The Prosperous Era of Longwan

"mighty."

As the officers of the Ministry of Punishments shouted in unison, they kept hitting the ground with water and fire sticks to make a "bang bang" sound. From the main hall, Wang Zhigao, the Minister of the Ministry of Punishments, Ge Shouli, the censor of Zuodu of the Ducha Yuan, and Chen Yisong, the minister of Dali Temple, etc. Walk out from the side of the screen wall and sit in the lobby.

Today, there are three desks placed in the lobby of the Criminal Department. This is also the standard configuration for the joint trial of the three divisions. There is only one table placed next to it, which is obviously a place assigned to a specific person.

In ancient feudal society, when trying some major cases or related cases involving the royal family, it was generally prudent to choose a three-level trial.

The three-division joint trial is actually roughly equivalent to today's public security, procuratorate, and court.

In later generations, the joint trial of three departments was often called "the joint trial of three halls." In fact, both of them mean the same thing. However, in local places, the joint trial of three departments was generally called the joint trial of three halls, while in the imperial court, it was the joint trial of three departments.

In different dynasties, due to the different status of the rulers, the Tribunal Tribunal has been adjusted and renamed many times.

Just like it was originally called Sangong, these were three very important official positions set up by Qin Shihuang after he unified the six countries. They were prime minister, Taiwei and Yushi. These three people were in charge of government affairs, military affairs and supervision respectively.

During the Western Han Dynasty, this system was inherited and actual power was given, so that one person was less than ten thousand people.

However, during the period of Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, after strengthening the power of the monarch, he established the governor, and later changed his name to Da Sikong. After that, he went through continuous reforms. By the end of the Western Han Dynasty, Da Sima and Da Situ were formed. The three princes of Da Sikong were also called the three manage.

During the Tang Dynasty, the Yushitai was established after summing up experience, and established a central department to supervise the Ministry of Punishment and Dali Temple. This was a very useful supervisory agency, so the joint trial of the three departments corresponded to the joint trial of some major cases by the three agencies.

The three judicial institutions can supervise each other and assist each other. This was a method that the emperor Wu Zetian thought of in order to strengthen the imperial rule. It was also a very representative legal system of the Tang Dynasty.

From today's perspective, such a system is also very advanced.

During the Ming Dynasty, after Zhu Yuanzhang abolished the strengthened monarchy system by abolishing the prime minister, the system of joint trial by three divisions was established. The three divisions of the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate jointly tried the cases, and then handed over the final jurisdiction to the emperor.

The initial establishment of the Three Divisions in the Tang Dynasty also laid the foundation for the later years. This also marked the emergence of judicial consciousness in ancient China, which laid a good foundation and opened the way for the subsequent establishment of the system.

This is because when the three divisions jointly hear a case, there will be three desks, and three judicial officials will sit on them. Everyone has a say in the trial process, so the people call it a three-court trial.

Although it was inherited from the Tang Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty established the Ministry of Punishment, Dali Temple and the Metropolitan Procuratorate with different powers and responsibilities from previous dynasties.

The division of labor of the "Three Law Departments" in the Ming Dynasty is as stated in "History of the Ming Dynasty: Criminal Law Chronicles II": "The Ministry of Punishment receives punishment names from all over the world, the Metropolitan Procuratorate inspects them, and the Dali Temple refutes them."

The functional differences can be roughly described as follows: The Ministry of Punishment handles appeal cases across the country, hears local serious and important cases, and hears cases from central departments.

Since cross-examination proceedings were prohibited in the Ming Dynasty, all local cases accepted by the Ministry of Punishment must have been tried by relevant departments.

Penalties in the Ming Dynasty were divided into five categories: flogging, cane, punishment, exile, and death. The Ministry of Punishment had the right to make final judgments on cases below exile, but the criminal and the case file must be sent to Dali Temple for review.

Even if the death penalty is reviewed, it must be approved by the emperor.

The Metropolitan Procuratorate supervises the entire trial process.

Generally speaking, the Ministry of Punishment actually handles and tries cases, Dali Temple conducts reviews, and the Metropolitan Procuratorate supervises the entire process.

However, as far as the current Wanli court is concerned, because the Wanli Emperor is young, the emperor naturally does not have the final jurisdiction. The three-division trial, or the court's judgment on the case, can largely influence the final decision.

Today, in the lobby of the Ministry of Justice, there are many tables and chairs placed after the police officers. They are all officials who have time to come here to watch the trial.

Ordinary people naturally cannot participate in such trials.

The court officials who came here today are all very high-ranking. They are led by not only the chief minister of the cabinet, Zhang Juzheng, and the second minister, Wei Guangde, but also the ministers of the other five departments and other important officials of the court, as well as Duke Dingguo Xu Wenbi, Duke Yingying, Marquis of Linhuai and other honorary ministers. Your representative.

In addition, the commander of the Jinyi Guards, Governor Zhu Xixiao, was also ordered to participate in the trial. Behind him stood Liu Shouyou and other Jinyiwei commanders.

At this time, Zhu Xixiao was sitting in front of the table on the side of the hall, staring at the door.

Although Feng Bao, the eunuch and Duke of Dongchang Factory, was not present, Xu Jue, who was responsible for the execution of thousands of households, came. He also escorted the assassin, Minister Wang, and the servant of the Gaofu. At this time, the two were separated and knelt on the left and right sides of the lobby. side.

In addition, Empress Dowager Chen also sent Wang Zhen, the eunuch beside him, not only to understand the results of the trial, but also to see the reactions of the ministers present.

After being promoted to the hall, all the officials sat upright without saying a word, leaving the entire hall to Wang Zhigao, the Minister of Punishment.

With a slap in the face and a crisp "pop" sound, he shouted to the court officials, "Bring the prisoners", and today's joint trial officially began.

Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng next to him were sitting there quietly, but their eyes were already looking towards the entrance of the lobby. As Minister Wang was brought in by two Dongchang fans, a small commotion came from behind them.

For the officials here, most of them saw this imperial convict minister for the first time today.

Well, in fact, even if Wei Guangde and Zhang Juzheng had seen him before, it was only a quick glance and their impression was not deep.

What's more, the person was still being suppressed at the time, and his face and figure couldn't be seen.

Now that I see him again, he does look like a soldier. He has a powerful figure and a sense of honesty. He is indeed Qi Jiguang's recruit.

Qi Jiguang has a very important condition when selecting troops, that is, he does not want smooth people. He likes people who are more straightforward, easy to drill, and obedient on the battlefield.

Wei Guangde actually believed Minister Wang's first impression that he was Qi Jiguang's soldier.

Now Wei Guangde just hoped in his heart that Wang Zhigao would come up and get straight to the point, and not ask other messy things, so as not to involve Qi Jiguang.

Although Wei Guangde had already talked about this matter with Wang Zhigao and Chen Yisong in private before the meeting started.

As for Ge Shouli, forget it, the stubborn old man is simply an unkind person.

In the view of Wei Guangde and others, today's court hearing should be just a formality. After all, he has been under the supervision of Dongchang. Even at this time, no one from the Ministry of Punishment can touch Minister Wang's clothes.

I didn't see anyone being dragged in. They were all Dongchang fanboys.

Perhaps, Zhang Juzheng thought so too, so like Wei Guangde, he calmly waited for the end of this joke-like interrogation process.

However, the development of events was somewhat unexpected.

After Minister Wang was brought into the lobby, neither Wang Zhigao, Ge Shouli, nor Chen Yisong spoke. Even Zhu Xixiao, who was ordered to interrogate the case, just sat on one side and watched the two officials from the Criminal Department step forward and directly passed over the people on both sides. Fanzi pressed Minister Wang to the ground.

Afterwards, government servants holding water and fire sticks came out from both sides.

Wei Guangde knew that this was an unspoken rule in the yamen, and it was a slap in the face.

Regardless of right or wrong, if you hold the person down first and give him a good beating, he will naturally become more honest when speaking later.

Wei Guangde lowered his head slightly. He didn't want to watch a big man having his pants pulled off, his buttocks bare and spanked, and then screaming.

With this posture, even a fool knows what he is going to do. This is the kind of treatment you get in the yamen.

Just when the officer of the Ministry of Punishment was about to pull off Minister Wang's pants, Minister Wang raised his head and shouted to the officials sitting in the hall: "I am promised wealth, why are you raping me?"

This shout was a bit abrupt, but instantly there was a commotion among the officials on both sides of the hall. Wei Guangde also looked at Minister Wang in disbelief. He did not expect that this would be the first thing the prisoner said when he came to the hall.

I have to say that in ancient yamen trials, some hidden rules were really effective, such as the killing stick before the trial.

In ancient times, there was an unspoken rule that seems strange and inhumane today, that is, if you want to go to the government office to beat drums and complain about grievances, you must first eat a "killing stick". There is no clear explanation for this amount. It's okay to do it a few times, it's okay to do it dozens of times, it all depends on the official's mood, after all, it's an unspoken rule.

As for why there was such an unspoken rule in ancient times, it was mainly set by the yamen to reduce trouble.

A very important principle in the ancient Chinese system is that "the people do not bring officials to justice". No matter how big the matter is, as long as no one files a complaint, the government will generally not take the initiative to intervene in civil disputes.

Of course, serious cases such as murder and robbery are excluded.

Ancient Chinese dynasties have always been small-government. A local official not only has to manage the place well, but also cares about people's livelihood. Naturally, he has insufficient power and cannot do everything himself. Naturally, he hopes to have fewer cases under his jurisdiction.

If the common people under the government have to come to the Yamen to complain over trivial matters, then the government will not have to do anything.

For civil disputes, non-government personnel such as Li Jia and clan chiefs are usually the ones to handle them. Only really serious matters are reported to the government.

So how to stop ordinary people from harassing the government for trivial matters, the killing stick came into being.

If you are not afraid of being beaten, then it must be a big deal. Otherwise, it is not a big deal and the person involved would not dare to come and file a complaint.

You know, this is no small matter, there are many ways to do it.

Some people get a stick and some medicine, and they can be active the next day.

And some people who eat sticks are not only bedridden, but also need to recuperate for a long time, and may even lose their lives.

Whether today's case is big or not, it certainly is, but this rule has been around for thousands of years and cannot be lost.

Wei Guangde looked at Minister Wang who looked aggrieved at this time. His silly look was a little cute, and Wei Guangde wanted to laugh without realizing it.

Of course, in such an occasion, he couldn't laugh, he could only hold it in.

He inadvertently glanced sideways at Zhang Juzheng beside him, wanting to see who Zunrong was now.

What surprised Wei Guangde was that Zhang Juzheng also looked surprised, as if he hadn't expected it.

Wei Guangde just frowned and thought to himself, didn't Feng Bao ask Zhang Juzheng for help? Zhang Juzheng didn’t know either?

"Snapped."

The gavel clapped again, and Wang Zhigao shouted loudly and asked: "What nonsense are you talking about, you bold maniac?"

No matter what, today's trial in the Ministry of Punishment seemed a little off at first.

Wang Zhigao, the Minister of Punishment, could not let this situation continue. He did not see that many of his colleagues on both sides had already started talking to each other.

If there were any problems during the trial of this case, it would be the Ministry of Punishment's fault, and he was not willing to bear the blame.

What's more, it seems that Feng Bao was responsible for this.

Yes, after it was reported that this case was related to Gao Gong, most of the officials did not believe it.

At this time, Zhu Xixiao was already staring at Minister Wang with squinted eyes to see what he would say next.

But at this time, Minister Wang looked around with his eyes wide open. He didn't seem to see the person he wanted to see, so he lowered his head in disappointment.

Immediately, Wang Zhigao waved his hand to signal the officer to leave. He didn't want to cause more trouble to affect today's trial, so he directly picked up the confession on the desk and asked: "What I have in my hand is the confession you made before. Now I will ask You, who ordered you to enter the palace to assassinate me."

Perhaps because he saw that he would not be beaten after shouting, Minister Wang was no longer pinned to the ground at this time, but just kneeling like that.

After Wang Zhigao asked, Minister Wang replied without hesitation: "Gao Gong ordered me to do it." ’

"What did Gao Gong instruct you to do?"

Wang Zhigao asked loudly again, "How did Gao Gong instigate you to enter the palace to assassinate, and who was the target of the assassination?"

"Gao Gong ordered me to enter the palace."

Minister Wang paused after saying this and seemed to wake up.

Entering the palace to assassinate, who to assassinate?

In this era, everyone knows that assassinating the emperor must be a serious crime of beheading.

No matter how stupid a person is, he would never confess like this.

Previously, in Fusi, Beizhen, it was said to the outside world that he was assassinating the emperor. However, when eliciting a confession, the eunuch did not let him say that he entered the palace to assassinate the emperor. He only told him to bite Gao Gong to death and arrange for him to enter the palace.

You know, for cases like this, it stands to reason that the factory guards would usually handle the case from beginning to end, and it would not be the Ministry of Punishment's turn to try the case.

After that, on the one hand, Feng Bao focused on serving his master well in the palace, and on the other hand, he urged the factory guards to arrest Gao's servants and complete the evidence chain, but he forgot about Minister Wang.

After all, Feng Bao did not meet Minister Wang in person, and many of the words he told his subordinates were very reserved.

Naturally, the eunuch responsible for persuading and teaching Minister Wang would not be able to tell him that Gao Gong sent him to assassinate the emperor. If he really told him so, Minister Wang would not admit guilt even if he was beaten to death.

As for the confession containing such words, it was just bullying Minister Wang because he was illiterate.

After all, not many people are literate these days.

The literacy mentioned here does not mean that one can be literate if he only knows a few characters in Douda. At the very least, he has to read through the "Three Character Classic" and "Hundred Family Surnames".

If a person is caught in the palace, the eunuch thinks that as long as he is bitten to death, Gao Gong sends him into the palace. As for entering the palace, his godfather will naturally take care of it.

"What are you doing in the palace?"

Wang Zhigao asked loudly. Seeing the silence of Minister Wang in the hall, he couldn't help but raise the gavel and slap it hard again.

"Snapped."

"ah"

When the alarm sounded, Minister Wang couldn't help but come out of his trance. He just looked up at Wang Zhigao, and then his eyes swept over the faces of Ge Shouli, Chen Yisong, Zhu Xixiao and others, and then looked at the officials on the left and right. .