Guide to Traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty.

Chapter 979 0974 [The Hero Who Followed the Dragon and Didn’t Do Well]

The closer it is to Yanshan Prefecture (Beijing), the more prosperous the population becomes, and it has already reached the county level of Jiangnan.

Quite sad.

It was a provincial capital and once the capital of the Liao Dynasty, but its population was only equivalent to that of a county town in the south of the Yangtze River.

The age structure remains the same, but there are a lot of children, all of whom were born in recent years!

The prefect of Yanshan was named Shao Yi. When Zhu Ming started his rebellion in Jinzhou, he was the bailiff of Xicheng County and was forced into the rebellion without knowing why.

This person is good at small tricks to fight for power and profit. He likes to make money but dare not be greedy for too much.

My abilities are limited, and my courage is limited too.

When he was forced to join the rebellion, he was even prepared to surrender and would immediately surrender the city if the government troops came.

Such a person has actually become a prefect.

Who can blame him for his rich experience? He was an old acquaintance of Zhu Ming when he was the governor of Jinzhou. When Zhu Ming first started his rebellion, he appointed four county magistrates, and Shao Yi was one of them.

If Shao Yi had been more capable, he would have been promoted to a senior official long ago. This prefect was promoted purely by virtue of his seniority.

Considering my age, it’s time for me to retire.

Shao Yi was quite old and not good enough with women, so he liked to show off his literary talent and often called together scholars in his jurisdiction to hold literary gatherings.

Moreover, he wrote inscriptions everywhere when traveling. His handwriting was average and his poems were even more mediocre, but they were always carved on stone tablets and cliff walls.

Serious things are also done, such as promoting culture and education.

He allocated funds from the government treasury to support the construction of community schools and village schools, and gave subsidies to teachers of community schools and village schools. He then publicized it as his own achievements, and every time he held a literary gathering, scholars would write poems to flatter him.

He also visited official schools at all levels from time to time. In his words, he encouraged people to study and support the younger generation.

The real reason was that the population in the area was too small. Apart from organizing the people to dredge the irrigation canals during the slack season, there was nothing to do at other times. For daily affairs, it didn't matter whether there was a prefect or not. Only certain matters required the prefect's signature and seal.

At this moment, Shao Yi was inspecting Yanshan Prefecture School.

Professors, instructors and other teachers gathered in the courtyard with their students, wasting a lot of time listening to Governor Shao bragging.

Those braggings have been made so many times that my ears are callused from hearing them.

But Shao Yi continued to repeat with great interest:

"In the early Song Dynasty, Ankang Prefecture was still called Jinzhou. Xicheng County was the county seat of Jinzhou, and I worked as a bailiff in Xicheng County..."

"You all know that the former Song Dynasty was ruled by corrupt officials and corrupt officials. Although I am upright and honest, the governor, prefectural judge, and county magistrate are all corrupt officials! One year, the governor was suddenly replaced. Guess who it was?"

Having said this, Shao Yi deliberately kept the question in suspense.

The teacher and students could only pretend not to know and asked in unison: "But His Majesty?"

Shao Yi smiled and slapped his thigh, "It is the Holy Emperor of the Ming Dynasty! Your Majesty took office in Jinzhou and went on a private visit. At the northern foot of Fenghuang Mountain and west of Hengkou Town, he saw many farmers panning for gold during the spring plowing season. He asked an old farmer and found out that it was the prefect who forced the farmers to pan for gold, even during the spring plowing season. Why did the prefect dare to do that? It was because the former Song Dynasty was too corrupt and the officials exploited the people at will..."

"Who is that state judge? He is the confidant of the former Song Jingxi Road Transport Commissioner. Who is the Jingxi Road Transport Commissioner? He is a relative of the treacherous minister Cai Jing! The official residence of the transport commissioner is in Luoyang, and he is also responsible for rebuilding the Luoyang Palace. The current palace was renovated by him. In order to make the palace walls beautiful, this guy first used ox bones to grind powder to make mortar, and killed all the oxen around Luoyang City! Later, he heard that human bones were better, so he went to the mass grave to get human bones, and even dug up graves to get bones, causing Luoyang people to boil with resentment..."

"The Emperor of the Ming Dynasty reduced taxes and levies in Luoyang, while the transport envoys of the former Song Dynasty dug up graves and dug up bones in Luoyang. Comparing the two, who is more benevolent? Even a fool can tell! If the former Song Dynasty doesn't perish, who will perish? If the Ming Dynasty doesn't prosper, who will prosper? And speaking of your majesty taking office in Jinzhou... Hey, where was I just now?"

Some students were already lowering their heads to hold back their laughter.

This prefect is not only old, but he also drank too much when he was young, which probably damaged his brain and caused his memory to be poor.

The teachers and students said in unison: "Your Majesty saw the farmers in Jinzhou panning for gold during the spring plowing."

Shao Yi suddenly recalled: "Yes, yes, yes. His Majesty told the farmers to go back to the fields and I will take care of the affairs here. He also drew his sword and showed his official badge, dispersed the wing troops who were supervising the mining of gold, and rushed to Hengkou Town to question the tax collectors..."

The old man spoke eloquently and what he said was actually quite interesting.

But the teachers and students were drowsy as they listened. They had heard it too many times and were very familiar with the emperor's governance of Jinzhou and his uprising.

Moreover, Shao Yi boasted too much and exaggerated his stories about how he assisted the emperor.

Especially when Zhu Ming started his rebellion, he only appointed four county magistrates, and Shao Yi always said that he was the leader of the four county magistrates because he was the magistrate of Pingli County, which was closest to Jinzhou City.

He also said that the current Right Vice Minister of the Ministry of Personnel, Zeng Xiaoduan, was only the magistrate of Xunyang County at that time, and was even farther away from Jinzhou City than he was.

He also said that the unjust case of Zeng Xiaoduan's family was overturned only because of his assistance to the emperor.

Teachers and students were all complaining in their hearts: You are so amazing, but you are only the prefect of Yanshan at your age, while others have become the right assistant minister of the Ministry of Personnel. Suddenly, an official came running and whispered in Shao Yi's ear: "Prefect, an angel passed by and has rested in the posthouse outside the city."

Shao Yi quickly stood up and said to the teachers and students, "Students, please go back to study. Professor Zhang, please follow me out of the city to welcome the angel."

"Farewell, Governor!"

The teachers and students felt as if they had been pardoned and happily sent the prefect away.

Back in the classroom, a student sighed: "Such a person who seeks fame and reputation, has no ability, and is confused, can actually become a prefect. Alas!"

"It's fate," another student said with a smile, "He was a meritorious official who served the emperor, and one of the four county magistrates when your majesty started the rebellion. If he really had some ability, would he stay in a remote place like Yanshan? Didn't you see the other three county magistrates at that time, one was the left vice minister of the Ministry of Justice, one was the right vice minister of the Ministry of Personnel, and one was the left governor of Shanxi?"

Another student asked, "The four county magistrates are like this, but why didn't you hear Governor Shao mention the governor of Jinzhou appointed by your majesty?"

"The governor mentioned it when he let it slip," someone who knew the situation whispered, "The prefect of Jinzhou at the time was called Liu Shiren, who moved to Daming Township and lived there for a few years. He was the first prefect of Hanzhong promoted by the retired emperor. Later, he was implicated in a major national case that year and was demoted. No one knows what position he holds now. If Liu Shiren had not been implicated, he would at least be a minister now, and he might even have joined the cabinet."

The students sighed, "This is very unlucky. He was only demoted, which means he was not involved in the case too deeply. He was probably implicated by his family. It's sad that he lost his position as a cabinet minister like this!"

At that time, there were three villages in Daming Township. The Liu Shiren brothers, one succeeded Meng Zhao as the principal of the village school, and the other was one of the village heads of Daming Township.

During the time when Zhu Ming was transferred away from Jinzhou, Liu Shiren assisted Zhu Guoxiang in preparing for the rebellion.

After the conquest of Jinzhou, Liu Shiren was in charge of all government affairs in Jinzhou. Later, when the entire Hanzhong was conquered, Liu Shiren became the first prefect of Hanzhong.

The first prefect of the Ming Dynasty!
The first prefect of the Ming Dynasty!
If such a person had not been involved in a major case, he would have entered the cabinet by now. The time he was demoted, he was already the Minister of the Left.

The court was very secretive about this matter, and Zhu Ming handled it very low-key, sending him to a remote place to be a prefect. His current position is the Left Governor of Guangxi.

……

When the magistrate Shao, who was always clumsy in his work, saw the imperial envoy's high spirits, he burst into laughter as soon as he entered the posthouse: "Why didn't you send anyone to inform us that the angel had arrived?"

The county magistrate who had been receiving Zongwu at the post station introduced him, "This is Prefect Shao. When Your Majesty started the rebellion in Jinzhou, Prefect Shao was one of the four county magistrates appointed by Your Majesty."

"Haha, it's all old news," Shao Yi said, waving his hands complacently, "Not worth mentioning, not worth mentioning."

Zong Wu heard this and did not dare to neglect it. He bowed respectfully and said, "I am Zong Wu, a junior student. I am here to see the governor in person."

The county magistrate then introduced: "This angel is the great-nephew of Elder Zong Ge."

Shao Yi became even more enthusiastic, holding Zong Wu's hand and saying, "So it's Young Master Zong."

After a few pleasantries, Shao Yi wanted to host a banquet and invite Zong Wu to the government office for a drink, but Zong Wu politely declined on the grounds that he was in a hurry.

Shao Yi asked, "Where are you going, young master?"

Zong Wu bowed in the direction of Luoyang and said, "I am ordered by the Emperor to go to Linhuang Protectorate to reward the meritorious officers and soldiers there."

Shao Yi said: "It's not an easy journey."

"Why?" Zong Wu asked.

Shao Yi explained: "The people living in the mountains along the way have all moved down and settled down to share the land. They took refuge in the mountains during the Liao and Jin dynasties. Who would want to live in the mountains when the world is at peace? Even the Liao Dynasty's Bei'an Prefecture (Luanping and Chengde areas) has only a few people left now, and the Ming Dynasty didn't even have a county. Without people, wolves and wolves are in power, and the wild animals in the mountains are very fierce."

Zong Wu wondered, "Since the Liao Kingdom was able to establish a state, there must be a lot of land that can be cultivated, right?"

Shao Yi said: "The Jin Kingdom built strong defenses and cleared the fields, taking all the people away, and many people starved to death on the way. Later, when the Jin Kingdom was destroyed, those people settled in Dading Prefecture and were unwilling to go into the mountains and return to Bei'an Prefecture. I heard from officials who came back from the north that the capital of Bei'an Prefecture is empty. There is only one post station, which is stationed with 200 soldiers and their families, and about 100 families who fled into the mountains and returned. In total, there are only about 1,000 people, all living in the city or on the outskirts of the city. If you are a little further away from the city, you will encounter wolves, tigers and leopards."

Zong Wu sighed, "It is better to be a dog in peacetime than a man in chaos. There are only a thousand people left in such a state. How difficult it is for people's lives."

Shao Yi smiled and said, "The people there don't have to pay taxes. They just need to contribute some food to support the local post station officials. They live a very comfortable life."

"It's really comfortable." Zong Wu didn't know whether to laugh or cry.

The reason why they don't have to pay taxes is naturally because it is too remote and the population is small, so even the tax collectors are too lazy to collect them.

Shao Yi said, "When the registered population increases to 5,000, the court will re-establish Xinghua County there. Does the angel have soldiers with him?"

Zong Wu said, "I brought more than ten imperial guards, as well as some civilians from Baoding Prefecture."

Shao Yi instructed: "When passing through Miyun, bring more food. Tell the imperial guards to be on guard, as there are indeed ferocious beasts in the mountains."

"Thank you for telling me, Governor." Zong Wu bowed.

As Shao Yi chatted, he started to brag again: "I used to be a bailiff in Xicheng County, Jinzhou..."

(In the previous chapters, some people's titles were wrong, and the ancient Yumen Pass did not take into account the degree of desertification. All have been corrected.)
(End of this chapter)