After the government responded to the lawsuit, the entire Hezhong Prefecture was in an uproar.
Because in this lawsuit, almost everyone's interests are involved, without exception.
High interest rates or low interest rates are closely related to the people.
Fan Zhen and Yuan Jiang are representatives of the conservative and reformist factions respectively.
The key point is that there is a hidden confrontation between judicial reform and new laws. Whether the royal court's judgment can be enforced is also an unsolved mystery.
Assuming that Fan Zhen won the lawsuit and allowed low interest rates, the Qingmiao Law would be completely abolished. Wang Anshi would definitely not agree to it, and there would inevitably be a game of bargaining.
This is even what many prime ministers are looking forward to.
Because at the moment, Fu Bi, Sima Guang, Wen Yanbo and others are unable to stop the new law.
It was now the end of autumn, and the people were almost done with their farm work. In the streets and alleys, in the city and in the countryside, everyone was talking about this lawsuit.
It even gave rise to a certain economic effect. The business of pubs and teahouses is much better than last year!
Transport Department.
Yuan Jiang glanced at Li Min beside him and asked, "What do you think about this lawsuit?"
Li Min hesitated for a moment and said, "I have already inquired in the imperial court. I think the other party is just Xiang Zhuang dancing with a sword, aiming at Pei Gong. On the surface, it is just targeting the government's ban, but in court, they may use this ban to attack the Qingmiao Law. This is their main purpose."
Yuan Jiang remained calm and continued to ask, "Are you sure you can destroy their intentions?"
Li Min immediately said, "Master Yuan, please rest assured. I promise I won't let them succeed."
Yuan Jiang then nodded with a smile, "I really did not choose the wrong person!"
At this time, the doorman outside said, "Master Yuan, Wei Tongpan and He Yanjian want to see you."
"Please let them in."
Yuan Jiang said to Li Min again: "Go back and prepare first. If you need anything, you can come to me anytime."
"Yes, I'll take my leave."
Li Min had just gone out when she saw Wei Yingfang and He Chunlin coming into the house.
When they met, a hint of doubt flashed across Wei Yingfang and the others' faces.
After entering the hall, the two men first bowed to Yuan Jiang. Wei Yingfang then asked, "Does Scholar Yuan really intend to ask this little pen to represent the government in the lawsuit?"
Yuan Jiang nodded, "That's right."
He Chunlin hurriedly said, "Master Yuan, the other party has invited Master Fan."
Yuan Jiang chuckled and said, "Before I came here, I worked with Fan Jingren in the Hanlin Academy. Although he is knowledgeable and intelligent, this has nothing to do with litigation. Look at Zhang San, he can't even write a smooth article, but he can beat talented officials like Fan Chunren, Su Shi, and Su Zhe. Litigation relies on experience and means, and knowledge is secondary."
The two looked at each other.
is that so
To be honest, they never believed in ear pens. When they had lawsuits before, they never cleared the ear pens, because in the eyes of the officials, ear pens were scholars who did not even have the qualifications to take the exam. How could they be compared with Jinshi? It would be better for the officials to defend themselves than to ask the ear pens to defend the case.
It was understandable that the other party invited Fan Zhen.
The Grand Secretary of the Hanlin Academy is definitely a genius among geniuses.
Therefore, they were shocked that Yuan Jiang hired Li Min to respond to the lawsuit!
Li Min vs. Fan Zhen.
The advantages and disadvantages are too obvious.
In fact, they hoped that the government would lose, but Yuan Jiang's sudden move made them a little confused, so they wanted to find out what was in the gourd so that they could inform the government.
... ...
Royal Court.
After what Gao Wenyin said last time, Zhang Fei has tried to eat breakfast at home recently.
However, due to the cooler weather, Zhang Fei could only temporarily move his favorite open-air restaurant to the corridor.
This morning, Zhang Fei hugged Gao Wenyin and whispered to her, causing his wife to giggle, while he slowly walked towards the dining table.
Xu Zhiqian, who had been waiting here for a long time, rolled her eyes. It was not because she was jealous, but because she felt that Zhang Fei was becoming more and more idle. It was already so late and he had just gotten up.
"Good morning, Zhiqian!"
"It's still early?"
Xu Zhiqian glared at him immediately and said, "Now that the government has responded to the lawsuit, why are you still gathering your strength?"
It was understandable that Zhang Fei relaxed and conserved her energy before, but now that the lawsuit has been settled, she should return to the overtime work she has been looking forward to for a long time.
“No.”
Zhang Fei sat down and said aggrievedly: "I have been losing output these past few days!"
"What output?"
Xu Zhiqian glanced at Zhang Fei in confusion, not wanting to guess the riddle, and asked again, "When do you plan to open the court?"
Zhang Fei said: "Seven days at the earliest, half a month at the latest, let's see how they are preparing."
Xu Zhiqian asked anxiously: "So how are you preparing?"
Zhang Fei laughed and said, "Zhi Qian, we are not the spies now, but the court president and the chief clerk. Since both of them have already invited the spies, what else do we need to prepare? It depends on how well they prepare. We are passive. Whoever can impress me will win."
Xu Zhiqian hesitated for a moment, "Then you don't have your own opinion?"
Zhang Fei said: "If they have their own opinions, how can we talk about fairness? Our job is to fight after they finish. We don't need to prepare too much before that because we don't know how they will fight and we can't prepare."
Xu Zhiqian nodded slightly, "That's true."
When they were spies, they had a very clear goal and they could work towards this goal, but now they still have a clear goal, which is to abuse their power and bend the law!
Xu Zhiqian asked again: "Who do you think will win?"
Just then, Li Si and Xiao Tao came over and presented breakfast.
Li Si handed a book to Zhang Fei, "Third brother, this is the book you wanted."
"Thank you!"
Zhang Fei took it and asked, "Have you eaten?"
Li Si said hurriedly: "We have already eaten. If there is nothing else, I will go and get busy."
"Go ahead."
After Li Si left, Xu Zhiqian asked, "What book?"
Zhang Fei said, "Book of Rites."
"... ... ?"
Xu Zhiqian stared at Zhang Fei in amazement, "Do you read the Book of Rites?"
"yes!"
Zhang Fei wondered, "Can't I see it?"
Xu Zhiqian said: "But you never read these books normally."
Zhang Fei sighed, "I just want to understand what this sect law is all about."
Xu Zhiqian couldn't help but smile and said, "The Book of Rites can only tell you the origin and cause of the clan system, but it cannot explain the current clan system."
"Yeah?"
Zhang Fei put the book down and asked, "Then tell me about it."
Xu Zhiqian said: "The patriarchal system recorded in the Book of Rites has long ceased to exist after the Qin and Han dynasties. Nowadays, there is no patriarchal system in the strict sense. There are only gentry, who often manage the countryside by relying on their reputation and wealth.
Just like Mr. Fan, after he retired, he created the system of charity houses in his hometown, which has been very popular in villages across the country recently, and many of them have established such charity houses. In normal times, they ask people to study, and when natural disasters occur, they help the villagers, in order to gain their support.
In addition, this kind of charity cemetery gradually received support from the imperial court. When encountering famine, the government was sometimes unprepared and had to rely on the charity cemetery for assistance first, but the imperial court would also provide support to the charity cemetery later.
Then they established and maintained order in the villages through education. The government does not have so many people to manage. Although there are royal police now, some remote villages cannot be managed, so gentry are needed. "
Zhang Fei nodded slightly, and suddenly looked at Gao Wenyin who was helping him serve the food, "Madam, you seem to be from a gentry family."
Gao Wenyin was stunned for a moment. "My father is just a teacher, and he is only a little famous in the village, but the family does not have much land, and it is difficult to help the people."
Zhang Fei said: "That is to say, one must have both fame and wealth to be qualified to manage a village."
Xu Zhiqian and Gao Wenyin nodded at the same time.
Zhang Fei said: "When Scholar Sima returns to his hometown, won't he be unable to manage the village? I heard that he doesn't even have an acre of land in the village."
Xu Zhiqian said hurriedly: "Sima Xueshi is different. Even if he retires, he will still have a great influence in the court. Some wealthy families, big landlords, and even local officials in the village will most likely listen to his advice.
In fact, there is no specific set of rules for village management. It is often formed naturally, and is usually decided by the big families in the village. Most of these people have connections in the government and have land at home. "
Zhang Fei nodded.
Just at this moment, Li Si came over again, "Third brother, the essay contest is here."
"Why is he here so early?" Zhang Fei was stunned.
Xu Zhiqian said unhappily: "It's getting late now."
"Ahem!" Zhang Fei pretended not to hear and said to Li Si, "Let him come over."
After a while, Qiu Zhengwen came over and bowed to the three people.
"What's up?"
"Third brother, Li Min has already taken over the lawsuit from the government, and he plans to ask me, Lu Bangxing and others to help."
"What are your plans?" Zhang Fei asked.
Qiu Zhengwen said shyly: "If possible, I would also like to go over and help."
Zhang Fei asked with a smile: "Because the other party is a bachelor of the Hanlin Academy?"
Qiu Zhengwen chuckled.
Zhang Fei chuckled and said, "If you want to go, go ahead, but you must behave well and don't embarrass our spies. It would be best if we could teach these Hanlin Academy scholars a lesson."
"Why!"
Qiu Zhengwen nodded excitedly.
After Qiu Zhengwen left, Gao Wenyin asked curiously, "Can Zhengwen and the others win the title of Bachelor of the Hanlin Academy?"
Zhang Fei said, "Madam! It's really because Scholar Sima and Scholar Wang didn't dare to go down, which seriously affected my record. My best record so far is just defeating a small censor Fan Chunren. Although I defeated him many times, I'm too embarrassed to say it out loud."
Gao Wenyin pursed her lips and smiled, "Yes, yes, no one can compare to you."
"This is a fact."
Zhang Fei smiled proudly.
Xu Zhiqian said: "But you haven't said who will win this lawsuit?"
Zhang Fei said: "The Imperial Court. No matter who wins, we are the biggest winners."
"... ... .?"
Xu Zhiqian rolled her eyes slightly and said, "I'm asking about both of them."
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "I really don't know. Both sides have a chance to fight in this lawsuit. Even if I go on the field, I can't say that I will definitely win, because there are too many issues involved. Even if we talk about good and evil, it's hard to tell. It all depends on who performs better."
... ... .
After breakfast, Zhang Fei asked Cai Jing to ask both parties whether the trial should be held in seven days, half a month, or one month. All of these were acceptable.
But both sides seemed confident and both said the trial would begin in seven days.
In previous lawsuits, the court president and the procuratorate were almost always in the lead, and both sides did not trust the ear pen. But this time, it was not as simple as the ear pen, but a group of ear pens.
Needless to say, Fan Zhen had more than a dozen think tanks helping him analyze the situation.
Li Min also invited all the spies from Beijing to join in the lawsuit.
There is no other intention, I just want to deal with these old masters and step on them to get to the top.
Because Li Min and his friends also knew clearly why the people of Hezhong Prefecture were reluctant to hire spies, because they believed that spies were inferior to officials.
If we can get rid of the group of Hanlin Academy grand secretaries and retired scholar-officials, everyone will come to us for help.
You should know that their bookstores will open one after another next year. They attach great importance to this battle and will go all out.
This is really quite a gimmick.
Not to mention the common people, there were also countless officials who applied to observe the trial in court during this period.
Cai Jing liked this kind of moment very much. No matter how he arranged it, it was the time to show his abilities.
Seven days passed in the blink of an eye.
Today is the day of the trial. As the weather has turned cooler, the court session is scheduled for 3:15 pm. However, before 3:15 pm, there are already crowds of people inside and outside the imperial court.
The gentry from the twenty-eight townships all had to stand outside and watch the trial.
When Fan Zhen appeared, many officials and literati gathered around him.
"Why use a butcher knife to kill a chicken? It's just a small pen, why bother Brother Jingren to do it?"
"I dare not! I dare not!"
Fan Zhen shook his head repeatedly, "You all don't know that these spies are not easy to mess with. Take the chief judge Zhang San for example, he was originally an spies."
"Eavesdroppers are only opportunists. When faced with real talent and knowledge, their true colors will be exposed."
Facing everyone's disdain, Fan Zhen didn't know what to say. He quietly looked around, sizing up the layout of the imperial court. Suddenly, he saw that the row of seats in the upper left corner was empty. He couldn't help but ask, "Are there any other distinguished guests coming today?"
"I don't know, why do you ask, Brother Jingren?"
"Look, there's no one sitting there."
Everyone tilted their heads to look, and one person exclaimed, "Assisting the jury?"