Forty-eight years of Qianlong

Chapter 268 Who do we represent?

In early August, after picking up another group of refugees on Jeju Island, the Thunder God finally returned to Beihai Town.

The Manchu refugees brought back this time are still mainly from Henan, and most of them are from Kaifeng, Guide, Weihui, Huaiqing and other counties.After questioning, Zhao Xin learned that at the turn of spring and summer this year, a large area of ​​locust plagues continued to break out in Henan, resulting in another failure of summer grain harvest.

The refugees who were asked about it cried and explained to Zhao Xin: "My lord, last year and this year it was too dry! When the locusts came, thousands of miles of grass and trees were eaten up, and even the hairs of cattle and horses were eaten clean. How can we live!"

During this protracted and catastrophic disaster, the victims in Henan could not bear the blow of hunger and sold their farmland one after another to make ends meet.Many peasant households eagerly sell the wheat fields that are about to mature at a low price when they are too green to harvest, and exchange them for rice, gold and silver, so as to relieve their poverty.

However, wealthy households in Taigu, Pingyao, Qixian and other places in Shanxi heard about the news and used usury to lend money to hungry people and annex land at low prices.They bought the farmland in the disaster area at a low price of one-third of the normal season, or underestimated the value of the other party's land for mortgage loans; or pawned the property of the victims at a low value.

Although Qianlong specially issued an order in May of this year to strictly order the local government to investigate the behavior of Shanxi merchants, and ordered the sellers to take back the cheaply sold land at the original price.

But the problem is, the farmers are starving to death, and the money from selling the land has been impatient to buy high-priced grain, so how can there be any money to redeem it?
The population of Beihai Town is increasing now.According to the plan of "mixing sand" formulated by Zhao Xin, Deng Fei had already transported [-] Henan refugees to Pingyuan Town in Ezodi to open up wasteland in July.After the opening of the "highway" between Beihai Town and Fuldan City, hundreds of refugee families will be led to Fuldan City every five days to open up the land on the south bank of Xingkai Lake.

However, due to the lack of agricultural machinery and equipment and skilled workers, the refugees can only wield shovels and pickaxes to reclaim the swampland under the leadership of civil affairs clerks.

With the increase of the population, the contradictions between the new and old refugees also began to appear.

Specifically, most of the early refugees have entered the ranks of middle peasants or even rich peasants through the distribution of land and working in workshops.Among the new refugees, many of them tried to marry their daughters into the old refugee families as concubines; some even wanted to be house slaves.

Faced with this situation, it is very difficult for Chen Qingsong to stop it, because Beihai Town currently does not have a complete legal system.The so-called "whatever is prohibited by the law can be done", even the security police can't intervene in the matter of taking concubines.

"You can do what is not prohibited by the law, but in fact it cannot be violated without the permission of the law. Lao Chen, there is a huge gray area in the middle; the only thing that can be restrained is morality. But what is morality today? It is the morality under the feudal system. Taking concubines, being a lord, and taking domestic servants are all allowed by the laws of the Qing Dynasty, so of course you have nothing to do with it.”

Regarding Chen Qingsong's distress, Zhao Xin talked eloquently, and he continued: "Look, one day you can fight for a house slave, and tomorrow you can fight for your daughter as a concubine. A concubine has no social status. , if you want to gain status, the only way out is to be a regular wife. Our place is full of barren mountains and wild mountains, and no one will be found if we bury them."

Chen Qingsong asked a little irritably: "Then what do you say?"

"Legislation and popularization of the law. You have been a leader, so you should know this better than me."

"I'm so busy all day long, I don't have the time to host this!"

"Look for those eight old guys at the education gate."

"They? Are they okay?"

"You'll know if it works or not. Let's hold a discussion meeting first."

Two nights later, Beihai Town's first "Legislative Preparatory Meeting" was held in a classroom at the school.In addition to Zhao Xin and Chen Qingsong, there were also eight teachers from the education department who attended the meeting. Wu Siyu was sent from the military system, and Hong Tao was sent from the medical system; as for the workshop, Li Ji's wife Zhi Nai was sent.

Zhao Liang's reply was: "No time! I have so much to do, I don't care about it."

Well, Zhao Xin, as the convener of the meeting, spoke first.

"Everyone, before discussing legislation, we must first determine a principle. Law, what is the spirit of our law in Beihai Town?"

As soon as Zhao Xin said this, the teachers who were about to talk endlessly were stunned. The spirit of the law?
"Mr. Zhao, can you tell me more about it?" Lao You, the person in charge of the education department, asked.

Zhao Xin smiled and said: "The spirit of the law is the interest class it represents, and whether it is a revolution or a reform, it will revolve around this theme. For example, the basic spirit of the Manchu law does not lie in the vast Farmers and petty bourgeoisie, but to maintain the feudal ruling order of the emperor's family to make up for its shortcomings; and the gains and losses of ordinary people mainly depend on the benevolence of the emperor or officials. For example, if there is an excusable situation, the emperor The sentence will be changed, so the Qing Dynasty is a relationship between the rule of man and the rule of law.”

Chen Qingsong suddenly realized: "You mean, we must first determine which class is represented by the laws of Beihai Town. If this problem is not resolved, concubines, house slaves, and even the formation of a new feudal class will inevitably happen. .”

"Yes!" Zhao Xin nodded and said: "If this issue is not clear, if we are not sure, even if we drive Qianlong or Jiaqing from the emperor's throne, this country will still be a feudal society. The Eight Banners are gone, but Over the past few hundred years, Han scholars and bureaucrats have formed a conservative and solidified thinking. They regard science and technology as strange skills and obscenity, and regard openness as the indiscriminate distinction between Chinese and barbarians. It will continue. No matter how powerful it is in a short period of time, it will not be able to escape the "cycle of chaos". .”

One person present suddenly asked: "Does human rights need to be protected? Should the method of extorting confessions by torture be retained?"

Zhao Xin nodded and said: "Mr. Zhang, the most important human right we have at this stage is the right to life. The presumption of innocence is not suitable. Europeans can do it, but we can't. Farmers in this era are oppressed, regardless of whether they are full or innocent. Island countries are all the same. But in fact, these people often play tricks with the government, even very cunning, if we don't have the means of thunder, then there are too many loopholes that can be exploited here."

Lao You nodded and said, "I agree with Zhao Xin's opinion." He didn't expect Zhao Xinyi to point directly to the core of the problem, instead of simply wanting to formulate a legal provision.

Wu Siyu said: "Actually, the "Disciplinary Regulations" currently implemented in the army are formulated with reference to the regulations when we were soldiers, but now there have been many problems, and the soldiers' emotions have fluctuated greatly. Now the army's treatment is generally very high, so many The refugees all want to marry their daughters into soldiers or officers’ families as concubines, and now Wang Yuanfang and I can only find out and stop them. For those who haven’t been found out, it’s a done deal, and we can’t say anything more.”

Zhao Xin said: "That's how it is. All those who take concubines in the army, no matter how high their positions are, will be eliminated!"

This seminar lasted for two full days, during which the teachers argued endlessly.What should embody the spirit of democracy and the rule of law, what should not be tortured to extract confessions, and some people even naively ask whether the death penalty can be abolished.

It was the math teacher Yu Deli who made the final decision.This guy didn't say a word for the previous day and a half, and finally saw that everyone's opinions could not reach a consensus, so he went back to his residence and searched, and he put a copy of "XX Border Region Legislative Principles" that was only two pages in front of everyone. .

After reading it, Lao You clapped his hands and exclaimed, "Yu Yu, why didn't you take out this good thing earlier!"

Yu Deli said lightly: "Personal inventory, I just took it out after thinking about it."

By the way, Yu Deli has quite a lot of inventory.After the meeting, at Zhao Xin's request, Yu Deli took Zhao Xin back to his residence and showed him his private collection.Zhao Xin found a lot of old legal materials in a pile of old documents, which made him overjoyed.

"Mr. Yu, why do you like to collect these things?"

Yu Deli said: "I can't say I like it. A lot of the materials here are left by my father. It's a pity to sell scraps, so I kept them all."

"Then who is your father?"

"I used to be a teacher."

"Oh!" Zhao Xinxin said that this was really a great help.

"Teacher Yu, are you interested in being the leader of the legal drafting team? I'm not trying to win you over, so don't get me wrong. When we set the banner before, I thought you were full of knowledge, not as simple as a math teacher. "

Yu Deli looked at Zhao Xin playfully, and said with a smile, "What's the matter with wooing? Everyone is a little bit ambitious, and so am I. Mr. Zhao, don't mind if I say that."

Zhao Xin quickly said: "No, no."

Yu Deli continued: "But what surprised me the most about you was that you were able to say something like the spirit of the law. It really impressed me. I thought you just wanted to be a warlord and overthrow the warlords of the Qing Dynasty."

Zhao Xin also smiled and said, "And then?"

Yu Deli stared into Zhao Xin's eyes and said, "Then you became another Yuan Shikai." He frowned and continued, "Maybe that's not accurate, at least your force is much stronger than Yuan Shikai's."

Zhao Xin put away his smile, looked at Yu Deli and said, "Teacher Yu, if one day I really become like that, what will you do?"

Yu Deli shrugged and said, "Since it's boring, let's go back. Plant flowers and walk the dog."

Zhao Xin nodded, stretched out his right hand, looked at Yu Deli and said, "I try not to be a single husband."

Yu Deli laughed and said, "Then I'll wait and see." Then he reached out and held Zhao Xin together.

Sure enough, after the seminar the next morning, Yu Deli was appointed as the leader of the drafting group of laws and regulations in Beihai Town under the strong recommendation of Zhao Xin, and presided over the drafting and formulation of legal provisions.

After Yu Deli took office, he first selected ten people from the school's older children over the age of 13 as assistants.After these ten children have studied in the school in Beihai Town for two years, they can already write properly, and the composition they usually arrange can also be meaningful.Yu Deli felt that this was enough, and these children were mainly responsible for recording, copying, and preaching.

As for the deputy leader of the drafting group, it was another teacher Zhou who taught Chinese.This person's name is Zhou Weiguo, he is nearly fifty years old, and he was also an outstanding representative of "paid supplementary lessons" before.However, Fang Hua originally wanted to pay for his wife's medical expenses, while Mr. Zhou felt that his salary was not enough.

Since the [-]th century, Zhou Weiguo has always been in a "yellow croaker"-like slippery state, usually not conspicuous.But since he joined the drafting group, Zhou Weiguo burst into a rage and began to express his opinions incessantly. Zhao Xin and others were impressed by many suggestions.

For example, Zhou Weiguo proposed that the first regulation that Beihai Town needs to promulgate should involve the protection of property rights.The reason for doing this is to let all the refugees know that as long as you obey the laws of Beihai Town, your human rights and property rights will be guaranteed; Yin, the guards can come to blackmail at any time.

So five days later, Beihai Town's first formal legal regulations were promulgated.As before, this regulation was first posted on bulletin boards in Beihai Town and Fuldan City in the form of , and students from the school were sent to read aloud to the refugees.

"Regulations of Beihai Town on the Protection of Human Rights and Property Rights, promulgated on September 1786, 9. The purpose of this regulation is to protect the human rights and property rights of all people in Beihai Town from illegal infringement. It protects the private property rights of all people and uses them according to law. The right to freedom of income. Except for the public security police department performing its duties according to law, no department shall arrest and interrogate anyone. If the interests are damaged, the right to sue any person for illegal behavior in any way.”

Standing at the front of the crowd, Zhu Dagui listened to a young man interpreting the contents of the notice to himself and others.These peasants from the Qing Dynasty had long formed the habit of obedience to what the government said, and they all listened to the child named Xu Funan honestly, looking at each other in blank dismay.

"Mr. Xiao Xu, I want to ask, are these people the people that the masters often talk about?" Zhu Dagui, as the leader of the resident group, often follows, so he is more courageous than others.

Xu Funan is 11 years old this year. He is 1.5 meters tall. He has a crew cut and is wearing the summer labor insurance uniform of Beihai Town. Those who don't know him think this child is a civil affairs clerk.

He listened to Zhu Dagui's question, cleared his throat deliberately, and explained: "The people are the people. All the people who live and live in Beihai Town, Fuldan City, including Kuye Island and Yuanyuan Town, including you and me Everyone inside is listed here."

At this time, another audience member said: "I've been listening for a long time, what are you trying to say about this right and that right?"

Xu Funan said in his heart that I wasted half a day spitting on my co-author. He rolled his eyes and said, "This regulation is the law, which means that under the premise of no crime, all your property will be protected. You blackmail and rob your property!"

"What? Law?! This law, how can you write it on white paper? It looks so frustrating! The emperor issued an imperial decree, and it was all made of yellow silk."

"Yes, yes, you used the wrong paper!"

Seeing that Xu Funan was about to cry, Zhu Dagui quickly turned his head and reprimanded the people around him: "You bastards, what are you doing!"

Just now the man who said the imperial decree said: "Why am I talking nonsense? In the first few years when I went to the county town to sell vegetables, I saw that the imperial decree was yellow in the hand of the imperial envoy!"

The crowd of onlookers began to discuss, but everyone didn't care about the content of the clause at all; this made Xu Funan feel traumatized and almost cried out of anger.

Like Xu Funan, other children in charge of preaching also encountered the same situation.There were even a few new migrant families who took a child by the hand and said that they would betroth their daughters to him.

Looking at the dejected students with red eyes, Yu Deli smiled and said: "Children, do you think that reading the regulations once can make everyone understand? This is a long way to go and extremely difficult!"

At this moment, Xu Funan and the others wiped their eye sockets, staring at Yu Deli intently and continuing to explain.

"If we want to overthrow a decadent dynasty, we still have to do a lot. In addition to preaching, we have to break apart the content of the regulations through radio, opera, and storytelling, so that everyone can understand them, so that ordinary people will Sincerely support us!"

　ticket ticket ticket ~ ~

　　
　
(End of this chapter)