I was compiling the daily records during the Wanli reign

Chapter 130 Magistrate Wu Qing of Xiangfu County: Only good citizens are the easiest to bully!

The front courtyard of the Xiangfu County government office.

At the order of Magistrate Wu Qing, more than ten yamen runners, more than ten clerks, and more than thirty farmers got into a fight.

The current Ming Dynasty.

It was not uncommon for county and village officials to fight with ordinary people.

And the vast majority of fights are covered up.

Because of the nature of the fight, it often cannot withstand close investigation. Once reported to the state government, both parties will be severely punished.

Not long after.

Several farmers were then captured by the clerks and tied up with ropes.

Wu Qing's tightly furrowed brows immediately relaxed a little.

He had been in Xiangfu County for four years and had extensive experience in fighting against the people.

These honest and simple farmers would never dare to come to the county government office to rob the bow unless someone took the lead.

Next.

All he needs to do is arrest all these people, intimidate those who should be intimidated, imprison those who should be imprisoned, and persuade the ringleader, Master Zhou, to suppress the matter.

Wu Qing knew that forging a bow was a capital offense, but he had no choice but to do it.

The neighboring counties are doing the same thing.

If the imperial court's request is truly fulfilled, all of the Zhou Prince's lands should be surveyed, and those that should be confiscated should be confiscated, and taxes should be levied accordingly.

King Zhu Zaiting of Zhou would not say anything.

But behind the scenes, it could cause a large number of tenant farmers in Kaifeng Prefecture to lose their jobs, and even destroy most of the commerce in Kaifeng Prefecture, making it impossible for any official in Kaifeng Prefecture, from top to bottom, to meet their performance targets.

To put it bluntly, the Ming Dynasty was still under the rule of the Zhu family.

Although the Prince Zhou's Mansion did not have military power, it had developed in Kaifeng Prefecture for many years and was practically half the master of Kaifeng Prefecture.

Nearly half of the common people in Kaifeng worked directly or indirectly for the Zhou Prince's Mansion.

The Prince Zhou's mansion had too many ways to avoid punishment from the imperial court, which made the officials and people of Kaifeng suffer.

If Kaifeng Prefecture encounters a disaster.

Relying on the state government or the imperial court is not as good as relying on the Prince of Zhou's mansion.

The officials of Kaifeng Prefecture and its various counties and prefectures had a cooperative relationship with the Prince of Zhou's Palace, rather than the latter controlling the Prince of Zhou's Palace.

Now, the common people will share a portion of the loss of the Zhou royal family's land.

This would not only ensure that the Zhou royal family would not obstruct the measurement of the fields, but also prevent the actual number of fields measured from decreasing too much.

This situation can be described as a win-win-win situation for the imperial court, the government, and the Zhou royal family.

As for the people.

Given the large number of people involved, distributing the tax across a larger area of ​​land is the most cost-effective approach.

In the eyes of Zhang Juzheng and others, the land survey in Henan was for the purpose of equalizing land taxes.

But in the eyes of local officials, the task was to measure all the fields within a year.

They use whatever method is fastest.

If local officials strictly followed the imperial court's regulations on land measurement, they would be going against the Zhou royal court.

That's a fighting style that "kills five hundred enemies but injures eight hundred of your own."

The Prince of Zheng, who was enfeoffed in Huaiqing Prefecture, the Prince of Tang, who was enfeoffed in Nanyang Prefecture, and the Prince of Chong, who was enfeoffed in Runing Prefecture, all under the jurisdiction of Henan Province, would certainly also secretly obstruct it.

Until then.

Not only will land surveying be difficult, but Henan may also face major unrest.

Local officials who fail to meet their targets will suffer the consequences.

……

Another quarter of an hour passed.

Only three farmers and Master Zhou, who was tightly gripping two bows, remained uncaptured.

Wu Qing took two steps forward, less than ten feet away from Master Zhou.

With his hands behind his back and a smile on his face, he said, "Master Zhou, put down your bow and arrow, shall we go to the tea room in the backyard for a chat?"

Master Zhou shook his head decisively without hesitation.

He simply couldn't believe this smiling tiger magistrate who always "speaked kindly but acted ruthlessly" in front of the people of Xiangfu County.

"Arrested!" Wu Qing waved his hand.

"Wu Qing, you corrupt official, I'm going to the government office to report you! I'm going to the government office to report you!" Master Zhou shouted at the top of his lungs, raising his bow and striking at the charging clerk.

"boom!"

at this time.

Shi Danian, the head of the soap-making team, kicked Master Zhou in the waist when he wasn't paying attention.

Master Zhou, who was over fifty years old, suddenly collapsed to the ground, his face covered in sweat from the pain, and the bow in his hand fell to the ground.

This Shi Danian was a notorious corrupt official in Xiangfu County, who was extremely ruthless towards his fellow villagers.

Just as the two constables were about to tie up Master Zhou.

More than ten soldiers suddenly rushed in from outside the yamen, and then a middle-aged official wearing a scarlet official robe with cloud and goose patches on the front and back walked in.

The scarlet official robe with the cloud and goose embroidered patch clearly indicates that he is a fourth-rank official.

"What happened?" the middle-aged official asked, his eyes wide.

Wu Qing immediately strode forward, bowed, and said, "Wu Qing, the magistrate of Xiangfu County, greets Councilor Xu. This...this is a group of troublemakers who stormed the yamen and caused a disturbance; they have all been arrested!"

The councilor was an assistant to the provincial governor.

Rank 4.

They were responsible for assisting the provincial governor in handling government affairs, and would often inspect local prefectures and counties on behalf of the provincial governor, usually without prior notice.

This Councilor Xu is none other than Xu Daren, the Left Councilor who was transferred from his position as a Principal Officer in the Ministry of Personnel in Nanjing to Henan at the beginning of the year.

At that moment, Master Zhou's eyes lit up, as if he had seen a lifeline.

“Counselor Xu, we are not troublemakers. Wu Qing, the magistrate of Xiangfu County, privately altered the standard for foot bows, intending to reduce the land tax of the Zhou prince and increase the land tax of the common people. Those foot bows are the evidence!” Master Zhou said quickly.

Xu Daren frowned slightly and looked at Wu Qing.

"Magistrate Wu, is this the truth?"

"This...this...that...that...I...I..." Wu Qingru's mouth was tied in knots, and she didn't know how to explain at all.

Xu Daren looked around.

"Untie all the villagers and take them to the back room. Take their statements first, and we will talk about it after I know the truth."

"Yes!"

The officials bowed in unison and began to untie the farmers.

Master Zhou and the farmers were very excited. They had originally planned to go to the prefectural magistrate to file a complaint, but unexpectedly, the provincial magistrate came instead.

Now, corrupt officials like Wu Qing will definitely be severely punished!
Immediately, Xu Daren strode towards the back of the county government office, with Wu Qing and the others following closely behind.

……

Lean slightly.

The county government office has three main halls, including the East Flower Hall.

Xu Daren, a councilor of the Henan Provincial Administration Commission, stared at Wu Qing, the magistrate of Xiangfu County.

"Useless! How could the common people have seen through this land-transfer method? If this gets out, you will surely die!"

Wu Qing looked aggrieved.

"These peasants have eyes sharper than archers; they know more about the Zhou Prince's lands than the people of the Zhou Prince's mansion themselves. However, Councilor Xu, rest assured, the fabrication of the archery incident won't spread beyond Xiangfu County. I have a way to deal with them!"

The so-called "land reform method".

This was a policy of "returning land to the people" implemented by a group of provincial officials based on the current situation in Henan.

Because there are too many princely clans and their hidden lands in Henan Province, strictly enforcing the law would harm the interests of countless princely nobles. They have a lot of land, a large population, and many places to spend their money.

In order to prevent them from causing trouble, they were to continue to help the government maintain local peace.

The provincial officials decided to have the common people share some of the burden for the imperial princes.

This is the strategy for converting farmland into arable land.

In this way, although the princes and vassals also suffered losses, they were not as severely affected, and the provincial officials were able to complete their tasks smoothly.

The only ones who suffer are the ordinary people.

Otherwise, if the princes and nobles were to rise up against land surveying as they did during the Jiajing era, it would be difficult to accurately measure the land in Henan, let alone in one year, or even five or ten years.

Xu Daren looked at Wu Qing.

"What are your plans next? How can you stop these people from causing trouble?"

Wu Qing smiled confidently.

"The people of Henan are the most honest and obedient people among the thirteen provinces and two capitals of the Ming Dynasty. I only need to threaten them with their parents, wives and children, threatening their safety and livelihood, and they will obediently comply!"

"That Master Zhou is rather stubborn, and since he has no relatives or friends here, he's a bit more difficult to deal with. However, I'm sure I can persuade him and make sure he doesn't mention this matter again!"

Compared to Xu Daren, Wu Qing was just a minor official.

But in Xiangfu County, it was the people's heaven.

With a single word, he could make these farmers' lives difficult, cause their fields to yield nothing for a "reasonable" reason, and disqualify their families and relatives from even being tenant farmers.

Many people are illiterate and some will never even leave Xiangfu County in their entire lives.

Wu Qing's decision was enough to make their whole family's world collapse, so they had no choice but to obey.

The common people who want to farm properly and dare not disobey the laws of the Ming Dynasty are often the easiest to bully.

Xu Daren nodded slightly.

"If you encounter someone who is too rebellious, you can make an exception and measure their land normally, just to prevent them from causing a major incident!"

"Your humble servant obeys!" Wu Qing said, but he would not actually do it.

In his eyes, there should be no compromise with the common people, because they like to take advantage of others. He would treat the fields as wasteland and swamps, and he would not let the people benefit from them.

"You may do as you see fit. I am leaving now. Remember, if anything goes wrong, it will be your fault alone, and the provincial government will bear no responsibility!"

"Your humble servant understands!" Wu Qing bowed deeply.

Xu Daren didn't even want to sit in on the proceedings; he simply didn't want to take responsibility.

When the officials were discussing the "Land Conversion Law," the county magistrates all stated that whichever county had a problem, the magistrate of that county would be the main culprit, and it would be unrelated to the higher authorities.

This is not a strategy set by the authorities.

Soon, Xu Daren left with his subordinates.

……

An hour later.

The county magistrate, registrar, finance and tax advisor, and criminal law advisor of Xiangfu County all stepped forward, using threats as the main approach and reasoning as a supplement to persuade the farmers, forcing them to swear an oath that they would never mention the matter of the bow again.

If they dare to speak out again, their wives, children, parents, fields, and houses may all suffer unexpected consequences.

This county official, who is the "parent" of the county, may not necessarily make the people under his jurisdiction live a prosperous life, but he may make their lives even more difficult.

Farmers have all witnessed this.

Since we know we can't defeat the other side, we have no choice but to compromise.

At this time.

Wu Qing arrived at the county magistrate's office where Master Zhou was being held.

Master Zhou had just finished writing the complaint, a lengthy document of several thousand words, detailing the poor performance of Wu Qing.

When Wu Qing appeared before Master Zhou.

Master Zhou was stunned for a moment. He thought that Wu Qing must have already been imprisoned in the county jail by Xu Canshen.

The county magistrate, who was standing nearby, presented the complaint to Wu Qing.

After carefully reading the complaint, Wu Qing smiled coldly and said, "The writing is passable, and the content is basically true, but it's useless."

Rip! Rip!
Wu Qing tore the complaint to shreds and threw it on the ground.

this moment.

Master Zhou instantly realized that Xu Daren, the advisor of the Henan Provincial Administration Commission, and Wu Qing were in cahoots.

Wu Qing looked at Master Zhou.

“Master Zhou, you are a scholar who has thoroughly studied the classics, how can you be so pedantic!”

“The Prince Zhou’s Mansion is the backer of our Kaifeng Prefecture. If we make a big move against the Prince Zhou’s Mansion, Kaifeng Prefecture will be in chaos, Henan Province will be in chaos, and many tenant farmers will even become refugees. Why can’t you put the big picture first and sacrifice your personal interests for this land survey in Henan? You are too selfish! You troublemakers are really too selfish!”

"I adjusted the bow length for the sake of the imperial court, for Kaifeng Prefecture, for Xiangfu County, for the Prince of Zhou's residence, and for the smooth completion of the land measurement policy. My heart is with the imperial court and with the greater good, while your heart is only for the common people!"

"As long as you promise me that you will no longer gather people to talk about the matter of measuring fields and bows, and as long as you do not leave Kaifeng Prefecture from today onwards, I can guarantee that I can bring you to the county school as an instructor next month, and I guarantee you a dignified old age!"

Master Zhou raised his head and looked at Wu Qing with a gloomy expression.

"The imperial court is measuring the land to equalize land taxes, to implement the Single Whip Law, and to reduce the taxes of the people, not to allow you to outwardly comply but inwardly defy it or to engage in fraud!"

"Are you doing this for the imperial court? You're afraid to offend the Prince Zhou's mansion, but it's for your career advancement and performance evaluation. You're going against national policy and acting as the Prince Zhou's dog!"

"As long as I have a breath left, I will sue you! I will sue you incompetent and selfish officials who harm the people and deceive the court!"

"I don't know what to do!"

"Guards! Take him to the county jail. He can come back and report to me when he regrets his actions!" Wu Qing said angrily.

He really had no way to deal with a poor scholar like Master Zhou, whose wife had died young, whose only daughter had married far away to another province, and who was very stubborn.

Inside the county's safe house, it was dark and damp.

Master Zhou seemed somewhat dazed.

Judging from the current situation, provincial and prefectural officials in Henan Province may have tacitly allowed county officials to measure fields in this way in order to complete the task of "completing the field measurement within one year".

Even if he complains to the provincial authorities, it probably won't do any good.

He wanted to cry but had no tears.

At this moment, he could only place his hopes on his student who was studying at the Kaifeng Prefectural School.

Before he came to the county government office to seize the bow, he wrote a letter to him, asking him to find an opportunity to report the matter of counterfeiting bows in Xiangfu County to Zhang Jian, the imperial inspector who was currently in Kaifeng Prefecture.

Currently.

The governor of Henan, Shi Mengzhong, is untrustworthy; the left provincial governor of Henan, Zheng Yunying, is untrustworthy; the left vice minister of Henan, An Jiashan, is untrustworthy; and the left vice councilor of Henan, Xu Daren, is still untrustworthy.

In the entire Henan Prefecture, only the Imperial Inspector Zhang Jian could be considered a representative of the imperial court.

If he also tacitly approves of this land measurement, the benefits will be greatly tilted towards the imperial princes, causing hardship to the common people.

That means the imperial court tacitly approved of this.

If that's the case, then Master Zhou would have no choice but to leave this world.

……

Three days later, Master Zhou was starving.

Wu Qing wanted him to compromise.

He was only allowed to drink a bowl of thin porridge twice a day, morning and evening. Then the jailer would bring him wine and meat and ask: "Do you still want to file a complaint?"

He can get meat and wine as long as he shakes his head.

However, Master Zhou not only refused to compromise, but also berated Wu Qing.

“No compromise! Then I will keep him locked up until he goes insane or dies by accident!” Wu Qing said angrily.

He dared not openly kill a scholar, but he could slowly torture him until he left this world.

until now.

Wu Qingdu believed that the policy of converting the people into farmers was a very correct strategy, but Master Zhou was stubborn and wanted to harm the officials and clerks of Xiangfu County and make the people of Xiangfu County suffer.

(End of this chapter)