Sima Guang, who had always been as steady as an old dog, became anxious this time and even walked away in anger. It can be seen that this matter was quite serious and that Sima Guang had no way to deal with it for the time being.
This is also true.
As soon as this newspaper was published, it immediately attracted widespread attention, and public opinion was almost one-sided.
They were all criticizing Zhang Fei madly.
In fact, the law on the rule of law had already been spread before, and was recognized by some people at that time. Only then did Zhang Fei gain the respect of many people.
But now that this newspaper has been published, those who originally supported Zhang Fei have begun to oppose him.
Because everyone's focus before was on Zhang Fei's founding of a new school, and everyone thought that how could such a young boy establish a new school, and what right did he have to do so.
Everyone wanted to refute Zhang Fei.
At that time, everyone was arguing about the same principle.
But those censors and imperial censors were not just talking about reason. They believed that the legal system would undermine the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues, and they gave very reasonable inferences.
...
...
These three principles are actually a kind of social order, not some great principles or advocacy.
To put it bluntly, this is the case. Only by doing this can the country remain stable.
The Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues have been deeply rooted in people's hearts for more than 800 years since Dong Zhongshu. Everyone's code of conduct revolves around the Three Bonds and Five Constant Virtues. If you deny this, then everyone is wrong.
This has nothing to do with reason.
This led to those hermits around Bian Jing who did not care about fame and fortune to come out and criticize Zhang Fei.
They were not really jealous of Zhang Fei, or displeased with Zhang Fei, but they thought that if this kind of thinking was not stopped quickly, it would undermine the moral code and would cause big trouble.
Public opinion was surging, and the government and the public were shocked. Zhao Xu also hurried out to convene a meeting.
As soon as this happened, the censors and imperial officials started to talk at once. In a word, this matter had endangered the country and the people, and the court could no longer ignore it.
"You have not attended the lectures, so you may have some misunderstandings about the law of the rule of law."
Fu Bi felt that he also had some responsibility, so he stood up and patiently explained, "In fact, Zhang San has also mentioned this point. The law of the legal system refers to legitimate rights and interests, and this 'legitimate' includes the moral code."
Imperial Censor Jiang Zhiqi immediately said, "Mr. Fu is well-versed in classics, knowledgeable, loyal, filial, benevolent, and righteous. He will not be easily influenced by them, but can you guarantee that ordinary people will not be deceived by them?"
Fu Bi frowned and said nothing.
Speaking objectively, this is to defend the legitimate rights and interests of individuals, which is indeed inflammatory and inciteful. No one can guarantee whether the people will misunderstand this.
In fact, Fu Bi knew that there would definitely be people who misunderstood.
This is indeed a problem.
Another imperial censor, Peng Siyan, stood up and said, "The key point is that what Zhang San said is unreasonable. The three principles are derived from the principles of yin and yang. The ruler is yang and the minister is yin, the husband is yang and the wife is yin, the father is yang and the son is yin. Yang is the master and yin is the assistant. This is the principle of heaven.
A minister serves his ruler, a son serves his father, and a wife serves her husband. If these three are in harmony, the world will be in order. If these three are in conflict, the world will be in chaos. This is the normal way of the world.
However, the legal system only emphasizes the rights of one person, which is bound to cause a struggle between yin and yang, disorder of social order, and go against the will of heaven, which will naturally lead to chaos in the world. "
This one is more exaggerated than the other.
Sima Guang said with a pleasant face: "That being said, Zhang San only said that. It is understandable that he said something wrong when he was young and hot-tempered. You can refute him, but there is no need to make a scene in the court."
Jiang Zhiqi said: "His evil words have already deceived Your Majesty. How long does Sima Xueshi want to protect him?"
Sima Guang was speechless immediately. Indeed, Zhao Xu almost ordered the revision of the "Song Dynasty Criminal Code" that day.
Zhao Xu couldn't help but look embarrassed.
Are you calling me stupid?
Li Yu, the censor, stood up and said, "The key is that he has no intention of repenting and has published our comments in newspapers, pretending to be honest and open, hoping to win the sympathy of the world. At the same time, he has deceived the world to inquire about his legal system. It can be seen that he has evil intentions and his heart deserves death."
When it came to newspapers, Sima Guang became even more furious. He stopped arguing and went back.
If it weren't for that newspaper, things wouldn't have escalated so quickly and there would still be room for recovery.
Wang Anshi saw the depressed expression on Sima Guang's face and couldn't help feeling worried. This was really a problem.
Jiang Zhiqi said to Zhao Xu again: "Your Majesty, the so-called legal system is just taking advantage of human greed to deceive the world. This is a heresy. If Zhang San is not severely punished and the spread of this evil thought is not stopped in time, everyone will become selfish and disregard the etiquette between the monarch and his subjects, the etiquette between husband and wife, and the etiquette between father and son. Not only will it destroy the century-old foundation of the Song Dynasty, but it will also destroy the etiquette of China."
"Your Majesty, please punish Zhang San severely."
Many ministers stood up to second the motion.
Wang Anshi saw that the situation was not good, and immediately stood up and said, "Your Majesty, why don't you call Zhang San to ask him clearly?"
Jiang Zhiqi immediately asked, "Grand Scholar Wang was also there at the time. I wonder what Grand Scholar Wang thinks of this?"
Wang Anshi remained silent.
This legal system was not his idea, so he was not in a position to argue for Zhang Fei.
Zhao Xu glanced at Wang Anshi, frowned, and after a moment's hesitation, he said, "This case will be temporarily handed over to the Censorate for investigation, and Censors Jiang and Peng will be in charge. If this is true, I will never tolerate it."
Jiang Zhiqi was overjoyed and said, "I obey your command."
Cases between officials are usually reviewed by the Censorate and then handed over to the Dali Temple for judgment.
If Zhang Fei was not an official, the case might be handed over to Kaifeng Prefecture. If the case was serious, it would be transferred to the Dali Temple.
At this time, Zhang Fei was entertaining his two good brothers at home.
"Third brother, your hot pot is really delicious and I never get tired of it. It's really enjoyable to eat."
Ma Xiaoyi squatted on a chair, pushing away the billowing steam with one hand, almost burying his face in the pot. He fiddled with the long chopsticks in it for a long time, and finally picked up a piece of mutton. He blew on it near his mouth, dipped it in sesame paste, and stuffed it directly into his mouth, looking really intoxicated.
"Xiao Ma, you took away the last piece of mutton and didn't even let your brother have it."
Cao Dongdong also drank until his face was flushed, and he shook his head, looking quite dissatisfied.
"Brother, don't you know the law of the rule of law? You have to defend your legitimate personal rights and interests." Ma Xiaoyi said vaguely while eating mutton with relish.
Is this how the law of the law is used? Zhang Fei almost laughed and said, "Let Xiao Tao bring some more."
Cao Dongdong snorted and immediately called out, "Madam Gao."
Um?
Zhang Fei glanced at Cao Dongdong, "Why are you calling me Madam?"
"Ahem, it was a slip of the tongue." Cao Dongdong explained guiltily, and then shouted: "Xiao Tao! Xiao Tao! Cut some more mutton."
Xiao Tao's voice came from outside the hall, "Hey! Wait a moment, Yanei."
"belch!"
Zhang Fei suddenly burped and put a hand on Ma Xiaoyi's shoulder, "Xiao Ma! You are so loyal. Every time I'm in trouble, you are always the first one to rush over. I am really touched."
When he was moved, he patted his chest desperately and raised his glass again, saying, "Come on, Third Brother will toast you another glass."
Ma Xiaoyi quickly put down his chopsticks and said casually: "Third brother, you are being polite. We are brothers. If this brother is in trouble, how can I, Xiao Ma, not help him?"
Zhang Fei waved his hand, "Then let's not talk about it anymore, let's do it."
"Dry!"
"etc!"
Cao Dongdong blocked the way with one hand and said unhappily, "Zhang San, what do you mean by that? Did I come here just to eat hotpot?"
Zhang Fei slapped his forehead and said, "Ouch! Look, I'm already drunk and forgot about Yanei. I'll punish myself with a drink."
Ma Xiaoyi said hurriedly: "Why punish yourself? Let's just have a drink together, brothers."
"Dry."
The three of them drank it all in one gulp.
Ma Xiaoyi wiped his mouth and asked again: "Third brother, I really think your legal system makes sense. You see, my father can't argue with me, so he beats me. It's really unreasonable."
Cao Dongdong immediately said, "You are nothing. When your father hits you, he will hit you with his right hand. My father is different. He can draw the bow with both hands. Every time he hits me, I feel like two people are hitting me. It's fatal! Zhang San, how do you think the law should deal with this situation?"
Zhang Fei chuckled, "Of course, if you sue your father for domestic violence, you can also inherit the family property earlier, killing two birds with one stone."
"What nonsense are you talking about."
Xu Zhiqian walked in with a displeased look on her face. "Don't you think it's chaotic enough outside? You're just talking nonsense here."
She has been really worried lately. There is a lot of gossip outside. The issues of father-son and husband-wife ethics have become very sensitive. If their words get out, something bad will happen!
"Why!"
Zhang Fei waved his hand and said, "We are just talking inside the house, don't make a fuss here."
Cao Dongdong chuckled and said, "I was just asking casually. I don't dare to tell my father about it."
You still blame me? Seeing that he was red from drinking, Xu Zhiqian couldn't help but blame him, "Drink less, it's already this late."
"when?"
Zhang Fei twisted his tongue and said, "Those imperial censors are just talking. If they don't agree, we can sue them. It's not the first time we've fought them, so there's no need to be afraid."
Before he could finish his words, there was a violent knock on the door.
Xu Zhiqian couldn't help but feel her heart tremble, and an ominous premonition arose spontaneously.
After a moment, Niu Beiqing's rough voice was heard, "Who are you? What are you doing?"
“Get out of the way!”
A group of people rushed in, and one of them reached out and pushed Niu Beiqing who was blocking the way away.
“Ouch!”
Niu Beiqing almost fell down, and his temper could no longer be suppressed. "You bastard, how dare you push your master Niu."
"Big Bull!"
Xu Zhiqian was startled when she saw that the man was wearing the uniform of the Imperial City Bureau, and she hurriedly called out to Niu Beiqing.
Fortunately, those people didn't want to bother with Niu Beiqing and went straight into the lobby.
Cao Dongdong rubbed his eyes and asked, "Who are you?"
The leader glanced at Cao Dongdong, then frowned and asked, "Who is Zhang Fei?"
"That's me!"
Zhang Fei slapped the table, stood up, and said shakily, "What do you want?"
Ma Xiaoyi was drunk and looked at those people sideways, "Yes! What do you want?"
Xu Zhiqian, the only sober person, stamped her feet anxiously, "Zhang San, Xiao Ma, you two should shut up."
But it's too late.
"Get it!"
The man immediately ordered.
The officers behind him immediately stepped forward and captured Zhang Fei.
"What are you doing? Let me go quickly. I am Zhang Darbi. Be careful or I will sue you in Kaifeng Prefecture."
Zhang Fei immediately struggled violently.
When Ma Xiaoyi saw that they were still fighting, he thought, this is too much! They don’t take me seriously at all.
"Xiao Ma, stop it."
Xu Zhiqian shouted to stop them, and then questioned the leader, "What are you arresting people on?"
The leader said, "We are here on the orders of the Censorate to arrest the suspect Zhang Fei."
As he said this, he showed the prison token.
"Taiwan Prison!"
Cao Dongdong opened his eyes and suddenly woke up. Seeing the uniform of the visitor, he couldn't help but feel uneasy. What kind of combination is this, the Imperial City Department and the Censorate? He whispered, "You guys go ahead and do your work. I'm going to the toilet."
"etc."
The general asked, "Who are you and why are you here?"
Ma Xiaoyi patted his chest and said, "We are Third Brother's brothers."
Cao Dongdong immediately said: "They are brothers. I just came here to eat hot pot. I am not very familiar with them."
Ma Xiaoyi pointed at Cao Dongdong and said, "Brother, why are you so disloyal?"
Cao Dongdong whispered, "Are you stupid? I'll go get you some help!"
Ma Xiaoyi said, scratching his head, "Then go quickly, brother."
"Do you have any accomplices?"
The officer immediately said, "Take them all down."
Cao Dongdong immediately became anxious and shouted, "Open your eyes and see clearly, I am Cao Yanei, I am the deputy superintendent of police, and my aunt is the Empress Dowager."
But it was of no avail. A group of burly officers immediately came forward and captured the three of them.
When Xu Zhiqian saw that even Cao Yanei was captured, she couldn't help but become extremely anxious. She was about to step forward to stop them when she suddenly saw Zhang Fei secretly winking at her.
No way.
Xu Zhiqian couldn't help but frown, and then let them take the man away.
The three of them were stuffed directly into a completely enclosed carriage and then drove away.
"Madam Xu, Madam Xu, who are they and why did they take Sanlang away?"
Gao Wenyin, who came to inquire, asked Xu Zhiqian anxiously.
Although Xu Zhiqian was worried, she still pretended to be calm in front of Gao Wenyin and said, "Don't worry, Sister Gao, this is all arranged by us. It won't be long before Zhang San will be back."
"Arranged?"
Gao Wenyin was puzzled and asked, "Why?"
Xu Zhiqian made up an excuse, "Luring the snake out of its hole."
An hour later.
“Ouch!”
“Ouch!”
Three drunk men, Zhang Fei, Cao Dongdong and Ma Xiaoyi, were pushed into a room and fell to the ground. Then, there was a loud slam of a door closing.
"Let me out, I am Cao Yanei, are you blind?"
Cao Dongdong jumped on the spot, threw himself directly at the door, and shouted desperately.
He was answered by the sound of chains.
“Ouch!”
Ma Xiaoyi got up and said, "Brother, what are you afraid of? Even if you lend them some courage, they won't dare to touch you!"
Cao Dongdong was furious and said, "What do you know? This is the prison. My father told me a long time ago that this place is specially used to treat royal relatives like us. It is the most terrifying place in Bianjing City."
Then, he complained to Zhang Fei again: "Zhang San, you really killed me this time."
Zhang Fei burped, spread his hands and said, "I'm not a royal relative!"
"you."
"Brother, this prison doesn't look scary!" Ma Xiaoyi suddenly said.
"Yeah?"
Cao Dongdong looked around and suddenly found that the room was quite spacious and bright. There was a bed, a table, and a small stove. It was really thoughtful! He couldn't help scratching his head and said, "Strange! My father said that this prison is more terrifying than Kaifeng Prefecture Prison. It is gloomy everywhere. Is he trying to scare me?"
"I see."
Zhang Fei suddenly said.
Cao Dongdong looked at Zhang Fei and asked, "What do you understand?"
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "That depends on who is caught. If it's someone in the yanei, the treatment will definitely be different from others."
Cao Dongdong's eyes lit up and he nodded, "That must be the case, that must be the case. I guess it's okay. My father will come to save me later."
Seeing this treatment, he immediately relaxed, sat down on the bed, and said to Zhang Fei: "Zhang San, don't worry, my father will definitely rescue you when the time comes."
Zhang Fei cupped his hands and said, "Then I would like to thank Yanei for saving my life."
Ma Xiaoyi was still drunk and didn't feel scared. This was his first time in prison and he even felt fresh. So he said, "Brother, why don't you send some wine and food over so we can continue drinking."
"ah?"
Cao Dongdong said awkwardly: "This shouldn't work."
You are the first person to come to Taiwan Prison to drink!
Zhang Fei snorted, "Yanei, that's all you can do."
Ma Xiaoyi nodded and said, "That's right, that's right."
Cao Dongdong's eyes turned, "Let me see if there is anyone outside."
He called softly, "Excuse me, is anyone there?"
Ma Xiaoyi asked, "Brother, can anyone hear you if you shout like that?"
Then he shouted outside, "Hey! Is there anyone there?"
"What's up?"
I just heard someone answering from outside.
Zhang Fei and Ma Xiaoyi looked at Cao Dongdong at the same time.
Cao Dongdong hesitated for a while before he mustered up the courage to shout, "Send some wine and food to this yamen."
The man outside immediately responded, "Please wait a moment, Mr. Yanei."
Cao Dongdong's eyes bulged. Is this true or false?
Ma Xiaoyi immediately looked at him with admiration, "Brother, you are really amazing."
Cao Dongdong was startled, glanced at Ma Xiaoyi, and laughed: "You just found out today that my aunt is the Empress Dowager. Who dares to starve me?"
Zhang Fei nodded and agreed: "That's right."
Cao Dongdong suddenly had an idea: "Why don't we ask them to send a few girls in? It's too boring for the three of us to sit in here."
"ah?"
Zhang Fei was shocked, you are getting too proud.
Ma Xiaoyi nodded and said, "Okay! Okay! With the lady accompanying me, I can enjoy the wine to my heart's content!"
"Wait a minute!"
Zhang Fei said: "Isn't this bad?"
Cao Dongdong asked: "Why is it bad?"
"Oh, by the way, look, there's only a bed here, not even a cover!"
"high!"
Cao Dongdong couldn't help but give a thumbs up and said, "I originally just wanted to find a few girls to drink with, but Zhang San, you are really thoughtful. This is exciting enough without any cover-up."
As he spoke, he looked around, as if thinking about how to arrange the battlefield.
It's over! It's over! This guy is really arrogant! Brother, I can't protect him anymore.
Zhang Fei suddenly glanced at the table, "Huh? What is this?"
Ma Xiaoyi looked over and saw a large wooden box on the table. He rushed to the table and curiously opened the box, "Ma Diao?"
I picked up a few and took a look. "They are not Ma Diao."
Zhang Fei suddenly pointed down, "Here is a piece of paper."
"Let me see!"
Ma Xiaoyi hurriedly picked it up and took a look. "Mahjong instruction manual?"
Censorate.
"We finally caught this guy. It was not easy. We must not let him off easily this time."
"Before, that guy hid in the office and we really couldn't do anything to him. Now he's finally in our hands."
"Brother Jiang, this time it's up to you."
"Don't worry. If this still doesn't convict him, I'll chop off my head and let you sit on it. Let's talk about the facts. His legal system is definitely problematic. You see, during the discussion in the palace, even Lord Fu, Sima Xueshi, and Wang Xueshi didn't know how to refute it."
"That's true."
"That's right! How can Zhang San, at his age, understand these principles? I think there must be someone teaching him from behind."
"who?"
"What do you think?"
"Xu Zhongtu?"
"Xu Zhongtu often makes unorthodox judgments and loves to show off. When he overturned the case of Dengzhou Ayun, it was in line with this legal system!"
"Yeah! That makes sense."
The grudge between the Censorate and Zhang Fei is not small!
In the past, censors such as Qian Yi, Li Zhan, and Lin Dan all suffered at the hands of Zhang Fei.
This situation will change over time.
Now Zhang Fei is finally in their hands.
This is going to be a death sentence!
An officer entered the room and bowed to Jiang Zhiqi, "Reporting to Censor Jiang, the suspect Zhang San has been arrested."
Jiang Zhiqi said: "Let a few jailers torture him first."
The officer hesitated for a moment and said, "Reporting to Censor Jiang, Zhang San is not imprisoned in the Taiwan Prison."
Jiang Zhiqi asked, "Where is he being held?"
The official said, "This time the emperor personally issued an order and sent people from the Imperial City Department. I guess he is being held there. Just now, someone from the Imperial City Department came to ask when Censor Jiang will be brought in for trial."
An imperial censor immediately said, "It seems that the emperor has also realized the seriousness of this matter and directly sent the Imperial City Bureau to arrest the person."
Jiang Zhiqi nodded and said, "The trial will begin tomorrow."
(End of this chapter)
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