Chapter 765 – Steering Public Opinion

To build momentum for the trial, the Tribunal was active on all fronts. First, they had the Department of Propaganda and Culture publish a special feature on the case in the Lingao Times. Although Ding Ding was skeptical about how many people could actually read it, Ma Jia's guidance was to "cook rice even if it's half-raw." At the very least, new immigrants had undergone basic literacy training and could handle a newspaper; as for local natives, many had also received literacy education in the factories.

Ding Ding penned the article himself. The DPC had a few scholar-types—Ming-era licentiates whose writing was unbearably pedantic even in vernacular. Ding Ding rarely asked them to write, mostly assigning them to proofreading.

Writing legal education articles wasn't new to Ding Ding, but writing them for seventeenth-century commoners was a formidable challenge—they had neither eaten pork nor seen a pig run. He had to convey basic concepts while keeping everything accessible. It took considerable brain-racking to produce a few pieces.

Per Ma Jia's request, the focus wasn't on the Marriage Law, but on the Criminal Procedure Law—popularizing modern judicial procedures and jurisprudential concepts while contrasting them with Ming judicial practice. As Ma Jia put it, they needed to highlight the "barbarity," "backwardness," "cruelty," and "incompetence" of the Ming legal system.

To emphasize these four points, Ding Ding had to consult E Shui, asking him to scour historical records and notes for material on the dark side of Ming justice to use as ammunition. He also made several trips to the county yamen to chat with Master Wang.

Since the county yamen had been thoroughly hollowed out, Master Wang had been idle. Besides helping stamp documents at the County Liaison Office and handling routine paperwork, his days were spent drinking, playing chess, and composing poetry with Magistrate Wu. The Liaison Office supplied them generously and issued monthly stipends—enough for a leisurely existence. Naturally, he was happy to chat when someone came asking questions.

Wang Zhaomin had been a legal secretary for decades. Though not necessarily brilliant in criminal law, his experience was vast, having handled countless cases. Hearing they wanted material on "dark secrets," he immediately recounted several complex and bizarre cases, adding his own detailed commentary.

Regarding the report on the case itself, Ding Ding followed basic modern principles: using "a certain village," "a certain unit," and pseudonyms. The Navy specifically called to demand that nothing in the article link back to the Navy. Wei Aiwen demanded that the subsequent brawl between the Navy and the Garrison Battalion be omitted.

"Damn it, who's the Propaganda Department here?" Though Ding Ding understood their reasoning, he resented every department trying to dictate his reporting.

Finally, Du Wen called unexpectedly to discuss whether this case helped improve women's status.

"I don't think this has much to do with women's status…"

"How can you say that? This is typical objectification of women. In this whole process, has anyone specifically talked to the female victim to hear her voice?"

Ding Ding admitted he hadn't, though Tribunal staff should have interrogated her.

"You see? No one cares about the woman's will or rights!" The voice on the phone grew agitated. "Did she perhaps want a divorce?"

"Ask the Tribunal."

"I certainly will. But the Lingao Times has serious bias issues in its reporting of this case…"

Ding Ding hung up in frustration—bias issues? Pan Pan, brewing coffee nearby, asked, "Who was that?"

"Du Wen from the Women's Federation." Unable to explain the Social Work Office to Pan Pan, Ding Ding introduced her as the Women's Federation Chair—a concept Pan Pan could grasp.

Du Wen had tried multiple times to recruit Pan Pan into the Women's Federation, but Pan Pan wasn't interested in political organizations. She believed women should protect their own rights, not form associations to demand them. Their philosophies clashed, so she had refused.

"Does this case concern women's rights?" Pan Pan was interested. Though she disliked that the Tribunal had internally decided the verdict before the trial, generally she found the case unremarkable. She certainly couldn't understand some elders' calls for death or life sentences. In her view, even for "destroying a military marriage," a light punishment was sufficient.

"You could say it does." Ding Ding looked at the table full of proofs and drafts. "For example, why couldn't that woman choose the man she loved? Or so Du Wen says." He quickly added the attribution.

A woman's gossip instinct kicked in instantly: "Does she love the young guy?"

"Who knows. That's irrelevant to the case."

"I'd actually like to know." Pan Pan's interest was piqued. "I want to write a feature on the emotional lives of naturalized citizens…"

"Absolutely not." Ding Ding quickly blocked his wife's whimsical idea. "Naturalized citizens don't need to think about emotional lives; eating and working is enough. Why make them think so much?"

"That's harsh. They're people too. Why can't they have emotional lives?" She insisted on the topic. Ding Ding reconsidered: since the Tribunal was about to promulgate the Marriage Law, and divorce was a key component, such a report might help build public opinion. He finally agreed and issued her a press pass to interview in the county prison.

Pan Pan went with high hopes and returned disappointed. She had expected a middle-aged woman with lingering charm; she found a haggard, shriveled woman with no charm whatsoever.

Though she brought a Hokkien interpreter, the "party concerned" was terrified by a blonde, blue-eyed, ghost-like "chieftain" coming to talk to her—let alone by the interpreter's mouth full of emotional terminology. Just explaining "Are you in love with so-and-so?" took several minutes.

Even more discouraging, this old-looking woman couldn't say clearly whether she loved the suspect, or even if she liked him. She seemed to view Pan Pan's constant talk of such things with silent contempt. It was either "I don't know" or silence. Pan Pan's interview hit a wall.

Finally, Pan Pan asked, "If you had the chance, would you want to marry so-and-so and live with him?" She hoped for a "love supreme" answer, but the woman replied crisply: "Unwilling." As for why, she refused to say, meeting Pan Pan's questions with a "none of your business" stare.

"Do these people have any thoughts of their own?" Pan Pan complained to Ding Ding.

Ding Ding smiled calmly. "Can't handle it? For seventeenth-century commoners, just having a Q&A exchange is good enough—don't forget she was a shop clerk in East Gate Market, so she's had a baptism of modern civilization! Go to the countryside and chat with peasants; getting one answer in ten sentences is lucky. And you want to write a feature."

Beyond newspapers, the DPC used "opinion guides" to steer public sentiment in public spaces. This was a new trick: selecting articulate, gossip-loving naturalized citizens—mostly peddlers—to spread news and guide opinion according to weekly DPC "notices." In return, the DPC paid each fifty circulation notes a month as a small "incentive"—Ding Ding refused to call it a wage.

The goal was quickly achieved. The guides spread the case through every village and town alley until the whole county knew—so much so that some elders objected: would such hype damage the army's image? Would people think joining the army meant getting cuckolded?

But Ma Jia and others argued that only massive publicity would make naturalized citizens fear cuckolding soldiers—years of hard labor were no joke. The Fu Youdi labor reform camp had become a terror legend of the new Lingao regime, a living hell in the people's minds.

As always, Du Wen demanded that the case be used to promote "protection of women's rights." She demanded the sailor and his wife be divorced—on grounds of "breakdown of affection"—and that the sailor be prosecuted for "domestic violence" (wife-beating). Naturally, the Navy vehemently opposed this. Most elders also opposed it—except Liu Yuefei, who had just returned from field research. Even female elders cared little about a native woman's marital happiness. Seeing little support, Du Wen personally wrote several articles advocating women's rights for Ding Ding to publish in the Lingao Times External Edition.

Propelled by the varying agendas of different departments, preparations for the grand judicial drama proceeded apace.

Ma Jia enthusiastically ordered black judicial robes for An Xi and the other court participants—he personally visited the Planning Commission warehouse to select a black silk of excellent sheen and texture. He also directed renovations of the East Gate Market Summary Court, refreshing it inside and out. Cork sound-absorbing panels were added to the walls to dampen noise from the gallery. Iron bars were installed on the windows—the latest news suggested a huge turnout, and those who couldn't get in would likely hang on the windows like people in another time-space.

(End of Chapter)