Shen Ren stroked his goatee and chuckled. "Everyone, please sit. This is the first time a court trial has been recorded. If you do this, I'm afraid there will be gossip."
Fang Yun nodded. "Thank you for your reminder, Registrar Shen. The trial will be temporarily suspended. As the county magistrate, I will report this to the Jingguo Ministry of Justice and Notre-Dame's Court of Punishment. We will use Ning An County as a pilot to reform the laws!"
As Fang Yun spoke, he began to write the Swan Goose Message.
Whether it was Fang Yun's supporters, Xia Jing En and Yu Ba Chi, or the other officials who opposed Fang Yun, they were all stunned. They wondered if Fang Yun had gone crazy.
Fang Yun was in the middle of the court examination!
What did the court examination mean? It was the most outstanding Grand Scholars of the human race this year, competing for the top ten subjects. There was no room for carelessness. No one could change the laws at this time. Even if they did, it would be to change some minor things.
If the reform failed, there would be huge consequences. They would be disqualified from the court examination, not to mention the top scorer.
Shen Ren's face lit up. Fang Yun had made a huge mistake!
Yu Ba Chi, who was dressed in blue, hurriedly stood up and cupped his hands. "Lord Xusheng, please reconsider."
Fang Yun stopped and looked up at Yu Ba Chi. His gaze was like water, and his eyes were as gentle as jade.
"This county magistrate has been brewing for a long time. I know what to do."
Yu Ba Chi looked at Fang Yun's eyes and was stunned. He saw a great power in those eyes. That power seemed to be able to remain unmoved even if the sky collapsed and the earth cracked. Even if he was trapped in an undercurrent of magma, he could remain calm.
Yu Ba Chi sat down silently.
Fang Yun held the official seal in his hand. He used his mind to write two identical documents, the Prison Lawsuit Book.
The criminal case was called prison, and the civil case was called lawsuit.
Long before the court examination. Fang Yun had already thought of how to obtain an A grade in the "Penal Prison".
Using the laws of the future was not only excessive, it was also not in line with the law of development. Thus, Fang Yun decided to take things one step at a time. During the Court Examination, there were two things he had to do. One was to rationalize the interrogations and reduce torture, and the other was to clarify the difference between criminal and civil cases. Furthermore, civil cases were decided by the warden instead of by the magistrate.
This was the general trend of history. As long as these two points were done well, the Penal Department's evaluation would definitely be extremely high!
As for the other changes, Fang Yun was prepared to take them one step at a time. He could not be too rash.
Fang Yun quickly finished writing the Prison Book with his mind. After explaining his views and the direction of the reform, he requested that the Ministry of Justice and the Criminal Court set up Ning An County as a pilot. He also requested that they send people to monitor the records and protect the reform of the law.
After sending out the swan goose letter, Fang Yun finally raised his head. By this time, the bailiffs had already brought over a table and chairs. Xiajing 'en and the other two legalist advisors sat to Fang Yun's right, prepared with brush, ink, and paper to record the trial.
"Pa …"
Fang Yun slammed the gavel and said, "Bring the plaintiff and defendant!"
Fang Yun flipped through the books. The term "plaintiff" had appeared in ancient Huaxia's Yuan Dynasty. It was also mentioned in some legalist books in Saint Origin World.
These two terms were easy to understand. Everyone was stunned at first, but they quickly understood. This was especially true for the two legalist scholars. They nodded instinctively. These two terms were more neutral than "victim's family" or "criminal". They felt that this Fang Xusheng was not ordinary.
In Saint Origin World, commoners did not kneel when they saw an official.
Two middle-aged men wearing silk robes entered the hall. They bowed respectfully and said in unison, "Commoners greet Lord Xusheng!"
"Who is the plaintiff? Tell me your name. "Fang Yun's face was calm. Even though this was his first trial, he did not have any stage fright.
"Commoner Zhang Youde greets Lord Xusheng!"
Fang Yun looked towards the direction of the voice. The one who spoke was a middle-aged man in his thirties. He was wearing silk robes that were of better quality than normal cotton robes. However, his robes were not shiny and were only half new. Fang Yun's gaze fell on the man's belt and fingers. There was only a jade pendant hanging from his belt. Other than that, he did not have any other accessories. It was not luxurious at all.
Fang Yun then observed the man's facial expression, breathing, and eyes. This was the famous Five Listens Prison Breaking Technique. It was to observe the person's speech, facial expression, breathing, hearing, and eyes.
In the Zhou Dynasty, this was a method used to solve cases. However, later on, it became a basic technique and could not be used as a basis for a case.
Fang Yun nodded and said, "Plaintiff, please state your reason."
"Yes, Lord! This man is called Liu Quan. He borrowed fifty taels of silver from me and said that he would return it in three months. However, half a year has passed and I have not seen a single cent! This commoner did not want to force him too much. However, the price of grain has been rising recently. This commoner's business is not good and I urgently need money. Thus, I have no choice but to sue him to the county yamen. I ask Lord to make a decision and let him return my money. "
Fang Yun nodded. Every spring and summer, the price of grain would increase by different amounts. It would only decrease after the autumn harvest. In addition, they were going to send troops to the north this year, so the price of grain increased even more.
"What do you want to say?" Fang Yun looked at the other person.
Liu Quan frowned and said, "Reporting to Lord, this commoner had no other choice. This commoner did not manage the business well and lost a lot of money. Thus, I borrowed fifty taels of silver from Zhang Youde. After paying off the debt, I was left with thirty taels of silver. I heard that the fans were selling well during the spring and summer seasons. Thus, I used the money to order a hundred exquisite folding fans and prepared to sell them. Who would have thought that something unexpected would happen. Because I did not take good care of them, the fans were damp and stained. I could not sell them unless I changed the fans. But where do I have the money now? "
Fang Yun nodded again. After observing Liu Quan, he found that his clothes were tattered and he was not clean. It was obvious that he was in a difficult situation. Moreover, other than being distressed, there was no difference in his heartbeat or breathing. Everything he said was the truth.
In addition, Fang Yun had seen the confession and the description of the two people in the torture room. He concluded that Liu Quan had met with a disaster and it was not that he did not want to pay back the money.
Fang Yun looked at Zhang Youde and said, "Do you believe what Liu Quan said?"
Zhang Youde helplessly said, "Of course I believe what Liu Quan said. Otherwise, I would not have delayed it for half a year before suing him."
"I saw in the confession that Liu Quan was willing to sell the fans to you for twenty taels of silver and use half a year to gather ten taels of silver. Do you not agree?" Fang Yun asked.
Zhang Youde bitterly said, "I do not know how much these fans are worth. Even if they are worth a lot, I do not know how long it will take to sell them. This commoner went to the pawnshop and asked. These fans can only be pawned for five taels of silver at most. How can they be worth twenty taels of silver? This commoner is really lacking in cash! "
Fang Yun looked at Liu Quan again and said, "Do you have anything else that can be used as compensation?"
"Reporting to Sir, after last year's business losses, everything that should be pawned has already been pawned. My family is now completely destitute. I can't pawn my children and house, can I? "Liu Quan's mouth was full of bitterness.
In the Saint Origin world, parents could sell their children to large families as maids or servants for several years. They could even sell them to brothels.
When Fang Yun heard this, he understood the sinister intentions of the Left Minister's party.
This case was very typical. If Fang Yun sentenced Liu Quan to use his house or children as compensation to Zhang Youde, causing the Liu family to be ruined, it would make him a good magistrate for the Legalists. However, it would definitely not be a good magistrate for the Confucians. It would definitely not be a good magistrate for the human race.
If he sided with Liu Quan and caused Zhang Youde to suffer losses, then Fang Yun would gain a reputation of being "benevolent" on the surface. However, this would not be tolerated by the law and he would definitely be criticized by the Legalists. Moreover, if Zhang Youde lost the money and something happened to his family, then Fang Yun's reputation of being "benevolent" would also disappear.
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