I was a conman in the Ming Dynasty.

Chapter 122: Surrender into a move

Chapter 122 Forced Confession

Hanshan County Prison.

Wang Wenzhou brought Wang Qiang and others here because they wanted to find someone to be the murderer.

The ensuing brawl resulted in the arrest of over a hundred people, all of whom were imprisoned. Wang Wenzhou knew that the assassin was definitely not among these people. He simply wanted to find someone to be the culprit and then have them implicate Wang Wenhua.

Wang Wenzhou analyzed who would benefit most after his death and concluded that it would definitely be Wang Wenhua.

Wang Wenhua is currently under house arrest in the county government office. What Wang Wenzhou wants to do is to solidify Wang Wenhua's crimes and then seek revenge.

"Sir, please be careful, there are four steps here." The prison was rather dark, and the jailer, Liu Yunli, was worried that Wang Wenzhou might fall due to poor visibility, so he quickly reminded him.

"Are all the people arrested that day still locked up inside?" Wang Wenzhou asked.

"Yes, sir, they're all inside," Liu Yunli replied.

"Wang Qingtian, I've been wronged!"

"I really didn't do anything!"

When the prisoners saw Wang Wenzhou, they all cried out that they were innocent.

"Shut up! I'm here today to seek justice for you. Line up one by one and let me see who doesn't look like a good person," Wang Wenzhou said to the prisoners.

The prisoners quickly lined up.

"You!" Wang Wenzhou pointed at a person, who looked fierce and menacing, and didn't seem like a good person at all.

“Yes! It’s you. What’s your name?” Wang Wenzhou asked.

“My name is Dao Meishan,” Dao Meishan replied.

"Good! You're the one! He's got an extraordinary presence! Men, grab him!" Wang Wenzhou ordered.

Dao Mei was completely bewildered and was dragged out by two constables.

"Pat pat!" Wang Wenzhou patted Dao Meishan's shoulder and asked kindly, "Hero, how old are you this year? Where are you from?"

"I am 22 years old and from Quanjiao County," Dao Meishan replied.

Quanjiao County and Hanshan County are adjacent. Dao Meishan has been in Hanshan for over two months and is currently working on a construction site. He's content with his lot, as he's the only one who needs to eat. However, he drank some alcohol at the wedding banquet that day, and during the melee, he fought extremely bravely, which made him a target of hatred. When Wang Qiang was ordered to arrest the rioters, he was unlucky enough to be arrested as well.

"Do you know why you were arrested?" Wang Wenzhou asked.

"Reporting to you, sir, I broke the ribs of three people, the arms of two people, and the legs of four people!" Dao Meishan replied with a mournful face.

"Wow! What a hero! You're quite skilled!" Wang Wenzhou said with a smile.

"My lord, I know I was wrong!" Dao Meishan knelt down and begged for forgiveness.

Wang Wenzhou pointed at the sword-wielding duster and ordered, "Shoot it!"

Four or five jailers immediately surrounded him and began to beat Dao Mei with a series of blows.

"My lord! Spare me! I know I was wrong!" Dao Meishan begged for mercy repeatedly.

"Stop!" Wang Wenzhou walked over, looked down at Dao Meichan, and asked, "Speak, who sent you to assassinate me?"

"Ah..." Dao Meishan was terrified and immediately knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "My lord! I'm innocent! When did I ever attempt to assassinate you?"

"Beat him! Keep hitting him! Liu Yunli, what kind of torture instruments do you have in your prison? I think this hero doesn't want to confess, so bring them all to him. Be careful not to kill him! Otherwise, I'll have to choose someone else." Wang Wenzhou said calmly.

"Sir! Don't worry, the brothers are very careful!" Liu Yunli quickly ordered the jailers to bring over the instruments of torture.

Wang Wenzhou sat leisurely in his chair, sipping tea with a smile on his face, occasionally tilting his head to watch the jailers administer torture.

"Sir, what should we do with the rest of them?" Liu Yunli asked.

Wang Wenzhou thought for a moment and then said, "The locals of Hanshan should have their family members come over to pay the fines and pick up their people. Those from other places who have money to pay the fines should be released, and those who don't should be sent to labor camps."

"Your subordinate obeys!" Liu Yunli asked hesitantly, "Sir, how much is an appropriate fine?"

"You handle it yourself, just don't punish them too severely. Keep half of the fine for yourself and give the other half to the brothers!" Wang Wenzhou didn't care about such a small amount of money.

"Thank you for your understanding, sir!" Liu Yunli was overjoyed. Recently, the yamen runners had been fining people until their hands were sore. Although they were also "police officers," since the labor camps were established, there were very few prisoners in the jails anymore, and their opportunities to make money had decreased significantly.

"Crack crack crack..." The whip lashed at Dao Meichan's body, leaving a bloody welt with each strike.

"Speak! Who sent you to assassinate Lord Wang?" the jailer asked menacingly.

"Officer! I really don't know who sent me to do this?" Dao Meishan was so frightened that he had already admitted to being the assassin, but he really didn't know who the mastermind was.

Wang Wenzhou took a sip of tea, picked up the cup, and walked over, saying, "Stop for a moment, let me ask you something."

"You! Confess honestly, did Wang Wenhua send you to assassinate me?" Wang Wenzhou asked.

"My lord, who is Wang Wenhua?" Dao Mei asked timidly.

"Keep fighting!" Wang Wenzhou waved his hand.

"Slap slap slap..." The jailers, having learned that the magistrate had just ordered a reward, beat the prisoners even harder.

"My lord! Stop hitting him! It was Wang Wenhua who sent his men to do it!" Dao Meishan finally got the hint after being beaten.

“Hero, you’re a real man! Tell me, are there also Ma Deyun, Yang Shan, Sun Feng, and Lin Qing?” Wang Wenzhou asked seriously.

“Yes! Yes! And the four of them too!” Dao Meishan nodded repeatedly.

“Hero! That’s right! I’ll ask you one more time, who is the mastermind behind this?” Wang Wenzhou asked.

"Wang Wenhua, Ma Yun, Yang Feng..." Dao Meishan hadn't finished speaking.

Wang Wenzhou frowned and cursed, "You pig-brain! Hit me again!"

"Smack, smack, smack..." The prison guards unleashed another brutal beating!

Wang Wenzhou repeated the names of the people, and this time Dao Meishan really remembered them.

Wang Wenzhou smiled and said, "Have Liu Yunli write down his statement and sign it."

"My lord! Please spare my life!" Dao Meishan pleaded guilty to avoid being beaten, but once he signed the confession, he would lose his life.

"Don't worry! I quite like you! You're smart, quick-witted, and a good fighter! You're a real talent! As long as you reveal the mastermind behind this, I guarantee I'll spare your life. After the case is closed, I'll send you to a labor camp. You need to reform yourself and start a new life! Understand? Stop fighting. We're all born of mothers and fathers; it's not good to hurt anyone, right?"

"Yes!" Dao Mei wiped away her tears, wondering if the little man was unlucky or lucky.

Wang Wenzhou instructed, "Liu Yunli, send men to bring him to court later. I want to hold a trial!"

"Yes, sir!" Liu Yunli's heart trembled. Although they often resorted to torture to extract confessions, these were all ordinary people. Not to mention the four great families of talented scholars, each of them wielded considerable power in Hanshan. Take Wang Wenhua, for example—he was Lord Wang's cousin. Lord Wang actually wanted to kill him.

Liu Yunli was genuinely frightened. What if the other people from the newly established Marquis's mansion came looking for trouble again? No one dared to touch Lord Wang, since he was just a jailer. If the people from the newly established Marquis's mansion killed him, it would be as easy as crushing an ant. What should he do?

Thinking of this, Liu Yunli had an idea and decided to report to Lord Wang Zhixin that what Lord Wang had done was really going too far.