In such cases, the death penalty is virtually automatic, but he can not in good conscience leave his benefactor, an upright official, with no heirs to carry on the family line. So instead Liu has his brother-in-law merely beaten; the fisherman's daughter is returned home, but Liu covers up the murder.
於是他重打大舅子，放回漁家女，但卻掩蓋了殺人部份的案情。