Judge of the Song Dynasty

The dust had settled.

With Emperor Zhao Xu’s golden words spoken, the matter of tenant farmer law reform was basically settled.

What everyone had been worried about before was precisely Zhao Xu’s attitude.

If it had only been Xu Zun spouting off, most people wouldn’t have taken it to heart, but at this particular moment, those words were extremely sensitive.

Was it really Zhao Xu who had instructed Xu Zun to say such things?

That was the key question.

All the commotion and outcry from everyone was actually just hoping to draw Zhao Xu out to take a stance.

No one had expected that after all their calling and pleading failed to summon Zhao Xu, a newspaper would be what lured him out.

And Zhao Xu’s attitude was very clear – the court would not act in such a manner.

Everyone felt relieved. Little did they know that there were actually two triangular relationships hidden within this affair.

Zhang Fei, Xu Zun, and Sima Guang formed one triangle.

Zhang Fei, Xu Zun, and Zhao Xu formed another triangle.

What Sima Guang sought was for this change in the law to be promulgated without encountering too much resistance.

What Zhao Xu sought was this newspaper – that is, future control over public opinion.

Because Zhao Xu had also discovered from that lawsuit just how important control of public opinion was.

The popular resentment triggered by the tenant farmer affair was actually driven by public opinion.

True, the court was not clean, but the landlords were certainly no white lotus flowers either. Yet at that time, the court found itself in an extremely disadvantageous position – the landlords were clearly acting without benevolence, yet they managed to gain the upper hand in public opinion.

In the capital, this could be reversed through a lawsuit.

But what about in the localities?

A minister’s mouth was the emperor’s mouth, a minister’s eyes were the emperor’s eyes.

This gave Zhao Xu a feeling of being constrained.

And the Song Dynasty lacked the soil for cultivating organizations like the Eastern or Western Depot, the secret police agencies of the Ming dynasty run by eunuchs and controlled directly by the emperor. Because of the eunuch rebellions at the end of the Tang Dynasty, Song emperors were very wary of eunuchs. Moreover, the ancestral laws of the Song Dynasty meant that it was very difficult for eunuchs to monopolize power. Even a grand eunuch like Tong Guan was really just that – when it came to truly wielding power throughout the court and manipulating politics, it was Chancellor Cai Jing, that old man who was the leader of the six traitors. No eunuch was ever said to be able to lord over the chancellor in the entire lifespan of the Song dynasty.

This led Zhao Xu to believe he needed to have a dedicated mouthpiece among the people to speak for him, rather than relying entirely on his ministers. Of course, he had never considered relying on eunuchs either.

The newspaper strategy that Zhang Fei provided perfectly satisfied Zhao Xu’s ambitions.

However, no one had thought that this entire process would result in the birth of the press.

After the meeting ended, they were overjoyed. They believed it was the newspaper that had caused a sensation, which drew the emperor’s attention and led to this meeting.

The newspaper was just a stroke of divine inspiration.

The key was still Sima Guang’s strategic planning and unexpected victory.

The ministers showered Sima Guang with another round of rainbow flattery.

The article was written so well.

This one article had resolved everyone’s concerns – how could it not be good?

Sima Guang, the leader of the conservative faction, actually became even more firmly established because of this.

Sima Guang had not detected the understanding between Zhao Xu and Zhang Fei, because he himself felt somewhat guilty – there were underhanded dealings involved.

He very much wanted to turn this page, so he returned to the Court of Penal Review and immediately convened a meeting to continue deliberating on revising the laws on tenant farmers, hoping for a quick resolution.

He believed that after all this commotion, the timing was now ripe.

This affair had caused such a stir that if those major landlords still threatened the court by dismissing tenant farmers in the future, it would truly slap the scholar-officials in the face and prove that Xu Zun had been right all along.

Sima Guang wouldn’t even need to take action – those scholar-officials would put a stop to it themselves.

The court had already anticipated their moves, so if they still acted that way, wouldn’t that be foolish?

Although Sima Guang wanted to keep a low profile, this had already attracted the attention and vigilance of the reform faction.

“Mentor, this matter is definitely not that simple.”

After learning of the emperor’s attitude, Lu Huiqing was deeply worried. “Academician Sima’s article was filled with his political agenda throughout, and now his article is being highly praised and can mislead the people’s hearts. It must be stopped, otherwise it will be detrimental to our New Policies!”

Wang Anshi nodded and said, “I’ve thought of this too. What countermeasures do you have?”

Lu Huiqing said, “Why don’t you also write an article promoting the ideals of the New Policies, then have Zhang San help print it?”

Wang Anshi stroked his beard and shook his head, “That won’t work.”

Lu Huiqing was stunned. “Why not?”

Wang Anshi said, “No matter what, Zhang San is still just a merchant. The New Policies are a matter of national importance – how can they be controlled by merchants? The article must be written, but it cannot be published in his newspaper. It should be published in the court’s official bulletin instead.”

After a pause, he continued, “Moreover, I’ve heard that Zhang San’s newspaper sells for dozens of coins per copy. If the official bulletin could become equally popular, it would also increase revenue for the state – killing two birds with one stone.”

This man was truly remarkable. He paid no attention to his own family’s financial situation, but when considering matters for the state, he thought through every detail – even thinking of making money from selling newspapers.

Of course, this also revealed his governing philosophy: the state should control everything, including public opinion.

Lu Huiqing frowned. “But the official bulletin has to go through layers of review. I’m afraid there won’t be enough time.”

Wang Anshi said, “I will petition His Majesty to allow my article to pass through quickly.”

For Wang Anshi and his faction, their first consideration was naturally political influence. But for merchants, their first consideration was profit.

Since the newspaper was so popular, it couldn’t just disappear. That very afternoon, people from various restaurants came looking for Zhang Fei, requesting to buy more copies from him since all the ones in their shops had been taken. They also inquired whether there would be new issues tomorrow.

At the law firm.

“Zhiqian, step aside. I need to meet with clients.”

“No.”

Xu Zhiqian blocked the doorway. “Unless you promise me that the remaining two issues won’t be published.”

Zhang Fei said, “How can that work? If we’ve printed them but don’t publish them, wouldn’t that be wasting money?”

Xu Zhiqian said, “I wrote this article, so I have the right not to publish it. What you’re doing constitutes stealing. As a pen-in-cap, you can’t knowingly break the law.”

Hey! Between husband and wife, who talks about law with you? Zhang Fei stepped forward and directly lifted Xu Zhiqian up, throwing her over his shoulder. Though this woman was tall, she was as light as a cat.

“Ah! What are you doing? Put me down quickly!”

“Put you down? This is really a case of the tiger not showing its might, and you taking me for a sick cat.”

“Smack!”

Zhang Fei slapped Xu Zhiqian’s perky bottom, a gleam flashing in his eyes. Oh my, this feels quite nice – so elastic and bouncy.

Xu Zhiqian was completely stunned. No one had ever treated her this way before. She immediately exploded with fury. “Zhang San, you lecher! I won’t let you get away with this!”

As she made her threats, her hands and feet flailed about constantly.

Zhang Fei hooked the door with his foot and shut it.

“What are you doing mmph…”

An hour later.

Xu Zhiqian sat on Zhang Fei’s lap, her hands pressed against his chest, her cheeks flushed red, panting softly. “Alright, can we be reasonable now?”

Zhang Fei snorted. “Who wants to be reasonable with you? I won’t.”

“You…”

Xu Zhiqian said, “But if you do this, it will really embarrass me. This doesn’t match reality – with my meager skills, why should I be in the newspaper for those literary masters to critique? This will only make people laugh at me.”

Zhang Fei explained, “Zhiqian, don’t forget why I started this newspaper in the first place. This is an excellent opportunity – I can’t let it slip away.

Besides, don’t think too highly of yourself. I never intended to show your article to Lord Fu or Chancellor Han and the others. It won’t affect anything – it’s just adding some entertainment for everyone.”

Xu Zhiqian said, “But everyone outside is discussing my article alongside Academician Sima’s article.”

Zhang Fei patiently coaxed her, “That’s just a coincidence. When two newspapers are published together, of course it will cause discussion. Tomorrow we’ll only publish yours, and this phenomenon won’t occur.”

Xu Zhiqian still shook her head. “No, just thinking about it makes me anxious.”

She had originally just wanted to help Xu Zun and hadn’t expected it to turn out like this. It was truly too exaggerated.

Zhang Fei thought for a moment and said, “How about this – we’ll say it was my idea and you were just ghostwriting for me. Everyone knows we’ve always been in perfect harmony anyway, and you’ve been ghostwriting all my legal documents.”

“Who’s in perfect harmony with you?” Xu Zhiqian spat. “Aren’t you afraid of losing face?”

Zhang Fei said, “I’m the man who wrote ‘Is my soul not consumed? In the westerly wind that lifts the curtains, I am thinner than the yellow flowers.'”

“You must have copied that!”

“You.”

Zhang Fei gently patted her perky bottom. “Fine, fine, fine, I copied that then. Now you can finally let me go, right?”

Xu Zhiqian glared at him. “It seems like you’re the one not letting me go.”

“Huh?”

Zhang Fei was stunned for a moment and released his arms that had been embracing her. “Sorry, sorry, I couldn’t help myself.”

Xu Zhiqian stood up, tidied herself a bit, then instructed him: “You must make it clear that I was only ghostwriting.”

“I’ll definitely make it clear.”

“And another thing.”

“What else?”

“You absolutely cannot spank me again in the future!”

By the end of her words, Xu Zhiqian’s face was red as blood.

Zhang Fei looked at her delicate and alluring appearance and really didn’t want to go out to work. He suddenly pulled her over and planted a fierce kiss on her delicate, alluring red lips. “No spanking, just touching.”

As he spoke, his large hand gently squeezed once more.

Then he ran out the door.

“Ah! You scoundrel, are you trying to get yourself killed!”

Arriving at the main hall, Zhang Fei personally negotiated with Fan Zheng and the other restaurant managers, satisfying their individual needs one by one. He arranged to print additional copies of Academician Sima’s articles to supplement their supply, and promised to provide content for the second and third issues over the next two days.

The price remained unchanged.

Fan Zheng and the others were quite satisfied with this arrangement.

If asked to commit to a month’s subscription, they wouldn’t be too willing. This newspaper was selling well only because it happened to be riding this wave of controversy. Once the heat died down, who knew if it could still attract customers?

Having caught this wave of popularity was good enough.

They only saw the surface and didn’t realize that the huge success of Sima Guang’s article was not good news for the reform faction. This matter was definitely not over.

As the leader of the reform faction, Wang Anshi was also brilliantly talented. Throughout history, those whose articles could be mentioned in the same breath as his were truly rare as phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

With Sima Guang launching an attack from this angle, Wang Anshi could not possibly remain indifferent.

The advantage was his.

That very afternoon, he finished writing an article that ostensibly discussed current politics but was actually propaganda for the Corvee Labor Law and the Balanced Delivery Policy.

That evening, when Emperor Zhao Xu summoned him for consultation, he showed the article to the emperor.

Emperor Zhao Xu was absolutely delighted with it. Every sentence hit the mark, the analysis was extremely thorough, and there wasn’t a single superfluous word. Reading through it was such a pleasure that he sincerely praised: “Your talent could only be matched by Guan Zhong and Han Yu working together.”

What Emperor Zhao Xu was implying was clear: Guan Zhong was a genius at governance during the Spring and Autumn Period but his literary talent was inferior to yours; Han Yu was an excellent essayist of the Tang dynasty but was not as good as you at governing the country. Only by combining the two could they compete with you. Thᴇ link to the origɪn of this information rᴇsts ɪn NoveI★Fire.net

This was truly the highest praise.

Wang Anshi also had an extremely competitive spirit and shamelessly asked: “How does it compare to Sima Guang’s article?”

In the great hall, you praised Sima Guang so much—well, that would naturally make one jealous. We are the true confidants.

Emperor Zhao Xu was taken aback and said: “Although Academician Sima is also brilliantly talented, compared to you, he still falls somewhat short.”

Reasonable!

Only then was Wang Anshi satisfied. He said: “I won’t hide it from Your Majesty—actually, I don’t necessarily want to compete with Sima Guang. I wrote this article mainly to promote my new laws.”

Emperor Zhao Xu immediately understood. He had also noticed that Sima Guang’s article contained much hidden agenda, so he said: “You want to print this article in the newspaper?”

Wang Anshi said: “I want to publish it in the official bulletin.”

Emperor Zhao Xu was surprised and asked: “Why?”

Wang Anshi said: “Your Majesty has already decided on reform, so the new laws naturally represent the imperial court. Publishing in the official bulletin would be more appropriate.”

Sima Guang’s article only represented his personal views; mine represents the court—it’s different.

Emperor Zhao Xu nodded and said: “We shall do as you suggest.”

Wang Anshi’s face lit up with joy. “Thank you, Your Majesty.”

Emperor Zhao Xu suddenly asked: “By the way, I summoned you today because I wanted to discuss with you the candidate for acting prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture.”

Upon hearing this, Wang Anshi felt a great weight lift from his heart. The Tax Affairs Bureau had been established without his input, which had made him somewhat uneasy. Now that the emperor was actively consulting him about the candidate for acting prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture, this undoubtedly proved that Zhao Xu still supported him as consistently as before.

However, he really hadn’t thought about this matter before. At the time, he had assumed Zhao Xu had other plans. After thinking for a long while, he said: “I believe Zeng Gong could be competent for this position.”

There really were no mediocrities in this era. Zeng Gong was one of the Eight Great Prose Masters of the Tang and Song dynasties, who had befriended Wang Anshi through literature. Their friendship was very strong.

In history, Lu Gongzhu would later turn to support Sima Guang, but Zeng Gong was quite supportive of Wang Anshi. The key point was that Zeng Gong was not only brilliantly talented but also exceptionally capable.

Zhao Xu’s eyes lit up, and he nodded repeatedly, saying: “Although Lord Zeng’s qualifications might be slightly lacking, he has served multiple times as a judicial aide and is renowned for his thorough knowledge of laws and regulations and his appropriate sentencing. He is indeed an excellent choice.”

Zeng Gong was currently serving as Vice-Prefect in Yue Prefecture and had never been a prefect before. By normal standards, he couldn’t be directly promoted to acting prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture. However, now that the judicial system had gained prominence and become increasingly crucial, the acting prefect of Kaifeng Prefecture absolutely had to be thoroughly versed in law.

Zeng Gong’s accomplishments in legal matters were widely renowned. Based on this point, Zhao Xu felt this candidate was excellent.

Of course, he was mainly using this to appease Wang Anshi, to prove that he still supported him.

He was also afraid that the matter with the Tax Affairs Bureau would cause Wang Anshi to misunderstand.