Chapter 32: Joint Trial
Fang Jian and the others, eager to return home, had hurried along their journey and finally made it back to the Capital City. They first went to their respective government offices to hand over official business, and all the individuals involved were properly settled and placed under guard. Only then did they receive a short leave to go home and rest. Fang Jian reported the process to her superiors at the Censorate, received a few words of encouragement, and was dismissed early. It was not yet time for the offices to close, so Fang Jian walked home slowly, hearing the citizens of the capital discussing the Zhuo Guanyi case all along the way.
Passing by a teahouse, she heard a storyteller inside recounting the Zhuo family's affairs. Fang Jian stopped to listen. The storyteller was exceptionally eloquent, narrating in one breath from the Zhuo family's early, happy days to Zhuo Guanyi's petition to the emperor. The tale, full of twists and turns, vividly depicted a young woman who endured humiliation and carried a heavy burden with unyielding spirit, while also painting Ye Ze's wickedness in exhaustive detail.
Observing the listening crowd, she saw some overcome with sorrow and others filled with righteous indignation. A few still muttered about a father and daughter fighting, calling Zhuo Guanyi unfilial, but they were berated by the angry commoners until they fled with their faces covered. Fang Jian knew then that the effort to guide public opinion had succeeded. She wondered if it was Cui Miao's doing.
The date for the joint trial by the three judicial departments was set for three days later. Fang Jian and her two colleagues reviewed the evidence again and again, then separately sought advice from their respective superiors and experienced peers, gradually forming a plan in their minds. Fang Jian made a special trip to see Gao Yunqu, asking her to look over their case as well.
Three days later, the trial officially began. The presiding judges were the three heads of the judicial departments. The Minister of Justice, Duan Songmian, sat in the primary seat, assisted by the head of the Court of Judicial Review and the Censor-in-Chief. In the hall below stood the plaintiff, Zhuo Guanyi, with Fang Jian and her two colleagues acting as her prosecutors. On the other side was her father, Ye Ze, assisted by a litigation master. Because Zhuo Guanyi had struck the Petition Drum, causing a great public stir, the common people were permitted to observe from outside.
As the prosecutors, Fang Jian's team spoke first. Chi Fei acted as their representative, beginning by clarifying the details of the case. She briefly described the cause and effect, and proposed that Ye Ze was guilty of three major crimes: first, seizing the Zhuo family's property; second, abusing his young daughter; and third, attempting to change the surname of the Zhuo family's descendants to cut off their ancestral line. Although Zhuo Guanyi was a child suing her father, it was an act of desperation. Ye Ze had first failed in his duty as a father, being cruel and unkind. Zhuo Guanyi, seeking justice for her mother, herself, and her sister, could be said to have performed a righteous deed.
As soon as these words were spoken, the commoners outside the hall erupted in an uproar. While village gossip had offered various accounts, now that officials from the three judicial departments had completed their investigation and were saying the same, Ye Ze's wickedness was all but confirmed.
"Seizing the property wasn't enough, he wanted to cut off their family line too? What kind of deep-seated hatred is that?"
"Look at the brocade robes that Ye Ze is wearing. He's feeding off the last of the Zhuo family. Disgusting."
Seeing the tide turn against them, Ye Ze's litigation master quickly interrupted, "Isn't this official being a bit biased?"
"I am Chi Fei, a Secretary of the Ministry of Justice. Who are you?" Chi Fei narrowed her eyes, her chin slightly raised as she replied coldly.
The litigation master hurriedly bowed. "This humble student is Zhang Bing, a Prefectural Graduate from Zhuo County, serving as Ye Ze's litigation master."
"Oh? A litigation master?" Most officials who had served in local government and presided over cases disliked the way litigation masters twisted arguments. Chi Fei made her contempt perfectly clear, which predictably displeased Zhang Bing.
He quickly returned to the main topic. "What the official just said has practically sealed Ye Ze's fate. Isn't that too arbitrary? Shouldn't you hear Ye Ze's side of the story?"
He turned to the three presiding judges on the dais. The three exchanged glances and gestured for him to speak.
Zhang Bing began, "I cannot agree with a single sentence Official Chi just uttered. The official claims Ye Ze seized the Zhuo family property, but according to the law, if the head of the household dies and the children are not yet grown, the spouse of the head of household may manage the property on their behalf to raise the children. The accusation of abuse is even more baseless. Everyone in Zhuo County knows that Zhuo Guanyi is unfilial. She argues with her father every other day, often resorting to fists and feet. Ye Ze has difficulty controlling her; the entire county can bear witness to this. As for changing the surname, that is even more absurd. Why not look at the household register? Is this young lady's surname currently Zhuo or Ye?"
"Exactly, exactly," Ye Ze nodded eagerly upon hearing this.
"You're lying!" Zhuo Guanyi, standing to one side holding her younger sister's hand, retorted.
"Oh? First Lady Zhuo denies it? Then let me ask you." Zhang Bing was full of confidence. "After your mother passed away, did you or did you not frequently talk back to your father?"
"But that was all because..." Zhuo Guanyi was getting angry. Fang Jian had told her not to speak hastily in court, lest she give her opponents an opening. The litigation master's words were clearly a trap, making it difficult for her to answer.
"So it seems you did," Zhang Bing interrupted her. "Your Lordships, esteemed sirs, when children misbehave, what is wrong with a parent punishing them to correct their ways? A child is still young; when they feel pain, they think their parents do not love them, little knowing that a parent's love for their child is far-sighted. Your Lordships, everyone in the hall, was there ever a time in your childhood when you were not scolded by your parents?"
Some in the crowd felt he had a point and nodded along. Zhuo Guanyi knew he was twisting logic but didn't know how to refute him. She trembled with anger, her grip on her sister's hand tightening.
"That's not right! That's not right!" Suddenly, the crowd heard a child's voice cry out. Looking closely, they saw it was Zhuo Guanyou, hiding behind Zhuo Guanyi. The little girl cried out through her tears, "What kind of father and mother would let their beloved children go hungry and cold, shivering in the wind? All the dirty and tiring chores at home are for me and my sister. Father and my little brother just watch, and we get beaten if we don't do it well. Other families aren't like this! I asked A'wen and A'cheng, and they both said they aren't!"
The little girl's cries silenced the entire court.
Han Jiwei stepped forward and questioned, "Ye Ze, do you remember the ages of your eldest and second daughters?"
Ye Ze was taken aback and answered tentatively, "Eighteen? Twelve?"
Han Jiwei was left speechless by his words. She took a moment to compose herself before saying, "The elder is sixteen, the younger is ten! It's all written on the household register! You call this loving your children?!"
Before anyone could react, she shouted to the observing crowd outside, "Are there any sixteen-year-old or ten-year-old girls out there?"
"Yes! Yes!" The crowd stirred for a moment, pushing forward two bewildered-looking young girls.
Han Jiwei beckoned to them. "Don't be afraid, come over here." She had the two girls stand next to Zhuo Guanyi and Zhuo Guanyou, respectively, and then bellowed, "See for yourself! These are young ladies cherished and doted on in their homes, and these are yours! Both are sixteen, yet there's a whole head's difference in height. This ten-year-old is so thin and small she looks like she's seven or eight. Do you think everyone here is blind?!"
"And look at the household account books! Let's just talk about clothing. A merchant family with some assets, with several children not yet grown, should be buying new clothes each year, shouldn't they? Look at your own accounts. You purchased clothes for an adult man and woman, and for a young boy, for each of the four seasons. There's not a single mention of girls. Do your daughters not need to wear clothes?"
"The... the account books aren't clear. It was all calculated together..." Ye Ze responded.
"Hah, the expenses for the head of the household, his wife and concubines, and his son are all written down clearly, but the expenses for the girls can't be written clearly?" Han Jiwei's eyes glinted with mockery.
Zhang Bing interrupted again. "The matter of clothing alone is hardly conclusive. It's common for private accounts to be a bit messy. As for their height, I have heard that some children eat more than adults but are much smaller than their peers. These things happen. How can this be presented as evidence in court? But as for Zhuo Guanyi talking back to her father, and even injuring him, there are neighbors who can testify to that."
Zhang Bing requested to call a witness. A loafer came to the stand, claiming to live near the Zhuo family. Being idle, he often watched the goings-on at their house and had seen it with his own eyes.
"Don't you dare lie! I've never seen you near our house! My father is strong and healthy, how could I possibly knock him down!" Zhuo Guanyi stomped her foot in frustration.
The situation grew tense. Both sides had their own arguments and nearly started quarreling in the hall. Duan Songmian slammed his gavel, shouting for silence, which finally stopped them. He looked at Fang Jian, signaling for her to continue.
So Fang Jian stepped forward and said calmly, "Let's set aside the matter of kindness and filial piety for now. Let's talk about the issue of inheritance rights. According to the laws of the Great Zhou, if the children have not yet divided the family property when the head of the household dies, the property should be inherited by the children in proportion according to the order of succession. If the spouse of the head of household does not remarry, they are to live with the eldest legitimate child. If the children are not yet adults, the property can be managed by the spouse of the head of household on their behalf, to be returned when they come of age. In other words, the Zhuo family property should be inherited by the two sisters, Zhuo Guanyi and Zhuo Guanyou. Ye Ze is merely managing it for them, and it should be returned to them when they become adults. Your Lordships, am I correct in what I have said?"
The three judges on the dais all nodded in agreement.
"Then the question arises. If he is only managing it on their behalf, then he should only be able to manage it, not dispose of it. I ask Your Lordships to look at this piece of evidence, a land sale document from the archives in Zhuo County. It records that in the spring of the twelfth year of the Yongxing era, the Zhuo family sold one hundred mu of prime farmland to the Song family's head steward, Song Zhi, at a price forty percent below market value. So I would like to ask the Zhuo Guanyi sisters, was it the two of you who sold the family property?"
"No! We didn't! I didn't even know how much land our family had. Father never told us!" Zhuo Guanyi quickly replied.
"Then if the Zhuo sisters, as the heirs, did not sell it, may I ask who did? Let's have the Magistrate of Zhuo County inform us, shall we?" Fang Jian called the Magistrate of Zhuo County as a witness.
"Who is in the hall below?"
"This subordinate is Song Bai, Magistrate of Zhuo County. Greetings to Your Lordships." Song Bai bowed low.
"Then tell us, how did your county office manage to complete a sale that the original owner knew nothing about?" Duan Songmian bellowed. If the magistrate was indeed guilty of dereliction of duty, his crime was far greater than a dispute over a commoner's property.
Song Bai would certainly not admit it. "This subordinate is aware of this matter. Ye Ze came to process the paperwork in the name of the Zhuo sisters' father, holding a handwritten letter from Zhuo Guanyi. According to the law, this is valid."
"We also found that handwritten letter in the archives. Someone, bring paper and brushes. Have the Zhuo sisters write a few characters so we can compare." Fang Jian had the two write, and the samples were presented along with the document to the three presiding judges. All three were well-read scholars with some expertise in calligraphy. After a brief discussion, they unanimously concluded that the handwriting was indeed not that of the sisters.
Fang Jian's lips curled into a slight smile. She looked at Ye Ze. "Then where did this handwritten letter come from? If it was forged, how could the sale be valid? Did the scribe in the county's household registration office act on his own? Or did Magistrate Song instruct him? And what is the relationship between Magistrate Song's surname, Song, and the Song family steward, Song Zhi?"
"This subordinate was deceived! Yes, the scribe in the household registration office said he had verified it, so this subordinate believed him!" Song Bai replied hastily.
"Then why don't we ask the scribe to come to the stand and explain himself?" Fang Jian clenched her fist, feeling the winds of victory begin to blow.
The scribe was not young and looked rather haggard. He had been waiting outside and had heard Magistrate Song's words clearly. The moment he entered, he began to weep and curse, "You vile Magistrate Song! You clearly handled this matter yourself from start to finish, and once it was done, you simply ordered me to file it away. Now you want to make me your scapegoat. You have the Song family to protect you; at worst, you'll just be dismissed from office and sent home. But if I, a minor clerk, am found guilty of this, I'll face exile or conscription at best, and execution at worst. My family's hereditary post will be gone too, just so you can install another one of the Song family's people, isn't that right? Your Lordships, please see the truth! This humble servant would never dare to commit such acts of malfeasance and corruption!"
Song Bai had no idea the scribe had also been brought to the capital. In his panic just now, he had shifted the blame to him, not knowing he was waiting right outside, hearing everything clearly. The scribe was not from a powerful family in Zhuo County; he was a minor clerk from a family that had held the post for generations. With his family's hereditary position and his own life on the line, he no longer cared about fearing the Song family.
"Zhang Tong, speak clearly. Tell us the cause and effect, tell us everything you know. The three judicial departments will not allow you to be wronged," Fang Jian said, taking a few steps closer to the scribe.
Zhang Tong then recounted everything. He said that Magistrate Song had personally handled the land transaction between the Zhuo and Song families. As a local, he had heard about Ye Ze's mistreatment of his daughters. Feeling some sympathy at the time, he had asked if the transaction was illegal, only to be viciously berated by Magistrate Song, who told him to stay out of the Song family's business, that no one would ever know if it was legal or not, and that he should just file it away.
He was also well aware of the Zhuo family's situation and spilled everything. Everyone in the southern part of the city knew about the Zhuo family. They had been good people for generations, but Zhuo Lan had died too young. Ye Ze kept the two children locked up at home, and whether he tormented or beat them, outsiders couldn't interfere. The neighbors could only curse him in private, unable to help.
They had hoped the imperial commissioners would bring them justice, but before the commissioners even arrived, the Song family hired a gang of ruffians to go door-to-door, warning everyone. One family refused to listen and spat at the lead steward on the spot, and they were beaten bloody by the Song family's servants. After such a warning, who would dare to speak? When the commissioners came asking questions, people were too afraid to talk, and they were unwilling to lie, so they could only remain silent. Only those lawless ruffians, who had taken the Song family's money, spouted nonsense.
Duan Songmian listened and understood. He then said, "Tell us about the Song family. What is the relationship between this Magistrate Song and the Song family?"
"Replying to Your Lordship," Fang Jian stepped back, and Chi Fei stepped forward to answer. They had previously divided up the details to be prepared for questioning. "The Song family is a powerful local clan in Zhuo County. The head of the family, Song Wenguang, is the one in power. Song Bai is from a branch of the Song family. He showed some academic talent, so the family sponsored his studies until he passed the Provincial Examination. He then returned to Zhuo County to serve as a registrar, and with seniority, was promoted to magistrate. The Song family owns tens of thousands of mu of land in Zhuo County and has numerous clan members. Their power is immense, and the local people dare not go against them."
"Hah! Tens of thousands of mu of land, and they still need to acquire more at a low price. What do they need so much land for? Song Bai," Zou Shuyan slammed his hand on the table, "did Song Wenguang order you to do this?"
"No, no, he didn't..." Song Bai was terrified but still denied it. "I did indeed acquiesce to the sale of the Zhuo family's land. It was the Song family's steward, Song Zhi, who came to me and asked me to make things convenient. In a moment of folly, seeing that we shared the same surname, Song, I agreed."
The steward, Song Zhi, also stuck to his story, insisting that he had been blinded by the prospect of the cheaply sold prime land and had acted on his own initiative to seek convenience from Magistrate Song, and that his master knew nothing of it.
"Excellent, just excellent. You use the laws and order of the court for your own private dealings. Truly excellent," Duan Songmian said in anger. "Song Bai, it seems you admit to this matter of bribery and malfeasance?"
Song Bai fell to his knees, closing his eyes in despair. "I... I admit it..."
"Have him sign a confession." Duan Songmian then turned to Ye Ze. "Since Song Bai has confessed, do you, Ye Ze, admit or deny the matter of selling the Zhuo family's land?"
Ye Ze, seeing that all was lost, collapsed to the ground and confessed everything.
The day's joint trial thus concluded. Duan Songmian followed procedure, having all parties sign their confessions, and announced that all testimony and evidence would be submitted to the imperial court for a final verdict from the throne. Then, he adjourned the court.
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