Chapter 185: Roundabout Methods
“Benefactor, you’re finally back. Academician Wang has been waiting here for quite a while,” Feng Nanxi greeted Zhang Fei as he stepped down from the carriage.
“I know,” Zhang Fei replied. Wang Anshi’s arrival didn’t surprise him.
Upon entering the hall, Zhang Fei bowed respectfully.
“Enough of that,” Wang Anshi waved his hand, as he never cared for such formalities. He asked, “How did it go?”
Zhang Fei smiled, “Everything is going well so far. At least the Left Court said they need to discuss it, clearly realizing this case concerns their interests.”
Wang Anshi nodded and asked, “Why only sue the Kaifeng County office and not include Wei Yushan?”
Zhang Fei explained, “This is to resolve a legal problem.”
“What legal problem?”
“The law doesn’t punish the masses.”
“Hmm?” Wang Anshi looked at Zhang Fei puzzled. Zhang Fei continued, “Looking at the current situation nationwide, tax evasion like Wei Yushan’s is very common, not just among large landowners but ordinary citizens too. If we confront this issue in court, they could simply say ‘everyone does it,’ putting us at a disadvantage.”
Wang Anshi said, “Isn’t that what we want?” His support for Zhang Fei was precisely to make these large landowners pay taxes. Just suing Kaifeng County wouldn’t achieve this goal.
Zhang Fei replied, “If we judge by law, the government would have to pursue many people’s unpaid taxes, causing serious conflicts that might backfire.”
Wang Anshi asked, “So this case only targets Wang Hong?”
“Not at all, that’s secondary.”
“Is that so?” Wang Anshi expressed doubt.
Zhang Fei countered, “May I ask Academician Wang, how can we convict the Kaifeng County office if this goes to court?”
Wang Anshi pondered briefly, seeming to understand something.
Zhang Fei explained further, “To prove that the county office broke the law, we must first prove their judgment was unfair and an attempt to cover up a crime. To prove this, we must first establish Wei Yushan’s illegal activities, including tax evasion. This addresses the issue of the law being unable to punish the masses because we’re only examining whether tax evasion has taken place as a matter of fact, rather than pursuing legal responsibility for it. If we win, Wei Yushan will necessarily be proven guilty.”
Wang Anshi nodded, “I see.”
Zhang Fei continued, “The only way to resolve the problem that the masses are breaking the law is through policy, not law. This requires your reforms, Academician.”
Wang Anshi frowned, “But I haven’t yet drafted regulations for this, it will take time. That’s why I hoped to use this case to intimidate them.”
After some thought, Zhang Fei said, “If we separate administration from law, we could collect some taxes and ease the tax evasion situation.”
Wang Anshi eagerly asked, “How so?”
Zhang Fei explained, “If we separate administration from law, administration loses its judicial power. Many large landowners evade taxes through legal loopholes, making it appear lawful. Hence, collecting taxes from them requires evidence, making it a judicial matter. Since the administration can no longer pass judgment, we can collect taxes by suing individuals. Though many evade taxes, cases require someone to report them, limiting the scope of liability. This avoids punishing the masses while still intimidating large landowners, though it won’t solve the fundamental problem.”
Wang Anshi glanced at Zhang Fei and smiled, “At this rate, you’ll be making quite a fortune.”
Zhang Fei gave a nervous laugh, “There are so many pen-in-caps in the capital, they don’t have to come to me.”
Wang Anshi replied with a knowing smile, “You’re quite clever. With this roundabout approach, you can not only get revenge on Magistrate Wang but also profit from it.”
Of course, this was just Zhang Fei’s suggestion. It was easier said than done.
Suing individuals for tax evasion seemed simple in theory, but implementation would be far more complicated.
Under the current system, only the Court of Penal Review, Court of Judicial Review, Censorate, Remonstrance Bureau, and the Superintendent’s Office answered directly to the emperor and not some other administrative official. All other judicial departments answered to the highest administrative official.
A prefect was the supreme judge of a prefecture.
A magistrate was the supreme judge of a county.
This had been the case since ancient times.
This situation involved challenging one’s superiors.
That was a major taboo in officialdom.
One wrong move could end one’s career.
Lu Jiawen dared to act this way because he was just an eighth-rank minor official – already at the bottom, he couldn’t be demoted much further. He had nothing to lose.
But Cen Yuanli and Yu Zaishen wouldn’t dare act so carelessly.
It hadn’t been easy for them to reach their current positions! But power was something everyone desired.
They immediately reported the matter to the prefectural office while also spreading word about it.
“Prefect, you were quite foresighted – beatings certainly wouldn’t intimidate that fellow,” Li Kai sighed as he entered the hall.
Lu Gongzhu asked in surprise, “Who are you referring to?”
Li Kai replied, “Who else but Zhang San?”
Lu Gongzhu immediately asked, “What has he done now?”
Li Kai said, “Word just came from the Left Court that Zhang San, hired by the Judicial Court, is representing them in suing the Kaifeng County Office.”
“What?”
Lu Gongzhu seemed not to understand, and after a moment’s pause asked, “The Judicial Court is suing the County Office?”
“Yes.”
Li Kai nodded.
Lu Gongzhu asked, “Is that even allowed?”
Li Kai hesitated before shaking his head, “I’m not sure either.”
This was unprecedented! This fellow was really something.
If you want to sue, just sue – why make everything so mysterious? Are you here to litigate or to teach us prefects a lesson? Pure troublemaking! How preposterous.
Lu Gongzhu took a deep breath and asked, “What crime is he alleging?”
“Intentionally freeing the guilty.”
As he spoke, Li Kai handed the complaint document to Lu Gongzhu.
Lu Gongzhu frowned upon hearing this, “He’s seeking revenge against Magistrate Wang!”
Li Kai nodded, “That’s what I think too.”
This charge of intentionally freeing the guilty was specifically aimed at judges.
It was also an important legal concept that formed part of a comprehensive framework.
There were four related crimes: “intentionally condemning the innocent,” “intentionally freeing the guilty,” “negligently condemning the innocent,” and “negligently freeing the guilty.”
Intentionally condemning the innocent meant a judge deliberately finding an innocent person guilty, or giving an excessive sentence for a minor crime.
Intentionally freeing the guilty meant a judge deliberately finding a guilty person innocent, or giving too light a sentence.
When Wang Hong directly dismissed the Judicial Court’s conviction document, this charge could certainly apply.
“Negligently condemning the innocent” meant a judge negligently finding an innocent person guilty, or giving an excessive sentence for a minor crime.
“Negligently freeing the guilty” meant a judge negligently finding a guilty person innocent, or giving too light a sentence.
The key distinction lay in intention versus negligence, and condemning versus freeing – one was intentional, the other was negligent; one was freeing from guilt, one was condemning to guilt.
Among these, “negligently freeing the guilty” rarely resulted in punishment for judges, as it aligned with the judicial tradition that “better to let a guilty person go free than kill an innocent one.”
In other words, it was preferable to tolerate a crime than to wrong an innocent person.
Life was sacred and death irreversible. In capital cases, if judges harbored doubts about potential wrongful convictions, it indicated there were uncertainties. In such situations, not imposing the death penalty was understandable.
For “negligently condemning the innocent” – wrongfully convicting or giving excessive sentences – if it involved death penalty cases with two or more defendants, the minimum punishment was dismissal and investigation.
But cases of “intentional condemning or freeing” carried heavy penalties.
Because these were deliberate acts!
The Song Dynasty was extremely strict regarding judicial matters.
Take “intentionally condemning the innocent” for example.
The Song Code had specific provisions explaining: When officials wrongfully condemn someone, if they impose a full sentence, they shall receive the same full sentence.
The meaning was clear – if a judge deliberately sentenced an innocent person to death, that judge would be sentenced to death.
If they gave excessive sentences for minor crimes, the difference would be calculated – if someone deserved exile to a location 100 li away but was sentenced to exile 500 li away, the judge would be exiled 400 li away.
“Intentionally freeing the guilty” also carried heavy punishment, but there was a key point – judges wouldn’t deliberately free someone guilty of a serious crime without taking bribes, so this involved corruption and bribery.
But regardless, the punishment was still severe.
Therefore when Lu Gongzhu heard that Zhang Fei was charging Wang Hong with “intentionally freeing the guilty,” he knew he was trying to destroy Wang Hong – if successful, the minimum punishment would be dismissal and investigation.
“Jiawen?”
Lu Gongzhu stared at the complaint document in shock. “How did those two end up working together?”
Li Kai asked quietly, “Were you unaware?”
Seeing Lu Jiawen mentioned, he wondered if Lu Gongzhu might be the mastermind behind this.
Lu Gongzhu immediately said, “Of course I didn’t know. This won’t do – I need to find that brat and get to the bottom of this.”
He came from the Lu clan of Donglai, one of the top three great scholar-official families of the Song Dynasty.
Historical records stated: “The Lu family held state power, with four people across three generations – such prosperity among noble families was unprecedented.”
Their ancestors had already achieved the rank of Duke during the Later Tang Dynasty.
Lu Gongzhu’s father Lu Yijian was a renowned chancellor, named among the “Twenty-four Meritorious Officials of the Zhaoxun Hall.”
His eldest brother Lu Gongchuo had served as Prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture, Scholar of the Longtu Hall, and Scholar of the Imperial Military Commission.
His second brother Lu Gongbi rose to Military Affairs Commissioner during Emperor Renzong’s reign and also became chancellor.
Lu Gongzhu himself would likely become chancellor too – anyone who had served as Prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture was generally in line for the chancellorship.
This Lu Jiawen was the grandson of his eldest brother Lu Gongchuo.
One can imagine how terrifying a Lu family meeting would be.
A room full of ministers, judges, and chancellors.
Fortunately, Lu Gongbi and the others were not currently in the capital – only Lu Gongzhu remained from his generation.
Upon returning home, Lu Gongzhu summoned Lu Jiawen.
The barely twenty-year-old Lu Jiawen knelt in the hall, but showed no fear. He kept his back straight and looked directly at Lu Gongzhu seated in the main chair.
“Why did you do this?” Lu Gongzhu demanded angrily.
Lu Jiawen replied with grievance: “Does granduncle also believe I made the wrong judgment in this case?”
Lu Gongzhu snorted: “Don’t try to confuse the issue. If you felt the magistrate’s judgment was unjust, you could petition the imperial court or the Kaifeng Prefectural Office. Why did you conspire with Zhang San and file a complaint against the county office in the name of the Judicial Court?”
Lu Jiawen responded emotionally: “That’s because when I argued with Magistrate Wang, he insulted me, saying if not for my family background, I wouldn’t even qualify to be a Judicial Administrator. He used this to invalidate my judgment. Even if an appeal succeeded, they would think it was because you or my uncles were looking after me. That’s why I decided to appeal on my own.”
Lu Gongzhu’s expression softened slightly: “Why did you seek out Zhang San?”
Lu Jiawen answered: “He was the only one who dared to take this case.”
Lu Gongzhu asked again: “Then why did you file the complaint in the name of the Court of Judicial Review?”
Lu Jiawen said: “That was Zhang San’s idea. He said it would be more likely to succeed this way, since the Academician Sima is implementing judicial reforms.”
Lu Gongzhu exploded in anger: “It seems you’re not just confused, but stupid. He already told you his true intentions, yet you still agreed. Don’t you know this kind of complaint will provoke conflicts between government offices?”
Lu Jiawen replied: “I agreed not because I’m stupid, but because I also support the separation of administration and law. Take Magistrate Wang – why did he punish the pen-in-caps of the Bianjing Law Firm the other day? It was because he worried these pen-in-caps would affect his tax collection, which concerns his political achievements. But from a legal standpoint, his judgment was clearly unjust.
You often teach me that officials should be fair and strict. Though Zhang San has his own agenda, he, like me, encountered injustice. What’s wrong with seeking justice together?”
Lu Gongzhu hadn’t realized Wang Anshi was the mastermind behind this, since it benefited Sima Guang. He said: “Do you think you can win this case? The Judicial Court suing a county office – how ridiculous.”
Lu Jiawen said: “At least the Left Court hasn’t rejected my complaint.”
Lu Gongzhu frowned slightly, suddenly realizing this issue. Such an outrageous case hadn’t been rejected but was reported upward. He immediately understood and cursed inwardly, wondering where that young troublemaker came from, so skilled in political maneuvering at such a young age.
Looking at Lu Jiawen again, he asked: “If I ask you to withdraw the lawsuit, would you agree? I promise you’ll get justice.”
He agreed with Lu Jiawen’s principled stand but disagreed with this method of appeal.
Lu Jiawen said: “If granduncle’s reasoning makes sense, I will naturally obey.”
Lu Gongzhu glared: “You little rascal, you’ve only known Zhang San for a few days, but you’ve learned quite a bit of his rhetoric.”
Lu Jiawen exclaimed excitedly: “I never thought my eloquence was inferior to Zhang San’s. I just never had the chance to show it.”