The joint trial of the three departments is a very rare event in the capital. It can be said that there has never been such a situation since Jiajing came to the throne.
In particular, the case that was being tried by the three divisions was actually a case involving a son-in-law who came to the house. This really shocked the jaws of the public.
However, after listening to the backstage comments from both sides, the melon-eaters all said that the melon was very big, very sweet, and worth eating.
On one side is the Liu clan, in the background is Liu Tai, the Minister of Punishment, on the other side is Liu Ruyun, the owner of Zuixian Tower, and in the background is Xiao Feng, the young minister of Dali Temple.
For more than a year, Xiao Feng's opponents changed like a revolving door. The front office went from Zhao Er to Tan Xinren, and then Shi Zhenxiang; the back office went from Zhao Wenhua to Liu Tai, and even directly faced Yan Song and Yan Shifan's father and son.
After taking stock of the melon-eaters, they all couldn't help but think to themselves: This is really a smooth and strict Party, and an iron-clad Xiao Feng.
Among the three people sitting in the hall, Yin Guojun of Shuntian Prefecture was the lowest-ranking one, but as the chief judge, he still sat in the middle. Of course, this was also the result of the other two's hard arguments.
Xu Hui would never sit in the front seat even if he was beaten to death. That position would burn his butt! And the Youdu censor sent by the Metropolitan Procuratorate also refused to sit down for three consecutive times and would never sit down.
Facing these two old foxes whose ranks were no lower than his own, Guo Jun had no choice but to bite the bullet and sit on the main seat, slapped the gavel in a fierce manner, and even Jiajing who was hiding in the back hall was startled.
.
"Liu Xia, you are suing the court official, Master Wenxuan. Today the three departments will interrogate. Tell me what grievances you have!"
Liu Xia was startled by the strength of the shock, but after all, he was a lawyer by trade, had a reputation as a scholar, and was considered to have seen the world, so he immediately stepped forward and cupped his fists.
"Three gentlemen, Liu Ruyun is a member of our Liu clan. According to clan rules, his grandfather Liu Lie had no heirs, so he hired a son-in-law, and his children must continue the Liu clan's legacy.
But the child is still a daughter. According to the clan rules, the property can be taken back to the clan, or Liu Ruyun can be asked to adopt a descendant from the clan as his son to ensure that the family property does not flow out.
But Liu Ruyun refused to be raised by a descendant of the step clan, and lied that she wanted to recruit a new wife, but kept putting it off again and again. When the deputy chief asked her anxiously, she even told nonsense that Zhenren Xiao was her son-in-law.
My people naturally didn't believe it and went to the Xiao Mansion to seek confirmation, but the Xiao Mansion was evasive and refused to speak directly. Master Xiao also supported Liu Ruyun and prevented us from exercising the clan rules.
The student dares to ask Master Xiao a question in this Sansi Hall today: Do you admit that you are the Liu family’s adopted son-in-law?"
Hiss... this guy's words are so sharp, he gets to the point!
If Xiao Feng admits it, then as the Liu family's surrogate son-in-law, his social status will plummet, and he is afraid that he will no longer have a foothold in the court.
If Xiao Feng refuses to admit it, it will be equivalent to circumstantial evidence that Liu Ruyun is talking nonsense. If she defies the clan rules, the clan has the right to take back the property and even severely punish her!
Everyone's eyes were focused on Xiao Feng to see how he faced this dilemma.
Xiao Feng smiled faintly, walked slowly to the front of the hall, and raised his hand to Guo Jun.
"Master Guo, I would like to ask Mr. Liu Xia, since he is being held accountable based on clan rules, what is a clan?"
This question is obviously a bit out of line, but since it is asked by Xiao Feng, Liu Xia must answer it, otherwise he will avoid answering it when it comes up, so Xiao Feng can naturally follow suit.
"Xiao Zhenren, clan members have the same ancestors, the same surname, and the same origin. Watching and helping each other is the meaning of the clan."
Xiao Feng nodded: "Since the time of Liu Lie, has the Liu family ever done anything to help the Liu Ruyun family? Please give me one incident!"
Liu Xia was suddenly speechless, but he was a lawyer and had a very smart mind. Knowing that Xiao Feng was going to make a fuss about this matter, he immediately refuted it.
"Master Xiao, although it is the intention of the clan to help each other, it is also an internal matter within the clan. You are not a member of my Liu clan, so you have no right to interfere in these matters."
Xiao Feng smiled: "Since watching and helping each other is a matter within the clan, then naturally, acting in accordance with the clan rules is also an internal matter within the clan. Can the government interfere?"
Huh? Liu Xia was stunned, why did he seem to be speaking in favor of himself? But after thinking about it, he was right! He couldn’t see any pitfalls!
Liu Tai was not so optimistic, because he had seen too many things about Xiao Feng digging holes for others! But since he couldn't figure out where the holes were, he couldn't remind Liu Xia to pay attention to anything.
Liu Xia nodded: "Master Xiao is right. Acting in accordance with clan rules is naturally an internal matter within the clan, and the government generally will not interfere."
Xiao Feng humbly asked for advice: "Then, how are matters within the clan generally carried out?
Even if you want to enforce the clan rules, you must have the means to enforce them. Since you don’t rely on the government, what can you rely on to enforce them?"
Liu Xia replied cautiously: "If you have clan rules to follow and everyone in the clan supports you, you will naturally get more help if you are in good ways, and less if you are unjust."
Xiao Feng nodded: "In other words, there is strength in numbers. Whichever group is more powerful will have the upper hand, right?"
This was a bit of a change of concept, but overall it meant the same thing. Liu Xia nodded hesitantly.
"If you have good moral principles, you will get a lot of help, but if you do not have good moral principles, you will have little help. If you are powerful, you will be powerful because you are right."
Xiao Feng smiled slightly: "Then the clan rules you implement are in line with the laws of the Ming Dynasty?
For example, confiscating Liu Ruyun’s family property, or even beating her or even killing her just because she pretended to be married? Do these comply with the Ming Dynasty Law?"
Why is this a bit like talking about a wheel? Liu Xia didn't know what Xiao Feng was doing by going around, but he definitely couldn't admit it.
"Master Xiao, as I have said before, the execution of clan rules is an internal matter within the clan, and the government has nothing to do with it! Whether the clan rules comply with the laws of the Ming Dynasty, the government also does not care!"
Xiao Feng was like a mentally retarded person who couldn't get around this detour, so he humbly asked Liu Xia for details.
"In other words, whether the clan rules can be enforced, what kind of clan rules should be enforced, and how the clan rules should be enforced are all matters within the clan, and the government has nothing to do with it, right?"
Liu Xia laughed angrily, was this Xiao Feng that Liu Tai had repeatedly asked him to deal with carefully?
This is Xiao Feng, who claims to have thwarted the strict party's frame-up in court debates? Is this the legendary Xiao Feng who fought with the Confucian scholars?
Thanks to all the efforts and preparations he had made, if he had known that Xiao Feng was such a thing, he would have taken action a long time ago. Then he would not be the number one litigator in Hexi, but the number one litigator in the Ming Dynasty!
"Master Xiao, what do you mean by going around in circles? Let me say it one last time, the enforcement of clan rules is an internal matter of the clan, and the government will not interfere!
If you don’t admit that you are the Liu family’s adopted son-in-law, you have no right to take care of the Liu family’s affairs! If you admit that you are the Liu family’s adopted son-in-law, you are just a status-based adopted son-in-law, and you have no right to speak!
Don't try to use your status as a court official or a Taoist master to suppress the Liu family clan, that won't work!"
Xiao Feng put away his smile, looked at Liu Xia coldly, and raised a sarcastic smile at the corner of his mouth.
"Then what are you complaining about? You want to enforce clan rules on Liu Ruyun. This is an internal matter within your Liu family clan. What does it have to do with Shuntian Mansion?
You dare to alarm the Third Division? Do you think these three adults have nothing to do, so you came here to entertain them? Hmm?"
This sentence immediately resonated with Guo Jun. He slapped the wooden wall viciously, startling Jiajing who had half-closed eyes behind him and looked in the direction of the front hall angrily.
"What is Guo Jun doing? Why is he acting like a stupid young man who just became the county magistrate? Fortunately, he is also a lot older."
Huang Jin smiled and said nothing. He knew that Guo Jun was holding fire in his heart, but he didn't dare to vent his anger on anyone, so he had to vent his anger on the table.
Liu Xia was stunned. He didn't expect that Xiao Feng would go around and around and end up waiting for him here. However, his reputation as the number one lawyer in Hexi did not come for nothing. He had two brushes.
"Zhenren Xiao, why do you want to accuse me so much? Everyone knows why I sued Shuntian Mansion. With your status and power, and supporting Liu Ruyun, can we continue to enforce the clan rules?
That’s why we asked Shuntian Prefecture to uphold justice. As for alarming the Third Division, Mr. Fu Yin felt that the case was serious and decided to report it, but it had nothing to do with the students."
Xiao Feng smiled sarcastically: "Then you can give me an example, why did I support Liu Ruyun?
I don't care what you accuse Liu Ruyun of. But what you accuse me of must be explained.
If you can't cite it, can it be considered as slandering my official? What crime should be committed by slandering an official of the imperial court?"
Liu Xia immediately responded: "Master Xiao, the people do not fight with the officials. You are in a high position and have an ambiguous relationship with Liu Ruyun. It is known to everyone in the capital. I will judge it rationally. What's wrong with it?"
Xiao Feng laughed loudly: "When did it become possible to use reason to judge someone's crime?
It was you who pushed Liutai to become the deputy clan leader. Your father was not willing to do so. This matter is also known to everyone in Liujiazhuang.
I just woke up, your father died sooner or later, but he died at this time, and you got a large sum of gold and silver inexplicably, bribed everyone, and obtained the position of clan leader.
Now you are falsely accusing me as the leader of the clan. If I judge it rationally, is it okay for you to kill your father?"
There was an uproar in the hall, Liu Tai's face was ashen, he was really afraid of something, why did he just talk about this matter, he coughed twice.
Liu Xia suddenly woke up and knew that she could not dwell on this issue any longer, so she immediately changed her mind.
"The student made a mistake, and the student should not judge it rationally. There is no real evidence for Mr. Xiao's support for Liu Ruyun. It is just that the student has an entrustment from his clan and does not dare to take it lightly.
The student only complained to Liu Ruyun. As for the matter involving Zhenren Xiao, please forgive me for the student's temporary impatience and excusable circumstances!"
Xu Hui looked at Guo Jun, and Guo Jun sneered: "You are suing an official from the people, and there is no solid evidence. How can you get away with it in a moment of urgency? According to the law, you should be punished with a rod!"
It is an ancient rule that when people sue an official, they will be beaten first. However, the methods of being beaten are different in different dynasties and generations. Due to Comrade Zhu Chongba's miserable background, the Ming Dynasty was the most lenient towards people suing officials.
But no matter how loose the rules are, there are still rules, otherwise things will get messy. So as long as it is not reported over the top, it is just a symbolic cane, ten or twenty times.
But for Liu Xia, who had thin skin and tender flesh, even twenty boards would cost him half his life. Seeing that Liu Xia was in a panic, Liu Tai had to take action himself.
"Master Guo, although I am an official of the imperial court, I am also the deputy chief of the Liu clan in Hexi. My name is also included in the joint petition.
Liu Xia has a reputation as a scholar, so he is not in vain. This matter involves a lot, and everyone is well aware of the complexity, so this crime seems to be avoidable."
Although Guo Jun didn't want to offend Liu Tai, he was the reasonable party at this time. He rolled his eyes and decided to go with the flow, which could avoid danger and give him a favor.
"Master Xiao, what Master Liu said is not unreasonable. You are a party to this matter. If you insist on pursuing it, I can enforce it according to the law.
However, Liu Xia is a scholar. If you want to make a decision, you need to invite the academic administration to see if the academic administration agrees to remove the title. It is very cumbersome. What do you think about this matter? "
Everyone is thinking, what you are asking is, can Xiao Feng let Liu Xia go? These twenty boards will be beaten if he troubles Xiao Feng again. As for Liu Tai’s face, Liu Tai is nothing, Xiao Feng even Yan Song
No face is given to him.
"Since Mr. Liu has come to intercede in person, I have nothing to do for myself. It's not easy to be a scholar, and I don't have time to wait for the academic affairs."
Well, everyone is surprised, why did Xiao Feng suddenly become so kind?
Liu Xia also secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He was not particularly afraid of Xuezheng. Because of the power of the Yan family, Xuezheng did not dare to easily punish his own talents. However, he was afraid of everything, so it was best not to bother with it.
"However, it is really hateful that he slandered me. Let's do this. If he is willing to let me slap him twice, I will not pursue him."