novelSusiti Chapter 103 Seeking Advice from Dou Fengjie
Chapter 103 Seeking Advice from Dou Fengjie
Chapter 103 Seeking Advice from Dou Fengjie
Changsun Wuji's series of questions plunged the Liangyi Hall into silence.
Preventing merchant ships from being equipped with armor is as cruel as sending someone up a mountain to fight a tiger bare-handed.
With the addition of soldiers and armor, the risk of rebellion increased dramatically.
Minister of War Hou Junji took a sip of scalding hot tea and exhaled a breath of hot air: "This humble official is too rough to understand this matter. But the Duke of Zan always has many ideas, why not summon him to consult?"
It's better to let my cousin handle this kind of public affair, so that people won't say that Old Hou is ungrateful and heartless.
Dou Jing, the Minister of Agriculture, looked on with deep doubt: "I know that the Deputy Director of the Imperial Gardens is knowledgeable in national policy and agriculture, but I have never heard of him being knowledgeable in laws and regulations?"
It wasn't that he was deliberately making things difficult; the scope was a bit too broad, and Dou Fengjie hadn't handled any legal cases before, so he hadn't demonstrated any ability in this area.
Minister of Civil Affairs Tang Jian took a sip of Qiuqing wine: "To stand out, the prerequisite is to be like an awl in a bag."
"How do you know he's incompetent if he hasn't even had a chance to consult the laws?"
Moreover, even though Dou Fengjie was a local tyrant at the Imperial Academy back then, he wasn't completely ignorant of laws and regulations.
The three schools of the Imperial Academy—the Imperial Academy, the Imperial College, and the Four Schools—had basically the same curriculum, which, in addition to the classics, also included the subjects of law, calligraphy, and mathematics.
Even if Dou Fengjie didn't have a deep understanding of law, he wouldn't be completely ignorant of it.
Li Tai didn't care about this; he believed that his uncle could definitely solve the problem.
Dou Fengjie, who was on duty at the Court of State Ceremonial, quickly entered the Hall of Two Elements, listened quietly to everyone's statements, and thought for a moment before replying.
"What the Minister of Works means is not that merchant ships are absolutely forbidden from having weapons and armor, but rather how these weapons and armor should be managed so that when ordinary people of the Tang Dynasty are traveling abroad, they can still abide by the laws of the Tang Dynasty."
After Dou Fengjie finished speaking, Changsun Wuji's expression softened slightly, and he nodded almost imperceptibly.
That's right, control is the key.
"First, the Imperial Workshops, the General Workshops, and the State Metallurgical Bureaus responsible for casting weapons and armor must mark each batch of weapons, armor, crossbows, and crossbow bolts, record them in a register, and seal them in the Ministry of Works for filing."
After Dou Fengjie finished speaking, the officials of the two prisons didn't react much, but Wei Ting, the Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, wanted to curse.
The Ministry of Personnel is already burdened with enough affairs; this additional matter will only add to the officials' grievances.
"Then, the Ministry of War took the lead and set up a special department to manage all the armor and weapons owners outside of the guard posts. They were required to keep records of how much armor and weapons they purchased, how much they used, and how much they damaged."
"If any illegal transfer occurs, the ship will be disqualified from possessing military equipment, and the individuals and merchants involved will be held accountable. Those who should be arrested will be arrested, and those who should be transferred will be transferred."
"The Tang Dynasty caravans preparing to set out westward along the Silk Road were also managed in this manner."
"The Wude Code is no longer suitable for the rapidly changing Zhenguan era and new laws should be revised according to current needs."
Perhaps knowing that Wang Gui had recommended Helan Sengjia as a replacement, Dou Fengjie seemed in high spirits and came up with one idea after another.
After finishing the tea, Dou Fengjie silently reached out his hand.
Li Shimin was both amused and annoyed: "Marquis of Wenjiang, give this rascal another twenty cakes of Huzhou compressed tea! Honestly, he's even bringing the autumn winds upon me!"
The supply of compressed tea to the emperor was also regulated and not unlimited. After Dou Fengjie extorted thirty cakes of compressed tea, Li Shimin had no top-grade compressed tea to eat that year.
Fortunately, Li Shimin preferred drinking alcohol, so whether he drank tea or not didn't really matter.
Wei Ting and Guo Xingfang, the Vice Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, felt a chill run down their spines.
Aside from Cheng Yaojin, Dou Fengjie was probably the only one who dared to extort benefits from the emperor.
With the emperor's favor extending to this extent, their hopes of revenge were dwindling.
Dou Fengjie was in his prime, while they were growing old; this feud could only be carried to their graves.
Even Wei Ting's eldest son, Wei Daijia, who was not responsible for driving or marrying in place of others, is now only a mere Left Qianniu Beishen.
Changsun Wuji laughed: "Duke Zan, do you think the law should be strict or lenient?"
Dou Fengjie chuckled and said, "Since you are testing me, I dare to answer."
"Those who treason, abduct, intentionally injure, kill, poison, or mutilate others shall be severely punished, preferably by immediate execution."
"Neighborhood disputes, unintentional injuries, and mistakes that can be remedied should be treated leniently."
Don't make it so that stealing a bird's egg is punished more severely than treason. If you do that, even the most eloquent person won't win people's hearts.
"Furthermore, the eight deliberations on reducing punishment must be explained clearly and explicitly, without any ambiguity that might arouse suspicion among the common people."
Dou Fengjie added a crucial sentence.
The imperial court has loopholes for reducing sentences; it should clearly explain this to the common people instead of making it seem like a thief's act.
"By His Majesty's benevolent decree, I am in charge of compiling the Zhenguan Code and would like to invite the Duke of Zanguo to join us for a discussion. Is that permissible?"
A genuine smile appeared on Changsun Wuji's chubby face.
Dou Fengjie didn't need to be very familiar with the law; as long as he maintained his integrity, he would be of great benefit to the Zhenguan Code.
The reason why laws and regulations lose their reverence is because people's hearts are not upright!
"Sikong Buqi, I will not hesitate to use my sharp tongue to find fault."
Dou Fengjie thought about it and agreed to become one of the assistants.
It wasn't for glory or power, but simply to ensure that the Zhenguan Law truly punished the wicked and prevented the good from shedding blood and tears again.
"An official impeached Abbot Falin of Ryūten-ji Temple, alleging ulterior motives and that his 'Benjōron' (Treatise on Correctness) made unfounded accusations against the imperial family, attempting to smear the marriage of the Emperor and Empress as illegitimate. What is your opinion?"
Liu Dewei, the Chief Justice of Dali, glanced at Dou Fengjie.
It was the Honglu Temple that first discovered the problem with "Bianzheng Lun" and that led to Falin being removed from the list of eminent monks.
Dou Fengjie smiled wryly: "This matter requires judicial review; it is not something I, an official, can presume to comment on."
Qin Ying's death spurred the Daoists, and the major hidden dangers of the "Treatise on Differentiation" were exposed.
In a best-of-all-trades scenario, if the Taoist priest dies, the Buddhist priest will also lose a temple abbot.
Especially since Farin is also a protector of Buddhism, it would be incredibly exciting if she were killed!
Li Shimin's face darkened.
He didn't mind that Falin's research showed that the Li family originated from the Xianbei, but Falin was careless in her writing and wrote that the Li family came from the Tuoba family!
According to this logic, Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun were of the same origin, so their marriage became "adultery," and according to the law, they should be forcibly divorced!
This kind of thing can be ignored if no one exposes it, but once it is exposed, it becomes a huge problem.
Even though Li Shimin and Empress Zhangsun were Buddhists, they could not tolerate this mess.
Farin was imprisoned in Dali, where she continued to chant Buddhist scriptures and resolutely refused to admit her mistakes.
Even Fang Xuanling, a close friend, dared not speak up for Falin.
Because some of the books that Farin was researching were from his own collection.
But Fang Xuanling had no idea that the direction of Falin's research was so bizarre!
Longtian Temple was thus abandoned once again, and all the Buddha statues in the temple were hastily pulled down by Li Taixing and given to Dou Fengjie.
Farin fell down, and Dou Fengjie ate his fill.