Starting from 1618 of the Ming Dynasty

Chapter 7 Courtroom Confrontation

The main hall of Ziyang County Government Office.

This is a typical Ming Dynasty government building, with blue bricks, gray tiles, and upturned eaves. But in the harsh winter of the 46th year of the Wanli reign, it seemed more like a behemoth designed to devour lives.

The snow outside the hall had not yet been swept away and had been trampled into black mud by the shoes of the onlookers. The cold wind, carrying snowflakes, rushed into the hall through the wide-open ceremonial gate, causing the water and fire sticks in the hands of the yamen runners on both sides to sway slightly.

"mighty--"

The deep, guttural voices of the yamen runners, accompanied by the muffled thuds of their batons striking the blue brick floor, echoed throughout the hall. This sound, specially acoustically designed, produced a resonance that struck the chest, enough to intimidate ordinary people even before they saw an official.

In the center of the main hall, a black plaque with gold characters reading "A Clear Mirror Hangs High" hangs prominently. Beneath the plaque, behind a desk covered with a deep red tablecloth, sits not the usually muddle-headed and greedy magistrate of Ziyang, but Zuo Guangdou, the imperial censor who has been ordered to inspect the capital on behalf of the emperor.

This man, known in history as the upright and incorruptible Donglin scholar who ultimately died tragically in prison, was now scanning the crowd below with the same scrutinizing gaze one would give to a death row inmate.

The once high and mighty magistrate of Ziyang County had now removed his official hat and robes, wearing only a white undergarment, and knelt on the left side of the hall, trembling like a leaf, his fat face undulating with each chatter of his teeth.

Meanwhile, the arrogant "Half-City Fan" Fan Renfu knelt on the right. Although his hair was somewhat disheveled, he was, after all, a seasoned veteran who had spent many years navigating the fringes of officialdom. At this moment, he was hunched over, trying to gain a sliver of hope with an extremely humble posture.

"Bring the plaintiff, Lu Yan, a student of the Imperial Academy from Ziyang!"

With a sharp crack of the gavel, it was as if a thunderclap had exploded in the hall.

Lu Yan stepped over the high vermilion threshold.

He didn't change his clothes. He was still wearing that thin, tattered scholar's robe, the hem stained with putrid black sludge from the sewers, and his face bore several dried bloodstains. This wretched appearance might normally be ridiculed as an insult to scholarship, but at this moment, it was the best indictment, the most silent accusation.

He walked steadily. Every step seemed meticulously calculated, landing precisely on the central axis of the blue bricks. His gaze did not fall on the menacing constables on either side, nor on his kneeling enemy, but was fixed on Zuo Guangdou behind the desk.

That look in his eyes wasn't the fear of a commoner meeting an official, nor the pedantic arrogance of a scholar, but rather the calm and composure of an engineer during project acceptance.

Behind him, Zhao Changying was carried in on a stretcher by two Jinyiwei captains. The tough man's left arm was bound with a thick wooden board, and his face was ashen, but his bloodshot eyes were still like those of a wounded, hungry wolf, staring intently at the back of Fan Renfu's neck, as if ready to pounce and tear him apart at any moment.

"Student Lu Yan, a student of the Imperial Academy from Ziyang, pays his respects to Your Excellency, the Censor."

Lu Yan performed the standard scholar's etiquette, his movements were meticulous, neither humble nor arrogant.

Zuo Guangdou narrowed his eyes slightly. He had seen countless people, those who cried out for justice, those who wept, and even those who wet themselves in fear, but he had never seen anyone as calm as this young man before him. This calmness reminded him of those remonstrating officials in the Ministry of Justice prison in the capital who had seen through life and death and dared to speak out against injustice.

"Lu Yan," Zuo Guangdou's voice was icy, "you have accused Fan Renfu, the head of this county, of encroaching on military farms, colluding with officials, persecuting gentry, and even plotting murder. Each of these is a capital offense. I ask you, do you know the laws of the Ming Dynasty? If there is no evidence and you are found guilty of false accusation, you will be punished with the torture of rolling on a bed of nails and exiled three thousand li away."

"I understand." Lu Yan's voice clearly echoed throughout the hall. "According to the Great Ming Law, a commoner who sues an official shall first be punished with thirty strokes of the cane; a student who sues an official shall be exempt from corporal punishment, but if he makes a false accusation, his crime shall be increased by one degree."

"Knowing this, you still want to sue?"

"We will sue." Lu Yan straightened up, his eyes clear. "Because what the students want to talk about is not a grievance, but the law of the land. Not a personal grudge, but a public matter."

"What a fine public account!" Zuo Guangdou slammed his gavel. "This court will give you a chance to speak. But you must understand, this is a courtroom, where evidence matters, not stories. If there is even the slightest falsehood, the imperial decree in this court will not be used against you!"

"Yes."

Lu Yan slowly turned around, his gaze finally landing on Fan Renfu.

Fan Renfu, who was also glaring fiercely at him, preemptively wailed, "Your Excellency! Your Excellency, please investigate! This Lu Yan is utterly slanderous! His father owed me a debt that caused him to die of anger, and not only does he refuse to repay it, he's devised this vicious scheme to extort me! The three hundred mu of land in Zhao Jiawa is fertile land that I acquired by hiring people to reclaim wasteland in the forty-second year of the Wanli reign (1563), and the county government has a registered deed for it! He's trying to renege on his debt, Your Excellency!"

These words, spoken with tears streaming down his face, were extremely moving. Had it been a muddle-headed official, he might have been swayed by this lament that "even the landlord's family has no surplus grain."

But Lu Yan simply watched his performance quietly, a faint hint of mockery curling at the corner of his lips.

"Is the performance over?" Lu Yan asked coldly.

He turned to face Zuo Guangdou, cupped his hands, and said, "Sir, Master Fan said that the wasteland was reclaimed in the forty-second year of the Wanli reign. May I ask, fellow villagers, what happened in Ziyang County in the forty-second year of the Wanli reign?"

A stir ran through the crowd watching outside the hall, and a bold old man shouted, "That year there was a terrible drought! The canals dried up, and all you could draw from the wells was mud!"

"That's right." Lu Yan's voice suddenly rose, drowning out all the noise. "In the 42nd year of the Wanli reign, Shandong suffered a severe drought, with the land barren for thousands of miles. According to the Ziyang County Annals, the county's grain production decreased by 70% that year, and countless people sold their children just to get a mouthful of Guanyin clay."

Lu Yan suddenly pointed at Fan Renfu, his finger like a sharp sword: "Zhao Jiawa is a high and dry place, usually lacking water. In those famine years, even the rats died of thirst, and even the wild grass withered and turned yellow. May I ask, Master Fan, what kind of magical means did you use to cultivate three hundred acres of irrigated land on that parched land where even the stones seemed to smoke?!"

"Did this water fall from the sky? Or is it something extraordinary that you, Master Fan, produced by urinating?!"

"coax--"

A burst of suppressed laughter erupted from the crowd outside the hall. This laughter was like a slap in the face to Fan Renfu.

Fan Renfu's face instantly turned a deep shade of liver color. He stammered in defense, "I...I dug a well! Yes, I dug a deep well!"

"Drill a well?" Lu Yan laughed, a chilling laugh. "Alright, then let's do the math. According to the county government's household register, the entire county was exempted from most grain taxes that year due to a disaster. Only your three hundred mu of 'newly reclaimed' Zhao Jiawa land actually paid the full amount of thirty shi of top-quality white rice as tax!"

Lu Yan took out the data sheet that he had prepared in advance from his pocket and showed it to Zuo Guangdou.

"My lord, please look. In those years of famine, newly reclaimed land not only didn't apply for tax reductions, but was actually able to pay taxes on top-quality paddy fields. This means that the yield per mu was at least two shi! In a year of drought, a yield of two shi per mu? Unless—"

Lu Yan paused, his gaze sharp as a knife, piercing Fan Renfu's heart: "Unless this land isn't newly reclaimed wasteland at all, but rather a military settlement with well-developed irrigation facilities, capable of drawing water from the canal even during a severe drought!"

The logic is closed and flawless.

This is not an emotional accusation; it is a mathematical death sentence.

Zuo Guangdou abruptly turned his head, his gaze like that of a hawk fixed on the kneeling clerk of the Household Department: "Summon the clerk of the Household Department! What exactly happened to the tax grain in Zhao Jiawa in the 42nd year of the Wanli reign? You were in charge of it, think carefully before you answer. Do you want to take the blame for him and be executed along with his entire family, or do you want to atone for your crime through meritorious service?"

The clerk with the pointed mouth and monkey-like face was already so frightened that he collapsed to the ground, his crotch soaked with moisture.

Under the censor's thunderous might, his mental defenses crumbled instantly, and he desperately kowtowed, pleading, "Your Excellency, spare me! Your Excellency, spare me! That...that was money taken from the military rations of other garrisons! Master Fan gave me fifty taels of silver and told me to tamper with the accounts, recording the military rations from the military farm as tax grain from his private land! That land...that land was indeed originally the military farm of Zhao Jiawa Garrison!"

"You're slandering me!" Fan Renfu shrieked, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, staring intently at the clerk. "I've been framed! Your Honor, they've conspired to frame me! I'm a gentry, I have official rank, you can't listen to the slander of petty people!"

"Still dare to argue?!"

Zuo Guangdou sneered and picked up the blue account book that had just been searched from the secret compartment of the Fan family's study from the desk.

"The 'Audit Report on the Loss of Military Farms' that Lu Yan presented is exactly the same as the records in your private account!"

Zuo Guangdou slammed the account book down in front of Fan Renfu. The pages were turned open, revealing dense red and black characters inside.

"Look for yourself! In the 42nd year of the Wanli reign, Zhao Jiawa had 300 mu; in the 44th year of the Wanli reign, Xigouzi had 500 mu; in the 45th year of the Wanli reign, Laoyapo had 400 mu... You recorded every single one of these messy accounts as 'bribing the county magistrate with 200 taels' and 'bribing the prefectural government with 300 taels'."

Zuo Guangdou pointed at the shocking figures, his voice trembling with anger: "Fan Renfu, this isn't an account book, you're writing your own death warrant! The war in Liaodong is critical, our soldiers are eating chaff and wild vegetables on the front lines, and you're here encroaching on military farms, undermining the foundation of the Ming Dynasty! I think your head is too hard to bear!"

Upon hearing this, the county magistrate, who had been kneeling to the side pretending to be dead, swayed slightly, attempting a final struggle: "Your Excellency, I... I truly knew nothing! This was all a deceitful scoundrel deceiving me..."

Lu Yan delivered the final blow, his voice light yet carrying immense weight:

"My lord, please turn to the third page of the account book. There is an entry for 'Bing Jing' of two hundred taels, with a red circle next to it that reads, 'The county magistrate accepts this with pleasure, granting Zhao Jiawa a land deed.' This handwriting is probably undeniably genuine. If you do not believe me, my lord, you can have the county magistrate write a few words in court for comparison."

The magistrate's eyes rolled back, and he let out a strange cry that sounded like a crowing before completely losing consciousness.

The outcome is decided.

The entire courtroom fell into a deathly silence, with only the howling of the wind and snow outside.

Zuo Guangdou suddenly stood up, his scarlet official robe fluttering in the wind. He grabbed the gavel and slammed it down, causing the dust on the roof of the hall to fall in a flurry, as if the corrupt officialdom itself was about to collapse under this blow.

"Fan Renfu, the head of Ziyang Village, has embezzled military farmland, bribed officials, oppressed the villagers, and deceived the emperor! According to the laws of the Ming Dynasty, he is stripped of all his titles and ranks, his property is confiscated, his entire family is imprisoned, and he will be executed in the autumn!"

"The magistrate of Ziyang, who was responsible for guarding the territory, was corrupt and lawless, colluding with evil gentry. He was dismissed from his post, investigated, paraded in shackles, and escorted to the capital for trial!"

"All other clerks and servants involved in the case, arrest them all and subject them to severe torture!"

As orders were given, the Jinyiwei officers, who had been poised for action, charged forward like wolves. Fan Renfu, who had been so arrogant just moments before, was now dragged down like a dead dog. His expensive sable coat was torn to shreds in the mud, and he was still shouting incoherently, "I'm innocent!"

"As for the plaintiff, Lu Yan..."

Zuo Guangdou's gaze softened as he looked down at the still upright figure below the hall.

"Although he offended the ceremonial procession, he was meritorious in exposing corruption and eliminating a scourge for the country; therefore, his merits and demerits cancel each other out. His father's debts were a setup by the Fan family and were illegally obtained; therefore, the court hereby rules—they are completely wiped out!"

As the words "wipe it off in one stroke" were uttered, Lu Yan felt a weight lift from his shoulders.

He slowly exhaled a breath of stale air, as if something inside his body had shattered. It was the last bit of obsession and resentment left behind by the original owner, which completely dissipated into the wind and snow with the end of this trial.

He neither cheered nor shed tears. He simply gazed quietly at the plaque inscribed with "A Bright Mirror Hangs High," silently thinking to himself:

"Phase 1 of the project: Clearing up unfinished debts, completed."

After the court session ended, Zuo Guangdou summoned Lu Yan to the back hall for a private audience.

The leader of the Qingliu faction looked at the young man before him with undisguised admiration in his eyes: "Lu Sheng, you have done a very good job. So good that... you don't seem like a student receiving government stipends, but rather like a veteran clerk who has worked in the Ministry of Revenue for thirty years. The court is currently in need of capable people. If you are interested, I can write a letter recommending you to the Ministry of Revenue in the capital as a minor official. Perhaps you will be more successful there than in the countryside."

This was an immense favor. For a poor scholar, it was a ladder to heaven.

But Lu Yan simply bowed deeply to the ground respectfully, refusing without the slightest hesitation.

"Thank you for your kind words, sir. However, my father has recently passed away, and I am still in mourning. I dare not travel far. Moreover..." Lu Yan raised his head, his gaze deep, "I feel that although the score in Ziyang City has been settled, the mess in the world is probably impossible to settle even in the capital."

Zuo Guangdou paused for a moment, then gave Lu Yan a deep look and sighed, "Very well. The capital... is indeed a melting pot. You'd better take care of yourself."

As Lu Yan walked out of the county government gate, he glanced back at the two majestic stone lions.

He knew that what he was rejecting wasn't an official position, but rather a ship destined to sink. The Ming Dynasty was already leaking; going to the capital to patch the leaks was pointless. He needed to build a ship of his own.