Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 274 - 210: Not Afraid of Floating Clouds Obscuring the Eyes

Chapter 274: Chapter 210: Not Afraid of Floating Clouds Obscuring the Eyes

"It turns out it was hidden here..."

"Indeed, it’s quite concealed!"

Chu Ge couldn’t help but marvel; the game’s mechanics were indeed profound. How could an ordinary person imagine that the game would bury the key clue for unlocking the next stage within a mountainous pile of cases, leaving players to unearth it themselves?

Upon reflection, however, it seemed quite reasonable.

On one hand, this was very much in line with the consistent characteristic of "Dark Sand"—the game never considered the difficulty or players’ acceptance, preferring to torment players with the high difficulty of real history; on the other hand, this also acted as a review and hint for the subsequent content.

Chu Ge had already sensed that the upcoming game content would largely relate to Wang Wenchuan’s reforms.

Ayun’s Case had a very close relationship with Wang Wenchuan’s reforms and could serve as an optimal entry point. Furthermore, the approach to this case was likely to be intricately connected with the subsequent reforms.

Chu Ge revisited the legal articles and the emperor’s previous decree, and after deep contemplation, he rendered his own verdict.

First, regarding the charge of "murdering one’s husband," since Ayun was still mourning her mother at that time, her marriage to Wei Da was not established, thus it could not be considered as murdering her husband.

As for the general charge of "attempted murder," after Ayun was arrested, she confessed truthfully before any corporal punishment, which fit the definition of "surrendering" in the emperor’s decree. Therefore, the actual crime should be classified as attempted murder, reduced by two degrees, resulting eventually in imprisonment.

After the judgment, Chu Ge submitted the result to the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Punishments, and of course, to Wang Wenchuan.

Then, Chu Ge’s perspective gradually rose, and scenes flashed swiftly before him like a slideshow.

His focus landed on his verdict, which, sent by fast horses of the post station, arrived in the capital of the Qi Dynasty of that time.

One copy reached the Ministry of Justice, while another went directly into Wang Wenchuan’s hands.

This seemingly simple verdict, however, caused a storm in the court of the Qi Dynasty.

The Ministry of Justice indeed disagreed with the verdict, wanting to overturn it and reinstate the death penalty by hanging for Ayun.

The Ministry of Punishments agreed with the Ministry of Justice’s view and believed that the death penalty should be imposed.

The Imperial Censorate in charge of supervision impeached Zhang Renxia, accusing him of misusing legal articles and damaging the court’s legal system for his own purposes.

But Wang Wenchuan agreed with Zhang Renxia’s verdict, requesting the emperor to issue a decree for senior court officials and Hanlin Scholars to discuss together.

In court, Wang Wenchuan supported Zhang Renxia’s verdict, naturally based on the previous imperial decree; while another senior official, Wen Jun, actually supported the judgment of the Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Punishments. He argued that "harming another person is not included under self-surrender" and believed that Ayun didn’t qualify for self-surrender, thus she shouldn’t have her crime reduced by two degrees.

Other Hanlin Scholars also put forward their opinions, but eventually, those who supported Wang Wenchuan prevailed.

Conveniently, the emperor also leaned towards Wang Wenchuan’s view, thus he issued an imperial edict, handling this case according to Wang Wenchuan’s opinion.

But soon after, the Three Law Departments did not accept this; the emperor instructed Wang Wenchuan to debate again with officials from the Ministry of Justice. More people got involved in this discussion, and what were originally just a few simple sentences in the legal texts and the emperor’s decree were now being meticulously scrutinized and debated with references and citations.

Finally, after lengthy disputes, the emperor grew weary and fully endorsed Wang Wenchuan’s view, affirming that Ayun’s marital status was not legal, and reducing the sentence from hanging to penal servitude.

In Chu Ge’s view, the emperor’s decree was issued layer by layer, eventually reaching Ayun in prison. During the process of her penal servitude, it coincided with the emperor’s decree of amnesty, and so, within a few years, she regained her freedom and remarried to have children.

The scene gradually elevated, and the view once again became shrouded in fog.

Chu Ge exhaled deeply, it seemed that this time, he had successfully cleared the second stage of Zhang Renxia’s role.

Though watching the lengthy cutscene was somewhat boring, through these people’s discussions, Chu Ge gained a deeper understanding of Ayun’s Case.

Should Ayun have died?

If one were to review the case afterward, clearly she should not have.

The key still lay in the emperor’s decree.

When the decree was issued, all officials agreed with it, thus it could be implemented throughout the land. Once the decree was issued, it had legal effect.

Thus, since all the various details of Ayun’s Case met the conditions of the decree, Ayun should have her crime reduced by two degrees.

As for why it still took so long to discuss, it was because officials from the two factions had divergences in their specific interpretations and determinations of the legal articles.

For instance, senior officials like Wen Jun believed that murdering one’s husband was a major crime, generally not included in amnesties; the penal code stipulates that one cannot surrender for causing harm or murder, which conflicted with the emperor’s decree; or whether Ayun can be considered to have surrendered, and how surrender should be defined, etc...

Throughout the process, both parties extensively cited various sources, presenting many arguments that left Chu Ge impressed.

It must be said, ancient people indeed were cultured.

If a modern person were placed in ancient times, even someone like Chu Ge who had a relatively greater understanding of the ancient era, would only be outclassed by these highly learned scholars.

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