Judge of the Song Dynasty

The arrival of Cao Dongdong and Ma Xiaoyi suddenly made Zhang Fei think that maybe this lawsuit could solve his current financial difficulties.

In fact, he had considered this issue long ago. If those wealthy people were not afraid of the law, then pen-in-caps could not make a lot of money.

Even when they wanted to evade or avoid taxes, they didn’t seek help from pen-in-caps.

It was simply unreasonable.

Too shameless.

He needed to carefully consider how to handle this lawsuit and make sure they felt the pain, without showing any mercy.

In the evening.

“Ah!”

As Zhang Fei stepped out of the shop, he stretched lazily.

Before he could finish stretching, Long Wu had already driven a carriage to Zhang Fei’s side. One word.

Professional!

Just as Zhang Fei was about to get in the carriage, Long Wu suddenly said, “Brother San, there are a lot more watchers around today.”

Zhang Fei instinctively looked around nervously, “Could there be any danger to my life?”

He was truly scared of being ambushed.

Long Wu replied, “No.”

Zhang Fei asked, “How do you know?”

Long Wu said, “I observed them earlier, they are just keeping an eye on things.”

“…?”

Zhang Fei breathed a slight sigh of relief but suddenly remembered Long Wu having the fighting skills of a fierce housewife. It had left him shaken and with the tense atmosphere outside, Long Wu seemed unreliable. He asked again, “Long Wu, tell me the truth, are you really skilled?”

Long Wu asked, “What do you mean by skilled?”

Zhang Fei, in a tone of despair, said, “I mean someone who is very good at martial arts.”

Long Wu thought for a moment and then shook his head, “I don’t know if I count, I haven’t encountered anyone very skilled in martial arts.”

Zhang Fei said, “Doesn’t Big Niu count?”

Long Wu immediately shook his head.

Zhang Fei asked again, “Then, how many Big Nius can you fight?”

Long Wu said, “I probably can’t beat him, I’m not good at fighting, I’m only good at killing and saving people.”

“…!”

Zhang Fei wiped his sweat, “Then how many Big Nius can you kill?”

Long Wu seriously thought for a while and said, “More than ten.”

Zhang Fei blinked, “Alright, I’ll trust you one more time.”

When they got home, just as Zhang Fei got off the carriage, he happened to meet Xu Zhiqian, who had just returned from outside as well.

“How are things on your end?”

Zhang Fei asked Xu Zhiqian.

Xu Zhiqian said gloomily, “They didn’t give me a good reception, citing their busy schedules and told me to go home and wait for news.”

Today, she had gone to the Bureau of Records to submit a list of pen-in-caps who were able to provide legal aid services.

But the Bureau of Records suddenly changed their attitude, saying they needed to wait a little longer.

Zhang Fei knew the reason and encouraged, “Just think of it as a blessing in disguise.”

Xu Zhiqian nodded helplessly.

It seemed the situation at the imperial court was not good. Zhang Fei said, “Let’s go to your house first. I want to ask father-in-law about the current state of the court.”

The two went straight to the Xu family house and waited for a while until Xu Zun returned.

“Don’t bother with it for now, it’s still uncertain!” Xu Zun said, waving his hand even before Zhang Fei could ask.

Zhang Fei asked, “Are many people opposed?”

Xu Zun smiled bitterly, “More than you can imagine!”

Zhang Fei just nodded.

Was it really beyond his imagination?

He had anticipated it would be difficult from the start, so he was already planning to play dirty with the pamphlets.

And it was true.

At first, those officials thought that it didn’t matter if they went to court, thinking it would definitely be beneficial for them.

But the result was shocking.

In the pursuit of basic fairness, they used all kinds of means, even sending the most powerful legal think tanks.

But it was all in vain.

Apart from losing face, they gained nothing.

Even the magistrate of Kaifeng County was exiled to Qiongzhou.

This time, they were determined not to fight this lawsuit.

Whoever did would be a fool.

Don’t even think about it.

Although in the Hall of Delegated Rule, the emperor and several state councilors had reached a consensus to let the judiciary decide.

But many officials immediately submitted memorials, impeaching Wang Anshi and trying to stop the lawsuit.

The reason was that the accused were people who had always followed the court’s decrees and laws, and although Wang Anshi’s complaint had nothing to do with the collecting back taxes, everyone knew it was just an excuse.

Those people were relatively forthcoming in paying taxes because the court promised to forgive past offenses; now the court was going back on its word, showing no trust, which would affect the court’s credibility.

Within two days, two large boxes of memorials were submitted, even from retired officials at home, all addressing Emperor Zhao Xu, expressing that this course of action was absolutely unacceptable.

In the study.

“Lord Wang, these are the memorials submitted over the past two days. I have only read a few, but they all oppose allowing the Kaifeng Prefectural Office to handle this case,” Zhao Xu said, pointing to the two large boxes, addressing Wang Anshi.

Wang Anshi cast a dismissive glance at the boxes.

Zhao Xu asked, “What is your opinion?”

Wang Anshi sneered, “Your Majesty, the more they oppose, the less you should agree.”

Zhao Xu questioned, “Why is that?”

Wang Anshi replied, “The answer lies within their own memorials.”

Zhao Xu inquired, “What do you mean by that?”

Wang Anshi explained, “Currently, their power is not fully established, so the discontent this case causes among the people is manageable. However, if the imperial court allows them to continue consolidating land and turning commoners into tenant farmers unchecked, the wealth of the nation will end up in their hands. If Your Majesty dares to tax them, the resulting public outcry might be beyond your control. Your Majesty would be forced to tax the commoners, leading to more people becoming tenant farmers and further strengthening their power. They would be able to bestow minor favors to the people using Your Majesty’s grace, while Your Majesty’s grace would come from public discontent. Your Majesty would be toiling in vain to benefit them. Not even an ordinary person would do something so foolish, let alone a ruler.”

Hearing this, Zhao Xu frowned and nodded slightly.

Wang Anshi continued, “Your Majesty, they accuse me of acting out of personal vendetta and being overly meticulous, don’t they?”

Zhao Xu was momentarily stunned and then nodded slightly.

Wang Anshi smiled, “They could always bring a legal charge against me in Kaifeng Prefecture. Their scheming behind the scenes is far from the conduct of a gentleman.”

Zhao Xu smiled faintly, “There’s no need for that. I will ignore their complaints and issue an edict for the Kaifeng Prefectural Office to expedite the trial of this case.”

Wang Anshi’s straightforwardness made it clear to Zhao Xu.

This cannot stand.

I’m the one who offends the common people while you benefit and gain their reliance.

Who is truly working for whom?

After Wang Anshi left, Zhao Xu immediately drafted an edict, ordering the Kaifeng Prefectural Office to expedite the trial.

But before the ink had dried, memorials from the three old chancellors, Fu Bi, Han Qi, and Zeng Gongliang, arrived one after another.

Their memorials were similar in content, conveying the same message.

Judicial action can achieve temporary justice but does not address the root cause of the issue. Only policy can resolve the problem.

If Zhao Xu had a policy, they would support using the lawsuit to establish authority. Without it, it would be counterproductive.

This made Zhao Xu hesitate once more.

The three chancellors were unlikely to collude, yet they all expressed this concern.

Clearly, there was merit to their argument.

Filing this lawsuit might force them to pay some taxes, but it would not solve the problem of regarding tenant farmers.

Landowners could always shift the tax burden onto the tenant farmers.

The same issue would arise next year, and would you file another lawsuit?

Without a solution, you would only end up offending people and expending significant political capital without resolving the issue, which is not worthwhile.

At this moment, Zhao Xu thought of someone—Zhang Fei.

Zhang Fei had previously mentioned this issue and proposed a solution: focus on commerce before agriculture, temporarily neglect this matter, and shift the focus to commerce. Later, they could address the agricultural issues.

But this was not an overnight task.

“Make arrangements for me to leave the palace,” Zhao Xu suddenly instructed the eunuch beside him.

The eunuch asked, “Is Your Majesty going to the Zhang residence?”

Zhao Xu nodded.

The eunuch said, “The Capital Security Office sent word that many people are watching Zhang San.”

“Is that so?” Zhao Xu snorted, “It seems they are truly determined this time!”

After pondering for a while, he added, “Send a message to Xu Zun, instructing him to bring Zhang San to the palace tomorrow.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

The next day.

Xu Zun found an excuse to have Zhang Fei deliver a document to the Court of Judicial Review. Once out of sight, Zhao Xu’s men took Zhang Fei to meet Zhao Xu.

“Zhang San, I believe you have the qualities of a chancellor!” Zhao Xu said, smiling as they met.

Zhang Fei’s heart skipped a beat, and he said nervously, “Your Majesty, if you have any requests, just say them directly. There’s no need to be so formal with a commoner like me.”

Zhao Xu was taken aback and asked, “I praised you, so why are you so frightened?”

Zhang Fei replied sheepishly, “Your sudden praise scares a commoner like me.”

Zhao Xu chuckled, “You misunderstood.”

He then informed Zhang Fei about the memorial submitted by Fu Bi, Han Qi, and Zeng Gongliang and said with a smile, “You see, their concerns are the same as what you anticipated, which is why I said you have the qualities of a chancellor.”

“So that’s what it is.”

Zhang Fei wiped his sweat and asked, “Is this the reason you summoned me today?”

Zhao Xu nodded, “I’m in a difficult position. Your strategy is good, but it can’t solve the immediate problem. If we don’t pursue this lawsuit, it will embolden them. But if we do, is it worth it?”

With so much opposition, even if he insisted on proceeding, it would come at a high political cost. Any mistake, and he would bear the blame. He had to consider if it was worth it.

This was truly a heaven-sent opportunity. Zhang Fei’s eyes shifted, and he said, “I think Lord Fu and the others don’t understand the law, which is why they said that.” Thɪs chapter is updated by nοvelfire.net

These three don’t understand the law?

Zhao Xu wanted to tell him he was just joking when he compared Zhang Fei with the chancellors.

He asked, “And yet you understand the law?”

Zhang Fei chuckled, “A little.”

Seeing Zhang Fei’s relaxed demeanor, Zhao Xu became hopeful, “What ideas do you have? Tell me quickly.”

Zhang Fei said, “Lord Fu and Lord Han only considered the political costs but not the costs of breaking the law, so their argument is completely wrong.”

Zhao Xu asked in confusion, “The costs of breaking the law?”

“Yes!”

Zhang Fei said, “Currently, these big landlords don’t even bother to hide their tax evasion. If we win this lawsuit, they won’t be so blatant and will find other ways to avoid taxes.”

Zhao Xu said speechlessly, “You also said they would still evade taxes, just with more effort. This doesn’t solve the problem.”

Zhang Fei said helplessly, “Your Majesty, it’s human nature. Even the common people would evade taxes if they could. Given our current situation, it’s almost impossible to stop it.”

Zhao Xu asked again, “Then what’s the point of this lawsuit?”

Zhang Fei said, “To let them know the law can punish them.”

Zhao Xu looked at Zhang Fei, still not understanding.

Zhang Fei explained, “Once they know this, they will find legal ways to avoid taxes. Transferring the tax burden to tenant farmers is a form of legal tax avoidance, but it has a flaw—the landlords can’t completely distance themselves because the tax is tied to the land.”

“If we can’t stop it, why not provide a legal method for them to avoid taxes?”

Zhao Xu was puzzled, “If we let them legally avoid taxes, why would I need your solution?”

Simply letting people not pay taxes was easy.

Zhang Fei hurriedly said, “Your Majesty, hear me out. There’s no free lunch. If the imperial court allows legal tax avoidance, they must give something back to the imperial court.”

Zhao Xu shook his head repeatedly, “If they were willing to give back, it wouldn’t have come to this.”

Zhang Fei said, “This lawsuit can force them to consider a compromise. Then, we can use Academician Sima’s idea of ‘preserving wealth amongst the people’ to negotiate this deal.”