Tiantang Splendid

Chapter 4774: Finding Someone to Take the Blame
Li Yuanjia had some doubts about Your Majesty's decision. He did not doubt the level of Your Majesty's action, but the intention of Your Majesty's action.

His Majesty ordered the Three Judicial Departments and the Imperial Academy to jointly try the case, and even inexplicably added a "special supervision". It seemed that this was done to balance the interests of all parties and stabilize the overall situation, so that everyone could sit together and discuss a decision that everyone could accept. However, in fact, it formed a de facto opposition and division, because everyone's interests were contradictory. The beneficiaries would not give up their own interests, but those who did not benefit would try their best to get a piece of the pie.

The most obvious among them are the royal family and the Jingzhao Wei family.

From the perspective of the royal family, they are the royal family of Li Tang and the bloodline of Emperor Gaozu. Although there are some differences among themselves, they also have common interests, which is that they must maintain the suppression of the royal family over the aristocratic families and must not allow the aristocratic families to challenge their bottom line and try to share their interests.

The once-mighty Guanlong clans have all fallen apart and disappeared, so what is the point of the mere Jingzhao Wei family?

But if Wei Shuxia is allowed to escape punishment, the dignity of the royal family will be trampled upon at will by the aristocratic families.

The Jingzhao Wei family has always been closely connected with the Guanlong clans. Although the two sides are not one and the same, many interests are linked together. The collapse of the Guanlong clans has caused heavy losses to the Jingzhao Wei family. If they are now allowed to be bullied by the royal family and let the outside world realize that the so-called Jingzhao Wei family is just an empty shell, the consequences can be imagined.

Therefore, neither side can retreat and must fight a war at any cost in order to maintain their core interests.

This was caused by the uneven distribution of interests after Your Majesty ascended the throne and the fall of Guanlong. Wei Shuxia was the fuse of this incident, but the core of the whole incident still lies in the distribution of interests. Since the contradiction exists, it is inevitable that it will break out. It's just that the death of Li Jingshu made the situation on the verge of getting out of control.

……

It was not until he sat in the hall of the Wei family and saw the Wei family's determination that Li Yuanjia suddenly realized the core of the current situation: some groups must be in chaos, otherwise they will flourish and pose a huge threat, while some groups cannot be in chaos, and complete chaos will lead to the breakdown of balance.

So the current situation must be chaotic, but this "chaos" must be confined within a certain range and cannot be completely "chaotic"...

Thinking about it this way, the method of shirking responsibility that he had discussed with the three judicial officials actually fits the current situation perfectly. There is no more appropriate way than this.

At the same time, he sighed in his heart that Dai Zhou had been able to sit in the position of Dali Temple Minister as steady as a rock. He was able to stay at a distance from the center so as not to be swept into the turbulent vortex, but also not too far away from the center to be despised. His political ability was truly unfathomable.

The world has looked down upon this veteran who has served three dynasties...

Li Yuanjia looked warm and gentle, and waved his hand and said with a smile: "Brother Wei, I'm afraid you have misunderstood. I did not come to your house to announce your son's guilt. In fact, there is no evidence to identify your son as the culprit who caused Li Jingshu's sudden death."

Wei Wan was stunned at first, but then she was overjoyed and grabbed Li Yuanjia's hand, unable to suppress her excitement: "So, is my son safe and sound?"

Li Yuanjia smiled and shook his head: "Brother Wei, you misunderstood again. Although your son is not the culprit, he is still involved. He still has to take responsibility. After all, if the real murderer cannot be found, then your son is still the primary responsibility."

"Then I don't understand. Since we know that my son is not the culprit who caused Li Jingshu's sudden death, he should only bear the responsibility he should bear. How can you equate responsibility with the culprit?"

Wei Wan straightened his back and spoke in a tough tone. Since Wei Shuxia was not the culprit but still had to bear the responsibility for it, did he really think that the Jingzhao Wei family was made of clay and paper?
The royal family can’t wrongly accuse anyone!
Li Yuanjia had already predicted Wei Wan's reaction, and he continued to smile as he said calmly, "The Jingzhao Wei family has a long tradition of poetry and literature, and their literary talent is unparalleled, but don't they usually read the Tang Dynasty Code? The law has long stipulated that if the real murderer cannot be found in a case like your son's, then even though he is not the real murderer, he will bear the same responsibility as the real murderer."

Wei Wan certainly read the law. As a member of the country's ruling class and vested interests, how could he not study the law diligently in order to find what was beneficial to him?
However, unlike the laws of successive dynasties since ancient times, which were rarely changed after being determined, the Tang Dynasty confirmed the laws at the beginning of its founding, and then improved them after Emperor Taizong ascended the throne. Several important officials and great scholars worked together to determine the "Zhenguan Law" as the law for the world.

However, as the empire's national power grew, private commerce prospered, and social development accelerated, many of the previously applicable regulations gradually became incompatible with the current social situation and had many drawbacks. Therefore, there was an institution in the central government that was set up all year round, with many important officials, great scholars, royal family members and other forces, who were specially drafted, studied, and improved the previous laws and regulations. Therefore, the current "Da Tang Code" is several hundred pages thick, and each law and regulation is attached with many detailed regulations to explain each situation in detail...

Therefore, unless one is a professional legalist, it is difficult for others to understand the specific meaning of every article and every point in the current "Tang Dynasty Code".

Wei Wan felt that Li Yuanjia's statement was unreasonable, but he also understood that Li Yuanjia had no need to deceive him, and the fact that Li Yuanjia came to him in person meant that the situation might not be as hopeless as he said.

Otherwise, why would Li Yuanjia, the Minister of the Imperial Clan, come in person?

Carefully considering Li Yuanjia's words, Wei Wan indeed figured out the meaning behind them, but he was not sure, so he asked tentatively: "Your Highness means that my son can be exempted from responsibility after the real murderer is found?"

Li Yuanjia shook his head: "Of course it is impossible to be exempted from responsibility, but the difference between the main responsibility and the secondary responsibility is still very large. The main responsibility is to kill someone and pay with his life, as for the secondary responsibility, we can discuss it calmly. As long as the deceased is not held accountable, the three judicial departments will certainly show leniency."

Wei Wan understood: "So for my son, the most urgent thing is to find the real murderer?"

Li Yuanjia nodded repeatedly: "That's right, but it's very difficult. The three judicial departments have been investigating for a whole night and haven't found a suspect yet. Even if we want to help, we can't. I'm really sorry."

Wei Wan's eyes flickered, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "What if we can get the murderer to come forward and confess?"

"Perhaps the murderer still has a conscience, that's not impossible. But it's hard to block the news. Your son was taken away by Lai Ji last night. By this time, I'm afraid the royal family has already got the news. Once several princes come together to Jingzhao Prefecture to put pressure on us, it will be difficult for us to resist. After all, the death of a prince's son is no small matter."

"Don't worry, Your Highness. I know what to do. I will find the murderer and persuade him with emotion and reason, so that he will come forward and take the responsibility for his crime so that no innocent people will be harmed."

"Since the Wei family has this ability, we are naturally happy to see it come to fruition, but it still needs to be done quickly... It's getting late, so I'll go back first."

"Your Highness, please take care. I will find a solution right away."

"Stay, stay."

After sending Li Yuanjia away, Wei Wan returned to the main hall and called the other sons over. He asked, "Your Highness's meaning is very clear. His Majesty does not want to see our Wei family and the royal family fighting to the death, so he is willing to let him off the hook. However, one of the real murderers must come forward and confess his guilt, so that Sanlang can be picked out... Tell me, who should this real murderer be?"

The sons all understood the meaning. As long as someone came forward to take responsibility for the crime, it didn't matter whether that person was the real murderer. The Three Law Departments and the Zongzheng Temple would stand on the side of the Wei family to resist the pressure from the royal family.

Of course, it is not easy to find the real murderer. Trampling the prince of a county to death is a serious crime. Even if it was unintentional, the offender should be exiled three thousand miles away. Those who participated in the attack on Jingzhao Prefecture that night were all children of aristocratic families and nobles. Who would be willing to bear such a serious crime?
In this case, if the Wei family wants to find someone willing to admit to being the "real murderer", they will not only have to pay a huge price, but also have to use some unconventional means.

The eldest son Wei Ling pondered and said slowly: "Ordinary people may not be willing to act as the real murderer. Even if they are willing, our Wei family may not be able to pay the compensation they need... What do you think of Chai Mingzhang, father?"

Wei Wan couldn't remember who this person was for a moment, so he frowned and asked, "Who?"

The fourth son Wei Caixuan said, "He is the nephew of the late Duke Qiao and the cousin of the brothers Chai Zhewei and Chai Lingwu."

Wei Wan suddenly realized: "The son of 'Bilong' Chai Qing!"

It is said that "Wall Dragon" Chai Qing has the ability to climb walls and climb roofs as if walking on flat ground, and is especially good at stealing. In the past, Emperor Taizong made a bet with Zhangsun Wuji and asked Chai Qing to steal a pair of stirrups from Zhangsun's house. Zhangsun Wuji sat outside the stable drinking that night, but Chai Qing still succeeded in stealing the stirrups...

It's just that this person had incomplete organs and insufficient bones since childhood, which was a congenital defect, so he died at a young age.

Chai Mingzhang was among those who attacked Jingzhao Prefecture last night. He is considered a representative of the Chai family.

Wei Wan asked, "Why choose him?"

Wei Lingze said: "The Chai family is now in decline and is not as good as before. As long as we give enough benefits, Chai Lingwu is likely to agree. Of course, the most important thing is that compared to others admitting the guilt of killing Li Jingshu, the price the Chai family needs to pay must be the smallest. Paying a relatively small price and gaining enough benefits is a good deal no matter how you calculate it."

Wei Wan was puzzled: "Why can the Chai family pay a smaller price than others?"

Wei Caixuan laughed and interrupted again, "Of course it's because Princess Baling and Fang Jun have always been friends. The Chai brothers were in danger several times before, and it was Princess Baling who interceded for Fang Jun and saved the day. If Princess Baling begged Fang Jun to intercede for Chai Mingzhang, even the royal family would have to hold their noses and stop. Nowadays, there are only a handful of civil and military officials in the court who can suppress the royal family, and Fang Jun happens to be the most powerful one among them."

On the one hand, he accepted the benefits from the Wei family, and on the other hand, he begged Fang Jun to suppress the royal family. All he had to pay might even be the "friendship of Guan and Bao" of Princess Baling. Chai Lingwu could easily accept the difference in price.

In any case, the deal is worth it.

Wei Wan nodded in approval and breathed a sigh of relief: "You go and do this yourself, and don't be stingy with Chai Lingwu. I have only one request, no matter what the cost, you must make sure that Chai Lingwu is willing to throw his cousin out to take the blame, and make sure that Sanlang returns home unharmed."

Wei Lingze stood up and said solemnly, "Don't worry, father. Sanlang is my brother. I must save him even if it costs my life. What's more, it's just a mere possession. I will go to Chai Lingwu to discuss it now."