bookbashuk Chapter 176
Chapter 176
Chapter 176
But none of that matters. Later generations of judges adhered to the principle of presumption of innocence, which meant that there was no need to prove one's innocence; all evidence spoke for itself.
There was no such saying in ancient times. If there was any evidence pointing to a certain person, that person would need to prove their innocence.
This is especially true when it comes to matters of treason.
"Wang Xiuzhuan, Gu Tingye, the younger brother of the Marquis of Ningyuan, requests an audience!" A soldier walked in and reported.
"Go and invite him in!" Wang You said.
"yes!"
The soldiers responded and withdrew.
"Could it be that Gu Tingye is seeking Mo Lan's hand in marriage to protect the Gu family?"
When Wang You heard that Gu Tingye was requesting an audience, he suddenly seemed to understand Gu Tingye's purpose in wanting Mo Lan.
In the original drama, some members of the fourth and fifth branches of the family participated in a rebellion. Although they were unaware of it, they helped Prince Chong purchase women from Jiangnan. Those women were used by Prince Chong to win over people.
Prince Chong wasn't stupid; he knew that even if he bribed some of the city's defense commanders, there were still so many soldiers and civilians entering and leaving the city gates of Bianjing.
No one would notice if one or two beauties were brought into the city, but if there were many, people would definitely take notice.
Moreover, since it involves rebellion, one cannot be too careful.
He could get some of the lords' sons to help him with the purchasing, and even if people noticed, no one would think much of it.
They would only assume that it was bought by the sons of nobles for their own enjoyment.
Not only were members of the fourth and fifth branches of the Gu family involved, but some other lords' sons also participated.
These questions were asked of the women who were sent away by the Prince.
In the original drama, Zhao Zongquan did not execute the two members of the Gu family, but only exiled them, without implicating the Gu family, entirely because of Gu Tingye.
The Prince of Yong is now on the throne, and Gu Tingye has not been given important positions and is very likely to be implicated.
Gu Tingye's marriage to Mo Lan brought him into contact with the Sheng family, indirectly connecting him with them as well.
Even if Wang You doesn't help, the authorities might still give him a lighter sentence.
Although it was just a guess, Wang You felt it was pretty close to the truth. As for whether it was true or not, he would find out when he met Gu Tingye.
Before long, Gu Tingye was brought in by the soldiers, who saluted and left.
"Ziqian!" Gu Tingye greeted, cupping his hands in greeting.
"When did Zhonghuai return to the capital?" Wang You asked, feigning surprise. "I didn't receive any news about it."
Gu Tingye's heart sank upon hearing this. He had asked the Sheng family for Mo Lan's hand in marriage, and the Sheng family had already agreed.
The Wang and Sheng families are related, so it's impossible for Wang You not to know.
Wang You acted as if he didn't know he had returned to the capital, clearly telling him not to try to get his help by using the Sheng family's name.
"I haven't been back long and have been busy with household chores, so it's normal that Ziqian doesn't know."
Gu Tingye said in a deep voice, "Ziqian, I came here today to ask you for some information."
"Oh?"
Wang You gestured for Gu Tingye to sit down and asked, "I wonder what news Zhonghuai wants to ask me?"
"Two of my cousins had some dealings with the Prince of Yan before and helped him with some things, but now they have been arrested."
Gu Tingye said, "They brought this upon themselves. I just want to ask Ziqian, will this matter implicate the Gu family?"
"Zhonghuai, they have connections with the son of the rebel king and even work for him. You should understand how serious this matter is. As for whether the Gu family will be implicated, I can't answer that for now. It depends on how deeply they are involved," Wang You said.
Gu Tingye nodded and asked, "I've heard that quite a few sons of nobles participated. Is that true?"
"That's right!"
Wang You pondered for a moment and said, "There are quite a few, mostly collateral relatives of noble families. We'll have to wait for the interrogation to confirm the specifics!"
"I understand, thank you!"
Gu Tingye cupped his hands and said, "I won't disturb Ziqian any longer. Farewell!"
"I'll see Zhonghuai off!" Wang You said, standing up.
"No need, you're busy with other things right now, important matters need to be addressed," Gu Tingye said.
Wang You didn't insist upon hearing this, and escorted Gu Tingye to the door before seeing him off.
"That's clever," Wang You thought to himself.
Gu Tingye sensed the refusal in his words and did not ask for his help, but instead inquired whether many noble sons were involved.
The reason for this is also due to the idea that the law does not punish the masses.
Although it involves treason, the emperor must be cautious because so many noble families are affected.
These noble sons were clearly being manipulated and were unaware that Prince Chong was plotting a rebellion.
The reason they were willing to listen to the Crown Prince of Chong and do things for him even though they knew that the chances of the Prince of Chong becoming the crown prince were slim was because their status was too low. Neither the Prince of Yong nor the Prince of Chong were people they could approach or curry favor with.
Even if the chances of winning over the Prince of Chong are slim, they are willing to do anything to try their luck, as long as there is even the slightest opportunity, and with the help of the Prince of Chong's heir.
This gamble wasn't about betting on Prince Chong's successful rebellion, but rather the possibility that he might be chosen as the crown prince.
They knew very well that their identities did not represent their family, and no one would care about them. They were doing things for the Prince of Yan with a sense of wishful thinking.
If they knew that Prince Chong was plotting a rebellion, they wouldn't dare to get involved even if they had eight hundred lives.
Moreover, they did all of this behind their family's back.
With so many noble families involved, if they were all aware of the situation, then action would have been taken.
However, these families were unaware of this, and if they were to take action, the impact would be enormous.
Most importantly, the Emperor has already targeted civil officials this time. If he were to target nobles as well, it would inevitably provoke opposition from all the officials in the court.
Only by targeting those who serve the Crown Prince and not those nobles can the nobles be kept silent on this matter.
Moreover, the emperor has just ascended to the throne, and the most important thing for him is military power.
These noble families might have limited prestige in the military if one family was wealthy, but if there were many of them, their prestige in the military would be considerable.
Not pursuing their families would also allow for better control over military power.
Therefore, Gu Tingye felt relieved when he heard that many noble families were involved.
"Greetings, Wang Xiuzhuan!" Yu Xingzhi bowed and said.
"Commander Yu, you're too kind."
Wang You waved his hand, gesturing for him to sit down, and asked, "Has the interrogation yielded any results?"
"The initial interrogation has been completed. The sons of those nobles all said that they were acting on the orders of the Prince of Yan's heir to help purchase women."
Yu Xingzhi said, "The Crown Prince of Chong said he heard that women from Jiangnan are good at bearing children, so he ordered them to buy women to bring back."
They assumed that the Crown Prince was afraid of being exposed and becoming a notorious figure, and since none of them knew that the Crown Prince had recruited so many people, they did not notice anything amiss.
This aligns with the information gathered by the Imperial City Guard.
"Um."
Wang You nodded and asked, "Where are the others?"
"Those civil officials were uncooperative and wouldn't say anything no matter what I asked. I took out the account books and letters and said that the late emperor had not yet confirmed the crown prince, so they had defected to the Prince of Chong after being won over."
Later, the emperor dealt with some officials and nobles who had spoken out against the selection of the crown prince. They all felt that Prince Chong had no hope and broke off contact with him.
"The gifts Xinhe sent to the Prince of Yan were all sent before that, and he was not involved in the rebellion," Yu Xingzhi said.
"I'm afraid the Emperor won't be satisfied with this result," Wang You said calmly.
"I understand, but apart from these things, they don't acknowledge or say anything else."
Yu Xingzhi said, "I really have no other choice now. I would like to ask Wang Xiuzhuan to consult His Majesty on whether torture can be used."
"The law does not apply to high-ranking officials, and now all the civil and military officials are probably watching the Imperial City Guard. If we really resort to torture, it could cause quite a bit of trouble," Wang You said, frowning.
"But I really have no other choice."
Yu Xingzhi said with a wry smile, "I've tried everything—coercion and bribery—but not one of them will say a word. Although the existing evidence is enough to convict them, it's not quite enough."
If one or two people admit it, it can be said that the others are unrepentant.
But no one acknowledged it, and the evidence alone was too weak.
"Then interrogate their families separately. With so many officials, there must be a few incompetent ones in their families," Wang You said.
"But it's not necessarily true that close relatives should conceal each other's wrongdoings—"
"Commander Yu, have you forgotten that protecting one's relatives does not include treason?" Wang You reminded him.
"Oh yeah, how could I forget that!"
Yu Xingzhi slapped his forehead and said excitedly, "Wang Xiuzhuan's reminder is good! I'll have their families interrogated right away!"
Wang You watched Yu Xingzhi leave and shook his head slightly.
Not long after Yu Xingzhi left, a soldier came to report that someone from the palace had summoned him to the palace.
Upon hearing this, Wang You immediately left the Imperial City Guard and went to the Imperial Palace.
"Your Majesty, I pay my respects!" Wang You bowed deeply.
Upon hearing this, the Emperor waved his hand and said, "No need for formalities. Not long ago, many officials came to dissuade me, and I had no choice but to agree to allow the Ministry of Justice, the Court of Judicial Review, and the Censorate to send people to observe the trial."
"I summoned you here to tell you that you must have sufficient evidence to leave them no chance to question you."
"Your Majesty, it may be difficult to achieve these things."
Wang You explained the predicament Yu Xingzhi was facing and his own arrangements, saying, "The evidence obtained in this way leaves a lot of room for doubt."
"Is there really no way at all?" the official asked, frowning.
"It's not that there aren't any."
Wang You pondered for a moment and said, "Among those military officers who were captured before, some knew that the Prince of Yan was plotting a rebellion."
If we let them implicate certain people, we can create irrefutable evidence. However, we would have to offer them some benefits, but even then, the civil officials would still question it.
After all, for those people, it was a crime punishable by the extermination of nine generations of their family; only by leaving their bloodline intact could they be persuaded to agree.
However, treason is a grave crime, and if we were to spare even a single bloodline for them, the civil officials would certainly not agree to it.
"What if we deceive them?" the official asked.
"That's feasible, but I'm afraid some civil officials might contact them," Wang You said.
"Hmph, if a criminal accused of treason could be easily contacted, there would be no need for the Imperial City Guard to exist."
The emperor snorted coldly, "Do as you say. Tell Yu Xingzhi what I just said."
"Your subject obeys the decree!" Wang You bowed and replied.
"Go!" the official said, waving his hand.
"Your Majesty has one more matter."
"explain!"
"Many sons of nobles are involved, and their families are probably unaware of it. I wonder how to handle this?" Wang You asked.
"They say they don't know, so they don't know?" the official said calmly.
Although titles in the Song Dynasty were not as valuable as in other dynasties, the emperor still didn't want to let go of the opportunity to openly and legitimately seize a title.
"Your Majesty, that is not a problem."
Wang You cautioned, "But doing so would only create more resistance in the court by affecting nobles and civil officials."
The emperor fell silent upon hearing this. Although he had easily dismissed Han Zhang and the others before, it was only on the premise that he had made concessions.
If the nobles are touched again, and those military families with meritorious service also get involved, it will indeed be more troublesome.
"What do you think we should do?" the official asked, frowning.
"That depends on how far Your Majesty intends to go," Wang You said.
The official glared at him and said, "Stop beating around the bush, just tell me!"
"If Your Majesty only wishes to kill a few civil officials, you can easily achieve your goal with a single move!"
Wang You said, "Simply announce that all those involved in the rebellion will be executed."
When the entire court opposed it, His Majesty first insisted, then conceded, deciding to execute only a few civil officials.
"If I back down, I'm afraid they won't let me kill a single one of them!" the Emperor said, frowning.
"That depends on His Majesty's acting skills."
Wang You said, "His Majesty said he wanted to remove the roof, but after being opposed, he then asked to open the windows. Naturally, they wouldn't even let His Majesty open the windows."
Because they realized that His Majesty didn't really want to lift the roof, but actually just wanted to open the window.
But if His Majesty can make them understand that His Majesty truly intends to remove the roof, they naturally won't stop him from opening the windows.
"But how can I make them believe that I really want to tear down the roof?" the Emperor frowned.
"Your Majesty's stance must be firm; there can be no compromise!"
Wang You said, "If the officials see that they cannot dissuade His Majesty, they will turn to His Highness or me. When His Highness and I are persuaded by them, we will come to persuade His Majesty. His Majesty will first get angry and stage a self-inflicted injury, and only then will he back down. In this way, they will naturally not dare to continue to pressure His Majesty."
As Minglan once said, "In all things in this world, it all comes down to who is willing to go all out."
But the most important thing is to convince the other party that you are willing to go all out.
Just like how Madam Kang and Madam Wang poisoned Old Madam Sheng, Old Madam Wang was certain that Sheng Hong wouldn't go all out, so she tried to appeal to his emotions.
Even though Minglan was resolute, Old Madam Wang was not afraid.
It wasn't that she was certain Minglan wouldn't dare, but rather that because Old Madam Sheng was still alive, Minglan had reservations and wasn't ready to take the plunge.
If Minglan really disregards everything and takes this matter to the authorities, although she may get the result she wants in the end, she will offend everyone in the Sheng family except for Old Madam Sheng.
But since Old Madam Sheng is still alive, Minglan cannot bring her to the Gu family.
Minglan is married and doesn't have to return to the Sheng family, but Old Madam Sheng has to stay there.
The hatred that the Sheng family has for Minglan will then fall on Old Madam Sheng.
But when Sheng Changbai appeared and his attitude was very firm, Old Mrs. Wang backed down.
Because she knew that Sheng Changbai's personality was very similar to that of Grand Tutor Wang; he would do what he said he would do.
This principle applies to everything.
Why did no one dare to force some strong-willed emperors to abdicate?
Because they knew very well that if they forced the emperor to abdicate, he could really kill them.
The more lenient the emperor's temperament, the more his ministers would appear selfless and fearless of death.
It's not that so many people aren't afraid of death, but rather that they know they won't die.
The emperor had only recently ascended the throne, and his officials had not yet figured out his temperament. However, it was impossible for the emperor to actually expose the truth and prove that he had the courage to do so.
At this point, Zhao Sheng and Wang You need to mediate.