This was supposed to be a contest between two officials of the Ministry of Justice, but because of an accident, it turned into a battle between the Three Law Divisions, a battle between King Wei and King Liang. In the end, thanks to Su Wei's sudden inspiration, the matter was resolved in a disguised form of compromise.
Chang Zhiyuan was guilty, but his filial piety moved the world, so Her Majesty the empress issued a special decree for him to be pardoned. In the eyes of the world, a murder case was still a murder case. It was just that the emperor was benevolent, granting him a special pardon, so it couldn't be used as a model. However, for those in the bureaucracy, especially those from the Three Law Divisions, victory and defeat had already been decided.
Why was it that the emperor didn't use his special pardon power for other cases, but this one just had to be heard by the heavens? Wasn't the meaning behind this clear? In this contest between the Three Law Divisions, it was easy to imagine who was the true victor!
The Imperial Envoy Station and Supreme Court weren't willing to accept their defeat. Supreme Court Court clenched their teeth, preparing to find Yang Fan's weak points and get revenge. Meanwhile, the Imperial Envoy Station lost this chance to make a name for themselves, so they turned to the deceased Pan Junyi's father, that Ministry of Appointments Vice Counsellor Pan Ziwen, attacking him for not teaching his son properly, for having improper conduct, for accepting bribes …
Either way, the Imperial Envoy Station didn't need evidence. Pails of dirty water immediately splashed all over Vice Counsellor Pan.
The Imperial Envoy Station's craziness couldn't be helped. Ever since Lai Junchen was demoted, the Imperial Envoy Station's situation had been deteriorating. This time, the Three Law Divisions lost, and the Imperial Envoy Station's prestige plummeted even further. If they didn't hurry up and find something to do, they wouldn't have any sense of existence left.
The Political Affairs Hall's ruling and the emperor's special pardon decree were both sent to the Ministry of Justice at the same time. When Yang Fan received the special pardon decree and the Political Affairs Hall's ruling, he immediately ordered for Chang Zhiyuan's release. His father Chang Lin was also called over and severely reprimanded. Chang Lin was naturally obedient. As for whether or not he was willing to turn over a new leaf and give up on gambling, that was hard to say.
When Yang Fan emerged from the main hall, Judicial Sector Vice Counsellor Zuo Yuanqing and Cao Qigen immediately led the various managers, secretaries, and secretaries to offer their congratulations. Class Leader Yuan and Manager Feng stood behind Yang Fan like guardian deities, looking left and right, feeling honored.
Soon after, the Imperial Censor Sun Yuxuan, the Imperial Censor Pi Erding, and the Imperial Censor Yan Xiaojun also led their own officials forward to congratulate Yang Fan. They all said that they wanted to invite him to a banquet to celebrate his success in the first battle, and that the Ministry of Justice would be able to hold its head high in the Three Law Divisions.
Naturally, Yang Fan could tell that their invitation was sincere. It was definitely not the distant banquet that Chen Dong had mentioned when he had just arrived at the Ministry of Justice. Naturally, Yang Fan couldn't act arrogant. Although this battle had established his position in the Ministry of Justice, if he wanted to be like a fish in water in the Ministry of Justice and obtain widespread support, he couldn't do without the friendship of these people.
After a lively exchange of pleasantries, the crowd dispersed one after another.
Yang Fan returned to the Judicial Sector. Class Leader Yuan and Manager Feng didn't have much to do, but they still subconsciously followed behind him, all the way until he entered the Ministry of Justice's courtyard gates.
On the other side was still that xiezhi divine beast carving. At the center of the courtyard was an osmanthus tree with lush foliage. Strangely, there wasn't a single person left in the courtyard, only Chen Dong. His back faced the courtyard gates, his hands behind his back, sizing up the osmanthus tree in front of him.
Feng Xihui and Yuan Han coincidentally stopped at the same time. Even though the two of them already steeled their hearts to follow Yang Fan, Chen Dong had been in charge of the Ministry of Justice for a long time, his influence still lingering. When the two of them saw him, they still couldn't help but feel timid.
Yang Fan waved his hand, walking into the courtyard alone.
Yang Fan walked up to Chen Dong's side and stood still. Chen Dong didn't even turn his head around. After a long time, he said with a sigh, "The osmanthus flowers have bloomed!"
Yang Fan looked at the small milky-white flowers on the branches, and only then did he realize that there was a refreshing fragrance lingering in the entire courtyard.
Yang Fan sniffed, and said, "Very fragrant!"
Chen Dong smiled, slowly turned around, and faced Yang Fan.
"Yang Langzhong, congratulations!"
"I dare not, I was just lucky!"
"Haha, Yang Langzhong is too modest. I was clever in small ways. You were wise! "
Chen Dong sighed lightly, raised his head, and looked at the sky covered by branches and leaves. He laughed in spite of himself, and said, "I overestimated my own abilities, always wanting to fight with you. After learning that this case involved the Supreme Court and the Imperial Envoy Bureau, I was still complacent, thinking that you got into trouble. Actually … from that time on, I was defeated! "
Chen Dong retracted his gaze, took a deep look at Yang Fan, and said, "I wanted to fight with you, but from that time on, you were fighting with the Supreme Court and the Imperial Envoy Bureau. You had already left me far behind, and I wasn't fit to be your opponent at all. Regardless of whether you won or lost, I had already lost first."
Chen Dong shook his head, and said with a bitter smile, "It's laughable that I was still complacent at that time. How laughable."
Yang Fan smiled, and said, "Little Brother was indeed lucky. When I chose the case of the Chang family's matron beating and killing my daughter-in-law, I also didn't expect that it would cause so much trouble later on."
Chen Dong nodded, and said, "It was indeed your luck. But talent is a kind of ability, wit is a kind of ability, connections are a kind of ability, and luck is similarly a kind of ability. You have it, but I don't, so I have to accept it. Moreover, what you did next was absolutely not luck!
If you succumbed to pressure from a certain aspect, you would lose very badly. But you stood higher than all of us, and you saw further than all of us. When others were still calculating which side they should stand on to obtain the greatest benefits, you were already standing on the side that was always right. When I was still waiting to see how you could satisfy all parties, you already knew very clearly that … you didn't need to give any explanation to any of them! "
Chen Dong raised his head again, and narrowed his eyes, as if he could see through the dense foliage and see something.
He stared fixedly for a while before saying to Yang Fan, "I lost! But this is just the beginning for you! Behind … "
Yang Fan nodded and said, "I understand. I'm only standing firm now, merely standing firm!"
Some words could not be said too clearly, just like some things could not be discussed on the table. The two of them were both smart people, and they would stop when they went too far.
Chen Dong smiled, and suddenly said again, "I haven't returned to Ruzhou for many years. There's also an osmanthus tree in the Ruzhou Prefectural Office. I wonder if it has bloomed yet."
Yang Fan frowned and asked, "Doctor Chen, are you preparing to leave the Ministry of Justice?"
Chen Dong also frowned and said, "If I leave now, there will still be people sending me off, and there will be people who miss me. When you completely grasp the entire Ministry of Justice in your hands and then kick me away, I will really become a stray dog. Yang Langzhong is not willing to let me leave in a more dignified manner? "
Yang Fan said, "Why do you have to leave? Is there an irreconcilable enmity between us? No matter what, you're also my senior. Shouldn't you look after and guide this junior more? "
Chen Dong looked at him, and his face gradually revealed a strange expression. "You dare to use me? You feel at ease using me? "
Yang Fan smiled. "Why not? Why not? Brother Chen even praised me for standing tall and seeing far just now. Then do you know where my ambition lies? "
Chen Dong stared at him for a long time, and finally, a smile slowly appeared on his face. He cupped his hands in front of his chest and said with a smile, "I am just a sparrow under this osmanthus tree. My ambition is just to become a doctor in the Ministry of Justice. When I retire and return to my hometown, becoming an assistant minister will be my life's greatest wish. How could I know the ambition of a great swan? I don't need to know, and I don't want to know! "
…
The osmanthus flowers bloomed, and the city was filled with their fragrance.
The three law departments investigated the case of Pan Junyi's murder, and the repercussions were endless. It even stirred up an even greater storm. The Imperial Messenger Station didn't let go of Pan Ziwen, the Vice Counsellor of the Ministry of Justice, and persevered in attacking him. It was as if they were beating a drowning dog.
Since someone had accused him, they had to send someone to investigate. The result was that Pan Ziwen's butt really wasn't clean. He was removed from his position, and the Imperial Messenger Station's reputation, which had plummeted in the competition between the three law departments, recovered slightly.
Soon after, when Yang Fan was investigating the case of Bei City's Workshop Magistrate Ying Tu, who had killed the commoner Qin Xiaobai, he uncovered the matter of Ying Tu's marriage with the deceased's wife. During the trial, Ying Tu's backer, another Vice Counsellor of the Ministry of Appointments, inevitably revealed himself.
This time, the Imperial Messenger Station had no choice but to follow behind Yang Fan and pick up the leftovers from Yang Fan's butt. They immediately began to impeach this unlucky Vice Counsellor and bring him down again.
Because of this, the Imperial Messenger Station's reputation recovered slightly, and Yang Fan's status also rose. The fall of two high officials of the Ministry of Appointments had a lot to do with him. Because of this, and because of Director Chen's strong support for him, his status and reputation in the Ministry of Justice were unparalleled. He was a far greater threat to Vice Counsellor Cui Yuanzong than Chen Dong had been.
When Yang Fan and Chen Dong had fought, Cui Yuanzong had sat on the mountain and watched the tigers fight. He wanted the two tigers to die together. Who knew that these two tigers would now be venting their anger through the same nostrils? Vice Counsellor Cui had failed to steal a chicken, and it was too late for regrets.
With Cui Yuanzong holding him back, Yang Fan did not have the spare energy to fight against the ruthless officials who had temporarily hidden their claws and teeth, or even began to pretend to be obedient children. He could only seize the time to absorb the power of the Ministry of Justice in order to compete with Cui Yuanzong. At the same time, he began to search for Tin Aino.
For Yang Fan, who was in the limelight of the Ministry of Justice, the Temple Department, which was in charge of all the monks and nuns in the world, naturally did not dare to slight him. When they heard that he wanted to check the information of all the nuns who had shaved in the past year, although they did not understand why the most famous person in the Ministry of Justice after Zhou Xing would suddenly be interested in nuns, they still fully cooperated with his investigation.
In the end, of course, they found nothing.
Xiao Man said, "Even if a woman has become a monk, she is still a woman. As long as it is a woman, especially a young woman, who does not care about their appearance? Shaving my head is so ugly. If I were to become a monk, I would definitely become a female Taoist priest. Taoists can keep their hair, and it is very beautiful, like a fairy. "
Yang Fan felt that what his wife said was very reasonable. Moreover, as a man, it was indeed a bit unreasonable for him to barge into a nunnery to check all the young nuns one by one. Unless it was absolutely necessary, this method could not be used, so he wanted to check the Taoist priests first.
However, the Taoist priests were under the control of the Clan Temple, so this was a bit difficult. In the previous dynasty, the monks and Taoist priests were all under the control of the Ministry of Rites. After Li Tang established Taoism as the family religion, Taoism was taken out separately, and was under the control of the Clan Temple, which was in charge of the affairs of the royal family, the royal family, and the relatives of the emperor.
The current official of the Clan Temple was Wu Chengsi, so if Yang Fan wanted to check the information of the female Taoist priests through the Clan Temple, he had to go through Wu Chengsi. However, because of Pan Junyi's case, Yang Fan had completely drawn a line with Wu Chengsi, so it was impossible to ask Wu Chengsi to do anything.
Moreover, this official of the Clan Temple, Wu Chengsi, was currently fighting with Liang Wangwu and Wu Sansi!
…
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
