One spring afternoon in the late Qing Dynasty, on a country road in Dongping County, Shandong Province, a middle-aged man named Zhang Nian, carrying two large chicken cages on his shoulders, was rushing along excitedly. His face was full of smiles and his mouth was humming a little song leisurely.
He was really excited today. He only went to two villages, and the two cages of chicks were all sold out. He saw that it was still early, and he was going to find a snack bar for a good meal before going home. He walked through a small forest, and there was no one in the forest. Anyway, it was still early, so it was better to sit down and rest. He sat on the ground and breathed a long sigh of relief, and a thought came to him at the bottom of his heart. He wanted to count how much he sold today.
He first took out a handful of the whole money in his underwear pocket and silently counted it. "Ha, today is really good," he said to himself with a smile. He put the whole money at his feet and took out a handful of change with a smile. He counted intently, never expecting a little mouse to come quickly from one side, bite the money and run away. He paused for a while, and immediately caught up, but no matter what, he couldn't catch up with the little mouse, and watched it bite the money and burrow into a grave in the woods.
Zhang Nian was stunned and immediately found a branch to smash the hole. The little mouse didn't come out. He dug into the hole for a long time, but didn't touch anything.
Zhang Nian did not dare to dig someone else's grave privately. After thinking about it, he could only go to the front village to find out whose grave it was, and then think of a way.
He picked up the empty chicken cage listlessly, and all his joy just now was gone. He really regretted sitting down to rest, and even more regretted sitting down to count the money. He sighed and sighed along the way, his legs couldn't move like lead, but his stomach growled, and he remembered that he hadn't eaten lunch yet!
After finally walking to the entrance of the village, the fragrance of food floating from a snack shop immediately attracted him, and saliva could not help but flow in his mouth. Alas, just fill your stomach first.
Zhang Nian touched the little change left in his pocket and did not dare to have a good meal. He called the store and asked for a bowl of soup and two steamed buns. The store was very small, and there were no waiters. Zhang Nian was indeed starving, so he ran into the kitchen and waited until the store prepared the meal. Zhang Nian was dejected, holding a large bowl of hot soup in his right hand, and walked out of the kitchen with two steamed buns in his left hand. He didn't want a man to come in from outside. The man raised his head forward, and Zhang Nian lowered his head forward. The two of them happened to bump into each other, and a bowl of hot soup that had just come out of the pot was splashed on the man. With a sound of "ah wah -", the man suddenly became angry and raised his fist to fight. Before Zhang Nian could react, blood rushed out of his mouth and nose. He immediately threw the steamed buns and fought back, but he couldn't beat the man no matter what. After a while, Zhang Nian lay down and didn't move, and the man also rested his feet, cursing indiscriminately: "Damn it! Have you tasted the sweetness that provokes your Master Yang!" This person's surname was Yang Mingfei, a bully in Sanli and Five Villages. He won money gambling just now and was about to have a good meal at the snack bar, so he didn't want to bump into Zhang Nian who had just been exposed to bad luck. At this time, although he injured Zhang Nian, he still shouted at the store with domineering force: "Old Liu! Get me a towel to wipe!" "Yes, Master Yang." The store took out a new towel and handed it to him.
He wiped it clean, threw the towel away, and spat at Zhang Nian again: "Damn it! It's so unlucky!" He turned and walked away. Zhang Nian slowly opened his eyes, the pain all over his body was unbearable, and he groaned in pain in a trance. The store was kind enough to help him, stop the bleeding, wipe it clean, and cook a bowl of soup for him again. He was full and feeling better. Thinking about it, today was really unlucky! Bai lost his money and was beaten up again. He thought, "This person was too cruel just now! It's so unreasonable! He hit her hard before he apologized to him, and he hit her so hard. He was determined to let out that breath and go to the county office to sue him. Thinking of this, Zhang Nian asked the shop owner about this person's origin. "Well, little brother, you'd better not provoke this person. He is from our village of Yang, and Sanli and Wucun are very famous in this area. Generally, the locals are afraid to hide when they see him, let alone you, a foreigner. If your injuries are better, you should leave here quickly!" The shop owner said kindly. "Old man, what is this person's name?" Zhang Nian asked. "Oh, this person's surname is Yang Mingfei, don't go to be beaten in vain, good brother." The shop owner said calmly.
Zhang Nian slowly stood up, thanked the store, and staggered to pick up the chicken cage to walk home. But in his heart, he silently wrote down the name of the village and Yang Fei.
Three days later, Zhang Nian walked into the county office and sued Yang Fei, a villager in Yangcun, for beating and wounding people.
The county magistrate quickly called Yang Fei to the hall. In the lobby, the plaintiff and the defendant were arguing.
Zhang Nian said: "Master, three days ago, the villain gave out takeaway chicken. In a small forest halfway through, when the little one sat down to count the money, the money was accidentally bitten by a hateful little mouse and got into a grave. In the Yangcun snack bar, the little one was upset and walked with his head bowed." He pointed at Yang Fei angrily, "He came straight in, knocked over the villain's bowl, and beat the little one up. If you don't believe me, sir, look!" Zhang Nian raised his face and lifted his clothes again. There were real scars on his face.
"Yang Fei! How dare you beat innocent people in broad daylight! Hit 20 boards first!" The county official glared at him and said loudly.
Yang Fei pointed at Zhang Nian and argued, "He's talking nonsense! When the little one walked into the store, he deliberately smashed the bowl on the little person. Don't believe me, sir! Look!" Yang Fei spread his hands and lifted his clothes, and his hands were indeed scalded.
"Zhang Nian! Daring to scold people! how dare you sue good people and hit 30 big boards!" The county official said.
"Master Qingtian! It was really the little one who lost money for a while and was in a bad mood. He lowered his head and walked, but I didn't see him. He rushed in and knocked over my bowl!"
"Master Qingtian! He's talking nonsense! He never lost money at all, he deliberately threw the soup on me!"
The two quarreled endlessly, and the county official was unable to decide the case for a while. In order to find out who was right and who was wrong in the case, the county official decided to follow Zhang Nian to check if there was any money in the grave that the little mouse got into.
"Thank you, Master Qingtian!" Zhang Nian said.
Zhang Nian and Yang Fei stood up and came to the small village forest outside Yangcun Village together with the county mayor and the yamen.
When Zhang Nian pointed to the grave, Yang Fei was dumbfounded. He was covered in cold sweat and shivering involuntarily. Suddenly, he fell to his knees with a "plop" and begged, "Master Qingtian, the little one was talking nonsense just now. It was the little one who knocked over his bowl and beat him up. Punish me!"
Everyone looked at him in amazement, wondering why he was suddenly willing to be punished again.
"Do you know whose grave this is in your village?" the county official stared at him and asked.
"Yes..." His face turned pale and his whole body trembled.
"Whose is it? tell me!" The county official yelled.
"Yes, it belongs to a small family."
"Is it yours?" Everyone was stunned.
"Who is your person buried here?" the county official asked.
"No... no..."
"Tell me who it is!" The county official angrily pulled him out.
"Yes..."
"If you don't hurry up, hit the forty boards!" The county official shouted.
"Master Qingtian, the little one says, the little one says everything. Here is... my wife's ex-husband."
"Ah?!" Everyone was even more surprised.
"Sir, please don't dig graves. I am willing to be punished, and I will definitely return Zhang Nian's money in full." Yang Fei kowtowed and begged.
"Oh?" The county official turned his head and glanced at him suspiciously. Yang Fei immediately lowered his head and trembled all over.
"In order to find out if there was Zhang Nian's money in the grave, I decided to dig up the grave and inspect it myself!" the county official said loudly.
"Master, Master Qingtian! Please don't dig!" Yang Fei kowtowed as if he was mashing garlic.
"We must dig today!" the county official said firmly.
"Then please allow me to inform my wife, okay?" Yang Fei said helplessly with a crying voice.
"Go back quickly!" The county official sent two yamen to accompany him.
Yang Fei went home and hurriedly talked to his wife. Pan Bilian, who was usually light and curly like a flower, immediately became limp, his face turned pale, and his whole body trembled after hearing this. Yang Fei whispered in her ear for a while, and she immediately removed her beautiful dress, removed her head of pearls, changed into plain clothes, her hair was covered, and ran out the door crying. Yang Fei and the yamen chased after her.
Little Women wept and ran to her ex-husband's grave, ignoring the county official's presence, she sat on the ground and cried: "Dear, you died so hard... You left me after a violent illness three years ago. I was left alone and bullied by others. I really couldn't live alone, so I had to do something wrong to you and married Yang Fei instead..." As she cried, she looked at the county official's face with her eyes.
"Little women, get up quickly. In order to judge the case fairly, I have to dig your ex-husband's grave today." The county official said.
"Ah, Master Qingtian, although my husband is a grass-roots person, can the tomb be dug casually?" Pan Bilian's face was full of pear blossoms and rain, and a pair of big eyes looked at the county official's face non-stop, "Master, when my husband Yang Tianming was alive, everyone knew that he was loyal and honest. A violent illness took his young life, and I don't want his grave to be dug three years after his death. Master, please forgive him."
"Sir, please, follow my wife." Yang Fei also knelt and begged.
"Sir, I can't bear to dig a good man's grave for my money. Sir, stop digging." Zhang Nian also kindly persuaded him.
The county official looked at Yang Fei, then at his beautiful Little Women, and then at the grave overgrown with weeds. He thought there seemed to be a mystery in it. Why did this little mouse bite Zhang Nian's money and get into Yang Tianming's grave, and Zhang Nian ran into Yang Fei in the restaurant, and Yang Fei happened to marry Yang Tianming's daughter-in-law? After thinking about it, he felt confused, and in order to get rid of the confusion, he decided to dig up the grave and inspect it himself.
"Yamen! Quickly dig up the grave and find Zhang Nian's money!" The county official shouted.
Several yamen took orders and left, Pan Bilian kept crying, and the county official stood there, letting her cry.
After a while, the grave was dug up, and a thin coffin appeared, but Zhang Nian's money was not found. But a little mouse's "squeak" sound came from the coffin.
"Open the coffin!" The county official shouted.
When the coffin opened, a pile of white bones appeared in front of her. Pan Bilian cried even more fiercely and wanted to pounce on her, but the two yamen pushed her away.
The yamen rummaged through the bones for money, and found Zhang Nian's money in a terrifying skeleton. A large nail inlaid in the skeleton attracted the attention of county officials.
"Take that head and let me see it!"
The county official found that a four-inch-long nail was inserted directly into the back of the terrifying skull, and his heart was immediately clear.
"Yang Fei! Pan Bilian! How dare you kill Yang Tianming! Quickly confess!" The county official stared at them.
They still wanted to quibble, and the county official glared at them: "If you don't tell the truth, you will be beaten to pieces first!"
Yang Fei and his wife were bluffed and their faces turned pale, and suddenly fell to the ground.
They kowtowed and stammered at what had happened.
It turned out that as early as four years ago, Pan Bilian, who was newly married, had hooked up with the bachelor Yang Fei and committed adultery. After Yang Tianming found out, she beat Pan severely. Pan Bilian held a grudge in her heart, and at the same time, she was like glue with Yang Fei, so she colluded with Yang Fei to murder Yang Tianming in order to achieve the purpose of union.
One night, after Yang Tianming fell asleep, Pan Bilian quietly opened the door and let Yang Fei into the house. Under the moonlight, she smashed a big nail into the back of Yang Tianming's head. Poor Yang Tianming closed his eyes forever before he could see who his enemy was.
The next morning, Pan Bilian's crying woke up the neighbors. When they arrived, she was dressed for the morning and parked upright on the bed.
She cried and told people that she suddenly had a heartache in the early morning and dawn. After a while, she closed her eyes and left him alone. After that, she let out a loud cry of grief.
Yang Tianming didn't have any relatives, so he hastily buried them with the help of his neighbors. In less than a year, Pan Bilian and Yang Fei became justifiable husbands and wives.
I don't want to think that three years later, a little mouse helped Yang Tianming avenge.
After the county official heard this, he shouted, "Put the criminals Yang Fei and Pan Bilian into prison!"