I served as an admonisher in the Song Dynasty

Chapter 422: Ten officials’ lives were wiped out in one stroke! Do you want to touch "Song Xingtong"?

Qiancheng County, on the streets of Defu Street.

Su Liang, wearing a moon-white gown, strode up to Chen Zhizhong.

"Mr. Chen, I haven't seen you for a long time. Are you still well?" Su Liang said with a smile on his face and cupped his hands.

The corners of Chen Zhizhong's mouth trembled slightly.

"Jing...Jingming, why...why are you here?"

Jing Ming.

Upon hearing these two words, the onlookers were stunned for a moment, and then suddenly realized.

This age and temperament made Chen Zhizhong nervous, and he was also known as Jing Mingzhe.

Except for Su Liang, Su Jingming, the hidden prime minister of the dynasty and the official favorite.

Du Lei took out a gold-plated document and looked at the onlookers.

"First of all, the imperial court has never advocated that the reform of the entire Song Dynasty should put the interests of the majority of people first and the overall situation. The reform of the entire Song Dynasty is the reform of the whole people. It will not work if one person is missing, and the imperial court will not abandon any common people. , let alone let them suffer unwarranted losses and harm due to the reform.”

The two generals did not even look at Chen Zhizhong and Zheng Youze. They waved their hands and turned around to evacuate.

"Follow the order!"

Naturally they admired him very much.

He thought Su Liang was still handling the case in Jinan Mansion, but he didn't expect that he had arrived in Qingzhou.

"Secondly, the main fault of the merchants on Defu Street invading the street is not you, but the local government. The previous county magistrate had unclear plans for the development of commerce, which led to people invading the street. This is the fault of the government. After the previous county magistrate leaves office, the current magistrate should Take responsibility instead of blaming the street invasion on the people.”

On power and influence.

Su Liang's aura was something that a small county magistrate could not resist.

Zheng Youze also lowered his head, and Su Liang overturned all his decisions with one sentence.

What the merchants want is not to punish the officials severely or to have them apologize to them.

After Du Lei finished reading, he put the document into his arms again.

The enemy was chased and beheaded in the Xixia city, and eight thousand enemies were wiped out in Jiaozhi territory.

Su Liang now.

Who else.

"Yes, the government has to recognize the two-year contract period!" Someone shouted again.

The county magistrates, government officials, and Xiang army officers and soldiers behind him also shouted in unison: "See Su Si's advice!"

Grandpa Qi from the tofu shop and shopkeeper Liu from the Liu Dawan Tea House were both excited. They did not expect that Su Liang, the most powerful Taiwanese admonisher in the Song Dynasty, would patronize their shop.

He quickly raised his hands and said, "Zheng Youze, the magistrate of Qiancheng County, please see Su Si for your advice."

At this time.

Su Liang interrupted Zheng Youze before he could finish speaking.

Just the fact that the other party is Su Jingming can make him obey his orders.

This is the dream of countless warriors, but it was achieved by Su Liang.

Su Liang ordered the soldiers to evacuate, making them believe that Su Liang would definitely uphold justice for them.

Zheng Youze had no choice but to step aside.

Yesterday, Zheng Youze learned about human trafficking in Jinan Prefecture.

"This is Jian Yuan's Right Secretary Jian Su Liang. Su Si Jian inspected Jingdong East Road under the holy orders, specially inspected the local area, raised all important matters concerning the local military, government and people's livelihood, and acted expediently..."

Zheng Youze hurriedly said to Su Liang: "Su Sijian, you have just arrived in Qiancheng County, so you may not be aware of the current situation. The reason why I am a low-ranking official..."

Su Liang looked around, took another look at Chen Zhizhong, and said: "Every merchant on Defu Street, my name is Su Liang. Duke Qi has been in office for a long time, so he may have some biased understanding of the Song Dynasty's political reform. Let me explain here first. one time."

Even if Zheng Youze was brave enough, he would not dare to check the authenticity of the document.

After the soldiers evacuated.

Hearing this, Chen Zhizhong's cheeks felt hot.

"Zheng Zhixian, I have been in the county for three days. I know the specific situation clearly. You don't need to elaborate!"

And this time.

Su Liangnai was the civil servant with the best reputation among the officers and soldiers of the Song Dynasty.

Su Liang was much stronger than the Duke of Qi whose official career was over.

Although he holds the position of admonishment, officials all know that he will have a seat in the future Zhongshu Political Hall.

Su Liang was the first to excuse him, which was already saving him face.

And they know better than anyone else the power to "go on special missions and act expediently".

"Su Si Jian, you said it well, that's the truth, but how to solve it next is the key!" A merchant said loudly.

Su Liang nodded, looked at the two soldiers on the side, and said: "All soldiers, evacuate immediately!"

But this is how to protect the interests of their stores.

Su Liangdao: "The government will definitely recognize the two-year contract period, but Defu Street will also be demolished. If Qiancheng County wants to develop, there cannot be such a situation where the street is not accessible for riding!"

"You...you still want to break it up. It seems...you...you are all in the same group!"

In the crowd, a merchant held up a wooden stick and shouted excitedly.

This is obviously a quick temper.

"Can't be demolished! Can't be demolished! Can't be demolished!"

The mood of the merchants became intense again.

Su Liang pressed his hands down and said: "Everyone, don't get excited, listen to me! Listen to me!"

At this time.

Grandpa Qi also turned around and said: "Everyone, please stop messing around and listen to Su Si's advice!"

The merchants gradually became quiet.

Su Liang continued: "My solution is for the government to find a business location in the county that satisfies you, and then sign a new contract."

"To make up for everyone's losses, this contract can be set for three years, and our business losses caused by the relocation will be compensated on a daily basis based on your business conditions. After this contract is signed, how about everyone moving out in an orderly manner?"

Merchants captured three important pieces of information from Su Liang’s words.

First, you can still open stores in the county; second, you will be compensated before opening a new store; third, only after the merchants agree to the new contract can the county government demolish them.

Merchants are not unreasonable either.

They also know that such encroachment on streets and roads is really not good for the development of Qiancheng County.

They didn't dare to take advantage of the government.

Su Liang's method is fair and just.

When the three-year contract expires, whether they can renew it depends on their own abilities.

"I promise!" Grandpa Qi said first.

"I...I agree too!"

"I...I promise!"

……

Merchants agreed.

Immediately.

Su Liang smiled and said: "Everyone, I will follow this matter to the end. Before everyone signs the new contract, not a single brick on Telford Street will be demolished."

"Besides, what I want to tell you is that it is not because of my arrival, Su Liang, that this result occurred, but because of the imperial court's policy."

"If you encounter similar problems again, if the local government does nothing, you can go to Kaifeng Mansion to submit the petition, but do not take such extreme measures and use force to deal with the government. What is reasonable has become unreasonable. Do you understand?"

"understand!"

The merchants puffed out their chests, their voices were very loud, and then they put their weapons aside one after another.

Just a few words.

Su Liang restored the court's credibility.

Chen Zhizhong and Zheng Youze both looked ashamed and lowered their heads.

Chen Zhizhong's problem is that he thinks it is wrong for ordinary people to cause trouble.

He always likes to minimize big problems and arbitrarily believes that invading the street is invading the street.

He is too rigid in doing things.

He likes to treat the common people as his enemies too much.

This is also the main reason why he is called "Mediocre Prime Minister" by officials.

As for Zheng Youze, he took his personal career too seriously.

He does not like to report the problems existing in the county to superiors, and believes that applying for compensation from the superiors is a sign of bad officialdom.

Therefore, he wants to suppress the people with force.

to be honest.

In their subconscious mind, they still don't care about the interests of the people. They only have eyes for themselves and political achievements.

At this time, Su Liangcai looked at Zheng Youze.

"Zheng Zhixian, do you have any objections?"

"No, no, I will definitely abide by this agreement and complete it strictly." Zheng Youze promised.

At this moment, he was in a panic. Su Liang could lose his official position with just one word.

Su Liang continued: "That's good. Now, shouldn't you apologize to Grandpa Qi?"

Zheng Youze was stunned, understood instantly, and quickly raised his hand to Grandpa Qi.

"Grandpa Qi, I'm sorry. I just said there were countless ways to prevent your grandson from studying. I was just talking out of anger. I didn't want you to commit suicide. I...I would never do that!"

Grandpa Qi suddenly laughed.

"Zheng Zhixian, you are actually not a bad official, but you are not honest in this matter. Old man, I know you are angry, otherwise I...I would have stabbed you with a knife!"

Hearing this, the surrounding merchants laughed.

Zheng Youze's official performance was actually pretty good, but he made the wrong choice regarding Telford Street.

"Everyone, please disperse. It's time to go about business. Don't hide weapons in the stalls anymore!" Su Liang said.

Immediately, the merchants all dispersed in a happy mood.

……

A quarter of an hour later.

Qiancheng County Government Office, back hall.

"Su Si admonished me. It was my fault that the official was wrong. It was me who misunderstood the imperial court's reform strategy and ignored the demands of the people. It was me..."

Zheng Youze kept apologizing.

Su Liangdao: "Don't worry, I won't let the court remove you from your job because of this matter. I still understand your political achievements and reputation in Qiancheng County. You must remember, don't be an official just for the sake of official career." , To take a longer view, Xie Yongqing, the magistrate of Jinan Prefecture, and Zhou Ding, the general magistrate, are the best counterexamples!"

"I understand, I understand!" Zheng Youze heavily handed over his hand.

aside.

Seeing that Chen Zhizhong kept his head down, Su Liang couldn't help but smile and said: "Zheng Zhixian, please get busy. I haven't seen Mr. Chen for several years, and we want to catch up on old times!"

Immediately, Zheng Youze left quickly.

"Ugh!"

Chen Zhizhong let out a long sigh and said: "Jing Ming, I'm telling you a joke. I have good intentions. I thought that by convincing these people, I would save the government from trouble. I didn't expect that I still made a mistake!"

If it were based on Su Liang's previous temper.

Chen Zhizhong let him, Wang Anshi and Sima Guang take the blame. Su Liang would definitely destroy Chen Zhizhong's face. But this person has become an official, and he is just mediocre, not ambitious.

Su Liang was no longer so angry.

"Mr. Chen, please don't be angry if I say something you may not like."

"Besides the loss of personal ethics, the main reason for your dismissal from the prime minister was that you always stood in opposition to the people and liked to sacrifice the interests of some people to solve problems for the court. This was wrong and protected the people. Only by protecting the interests of the imperial court..."

Upon hearing this, Chen Zhizhong frowned.

He always thought that he was being targeted by officials because he failed to pass the Jinshi examination.

It suddenly dawned on me at that moment.

It turns out that if you want to be a good official, you don't have to be the hands of the officials, but you have to be the brains of the people.

The most fundamental reason why he was dismissed as prime minister and retired early was after the officials finished talking about some matters.

He would only shout "I second my opinion" instead of "I have objections".

Officials will definitely not like a husband who can only speak second opinions.

"Been taught a lesson!"

Chen Zhizhong stood up and solemnly handed over his hands to Su Liang.

At this moment, he finally saw it through.

I have seen through that my abilities are indeed limited, and I am not as good as those in the court today.

He no longer thinks about returning to the court. If he can exert his remaining enthusiasm in Qingzhou, he will be worthy of this life.

……

afternoon.

Bianjing City, inside the Chui Gong Hall.

Zhao Zhen sat in front of the imperial case, flipping through the documents.

The ministers of the two governments and three departments, as well as the Taiwan admonishers Ouyang Xiu, Fan Zhen and others all frowned.

Lean slightly.

Zhao Zhen put down the document in his hand and said angrily: "I ordered all the admonishers from the station to patrol the country to check for leaks and fill in the gaps. I thought there wouldn't be any big problems, but I didn't expect that there are all problems in the place!"

"In addition to the human trafficking incident in Jinan Prefecture, there are unscrupulous officials who support singers, officials who are greedy for money and accept bribes, and officials who overhauled an arch bridge less than five feet long three times in one year for political achievements..."

"boom!"

Zhao Zhen slapped the imperial case hard and said coldly: "What can I do so that these officials can keep themselves clean and serve the public with integrity!"

Zhao Zhen was very angry.

He didn't expect that there were so many local problems.

Prime Minister Wen Yanbo immediately came out.

"There are many officials and local officials, and it is inevitable that there will be some moths. Taiwan's admonishing officials are all very aware of everything and cannot tolerate a grain of sand in their eyes. These are personal issues of local officials. The overall implementation of the current reform strategy is still not good. questionable."

"Yes, the official family is actually very good! In all dynasties, there have been officials who were greedy and incompetent. This is really inevitable. The effect of our current reform is already very good!" Zhang Fangping also added.

At this time.

Ouyang Xiu suddenly took out a memorial from his arms and stood up.

"In the official family, I have made statistics on the specific violations and crimes committed by local officials. Most of them are doing it for fame, profit, and women. It is very common. I suggest that these negative examples should be severely punished!"

"The ministers screened out ten local officials. The crimes committed by these officials would not be enough to anger the people if they were not killed, but they were familiar with the "Xingtong" (i.e., Song Xingtong). After knowing that they were guilty, they first surrendered and were reduced to second class, and then He also used the official sentence to compensate for the punishment, and in the end he only received a sentence of strangulation or two years' imprisonment, which is really too light. "

"I suggest killing chickens to scare monkeys and punishing these ten officials to death!"

Since Su Liang advised Wang Anshi to "regardless of personal virtues, make merit first and then become a saint", Ouyang Xiu also had the idea of ​​moving up in his mind, so he has been very active recently and has done a lot of homework.

Zhao Zhen took Ouyang Xiu's memorial and read it carefully.

In the Song Dynasty, scholar-bureaucrats and officials had always had the privilege of extorting punishment from their official positions.

If you are above the ninth grade, you can serve one year as a disciple, and those who surrender can also seek leniency.

After reading it, Zhao Zhen found that this was indeed the case.

A local magistrate kept three female prostitutes and caused the death of a farmer's family. In the end, he surrendered and was sentenced to "two years of apprenticeship" in addition to an accident caused by negligence.

If it were an ordinary person, it would definitely be the death penalty.

"The punishment of these officials is indeed too light, but the court's preferential treatment of scholar-bureaucrats cannot be completely abolished, otherwise the impact will be too great!" Zhao Zhen said.

Ouyang Xiu cupped his hands and said: "In officialdom, for ordinary crimes and punishments, scholar-officials can have their sentences reduced based on their privileges, but when it comes to people's livelihood and the lives of ordinary people, scholar-officials should not have such privileges!"

Zhao Zhen nodded in approval.

At this time, Wen Yanbo stood up.

"It's inappropriate for officials. Doesn't this mean a major overhaul of the "Xingtong"?"

"The preface says: The power that was established at the end of the Song Dynasty cannot be changed. Once the "Xing Tong" is overhauled, where is the majesty of our dynasty's laws? If future generations take this as a precedent and continue to make major changes to the "Xing Tong", I am afraid that chaos will reappear. !”

At this time, Zhang Fangping also stood up.

"Although these ten officials committed serious crimes, their crimes are not serious enough to lead to death. To take away the lives of ten officials in one stroke is too cruel and heartless. It is not the behavior of our king and ministers!"

"I agree that the "Xingtong" cannot be changed, and the ten officials cannot be killed. We can think of other ways. Although scholar-bureaucrats are not incapable of being killed, the crimes of these people do not warrant the death penalty!" Song Xiang followed up and said .

They all felt that Ouyang Xiu's policy was too cruel.

Before Ouyang Xiu could wait for the other ministers to express their opinions, he stood up and retorted: "The official family, killing these ten officials is not only because of the crimes they committed, but also to safeguard the achievements of the Song Dynasty's reform."

"At the moment, the most important thing is to maintain and stabilize the achievements of the reform throughout the Song Dynasty, and the people who can cause great damage to the reform are local officials. Without capital punishment, such incidents will inevitably occur in endlessly. I am afraid that Taiwanese admonishers will be sent to visit the capital once a year. not enough."

"For the sake of the results of our reform throughout the Song Dynasty, and for the benefit of the entire imperial court, these ten officials should be killed, in order to frighten the officials in the world!"

"I object. This move will make people panic, and the "Xingtong" must not be changed!" Wu Yu also objected.

Fu Bi, who had been silent until now, thought for a while and said, "I think it's killable!"

"I also think it's killable!" Fan Zhen also said.

Before coming, Ouyang Xiu had already revealed some ideas to Fan Zhen.

Seeing the hesitation on Zhao Zhen's face, Ouyang Xiu continued: "Guan family, with the prosperity of our dynasty's commerce, there will be more and more entertainment and enjoyment businesses, and the ones who are most likely to be dragged into the trap are the privileged scholar-bureaucrats and officials, Ruo Huairou If we wait, more problems will inevitably arise, and our reform achievements will most likely be greatly damaged, and we will go back!"

"Xu Fei, the general magistrate of Shouzhou who was sentenced to strangulation, wrote in his confession that he believed himself to be honest and not tempted by money and lust. His only hobby was calligraphy. Some businessmen knew his hobby and found him a job. A young woman with whom he could spend a night chatting about calligraphy, and then he fell in love.”

"Most officials are not saints. It is too difficult to refuse all temptations based on their own virtue. The death penalty must be adopted to make them timid!"

"I suggest that these ten officials be taken to Bianjing City and beheaded collectively to make the officials in the world reflect on themselves! This move is not a harsh rule or a bad law, but part of the reform of the entire Song Dynasty!"

……

Ouyang Xiu's voice was as loud as a bell, and his words made both the emperor and his ministers think deeply.

The hall was silent for half an hour.

Zhao Zhen said slowly: "During the reform period, everything can change."

This remark comes from Su Liang.

This is a sentence often said by officials of the Reform Department.

Wen Yanbo looked anxious and said again: "The official family, if the "Xingtong" is greatly disturbed, the negative impact will be too great!"

Zhao Zhen shook his head.

"Don't move the "Xingtong". I am going to issue a supplementary decree to enumerate and regulate the privileges of "seizing official positions and exempting from punishment" by scholar-bureaucrats. However, these officials listed by Ouyang Xuesi will be excluded from the privileges after verification by the Zhongshu. If the person can be sentenced to death, he will be sentenced to death.”

If the death penalty can be imposed, the death penalty will be imposed.

These words are extraordinary.

The laws of the Song Dynasty have always followed the principle of "doubt the crime without hesitation".

You may or may not be sentenced, but you must not be sentenced, but Zhao Zhen wants to do the opposite today.

This was obviously to safeguard the achievements of the Song Dynasty's reform.

Wen Yanbo couldn't help but be overjoyed when he heard that the officials were not planning to amend the "Xingtong". These supplementary regulations were indeed a middle-of-the-road strategy and feasible.

The official family has moved from a virtuous king to a sage king.

"I agree with what the official said!"

"I have no objection!"

"I have no objection!"

……

Suddenly.

All the monarchs and ministers reached a consensus.

Three days later.

Zhongshu promulgated the "Regulations on the Restrictions on the Privilege of Scholar-officials Using Officials to Commit Punishments."

The officials in Beijing and the people in Bianjing City had not yet woken up from the huge shock.

Another document titled "Summary of the Capital Punishment Cases of Ten Officials" once again shocked everyone's attention.

It was unprecedented for the imperial court to execute ten scholar-bureaucrats at once.

For a while.

Some are happy and some are sad.

When these two documents reach the local area, they will inevitably cause violent storms and waves.

But the purpose of this stormy wave is to suppress evil winds, not to stir up more right and wrong.

The current Song Dynasty.

The scholar-bureaucrats who violated the law did not dare to use forceful reasoning and threatened the court with ancestral laws or resignation.

They no longer have the amulet.

After these two documents are issued.

None of the officials in Bianjing City raised any objections.

present.

Zhao Zhen has completely taken control of Taijian and the two mansions, and the imperial power has almost reached its peak.

He is no longer the "benevolent king" who could make a few officials change their decisions or regress just by crying.

Many people in Bianjing City were so happy that they almost went crazy.

They like fairness and they like those lawless officials who rely on their privileges to be severely punished.

Especially some businessmen.

More than once, they heard some officials speak nonsense and demonstrate the superiority of scholar-bureaucrats.

Similar: If I make a mistake, I can use the official sentence to compensate for the punishment, which is equivalent to having two lives. Can you do it?
Now, those officials who relied on their privileges and did bad things have their privileges reduced. If they dare to violate the law and discipline, they will be severely punished by the court.

Practitioners of Goulan House in Bianjing City are also very excited.

The deeds of these ten bad officials were enough to serve as material for their storybooks for half a year.

……

Qingzhou territory.

Su Liang had just returned from inspecting a field that had been successfully reclaimed.

Then I saw the "Regulations on the Restriction of the Privilege of Scholar-officials Using Officials to Commit Punishment" and the "General Summary of the Capital Punishment Cases of Ten Officials" that were urgently sent from Bianjing City.

After Su Liang saw it, he smiled from ear to ear.

"This time, the officials are so fierce! This is the best way to eradicate local officials' illegal crimes. Only when they see blood will they be afraid and do their jobs properly!"

Su Liang was even more happy that the officials and ministers became more and more virtuous and capable, and became more and more like him.

It is the general trend for the Song Dynasty in this state to achieve a prosperous age.

(End of this chapter)