Stories from Ancient China: Cheng Lin and The Palace Fire

During the Reign of Ren Emperor of the Northern Song Dynasty (1023 to 1063), Cheng Lin was a high ranking law enforcement in Kaifeng, the capital city. One day a fire broke out in the royal palace, damaging two halls. The eunuchs in the palace went to investigate the fire and found a tailor's flatiron at the fire scene. The royal tailor admitted that he was responsible for the fire. He was arrested and sent to the law enforcement agency of Kaifeng for punishment. It was considered a major crime, and he was likely going to be executed for it.

Cheng Lin was not convinced that the tailor was responsible for the fire, yet he couldn't prove it as he wasn't allowed to enter the royal palace. So he had someone paint a drawing of how the fire had spread throughout the palace. It turned out that there were many people living in the palace but many of the rooms were very narrow. A lot of the stoves were placed next to the walls, which were made up of wooden boards. As time went on, the wooden boards became very dry. Cheng Lin said, "The cause of the fire isn't something that could happen over just one or two days." So he reported to the emperor, "The fire is probably a disaster from the heaven. We shouldn't blame the tailor for it." Ren Emperor agreed to it and let the tailor get off easy. Nobody was given the death penalty.

If all the law enforcement officials would investigate criminal cases with the kind heart that Cheng Lin had, how could anyone be found guilty for crimes that he or she hadn't committed?