Qing Yao

Chapter 261 If you act as an honest official, how can we use you?
Fu Chang had no idea that the Governor-General had come down incognito for a private visit. Instead, after hearing that Zhao An had led a group to clear silt, he thought it over and decided to volunteer for the work.

To put it in Master Fu's heart: "If Wu Fu'er is like this, how can I be like this in the future?"

Besides, it's something the people would be happy to see when a provincial governor takes the initiative to lower himself and clean up the stinking ditches for the common people.

The Fu family, who always sought stability, certainly wouldn't miscalculate.

Encouraging officials to take the lead in labor was actually a fine tradition of the Qing Dynasty. As early as the reign of Emperor Shunzhi, relevant regulations were issued, and Emperor Shunzhi himself took the lead in farming to set an example for officials across the country.

Emperor Kangxi personally plowed an acre of land in one go in the southern suburbs of Beijing. At that time, about 10,000 people watched the event. Grand Secretary Li Guangdi specially wrote an essay and had it engraved on a stone to commemorate the event.

When Emperor Yongzheng came to power, he and his concubines would dress up as farmers and silkworm farmers and work in the fields.

The current emperor is somewhat lazy, but he has repeatedly issued decrees to encourage officials to take the lead in labor.

Of course, the land cultivated by the late emperors was all sifted finely by the Imperial Household Department in advance, so as to ensure that the late emperors could cultivate it easily. In addition, 24 old farmers were carefully selected to assist in plowing and were trained in etiquette, otherwise the old oxen would not cooperate and could easily hurt the late emperors.

Although the process is tedious and the results are disproportionate to the effort, it's better to do it than not at all.

Given the fine traditions of the Qing Dynasty and the fact that it was a project initiated by the Fifth Prince, Master Fu certainly could not back down.

The effect was obvious; it overshadowed the instigator, "Five Blessings Prince," and became the sole focus of attention at the scene. Public commentary surged exponentially, making it the top trending topic in Jiangning Prefecture today.

There's no way around it; the village chief leading the work can't compare to the township head's participation, and no matter how hard the township head works, he can't match the intensity of the county head getting involved in the work.

Lord Kuang Fu is the governor of a province.

Whoever holds a higher official position is considered to be in a better position and becomes the focus of public opinion.

This reflects both the common people's simple understanding and the nature of public opinion.

The result was a win-win situation for Fuzhou University.

First, it deepened his relationship with "Five Blessed Princes"; second, it earned him a good reputation as an official.

The winner, "Five Blessings Prince," was overwhelmed. It was as if he had set up a makeshift stage, only to have the microphone snatched away by someone else as soon as he opened his mouth. In the end, he had done all the work for the fat prince, and he was quite unhappy.

On second thought, it's a good thing. If he performs alone, he's easily labeled as "putting on a show." But if all the officials in Jiangning come to perform, what will that be called?
That's called a complete overhaul of the administration!
When officials love the people, the people will support the officials.

What reputation or political achievement can compare to these six words?

If this continues, it might just be the rise of the "Jiangning New Army" in the Qing Dynasty's political arena.

To put it another way, a Jiangning faction suddenly appeared outside of the microloan party.

Judging from Fu Chang's actions, he's clearly aiming for the party leader.

Regardless, the fact that Fu Chang, as the governor of a province, was willing to jump into the stinking ditch to do practical things for the people is undoubtedly a great step forward for society and is also conducive to the reform of the officialdom.

As long as it brings some benefit to the people, even if it's insignificant, Zhao An is willing to actively promote it.

If you can't do big things, start with small things.

Zhao An felt very uncomfortable because Fu Daren kept calling him "brother". Had the two broken up only half a day ago?

That's how they became brothers.

Although I made up stories to mislead Fatty Fu into making wild associations, no matter how good "Story Club" is, it can't compare to the brainwashing power of "Reader" and "Zhiyin".

Excessive enthusiasm is either suspicious or suspicious. When leaving work, it was only natural that Lord Fu should walk in front, with Zhao An, the grain transport commissioner, following behind. However, Lord Fu insisted on giving the center position to Zhao An, insisting that his "younger brother" go ashore first. This shocked officials such as Li Yaodong, the prefect of Jiangning, and Kong Qingguang, the magistrate of Shangyuan County, who wondered why their provincial governor was so humble towards the grain transport commissioner of Anhui.

This is truly unbelievable; you should know that the two have absolutely no leadership relationship whatsoever.

It's similar to how the sword of the previous dynasty cannot be used to kill officials of the current dynasty.

What followed left the Jiangning officials speechless was that the governor, covered in mud, handed a bucket of hot water brought by his attendants to Zhao Liangdao as soon as he got ashore.

"My lord, you mustn't, you mustn't!"

Zhao An was flattered, but he resolutely refused the hot water that Fatty Fu brought him.

"Brother, you've done such a great service to the people. What's wrong with me, your older brother, offering you a bucket of water? Your attitude is disheartening. Do you really intend to shut me out?"

Without saying a word, Master Fu placed the hot water bucket in front of Zhao An, and then presented him with a towel handed to him by his attendant.

"This"

Left with no other choice, Zhao An had to take the towel and wash first.

Not to mention that he couldn't understand why the provincial governor was acting this way, which of the officials present could figure it out?

Everyone was completely bewildered, having no idea what was going on.

A few days later, the Grand Council received a memorial from Sun Shiyi, the Governor-General of Liangjiang.

This was Sun Shiyi's first special memorial after he was "demoted" from Grand Councilor to Governor-General of Liangjiang. The Grand Council secretaries who received and sent it attached great importance to it and delivered it to the Grand Councilor's office immediately.

The Grand Councilor on duty today is Heshen Tongfu Chang'an.

Heshen was dealing with matters concerning the Hanlin Academy, because yesterday the old master had given him two additional concurrent positions: one was to serve as the Grand Academician of the Hanlin Academy, and the other was to serve as the Daily Lecturer and Recorder of the Emperor's Daily Life.

This increased Heshen's concurrent posts from 36 to 38, covering almost all matters of the court. Although he was still nominally the vice prime minister, his actual power far exceeded that of the prime minister, Agui.

The more part-time jobs one has, the more responsibilities one has. Heshen dared not disappoint the old master's favor and trust, so he worked overtime to handle the affairs of his two new positions, keeping him extremely busy.

The military secretary who delivered the memorial had good judgment, so he sent it to the relatively relaxed Fu Zhongtang.

Where was it handed over from?

"Reporting to Your Excellency, this is a special memorial from the Governor-General of Liangjiang."

"Oh?"

Upon hearing that the message was from Sun Shiyi, Fu Chang'an quickly opened it to read.

"Your subject, Sun Shiyi, Governor-General of Liangjiang, respectfully reports: Zhao Youlu, the Grain Commissioner of Jiang'an, has been honest and dedicated to his duties since assuming office, diligently caring for the people's welfare. He has supervised the transport of grain, eliminated long-standing malpractices in the exchange and transportation process, and strictly prohibited extortion by clerks and officials."
What is particularly commendable is that, despite holding a high-ranking position in charge of finances, his official residence was sparsely furnished, and he had only a few servants. When I secretly inquired about public opinion, the scholars and common people all said that he ate simple food and wore plain clothes, no different from the poor and needy. His subordinates also feared his keen insight and dared not offer him bribes.

The Emperor once said that the three words "integrity, prudence, and diligence" are indispensable for an official. Now, observing this official's conduct, he is truly comparable to the virtuous predecessors and can be called a model of an honest and capable official.

At the end of his memorial, Sun Shiyi actually requested the court to commend Zhao Youlu, the grain commissioner of Jiang'an, as a model for officials throughout the country.

After reading the entire document, Fu Chang'an looked puzzled and turned to Heshen, who was reviewing official documents. He asked, "Minister He, isn't Zhao Youlu one of your men? When did this kid get involved with Sun Shiyi? This kid wants to be an honest official, how are we supposed to use him?"

(End of this chapter)