Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 247 0242【Rectification of law and order】

An official ship brought official documents and residence reports.

After watching it, Wu Mao, the observation officer, was very emotional, and took it to Zhu Ming for a review: "Prefect, Your Majesty has recovered!"

This is said, as if Song Huizong was blind before.

"Why are you so excited?" Zhu Ming asked with a smile.

Wu Mao said: "Your Majesty ordered the construction of the palace to be stopped, and officials were strictly prohibited from entering the Huashi Gang, and ordered all the roads to worship the rivers and pray for rain. The imperial court sent a Lian visit envoy to inspect the prefectures and counties of the roads, and also allowed the people to go to the Shangshu Province to express their grievances!"

"That's all?" Zhu Ming took the residence newspaper and official documents.

Wu Mao said: "Stop building palaces, strictly prohibit flowers and stones, visit places honestly, Xu Min complains, this is a sign that the world is about to be ruled."

After reading it carefully, Zhu Ming pointed to one place and said, "It's not an edict to stop the construction of palaces, but a 'request for power'. You missed a word."

Wu Mao said, "It's all right."

Zhu Ming could imagine why Song Huizong made these actions.

The main reason is the spring drought in the north this year, which has affected many road points, and the lack of snow last winter, all of which are regarded as warnings from heaven.Upright people both inside and outside have come forward to speak out, pointing out the mistakes of the current administration, and some even took the opportunity to impeach the treacherous party.

In the face of raging public opinion and natural disasters, Song Huizong had to make concessions.

But "Quan Ba" is a bit nonsense, and it is an expedient measure, which means that the palace will be repaired after a while.

As for dispatching an incorruptible envoy to inspect places, that's even more speechless.Most of the inspection officials belong to the traitorous party. When they go to the place, they are probably busy extorting money, which will only make the life of the people worse.

Zhu Ming carefully read the official document and the residence newspaper, and found another important piece of information.

It may be that the emperor bypassed the secretary province and governed the country through secret memorials and central decrees. This situation aroused dissatisfaction among too many courtiers.

It just so happened that the office building of the Secretary Province had been relocated. Song Huizong said that he would return to the Secretary Province, so that the ministers would be less secretive in the future, and he himself would try not to issue an edict to restore the normal operation of the central organization.

but!

Cai You was actually in charge of promoting the secretary province, and the secretary province has completely become the territory of the Cai party.At the same time, the new office building of the Ministry of Secretaryship is next to the Daolu Academy, and is neighbors with a group of Taoist priests.

"Do whatever you need to do, don't be too optimistic," Zhu Ming instructed.

"Yes." Wu Mao was just having fun, of course he didn't think that the traitorous party would collapse.

Another [-] days later, Qian Chen returned to his command.

After learning about the experience, Ju Ming praised him greatly: "You are talented in economics, it is too wronged to be a car."

"Don't dare to do it, the prefect is absurd." Qian Chen hastily replied modestly.

The economy here refers to economics for the people.

Zhu Ming said again: "Don't bother the two masters with one thing, and leave the rest to Your Excellency. Immediately contact the merchants in various counties in Jinzhou, and make an appointment to transport the goods to Xiangyang, and bring the grain on the return trip. The state government warehouse Some of the goods in the store are also sold to merchants in exchange for money, and I will order the general to open the minister's treasury, and at least I have to collect several thousand guan to buy grain."

Qian Chen gladly took the order, he found the value of life with Zhu Ming.

……

"Big verdict, officials in all counties are saying that there is a spring drought and request to suspend this year's summer grain." Said Song Ning, who joined the army.

Li Daochong said in a bad mood: "I'm just passing the judgment, and I'm not the minister of the court. How can Xia Liang slow it down? If the court urges me, where can I ask for mercy?"

Song Ning sighed: "Alas, Jinzhou has a narrow land, and there is a spring drought, so I really can't squeeze out a few. If the pressure is too much, there may be starving people."

Li Daochong said: "It is my job to collect taxes, and the rebellion of the hungry people will be managed by the prefect. When it comes to May, more summer grain will be urged, and the court's taxes cannot be delayed."

Song Ning was a little speechless: "The big sentence of tax extortion has stirred up chaos among the people, and they want to direct the disaster to Zhu. But Zhu's methods are tough, so how can he sit still? At that time, he will definitely order to allow the counties to owe summer grain. It is the right to do so in the event of a natural disaster.”

"Then he will bear full responsibility for the arrears of taxes!" Li Daochong said.

"Does he really care about taking responsibility for what he says and does?" Song Ning asked.

As soon as this remark came out, Li Daochong was speechless for a moment.

As the saying goes, if you stand on a wall, you can be strong without desire.Zhu Ming is not afraid of taking responsibility, does not ask for money, does not seek promotion, and has no scruples in doing things. Ordinary means are useless to him.

Song Ning bowed his hands and said goodbye. He was going to lie down and was too lazy to fight with Zhu Ming.

When Song Ning left the general judgment hall, the subordinate officials immediately went in and reported: "The judge has already found out that the two or three hundred people are iron smelters and blacksmiths hired by Zhu Taishou from Xuzhou. Zhu Taishou also used the county's iron The merchant secretly bought iron ore, and seemed to be building an iron smelting plant.”

Li Daochong patted his thigh and said with a smile: "I thought he was really a saint who eats summer and drinks dew. It turns out that he also wants to do business to make money."

The official said: "I'm afraid I won't make a lot of money by smelting iron in Jinzhou."

"I don't care if he makes money or not. Anyway, let him lose money! If he cuts off my money, I will cut off his money too." Li Daochong gritted his teeth.

Of the three major iron smelting bases in the Northern Song Dynasty, two were in Shandong and one was in Hebei (Cizhou).

The various prohibitions on ironware are also mainly enforced in these places, and rarely disturb the iron smelting industry in other branches.

Li Daochong couldn't remember clearly. He didn't know whether the imperial court's iron ban was effective outside of Shandong and Hebei.Forget it, try banning it, it's going to cause some trouble anyway.

This guy, who had laid off the officials from Shiyiwu, recruited some of them back to collect taxes from Zhu Ming's iron smelting plant, and even ordered Zhu Ming to sell the pig iron smelted to the government.

Even Li Daochong himself didn't think it would work, and Zhu Ming definitely wouldn't cooperate, he was just doing something to disgust people.

Li Daochong was very disappointed by those dismissed officials.They were urged to go to the prefectural office to make a noise, but none of them dared to go, and they were all frightened by the magistrate.For fear of causing trouble and going to prison, the principal offender will be assassinated directly, and the accomplice will also have to be punished.

Li Daochong was making arrangements when the subordinate officials suddenly came to report: "Big verdict, Taishou Zhu has...made a move again!"

Li Daochong was terrified like a conditional launch, and panicked: "What is he doing again?"

"Clean up the nursing homes and beggars!" The official replied.

……

"Where is the management of Jinzhou Nursing Home?"

Without any warning, Zhu Ming led people straight to the Nursing Home, and even the government officials who followed him out were not aware of the situation.

There is only one old janitor in the nursing home, and the yard inside has already grown grass.

The old man said: "Monk Guan Gou didn't have enough to eat, and he went out of the city for alms for several years and didn't come back."

In the Song Dynasty, monks were basically responsible for the daily management of charitable organizations. After the Huizong Dynasty, there were more Taoist priests.

Regardless of monks and Taoists, they are only responsible for management, and it depends on whether the government will provide funds.

The government provides funds, and they can embezzle.

The government does not provide funds, and it is difficult for them to even eat.

The monks in the Jinzhou Nursing Home were very unlucky. They couldn't get a penny of funds, so they were so hungry that they had to go out for alms by themselves.

Zhu Ming rushed back to the state government on horseback, and called Fan Zhun and Guo Wenzhong, who were both in charge, and said, "You two, immediately check the account books of the Yangjiyuan and Anjifang, and the officials involved must surrender within three days. "Song Xingtong" punishes sins with copper!"

In the laws before the Ming Dynasty, except for the "ten evils", all crimes could be fined with money.

What made the Song Dynasty more advanced than the Tang Dynasty was that ordinary officials could not pay fines to atone for capital crimes, which was the prerogative of the royal relatives and bigwigs.Middle and low-level officials and civilians, only the elderly or children, can be punished with copper to avoid death (although according to the usual practice, civilian officials are generally not sentenced to death).

Beating the board and exile can also be redeemed for copper.

Ten whips are fined for one catty of copper, and ten boards are fined for ten catties of copper. The regulations are very specific.

As soon as the state government sent people to check the accounts, the news spread quickly, and more than a dozen officials rushed to surrender with money.

Even Fan Zhun, who was in charge of checking the accounts, quietly called his cronies and said, "Go to my house immediately and ask my wife to send some copper coins. She said that I would surrender myself, and I am afraid that I will be fined ten pennies to redeem my crime."

Fan Zhun also had no choice. He was not the only one who took the lead in checking the accounts, and Guo Wenzhong was also supervising it.

Zhu Ming ordered Wang Jia to go out with the Yaqian officials to arrest beggars inside and outside the city.

Handicapped beggars are thrown directly into nursing homes and do some light physical work within their capabilities.

Sick beggars are sent to Anjifang for treatment.

All able-bodied beggars were detained and sent to Zhu Ming's charcoal field to cut wood and burn charcoal.As for the original workers in the charcoal field, if they are stronger, they will switch jobs to mine iron ore—they are all open-pit mines, and there is no danger for the time being.

At the same time, there must be interrogation. If there is a beggar leader who commits a crime, he will be immediately escorted to the Judiciary for trial.

In an instant, chickens and dogs jumped around inside and outside the city, and the beggars cried and shouted loudly, thinking that the government wanted to kill them.

The next day Wang Jia came to report: "Prefect, according to the confession of disabled beggars, there is a group of beggars' heads outside Jinzhou City. They picked raw animals, cut them up, and occasionally abducted women and children. I sent people to arrest them last night, and only four of them were arrested. Hearing the news, he absconded."

Zhu Ming was furious: "Issuing a sea arrest document, one person will be rewarded with ten coins. Those who provide strong clues will be rewarded with five coins. If you encounter resistance, you will be beaten to death!"

Harvesting and cutting off is to turn normal people into cripples and control them to beg along the street, and those who are cut off are often young children.

Wang Jia said in a low voice: "Prefect, I suspect that the subordinate officials have reported the news. I have heard about these beggars for a long time. I only brought a few cronies to interrogate yesterday. After asking the address, I ordered arrest immediately. Just like this, all the rumors were leaked, and the beggars were let out. I ran a few."

"It's fine if you can't find out the whistleblower, as long as you don't do it." Zhu Ming ordered.

Wang Jia recommended too many Yaqian officials and town soldiers, and his influence rose rapidly in the state government.

Although Ju Ming trusts him a lot, he can't give him too many opportunities.The investigation of ghosts can be investigated, but it cannot be expanded to prevent Wang Jia from taking the opportunity to eliminate dissidents.

"Yes!" Wang Jia took the order and left.

To investigate official charitable organizations and clean up beggars inside and outside the city is Zhu Ming's decree that kills four birds with one stone.

One is to rectify law and order.

Some of the letters received by the public opinion box were reports of disappearances.

This kind of case is under the jurisdiction of the county government, but the family members do not trust the officials of Xicheng County, because it is useless to report the case, so they ask the prefect to help find the family members.

There was even a whistleblower who said that he discovered that his child had become a monster with missing hands and legs, and that he was insane and couldn't recognize his parents.He also reported to the government before that the beggar killed a picked child, the government could not confirm the identity of the disabled child, and soon the child disappeared completely.

Such an evil force must be eradicated!
The second is to eliminate hidden dangers.

After another two months, a large number of hungry people will flow to the city, and the beggar group will definitely take the opportunity to grow.

The gang of beggars has to be destroyed in advance, which is more conducive to the management of the hungry people.

The third is to manage charitable organizations, so that the Nursing Home and Anjifang can get on the right track.

The fourth is to get some cheap labor for their own charcoal field. After all, both charcoal burning and mining require manpower.

A series of rectification actions not only cleaned up the beggars, but also frightened the local ruffians, and the law and order in the entire Jinzhou City improved instantly.

(End of this chapter)