The Soldier of the Red Mansion

Chapter 427 Forced
The execution took place at Caishikou.

The market was packed with people. Wei Zhao, undaunted by the danger, stood in front of Jiang Heng, risking his life to ensure that the other party would not dare to make a move.

The new imperial censor sent to Datong by the court was killed the moment he stepped into the city.

If this were to happen, even if the imperial court didn't want to cause trouble, it would be unable to continue to turn a blind eye. Moreover, Wei Zhao was the governor of Datong, and according to the rules of officialdom, he was the highest-ranking official in Datong.

The people below were discussing it animatedly, and the officials of the military governor's office and the inspection team were indeed finding it a difficult situation. In the end, they sent someone to inform the military governor's office so that the military governor's office could come up with a solution.

The most dangerous people were actually those below him. Seeing someone leave to report, Wei Zhao felt relieved.

As long as they're willing to talk, that's fine.

Ignoring the people's discussions and ignoring Jiang Heng's words, he simply sat on the execution platform and waited.

Saving Jiang Heng's life was not only due to his influence in Taiyuan Military Town, but also because if even he was easily killed by the Datong Army, which other officer would dare to step forward and offend the Datong Military Town?

So how can we protect Jiang Heng?

The two conditions that can be agreed upon are that Taiyuan will stop obstructing the caravans and that the Xuanfu army will withdraw. However, the only condition is that Zhou Wen must be protected by Wang Xin, so this is a point that cannot be compromised.

What can be compromised, and what must not be compromised?

In an instant, Wei Zhao had an idea.

Regardless, even if Jiang Heng's life is saved, dealing with Wang Xin will take one or two years, and he resents Jiang Heng more and more.

A general was captured while under the protection of his own servants.

What an incompetent fool.

Wei Zhao was used to this kind of thing, but this time the impact was particularly great to him, and he even had to readjust his grand plans.

They leave quickly and return quickly.

A young man appeared, and he approached Wei Zhao without any stage fright.

“My name is Jia Huan. I am a clerk in the Jiedushi’s office. I have come to remind the Censor that, according to the laws of the Great Zhou Dynasty, those who obstruct and those who protect are equally guilty. Although in practice, the punishment is often lighter, according to the crime of the criminal Jiang Heng, the Censor should also be beheaded.”

Wei Zhao stared blankly at what was behind them.

Not even an official came.

Seeing that Wei Zhao remained silent, Jia Huan said excitedly, "Silence means consent. Since the local people started to expose corrupt officials, they have only ever killed county magistrates. I never thought that today they could kill an imperial censor."

What I fear most is a hothead like this. Is the governor's office betting on me, so they deliberately sent this hothead?
Now that he's been sent here, with this hotheaded behavior, there's a real possibility he might get his head chopped off. Wei Zhao's words stuck in his throat; denying it wasn't right, admitting it wasn't right either, leaving him in a dilemma.

"Why haven't you invited the Imperial Censor to leave yet?"

Tao Sheng, who was appointed as the judge of Datong and in charge of judicial trials, hurriedly sent someone to "invite" Wei Zhao down again.

This time, Wei Zhao was no longer defiant; he was subdued and carried off the execution platform by several constables.

"grown ups!"

"You can't leave, sir."

Jiang Heng cried out in heart-wrenching agony, driven mad by his fear of death, not to mention the skinning and dismemberment he had suffered, leaving him trembling like a sieve.

"kill him!"

"kill him!"

A crazy old woman with only a few teeth in her mouth, dressed in filthy and tattered clothes, shouted in the crowd. Her shrill voice silenced the surrounding people.

Jiang Heng's eyes narrowed.

"There's a new case," a member of the inspection team said to his colleague before walking over.

I thought that after many investigations, I had gathered all the evidence, but I didn't expect there would still be omissions. But it's not surprising, the old lady in front of me is crazy, sometimes crazy and sometimes lucid.

If you say it's skinning and tendon-pulling, then it is skinning and tendon-pulling.

Because it was too cruel, many people couldn't bear to do it. However, the old woman refused to leave and squeezed to the nearest stage, where the people had already made way for her.

The two inspection team members had no choice but to follow the old lady.

Each time you peel it.

The scene was bloody, and most of the people squinted, not daring to look closely. They could only hear Jiang Heng struggling like a pig being slaughtered on the execution platform, but he was bound and could not move an inch.

"Okay!"

"Give it to me!"

The old woman stretched out her hand, opened her shrunken and terrifying mouth, and even tried to climb up, seemingly intending to tear Jiang Heng apart herself. The inspection team members were so frightened that they quickly stopped her.

"Will the old lady be in trouble?"

The older members of the inspection team expressed their concerns.

"How many families has Jiang Heng wiped out? He's always been good at eliminating the root of the problem. Many victims have lost their loved ones. It seems this old lady must be one of them." The young inspection team member was kind-hearted and full of pity for the old lady, not minding that she was dirty.

Many people couldn't bear to watch and left, and those who remained watched even less.

Jiang Heng is dead.

The old lady also died.

When people found her, the old lady had a smile on her face.

People buried the poor old woman.

Just like the mass graves that once covered thousands of years of bones, this place is now just another one added to the list.

“Ordinary people are easy to bully, very weak, like sheep. Even a flock of sheep won’t run away from a wolf, they’ll just obediently let the wolf bite them to death.” Hearing about the execution ground, Wang Xin couldn’t help but feel sympathy.

“But even the weakest person has a sense of self-awareness. He may be confused, but he will eventually see things clearly one day.” Wang Xin sneered, “That’s why there’s a saying that an old man who doesn’t die is a thief. They treat the people like thieves from the bottom of their hearts, and any disobedience or disobedience will become their greatest hatred.”

Zeng Zhi, Yan Zhongzheng, and others lowered their heads.

The military commander hated corrupt officials more than anyone else, not even the Hu people.

If rankings are given.

Officials who commit evil deeds come first, followed by barbarians.

With the commander taking it so seriously, who among the subordinates would dare to act recklessly?
"That's why General Jie wants to take Shanxi as soon as possible." Jia Huan was in charge of running errands and happened to come across this incident. It was he who came back and told the story, and he became bolder and bolder. "The people of the world are waiting for General Jie to come and save them."

"Shut up!"

Wang Xin cursed in disgust.

Although Jia Huan was just an ordinary clerk, in just a few months, his position in the military governor's office became increasingly sensitive, and many people began to have high hopes for him.

Jia Huan lowered his head.

Wang Xin ignored Jia Huan, knowing that some things needed to be addressed, and that lecturing him was useless, even though he had lectured him on these principles countless times before.

"Get ready to go."

Wang Xin gave the instructions.

The military governor's office is indeed going to send troops.

The problem of the barbarians has been largely resolved. With the problem gone, the merchant guild is no longer willing to hire too many mercenaries. In less than three months, more than 6,000 soldiers have been returned, their employment terminated early, and they have agreed to pay termination fees.

The pressure on the rear has been reduced, and there are now more than 6,000 elite troops.

If we don't take over the Taiyuan army now, it would be a disaster if we didn't seize this opportunity.

Everyone understands this principle.

One thousand Imperial Guards were on standby for battle. Three Class A battalions and two Class B battalions from Datong City were also transferred to cooperate with three battalions from Daizhou, bringing the total to 25,000 troops. Nineteen thousand troops were sent south to Taiyuan.

The specific allocation of grain and fodder was arranged by Yan Zhongzheng and others, with Wang Xin ultimately reviewing and approving the decisions.

Wei Zhao did not come to the military governor's office, but went to the governor's office instead.

The Jiedushi (military governor's office) and the Xunfu (governor's office) had existed in Datong for

When Feng Yong was stationed in Datong, although he was also a military governor, he was only the military governor of Yongxing, and his authority and responsibilities were lower than those of the governor of Datong.

After Feng Yong's defeat, the military governor's office remained vacant for several years.

It wasn't until Wang Xin became the military governor of Datong that this place was vacated again. On the contrary, the governor's office had been in and out of business, and now it has a new master.

Zeng Zhi, who was in charge of the main affairs of the military governor's office, frowned and asked, "How should we deal with this new censor?"

"Business matters."

Wang Xin didn't care.

In the early Ming Dynasty, there was no trade at all. Looking around, where wasn't Mongol territory?

If even China is being governed so poorly, what about the surrounding areas?

The so-called Renaissance in Western Europe was essentially a form of migration of the elite from the Jin Dynasty to the south. In a land shrouded in darkness, all civilizations were either being destroyed or fleeing their idyllic retreats.

In the 14th century, the regions outside the major civilizations were actually the poorer Western Europe. Even at that time, Western Europe was considered a "pure land" compared to the Mongol Empire.

Trade exists only when there is demand!
In the early Ming Dynasty, commercial taxes were low, so the government encouraged commerce. Even military rations were distributed through merchant guilds. The Ming Dynasty also liberated artisans and reduced their restrictions. Compared to the Yuan Dynasty, the Ming Dynasty made significant progress.

The iron smelting industry was also opened to the public, leading to a rapid increase in iron production and laying the foundation for iron pots to become a major export product in the Ming Dynasty.

By this time, the Ming Dynasty still could not collect commercial taxes, or the court wanted to collect commercial taxes but could not implement it.

Do merchants have the right to refuse the imperial court?
The ones who truly refused were the officials.

Commerce is in the hands of officials, who monopolize it through the power they wield.

Every drink and every bite is ordained by Heaven.

The Great Zhou Dynasty inherited the system from the Ming Dynasty.

The more officials and businessmen fear Datong, the more Datong's prosperity and even its tax revenue rely on commerce. Even personal taxes are built on commercial prosperity. Only when people have substantial returns can they afford to pay personal taxes.

However, the government simply couldn't collect this commercial tax.

Because this step was missing from the design.

Just like the backward relationship between officials and businessmen, no matter how prosperous the conditions are, there is no possibility of prosperity under such backward production relations.

Even if external forces slightly compressed this backward production relationship and brought about a bit of prosperity, it wouldn't be long before the backward production relationship destined the productive forces to be unable to enter the advanced production relationship.

Therefore, no matter how much new benefit Datong gains, the backward government will not be able to obtain a single penny.

"Scholars, farmers, artisans, and merchants."

"If you despise doing business, why live off commercial taxes?"

Wang Xin sneered.

Ever since his brother-in-law personally applied medicine to his body last time, Jia Huan has been convinced that his brother-in-law is the one for him.

But I don't know why.

Thinking of her brother-in-law's recent hostile attitude towards her, Jia Huan felt somewhat disheartened. "Qi Miao, do you think the General will regret marrying my sister?"

Workers get at least six days off a month, and some businesses even give up to eight days off.

The military governor's office set the time at six days.

He had six days off per month, a salary of six qian and six fen, and eight taels of silver per year.

Ordinary clerks were divided into five grades, with a promotion of one grade every two years. Each grade would increase the salary by two taels and five mace, meaning that a second-grade clerk's salary was ten taels and five mace per year.

Jia Huan and Qi Miao were both first-level clerks, earning only eight taels of silver a year.

However, both of them were single and lived comfortably on eight taels of silver, without worrying about money. But if they wanted to support their families, a second-level official would struggle, a third-level official would be good, a fourth-level official would be moderately well-off, and a fifth-level official would be well-off.

"No way?" Qi Miao wasn't sure.

Jia Huan's face was cold and gloomy.

She and her siblings were born out of wedlock and had suffered enough scorn since childhood.

But what can I do?

Jia Huan felt distressed, and when he went to sleep at night, he held the jade pendant in his hand.

This jade pendant was left by my mother to my older sister.

Before I left, my sister gave it to me.

He held the jade pendant tightly in his hand.

Jia Huan tried to calm himself down. He would continue to work hard tomorrow. He couldn't change whether his brother-in-law would look down on him and his sister because of their background, but he was determined to show his brother-in-law how good he was.

otherwise.

Why should I take revenge?
Jia Huan fell asleep.

In the dream, the child's face was furrowed with brows.

Day two.

Qi Miao opened his eyes and immediately looked at the bed opposite him. Sure enough, the bed was empty, and even the bedding was neatly folded.

"This doesn't look like the brother-in-law of the military commander at all."

Qi Miao was impressed.

He wouldn't be jealous at all if someone like that could rise to prominence.

He can't hold on.

You have to endure hardship even if you don't have to.

Now that you've arrived at the Marshal's Mansion, even if you become an ordinary clerk there, as long as you work diligently and don't make mistakes, you can at least reach the third-level clerk rank, and there's a good chance you can strive for the fourth-level rank.

If it were me, I could never have done what Jia Huan did.

Thinking back to last month, Jia Huan's groin healed and reopened repeatedly, the pain alone was unbearable, yet he persevered.

The military governor's office was busy with the troop movements.

There are many things to do in various places.

Jia Huan not only did his job well, but also helped his colleagues and maintained a good impression with his superiors. He understood both the grandeur of a wealthy family and the hardships of life. He was also intelligent and learned everything quickly.

He carried the official documents to Zeng Zhigong's residence.

He didn't try to curry favor with Zeng Zhi, nor did he try to use their relationship to get acquainted with him. He left respectfully, appearing to be focused on his work.

"Jia Huan."

Zeng spoke out directly.

"Lord Zhonglang," Jia Huan stopped and turned around to ask, "What are your orders?"

Zeng Zhi remained silent, observing the young man before him.

Jia Huan remained expressionless, his demeanor neither good nor bad, which made Zeng Zhi even more satisfied.

Do you know why the commander was dissatisfied with you yesterday?

"Please teach me, Lord Zhonglang."

The word "teach" delighted Zeng Zhi, who laughed and said, "The General often says that people are the foundation. This time we are indeed planning to take over Shanxi, but it is not for the benefit of the General alone, but truly for the benefit of the people."

Whether Jia Huan can understand it or not depends on himself.

Zeng Zhi stared intently at Jia Huan.

Jia Huan suddenly realized.

Yes.

That's how a brother-in-law should be. No wonder he was unhappy with his words. Jia Huan now knows how he should speak from now on.

What kind of person does my brother-in-law hope to be?

That's what kind of person you are.

I can keep my temper in check.

ten years.

Twenty years.

He was certain he would get his chance, and he didn't care about the possibility of suffering for twenty years.

Simultaneously.

Dressed in imposing official robes and displaying the air of an imperial censor, Wei Zhao arrived at the military governor's residence, escorted by officials. In front of everyone, he asked Wang Xin, "After three years of reporting to the capital, when will the military governor return to the capital?"

An army marches on its stomach.

Wei Zhao, though only recently arrived, understood from Datong's movements that Datong was about to take action against Taiyuan.

Today, Taiyuan is like a bride who has taken off her clothes to Datong.

Wei Zhao pondered all night but had no idea what to do, so he decided to leave the imperial court.

Zeng Zhi and the others frowned.

Of course, the military governor could not return to the capital. Unlike in the past, the current relationship between the military governor's office and the imperial court made it too risky for the military governor to return to the capital. No one could afford to take that risk.

Wei Zhao deliberately asked the question in public, leaving the military commander no room for maneuver.

(End of this chapter)