Since the Accounting: A Chronicle of the Roman Khanate

Chapter 457 We all hope that the old Emperor Zhu Hongwu will come back
"Patriarch, what does this mean?" Although Father Peter knew some Chinese, this kind of conversation mixed with dialects and colloquialisms still made him a little confused, so he had to ask Lama Wang for advice.

"The situation in other places is out of control." Wang Dalai Lama roughly understood: "This kind of thing cannot be happening just in their place. People in other places have already got the news."

"Yes." Tang Sai'er replied: "The masters in the sect often travel to various places and are relatively well-informed. They said that what Mr. Fu said was just to deceive people."

"The fellows on the beach said that they had heard this many times and did not believe it at all. They insisted on not disbanding this time and would fight to the end. As expected, the government turned against them and called in the government officials to beat up the elders who petitioned and injured them. Quite a few people. The remaining people were also washed away and had no choice but to flee back to the village."

"What do you do?" Father Peter asked.

"We don't know what to do. The masters in the church have different opinions and no one can convince the other." Tang Sai'er said: "The great monk can't make up his mind. He is not willing to accept it. He feels that the government is deceiving us again; but I didn't dare to gamble, for fear that this time I would really make people anxious and call in the officers and soldiers. However, the old fairy girl was very determined. She held altar rituals every day and summoned the villagers. She seemed determined to do it. The great monk was not sure. If you have any idea, I’ll go ask the gentleman at the village next door.”

"During that time, the old fairy lady didn't know why, but she admired me very much, so she specially took me out of her home and taught me martial arts. She also gave me various magic weapons and said that I would be her apprentice." She thought about it. : "I became a fairy aunt in the future, that's what she asked me to do."

"Isn't that a good thing?" Father Peter said: "In our area, some monks will also go to the people to select smart children to serve as their apprentices. This is an ancient tradition. Even in Rome today, this is considered education. A kind of supplement. Your family should be very happy."

"Yes, my parents were indeed very happy at the time, thinking that I had a future. The fairy promised that she would take me away and educate me well, and she would also help me find a matchmaker and marry me to a good family. They didn't hesitate at all. Let me follow the old fairy." Tang Sai'er said.

"However, the great monk is a little worried. He seems to have always disagreed with the old fairy's approach. He has never shown it in front of outsiders, but he has asked me several times in private to find out what the old fairy is preparing for. What, so I still remember it."

"It's normal for local leaders to have differences." Lama Wang was not surprised.

"The great monk has a bit of a prejudice against the old fairy lady." Tang Sai'er didn't hide it very much, but said helplessly: "He quietly told me that although most of the people in the church are good people, there are some who are in charge of things and always like to make trouble over nothing. , try every means to benefit yourself.”

"He said that when he went to the city, he heard some people gossiping, saying that our White Lotus Sect is just a group of ruffians. We usually cause trouble for no reason and extort benefits. When big things happen, we will join forces with other cults to mess up the world and seek benefits for ourselves. .Our reputation has been ruined by them."

"Then this is indeed intolerable." Father Peter nodded in agreement: "This monk is right. Isn't this calling you Jews?"

"Uh..." Tang Sai'er didn't seem to know what the allusion was. He scratched his head and said, "I too... I probably think so. Although I am not old, I am not stupid. He is I mean, don’t you just suspect that Old Fairy Girl and the others are fanning the flames..."

"Mr. Da's relationship with them is also very average. He has more contacts with the great monks and borrows scriptures from each other to read, but he doesn't like the old fairy girls very much." She mentioned another character:
"My mother-in-law sent me to visit Mongolia before, so he asked the great monk to give me a message, saying that since he has been my husband, he must help me to the end. People like the old fairy are addicted to strange powers and chaos. He said that if he uses heresy to attract people, even if he claims that he has good intentions, he will definitely cause trouble over time. He said that the world is in chaos now, and it is not easy to force anything, but I must respect myself in the future and abide by my principles. Heart. In short, they are all great principles."

"However, Mr. Da is also very confused about this matter. He suspects that the old fairy girl is too evil-minded and has an impure mind, but he also doubts the government. The monk said that before other Zhuangzi had trouble, Mr. Da believed that the government It was a deception."

"How did he deduce it?" Lama Wang was also a little curious.

"Mr. Da is a person who has read the Four Books and Five Classics. Of course he knows it." Tang Sai'er said: "In the Spring and Autumn Period, there is a saying, 'The money is heavy but sweet, so you can lure me', because at that time there were many examples of mutual trapping. Like Such a greedy and untrustworthy person would definitely not be at ease if he suddenly made a promise and offered special preferential conditions, and only a fool would be fooled. So he told the students clearly that the government's guarantee was not enough to be trusted at all. .”

"He still felt in his heart that he should gather and train the villagers and make preparations in advance. But he always disliked the old fairy girls and thought they were messing around. In fact, there was nothing he could do. Don't talk about him. I wouldn't know about this either. How can I make a good decision..."

"Then what happened in the end?" Lama Wang asked.

"Originally, even Old Fairy Girl and the others did not plan to start fighting with the government immediately, but wanted to accumulate some strength first. But something happened again in Jinan." Tang Sai'er said: "There are rumors over there that the late Emperor Hongwu During the reign, an edict was issued allowing the public to accuse officials of corruption and bending the law. Therefore, I threatened to make the matter bigger and bring it to the capital."

"Is it true?" Father Peter expressed doubts: "Setting this precedent is tantamount to allowing the public to question the authority of officials. The government is a system, so even if the lower levels really violate the law, the upper levels will definitely not like the people to sue them. Because As a result, the people will definitely become more and more arrogant, and the authority of the government as a whole will also decrease." "I used to work as a consultant to compile church laws and read a lot of legal books. In the traditional provisions, the son accused It is not allowed by law for fathers or wives to accuse their husbands. This is because such accusations damage the authority in society, and state authority is obviously closely connected with these social authorities, at least in name, and they cannot be allowed to be questioned at will. What's more, accusing officials directly questions the executors of state power."

"If Emperor Hongwu really dared to do this, it would mean that he had authority from other sources. So when someone questioned the old authority system, he could partially tolerate it in exchange for more efficient operation of national institutions." He shook his head. The head analyzed: "But you know what this means? This is not just as simple as being generous. This shows that in addition to traditional authority, a new basis for legitimacy has been found. If you identify it carefully, it can be regarded as the founding of a sect. Got the idea.”

"Well, this isn't new. We all have said that during the time of Yao and Shun in ancient times, there was a place to beat drums to complain about grievances. If you insist on saying it is a new authority, then you can only say that it gives the common people a Justice is a kind of authority - but this thing is not new, and it was not invented by his old Zhu family." Tang Saier didn't quite believe it.

"Then...that's more powerful. I thought it was only in Rome." Father Peter was a little surprised: "Then they went to sue, did they succeed? Does the emperor still recognize it?"

"I don't know whether to admit it or not... In fact, everyone doesn't know if there are other requirements or what steps to follow." Tang Saier shook his head and said, "I guess they don't really expect to succeed. They can just scare the officials temporarily. ”

"So, the people over there looked for documents from the Hongwu period. The documents were too small and inconspicuous, and they were afraid that the government wouldn't see them, so they asked a carpenter to make a sign with the portrait of the old Emperor Hongwu on it and hold it up. For everyone to see.”

"I think it makes sense for them to do this - just like you said, the government likes to talk about the emperor, his ministers and his son every day. They can't even deny what the emperor's father said, right?"

"It's a pity that the court's intentions were not tested in the end. Because they were stopped when they reached the county seat." She told the two of them: "The village elders all came forward and cried, saying that everyone wanted to marry Emperor Hongwu. Back then, the old emperor Leading everyone to kill the Tatars was a bigger battle than now, but we didn't see so many bad things. It would be great if he could come back."

"But the government didn't pay attention at all. Instead, as if facing a formidable enemy, they directly mobilized the government and troops to suppress it. Fuyin Lao'er threatened that anyone who dares to make trouble in the late emperor's name again will be sent to see the late emperor."

"The villagers had high expectations. When they saw what he said, they were very angry and finally started fighting with the officers and soldiers. Unfortunately, they were not prepared enough. They were no match for others and many people were killed. The documents that were not authentic or fake were also unknown. It was lost, and the portrait and sign were smashed by the officers and soldiers. The survivors had to flee in all directions, and those with quick legs ran all the way to our village to report the matter to the police. Only then did everyone know about it."

"The villagers are all talking about it. It seems that the court really doesn't want my father anymore. It seems that what Mr. Da said is indeed right. The government has been fooling people before. The monk also made up his mind and said that there is nothing that can be done about it. Be kind. Let’s prepare to rebel.”

"Isn't this something that happens elsewhere?" Father Peter asked.

"The great monk explained it. In this matter, the government themselves went too far. If the court pursues the case, they will be in great trouble. Therefore, in order to shirk responsibility, they must give everyone all the charges. Press it - and the bigger the crime, the better." Tang Saier said.

"If the officials are incompetent, or even corrupt and bend the law, and eventually cause a civil uprising, the official's reputation and even the family's head may not be saved. If you want to save it, you have to say that we are all long-standing bandits and traitors who have colluded with the Tatars. , had long decided to rebel. Only in this way can all this series of things be said to be the fault of the unruly people. And instead of being blamed for their incompetence, they have the merit of exterminating bandits and spies. "

"So, regardless of whether we rebel or not, the officials in the province will make this series of things an ironclad case. Those who don't rebel will also be forced to rebel; if they can't be forced to rebel, they will be killed. We, please go up and report your merits to the bandits. How can a person like this in the village be the opponent of so many high officials? For the sake of their future, wealth and lives, we can only let us all die."

"We, the White Lotus Sect, have been preaching in that corner for several generations, and everyone has long been used to it. At the end of the Yuan Dynasty, we started a rebellion and fought with Tartar officials and squires. But in the eyes of the officials, we were not worthy... ...Expulsion of those Tartars. Not only is this not a credit, but it is evidence of guilt. It shows that we have already had a cult gang, a history of rebellion, and the power of rebellion."

"So, the great monk concluded that even if the previous incidents were spontaneously caused by the villagers, this rebellion will definitely be blamed on the White Lotus Cult. No matter what the elders in the cult think, this crime cannot be uncovered. It's gone. In that case, why continue to suffer from this bird's anger and end up being an unjust ghost?"

"That's it..." Father Peter sighed, looked at Lama Wang, and said with emotion: "What about you?"

"We are really rebelling." Tang Sai'er nodded.

(End of this chapter)