"There are many people who are dissatisfied with life in this society, so is everyone going to kill people? Everyone has their own reasons for killing, right, and I'm not a psychopath. ”
"I'm just avenging my mom, that's all."
Under the gavel in the spring of 2019, Zhang Koukou faced the solemn courtroom and poured out his inner defense at the time of trial on April 11.
On that fateful day, he tried to draw a picture of justification for his actions – the tragedy that led to the deaths of all three members of the Wang family – in an attempt to find some balance on the legal scales.
What happened to Zhang Koukou's mother back then, so that the tragedy happened now? Perhaps, we need to go into Wangping Village back then to learn all the truth.
Once a complete home
In that corner forgotten by the years, a small village lay quietly in a corner of the map, one day, a clear cry broke the quiet morning light, a baby boy announced his arrival in this world, his name is Zhang Koukou, is the precious result of Zhang Furu and Wang Xiuping's emotional interweaving.
Zhang Furu is honest, Wang Xiuping has a strong personality, as long as she feels that she is reasonable, she will never back down, and the neighbors also know Wang Xiuping's temperament, and they don't want to provoke her if they have nothing to do.
The Wang family and the Zhang family used to have close contacts
Before the birth of Zhang Koukou, the Zhang family and the Wang family were very close to each other, and the form of relatives was closely linked.
The two houses are front and back neighbors, the Zhang family house is in front, and the Wang family house is next to the back, if there is anything in one family, the sound does not need to be specially amplified, the other family can hear it.
There is a conflict between the two families
Wang Ziqing of the Wang family once did business with Zhang Furu, but due to Zhang Furu's mistake, both Zhang and Wang suffered economic losses, and gradually Zhang and Wang quietly weaved a layer of estrangement.
Later, when the village assembly bell rang, the village committee gathered a group of villagers and issued a call for self-reliance, advocating that the villagers raise their own funds to take over the rice processing factory in the village.
It's a bet on future earnings, and while the road to contracting is paved with unknown challenges, the fruits of profitability are mirage, tempting and unattainable.
Both Zhang and Wang were hesitant about this, and even though they were both interested in contracting, in order to ensure fairness, the village committee decided to let the two families contract in turn, each for two years.
After the Wang family took over the contract, they made a profit, and seeing that the two-year contract period was still half a year old, Wang Ziqing sat down to discuss with his family.
At this time, Wang Ziqing's eldest son, Wang Xiaojun, has found a place under the lintel of the township government.
Seeing that the time was ripe, Wang Ziqing assigned Wang Xiaojun to take the first step and use his connections and convenience in the government to go to the village committee to go through the cumbersome procedures for renewing the contract, so as to ensure that this lucrative contract could be firmly held in the hands of the Wang family.
Zhang Furu has his own plans in his heart, he expects that the period of the Wang family's contract is coming, and there is no need to deliberately arrange it, as long as the two families meet by chance in the village committee, the two families can naturally sit down, spread out the contract and discuss it carefully, and maybe they can regain their old friendship.
Just when Zhang Furu was preparing for the contracting with hope and drawing a blueprint for the future in his heart, he unexpectedly bumped into the ruthlessness of reality.
It turned out that the Wang family had already secretly laid out and quietly seized the opportunity, just like a shortcut, and firmly held the fruits of the contract in their hands.
Zhang Furu's enthusiasm was poured with cold water, and in the face of this sudden change, his mood was complicated and heavy.
Tragedy of '96
The relationship between the two families of Zhang and Wang is like a long stream of water, although there are occasional small waves—those inadvertent small frictions, but on the whole, they jointly maintain a superficial peace.
On that blazing August 27, 1996, Wang Xiuping returned home, and when she was about to get home, she found Wang Fujun, the second son of the Wang family, standing in the middle of the road, which undoubtedly became an obstacle for her to move forward.
Wang Fujun was provoked by Wang Xiuping in the middle of the road, and he burst out of his mouth to severely reprimand Wang Xiuping, calling her a "crazy woman".
At this moment, the long-dormant contradiction between the two families is like hay ignited by sparks, burning in an instant, turning the past calm into nothing.
After being scolded, Wang Xiuping was unwilling, she turned to Wang Fujun and spat directly at him, and the spit fell on Wang Fujun's face impartially.
Wang Fujun's emotions exploded instantly, and he slapped Wang Xiuping back, Wang Xiuping was humiliated, and she waved her hands at Wang Fujun not to be outdone.
Wang Zixin and Wang Zhengjun were attracted by the sudden commotion, and they quickly joined the melee, and soon the Zhang family also joined in.
Zhang Libo handed Wang Xiuping a flat iron, and in the excitement, Wang Xiuping swung the flat iron and slammed it twice at Wang Zhengjun, landing on his forehead and left side of his face.
Wang Zhengjun's head suddenly opened his flesh, blood gushed out, and the scene became more and more tragic, Zhang Furu saw this, knowing that the situation was serious, he hurriedly pulled up his wife Wang Xiuping, wanting to take her away from this place of right and wrong.
However, driven by anger and excitement, Wang Zixin had lost his mind, and quickly found a wooden stick and smashed it hard at the unsuspecting Wang Xiuping's head.
Wang Xiuping fell to the ground on the spot, her body fell to the ground weakly, her hands tightly folded on the battered head, her face distorted, and she let out a burst of sad screams.
At this moment, the chaos was illuminated by the headlights of a car in the night, and the light seemed to give her a hint of lucidity, and she staggered to her feet, and then staggered towards her home.
In the end, slowly, she fell down again, facing the blood that kept gushing out of Wang Xiuping's nostrils and the blood foaming in her mouth, Zhang Koukou was completely frightened by the sight.
Wang Xiuping made a ho-ho sound in her throat, like a wail of pain, which made Zhang Koukou's heart beat faster, fear and panic spread in his heart, and Zhang Koukou's emotions completely collapsed at that moment.
He threw himself on Wang Xiuping, tears flowed down like a spring, his voice choked and desperate, and he cried loudly.
In view of the fact that both Zhang and Wang were injured in the clashes, the village committee quickly intervened and took emergency measures to avoid further deterioration of the situation, and they arranged for each of them to seek medical treatment.
When Zhang Furu tried his best to send Wang Xiuping to Wangping Township Hospital in a board car, Wang Xiuping's injuries were too serious, and when 22 o'clock came, a fresh life was gone.
When the village committee learned of Wang Xiuping's unfortunate death, it realized the seriousness of the situation and immediately called the police.
Wang Xiuping passed away, and the body rested helplessly on the roadside car, and the forensic team followed established procedures to conduct an autopsy on Wang Xiuping's body to determine the cause of death.
At that time, the environment was poor, many villagers gathered around the autopsy site, and the forensic doctor was so focused on his work that he did not pay much attention to the silent Zhang Koukou beside him, who may not have known that he was a relative of the deceased.
Zhang Koukou was deeply impressed by the scene at that time, and he has not forgotten it for many years, and every time he talked about the scene with his good friends, Zhang Koukou always said that his mother died too miserably.
On 5 December 1996, the case was heard by the local courts.
Although Wang Zhengjun's actions were found to constitute the crime of intentional injury causing death, considering that he was a minor, the court gave him a lenient sentence and was finally sentenced to seven years in prison.
Wrong life
Wang Xiuping's death shattered the peaceful life of the Zhang family, and replaced it with hard work day after day and deep nostalgia for their deceased relatives.
A single father with two children, sometimes there is work, Zhang Furu can't even have time to cook, the two children can only starve, he can no longer afford to provide for Zhang Koukou to continue to go to school.
Zhang Koukou left his hometown and went to Xinjiang to work, in a foreign land, Zhang Koukou worked hard and made unremitting efforts for family life.
In 2001, when Zhang Koukou heard that there was an opportunity to join the army, he made a decisive decision, Zhang Koukou hoped to seek a better future by joining the army.
In the barracks, the commander carefully cared for the growth of the recruits, and in an in-depth exchange, they wanted to know what kind of dreams and ambitions Zhang Buckle had in his heart after putting on the military uniform.
At that time, Zhang Koukou's voice revealed unswervingness: "I chose to join the army, not for anything else, just to make this body more indestructible, and to seek justice for my mother and her in the future." ”
When his mother died, Zhang Koukou was just a teenager, and the feeling of powerlessness at that time has been haunting Zhang Koukou's heart.
After Zhang Koukou was demobilized in 2003, he failed to get a resettlement job as he wished, so he went to work in a foreign country, cut down on food and clothing, and every meal was simple food and clothing, and every shopping was a careful budget.
His heart, which longs to change the fate of his family, drives him to save every meager salary and carefully remit it to his father.
Zhang Koukou has thought more than once that if his mother is still there, then he can still go to high school, or take the vocational school entrance examination and learn a craft, then his life will definitely not be the same as now.
No matter how harsh the wind and frost in the outside world are, Zhang Koukou always chooses to bear the loneliness of his heart alone during the Spring Festival, he rarely sets foot on the road back to his hometown, and it seems that every time he steps on it, he will inadvertently uncover the scar in his heart that has not yet healed.
He has been planning his future countless times in the dead of night, eager to change the trajectory of his fate bit by bit through his hands.
He yearns for love and looks forward to marriage, but Zhang Furu is immersed in the busyness of work day after day, and his figure shuttles between villages, leaving no time to care.
And Zhang Libo has already entered into marriage, and her days are filled with family trivialities and responsibilities, although she is concerned about her younger brother's marriage, she is powerless.
Zhang Koukou's marriage event is like an unfinished picture, which was quietly shelved and gradually covered with dust.
The cause of the year, the effect of the present
Wang Xiuping's death had a profound impact on Zhang Koukou's life and made a major turning point in his life trajectory.
Just like Zhang Koukou found it difficult to face reality and chose to escape and return to his hometown, the Wang family could no longer return to the peaceful days of the past.
Wang Xiaojun, the eldest son of the Wang family, lives in the county seat, the second Wang Fujun is in the Forestry Bureau, and the third Wang Zhengjun always chooses the dead of night even if he occasionally returns, as if he has an indescribable avoidance of this land.
In 2018, Zhang Kou returned to the village for the New Year, and he stumbled upon Wang Zhengjun next door who was also planning to spend the New Year at home.
On February 15, 2018, to worship the ancestors who are buried here, Zhang Furu, as a family elder, follows traditional customs and is also ready to join the ranks of worshipping ancestors.
However, Zhang Koukou was busy cleaning a padded jacket at the time, so he politely declined his father's invitation to stay at home.
Zhang Koukou stood on the roof of his house, quietly observing the Wang family's every move, until he saw Wang Xiaojun, Wang Zhengjun and relatives set off to the ancestral tomb to worship their ancestors.
Zhang Koukou quietly left home, like a shadow, following behind the ancestor worship crowd, when the Wang family returned to the village after worshipping the ancestors, Zhang Koukou acted quickly and decisively.
He first locked on Wang Zhengjun, who was walking at the end of the crowd, quickly stepped forward, grabbed him, and without hesitation, he waved the knife in his hand and stabbed Wang Zhengjun in the neck and back several times in a row.
In the end, Wang Zhengjun fell to the ground weakly, blood staining the surrounding land, and at the same time, Wang Xiaojun, who was walking in front of the crowd, also sensed that something was wrong.
Wang Zhengjun moved behind him, and a sense of ominousness suddenly rose in his heart, he instinctively wanted to escape, however, Zhang Koukou's speed was faster, Zhang Koukou's arm swayed a cold arc, and the blade drew a dazzling trajectory in the air.
Under this sudden attack, Wang Xiaojun's pain spread from the bottom of his heart to his whole body, and his moans echoed in the silent air, but they were like stones sinking into the sea, unable to resist this raging storm-like disaster.
After attacking Wang Xiaojun, Zhang Koukou did not stop there, and came to Wang Zhengjun, who had fallen to the ground, again.
Without hesitation, he swung his knife again, stabbed Wang Zhengjun's body, and made up a few more stabs to ensure that he could never stand up again.
Then Zhang Koukou entered Wang's house with a lot of emotion, and in the hall, Zhang Koukou used sharp weapons to violently attack Wang Zixin, mainly targeting his waist, abdomen and neck, and each attack was accompanied by the victim's cries of pain and blood flowing, and the scene was extremely tragic.
At this moment, Zhang Koukou seemed to be swallowed by hatred, and he only had the pleasure of revenge and resentment against the past in his heart.
After completing a series of retaliations, Zhang's anger still does not seem to have been fully vented. So, he picked up the homemade gasoline incendiary bottle prepared in advance and burned Wang Xiaojun's car.
After committing the crime, Zhang Koukou fled the scene, thinking that he would probably never have the chance to spend Chinese New Year's Eve again, so he went to a neighboring village to see the lanterns.
On February 16, his relatives borrowed more than 100 yuan, and he wanted to go home to see his father again, but when he found someone in the house, he immediately ran away and hid under the bridge for the night.
In the morning light of February 17, Zhang Buckle Button beside the inconspicuous stall on the corner of the street, with an almost ceremonial serenity, savored a simple but meaningful dough.
This daily and familiar taste, like a gentle tide, quietly soothed the hatred and pain churning in his heart, and after eating the dough, he voluntarily surrendered.
End
On January 8, 2019, the Hanzhong Intermediate People's Court held a public hearing of the first-instance trial of Zhang Koukou's case, and the court finally sentenced Zhang Koukou to death for intentional homicide and intentional destruction of property.
On the morning of July 17, 2019, Zhang Koukou was executed.
The unfortunate experience of Zhang Koukou's mother back then had a far-reaching impact, which not only took away the life of Zhang Koukou's mother, but also buried pain in the hearts of Zhang Koukou and his family.
Zhang Koukou firmly believes that his actions against the three members of the Wang family are completely out of deep mourning for the murder of his mother and the pursuit of justice, and he follows the principle of "the wronged have the head, and the debtor has the owner" to characterize his actions.
He deliberately avoided Wang Zixin's partner, Yang Guiying, to show that his actions were targeted and restrained, and also revealed a trace of benevolence and principle in his heart.
Perhaps, if Wang Xiuping's case had been handled in a more secure and humane way, perhaps everything that followed would not have happened.