My Wife is Unbeatable in the Whole World, Touch Me If You Dare!-Chapter 438 - 298: Joining the Ministry of Justice

Expand official schools, reform the Imperial Examination, revoke noble titles, remove the privileges of the famous families, implement land reforms, return land to the people...

If Li Nuo had not known beforehand, they might have thought they were speaking of his father.

The content of the Right Prime Minister's reforms was almost identical to what his father and his colleagues had advocated years ago.

No, the Right Prime Minister's reforms had preceded his father's by twenty years.

It should be said that his father's reforms were merely an inheritance of what the Right Prime Minister had initiated back then.

Since they held the same ideas about reform, why did the Right Prime Minister oppose them at the time?

This question, I'm afraid, only the Right Prime Minister himself knew the answer to.

Li Nuo, familiar with the history of both worlds, knew that these reform contents touched the fundamental interests of nobles and the famous families; merely chanting slogans by some officials would not suffice for success.

The situation in Daxia was different.

The Six Great Families had been established in this land for a thousand years, and if they joined forces, they could change the dynasty of Daxia, even the Royal family couldn't touch their foundation.

"Political power grows out of the barrel of a gun," to change this status quo was possible only through violent revolution.

Sadly, in present-day Daxia, no one could change the fate predetermined by the famous families.

The Six Great Families had seven individuals in the Sixth Realm.

Anyone who dared to challenge the famous families would likely be crushed easily just as they showed any signs of defiance.

However, those brave enough to challenge them were truly admirable.

To die was all it was.

This was also why Confucian officials were adored by the masses.

Li Nuo couldn't achieve the selflessness of the Confucians; he believed in doing as much as his abilities allowed. If he were in the Seventh Realm, he could press down on the heads of the famous families and nobles to reform, making life better for the common people.

But before then, senselessly sacrificing his family for no change was something he absolutely wouldn't do.

Regarding the previous acts of the Right Prime Minister, Li Nuo had nothing to say other than he admired him.

From his own perspective, he just wanted to handle his cases well, increase his own strength, and at the same time, do something for the common people; he did not approve of the Right Prime Minister's obstruction.

Upon reflection, it seemed that the reform was a turning point.

Whether it was the Right Prime Minister or his own father, after experiencing the failure of reforms, both seemed to become different people...

A moment later, Li Nuo left Honglu Si, preparing to assume his position at the Ministry of Justice.

At that moment, within the Ministry of Justice, a young man in black entered a government office and saw King Chun and Li Xuanjing playing chess; his opened mouth then closed again.

Li Xuanjing placed a chess piece down and asked, "What is it?"

The young man in black glanced at King Chun.

King Chun paused for a second, realizing his intent then immediately raged, "You impudent boy, what do you mean by that? Am I an outsider to you? Is there anything that cannot be said in front of me?"

Li Xuanjing said, "It's okay, go ahead."

Then the young man in black spoke, "Sir, while Spiegel Bureau was investigating Dongfang Bo, we found a new lead."

King Chun asked, "Who is Dongfang Bo?"

The young man in black explained, "In the case involving the embassy of Liang, he's the mastermind behind the murder of the Second Prince of Liang, and who attempted to destabilize the relationship between Daxia and Liang."

King Chun held a chess piece, pondering where to place it, and said, "Ah, continue…"

The young man continued, "We found out that Dongfang Bo came from a poor family, and the reason he could enter the academy to study the Six Arts was that he was being quietly funded by someone behind the scenes. The benefactor, named Zhang Xian, had previously served as a court official, up to the position of Minister of Revenue, then voluntarily retired and had sponsored many local poor students. Dongfang Bo considers him a mentor..."

King Chun asked, "Is there a problem with this Zhang Xian, did he embezzle the court's Silver?"

The young man in black looked at Li Xuanjing then said, "Zhang Xian is not a problem, but the mentor of Dongfang Bo is Zhang Xian, and Zhang Xian's mentor was the current Right Prime Minister…"

King Chun failed to grasp anything concerning, but Li Xuanjing paused while making his next chess move.

The next words he was unsure whether he should say, so he glanced at King Chun again.

King Chun, angered, got up and pointed at him, "Just say it, if you dare to look at me again, believe it or not, I'll beat you?"

Seeing that Li Xuanjing did not stop him, the young man in black had to say, "I suspect that the embassy case of Liang is manipulated by the Right Prime Minister from behind the scenes, this kind of situation, once could be a coincidence, twice can no longer be considered so..."

King Chun stared at the young man in black in astonishment and asked, "Do you know what you are talking about?"

This was tantamount to treason.

The Right Prime Minister was a Great Scholar of the Fifth Realm; would he commit treason?

Not only would no one believe it if it were spoken out loud, but the person who said it would also be considered a fool.

To be blunt, even if the Father Emperor betrayed Daxia, a Great Scholar of the Fifth Realm would not betray Daxia.

When he looked towards Li Xuanjing, he was startled and incredulously asked, "He isn't telling the truth, is he?"

Li Xuanjing said, "The words spoken just now, Your Highness, please pretend you did not hear them."

King Chun realized the seriousness of the situation and slowly nodded.

If he had heard it, what could he do?

No one dared to investigate a Great Scholar of the Fifth Realm, the courtiers trusted him, the people adored him, even the Father Emperor had to respect him, anyone who dared to attack him would undoubtedly be attacked by everyone else, even if that person was the Emperor...

The Right Prime Minister committing treason was as absurd as someone saying that Xuanjing would betray him.

He looked at the young man in black and said, "I suggest you investigate this thoroughly, there must be some misunderstanding here…"

...

The Ministry of Rites acted swiftly, and three days later, new official clothes were delivered.

The official robe was delivered in the morning, and Li Nuo assumed his position at the Ministry of Justice in the afternoon.

He was much more familiar with the Ministry of Justice than with the Ministry of Rites and Honglu Si. Even his government office was the same one that Anning had once occupied.

Everything was so familiar, leaning comfortably in a chair wrapped with soft cushions, he felt a sense of returning home.

The former Minister of Justice had been promoted to the Imperial Censorate.

The Imperial Censorate could also practice Law, and it was respected; there was nothing Li Nuo felt guilty about.

Li Nuo had met both the Assistant Minister of Justice and the Minister of Ministry of Justice before, but he wasn't very familiar with them. He would have more interactions with them in the future.

The case files sent to the Ministry of Justice from various places would first come to Li Nuo. After his review, they were forwarded to the Assistant Minister and the Minister for their seal. The sentences of imprisonment would take effect immediately, whereas exile and death sentences needed to be further submitted to the Ministry of Justice.

Now, at the end of the year, case files from all over were accumulating at the Ministry of Justice; the Archives were piled high like mountains.

For other officials at the Ministry of Justice, this was a headache, and they could hardly leave work on time every day.

But for Li Nuo, he wished there were endless case files to review; after a day, his hand was sore from stamping.

After becoming a Minister of Justice, he possessed true and complete law enforcement powers.

The rate of increase of his lifespan was obviously much faster than when he had no title.

Just today, his lifespan had increased by more than three hundred days.

When the oil lamp popped, leaving no more documents on the desk, Li Nuo put down the stamp and rubbed his sore wrists.

In just half a day, all the case files that had accumulated over the days at the Ministry of Justice were dealt with by him.

He didn't know if it was because of the rise in his cultivation or the match with his official position, but his ability with the Law Code had also greatly improved.

As long as he stamped, even if the increase in lifespan was less than a day, he could directly feel the change in cultivation.

By the Fourth Realm, these minor cases of imprisonment had too little effect on cultivation, and even handling them personally, he could not sense such minor changes.

But the Law Code seemed to amplify these minor changes countless times.

Whenever he judged a case problematic, which could lead to a decrease in cultivation, Li Nuo would mark it for retrial. Those that increased his cultivation indicated the judgment was correct; he would set these aside to submit to the Assistant Minister and Minister for final approval the next day.

He stood up, stretched his body, and his bones cracked loudly.

When he left the Ministry of Justice, the moon was already high in the sky.

Two figures were waiting outside the Ministry of Justice.

One squatting beside the carriage smoking dry tobacco was Gatekeeper Huang.

Leaning against the Ministry of Justice door looking at the moon was Yiren.

How late it was for Huang to come to pick him up was normal, but it was a surprise that Yiren also came. Li Nuo explained, "They're worried about you and asked me to check on you."

Li Nuo didn't say much else, boarded the carriage, and said, "Let's go home."

Sitting in the carriage, Li Nuo occasionally glanced at Yiren sitting opposite him.

These past few days, Yiren seemed somewhat different from before. Besides practicing, she always hovered around him. But hovering was just hovering—it was better seeing her around every day than wanting to and not being able to.

Yiren's cultivation had progressed rapidly due to her efforts.

His wife, being pregnant, could not practice cultivation for at least a year.

In one year's time, Yiren's cultivation could perhaps catch up to hers.

Yiren leaned against the carriage, her gaze occasionally sweeping over Li Nuo.

The fortune-teller had told her to take the initiative; but how could she do that?

During the day at home, both Song Jiaren and Li Anning were around.

Now that it was just the two of them, she didn't know what to say.

Song Jiaren and Li Anning both being pregnant, she found it somewhat immoral to take advantage of their vulnerability.

Although he was supposed to be her husband, she had accepted the reality that he was now someone else's husband.

Oh, if it were just the two of them at home...

…

The next day, before going to the Ministry of Justice, Li Nuo instructed Housekeeper Wu some matters.

In the morning, some more case files were delivered, which Li Nuo quickly dealt with, and then he was somewhat idle.

After lunch at home, he was reading in his study when Housekeeper Wu came in. Li Nuo, unable to wait, asked, "Did you find out anything?"

Compared to ordinary cases, cases involving nobles and officials yielded greater benefits.

After going to the Ministry of Justice, he finally had the authority to handle cases involving officials below the seventh rank.

Housekeeper Wu shook his head and said, "In the Capital, all officials below the seventh rank who committed serious crimes have been executed by the lord."

Li Nuo thought for a moment and asked, "What about above seventh rank?"

For officials above the seventh rank, the Ministry of Justice could first impeach them, then investigate them after they were demoted.

Housekeeper Wu continued shaking his head and said, "They've also been executed by the lord."

Li Nuo, not giving up, asked, "What about the nobles?"

Although nobles had privileges, using those privileges came at a cost.

Being demoted once would decrease one lineage, which could be considered accumulating virtue for future generations.

Housekeeper Wu, helplessly spreading his hands, said, "The nobles in Chang'an that should be executed were all executed during the last Eastern Palace case; the rest don't have much leverage…"