In fact, only Zhang Fei and Xu Zhiqian knew about the evidence provided by the Taxation Department. Xu Zun did not know anything about it, but that was just because Xu Zun didn't ask. If he asked, Zhang Fei would definitely tell the truth.
.
But he didn't mention the others at all.
Because this battle is crucial for the Taxation Department and the Public Security Bureau, and there is no room for error. You must know that this is the first time that the Taxation Department has resorted to violent tax collection on a large scale, killing many people, and directly facing those who
Local gentry.
In fact, when dealing with these grassroots bandits, the Taxation Department is trying to crack down on the mountains and shake off the tigers. The target is still the wealthy gentry, who are the ones who are holding the power.
And those wealthy gentry knew very well, so they supported these grassroots bandits against the tax department.
At the same time, the Department of Taxation also knows that doing this will definitely trigger opposition from many ministers in the DPRK and China. This feudal society is composed of officials and gentry. Dealing with the gentry is actually dealing with officials in the DPRK and China.
But without taking this step, there is no way to raise this tax.
The Taxation Department actually relies on the Public Security and Procuratorate Law to collect taxes. Without the Public Security and Procuratorate Law, the Taxation Department would definitely not be established, because the ministers would definitely oppose it.
It's very simple. Without the Public Security Bureau, the tax department is the emperor's money-making pawn and is not controlled by the state.
If this was possible, there would be no need for Wang Anshi to reform, and he would just set up a tax department to rob it.
As the emperor's secret service, the Imperial City Division only has the power of investigation, but does not set up prisons. Even if the Imperial City Division discovers that a minister has violated the law, he must hand it over to the Yushitai or Dali Temple. But even so, the ministers have no control over the Imperial City.
Si was still dissatisfied. They believed that the Imperial City Si should be responsible for the country, not the emperor.
Everyone knows that the Emperor is behind the Taxation Department, but the reason why they cannot directly oppose it is not because they are afraid of the imperial power, but because the Taxation Department is acting under the banner of collecting taxes in accordance with the law, rather than under the banner of imperial power.
The emperor just silently supported it.
From this point of view, the Taxation Department is actually a state agency. The taxes they collect must be entered into the accounts of the Third Department. The person who distributes the money is also the Transfer Department, but this boss is the person appointed by the emperor.
If the tax police are caught breaking the law, they will definitely be punished.
The Public Security Bureau also needs a tax department. If the tax law is not well implemented, many illegal things will occur, and the Public Security Bureau will be incapable of doing so.
I remember that when Zhang Fei was still Erbi, nine out of ten cases were related to taxation, which often put the court in a dilemma. The judgments at that time often had nothing to do with the law and were purely political judgments.
To put it simply, whether the tax laws can be thoroughly implemented is the touchstone of the public security organs. If they cannot be implemented, the public security laws will be superficial and useless.
Therefore, Zhang Fei was very cautious in this case and did not dare to make any negligence.
...
"How long will this adjourn?"
Zhao Xu held his breath and asked with a deep eyebrow.
He is eager to get angry now, and he will be ready to get angry when the case is finished.
Liu Zhao said next to him: "I don't know for sure, but it will take at least a day or two to verify the evidence. There will definitely not be another trial today."
When Zhao Xu heard this, he immediately stood up and left angrily.
This case really refreshed his understanding of the Forbidden Army. Knowing that he still wanted to eliminate Xixia, this was a huge blow to his confidence.
How can we fight against Xixia, let alone the more powerful Liao Kingdom?
The key is, the money was spent.
This is the most hurtful thing.
If we say we don't spend so much money, then that's fine, but now 60-70% of our budget is spent on this every year, and this is what we get in exchange for this?
Can this not make Long Yan furious?
.......
"Scholar Wang, this case cannot continue to be tried like this. Even if it is to be tried, it should be tried behind closed doors."
"If something like this is said in front of so many people, it may arouse public outrage and be detrimental to the stability of the country."
"It's all Zhang San's fault. This rebellion is a rebellion, and he wants to involve the Forbidden Army. This will make the Forbidden Army panic."
...
As soon as Wang Anshi stood up, a group of officials gathered around him, chattering and refusing to listen.
In the past, these reasons could indeed make Wang Anshi hesitate and put the overall situation first, but today, he only felt disgust in his heart and sneered: "You are really worthless, those officials have already done such unscrupulous things.
, but you still want to help them cover it up, aren't you afraid of being infamy for thousands of years?"
After speaking, he shouted angrily.
Those officials were immediately blinded.
Wang Anshi was too lazy to chat with them, his sleeves and robes shook, and he left angrily.
Compared with here, Sima Guang and the others are relatively quiet. It's not that they don't want to persuade, but when they see Fu Bi, Lu Gongzhu and others, their faces are very ugly, and they don't dare to go up and ask for trouble, so they can only endure it.
Then he watched Sima Guang and the others leave.
But in my heart I was anxious and uneasy, talking and whispering to each other in twos and threes.
...
One of the key reasons why Li Guozhong asked Li Lei to ask for an adjournment was that he wanted to express that we had no knowledge of this case.
This was also the first time for them to litigate this kind of lawsuit. They were already worried, and of course they were scared to death that such a thing would happen again!
After seeing the young man leave, Fei Ming whispered: "They must know about this, they just didn't tell us."
Li Guozhong nodded: "I also know this. It is impossible for them to tell us about such a thing."
There is not one person behind them, but all the forces in Qizhou's black and white circles. The affair between Xie Liuwu and Wu Tian happened in recent years. It does not need to be traced back many years ago. It is impossible that no one knows about it.
It's just that they think these are two different things. The key point is that they don't dare to tell Li Guozhong and others about these things. Can such things be said nonsense?
Damn it, many of them have nothing to do with this case.
Li Lei asked: "Father, what should we do now?"
This chapter is not over yet, please click on the next page to continue reading! Li Guozhong sighed: "Continuing this case will only involve us."
Fei Ming said: "But can we escape now?"
Li Guozhong frowned and remained silent.
He really didn't want to fight, God knows what else could be uncovered later.
...
It is said that the trial is adjourned, but with so much evidence, it is impossible for all of them to be verified in this short period of time. Moreover, this lawsuit cannot be over in a day or two. There is no need to rush the progress. The trial will end here today.
This made many people breathe a sigh of relief. Just now, they were all frightened while listening to it!
But the people are complaining more. At this juncture, if you do something like this, you can't get up or down, how uncomfortable it is!
It's a good thing they didn't prepare rotten eggs, otherwise, they would have to shout directly in the face. This kind of person is more hateful than Wu Tian.
...
"How about it?"
When Zhang Fei returned home, Xu Zhiqian walked over quickly and asked, "How come the trial was completed so quickly?"
"Be careful, pregnant woman."
Zhang Fei gave her a slightly reproachful look, then gently supported her with one hand and said: "The trial has not been completed because they did not expect that we would find out Wu Tian and Xie Liuwu's deeds. I think Li Guozhong and the others felt very sad about this."
I was afraid, so I applied for an adjournment of the hearing."
Xu Zhiqian asked: "Then will they continue to fight?"
Zhang Fei said: "They definitely don't want to fight, but whether they continue to fight may not be up to them!"
Xu Zhiqian added: "From a judicial perspective, do they still have a chance to turn defeat into victory?"
Zhang Fei smiled and said: "How many times have I discussed this issue with you? There is no sure-win lawsuit in this world, and we are not omniscient and omnipotent. What we hold in our hands may not be the whole truth. If they find a
Very crucial evidence, then it is possible to overturn the case."
.....
Li's Bookstore.
At this time, a group of tea-eaters, Erbi, were restless in the lobby, pacing back and forth, and occasionally bumping into each other.
Although they went to court, they also made plans behind the scenes. Now that they learned the outcome in court, they were all panicked.
After a while, Li Guozhong and Li Lei finally came back.
"Li Xingshou, what did they say?"
A group of people immediately came to greet him.
Li Guozhong said: "They asked us to wait and see. Maybe they will take the opportunity to put pressure on the court."
"This lawsuit is really deadly."
"Originally, this was a case of rebellion, and now it involves a case of collusion between grassroots bandits and the government. If we get involved, the whole family may suffer!"
.....
These tea-eaters and Erbi expressed their concerns about this case.
Li Guozhong sighed: "Why am I not afraid? Therefore, we have to find a way to get the protection of the imperial court first. Otherwise, we will not go to court again."
"How to get protection from the imperial court?"
"It's very simple. Let's apply to the imperial court to withdraw from the case first. Based on my understanding of Zhang San, they will definitely find a way to protect us."
"Why?"
"Because Zhang San attaches great importance to the public security system, if Erbi helps people litigate, it will be dangerous, which is not conducive to the public security system."
"That's true, and now the Procuratorate has the upper hand. If we withdraw out of fear, it will only make the Procuratorate's victory less convincing."
...
In fact, the employers behind Li Guozhong and the others could not pin all their hopes on Li Guozhong. After all, this was a feudal society, and they were the owners of power, while Li Guozhong and the others were just their tools.
Now that the lawsuit has reached this stage, the interests of more people are involved, especially the three government offices are implicated.
So they began to express various "concerns" to the court.
But they can't say that the public security organs are at fault, they can only say that Dajuguan is wrong.
Take the big chrysanthemum as the most important thing.
The case must be handed over to the Yushitai and Dali Temple for a secret trial, and can no longer be heard publicly.
Meng Mansion.
"It's totally out of the question this time."
Pei Wen came to the hall and said very frustrated.
Meng Qiansheng asked: "What's going on?"
Pei Wendao: "Whether it is the Political Affairs Hall, the Privy Council, the Third Department, or the Second Government Ordinance Department, they all expressed support for the public prosecutors and the law to strictly investigate this case."
Meng Qiansheng frowned and said, "Do even Collector Lu and Yushi Deng support it?"
Pei Wen nodded and added: "I heard that the official was also present that day and was very angry about it."
Meng Qiansheng frowned, "Can the trial be conducted behind closed doors?"
Pei Wen shook his head and said: "Looking at this situation, it is probably very difficult, because this is not only a problem with the tax department, but also related to corruption in the military camp, and it is so outrageous. No prime minister will support them. Nowadays, many powerful people and relatives in the capital have become Keep a respectful distance."
Meng Qiansheng sighed, "If I had known this, we might as well go to trial. Even if we give the most just verdict, it would be better than now!"
Xie Yun said: "That's different. If this case-within-a-case had not happened, no one would be willing to try it!"
.....
I remember that when Wang Hong, Wang Wenshan, and Gu Ji started making trouble, the court always favored them. Except for Wang Hong, Wang Wenshan, and Gu Ji were all transferred because it only involved privileges and taxation, and did not involve very serious corruption issues. .
These are issues of two natures. As for the ministers, if the emperor wants to touch our privileges, then we must resist. This is just a game, and the emperor will leave some room and dare not do anything.
But this kind of corruption is another matter.
The Song Dynasty has always been relatively strict about corruption. There were very few instances of direct corruption among senior officials in this dynasty. Their salaries were already high, and they had many privileges and rewards from the emperor. There was no need to engage in corruption because the Song Dynasty And instead of preventing annexations, they can lend money to annex land. The current corruption is concentrated at the bottom, that is, those petty officials. It was not until the reign of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty that widespread corruption began.
Nowadays, this kind of thing is even less supported. For example, Sima Guang, Wang Anshi, and Zhao Pin are more incorruptible than the other. The richest prime minister at present is Zeng Gongliang, but he is just stingy and cherishes his own money. Unlike Sima Guang, Wang Anshi and others who regard money as dung.
When Zhang Fei exposed the Saber corruption case in court, whether it was Wang Anshi, Chen Shengzhi, Sima Guang, Wen Yanbo or others, they all became very resolute in supporting the imperial court and the procuratorate, and said they would wait until the verdict of this lawsuit , we must also strictly investigate the corruption case of Qing Pingjun.
This matter cannot be brushed aside like this.
In fact, this also involves the struggle between civil and military officials. If the military general is corrupt, the civil officials will naturally not let it go.
Many censors are impeaching Xie Liuwu and others.
When all the prime ministers expressed their stance, and their attitude was so resolute, they naturally did not dare to make trouble again, but when one thing came to one, they could not let the public prosecutor and the law label those gentry and nobles as rebels.
This is also the interest of most of the ruling class.
But now they can only rely on these Erbis, and their attention has returned to the lawsuit.
Li Guozhong knew that he could not escape. If he dared to withdraw, the capital would definitely not be able to survive, but he also had to make plans for himself.
Today Li Guozhong and Zhang Fei came to the imperial court to check the evidence, but when they saw Zhao Pin, Li Guozhong said: "President, we really have no knowledge of the Saber corruption case mentioned by the Procuratorate."
Zhang Fei, who was sitting opposite, smiled and said nothing.
Zhao Pin asked: "Aren't you here to verify the evidence today?"
Li Guozhong said aggrievedly: "But we are afraid."
Zhao Pin frowned and said, "What are you afraid of?"
Li Guozhong said: "I'm worried that if we lose the lawsuit, we will be recognized by the imperial court as their accomplices."
"nonsense!"
Zhao Pindao: "You used to help those evil people fight lawsuits, but you didn't fight enough. How will the imperial court settle the score with you?"
Li Guozhong said: "But this time is different. In this kind of case, we..."
"Nothing is different."
Zhao Pin waved his hand and said: "Since the imperial court allowed them to participate in this case, they will not settle accounts with you unless you also participate in this case."
Having said this, he turned his head and looked at Zhang Fei again, "Prosecutor Zhang, do you think so?"
Zhang Fei smiled and said: "If Li Xingshou says this again, then our procuratorate may really file a lawsuit against them, because their remarks may mislead the people and think that we coerced them to withdraw, which will hurt us." The reputation of the prosecutor’s office.”
Li Guozhong hurriedly said: "I never meant this."
Zhao Pindao: "Then you don't need to test here."
"yes."
Li Guozhong quickly cupped his hands and said.
Next, Li Guozhong verified the evidence on behalf of Wu Tian and others. In fact, he just pretended to look at it. This was just an excuse. If the evidence was false, it would have been his turn to check it. Someone would have found it out long ago. .
However, he still pretended to delay. Time was very precious to them at the moment.
Zhao Pin also saw what he was thinking and said that if he could not provide strong evidence, the imperial court would continue the trial in three days.
Don't think about dragging it on endlessly.
Li Guozhong could only agree.
Come out of the house.
Li Guozhong whispered: "Don't blame Prosecutor Zhang. I was forced to do so. In fact, I really don't want to take this lawsuit..."
Zhang Fei nodded and said: "I know, but you don't have to be afraid. You can use whatever means you have, as long as they comply with the rules, I guarantee that nothing will happen to you."
Li Guozhong's eyes shook a few times, "Prosecutor Zhang, can you teach us two tricks? This is the first time we have encountered such a lawsuit."
They had fought with Zhang Fei several times before and had personal contact with them. Zhang Fei also secretly helped them.
Zhang Fei shook his head and said: "I really can't help you this time, because I am a prosecutor, not an Erbi. If I help you, wouldn't I be putting the handle in your hands?"
"Yes Yes Yes!"
Li Guozhong nodded repeatedly, but thought in his heart, according to what he said, there is still a chance, but what exactly is the chance?
Zhang Fei cupped his hands again and said: "If there is nothing else, I will leave first."
"Oh, Prosecutor Zhang, walk slowly."
...
Since Li Guozhong did not present any strong evidence, the imperial court will continue to hear the case in three days.
There are even more people coming back this time than last time, because public opinion about this case has fermented, and more and more people are involved.
Before the trial began, Zhao Pinxian announced that after verification by Li Guozhong and others, there were no problems with the evidence provided by the procuratorate.
However, he did not express his position clearly, which is a solid evidence. After all, the lawsuit has not been completed yet.
After the announcement was made, the trial continued.
Zhang Fei stood up first and said, "Wu Tian, can you admit that you used Liu Lian to trade sabers with Commander Xie Liuwu?"
Wu Tian nodded and said, "I admit it."
Zhang Fei added: "That's why you went to rescue Liu Lian because she has many key evidence of your crime."
Wu Tiandao: "Not only that, Liu Lian is also my right-hand assistant. She can earn me a lot of money, and can also provide me with a lot of supplies and government information."
As soon as these words came out, everyone was shocked.
Is this about giving up on yourself?
But this seems to be normal, the evidence is solid, how can he refute it.
However, Zhang Fei did not feel happy, and just said lightly: "I'm done asking."
Li Lei stood up and asked: "Wu Tian, how did you get the tattoo on your face?"
Wu Tiandao: "I was once a soldier in the Qingping Army. Later, I was tattooed because I gathered a crowd to make trouble and bumped into the capital officials."
Li Lei asked: "I wonder why you gathered people to make trouble?"
Wu Tiandao: "I joined the army not for livelihood, but because I hoped to go into battle to kill the enemy and serve the monarch. Who would have thought that after entering the military camp, not only did I not get the chance to go to the battlefield, but I also became a servant of those civil servants. That year in Qizhou
During the Song and Ming dynasties, they often enslaved our soldiers to show off to officials who came to Qizhou.
I remember that winter, a Beijing official came to Qizhou, and Song and Ming arranged for us to play gongs and drums, and also forced us to dance in front of the procession, like clowns.
That's all. Later, when Song and Ming entertained the imperial official at the inn, they asked us to line up outside and wait for orders at any time. This station lasted three hours, during which they didn't even give us a bite of hot rice. Until the third watch. At that time, they had not stopped drinking and having fun. It was freezing and snowy at that time, and many of our brothers had already lost feeling in their legs from the cold.
It wasn't until one of the soldiers fell that I couldn't stand it any longer, so I rushed into the post station without authorization and argued with them. As a result, I was convicted of gathering a crowd to cause trouble and inciting mutiny, and was sentenced to death in Qingzhou."
Li Lei nodded, took out another piece of evidence, and said to Zhao Pin: "This is the verdict of that case, as well as the confessions of the soldiers, servants and singing girls who participated in the matter at that time. This can prove that Wu Tian did not It’s not a lie, and the soldier who fainted at that time also suffered from frostbite on his legs and could no longer walk. He died a year later.”
Zhao Pin nodded and said, "Submit it."
Wang Anshi smiled coldly: "This case is getting more and more interesting."
Zhao Xu, who was secretly sitting in the corridor, couldn't help pinching his forehead and asked: "Is everything he said true?"
Liu Zhaodao: "It is true that many local officials often send soldiers or people to serve as officials to show off. In some places, the number can reach as many as a thousand."
Zhao Xu asked: "Since you know this, why is no one taking care of it?"
Liu Zhao remained silent.
This is the wisdom of the world. I will give you as much ostentation as you give me. Anyway, you don’t have to pay for it yourself. If you don’t pay to death, I will go to your place and I will also get benefits.
So almost no one would say such a thing.
Qi Ji whispered: "It seems that they want to use Wu Tian's experience to win everyone's sympathy."
Zhang Fei said: "This is a case of rebellion, but it is of little use."
Then I heard Li Lei ask: "Why did you become a bandit in Qizhou later?"
Wu Tiandao: "Because I still want to fight on the battlefield, serve the country, and serve the monarch, so after completing a year of hard labor in Qingzhou, I returned to Qizhou and became a bandit."
As soon as these words came out, everyone in the audience looked at Wu Tian in shock.
what are you saying?
Is this person crazy?
Serve the country and then become a bandit?
Even Zhao Xu was confused.
what's the situation.
Li Lei asked: "You said you wanted to continue serving the country, so you turned into a bandit?"
Wu Tian nodded and said: "Exactly."
Li Lei asked: "Don't you realize this is very contradictory?"
Wu Tiandao: "This is not contradictory at all, because many leaders in the Forbidden Army, and even some commanders, are all grassroots bandits. As long as you can defeat the officers and soldiers, as long as those officials are helpless against you, they will find a way to appease you and give you Your official position will allow you to enjoy high status and generous salary, so I tried every means to recruit troops, expand my power, and strive to attract the attention of the imperial court, and then accept the imperial edict."