Chapter 150: Seven days to collect evidence, ten days to kill, Zhao Duan's words cut through the heart
How to explain it?
Zhou Cheng's face looked extremely ugly, but after all, he was a veteran who had experienced many ups and downs in the officialdom for many years.
From the dialogue in the painting, we can see that he is misleading, but there is no actual evidence.
In other words, every sentence he said in the conversation is fine if taken separately, and his questioning of Wang Shan's initial statement is also reasonable and well-founded.
Instead, it was Wang Shan himself who changed his statement.
The so-called "art of speaking" means that every sentence spoken by the tribesmen is justified, but the meaning behind it depends entirely on the people below to speculate.
Zhao Duan could accuse him of deliberately misleading others.
But on the other hand, Zhou Cheng could also argue that his questions were just routine and reasonable doubts.
At this moment, Zhou Cheng was extremely grateful for his caution, which bought him room to maneuver.
Therefore, Zhou Cheng did not respond to Yuan Li's question. Instead, he frowned and looked down at the hall:
"If I remember correctly, this dynasty has a rule that priests of the Heavenly Master's Mansion are strictly forbidden from interfering in any court affairs unless invited by the court. Priest Jin Jian is a disciple of the Heavenly Master, so he should know this."
Zhao Duan was surprised.
At this point, Old Deng was still trying to make trouble for him from the source of evidence.
Do you think the scroll hammer can't kill him?
Jin Jian was stunned, as if he had not expected that there would be something for him to do.
He glanced at the latter and lied without blushing or beating his heart:
"I didn't record this scroll. I just gave it to you."
Well done... Zhao Duan nodded approvingly. Although this girl looks silly, her IQ is still high enough.
"Zhou Cheng!"
In the jury box, Ma Yan slammed the table with his bony hands, stood up suddenly, and said in a cold voice:
"Zhao Duan has provided evidence, and now it's your turn.
You may deny this conspiracy with Wang Shan, but I will report today's events to His Majesty truthfully! This matter is not over yet."
Zhou Cheng said nothing, as if he was thinking about how to respond.
But by this time, the trial against Zhao Duan was apparently over.
The Minister of Justice glanced at Yuan Li, stood up, and said:
"Since there is new evidence in this case, according to the regulations, the relevant suspects are being detained pending retrial."
Zhou Cheng did not stop him this time.
Everyone also knows that there will be no so-called "retrial".
Just wait for Ma Yan to deliver the news to the palace and clear up the misunderstanding.
It is conceivable that the empress will issue an order to release Zhao Duan.
As for the accusations against Zhou Cheng, it was not so quick.
After all, he is one of the Nine Ministers and a minister of state. At least now, Zhou Cheng is still the chief judge.
The officials stood up one after another, and the people outside the hall also prepared to leave.
However, just when everyone thought that today's drama was over.
Outside the Dali Temple, there was suddenly a sound of horse hooves like thunder!
People turned around in surprise and looked over. Zhao Duan and everyone in the hall also looked up.
Two powerful military horses arrived almost at the same time. Two figures dismounted and, ignoring the clerks guarding the gate who tried to stop them, rushed into the crowd in the cold wind outside the capital.
"Zhang Han? Haitang?"
At this moment, many people present recognized the two police officers from the imperial yamen.
"Why are they back? Didn't they go out to handle a case a few days ago?" Some insiders were surprised.
Ma Yan also raised his eyebrows and suddenly looked at Zhao Duan with a hint of guesswork.
"Zhao Jisi!?"
The two warriors rushed into the lobby and seemed to have not yet figured out the situation. Seeing that he was wearing prison clothes, they became anxious.
Haitang's face changed. She didn't understand why such a change happened just a few days after leaving Beijing.
Zhang Han was calmer. Mingrui sensed that the atmosphere was not right and said in a deep voice:
"Haitang and I just returned to the city. We heard at the city gate that the three courts would hold a joint trial today, so we came here."
Zhao Duan didn't care about these things, and the first question he asked was:
"Is the trip going smoothly?"
Haitang and Zhang Han understood and nodded at the same time.
Zhao Duan smiled.
There was a hint of emotion in the smile.
Although according to the distance they traveled, the two should have returned, but the coincidence of them being in court seemed like fate.
"Could it be that the souls of those who died thirteen years ago are also silently helping?"
Zhao Duan couldn't help but daydream, thinking to himself, since the stage has been set up and the east wind has arrived, it would be better to do it today than to wait for another day.
"I'm fine." Zhao Duan explained to the two of them first.
Then he turned back and looked directly at the Dali Temple official who was sitting above the high "case". His eyes were cold and indifferent.
"It's your turn now."
Then, without waiting for Zhou Cheng to respond, Zhao Duan said loudly:
"Please, gentlemen, please sit down for a moment. Today, the three chief judges are all present, and I would like to submit an appeal."
"Complaint? Who are you going to sue?" The Minister of Justice frowned and said:
"Let me be clear, if you mean to sue the Minister of Justice Zhou for framing you..."
Zhao Duan shook his head:
"The person I'm suing is indeed Minister Zhou. He's not framing me, but rather, thirteen years ago, Minister Zhou, along with Wang Shan, the former Imperial Supervisor Wang Zhen, and others, persecuted loyal officials, disrupted government order, and falsely accused and murdered dozens of officials, including Xue Lin, the Junior Secretary of the Dali Temple!"
The sound is like thunder!
When he said this, the onlookers who were about to leave stopped in shock, suspecting that they had heard it wrong.
Is there a reversal?
"Xue Lin? Who is that?" Qian Kerou and others were confused.
Zheng Laojiu looked nostalgic: "That was more than ten years ago..."
Many older officials were touched and recalled this past event.
In the hall.
Yuan Li, who regarded herself as a "spectator" today, had a smile in her eyes and turned to look at Zhou Cheng.
However, when the sixty-year-old man heard the name "Xue Lin", his crimson official robe trembled subconsciously and his pupils suddenly narrowed.
Then his face trembled and his face turned pale:
"You thief, since you dare to slander me, come here..."
"Sir Zhou," the Minister of Justice suddenly held his hand and said in a deep voice:
"This is the court."
Then, this "Imperial Party" minister, who was no longer constrained in his actions after Pei Kaizhi's downfall, looked at Zhao Duan and said calmly:
"Zhao Jishi, you should know that falsely accusing a third-rank official without solid evidence is a serious crime. Are you sure you want to continue?"
"Thank you, Lord Shangshu, for the reminder," Zhao Duan simply said thank you.
The Minister of Justice sighed, knowing that after today, the court would probably be shaken again.
Without Zhou Cheng to stop him, Zhao Duan walked slowly, but not hurriedly, and began to tell the story:
"As you all know, my Imperial Court is responsible for monitoring misconduct among officials. Unfortunately, since our last conflict, Minister Zhou has been secretly investigating me, and I, too, have been investigating Lord Zhou..."
Then, he began to talk about how he asked two colleagues for help, starting from the lost files, and searching for Xue Lin's descendants, and learned the truth of the past from Xue Xuan.
During the process, he concealed the fact that he was assigned by the Empress, and only said that he wanted to investigate
——This is reasonable. After all, the stereotype that Zhao Shijun is vindictive and anyone who offends him will be retaliated against has long been deeply rooted in people's minds.
When he repeated the truth from Xue Xuan's mouth, there was a commotion outside the hall.
Wang Shan's originally pale face had become almost transparent.
"What nonsense!"
Zhou Cheng sneered angrily:
"As the daughter of a convicted official, she naturally refuses to accept the verdict and resents me. She fabricates lies and false accusations in an attempt to overturn the late emperor's verdict. How ridiculous! If this can be considered evidence of guilt, wouldn't it be absurd?"
Look, he's anxious again... Zhao Duan sneered:
"Chen Zhou, please don't use the 'late emperor' to pressure me. The late emperor was naturally wise, but he was blinded by certain treacherous ministers. As for the evidence you want, I certainly have it."
At this moment, one of them was in the hall and the other was in the lower hall.
But in terms of momentum, the situation is reversed.
Zhao Duan talked freely:
"After the three of us learned of the confession, we wanted to investigate, but many of the files were lost. In desperation, we had no choice but to go to the Censorate to look for Mr. Yuan. Fortunately, Mr. Yuan generously helped us and was willing to seek justice for the innocent soul who was wronged thirteen years ago.
In this way, we were able to obtain the location of the many old documents scattered around and the person in charge."
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone looked at the blue-robed doctor in the hall in astonishment, who had been looking at the fun.
Zhou Cheng turned his head woodenly and stared at Yuan Li:
“It’s you…”
"..." Yuan Li looked indifferent, glanced at Zhao Duan meaningfully, and smiled:
"Since this is an old case handled by the Censorate in the past, it is my duty as an official and I will do my best to help."
Mr. Yuan is finished!
The crowd almost exploded. Zhao Duan’s previous narration could not have made people realize the seriousness of the situation.
But Yuan Li's entry invisibly greatly increased the weight of Zhao Duan's words.
Some people even began to imagine whether this was another big move by the important figures in the court?
Zhao Duan's story continues:
"Then, two of my colleagues worked through the night and finally found the crucial evidence. To avoid alerting the suspects, they used the excuse of being out on a case to collect the evidence."
At this time, Haitang and Zhang Han looked at each other, spoke up, and briefly described the process of their search for witnesses.
Because the interval was too long, the evidence collection process for both of them had some twists and turns, but fortunately, those who can sit in the position of investigation officer are not simple people.
Despite obstacles, success was achieved.
"I have the relevant files that were lost that year, which can be checked."
Zhang Han took out a cloth package from his arms, thought for a moment, and handed it to Ma Yan.
Haitang also took out a few pieces of paper from her waist bag and said:
"I've found a few witnesses, but they're still behind, being protected by my subordinates. They won't be able to enter the capital until later. But they've all written down their confessions and signed them."
Ma Yan harvested evidence × 2
Zhao Duan turned his head again and pointed at Wang Shan, who was kneeling on the ground beside him and had turned pale, and said:
"As for this man, he was a key suspect in a case that year. When I went to arrest him, I ran into Zhou Cheng and this man conspiring loudly. The relevant evidence, ah, you gentlemen have just reviewed it."
You arrested him, weren't you doing it to protect yourself? Why...
In the jury box, He Zheng, the Chief Censor in green robe, wanted to speak.
The next second, he suddenly realized that perhaps, from then on, they had been fooled and misled by the thief Zhao, and thus ignored the knife that was secretly stabbing at them.
Repairing the plank road in public and marching through Chencang in secret.
There is no such allusion in this world, but Zhao Duan's methods coincide with it.
Seven days to collect evidence, ten days to kill.
The three-court trial that Zhou Cheng prepared for Zhao Duan has now become his own public trial.
"All relevant physical and witness evidence are available for inspection by the three courts."
Zhao Duan, wearing prison uniform, looked up at Zhou Cheng, who was sitting slumped in the high "chief judge's seat" with a smile on his face. Every word he said was heartbreaking:
"Zhou Cheng, do you plead guilty?!"
Zhou Cheng said nothing, his face pale.
A brief silence.
Immediately, the entire courtroom erupted in an uproar.
(End of this chapter)
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