I'll steal Gao Qiu's life and lead the Song Dynasty to prosperity.

Chapter 122 Obeying the Imperial Decree to Borrow Grain, and Emptying the Granaries as Ordered

With the warehouse doors wide open, Zhao Mingcheng stood at the entrance, adjusting his gaze to the difference in light between the inside and outside, before taking the first step and entering the Ruzhou Ever-Normal Granary.

Cao Fu followed closely behind, and Lu Zhang, along with two Imperial Guards soldiers carrying torches, immediately stepped forward to illuminate the warehouse.

As the firelight reached, the scenery gradually became clearer.

However, the anticipated scene of mountains of grain and stacks of sacks did not materialize.

The vast granary was completely empty.

The ground was fairly flat, but it was covered with a thick layer of dust, and every step kicked up a choking cloud of dust.

Near the inside of the warehouse door, dozens of tattered, deflated burlap sacks were scattered haphazardly, along with seven or eight locked...

But it was clearly a wooden box that had been covered in dust for a long time.

Zhao Mingcheng walked up to the pile of sacks and gently kicked the nearest one with his toe.

The burlap sacks were light and flimsy, lacking the substantial feel that grain should have.

He gestured to one of the Imperial Guards: "Open it and take a look."

The soldier drew his short knife from his waist and skillfully cut open the sack.

What was exposed inside was not golden millet or wheat grains, but a pile of grayish-yellow sand.

The loess soil contained a large amount of moldy, blackened grain residue that was almost unrecognizable, emitting an unpleasant odor.

"This is sandy, moldy grain; even livestock won't eat it." Cao Fu squatted down, grabbed a handful, examined it, clapped his hands, and spoke in a deep voice.

"Moreover, it has been moldy for a long time, probably leftovers from the previous dynasty—no, even earlier."

Zhao Mingcheng remained expressionless and then gestured to the person next to him to check the other sacks.

The results of the inspections were largely the same: the bags contained either pure sand or sand mixed with rotten grain residue that was no longer edible.

Clearly, these sacks are placed here merely to prepare for a possible, cursory "inspection," creating the illusion that there is something inside the warehouse.

These local officials never expected to be able to truly deceive a thorough investigation.

"Let's take another look at those boxes."

Zhao Mingcheng turned his gaze to the large wooden crates.

Lu Zhang stepped forward personally, raised his scabbard, and slammed it heavily onto the copper lock of a box.

With a "click," the flimsy lock fell to the ground, and he lifted the lid of the box.

There was no gold or silver, nor any food, in the box.

Inside the box were neatly stacked stacks of paper documents, yellowed and curled at the edges from years of use.

Zhao Mingcheng bent down, picked up the top volume, and flipped through it by the firelight. Cao Fu also leaned closer to watch.

The documents were official documents with strict formats, bearing the seals of officials at various levels and written in neat regular script.

But the content was shocking.

"In the seventh month of the sixth year of the Yuanfeng era, by imperial decree of the Transport Commissioner, in order to raise funds for the autumn defense of the Fuyan Road, 20,000 strings of cash and 5,000 shi of grain were borrowed from the Changping Granary of this prefecture, to be repaid within three years. The Prefect, the Sub-Prefect, and the Supervisor of Changping Granary all signed this document."

Below is a string of monograms and official seals.

"In the tenth month of the third year of the Yuan You era, by imperial decree of the Circuit Ever-Normal Granary, it was decreed that the principal of the Green Sprout Loan in this circuit was insufficient, and that 8,000 shi of grain stored in the local granary be temporarily borrowed to make up the shortfall, to be used to replenish the loan once the loan was recovered. This document was signed by the Prefect, the Sub-Prefect, and the Supervisor of Ever-Normal Granary."

"In May of the second year of the Shaosheng era, by order of the Privy Council and the Three Departments, in order to support the construction of fortresses in the Xihe-Lanhui Road, 100,000 shi of grain from the Ever-Normal Granaries of various prefectures in the Northwest Jing Road were urgently transferred, with the local prefecture to levy its share —"

"In the eighth month of the first year of Yuanfu, due to the arrears of the salaries of the officials in this prefecture, the clerks and officials made a fuss. After a meeting of the prefectural government, it was decided to temporarily borrow three thousand strings of cash from the surplus of Guanghui Granary to cover the expenses."

"In the winter of the second year of Yuanfu, an urgent official document from the Road Transport Office was issued, requesting that 5,000 strings of cash be borrowed from the local granary in order to make up for the annual tribute quota, which could be offset against the summer tax of the following year."

One box, two boxes —

Zhao Mingcheng and Cao Fu quickly flipped through the pages.

These documents span from the Yuanfeng era through the Yuanyou and Shaosheng periods, up to the Yuanfu era of this dynasty, covering nearly twenty years.

The content varied widely, but the core message was the same: [embezzlement of stored funds and grain].

Its use is even more "legitimate":

Subsidizing military expenses, covering the principal of the Green Seed Loan, advancing government salaries and daily expenses, fulfilling the imperial court's tribute obligations, and even coordinating relief efforts with neighboring prefectures—

Every instance of misappropriation, regardless of the amount.

All of them were based on approvals, edicts, and inscriptions from higher authorities.

Furthermore, it bears the joint signatures and seals of the main officials of the state government at the same level, making the procedures "complete" and the process "legal".

Turning to the back, there were even documents about circular borrowing and using new money to offset old debts. One example was that the money borrowed in the later period was used to "repay" the deficit of the previous period. The accounts were clearly marked up, but in reality, the granaries had already been emptied several times.

Seeing this, Zhao Mingcheng wasn't too surprised.

In his previous life, he studied the history of the Song Dynasty, paying particular attention to the collapse of finance and institutions, and was well aware of the fatal flaws of the "three granaries" system in the mid-to-late Northern Song Dynasty.

The initial intention behind establishing these warehouses was good.

However, in practice, it has gradually become a tool for "plugging holes" in the central and local finances.

When the imperial court faced financial difficulties, it turned to the Ever-Normal Granary, diverting funds under various pretexts:

When local government officials were not functioning properly, they also turned to the Ever-Normal Granary, the Charity Granary, and the Guanghui Granary for help.

When Wang Anshi implemented the Green Sprouts Law, a large amount of the capital in the Ever-Normal Granary was misappropriated as capital for the Green Sprouts Law, making recovery difficult and resulting in huge losses.

All of this is often disguised under the guise of "obeying imperial orders," "following imperial decrees," and "according to precedent," with a complete bureaucratic document system as cover.

While embezzlement and theft of grain certainly exist, what is more widespread and destructive is this kind of "legal misappropriation."

This is like a slow poison, gradually eroding the foundation of the storage, until the disaster strikes, completely exposing the emptiness beneath the "paper grain reserves".

Cao Fu's breathing gradually became heavy.

He flipped through the documents, one by one, bearing the bright red official seals and familiar official titles, his fingers turning slightly white from the pressure.

Cao Fu naively believed that the empty granaries were mainly due to the corruption and theft by local officials.

However, the overwhelming evidence before him told him that things were far from simple.

This is not corruption; this is the collapse of the entire system!

It's a top-down, layer-by-layer exploitation, a veneered hollowing out!

Every loan may have had a "reluctant" reason at the time.

But in the long run, that leads to the complete bankruptcy of storage facilities, a desperate situation where there is no food to store when disaster strikes!

"To appease—" Cao Fu's voice was dry and somewhat weak as he raised his head and continued.

"This—this is no granary! This is clearly a—a debt warehouse piled high with IOUs and approvals. The grain—it's all gone long ago. It's been 'borrowed' away bit by bit since the Yuanfeng era!"

Cao Fu pointed at the document and murmured.

"Temporary loan, compensation, mutual assistance—how nice these words sound! But when have they ever been repaid? What are we using to make compensation?"

His worldview has begun to crumble.

Zhao Mingcheng closed the last book in his hand and gently placed it back into the box.

His face did not show the same intense emotions as Cao Fu's, because he had already expected this.

However, when he witnessed this “legal” hollowing out process that spanned twenty years, he could still feel a great chill from the systemic corruption.

"Brother Wenzhong, now do you understand why they were so desperate to prevent us from opening the warehouse?"

Zhao Mingcheng said to Cao Fu.

"What these local officials are afraid of is not just seeing empty granaries. Empty granaries can be attributed to natural disasters, losses, or even the previous administration. What they are more afraid of is seeing these things."

Zhao Mingcheng pointed to the box full of documents.

"They are afraid that we will see these legal documents, and see this 20-year-long chain of embezzlement, in which officials protect each other and are tacitly aware of each other's wrongdoing."

I'm afraid to see that this warehouse wasn't emptied overnight by some corrupt official, but rather "eaten up" little by little by the system and by all of them through a series of approvals and signatures.

Opening this warehouse door reveals more than just a few bags of sand; it tears away the veil of secrecy that had been placed over the officialdom of Ruzhou, and indeed many places in the Song Dynasty.

They've kept this cover up so well, and the officials have all tacitly agreed to protect each other. How could they not be afraid of it being exposed?

'

Cao Fu remained silent, gazing at the boxes full of documents and then at the empty walls of the warehouse. He finally understood why Zhou Xu and the others had struggled so much earlier.

This is not simply dereliction of duty.

This is a systemic rot that will affect the official positions, future prospects, and even the heads of countless people.

Zhao Mingcheng stopped looking and turned to walk out of the warehouse, with Cao Fu and Lu Zhang silently following behind.

Outside the warehouse, Zhou Xu, Wu Ming'an, Wang Qian, and others were still under the watch of the Imperial Guards, kneeling on the ground like lambs to the slaughter, not daring to even raise their heads.

Upon hearing footsteps, they trembled even more violently.

Zhao Mingcheng walked up to them, stopped, and calmly swept his gaze over these officials of the prefecture.

He didn't shout or berate him, nor did he make any indignant accusations; he simply spoke slowly in a calm tone.

"Alright, get up, everyone."

Zhou, Wang, and Wu trembled, almost unable to believe their ears, and hesitated.

They exchanged furtive glances, then looked at Zhao Mingcheng. Seeing that he clearly had no intention of continuing his outburst, they trembled.

He scrambled to his feet, hands clasped, head bowed, not daring to meet Zhao Mingcheng's gaze.

They dared not look at the wide-open warehouse door, which seemed capable of swallowing everything.

Zhao Mingcheng looked at them, his tone still calm, his words clear and distinct.

"I have already inspected the granary. There is not much grain in it, but there are quite a few documents, IOUs, and accounts."

From the Yuanfeng era to the Yuanfu era, I remember each transaction clearly: the grain ration books for the Green Sprouts Loan, the military rations for the border towns, the salaries of the prefectures and counties, and the tribute payments—the categories were numerous, the reasons were sufficient, and the procedures were complete.

Zhao Mingcheng paused, and seeing that Zhou Xu and the others looked ashen-faced and were sweating profusely, he continued.

"In that case, it can't be entirely your fault. You, and your predecessors, were merely following orders to borrow grain and emptying the granaries as instructed."

If the imperial court needs to wage war, you must divert grain; if the provincial government needs to achieve political success, you must provide assistance; if the prefectural government needs to operate, you must provide funding.

With each layer pressing down on the next, and each level borrowing from the level below, the Changping Granary, the Yi Granary, and the Guanghui Granary were no longer intended as famine relief granaries, but rather became accounting offices used to rob Peter to pay Paul, with most of the grain in the granaries being borrowed out.

You've been preventing me from opening the granaries, and now I understand why. It's not that the grain in the granaries is something to be ashamed of; it's just that the evidence of these "empty granaries by imperial decree" is far too—shocking.

"If we cover it up, everyone looks good; if we uncover it, no one will look good. Am I wrong, Prefect Zhou?"

Zhao Mingcheng looked at Zhou Xu.

"Your humble servant—Your humble servant—"

Zhou Xu's legs went weak, and he almost knelt down again. His lips trembled, and he was about to cry.

This time, it wasn't just fear, but a profound sense of shame, grievance, and despair at having my disguise completely ripped out and my shameful truth exposed.

Zhou Xu wept uncontrollably, tears streaming down his face.

"Pacifier, I am guilty—I am incompetent—but—but I have no choice!"

Who dares disobey the imperial decree and the official documents of the Transport Commissioner? The hole that the previous official had emptied is already in this state when I took office!

"This humble official—this humble official also wishes to be a good official, also wishes to have granaries full of grain, so that people can be saved in times of disaster! But—but this—this is not a problem that arose overnight, nor is it a problem that plagues only one prefecture! Pacification Commissioner, please understand! Pacification Commissioner, please understand!"

Zhou Xu really cried, and he cried with genuine emotion.

He seemed to want to cry out all the pressure and grievances he had endured over the years, under the guise of "abundant granaries" while actually living in fear and uncertainty.

Wu Ming'an and Wang Qian also wiped away tears, repeatedly agreeing, their posture humble to the point of being insignificant.

Zhao Mingcheng watched them cry and plead quietly, his face showing neither joy nor anger.

He knew that part of what Zhou said was true.

The festering wound in the Song Dynasty's granary system was by no means the fault of one person or one prefecture.

This is a legacy of bad practices accumulated by generations of people, starting with those who designed the top-level system and continuing through subsequent legal reforms.

The truth has been partially revealed, but how should we deal with the mess in Ruzhou and the larger systemic problems behind it?

Zhao Mingcheng gazed at the gloomy sky, his mind churning with thoughts.

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