Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

Li Hanzhang, the Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Meng Zhao, the Minister of the Ministry of Rites, and Chen Dong, the censor of Zuodu of the Inspectorate, were all standing in front of the father and son at this moment.

Zhu Guoxiang didn't speak, just sat and listened.

Zhu Ming took out the private message sent by Bai Chongyan and said: "The murder suspect's surname is Mao, and his ancestral home is Jiangshan County, Quzhou. His grandfather Mao Zongheng was an official in Shaanzhou forty years ago, so he moved there with his family. Shaanzhou at that time It was still under the jurisdiction of Shaanxi Province, but now it is under the jurisdiction of Henan Province. Let the officials go and find out about Mao Zongheng!"

"yes."

Li Hanzhang took the order and went to personally lead people to look through the archives of the former Song Dynasty.

The others sat there waiting, the atmosphere was quite solemn, and they never spoke again.

After waiting for about three hours, Li Hanzhang found the files of the Ministry of Civil Affairs of the former Song Dynasty: "The Mao family is a famous imperial examination family in Quzhou. There were 58 Jinshis in the Mao family in Quzhou in the former Song Dynasty, and 51 of them were the Mao family in Jiangshan. Jiangshan County in the former Song Dynasty There were 64 Jinshis in total, 26 of whom were from Jiangshan Mao family."

Zhu Guoxiang asked: "Xu Fuyan, the Minister of Punishment, is from Quzhou, right?"

Li Hanzhang was already prepared: "According to the archives of the Ministry of Personnel, the Xu family who produced Jinshi in Quzhou include the Xi'an Xu family, the Changshan Xu family, the Jiangshan Xu family, the Kaihua Xu family, and the Longyou Xu family. And Xu Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment, From the Xu family in Xi'an."

"Xu Shangshu's great-grandfather, Xu Bi, was the first Jinshi in Quzhou in the former Song Dynasty. Xu Bi had a very famous son-in-law, who was also from Xi'an in Quzhou, the iron-faced censor Zhao Bian who rose to the rank of deputy prime minister."

Ju Ming smiled and said, "In-laws are still recorded in the files of the Ministry of Personnel?"

Li Hanzhang said with a serious expression: "There is no record in the official files, but this iron-faced censor Zhao Bian was the mentor of my great-grandfather. And my great-grandmother was Xu Shangshu's aunt. If this case is really related to Xu Shangshu, I Please retreat immediately."

"That's not necessary," Zhu Guoxiang said. "Your great-grandmother is Xu Fuyan's great-aunt. How far are they related?"

Li Hanzhang added: "My grandfather and grandmother were married cousins, and my grandmother was also from the Zhao family in Xi'an. The big families in Quzhou have been married for generations. No matter which family is involved in this case, they are all relatives of my Li family." .”

Zhu Guoxiang smacked his lips: "Then you can avoid it."

Zhu Ming asked Chen Dong: "When the common people complain about grievances, the censor patrols the city but ignores it. What is the background of that censor?"

The files of officials of the Inspectorate are more detailed and they must register in-laws within three generations.

Chen Dong took out a piece of paper: "This censor is called Ying Shan, a native of Guixi, Xinzhou, Jiangxi. Xinzhou and Quzhou are next to each other, and the former Song Dynasty belonged to the two Zhejiang roads. The Ying family is related by marriage to the Jiangshan Zhou family and the Jiangshan Mao family. , and are also related by marriage to...the Zhang family and the Fan family in Dexing."

The atmosphere became more and more solemn. The Dexing Zhang family was the family of Crown Princess Zhang Jinping and the family of retired Prime Minister Zhang Gen.

This is a very large bureaucratic in-law network, which is connected with the families of the crown prince, the Minister of Official Affairs, and the Minister of Punishment.

There is no need for these big shots to take action personally, and it is even possible that the big shots don't know about it. However, the various officials involved in the case, in order to please the relatives of the big shots and the murderer's family, would be very sensible to work together to suppress the case.

Zhu Guoxiang said: "We organized a joint trial of the three judicial departments, and all the officials involved in the case recused themselves!"

…

Forty days later, all those involved were brought to the capital.

The Procuratorate, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Dali Temple jointly tried the case, with Chen Dong serving as the general person in charge of the case.

The first to appear were several witnesses. They knew that perjury was a crime, and they were so frightened that they could no longer walk. They were dragged in by the officers.

Looking at the witnesses who were slumped on the ground, Chen Dong frowned and said, "Bring some chairs over and ask them to sit down properly. If they can't sit still, tie them to the chairs!"

The chairs were quickly moved into the hall, and several witnesses were dragged up and pressed onto the chairs.

The right minister of the Ministry of Punishment is responsible for verifying the identity, and the minister of Dali Temple serves as the court clerk.

"Poof!"

Chen Dong was so frightened that several witnesses trembled all over.

"Shi Guang!"

"In the……"

The witness named Shi Guang was so frightened that he wanted to kneel down and confess, but found that his knees were weak and he could not stand up.

Chen Dong asked: "Why is your confession inconsistent?"

Before the guy could answer, the smell of urine could be heard in the hall, and he was so frightened that he peed on the spot.

After waiting for a long time, Shi Guangcai, who peed his pants, said: "A few officials from the county government came and said that Mao Balang can reach the sky. Even if the emperor comes to solve the case, he won't really care. They also said that if I keep talking nonsense, I will be thrown into prison. I got up and wanted to sell my mother-in-law to a brothel. I...I was so frightened that I couldn't sleep, and when I went to court again, I...changed my story."

Chen Dong asked again: "How many men are threatening you? Are they from the county government or the government government?"

Shi Guang shook his head and said, "I don't recognize them. They are all wearing public uniforms and speaking with local accents."

"I recognize it, I recognize it, and I will serve the crime!" Another witness suddenly shouted.

Chen Dong glanced at the witness information: "Your name is Yu Gui, and you work as a bartender at Yongcui Tower?"

Yu Gui said: "I am Yu Gui. Half a month before Yao Erlang died, he had wine with Mao Balang in Yongcui Tower. They ordered a pot of rice wine in the private dining room on the second floor facing the street. I can't remember what was served with the wine. . I forgot to scald the wine vessel, so I gave it to them. When I arrived at the door, I heard the two of them arguing. They seemed to be arguing about which house's young lady. Yao Erlang might not be able to compete, so he made a fuss about reporting Mao Balang's imperial examination. Cheating."

The three chief investigators all looked shocked at this moment.

They have read the files in detail and gone back and forth several times, but there is no evidence of cheating in the imperial examinations in the testimony.

Chen Dong asked: "When you testified before, did you admit that you heard about cheating in the imperial examination?"

Yu Gui said: "I said it the first time I testified, but then I wasn't allowed to say it."

The three interrogators looked at each other. There was an unexpected gain, and the official involved in the case hidden inside was guilty of a serious crime. One is to help candidates cheat, and the other is to tamper with case testimony.

Chen Dong asked again: "Do you think you know the officials who threatened the witnesses?"

Yu Gui said: "There is one who is in front of Fa Cao's office. I don't know his name. I only know that he is called Gu Da. There is also a man who is not a man. He is Sun Su, a servant of the Mao family. He wears public clothes and pretends to be a man. . When the trial is re-examined this year, I don’t dare to talk nonsense anymore, I have already confessed. Afterwards, Sun Su even led others to beat me up, and my left leg is now lame. I was also fired from Yongcui House, even at the end I wasn’t even given half a month’s salary.”

"Poof!"

Chen Dong slapped the prison wall fiercely: "Bring Gu Ren and Sun Su to the court!"

"Spare my life, spare my life..." Gu Ren started crying while still outside the door.

Sun Su, on the other hand, was a bit unscrupulous and said nothing during the whole process.

After verifying his identity, Chen Dong asked several witnesses: "Were they present when I threatened you to give false testimony?"

Most of the witnesses nodded quickly, but two couldn't remember clearly. Because I was too scared at the time, I didn't dare to look at those guys, and I didn't see many faces clearly.

Chen Dong asked: "You are the magistrate of Shaanzhou Prefecture, Cao Yamen?"

Gu Ren wiped his tears and cried: "I was forced too. It was Zhao Facao who asked me to do it. If I don't obey, I will be killed. The Mao family only gave six guan of money, and Sun Su gave my brother a drink. "Dun. I didn't hit anyone, I just threatened. Later, it was Sun Su who broke Yu Gui's leg..."

Chen Dong asked again: "Who else threatens witnesses with you?"

Gu Ren replied: "There are many people and we don't dare to have too many. Apart from Sun Su, I only brought two brothers of the Fa Cao. One is my brother-in-law, named Li Yingfei; the other is my adopted brother, named Dong Liang."

When Henan prosecutors retried the cases this year, these people were interrogated, but each of them pretended to be dumbfounded and denied that they had threatened the witnesses.

As a high-ranking official in the government, Gu Ren was dishonest when facing the inspectors. He felt that the Mao family had the backing of a big shot.

It was not until the emperor intervened and asked the Three Law Divisions to come for a joint trial that Gu Ren finally dared not hide it anymore.

Chen Dong shouted: "Bring Li Yingfei and Dong Liang to the court!"

After an interrogation, Li Yingfei and Dong Liang admitted to threatening witnesses, and they were all dragged away by Gu Ren.

Gu Ren claimed that he obeyed the orders of Fa Cao and Zhao Hui.

Soon, Zhao Hui was brought to court.

This guy was born in the Zhao family in Xi'an County, Quzhou, and he was Li Hanzhang's distant cousin.

Two years ago, he served as the Shaanzhou Prefecture's legal director, which is an official position specifically responsible for justice.

The judicial system was similar to that of the previous Song Dynasty. County-level yamen could only hear civil cases. Once a criminal case is involved, it must be transferred to the state court (similar to a municipal court).

After the preliminary hearing by the state court, the case will be handed over to the provincial criminal department for review.

Ordinary criminal cases can be finalized by the Criminal Division. Criminal cases of a serious nature must be sent to the Ministry of Criminal Justice for review.

Zhao Hui is equivalent to the president of the Municipal Court. He has been promoted to Hebei this year. He was arrested and brought back to the capital a month ago while serving in Hebei.

Chen Dong asked: "Did you ask the Yamen to threaten the witnesses?"

Zhao Hui looked at the officials of the Sanfa Department, his expression seemed to be regretful, but he chose to remain silent.

Chen Dong and Zhao Hui looked at each other for a long time, and said: "You have been a law officer, so you should know the "Da Ming Code". It has already been tried by the three law divisions, and the officials and the prince are watching. Who else do you want to excuse?"

"well!"

As soon as these words came out, Zhao Hui sighed.

Chen Dong said: "Confess truthfully, and maybe you can get a lighter sentence if appropriate."

Zhao Hui said: "The murderer's father was a classmate and good friend of my father. The Jiangshan Mao family has been married to my Zhao family in Xi'an for generations. Although the Shaanxian Mao family is separated from the Jiangshan Mao family, it is only a matter of these two generations. . The murderer’s seventh brother was engaged to my young sister at the time. Because of the murder, the engagement between the two families was canceled last year.”

Zhao Hui even deliberately slowed down his speech and stopped after finishing a paragraph to make it easier for the clerk who was reviewing the case to take notes.

When the clerk stopped writing, Zhao Huicai continued: "The Eighth Lang of the Mao family did not intend to kill anyone. He and the deceased have always been good friends. Because of their jealousy, the conflicts between the two increased day by day. The deceased threatened Mao Eighth Lang many times, claiming to expose him for cheating in the imperial examination. The last time During the dispute, Mao Balang was so frightened and angry that he accidentally strangled the other party to death."

"Mao Balang was so frightened that he went home in panic. He ran for a while and turned back, dragging the body to the river. He shouted for help by the river and later claimed that the deceased accidentally fell into the water."

"But the family members of the deceased thought it was too strange because neither of them had any servants. During the autopsy, they also found pinch marks on their necks."

"The woman who made them jealous was a young widow in Shaanzhou. This widow had an affair with both the murderer and the deceased. It was related to the reputation of the widow's husband's family and her natal family. The two families did not want to cause a dispute and let the Mao family discuss it with the deceased's family. solve."

"When I intervened in this case, the four families of the murderer, the deceased, and the widow's husband and natal family had actually reached an agreement. I reversed the case for Mao Balang, but I was just pushing the boat along. Of course, I also thought about the relationship between my Zhao family and the Mao family. On behalf of friendship.”

"Later, the case became more serious because the deceased's biological mother went to the court to complain, and even stopped the patrolling censor's car. The other families were furious, and after a quarrel, other members of the deceased's family also became angry and began to mobilize. The connections must be destroyed to the death.”

"All the officials and families involved in the case have been implicated and had to go around trying to clear up relationships to cover up the case."

Chen Dong sneered: "You have talked so much, but it seems that something has been missed. First, why did the testimony about cheating in the imperial examination disappear from the files of many trials? Second, how did the former Henan Inspector get dragged into trouble? ? Third, why did the Ministry of Punishment take the risk to help you cover it up? Fourth, why did the patrol censor ignore the case? "