After several days of selection by Cai Jing, it was finally determined that 200 officials would attend the trial.
Judging from this number of people, it can be seen that the imperial court is also eager to raise the bar and at the same time give more people the opportunity to watch the trial, because this lawsuit is a very important publicity for the imperial court.
However, this kind of publicity must target the right people, and they must be officials who have a vital interest in the case. Officials like He Chunlin, if they come to observe the trial, they will only occupy a quota, which is of little significance.
He is not within this range, and he will not care about your judgment.
During this period, Zhang Fei was not idle either. He, Xu Zhiqian, Cai Bian and others had been preparing information. From this matter, the imperial court was also divided into internal and external affairs. Cai Jing was specifically responsible for foreign affairs and no longer followed them to study every day.
law.
But having said that, for Zhang Fei and the civil and military officials, this lawsuit has really gone through many twists and turns.
It's different from what everyone expected.
This was not Zhang Fei's original plan. In his plan, the trial was already overdue, and he was forced into this.
This is really a matter of fate.
finally.
The court session finally came today.
But not in bitter anticipation, but in fear.
In fact, the concerns of Su Che, Cai Bian and others were unfounded. The imperial court indeed paid a political cost in this struggle.
Both civil and military officials were full of distrust of the imperial court.
If possible, they would rather continue to quarrel than argue about right and wrong in the imperial court.
But there is no way, this is the order of the emperor and the political hall.
Although some officials have quickly sent the memorial to impeach Zhang Fei to the capital, but so far, the court has not given any response.
Both sides can only bite the bullet and go to trial.
The door leading directly to the imperial court was opened again at the fourth watch.
The people who were going to be heard today were all the leaders of the Hezhong Mansion and could not be offended. Wei Yingfang thought that since they had already given in anyway, it would be better to give in to the end.
The key is, if you keep that door closed, you will still go when you need to go. People won't blame Zhang Fei, they will definitely blame them.
It's totally thankless.
Today's court session is still set at Chen hour. This is also because there are many elderly people attending the trial today. If the court session starts too early, there is still a fear that they will not get enough rest.
But judging from the results, this is completely unnecessary.
Not long after the genius came to light, the courtyard of the imperial court was already overcrowded with people, including general envoys, xuanfu envoys, magistrates, county magistrates, qiaoju, commanding envoys, etc.
It's like a feast.
At first glance, there are no two camps of civil and military forces as imagined. Everyone is enjoying themselves.
You must know that almost all of these officials are veterans. Although this case involves a civil and military dispute and they are secretly competing with each other, on the surface, everyone still has a good conversation when they meet.
There was no hint of hostility at all.
"Wang Jinglue."
Cai Yanqing came up behind a middle-aged man about forty years old and shouted abruptly.
The man turned around and said with a hearty smile: "Who do I think you are? It turns out to be Brother Zhong Yuan, polite, polite."
This person's name is Wang Shao, and he currently serves as the military envoy of Qin Feng Road. However, his power is not limited to Qin Feng Road. He can be regarded as the chief of staff of the northwest war situation, because in the first year of Xining, he proposed the "Pingrong Policy" to Shenzong.
He was a proper landlord and war faction in the DPRK, so he was naturally highly regarded by Zhao Xu.
Currently, he is in charge of the Hehuang area, which is the frontline battle layout.
Cai Yanqing chuckled: "I didn't expect you to come too."
"I will inevitably have to deal with this imperial court in the future, why don't you give it a try?"
Wang Shao smiled lightly, but then said: "But this time I am really lucky to have Brother Zhong Yuan, otherwise, I might not be able to make it in time."
Cai Yanqing smiled and said: "You are mocking me!"
Wang Shao said in a low voice: "I am very curious as to what method that boy used to irritate Brother Zhong Yuan, who has always been indifferent to emotions and anger, to such a situation."
Cai Yanqing sighed: "This person can't help himself in official circles!"
Wang Shao immediately glanced at Wei Yingfang and said with a smile: "I see."
Cai Yanqing suddenly asked in a low voice: "By the way, what do you think of this imperial court?"
Wang Shao looked around and whispered: "Brother Zhong Yuan should think about why the government wants this imperial court to hear this case."
Cai Yanqing narrowed his eyes and said uncertainly: "To raise a general?"
A strange smile appeared on Wang Shao's lips: "Originally, I thought so too, but when I learned about what happened during this period, I realized that it might be more than that. Whether it was for General Zhong or Magistrate Lu, the officials sent someone with
Just let officials who think the same as you think come to the trial. The situation will definitely be better than now, so why go to all the trouble and cause complaints."
Cai Yanqing said: "So the officials want to change the current civil and military system?"
Wang Shao nodded.
Cai Yanqing couldn't help but wonder: "But can it succeed?"
Wang Shao smiled and said: "Then you have to ask Brother Zhongyuan. I just came here and I haven't seen President Zhang yet."
Cai Yanqing sighed: "It's hard to say! Although the previous lawsuits were all unique and exciting, President Zhang's character is really weird, and his behavior is different from that of all officials, making it hard to figure out.
, and the relationship between civil and military forces is extremely complicated and not easy to judge."
Wang Shao nodded and said: "Since the official sent him here, he must be outstanding, but I believe that no one in the world can guarantee whether he can truly handle the complex relationship between civil and military affairs."
"Wei Tongpan, you have been an official for so many years, why are you still fighting with a boy?"
An old man in his fifties, with black and white beard and hair, smiled and said to Wei Yingfang.
Wei Yingfang said sarcastically: "It makes Magistrate Lu laugh, but Wei actually doesn't want to, it's actually President Zhang!"
"Is it too much to bully someone?" the old man chuckled.
Wei Yingfang asked in astonishment: "Prefect Lu already knows about this?"
The old man smiled and said: "Stop complaining, that kid Li Kai, the general judge of Kaifeng Mansion, was forced to burn incense and pray for blessings."
Wei Yingfang was shocked and said: "Really?"
The old man chuckled and said, "My third brother is almost going to burn incense."
"!"
Wei Yingfang was immediately stunned.
This old man's name is Lu Gongru, and he currently serves as the magistrate of Jingzhao Prefecture (Jingzhao Prefecture is Chang'an, and the Northern Song Dynasty still continued the name of the Tang Dynasty), and who his third brother is is the current Prime Minister Lu Gongru.
At that time, Mr. Lu was also very worried about Zhang Fei. When he was writing letters to his younger brother, he had to share such a big interesting story with his younger brother.
At this time, Yuan Jiang came over and shouted: "Lu Zhiqing."
"Brother Hou."
Lu Gongru quickly bowed his hands.
Yuan Jiang smiled and said: "I didn't expect that even you would come all the way to watch the trial."
Lu Gongru chuckled and said: "There is no way. Maybe it won't take long before the public prosecutor and the procuratorate will go to Jingzhao Mansion. I want to ask for advice."
Yuan Jiang smiled and said: "The experience is unspeakably painful!"
Lu Gongru said: "But it's not difficult for brother Hou. The method of salt debt is really wonderful."
Yuan Jiang's face turned slightly red, "Where! Where!"
There were five or six burly middle-aged men standing in the corridor, they were Zhong Ji, Yao Si, Zhe Jizu, Qin Zhongshou and others.
At this time, they were complaining around an old man.
"Ms. Guo, so long has passed since this case, but they are still unwilling to give up. If this continues, the morale of the army will be unstable, and how can they win the war?"
Zhongjie sighed.
The old man stroked his beard and smiled and said: "Why don't you think so? It is precisely because this situation is not good for the morale of the military that the officials decided to set up this military court to be responsible for hearing this case."
This old man's name is Guo Kui, a famous commander-in-chief in the Northern Song Dynasty, but he is as famous as Di Qing. He is currently serving as the Xuanfu envoy of Shaanxi. He is very famous in this generation and is known as Guo Xianggong.
Zhe Jizu said: "But it doesn't look like it. What President Zhang did is very outrageous. How can such an official try the case fairly? I'm afraid it will get worse as the trial goes on!"
Guo Kui nodded with a smile and said: "I have heard about the battle between the imperial court and the government, but the verdicts in the first two lawsuits are said to be good, so don't think too much about it, let's take a look before talking."
Yao Si suddenly said: "We have been standing here for half an hour, but there is no trace of the master. He is really arrogant!"
Guo Kui frowned slightly and said nothing.
This seems a bit excessive.
At this moment, the owner Zhang Fei was sitting leisurely by the lake, enjoying a delicious breakfast with his two lovely wives.
Of course, only he is leisurely.
Xu Zhiqian was really restless and said: "Zhang San, I heard that Mr. Lu Xiaoxian, Mr. Guo, and Wang Jinglue are all here. Don't you go out to entertain them?"
Zhang Fei laughed and said: "Zhi Qian, you have only been the chief clerk for a few days, how come you have learned so badly? This kind of officialdom entertainment is really easy to do!"
Xu Zhiqian said angrily: "Isn't this basic etiquette?"
Zhang Fei snorted: "This is a lawsuit, not a banquet. The key is that I didn't invite them, they applied for the review themselves."
Xu Zhiqian said: "You forgot that when we were having a lawsuit in Kaifeng Mansion, Magistrate Lu also had to come out to entertain us."
In fact, she didn't know much about this. To put it bluntly, Xu Zun had never encountered such a grand situation. A lawsuit had attracted officials from all over Shaanxi Road.
She had no experience, but the official etiquette was very important. In her memory, Lu Gongzhu was also the chief judge at the time and also came out to greet the guests.
Now there are a group of gentlemen outside, and you are sitting here having breakfast.
Fortunately, you can still afford it.
Yes! Old Lu also came forward to entertain us at the beginning. Zhang Fei was stunned for a moment, but shook his head and smiled: "That's different. Magistrate Lu has a good relationship with them. I don't even know them, and so many things happened in the middle. If I want to go out, besides being embarrassed, I will still be embarrassed, and it may be even worse."
Xu Zhiqian nodded immediately. Zhang Fei's mouth was so scary, and said: "You are right, it's better not to go."
After leisurely breakfast, Zhang Fei saw that the time was about the same, so he ordered Li Si to inform Cai Jing and ask Cai Jing to invite the guests to the military imperial court.
Xu Zhiqian prepared the copywriting required by Zhang Fei.
And he continued to sit here, chatting with Gao Wenyin, but Gao Wenyin was also infected by Xu Zhiqian, and she was also absent-minded.
Over there, Cai Jing invited all the civil servants and military officers to a valley northwest of the imperial court. They could still hear the sound of spring water hitting rocks. It was really beautiful mountains and clear waters, and the scenery was pleasant.
But I saw that a court bench had been set up at the entrance of the valley, with rows of benches and long tables placed on both sides.
"Oh, this is the Military Imperial Court?"
Wang Shao said in shock.
Although the environment is nice, it is not as solemn as expected.
Cai Jing replied: "Returning to Wang Jinglue, this is because the weather has been hot recently. It would be too stuffy to do the trial in the house, and it cannot accommodate so many people, so I chose to do the trial here."
"I see."
Wang Shao nodded and asked: "Where is your president now?"
Of course Cai Jing would not say that Zhang Fei was having breakfast by the lake, and said: "Our president is preparing relevant documents."
Lu Gongru chuckled and said, "I heard that your president must be the last one to arrive, whether he is litigating or hearing a lawsuit."
Cai Jing was speechless.
The teacher's reputation is so great that nothing can hide it.
Wang Shao chuckled, "You're not very young, but this scene is quite impressive!"
But I have to say that it is indeed very comfortable to sit here. There is no sun at all, and there is a breeze blowing from time to time, which is very cool. Many old people just sat down and began to doze comfortably.
After a while, a group of people came over. The guests who had closed their eyes to relax immediately opened their eyes and asked each other, who is Zhang San?
neither.
Those who came were none other than Su Che, Cai Bian and others.
Zhang Fei must be the last one to arrive.
After they were ready, Zhang Fei, Xu Zhiqian, and Li Si arrived belatedly, but in fact they were not too late. The court was scheduled to start at Chen time, so they arrived early.
As soon as Zhang Fei appeared, discussions immediately broke out on both sides.
So young?
Why is there a woman beside him?
It's really better to be famous than to meet.
At first glance, everyone wearing official uniforms is young.
This is outrageous.
Both Guo Kui and Wang Shao found it difficult to accept that such a big case was being tried by such a group of young men. How could it be convincing?
How could the court make such a decision?
Incomprehensible!
No matter whether they are civil servants or military generals, their hearts are broken.
Su Che, Cai Bian and others immediately stood up.
Cai Yanqing subconsciously prepared to stand up, but when he saw that everyone was still sitting, he decided to leave it alone.
Zhang Fei is also a serious person. He looked around and explained loudly: "I stand up at this time just to show respect for the imperial court and the law."
The sound effect of this Taniguchi is also very good, it is very comfortable to listen to, but it is very dazzling to look at.
You're just standing here, and you didn't come out to say hello just now. How can you be respectful?
Everyone is looking at each other.
Zhang Fei didn't say anything more and just stood here.
Hey! You guys are still messing with us.
His expression made many people unhappy.
Then let's just spend it.
A quarter of an hour passed.
Zhang Fei was still standing.
More than two hundred people were sitting here, and all they could hear was the dripping sound of spring water.
The atmosphere has solidified.
Xu Zhiqian's heart jumped into her throat. The person sitting here was no ordinary person. She whispered: "President!"
Zhang Fei said: "Don't worry, we are all young and can stand up. We will get off work when the time comes."
Su Zhe was also helpless. He had dealt with Zhang Fei several times and knew that if he didn't do this today, he would definitely not be able to be interrogated. He would really stand there until he got off work.
And Cai Bian and the others are used to it, and have nothing to fear. They were much better at listening to the lectures in class than this group of people, so what, don't they still have to abide by the rules?
Haha, this person is exactly what the third brother said. Lu Gongru muttered in his heart and stood up first.
When they saw it, they all stood up one after another.
In fact, they feel uncomfortable too.
If you knew that this kid would be so serious, you could have just stood up. It was you who was embarrassed by what happened.
After they all stood up, Zhang Fei said: "Everyone, please sit down."
But this time he didn't say anything. After saying that, he sat down directly. He also waited until they all sat down before he sat down.
Su Che, Cai Bian and other talents sat down one after another.
Zhang Fei did not bang the gavel directly, but said loudly: "Before the court opens, the president of this court will first explain that this military court, the military court, as the name suggests, is specialized in trying military criminal cases, but it is not a permanent official office.
Only relevant cases will be temporarily established."
Zhongzhi, Qin Zhongshou and other generals looked at each other in tacit understanding and breathed a sigh of relief.
There are military rules in the military. If it is a permanent organization, all illegal matters in the military must be submitted to the imperial court for trial.
If not, it must be selective.
He also heard Zhang Fei say: "The Suizhou case in the fourth year of Zhiping that is to be heard today is presided over by the president of the Imperial Court of Hezhong Prefecture, who is Zhang Fei. The assistant is the chief clerk Xu Zhiqian, and the four assistant judges are Cai Jing.
, Cai Bian, Shangguan Jun, Ye Zuqia. In addition, Su Che, the chief prosecutor of the Procuratorate, and two prosecutors, Chen Qi and Wang Shen, are responsible for supervising the trial."
Having said this, he pointed his hand to the dark-skinned boy next to him, "The person maintaining law and order in the court is Captain Ma Xiaoyi of the Hezhong Prefecture Police Station.
If both parties have no objections to the selection, we will formally open a court hearing."
"I have an opinion."
I heard someone say from the right.
Everyone looked for fame and turned out to be Lu Shen, the prefect of Chengdu.