Madam Bian was arrested.
The Song family's fire was indeed arson. Someone claimed to have seen Madam Bian arguing and fighting with the Song family's eldest son on the street shortly before the blaze.
Madam Bian alleged that the disappearance of her son and niece was the work of the Song family, vowing to make them pay with blood for blood. That very night, the Song family residence caught fire, and none of the dozen or so inhabitants survived. The state of the scene and the condition of the bodies indicated that the Song family had lost their ability to resist when the fire broke out.
Therefore, Madam Bian, who bore a grudge against the Song family and had threatened revenge, became the prime suspect.
At today's trial, with Magistrate Wang Xun being a wanted man, Yu Dapu presided over the court in his stead.
He sat before the plaque bearing the inscription "Bright Mirror Hangs High," looking down at Madam Bian, who knelt on the ground below.
Madam Bian’s surname was Luan.
Her given name was Luan Yulan.
"Luan Yulan, do you know your crime?"
Yu Dapu’s booming question echoed, while the bailiffs on either side, holding their boards, fixed their menacing gazes upon her. Madam Bian trembled like a sieve, her fear reaching its peak. It felt as if her blood had become stagnant, the lack of circulation imparting a chilling sensation, as if she had fallen into a cold abyss.
She gritted her teeth, her gums bleeding, the thick, unyielding scent of blood filling her mouth. The sweet, metallic taste surged towards her skull. She opened her mouth, and from the root of her tongue, a sound emerged, so faint it was almost negligible: "This commoner knows no crime!"
"I ask you again, do you know your crime!"
Yu Dapu, not having heard her response, repeated his question.
This time, Madam Bian lifted her head. She took a breath, then another, as if trying to draw all the oxygen from the courtroom into her lungs. Her hands, which had been resting on the ground, clenched tightly, her fingernails digging into her palms without her noticing. "This commoner states, this commoner knows no crime!"
Yu Dapu narrowed his eyes. He flipped through the submitted testimony, his tone intensifying. "Luan Yulan, you once declared you would make the Song family pay with blood for blood, proving you held a grudge against them."
"Furthermore, on the night of the Song family's fire, you were seen near their residence. The bailiffs found a packet of knockout powder in your home. Based on the imprints left on the oil-paper wrapper used to contain the powder, it is evident you had used it. After the knockout powder was found, the bailiffs also discovered traces of diesel fuel beneath the firewood pile in your house."
"You believed the Song family's eldest son abducted your son and niece, thus harboring deep resentment towards the Song family. Your anger grew uncontrollable, and you procured knockout powder from an unknown source. Under the cover of night, you snuck into the Song residence and added the powder to their water缸. In the latter half of the night, while the Song family members were unconscious, you doused every corner of their home with diesel fuel and set it ablaze."
"Is what this official states true or false?"
Murmurs erupted from outside the courtroom. The onlookers, gathered to witness the trial, whispered amongst themselves, having already thoroughly condemned Madam Bian.
The neighbors from Ji Jia Lane had all arrived and joined in.
"This Madam Bian has been mad for a long time. She's a complete lunatic. It's such a pity for the dozen or so members of the Song family to have perished at the hands of this madwoman."
"What a sin, truly a sin! I say, perhaps her two nieces who came to stay weren't missing at all, but rather, she killed them in her madness. Who knows!"
Madam Bian's eyes turned scarlet. The murmurs and sharp gazes from behind threatened to consume her. She looked at Yu Dapu, seated high in the hall, her mind replaying the sounds and smiles of her son. Her life had been one of hardship, and her only wish was for her son to grow up safely, marry, have children, and continue the lineage. Yet, even this small wish could not be fulfilled.
Madam Bian was filled with fear and panic. She had never experienced such a scene, a scene where the crowd, in their outrage, accused her of murder.
Every person, every voice, was forcing her to confess.
She knew how to read. She recognized the four characters "Bright Mirror Hangs High" on the plaque adorning the front of the courtroom, making the entire situation feel infinitely ironic.