The Paper, senior reporter Wei Jiaming

  After seventeen years in prison, Cao Qingsan’s most important object is a photo of a man: the person who shows the "V" gesture in front of the camera is about 29 years old, with a flat head and small round eyes, his name is Cai Moutao , Nicknamed "Little Three Sons". In Cao Qingsan's view, this photo smuggled from the prison is a strong evidence that supports him and his brother for continuing to complain for 21 years.

  It all started with a theft case in 1999. On New Year's Day of that year, Huang Chao, manager of Shenyang Cantonese Food Spices and Nuts Shop, reported to the police that the warehouse rented in the material factory of Shenyang Railway Bureau had been stolen, and 338 boxes of American pistachios and 50 boxes of almonds were “missing”. On August 29 that year, 30-year-old Cao Qingsan and 25-year-old brother Cao Bosan were taken away from their homes by the police and were later identified as suspects in the theft.

Before the accident, the three brothers Cao Qingsan and Cao Bo took a group photo. The pictures in this article are all pictures of The Paper, reporter Wei Jiaming

  Since being questioned, the two brothers have repeatedly confessed that the goods were purchased at a low price from a man named "Little Three Sons", not stolen. During the review and prosecution stage of the case, the prosecution also returned the case for additional investigation on the grounds that the "small three sons" should be present. However, the police insisted that no such person was found.

  The "Little Third Son" disappeared, and the Cao brothers became thieves. On January 28, 2000, the Shenyang Railway Transportation Intermediate Court (hereinafter referred to as "Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court") in the first instance ruled that Cao Qingsan and Cao Bo were sentenced to life imprisonment for the three crimes of theft. The two appealed, but the case-handling department said, "The New Year is almost coming, and no one cares about this now", so there is no more.

  After serving their sentences, the brothers continued to complain. In June 2001, the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court rejected the two complaints.

  Cao Qingsan never expected that a year later, he would see the "little third son" inside the high wall and learn his real name: Cai Moutao. In the photos Cai Moutao brought into the prison, one of them had the address of Cao Qing's three sisters' homes written on the back. Cao Qingsan said that it was the place where they agreed to pay the balance.

The addresses of Cao Qing’s three sisters’ homes recorded with a blue ballpoint pen on the back of Cai Moutao’s photo

  In 2006, Lingyuan City’s Fifth Prison set up a task force to investigate Cai's remaining crimes. During the initial investigation by the police of the Prison Investigation Division and the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court, Cai Moutao confessed to the crime of theft of nuts.

  However, when the judge of Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court arraigned again, he changed his statement again. Aaron, a cellmate who was in the strict management team with Cai Moutao, told The Paper (www.thepaper.cn) that Cai Moutao said afterwards that the judge told him to "stop nonsense" and still admitted to committing theft in private.

  The Cao brothers continued to appeal, but they were rejected by Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court and Liaoning Higher Court in 2007 and 2014. In 2017, the three brothers Cao Qing were released from prison one after another. They turned to the Second Circuit Court of the Supreme Court in Shenyang to submit appeal materials. The lawyer representing the complaint, He Chengchen, told The Paper that the court had replied on November 25, 2019 that it had accepted the complaint.

  On August 20, The Paper reporter, Cao Qingsan and Cao Bosan came to the court to inquire about the progress of the appeal. The judge in the third interview room said that the case has not yet been opened for review and will communicate with the trial judge as soon as possible.

Cao Qingsan (first from right) and Cao Bosan after being released from prison

Six months after the theft of the Nut Store warehouse, the two brothers were accused of theft

  In 1969, Cao Qingsan, a native of Shandong, was born in a peasant family in Qingyuan County, Fushun City, Liaoning Province. He has three older sisters. In 1974, the younger brother Cao Bosan was born.

  The family is poor, with many children, and the Cao family’s parents are unable to support them, so the Cao family’s brothers and sisters are not highly educated. After graduating from junior high school, Cao Qingsan worked at home, while Cao Bosan only had a primary school diploma.

  In the early 1990s, the spring breeze of reform and opening up, Nanerma Road, Heping District, near Shenyang Railway Station, gathered popularity, and quickly developed from the road market to the largest distribution center for small food and agricultural and sideline products in the Northeast. The inspection, sales, and distribution are all done here, and Cao Qingsan saw business opportunities from it.

  He told The Paper that in the seven or eight years before the accident, he and his brother were "squatting in a pit" in the Nan'er Small Food City, carrying goods for foreign merchants who came to the mall to distribute goods, earning labor, and usually charging one piece for each piece of goods. Money, "Sometimes I can earn thirty or forty yuan a day." At the same time, their family has moved from Qingyuan County to a house in Zijinniu Street, Xincheng District.

The small food market on Nanerma Road, Heping District, Shenyang where Cao Qingsan worked with his brother

  After several years of hard work, the Cao brothers, who were born in poverty, saved some wealth and their lives gradually improved. But on August 29, 1999, their fate took a sharp turn. That evening, the police opened the door of Cao Qingsan's house and took Cao Qingsan and Cao Bosan away together on the grounds of questioning.

  At the Criminal Police Team of the Shenyang Railway Public Security Bureau, the policeman handling the case asked Cao Qingsan: "Have you sold nuts recently?" Cao Qingsan nodded. "Where did the goods come from?" the other party then asked.

  Cao Qingsan stated that he told the police at the time that he had met a man named "Little Sanzi" from Nanermalu at the end of 1998, who claimed to be the nephew of the owner of Shenyang Cantonese Cuisine Spice Nut Shop. On December 31 of that year, Cao Qingsan spent 100,000 yuan to buy a batch of American-made pistachios and almonds near the expiration date. On the day of delivery, he paid a total of 50,000 yuan and asked his brother Cao Bosan to find a car. People helped to move the goods, but after New Year's Day, I never saw the "little three sons" again.

  However, the content recorded in the transcript is quite different.

  According to the case file, on New Year’s Day in 1999, Huang Chao, manager of Shenyang Cantonese Food Spices and Nuts Shop, reported to the police that he had stolen the warehouse rented in the material factory of Shenyang Railway Bureau. A total of 338 boxes of American imported pistachios were stolen (each It weighs 22.68 kg, unit price is RMB 480) and 50 boxes of almonds (each weighs 22.68 kg, unit price is RMB 1,200), with a total value of about 220,000 yuan. When reporting the case, the warehouse manager Chen Guang stated that when he was found stolen, the padlock on the door had been replaced by someone and “it could not be opened with the original key”.

  Eight months before they found Cao Qing’s three brothers, the police had focused their investigation on the insiders of the nut shop, and later turned their attention to the farmer’s market owner who sold the nuts, that is, the next home where Cao Qingsan sold nuts.

  The police investigation determined that at two o'clock in the afternoon on December 31, 1998, the Cao brothers brought the bolt pliers prepared in advance to the warehouse of the Cantonese Seasoning Nut Shop located in the material factory courtyard of the Shenyang Railway Bureau. Cao Qingsan used bolt pliers to cut it. Replace the locks of the warehouse with the same type of locks prepared in advance, and then Cao Bosan will answer them at the gate of the factory. In the process of committing the crime, Cao Qingsan twice came to the Nansan Road Market in Heping District to hire six human tricycles, and then rushed back to the warehouse to open the warehouse door with the key and stole nuts from it. After that, the two sold the stolen goods to the owners of the Shenyang Beihang Farmer's Market three times, and received more than 140,000 yuan in stolen money, each of which distributed 70,000 yuan.

The former warehouse site of the Material General Factory of Shenyang Railway Bureau where the theft occurred in that year has now been converted into a bathing center

  The Paper noted that the basis for the above conclusion is the confession of the Cao brothers and the testimony of the tricycle driver they hired on the day of the case.

  From being detained on August 29, 1999 to being arrested in accordance with the law, on October 9, 1999, when Cao Qingsan and Cao Bosan made 7 and 6 interrogation transcripts respectively, half of them were requested by the case handling department. People made it after "reflection". After the prosecution intervened, the two men withdrew the confession at the same time.

  It is worth noting that the first transcript on the day they were detained was both a confession of guilt, but neither of the two transcripts recorded the location and specific time of the interrogation, and the paper used was the same as the second transcript made on the same day later. completely different.

  Cao Qingsan said that he did not admit the theft at the time. It was because of the beating that the policeman in charge of the case took the transcript filled with words and grabbed his finger forcibly pressing the handprint. The policeman also said, "Your brother recognized it. Do you still recognize it?" Cao Bosan said that on the day of the incident, he only helped his brother contact the vehicle and had not been to the scene. He really did not know the origin of the nuts. "The police told me that my brother had recognized it. If I also plead guilty, I can help him share a little sentence. I don’t understand the law, so I believe it.”

  Even so, since the first interrogation transcript, Cao Qingsan kept mentioning the plot of buying goods from the "Little Sanzi", but was unable to provide detailed information to the police because he did not know the "Little Sanzi"'s real name. At the beginning of Cao Bosan's second transcript, he also continued to confess the existence of the "little third son" and said that "the goods were sold to my brother by the "little third son"."

The police claimed that there were no "little three sons" after investigation, and the key physical evidence was lost due to "bad preservation"

  On October 8, 1999, the Shenyang Railway Police transferred the case to the Shenyang Railway Transport Branch of the Liaoning Provincial Procuratorate (hereinafter referred to as the "Shenzhen Railway Procuratorate") for review and prosecution. On November 15 of that year, the Shenyang Railway Procuratorate returned the case for supplementary investigation. , And issued a detailed explanation.

  After review, the Shentie Procuratorate found five remaining problems in the case: first, the "small three sons" related to the case should be involved; second, the tool "bolt pliers" used by Cao Qingsan when committing the case should be extracted; Third, the locks and keys that were replaced during the crime should be withdrawn; fourth, what was the source of deposits found in the defendant’s home; fifth, the time when Cao Bosan participated in the theft.

  On December 6 of that year, the Shenyang Railway Public Security Bureau issued a supplementary investigation report and transferred the case again. The supplementary investigation report showed that after the police visited the relevant personnel, none of the "little three sons" were found.

  Cao Qingsan expressed doubts about this. He told The Paper that Song Moumin who introduced him and the "little three sons" was a small worker in the stolen nut shop, and it was impossible to find him out. The third sister of Cao Qing, Cao Xiuyun, told The Paper that many years after the incident, Song's family had found Cao's family and hoped that they would not continue to appeal. "Song's family said that Song was also taken by the police to investigate the matter. Catch it." After that, the Song family moved out of Xinchengzi, where it was unknown.

  The old house of the Cao brothers had been demolished before they were released from prison. Because they did not have a registered permanent residence during their sentence, they were not assigned to the relocation house. Currently, they can only squeeze in a room in the Moral Education Homeland of Shenbei New District with their old mother and third sister.

  Regarding the whereabouts of the wire-cutting pliers, the investigation report, based on the explanation presented by the Criminal Police Brigade of the Shenyang Railway Public Security Bureau on September 21, 1999, stated that the case was handed over by the Xinchengzi Public Security Sub-bureau and they had repeatedly reported to the Xinchengzi Public Security Sub-bureau. The criminal police team sought material evidence, but the other party's comrades who handled the case denied that they had seen the object, and they did not find it after two searches in Cao Qing's three homes. Similarly, according to the investigators’ recall, the “cut off” locks and keys that were retrieved at the time of the case were also lost due to improper storage during the long process of solving the case.

  In addition, the investigation into the accounts opened by Cao Qingsan and Cao Bosan in Shenyang Liaoyang ICBC was based only on the account opening and deposit certificates obtained when handling the case. The above-mentioned copy of the evidence shows that the account opening times of the two were in May and July 1999, respectively. After the account was opened, 50,000 yuan and 30,000 yuan were deposited.

  Cao Qingsan claimed that the money he deposited was indeed obtained from selling nuts, but this does not mean that the nuts were stolen. Cao Bosan claimed that the money his brother sold the nuts was not distributed to him. The 30,000 yuan was his previous savings. However, the police's supplementary investigation report still found that Cao Bosan had been involved in the theft since the two brothers planned to commit the crime.

  In January 2000, the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court heard the case publicly. Cao Qingsan’s defender Hao Shenwu defended Cao Qingsan’s innocence in court, saying that the public prosecutor did not show the tools Cao Qingsan used in committing the crime, and that the evidence for alleged theft was insufficient.

  On the 28th of that month, the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court made a first-instance verdict and found Cao Qingsan and Cao Bo three guilty of theft, and both were sentenced to life imprisonment, deprived of political rights for life, and confiscation of property of 100,000 yuan each.

  The Paper noted that the criminal facts identified in the first-instance judgment and the content of the charges in the indictment are slightly different in terms of committing the crime. The first-instance judgment only found that Cao Qingsan "opened the warehouse door lock" without mentioning specific details such as the use of bolt pliers.

  The Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court believes that the accusation made by the defender Cao Qingsan to cut the warehouse door lock with bolt pliers and replace it with a new lock is not sufficient and accepted. However, the two ignored the national law and secretly stole other people’s property for the purpose of illegal possession. And the amount is extremely large and should be severely punished.

  After the first-instance judgment was issued, the Cao brothers refused to accept and filed an appeal. However, due to some reasons, they eventually missed the opportunity to appeal. Cao Qingsan said that when the Chinese New Year was approaching in 2000, "the case handling department told us that the New Year is coming, and no one cares about it now. I will talk about it after the new year."

The "true murderer" is suspected of encountering in the high wall, the prison has set up a task force to investigate

  Since March 15, 2000, the three brothers Cao Qing entered the fifth prison of Lingyuan City to serve their sentences. In the meantime, Cao Qingsan still insisted on appealing for himself. He instructed the older sister Cao Xiuling outside the prison to go to the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court to deliver materials every month. The uneducated older sister sometimes kneeled in front of the court for a long time.

  On June 14, 2001, Cao Qingsan received the first notice of dismissal of the appeal issued by the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court in prison. The reason for the court to reject the complaint was that after a review, it was confirmed that the original judgment was correct in terms of ascertaining facts and applying the law. Cao Qingsan's complaint claimed that the act of buying the goods was that he used his own key to open the lock and hired people and vehicles to transfer the goods. The act of selling stolen goods met the constitutive requirements of the crime of theft, so the appeal was rejected.

  Cao Qingsan still refused to accept this result, and he continued to write letters in jail for grievances. What Cao Qing never expected was that the "little three sons" who changed their brother's life trajectory would encounter them in prison by chance.

  In June 2002, a new group of criminals arrived in Cao Qingsan's seventh prison, and he recognized the "little three sons" at a glance. He was about 1.7 meters tall, with a melon face and small round eyes, "It must be him!" After several inquiries, Cao Qingsan learned the person's real name-Cai Moutao.

  Cao Qingsan deliberately passed by Cai, but the other party did not recognize him. Before being imprisoned, Cao Qing tripled weighed 160 jins, and she lost 50 jins abruptly while serving his sentence. His body looks different from before.

Cao Qingsan before the accident

  Cai Moutao was sentenced and imprisoned for intentional homicide (attempt). On November 19, 2001, the first-instance judgment made by the Fushun Intermediate People's Court showed that Cai Moutao was a native of Tonghua City, Jilin Province, born in 1971, and was temporarily living in Xinfu District, Fushun when the case occurred. On June 3, 2001, Cai Moutao stabbed his ex-girlfriend’s father in the chest, abdomen and upper limbs with a sharp knife prepared in advance due to a relationship dispute. Another person at the scene was also stabbed by him, and Cai Moutao attempted suicide. All three were taken to the hospital for treatment. The Fushun Intermediate People's Court convicted Cai Moutao of intentional homicide (attempt) and sentenced him to death with a two-year reprieve.

  Of course, it is impossible to conclude that Cai Moutao is the "little third son" based on his appearance alone. Cao Qingsan said that one day, inmates were watching a photo album of Cai Moutao brought into the prison from the detention center during a break. He accidentally discovered that the back of one of the photos actually had the address of his elder sister Cao Xiuling in Yantai Village, Xinchengzi District. Cao Qingsan secretly hid the photo and passed it to his family who appealed for it during the meeting.

  Soon, Cao Xiuling handed over the photo to the appeal lawyer, requesting to continue to appeal to the higher court as new evidence. On December 8, 2004, Liaoning Huachen Law Firm sent a letter to the leaders of the Liaoning Higher People’s Court stating that the complainant had seen the "little three sons" in prison and the conditions for a retrial were already in place. "For the fairness and dignity of the law, please Relevant leaders paid attention to this case and asked for verification and retrial."

A photo of Cai Moutao taken from prison by Cao Qingsan

  Letters were sent one after another, but there was no news. Cao Qingsan said that when he was desperate, he thought of hunger strike. So far, the prison began to pay attention to his case.

  In March 2006, Meng Xiangdong, a judge of the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court, went to Lingyuan City’s Fifth Prison to interrogate Cai Moutao. Cai denied that he was called the "Little Sanzi" and that he had been to the Nanermalu Market. He also said that he was the Cao brothers. Intentionally let him replace the third party in this case, let him say "I led them to open the door to pick up the goods."

  During the same period, Cao Qingsan denied having exchanged information about the theft case with Cai Moutao during a court investigation.

  In 2006, things took a turn for the better. At that time, Mr. Yang, who was renovated in the third prison of the seventh prison with Cai, reported Cai's surplus of theft to the prison. According to the case file, when Yang Moujun was arraigned by the Prison Investigation Division, he and Cai Moutao had a very good relationship, "I think I am helping him by doing this." Yang said that after the court arraigned Cai Moutao, Cai once told him about the matter and asked him to make his own decisions about whether to admit it or not. Yang Moujun also emphasized that he is not familiar with the Cao brothers.

  In order to thoroughly find out whether Cai Moutao was guilty of theft, Lingyuan City Fifth Prison set up a special case team, with Wang Xin, the then Chief of the Prison Investigation Section as the team leader, and Liu Guojun, then the Deputy Chief of the Prison Investigation Section as the deputy team leader. .

  The case file material shows that when Cai Moutao was arraigned by the Prison Investigation Division on July 13 and 15, 2006, he admitted that he was the "little third son" and confessed to the theft of Huang Chao's nuts. It was stolen, I don’t know, and I never mentioned it to him.” As for why he didn’t confess before, Cai said that when he first entered prison, he was sentenced to death with a suspended death sentence for fear that he would be shot if he said it. , So dragged.

  Cai Moutao also claimed that Cao Qingsan once wrote him an IOU in the car at the time of delivery, amounting to RMB 50,000. Half a year later, seeing the Cao brothers had an accident, he tore the IOU.

  During the investigation of the prison task force, it also investigated the relationship and degree of interaction between Cai Moutao and Cao Qingsan in prison. All inmates under investigation stated that the two did not really come into contact, nor did they speak when they met. Among them, inmate Zhang Moubo, who had written materials for Cai Moutao, said that Cai Moutao said that he had asked Yang Moujun to pass a message to Cao Qingsan and asked Cao to get him some money, so he agreed to surrender, but Cao Qingsan did not agree. When it came to this, Cao Qingsan was very angry. Cao Qingsan said that if he surrendered and asked me for money, he would not be able to give him a cent."

  On July 21, 2006, Judge Meng Xiangdong came to Lingyuan City Fifth Prison again to interrogate Cai Moutao. According to the investigation transcript, Cai Moutao admitted that he had worked in the nut wholesale department of the South Second Market and stole the warehouse key. After that, he met Cao Qingsan and sold goods to him.

  As for the number of pistachios and almonds involved in the case and the amount of the purchase price, Cai Moutao stated clearly and consistent with the facts. Cai Moutao also confessed to Meng Xiangdong: "I felt very burdened after you came here for the first time, so I thought of surrendering. When I sold it to Cao Qingsan, I never claimed that the goods were stolen and asked the government Give me a chance to be considered in sentencing."

Repeated complaints were dismissed and the "little three sons" changed their words

  The investigation by the prison and the court gave hope to the Cao brothers who have been complaining for many years. However, things backfired. On November 23, 2007, the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court rejected the complaint again on the grounds that the facts in the original judgment were clear and the evidence was sufficient. Some of the interested parties mentioned in the complaint were found to be false and some witnesses could not be found. The reason for the complaint Not accepted.

  After being commuted several times, Cao Qingsan was released from prison after squatting for 17 and a half years. With the help of a lawyer, he found two inmates who had spent the same period in the strict control team with Cai Moutao, and learned that the court dismissed him. The reason for the complaint.

  Lawyer Zhai Wenbin’s investigation transcript of Cai Moutao’s cellmate Aaron on September 3, 2017 showed that he had assisted in the discipline and care of other prisoners in the first month of 2006, and he was responsible for Cai Moutao.

  In the transcript of the investigation, Aaron said that Cai's superiors took it seriously and he was arraigned many times. The one he was most impressed was: After the judge of the Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court came for the arraignment, he heard at the door of the interrogation room that the judge would not let Cai confess guilt , "He (the judge) said that it took too much time. What are you talking nonsense? Don't you know what sentence you have been sentenced? You have a suspended death sentence. Do you accept it now and consider the consequences?"

  On August 21, The Paper reporter contacted Aaron, and he told The Paper that Cai Moutao did tell him after the arraignment. The judge told him to "stop nonsense", but Cai Moutao still admitted that he did it in private. Theft.

  Another inmate, Zhang Wei, who was in the strict management team with Cai Moutao, made a lawyer’s investigation record on August 24, 2017. It also showed that Cai Moutao admitted that he did the case and has nothing to do with Cao Qingsan. I only knew that he was called'Little Sanzi', but didn't know his name, so I was imprisoned."

  Zhang Wei said that after the court came to investigate, Cai Moutao told him when he came back that he had lied. "He said that the court told him not to recognize it. If he wants to recognize it, he must be sentenced severely because he has already been sentenced to death with a suspended sentence." .

  In response to the above statement, on August 24, The Paper contacted Meng Xiangdong, the judge of the Shenyang Railway Intermediate People's Court who was responsible for the review of the case. He said that the investigation by the Prison Investigation Division was not true and "just made a deduction." When asked about the details of the review, Meng Xiangdong said he would contact the court’s propaganda department.

  Afterwards, The Paper reporters came to the Political Department of the court to interview and sent interview letters in accordance with the requirements of the department regarding the review of the case, reasons for rejection, and whether or not Cai Moutao had investigated other social relations. As of press time, Shenyang Railway Intermediate Court has not yet responded.

  After the complaint was rejected, the three brothers Cao Qing continued to submit materials to the higher court and submitted new evidence obtained during the prison investigation. On September 4, 2014, the Liaoning Provincial Higher People's Court also rejected the complaint on the grounds that "Cai's confession was inconsistent", and believed that it could not prove that Cai was a "little third son" and participated in the theft.

  In 2017, Cao Qingsan and Cao Bosan were released from prison one after another. What made them most anxious was that Cai Moutao, who was sentenced to death with a suspended sentence, was about to be released after several commutations. "When he comes out, there is a huge crowd, and I don't know where to find this person." Cao Qingsan said.

  The criminal ruling document published by the China Judgment Documents website shows that on January 20, 2019, the Chaoyang Intermediate Court of Liaoning Province ruled that the offender Cai Moutao was allowed to deduct eight months of imprisonment, and the sentence will be calculated from the date of the ruling to June 2021. Until the 12th.

  The ruling stated that Cai did show repentance during his sentence. He has been credited three times, praised twice, and once evaluated as a "prison reform activist", and has reduced his sentence five times so far.

  The three brothers Cao Qing turned to the Second Circuit Court of the Supreme Court in Shenyang to submit their appeal materials. Because there is no car, the two brothers have to take the one-hour bus 328 from Xinchengzi to downtown Shenyang. While holding the complaint materials and passing through the former site of the Nanermalu Market, Cao Bosan had mixed feelings in his heart.

The three brothers Cao Qing do not have a car. Each complaint must take the 1-hour bus 328 to Shenyang

  He said that he was not born in a good family. The brothers went from the county seat to the provincial capital by hard work. When everything started to improve, they lost 17 years of freedom due to an "unclear" lawsuit, and now they have nothing. .

  He Chengchen, the lawyer representing the complaint, told The Paper that on November 25, 2019, the Second Circuit Court of the Supreme Court replied that the case complaint materials had been accepted. On August 20, The Paper reporter came to the court together with Cao Qingsan and Cao Bosan to ask about the progress of the complaint. The judge in the third interview room said that the case has not yet been opened for review. "The manpower is limited and it is not so fast." Communicate with the trial judge as soon as possible.

  Cao Qingsan said that his deepest guilt was not being able to meet her eldest sister Cao Xiuling before she died. For more than ten years, Cao Xiuling rushed to the court and procuratorate for the two younger brothers, and went to the Liaoning Provincial High Court dozens of times to appeal. During a complaint, she locked a pair of children at home, causing her daughter to be paralyzed after gas poisoning and died soon after.

  Cao Xiuling's perseverance did not turn the case around. The toil and the pain of losing her daughter caused her to suffer from severe uremia and died in 2012.

  On the night of her sister's death, Cao Qingsan woke up in a dream. During the day the next day, he begged the prison guards to call his relatives. Hearing sadness and joy from the receiver, Cao Qingsan silently hung up the phone.

  "She didn't wait until the day I was released from prison after all." After speaking, the 51-year-old man wailed loudly.

  (In the text, Huang Chao, Along, and Zhang Wei are pseudonyms)

  (Intern Lu Yan also contributed to this article)