Jingnan Strategy

Chapter 486: Think twice about others

"boom!"

In October, despite the cold weather, the railway construction project could not slow down.

On the route from Shuozhou to Taiyuan, amid the sound of hammers hitting sleepers and rails, thousands of workers exhaled and worked feverishly to build this section of the railway.

Most of them are part-time workers recruited from nearby areas, and some are long-term workers who follow the team during construction.

The difference between short-term workers and long-term workers is nothing more than the length of time they can stay on the construction site.

In this era of extremely low returns from agriculture, working as a laborer has gradually become the mainstream of people in the Ming Dynasty, and among them, railway workers are the most stable and long-lasting.

A skilled railway worker can lay at least ten steps of sleepers and rails every day, and such a person is a talent on any section of the line.

It's just that under the general environment, talents may not be of great use, at least in the Shuozhou-Taiyuan section of the Northwest Railway.

A quarter of an hour of hammer swing is too much for even a young and strong young man.

Six hundred coins is twelve days' income. Although these supervisors dare not deduct wages, they have many ways to make money.

They have one hour of rest time. Of course, if both of them are long-term workers, as long as they are given enough money, they don't have to work at all.

For example, the two men in their thirties who gathered around the fat man and communicated with him in a flattering manner gave him enough money.

The young man had gone to elementary school. When he heard this, he immediately said: "This guy must have paid money to the people above, otherwise he wouldn't have received such a good job."

The old worker was silent when he heard this, and after a long while he said: "The salary will be paid as usual, but on the first night of payment, at least three hundred cash must be sent to him privately."

Fatty Wang, who originally looked like a master, saw the carriage and trotted forward in a flattering manner, his whole body trembling with fat.

The old man sighed and regretted that he was not Fatty Wang himself.

The young man looked at the two flattering people and couldn't help but ask the old man.

"Okay, I'm just here to tell you this. You can choose forty long-term workers to go south and look for them."

The old worker was worried that the young man would make him angry, so he quickly picked up the hammer and pretended to scold him. At the same time, he turned his back to the fat man and stretched out his hand towards the young man, pretending to hit him.

The old Changgong's words made the young man look unhappy. At the age of eighteen or nineteen, he was at the age of passion. Hearing this, he immediately retorted:
"Eat, eat, eat, one day this Fatty Wang will be exhausted to death!"

The car door was opened a small crack, but Fatty Wang did not rush up. Instead, he leaned on the crack of the door and said flatteringly:

While they were working, a carriage slowly came to the construction site.

"You guy, why do you keep throwing things away?"

"I gave it. He thought my gift was too small and refused to accept it." The young man said this awkwardly, but the old man asked strangely: "How much did you give?"

"Hmph!" The young man snorted coldly, and at the same time glanced at the team that stretched to the horizon with almost no end.

"I saw your gift yesterday, and you are considerate of it. When the time comes from Taiyuan to Fenzhou, you should follow suit."

"Look at us long-term workers. The work we do every day is the easiest. You short-term workers are exhausted from work."

"Yes, thank you, Mr. Wang, thank you, Mr. Wang!"

"At least not less than this number."

As his henchmen, Liu Wu and Wu Er hurriedly came over, handing over water and coarse cloth.

Looking at the carriage going away, Liu Wu, who was in his thirties, exclaimed: "Boss, this guy charged us ten thousand dollars yesterday, and he doesn't even want to get off the carriage?"

"What, you gave him a gift?"

"Hey, you can't talk nonsense." The old man looked around quickly and made sure no one heard him before he said:

"Master Wang, you are here..."

"It has only been four months since I came to this construction site. I heard that his family has begun to build a courtyard with three entrances and exits. He also specially found two thin horses from Zhili in the south for himself. What do you think of this person? ah……"

"Three hundred coins, that's six days' wages, all for working for him!" The young man threw the hammer in his hand to the ground angrily, and the movement attracted a fat man not far away.

Looking at this scene, the fat man withdrew his eyes, and the young man also took the hammer angrily.

As Master Wang spoke, Fatty Wang nodded and bowed. After a while, the carriage began to turn back, and Fatty Wang trotted to see each other for a short distance before wiping his cheeks, which were full of grease and sweat.

Putting down the hammer to change the shift, a young man of 18 or 19 gasped and wiped his sweat, laying sleepers for him. When the 40-year-old worker fixing the rails saw this, he looked around and whispered:
"Look, you didn't listen when I asked you to give something to Supervisor Wang, and now you have to continue hammering here."

"Yes, yes, the grassroots will definitely do a good job!"

"Fat Wang and I used to live in the same town. He couldn't read before and he didn't have a wife in his forties."

"At least half a month's wages." The young man spoke quickly, and the old man was speechless: "His appetite is getting bigger and bigger, and even so much can't satisfy his appetite."

In the car, the man who was called Mr. Wang couldn't help but smile a little proudly when he heard this, and touched his goat's beard with his hand.

The salary given by the court was fifty cents per day, which was almost three times the normal salary.

"How much money did Liu Wu and Wu Er pay so that they didn't even have to work every day?"

Under the service of the two men, Fatty Wang felt a little more comfortable.

The old man made a six sign, which made the young man tighten his grip on the hammer.

Fatty Wang nodded and bowed, much like the so-called Lord Wang's dog.

"I don't know. Let's work quickly..." The old worker shook his head, pulled the young man and lowered his head to change shifts with the people in front.

"He has one supervisor in charge of a hundred people, and you old long-term workers account for thirty of them. You don't pay him less every month, right?"

"I have twenty teams in my hands, what can I do with five guans of money?" Fatty Wang breathed a sigh of relief, and then said:

"Our team can hire forty permanent workers. You two can choose between the ten extra spots."

"Don't worry, boss, we promise to complete it!" Liu Wu patted his chest, and Fatty Wang nodded and continued to inspect the construction site.

The standards of the Ministry of Industry are very strict. If something goes wrong on the railway, his wealth will be over. He doesn't dare to neglect his duties in such a thing that would cost him his head.

Fatty Wang is like a hound, constantly wandering on his section of the railway.

At the same time, the so-called Mr. Wang who left in a carriage also walked a few hundred steps in a carriage and came to the yard of a temporary concrete bungalow.

This will be the sentinel courtyard of the Military and Horse Division in the future, and it is also the place where the current supervisors who manage this section of the project rest.

Mr. Wang, who was so arrogant in front of Fatty Wang, walked into the courtyard like Fatty Wang in a flattering manner and gently knocked on a courtyard door.

"Come in!"

A voice came out from inside, and the so-called Lord Wang walked into it.

The room was equipped with floor heating and a heated kang, which made it very warm. There was a man wearing the uniform of an eighth-grade official sitting inside. He was lying on a chair moistly, and in front of him was a worker with swollen chests.

Although the worker lowered his head, he could still tell that he looked somewhat pretty.

Lord Wang bowed when he saw this and said: "Master Bo..."

"Well, I saw your stuff, it's pretty good..."

The master didn't even open his eyes. He just stretched his legs a little, and was put on his lap by the worker, who kept kneading him with his hands.

Enjoying the heat in the room and the touch on his feet, the master slowly opened his eyes.

"Although the gifts are in place, the project still needs attention. If you can't do this job well, you have to lose your head."

"In addition, the number of long-term workers should be recruited as secretly as possible. The court does not allow the recruitment of long-term workers. If a critical moment comes, they have to know what to say and what not to say."

"Your Majesty, I understand." The so-called Lord Wang was dressed in official uniform and bowed flatteringly.

"Okay, back off."

"I am resigning..."

As soon as the boss spoke, the official Wang left the room and closed the door.

Seeing that the door was closed, the host also put away his indifferent appearance, bowed and stretched out his hand, and pulled the somewhat pretty female worker into his arms.

"grown ups……"

The female worker was so frightened that her voice trembled. When the boss heard this, she said in a bad tone: "I give you the wages of four people every day, and you are going to serve me like this?"

"I..." After hearing this, the female worker did not dare to say anything more. The boss also raised and lowered his hands, and said regretfully at the same time:
"What a pity... what a pity... If I had met you a few years earlier, I would have been able to love you a few years earlier."

As soon as he finished speaking, the boss's actions became more extreme. He pulled the female worker into the resting bedroom next door.

Two hours later, he walked out of the bedroom out of breath, exhausted by the wine. After taking a few breaths, he walked out of the warm room.

Outside the house, an official was waiting at the entrance of the courtyard early. When he saw his master walking out of the house, he stepped forward and bowed.

"Have everything been delivered?"

The master loosened the belt that was too tight just now, and the clerk nodded and said: "One hundred guan, not a penny less."

"Just deliver it to me." Zhu Bo nodded, and then went to inspect the construction site.

Scenes like this keep happening at various construction sites, and such a scene will naturally not be ignored by Zhu Gaoxu.

Hundreds of miles away, he was holding a booklet in his hand, which clearly recorded the names and official positions of many people.

This nearly three-inch-thick document records the names and official positions of no fewer than ten thousand people, including the wailang and chief officials of the Six Ministries in Beijing, as well as local officials, including their corrupt methods.

"Your Majesty, with so many people here, can we take action?"

Sitting on the chair, the Jin Yiwei commander in charge of all this made Liu Mian eager to try.

Obviously, the document in Zhu Gaoxu's hand is what he found out after rectifying the Jinyi Guards. If this matter is implemented, it will be the biggest case in the Hongxi period.

But compared to his excitement, Zhu Gaoxu's expression was calm: "I will keep this matter under control for now and continue to investigate. When the court needs it, you can take action."

"Yes!" Liu Mian nodded with regret, but compared to him, Zhu Gaoxu was not regretful.

From elementary school to middle school, he trained so many New Deal students, but in the end these people still ended up falling into the dye vat.

Maybe it’s because he can’t stand and talk, but he is indeed very disappointed with these New Deal students. "Your Majesty, will I resign?"

Seeing that Zhu Gaoxu was silent, Liu Mian bowed cautiously and asked.

"Go down and find these people."

Zhu Gaoxu said lightly, and Liu Mian bowed and left Wuying Hall.

Not long after, Zhu Zhanhe's voice sounded outside the palace, and the eunuchs on duty also hurriedly sang the salute.

"come in"

Following Zhu Gaoxu's call, Zhu Zhanhe also came quickly with a memorial.

"Dad, the Oris army and people's marshal's palace has won a great victory!"

After he finished speaking, he opened the memorial and handed it to Zhu Gaoxu, who also took it and looked at it.

[In the summer and June of the fifth year, Yi Chou and Shuo Jihai, the grandson of Marshal Sigong of the Oris Army and People's Marshal's Mansion was imprisoned and sent monks to Lhasa to ask for help. Li Ying, the commander of the capital, heard that Kasmir led his army to invade the Oris Military and People's Marshal's Mansion. , drove two thousand riders to Xiangxiong, crossed Qiangtang and the Greater Snowy Mountains, and fought with Kasmir Zain, beheading 3,674 Zayin. Zayin fled to the Snowy Mountains. 】

[After the war, Fu Si Ruo Man Lai came to Xiang Xiong. When Si Ruo Man Lai heard that the heavenly soldiers were coming, he burst into tears of gratitude. From then on, he paid tribute of 100 taels of gold and 500 taels of silver to the land as taxes every year. 】

Looking at the good news, Zhu Gaoxu could only say that fortunately Li Ying won the battle. If he had lost, he would not be lenient.

"It was wrong to mobilize troops without authorization. I will be fined half a year's salary. I repel the enemy. I have done a good job in protecting the army and people of Oris. I will be rewarded with three hundred colorful coins and one hundred pieces of brocade."

"In addition, officials from the Ministry of War and the Sixth Army Governor's Office are sent to verify the number of beheadings. If the beheadings are true, a reward of five thorns will be given to each prisoner's head, and the Ministry of Household Affairs will allocate it."

Zhu Gaoxu made clear rewards and punishments, but Zhu Zhanhe was speechless and hesitated: "This... the local generals are outside, so they naturally know the local situation. Although Li Ying's move is inappropriate, it is not like he will be fined for half a year..."

"Then what do you think it should be?" Zhu Gaoxu raised his head and looked at Zhu Zhanhe. Upon seeing this, Zhu Zhanhe thought for a moment and said, "How about three months' salary?"

"Just do as you say." Zhu Gaoxu nodded and pushed the thick book to Zhu Zhanhe.

"You will have to go somewhere after the Lantern Festival. Before that, I have to let you know what the Ming Dynasty really looked like."

"The real appearance?" Zhu Zhanhe noticed something was wrong, picked up the thick book and opened it.

Just at the beginning of the chapter, Zhu Zhanhe was already shocked by the content. He didn't even bother to greet his father, so he subconsciously sat next to him and flipped through the book page by page.

Zhu Gaoxu didn't bother him when he saw this. He lowered his head and calmly dealt with the memorial in front of him, as if nothing had happened.

Half an hour later, Zhu Zhanhe slowly walked out of the album and closed it with a heavy heart.

His expression was slightly complicated, and he looked at his father who was as calm as water.

"Dad, has this case been resolved?"

Zhu Zhanhe became much calmer. If it were him before going to guard the border, he would have screamed that he wanted to kill all these people, but now he can suppress his temper and ask questions.

"It hasn't been done yet, and maybe it won't be dealt with in the next two or three years."

Zhu Gaoxu spoke in an understatement. Hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu felt a little uncomfortable, but he quickly suppressed it.

"Are you planning to take action when the national debt is repaid?"

Zhu Zhanhe was not stupid. After all, he had learned so much economic knowledge in middle school, and he often corresponded with Jianghuai, so he naturally knew the weight of this booklet.

It can be said that if the case is handled in accordance with this manual, at least tens of thousands of people will be directly arrested, hundreds of thousands of people will be implicated, and the amount involved will not be less than 5 million yuan.

If the wealth accumulated by these people in the past is added, the final proceeds from house confiscation can even be doubled several times.

At this moment, Zhu Zhanhe understood why his grandfather said that his father was ruthless.

Other emperors at least had basic respect for the scholar-bureaucrats. Even his own grandfather, who scolded Confucian scholars as old barbarians every day, did not fall short in his superficial work.

In comparison, my father is very consistent with the opening sentence of "Laozi"... The heaven and the earth are unkind, and treat all things as stupid dogs. The saint is unkind and treats the common people as stupid dogs.

The so-called Chu dog is a dog made of grass during sacrifices in the pre-Qin Dynasty.

It is worshiped by the world during sacrifices.

After the sacrifice, it was abandoned in the wild by the world and trampled upon.

Nature and heaven and earth have no selfishness or discrimination. They regard all things as equal.

This is the same for the sage. He regards the people as equals.

Perhaps in the eyes of his father, except for those close to him, everyone else is equal.

Officials, Confucian scholars, common people, livestock...

In the eyes of his father, these people or animals are all actually the same.

Perhaps at this moment, Zhu Zhanhe barely understood the meaning of "Emperor" and the heaviness of "Emperor".

Throughout the ages, who can treat any existence as equally as the "heaven and earth" mentioned in "Laozi"?

Even if he is his own father, doesn’t he still need to worry about the relationship between father and son?

"Leave it alone first and let their snowball grow bigger."

Zhu Gaoxu held a red pen in his hand and mechanically dealt with each piece of government affairs, without any regard for the future of tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of people.

"But the people..."

Zhu Zhanhe wanted to say that the people would be continuously exploited during this waiting process, but the words came to his lips but he could not say them.

This group of people are exploiting the people, so if there is a different group of people, they won't be exploiting?
Of course it's impossible. If these people were really that good, they wouldn't be corrupt.

Zhu Zhanhe suddenly became worried about Jianghuai. He was worried that his good friend would also lose his true heart in the local area.

"It is pitiful that people are being exploited, but repeated torture is the most harmful to the interests of the people."

Zhu Gaoxu suddenly spoke and said with a bit of education:
“Let’s get the immediate things done first so that the people can get some of the money and go home.”

"When the people return home, we can take action, and the action is to take back this part of the embezzled wealth to the state, and then distribute it to the people through fairer means and policies. This is called resource distribution."

"Although during the distribution process, many people may join in and undermine the originally formulated policy, as long as 20 portions of the 100 portions of meat are distributed to the people, it represents the success of the policy."

"As for the eighty pieces of meat that were corrupted, you can keep records like the account book in your hand. When the people have no meat to eat, you must be ruthless to cut off the meat of these guys and feed the people with their meat. "

"This world is a world where people eat people. The difference is that our Tian family stands at the highest position and can distribute the flesh and blood on the table at will during a certain period of time."

"If you want to control the distribution rights for a long time, you must have enough flesh and blood to train hounds, so that the hounds can intimidate other people at the table who are not convinced."

"Hounds are an army, and flesh and blood are resources. As for the master who can control all this, it depends on who is sitting at the table."

"The masters of the table will change. Some masters are strong and some are weak and stupid."

"If the master is weak and stupid, the master may be brought to the table."

"I am telling you this because I want you to know that if you don't want to share their flesh and blood, you must share your own flesh and blood."

"If you don't divide anything, then the people will want to divide your flesh and blood."

After Zhu Gaoxu finished speaking, he didn't know whether Zhu Zhanhe understood it, but at least he said it.

"My son..."

Zhu Zhanhe seemed to have not yet come out of the cannibalistic world that Zhu Gaoxu said. Zhu Gaoxu was also very patient, waiting for him to speak while processing the memorial.

After a while, Zhu Zhanhe said with difficulty: "I understand."

"You may not understand it, but it's okay. You will understand it in the future."

Zhu Gaoxu put down his ink pen, sighed and looked at Zhu Zhanhe.

"Wherever there is white, there is black. It is impossible to completely eliminate all black, but you have to control this degree."

“You must use the right people, and you must not let others cover your eyes or ears.”

"Only by keeping an eye on all directions and listening in all directions can you truly drive the carriage of the Ming Dynasty well."

"I actually don't want you to go to Longchuan, because it's so cleanly managed there."

Zhu Gaoxu seemed to be praising Jiang Huai, but he meant that being too clean was not good, so Zhu Zhanhe couldn't help but said: "Isn't it bad to be clean?"

"It's okay to be clean, but sometimes being too clean will lead to the opposite." Zhu Gaoxu looked at Zhu Zhanhe's unconvinced eyes.

"It's impossible for him to sit in that position for the rest of his life, and it's impossible for him to guarantee that he can stick to his heart for the rest of his life."

"I hope it will be natural. Therefore, the wind will not last forever, and the rain will not last forever. Who is this? Heaven and earth. Heaven and earth cannot last forever, how about humans?"

He taught by words and deeds, but when faced with his words, Zhu Zhanhe still couldn't control the aloofness in his bones, and said harshly:
"I just think that black is black and white is white. No one dares to say black or white anymore, let alone other things?"

Facing his appearance, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but think of his young self in his previous life.

Maybe he was wrong, or maybe Zhu Zhanhe was too protected by him. His words made Zhu Gaoxu not know what to say, or Zhu Zhanhe couldn't even listen to what he said now.

Facing Zhu Zhanhe, he leaned on the chair: "You have your own strength, but not everyone is you..."

"It seems that it is right to let you practice this time, but the training time is too short and will not be of any benefit to you."

Zhu Gaoxu thought for a moment, and then said:

"I allow you to practice in Longchuan for one year. After one year, I will transfer you to another place to practice for another two years."

"If you can still hold on to your integrity after three years, then I won't say another word to you."

Zhu Zhanhe felt dissatisfied in his heart, and he bowed and said, "I would like to thank your majesty for your support!"

After the words fell, Zhu Gaoxu waved his hand, indicating that he could go out.

When Zhu Zhanhe saw this, he turned around and left, leaving only the empty Wuying Hall and Zhu Gaoxu, who was slanted by the sun.

Apart from him, there are few bright places in the palace...

(End of this chapter)