During the Three Kingdoms period, Emperor Cao Pi of Wei appointed Gao Rou (ZiWen Hui) as a court lieutenant, the highest magistrate of the State of Wei, a native of ChenLiu County (囔县, in modern Qi County, Henan), a nephew of Yuan Shao and a subordinate brother of Shi Gaogan.
At that time, Cao Wei's army was very strict, and if he deviated slightly, he would be severely punished, and he would also associate his relatives, which was also a major reason why the soldiers in the army did not dare to be deserters. After all, if you can escape the monk, you can't escape the temple, and there are always relatives in the family.
One day, someone in the garrison of the capital reported to the commander that the soldier Dou Li had left the camp to run errands and had not returned for several days, and must have been a deserter and should immediately send troops to search for him. At the same time, his wife Ying and children were made slaves of the official family to strictly enforce military discipline.
Statue of Gaurou
When Dou Li's wife heard about this, she was horrified and hurried to the local state capital to cry out for justice. However, after several trips, the local state government used various excuses to prevaricate because the case involved the military, and always refused to accept it.
However, Dou Li's wife did not give up, and since the local government did not dare to accept it, she went to the court lieutenant, the highest judicial organ of the country, to cry out for injustice.
Therefore, Gao Rou accepted the case. In the lobby, Gao Rou asked Dou Li's wife, "Why do you dare to say that your husband is not on the run?" ”
Dou Li's wife cried and said, "On the one hand, my husband often expressed at home that he wanted to kill the enemy and make meritorious contributions, and he was not afraid of the sword light and blood shadow on the battlefield at all, so how could he be a deserter?" On the other hand, my husband was an orphan from childhood, and was later adopted by an old woman who recognized this old woman as a mother, who was usually very filial and loved me and my children. Therefore, he is not a man who does not care about family affection at all, how can he be a deserter? ”
Gao Rou nodded, then asked, "Does your husband have a vendetta against others?" Dou Li's wife shook her head and said, "My husband is very kind, has no grudges with others, and is willing to help people." ”
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Gao Rou asked, "Does your husband have any money dealings with others?" Dou Li's wife thought for a moment and said, "Yes, my husband once lent money to Jiao Ziwen, a soldier in the same military camp. Moreover, my husband has asked for it many times, but the other party has been playing a trick to pay it back. ”
Subsequently, Gao Rou ordered people to go to the military camp to mention Jiao Ziwen to the church. However, Gao Rou's subordinates hurriedly said, "Your Honor, this criminal named Jiao Ziwen happens to be detained in prison." According to the case file, Jiao Ziwen was a treacherous and cunning person, and a few days ago he was convicted and imprisoned for causing serious injuries after drinking alcohol and violating military discipline. ”
Hearing this, Gao Rou already knew in his heart that he ordered someone to escort Jiao Ziwen to the lobby for trial as soon as possible.
On the same day, Jiao Ziwen was taken to the lobby, and Gao Rou did not mention Dou Li's matter, but first asked him what he had committed and went to prison. As he spoke, he suddenly asked, "Have you ever borrowed money from someone else?" Jiao Ziwen said: "My family is poor, and I have never dared to borrow money from others, for fear of not being able to pay it back." ”
However, Gao Rou noticed that a fine sweat appeared on Jiao Ziwen's forehead, thinking that it was caused by nervousness, after all, the weather was relatively cool at that time, and his sudden question may have caught him off guard, which made him nervous.
Therefore, Gao Rou stared at Jiao Ziwen and said coldly: "You borrowed the silver money of Dou Li, a soldier in the same battalion half a month ago, do you dare to argue?" ”
As soon as these words came out, Jiao Ziwen's face changed drastically, thinking about whether the matter had been revealed, and his speech was a bit squeaky and incoherent. Seeing this, Gao Rou asked again: "You have already killed him, I have evidence in my hands, confess guilt as soon as possible, and strive for leniency." ”
Gaulle stills
Therefore, Jiao Ziwen knew that he could no longer hide it, so he had to prostrate himself and confess his guilt, explaining the whole process of killing Dou Li and where his body was buried.
Then, according to Jiao Ziwen's confession, Gao Rou sent someone to dig up Dou Li's body and let Dou Li's wife transport her back to her hometown for burial.
At this point, the truth of the case was revealed, and Emperor Wendi of Wei praised Gao Rou: "The punishment of prison is clear, and the law is clear." At the same time, the edict pardoned Dou Li's wife and children for their sins.
In the chaotic world of the Three Kingdoms, it was extremely rare for an official who could be so concerned about the case of an ordinary soldier, which showed that Gao Rou was a rather rare good official. Therefore, Cao Cao, the King of Wei, Cao Pi, the Emperor of Wei, and Cao Rui, the Emperor of Wei Ming, all attached great importance to him, and even Sima Yi entrusted him with heavy responsibilities during the Gaopingling Rebellion. He spanned almost the entire history of Cao Wei and witnessed the rise and fall of the Cao Wei regime at the age of ninety, and his high life expectancy was extremely rare in the Three Kingdoms.
(Note: The source of this case is the "Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Wei Shu, Gao Rou Biography")
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