Elegy of Tang Dynasty

Chapter 804 Extra 1: The Tiger Dies but the Might Remains (1)

"Have you heard that the imperial court wants to cancel the requirement for scholars to go to the countryside to teach children how to read, saying it is disrespectful."

In the private room on the second floor of Zhuangyuan Building, a round-faced candidate asked in a low voice.

"Hmph, what dignity? I think it's the death of an official, so all those evil spirits came out!"

A candidate named Bai shouted at his deskmate.

His name was Bai Juyi. He was recommended by the great writer Gu Kuang and went directly to Bianzhou to take the imperial examination. His father was the magistrate of Kaifeng County, so he had a family background in learning and many connections.

However, Bai Juyi was a righteous man who hated evil. He had real ability, and passing the imperial examination was nothing to be proud of.

When he was young, a Jinshi came to his hometown to give free lessons, which impressed Bai Juyi deeply. Now he is also a candidate, and naturally plans to participate in it after passing the Jinshi exam.

It can be considered as fulfilling a vow.

"But wasting a year teaching those peasants is indeed a troublesome matter, and it cannot be pushed away."

The round-faced candidate sighed and shook his head.

The imperial court system is good, but when it falls on those "chosen ones" of the Jinshi, it is not so good for the person concerned. What benefit can you get from going to the countryside to teach those children to read?

No one would be happy about it.

"You don't even understand the principle of remembering your roots. I think you should not take the imperial examination. Let's sever our ties!"

Bai Juyi got angry and scolded the round-faced candidate.

"No, no, no, Brother Bai, don't get so excited. I just said it casually. I will do whatever the court requires. There is no need to be so particular."

The candidate named Yuan Zhen hurriedly grabbed Bai Juyi's sleeve and asked him to sit down.

"It's been just over a year since the emperor passed away, and the court is already in chaos. What should we do?"

Bai Juyi said worriedly.

Emperor Fang Qing passed away at the beginning of last year, and the forty-something Crown Prince Fang Xiaoru succeeded to the throne and issued a general amnesty. This Crown Prince was weak in power and could not control the court officials. Without Fang Qing to suppress the factional struggles in the court, they were already taking over.

Over the years, the imperial court has given many benefits to ordinary people. For example, the government provides stone mills for self-cultivating farmers for free, and they can borrow mules and horses to transport grain for sale for very little money. The government also provides farmers with low-interest loans, and the repayment period can be delayed, etc. There has even been a large-scale reduction in loans due to disasters.

Now, some court officials have suggested that the lower-class people cannot be given transfusions for a long time, as this will not be sustainable for the national finances.

But when some people proposed to increase taxes on wealthy merchants in Jiangnan and Huainan to make up for the fiscal deficit, others said that this was draining the pond to catch fish and competing with the people for profits.

There was chaos in the court and no new policies could be decided.

"If the government were still here, this kind of problem would be easy to deal with."

Bai Juyi sighed.

Today, on the surface, the Ming Dynasty seems to be booming, with flowers blooming and trade flourishing.

However, in private, local wealthy families found ways to annex land, colluded with court officials, and formed cliques through marriage. In addition, the population had increased significantly since the establishment of the Ming Dynasty, so some chaos appeared in the local areas.

The scene inside the city was quite different.

Fang Qing originally established many laws to protect the rights of workers in the workshops, but they were soon abolished after his death. The reason was not complicated. The central government officials did not have such close ties with the local wealthy families, so they investigated the embezzlement of land by these wealthy families more strictly.

However, these court officials had very close relations with the big merchants in Bianzhou!

There are also many private tributes and offerings on weekdays.

When Fang Qing was in office, he had been investigating the issue, but unfortunately, the problem persisted and the root cause was only addressed.

Those businessmen were whispering behind the scenes, and the earlier bills were "replaced" for various reasons.

Many hired workers now live a harder life than the slaves of the past. Having lost their land, they have no bargaining power with merchants. Fang Qing's proposal to abolish slavery and the master-servant agreement have all become empty words.

"You two, take a look at this."

A young man wearing a melon-shaped hat and a patched cloth robe handed them a book. The title was blank and the author was signed "Lanlin Xiaoxiaosheng".

"This, this is a banned book!"

Bai Juyi was shocked, but he quickly put the book into his sleeve.

The young man gave Bai Juyi a thumbs up, smiled and nodded, then quietly went downstairs. "Is this the legendary book?"

Yuan Zhen came over and asked with a mysterious look on his face.

"Yes, this is it, that book!"

Bai Juyi nodded and his expression became serious.

At this moment, someone outside shouted, "Someone's dead! Someone's dead!"

Bai Juyi quickly stretched his head to look, and saw an official in a purple robe lying in a pool of blood, right at the gate of Zhuangyuan Building!
"This is the Minister of Rites!"

Yuan Zhen was shocked. Why did he know this person? Because he had given money to this person. It was not that he would not pass the imperial examination, but that giving some money would increase the possibility of passing.

These are no longer unspoken rules, but are close to explicit rules.

"Something happened!"

The two went downstairs and saw the Minister of Rites lying in a pool of blood. There was a piece of paper next to him with five words written on it:
Get rid of thieves for the government!
Bai Juyi and Yuan Zhen both gasped, looked at each other, and saw horror in each other's eyes.

There was only one official in the world, and that was Fang Qing. After the crown prince Fang Xiaoru succeeded to the throne, he put him aside on the pretext that "the name of the previous emperor cannot be desecrated."

Now he is still called the Son of Heaven. The throne is appointed by heaven, which is completely different from what Fang Qing said when he was in office.

On the top floor of a few buildings away from the Zhuangyuan Building, a middle-aged man with a gentle face was chatting with a beautiful young woman. At this moment, the young man wearing a melon-shaped hat came in and said to the middle-aged man, "Father, it's done."

"Well, well done. For a scholar like Bai Juyi, we can slowly examine his character. Let's pause the action of exterminating traitors and wait and see how the court reacts.

This Minister of Rites, Li Xinggong, is acting recklessly because he is a distant relative of the Queen Mother (Wang Yunxiu). The Emperor cannot control him, so we will control him on his behalf!"

This middle-aged man is Che Youwei, the youngest son of Che Guangqian. He has been unruly since childhood and likes to make friends with people from all walks of life. He is also Fang Qing's de facto son-in-law, married to Jiang Wuyan's beloved daughter Jiang Jinbo, and the beautiful woman sitting next to him is her.

Jiang Wuyan had a free and easy personality. She did not want her offspring to be bound by imperial power, so her daughters all took her surname and did not enjoy the court's offerings as princesses.

"Killing a few corrupt officials is useless. Those ministers and assistant ministers will continue to do the same as before."

Jiang Jinbo sighed and touched her husband's hand. She just loved Che Youwei's public-spirited character. In fact, with the current status of the Che family, Che Youwei had everything he wanted.

It doesn't have to be like this.

"My father said, and the government also said, private interests are temporary, public interests are eternal. It doesn't matter how many of those who bring disaster to the government are killed."

Che Youwei sighed.

"My father hated assassinations the most. If my mother hadn't agreed to this, I wouldn't have used this."

Jiang Jinbo also sighed. This group of killers was the dowry left to her by Jiang Wuyan. They were all descendants of the Jiang family.

Che Youwei took out the "banned book", handed it to Jiang Jinbo and said, "Lanling Xiaoxiaosheng has quietly gone to Guangzhou, and I plan to start an uprising in Guangzhou. The emperor once said that the world does not need an emperor, and Che agrees with that."

"Does it really have to come to that?"

Jiang Jinbo asked helplessly.

That was one of her brothers, standing up against her other brother, even though they were half brothers.

"What if that one is the same as this one?"

Jiang Jinbo asked back.

"Then change another one! I don't believe we can't find one like the official one!"

Che Youwei said in a decisive tone.

Jiang Jinbo opened the banned book and saw a sentence written on the title page:

There has never been any savior. To create happiness for the people, it all depends on ourselves.

"I will go with you."

Jiang Jinbo held Che Youwei's hand tightly and said.

(End of this chapter)