The prince is more stable

Chapter 529: Killing Dogs
Public opinion in Bianjing exploded overnight.

This was a long-planned plan, which the father and son had decided on long before Zhao Xiaoqian attended the court meeting.

Killing an official without authorization is indeed a violation of the law. Zhao Xiaoqian has been caught with this evidence and there is no way he can clear himself of the charges.

But Zhao Xiaoqian grasped the psychology of the people.

That is, "it is unacceptable under legal principles, but excusable under emotional circumstances."

The people of the Song Dynasty are simple and innocent. They have a clear distinction between good and evil. Good is absolutely good, even illegal things are good. Bad is absolutely bad, and even the prodigal son's return is questionable.

This simple idea has not changed even after a thousand years.

A person's goodness can cover up thousands of badnesses. Even if he has committed many evil deeds, he is still a good person.

What Zhao Xiaoqian did was indeed against the law, but he had a clear conscience.

After the storyteller told the people everything that happened in Zhending Prefecture, the people were boiling with resentment.

His Royal Highness the Prince just killed a group of bad guys. What did he do wrong?
Did the imperial court's laws even disregard common sense? What difference was there between taking the criminal back to Bianjing and executing him in Zhending?
Now, a great hero who has eliminated harm for the people has been imprisoned because of such a small matter. It is said that the court will still hold him accountable. Isn't this confusing right and wrong?
With the meritorious officials being held accountable, who would help the Song Dynasty fight against the Liao? Would the hard-won prosperity of the country be forced back into the humiliating past?
That night, the brothels in Bianjing were brightly lit, and the storyteller stayed up all night. After Zhao Xiaoqian finished his story, one group of spectators left, and another group came after hearing the news. They sat in the brothels and asked the storyteller to start over.

The storytellers really told the story all night long, repeating it over and over again. When it was almost dawn, the audience finally dispersed, and the storytellers had become hoarse and could not utter a sound.

Of course, the storytellers also made a fortune that night. Groups of spectators were very generous, especially when they talked about Zhao Xiaoqian being wrongfully imprisoned. The spectators were filled with righteous indignation and didn't know how to vent, so they threw handfuls of copper coins at the storytellers.

After dawn, the influence of public opinion quickly spread to the court.

It was a new day. The common people and merchants of Bianjing continued to work hard for their livelihoods, and idle people gathered in groups of three or five, but the atmosphere in Bianjing today was very different from usual.

People gathered in groups and talked about the story of Zhao Xiaoqian.

The reactions of the common people were quite consistent. The common people and merchants all spoke up for Zhao Xiaoqian, believing that the court was unfair and should not have handled the matter so hastily, which had disheartened the meritorious officials.

Loyalty every slaughter dog generation.

As the public discussion grew louder, someone finally stood up and shouted angrily.

In the morning, three or five idle men gathered together and came to Kaifeng Mansion. They took the drumstick outside the hall and beat the drum hard to appeal for justice.

The drum for complaining had not been struck for many years and was covered with a thick layer of dust. When the drum sounded suddenly today, the entire city of Bianjing shook.

Inside the Kaifeng government office, officials and servants were terrified and ran out in their official uniforms in a rage.

When the drum for appealing for justice sounds, all officials, both high and low, must immediately go to court to hear the case. No delay or laziness is allowed. This is the ironclad law of the court.

The idle men beat the drum of complaint vigorously. Kaifeng Prefecture Governor Lu Jiawen hurriedly put on his official uniform and came to the court. Two rows of officers were already waiting in the hall.

Lu Jiawen raised his eyes and glanced at the group of idlers outside the hall who were still beating drums to complain about their grievances. As soon as he saw the clothes of those people, he knew that they were a group of hooligans in the city of Bianjing.

But hooligans are also ordinary people, and when ordinary people complain, the prefect must hold a court hearing.

Lü Jiawen had no choice but to order the person who came to complain to be brought into the court. He slammed the gavel and asked who was in the court and what he was complaining about.

Three or five idle men stood in the courtroom with their heads held high and their chests puffed out, shouting back, "Nothing special, but to speak out for the Prince of Hejian. The court is unfair, there are treacherous people in the court who deceive the emperor and persecute loyal officials. Even though we are butchers in the market, we still have the right to speak out for His Highness the Prince."

Lu Jia asked with a heavy sigh.

The common people are ignorant, but they have an inexplicable courage that comes from nowhere and dare to stand up for Zhao Xiaoqian. The common people have such courage because the ignorant are fearless, but is he, the prefect of Kaifeng, also ignorant?

The matter of Prince Hejian is very complicated. Not to mention these common people, even he, the prefect of Kaifeng, dares not get involved easily. You guys can't even get enough to eat, how dare you get involved in this matter?

and so……

Hello people, goodbye people!
Lu Jiawen didn't even bother to reply, and slammed the gavel: "Court dismissed!"

The idlers who were complaining were furious: "You don't care about right and wrong, you don't distinguish between black and white, you don't try cases, you don't redress grievances, you, the prefect of Kaifeng, are also a bad person!"

Lu Jiawen was furious. He didn't want to bother with you idle people in society, but you dared to curse the officials. This is intolerable!

"Come here, arrest him, give him twenty strokes of the cane, and detain him for ten days!"

At this time, outside the Kaifeng government office, countless people had gathered to watch the excitement, and the idle men who came to complain were obviously also attracted by the crowd. When they saw Lu Jia questioning them about their crimes, they were not angry but happy. They looked brave and unyielding, and did not struggle at all, allowing the officers to handcuff their arms and take them away.

They had expressions of glorious sacrifice on their faces, and walked out of the government office with their heads held high and chests puffed out.

The people watching outside suddenly burst into loud cheers, applauding these idlers who were standing up for justice.

When the idlers heard this, they felt more honored and thought that their suffering and righteousness were meaningful. Not to mention having a separate page in the family tree, at least they could be the first to burn incense in the ancestral hall during festivals.

So the idle men were so excited that they could hardly control themselves, and welcomed the highlight of their lives with red eyes. At this time, they were not afraid. They lay on the door panels prepared outside the government office as soon as they went out, took off their pants openly, turned their heads and glanced at the officers with disdain and arrogance.

"Come on, if you cry out in pain you're not worthy of being called a hero!"

This statement was met with another round of cheers. The idlers were so excited that they were trembling with excitement. They secretly made up their minds that when the execution was carried out, they would not cry out even if it hurt like hell. Otherwise, their reputation as heroes would be tarnished, and their future in the streets of Bianjing would be difficult. After being lashed with the cane twenty times, the idlers were carried back home, covered in wounds, by the enthusiastic crowd. As they were carried away, they were held high and paraded through the streets like the three animals to be slaughtered during the New Year sacrifice.

The idlers, however, were full of glory and smugness, feeling both happy and miserable.

Seeing these idlers happily enjoying the highlights of their lives, other idlers in the market were jealous and envious.

What merits and virtues did they possess? Didn't they just beat a few drums to protest their grievances and receive dozens of beatings? And that made them heroes?

I can be such a hero!

So, after one group of idlers received a beating, another group followed suit, and the drum of complaint outside the Kaifeng government office was struck again...

The prefect Lu Jiawen was almost going crazy. The people of Bianliang under his rule were originally so simple and kind. But today he realized that these unruly people were actually courting death.

…………

Kaifeng Prefecture was destined to be very busy today. Groups of idle men came, beating drums as if they were risking their lives. Lu Jiawen kept increasing the severity of the punishment, from the initial twenty strokes of the cane to thirty, forty, and finally he simply stopped holding court. Anyone who beat the drum would be arrested and thrown into prison to calm down.

Because of this incident, Zhao Xiaoqian's deeds became known to the people of Bianliang again, and the discussion among the people became even louder.

At the same time, another related interrogation began in the inner hall of the Dali Temple.

The trial was held on a grand scale. The presiding judge was Zhang Dun, the prime minister of the time. The other jurors were the Chief Censor, the Minister of Justice, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

The prime minister and the heads of the three judicial departments formed the dream trial team of the Song Dynasty.

Since the founding of the Song Dynasty, no one has ever received this honor.

It is an honor to be personally interrogated and beheaded by the prime minister and the heads of the three judicial departments.

The number of people on trial was also very large, totaling more than 30 people, led by Liu Xianzhen, Chen Huan, and Qiao Rongzhi.

At dawn, Zhang Dun came to the inner hall of the Dali Temple and ordered Liu Xianzhen and others to be alerted.

The interrogation process has lasted for a whole morning, but there has been little progress. Liu Xianzhen heard with his own ears at the court meeting yesterday that Zhao Xiaoqian admitted to killing Han Wei and other officials without authorization. Knowing that there was no evidence to prove the crime, he refused to plead guilty and insisted that it was Zhao Xiaoqian who forged evidence and fabricated the officials.

The progress was so difficult that Zhang Dun felt very embarrassed.

I am the prime minister, and I work hundreds of thousands of dollars a minute. I put aside all the state affairs and come here to try the case in person, but you refuse to confess. Am I giving you face?
The presiding judge looked unhappy, and the jurors nearby were naturally embarrassed as well.

The Minister of Justice Xing Shu came over quietly.

That’s right, Xing Shu, the former Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice, had been promoted to the Minister of the Ministry of Justice when Zhao Xiaoqian went to Zhending Prefecture to guard the border.

It was not because of his outstanding business ability, but because he clung tightly to Zhang Dun's thigh.

After being slapped in the face by Zhao Xiaoqian so many times, he was still able to get promoted. Who can he complain to?

Xing Shu leaned close to Zhang Dun's ear and frowned, saying, "Master Zhang, Liu Xianzhen and the others are refusing to confess. I'm afraid we can't continue the interrogation today. It would be better to put them in prison first and mobilize experts from the three judicial departments to slowly grind them down. Within three to five days, we will definitely get a confession."

Zhang Dun shook his head with a serious face.

Three or five days is not a long time, but Zhang Dun could not wait. To the prime minister, this was just a small case, and he did not have the patience to wait.

Besides, the emperor summoned him alone yesterday and issued an order to release Zhao Xiaoqian from prison within three days. Time is so tight, who has the time to waste with this group of convicted officials?

More importantly, this case also involves a group of old party officials. Zhang Dun is even more anxious. As long as the old party is not eliminated, I will not be able to sleep peacefully. Is it too slow to deal with them? There is no time!

Zhang Dun glanced at Xing Shu coldly and said nothing.

But Xing Shu felt a chill on his back. After clinging to Zhang Dun for many days, Xing Shu had a relatively good understanding of Zhang Dun. At this moment, he immediately understood the meaning of the look Zhang Dun gave him.

Mr. Zhang was very unhappy with his suggestion and even wanted to spit in his face.

Xing Shu, knowing the current situation, immediately decided to correct his mistake and said, "If we want to get confessions from Liu Xianzhen and others, I think we may have to use some tricks."

Zhang Dun understood what he meant. "Use some means" meant using torture.

Zhang Dun was suddenly tempted.

He had no interest in trying the case, but this was a task assigned by the government, and he had to carry it out. Since the government had given the order, perhaps... there was no need to be too strict with the rules.

It is not impossible to use torture. Zhang Dun just wants to complete the task quickly, end the case as soon as possible, return to work, continue to work hard for the Song Dynasty, and continue to pursue the old party.

Then Zhang Dun let out an inaudible "hmm" sound from his nose.

No one else heard this "hmm", except Xing Shu, who couldn't help but feel certain.

As your best confidant, Mr. Zhang, I understand you!

(End of this chapter)