Meng Xinghe has never been to court several times in his life. The only time he went to court was in the county government office in Taoyuan. However, the scene that time was many times worse than the one he is currently awaiting trial in Dali Temple.
All the people present were dressed in official uniforms. Even in some inconspicuous places, you can see petty officials who are at least sixth grade and above, several levels higher than the county magistrate, as well as some students who came to join in the fun. Ordinary There were so few people that their shadows were almost invisible.
Although the old prince and Du Ruhui were colleagues for a time, they were each their own masters. Everyone understood in their hearts that no one wanted to recruit Meng Xinghe to their camp. After all, it is better to raise ten smart people than to recruit one smart person. Loyal servants are much better. In addition, both of them are one of the examiners of the imperial examination. No one can escape the relationship. They stood in front of the Dali Temple government office early, waiting for Meng Xinghe's arrival.
"Mr. Du, Your Majesty," Meng Xinghe didn't care how the two of them fought overtly and covertly in the court. He was a free man, and no one would be offended by his actions. He bowed to the two of them first, and then saw Hou Wenhai, the Minister of Rites, walking from a distance. Come, he was accompanied by three tall, short, fat and thin officials. They were chatting happily, as if they had forgotten that they were here to hear a major case for a few days.
Through Master Du's introduction, Meng Xinghe knew that the people walking next to Hou Wenhai were "the minister of Dali Temple, the minister of the Ministry of punishment, and the doctor of Yushitai." However, Meng Xinghe was not familiar with these official positions. Anyway, he was either the first or second rank in the court. Mr. Pin is also the three presiding judge responsible for hearing the case today. Meng Xinghe has read about the three-division trial in the book before. The scene is so magnificent. I am afraid that his name will cause a sensation in the capital later. I never thought that in this life He was also able to personally experience the so-called Tribunal Tribunal, which was a great experience.
It was almost time for the hearing to open. All the people related to the case entered the inner hall of Dali Temple respectively and were divided into seats on the left and right sides to wait for the hearing. At the top of the hall, three seats were placed for the three divisions to sit down at the same time today. For the hearing, the decoration in the hall is not gorgeous, but it gives people a depressing dullness, making the whole hall solemn and sacred.
However, what is strange is that today's Dali Temple Yamen is a little different. Behind the three chief judges' seats in the hall, there is a huge floor-to-ceiling screen, covering the original mural of the sun and moon shining on the mountains and rivers. When everyone entered, they obviously saw this change, but they couldn't guess the meaning of using a screen to block the mural that originally symbolized justice and strictness. However, those who often hang out in the court, who don't know that there are actually many things behind the screen? There was only one person listening, but that person must have wanted not to disturb the people, so the ministers did not behave like monarchs and ministers, but they did not dare to talk too much, and each sat in their seats, waiting for the case to be heard.
Meng Xinghe stood in the middle of the hall, facing the three presiding judges in front of him, and numerous students who came to listen behind him, and of course some people he knew. He did not feel timid at all. After being beaten, there were so many people present. He didn't believe that there was no justice in the world. After all, he had seen the big world and could even play weird time travel. Meng Xinghe was as calm as rain falling into the sea, without causing any ripples. He turned his gaze He placed it on the screen. With his unreliable thinking, he could guess that the person behind the screen was probably the most talkative person here. As for who it was, the corners of Meng Xinghe's mouth turned up. It turned out that Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty also liked to play this kind of game. Why bother when Shenlong sees the beginning but not the end?
Meng Xinghe was not a fool. This kind of simple truth had been poisoned by novels and TV series in his previous life. He had long seen the mystery behind it. Since the emperor had come to the scene, it was impossible for today's case to be unjust.
"Pa, pa, pa, be quiet,"
With the sound of three alarms, the originally quiet lobby inside and outside became even more silent, which also brought Meng Xinghe, who was wandering in his mind, back to reality.
"Who is in the hall?"
The speaker was an old man with gray hair, but he was still energetic. He had thick eyebrows and big eyes. His thin face did not look old, but looked very energetic. He was sitting among the three people, and he must be the chief judge.
"Taoyuan student Meng Xinghe," Meng Xinghe said his name truthfully. He was neither arrogant nor humble. In short, he acted very calmly.
The presiding judge confirmed that the person in the hall was today's criminal, clapped the wooden door again, and said: "Since you are a student from Taoyuan, why don't you kneel down when I see you sirs? Could it be that you want to despise the court?"
Meng Xinghe is the first person who has been able to stand in the hall and refuse to kneel since he walked into the Dali Temple Yamen. It is inevitable that the chief judge will be attracted by this kind of student who has been studying for several years and still maintains his aloofness. That kind of disrespectful behavior made Meng Xinghe angry, so the presiding judge had no choice but to angrily accuse Meng Xinghe of contempt of court according to the trial procedure.
When everyone was watching how this somewhat unruly seven-foot man responded to the angry questions of the presiding judge, Meng Xinghe suddenly took a step back and said calmly in front of hundreds of pairs of eyes around him: "Students only worship their parents in heaven and earth throughout their lives. Now that I can see the blue sky, I should kneel down and worship devoutly." After saying that, Meng Xinghe did not feel that kneeling was a shameful thing. He knelt down respectfully and said: "Long live, long live, long live, long live, long live my emperor, Taoyuan student Meng Xinghe. Long live the Emperor. May the Emperor enjoy eternal blessings and live as long as the heavens. May the Tang Dynasty be prosperous and prosperous forever."
With three cheers and a little bit of flattery, Meng Xinghe knelt down neatly. When some people didn't understand what he meant, the three presiding judges sitting in the hall had no expression on their faces. With such ease and ease when kneeling, how could they dare to calmly accept Meng Xinghe's bold worship? They hurriedly stood up from their chairs, and the three of them knelt on the ground with a loud "pop" at the same time, shouting long live to the back of the screen.
Even if he died, he would have to drag three people on his back. Meng Xinghe smiled contemptuously. There was gold under the man's knees. In the hands of ordinary officials, he could still say proudly that he would not kneel down, but the person sitting on top was the emperor of the Tang Dynasty. Even if Meng Xinghe Xinghe was not superstitious and was afraid that he would die if he even moved his fingers.
He is under the eaves, not to mention that he is just a scholar from a poor family and has no ability to fight with the sky. Kneel down once and flatter once. Meng Xinghe still understands such a simple way of being an official, so he will not be stupid. Standing there and saying something about being upright and unwilling to kneel until death will only make him die quickly.
Today is different from the past, and Chang'an is by no means a paradise. Along the way, I have seen a lot and naturally learned how to behave.
"Ahem," a dull voice came from inside. Meng Xinghe knew that this was Emperor Taizong's intention to calm them down. While the three old men were still kneeling with their heads buried, he had already stood up.
"This kid is getting more and more naughty," the person sitting behind the screen laughed interestingly, as if he felt that wherever Meng Xinghe was, unexpected things would happen.
The three presiding judges suffered a secret loss from Meng Xinghe, and no longer acted as unattainable as before. They sat in the hall and carefully reviewed the case. In their opinion, this man was indeed not the kind of person who was easy to deal with. No wonder he even controlled him. Du Laoguai, who has been in power for decades, would put down his veil and make the decision for him. If he is not a capable person, how can he be treated like a polite corporal? Knowing that today's trial will be difficult, the three adults want to end it as soon as possible, but they dare not The arbitrary judgment made me feel really uneasy.
He took out a charge sheet that had been written long ago and read it out in front of everyone, such as Meng Xinghe's cheat sheet and submitted it to the Tribute Court, which was related to imperial examination fraud. The presiding judge hit the nail on the head and pointed out Meng Xinghe's weaknesses, saying "Taoyuan student Meng Xinghe, I just said that it was presented by Master Hou, the Minister of Rites. Now I ask you, if you can prove that the cheat sheet found in front of the Gongyuan gate that day was not yours, then you can Prove that you have been wronged. If you cannot, then according to the laws of the Tang Dynasty, those who cheat in the imperial examination will have all their honors cut off, be exiled to Mobei, and will never be able to return."
Meng Xinghe smiled bitterly in his heart. Hou Wenhai insisted that the matter of carrying the cheat sheet that day was related to him. Although he said a few things at that time to prove that he did not write the cheat sheet, it did not prove that he did not bring it to the Tribute Academy. The only way to find a breakthrough now is The only gaps were the two soldiers responsible for body searches and the invigilator who was responsible for checking the candidates in front of the Gongyuan gate that day.
The trouble lies with these three people.
"Sir, the students requested to confront the soldiers and invigilators who were responsible for the body search that day in court." Meng Xinghe is not stupid. He cannot explain this kind of thing clearly. He can only invite the people who were involved to confront him face to face. This is the only time he has now. path.
The chief judge in the court complied with Meng Xinghe's request.
After a while, a lithe woman dressed as a yamen official led the three of them to the lobby.
"The villain Wang Tong, the villain Wang Sheng, the lower official Wang Wen, come and see the master,"
The two men dressed as soldiers knelt on the ground, and the invigilator also knelt down quickly.
The three of them were kneeling in the middle of the lobby, clustered together, forming a sharp contrast with Meng Xinghe who was standing nearby. Looking at this situation, the onlookers felt that the three of them did not look like people who would make false accusations, but instead had angry looks on their faces. Meng Xinghe has an unspeakable insidiousness.
"All three of you, please stand up," the presiding judge ordered. The three of them agreed and spoke modestly before they dared to stand up and confront Meng Xinghe.
"Meng Xinghe, now you can confront them in court," the presiding judge said.
Meng Xinghe was not the kind of ruthless person who was in a hurry to speak, then made his opponent have nothing to say in his retort, and then knelt on the ground and surrendered. He circled around the three of them, looked up and down, and then asked inexplicably: "No Do you know where these three people are from?"
"People from Liaodong!" Standing in front of the three of them, Wang Tong, who was taller and bearded, looked like a tall and rugged person from Liaodong. He was the first to say.
"Oh," Meng Xinghe nodded, seeming to be confused: "You and I don't seem to have a deep hatred for killing your wife and children, so why do you want to accuse me unjustly?"
Meng Xinghe narrowed his eyes and looked at these three people carefully. They were all from Liaodong, all surnamed Wang, and they seemed to be relatives. He thought it would be interesting to play like this, so he did not directly say what was in his heart. I want to silently watch a person's process from being proud to dying.
It was a kind of enjoyment to deal with the enemy and watch him die unyieldingly in front of you. Meng Xinghe didn't know when he had this idea, but he couldn't deny that his heart was filled with joy at this time.
"We don't know what the young master said. We are just soldiers who are responsible for routine inspections in front of the Gongyuan with our salary from the court and dedicated to serving the country. As for the injustice that the young master said, we are missing. If we were in front of the Gongyuan, Everyone who is found to have a cheat sheet says he was wronged by us. Then there are thousands of cases waiting for us to confront him in court. The young master is a scholar and is thin-skinned, but so are our brothers from the Wang family. A person with a thin face cannot do such a thing that is harmful to nature. Please don’t bother me. The laws of the Tang Dynasty are fair, and the eyes of the three examiners are also sharp. Who is fair and who is foul depends on the justice of the people."
Even though the man named Wang Tong was tall and tall, with a rough beard, his righteous answer was so thoughtful that even Meng Xinghe sighed. People should not be judged by their appearance. Some people should not be caught on the spot. Catch his tail, he is a master of disguise, and he is also sensational.
Okay, you want to play, right? I will play with you. In the end, you will all play to death. Meng Xinghe sneered, pacing back and forth in the lobby, looking at the sky and the ground for a while, and kicking a few times. Feet, see if the knot is strong, and then without any rules, he said: "If you want to make a big statement, win people's hearts, and act very righteous, right? I will also say it, let's see who can say it better,"
Of course, Meng Xinghe knows, and there are many of them. Looking at the expressions of the three Wang family members who have not changed at this time, Meng Xinghe suddenly laughed and said: "Well, today, let's talk in front of everyone in the world. What is justice lies in the heart of the people,"