Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 1075 [The Water is Deep]

"Governor, villagers are gathering outside the city and are being stopped by the soldiers guarding the city!"

Jiang E ran inside in a hurry.

Nie Wen put down his brush and asked, "How many people are here?"

Jiang E said: "There are more than a thousand people, and more villagers are coming here after hearing the news."

Nie Wen stood up calmly and walked out slowly.

This matter can be big or small. If it can be suppressed there will be no risk, but if it gets out of hand it will alarm the imperial court.

Isn’t Nie Wen afraid?

He is afraid that he cannot make the decision.

This is a provincial capital, not just a prefectural capital.

The officials from the three departments of Huainan Province are all here. What can a small prefect of the auxiliary prefecture do?
If you were not a good person in your previous life, you will be a county magistrate in this life. If you did evil in your previous life, you will be a county magistrate in the suburbs. If you have committed many evil deeds, you will be a provincial capital in the suburbs.

“Full of evil” refers to Nie Wen.

No matter what major events occur, he has no say in the matter, but he has to take the blame if something goes wrong.

Nie Wen sent people to post notices all over Chuzhou Prefecture, not only for the officials to see, not only for the common people to see, but also for the provincial officials to see!
You want me to take the blame?

I'm just going to make this matter bigger and implicate all the officials from the three departments.

Jiang E had already run to the inner door of the government hall, but found that the prefect Nie Wen had not come. Turning his head, he saw Nie Wen standing in front of the stone pavilion, with his hands behind his back, observing the words engraved on the stone.

"Governor, it's almost too late!" Jiang E hurried back to urge.

Nie Wen read the commandments and said, "Your salary is the blood and sweat of the people. It is easy to abuse the people, but it is hard to deceive God. Do you know the origin of these sixteen words?"

Jiang E said: "Of course I know, but the situation outside the city is extremely urgent..."

"Some people are more anxious than us," Nie Wen said with a smile, "They usually turn a blind eye, even my posting of notices. Some people think the matter is not a big deal, some people are happy to see it become a big deal. I am the one who bears the consequences, and if I take a step back, they will bear the consequences."

Hearing this, Jiang E became even more anxious: "But my husband is the prefect. If there is a civil riot in Chuzhou Prefecture, my husband will be the first one to be held accountable!"

Nie Wen walked slowly towards the lobby, rolled up his sleeves and said, "Don't be afraid! I was born as a censor, and I was promoted to a civil official after uncovering a case. When I was a censor, I was very successful. I brought down dozens of officials. But in recent years, I have become more and more uncomfortable. I have been restricted in everything I do. I might as well go all out and expose the affairs of Chuzhou Prefecture."

Jiang E was stunned when he heard this.

Nie Wen said, "After this matter is settled, if I can still be an official, I will ask to be transferred to Anxi or Jiaozhi. Those two places were recovered not long ago, and the court needs to open up the situation. I can be more relaxed if I serve there. Or, I can be transferred to Dali. Don't be afraid, I still have some old friends, and I will consider your future."

"Why has it come to this?" Jiang E sighed.

Nie Wen said, "You don't understand. The waters here are muddy. Lord Li... has been the Prime Minister for too long. I don't know how many people are hoping that he will move on. Some bastards have been trying to use me as a pawn. I can use this pawn to poke a hole in the sky."

Involving court disputes?

Jiang E suddenly didn't dare to speak anymore.

Nie Wen smiled and said, "Although the life of the prefect of Chuzhou seems frustrating, it is actually a lucrative position. If I had been promoted normally, would I have been able to get this position? It's just that they saw that I was a censor, and they know that I have a straight-forward character and I can't tolerate any sand in my eyes. They also want to use this incident to win over my mentor and old friends behind me."

Jiang E walked silently behind Nie Wen like a young wife, her head buzzing and she had lost the ability to think.

Walking along the streets, they met the Chief Secretary officials.

The two provincial governors were riding horses, while the other officials were either in carriages, on horses, or running.

The officials of the Censorate had already gone to the city gate with their runners.

As for the general and the commander-in-chief, they have already arrived at the military camps inside and outside the city, and directly dispatched troops to prevent the situation from getting out of hand.

The city gates were closed and the soldiers climbed up the city walls.

General Li Jiang angrily rebuked the archers: "You are not allowed to draw your bow without orders. What if the bow goes out?"

The archers on the city wall let go of their bowstrings.

Li Jiang was born into a salt smuggler family and went to Bazhou to seek refuge with Li Bao. He had a long career but average ability, and had been punished for his dirty deeds.

Overall, it's not a big problem.

The one who really has a big problem is the commander-in-chief Guo Xiong outside the city.

Guo Xiong was not only responsible for the recruitment, training, and demobilization of soldiers throughout the province, but also for the anti-smuggling and anti-theft operations. He was only responsible for the anti-smuggling and anti-theft operations in the countryside, not in the urban areas. Moreover, if the scale of the bandits was too large, they would be handed over to the general for handling.

The gangsters under Li Xiaojian's protection often intercepted canal merchant ships and extorted money. This matter was also within Guo Xiong's authority and responsibility, and he had never seriously investigated it. Naturally, he had received benefits.

"Everyone go away, are you still planning to rebel?"

At this moment, Guo Xiong arrived with his troops from the military camp outside the city and angrily rebuked the villagers who had gathered together to petition.

Seeing the army coming, many villagers were frightened, even some militia leaders became cowardly and subconsciously stepped back and wanted to go home.

Tao Dingan, who initiated and coordinated the petition, stepped forward and clasped his fists, saying, "Sir, we are not here to rebel. We are just ordinary farmers. The government posted a notice saying that no money would be collected, but sent people to urge us to pay for the exemption money. Rural people are short-sighted and don't know what's going on, so we came together to the provincial capital to ask."

Guo Xiong asked, "Are you the leader?"

Tao Dingan said: "I was entrusted by my fellow villagers to ask whether they would accept the exemption money..." "He who leads the trouble will be arrested first!"

Guo Xiong was too lazy to say anything and directly ordered the soldiers to arrest people.

Seeing the soldiers taking action, most of the villagers were frightened and ran away, dispersing through the gaps deliberately left by the army.

But there were also twenty or thirty people who showed considerable courage and stepped forward to protect Tao Dingan.

Guo Xiong said: "Catch all those who stand out!"

These twenty or thirty people were quickly pinned down and their hands were tied behind their backs with ropes.

"Why are you tying me up?"

"We are here to ask for the exemption money. We want to see the prefect!"

"The prefect used his seal on the notice, clearly stating that he would not collect money from the people. Why doesn't he keep his word?"

"Is the prefect still in charge of Chuzhou Prefecture?"

"..."

A group of civil servants stood on the city wall, frowning as they watched the farce outside the city.

Of course, there are also people who look normal.

"Open the city gate." Nie Wen said to the soldiers guarding the city gate.

General Li Jiang walked over quickly and scolded, "Why are you still standing there?"

The city gate opened, Nie Wen walked out with his hands behind his back, and Guo Xiong was escorting the people over.

Nie Wen stopped at the city gate and said, "Guo Duzhi, I ordered the notice to be posted, and these people came to ask me. They didn't steal, rob, or carry any weapons, and the place where they gathered is in the city. You have no reason to arrest them, and you have no right to arrest them."

Guo Xiong was a little angry and asked, "This is not only the prefectural capital, but also the provincial capital! You are just the prefect. If there is a mess, can you afford it?"

Nie Wen pointed at the captured people and said, "These are all people under my rule. I believe they are not bad people. If there is any trouble, I will bear all the blame."

Guo Xiong didn't say anything, but stood there staring at Nie Wen.

Nie Wen was too lazy to pay attention to him and turned to look at the officials standing on the city wall.

Right Governor Zhang Su was the first to come downstairs and said, "Take him to the Governor's Office."

Soon, the Censor Huang Shilian also showed up and said, "I think it's just some misunderstanding. Take them to the Censorate for questioning. Once the misunderstanding is resolved, they will all be released back home."

Nie Wen said, "There may be some hidden story behind the exemption money. It's probably not a misunderstanding."

"It must have been some clerks who made the mistake. Most of them are illiterate," said Huang Shilian.

Zhang Su walked further outside the city and bowed to the tower: "This is a serious matter. Please let Yang Buzheng take charge."

Yang An, the Left Governor, who had remained silent all this time, now glanced back and forth between Zhang Su and Nie Wen, as if he wanted to know whether the two had gotten involved.

The other officials, such as the councilors, judges, and Cao Yuan, all stepped back, obviously not wanting to get involved. Or, they didn't know how big the incident would get, so they planned to wait and see before expressing their opinions.

Feng Liang, the Deputy Censor and Academician, also retreated at this moment, but his expression was filled with fear.

Yang An, the Left Governor, had become the focus of attention. He was forced to say, "Take them all to the Censorate to inquire about the reasons."

Right Governor Zhang Su asked, "If there is a criminal case, it should be taken to the Censorate. But these people are just confused about the government order. Since both of us governors are here, shouldn't we take them to the Governorate? Why treat them as criminals without asking the reason?"

Yang An remained calm and said, "Then take him to the Governor's Office."

Suddenly, Yan Tao, dressed in plain clothes, walked out from the corner of the street outside the city, holding the official badge of the censor and said loudly: "Yan Tao of the Inspectorate has been ordered to inspect Huainan. Please allow me to listen in at the Provincial Government Office."

Yang An's expression finally changed, but he regained his composure in an instant, bowed and said, "Censor Yan, please come in."

Nie Wen smiled, as if meeting old friends, and asked casually, "Are you the only one?"

Yan Tao said: "Six of them came, scattered all over Huainan."

The two walked side by side.

After entering the city, Nie Wen whispered: "If you achieve great success this time, don't follow my example and become a civil official. It's very uncomfortable, and everything is beyond your control."

Yan Tao pouted and said, "Are you involved with that Zhang Su?"

"That bastard has been trying to get me to step forward," Nie Wen said. "I was really frustrated, so I took the opportunity of the expedition to Dali to stir up trouble. Whatever happens, I am at most responsible for negligence, and at most I will be demoted one level."

Yan Tao smiled and said, "If you offend those people, it will be difficult for you to get promoted in the future."

"It doesn't matter. If I can't get promoted, then I won't get promoted. What matters most is that I have a clear mind," Nie Wen said. "We came from the Inspectorate, so why should we be afraid of offending people? Even if I am transferred to a civil servant, I will still dare to do my job with my head held high!"

Yan Tao said, “There might be a big fight in the court.”

"I don't think there will be a quarrel," Nie Wen said, "This incident is more like a test. Elder Li is still trusted by the government, and that person... has retired for many years."

(End of this chapter)