After Weng and his son-in-law went to court, they went straight to the Lin Mansion and celebrated in a low-key manner.
Lin Ruhai also brought Feng Yibo and Daiyu to incense Jia Min's spiritual place.
It can be regarded as comforting the spirit of the deceased wife in heaven.
Later, because of the solid evidence, Lin Ruhai participated.
The review work of Lantai Temple also went very smoothly.
It's just that the Zhen family was sentenced to death and imprisonment, which fell into the category of autumn trial.
After review by Lantai Temple, it will be forwarded to the Ministry of Punishment.
It will then be reported to the Ministry of Punishment, waiting for the emperor’s approval.
After approval, beheadings can be carried out uniformly after the autumn trial.
Generally, cases involving autumn review will be divided into four situations during review.
That is: postpone the decision, be cautious, keep the heir, and be honest.
This "suspended sentence" is not the current reprieve of death.
Instead, the execution was suspended and the case was retried.
Similar to insufficient evidence, remand for retrial.
Generally, there are still doubts about the circumstances of the crime, and the prisoner needs to be temporarily detained.
Leave it to the autumn trial next year for another trial.
During this period, investigations and evidence collection will also be conducted in accordance with procedures.
"Kejin" means that the situation is excusable.
In other words, although the situation is true, there are circumstances that can be forgiven.
In situations such as excessive defense or catching an adulterer in bed, the punishment will be reduced as appropriate.
Under this review, most people can survive.
"Retaining heirs" is a product of the society of etiquette and law.
It is similar to the rule that pregnant women are not executed, except that the protagonist is changed from a pregnant woman to a man.
And it needs to meet the conditions of "frost wife's only son" and other foster care conditions.
If the conditions are met, an application must be made by the Ministry of Criminal Affairs.
After obtaining the emperor's approval, certain penalties will be imposed.
In the end, most of them will be spared the death penalty and allowed to be raised.
In the above three situations, it can be said that there is hope for survival.
The Zhen family belongs to the fourth situation.
That is, "truth".
The meaning of "truth" is obvious, that is, the situation is true and you can proceed to the next step.
The next step is to petition for execution.
It also needs to be transferred by the Ministry of Punishment and wait for the emperor's approval.
Finally, after the autumn trial, they will all be beheaded at Caishikou.
Unfortunately, it's winter now.
Even if the Zhen family is "true", they can survive for another year.
After the Lantai Temple review is completed, the results will be forwarded to the Ministry of Punishment.
On this day, Feng Yibo wandered into the Penal Department Yamen.
He didn't go in directly, he only spoke to the clerk at the door.
After a while, Yang Mingxin came out.
"Ouch! Why did Captain Feng think of my inspection work?"
At the beginning of the year, he was finally promoted to a higher level.
From being an Attendant of the Sixth Rank of the Hanlin Academy, he was transferred to the Ministry of Punishment to serve as a Foreign Minister of the Fifth Rank.
For this reason, Feng Yibo and Liu Zheng also blackmailed him into having a drink at Zhuangyuanlou.
Listening to his tone at this time, Feng Yibo couldn't help laughing and said:
"Brother Xinmin, your colleagues and subordinates are watching! Are you sure you want to continue chatting here?"
The three of them usually have a close friendship, but they always communicate in private.
This is the first time we meet in the ministry.
Yang Mingxin was used to "laughing and scolding" with the two of them on weekdays.
When I saw Feng Yibo today, I started joking as usual.
But he forgot that this was his office.
"hiss!"
Seeing that the junior officials and colleagues were looking here, Yang Mingxin quickly pulled Feng Yibo towards the courtyard.
Arriving at his office in one breath, he asked the clerk to serve tea.
When there was no one else in the room, he took a breath and said:
"Yibo, don't you have to work today? Why are you out so early?"
Feng Yibo actually came here because he wanted to talk to him about something.
But it was hard to talk about it, and he hesitated to speak all the way.
When Yang Mingxin saw his appearance, he frowned slightly and guessed:
"What's wrong? Did something happen? Do you need someone to drink with you?"
After asking three times in a row, without waiting for Feng Yibo to respond, he stood up and said:
"Wait for me to tell my colleagues, and let's go find Haoran and have a chat at our old place."
The old place he was talking about was, of course, Zhuangyuan Building.
It was not far from Liubu, and the three of them often drank there.
It has become a habit since the imperial examination.
"No need, Brother Xinmin, I'm just here to find you."
Feng Yibo was still hesitating. When he saw Yang Mingxin getting up, he quickly stopped him and said:
"I just came here to ask about the Zhen family, but when I get to the Criminal Department, I naturally have to talk to Brother Xinmin."
When Yang Mingxin heard this, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief.
He sat back in his seat and said:
"The evidence for the Zhen family's affair is conclusive, and everyone in the Zhen family has confessed. After the Lantai Temple reviewed the matter, I took another look at it and found that there were basically no problems, so I handed it over to the higher authorities."
The position of Yuanwailang of the Ministry of Justice is directly responsible to the Minister of Justice and the Minister.
The most important responsibility of this position is to be in charge of the annual autumn review.
Yang Mingxin thought Feng Yibo came to him to confirm this.
At this moment, it is difficult to say seriously:
"I know that Yibo, who was born in Jiangnan and participated in the suppression of Japanese invaders, must hate the Zhen family's crimes. But you can rest assured that this matter is irrefutable and there will be no recurrence."
At the court meeting that day, Feng Yibo urged Emperor Jingshun to severely punish the Zhen family.
Although Yang Mingxin did not go to court, he had heard some things.
When I heard him mention this matter today, I thought Feng Yibo was worried.
Come to the Ministry of Justice to find him and ask about the progress of this matter.
To avoid any more repetitions.
"That's good."
He said yes, but there was a twinkle in Feng Yibo's eyes.
But after much deliberation, he still didn't tell Yang Mingxin his true intention, he just said:
"By the way, I wonder if it would be convenient for me to meet Zhen Yingjia?"
His coming to the Ministry of Punishment is indeed related to Zhen Yingjia.
However, it was not because I wanted to see him.
Feng Yibo came here because he actually wanted to ask someone in the Ministry of Punishment to find a solution.
See if we can send Zhen Yingjia on her way ahead of time.
Speaking of this, we have to start with what Jia Zheng said to Weng and his son-in-law after going to court that day.
Previously, both Weng and son-in-law had obviously ignored the affairs of the harem.
Jia Zheng reminded me that day, and I realized it only after Weng's son-in-law arrived.
Feng Yibo also thought of more.
In addition to Yuanchun's plea, there is another thing that may have a great impact on this.
In fact, things in the Zhen family may even turn around.
This thing is that the child will be one year old next year in Yuanchun.
When the time comes, will Emperor Jingshun grant amnesty to the world?
If a prince is established by then, the possibility of amnesty will be even greater.
If this is the case, it is unlikely that the Zhen family will be able to escape.
This is not for nothing to worry about. Amnesty for the world is not uncommon in this era.
Generally speaking, the new emperor ascends the throne, changes the reign title, names the queen, establishes the prince, etc.
Most of them will grant amnesty to the world!
Even the queen and empress dowager passed their birthdays, or gave birth to princes and princesses.
As long as the emperor is happy, he can also grant amnesty to the world.
After Yuanchun gave birth to the prince, Emperor Jingshun did not want to be too public for fear of what impact it would have on the child.
It was not officially announced to the world.
Because his previous prince died in infancy, this was also to prevent his joy from being in vain.
However, this matter cannot be hidden.
Therefore, many of the nobles and important ministers who had gained the trust came to the capital to do their best.
If Yuanchun's son reaches one year old, the possibility of premature death is reduced.
Emperor Jingshun may very well take this opportunity to tell the world.
He might even be directly established as a prince.
If this is the case, then the possibility of amnesty is extremely high!
Although the Zhen family has committed many crimes, they are not among the "Ten Evils".
Just within the range of pardon!
Even if he is not released directly, his sentence will at least be reduced.
From beheading to exile, etc., leaving a dog's life behind.
Feng Yibo didn't want to let go of this guy who colluded with the Japanese pirates!
It was precisely when he thought of this that he hesitated, thinking that the Ministry of Punishment would first rely on connections to try to send Zhen Yingjia away.
At that time, even the pardon had no subject.
As for the rest of the Zhen family, they cannot commit suicide on a large scale due to fear of crime.
Kill the chief culprit first, and then sort out the rest slowly.
"oh?"
When Yang Mingxin heard that he wanted to see Zhen Yingjia, he was stunned for a moment, then laughed and said:
"What's so difficult about this? With your status, you can go straight over and they won't stop you."
Feng Yibo still didn't say anything about sending Zhen Yingjia away.
Because the moment he met Yang Mingxin, he actually understood.
I can't open my mouth.
He only had two real friends in the capital.
Yang Mingxin and Liu Zheng.
The three of them are Jinshi in the same ranking, and they are also good friends.
In other words, no one asked anyone for help.
There is no interest between the three of them.
Even though Yang Mingxin knew that both of them were capable, he never really spoke.
Being able to join the Ministry of Punishment as an official has nothing to do with the two of them.
If Feng Yibo blamed Yang Mingxin for this matter...
Regardless of whether Yang Mingxin agrees or not, their friendship will also change slightly.
Feng Yibo didn't want to tarnish this most cherished friendship.
After figuring this out, he no longer struggled and replied with a smile:
"When I get to your territory, can I still come and see you?"
Although he didn't know what happened, it could be seen that Feng Yibo suddenly relaxed and Yang Mingxin also breathed a sigh of relief.
"That's true!"
He nodded with satisfaction, then stood up and made a "please" gesture and said:
"Let's go, I'll accompany Captain Feng for a trip, and I'll just meet the head of the Zhen family."
The two revealed their identities and registered again.
He was quickly taken in respectfully by the jailer.
The Penal Department Prison was not as spooky and terrifying as imagined, but it was not much better.
In the middle of the cell is a relatively spacious passage.
It was used by jailers to escort prisoners and conduct daily inspections.
In contrast, it is naturally a cramped prison cell.
The symmetrical cell doors on both sides of the passage are no taller than a person.
The windows are also very small.
Feng Yibo glanced inside and saw that each cell was only about two meters square.
But there were at least five or six people locked up in such a small space.
There were even more than a dozen crowded together.
Seeing the jailer coming, no one dared to approach this side of the aisle.
Obviously the prisoners have learned their lessons.
Everyone huddled inside and looked at a few people cautiously.
It seems that he is afraid of being selected by the jailer and not knowing what he will face when the time comes.
After all, torture in this era does not violate the regulations.
The two of them followed the jailer and walked along the corridor for a while.
At the end is death row.
Above the cell door, there is a withered head of Bi An.
It looks like a big tiger.
For this reason, Death Row is also called Tiger Head Prison.
Compared to the crowding outside, the cells here are much better.
It's not that the cells are big, but that there are few people in them.
Most death row inmates live in a room per person.
There are only a few cases, maybe because there are not enough cells.
It may also be that the death row inmates are in a group, so there are three or four people in one room.
As soon as I entered the death row, I didn't know whether it was the smell of rancidness or defecation.
Feng Yibo smelled an unspeakable smell.
Both of them could not help but cover their mouths and noses with their sleeves.
The jailer seemed to be used to it and made no move.
But he didn't say much, he took the two people directly to a cell and shouted:
"Zhen Yingjia, two adults are here to visit, but why don't you come over to talk!"
Zhen Yingjia has accepted his fate, and he has been very tired of maintaining it these years.
I was on tenterhooks all day long, and couldn't even sleep well.
Now that he was escorted to the capital, he felt relieved.
Even on death row, he slept extremely soundly.
The only pity is that there may not be many days like this.
Zhen Yingjia felt a little strange when she heard the jailer calling him.
As the saying goes: When the tree falls, the monkeys scatter.
After the Zhen family was ransacked, they were escorted to the capital.
No one dared to see him yet, and all the old relatives were afraid of being implicated by him.
He sat up curiously and looked at the cell door.
In addition to the jailer, there were two men in official uniforms.
Judging by his clothes, one of them must be the minister.
Zhen Yingjia was a little confused, but still stood up slowly.
Wandering to the cell door.
Feng Yibo only saw him wearing a coarse prison uniform, which was in tatters.
The shackles and chains on his body were jingling.
At that moment, he spoke first:
"Master Zhen, we have been separated for many years, but I didn't expect to meet again here."
The only time the two met was at the Luming Banquet after Feng Yibo won the election.
At that time, Zhen Ying Jiade was highly respected and one of the most important people in Jiangnan.
Although Feng Yibo is high-spirited, he is still just a scholar.
The two had nothing to do with each other except for a drink.
At this time, one was a prisoner and the other was an official.
Under the reversal of the two poles, it is inevitable to make people sigh.
"This sir...have we met before?"
Zhen Yingjia looked at it for a long time and had no impression.
However, as he watched, he suddenly thought of something!
That's the age of the person in front of you!
This man was about twenty years old, but he was wearing a scarlet robe embroidered with peacocks.
This is the uniform of a third-grade civil servant!
For such a young minister in the current dynasty, it is easy to know.
"Could it be that Feng Jiaxuan is in front of you?"
Although Zhen Yingjia doesn't remember Feng Yibo's appearance, she is very familiar with this person!
After all, he also reported that Feng Yibo colluded with the King of Donghai County to rob the Zhen family fleet.
It's a pity that I originally used this opportunity to divert my attention from the center.
Unexpectedly, after this news was reported, it would sink into the sea like a cow in the mud.
Emperor Jingshun didn't even pay attention.
"Master Zhen has good eyesight, but Feng Yuan doesn't dare to call me 'Jia Xuan'. If you don't mind, you can call me..."
When Feng Yibo saw that he recognized him, he smiled and nodded.
After a pause, he changed the subject again:
"...Just Captain Feng."
Normally, you should state your first name at this point.
But Feng Yibo reported his honorary title,
He saw that Zhen Yingjia was still wearing shackles even though she was wearing a coarse prison uniform.
But his complexion was not bad, and there was no trace of the deathly look that a death row prisoner should have.
Feng Yibo didn't want to argue with him about his seniority, so he made a casual joke.
Unfortunately, Zhen Yingjia didn't find it funny.
