Chapter 1426: These Three Are Scapegoats!

After Tang Ye finished the government team meeting and returned to his office, he received a call from Xia Xiang.

"County Magistrate Tang, there is a result in Deputy Town Mayor Ma's case; the perpetrators have turned themselves in. They are three local thugs who got drunk that day and plotted to steal some money. They ran to Deputy Town Mayor Ma's dormitory, but discovered he wasn't asleep, so on a whim, they beat him up. In my opinion, we should first interrogate these three, then lock these little punks up for half a year to let them suffer a bit and learn their lesson."

Xia Xiang patiently explained the ins and outs of the case to Tang Ye!

Tang Ye remained calm, "Is that so? So the matter is that simple!"

Xia Xiang himself felt this reason was too far-fetched, but he could only bite the bullet and say, "Yes, County Magistrate Tang. Actually, the matter isn't that complicated; there is no Hidden Plot at all. It was just a few thugs getting drunk and causing trouble—a typical case of low-IQ crime!"

Tang Ye thought for a moment and made a request, "Send me the photos of those suspects."

Xia Xiang hurriedly replied, "Very well, I will have them take the photos immediately, and then I will bring them over."

Tang Ye waved his hand, "No need for that much trouble. Just have someone take the photos and send them directly to my email."

Xia Xiang secretly thought that Tang Ye was indeed efficient, and hurriedly said, "Understood, I will arrange it right away."

About ten minutes later, Tang Ye logged into his email and successfully saw the photos of the three "suspects."

Subsequently, he asked Qian Wenle to find a way to print the photos out.

After Qian Wenle finished printing the photos, Tang Ye picked up the file folder containing them and went to the County People's Hospital.

Walking to the door of Ma Ran's ward, he vaguely heard movement inside and knew there was someone in the room.

After knocking lightly and pushing the door open, he found Liu Chun sitting by the bed peeling an apple for Ma Ran.

Tang Ye greeted them with a smile, "Oh, Xiao Liu is here too!"

A blush instantly rose to Liu Chun's cheeks. She hurriedly put down the apple in her hand, stood up to pull over a chair, and said somewhat embarrassedly, "County Magistrate Tang, hello! Please, have a seat!"

Tang Ye nodded at Liu Chun, took out a hundred-yuan bill, and said with a smile, "Xiao Liu, could you please help me buy a pack of cigarettes?"

Liu Chun knew that Tang Ye and Ma Ran had matters that required her to step out, "County Magistrate Tang, I'll go right now."

After Liu Chun left, Tang Ye sighed, "Xiao Liu is actually quite good. If you don't like her, you need to make it clear to her. She isn't young anymore; if you keep dragging it out, it's easy to delay her."

Ma Ran nodded slightly, "I have actually told her many times and clarified our relationship. But she just can't let go."

Tang Ye said earnestly, "It is very difficult to meet someone in one's life whose eyes are filled only with you. I suggest you cherish it, because once you miss it, there is no way to recover it."

Ma Ran looked at Tang Ye with a firm gaze and said solemnly, "County Magistrate Tang, please rest assured, I will not make mistakes in my personal relationships, nor will I delay her."

Seeing his determined attitude, Tang Ye stopped mentioning it. He took the photos out of the file folder and handed them to Ma Ran, "Someone turned themselves in today, claiming to be the people who injured you. Take a close look and see if it's them!"

Ma Ran picked up the photos, looked at them carefully, and said with a serious expression, "No! It is definitely not them!"

Tang Ye asked, "Why are you so sure?"

Ma Ran explained with an agitated tone, "When they fought with me that day, I specifically grabbed one of them to beat him; his face must have had injuries. Only a few days have passed, so the injuries couldn't have healed so quickly;

Besides, those three were all burly and broad-shouldered; one look and you could tell they were professional thugs;

These three are as thin as toothpicks; even if ten of them came, they wouldn't be my match."

Tang Ye knew that although Ma Ran had not received professional training, he was tall and had the habit of exercising. Ordinary people, even two or three of them, couldn't get close to him, let alone beat him into serious injury.

Tang Ye put the photos away and said in a serious tone, "I also suspect these three are scapegoats. To just get it over with, they actually dared to fool us. This is a disregard for the law and a provocation to public authority!"

……

Returning to the office.

Tang Ye dialed Han Hu's phone number.

About ten minutes later, Han Hu walked into the office.

Tang Ye took out the photos, "These are the photos of the suspects who turned themselves in at the Lianhua Town Police Station. I have verified it with Ma Ran. None of these three are the people who committed the assault that day."

Han Hu fell into silence, "Do they really think they can muddle through by just finding three people to act as scapegoats?"

Tang Ye reminded him, "Although these three are not the culprits, they have inextricable links to the mastermind behind the scenes. The other party has already surfaced; if we investigate further down from these three, there will definitely be new clues."

Han Hu nodded, "County Magistrate Tang, I understand what to do."

Returning to his office, Han Hu dialed Bi Dongqing's phone number.

Bi Dongqing was five years older than Han Hu. In recent years, Han Hu had been promoted very quickly, which made Bi Dongqing extremely envious.

However, deep down, Bi Dongqing did not respect Han Hu.

In his view, Han Hu's resume was not as good as his own; it was mainly because he had good opportunities and was successively entrusted with important tasks by Han Zhengyi and Tang Ye.

Dissatisfaction aside, Han Hu was his direct superior after all, so on the phone, Bi Dongqing's tone still sounded very polite:

"County Magistrate Han, do you have any instructions for me?"

Han Hu said, "Police Station Chief Bi, I must remind you that Ma Ran being seriously injured is not an ordinary criminal case; it is also a political case."

Bi Dongqing explained, "That is why we investigated it seriously! The criminal suspects have already been handed over to the County Bureau."

Han Hu sneered, "You are a veteran police officer. Judging by your many years of experience in handling cases, you think a few little punks got drunk, caused a scene, went to the Deputy Town Mayor's dormitory to steal, and ended up beating him up. Do you think the logic of this matter holds up?"

Bi Dongqing did not show the slightest panic and sighed helplessly, "County Magistrate Han, handling cases relies on evidence and facts. The fact is that it was just a few punks who got drunk and beat someone up. Now that we have both human and physical evidence, what do you want me to do? Fabricate it out of thin air? I don't have that ability, and I cannot do that."

Han Hu knew that Bi Dongqing was deliberately quibbling, "Old Bi, I must remind you that your attitude is very problematic!"

Bi Dongqing said coldly, "If you think my attitude is wrong, you can discipline me. If you think there is a problem with this case, you can also go through the procedures to have the organization investigate me; I will accept it completely. However, the facts of this case are just as they are. Those three turned themselves in; I have no way to distort the facts."

Han Hu said in a deep voice, "Fine, let's wait and see. The truth will come to light!"

Bi Dongqing said, "County Magistrate Han, I have to get to work. Let's stop chatting for now."

Subsequently, Bi Dongqing hung up the phone.

Hearing the busy signal, Han Hu slammed the receiver onto the landline.

Bi Dongqing was challenging his authority.

If nothing unexpected happened, the news of Bi Dongqing butting heads with him would soon spread throughout Yechuan.

He had to find out the truth quickly...