273 Courtroom Debate (2/2)
Officer Lai coldly said, ”Objection! That is a lie. You took the money off Eunuch Dai, do not deny it. Dai Zhen had been a proficient inspector of vegetables for six years! Who knows how much he took from the palace? I would wager that you fired him, returned the money that he had stolen and then set him free. Your mode of operation is shrouded in a suffocating miasma of mystery.”
Fan Xian looked unnerved, and so he calmly replied, ”According to the Overwatch Council’s investigation, in six years, Dai Zhen accepted a number of bribes that, when all added up, amounted to the gross total of 472 tael. The third law of the Qing Kingdom specifically states that if the amount of a bribe is below 500 tael, one will only lose one's job, pay a fine in the amount of bribed money, and pay an additional fee for committing the crime in the first place. There was no need for him to be sent to the Ministry of Punishment. Therefore, Dai Zhen was indeed fired, forced to pay 1,000 tael, and subsequently let go. I have no idea why you would think my treatment of the matter was an issue. Where is this suffocating miasma of mystery you speak of, hm?”
The case of Dai Zhen was indeed investigated by the Overwatch Council. Fan Xian spoke the truth, for he had only accepted briberies that amounted to the figure given.
Officer Lai began laughing. ”472 tael? Are you trying to fool us all?”
It was a little silly for Officer Lai to say that, but then Fan Xian began laughing, too. He said, ”Well, Dai Zhen was known to slip a cucumber or two into his pockets. According to the law, the sum of stolen vegetables should have been added to the tally of his briberies. That was an oversight on my own behalf, so I thank you for the reminder.”
Officer Lai did not take kindly to Fan Xian making light of the situation and, with great fury, he shouted, ”Ridiculous! In the past six years, Dai Zhen must have accepted a total that exceeded 4,000 tael. The civilians down at the markets are all mad about it. So why, Fan Xian? Why do you protect him? What have you to gain from this treachery?”
The court’s audience stayed silent. All that could be heard was the exchange between the commissioner and the Imperial Censor of the Left.
Fan Xian slowly lifted his head and, with frosted eyes, peered right at Officer Lai while taking a step forward.
Officer Lai saw the gravity of his demeanor and took a step back without realizing it.
Without averting his gaze, Fan Xian slowly said, ”What do I want? The seething discontent of the populace?”
Fan Xian took a deep breath and continued, ”Let me ask you something. You are a censor of the Imperial Censorate, correct? And you are in charge of investigating bribery, yes? If you are saying that Dai Zhen stole that much tael, and that the civilians are all mad about it, in the six years that have elapsed, why have you yet to notify anyone? I haven’t seen a single document make mention of Dai Zhen’s crimes. Perhaps you are the one who is looking to cover the tracks of others? Come on, tell us. Why didn’t you alert the correct personnel and arrange to capture Dai Zhen?”
Fan Xian suddenly exploded with rage, much to the bewilderment of his audience.
Fan Xian would not permit Officer Lai the opportunity to speak, and with a fiery look, he said, ”I have been in charge of the First Bureau for less than a month, and we were already made aware that Dai Zhen was accepting bribes. Officer Lai knew that Dai Zhen was accepting bribes and thieving from the helpless populace for over six years and did nothing about it. When the Overwatch Council investigated it, we quickly sorted it out. Case closed. The Imperial Censorate on the other hand, had their head in the sand for six years.
”Six years!? And you have the audacity to tell me that the Overwatch Council is the one that is corrupted?”
Fan Xian bowed before the Emperor on his throne. He then turned around with anger to face Officer Lai once more. He said, ”I really want to ask something. What are you trying to pull here?”
After a barrage of questions, Officer Lai remained silent. He was petrified. He acknowledged he had made a mistake in his dialogue earlier, which left a breach in his defense for Fan Xian to latch right onto, so that he could swing the discussion around. If he were to admit that the Imperial Censorate was not aware of the corrupt officer Dai Zhen, it would still put Fan Xian in the right, for there was no way to disgrace his claim that Dai Zhen only stole 400 tael. In his fury earlier, when he told the court that Dai Zhen must have accepted 4,000 tael in total, he walked right into the trap Fan Xian had laid out for him. He fell for it, hook, line and sinker. As the second-in-command for the Imperial Censorate, he could not claim to have known about it for six years without doing anything to resolve the situation. This case was only brought to their attention following the Overwatch Council’s investigation, after all. After Fan Xian pointed this out, it sounded as if the Imperial Censorate was desperate in their jealousy of the Overwatch Council, framing them with false allegations.
All the officers in the court stared at Officer Lai with unpleasantness in their eyes. When they turned to look at Fan Xian, it was only with respect and admiration. Of course, these officers knew what was going on, but it was Fan Xian’s ability to lay traps for his opponent with no prior planning that astounded them. With this power and wisdom, it drove fear into the hearts of even the oldest, most jaded officers who were there. Fan Xian was unlike any of the other young officers.
In their hearts, they were each and all thinking that this Fan Xian could not only write and fight with superb dexterity, but that he was more than suited to be a politician. They each thought his father, Fan Jian, was extremely lucky to have a son as talented as this.
The Imperial Censor of the Left Lai Ming Cheng’s lips were trembling. He fell to his knees and as he gasped for breath. He at last spoke. ”I know I have done wrong. Please punish me, My Lord! But Fan Xian broke the law; you cannot simply let him go. Take him to the Supreme Court and you are guaranteed to find something out.”
The Emperor had grown annoyed long ago. Seeing Fan Xian’s behavior, however, he was almost brought to smile. He spoke, ”Okay, okay. I understand. You are the Imperial Censorate’s second-in-command; if you were unable to catch on to the treacherous misdeeds of a professional vegetable inspector, that’s fine. I won’t punish you this time. But if you come into my courtroom with falsified allegations again, using the 'anger of the people' as justification, I’ll have you know that I am not like the emperor of northern Qi or Wei. And Qing is a different kind of nation. Do not seek to bolster your reputation again.
Trying to bolster his reputation? Lai Mingcheng was filled with both anger and embarrassment. He felt as if he would rather die than be known for that. He maintained his position on the floor, and kowtowed repeatedly.