Seeing Zhang Fei solemnly defending his cause, Zhao Xu did not feel moved at all. Instead, he felt inexplicably surprised, as if something was not right.
"Really?"
"Of course, how dare I deceive Your Majesty."
Zhang Fei said again with a serious expression: "The power of the Imperial City Department is to maintain the authority of your majesty and the stability of the country. This is different from ordinary criminal cases and civil lawsuits and cannot be generalized.
Take this case for example. Although I am not clear about what exactly happened, assuming that the two soldiers had ulterior motives, or were spies sent by the Khitan, they took advantage of some of Cheng Dujian's inconsideration in Hebei Province to disrupt our military morale and arouse the anger of the soldiers. The consequences would be unimaginable and very terrible.
I can fully understand why the Imperial City Department responded promptly to this. Therefore, when I first learned about this matter, I thought that this kind of case should be handed over to the Dali Temple for a quick judgment to avoid a disaster. "
As Zhao Xu listened, he suddenly felt that what Zhang Fei said made a lot of sense. In this kind of situation, it is better to kill the wrong person than to let him go. He couldn't help but take it seriously and asked again: "Such a simple truth, even you understand it, why do those prime ministers always pester me?"
What do you mean even I understand, it's so insulting.
Although he thought so in his heart, Zhang Fei did not dare to argue with Zhao Xu. He coughed and said, "Your Majesty doesn't even understand this?"
Zhao Xu asked in surprise: "Do you understand?"
...
...
"Of course I understand."
Zhang Fei nodded.
Zhao Xu asked: "Then tell me why this is so?"
Zhang Fei said: "The desire to show off and gain fame."
"Showing sexual desire?"
Zhao Xu was confused and asked, "What. What do you mean?"
Zhang Fei patiently explained, "Whether it was Wang Xueshi's new policy or Cheng Dujian's flood control, they didn't nitpick on anything. As long as there was a problem, they would definitely hold on to it. Otherwise, how would Your Majesty know that they were working diligently, and how would the people know that they were pleading for the people? They would have no sense of existence, just like a fly seeing cakes. Anyway, I think, uh, that's the case."
When Zhao Xu heard this, he couldn't help but think about it carefully. He felt that Zhang Fei's words were true and it was really the case. He couldn't help but feel better.
Because this is enough to prove that they will not let go of anyone or anything unless it is directed at the emperor.
"Then in your opinion, how should this matter be handled?" Zhao Xu couldn't help but ask curiously.
“I thought we could learn from the Department of Taxation.”
"Tax Commissioner?"
"Exactly."
Zhang Fei nodded. "Your Majesty, haven't you noticed that those ministers and dignitaries hate the Tax Commissioner to the core? If they have to choose between the Imperial City Commissioner and the Tax Commissioner and have to close one of them, they will definitely choose the Tax Commissioner. But they only dare to yell and complain at home, but no one dares to impeach the Tax Commissioner in the court like they did the Imperial City Commissioner. But in fact, to them, what the Tax Commissioner did is much more hateful than what the Imperial City Commissioner did."
Zhao Xu thought for a while, nodded and said, "Yes! Recently, no one has impeached the Taxation Commissioner. Even if there are, they are very sporadic, not like the one against the Imperial City Commissioner."
Zhang Fei said: "That's because the Taxation Commissioner can make them speechless."
Zhao Xu suddenly raised his eyebrows and said with a smile: "The reason why the Taxation Department has left them speechless is that the Taxation Department prosecutes tax evaders through the Procuratorate. Do you want the Imperial City Department to prosecute through the Procuratorate as well?"
"Your Majesty, this is wrong."
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "The reason why the Taxation Commissioner silenced them is not because he filed a lawsuit through the Procuratorate, but because the Taxation Commissioner's methods are strong, smart, professional, and ruthless.
If they don’t have these means, whether they file a lawsuit through the procuratorate or not, it will give people something to blame.”
Zhao Xu thought for a moment and said, "You mean, the Imperial City Division is not strong enough?"
"That's right."
Zhang Fei said: "Your Majesty has entrusted such an important authority to those who are not so professional. There is only one result, which is to mislead the country and the people.
Take this case for example, if the tax commissioner was in charge, they would not arrest anyone that night. They would find out the details of the two soldiers and then send people to investigate secretly to see how many people were complaining and whether they were real complaints or had other motives, and then catch them all in one fell swoop.
As a result, the Imperial City Bureau arrested the man that night. If it was false, they were fabricating a wrongful case and causing His Majesty to be entangled by those ministers, making the Imperial City uneasy.
But if it is true, then they are alerting the enemy, which will allow the real evil-minded people to continue hiding in the Three Yamen, causing endless troubles.
As for the torture by the Imperial City Bureau, it was simply ridiculous. The Tax Bureau never tortured anyone because people can lie but accounts cannot.
If he really is the other party's spy, he knows that he is doomed and can deliberately frame loyal officials. What should he do then?
This is something that can directly endanger the country. How can they do it so carelessly? They are really worse than the Royal Police. This is really puzzling!"
Zhao Xu nodded repeatedly after hearing these words. "You are right. They were indeed too hasty in handling the matter. Compared with the Commissioner of Taxation, they are indeed far behind."
Zhao Xu couldn't believe how powerful the Commissioner of Taxation was now. He knew very well that the Imperial City Department could not compare to the Commissioner of Taxation.
Zhang Fei said: "So, Your Majesty, I think the Imperial City Department should be strengthened, whether in terms of power, scale, or talent, it must be strengthened accordingly."
Zhao Xu glanced at Zhang Fei, and was touched. Zhang Fei was really thinking about him. He didn't want to restrict him, but to strengthen him. He asked, "How do you think we should strengthen it?"
Zhang Fei said: "First, enact the National Security Law."
"National Security Law?"
"good."
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "It means summarizing all behaviors that threaten the country and the people together and making them a law within a law. Such harmful behaviors are put together with ordinary criminal laws and civil laws, and they are treated with a set of judicial systems. This is obviously wrong and does not seem to be taken seriously enough.
In addition, why is the Commissioner of Taxation so powerful? Because behind him are the tax laws. Tax evasion is wrong and should be punished. This is common sense and it has been made clear in advance. If you are caught, you deserve to be punished. The powerful people in the court want to help every time, but they can only endure it and blame themselves for not living up to their expectations.
Similarly, if the Imperial City Department wants to strengthen its control over this aspect, there must be a clear set of laws and regulations behind it. In this way, there won’t be so many people gossiping about it. As the saying goes, there is a legitimate reason for the teacher’s actions.”
"The National Security Act."
Zhao Xu nodded and said, "That makes sense! There should be such a law."
Zhang Fei said: "Secondly, the rectification of the Imperial City Department is such an important power that it cannot be assigned to anyone casually. It must be selected carefully, just like the Taxation Department, and ability must be the first priority. You can build your own intelligence system, and at critical moments, you can also share intelligence with the Taxation Department."
Zhao Xu nodded again, waited for a while, and suddenly asked: "Is there no end?"
"have!"
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "If Your Majesty agrees with the first two points, we will use this case to complete the layout of the first two points."
Zhao Xu couldn't help but ask curiously: "What do you mean?"
Zhang Fei said: "Assuming that under the entanglement of ministers, the procuratorate is forced to investigate the Imperial City Department, and the shortcomings and violations of the Imperial City Department, and then bring the Imperial City Department to the imperial court, your majesty should be furious, they are simply going too far. In this case, your majesty can take the opportunity to demand the introduction of relevant laws, and on the other hand, you can use this opportunity to rectify the Imperial City Department and expand its powers. This case is an excellent reason, as long as we can make good use of it."
Zhao Xu was confused for a long time, then suddenly pointed at Zhang Fei and burst into laughter.
"You are worthy of being called Zhang Da'er's pen. You have such a big mouth, haha." After a while, Zhao Xu laughed so hard that tears almost came out, and finally calmed down, "You went around in circles, this is what you wanted to say, right?"
Zhang Fei chuckled and said, "Your Majesty, nothing can be hidden from you. But I am different from them. What I said just now was to solve this problem, not to just stand there and talk without any worries. If something goes wrong, they will blame others.
The Imperial City Administration should strictly supervise such behavior, there is nothing wrong with that, but they did it in a very rough way, and it is difficult to convince the public. Anyone can do it, which is extremely disadvantageous to Your Majesty. They are Your Majesty's eyes and ears, so how can they be so careless?
Moreover, this will cause Your Majesty to get caught up in the struggle with the ministers, and thus neglect to guard against the real enemies, which will give those with ill intentions an opportunity to take advantage of you, which is also quite dangerous. "
Zhao Xu nodded slightly, comparing the two government offices, the Taxation Bureau and the Imperial City Bureau, in his mind. Collecting taxes in the past was really a big problem. In comparison, the difficulties of the Imperial City Bureau were really nothing.
The reason is that as long as officials ask the people to pay more taxes, the honest ministers will keep pestering them, and the powerful will take advantage of the situation, resulting in nothing being done. The problem of tax evasion cannot be solved. This is the reason.
If the tax collectors are unprofessional, it will give tax evaders an excuse to make trouble.
In the new policy, many regulations are designed to change the way of collecting the money.
But the Commissioner of Taxation has silenced those powerful people with his brand-new tax law. So far they have not found a way to deal with the Commissioner of Taxation. They will lose if they fight with words or with fists.
Then why doesn’t the Imperial City Commissioner learn from the Tax Commissioner?
Zhao Xu, who had already tasted the sweetness, was finally persuaded by Zhang Fei and nodded, saying, "You are right. The Imperial City Bureau does need to be rectified. I will act according to your plan and help the public security, procuratorate and courts."
What I mean is, I also know your little thoughts.
However, Zhang Fei did not hide anything about this, but he said one thing that impressed Zhao Xu more, which was that his plan was to solve the problem, not to blame anyone.
This is a very important point.
Existence is reasonable. Everything the Imperial City Bureau does has its reasons. Otherwise, why would the emperor keep the Imperial City Bureau?
There is no point in scolding the Imperial City Bureau. You have to solve the problem first. This is the key.
Zhang Fei bowed and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty." He secretly moistened his dry lips with his tongue and secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
“That’s right!”
Zhao Xu suddenly seemed to remember something. "Earlier, Song Shouyue from the Palace Guard sent me a memorial. His suggestion was to abolish the imperial guards in some counties and prefectures in the east of Jingdong Road and then incorporate them all into the Royal Police."
Zhang Fei was surprised and asked, "Why is this?"
Zhao Xu could not help but sigh, with a look of annoyance between his eyebrows, and said: "Didn't you ask very clearly about the treason lawsuit? The soldiers of the imperial guards still have to curry favor with the bandits, which really makes me feel chilled. Therefore, after the lawsuit was over, I immediately sent Song Shouyue, the commander of the Palace Front Department, to reorganize the imperial guards over there.
But after Song Shouyue went there, he found that the morale in the barracks was extremely low and hopeless, but the reason was not the soldiers, but the corruption of the barracks, the lax military discipline, etc. Because he found that once the imperial guards were summoned to the police station, they became like a different person.
After many inspections, Song Shouyue believed that the system and atmosphere of the police station were incomparable to the imperial guards, and it would be difficult for him to change it alone, so he suggested that the local military and police be integrated. What do you think? "
The same person is completely different when working in a military camp and a police station. What is even more speechless is that this system is already rotten and it is difficult to reverse the situation.
The police station is full of vitality.
Zhang Fei shook his head and said, "I don't really understand this."
Zhao Xu hesitated for a moment and said, "Let me put it this way, will this do any harm to the police station?"
Zhang Fei thought for a while before saying, “If everyone follows the rules and only recruits soldiers, and does not force those generals to serve as police chiefs, then there will be no harm.
Having said that, in fact, if a police station has more staff, it will be very good for its development as long as it does not add financial pressure.
Whether in the capital or Hezhong Prefecture, the police force has always been insufficient. This is mostly due to financial issues. This is also one of the important reasons why the Royal Police are loyal to their duties and can receive a full salary every month. "
Zhao Xu gritted his teeth and said, "Speaking of finances, I would rather pay the Royal Police more than support those useless people. I was really pissed off last time."
He was unwilling to be mediocre, he wanted to be both civil and military, but in the end he got such a reward, he felt heartbroken to spend the money.
Zhang Fei added: "However, the duties of national defense and police are still different. If the military and police are combined for a long time, they may not be able to cope with sudden wars. After all, catching thieves and fighting wars are not the same thing.
If this is to be done, I suggest setting up an armed police force in the police station to completely replace the imperial guards in defense work and deal with local bandits. In this way, we can learn from the excellent system of the police station and be able to mobilize in time if there is a war. "
At the beginning, Zhao Xu wanted to use the police station to train a more elite armed force because he wanted to fight, but many ministers opposed it.
Zhang Fei doesn't need to hide anything about this topic.
Zhao Xu nodded slightly. "That's fine too. We can dispatch some experienced police chiefs from the Beijing Police Station and recruit those imperial guards into the police station."
Zhang Fei suddenly seemed to remember something and hurriedly said, "Speaking of the Imperial Guards, there is something I almost forgot to tell Your Majesty."
Zhao Xu asked, "What's the matter?"
"It's the soldiers."
Zhang Fei said.
Zhao Xu was stunned for a moment, then asked, "Are they the two captured soldiers?"
"Yes, oh no, and no, actually it is."
"What are you talking about?"
Zhao Xu looked at Zhang Fei in confusion.
Zhang Fei immediately organized his words and said, "It's like this. According to the investigation report of the Procuratorate, the soldiers were indeed under great pressure, but they had no discipline or sense of honor. Instead, they were full of resentment. They were completely different from the Royal Police. Such a team will have problems sooner or later. This case shows that everyone has complaints in their hearts, but they dare not speak out. But this is a very dangerous signal. It is far from enough to rely on punishment to deter others."
Zhao Xu asked: "What suggestions do you have?"
Zhang Fei said: "Last time I talked to your majesty about how to benefit the world and enrich the world, and the Xiang soldiers will also bear an important part of the responsibility.
I think we must make the soldiers professional, responsible and honorable. As far as I know, the soldiers are mainly responsible for menial tasks and only go to the front line in critical moments.
Many soldiers were not good at fighting, but they were experienced and skilled in certain matters. So the court could divide the soldiers according to their types of work, with water transport being one group, river construction being one group, housing construction being one group, road construction being one group, and so on.
That is to split the soldiers into departments similar to workshops, so as to facilitate management, improve their professionalism, give them attention, give them a sense of honor, and lay the foundation for the future development of the country.
Now that they are gathered together, there is a mix of good and bad people, and they are easily instigated and oppressed by corrupt officials, and it is easier for corruption to breed. Many soldiers do not get enough money, but they do more work than anyone else. Where does the money go? The answer is obvious. "
Zhao Xu thought for a while, "So you want to use this case to reorganize the soldiers?"
Zhang Fei nodded and said, "Your Majesty has paid such a high price, so you must get a corresponding reward."
Zhao Xu laughed and said, "The biggest winners here are you, the public security, procuratorate and courts again!"
Zhang Fei smiled and said, "The public security, procuratorial and judicial organs will only win on the surface, but the real benefit will belong to the government."
After hearing this, Zhao Xu suddenly asked with great interest: "Then who do you think is the loser?"
"Loser?"
Zhang Fei thought for a moment and said, "Western Xia? Or is it Liao? After all, if your majesty and the country benefit, isn't that the blessing of the people of the Song Dynasty?"
"Hahaha!"
After coming out of the palace, Zhang Fei couldn't help but wipe his sweat off his forehead, then he let out a long sigh of relief and sighed in his heart, "It's so damn hard for me!"
I've talked so much that my lips are peeled off.
In fact, to be honest, he now has no idea what Zhao Xu thinks about this matter.
Zhang Fei only holds on to one belief, which is not to be too sure about what the emperor is thinking. This is something only fools would do. Anyone who does this is basically doomed to fail.
We can only consider the emperor and use benefits to persuade him.
You can't use Xu Zhiqian's point of view to tell the emperor that the two soldiers were just talking nonsense after drinking and should not be taken seriously. It is normal for you to think so, but it may not be the case for the emperor.
Because the emperor controls the most precious things in the world, this kind of thing is very scary for the emperor.
The emperor stands at the highest point, and what he sees is definitely different from what you see.
You can only tell the emperor that this kind of thing must not be tolerated and must be monitored at all times.
So you need a stronger and more professional team, but the current Imperial City Bureau is just a bunch of rubbish. Not only can you not get things done by relying on them, but you will also get yourself into trouble.
Zhang Fei then immediately rushed back to the procuratorate. He first informed Xu Zun and told him that he had obtained the emperor's consent.
This made Xu Zun admire his son-in-law very much. You can even convince the emperor, you really deserve to be the writer of Zhang Dayer.
It’s really amazing!
Xu Zun immediately called Qi Ji and Wang Gong to discuss the matter.
"Since the Royal Court has issued an order, our procuratorate must comply."
Xu Zun looked at Qi Ji again and said, "Inspector Qi, please take someone to the Imperial City Department and ask them to stop the interrogation and accept our investigation."
Zhang Fei added: "If necessary, we must also provide protection and medical treatment to suspects. It is also the responsibility of our procuratorate to safeguard everyone's legitimate rights and interests."
The father-in-law and son-in-law sang the same tune, but Qi Ji was sweating profusely.
Because he didn't know that Zhang Fei had obtained the emperor's consent, and he was actually a newcomer in the officialdom, with little experience, only a few years more than Zhang Fei. Suddenly he was asked to lead people to the Imperial City Department and control the suspect. He couldn't help but feel very uneasy, and glanced at Zhang Fei on the side, "Prosecutor Zhang, do you want to go with me?"
Zhang Fei said, "Inspector Qi, our procuratorate emphasizes that everyone has their own duties, but I can't do everything."
He was not afraid to go along, but he had to be the first to do anything. If he had to go on a business trip again in the future, wouldn't everything go back to square one? This was also an experience for the procuratorate.
In fact, in this regard, the Procuratorate is far inferior to the Censorate. Those censors are not afraid of these things. They dare to rush forward without orders, not to mention that they have orders from the imperial court in their hands.
Qi Ji nodded awkwardly, but sweat had already started to form on his forehead.
Zhang Fei suddenly looked at Wang Gong standing beside him, "Wang Duyou, write an indictment immediately and have Inspector Qi take it with him."
Wang Gong couldn't help but ask curiously: "Who to sue?"
Zhang Fei said: "Sue the Imperial City Bureau for violating the law."
".?"
Wang Gong looked confused.
Zhang Fei said to Qi Ji again: "Inspector Qi, go to the Imperial City Department and show them the order from the Imperial Court. If the Imperial City Department still refuses to cooperate, you can slap this indictment in their faces and tell them to expect to be sued by our procuratorate. By the way, tell them that another nickname for law is the king's law."
(End of this chapter)
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