The Happy Life of Small Officials in Northern Song Dynasty

There was a commotion in the city of Yangzhou. Dozens of soldiers held gongs in groups and shouted along the street: "Fathers and folks, listen up. The imperial court food envoy Mr. Su and our government respect the prefect of Song Dynasty. We feel sorry for the villagers who are hungry and cold. It is hereby ordered to open official warehouses to release grain. Each household will receive one liter of rice based on the number of persons registered in the household registration book, and quickly go to Baoyang Hunan official warehouse to get it based on the book. The number of official grain is limited, first come first served... "

The gong bang bang resounded throughout the city, and the sound of the gong seemed to be the sound of heavenly sounds to help the world, warming people's hearts of despair, sorrow, anger, and helplessness. Inquire about discussions.

Some people expressed doubts. Over the past few days, some people have petitioned the government for food relief, but what they got in return were severe reprimands and answers that there was no food in the official warehouse. How can food be distributed now?

Suspicious, some people suddenly found that many folks who went to try their luck with rice bags actually came back home happily with heavy rice on their backs. The facts speak louder than words. They rushed home to get their household registers and rice bags and ran like crazy to the Guancang on the south side of Baoyang Lake.

Many people who were about to go out of the city to wander in other places ran back after getting the news. They didn't even care to take a breath, so they rushed to the official warehouse with their belongings.

Su Jin stood in the courtyard of the Guancang, looking at the bustling people with a smile. The people who were originally lifeless, only became brighter because of the living food. Su Jin sighed a little.

"Commander Pan, pay attention to maintaining order, it will hurt people if it's so crowded," Su Jin said.

"What the Special Envoy said is to immediately set up a isolation zone, line up to enter, and increase the number of people who distribute food." Pan Jiang was also infected by the joyous emotions of the people, and said loudly.

Su Jin said with a smile: "Thank you for your hard work. I will try to get all the astigmatism before dark, so that the common people can eat well and have good dreams at night."

"Honestly obey orders."

The number of food distribution points was increased to ten, and the people also lined up in ten long lines according to the instructions of the officers and soldiers. Every time ten people came forward to receive food, the speed was greatly accelerated; at the same time, ten literate soldiers distributed the food Register and register the names of the people one by one to prevent people from taking fish in troubled waters and collecting them repeatedly.

Su Jin looked at the orderly scene with satisfaction, and a stone fell to the ground in his heart. The difficulty in front of him can finally be overcome. One liter of food per person, as long as it is not wasted, can last at least six or seven days. By then, Luzhou's grain should also arrive, so that it can be handed over, and then free up hands to rectify the black market, dig out millions of shi of rice grain in Yangzhou city, and the worry of famine this winter can be completely resolved.

The people who received the food spontaneously kowtowed to Su Jin and shouted: "The adults who do good deeds will have good rewards in the future. I wait for the people to wish the adults to be promoted and prosperous..."

Su Jin waved his hand and said: "It's not me who should be thanked. If you want to thank you, you should thank the emperor for his mighty grace and heaven's presence; the sage is in the capital, and he is worried about the affairs of Yangzhou, so he specially sent me to solve your urgent needs. My lord also used his salary and food to help you, so if you want to thank him, go to the government office tomorrow morning and kowtow to him."

A white-haired old man kowtowed tearfully and shouted: "Prefect Song, Song Qingtian, I'll go to the government office to kowtow to the old man after this."

Su Jin laughed and said: "Don't worry, the prefect of Song Dynasty has important matters to deal with, so don't be disturbed. You all go to the Fuya Square to kowtow to him tomorrow morning, and I will come out with him to meet you, how about it?"

"So that makes it so, this young adult's title is...?"

"What young man? My lord is Mr. Su, the food envoy appointed by the imperial court." The dynasty on the side shouted.

"Imperial order? Isn't that an official sent by the emperor? Mr. Su is a handsome young man. He must be a top official in the future. He will have many children and grandchildren, and he will live a long life; the little old man wishes you a lifetime of good fortune and endless glory and wealth." Then The old man kowtowed to Su Jin again and again; all the people behind him also knelt down and kowtowed loudly.

Su Jin hurriedly said: "Get up quickly, isn't this killing me? It has been said that this is the grace of the emperor and the credit of the lord of the government. I am just acting on behalf of the emperor and carrying out the orders of the prefect of Song Dynasty; Parents, wives and children are waiting to be fed, everyone, hurry up and go back, have a good meal and sleep well tonight."

Then everyone got up, carried the rice, and wiped away their tears.

Su Jin sighed in his heart, people in this era really don't have many demands, they have food to eat when they are hungry, and clothes to wear when they are cold, this is their greatest happiness, things like relief are actually things that the court must do, It is a matter of course for the people to pay taxes to support the rulers in a good year. In a famine year, it is a favor for the rulers to give some money and food. The people have not yet developed their wisdom. I am afraid that these things have never been considered by the people. Why should this be the case? .

Su Jin was sighing to himself, when he suddenly saw more than a dozen people coming in aggressively from outside the official warehouse, the leader was short, fat and shiny, with a fat face, forming a strong contrast with the surrounding people.

A woman had just received the grain and was walking out with her back on her back. Her thin body was staggered under the weight of the rice bag, and she bumped into the dozen or so people who came in. The corner of the rice bag rubbed the official uniform of the short and fat man. Immediately wiped out a piece of dirt.

The fat man cursed angrily and kicked away, the woman fell on the snow in response, the rice bag scattered and the food spilled all over the ground.

"The muddy legs of a straight mother! Don't you wear glasses when you walk? Do you know how much this new official uniform cost me?"

"My lord, forgive me, I was not careful, I know I was wrong." The woman was so frightened that she kowtowed and apologized, and at the same time she took the rice spilled on the snow and put it into a rice bag.

"It's easy to say, the material and workmanship of my official uniform are ten and three hundred coins, what do you think?"

The woman murmured and dared not make a sound, ten pennies, not so much money to pay for selling children, timidly lying on the icy snow, her body trembling.

The surrounding people watched this scene one after another, and no one dared to say a word, but they couldn't hide the anger in their eyes.

The fat official seemed to sense the unkind eyes of the people, pointed at them and shouted: "What are you looking at? A bunch of rice thieves, who wants you to come to collect food? This is military food, don't you all want to live? Get the hell out of here, stop distributing the rice, those who have received the rice will have to send the rice back to the official warehouse within a limited time, and those who disobey will be taken to jail."

The common people don't understand this, and they look at each other in astonishment. How come some officials want to distribute rice, but some say it's against the law. What's wrong?

The woman on the ground took this opportunity to secretly hold a few handfuls of Milian that was stained with mud and put them into the cloth bag, carried them up and ran away. The fat official stretched out his hands quite nimbly, and caught up with the woman in two steps, grabbing the woman's hair When the bun was pulled back, the woman fell on her back, and the fat official refused to give up, stretching out her feet and kicking her. The woman cried and begged endlessly, and the bag of rice was completely spilled on the ground, and she was trampled on. It became muddy.

"I told you rice thieves to come here to receive military rations without my official's consent. I will kill you...I will kill you."

The fat official was out of breath, and kicked several times, his toe was pierced by a bone in the woman's body, the pain was excruciating, and he became even more annoyed immediately, he stretched out his hand and shouted: "Bring me the whip, I want to take off a layer of her skin. "

The attendant took out the whip from his waist and gave it to him, and the official held the whip in his hand and beat it, and the whip whipped towards the woman's bony body with a gust of wind...

Hearing a loud 'pop', a fiery bloodstain suddenly appeared on the fat official's face from his forehead to his chin. The bloodstain changed from shallow to deep, from red to purple, and then thin beads of blood ooze out.

The fat official was stunned for a few moments, but before he could react, he covered his face and yelled, "Hey, hey, you beat me to death, it hurts me to death..."

The people next to him could see clearly that there was a big stupid man standing beside the official. He was the one who held the fat official's wrist and pulled it the moment the whip came down. The whip changed direction and covered his head and brain. The whip was drawn on the fat official's white-faced fat face, impartially, and the whip marks divided the face into two halves like a golden cut.

The ten or so guards and soldiers who came with him saw it clearly. When they saw someone attacking your lord, the sound of 'Cang Lang Lang' was loud, and they all drew out their simple knives and surrounded them.

"Take down this thief, dare to beat this official, if he dares to arrest, he will be killed on the spot." The fat official covered his face and stepped back, sternly shouting.

The yamen servants had to approach one after another with swords and flowers, forcing the swarthy man back and forth, seeing that a bloody conflict was inevitable.

The fat official gritted his teeth and jumped, wiping the blood on his face while urging his subordinates to act quickly, cursing and jumping, extremely arrogant.

At this moment, a sneer sounded from behind the fat official: "This lord is such a powerful official, but it's a pity that there are puss..."

The fat official turned around angrily, and in front of him stood a young man with fine brows, his hands covered his sleeves, looking at him coldly.