Hu Defu, the head of the capital, said: "This scar is terrible! It is clear that the first bird is immediately fatal, and he can't even shout for help. ”

Nie Xiaoman nodded, then turned his head to Pu Jiaoren and asked, "Have you ever moved this corpse?" ”

Lieutenant Pu shook his head, and before he could answer, the servant next to him suddenly said something.

"Just now, because Madame couldn't pass under the stairs, she once asked Quan Thirteen to drag it."

Nie Xiaoman nodded again, straightened up, and looked at the corpse carefully. Then he walked to the dead man's feet, and looked down again at the dark leather shoes on the corpse's feet. After a pause, he moved the bed quilt and covered the body again.

Then Nie Xiaoman returned to the outer room and whispered to the Puxian lieutenant, asking him to invite the deceased's wife to come to the outer room to talk.

After a while, the woman still lowered her head, and was supported by the middle-aged maid, and slowly walked out into the outer room. Her thin waist seemed to have a natural grace when she walked, and she sat down on a circle chair, the plain scarf in her hand still covering her cherry blossom mouth.

Nie Xiaoman began to say: "Mrs. Niu, I already know what happened in this case. Now I have to ask a few words, and ask Madame to tell me the truth. ”

The woman raised her head slightly, frowned, and replied in an official dialect with a Hangzhou accent: "I can say that I do not know anything about this matter, because this disaster is really unexpected." ”

Nie Xiaoman said: "But when was the case the night before?" Does Madame know? ”

Her eyes were fixed on the floor, and she shook her head and replied slowly, "I don't know. At that time, I was already asleep, but Niu Yizhi was still in the study. He prepares business during the day, reads books at night, and doesn't sleep until late at night. The study was upstairs to the east, but our bedroom was to the west. Therefore, I don't know what he did in the study. Then I heard the thud of a bird's gun. ”

Nie Xiaoman suddenly raised his hand and asked, "I'm sorry, madam, please recall." Did you hear any other sounds before you heard the birds? ”

The beautiful woman shook her head, "No." I woke up to the sound of birds. ”

"Good. Please go on. ”

"I didn't dare get up. But then I couldn't call, so I reluctantly got dressed and went downstairs, lit the oil lamp downstairs, only to find that Niu Yizhi had fallen to the ground. I was in a hurry to go downstairs, so I didn't think to notice the hour. ”

"When you went downstairs and found out, did you see the murderer?"

"Nope.

"Do you hear anything?"

"No, there isn't. The whole house was quiet then. I was the only one in the room, except for my husband, who fell to the ground. I was almost scared out of my mind! ”

Nie Xiaoman turned his face sideways and asked, "Does this maid also live in the annex house at the back?" ”

Mrs. Niu said: "No, Mama Li originally lived in this main house. Her bedroom is downstairs to the east. But the night before she happened to be home. ”

Su Jingmo was focused on the maid because Nie Xiaoman's gaze was on the maid's body, so Jingmo's eyes were also on the same target. I saw that the maid was about thirty years old, and although her skin was slightly dark, her eyebrows were straight, and her dark eyes also looked smart and clever. Because she was stared at by the man's gaze, she suddenly lowered her head, as if she was shy and scared.

Nie Xiaoman said: "That's really a coincidence! Mama Li, do you often go home to live?

Mother Li hesitated for a moment before replying in a low voice: "No, it's rare for me to go back." The day before yesterday - the day before yesterday was because of—"

At this time, Hu Defudu, the head of the capital who was standing on the side, suddenly interjected from the side and reproached: "Why are you spitting and spitting? Do you still have something to hide, hide it and don't report it, you have to be careful. ”

Nie Xiaoman still maintained his gentle voice, and asked again, "Mother Li, you might as well tell the truth." What did you go back for the day before yesterday? Since you said that it is rare to go back, there must be something special, right? ”

The maid took a breath before replying, "Yes, sir." The day before yesterday after dinner, Qingfu, my head of the house, came here to look for me. He asked me for money again, and I didn't give it to him, so he scolded me, and I had a few arguments with him. After dinner, the host, fearing that we would lose harmony with our husband and wife, called me home. ”

"When did you leave?"

"After dinner, I washed the dishes before I went back, about three o'clock. After midnight, Wu Asheng, who lived east of here, suddenly came to my house and knocked on the door to report the news, and I hurried back. ”

Nie Xiaoman's eyebrows seemed to be raised, and he glanced at the short and fat county lieutenant again. The county lieutenant seemed to turn a blind eye, bowed his head and said nothing.

Nie Xiaoman said again: "Your home must be in the town, right?" ”

The maid nodded, "Exactly, it's next door to the smelter shop in the west of the town."

Nie Xiaoman nodded, and then moved his gaze to Hu Defu's face, but Hu Defu nodded as if he completely agreed.

Nie Xiaoman continued to ask the deceased's wife, "Mrs. Niu, please continue." How did you deal with this murder after you found out? ”

She replied, "When I got to the foot of the stairs, I saw my husband's bloody shape, and he could barely stand. I called out a few times, but no one answered, so I started crying out, and then I couldn't stand the fright, and fainted. ”

At this point, the beautiful woman paused, as if the fear was still engraved in her heart, and after a while she continued: "I was not awakened until our maid Quan Thirteen woke up and hurried downstairs. I had lost my nerve and had to go back to my room. When I went back to the room, I asked, and Quan 13 said that it was almost time. In the future, it means that the adults will ask the right thirteen. ”

Nie Xiaoman nodded modestly. "Good. Sorry, one more word. This time the husband was killed, what kind of role and purpose is the murderer after all, Mrs. Niu has some opinions? ”

Although Nie Xiaoman's voice was very kind, his sharp gaze never slackened. When he asked this, he stared intently at the look on the woman's face.

The beautiful woman shook her head again and replied, "I have no opinion at all. As I said earlier, this incident was accidental. Niu Yizhi has very few friends here, and there is no grudge, I really can't think of anyone who would do this. But—"

"But what?"

"I remember two or three days ago, a beggar with a hemp seed came into the bamboo fence and violently demanded money from us, and then drove Niu Yizhi out. He cursed fiercely as he left. My lord, do you think such a person would commit murder because of revenge? ”

Nie Xiaoman didn't expect the other party's rhetorical question, hesitated for a moment, and responded: "Well, this is really possible, but to track down the whereabouts of this kind of beggar, I think the county lieutenant Pu should be able to do it." Does Madame have any other opinions? ”

She muttered, "Maybe there's some steal—"

The short and fat county lieutenant sat silently beside him at first, and his round face already showed an expression of impatience. At this time, it seemed that he couldn't hold back and interjected from it.

He frowned and said, "That's too far. You haven't lost anything in your house, how can there be a thief? Besides, if a thief steals, how can he carry a bird gun and hurt people? It is what you call a beggar, although this kind of person is stubborn and lawless, but he will never use a bird to commit murder. ”

Although these words were brutal and rude, Jing Mo couldn't help but admit that they were reasonable. At the same time, Nie Xiaoman added an important addition, which proved that her opinion could not be established.

Nie Xiaoman said: "I heard that you have a fierce dog. If any beggars come in, the dog will not be quiet and not bark. But as far as I know, the dog hadn't barked the night before. Otherwise, the neighboring dogs near here must also bark wildly.

The woman nodded, "Yes, but Cang'er is now gone." ”

Jing Mo exclaimed: "The dog is gone? ”