Tang Dynasty Xie Lu Lang

Chapter 465 Decisions by Various Departments
Because he had many cases to hear in the afternoon, Zhang Dai didn't spend too much time eating. He mainly dealt with various long-standing cases, and the parties involved had been troubled by them for a long time. Naturally, the faster the cases were resolved, the more comfort he could give them.

In handling these cases, Zhang Dai also felt that there were advantages to having a low official rank, namely, that one's connections in officialdom were relatively shallow, and one could handle various personnel disputes with fewer concerns and enforce the law impartially.

Even though his grandfather had many connections in the court, it wouldn't pose a significant restriction on him. After all, he didn't need to maintain the glory of his faction, and he could be ruthless to the point of disregarding even his own family when he wanted to be. Even if others came to his house to complain, his grandfather could simply brush it off with the phrase, "He's still just a child."

However, as his power grows and he eventually leads his own team, he will have to consider and worry about many things, making it difficult to act as freely as he does now.

When Zhang Dai returned to the Judicial Office, Li Ce, who was still waiting there, quickly stepped forward, his attitude becoming much more upright and humble. He bowed and asked Zhang Dai, "Judge Zhang, shall we now proceed to the court to preside over the case?"

Zhang Dai took the case book and glanced at it briefly. He then said, "There are still more than a dozen cases this afternoon, and the litigants have been waiting for quite some time. If there is still time after the matters are settled this evening, I will summon you to the court for questioning."

"Doesn't that mean it's still uncertain whether the draft can be submitted today?"

Upon hearing this, Li Ce immediately looked troubled, glancing at Zhang Dai as if he wanted to say something but hesitated.

"do you have any opinion?"

Seeing his expression, Zhang Dai immediately raised an eyebrow and asked in a deep voice, "I gave you a chance, but you didn't take it. Now that you've missed your chance, what do you want?"
"No no!"

Li Ce quickly shook his head and waved his hands, saying that the warning that Grand Minister Su Yanbo had given him before leaving was still ringing in his ears. Although he was also a member of the Li Tang imperial family, this status as a distant relative could not bring him much help, and he still had to abide by the various rules of officialdom.

After a pause, Li Ce saw Zhang Dai heading straight for the hall, so he quickly caught up and said, "Seeing that Attendant Zhang is busy with his case, I am really ashamed to bother him with such a small matter. I wonder if Attendant Zhang would allow me to privately discuss with Dr. Chu to apologize and then report the result to Attendant Zhang?"

"Alright, go ahead. But don't even think about trying to distort or obscure anything in my straightforward case!"

After thinking for a moment, Zhang Dai said that because he had too many cases to handle, it was difficult for him to distribute his energy evenly across all matters.

In the end, this matter was just that the Taichang Doctor's pride was hurt. Even if the sacrificial meat were given to Zhang Dai, he would never eat it. If the two of them had reached a private settlement, there would have been no need to take it to court.

It should be noted that the Imperial Kitchen is the main dining hall for court assemblies and banquets. If he really punishes the head chefs severely, he worries that the cooks might spit in their food during the banquets.

When Li Ce saw that Zhang Dai had agreed, he immediately thanked him repeatedly and then went straight to find the Taichang Doctor, whose pride had been hurt, to seek his forgiveness.

The afternoon's trial also went relatively smoothly. All those involved in the case obediently accepted questioning, and some prominent officials were also questioned. They were all quite cooperative and did not dare to show any hostility or arrogance towards Zhang Dai.

It is evident that the impeachment against Xue Tao recently had a considerable deterrent effect, and Zhang Dai's image as an imperial censor, characterized by authority and integrity, has been established. He can resolve many issues simply by relying on his reputation.

As evening fell, after finishing the interrogation of various cases that day, Zhang Dai summoned the Imperial Academy Doctor and Li Ce. Seeing that the doctor's expression had calmed down considerably, he asked again, "Does Doctor Chu accept the apology from the Imperial Kitchen Master? If not, you can submit another petition, and I will personally present it to the court for you!"

“I accept that Li Ling’s accusations are fairly sincere and he has promised not to repeat them in the future. However, the uneven distribution of the sacrificial meat is indeed true. I request that he be fined one quarter’s salary as a mild punishment.”

Dr. Chu was not one to make trouble unnecessarily. After accepting Li Ce's apology, he did not pursue the matter further. However, he still provided Zhang Dai, who had upheld justice for him, with some credit. He then couldn't help but exclaim, "Zhang Xielu—no, Zhang Shiyu—is truly a capable and upright official, a model of judicial conduct! I have repeatedly appealed to no avail, but Zhang Shiyu's skillful intervention has resolved the deadlock. If everyone in the court were like Zhang Shiyu, how could there be any more injustices!"

Hearing such praise, Zhang Dai couldn't help but beam with joy. Wasn't this the very positive feedback he sought after by working so hard to handle lawsuits and preside over cases?
Over the next few days, Zhang Dai stayed in the Censorate to handle cases and resolve hundreds of backlogged cases, earning him a reputation for competence and efficiency among his colleagues and the public.

Just as Zhang Dai was engrossed in solving the case and full of enthusiasm, the Imperial Censor Pei Kuan came to remind him that he would be going to the execution ground to supervise the execution of prisoners the next day, and that he needed to arrive at the government office early the next day.

Zhang Dai had almost forgotten about the matter, but after hearing Pei Kuan's reminder, he couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

Although he had caused the deaths of many people, directly or indirectly, since coming to this world, this was the first time he had personally supervised the execution of a condemned prisoner. The thought that a vibrant life would be severed from his head before his eyes tomorrow filled him with trepidation.

"These are sutra cloths and ritual implements blessed by eminent monks of Anguo Temple, and these are talismans and golden tablets personally made by a monk of Xuandu Temple..."

Aying fiddled with the various Buddhist and Taoist ritual implements she had recently collected, explaining to Zhang Dai their different effects and how to wear them. She even took out some animal hair to braid into his hair: "This is a lion's mane from the Prince's collection. It's used to calm frights, ward off evil spirits, and protect the spirit. The county princess instructed me to make sure it's braided into your hair, my lord. And there's a tiger bone buckle..."

Zhang Dai cooperated with the young woman in her superstitious practices, which made him even more nervous. He tossed and turned all night, only managing to get a short nap in the latter half of the night, but was soon woken up to prepare to wash up and return to his quarters.

As for the magical artifacts, Ah Ying carefully adorned them one by one for him. She also distributed several to Ding Qing and the Jin Huan brothers, creating a protective barrier around Zhang Dai that made him impervious to evil. Zhang Dai was secretly criticizing Ah Ying for making a mountain out of a molehill, but when he returned to the Censorate office, he found several monks and Taoists already waiting there. It turned out that the Censorate had also prepared the necessary personnel and rituals.

Pei Kuan, who was also required to go to the execution ground to supervise the execution, inexplicably acquired several magical artifacts. Zhang Dai even discovered a monk's robe under Pei Kuan's official robe.

He then remembered that Pei Kuan was a deeply devoted Buddhist who had even sought to become a monk in order to avoid trouble when he was threatened and framed by Li Linfu in the past. Therefore, he naturally cared more about these things.

But faith is one thing, but it does not affect the duties a person performs in reality.

Whether serving as an official in the Ministry of Justice or as a judge in a border town, Pei Kuan was always very dedicated. He did not condone evil because of his faith, and when dealing with people who violated the law, he did not break the law or order because of Buddhist precepts and doctrines.

Even in ancient times, if a religion became detached from reality and violated mainstream values, it would inevitably be eradicated and could not supersede the imperial code!

"Let's go!"

The sound of drums for the morning audience came from the direction of Xingqing Palace in the South Palace. Pei Kuan, who had been silently reciting Buddhist scriptures in the hall, stood up upon hearing this and signaled Zhang Dai and other members of the Censorate, as well as several monks and Taoists, to leave the Censorate office and head straight for the Dali Temple.

During the Tang Dynasty, when executions were carried out, one censor, along with one secretary of the Imperial Secretariat and one general of the Imperial Guard, were required to supervise the execution.

Pei Kuan is supervising the decision today in his capacity as a secretary of the Imperial Secretariat. As for the Imperial Guard, the Right General of the Imperial Guard has already led his troops into the city through the Shunyi Gate in the west and is waiting in front of the Dali Temple.

"We, your humble servants, have come to pay our respects to General Cui. We are grateful that you led your troops to supervise the execution of the prisoners today!"

Pei Kuan led his men to pay their respects to Cui Yao, the Right General of the Golden Guard, who was dressed in armor.

Cui Yao, born into the Cui clan of Qinghe, was over fifty years old and possessed a dignified air. He also had another, even more special, identity: he was the son-in-law of Princess Taiping. Years earlier, he had been implicated by his mother-in-law and forced to flee, but now, with the passage of time, he had returned to the court and was ranked as a third-rank official.

Therefore, the officialdom of the Tang Dynasty, especially among the imperial relatives, was a complete mess, filled with all sorts of love-hate relationships.

"Now that we're here, let's go together to the Dali Temple prison to verify the prisoners' identities. Yuan, the eunuch from the Inner Palace, has already gone in."

Cui Yao nodded slightly in response to everyone's greetings, and then spoke again.

Upon hearing this, Pei Kuan looked slightly taken aback, then frowned slightly.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Dai couldn't help but feel a pang of unease. It seemed that the eunuchs were truly eager to get rid of Wang Maozhong's son, having already sentenced him to death, and were even sending representatives to the execution ground to accompany him.

Officials were already waiting at the Dali Temple, leading the group directly to the prison. It was still very dark at this time, but the Dali Temple prison was lit up with torches, which dispelled much of the eerie atmosphere that permeated the surrounding area.

"The thieves are currently in prison. We request that Vice Minister Pei come with an order to verify their identities!"

A purple-robed eunuch stood with his hands behind his back in front of the prison gate and addressed Pei Kuan. He was Yuan Siyi, an imperial eunuch. Although he was just a eunuch, he was tall and did not have much of a feminine air about him.

Gao Lishi, Yang Sixu, and others were similar. Although Emperor Xuanzong trusted eunuchs, those who were too sinister or unsightly were unlikely to win his favor.

Although Yuan Siyi arrived at the Dali Temple early in the morning, the execution order had to be issued from the Zhongshu Sheng (Secretariat), so Pei Kuan had to carry the order and enter to verify her identity. Although it was just a formality, it demonstrated that the eunuchs of today did not have the privilege of arbitrarily interfering with the administrative affairs of the outer court and still needed to abide by the rules.

Pei Kuan stepped forward in response, took out the order, and loudly proclaimed: "Bring out Wang Shouqing, the former Crown Prince's Chief of Staff!"

"Spare me, spare me, I don't want to die... Father, save me!"

Several jailers opened the cell door, and immediately the heart-wrenching cries of Wang Maozhong's son echoed from inside.

(End of this chapter)