In July 2019, 29-year-old couple He Jie and Ma Guoliang rented duplex room 603 on the top floor of a building in Zhouyuan Community, Zengcheng District.

He Jie is a middle-level manager in a public institution, and Ma Guoliang is an expatriate employee at the Zengcheng District Emergency Management Bureau and is about to resign and take the public examination. Because the two have the same career goals, they always like to go to charity sales in pet stores and pet hospitals in their free time. They also often feed stray cats and dogs, help forward adoption news, etc. These similarities bring them together.

When they were preparing to move here When welcoming a new life, I accidentally saw two white dogs on the rooftop of 602 on the day of moving. I saw that the shoulders of these two dogs were as high as their knees, their originally white hair had begun to turn yellow, their bones were protruding, and their mental state was also particularly poor. The rooftop was covered with feces, which seemed to have not been cleaned for a long time, and there were many other rubbish. Although there are two dog cages, there are no dog bowls or bowls.

The two dogs made a "wow" sound when they saw people. How could such kind people as He Jie and Ma Guoliang ignore them, so they immediately went to get something to feed them. After getting closer, I determined that they were two Samoyeds.

He Jie and Ma Guoliang originally had cats and dogs, Xiangxiang and Dafei. So from then on, the two of them would scoop out two small bowls of dog food for the two Samoyeds to eat before going to work at 8 a.m., and then pack some leftover bones from the workplace canteen after get off work. The two dogs always eat in a hurry, obviously because they are frightened by hunger.

As a long-haired dog, Samoyed It was obvious that something would happen if they stayed in such an almost open-air environment for a long time, so the two took the initiative to build a dog shed for them to avoid the rain. At the same time, they added anthelmintics and probiotics to the dog food, and They will be bathed and their feces cleaned regularly.

Why are there two dogs on the rooftop? He Jie and Ma Guoliang also suspected that someone had raised them, maybe someone from 602, right? But they asked the neighbors and landlords they could find, and they all said they didn't know.I don’t know who the dog is, but I haven’t seen the owner at all, and the doors and windows of 602 are always closed, so no one can be found. So everyone thought that the dog owner abandoned the dog and left after that.

Sometimes they would bring two Samoyeds home to play with the golden retriever Xiangxiang. The two Samoyeds were so energetic that they felt like they were being driven crazy. This made the two of them pity them even more. In this way, they actually fed the two Samoyeds for a year and nine months, with a total cost of about 5,000 yuan. Their condition was much better.

But during this period, the two never saw the dog owners, and then they determined that the two dogs had been abandoned.

Looking for adoption and turning into a thief

February 28, 2021 is when the rent is due. The couple is worried that after they leave, the two dogs will have to fend for themselves on the rooftop. Unfortunately, their new house couldn't accommodate three dogs, so they began actively looking for adoptions for two Samoyeds. But because they were in poor condition and were already adult dogs, it was difficult to find suitable adopters. In the end, He Jie’s colleague Liang Jing agreed to adopt them. Her home is in a rural area and her yard is very large.

Liang Jing is also a kind-hearted person. She and He Jie went to feed two Samoyeds several times, and she was very distressed when she saw their condition. The two Samoyeds were very lively and friendly after arriving at Liang Jing's house, which made everyone very happy.

But soon, a text message broke the beautiful status quo. He Jie received a message saying that she stole the dog.

This groundless accusation made He Jie very angry. She contacted the so-called owner, 42-year-old Liu Bingzhong, a resident of No. 701 on the top floor of the community where the alleged owner previously lived. This Liu Bingzhong said that he learned from the parking attendant that they had stolen his dog, and asked He Jie to return it immediately, otherwise her job as a civil servant would be affected.

Is this already threatening? He Jie was really angry and asked Liu Bingzhong to call the police. At that time, she felt that this person was an abnormal person and was here to extort money.

However, soon the police from Fupeng Police Station actually contacted He Jie. She and her husband went to the police station to assist in the investigation. The police asked about the whereabouts of the two Samoyeds, and then they realized that maybe Liu Bingzhong was indeed. Is the owner of two Samoyeds. They then explained to the police that they did not know that the two dogs had an owner, and that they had fed them for a year and nine months! However, the then deputy director claimed that they had concealed the facts and was completely unconvinced, and a verbal conflict broke out between the two parties.

Ma Guoliang made a complaint call to the Police Supervision Brigade of the Zengcheng District Public Security Bureau. The next day, He Jie's colleague Liang Jing was also asked to come to the police station to assist in the investigation. The deputy director asked Liang Jing why she was shielding criminals? After Ma Guoliang learned about it, he suspected that Liang Jing had been intimidated and complained again.

Although Liu Bingzhong wanted the matter to end just like that, the police from Fupeng Police Station did not. On August 24, 2021, the Zengcheng District Procuratorate of Guangzhou City filed a public prosecution in court against Ma Guoliang and He Jie on suspicion of theft. In this way, the two good Samaritans were found guilty of theft.

He Jie’s salary was suspended by his employer, and Ma Guoliang also lost his job and the mood to prepare for the civil service examination.Instead, I found a job as a salesperson in a communications construction company near my home. Their lives were ruined.

After filing an appeal, on May 19, 2022, the Zengcheng District People’s Court ruled in the first instance that the two were guilty of theft, were fined 2,000 yuan, and sentenced them to 4 months of criminal detention.

The two immediately appealed. You can't be insulted like this for nothing! Fortunately, the second instance revoked the original judgment and sent the case back to the Zengcheng District People's Court for a retrial. During this period, the leaders of He Jie's unit, possibly fearing the impact on the unit, asked her to plead guilty several times, and she could be convicted and exempted from prison terms. The staff would still be on staff, but she would not be able to participate in the evaluation for two years.

But they really mean well, how could they admit to this unfounded crime? So he refused to give in.

Still fighting

The dog owner wrote in the letter of understanding issued by him: "They only met once during this period. At that time, I only reminded them not to be bitten, and did not say anything I am a dog owner." However, neither the couple had any memory of the meeting, but this matter was put into the case file without review and confirmation. Regarding this issue, a staff member of the Zengcheng District People's Procuratorate said that "it was an oversight. "But it does not prevent conviction."

The landlord and neighbors said that the two dogs were really almost dead at first. If it were not for the couple's care, they might have died long ago. The dog owners were indeed very irresponsible. The dog owner said that he was busy at work and neglected to take care of the dog.

The surveillance video used by the court only intercepted the scene of them taking the dog to Liang Jing, and it was also said that they used cardboard to cover it up to cover up. But in fact, the so-called cardboard is a moisture-proof pad, but it is just to make the dog more comfortable.

He Jie’s defense lawyer believes that the pricing of the two Samoyeds is a major point of controversy in the case, because the starting penalty for theft in Guangzhou is 3,000 yuan, and the two dogs were not Pricing is only calculated based on the price when the dog owner purchases it, but if the dog is raised like this and it is an adult dog, the price will change. He Jie and Ma Guoliang applied to the court to reassess the price of the dogs involved, but have yet to receive a reply.

He Jie is the director of the department, but he often has to deal with these messy things. Later, he was demoted to the most basic clerk. He became suspicious and inferior, which almost affected his normal life. Fortunately, Ma Guoliang has two apartments at home. They have spent more than 200,000 yuan since the trial. If it were a family in a worse economic situation, it would probably have collapsed long ago.

Postscript

TrueI sincerely hope that our society will be a society where good intentions are rewarded. I don’t know what else to say.

When He Jie and Ma Guoliang were interviewed by The Paper, they said they did not regret rescuing the two dogs. The dogs would always hug themselves with their legs when they saw them, and when they took them to Liang Jing’s house Late that night, their two dogs, who were always extremely active, quietly looked at the street scene along the way without moving.

At that moment, they felt solemn and excited about saving two lives.