Taichang Ming Dynasty

Chapter 167 Trial Incident
"." Li Ruhua glanced at Zhou Jiamo who was sitting next to him, but did not say anything.

"Why don't you sit down first. It's not a good thing to stand all the time." Xu Guangqi looked at Zhang Wenda and suggested.

"Okay! Let's do it." Zhang Wenda reacted and immediately made the decision. "Someone come!"

"Sir!" The bailiff came over and clasped his fists, waiting for orders.

"Bring a stool over to Minister Sun." Zhang Wenda ordered.

"Yes." The yamen runner didn't understand what was going on, but he still brought a short stool to Sun Ruyou according to the order of the court official.

"Right Minister, please take a seat." Xu Guangqi smiled at Sun Ruyou, which made Sun Ruyou feel inexplicably moved.

Hai Zhentao still stood there without moving, but at the same time waved to Lu Wenzhao.

Lu Wenzhao understood and let go of Sun Ruyou. When Sun Ruyou was dragging the shackles on his hands and feet towards the lobby, Lu Wenzhao took advantage of no one's attention, approached Hai Zhentao, and whispered, "What are you doing? What's the matter with sitting down?"

"You haven't read the Ming Dynasty Code, have you?" Hai Zhentao glanced at Lu Wenzhao.

"No." Lu Wenzhao shook his head. "It's useless." Jinyiwei cases were always conducted without regard for law or facts. They followed their superiors' instructions. If they didn't, they followed their own preferences. If someone was killed, as long as they weren't an official, they could report it as an accident.

"You should read more books when you have time," Hai Zhentao explained quietly. "Sun Ruyou is a third-rank official who hasn't been dismissed from his post. According to the law, he can sit for trial. It's the same as what Lord Zhang said before about removing his shackles."

Lu Wenzhao nodded slightly, then asked with some concern: "You won't stop it?"

"Stop it! We have the key to the shackles, but we don't control Lord Sun's legs. If he wants to sit over there, let him." Hai Zhentao controlled his voice well. "No one said they couldn't let Lord Sun sit. What's going on over there?"

"We have done everything we can. But I can't guarantee that Lord Sun won't go crazy later."

"If he goes crazy, cut off Sun Jiaji's ear and give it to him. Make him repent."

Snapped!
After Sun Ruyou settled down, Zhang Wenda raised the gavel and slammed it. "Trial!" Since the imperial edict didn't mention it, he could just dismiss Cui Wensheng's presence as a personal act of boredom.

But before Zhang Wenda could ask his first question, new noise was heard outside the yamen.

Immediately afterwards, a team of Dongchang soldiers rushed into the Censorate in two columns, forcing the onlookers to make way.

"Cui Wensheng, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department and the governor of the East Factory, has arrived!" An eunuch shouted at the door. Then, without waiting for anyone to inform him, Cui Wensheng walked in.

"Eunuch!" Censor Yuan Huazhong couldn't find a suitable object for a while, and couldn't break through the human wall formed by the Dongchang men, so he took off his boots and threw them at Cui Wensheng's head.

The guards around the East Depot commander were no ordinary men. How could they possibly allow such a slow-moving flying object to hit Cui Wensheng? Before Cui Wensheng could turn around, the guard used his scabbard to knock his boot to the ground.

"Pick it up. Throw it away." Cui Wensheng's revenge was simple. It's winter, and I wonder how long you can last without your cotton boots.

"Greetings, Admiral!" Hai Zhentao and Lu Wenzhao knelt on one knee in front of Cui Wensheng.

"Yeah." Cui Wensheng nodded, then stepped over the threshold and into the main hall. He didn't even look at Hai Zhentao.

Before Cui Wensheng could even stand still, Zhang Wenda asked in a deep voice, "Eunuch Cui, what are you doing here?"

"Just to sit in." As soon as Cui Wensheng entered the lobby, an eunuch found him a chair with a backrest.

"Is there an order?" He Zongyan looked Cui Wensheng up and down, but he didn't see him making any move to take anything out.

"No." Cui Wensheng not only sat down, but also crossed his legs.

"If there is no imperial decree, what are you doing here?" The person who slammed the table was actually Xu Guangqi.

"This is a case of rebellion. Of course the East Factory will investigate." Cui Wensheng still looked arrogant and domineering.

"Eunuch Cui, I'm afraid it's inappropriate to classify the case now." Huang Kezan was shocked by the word "rebellion". "This case hasn't even been tried yet!"

"Then you guys go ahead and try it." Cui Wensheng turned the tables.

"This is a judicial hearing. Just shut up unless you have the order!" He Zongyan was rarely angry.

"Who are you?" Cui Wensheng followed Taichang after the death of Emperor Wanli and had never dealt with He Zongyan.

"The Minister of the Supreme Court, He Zongyan." He Zongyan had always been a low-key person. Even at this moment, he still didn't act like an imperial tutor.

But just because He Zongyan didn't do it didn't mean others wouldn't help him. "When you were still being punished in Zheng Palace, He Shaobao was already teaching in Ciqing Palace," Zhang Wenda said.

Cui Wensheng was familiar with Zhang Wenda. He remembered clearly that it was a sentence in Zhang Wenda's memorial, "For two hundred years since our ancestors, there has never been a case where a criminal was not handed over to the court and was ordered to be convicted," that directly led to Concubine Zheng instructing him to beat Pang Bao and Liu Cheng to death.

"It's Master He." Cui Wensheng didn't know He Zongyan, but he knew the emperor had always been very kind to Master Sun. "My apologies," Cui Wensheng said, bowing.

He Zongyan returned the greeting with a perfunctory bow. He had a general understanding of Cui Wensheng: a man who relied on his master's power but was also a coward.

"The three judicial officials are here to hear the case. Eunuch Cui, if you don't have any new orders, you'd better just sit there and listen." Huang Kezan gestured towards the gallery where Zhou, Li, and Xu sat. "Please sit there."

Cui Wensheng felt that it was about time to back down, but he still said harshly: "If you judge the case impartially, I will naturally not interrupt." As soon as he stood up, two eunuchs came over and carried a chair for him.

"We can't try him yet," Zhang Wenda said, staring at Cui Wensheng. Now that Cui Wensheng was here, he had to fight for his place.

"You don't want to give me your seat, do you?" Cui Wensheng mocked.

"Order the Imperial Guards to remove the restraints from Minister Sun." Zhang Wenda ignored Cui Wensheng's taunts. "Otherwise, the trial won't be possible."

"Why are you doing so much trouble?" Cui Wensheng yawned. "Just do the trial like this."

"According to the ancestral law, the shackles should be removed from the interrogation room before the current official is convicted." Zhang Wenda emphasized: "The emperor hasn't convicted Minister Sun yet. You don't want to remove the shackles. Do you want to convict Minister Sun on behalf of the emperor? If you nod, I won't mind giving you my seat. Anyway, the guilt has been determined, so we don't need to conduct a trial." Zhang Wenda looked as if he said, "I won't conduct a trial unless you remove the shackles."

Cui Wensheng was silent for a long moment before shrugged and said, "Then let's follow the ancestral law. Untie him."

"I will follow the orders of the admiral!" Hai Zhentao walked up and said loudly on purpose.

Hai Zhentao's actions caught Cui Wensheng's attention. He thought this Jinyiwei, wearing a fourth-rank official uniform, was doing this to show his position and flatter him, so he nodded in satisfaction. But in reality, Hai Zhentao just wanted to get out of the way. Snap!
Zhang Wenda raised the gavel and slammed it again. "Sun Ruyou, the three judicial officials have been ordered to conduct a joint trial. You must answer truthfully."

"Please ask." Sun Ruyou sighed.

"In the case where Yang Yuan, Feng Sanyuan, and Gu Xu falsely accused Xiong Tingbi, was there someone behind the scenes directing them?" Zhang Wenda asked, looking at the manuscript he had written in advance.

"Yes." As soon as Sun Ruyou said this, the whole room immediately erupted in uproar.

"Silence!" Zhang Wenda slammed the gavel. He continued to ask, "Who ordered this?"

"Zhao Nanxing, a Jinshi (Jinshi) in the Jiaxu year of the Wanli reign." Because Zhao Nanxing held no official position, the name "merit" could only be used as a prefix. "Zou Yuanbiao, former Minister of the Supreme Court." Sun Ruyou narrowed his eyes, his face filled with pity.

He still remembered that at the secret meeting to discuss attacking Xiong Tingbi, Xu Guangqi and Zhao Nanxing had a fierce quarrel, and Zou Yuanbiao tried to mediate but did not comment on the matter itself.

"Who else is involved in this case? Are you involved yourself?" Zhang Wenda asked.

"Except for Zhao Nanxing and Zou Yuanbiao, I am the only one participating." He paused, then added resignedly: "The gathering place is my home." This was a complete lie. The secret meetings of the Donglin Party's top leaders were almost all held at Liu Yirong's house. It was not until the Jinyiwei surrounded the Tianshi Zhang Mansion opposite Liu's Mansion that the secret meeting place was changed to Han's Mansion in Baodafang.

"Why did you frame Xiong Tingbi?" This time it was He Zongyan who asked.

"Xiong Tingbi has talent but no moral integrity, and is unfit to hold the important position of governor." This is still a lie.

The real answer is simple. First, Xiong Tingbi's widespread abuse and provocations made him disliked by Zhao Nanxing and many Donglin Party members. Second, Xiong Tingbi, a native of Huguang, was considered a member of the Chu Party and a key point in achieving the goal of "exposing all the party members" and "filling the court with upright people." However, neither of these answers can be made public.

"Oh." Xiong Tingbi's contribution to defending Liao was widely acknowledged. So He Zongyan just shook his head and sneered, saying nothing more.

Zhang Wenda glanced at Huang Kezan and He Zongyan, confirming they had no intention of pursuing the matter further. Then, as the presiding judge, he approved the answer: "The false accusation is true. It is recorded."

Upon hearing this, the deputy officials from the Ministry of Justice and the Dali Temple who were sitting in the second seat first looked up to confirm the tacit attitude of the chief official of their office, and then raised their brushes to write on the paper in front of them.

Once the case is written down, the three judges will review it. Unless the guilty official protests his innocence before the case is closed and obtains an imperial decree for a retrial, this will be the conclusion.

"Sun Ruyou. The judge asks you again. Was your roaring at the court on the eleventh day of the winter month a premeditated attempt to force the emperor to abdicate?" Zhang Wenda glanced outside the door and saw the censors blocked by a wall of people. In the end, he decided to use a gentle way of asking rather than an accusatory interrogation.

Hearing this question, Lu Wenzhao, who was standing outside the hall, suddenly became nervous. He tightened his grip on the knife in his hand until he heard Sun Ruyou's answer:
“There were discussions, but no pressure to abdicate.”

"Huh!" Lu Wenzhao let out a long sigh, his face flushed with accomplishment. As long as they admitted to discussing it, the nature of the matter was set. Whether or not to force the emperor to abdicate was not up to the prisoners.

In stark contrast to his reaction, the imperial censors gathered in the courtyard in front of the Censorate were silent at first, then burst into a barrage of questions. However, the cacophony made it impossible to hear anyone's words clearly.

"Silence!" Zhang Wenda banged the gavel three times before finally hushing the clamor. These censors were far more formidable than the common people who had come to the county yamen to watch the commotion. At least, the yamen runners didn't dare whip them.

"Who is the mastermind and what is his intention? Come forward immediately!" Zhang Wenda asked two questions in a row.

"The conspirators were Zou Yuanbiao and Zhao Nanxing. I was also involved," Sun Ruyou offered the answer the Imperial Guard had prepared for him. "There was no one else." At this point, a hint of the sweetness of aged tea lingered in his bitter mouth: At least Liu Ge Lao, Han Ge Lao, Zhou Butang, and Xu Butang had been eliminated.

"Although we do have the intention to discuss things together, we have no intention of disrupting the government. All we want is for the emperor to accept our good advice, restore the old system and laws, and not repeat the mistakes of the previous emperor." Sun Ruyou continued.

After the Wenhua Hall Incident, the reform of the court meeting system was widely recognized as good governance. Sun Ruyou's claim that the conspiracy was intended to persuade the emperor to accept sound advice was untenable. Moreover, the act of conspiracy itself was a "small-minded clique" prohibited by ancestral law.

The three judicial officials were there to hear cases, not to debate, so Zhang Wenda did not engage in a debate on the merits of his advice. Instead, he ordered, "The conspiracy is true, and it is recorded."

"The judge has one last question for you," Zhang Wenda cleared his throat. "How did you collude with the censors to force the emperor to abdicate?"

"There is no need for linkage and there is no linkage. The censors spontaneously responded to the righteous act of Mr. Zou and Mr. Zhao." After saying this, Sun Ruyou closed his eyes and stopped talking, with an indifferent look on his face.

The Northern Pacification Division directed the Central Thousand Households Unit to conduct a house search of the imprisoned officials, uncovering numerous letters, including some signed by Zhao and Zou. However, these letters only proved correspondence, not conspiracy. Compared to the confession of a key figure like Sun Ruyou, they were practically worthless.

"It's on record." Zhang Wenda nodded.

After the last deputy official in charge of recording put down his brush, Zhang Wenda spoke again: "The trial is concluded. The criminal official will be detained." Cases heard by the three judicial departments were never pronounced in court. After the trial, only a joint memorial was produced to be submitted to the emperor for his decision.

"Wait." Cui Wensheng, who had been silent the whole time, suddenly stood up. "Who said the criminal was detained by the Censorate?"

"It's the rules!" Huang Kezan retorted. "The criminal should be detained by the same yamen where he was tried."

"The court has no right to interfere with cases handled by the factory guards." Cui Wensheng didn't argue with Huang Kezan. "That's the rule."

"But the case is already in the hands of the judicial department." He Zongyan said.

"Hasn't your trial concluded?" Cui Wensheng approached Sun Ruyou. "Are you hoping to uncover something else? Someone, come here."

"What do you want, Admiral?" Hai Zhentao walked over.

"Lock it up and take it away." Cui Wensheng saw this as a great opportunity to show off in front of the emperor. He had to find the spotlight himself, otherwise Wei Zhongxian would step on him sooner or later.

"That won't do!" Zhang Wenda slammed the table and stood up, walking up to Cui Wensheng and confronting him. "This is the Censorate, not Qianqing Gate."

"Hmph. What do you mean?" Cui Wensheng met Zhang Wenda's gaze without fear. "Why not explain yourself more clearly?"

"The Censorate is not a place where eunuchs can run wild!" Censor Yuan Yingtai walked around and came in from the back door of the lobby, with several censors following him.

"Hey! Isn't that Censor Yuan? He's jumping so high even with one shoe missing," Cui Wensheng scoffed. "What can you do if I take him away? Are you going to report me?" Cui Wensheng believed his arguments were sufficient, and since he was carrying out the emperor's secret decree, he felt confident.

"You're planning to hit someone here!" Zhang Wenda's anger suddenly flared up. "Someone come!" The Censorate also had soldiers.

However, it is hard to say how much momentum the Censorate's soldiers still have when facing the Jinyi Guards and the Dongchang guards.

"I'm not going to bite anyone I see like those wild dogs." Cui Wensheng gave Yuan Yingtai a provocative look. "I'm just following the rules and taking the prisoner away."

"Let's ask for permission." Just when both sides were at their wit's end, He Zongyan stood up, inadvertently blocking Xu Guangqi's way as he was about to say the same thing. "I will go to the palace now and ask to see the emperor."

"Then I'll wait for you." Cui Wensheng didn't mind, as long as the emperor and the ancestors knew that he had such thoughts. "Withdraw."

(End of this chapter)