Font Size:
Stealing silver?
Upon hearing this accusation, Song Fengshou and Tang Shi were dumbfounded, then incredulous.
“What nonsense is this? When did we, as a couple, ever steal your silver?” Song Fengshou retorted, his eyes narrowing in disbelief.
“How could we have stolen when we clearly saw a figure dart into our granary, disappearing in an instant? Upon inspection, we found a missing silver piece. Following the shadow, we traced it to you two, acting suspiciously and holding a silver piece that seems to match the one missing from our store. And you claim you didn’t steal it?”
The burly man seethed with anger. “I’ve never seen such shameless individuals. You steal our silver, and when we catch up, you accuse us of robbery. What a clever trick, thieves accusing the pursuers!”
“This silver was clearly not stolen; we picked it up as we passed by. You chased us right after we found the silver, demanding it from us. Isn’t that robbery in itself?” Song Fengshou countered.
Tang Shi angrily interjected, “Officer, they saw us pick up the silver, envied us, and attempted to steal it from us. Failing to do so, they falsely accused us of stealing from their store, unjustly framing us. Their hearts are truly dark and twisted!”
“Individuals who resort to baseless accusations should be promptly taken to the magistrate’s office and given a sound thrashing. Officers, please take them away and teach them a lesson!” she continued.
Enraged by Tang Shi’s words twisting the truth, the burly man slammed his fist into a nearby osmanthus tree, nearly causing it to split. “You two are the ones spreading lies here. We clearly followed you all the way!”
“This silver was found by us!”
“You stole it!”
“Picked up!”
“Stolen!”
…
The argument left the officers with a headache, prompting them to rub their temples and intervene, “Since one side claims it was picked up and the other side insists it was stolen, and we can’t seem to reach a resolution, I have a way to determine who is telling the truth and who is lying.”
“What method is that?”
“If you claim you found the silver, was there anyone else present to witness it?” the officer inquired of Song Fengshou.
Shaking his head, Song Fengshou replied, “There were no witnesses around at that time…”
“I saw it!” Tang Shi chimed in, “I saw it, it was our head of the household who picked up the silver.”
“You two being on the same side doesn’t count,” the officer remarked. Turning to the burly man, he inquired, “If you claim he stole the silver, do you have any witnesses?”
“No outsiders, just the store assistants. I’m not sure if that counts,” the burly man truthfully replied.
“As there are no external witnesses, it means there’s no definitive proof. Let’s talk about the physical evidence,” the officer continued. “Can you both describe any unique features on the silver that could be identified?”
To ensure both parties stayed on track, the officer separated them for questioning.
The burly man explained, “We just received this silver this morning. It weighs twelve taels and three maces, with polished marks at the end, slightly tapered at the top, a bite mark which I made. Additionally, there’s a slightly unclear character on the silver, resembling the character ‘Lin,’ with one side nearly worn away, resembling the character ‘Mu.'”
On the other hand, Song Fengshou stated, “I just picked up the silver a while ago, estimating it to weigh over ten taels, shiny without any noticeable peculiarities, except for the tooth mark I just made.”
Observing the discrepancies in their descriptions, the officer took the silver and examined it closely.
After a moment, the officer chuckled, “Indeed, there is a faint ‘Lin’ character on the silver, with polished marks at the end and a tooth mark at the top. It seems this silver is yours.”
With that statement, the officer returned the silver to the burly man, who accepted it joyfully, expressing gratitude for the fair judgment.
However, Song Fengshou protested, “Hey hey hey, this silver was found by us. Why was it given to him? Besides, this silver was smooth and had no visible markings or polishing traces!”
As Song Fengshou rushed forward to reclaim the silver, the burly man intercepted him, waving the silver in front of his eyes, saying, “Take a close look. The inscription and the polished mark—how could this be fake?”
Song Fengshou and Tang Shi, upon closer inspection, were left dumbfounded. The silver, which had appeared smooth and unmarked earlier, now clearly bore a character.
Perhaps in their excitement when they found the silver, they had overlooked this detail?
As they stood there, musing over the sudden appearance of the silver, a thought struck them—what if someone else had stolen the silver, then, fearing pursuit, dropped it here, planning to retrieve it later?
Yes, that must be it.
Song Fengshou’s mind raced, and he hurriedly explained to the officer, “Officer, I believe it’s like this—a person likely stole the silver, then threw it here to divert attention before coming back to claim it.”
“Yes, that seems plausible,” the officer impatiently replied, tapping his ear and signaling for a chain to be brought over. He locked up Song Fengshou and remarked, “Since you have so many explanations, why not share them at the magistrate’s office?”
With that, he dragged Song Fengshou and Tang Shi towards the magistrate’s office, leaving behind a trail of confusion and unanswered questions.