Because the ancient system was not so perfect, the government was actually very personalized. The image of the government, as well as the working style and efficiency of the people within the government, mostly depended on the boss of the government.
From the series of things that just happened, it can be basically confirmed that the owner of this government is definitely a diligent and strict official.
Otherwise, with Zhang Fei's image and attitude, he might have been driven away before he could even take out the paper, let alone that the yamen officer would find Liu Hai and receive the paper as soon as possible.
You must know that today's government does not serve the people, but serves the emperor. It is more about ruling the people. This is a completely different concept.
This is indeed the case. Xu Zun, the magistrate of Dengzhou, has always been fair, strict, upright, and very diligent. He was already serving in Dali Temple and was an official from the capital. He was sent to Dengzhou as the magistrate the year before last.
Because the Tang Dynasty was in trouble with local military envoys, the Northern Song Dynasty was very concerned about local governance.
The magistrates of prefectures and counties are meant to be "temporarily in charge". After one year, they will have to return to Beijing to take up their posts. This arrangement prevents the formation of an intricate network of influence in the local area, which is tantamount to strengthening the centralization of power.
Xu Zun, who had just approved the official release of Zhang San, did not give himself a short vacation. At this time, he was sitting at the table, carefully reviewing the confession in Ayun's case.
Xu Yuan, the chief clerk standing next to him, had a worried look on his face.
Judging from the facts of the case, this case was just a very simple murder case. It took less than a day for Ayun to go to court and plead guilty, so the county captain of Penglai County quickly closed the case.
But it has been delayed for several months now.
It turned out that the case involved human life and was found to be a crime of evil and rebellion, which is one of the four ten evils. It generally refers to the murder of a close relative, and the murder of a husband is naturally among them.
According to the law, beheading can be imposed, but Penglai County does not have the final right to make a judgment, because according to the legal system of the Song Dynasty, this must be reviewed one by one by Dali Temple, the Ministry of Punishment, and the Criminal Court before the final judgment is given.
Dali Temple and the Ministry of Punishment saw the case and immediately approved it without any doubts.
But when the verdict of the case fell into Xu Zun's hands, Xu Zun thought the verdict was unfair.
Because Ayun's mother passed away a year ago, which means that Ayun is still observing filial piety, so according to the laws of the Song Dynasty, marriage is not allowed during the period of observing filial piety.
Xu Zun took this as an excuse to protest to Dali Temple and the Ministry of Punishment.
For the first time, Dali Temple ignored it and continued to uphold the original verdict.
Although there is this law, there are etiquette and laws among the people. Among the people, during the mourning period, it is just said that no weddings will be held, but marriages and recruitment (betrothal) are allowed.
According to the law, as long as the man has paid the tax, the two are husband and wife.
Xu Zun protested again. This time he even criticized the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Punishment. As officials, we should abide by the law, not the unwritten rules of the people. The law clearly stipulates this. As law enforcement, you Personnel must know the law and break it.
This time, the Dali Temple and the Ministry of Punishment finally gave up the crime of evil and rebellion, and sentenced Ayun to murder and wounding, and he was hanged according to law.
However, Xu Zun only approved the official document instructing Zhang Fei to be released, but did not pass the final judgment of Dali Temple. He obviously still had doubts about this.
Xu Yuan, the chief secretary who had been following him all the time, felt that Xu Zun was going too far, so he advised: "Now that Dali Temple has taken a step back, why don't the magistrates just accept it when things get better?"
Xu Zun frowned when he heard this and said: "Although the verdict of Dali Temple no longer mentioned the ten evil crimes, it still sentenced Ayun to murder and injured him and punished him by hanging. This still requires death."
Xu Yuan found it funny and said: "But there is no problem with this crime. Ayun had the intention of murder, but he failed to commit murder. He was injured after murder."
Xu Zunxiao asked: "When I discussed the ten evil sins with you, how did you say it?"
Xu Yuan pondered for a while and said: "Xiaoguan said at that time that although the law does not allow marriage during mourning, people also have etiquette to follow. They just don't hold weddings, but they don't object to marriages and levies. The Wei family has already accepted levies. The relationship between the two should be husband and wife, so Ayun's murder of Wei Ada is murder of her own husband, which is a very evil crime."
Xu Zundao: "Yes! At that time, you said that it was impossible to exempt the ten evil crimes, but now Dali Temple has not mentioned the ten evil crimes again. This is not the tolerance of Dali Temple, but that Dali Temple also knows that this verdict is unconvincing. , so the verdict was changed to murder with injury. Having said that, if I didn't appeal at that time, wouldn't it be an unjust case?"
Xu Yuan was speechless for a while. Among the ten heinous crimes and murder, he was injured, and both were dead. The difference was that the murder of his husband was punishable by beheading, while the murder of injured persons was punished by hanging.
Is there a big difference?
Is it very unfair?
He estimated that Dali Temple was too lazy to argue with Xu Zun. After all, this guy was a habitual offender, so he took a step back.
Xu Zun glanced at Xu Yuan and saw that he was still dissatisfied, so he said earnestly: "You must remember one thing, the law can kill people, but it can also keep people alive. However, once this life is gone, there will be nothing left. Therefore, when we review cases, we must try every means to give the prisoner a chance to live, so that we can try to avoid unjust, false, and wrongful convictions."
Xu Yuan glanced at his boss helplessly. Obviously, he did not accept Xu Zun's idea.
At this moment, Liu Hai, the Muke who specializes in delivering papers, suddenly appeared in front of the door.
"Reporting to the magistrate, someone just broke into the Yamen to file a complaint."
He used "break" to describe it, which shows that he was very unhappy with Zhang San, because breaking into the Yamen was already a crime and could be punished with a cane as a warning.
However, Xu Zun thought that since he had gone to the Yamen to file a complaint, it must not be a small case, so he immediately asked: "Do you have a complaint paper?"
"Yes. But...!"
Bangs hesitated slightly.
Xu Zun immediately asked: "But what?"
Liu Hai said: "But...but...!"
Seeing his hesitation, Xu Zun said impatiently: "Send the paper in."
"yes."
Liu Hai didn't dare to say anything and quickly handed over the paper.
Xu Zun took it, and when he saw it halfway, he couldn't help but look surprised. He was here to sue me for his feelings. He was even more curious. He looked directly at the place where the signature was signed, and immediately said in surprise: "Is it him?"
Seeing Xu Zun's strange look, Xu Yuan asked curiously: "Who complained?"
Xu Zun smiled bitterly and said, "That's the Zhang San who was just released."
"Zhang San?"
Xu Yuan asked in surprise: "Is there any hidden secret in this case?"
Xu Zun smiled and said: "It's not because of this case. No, it has something to do with this case."
Xu Yuan didn't understand what he heard and asked again: "I wonder who he is suing?"
Xu Zun couldn't laugh or cry and said, "That's me."
"...!"
This is really rare. Xu Zun is a little excited. He has never been sued by anyone in his life.
The sense of anticipation was immediately heightened.
A quarter of an hour later….
When Zhang Fei was escorted to the court, there was no "power..." as expected, nor was there any mention of the Yamen lining up to beat him with sticks.
Xu Zun didn't even wear official uniforms. He just sat in the court in regular clothes. In addition, there was Xu Yuan, the chief registrar, a clerk in charge of recording, and two burly officials.
boom!
"Who is in the hall?"
Xu Zun slapped the alarm and shouted.
Although he is not wearing official uniform, his momentum is not reduced at all.
However, Zhang Fei replied in a neither humble nor arrogant manner: "Zhang San, a small citizen, has seen Zhizhou."
Xu Zun immediately shouted: "How dare Zhang San dare to slander me."
Zhang Fei replied: "Everyone in Dengzhou knows that the Zhizhou is well aware of everything and is honest and upright. How can the common people dare to slander the Zhizhou?"
You have said all these good and ugly things, so what do you want to do? Seeing that Zhang San was so cowardly, Xu Zun felt uncomfortable for a moment, and simply asked: "Then you can tell me how I am a prey to the common people. If there are even half-truths, I will not be merciful."
Zhang Fei immediately asked: "May I ask Zhizhou, can you prove that Xiaomin has nothing to do with Ayun's case and is innocent?"
Xu Zundao: "If this were not the case, how could you be standing here? We have already found out about this matter. You really have nothing to do with this case."
Zhang Fei said: "It means that the common man has been in jail for three months for no reason."
Oh, so that's what he came for. Xu Zun's expression softened a bit, and he said: "You can't blame me, because you were so inconsistent with what you said that day that you couldn't even pronounce your own name clearly. In addition, there were witnesses who saw you and Ah Yun Nuanhui, shouldn’t I be suspicious?”
Zhang Fei nodded and said: "Given Xiaomin's condition at that time, it is natural for Zhizhou to suspect Xiaomin, but in the end it was just Zhizhou's suspicion. There was no evidence to prove that Xiaomin was involved in the case, and Ayun did not mention it. Xiaomin, based on this, Xiaomin has indeed been in jail for three months for no reason. Not only has he suffered mental and physical torture, but he has also lost his livelihood for three months. The losses are immeasurable to Xiaomin. of."
Xu Yuan, the chief bookkeeper, felt that this boy was a little open-minded, and said with displeasure: "We are just doing things in accordance with the law, and we have made no mistakes. Besides, you also have a lot of responsibilities, so you can't blame others."
This actually involves a very key legal thought issue, that is, the presumption of guilt and the presumption of innocence. Thousands of years later, the law is based on the presumption of innocence. As long as there is no conclusive evidence, it is innocent.
But now there is a presumption of guilt, and there is only one theory of "the crime should be light if there is doubt", which means that if there is any doubt, the punishment should be given lightly, rather than the benefit of the doubt going entirely to the defendant. Therefore, it is very reasonable and reasonable to detain Zhang Fei, as long as he is not confused Officials will do this.
Because in reality, the government does not have the financial and material resources to support the presumption of innocence.
If you don't take him into custody, what if the suspect runs away? Da Song doesn't have a Sky Eye system, where can he find it?
Zhang Fei nodded and said: "What the chief clerk said is true, but assuming that Zhizhou intends to punish the people and make them go to jail for several months, will there be any change in the result and process? The answer is no. Zhizhou Although there is no intention to feed the common people, the common people suffer from the flesh and blood. The common people think this is better than doing it intentionally, because it is not illegal and cannot be regulated."
After Xu Zun heard this, he frowned, but there was no look of anger on his face. Instead, he began to think seriously, because he felt that what Zhang San said made sense, and it was more terrifying unintentionally than intentionally.
If someone intentionally harms someone, the court has an accountability mechanism, and people can also appeal. But if it is unintentional, then there is nothing to control. This is terrible!
After a while, Xu Zun suddenly asked: "What do you think it should be?"
Zhang Fei said: "The people think that at least the government should give them some compensation."
Xu Yuan immediately said: "This is unreasonable. Do you think the government is responsible for opening charity halls?"
Zhang Fei shook his head and said: "The government is not a court of charity, but for us people, it is a court of justice. The common people suffered three months of imprisonment for no reason and suffered heavy losses. It is reasonable and reasonable to ask for compensation."
When Xu Zun heard this, a flash of disappointment flashed in his eyes. This was not a solution.
What should we do if we encounter this kind of thing in the future? The government is obviously acting in accordance with the law, but it has to pay compensation every day. This is impossible.
But Xu Yuan was a little angry. You weren't finished yet. When he was about to scold him, Xu Zun suddenly said: "I enforce the law impartially and have no fault whatsoever, so I will not give you any compensation. However, I will not give you any compensation for what happened to you." I am very clear that you are grievances in your heart, which is human nature, and I will not pursue the charges on this paper."
"Thank you, Zhizhou, for your forgiveness." Zhang Fei was so scared that he was like mercury running down the ground, clean and tidy.
Xu Zun's expression froze. Zhang San, who had been so confident just now, gave in so quickly.
Before he could come to his senses, Zhang Fei suddenly changed the subject and said, "Besides, I have one more complaint."
Curious: "What's the matter?"
Zhang Fei said: "Thank you Miss Ayun for saving your life."
Xu Zun was stunned for a moment, then he immediately reacted and said, "Do you want me to tell you something?"
Of course he knew that Ayun had a life-saving grace for Zhang San.
Zhang Fei shook his head and said: "How dare you, a humble citizen, bother Zhizhou, and...and how can I say thank you for this life-saving grace?"
Xu Zun asked: "Then how do you plan to repay your thanks?"
Zhang Fei said: "Xiaomin believes that Ayun should not be convicted of murder, but guilty of wounding."
Xu Yuan was shocked when he heard this.
This is obviously murder, how can it hurt people!
If you don’t understand the Fa, then stop talking nonsense!
Xu Zun became more energetic and asked, "What do you mean by this?"
Zhang Fei said: "During the interrogation process, Xiaomin immediately confessed his crime after learning that Ayun was arrested. I wonder if that's true?"
Xu Zun nodded and said: "It is true."
Zhang Fei said: "If you remember correctly, during the reign of Emperor Zhenzong, some prisoners complained about injustice and accused the government officials of torture and extorting confessions, which led to unjust, false and wrong cases. Therefore, Emperor Zhenzong took back the judicial interrogation power of the government officials and only had criminal investigation trials."
So professional? Xu Zun couldn't help but look at Zhang Fei differently and nodded: "You are right, the government officials do not have the power of judicial interrogation."
This is actually similar to that of later generations. When the police ask for a confession, it is a criminal investigation interrogation, and the court interrogation is called a judicial interrogation.
Zhang Fei immediately said: "Ayun confessed immediately after being arrested by the Yamen. There was no judicial trial at that time, it was just an ordinary inquiry. In other words, he can be punished by surrendering."
Surrendering does not mean that you have to go to the Yamen and confess your guilt in order to surrender.
In the Northern Song Dynasty, voluntarily confessing without judicial trial could also be a case of surrender. This also encouraged everyone to surrender and avoid consuming the government's manpower and material resources.
Xu Zun stroked his beard and said, "That makes sense."
Zhang Fei immediately said: "And among the regulations on surrender, there is another article to avoid the crime caused."
Xu Zun and Xu Yuan read at the same time: "Excuse me from the crime I committed?"
Neither of them thought for a moment that Xu Yuan wanted to find a book to read, but felt that it was very shameful. He was the master of the book, and he was actually taught by a prisoner who had just been released from prison.
But Xu Zun couldn't care less, and immediately ordered Liu Hai to fetch "Song Xingtong" and read it, and found that there was indeed such an article.
However, this article is not listed in detail, but is included in the explanation of the surrender regulations.
Therefore, even Xu Yuan, the chief bookkeeper, did not think of such a thing for a while.
The original text is: "Those who commit killing and wounding and surrender themselves will be exempted from the crime for which they committed the crime, and they will still kill and wound for the reason." It is also argued: "Suppose someone kills or wounds someone due to robbery, or someone who negligently kills or wounds a rich man and surrenders, he will be exempted from the crime of robbery, so The crime of murder is still punishable.”
Fine!
Very thin!
Xu Zun looked at the three pictures with admiration, nodded and said: "Yes, that's the way it is."
Zhang Fei said: "According to this regulation, anyone who commits the crime of wounding due to theft and surrenders will be exempted from the crime of theft and will only be prosecuted for the crime of wounding."
"good!"
Xu Zun nodded.
What is the purpose of avoiding the crime of cause? It is actually very simple. For example, if you break into a house and you are discovered, you hurt others, but because your original purpose is not to hurt people, but to steal, that is, to hurt others due to theft. Man, in this case, if you turn yourself in, the law will only hold you accountable for the crime of hurting others, not the crime of theft.
This is to absolve yourself of the sin you caused.
If theft is combined with injury, the death penalty will be imposed, but if only injury is pursued, it will be determined based on the circumstances of the injury, but generally the death penalty will not be imposed.
This is very reasonable. If there is no such legislation, it will lead to the situation that once someone is injured due to theft, the person will be killed and silenced directly. It will be death anyway.
If he was given a way to survive, it might be possible to avoid hurting innocent people and even allow the injured to receive timely treatment.
Zhang Fei immediately said: "According to the laws of our dynasty, the crime of robbery is more serious than the crime of murder, so it can be inferred that this law also applies to the crime of murder, so Ayun, who has surrendered, naturally also applies According to this law, Ayun injured someone because of murder. Based on the crime of absolution, he can naturally be exempted from the crime of murder and convict Ayun of wounding."
The first half of the sentence in the original text reads, "Those who commit murder and wound themselves and surrender themselves will be exempted from the crime for which they committed the crime and will continue to kill and wound them accordingly."
This is the regulation.
In the second half of the sentence, it is further discussed: "If someone kills or injures someone due to robbery, or accidentally kills or injures a rich man and surrenders, the crime of robbery will be exempted, so the crime of killing and wounding will still be punished."
This is an example explanation.
It does not mean that the exemption of the crime is only applicable to the crime of robbery and murder.
Zhang Fei's inference logic is correct.
But Xu Yuan was dumbfounded.
Is this okay?
"That's nonsense!"
Xu Yuan angrily rebuked: "You are talking nonsense. You just said that the crime of theft and injury can be exempted from the crime because the crime of theft is lighter than the crime of killing and wounding, so the crime of theft is exempted." , and only pursue the crime of killing and wounding. But when it comes to you, you confuse right and wrong. The crime of murder is more serious than the crime of wounding. Is there any reason to exempt murder and only pursue the crime of wounding? If this is the punishment, what is the justice of heaven."
Zhang Fei smiled and said: "That's not what the officials said just now."
Xu Yuan wondered: "I didn't say anything just now."
Zhang Fei said: "Just now, the common people are moved by emotion and rationality. They think that they have been imprisoned for three months for no reason and need some compensation. Isn't this unreasonable and unreasonable? But the two officials But he insists that the government only acts in accordance with the law, and the ordinary people can only consider themselves unlucky. After all, this is what the law stipulates.
But now the people are arguing according to the law. Since the law stipulates that those who surrender can be exempted from the crime they committed, then Ayun who injured someone for murder can naturally be exempted from the crime of murder. However, the chief clerk refutes the people with the law of heaven.
Then the common people have to ask, which one comes first, the laws of heaven or the law. "
Xu Yuan was speechless for a moment.
These two things seemed to be incompatible, but after Zhang Fei's sophistry, they suddenly became the same thing.
Now that the truth has come to light, no one can deny that Zhang Fei has indeed been in jail for three months unjustly. He had nothing to do with the case. He didn't even know Ayun. Even in terms of natural justice, he should be compensated.
But the government also acts in accordance with the law. The law stipulates this, so you can't blame the government.
But you can't double standard.
It turns out that when he sued me before, he was just paving the way for the case! Xu Zun suddenly realized. He glanced at the embarrassed Xu Yuan next to him and spoke out to help: "Both stealing and killing are crimes, but why is 'conspiracy' a crime? According to your words, thinking about someone's death is also a crime. I There has never been such a law in the dynasty.”
To absolved of the crime is to give the judge an explanation to determine whether the two crimes are concurrent.
But according to Zhang Fei, murder and murder must be separated. The idea or intention of murder is a crime, and the act of murder is another crime.
But the problem is that the thought of murder is not a crime. Many people shout, "I'm going to kill you." At this moment, this person is definitely thinking of murder, but this is not a crime, it is just a pleasure.
Murder is one crime, not two.
Robbery and murder are different. Robbery and murder are two different crimes.
Zhang Fei said calmly: "Zhizhou's words are wrong. There is a rule in our court's laws. Anyone who tries to enter the palace without crossing the threshold will be punished with eighty sticks. This is the crime of conspiracy. In addition, if two people conspire, one person breaks the law. , two people are guilty of the same crime, but one of them only conspired and did not commit any actions, but they are also charged with the same crime. This is also the crime of conspiracy. It can be seen that conspiracy can certainly be punished as a crime."
There are too many examples of this. You can shout to kill people, but if you shout to rebel, it will be a dead end regardless of whether you have acted or not.
Xu Yuanren was confused.
This kid couldn't even speak clearly before. How did he become so eloquent after he was released from prison?
After Xu Zun thought for a while, he suddenly laughed and scolded: "How dare you talk nonsense in this court, you unruly man. However, if you commit your first offense, I will not pursue you any further. As for the compensation you demand, I will not Granted, I will say it again, I am only acting in accordance with the law and have not wronged you, so please step aside."
"Xiao Min, please retire."
Zhang Fei immediately bowed, turned around and left the lobby.
Very straightforward!
Very chic!
Xu Yuan felt a little incredible. Suddenly, he realized that I am the outsider in feelings. He immediately said to Xu Zun: "Zhizhou, this statement is absolutely unacceptable!"
Zhang Fei gave them two choices, either to compensate or to absolve Ayun of murder.
Of course, they could choose neither, or choose to give Zhang Fei a slap in the face.
However, Xu Zun emphasized that he would not compensate Zhang Fei, and at the same time he readily let Zhang Fei go. Obviously, he wanted to use this to absolve Ayun of the crime of murder.
Xu Zun said with a smile: "Since someone has raised doubts, we must fight for the prisoner. It depends on whether Dali Temple can find a reasonable explanation that is convincing."
Although this statement sounds unacceptable, Zhang Fei is clear and logical. He is arguing in accordance with the law and is logically correct. He is not talking nonsense. Since there is such a provision in the law, if you want to deny it, you must give a reasonable explanation. and authoritative explanation.
As he said that, Xu Zun looked out the door and said with a smile, "This kid is quite courageous."
The words are full of appreciation.
However, what he didn't know was that it wasn't Zhang Fei who was brave, but because he himself was so famous in history.
And the reason why he is famous is because of the Ayun case.
This case not only involved the famous Wang Anshi's reform, but also contained the struggle between two legal thoughts. It has great research value in the legal research of later generations.
Zhang Fei has also studied this case and is very clear about it.
If it were any other official, even Bao Zheng, Zhang Fei would not dare to be so reckless.
This is simply confusing right and wrong and misleading the public.
It was precisely because Zhang Fei knew that Xu Zun had historically used "to absolve him of the crime he caused" to help Ayun avoid the death penalty. But it was also because of his defense that the case became more and more troubled, and eventually Song Shenzong, Wang Anshi, Sima Guang and others were all implicated, making this case an eternal mystery, with a time span of more than ten or twenty years.
But Xu Zun hasn't thought of this yet. Zhang Fei just gave Xu Zun a pillow that he will have in the future.
Zhang Fei was of course confident, because the complaint he made was exactly what Xu Zun was thinking at this time. The two coincided with each other. How could Xu Zun blame him? It was too late to thank him.
...
"Zhang San! Zhang San!"
Zhang Fei, who had just left the government office and had not gone far, suddenly asked someone calling him from behind. When he looked back, he saw a boy dressed as a servant running towards him.
The boy caught up with Zhang Fei, took off the baggage on his shoulder, handed it to Zhang Fei, and explained: "My master knows that you have just been released from prison and have no money on you, so he ordered me to come and lend you some money temporarily." and clothes, return them after you find your relatives."
Zhang Fei was stunned for a moment, then laughed, and without asking who his master was, he took the baggage. He felt that the baggage was so heavy that he almost couldn't hold it firmly, and said: "Please wait for me to tell your master, please." , Zhang San will be rewarded generously one day."
The boy nodded, turned and left.
Looking at the baggage in his hand, Zhang Fei raised the corner of his mouth and said to himself: "It seems that the historical records are correct. This Xu Zunguo is really law-enforcement and his feelings are deep!"
At this point, he paused for a moment, frowned and said: "However, if Ayun's death penalty is really reduced by absolving him of the crime he committed, it is really unconvincing, and it is also difficult to repay this life-saving grace. I must give it to him." Save her."
