In fact, to be honest, the procuratorate is more in line with Zhang Fei's expertise, but the work of the procuratorate is to take the initiative to investigate and then file lawsuits. The procuratorate should intervene in any illegal and unlawful behavior. If the procuratorate's powers are fully utilized, this power is no less than that of the Censorate. The difference between the two is that the Censorate does not need evidence and can report to the emperor upon hearing the news, while the procuratorate still needs evidence, but the procuratorate can target everyone, while the Censorate only targets ministers.

This is how Zhang Fei encouraged Su Che in Hezhong Prefecture.

However, now that it was his turn, he still felt a little uneasy. After all, this was the capital city, filled with dignitaries and the relationships among them were complicated, and more or less involved the emperor, which would be difficult to deal with.

It is impossible to do it as easily as the president of the court.

However, Fu Bi's suggestion is also very correct. Being the presiding judge may be more troublesome because the procuratorate is proactive and can act freely before indicting a case. The royal court, on the other hand, is completely passive and has very little room for maneuver. Once someone sues you, you cannot not make a judgment.

This requires sufficient authority, and in the capital, Zhang Fei obviously does not have such authority.

It can be seen that everything has its pros and cons, and it depends on how to make a choice.

Zhang Fei also has to think about this issue seriously.

In the evening, Xu Zun returned home and Zhang Fei told him Fu Bi's suggestion.

After listening to Fu Bi's suggestion, Xu Zun felt that it was more appropriate. Although Zhang Fei was much more shrewd than his peers, he did not have much experience in officialdom. Compared with the officialdom in the capital, the officialdom in Hezhong Prefecture was nothing. It would be a good idea for Xu Zun to guide him for a while.

...

...

The next day.

Gao Wenyin's biological clock, which was more accurate than a mechanical clock, woke her up on time at dawn.

As usual, she gently moved her lover's arm away from her body, but the next second, the big hand hugged her tightly.

I heard another whisper in my ear, "Sleep a little longer."

Gao Wenyin pouted depressedly and asked in a low voice: "Do you have anything to do today? Do you want me to wake you up later?"

Zhang Fei murmured half asleep, "It's been fine recently. I've already told Daniu to close the door and refuse visitors. You can sleep as long as you want. We'll do some morning exercises later."

"No seriousness!"

Gao Wenyin gently patted the hand that was trying to do something naughty. Her eyes moved and her eyebrows revealed a bit of shyness that could not be concealed, "Sanlang."

"Um?"

"I may be a little inconvenient."

"Is your period coming?"

Zhang Fei said: "But it seems that the time has not come yet."

He may not remember anything else, but he remembers this incident very clearly.

Gao Wenyin said: "No."

"Why is it inconvenient?" Zhang Fei asked.

Gao Wenyin blushed and whispered, "I might be pregnant."

Zhang Fei was stunned for two seconds, then suddenly opened his eyes, feeling as if he were dreaming, and asked, "What did you say?"

Gao Wenyin said shyly: "I...I might be pregnant."

Zhang Fei said: "When did it happen? Why didn't you tell me?"

Gao Wenyin said, "It was yesterday. I suddenly felt a little uncomfortable. Xiaotao happened to be there. She suspected that I was pregnant. Later, she checked my pulse and said that I was pregnant."

Zhang Fei frowned and said, "Then why didn't you tell me last night?"

Gao Wenyin said, "You fell asleep as soon as you came back last night, and I don't know if Xiaotao can really diagnose a pulse. I don't want to disappoint you."

Xiao Tao also has this skill? Zhang Fei blinked, and suddenly said to Gao Wenyin: "Madam, you have to promise me that you can have a baby, but don't forget your husband just because you have a child."

Gao Wenyin said angrily and amusedly: "What nonsense are you talking about?"

Zhang Fei said: "I know your personality very well. This is possible."

"I won't tell you anymore."

Gawain pursed his lips and turned away, his eyes full of joy.

After this incident, Zhang Fei of course couldn't sleep. He got up quickly and pretended to help Gao Wenyin get up. His rough hands and feet made Gao Wenyin roll her eyes and tell him to take care of himself.

After washing up, Zhang Fei quickly called Xiaotao over.

Just at this time, Xu Zhiqian also came into the hall. Seeing Zhang Fei so serious, she asked, "What's the matter?"

"I'll tell you later." Zhang Fei asked Xiao Tao again, "Xiao Tao, can you also take a pulse?"

Xiao Tao was very unhappy and said, "Third brother, when you hired me, didn't you listen carefully? I know a little bit about everything. I know everything that the midwives know, so the price you offered was too low."

She is also very strong-willed. Back then in Baifan Tower, the maids of the same period were all priced sky-high, but she was the only one who was taken by Zhang Fei at a low price. She has always been unhappy about this.

Zhang Fei glared at her: "Didn't I give you a raise later?"

Xiao Tao quickly apologized with a smile, saying that those maids back then were not as good as her.

Xu Zhiqian, who had just reacted, said with a hint of surprise: "Sister Gao, you are pregnant."

Gao Wenyin was not sure either, with her eyelids drooping, she said softly, "Xiao Tao is right."

Zhang Fei frowned and said, "But Xiaotao is not a professional after all. I will find someone to take your pulse later."

Xiao Tao said excitedly: "Third brother, how can you doubt my ability? I came from Baifan Building. It was also me who diagnosed Madam Xu's pregnancy pulse. Now it has been confirmed."

"Xiao Tao!"

Xu Zhiqian stamped her feet lightly.

Xiaotao suddenly realized that she had let the cat out of the bag and quickly covered her mouth.

Zhang Fei couldn't help but feel overwhelmed. He tilted his head to look at Xu Zhiqian, "What's going on?"

Gao Wenyin also looked at Xu Zhiqian in shock.

Xu Zhiqian's beautiful eyes wandered: "I just want to wait until you finish what you have on hand before telling you."

"you."

Zhang Fei pointed at Xu Zhiqian and said, "Stop fooling around here. I don't know you yet. You must want to get a job in the capital first and then tell me. If you are pregnant, I can't let you be the chief clerk."

Xu Zhiqian quickly denied it, "No, who wants to be the chief clerk?"

But the confidence is a little lacking.

"It doesn't matter whether it happens or not. You're definitely finished anyway." Zhang Fei shook his head.

Xu Zhiqian panicked and asked, "What do you want?"

Zhang Fei laughed and said, "I'll tell my father-in-law later."

"Saburo."

Xu Zhiqian immediately became timid, pulled Zhang Fei's arm and acted coquettishly.

It's useless!

Zhang Fei will never show mercy when it comes to suing Xu Zhiqian.

After Xu Zun came back at noon, Zhang Fei started to complain about everything. How cruel was Erbi's mouth.

When Xu Zun heard this, he was furious. He pointed at Xu Zhiqian for a long time and finally said, "Let's talk about it after the baby is born."

I want to curse, but I don’t dare.

Xu Zhiqian had already prepared herself to be scolded, but when she saw this good thing coming, she couldn't help but wink at Zhang Fei provocatively.

Zhang Fei's mouth twitched a few times, but he pretended not to see it.

In fact, Zhang Fei is not so childish. He just wants to put some pressure on Xu Zhiqian so that she won't work so hard that she neglects her health.

This morning, I had two unexpected good things happen to me, but when I think about it carefully, it makes sense, because in the last six months in Hezhong Mansion, Zhang Fei was basically on semi-vacation, and his focus shifted from the office to the bedroom, so the attack became a little more intense.

However, Zhang Fei had mixed feelings. Both of his wives were pregnant at the same time, so who should he sleep with tonight?

You can't just look for Li Si.

well.!

Of course, there was no time to think about these things at this time. Zhang Fei immediately called Fan Yong to come and find a midwife. However, he also reminded Fan Yong not to reveal this to anyone in advance. He has been preparing for his homework recently and does not want to be congratulated again.

Zhang Fei felt a little embarrassed to receive this gift.

Fan Yong readily agreed. Of course, he would not help Zhang Fei save money and directly provide the Zhang family with a team of midwives, which included maids and midwives, a total of fourteen people.

When Xu Zhiqian saw this lineup, she almost fainted. How could they still have freedom?

Fortunately, Zhang Fei has been closed to visitors recently, so he can stay at home with them. The best way to comfort Xu Zhiqian is to discuss with him the issue of going to the Legislative Council to explain.

Zhang Fei chose to close the door and refuse visitors at this time because he didn't want everyone to think that he came back just to deal with the Qingzhou issue.

So the reason why he closed the door to visitors was that he had to prepare his homework as he was about to give a report to the Legislative Council.

Looks pretty good!

But who would believe it?

Everyone was still staring at Zhang Fei, but for several days, Zhang Fei really did not leave the house, nor did he see any guests.

This left everyone a little confused.

Could it be that this guy really came back to make a report?

Impossible!

The reason why they are so surprised is that the current situation is getting worse and worse. The reformists and conservatives are accusing each other, impeaching each other, throwing dirty tricks at each other, and arguing fiercely every day.

If we don't take action to resolve the problem, it may be too late.

The fierce struggle in the court actually reflected that the situation in Jingdong East Road and Qingzhou was very bad, otherwise the two factions would not be so crazy.

This is indeed the case. We have now entered the stage of collecting taxes. This is the most terrifying time of the year for the people. Coupled with the current debt problem, it is really too bad!

Qingzhou!

After receiving instructions from Sima Guang, the Qingzhou public security, procuratorial and judicial organs began to conduct public trials for all lawsuits filed by the people. However, the result was that the number of sentences increased and became increasingly complicated, with seemingly no end in sight.

Royal Court.

"Why are there so many lawsuits?"

Qian Yi saw Sun Gu coming into the room holding a stack of lawsuits. He was really annoyed. This thing would never end!

He hasn't had a single day of rest since he took office in Qingzhou!

Sun Gu said helplessly: "These are appeals filed by those landlords because they were dissatisfied with the previous judgment of our imperial court."

Qian Yi frowned and asked, "Why are they dissatisfied?"

Sun Gu said: "Because they think that the people have money to pay taxes, so why can't we pay them back first."

In the loan sharking lawsuit, they still followed Zhang San's precedent, first reducing the interest rate to a legal range, and then paying some money back every month while ensuring the debtor's life.

Try to ensure the interests of both parties.

According to this precedent, after deducting living expenses, the rest must all be used to repay debts. However, many people now have tax money in their hands. Should they repay the debt first or pay taxes first?

This has caused controversy.

Those big landowners thought that according to this judgment, the money should be returned to them first, because the case did not state that paying taxes should be given priority, it just said that living should be guaranteed first, and paying taxes is not living.

Qian Yi couldn't help but frown. There was no explanation for this in the case law!

Sun Gu said: "Now the big landlords are stopping the people from paying taxes and asking them to pay back the money first. The government is also asking us, what should we do about this matter?"

Qian Yi frowned, "Are they asking questions or deliberately making things difficult for us?"

No matter how powerful the landlords are, they cannot be as powerful as the government. If the government was not manipulating them from behind, those landlords would be so bold as to stop the people from paying taxes!

Procuratorate.

"Wang, the transport commissioner, recently many soldiers have come to the transport department to sue them, saying that the transport department has not paid them. I don't know if this is true or not."

Fan Chunren asked the tall and thin official in his forties in front of him.

This man was named Wang Juqing. He had just been appointed as the Transport Commissioner on the Jingdong East Road and was recommended by someone from Wang Anshi's side.

Interestingly, the capital of Jingdong East Road is in Qingzhou, and the headquarters of the Transportation Bureau is also in Qingzhou. In Qingzhou, the two factions can be said to be in close combat.

Wang Juqing sighed and said, "The autumn tax has not yet been collected, and the money and grain in the warehouse have already been used to compensate the soldiers, yamen runners, and clerks. How can there be money left to pay the grain transport soldiers?"

Fan Chunren asked: "Why didn't the transport envoy explain this situation at the time?"

Wang Juqing immediately said: "Chief Prosecutor Fan, please don't wrongly accuse anyone. We have explained to Chief Prosecutor Fan early on that the reason why we owe those people military pay and wages is because of financial difficulties.

But Chief Prosecutor Fan still appealed according to the law, saying that he wanted to defend everyone's legitimate rights and interests, without considering the situation of our government at all."

Fan Chunren said: "This is my duty. The fact is that you did default on payments. We, the procuratorate, cannot ignore the facts. However, you can also explain your difficulties in court, and the Royal Court will consider it accordingly."

"As appropriate?"

Wang Juqing laughed and said, "I really didn't see that. Let alone Qingzhou, don't you know the situation of local finances across the country? If you really can make discretionary considerations, you shouldn't file this lawsuit, but should discuss it with us privately.

You, the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs, are portraying our government officials as villains under the banner of caring for the people. If we don't pay compensation, then we will be convicted of being villains, and the people will be on your side. You really have a good plan."

"Wang Shouming, stop slandering me here."

Fan Chunren was a man of short temper. He immediately stood up and angrily said, "Do you think I don't know what you are playing? If you had really cooperated with our public security, procuratorate and court, this matter would not have come to this. You have never thought of communicating with us. We said that if the government has difficulties, it can compensate in installments, but you said in court that you will fulfill your compensation obligations immediately.

Then you deliberately embezzled military pay to compensate those soldiers in the hope that more soldiers would come forward to file complaints, intending to disrupt Qingzhou and ultimately frame our public security, procuratorate and courts?"

Wang Juqing sneered: "Can your procuratorate judge cases based on conjecture?"

"Thanks for the reminder."

Fan Chunren said: "Our procuratorate will immediately investigate your Transportation Department. I also tell you that even if Qingzhou is in chaos, we will bring you to justice. You will never succeed."

Wang Juqing bowed and smiled, "Then I will be waiting for Chief Prosecutor Fan to come."

After saying this, he flicked his sleeves and turned to leave.

Liu Zhi, who was sitting nearby, said, "It seems that they are determined to use financial resources to force the court to abolish the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs."

Fan Chunren frowned and said, "Now that things have come to this, we have no way to retreat."

Liu Zhi asked: "What are you going to do?"

Fan Chunren said, "We didn't intend to settle old accounts originally, but they are doing this now, so it's not our fault. I want to check their accounts to see how the money is used. He said something very right. Everyone knows the situation of local finances. I don't believe there is no trick here."

As the saying goes, this three-foot-thick ice does not form overnight.

What Bei Song suffered from was not a disease but a chronic disease. His body is now very weak, and the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs are undoubtedly a strong medicine. If used well, it will be good. If used poorly, it may aggravate the condition, and his weak body will not be able to bear it.

What’s even more terrible is that these officials all knew what disease the Northern Song Dynasty had, what symptoms it had, and what problems it had, so their counterattacks were very precise and hit the reformers’ weak spots everywhere.

From this we can see that Zhao Xu, Wang Anshi and others made a very accurate judgment. Hezhong Prefecture was only the result of Zhang Fei's personal ability, and did not represent the success of the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs.

Of course, it does not represent the success of the Qingmiao Law.

Palace.

"The student is incompetent and has let his teacher down."

Lu Huiqing bowed and said with shame.

"Let's not talk about this for now." Wang Anshi asked anxiously, "Is the situation on Jingdong East Road very bad now?"

Lu Huiqing stood up, but then lowered his head. "It is indeed very, very bad. According to the information we have gathered so far, people in many places have refused to return the money for the young crops, including self-cultivating farmers, wealthy households, and even large landowners."

Wang Anshi asked, "Why is this happening?"

Lu Huiqing wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "Initially, it was because many ordinary farmers could not pay back the money, and they all borrowed from those big landlords and rich families. Now that their debts have matured, those big landlords and rich families tried to force them to pay back the money, but they were met with resistance, so those big landlords and rich families turned to the government for help.

However, due to the large number of people involved, the local government did not support the big landlords and wealthy households in order to avoid arousing public resentment. Instead, it asked them to pay back the money first. However, this made the landlords and wealthy households very angry, so they also refused to repay the Qingmiao money. "

Wang Anshi angrily rebuked: "How dare they do this? If they refuse to repay, will the government just let them do what they want?"

There are only a few big landlords and rich families. Beating them has nothing to do with the people and will not arouse public resentment. We should cut off those who need to be cut off.

Lu Huiqing suddenly raised his head and said, "If it were usual, I would not think this would happen, but I suspect that many wealthy families and landlords are backed by ministers in the court, so they are fearless. It is said that they will oppress the people in the same way as the government oppresses them. What's worse is that the local area is currently collecting taxes, and many people are so determined that they even refuse to pay taxes. And..."

Wang Anshi frowned and asked, "What else?"

Lu Huiqing said: "It is said that many local people chose to flee, but some people also heard that a group of people were heading towards the capital, probably intending to file a complaint with the emperor."

"What?"

Wang Anshi slammed the table angrily, "They want to put the new law to death!"

"But don't worry, Master." Lu Huiqing said, "The situation in Qingzhou is even more grim. I have already arranged for some people to go to the capital to file a complaint. At worst, we will perish together with them."

"Destroy everything?"

Wang Anshi frowned and sat down slowly. "This is like a total destruction of both the good and the bad. Isn't this exactly what they want? They want to use the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs to block my new policy."

Lu Huiqing said: "It's not that the new law and the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs will perish together, but that we will perish together with them."

Wang Anshi was startled and looked up at Lu Huiqing.

Brother, that’s not the case!

Lu Huiqing said firmly: "If they really come to the capital, someone will have to take responsibility. We can only fight to the death to have the possibility of negotiating with them."

It can be seen that the problem with Jingdong East Road is that either we fight to the death with the other side or we cannot survive.

"negotiation?"

Wang Anshi seemed very hesitant. It must be said that Wang's acting skills were no less than those of Zhang Fei and Zhao Xu.

Lu Huiqing nodded and said, "If the crisis on Jingdong East Road was caused by them, then the only way to resolve the crisis is to negotiate with them."

Although he was watching it, there was one thing he did not expect, that is, the debt of the Qingmiao money was very complicated at the bottom. The self-cultivating farmers owed money to the rich households and the government, the rich households owed money to the landlords and the government, and the landlords owed money to the government. As long as there was a problem in any one link, the whole thing would explode, involving many people, and forces from all walks of life would be involved, which would eventually lead to such a large-scale debt crisis.

The key point is that this is the time to collect taxes, and everyone is under a lot of pressure.

Wang Anshi breathed a sigh of relief. "Yes, this is the only way to deal with it now. But now that we have fallen out with them, we can't just be humble and go talk to them."

Lu Huiqing said: "There is someone who can help us."

"who?"

"Zhang San."

Meng Mansion.

"It's a mess! It's a mess! Everything is a mess!"

Pei Wen rushed into the hall dancing and shouting excitedly.

Meng Gansheng, who was discussing the situation in the court with Xie Yun, asked, "What's the mess?"

Pei Wen said: "The entire Jingdong East Road is in chaos, including Qingzhou."

Xie Yun stood up suddenly, "What's going on?"

Pei Wen said: "It turns out that what Sima Junshi and his men said was all true. The governments of various states in the east of Jingdong Road are using the Qingmiao Law to make money. After four rounds, not only the common people can't bear it, but even many wealthy families can't bear it. It just so happens that all the states are collecting taxes now, and according to regulations, the Qingmiao money is to be paid together with the autumn tax. Many people know that if they pay the tax, they will definitely not be able to pay it back, and if they pay it back, they will definitely not be able to pay the tax. Anyway, they will die, so they simply don't pay it.

When the landlords and wealthy families saw that the people did not pay back their debts, they also stopped paying back their debts. However, since there were too many defaulters, the government did not dare to force them to pay back, fearing that it would cause chaos.

Meng Gansheng was not happy to hear this, and asked hurriedly: "What about Qingzhou?"

Pei Wen said: "The situation in Qingzhou is not much better. The Transportation Bureau used all the military pay to pay off previous debts. As a result, more people can't get their pay. The local grain transport has stopped, and it's a mess now."

Meng Gansheng slapped the table and said excitedly: "It's really a case of searching for something without any effort, but now it's easy to find! It would be best if they finish the game together. Haha!"

In fact, most people neither like the new policy nor the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs. They only choose to support the new policy or the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs out of helplessness.

For most people, it would be best if both sides perish together.

But this is just a thought, because before this, they all believed that there would still be a winner and a loser, so they turned to the New Deal and used Wang Anshi to get rid of the public security, procuratorial and judicial organs first.

I never thought that problems would arise on both sides at the same time and become so serious.

I can't believe it!

This is simply a dream!

Pei Wen said: "Now we have to add fuel to the fire and try to make this matter bigger and see how they end it. If they can't end it, we will make a petition together to force the government to abolish the new policy and the public security, procuratorate and courts."

Meng Gansheng nodded and said, "Go and contact the person immediately, and we can discuss this carefully."

"yes."

"etc!"

Xie Yun suddenly asked: "Did we overlook someone?"

Meng Gansheng asked: "Who?"

Xie Yun said: "Zhang San. This guy has not shown up yet."

Meng Gansheng stroked his beard and said, "Logically speaking, Lord Fu suggested that the government transfer Zhang San back for this matter, but after this guy came back, he closed the door and refused to see anyone, saying that he had to prepare some documents to explain to the Legislative Council."

Xie Yun said: "This kid is very cunning, we have to be on guard!"

Meng Gansheng nodded and said, "We need to prevent it, but he stays at home and doesn't go out, so how can we prevent it?"

".!"

Xie Yun didn't know what to say for a moment.

Pei Wen said excitedly: "This matter has nothing to do with us, we just need to mess things up, why worry so much."