Red Mansion: Fuyao River and Mountain

The palace city of the Great Zhou Dynasty, Qianyang Palace.

Jia Cong's words were impartial, well-reasoned, and full of careful and measured persuasiveness.

The original angry expression on Emperor Jiazhao's face gradually faded away like a surging tide.

Wei Guanyao, who was standing by, was secretly impressed after hearing what Jia Cong said.

He recalled that when a major case of the Water Conservancy Bureau occurred in Nanjing, Jia Cong assisted Prince Ning in solving the case. At that time, Wei Guanyao thought that Jia Cong just happened to be there and had some luck.

Two years later, Jinling Guard Commander Zhou Zhengyang was arrested. Dali Temple Director Yang Hongbin went to Jinling to arrest him, but Zhou Zhengyang escaped upon hearing the news, causing the case to come to a standstill.

Emperor Jia Zhao did not dispatch officers from the three judicial departments to Nanjing to assist Yang Hongbin in arresting Zhou Zhengyang. Instead, he sent Jia Cong, who was outside the three judicial departments, to take charge of the case.

At that time, Wei Guanyao secretly felt dissatisfied with Emperor Jiazhao's move.

The Three Judicial Departments are full of talented people, but the emperor turns a blind eye to them and sends a young noble to take on the important task, which brings shame to the Three Judicial Departments.

It was not until February after Jia Cong came to Nanjing that he successfully solved a major case involving the Nanjing Guards. Only then did Wei Guanyao begin to look at him with admiration.

But that was all, because Wei Guanyao and Jia Cong had never had any official dealings, let alone a personal friendship. Although he knew that Jia Cong had detective talent, he did not know exactly how talented he was, and he had never seen it.

Now that he was not involved in the investigation of the fraud case, but only listened to the interrogation he had just heard, he could make a thorough analysis based on these few words.

His ideas are sharp, his insights are novel and thought-provoking. He is able to keenly perceive and dig out the doubts in details that others ignore.

Such extraordinary talent is indeed amazing, and no wonder the emperor values ​​him so much.

Just now, his words in front of the emperor seemed fair, and he did not mention Zhou Junxing at all.

However, his words concealed a sharp meaning, and his criticism of the brutal torture methods used by the Magistrate's Court was implied. It was obvious that, at such a young age, he had already shown his cunning and shrewd mind. The young are really to be feared!
……

Wei Guanyao saw that as soon as Jia Cong finished speaking, the anger on the emperor's face disappeared quickly, as if Jia Cong's words had hit the mark.

Wei Guanyao had some understanding in his mind. He knew that since he could become the chief official of Dali Temple, he was no ordinary person. How could he not sense the hidden intention?

He even wondered if Jia Cong was just guessing the emperor's mind, which was why he said these words. If that was the case, the young man's quick wit and strategy were somewhat shocking...

Moreover, as the Minister of Dali Temple, Wei Guanyao had seen too many major cases and had rich experience.

Just as Jia Cong said, the main culprit in the fraud case, Wu Liang, would rather commit suicide than falsely accuse Lin Zhaohe of fraud. This is enough to show that Lin Zhaohe committed fraud and his evidence was far-fetched and difficult to draw a conclusion.

Moreover, in this major fraud case, His Majesty let the Court of Magistrates take the lead and the Dali Temple assist in handling it. It was really unbecoming and disgraceful for the three judicial officials to submit to the cruel officials in the inner court.

Although there is the emperor's prominent royal power and his intention to use the Court of Inquisition to check and balance the officials in the courts, if things continue like this, the legal stance of the three courts will inevitably be greatly weakened.

An official like Wei Guanyao, the head of the Three Judicial Departments, who had been immersed in officialdom for half his life, was well aware of the principle of the rise and fall of some things, and his thoughts were more profound than those of others.

In the current situation, if the Magistrates' Court is allowed to make a big fraud case, Zhou Junxing will be able to win the favor of the emperor and his power will grow. As the situation becomes worse, the intimidation and suppression of the officials by the Magistrates' Court will continue to worsen.

At that time, Wei Guanyao, a senior official of the Three Law Departments, not only had a very bad career prospect, but also cruel officials were in power, the authority of the Three Law Departments was weakened, the government and the people were in turmoil, and there were endless troubles...

Although Jia Cong's remarks just now were openly aimed at Lin Zhaohe's suspicion of fraud, analyzing the causes and raising doubts, he was secretly pointing the finger at the brutal behavior of the Court of Inquiries.

Moreover, as soon as Jia Cong finished speaking, the emperor's eyes and expression relaxed, which showed that Jia Cong's words were highly recognized by the emperor. Wei Guanyao would naturally not miss such a favorable momentum.

He said: "Your Majesty, what the Earl of Weiyuan said is fair and just, and I agree with it. Lin Zhaohe is suspected of fraud, and there are many doubts, so we cannot make a hasty conclusion.

Judge Zhou of the Magistrate's Court used excessive torture during interrogation, causing the case to be in a quandary. Since he took charge of the fraud case, his actions have been reckless, leading to an urgent situation in the city and panic among the people.

In the past two days, a large number of candidates have left the capital in a hurry, fearing that they would be implicated in the fraud case. This has caused a lot of discussion in the market, which is really damaging to the dignity of the court. "

……

Emperor Jia Zhao looked gloomy and said, "Zhou Junxing acted rashly, causing the death of the main culprit in the examination fraud case and causing complications. He has failed my expectations.

From now on, the examination cheating case will be hosted by the Dali Temple. All trials and detentions will be under the jurisdiction of the Dali Temple, and the Court of Inquisition will assist.

The suspect Lin Zhaohe is temporarily detained in the Dali Temple Prison and will be examined according to the established laws of the Three Judicial Departments. He will be neither wronged nor lenient, and will be fair and just, and will refute the clear and turbid.

The main culprit, Xu Liangxiong, was the chief examiner and was guilty of dereliction of duty and selling questions, which disturbed the integrity of the imperial examination. His crime was aggravated. The Dali Temple stepped up the interrogation and brought the case to justice as soon as possible.

The remaining criminals will have their confessions signed and their convictions reviewed by the Dali Temple. If they are involved again, they must be carefully investigated to avoid implicating innocent people...

The violations of discipline of officials in the Spring Examination reported by the Metropolitan Procuratorate will be investigated and evidence will be collected by the Procuratorate, and the Dali Temple will review and preside over the trial. There will be no leniency for misconduct, corruption and bribery, so as to clean up the government..."

Guo Lin, who was accompanying Emperor Jia Zhao, memorized the Emperor's instructions and asked the eunuchs to take notes, draft the imperial edict, and issue it to the relevant departments.

Wei Guanyao bowed quickly to receive the order, but he felt mixed emotions.

Just now, he followed Jia Cong's words and used his power to attack him, stating that Zhou Junxing had misjudged the rules and created too many complications in handling the major fraud case, and that he could not escape blame.

In view of the current situation, the emperor deprived the Court of Magistrates of its right to preside over fraud cases, and the Dali Temple finally regained the initiative.

Moreover, the fraudster Wu Liang committed suicide, which caused the situation to take a sharp turn for the worse. The trial and closure of the case were all in a passive position. The emperor was already on guard to prevent the involvement of more people...

However, although the emperor had criticized Zhou Junxing, he obviously would not give up this sharp weapon and still asked him to investigate the discipline of officials in the Spring Examination.

Wei Guanyao felt a little shudder in his heart. The three judicial courts and the Court of Magistrates were confronting and fighting secretly. The emperor was a man of deep strategy, so how could he not notice it?

He stepped back and forth in relation to Zhou Junxing's power, and there was a deep meaning behind it.

For the emperor, the three judicial departments and the Court of Inquiries should check and balance each other, and neither of them should be neglected, which is in line with his wishes...

……

After Wei Guanyao received the imperial edict and left the palace, Emperor Jiazhao glanced at Jia Cong who was still standing in the palace.

He said: "What you just said is sharp, thoughtful and insightful. You have been to Nanjing twice and solved many major cases. I know you have detective talent.

It's a pity that you are a candidate for this imperial examination, and I have to be cautious about your involvement. Otherwise, if I had asked you to be in charge of the investigation when this case first occurred, perhaps there wouldn't have been such complications."

Jia Cong bowed and said, "Your Majesty, you are too kind to me. Wei Siqing of the Dali Temple and Zhou Yuanshi of the Tui Shi Yuan are both capable officials of the court. I am young and dare not compare myself with them."

Emperor Jia Zhao listened to Jia Cong's words and smiled faintly: "At your age, it is naturally good for you to be modest and upright in your words and deeds, but young people are too cautious. Be careful not to lose your sharpness and become old-fashioned early."

Guo Lin, who was standing by, was slightly stunned when he heard what Emperor Jiazhao said. The emperor was a strict and reserved person, and he rarely said such friendly and joking words even to the princes.

Although Jia Cong is young, he has outstanding talents, is capable of handling affairs, and knows how to speak. It seems that he is increasingly valued by the emperor...

……

East of Shenjing City, Yuping Street, back alley.

The quiet house at the end of the alley, with two black oil doors, isolates itself from the hustle and bustle of the city. The flowers and trees in the courtyard are lush and verdant. Under the bright early summer sun, it exudes an irrepressible vitality and vigor.

A middle-aged man in a convenient short brown suit, with his sleeves slightly rolled up, sat at the stone table in the yard, still looking like a leisurely flower farmer. There was a flower hoe and a kettle at his feet, and a small red clay stove on the table, with smoke rising and the fragrance of tea filling the air.

At this time, there were knocks of varying lengths coming from the tightly closed courtyard door. The middle-aged man stood up and opened the courtyard door. Liu Wenxuan, the owner of the brocade and satin shop, flashed into the yard with a serious expression on his face.

He said, "Boss, I just received news that Wu Liang, the main suspect in the Spring Examination fraud case, committed suicide in the torture room of the Magistrate's Court because he refused to falsely testify against Lin Zhaohe for fraud!"

The middle-aged man, who usually had a calm expression, couldn't help but change his expression when he heard this. The teacup in his hand shook slightly, and a little tea splashed out of the cup.

He asked in a deep voice: "Is the news reliable?"

Liu Wenxuan said: "We have spies near the Magistrate's Court. After noon, there was a commotion inside the Magistrate's Court.

Yang Hongbin, the chief judge of the Dali Temple, left the Magistrates' Court in a hurry with a furious look on his face. He took Lin Zhaohe with him when he left. Lin Zhaohe was carried away on a stretcher, which meant that he had been severely punished. Soon, a runner from the Magistrates' Court went to the funeral shop to buy a coffin. Soon, the coffin containing the body was moved to the East City Charity House for temporary storage.

Our people spent some money to bribe the police, found out the relevant reasons, and went to the charity cemetery to check. The deceased was indeed Wu Liang, with a shattered head, and died from hitting a hard object. "

The middle-aged man said solemnly, "Wu Liang was the main culprit in the fraud case. He suddenly committed suicide. This major case has lost its most important support. The situation will definitely change drastically. We are really caught off guard!
After Wu Liang was imprisoned, he could not bear the torture for a short time and confessed and signed a pledge. I thought he was weak and had been completely controlled by the Magistrates' Court. I did not expect him to be so brave. It was beyond my expectation...

You said that Yang Hongbin left the Magistrate's Court in a rage. It is conceivable that it must have been Zhou Junxing's excessive torture that prompted Wu Liang to commit suicide in anger. Based on this incident alone, Zhou Junxing could not escape punishment.

If the emperor were to hold him accountable, the development of the matter would deviate from our plan..."

……

Liu Wenxuan frowned and asked, "Boss, then won't all our plans be in vain?"

The middle-aged man picked up the remaining half cup of tea and drank it slowly: "I once said that the Spring Examination is a major event for the country to select talents, and even the current emperor cannot fully control it.

We are only sowing the seeds. As for the outcome, it will mostly depend on God's will. As for your statement that your plan has failed, it is too early to say.

Ever since Lin Zhaohe was arrested, I asked Shenglan to stay out and keep an eye on the situation. She will come back every day at twilight hour to hear any news, and then make plans."

After the middle-aged man finished speaking, there was a silence between the two. The middle-aged man took a new teacup, poured a cup of hot tea, and quietly pushed it to Liu Wenxuan.

Before there was any new news, all they could do was wait patiently. The courtyard returned to peace, and time passed silently...

Until the sun was setting slightly in the west, there was a sound of wind over the courtyard wall, and a tall and slender figure climbed over the wall and came in.

The middle-aged man smiled and asked, "Shenglan is back, is there any new movement outside?"

The tall woman sat down at the stone table, poured herself a cup of hot tea to quench her thirst, and said, "These days, because we have spies in the Magistrates' Court, I spend very little time there.

I walk around the market every day. Because of the examination fraud case, Dali Temple Chief Yang Hongbin is quite active, and I have also paid much attention to the Dali Temple.

Half an hour ago, Dali Temple Minister Wei Guanyao suddenly returned to the yamen, and led more than ten prison cars with Yang Hongbin and went directly to the yamen of the Inquisition.

Out of curiosity, I followed them all the way. Not long after Wei Guanyao and Yang Hongbin entered the yamen, they took out more than ten prisoners, put them in a prison van and returned to the Dali Temple.

I could see clearly from the side that the prisoners were all wearing scholar's robes. Although they were torn, they were undoubtedly those of scholars.

These prison carts moved around the streets, attracting passers-by to watch. Some who knew the truth said that these prisoners were all tribute scholars and juren who were implicated and imprisoned because of Wu Liang's confession.

Boss, this situation is clearly the transfer of prisoners by two major government offices."

……

After hearing this, the middle-aged man thought for a moment, then smiled and said, "When a fraud case breaks out, it should be handled by the three judicial departments, which is in line with the conventional law.

But the current emperor chose to hand the case over to the Court of Inquiries. Wei Guanyao, as the Minister of the Dali Temple, was naturally dissatisfied. Now that he had caught Zhou Junxing's handle, he would naturally not miss the opportunity.

I guess he must have impeached Zhou Junxing in the palace, and the emperor must have punished him, otherwise the Dali Temple would not have made such a big fuss and taken away all the suspects of fraud from the Magistrates' Court."

Liu Wenxuan said: "Boss, Wei Guanyao has a reputation for being upright and strict, totally different from Zhou Junxing, a cruel official. The examination fraud case has been transferred to the Dali Temple for trial.

The momentum will surely be reduced, which may be detrimental to our plans."

The middle-aged man said: "You are right. Wei Guanyao is an orthodox civil servant. He is concerned about the overall situation in the officialdom. He is concerned about whether the three judicial departments, who are responsible for the law, are suppressed by the vicious inner court such as the Tui Shi Yuan.

As long as the major case of cheating in the imperial examination was not controlled by the Court of Judicial Review and did not become a target of Zhou Junxing's framing and attempt to curry favor and gain power, his goal would be achieved.

In comparison, how the imperial examination fraud case would eventually develop, how many people would be implicated, and whether it could accumulate merit for the Dali Temple were secondary to Wei Guanyao.

If my guess is correct, it must be that Wu Liang suddenly committed suicide, causing the fraud case to come to a standstill, and the emperor was worried that this matter would arouse criticism from the literati and the people.

The crime of cheating, which was originally justified, was misinterpreted by scholars and common people as persecution of scholars by the government, causing today's imperial examination candidates to commit suicide to express their will. Where is the fairness and dignity of the court?

Besides, this major fraud case has implicated more than a dozen current imperial examination candidates, and the noise has already been quite loud. The emperor has already begun to think of restraining himself in order to avoid shaking up the government and giving others excuses to make false accusations, thus losing the greater for the smaller.

He reduced the power of the Magistrates' Court to preside over the case and replaced it with the Dali Temple. It was not just Zhou Junxing's fault, but Wei Guanyao was able to help him control the situation! "

……

Liu Wenxuan frowned and said, "Boss, once the situation calms down, our original hard work will not be able to take advantage of the chaos and accomplish our goals."

The middle-aged man looked calm, filled his teacup with hot tea, and said, "Although success depends on fate, some opportunities must be created by ourselves.

This major cheating case can actually be divided into two lines. One is the cheating in the examination by the candidates, and the other is the decline of discipline among the officials in the spring examination.

In fact, it is not good for us if too many candidates are involved in cheating.

If the case becomes too widespread, even the 23 candidates we selected might be implicated, and what happened to Lin Zhaohe might happen again.

Therefore, the current emperor wants to calm the situation because of the Wu Liang incident, which is actually beneficial to us.

That blue booklet was not a useless decoration. It was just a trigger for the examiner Xu Liangxiong to fall into its trap.

I would like to ask, among the officials taking the examination this time, how many of them are able to keep themselves clean and have not made friends with other candidates in an attempt to gain fame and reputation before entering the examination?

If we want our original hard work to be accomplished, we can only make some changes to the discipline of the officials in the Spring Examination...

Of the twenty-three candidates we selected for this year's imperial examination, how many will fail the exam?"

Liu Wenxuan took out a list from his bosom, looked through it carefully, and said: "The boss has a good eye for selecting people. Among the candidates you selected, only six failed the imperial examination.

These six people have great potential, and they may be able to make a comeback next year and win the championship."

……

After hearing what Liu Wenxuan said, the middle-aged man sighed and said, "Among the twenty-three people I selected, Lin Zhaohe is the most valuable. The other twenty-two people combined are not as valuable as him.

Lin Zhaohe was able to rank third on the list, which meant he was qualified to enter the palace examination with first place.

Originally, Jia Cong was the only candidate for the top prize, but Jia Cong was of noble status, had made outstanding contributions and was famous throughout the world.

The emperor had to take into account the opinions of the people and the overall situation of the country, and he also had to check and balance the young ministers' fame. I am afraid that Jia Cong will not be able to dominate the world.

Therefore, as a second choice, Lin Zhaohe, who is ranked third on the list, already has a chance to win the first prize. Such a person originally has unlimited potential. "

Liu Wenxuan asked, "Boss, this time Wu Liang would rather commit suicide than falsely accuse Lin Zhaohe of fraud. This move will definitely help Lin Zhaohe escape punishment.

At that time, Lin Zhaohe was still the third on the list and the favorite for the top prize. Now he is imprisoned in the Dali Temple. Should we help him?"

The middle-aged man shook his head slightly and said, "It's not as simple as you think. Scholars value their reputation the most. He was involved in a fraud case. Even if he is eventually acquitted, his reputation has been tarnished.

Even if he can pass the exam, his future will be ruined. Now that he has attracted attention, we must not intervene at this critical juncture, lest we reveal our flaws..."

The middle-aged man continued, "Although the six people who failed the exam were slightly less talented, they are all useful people.

You ask someone to tell them that the imperial examination is a fair and honest thing, but the officials have corrupted discipline, are obsessed with fame and greed, and have formed ties with others to grant examinations privately, leading to rampant fraud.

A talented and handsome man has failed miserably. Where is justice? How can a righteous man just stand by and watch...

We also need to let them know that our company has extensive connections in Jiangnan, and there are many prefectures and counties in Jiangnan, and government offices are densely populated. If we plan carefully, there will always be a vacancy to be filled. The candidates are already qualified to be appointed as officials..."

Liu Wenxuan understood and stood up and said, "I understand what the boss means. I will take care of this matter..." (End of this chapter)