My father is Jiajing

Chapter 520: Fair, or damn fair
Zhu Zaigui's eyes were fixed on Zhao Wenhua, and Zhao Wenhua bowed with great humility. He was also waiting for Zhu Zaigui's instructions.

Zhu Zaigui pondered for a while, then said, "Since you have received the evidence, you will be responsible for verifying it. However, I also have a request. You must verify the evidence thoroughly. Only when the evidence is irrefutable can you formally request the court to conduct a thorough investigation."

"Otherwise, if there are any flaws or accidents, and some officials who are not involved are affected by what you have done, causing them to panic, that would not work. So do you understand what I mean?"

After hearing what Zhu Zaigui said, Zhao Wenhua immediately bowed again: "I understand! I will definitely investigate the evidence thoroughly and there will be no falsehood or involvement! I will never let this case affect the stability of the capital and beyond."

Zhu Zaiqi hummed, "Very good, that's what I mean. You can check it carefully in your own way."

After saying this, Zhu Zaigui suddenly talked about another thing.

Zhu Zaigui said: "Minister Zhao, if I remember correctly, there should be a profession called 'lawyer' or 'attorney' in this world."

Zhao Wenhua didn't know why Zhu Zaigui suddenly asked about this matter, so he bowed and said, "Your Majesty, there is such a profession."

Zhu Zaigui asked: "What exactly do they do?"

Zhu Zaigui's question was a bit of a knowing question, but Zhao Wenhua still answered honestly: "Lawyers are responsible for helping people who need to sue to write petitions or help explain the reasons for the case to help the employer escape from the crime, or help the interrogating officials sort out the whole story of the case."

Zhu Zaigui said, "Yes, in this sense, lawyers can be considered a kind of philanthropic profession. But I still have a question in my mind. If I understand correctly, these lawyers should be paid money for helping people to file lawsuits and write petitions, right?"

"Since they have to pay money, then these lawyers must be biased when helping ordinary people who need to sue. So in the trial and investigation of some cases, those with more money should have a greater chance of winning, while those without money should rely on luck, right?"

Zhao Wenhua couldn't help but feel embarrassed when he heard this. These things have been like this since ancient times, and there is nothing that can be done about it. Even if some officials are too picky and insist on not following the "rules" to make judgments, it won't be much better.

Because this kind of people are probably those who are seeking fame by selling their integrity. The first element in their trial is to deliberately give bias to the party that is considered to be the weaker party by public morality, and they don't really care how right or wrong they are.

Although this kind of case has little impact on those wealthy families who obviously have the right reasons, it also has a negative impact on the local public security management. Some unruly people will take the opportunity to take advantage of the officials' mentality and deliberately create some bad cases against the local wealthy families, making the local customs no longer simple and peaceful.

So sometimes these grassroots cases are always a headache, and people don't know how to review and approve them. Therefore, as long as the case has little influence, neither the court nor the local government will care about the result. They only care about the superficial peace of the world or a place.

As for deeper issues of fairness and justice, they were not within the consideration of the imperial court or local governments.

However, this approach is bound to be problematic. Although doing so may bring temporary peace and stability, the resentment and hatred accumulated over time will turn into real social problems.

In serious cases, a horrific murder may suddenly occur when no one is paying attention.

In more serious cases, these long-accumulated grievances and hatred will turn into distrust of the court. Over time, no matter what policies or laws the court wants to implement, the people will think that the court or the government is trying to extort money from the people in the name of trickery.

Therefore, over time, people's hearts may become scattered. If they encounter some major disasters or famines, these people who already do not trust the court and the government may become bold enough to raise the flag of rebellion, which may shake the foundation of the world.

Therefore, when the court and government officials are maintaining peace and harmony in the world or in the local area, they must also pay attention to fairness and justice. Otherwise, if all these grievances are really accumulated, few people will be able to bear the consequences.

Zhu Zaigui looked at the embarrassed Zhao Wenhua and said, "Since you are now the Minister of Justice, you should naturally play your due role. Provide the fairness and justice that the people desperately need in a new way. Let all those who have been wronged or unfairly treated in the world receive a fair and just trial, which can also reduce some tragedies caused by lynching."

"Throughout the ages, whether it was the common people or certain great scholars, people always liked to complain about things like 'imperial power does not extend below the county level' or 'the emperor is far away from the mountains'. To put it bluntly, the essence of these words is actually a helpless irony of the injustice or injustice they have suffered, and a lack of trust in the court or His Majesty."

"Therefore, for the sake of the country, and to prevent your majesty from suffering these groundless complaints and sarcasms, I think the Ministry of Justice should do something to actively represent the righteous and majestic "Great Ming Code" of the court and your majesty's naturally selfless attitude as a monarch and father, and convey it to every corner of the world in a new form."

"While bringing fairness and justice to the people of the world, we must also try to weaken the power of local clans to punish privately. Let more people know the injustice and grievances they have suffered. The court and His Majesty are watching and will help them to uphold justice."

"In this way, not only will the prestige of the court be greatly enhanced, but even your Majesty's image as a selfless and loving monarch and father will be further strengthened in the hearts of the people. And it is also in line with the demeanor of the holy monarch of the holy dynasty."

After hearing these words, Zhao Wenhua was also amazed, but how could he convey the image of fairness, justice and selfless love represented by the court and the emperor to the people of the world?
You must know that no matter whether it was a dynasty as powerful as the Han and Tang dynasties, or a prosperous era like the Hongwu and Yongle dynasties of our own dynasty, none of them could spread the fairness, justice and selfless love represented by the court and the emperor to the world.

Many places still need to be managed by some local clan forces to ensure peace.

Moreover, even for county magistrates and minor officials at the grassroots level, the influence they can exert is almost entirely within the area of ​​the entire county. As for the rural areas below the county, even if the county magistrates want to manage and influence them, not many people can do it.

After all, compared to the people in the county town who you can directly contact on weekdays, most of the ordinary people almost all live in the countryside where they can never leave in their entire lives.

Their awe of the imperial court and government was not even as direct and clear as that of the elders in their own village or clan.

Moreover, even if they encounter injustice and wrongdoing, they are unlikely to leave their hometown to go to the county town or other places to appeal for justice.

Those who can decide their life, death, or fairness are mostly their clan elders.

So in this situation, even if the Ministry of Justice takes some action, it may not be successful.

After all, concepts are hard to change, and the areas that the Ming Dynasty could actually manage and control were only the county towns. As for the lower places, it was not that the court did not want to manage them, but because of insufficient manpower and transportation conditions. Otherwise, when issuing decrees or edicts, which court or emperor would not want to post notices in the countryside?
Obviously, this ideal is too far-fetched and cannot be achieved in a short period of time.

Zhao Wenhua said: "Your Majesty is right, but...but this kind of thing..."

Zhao Wenhua wanted to say something but stopped himself. He didn't want to pour cold water on Zhu Zaigui at this time, but the reality was like this. If he didn't say anything, he would be making things difficult for himself. And even if it made things difficult for himself, he couldn't make any changes.

After all, this situation has not been going on for just one or two years, but for one or two thousand years. Throughout the ages, countless talented people have thought about these issues and made some changes, but due to the constraints of reality and practical problems, most of these changes and modifications have come to nothing.

At the imperial court level, the most they would do is to be cautious in killing as few people as possible, and to conduct three trials and three verifications to ensure that there were no flaws or doubts in the case files. Only then would they hand over the names of the prisoners to be executed from all over the country to the emperor for his decision.

But even so, the criminals who could be executed by the emperor were only those cases that were reported to the government.

Most of the murders that occurred in the countryside were almost always not reported by the people and not investigated by the officials. As long as no one came to complain and as long as no malicious impact was caused, the local officials would rather keep their affairs to themselves.

So this is a fact that the Ministry of Justice cannot change.

At the same time, Li Chunfang and Gao Gong in the hall had the same look and attitude. Although they still had some psychological resistance and grudges towards Zhao Wenhua, they also understood that Zhao Wenhua was now a sharp knife in Zhu Zaigui's hands, so they naturally would not openly make things difficult for Zhao Wenhua.

Therefore, at this time, Li Chunfang and Gao Gong could not help but look up at Zhu Zaigui who was high above them. They both wanted to stand up and advise Zhu Zaigui not to act so idealistically.

Moreover, the things in the world are not as fair and just as we can imagine. We can't bring fairness and justice to every corner of the world and into the hearts of its people just by imagining it.

The people and rules involved cannot be explained in just a few words.

Therefore, at this moment they were somewhat worried that Zhu Zaigui's ideas might be too idealistic and unrealistic.

After all, judging from the current trend, Zhu Zaigui is the future emperor of the Ming Dynasty. If the emperor governs the country in such an idealistic way, it would not be a good thing, but a terrifying disaster.

Therefore, as officials of Prince Yu's Mansion, as Zhu Zaigui's husband, and as Zhu Zaigui's strongest supporter, they can fight and compete in normal times, but they must never joke with their common interests and future.

So at this moment, Li Chunfang and Gao Gong also stood up, and they also bowed to Zhu Zaigui, "Your Highness's words are very good, and they can be regarded as charitable words of compassion for the world and for all people in the world."

"But the affairs of the world have their own rules. Although the Ministry of Justice is in charge of the world's major criminal cases, all the evil and injustice in the world cannot be changed by just one or a few decrees. There are many issues involved. Please be cautious about this matter. Don't be hasty. Minister Zhao will definitely take the Ministry of Justice seriously and will never let you down."

When Zhao Wenhua heard Li Chunfang and Gao Gong stand up to speak for him at this time, he was deeply moved. You know, if the current situation is used well, it can also be an excellent opportunity to add insult to injury.

However, Li Chunfang and Gao Gong did not do so. Instead, they helped him to solve his difficulties based on the facts. He had never experienced this when he was in the "Yan Party".

So at this moment Zhao Wenhua suddenly discovered the difference between Prince Yu's lineage and the Yan Party. They were indeed a group of newcomers with ideals and beliefs, and they were indeed different from the previous atmosphere in the officialdom.

Zhu Zaigui looked at the sudden changes in the three people and couldn't help but smile.

Zhu Zaigui smiled and said, "I naturally understand what Mr. Li and Mr. Gao mean. I also know the difficulties faced by the Ministry of Justice. So I will not be so crazy as to let the Ministry of Justice take care of all the grievances and injustices in the world all at once."

"What this king means is that I want to make some minor changes to the current criminal law and the trial and sentencing of cases, to increase the fairness of some ordinary cases, so that more ordinary people will have a certain degree of self-defense when facing injustice."

"So, the three of you don't need to be so nervous. I am not crazy enough to let the Ministry of Justice take on all the criminal cases in the world. And if Minister Zhao is really asked to do it, I guess he won't be able to achieve any results even if he works himself to death."

"After all, if we really want to achieve this, the realistic conditions required are not something that can be achieved in the current Ming Dynasty. Therefore, I naturally understand that some things need to be done slowly and need to be handled according to the actual situation and development. We must not be overly idealistic or overly picky."

After hearing what Zhu Zaigui said, Li Chunfang, Gao Gong, Zhao Wenhua and others couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. They were really afraid that Zhu Zaigui would get carried away and make a fool of himself on the first day of his official term as regent.

The three of them bowed together, "Your Majesty is wise!"

Zhu Zaigui continued to smile and said, "My intention is actually very simple. I want the Ministry of Justice to formalize the profession of lawyer. In the future, anyone who wants to be a lawyer must pass the judicial examination of the Ministry of Justice, and the scope of their litigation fees must be regulated. At the same time, a public prosecution system must be established. For some serious cases, when the victim is not present, the government will arrange for lawyers to prosecute."

"In addition, a legal aid system should be established to arrange free lawyers to help ordinary people who cannot afford lawyers complete the litigation process. This will not only greatly improve the fairness and justice of criminal proceedings, but also effectively manage lawyers, a group of people who are usually unrestrained, to prevent some of them from being unscrupulous and thinking that they can distort the judiciary with their clever words."

"So, what I want is for the Ministry of Justice to make some changes that are in line with the times, and provide a new way to solve problems for the judicial cause of the Ming Dynasty and the fairness and justice that the people care about. Minister Zhao, do you think this is feasible?"

After hearing this, Zhao Wenhua's face became excited. This is really great.

If this can be done, it will not only expand the power of the Ministry of Justice, but also lay a new judicial foundation for future judicial procedures. This is simply a great thing that will be passed down through the ages.

------

Asking for a monthly ticket~~
(End of this chapter)