4-66 Three sessions

Without the presence of rumor-mongering experts in Nanchang, Guo Yushi's shocking scandal spread all over the streets and alleys of the capital, and those prostitutes and prostitutes spread gossip no less than professionals, and there were also a group of generals who were extremely dissatisfied with Guo Yushi.

Of course, there are also a large number of people who are reluctant to believe this rumor, they think that this is a naked frame-up, people who hold this view are mainly civil officials, and a group of people in the Metropolitan Procuratorate reacted the most intensely, although these people do not have close contacts with Guo Zheng on weekdays, but Guo is a person from the Metropolitan Procuratorate after all, and it depends on the owner to beat the dog, if Guo Zheng is really convicted this time, then how will the imperial historians enforce the law in the future? How to participate in people?

The civil officials of the other ministries were also very indignant, not to mention that this was very likely to be a frame-up, even if it was really prostitution, what would happen? What's wrong with people's heavy tastes? What's wrong with killing and injuring a lowly turtle slave? Are there still few officials in the capital who sleep in flowers and willows? There are also many people who commit murder and hurt people, since they are officials in the same dynasty, who does not have a little power in their hands, and who can guarantee that they will not be used by others in the future? The Five Cities Terracotta Division was indeed inappropriate in handling this matter, that Li Yan also seemed to be a smart person, how could he do such a thing that broke the rules of the game?

The civil officials unanimously believe that there is someone behind Li Yan, the mastermind behind the scenes is the military general group, the Ming Dynasty has always been to control the military with literature, but since the Manchu Qing Dynasty entered the customs, the status of the military during the war rose sharply, once passed the civil officials, after the eunuch party took power, it is the collapse of etiquette, many local military generals do not put the same level of civil officials in their eyes, after the Donglin Party came to power, this unhealthy atmosphere has changed, the literati from the military department Shangshu Yuan Chonghuan cooperated with the Metropolitan Procuratorate to run a group of arrogant generals, only to beat their arrogance, The court weather is new, and now this incident is the counterattack of the generals, and their leader is none other than the most popular town Wubo recently!

It is not unfounded to believe that Zhen Wubo is the mastermind behind the scenes, the day before yesterday, Guo Yushi just participated in Zhen Wubo's book, this matter is well known in the Metropolitan Procuratorate, revenge, it must be revenge, the front foot is involved, and the back foot will have an accident, this is not revenge, what else can it be?

Yushi's violation of the law is a big thing, the normal procedure is to dismiss the official first and then go to prison, and appoint a special official to conduct a trial, but last night's incident was a sudden incident, so Guo Zheng's official position is still there, but he was first detained by the Wucheng Terracotta Division, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate seized this point in the early court. Guo Yushi should be released, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate should send personnel to investigate the matter thoroughly. Other Wenchen also echoed, and Zhu Youxiao snorted coldly: "Guo Zheng, I remember him, this case is to be thoroughly investigated, but it cannot be handled by the Metropolitan Procuratorate, and it will be handed over to the three legal divisions for trial together, and the South Factory and the East Factory will send personnel to hear the trial." ”

The emperor issued a holy decree, everyone is not good to say anything, they have to prepare for the trial work, the chief judge of the three law division trial is Dali Temple Zhengqing Xu Jiujing, the two deputy judges are the left deputy capital Yu Shi Zhao Huo and the criminal department waiter Feng Qingshan, these three people are the three civil officials, but Xu Jiujing is the oldest, and the trial experience is also the richest, so he served as the chief judge. The East and South Factories also sent officials of the corresponding levels to hear the trials.

On the day of the public trial, there are a lot of people outside the yamen of Dali Temple, this kind of thing is very rare, many onlookers are prostitutes, the story of the perverted demon Guo Yushi has been spread in the prostitution world in the capital, and through the mouths of the prostitutes spread further, as the juniors of the same industry, many prostitutes give up today's business not to do, but also to the plaintiff Ruhua old-timers to cheer up, the girls are many, the piss idlers naturally have more, and the Dali Temple is usually surrounded by three layers and three layers outside.

When the two adults of the Criminal Department and the Metropolitan Procuratorate arrived, they were very unhappy to see so many people watching, but they had nothing to say, this criminal case involved the people, and it was impossible for the people to listen to the trial, and the Dali Temple didn't say anything, so how could they do it on their behalf.

Dongchang sent a middle-aged eunuch to listen to the trial, this person didn't talk much, An An sat aside and drank tea, it seems that Dongchang is not very interested in this case, and has no intention of participating in it, and the one who came to hear the trial in Nanchang has not appeared, and the chair is empty on the side of the lobby and people have no bottom in their hearts.

The presiding judge Xu Jiujing is an old official oil, not tall, and his appearance is not outstanding, but he was born in the former dynasty, and he rose step by step from the county, and he is good at judging cases, not afraid of the powerful, nor forming gangs, although Dali Temple is one of the three law divisions, but over the years, the main cases have been handled by Dongchang Jinyiwei, and Dali Temple can only

Dealing with some ordinary civil cases, as the final adjudication body of the country, Xu Jiujing has judged many difficult cases and has a good reputation, which is why the imperial court chose him as the chief judge.

After the three-way drum, the adults rose to the seat to ask the case, humbled each other, and after saying enough clichés, the trial was opened by the chief judge Xu Jiujing, and he was shocked: "Take the plaintiff." ”

There are two plaintiffs, one is a girl like a flower, the other is a dog, the latter is seriously injured so he can't go to the hall for the time being, Ruhua came to the front of the hall, knelt down with a plop, and was about to start singing with a long voice, Xu Jiujing looked at her red jacket and green pants and embroidered shoes, and knew that this was an old prostitute with a fat powder on her face, so she stopped crying at the moment and asked: "What is the name of the person kneeling in the hall?" Who is being sued? ”

"The slave's surname is Liu, whose name is Ruhua, and he is a famous Oiran on the bank of the Qinhuai River twenty years ago, and now he is suing Guo Zheng, a wick.....ed person who prostitutes and did not give money, and also killed and injured the slave brother Zhang Gou."

The onlookers outside laughed when they heard Ruhua's self-reported home, Xu Jiujing frowned, and asked, "Is there any paper?" ”

"The slave has a paper." Ruhua trembled and took out a piece of paper and submitted it, Xu Jiujing asked the official to transfer it, and looked at it at a glance and ten lines, and couldn't help but be secretly surprised, this paper was very well written, and at first glance it came from the hands of a very experienced lawyer, not many words were written, but every sentence was to the point, and the events of that night were described very clearly and clearly.

"Invite the two adults to watch." Xu Jiujing didn't say anything after reading it, but asked the official to forward the case to the other two deputy judges for viewing.

"Ridiculous! Nonsense! ”

After reading the pleadings, Zhao Huo, the deputy capital of the left, couldn't help but scold the case, "Don't say anything else, it is a big crime for the people to sue the officials, this Diao woman dares to falsely accuse the court officials, and she should first beat a hundred kills." ”

"What Lord Zhao said is very true, how can there be no rules, in the future, these Diao people will learn to sue the officials in a piece of paper, where is the face of the court, and where is the prestige of the government? I think not only to hit the board, but also to roll the nail board! Feng Qingshan, the waiter of the Criminal Department, also said, he didn't look at the situation carefully, and when he came, he made up his mind that he would cooperate with the Metropolitan Procuratorate to suppress this case.

Xu Jiujing looked at the eunuch of Dongchang, the princess was sitting with his eyes closed, as if he didn't care about the affairs in the hall at all, so Xu Jiujing said: "Two adults, the plaintiff is an old woman, and if you kill a hundred people, you won't die if you kill a hundred people?" Before the trial began, the plaintiff was beaten to death, how can this be tried, according to the official's opinion, it is better to let the defendant make a defense, let's try it peacefully, if it is really a false accusation against the official, it is not too late to punish the crime. ”

In the end, the two deputy judges gave Xu Zhengqing face, so they no longer insisted on their own opinions, and Xu Jiujing was still tried.

"Take the defendant to court."

The officials standing on both sides of the station beat the ground rhythmically with water and fire sticks, while shouting "mighty" in a low voice. Guo Zheng was brought up, still wearing the coarse cloth short clothes of the day of the case, but he didn't wear a hat, at this moment he stood proudly in the hall, facing the three adults in the hall just Ji, and did not bow down, his fame and official position have not been removed, and it is legal to do so.

"Guo Zheng, let me ask you, what did you do in the old street in the south of the city on the night of the crime?" Xu Jiujing asked in Chen Sheng.

"The official went to Weifu to investigate the case, because at noon that day, a person sent a secret letter to the official, saying that there was evidence of corruption and perversion of the law by the senior officials of the dynasty to be presented to the official, so the official did this dress, but I didn't think that as soon as I arrived at the place, two people jumped out and grabbed the silver that the official wanted, and drew a knife to threaten, the official had no choice but to resist, and killed and injured the man by mistake in the fight, and then the patrol of the Wucheng Soldiers and Horses Division arrived, and arrested the official indiscriminately, and the woman was ----- the flower next to her, but became a high-sounding plaintiff. That's the way it is, please three adults to see! Guo Zheng impassionedly uttered a watertight defense.

Framing is clearly framing, this is the first reaction of everyone in the hall after hearing this defense. Ruhua didn't agree, and cried and rushed over to beat Guo Zheng: "You little white face, obviously you can't afford to pay for prostitution, Zhang Goucai used a knife to scare you..."

Ruhua still wanted to scold in the gap, but was frightened by Xu Jiujing's shock: "Dare to roar in the court again, and the board will serve." Ruhua didn't dare to speak, Xu Jiujing then asked: "Guo Zheng, this official asks you, where is the secret letter you received from the invitation?" Who can testify? Why did you leave something with you in the room like a flower? ”

"The secret letter has been destroyed, and it has been involved in secrets, so it has not been disclosed to others, this is the rule of our Metropolitan Procuratorate to handle cases, and I think adults know this very well." Guo Zheng replied.

"As for saying that the official's belongings fell on Ruhua's house, it is even more inexplicable, she has a lot of things in her house, and she just takes one or two things and says that they belong to the official, what is the evidence to identify?" Speaking of this, Guo Zheng's tone was obviously mocking.

The hat was bought by Guo Zheng at a roadside stall, and there was no way to prove that it was owned by him privately, Guo Zheng had already thought about it, as long as he did not let go of his mouth in this case, the possibility of winning the case was very high.

"How do you justify the witness, several prostitutes on the old street say they know you." Xu Jiujing stared at Guo Zheng and asked. This case looks simple, but in fact it is very complicated, and there are all aspects of the relationship involved, and the slightest carelessness will offend people, which is really a tricky case.

"Hahaha" Guo Zheng looked up to the sky and smiled, and then said with a straight face: "Lord Xu, may I ask if you believe in a group of old prostitutes who can't eat, or believe in the imperial history of the four products of the Metropolitan Procuratorate, this case can only be so clear, someone conspired to frame the official, and set up such a clumsy situation to ruin the reputation of the official, with good intentions." ”

Xu Jiujing has been the Zhengqing of Dali Temple for so many years, and he has never encountered such a defendant, Rao is very shrewd, and he can't react for a while.

Taking advantage of the fact that everyone was stunned by their own words, Guo Zheng struck while the iron was hot and continued: "These old and decrepit old prostitutes, they can sell their ** for a dozen copper plates, they are so shameless that they are not bribed, who can guarantee that they are not bought?" Everyone knows that prison history is an official who offends people, and there are not a few officials in the capital who hate me Guo Zheng so much, and the patrol team of the Soldiers and Horses Division came so quickly and in such a timely manner that it can't help but make people suspicious, you must know that they never go there to patrol in normal times. Therefore, this official demands that the plaintiff and witnesses be tortured to find out who is behind the scenes, and give justice to the official! ”

The people outside wanted to see the fate of this perverted prostitute who was tortured, but they didn't expect to be turned into a defendant by him, and everyone was stunned, and there was silence inside and outside the court for a while, and some ordinary people came from hearing about Guo Yushi's name, and they didn't believe that Guo Zheng would prostitute and kill people. The prostitutes immediately refused, and the two had a dispute and scolded, and there was chaos in front of the Dali Temple.

"Silence! Quiet! Xu Jiujing picked up the startling wood and slammed the table, and more than a dozen officials rushed out to maintain order, and it was not easy to control the chaotic scene.

"What do you two adults think?" Xu Jiujing asked the two deputy judges.

"There is no need to pass on the witnesses, they are all shrews and people, Guo Yushi is clearly framed, this is already very clear." Zhao Huo said.

"What Lord Zhao said is extremely true, the important thing at the moment is how to clear up the grievances for Guo Yushi and find out the mastermind behind the scenes." Feng Qingshan also chimed in.

Xu Jiujing nodded, although he is a Qing official, but he is not a confused Qing official, this case has no life, and it is not a serious case in itself, and even if Guo Zheng really prostitutes, he really killed people, for the sake of these prostitutes and turtle slaves, it is a pity to bury a promising and upright imperial history.

As long as it is a mortal, who can do nothing, Xu Jiujing thought.

After making up his mind to acquit Guo Zheng, Xu Jiujing symbolically asked the father-in-law of Dongchang: "What does the father-in-law think?" ”

This father-in-law, surnamed Cao, was specially sent by Wei Zhongxian to hear the trial, although the hearing officials could not directly intervene in the trial, but it was still effective to say a word or two at a critical moment. The eldest princess went out to play with Uncle Zhen and had a conflict with Guo Zheng, Dongchang knows, the emperor doesn't like Guo Zheng, Dongchang also knows, I wanted to let the civil officials and the one who heard the trial in Nanchang make a fuss, Dongchang sat back and enjoyed the profits, but now no one in Nanchang came, Gonggong Cao's face was like autumn water, but he was very anxious in his heart, to let these civil officials sentence Guo Zheng not guilty, then Gonggong Wei would definitely blame himself for being useless, and the emperor would feel that Dongchang was very useless.

So he made a move, put down the teacup and said with a smile: "It seems that there are more than shrews and Diao people among the witnesses, more than a dozen military attaches from the Wucheng Soldiers and Horses Division and the Beijing Army have witnessed this case, why not let them come out and talk about it?" ”

Guo Zheng is not afraid, Cao Gonggong's words are equivalent to saying in vain, because when the generals appeared, all the ones who should have been born were finished, and what they saw did not prove Guo Zheng's guilt, logically speaking, prostitution is a very private matter, as long as it is not caught, it cannot be counted, as for killing people with knives, it is all based on his own mouth, so he is not afraid of the testimony of any witnesses.

The three officials exchanged glances, and felt that it was better to complete the procedure, let all the people testify, let all the physical evidence be presented in court, and make this case an iron case in order to stop others' mouths.

"Witness Evidence." Xu Jiujing said.

The witnesses were Xiao Qi of the Nancheng Terracotta Patrol who arrested Guo Zheng that night, as well as several old prostitutes that Guo Zheng had patronized, and the physical evidence was a murderous knife, Guo Zheng's hat and half a red candle, and the piece of lead that passed off as silver.

As expected, the testimony of these witnesses pale under Guo Zheng's quibbles, and cannot form a valid accusation at all.

Guo Zheng glanced at the dejected witnesses, and smiled proudly, he could think of who was the person who framed him behind the scenes, with the participation of the Wucheng Soldiers and Horses, plus he had just participated in the town of Wubo a few days ago, ninety percent of this matter was done by him, but the martial artists are ninety martial artists, it is okay to fight and play with their lives, and it is still tender to engage in conspiracy in the fighting heart, just with such an inferior layout, it is too child's play.

The matter is already very clear, several adults in the hall feel that the case can be closed, Xu Jiujing coughed lightly and was about to announce the verdict, when he suddenly heard a noise outside the door, and after a gong sounded, someone shouted: "Uncle Zhen Wushu has arrived." ”

The other protagonist of the hearing finally arrived belatedly.