Chapter 018 Fight to the death
Dear friends, please add it to your collection. Thank you.
Snapped...
The alarm sounded. Zhang Wenda knocked it himself. He said in a cold voice: "Chen Cao, please don't mention anything unrelated to the case. Otherwise, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Chen Cao apologized to Zhang Wenda, and then said loudly: "My Chen family, after my father died in the battle of Saarhu, the family fell into decline and had no money left. All the money gained later came from writing scripts. How much, there are accounts. If you don't believe me, you can check the accounts and you will know. Mr. Huang said in his confession that he accepted five thousand taels of cash as a bribe from me. I am not afraid of everyone's ridicule. Now that my Chen family's property has been purchased, the cash at home is only five hundred taels. , and it’s all loose silver. You can tell by checking which bank this money was exchanged at. If you don’t believe it, feel free to check it out.”
Huang Chengxian's heart skipped a beat. When he questioned himself earlier, he answered casually, but it turned out that he said the wrong thing. If he said that he remembered it incorrectly, but he had already signed and pledged it, once he reversed his confession, what he said would have no basis, and the case would be over. .
Zhang Wenda nodded and signaled to Chen Yiyuan. Chen Yiyuan immediately ordered the yamen to go to Chen's house to get the account books, and then went to the major banks in Jinling to check if there was any record of Chen Cao exchanging cash.
At this moment, drums sounded outside the yamen, and Zhang Ke was brought into the lobby by the yamen. Chen Cao's brows jumped, feeling that something was not good.
Zhang Ke glanced at Chen Cao, then saluted Zhang Wenda and others: "Student Zhang Ke, I have met all of you."
Chen Yiyuan stared at Zhang Ke and said, "Zhang Ke, what are you doing here?"
Qin Weimin felt that something was not good, so he first raised his hands to Zhang Wenda and said, "Master Zhang, this person is Zhang Ke, the official candidate for the county prime minister of Jiangning County in the 46th year of Wanli. He is the eldest brother of the deceased Zhang Liang."
Zhang Wenda nodded: "Zhang Ke, what do you want?"
Zhang Ke saluted Zhang Wenda and said, "Your Majesty, the students want to sue Chen Cao for abusing his power, extracting confessions through torture, and fabricating false confessions."
Oops...
The excitement was getting louder now, and everyone in the courtroom began to whisper to each other. Zhang Wenda glanced at Chen Cao and found that Chen Cao was a little flustered, but then he calmed down again, knowing something secretly in his heart, and then said: "Tell me carefully."
After Zhang Ke explained clearly what happened that night, he pointed at Chen Cao and said: "This guy also threatened my family, saying that anyone who complains to an official will be punished with a higher penalty. The student is a judge, and he knows all about the laws of the Ming Dynasty." , His torture to extract confessions is no different from what Ji Gang did, how can such a scum have the face to serve as the Emperor's own army?"
"Chen Cao, do you have Zhang Youcai's confession?" Zhang Wenda asked rhetorically.
Chen Cao had calmed down from being surprised and flustered before until Zhang Wenda asked him. Then he clasped his fists towards Zhang Wenda and all the jurors and said, "My lords, I would like to ask you a question. Can the testimony obtained by coercing a confession be used as evidence in court?”
this?
Since the founding of the Ming Dynasty, officials have used torture when trying cases. There are countless unjust cases caused by so-called beatings. Wai Lang, a member of the Ministry of Punishment, is in charge of these matters. In order to prevent unjust cases, the rationality of the files must be carefully reviewed. Zhang Liang's case was entrusted to Gu Dazhang. Give.
However, the officials sitting here knew that most of the evidence obtained after torture could not be proved true, but officials were not allowed to do so in order to solve the case. Sometimes it was understandable to treat the real murderer, but after all, the real murderers were in the minority.
Qiao Yunsheng, the Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment, frowned. He was the Shangshu of the Ministry of Punishment in Nanjing and was in charge of all the cases in Nanzhili. He was also very familiar with the use of punishment. It was not clear whether he had any unjust cases in so many years as an official, but what he did know was that it was impossible. Avoid, so his expression is also a little embarrassed.
Seeing that they didn't speak, Chen Cao turned to the many officials in the auditorium and said, "What do you think, sirs?"
Chen Cao didn't know Gu Dazhang, but he only knew that such a number one person was there. They all happened to look at Gu Dazhang. Gu Dazhang coughed twice, and then said loudly: "Since the founding of our country, there has been no shortage of torture, but we have done everything to the point, and we have tried our best to avoid torture to extract confessions." If this is the case, Chen Qianhu’s evidence may not count, and it may also have the purpose of abusive lynching.”
Chen Cao nodded towards Gu Dazhang and gave him a thumbs up happily. If Chen Cao knew who the person in front of him was, he would probably feel from the bottom of his heart that these people were all Shabi.
"Master Zhang, what do you think?" Chen Cao looked at Zhang Wenda.
Zhang Wenda looked at Gu Dazhang, and then said, "I agree with what Mr. Gu said."
good...
Chen Cao nodded, and then took out Zhang Youcai's confession from his arms: "For your information, my lords, what I am holding is the testimony of Zhang Liang's father, Zhang Youcai. Please listen clearly, it is the testimony of Zhang Youcai, not the Zhang family." other people."
"My lords, he forced the student's father to write down this testimony. He did not count. Please be careful, lords." Zhang Ke shouted loudly with his hands raised.
"Why did I force you Zhang Youcai?" Chen Cao turned to stare at Zhang Ke and said with an angry smile: "I went to your Zhang family and obtained testimonies one after another. I did not torture your father Zhang Youcai. Your family has nothing to do with this matter. My subordinates all know that your father wrote the testimony voluntarily, so what does it have to do with me? In this case, there is no such thing as torture to extract a confession, and this testimony is valid evidence."
Zhang Wenda carefully read Zhang Youcai's confession, which included his views and identification of Zhang Liang's case. Zhang Wenda finally understood at this moment that the reversal of Zhang Liang's case was really done by someone behind the scenes, with the purpose of punishing him. Now He also firmly believed in Chen Cao.
Chen Yiyuan said: "Zhang Ke, how did Chen Cao threaten your father?"
Zhang Ke handed over his hand and said, "Report to the Lord of the Palace, one of his subordinates slapped the student, and then threatened to arrest the student and torture him when he returned. My father was afraid and agreed to write these testimonies."
Not only Chen Yiyuan, but also several of the jurors and the spectators felt ridiculous. He was slapped without even knocking out his teeth. This was not called torture at all. Seeing the reactions of these people, Zhang Ke instantly felt that he had come to the wrong place.
Chen Cao couldn't help but sneer, and then took out another letter: "My lords, this is a correspondence between Zhang Liang and someone during his lifetime. What the letter says is an appointment with Zhang Liang to drink at Zuixiang Tower. Zhang Liang's case It turned out that the official was from the Jinyiwei Qianhu in Nanzhili, and the deceased was from the Imperial College. It was the official’s duty to investigate the case, so he went to Zhang’s house to seal Zhang Liang’s letters. When the official learned the news , sent people to investigate, and the girl from Zuixianglou said that there was someone who accompanied Zhang Liang to Zuixianglou for drinking and sleeping with prostitutes. As for who it was, they didn't know who it was. Based on Zhang Youcai's testimony, the subordinates suspected Zhang Liang's death. It was a premeditated incident, and the purpose is still unclear.”
"Since it's not clear, how can you overturn the fact that you didn't pay bribes? If you go by what you said, Huang Chengxian is framed by you. But after all, he is also a general judge in the government, a sixth-grade official, and he has a great future?" Xiong Mingyu He said with a frown.
Chen Cao smiled confidently: "Return to Mr. Xiong, I have already made plans for you. Please listen carefully to all the gentlemen in the hall. Zhang Liang has a personal servant named Zhang Qi. He is a pariah who sold himself to the Zhang family. He has been studying in the Imperial College with Zhang Liang. However, on the night of the incident, Zhang Qi sent the beaten Zhang Liang home and then left with his family." Chen Cao's head looked left and right from time to time, in order to let everyone in the hall hear: "I am here. On the second day after the incident, people were sent to Zhang Qi's home to check. According to their neighbors, Zhang Qi's family left before dawn. So, why did a slave who sold himself to the Zhang family take the risk? Run away with your family?" He then added: "Anyone with low status and sold into slavery will not be held accountable by the government even if he is beaten to death by his master. Therefore, Zhang Qi knew that he would be beaten to death by his master if he ran away privately. Besides, where can he go?"
Chen Cao saw that everyone was nodding, thoughtfully, and then said: "Xiaguan's subordinates have carefully inquired about the Zhang family, and they have also filed a record with the Jiangning County Government. The Zhang family immediately called after Zhang Liang's death. We were looking for Zhang Qi. When we arrived at Zhang Qi's house, we found that none of them were there. Why did Zhang Qi and his family leave at night, risking being beaten to death?" Chen Cao looked around at everyone in the hall. He said loudly: "The reason is that Zhang Qi knew that Zhang Liang would definitely die. As a personal servant, he would definitely not survive if his master died. Therefore, Zhang Qi, who was afraid of death, took his family members to escape at night."
Oops...
The hall was completely boiling, and Zhang Wenda was lost in thought. However, Cao Yubian, Gu Dazhang, and Gu Linsheng and Zhao Cheng from the people's group who were hearing the trial looked embarrassed. There is no doubt that this time Zhang Liang was tried, they were the ones who Even if he is not the mastermind behind the scenes, he is also involved in a lot.
"Chen Cao, is there any whereabouts of Zhang Qi's family?" Chen Cao had always been confident. Only then did Zhang Wenda understand the reason why Chen Cao said he wanted to make things worse that night. So that was it.
Chen Cao nodded and said: "Before the official was suspended, he had already found the long-missing Zhang Qi family in Chunhua Town, Jiangning County."
Gu Linsheng couldn't stand, Zhao Cheng looked pale, and Zhang Qi's family was a burden. They knew it, but they didn't dare to kill people blatantly. They could only frame the blame, otherwise they wouldn't have gone through so many twists and turns.
Gu Dazhang's face was livid, and when he looked at Gu Linsheng, he hated the iron.
"The lower official had previously arrested the household secretary and a group of subordinates in Jiangning County. They admitted that they had forged a road guide for Zhang Qi, with the purpose of going to Shangyuan County. The lower official then detained these people and notified Jiangning. The county government, and then rushed to Shangyuan County non-stop. When they arrived, they found out that Zhang Qi's family had arrived and then left." Chen Cao took a deep breath: "Xiaguan finally got the news not long ago. My son gambled heavily in Chunhua Town and lost thirty taels of silver in a long time. Sirs," Chen Cao finally couldn't help but smile: "Zhang Qi's family is a prostitute of the Zhang family. Every month The family only gave them fifteen taels of living money, and his son Zhang Shishi was an idler. A local Qingpi in Jiangning once reported that Zhang Shishi owed them more than ten taels of silver. However, on the night of the incident, Zhang Shishi had a one-time He paid off the debt and then disappeared. Judging from these news, do you think that where did Zhang Qi's family get so much money?"
Those who are not involved will naturally feel that they are righteous, while those who are involved will understand that they will be exposed soon.
Chen Cao said jokingly: "Oh, by the way, I want to make a digression. When Zhang Shisi asked the banker to lend him money after losing money in the gambling house in Chunhua Town, he said in a conversation with the banker that the young master of Nanjing Taipu Temple Qing Gu Yuncheng, Master Gu is his master, and he has plenty of money for him to spend. Then the banker lent him another thirty taels of silver for gambling. If the official had not been suspended, he might really have to go to Master Gu's house to ask. Ask if there is a slave named Zhang Shishi."
"Nonsense," Gu Dazhang finally couldn't help it anymore: "Chen Cao, don't try to include my father in this nonsense."
Only then did Chen Cao notice that the person scolding him was the person who had explained earlier, and now he guessed that this person was probably Gu Dazhang: "Dare you ask this sir?"
"I am Gu Dazhang, a member of the Criminal Department of the capital." Gu Dazhang said proudly, holding out his chest.
"Oh... I'm embarrassed to see Mr. Gu in person." Chen Cao saluted Gu Dazhang with a hint of mockery. They were both of the same rank, so there was no one who was overpowering the other, but Chen Cao still said without changing his expression: " If Mr. Gu doesn’t believe it, you can ask for the testimony of my Qianhu Office. Everyone in the gambling house has testified. There is no need for dozens of people to wrongly accuse a person from a lowly family. Even if they are wronged, what benefits will they get? "
One sentence made Gu Dazhang choked and speechless. Gu Linsheng outside the hall trembled from the bottom of his heart. Thinking of Zhao Cheng's previous words, he couldn't help but shudder again.
Snapped...
Zhang Wenda personally knocked on the gavel and said, "Come here, bring Zhang Qi's family to the court."
The person escorting Zhang Qi's family was Zhao Xin, and he was always under his supervision. This was his trump card and there must be no problems.
When Zhang Qi and Zhang Shisi entered the hall and saw this grand scene, their legs couldn't help but soften, and they knelt down with a plop. When Zhang Ke saw Zhang Qi, he quickly asked: "Zhang Qi, are they right?" You have to torture yourself into submission, so you don’t have to be afraid. With me here, as long as you tell the truth, all the adults will make the decision for you.”
Snapped...
Zhang Wenda said angrily: "Zhang Ke, I understand that you are a judge. If you interrupt my trial again, don't blame me for being ruthless."
Zhang Ke bowed and apologized. Zhang Wenda stared at Zhang Qi for a long time before saying, "Zhang Qi, I want to ask you, where were you the night before Zhang Liang died?"
Zhang Qi trembled, recalling the conversation with Zhao Xin in the prison in his mind, and then said: "I accompanied the third young master to drink in Zuixiang Building..."
"Is there anyone accompanying you during this period?" Zhang Wenda then asked.
Zhang Qi's eyes were wandering, and anyone with a discerning eye would see something wrong at the first sight. Xiong Mingyu shouted angrily: "Master Shangshu asked questions, and hesitantly refused to answer. A severe punishment is waiting for you."
Zhang Qi was so frightened, and coupled with what Zhao Xin told him before, he immediately said tremblingly: "Returning to your lord, there is indeed someone accompanying me during this period, and he is... the third young master's classmate in the Imperial College."
The person who invited Zhang Liang to drink was really none other than Zhao Cheng. When he heard Zhang Qi say these words, Zhao Cheng couldn't bear it and fainted. There were more than a hundred people from all walks of life watching the trial outside the hall. As a young man in a green shirt fell to the ground, they all whispered to each other. If you listen carefully, most of them laughed.
Chen Cao looked back and saw Gu Linsheng slapping Zhao Cheng who had fainted. He couldn't help but sneer at the corner of his mouth.
"In the courtroom, keep quiet. If you make any louder noises again, the officers on the left and right will obey orders and send all those people out to me." Chen Yiyuan slammed the table and said angrily, and then apologized to Zhang Wenda with his hands in hand.
"I'm asking you, do you know who that classmate Zhang Liang is?" Zhang Wenda then asked.
Zhang Qi trembled all over and said in a trembling voice: "I don't know very well... I only know that the third young master calls him 'Mr. Zhao'."
Chen Cao stared at Zhang Qi and couldn't help but said: "Zhang Qi, didn't Mr. Zhao say that he was treating the whole audience?"
Zhang Qi shook his head without knowing it: "I don't know about this, but the money for the drink that night was indeed paid by Mr. Zhao."
Zhang Wenda didn't take it seriously at Chen Cao's sudden gag, but said to the people in the hall: "My lords, the case has basically begun to take shape at this point. The most important thing on the night before Zhang Liang's death, except Song Che, was the person named Zhao. Mr. Qin, I would like to collect the list of Imperial College students in the Nanjing Academic Affairs Office to see how many students named Zhao there are."
Qin Weimin quickly handed over to Zhang Wenda, then silently left the auditorium and went to the Yamen to get the roster.
After arranging things here, Zhang Wenda is about to ask the key point: "Zhang Qi, I will ask you again, why did Zhang Liang conflict with Song Che, and do you know the causes and consequences of his death? Also, why did you run away with your family? , tell me carefully where the property in your home comes from."
"Sir, the reason why the third young master had a conflict with Mr. Song Qi was because... because..." Zhang Qi raised his head and stared at Cao Yubian.
The silence in the hall was terrifying. Everyone was staring at Zhang Qi. Every move he made was in the eyes of the people in the hall. Cao Yubian noticed that Zhang Qi was staring at him, and his whole body went numb. Many people also looked at Cao Yubian. Bian, Cao Yubian's face instantly turned red, so he slapped the table and shouted: "You bastard, just say what you say, why are you looking at me?"
Xu Xianchun and Luo Yangxing in the auditorium both sneered. They had been Jin Yiwei for many years and were very good at investigating and reviewing cases. They knew why Zhang Qi was looking at Cao Yubian, but it was just not easy to find out. .
Xu Hongji, on the other hand, couldn't help but sneer and said: "Huh, Mr. Cao, when others look at you, you will blush and burst into laughter. I don't know how involved you are in this case..."
Phew...
I don't know who couldn't help laughing, and Cao Yubian was even more embarrassed. Zhang Wenda interrupted the embarrassment and asked coldly: "Zhang Qi, come here quickly."
Zhang Qi immediately kowtowed, and then said in a sob: "Your Majesty, the little ghost is obsessed with things, and was fooled, causing the death of the family master. After the little one was captured by the Jin Yiwei Master Zhao, he communicated with Mr. Zhao, and Mr. Zhao said that as long as the little one is If you give an honest account, you can become a tainted witness and receive a lighter punishment."
"A tainted witness?" Zhang Wenda frowned. This was the first time he had heard this term, but he was still a cunning old man. Zhao Xin was Chen Cao's confidant. Zhao Xin's words must have meant what Chen Cao meant. Seeing Chen Cao Cao Cao looked at himself with a smile on his face, and Zhang Wenda made a calculation: "As the so-called weakness is nothing more than a favor, you have repented and took the initiative to explain. If it is combined with the situation at that time, I can consider it. "
Zhang Qi quickly kowtowed again, then took a deep breath and said loudly: "Sir, my third young master is not very good-tempered. He will faint when he is provoked. However, he is a servant. How can he dare to speak ill of his master? , one day when the third young master was studying, Mr. Zhao wrote a letter to the third young master and invited him to drink at Zuixianglou.
When we arrived at the place, my young master was drunk by Mr. Zhao. It happened that Song Zongqi brought people to Zuixiang Building to collect regular money. Mr. Zhao didn't know what he said to the young master, so my young master got up and blocked Song Zongqi's way. To provoke Song Zongqi, his words were full of filth. "
"You are so rebellious that you speak ill of your master like this." Seeing that something was wrong, Gu Dazhang couldn't help but interject. The purpose was to arouse everyone's resentment towards Zhang Qi and make his words untrustworthy.
Zhang Wenda had a higher official position than Gu Dazhang, so he looked at Gu Dazhang angrily: "I would like to reiterate one last thing, if anyone interrupts again, no matter who it is, don't blame me for being ruthless." He looked at Zhang Qida and said, "You continue explain."
Zhang Qi nodded and continued: "Song Zongqi was angered by my young master, and the two parties started fighting. My young master was injured at that time, but the injury was not fatal."
Here comes the point...
"On the way, Mr. Zhao brought another group of people and blocked the young man's way. The person who came said that he was Gu Yuncheng, the minister of Taipu Temple in Nanjing, and the housekeeper of Mr. Gu's family. He wanted to see the young master for something, so the young man asked them to get on the carriage. , and after a while the young master groaned, and they got out of the car and left. Then Mr. Zhao gave the young man five hundred taels of silver notes and asked him to leave with his family, accompanied by a middle-aged man from another group. They took us from Jiangning to Shangyuan and then to Chunhua Town."
"How dare you talk nonsense, you bastard." Gu Dazhang couldn't help it. Gu Yuncheng was his father. After being involved in this case, he couldn't clear his suspicions, so he couldn't help but cursed.
"Come here, take Gu Dazhang out to me." Zhang Wenda said angrily.
The Jin Yiwei on both sides stepped forward immediately, holding Gu Dazhang in his arms and left without caring.
"I later found out that the young master died the next day. I can swear that the young master was injured at that time. I asked a doctor in the city to diagnose and treat the young master. The doctor said that it was just a skin injury, not serious, and he prescribed a doctor. Yao then asked the younger one to take the young master back."
"Which pharmacy doctor treated me?" Chen Yiyuan couldn't help but ask.
Zhang Qi thought for a while: "It's the Huichun Hall on the street of Zuixianglou, the famous Dr. Zhu."
"Come here, go to the Huichun Hall immediately to ask Dr. Zhu to verify Zhang Qi's words." Zhang Wenda ordered.
The case has basically come to light now. Song Che was wrongly accused, so there is another mastermind in Zhang Liang's case, and Chen Cao can also be cleared of suspicion. In order to end the case as soon as possible, Zhang Wenda immediately announced: "The case officer has been It’s clear. I believe everyone can also confirm Zhang Qi’s testimony. I just received a reply that the account numbers at Chen Cao’s home are all correct, and all major bank accounts in the city have confirmed that there is no record of Chen Cao withdrawing cash. Based on this, It was determined that Chen Cao was not guilty. I inspected southern Zhili on behalf of the emperor and had certain rights. I am announcing in court that Chen Cao was acquitted and the official was reinstated. He will cooperate with the trial of Zhang Liang's case. Sirs, what do you think? ?”
Zhang Wenda looked at Luo Yangxing and Xu Xianchun. They both nodded at the same time, indicating that they had no objection. Xu Hongji, as the person behind Chen Cao, also nodded. For this reason, Zhang Wenda specially took a photo of Gaiden. indicate decision.
