Case of a Hezhou Commoner Suing a Lieutenant Colonel for Forced Purchase of Sheep and Horses in the Fourth Year of Tianbao, Longyou Circuit

In the fourth year of Tianbao (745 CE) during the Tang Dynasty, commoners Wang Xiaozhong and Li Guangjun from Hezhou in Longyou Circuit brought a complaint before local authorities against Lieutenant Colonel (Biejiang) Wang Fengxian. They accused him of abusing his military position to force them to sell sheep and horses at unfairly low prices, a practice known as "coercive purchase." The case was recorded in official government documents, indicating that the Hezhou prefectural government formally accepted and reviewed the grievance. This case highlights the intersection of military authority and civilian economic rights along the Tang frontier.

Surviving fragmentary documents suggest that the Hezhou government ruled in favor of the commoners and ordered Wang Fengxian to compensate the victims at fair market values, affirming the legal protection of civilians against military overreach.

Whether Lieutenant Colonel Wang Fengxian abused his official military authority to coerce commoners into selling livestock at prices significantly below the prevailing market rate, thereby violating Tang dynasty laws against official exploitation and economic coercion.

This case exemplifies the Tang dynasty's legal framework for curbing military abuse of power in frontier regions and its commitment to maintaining social and economic order. It served as a precedential warning against official exploitation, reinforcing that even low-ranking military officers would be held accountable for economic injustices against ordinary people.