Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 271 Li Ming breaks feudal superstition
The Lu family residence is located on the outskirts of Youzhou City, on the banks of the Haihe River.

The winding paths lead to secluded places with beautiful scenery.

The mansion covers a vast area, thousands of steps long from east to west and from north to south. In the mansion, small bridges and flowing water flow slowly, and pavilions and terraces are lined up one after another.

A grand family dinner is being held in the luxurious main house.

There is wine like a river, and meat like a hill.

The entire Fanyang Lu clan, whether main branch or side branches, gathered here.

Although the scene was lively, the guests' smiles were forced and there were gloomy looks on their faces.

And who else could be the culprit that made them so unhappy except Li Ming?
That new young master is so unruly!
They actually took away their land!

Throughout the dynasties, no ruler has ever dared to take action against the "land" of the local tyrants!
Even the barbarians Xueyantuo know this rule!

Does that little Guanzhong guy think that Hebei is a barbaric place like Liaodong?

It's totally lawless!

"Why are you so sad? Drink!"

The clan leader, Lao Lu, had a rosy face.

He seemed to be not affected by the change in the situation at all. He ate and drank as usual, often hosting drinking parties and chatting happily with guests.

Today's luxurious family dinner was also organized by him.

"Ah...how can you still eat?"

His fellow tribesmen were not as open-minded as he was.

"Land is our foundation. Without it, our Lu family will gradually wither and there will be no possibility of prosperity!"

"Don't even mention the family's future, even our own future is dark!"

Everyone complained at once and sighed in unison.

Indeed, without land, how can these powerful families who have controlled large amounts of land for generations survive?

In theory, Li Ming did not kill them all, but provided them with a way to make a living.

Either you support yourself like ordinary people, or you do business like businessmen.

It's simply nonsense and outlandish!

The Fanyang Lu family was the descendant of Duke Tai of Qi, a wealthy and noble family. Even the daughters of the imperial family vied to marry them. It was said that "one family with three masters is a great honor for the world."

Let them be self-reliant like the common people?
Can that be the same? !
Besides, working is not as easy as collecting rent...

"Not only the Lu family in Youzhou, but also the Li family in Zhaojun, the Zheng family in Xingyang... the land of everyone in the world has been taken away by the young master."

"He has caused so much trouble to the area, ignoring the opposition of the world. His Highness is truly worthy of his name, and is extremely naughty!"

The so-called "people of the world" they mentioned are naturally the few major families that are in their eyes. Others are tacitly considered not to be human beings.

Old Lu sneered at the worries and hardships of his fellow tribesmen and raised his glass, saying:

“When winter turns to spring, what does a temporary setback matter?
"Our Lu family has been passed down since the Spring and Autumn Period. We have stood firm through thousands of years of wind and rain. What kind of turmoil have we not seen? How could we fall into the hands of a young child?"

"It would be great if it's just as the master said..." The clan members disagreed with Lao Lu's optimism.

Throughout the dynasties, the imperial power has also tried to target these local tyrants.

The local bullies' ways of resistance can be roughly summarized into two methods, one civil and one military.

Needless to say, Wu's strategy was nothing more than building fortresses and bunkers, organizing militias, arming himself like a hedgehog, and making the central government afraid to act rashly.

Facing Li Ming's powerful Red Turban Army, it would be tantamount to seeking death.

Wen’s move is more subtle, similar to “non-violent non-cooperation”.

Because imperial power does not extend below the county level, grassroots governance below the county level is generally "default" and handed over to clans.

Therefore, when governing the country, the rulers must also rely on the cooperation of these local nobles.

If the wealthy families do not cooperate, the emperor will not be able to collect taxes and will have to follow the rule that “government orders cannot leave the county government.”

Of course, this move is even more vulnerable in the face of Li Ming's grassroots organizations.

There were production brigades in the countryside and state-run trading companies in the cities, with professional clerks serving as the link for transmitting information from top to bottom, so there was no need to worry about losing control at the grassroots level.

If the powerful families don’t want to cooperate, then they don’t have to. Who needs pre-modern feudal stuff like clan law?

Faced with Li Ming's dimensionality reduction attack in both civil and military aspects, all the noble families felt despair.

I feel like a praying mantis blocking a car, being ruthlessly crushed by the wheel of time.

"Oh, a tempest in a teapot."

Looking at the panicked expressions of his relatives, Old Lu just smiled mysteriously and took a sip of wine carefully.

He was confident.

In addition to hiring people to cause trouble and attack Li Ming's economic policies.

He also spent a huge amount of money to hoard large quantities of rice, flour, cloth and other daily necessities.

He planned to buy up all the daily necessities in the market and drive up prices.

In Hebei, where a lot of work is in the process of being rebuilt, if there were a shortage of supplies, it would certainly greatly disrupt the ruling order and deal a heavy blow to Li Ming's prestige among the people.

The common people don't care who the culprit is. As long as they can't get food, they will vent their anger on Li Ming.

Of course, to achieve such an effect, the power of the Lu family or even the entire Hebei gentry is not enough.

Old Lu also found a powerful backer for his family.

That is the regent sitting in Chang'an, Li Zhi!
Needless to say, there is a competitive relationship between Li Zhi and Li Ming.

This gives these third-party forces an opportunity to exploit loopholes.

Although Old Lu was very reluctant to serve the Li Tang family's court.

But he hated Li Ming from Liaodong even more.

Faced with two evils, he had no choice but to choose an alliance with Li Zhi.

And Li Zhi definitely did not want to see Li Ming successfully digest Hebei and expand further.

No matter who tries to trip up Li Ming, he will definitely help them.

The two sides hit it off.

"The regent is willing to donate generously. With the financial resources of the court, it will not be easy to defeat Li Ming.

"As long as Hebei is in chaos again, everything will be fine..."

Old Lu was just thinking about it when the butler lowered his head, walked over to him in small steps, bowed his head and whispered:

"Mr. Lu, there are guests coming to visit."

Well, isn't my house full of guests? ...Old Lu felt that something was wrong with the housekeeper today.

"Who is the visitor?"

"Uh..." The butler paused, a conflicted look on his face.

After a moment, he seemed to have made up his mind and whispered:
"I'm from Chang'an."

"Oh! That's a distinguished guest from the court. I'll go and greet him right away."

Old Lu thought that it was Li Zhi's envoy who came, so he immediately put down his cup and stood up, without noticing that the butler looked away guiltily.

"Everyone, eat and drink first, I'll be back soon!"

No matter how arrogant the aristocratic families were, they still had to observe superficial etiquette. When a distinguished guest came, the host would go out personally to greet him.

After walking through the long corridor and passing by the exquisite pool and rockery, Lao Lu finally arrived at the front door of his home.

The gate was open and many people gathered at the door. They were all wearing cloth, but they were all strong and did not look like ordinary people.

Behind them, the servants of the Lu family squatted in the corner, holding their heads and trembling.

A little black-haired man stood among the "commoners", holding a long list in his hand.

"Are you the patriarch of the Lu family?" asked the black-haired Yuchi Xunyu.

Old Lu froze.

Yuchi Xunyu drew a cross on the list:

"Come with me."

…………

On the banks of the Haihe River.

A mysterious mansion that no one can detect.

The patriarchs of prominent families north of the Yellow River and east of the Taihang Mountains gathered here and were holding a special "banquet".

In front of each person there was a small table, on which were placed two meat dishes and two vegetable dishes, a pot of wine, a bowl of rice, and a piece of rotten and smelly raw meat.

This was the standard meal for the last meal before execution in the Tang Dynasty.

At the main seat in the banquet hall, a noble-looking child was resting with his eyes closed, looking calm and composed. It was Li Ming.

After a while, Li Ming opened his eyes, smiled and said to the entrance of the hall:

"Mr. Lu, you are finally here. We are just missing you before the feast begins."

Led by the armored guards, Lao Lu from Fanyang was also "invited" to the banquet.

Old Lu was in a daze and had no idea what was going on, but he subconsciously felt that something was wrong.

The "guests" in the hall were all old acquaintances, all of whom were accomplices in the conspiracy to overthrow Li Ming a few days ago.

But now, these old faces pretended not to know him, sitting straight, staring at the small table. Old Lu took a quick look and found that only Qinghe Old Cui was missing from the table. His heart sank immediately, and he sat down in the last empty seat nervously.

The atmosphere was extremely solemn.

Li Ming smiled lightly and pointed to the table in front of him:
"Eat it, why not? Do you think the rice from Liaodong is not tasty enough?"

Old Lu couldn't stand this atmosphere, so he mustered up the courage to ask:

"I wonder why His Royal Highness the Regent 'invited' us common people?"

"It's just a small matter." The other party was so straightforward, Li Ming didn't want to beat around the bush with him, and got straight to the point:
"The market has been moving strangely recently, with a shortage of rice, grain and cloth. It seems someone is hoarding them. Do you have any clues?"

He was so sharp, but he was discovered just after he started… Old Lu was shocked, but he refused to admit defeat:

"Is there a possibility that Your Highness is not practicing benevolent governance, which has led to the wrath of heaven and the resentment of the people, causing the country to suffer from disasters?"

In the huge hall, you can hear other people gasping for air.

Li Ming didn't even raise his eyebrows, and waved his hands lightly to the left and right:

"This is superstition. Mr. Lu has been deceived by feudal superstition. Someone, help him wake up."

In full view of everyone, the head of the Lu family was dragged away like a dog.

After a while, Lao Lu's scream was heard outside the window, followed by a splash, as if something heavy was thrown into the Haihe River.

The banquet hall was completely silent, as quiet as death.

The heads of the noble families all looked ashen and trembled like sieves. The more they looked at the raw meat on the table, the less it tasted good.

Li Ming ignored them and just ate rice mixed with millet.

After a while, the sound of something being fished out of the water was heard outside the window.

Old Lu was dragged back, soaking wet and shivering.

"Mr. Lu, are you awake?" Li Ming asked with a smile.

Old Lu was already distracted and was nodding subconsciously.

Being thrown into an icy river in the middle of winter was quite sobering.

"What do you think about the unusual changes in the rice, grain and cloth markets?" Li Ming still smiled.

"Donate, donate..." Old Lu nodded like pounding garlic:
"I, the Lu family of Fanyang, am willing to give away all my wealth and the stored food... to the poor."

Li Ming nodded in agreement, then pretended to be surprised and said:

"Hey, Mr. Lu, you are soaked all over. Go change your clothes and wipe yourself off. Then drink some hot ginger tea to warm yourself up."

Without waiting for the other party to answer, he ordered the guards to drag him out.

After dealing with the troublemaker from the Fanyang Lu family, Li Ming turned to the other noble representatives present with a friendly expression:

“Perhaps it’s because my ability is really not up to standard, which has led to a shortage of rice and food, and the people are starving.

"As a wealthy family born and raised in Hebei, I hope you can follow the example of the Lu family and do your best to help your fellow villagers who are starving and freezing.

"Who is in favor and who is against?"

The aristocratic families who had looked down upon the common people suddenly turned into loving philanthropists.

“We are willing to give generously!”

"I, I, I, the Zhaojun Li family is willing to sacrifice our family property to help the people overcome the difficulties!"

"Bohai Gao family is also willing..."

Seeing everyone enthusiastically donating their love, Li Ming smiled with satisfaction.

…………

"Thanks to Mr. Cui for providing the information about the rebels. I am very grateful."

After the pleasant charity lunch, Li Ming expressed his gratitude to the patriarch of the Qinghe Cui family.

The aristocratic rebellion group headed by the Lu family was reported by Lao Cui, and he also participated in Lao Lu's conspiracy at that time.

In the case of the gangsters causing trouble in Youzhou Prefecture, Li Ming saw at a glance that it was the local tyrants from Hebei who were behind it.

But the specific list of local tyrants who were causing trouble was provided by Lao Cui.

We can't purge all the nobles at once, as this would really force everyone to rebel.

"Oh, oh, oh, I dare not, I dare not... Your Highness will give me orders at any time." Lao Cui expressed his loyalty again and again and left trembling with fear.

After Lao Cui left, Yang Shidao, who participated in the whole process, couldn't help but sigh:
"Your Highness's actions are truly... vigorous and decisive."

He was greatly shocked to see the arrogant families bowing down to his little cousin and asking for whatever he wanted.

"When the flames of rebellion are ignited, they must be extinguished decisively at the first opportunity, otherwise they will spread and affect a wide range of people," said Li Ming.

The moment he learned that someone was spreading rumors in front of the Youzhou Mansion, Li Ming prepared this steady, accurate and ruthless response.

Don't argue with a lawyer who speaks for money, because you can never wake up someone who is pretending to be asleep.

To eliminate rumors, we must grasp the root of the rumors, which is to shut up the masterminds behind them.

It is said that it takes only one mouth to spread a rumor, but it takes a lot of effort to refute it, so Li Ming simply didn't bother to refute it.

Instead, he chose to break the rumormonger's legs.

False debate: presenting facts and reasoning. Real debate: banning and deleting accounts, in the physical sense.

A counterexample is the unnamed Emperor Yongzheng, who confronted the rumor-mongering people head-on and wrote a whole book called "Records of Awakening to the Great Righteousness", but ended up making the matter worse.

"You see, after a good beating, the world is really peaceful.

"Not only did the noise stop, the troublemakers also stopped, and I also got them to give away their gold coins."

Li Ming was quite satisfied with the result.

"Your Highness is wise." Yang Shidao flattered and wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

He kept thanking his luck in his heart that he was born into the Hongnong Yang family and was on the same side as the young prince.

If he were on the other side, he doubted if he could survive more than three chapters.

"It takes evil to deal with evil. The local tyrants in Hebei are deeply rooted, and they still need me to beat them for you."

Li Ming smiled and replied:

"Gong Yang has a kind heart. If I don't train them well and remove their fangs, they will ride on your neck sooner or later."

Yang Shidao's face turned serious.

Li Ming's words basically meant something, that is -

Yang Shidao was responsible for coordinating the administrative work of the entire Shandong and Hebei regions.

When following Li Ming to Youzhou, Yang Shidao had this guess and had a belly lawsuit all the way.

"Your Highness ordered me to govern Hebei, and I will certainly live up to your expectations. But..."

Old Yang said after careful consideration:

"I am not being modest. How did I, a member of the Yang family from Hongnong, Henan, end up in Hebei? Your Highness should seek help from someone else."

Li Ming waved his hand:
"The Governance Committee and I have decided that you will be the one to manage Hebei."

Yang Shidao wanted to decline:
"Minister Cui Renshi, Hebei Provincial Governor Cui Yi, and Youzhou Governor Cui Mingan are all capable officials from Hebei under your command."

"Yes, so we must never let them govern Hebei." Li Ming said bluntly.

Yang Shidao was stunned at first, but then he understood.

The Cui family of Boling was originally the most powerful family in Hebei, but now all other powerful families in Hebei that could check and balance it have been eliminated.

If Bo Ling Cui is allowed to govern the local area again, it would be cultivating super-powerful families and encouraging them to break away from the central government.

"It's not just Hebei. From now on, the chief administrative officer of a place must be transferred from outside. The governor and county magistrate cannot be a local from the state or county."

Li Ming gave instructions:

"Officials must observe geographical avoidance and rotate regularly when performing their duties."

A rolling stone gathers no moss. This is to prevent local officials from degenerating into local tyrants or even becoming local tyrants through institutional means, and to prevent the birth of a second "Hebei".

Yang Shidao was sincerely convinced:
"This method is wonderful, very wonderful!"

"Your Majesty's political skills have reached the pinnacle, and Your Highness is even better than him."

"What kind of political tactics are you talking about? Don't say it so harshly." Li Ming smiled bitterly and shook his head:

"Besides, when it comes to politics, my brother is not bad either."

Yang Shidao didn't understand what he meant and frowned in confusion.

Li Ming pointed at the table:

"After their lands were cut, the power of these Hebei nobles had already dropped drastically. So where did they get the courage and strength to stir up trouble?"

Yang Shidao was shocked:
"Then... which prince could be connected to the incident in Hebei?"

"Who else could it be? The Prince of Jin, of course—but he's the regent now."

Li Ming sighed and looked towards Chang'an
…………

Chang'an, Tai Chi Palace.

"Ah!"

Li Zhi sneezed suddenly.

(End of this chapter)