Chapter 79: Angry Mobs
Tang Jie’s suggestion was actually a lesson learned from Sima Guang. He believed that Sima Guang failed because of his position as presiding judge. Once he could not use his status to browbeat the opposition, he was left with only listening or mild questioning without aggression, because the presiding judge had to maintain a neutral attitude.
So, if the government sent someone to counter the pen-in-cap, the official in charge could act more calmly.
This obviously disadvantaged Zhang Fei, as it was at least a two-against-one situation.
Therefore, after the meeting, Xu Zun returned home, had Xu Zhiqian call Zhang Fei over from next door, and informed him of the suggestion from the Hanlin Academy.
Zhang Fei was delighted upon hearing this.
“This is good news!”
“Good news?”
“Of course, it’s good news, at least it’s fair,” Zhang Fei smiled.
Xu Zun furrowed his brow, “Frankly, I also think this is a good suggestion, but it’s obviously unfavorable for you.”
Xu Zhiqian snorted, “At least this is an aboveboard method, much better than last time when they used their power to target Zhang San.” “Lady Xu is absolutely right.”
Zhang Fei gave Xu Zhiqian a rare approving glance, “And looking at it in the long run, this is more beneficial to me because it will encourage litigation. And then my bookstore can also be hired by the government!”
Xu Zun was taken aback. Yes! Zhang Fei could also work for the government.
Zhang Fei continued, “But since both sides have defense attorneys, it would be reasonable to establish proper procedure, otherwise, the courtroom might turn into a market, with endless arguments.”
Xu Zun nodded, “What’s your opinion?”
Opinion?
He didn’t have an opinion.
But he had a ready-made solution.
So Zhang Fei informed Xu Zun of the procedural system from future generations.
Xu Zhiqian nodded repeatedly as she listened, “This kind of litigation is quite fair.”
Xu Zun said, “Although this method is good, it won’t be needed this time, because the imperial court hopes that the matter be resolved quickly.”
Just as they were chatting, Li Si rushed in anxiously, “Brother San, someone from the Fan Family Bookstore is here.”
Zhang Fei was surprised, “So someone’s here, why are you so flustered?”
Li Si said, “That person said that just now someone threw a bucket of dung on the door of the Fan Family Bookstore.”
“What?”
Zhang Fei stood up, “Did they catch the criminal?”
Li Si shook his head, “They said the criminal was riding a horse, and in a moment, he disappeared without a trace. It was just getting dark then, and there weren’t many people on the street, so no one saw the criminal’s appearance.”
Zhang Fei and Xu Zhiqian immediately went to the Fan Family Bookstore.
Fan Li was cursing vehemently, primarily at Li Guozhong.
He was convinced it was Li Guozhong’s doing.
Zhang Fei comforted Fan Li for a while before leaving with Xu Zhiqian.
On the way.
“What do you think?” Zhang Fei asked Xu Zhiqian.
Xu Zhiqian pondered for a moment and said, “It’s hard to say whether it was Li Guozhong, but this action is definitely aimed at you.”
“At me?”
“Aren’t you forgetting why you had Li Si commit suicide by drowning in the river?”
Zhang Fei nodded slightly, appearing thoughtful.
Xu Zhiqian continued, “You were able to gain an advantage in court before, when public opinion greatly helped you. But this time public opinion may not be on your side. They are likely doing this to incite public anger, and this could be very detrimental to you.”
Zhang Fei smiled, “This is exactly what I want.”
Xu Zhiqian was puzzled, “What do you mean by that?”
Zhang Fei chuckled, “Haven’t you forgotten? The most difficult part of this lawsuit isn’t about winning or losing in court, it’s about preventing the Grand Empress Dowager and the Empress Dowager from punishing Cao Dongdong.”
Xu Zhiqian still didn’t understand, “Given the current situation, I’m afraid the two Empress Dowagers will be even more angry.”
Zhang Fei smiled, “Anger is good, the angrier the better.”
…
Indeed!
Before this case, the people of Bianjing had a very favorable impression of Zhang Fei. They thought he was different from ordinary pen-in-caps: that he specifically helped the poor litigate and sought justice.
But when they learned that Zhang Fei was defending Cao Dongdong, his reputation plummeted instantly.
The people didn’t have much fondness for these imperial relatives; their vast landholdings didn’t fall from the sky, and the largest shareholder of the Xiang-guo Temple was none other than these imperial relatives.
Coupled with someone influencing public opinion and throwing dung, it made it seem like Zhang Fei was a universally hated villain. The effect was quite impressive; public opinion now overwhelmingly supported Lin Fei.
Zhang Fei was being criticized and condemned by everyone.
Fortunately, the court didn’t plan to drag it out. Otherwise, if it fermented for too long, the court of public opinion could turn the truth on its head. This was actually quite normal.
As the saying goes, public opinion is to be feared.
…
Today was the day of the trial.
Despite the biting cold wind, the area in front of the Kaifeng Prefectural Office was still packed with people.
After these days of build-up, this case had alarmed almost all the citizens of Kaifeng Prefecture.
And when Zhang Fei arrived at the Kaifeng Prefectural Office, he was truly to disdainful looks and sarcastic remarks.
“Oh! Isn’t this the great pen-in-cap Zhang San?”
“Heh! Indeed.”
It was a young scholar speaking. He said, “I remember you once said that the reason you studied law was to bring injustices to light and only help the poor litigate.”
Zhang Fei chuckled, “Your academic performance must be poor, isn’t it?”
The young scholar frowned, “What do you mean by that?”
Zhang Fei said, “I only said one sentence, and you’ve already remembered it wrong. Can your grades be good? My words were, ‘Bring injustices to light and help the poor litigate without taking a single penny.'”
The young scholar said, “That’s what I meant.”
Zhang Fei rolled his eyes, “Helping the poor litigate without taking a single penny doesn’t mean only helping the poor litigate. Is that really hard to understand?”
“What about bringing injustices to light?”
“Cao Dongdong suffered injustice, so I should stand up and defend him.” Zhang Fei said firmly.
“Absurd!”
Another scholar stood up and said, “The evidence in this case is conclusive. Don’t distort the facts here!”
There were many others behind him who seemed ready to act.
Zhang Fei, seeing this, repeated his old trick, “I’ll say it again, if you’re so capable, come to the court and argue with me. You don’t even have to take responsibility for anything you shout here.”
Suddenly, someone shouted, “Brother San, we support you!”
“Zhang San, teach that ignorant scholar a lesson later.”
…
Zhang Fei looked around and saw a group of young masters standing in the distant corner, including Ma Xiaoyi. They kept their distance but shouted loudly. They were really escalating matters!
Worst of all, the public anger would be directed at him, Zhang Fei!
Heavens!
Facing these scholars, Zhang Fei was still confident and at ease, but seeing those young masters, he was really anxious. These guys would only escalate matters. He quickly shouted loudly, “Make way! Please make way! Not making way, huh? I’m here to defend Cao Dongdong. If you get in my way, it’s obstructing justice.”
Swish, swish, swish!
A path was cleared.
“Shame!”
“Hypocrite!”
“Shameless scoundrel!”
…
Wherever Zhang Fei went, he left behind a trail of curses.
The only thing worth celebrating was that no one spat on him.
Thankfully!
Thankfully!
Zhang Fei thought to himself, how much money should I ask Cao Dongdong for?
He hadn’t discussed the issue of remuneration with Cao Dongdong yet because at that time he was solely focused on dealing with Wang Wenshan.
Finally, he arrived in front of the prefectural office.
“Let’s go!”
The guard pushed Zhang Fei.
“Oh!”
He almost fell to the ground.
He was enraged!
Zhang Fei turned around, glaring angrily at the guard, “As a government official, you dare to abuse your power. Be careful, I’ll sue you.”
The guard said, “It was your own carelessness, who else can you blame?”
“With so many people watching, you…!”
“We haven’t seen anything.”
“I saw it was your own carelessness.”
…!
The crowd knew whom they wished to support.
Zhang Fei reluctantly swallowed this humiliation and entered the prefectural office, afraid of another “accident.”
Walking along the corridor to the front courtyard of the hall, he saw many people standing there.
Tang Jie, Chen Shengzhi, Wang Anshi, Sima Guang, Liu Shu…!
Don’t they need to work? Zhang Fei wondered.
Little did he know, at this stage, they didn’t really need to work much. They had entered the holiday period, but they still took turns to be on duty.
If it weren’t for this case, the Kaifeng Prefectural Office would have closed.
One could imagine how much the guards of the Kaifeng Prefectural Office hated Zhang Fei. Just giving him a push, could be considered merciful.
Lu Gongzhu, dressed in thick official robes, took his seat.
“Court is in session!”
“Awe and strength…”
The bailiffs’ chants echoed.
Zhang Fei was the first to be called.
“This commoner Zhang Fei pays respects to Prefect Lu.”
“No need for formalities!”
Lu Gongzhu said, “The suspect Cao Dongdong has appointed you to represent him, but Lin Fei has no money to hire a pen-in-cap. In the interest of fairness, I intend to let Chief Clerk Huang Gui act as the prosecutor. What do you think?”
He was very fair and strict, so he needed to make it clear to Zhang Fei. After all, this suggestion was still under review and had not become a legal provision yet.
Zhang Fei said, “I have no objection, but I also have a small suggestion.”
“What suggestion?”
“Both sides should take turns questioning the parties involved and relevant witnesses. When one side is questioning, the other side must not interrupt. This way, we can avoid meaningless arguments. After all, we are all providing evidence to Prefect Lu for a fair judgment, not competing for victory or defeat.”
Lu Gongzhu pondered for a moment and said, “Reasonable, we’ll follow your suggestion.”
Zhang Fei continued, “Then please let Chief Clerk Huang ask his questions first.”
Lu Gongzhu asked carefully, “Why?”
Zhang Fei explained, “I am the defense, and Chief Clerk Huang is the prosecution. If Chief Clerk Huang doesn’t prosecute, how can I defend?”
Lu Gongzhu nodded, “Then let Chief Clerk Huang ask first!”
Zhang Fei added, “Could Prefect Lu please provide a chair for me? My foot injury from a few days ago hasn’t fully healed.”
Lu Gongzhu said, “In this courtroom, the only thing I can grant you is a beating.”
“A beating? Prefect Lu, please ignore what I said.”