Chapter 190: Learning on the Spot
“You’ve asked your questions, but I haven’t even answered yet. You’re deliberately wronging me!”
Inexperienced in litigation, Lu Jiawen anxiously stood up and started arguing with Fan Chunren.
He wanted to reason with him.
It wasn’t fair that after Fan spoke, he wouldn’t let Lu speak.
How was this any different from framing someone?
Fan Chunren seemed to see his past self in Lu Jiawen. Instead of mocking him, he gave him a paternal look suggesting he should remain calm.
The court recorder glanced at Zhao Bian.
Zhao Bian, being experienced, shook his head to indicate Lu Jiawen’s words needn’t be recorded, then struck his gavel and called, “Silence!”
“I-!”
Lu Jiawen looked at Zhao Bian, then turned to Zhang Fei with an aggrieved expression. “Sit, sit, sit, sit!”
Zhang Fei nodded with a smile.
Lu Jiawen sat back down, his inexperienced face flushed red.
The key was that he wasn’t stupid – he knew how important this question was.
Although court was in session, whether this case could actually proceed wasn’t yet settled. Emperor Zhao Xu hadn’t even specifically discussed this matter in a meeting, he had merely approved their request.
Zhao Xu had clearly left himself room to maneuver.
If Lu was deemed to be acting out of revenge, the court would certainly not allow such incidents to happen again.
Because it could become a means for subordinates to seek revenge against their superiors.
This would have very negative implications.
Lu Gongzhu could only shake his head and console himself that it was good for the young man to suffer a bit.
“Remonstrator Fan has improved quite a bit!”
Xu Zhiqian turned and whispered.
Zhang Fei smiled and said, “He learned this move last time, but he’s using it more skillfully now.”
Seeing the young man still chatting with the lady, Zhao Bian frowned and called, “Zhang San.”
“Present.”
Zhang Fei stood up and first quietly said to Xu Zhiqian, “Document one.” Then he looked at Lu Jiawen, seeing how his previous arrogance had transformed into the demeanor of an aggrieved wife.
His smile faded as he asked seriously, “Judicial Administrator Lu, did you know Geng Ming before this case?”
“No, I didn’t!”
Lu Jiawen shook his head.
Zhang Fei asked again, “Were you aware of this person?”
Lu Jiawen shook his head and said, “No.”
Zhang Fei continued, “As Magistrate Wang’s subordinate, were you aware of how he typically managed his subordinates?”
Lu Jiawen answered, “Very strictly.”
Zhang Fei said, “Was it worth defying your superior for a commoner you’d never met, especially given how strictly this superior managed his subordinates?”
Xu Zhiqian’s eyes lit up, and she glanced smugly at Fan Chunren across from her. Seeing Fan deep in thought, she mused that he couldn’t win if he was only learning as he went along.
Han Qi whispered, “It seems Chunren is still a step behind!”
Fu Bi nodded slightly.
The comparison made the difference clear.
While Fan Chunren was using rules to his advantage, Zhang Fei’s questions were more logical.
Lu Jiawen seemed to be holding back anger: “My duty isn’t to curry favor with superiors, but to review cases and determine sentences according to the law.”
Zhang Fei nodded and continued, “But did you examine whether Magistrate Wang’s verdict had merit, or were you simply dissatisfied because he rejected your judgment?”
Lu Jiawen immediately replied, “Of course I examined it. But Magistrate Wang claimed that the tax receipts provided by Geng Ming were insufficient evidence. However, in the Judicial Court’s opinion, those were crucial evidence proving that Geng Ming was forced to pay much more tax than required.”
The commoners outside the door nodded repeatedly.
Although they weren’t clear on the specific details of the case, such situations were all too familiar to them.
Zhang Fei nodded and asked, “In such situations, what does your Court usually do?”
Lu Jiawen said, “We either follow the magistrate’s decision, appeal to the Kaifeng Prefectural Office, or report it to the Superintendent’s Office.”
Zhang Fei continued, “But you didn’t choose to appeal to Kaifeng Prefecture or report to the Superintendent’s Office. Instead, you filed a complaint with the Left Court. Why?”
Lu Jiawen replied, “I originally planned to appeal to Kaifeng Prefecture, but Magistrate Wang’s words made me decide to file with the Left Court instead.”
Zhang Fei asked, “Which words?”
Lu Jiawen answered, “As mentioned earlier, Magistrate Wang questioned my judgment by saying that without family connections, I couldn’t even qualify as a clerk. Since my granduncle happens to be the Prefect of Kaifeng, I worried Magistrate Wang would dispute an appeal there. So I wanted to prove my ability by filing the complaint on my own merits.”
“I see.”
Zhang Fei nodded, reaching down as Xu Zhiqian immediately handed him a document.
Zhang Fei held up the document and said, “These are Lu Jiawen’s previous judgments from the Judicial Court.”
Fan Chunren immediately challenged, “What does this have to do with this case?”
Zhang Fei replied, “Whether Lu Jiawen is qualified for this position is crucial to this case, since Magistrate Wang questioned his competence. Therefore, I must prove this point.”
Zhao Bian nodded slightly and said, “Indeed, if Lu Jiawen was incompetent and made frequent mistakes, causing Magistrate Wang to distrust him, this would be very relevant to this case.”
Zhang Fei continued, “A Judicial Administrator’s duty is to interpret law and determine sentences. This requires highly specialized knowledge. Many officials couldn’t handle this work without careful study of criminal law. I believe Your Honor understands this better than I do.”
Zhao Bian gave a slight nod.
Zhang Fei went on, “Though Lu Jiawen is young and seems inexperienced, his recent legal judgments prove he is absolutely qualified for this position. Moreover, every case he ruled on was approved by Magistrate Wang, showing the magistrate was well aware of Lu Jiawen’s capabilities.”
Zhao Bian said, “Present the evidence.”
A clerk immediately came forward to deliver the document.
When it came to case experience and expertise, Zhao Bian was impartial and began reviewing the document seriously.
“Have some tea first!”
After Zhang Fei sat down, Xu Zhiqian promptly poured him a cup of tea.
Zhang Fei took the tea and smiled, “Chancellor Zhao seems old-fashioned, but who knew he’d be so thoughtful, preparing tea without us even asking.”
Xu Zhiqian quickly said, “Chancellor Zhao used to be famous for his impartiality.”
“Really?”
Zhang Fei said, “Last time he was vocally opposed to us.”
Xu Zhiqian whispered, “That was about reforms, not a criminal case.”
Zhang Fei nodded, “That’s true.”
Meanwhile, Fan Chunren and Qian Yi were quietly discussing on the side.
“That kid always thinks several steps ahead of us. This won’t do!”
Just from the first question, Qian Yi realized there was still a gap between Fan Chunren and Zhang Fei.
Fan Chunren said, “We can only learn as we go.”
Qian Yi worried, “Will that work? If we don’t learn well, we’d be better off sticking to the plan.”
Fan Chunren confidently replied, “This is where we censors and remonstrators excel.”
They never followed scripts, usually improvising instead.
Qian Yi nodded slightly and added, “It’s a pity we only prepared Magistrate Wang’s case records. Otherwise, we’d be more convincing.”
Fan Chunren sighed, “Indeed! Next time we get a chance, we should prepare more documents.”
Lu Huiqing glanced at Wang Anshi, seeing him staring at Lu Jiawen, and said, “Teacher, don’t worry about Lu Jiawen-“
Before he could finish, Wang Anshi said, “That seat is unbearable.”
“What?”
Lu Huiqing asked in bewilderment.
Wang Anshi said, “Look at the kid. When he first sat down, he was so confident and excited. After just one question, he’s deflated. Next time, I’d rather be a pen-in-cap than sit there. It’s too frightening.”
Lu Huiqing nodded with an embarrassed smile and fell silent.
After a while, Zhao Bian put the documents aside and said, “Lu Jiawen is absolutely qualified to serve as Judicial Administrator.”
Lu Gongzhu, sitting nearby, couldn’t help but smile.
Winning the point through a competent work record was acceptable too.
Fan Chunren stood up again and asked Lu Jiawen, “Judicial Administrator Lu, you mentioned earlier that Magistrate Wang is strict as an official, but what do you think of his case-handling abilities?”
Xu Zhiqian smiled, “He’s learning on the spot!”
Zhang Fei laughed, “He’d still need to face me in court a hundred times.”
Lu Jiawen answered, “In my view, Magistrate Wang is mediocre in handling cases.”
This stupid kid. Lu Gongzhu had a headache. Who would dare to be your superior if you talk like this?
Fan Chunren said, “So that’s why he strongly agreed with your previous judgments.”
Lu Jiawen declared firmly, “That’s only because my judgments were correct.”
Zhao Bian kept shaking his head.
Zhang Fei looked at Fan Chunren in surprise, trying hard not to laugh.
Xu Zhiqian frowned and asked quietly, “Didn’t you brief him?”
Zhang Fei said, “Of course I did, but he wouldn’t listen.”
Xu Zhiqian asked, “Why?”
Zhang Fei smiled bitterly, “He said he couldn’t lie in court.”
“What does that mean?”
“He genuinely looks down on Wang Hong’s judicial knowledge.”
“What can we do about this?”
Xu Zhiqian said worriedly, “How could Magistrate Wang become the county magistrate if he truly lacked ability? People will easily find flaws in this argument.”
Zhang Fei chuckled secretly and said, “This is a good bait.”
Xu Zhiqian asked curiously, “What do you mean?”
Zhang Fei explained, “If it were me, I would emphasize Wang Hong’s governance abilities while deliberately downplaying his judicial skills. This way, we can be flexible on this issue.”
Xu Zhiqian blinked, suddenly understanding. “I get it now.”
Zhang Fei smiled, “I originally wanted Lu Jiawen to emphasize Wang Hong’s impressive abilities, but this kid refused no matter what. Since this issue wouldn’t affect the big picture, I didn’t force him. Who knew Remonstrator Fan would actually help our cause? Heh, looks like Remonstrator Fan has fallen into our trap.”
Xu Zhiqian smiled subtly and looked toward Fan Chunren.
Fan Chunren seemed unaware and continued his attack on Lu Jiawen, asking, “But why did he overturn your verdict this time?”
Lu Jiawen answered, “Because he wanted to protect Wei Yushan.”
Fan Chunren said, “According to what you just said, Wei Yushan also submitted a complaint to Kaifeng County against Geng Ming at that time.”
Lu Jiawen nodded.
Fan Chunren asked, “How did Magistrate Wang rule on that?”
Lu Jiawen snorted, “Wei Yushan’s complaint was absolutely-!”
Fan Chunren cut him off, “Just answer me, how did Magistrate Wang rule at the time?”
Lu Jiawan said, “Magistrate Wang dismissed both cases due to insufficient evidence.”
“I have no further questions.”
Fan Chunren sat down.
“The warm-up is over.”
Zhang Fei stood up: “I request that Your Honor call defendant Magistrate Wang Hong to testify.”
Zhao Bian nodded and said, “Judicial Administrator Lu, you may step down and rest for now. If there are any questions, this court will summon you again.”
“This subordinate takes his leave.”
Lu Jiawen stood up and bowed, and as he passed by Zhang Fei, he complained, “This is so boring.”
Zhang Fei gave him a cool glance, thinking to himself: You’re just a tool, not the main character – don’t you have any self-awareness?