"Very good! The Right Secretary of the Board of Rites, Guan Yi, as a Jing official and a scholar, had declared that he would give up his territory, disrupting Jing Country and interfering with the decisions of the Cabinet. He deserved punishment. Guan Yi, are you convinced? "
The hall was so quiet that one could hear the buzzing of mosquitoes.
"I am not convinced!" Guan Yi held his head high and his expression did not change.
"Why?" Fang Yun looked indifferent as if they were talking about a small matter.
"After Confucius, the emperors of the human race have spread their views. I am a Jinshi. How can I be punished for my words?"
Fang Yundao asked, "What do you mean by being punished for words? What is this' words'? The law states that those who scold others should be slapped. Is this a crime? "
"Scolding others is an insult to others. Hurting others is a mistake. It is not a crime."
"Then in your opinion, as long as you can prove that someone's words hurt others, they can be punished?" Fang Yun asked.
"That may not be the case. It could be that the speaker is just stating the facts. But if someone thinks that the speaker is hurting himself, how can this be a crime?" Guan Yi said.
Fang Yun nodded and said, "I see. So as long as you can prove that the speaker is biased and is not stating the facts, you can punish him?"
Guan Yi hesitated and said, "As long as the speaker does not admit that something was intentional, it should not be a crime."
"According to your opinion, as long as the criminal does not admit to his crimes, he should not be punished even if there is solid evidence?" Fang Yun asked.
"If he has committed a crime, then he should be punished according to the law. If he has not committed a crime and it is just a matter of words, as long as the speaker is reasonable, even if there is a mistake, he should be punished appropriately. For example, Magistrate Yan, although he attacked me, you only let him sit at home and did not let him speak. It is not a heavy punishment. "
Fang Yun smiled and said, "The reason why I punished Magistrate Yan to keep his mouth shut for ten days was because his mistake was scolding people. If he had hit people, I would have tied his hands. Different mistakes require different methods to deal with. According to what you said, as long as it doesn't harm the speaker, this official can carry it out. Is that right? "
Guan Yi frowned slightly. He knew that Fang Yun was looking for trouble with him, but he had already decided that the Infernal Prefect was at fault. If he suddenly changed his mind, it would be like toying with his superior. Fang Yun would have an excuse to punish him. If he didn't change his mind, it would be equivalent to giving Fang Yun the right to punish him.
Guan Yi's heart was as clear as a mirror. The content he had published in the Xiangzhou Gazette these past few years indeed had a clear bias.
The rest of the officials present also vaguely understood. If Guan Yi was not a Jinshi, Fang Yun could directly convict him. However, Guan Yi was a Jinshi. As long as he did not commit any serious crimes, even the king could not do anything to him, let alone the governor. At worst, he could just leave and leave a good reputation.
Dong Wencong, on the other hand, had a deeper understanding. Since Fang Yun didn't want to bear the infamy of future generations, he naturally wouldn't punish Guan Yi for the matter of the Xiangzhou Magistrate's supplement. He should be using other methods to deal with Guan Yi. Moreover, a few days ago, Fang Yun went to the prison alone to meet a few officials who had been arrested for investigating the brothel. Perhaps it had something to do with this matter.
After that, Dong Wencong gently shook her head. Guan Yi and the other Qing officials were deeply rooted in Xiangzhou. Even if there were any weaknesses that could be used against them, only their confidants would know. Among those who were arrested, there were definitely no confidants of Guan Yi. Even if Fang Yun had something that could be used against them, it would be insignificant. It would be impossible for him to completely overthrow Guan Yi.
Guan Yi didn't speak for a long time.
After a while, Fang Yun slowly said, "Guan Yi, do you know the whole story behind the poem 'What harm is there in giving him a head start'?"
The officials present perked up. Only then did they understand that Fang Yun was referring to this sentence. Because not long ago, Guan Yi had used this phrase to suggest that Jingguo should give the disputed land border to Gyeongo to avoid conflict.
The poem that Fang Yun had written surfaced in the minds of many officials.
A thousand miles of letters are just walls, what harm is there in giving him a head start? The Great Wall of China still exists today, but Qin Shi Huang is nowhere to be seen.
Guan Yi left and said, "I heard that your friends in Ji County had a conflict over the land occupied by their houses. You wrote this poem to persuade them."
"No, you're wrong," Fang Yun said.
"Then perhaps I've misheard," Guan Yi said.
Fang Yun sat on the main seat and leaned back in his chair. His gaze was dignified as he said, "No, you didn't mishear the story. What you're wrong about is that you thought I wrote this poem to persuade them."
Guan Yi smiled slightly and said, "Fang Xusheng, if you didn't write this poem to persuade them, did you write it to fan the flames?"
"I wrote this poem to make an exchange. I gave this poem to Fang Daniu's parents in exchange for giving them a head start, in exchange for the harmony between the Fang family and the Lu family, in exchange for my housekeeper Fang Daniu and my friend Lu Zhan not being mocked by others. Do you understand? "Fang Yun looked at Guan Yi calmly.
All of the officials present were moved. Fang Yun's words were not profound, but the meaning behind them made them think deeply. They could not help but admire Fang Yun even more.
Some of the officials looked at Fang Yun and suddenly felt regret. They regretted making an enemy out of such a respectable scholar.
Cold sweat appeared on Guan Yi's forehead. As a Grand Scholar, how could he not understand Fang Yun's words? However, he could not answer at this time.
Fang Yun said slowly, "Since you don't want to answer, I'll tell you. Those who have disputes with their neighbors and take the initiative to give way are called virtuous people. As an outsider, those who persuade both parties without causing them to suffer losses are called good people. However, as an outsider, those who ask one party to give way at the expense of benefits are called despicable people in Ji County. To be arrogant, all I had to do was say a few words and the two families would do their best to reconcile. I could still win the reputation of making neighbors live in harmony, but I didn't do that. "
Guan Yi lowered his head slightly. His mind was thinking quickly, trying to find a counterattack strategy.
Fang Yun continued, "I wrote this poem and gave it to Fang Daniu's parents. At that time, I did not try to persuade Fang Daniu to give way. I only said at the end, 'If you can give way, give way. If you can't give way, don't give way.' If I asked Fang Daniu's parents to give way, what would I do if the two families had a grudge? So what if the two families lost three feet in their hearts? I thought that the three feet distance was fine. However, Fang Daniu's parents might have wanted more land because of their face, because of the grudge, and because they wanted more land. They thought that the three feet distance would not give way. Therefore, I did not persuade Fang Daniu's parents to swallow their anger like a despicable person. Instead, I used this poem in exchange for his parents to be relieved and take the initiative to reconcile with their neighbors. "
After listening to Fang Yun's intentions, almost all of the officials present were convinced. Even the officials who opposed Jingguo could not oppose Fang Yun for this matter.
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