Chapter 278: A visitor arrives at the Court of Justice

When Ying Chengjiao was four years old, his grandfather King Zhaoxiang of Qin told him that there are some things in this world that cannot be said carelessly, because if one is not careful, someone may die because of them.

When Ying Chengjiao was twelve years old, Xi Shu, who came from the Xi family, one of the three great families in Qin State, told him that in this world, a casual refusal could cost someone's life.

At first Ying Chengjiao didn't know why Xishu did this.

Although in this era where royal power is supreme, Ying Chengjiao has long known that people's lives are as cheap as grass.

But it was too sudden that Xishu, who was smiling and asking his concubines to sway their bodies to show off their easy-to-talk figure, drew his sword and killed people in the next second.

Later, when Ying Chengjiao learned that all the concubines in the towers in Guanzhong were from the three families of Meng, Xibai, and that the three families were good at training beautiful women, he understood why Xishu killed people so hard that day and caused a river of blood.

Xishu wanted to trap Ying Chengjiao with a woman, but Ying Chengjiao did not dare to indulge because he was practicing "Huangdi", so Xishu's plan failed.

Xishu was so angry that he staged a scene of beheading a concubine on the tower for Ying Chengjiao.

She was angry at her concubines for not being able to seduce Ying Chengjiao, and she also showed her dissatisfaction in front of Ying Chengjiao.

"Why do you have to do this? Those untouchables are a whole East Sea away from you. Why do you insist on placing yourself among them?"

Gan Luo shouted in confusion.

Young thoughts are nothing more than childish, so why should we bother about them and pay for them?

"Li Si, what are you waiting for?" Ying Chengjiao shouted in a deep voice.

"……only!"

The Legalist giant, who was well versed in the six arts of Confucianism and had great martial arts skills, pushed aside Gan Luo who was blocking his way, opened the iron gate and ran out.

"...Ying Chengjiao, stop looking for high-sounding reasons for your killing! You have been watching coldly, watching the three families of Meng Xibai stand firm for more than ten years! If it was what happened back then, you should have taken action long ago! You killed Meng Xibai only because they blocked your way. You are the same as us, you are so hypocritical..."

In the ears of Li Si who was running quickly, Gan Luo's screaming, despair and anger became smaller and smaller until it disappeared.

During this period, no one heard Ying Chengjiao utter a word of rebuttal.

When they reached the entrance of Xianyang Prison, Li Si, who had been running as if he was being chased by a wild beast, slowed down.

He stopped and looked back, as if he was looking to see if the wild beast that had been chasing him was catching up.

"It's enough for a dog to understand a person's intention. Why ask why? Meng Xibai is actually the power of Lord Chang'an... Lord Chang'an is indeed not simple."

After muttering to himself for a few sentences, Li Si, who was willing to be a lone minister in exchange for holding power, looked determined and turned back to the Supreme Court.

As soon as he entered the gate of the Supreme Court, he loudly ordered the Supreme Court Justice to bring all the soldiers of the Supreme Court to stand by. He tied up the Right Supervisor, whose face changed, and tied him up in place, just like Ying Chengjiao, without saying why.

After a while, all the officials of the Qin Supreme Court came out.

The soldiers in the palace were all sharp warriors who survived the battlefield. They were fully armed and headed straight for the Meng family under the command of Li Si.

When the people along the way saw this, their faces changed drastically and they hurriedly moved to the sides of the road to make way for the soldiers.

The patrolling city defense troops had a look of surprise and doubt in their eyes.

Looking at the hundreds of soldiers from the Supreme Court who had fought on the battlefield like them, they dodged and thought to themselves that something big had happened.

The rapid and orderly footsteps were like thunder that awakened the world, striking the ignorance and chaos.

This force rushed at lightning speed to the three ancient families of Meng, Xi and Bai that had appeared as early as the time of Duke Mu of Qin.

The action of sweeping away fallen leaves in the autumn wind caused the three major families of Meng, Xi and Bai to be filled with fear, anger, resentment and hatred.

He was spewing rubbish, "Did you catch the wrong person? How dare you, you brat? His Majesty knows I will never let you go."

Within half a day, all the members of the three major families of Meng, Xi and Bai in Xianyang were taken to the Palace of the Supreme Court.

Their number was greater than that of the officials in the Supreme Court, and the huge Supreme Court could not accommodate them all.

Although they were tied up, they showed no fear on their faces. Instead, they repeatedly warned the soldiers guarding them to release them immediately.

"Your Excellency, there are more than a thousand people here. Do we really want to put them all on trial in public?"

In the back hall, the Chief Justice's eyelids were twitching wildly. He was horrified as he looked at the cold and rigid Li Si.

At this moment, he wished that the person who was tied up next to him and unable to move was not the Right Supervisor of the Court of Justice, but himself, the Chief Justice of the Court of Justice.

This was too crazy, and a mere court official like him really couldn't handle it. He felt that if he continued to participate in this matter, he would either explode on the spot or explode afterwards.

"I'm not saying that we shouldn't let the Supreme Court judge try the case. The Supreme Court shouldn't try the case. But for such a big matter, you should consult your majesty first."

The Chief Justice was considering his words and observing Li Si's expression, fearing that Li Si, who had oppressed him for years, would get angry, so he ordered the palace soldiers to tie him up and throw him into the three major families.

Having worked in the Court of Justice for so many years, the old one has been in the Court of Justice for decades and claims to have seen all kinds of situations.

But the old Chief Justice had never seen a scene like today where there were not enough officials in the Supreme Court to catch criminals.

If that were all, the old chief justice would marvel at it for a while, worry about where to place these prisoners for a while, and then think about it in his mind as a strange thing, and then let it go.

But Li Si, the boss, wanted to conduct a public trial, and judging by the evidence, basically none of these people would survive...

"We are doing things according to the law and hearing the case according to the law. Why should we trouble Your Majesty?"

Li Si asked expressionlessly.

"That being said." Tingwei Zheng smiled bitterly and said, "But this number is really too many."

It is acceptable to sentence one person to death, or it is acceptable to sentence ten people to death.

But how can hundreds or thousands of people be sentenced to death?

"Si said he would give you a court judge."

Li Si held his head high and chest out, then walked out.

"Go out with Si. After this matter is over, you will be the new court judge."

The Chief Justice had a bitter face and looked like he wanted to cry.

It’s better not to have such a Tingwei…

It is actually very easy to try this type of case involving thousands of people, and there is no need to try each person one by one.

As long as we interrogate dozens of them and convict them of crimes against the three Yi tribes, this group of people will all die.

Li Si sat high in the hall, summoned witnesses, ordered his subordinates to produce physical evidence, and brought in high-ranking officials from the three families of Meng, Xi and Bai one after another.

Li Si, the Chief Justice.

Start the interrogation.

But every prisoner who came up for interrogation held his head high and refused to cooperate.

They said the witnesses were fictitious and the evidence was a frame-up, and they had no respect for Li Si, the chief justice.

Ordinary people might think that the Supreme Court is a den of wolves and dragons, and they would like to say anything after entering.

But for these noble children, the Supreme Court was far less scary.

Qin law stipulates that torture or coercion to extract a confession is not allowed.

If a case is judged by this means, once the parties initiate a review, the judgment will be invalid and the judge will be held accountable for his fault.

Basically, the person will be sentenced to whatever crime the official was convicted of at the time, and there is no upper limit.

At first they were a little panicked, but after being comforted by Meng Jiakun, Bai Fei and Xi Shu, most of the people from the three major families were no longer panicked.

There were indeed cases of killing an entire family in the history of the Qin State, but they were all orders issued by the King of Qin.

No Qin family had ever been destroyed as a result of a trial by the Supreme Court.

This statement was clear in its facts and greatly encouraged the three arrested families.

"That bastard, Li Si, is courting death. As long as we don't say anything, once His Majesty knows what he did, that will be the time for us to strike back."

People spread the word, waiting for the First Emperor to bring justice to them.

Such a big thing happened in Xianyang City. As the master of the Qin Empire, it was impossible for the First Emperor not to know about it.

The three great families of Meng, Xi and Bai have been in Qin for so many years, and their family members are spread all over the country.

Even if someone around the First Emperor intended to conceal the news, someone would have passed the news to him.

…

Xianyang Palace.

The Confucian scholar Fu Sheng was sitting opposite the First Emperor and didn't know what to say.

This was the first time he met this great emperor in private. Usually, Chunyu Yue did this kind of thing.

Fu Sheng, who was well versed in learning and buried in books, made up his mind that as long as the First Emperor did not speak, he would never speak on his own initiative.

He was afraid that once he opened his mouth, the seeds of Confucianism that Chunyu Yue had saved with his life would be destroyed.

It was not known how long it had been, but Fusheng felt his legs were numb from kneeling , and the First Emperor finally put down the bamboo slips in his hand.

"The Book of Rites, Doctrine of the Mean says: Today, all carriages are built on the same track, and all books are written in the same script. I have done the latter, Fusheng, do you think I should do the former?"

Fu Sheng had been waiting for the First Emperor to speak. After experiencing the great changes in Confucianism, he was a little timid. But when he heard the First Emperor talking about "Book of Rites", his eyes immediately lit up and all his energy and spirit returned.

"The Book of Rites" is one of the Five Classics of Confucianism, and the scholarly Fu Sheng was no stranger to it.

Stepping into his own field, Fu Qi's aura was greatly enhanced, and he said decisively without any hesitation: "Not only must we do it, but we must do it quickly."

"Oh? Why do you say that?" The First Emperor asked, half testing him and half asking for advice: "Bashan, Chushui, and Qi by the sea, the terrain and landscape of each place are different, and the road maintenance is also different.

"The carriages and horses they ride on have been developed over thousands of years and are suitable for the local carriages and horses. If I want all the carriages in the world to be of the same standard, wouldn't that mean I'm standing against everyone in the world?"

Fusheng rolled up his sleeves with both hands and was about to answer the First Emperor's question.

At this moment, he had no idea of making Confucianism a prominent school of thought in the world. He just wanted to answer the questions and resolve the doubts of the First Emperor, just like he had answered the questions and resolved the doubts of those Confucian scholars for so many years.

Answering questions and resolving doubts is the second thing Fu Sheng likes to do besides studying the classics.

Tap tap tap

There was a knock on the gate of Zhangtai Palace.

The First Emperor turned his head to look at Gai Nie behind him, and pressed Fu Sheng with one hand to stop him from speaking.

Zhao Gao knew that I summoned Fusheng to ask about state affairs, but he still chose to knock on the door. What big thing had happened?

Fusheng's face flashed with anger, and he was about to scold the First Emperor for looking around while studying!

Fortunately, I saw the black crown on the First Emperor and was shocked.

He realized that the person in front of him was not the Confucian disciple who asked him for advice, but the First Emperor who held the life and death of Confucianism in his hands.

He was frightened and broke out in a cold sweat, but he nodded repeatedly like a chick pecking at rice and kept silent.

Gai Nie understood and walked straight over to open the palace door.

When Zhao Gao entered, there was a look of fear on his face.

The First Emperor frowned. Zhao Gao only showed this expression when facing him, and had never shown fear before.

Even if it was just for show, it could prove that something big had indeed happened outside.

He stood up suddenly, took two steps at a time, came to Zhao Gao, and grabbed Zhao Gao's hand.

He said in a deep voice: "What happened?"

"Li Si has arrested all the people from the Meng, Xi, and Bai families. It seems that he wants to follow the order of Lord Chang'an and destroy the three families."

This brat! What is he going to do again!

To be honest, when the First Emperor saw Zhao Gao's performance, his first thought was that Ying Chengjiao was causing trouble for him again.

The First Emperor asked so anxiously because he realized that the problem might lie with Ying Chengjiao.

Releasing Zhao Gao's hand, the First Emperor whispered, "I want him to stop killing people at will!"

Zhao Gao lowered his head and said nothing.

The total number of people from the three major families in Xianyang exceeded a thousand. The execution of such a large group of people at the same time would definitely cause quite a stir.

The First Emperor took two steps, walked quickly to the table, picked up the brush, dipped it in ink, spread out the bamboo slips, and wanted to write an imperial edict to Zhao Gao to send it to immediately stop Ying Chengjiao's mischief.

Even the First Emperor himself rarely did things like killing an entire family.

"His Majesty."

Gai Nie suddenly spoke.

"Um?"

The First Emperor stopped writing and raised his eyes.

"The man was arrested by the Imperial Court."

Gai Nie said expressionlessly.

"Of course I know that it was Li Si who arrested him, but this must have been the order of that bastard. Without that bastard's permission, how could Li Si dare to do such a thing? Don't make excuses for that bastard anymore. If you disturb me again, be careful of being beaten in the court."

The First Emperor said impatiently.

"The man was arrested by the Imperial Court."

Gai Nie seemed not to have heard the First Emperor's warning. He immediately took over the conversation after the First Emperor finished speaking, putting emphasis on the word "Tingwei".

"I've said it all, I know!"

The First Emperor shouted angrily.

He saw that Gai Nie had no expression, his face was extremely cold and serious.

His irritable temper gradually subsided, he thought for two breaths, and narrowed his eyes.

Snap~

He put the brush in his hand on the table, turned to look at Zhao Gao and said, "Did Li Si arrest all three families and bring them to the Supreme Court?"

Zhao Gao still had a panicked expression on his face and lowered his head.

"yes."

Fu Sheng, who was listening nearby, huddled together and trembled a little.

He was well versed in academics, but he also knew the power of the three great families of Meng, Xi and Bai in the Qin State.

Anyone who came to Xianyang and entered the upper class knew about the three great families of Meng, Xi and Bai.

Even Fu Sheng, who didn't care much about political affairs, knew about it.

The three great families of Meng, Xi and Bai were arrested, and from what Zhao Gao said it seemed they would be killed. This was shocking news .

Fu Sheng really didn't understand why Gai Nie mentioned the person Li Si arrested twice and why the First Emperor asked twice.

What is the difference between the one arrested by Li Si and the one arrested by Chang'an Jun?

Of course it's different.

The First Emperor calmed himself down.

This guy did not go against my wishes. He acted within the laws of Qin and he did not kill in private.