Long live Emperor Wu!

When the old man said this, he scratched his face, curled his lips, and said:
"Chu Suiliang was beside me at that time, keeping a dark face and saying nothing the whole time. Then I thought, I am going back to retire, why should I make things difficult for such a big official?

If he is unhappy and says a word, I might not be able to live well when I go back to my hometown.

Which official in the world is not under the supervision of the Minister, don't you think so? "

After hearing this, my companion sighed heavily:

"Hey...! You said that he is such a big official. How much is his annual salary from the court and the reward from the Holy Emperor? Why is he still greedy for such a small advantage?"

"Huh! If you don't take advantage of me, it will go to waste. Does it have anything to do with how much he has? He didn't rely on his official power. I'm quite content to take what I have for free."

The companion laughed bitterly and said:
"You are quite considerate."

Wei Siqian had finished eating the noodles quickly and kept looking at them. He took out a handkerchief and wiped his mouth. He also took out a few copper coins from his purse, put them on the table and said:

"You can leave after you finish eating. I'll go talk to them."

After saying that, he stood up and walked straight to the table.

Pei Xingjian subconsciously wanted to stop him, but as soon as he raised his face, the man had already passed by.

He could only shake his head, finished his noodles in a few seconds, and walked away alone.

He still has to go back to the county government office to sit in court, and he really can't stay here with him.

……

……

A few days later, at the court meeting, Wei Siqian had just finished talking about the routine affairs of the court, and stood up from the queue of ministers, holding up the jade tablet and saying:

"Your Majesty, the right servant of your minister, Minister of Public Affairs, shot Chu Suiliang and forcibly bought other people's fields. This is relevant evidence. Your Majesty, please preview it."

As he spoke, he took out a memorial from behind the wat board, held it in both hands and presented it to him.

As soon as these words came out, the officials were shocked and all looked sideways at him. They looked at him as if he were a stranger. Some were surprised, some were repelled, and some were looking up and down.

Chu Suiliang himself was also stunned. He looked at the newly promoted censor, not believing his ears.

Emperor Li Shan was skeptical at first. After all, he couldn't imagine that a high-ranking member of the imperial court would be short of someone else's acres of land and force him to buy it?

He turned his face slightly, and through the jade algae on his crown, he winked at Xu Huaian, who was standing next to him.

Xu Huaian then walked down, took the memorial from Wei Siqian's hand, and handed it to the emperor with both hands.

In the silence of the court, Li Shan opened the memorial dignifiedly and majestically, lowered his eyes to read from beginning to end, frowned slightly, and then closed it again.

He reached out and handed the memorial back to Xu Huaian's hand, and ordered:
"read."

So Xu Huaian took it in his hand, glanced at it, and began to read, his voice loud and cadenced:
"The details of the facts are as follows. On the 23rd of last month, at the end of the month, at the end of the Lunar Tower, the right servant of Shangshu Province shot Chu Suiliang, and with a certain Liang from the Interpretation Institute...

...The witnesses and material evidence are all there. Your Majesty, please take a closer look. "

After he finished reading, everyone in the court lowered their heads and exchanged glances with each other, but no one spoke.

Emperor Li Shan asked Chu Suiliang:

"Chu Aiqing, is this possible?"

Chu Suiliang then stepped out and said loudly: "Your Majesty, what happened is indeed true, but I don't know what the crime is?
The imperial court has always had a policy of stabilizing commodity prices. Recently, the price of land in Chang'an City has skyrocketed. Many people have taken advantage of the situation and sold it at high prices. I bought the land at the official price. What crime is there?
Moreover, the other party sold the subject voluntarily and there was no coercion. How could it be called a forced purchase?I believe that in order to achieve meritorious service, Wei Siqian did not hesitate to spread rumors and cause trouble, and he should be severely punished. "

Li Shan didn't have any serious expression on his face, but he was extremely disappointed in his heart.

Because no matter what the sophistry, according to the testimony, the other party did not want to sell, but was forced to sell it because of his official power.

Wouldn't he understand this?He must understand.

But he felt that he was not wrong, because it was unclear and there was room for quibbles.

Wei Siqian was naturally dissatisfied and said straightforwardly and loudly:
"The official price is the price for official transactions, which is generally lower than the market price. It is set for the entire court, not for private transactions by subordinates. When Mr. Chu bought the land, he added it to his household registration. Did he buy it for the court?

It is even more ridiculous to say that the other party was voluntary. It was already stated in the testimony that the other party was planning to sell the land and return to his hometown to buy a house and property. He could obviously sell it to someone else for [-]% more, so why did he buy it to Mr. Chu at the official price?

According to the law of the Tang Dynasty, any official who takes advantage of his power to seize other people's land will be punished with ten whippings for less than one acre, and one level for every three acres; after sixty, one level for every five acres, and the punishment will be two and a half years.

Chu Suiliang usurped 35 acres of other people's property and shall be sentenced to one and a half years in prison. Please punish him according to law! "

The courtiers were silent, most of them were troubled by Wei Siqian's bold behavior.

That was an old minister that Emperor Taizong relied on, and he was also an auxiliary minister. He didn't want his own future, so he acted like a cow and offended him in front of everyone.

Of course, they were asked to express support, but they were reluctant... The testimonies collected by Wei Siqian were complete, and Chu Suiliang also admitted...

To say that he didn't force the purchase seems... unreasonable.

Seeing that no one spoke, Li Shan glanced at the ministers and asked:

"Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, what do you think?"

After a moment of silence, Dali Temple Shaoqing Zhang Ce stood up and said:
"Your Majesty, Mr. Chu purchased it at the official price. It definitely does not qualify as robbery, and he will not be charged with this crime."

When Wei Siqian heard this, he angrily pointed at him and cursed him, saying;
"You are doing this for your own sake, and you will be punished for your crime!"

Upon hearing this, Zhang Ce turned around and said angrily:

"You! Mr. Wei, why do you bite people when you see them in the debate?! The censor's duty is for you to supervise, not for you to accuse people randomly. It's just grandstanding!"

Li Shan closed his eyes and said in a tired tone:
"enough!"

The voice was not high, but the emperor's timbre was particularly sensitive in the ears of the courtiers. The two people who were arguing stopped in an instant and regained their respectful expressions.

Seeing that there was no one supporting Wei Siqian in the court, the emperor said slowly:

"I heard Chu Aiqing admit what happened, and I couldn't help but feel a little disappointed. You are a veteran of two dynasties, serving the imperial court, and you must be extremely shrewd in observing words and deeds. How could you not see that the person did not betray you voluntarily?
But you still bought it at the official price. If you ask your ministers and ministers, would anyone believe you if you said you didn't buy it by force? "

As soon as he said this, Chu Suiliang lowered his head and glanced back, looking very nervous.

He...actually didn't expect that someone would be so blind as to come to him on this matter!
Who doesn’t understand yet?But it all passed by turning a blind eye.

He was neither seeking money nor harming life, he just lowered the price and bought a few acres of land.

This Wei Siqian... is really hateful!
Emperor Li Shan on the throne continued:

"As for the crime of illegal invasion to seize land... Changsun Wuji, what do you think of the Tang Code that you participated in the compilation of?"