The incident was sensational, but the case was not complicated.
As the harsh interrogation proceeds, the general context emerges.
Lai Jiang was awarded Jinshi in the first year of Baoyou. He was thirty-eight years old and ranked relatively low on the list.
Due to the increasing number of people taking imperial examinations, not every Jinshi can hold an actual position.
When selecting officials, in addition to paying attention to ranking, there is also an unspoken rule that priority is given to young people.
Normally, Lai Jiang would have little chance based on his conditions, but he was from Lin'an, and through many twists and turns, he spent a lot of money to get a job from the Salesian Bureau.
Not long after taking office, Lai Jiang, who had been a bachelor for decades, quickly married Guo Mei, who was twenty years younger than him.
Guo Mei thought she could live a wealthy life, but after she got married, she discovered that the Lai family not only had no money, but also owed a lot of debt, and Lai Jiang's salary was only about ten months.
How can this be done? So Guo Mei encouraged Lai Jiang to use his power to make money.
From the beginning, he secretly misappropriated money and food, and later he became unscrupulous, and his methods were even more varied.
They made false reports and concealed reports, deliberately created vacancies, pretended to receive relief money and wages, and privately shared all the money and food allocated by the court and property donations from the private sector, and only gave some rags and rubbish to the orphans.
Anyway, they don't care about the life and death of the orphans at all, and they can still pretend to receive medical money when they are sick.
Some babies with better qualifications, especially girls, are also privately sent to be sold on the black market.
Some older children were sent to work as servants in their own homes or the homes of relatives and friends.
Although the relevant system at this time is considered to be very complete, the entire Salesian Bureau is in a mess. Lai Jiang and the others have kept the accounts in order. When there is an inspection or outsiders come to the hospital, they will take disguise and response measures, and they will also take bribes and management. attentive.
Coupled with the lack of an effective supervision system, Chang Pingsi, who was in charge of this aspect, didn't pay much attention to it, and was fooled by them.
In fact, their methods cannot be said to be clever, but even in later generations, similar things still happened.
Over the past two years, Lai Jiang has taken away how much money he has taken from the Salesian Bureau. He can't figure out the exact amount himself. It is estimated that it is no less than 30,000 guan. Other officials in the bureau have made from a few hundred to several thousand guan. Anyway, they all have this amount. Made a fortune.
Then, the total number of orphans who died in the hospital was close to five hundred. Some of them died unavoidably, but most of them died because they were not treated properly. Those who died for no reason were equivalent to being killed by these people.
In addition, the nursing home was slightly better, at least no lives were lost, and the abuse and harsh treatment were milder, mainly due to improper payment of money and food. However, it took too long to establish, and there were more bad debts there.
The officials present only frowned after hearing these things, and did not feel any surprise.
On the contrary, most of the officials were shocked. Perhaps they, who read the books of sages every day, could hardly imagine that officialdom had such a dark side.
What is even more shocking is that a person who had the same status as himself and others three years ago, after passing the imperial examination, did not rule the country and bring peace to the world, but for his own selfish interests, he actually regarded human life as nothing, and his heart was more poisonous than snakes and scorpions, and more poisonous than ink. black.
As a result, many people fell into confusion, and some even began to question themselves whether it would be like this in the future.
The case, under the supervision of King Yan, was concluded as quickly as possible.
Although there are still many details that are rough, all the prisoners have confessed, the facts are relatively clear, and the evidence is complete. In Zhao Mengqi's view, this is enough.
After taking charge of the trial, Gao Hengsun carefully checked the Salesian Bureau's case files, signed and sealed them, and handed them to Feng Mengde.
Feng Mengde had a serious look on his face. He took the case file and reviewed it item by item again, and then began to review relevant laws and past cases.
Finally, he breathed a sigh of relief. He first stated the charges and the basis for the verdict, and then said, "According to the law, Lai Jiang, Guo Mei, Wang Laishi, and Lian Caiying are sentenced to four people. They are the leaders and have no family property. He Fan and Guo Sanqi... …Fifteen people, one hundred swords, three years of service, and the management of Qiongzhou, and no pardon will be spared..."
"Wait!" Zhao Meng
Kai interrupted loudly.
Feng Mengde was not surprised. He guessed that King Yan would be dissatisfied with the verdict.
"Your Highness, I promise that the judgment will be strictly based on the law and will not be in vain."
Jiang Wanli also said, "Your Highness, Shi Lang Feng's judgment is not inappropriate. I think I can report it to the Political Affairs Hall accordingly..."
"No!" Zhao Mengqi's face was expressionless, but there was fire in his eyes, "This is too light. In the face of hundreds of human lives, this is really too light!"
"I don't want to listen to any legal regulations. At this moment, I just want to do justice for heaven! The four principal criminals must be skinned and hung in... Gongyuan! The rest of the accomplices will all have their heads hung at Chaotianmen! Also, in the nursing home , as long as anyone who is greedy for money and food for relief is more than ten thousand dollars, he will be the same as a bastard!"
"I want everyone to know that there are some things that cannot be touched at all, and there are some money that cannot be greedy even if they are half a penny!"
The three presiding judges were all stunned.
Jiang Wanli hurriedly admonished, "There is no punishment for peeling off the skin of the grass in our dynasty. This is too cruel. If there is peace in the world, it is also too harsh to punish someone for ten times. The law is nothing more than to avoid past mistakes and avoid future ones." If you want to express your gratitude and enmity, you should do it in the right way..."
Feng Mengde grimaced, "Your Highness, based on your judgment, you will definitely not be able to pass the political hall, nor the official court. I suggest that it is better to act in accordance with the law."
"Your Highness, although these people deserve their punishment, politicians should uphold benevolence and stop in moderation. Otherwise, I am afraid that there will be criticism from both the government and the public..."
Originally, Gao Hengsun's decision had nothing to do with him, but he couldn't help but join in the remonstrance.
Magistrate Gong, Malang and other officials who were listening to the trial also began to persuade him.
The nearly a thousand spectators were also talking about it.
Some people say that King Yan's sentence was too harsh, and it was unavoidable that he was violent and unworthy of the royal demeanor.
There are also those who support King Yan and believe that otherwise it would not be enough to comfort the spirits in heaven of hundreds of dead orphans.
It is also said that governing a country with Confucianism should be benevolent and forgiving, with education as the main focus and punishment as a supplement. Using evil to control evil will only make people's hearts more corrupt.
Some are rational types who believe that the judiciary should be rigorous and how it should be implemented according to the provisions of the law.
Others say that the accomplices may have had their own reasons and were forced to get involved in corruption and perversion of the law, and they should be given a chance to change their ways.
Some people even think that it is a bit unfair that ten dollars can't even buy half an acre of land, but it has to cost one's life.
For a time, the lobby was as noisy as a busy city, with commotion and arguments.
"enough!"
Zhao Mengqi shouted angrily, like a volcano erupting, drowning out all the noise.
"Everything you say and think seems to make sense!"
Zhao Mengqi stood proudly in the main hall, but his eyes were looking at the void outside the hall.
"Gu believes that a country should be founded with kindness and governance should be for the people."
"We, the politicians, eat and drink for the sake of the people. Even if we are incapable of benefiting the people, we should not harm the people and abuse them."
"Ensuring people's survival is already the lowest bottom line for a country. Those who are widowed and lonely can only rely on the state in the end. The state's relief is not a charity, but an obligation."
"If you can't even keep this bottom line, then what's the point of such a country's existence?"
"Today I want to tell everyone in the world that my attitude towards anyone and anything that violates this bottom line is zero tolerance!"
"The law does not allow me to do what I did, so it doesn't matter. I still persist and insist on my own way, even if I use lynching."
Having said this, Zhao Mengqi paused and shouted in a deep voice, "Dongwei, listen to the order!"
All the Dongwei soldiers inside and outside the lobby stood at attention, fisting their chests, "Please order!"
"Take all the prisoners to the market, set up a execution ground, and execute them in public! Anyone who dares to obstruct will be considered hostile and will be killed without mercy!"
Zhao Mengqi's tone was calm, but anyone could hear the undoubted meaning in it.
"Here!"
The Dongwei soldiers immediately took action, working in pairs, carrying the prisoners out of the lobby, and then continued out of the main entrance of Dali Temple.
present
Everyone else was stunned.
King Yan is crazy! ?
He actually wanted to risk the disapproval of the world and carry out lynching in public! ?
Doesn't he want to reserve a seat?
