Chapter 78: Competition Brings Improvement
In this matter, Zhang Fei’s appearance only added fuel to the fire.
Originally, the situation was already tumultuous, especially since it involved imperial relatives. Just fittingly, Zhang Fei had serious conflicts with the officials in the court, adding to this tension.
The level of animosity can be easily imagined.
It even disturbed the two Empress Dowagers in the palace.
They both hoped that the situation wouldn’t escalate further.
“This son greets the Empress Dowager.”
“No need for formalities!”
Empress Dowager Gao expressed her apologies, saying, “I’ve heard that Dongdong’s matter has caused Your Majesty quite a bit of trouble recently.”
Emperor Zhao Xu hurriedly responded, “The imperial censors have always been like this; there’s no need to pay them any mind.”
“How can Your Majesty say such a thing? Without the censors to bring wrongdoing to your attention, how would you know about the affairs of the common people?” “Yes, I misspoke.”
Though he said so, the young and spirited Emperor Zhao Xu still felt indignant.
“Alas…”
Empress Dowager Gao sighed, “This Dongdong is truly incorrigible. After causing such trouble, he not only fails to reflect on his wrongdoing but even enlists a pen-in-cap to appeal on his behalf. That’s making things even more disgraceful.”
After a pause, she added, “Grand Empress Dowager Cao and I believe that this matter should not continue to escalate, lest it disturb Your Majesty’s governance of the country. It’s best to leave it to the Kaifeng Prefectural Office to adjudicate.”
The implied message was for a ruling to be quickly issued.
They both believed Lin Fei and distrusted Cao Dongdong, thinking the situation was exactly as it appeared.
Moreover, according to the law, the typical sentence for rape is two years, but since Cao Dongdong’s case was attempted rape, it would be one to one and a half years. He would take a stroll outside, and after the matter settled down, he could return.
Continuing the commotion would only bring further shame to the royal family.
But Emperor Zhao Xu was unwilling to compromise. He had wanted to go to Zhang San earlier but was thwarted by Xu Zun. Now that he knew Cao Dongdong had hired Zhang San, he was pleased. So he said, “I believe that Cao Dongdong’s acts in hiring a pen-in-cap are in accordance with the law. Kaifeng Prefectural Office has also allowed him to engage a pen-in-cap to plead his case. If I were to intervene, it would only give others a chance to cause trouble. Why not leave everything to the Kaifeng Prefectural Office to handle?”
After some consideration, Empress Dowager Gao felt that the emperor’s words made sense.
The Kaifeng Prefectural Office had already granted permission. If they were to interfere further, it would only give rise to gossip.
After some deliberation, Empress Dowager Gao said, “Let me discuss with the Grand Empress Dowager again!”
……
Fan Family’s Bookstore!
“Have you gone mad?”
Li Guozhong glared at Fan Li with bulging eyes, his hair standing on end from anger.
Fan Li said, “Thank you for your concern, Mister Li. I’m perfectly sane.”
“Sane?”
Li Guozhong said, “You call selling the bookstore to Zhang San sane?”
Suddenly, Fan Li’s eyes slanted, his brows raised. “May I ask, Mister Li, if I don’t sell to Zhang San, what else can I do? Sit and wait to die? I remember when you took away my customers, you didn’t have this attitude.”
“I knew it! I just knew it!”
Li Guozhong paced back and forth anxiously. “This is clearly Zhang San’s scheme. We’ve all been played by him. Can’t you see that?”
“It’s not a scheme; it’s an aboveboard plan.”
Fan Li sneered, “Zhang San was honest with me from the start. But we had a chance to thwart his plan, to make it fail. It was your greed, disregarding my livelihood, that led to this situation. You can hardly blame me for seeking another way out.”
“You… Alright, just wait to regret it! The evidence in this lawsuit is solid. You think Zhang San is a god? If you lose this lawsuit, hmph, you’ll just wait to close down!”
With that, he swung his sleeves behind him and left angrily.
……
Xu Residence!
“I see!”
Xu Zun nodded.
Zhang Fei explained again, “The reason I didn’t inform you beforehand is because, for me, this is just ordinary business all in a day’s work. I now have the right to litigate for anyone.”
Xu Zun asked Zhang Fei, “Are you sure you can win?”
He added, “Many censors, as well as the Ministry of Punishments and the Court of Penal Review, are all watching this case. And the only ironclad evidence in this case is that admission letter. It won’t be easy!”
Zhang Fei smiled, “If I couldn’t win, I wouldn’t have taken it on.”
Seeing his confidence, Xu Zun relaxed a bit and sighed, “Actually, it shouldn’t have come to this. If Lin Fei had listened to Qian’er’s advice and turned back from the wrong path, it would have been good for him and everyone else.”
Zhang Fei said, “Rather than suffer in silence, it feels better to go crazy for once. I can understand Lin Fei very well.”
Suddenly, Xu Zhiqian asked, “If it were you, would you make the same choice as him?”
Zhang Fei replied, “If you ask me, perhaps I would say no. But if I were him, perhaps I would. They say the times create heroes, but they also create many pitiful people. It’s just that people only remember the heroes.”
……
Hanlin Academy.
“This is outrageous! Outrageous!”
A sixty-year-old man sat in the Hanlin Academy, slapping the table, stamping his feet in frustration. “A mere pen-in-cap, he’s really ignorant of the heights of heaven and the depths of the earth. Does he really think he can change facts with just his mouth?”
Looking around at officials like Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Liu Shu, Lu Gongzhu, Xu Zun, and others, he pointed at them and said, “You, pillars of the court, being played by a pen-in-cap, indifferent to it all. This is unheard of in history.”
This old man was none other than Tang Jie, the Accounting Chancellor. He was known for his integrity and incorruptibility, upright and unbending. Since he took office, he had never feared the powerful. When he served as the Chief Censor, the powerful figures in the court feared him like a tiger, his reputation rivaling that of Bao Zheng.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t dare to scold Wang Anshi and Sima Guang like this!
Wang Anshi said, ” Accounting Chancellor, your words are wrong. All of Zhang San’s actions are lawful. Blaming him just because he’s a pen-in-cap is unjust.”
Tang Jie didn’t like Wang Anshi’s attitude. “He’s fought so many lawsuits in the Kaifeng Prefectural Office, and how many times has he produced ironclad evidence? He’s always twisted the truth with just his mouth. Now that the evidence is solid in this case, he wants to do the same old trick again. If he succeeds in this case again, heh, you’ll all be the laughingstock of future generations.”
Back then, in the case of Ayun, he strongly supported Sima Guang. For this, he argued fiercely with Wang Anshi until the cows came home. It wasn’t until Zhang Fei brought up filial piety that he was forced to shut up as a matter of political correctness.
But he was still not convinced. Zhang Fei had won that lawsuit without ironclad evidence.
Before, he also supported the constraint of litigation rights. He advocated for investigating cases based on evidence. These pen-in-caps specialized in exploiting legal loopholes. This was simply a crooked path!
And this time, it involved imperial relatives, so he couldn’t restrain himself anymore. He had to step forward and oversee the situation.
Xu Zun naturally supported Zhang Fei, saying, “In the courtroom, the law comes first. It’s only in an arena, where we talk about winning and losing. As long as we uphold justice, why fear the ridicule of future generations?”
Tang Jie glanced at Xu Zun and sneered, “I almost forgot, that pen-in-cap person is your student, Xu Zun. No wonder!”
Xu Zun was a well-known eccentric in the legal circle, often coming up with wild ideas that left his colleagues speechless. In the case of Ayun, he was the main culprit, and Zhang Fei was at most an accomplice.
Xu Zun said, “If I ever act in favoritism, you may impeach me.”
Although Tang Jie didn’t like Xu Zun, he also knew Xu Zun’s character and said, “I’m just discussing the matter at hand. I’m not targeting you. I believe this is unfair.”
Wang Anshi asked, “What unfairness do you perceive?”
Tang Jie said, “Haven’t you noticed that there is always only one pen-in-cap in the courtroom?”
Everyone looked at each other.
Although there was only one pen-in-cap, the government had always taken a position in opposition to Zhang Fei.
But then again, the presiding judge had to be impartial. He could only raise questions and couldn’t argue with the pen-in-cap. His role was ultimately different from that of an opposing pen-in-cap.
Lu Gongzhu said, “Lin Fei may also hire a pen-in-cap.”
Tang Jie said, “You should know that it costs a lot of money to hire Zhang San now. Only someone like Cao Dongdong, a rich kid, can afford it. Lin Fei definitely can’t afford it. If even a military instructor can’t afford it, all the more ordinary commoners would not be able to.”
Sima Guang nodded slightly and asked, “I wonder what your thoughts are on this?”
Tang Jie said, “In the past, there were rarely pen-in-caps appearing in court. Now that Zhang San has appeared, this unspoken rule has obviously been broken. I believe the government should establish another office specifically to help the people deal with pen-in-caps. That would be fair.”
When this was said, everyone nodded in agreement.
Not only was it fair, but the government also gained another card to play, which was beneficial to imperial rule.
Look at that, compared to the likes of Wang Wenshan, it was clear who had the superior plan and who was inferior.
Xu Zun was also interested in this and asked, “But I wonder if this office is for the accuser or the defendant?”
Tang Jie said, “It’s for the opponent of the pen-in-cap.”
Since the government took a neutral stance, it didn’t matter which side it was on. The purpose was to act as a check against the pen-in-cap and not let them monopolize the narrative.
Xu Zun said, “If we were to do this, I wouldn’t recommend having the government act as the opponent. If one party is from the government, then the government is likely to favor its own side, which would be unfair.”
ang Jie said, “If the presiding judge is inclined to favor one side, then he will naturally do so. What does it matter if the government is on one side?”
Xu Zun insisted, “Can you guarantee that the government won’t intentionally favor its own side out of face-saving considerations?”
Tang Jie fell silent for a moment and asked, “What do you suggest then?”
Xu Zun furrowed his brows, pondering.
Suddenly, Sima Guang spoke up, “Why not do this? The government can establish a cooperative relationship with the notaries. The government already grants them a monopoly status, and in addition, the government can exempt them from taxes in exchange for their legal services in such matters.”
Tang Jie nodded slightly. Notaries were a supplement to the government, but nominally not part of it, which was very suitable. He then asked the others, “What do you think?”
The rest of them nodded in agreement.
Lu Gongzhu asked, “Should this case be postponed until this matter is settled?”
Tang Jie said, “There’s no need for that. You just need to assign Chief Clerk Huang Gui to assist Lin Fei.”
Lu Gongzhu immediately objected, “Isn’t that against the rules?”
Tang Jie replied, “This is an urgent matter. Currently, only Huang Gui is familiar with this case. As long as Prefect Lu ensures fair play, it’s fine.”
Lu Gongzhu looked at Sima Guang and Wang Anshi.
Wang Anshi said, “For the sake of fairness, it’s best to inform the other party first. If they raise objections, we should also discuss it with them.”
Sima Guang also nodded in agreement.
After some thought, Tang Jie also nodded.
This case must be resolved quickly, without delay.
Lu Gongzhu nodded and said, “Alright!”
In fact, he was the most aggrieved one.
What kind of bad karma did he have to encounter such a weirdo as Zhang San?
Zhang San had only come to Kaifeng for a few months. In these few months, if he wasn’t in the Kaifeng Prefectural Office, he would be on his way there.