he should have fled with his wife and children at that time. No, he should have killed Kong Shida on the spot, and if it was possible, he would have killed Kong Wenhe as well-

Not long after he slept because of the large amount of alcohol he had drunk before, and the excitement and anger that followed, coupled with the confusion in his heart, the door of the house he was in was suddenly knocked open.

Before Wang Zhizhou could come to his senses, several people had already rushed into the room, ripped him off the bed, slammed him on the ground, and almost stopped breathing.

At the same time, he heard a few happy shouts in a trance: "I have caught Wang Zhizhou, the murderer of his wife!" ”

These words made him suddenly startled, and as soon as he wanted to open his mouth to argue, he was kicked in the head hard, and then fainted directly.

When he woke up again, he found himself lying on top of the public court, with servants holding sticks on the left and right, and under the plaque hanging above the mirror, the county magistrate was saying with a serious face: "Bring the murderer Wang Zhizhou who killed his wife to this official!" ”

Then he was dragged to the middle of the lobby like a sack, and there was a whisper behind him, and it was the people of the county who were listening outside who were talking and pointing.

Although he couldn't hear what they were saying, the disdain, fear, and disgust in their tones were clearly captured by him. At this time, Wang Zhizhou was still a little dazed, and he didn't know what was going on.

Until the startled wood slammed, the county commander shouted and asked: "Wang Zhizhou, this official asked you, are you guilty?" ”

Wang Zhizhou reacted at this time, and hurriedly shouted: "My lord, Xiaomin is wronged, I didn't do anything, what's wrong with my wife......

"Presumptuous! So far, the human and material evidence is conclusive, you still dare to deny it, and dare to roar in court, but where will you put your own official and the law of heaven and reason! Come on, torture me! ”

The county magistrate reprimanded him angrily, and then Wang Zhizhou was dragged down in a daze, and was beaten thirty boards in public, and then brought back to him for questioning.

And this time, the county magistrate no longer had any circles with him, and with a wave of his hand, he asked people to bring a corpse placed on the door panel to the hall. After someone lifted the white cloth covering the corpse, Wang Zhizhou saw that his wife had been wounded by multiple stabs, and she had been angry for a long time.

This completely stunned him, and his brain was like a thunderbolt, making his eyes blaze with gold stars, and his ears rumbled, and he couldn't even react or say anything.

It wasn't until the repeated scolding and startled slapping sound came again that he recovered from the shock slightly, and then met the solemn gaze of the county commander full of threats: "Wang Zhizhou, you suddenly went berserk and killed your wife in Qingxin Temple, after the incident, there were many monks and people from the Confucian family who were present at the time to testify, do you still want to deny it?"

"Now that the human and material evidence is complete, it is useless for you to deny it. This official advises you to confess your sins honestly and avoid the pain of the flesh and skin! ”

Wang Zhizhou, who had been deeply shocked, was already at a loss for speech, and after hearing that the Kong family was also a witness, he finally reacted quickly and shouted again: "Wronged...... This is all framed by the Kong family, it is them, it is Kong Shida, Kong Wen and they killed my wife, and then framed me......"

He shouted loudly, but in exchange for another shout: "Ridiculous! It's just a bunch of nonsense, torture with me! ”

When he was beaten again and brought back for questioning, Wang Zhizhou finally came to his senses - he completely fell into the calculations of the Confucian family and the county government this time.

Whatever is fair and fair, it is all a lie to stabilize him.

Brought him from Qingxin Temple outside the city to the county government just to better control him so that he could not talk nonsense.

Then, when they relaxed and thought that everything would have a fair trial, they first killed their frightened wife who needed treatment, and then blamed themselves for her death.

"I'm stupid...... How could I be persuaded by a few words from Kong Wenhe, thinking that he would really uphold justice for me? How could I think that the county government could make enemies of the high-ranking and famous Confucian family for the sake of a small person like me, and condemn their children......"

Wang Zhizhou did figure everything out, but he couldn't accept it.

Although the continuous torture had brought him into a coma, he still refused to admit such crimes, and when the county magistrate asked him again if he was guilty, he shouted with his last strength: "I am wronged, it is Kong Shida who wants to mistreat my wife......

As a result, before he could speak, he was hit in the cheek with a stick, which made his front teeth fly out, and his cheeks were high and swollen, but he couldn't even speak.

And the many people who were hearing the trial outside, except for a few exclamations, did not have the slightest suspicion about this. There were even people there who sighed: "This Wang Zhizhou is really crazy, not only killed his wife, but also splashed dirty water on the Kong family, how is this possible!" ”

"Yes, how could a child of the Kong family do such a thing, he is clearly just climbing and biting indiscriminately, wanting to excuse himself. But I don't want to think about it, how could the county magistrate be deceived by such a lie? ”

In fact, just as these "people who understand" said, the county magistrate was not "deceived" by his words at all, and seeing that he still refused to admit his guilt, he decisively ordered the continuation of the punishment.

beat Wang Zhizhou to the point that he was covered in blood, and he didn't know how many bones were broken, and after he fell into a coma several times and woke up, he was thrown into the prison and prepared to be interrogated again in two days.

The next period of time was the most painful period for Wang Zhizhou, he saw no hope on death row, and every few days, he would be brought to court for re-interrogation, and the county magistrate had to get an answer to his confession.

And to the other party's surprise, even though he was devastated, he actually gritted his teeth and persevered until that night......

Some people died, but not completely......