The Most Powerful Young Master of the Northern Song Dynasty

Chapter 28: Don’t Look Down on a Poor Young Man

Sima Guang declared, “Strip Wang Bang of his academic honors and official status. Take him into custody; the ‘Shuzhou Investigative Bureau’ will now conduct a criminal trial against him.” “Wait!” Wang Bang shouted. “Though I am young, I will invoke the laws of the Great Song to vigorously contest this and refuse to undergo the interrogation at the Shuzhou Magistrate’s Office.” Sima Guang could do nothing about this, and asked coldly, “Have you thought this through?” The implication, of course, was the old adage: “Confess and receive leniency; resist and face harsher punishment.” Theoretically, Sima Guang’s earlier statement constituted an administrative ruling rather than a judicial verdict. If Wang Bang chose not to appeal and tacitly accepted it, the charges would stand, but the punishment would not be severe. If he were to appeal and argue his case vigorously—what is commonly known as “going to court”—he could certainly do so; however, according to established practice, losing such a case generally resulted in the maximum sentence. Most Xiu Cai would not dare take such a risk; in the former scenario, they would merely lose their academic title and status and receive a flogging—that would be the end of it. In the latter, however, they could even face the death penalty. However, Wang Bang dared to take this case to court precisely because of Sima Guang’s impartiality; even if he ultimately lost the defense, he would still have to wait for Wang Anshi to conduct a retrial. Indeed, the Song Dynasty had a rather charming system: even if a verdict was handed down here, Wang Bang could still contest it and appeal to the Office of the Deputy Magistrate for a retrial. This right wasn’t exclusive to Wang Bang—ordinary citizens had it too. “Your Honor, I’ve thought it through. If I’m being accused of a crime out of the blue, I naturally have to ask why,” Wang Bang said. Sima Guang sighed and turned to the court clerk, saying, “Record this testimony exactly as it was given in court. This is very important.” “Yes, Your Honor,” the court clerk replied, gripping his pen in readiness. Sima Guang said, “Speak. The prefecture now accuses you of disrupting public order, exploiting your father’s official position to extort money, and exploiting the Shuzhou market. What do you have to say in your defense?” Wang Bang replied, “The money I received was in exchange for labor. With the government failing to act and the markets of Shuzhou in a state of unrest, wealthy families and powerful officials can hire retainers to guard their estates—so why shouldn’t small vendors and lower- and middle-class merchants be able to purchase bodyguard services?” “Bodyguard services?” Sima Guang couldn’t help but pause in surprise. “Are you trying to explain Ma Jinsi’s actions as bodyguard services?” “It’s not that I’m choosing to interpret it that way—it’s a fact. Ma Jinsi helped them eliminate their worries; that is labor, and labor must be paid for—that is the commercial logic of our Great Song Dynasty. First, Ma Jinsi did not threaten the vendors; second, he did not use force; and third, he did not coerce them into making further purchases. The principle is the same as this: if the food at Nanhua Lou isn’t tasty, Nanhua Lou hasn’t committed a crime—customers can simply choose not to eat there. Unless the Nanhua Lou uses a knife to force diners to eat—only then would it be a crime,” Wang Bang declared loudly. “If we were to label Ma Jinsi and his associates’ actions as a disruption of public order, I, Wang Bang, would be the first to object—I wouldn’t back down even if I had to go to the capital to argue my case before the imperial court. If Ma Jinsi is a gang criminal, then I believe the household servants in the homes of all the powerful and influential officials in the court are private armed forces, gathering with the intent to incite rebellion.” Sima Guang could not help but fly into a rage. Though overcome with anger, he was forced to give the matter careful consideration—the young man’s argument had some merit. At least on the surface, it made sense. It was no secret that Ma Jinsi and his associates were brazenly collecting money; it was done openly. The only puzzling aspect was that, so far, not a single person had come forward to file a complaint. The reason no one had come forward was most likely the unwritten rule that “the wealthy do not quarrel with officials.” In other words, Wang Bang was effectively “borrowing the tiger’s might”—exploiting Wang Anshi’s latent deterrent power—which constituted a form of intimidation. However, such a threat is very difficult to prove. Such baseless allegations are almost a common under-the-table practice among officials. If this were brought to court, the case would be taken all the way to the capital, and it would be me, Sima Guang, who would lose—not the Wang family. After all, doing so would make me no different from Wang Anshi—it would incur the enmity of the entire bureaucratic establishment and set a very bad legal precedent. After a long silence, Sima Guang said, “Very well. For the time being, this court cannot prove whether you threatened them or not. Ma Jinsi and his associates are undoubtedly a bunch of unemployed ne’er-do-wells, but they have not committed any major offenses, and I do not wish to pass judgment on their character based on this alone. However, there is one point you cannot avoid: you are still disrupting public order. Assuming you describe your activities and your group as a business enterprise, have you filed taxes? Have you registered your business?” Wang Bang spread his hands and said, “I haven’t registered or filed taxes yet, but I’m already making preparations. On this point, I admit I’ve been somewhat negligent.” Sima Guang said, “Is it merely a ‘certain degree of negligence’? You’re being far too lenient with yourself; this is simply not the attitude you should have when admitting fault.” Wang Bang replied, “Your Excellency speaks with great insight. If the law is not strictly enforced, it will inevitably lead to others following suit. Such is the power of example. It is certainly my fault that I did not register and file taxes in a timely manner, but I was indeed in the process of preparing to do so. It’s just that the business opportunity was enormous, and time waits for no one, so I jumped on the bandwagon first and took care of the paperwork later.” “Is this right? Of course not. But given that this practice is rampant in Shuzhou today, the responsibility doesn’t lie entirely with me. The Butchers’ Guild, the Egg Gang, the South City Horse Caravans, the Ferryboat Guild—including the Beggars’ Guild, which has already been proven to have committed serious offenses—none of these groups have ever registered under the name of a major merchant house. Consequently, in the absence of enforcement, a precedent and inertia have taken hold, turning this into a folk custom.” “What is a folk custom? It is something that has become established by common practice, is widely accepted, and has been in place for a long time. Since the authorities have not declared it wrong, it falls into a gray area. Of course, it is not legal, but the Great Song Dynasty does not support labeling such situations as illegal. The greatest responsibility lies with the presiding judge. Therefore, while I am certainly at fault, I am not guilty, because I acted in accordance with folk custom. The authorities may say I am wrong and may require me to correct my actions, but they cannot ‘punish without first instructing.’ ” The magistrate’s face darkened. Given the political climate of the Song Dynasty, once Wang Bang’s defense was recorded in the official minutes, the magistrate’s office dared not continue the interrogation—not even if the prefect ordered it. Otherwise, they would be tormented to death by Wang Anshi and Bao Zheng. “Release him. He is not guilty on this charge. Dismissed.” Sima Guang was quite decisive. He rose with a touch of melancholy, then paused and added, “Wang Bang, take care of yourself. I hope you don’t truly go astray. To be so young yet so detestable and wicked—this is not a blessing for the Wang family. I, Sima Guang, have nothing more to pass on to you, and you will clearly not heed my advice on your future path. I hope you understand the path you are choosing; this is my final request of you.” Wang Bang turned and slipped away—endless tasks awaited him. Fortunately, having an official title and status was indeed a good thing; otherwise, the standard procedure for being summoned for “tea” would have been a beating first—using a “deterrent rod” to crush one’s arrogance before any conversation even began. I, Little Wang, have no backbone and am afraid of pain. If I’d been beaten up, I wouldn’t have even waited for them to interrogate me—I would’ve voluntarily confessed that I’m a time traveler right away. That would’ve been a massive disgrace. It was a close call, but I made it through unscathed. Luck is a form of strength, after all. Starting out with a loli, I quickly picked up a bunch of gear and even snagged a cheap wife. Though fortune and misfortune go hand in hand, I made it through unscathed—that’s good enough. A solid Silver-tier start…