People in the Song Dynasty were lawless

Chapter 449 Arresting people as soon as entering Youyan

Zhao Jun actually knew that the people's superstitious and feudal ideas could not be changed in a short period of time.

Just like technology cannot be iterated in just a few years or decades.

But just as the Song Dynasty mobilized the whole country to first develop cutting-edge technologies such as steam and electricity, and then gradually popularized the basics and accumulated other technologies.

There are some things you have to do first, only then will you have a future.

If you think “Oh, this is too difficult to do, I’d better not do it and just let it go”.

Then even if the Liao Dynasty and Western Xia were defeated, the Song Dynasty would just be a feudal society no different from other dynasties and would never be able to move towards civilization.

So Zhao Jun’s idea is very simple. He doesn’t want to talk about how difficult it is to do this, nor does he want to know how many disadvantages there are in doing it.

He only cares about what to do, how to do it, and how to develop a relatively complete plan to solve various problems and drawbacks.

Because no matter how many disadvantages there are or how great the resistance is, the advantages will definitely outweigh the disadvantages.

Therefore, this is not only responsible for the development of the country, but also responsible for the Chinese Han people in the Song Dynasty!
of course.

In addition, there is another factor, which is to strengthen control over the grassroots.

In addition to the well-known factors such as economy, military, and education, later generations also use four other factors to measure a country's strength.

In 1993, the country issued a report called "China's Capabilities Report."

The report points out that China's development is inseparable from national capabilities, which include "fiscal absorption capacity", "macro-control capacity", "legalization capacity" and "enforcement capacity".

Based on the theoretical foundation of this report, my country has improved many reforms, including the tax-sharing reform, the social security system, and the strengthening of macro-control capabilities.

Many of the policies extend beyond 2020.

Think about it again, as early as 1992, Mr. Qian had written a letter to the country suggesting that my country's automobile industry should skip gasoline and diesel and directly develop new energy.

It can be imagined that since the 90s, my country's future development planning has been very long-term, taking into account things that will happen decades later.

In essence, the so-called national capacity refers to the ability of a country to transform its will and goals into reality.

The ability to draw financial resources, the ability to legalize, and the ability to enforce are all inseparable from the control of the grassroots.

Then the best option is to take advantage of this opportunity to gradually break the feudal landlords and gentry’s monopoly over the countryside and further strengthen central power.

Therefore, in general, what Zhao Jun needs to do is, first, to have a long-term vision and regard the development of science and technology, the popularization of basic education, and the change of people's ideas as a century-long plan for the future.

The second was to establish farmers' associations, an organization that was opposed to the landlord gentry class, and through the support and help of the government, strengthen the farmers' associations' control over the countryside. The court would then use the farmers' associations to implement the court's will.

In this way, the grassroots people who were once far away from the central control and where the so-called imperial power did not extend to the countryside can be connected with the upper class.

The only issue to be considered is whether the government can be closely connected with the farmers' association, rather than the government being bribed by landlords and gentry, causing the farmers' association to be in name only.

This will test the strength of supervision.

Zhao Jun is not worried about this, as the intensity of supervision often depends on the person in highest authority.

During the reign of Zhu Yuanzhang in the Ming Dynasty, supervision was extremely strict, but subsequent emperors gradually began to relax their supervision, which led to the political corruption in the middle and late Ming Dynasty.

Zhao Jun is only 35 years old now. If nothing unexpected happens, he can still stay in power for at least 30-40 years, or even 50 years.

Such a long period of time was enough for him to perfect and normalize political supervision, and also enough to train several successors who could always implement his will and pass on his ideas.

Therefore, Zhao Jun is still very optimistic about the future development of the Song Dynasty.

He left Lincheng on March 29 and continued to head north. Wherever he arrived, he would first conduct a day of undercover investigation in the local area. If he found corrupt officials, bandits, bullies, or oppressive practices, he would severely punish them.

If the local officials did a good job, he would praise them, and then call together local officials and members of the farmers' association to explain the idea of ​​breaking old customs and habits.

Although he could also return to the central government and issue decrees directly later, there are many layers between them, and the central government's will may not be fully implemented. The effect would be much worse than Zhao Jun's personal explanation.

The only problem is that we have to carry out ideological work in this regard wherever we go, which wastes a lot of time.

The original plan was to go directly north to Youyan, crossing the entire Hebei Plain at an average speed of 20-30 kilometers per day, a journey of about kilometers, and arrive within a month.

But now he would have to spend one more day in each county, so the journey would naturally be much slower. By the time he arrived in Youyan, it would basically be late April.

On April 22nd, Zhao Jun arrived in Rongcheng.

Cui Yi, the pacification envoy of Youyan Road, Yang Ting, the transport envoy and prefect of Beiping, Wang Si, the chief judge, Zhou Hang, the envoy of Changping, Tang Jie, the censor, Wei Guan, the prefect of Zhuozhou, and Wu Kui, the judge, came to meet the emperor.

Now that the Sixteen Prefectures of Youyun have returned, the imperial court has carried out administrative planning for the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun and parts of Liaodong.

The area from Beijing to Shenyang is about 120,000 square kilometers, which is called Youyan Road. Later generations, Shuozhou, Datong, Zhangjiakou and surrounding areas are about 90,000 square kilometers, which is called Yunshuo Road.

Since the Liao and Song dynasties were still in a state of war in theory, the Song Dynasty merely accepted the Liao's peace talks, but that did not mean that it would withdraw its troops from the border.

Therefore, the army that was previously deployed in Hebei Road has now moved north, and there are also local pacification envoys in charge of leading military affairs, as well as many other senior generals such as the general manager of the army and the deputy general manager of the army.

At present, the border between Liao and Song is divided by rivers such as Yuli River, Daling River, and Jin River. On the Youyan Road side, the Song Dynasty occupies Bei'an Prefecture, Zezhou, Yuzhou, Jinzhou and other places.

The specific location is roughly the area south of Longhua County, Lingyuan City, Jianping County, Chaoyang City, Chengde City, Jinzhou City, Fuxin City and other large areas that were part of the Song Dynasty.

Yunshuo Road extends to Zhangjiakou in the east and Hohhot in the west, with the main areas being Datong City and Shuozhou City in Shanxi Province, and Ulanqab City in Inner Mongolia.

Rongcheng, as a border city between Youyan Road and Hebei Road, once prospered briefly due to the trade between Song and Liao. Now that Yanyun has returned, there are no longer any barriers or tariffs in the trade between the two places, and it has gradually fallen into normalcy.

It was noon and the weather was getting hotter recently.

It has not rained in Yanyun for more than 20 days, and the local government is organizing a team to dig canals to cope with possible drought.

At this moment, a convoy was slowly coming in the wilderness. In the distance, beside the pavilion on the official road, there were officials from Youyan Road standing there.

The carriage stopped and Zhao Jun lifted the curtain. A gentle breeze blew in, but it was also accompanied by hot and foul air, making one feel uncomfortable all over.

"It's only late April, not even midsummer May, and the weather in Youyan is already so hot."

Yang Cha, Yang Gao and others came over.

Zhao Jun walked down the carriage road and said, "It is true that the climate in Youyan is somewhat unusual, but the local government seems to have taken preventive measures."

He looked across the fields. The farmland on both sides of the road was a little dry. Many farmers were digging canals on the banks of the Yishui River in the distance. Because the flow of the Yishui River had also dropped significantly, the previous canals could no longer divert water. "Your humble servant greets the Magistrate!"

The carriage stopped beside the pavilion. Cui Yi and other officials stepped forward, and dozens of people bowed to him in greeting.

In addition to the main officials of the five departments along the route, there were also local deputies, local county officials, and border generals guarding Youyan Road, with ranks ranging from Cui Yi, the fourth rank, to the eighth rank county lieutenant.

Zhao Jun took a quick look and identified the leader by his official uniform and position, and said, "Are you Cui Yi?"

"That's right, the official."

Cui Yi said with a smile.

"Where's Tang Jie?"

Zhao Jun asked again.

Tang Jie, the head of the Imperial Censorate, stepped forward and said, "I am here."

"Ah."

Zhao Jun nodded and waved his hand, saying, "Catch them both first! Don't use force. The matter has not been concluded yet. Just isolate them for investigation first!"

Behind them, the imperial guards led by Jiang Dalang rushed over like wolves and tigers and controlled Cui Yi and Tang Jie.

Tang Jie had a calm expression and did not resist at all.

Cui Yi was horrified and shouted, "Minister, Minister, what's going on? Why are you arresting me? How can you arrest an official appointed by the court for no reason?"

"This"

"Forehead"

Many officials present were also shocked and looked at each other in bewilderment.

No one expected that Zhao Jun arrested the two highest-ranking local officials when he first arrived in Youyan, and one of them was the pacification envoy.

You should know that although Cui Yi's rank is the same as Yang Ting, Wang Si, Zhou Hang, Tang Jie and others, which is the fourth rank, the pacification envoy is usually above all other officials and has always been the head of the four officials, known as the "Shuai Si".

The reason for this is that the full name of the pacification commissioner was previously called the Jinglüe pacification commissioner, which covered the responsibilities of "jinglüe" and "pacification". At the local level, they were collectively referred to as the Four Departments together with the Transport Commissioner, the Revenue Commissioner, and the Judicial Commissioner.

Among them, the transport officer was in charge of material transportation, the custodian was in charge of warehouse storage, the criminal justice officer was in charge of criminal prosecution, and the general manager and pacification officer was in charge of civil affairs and military affairs, and could be said to be the highest military and political officer along the way.

It was not until the imperial court wanted to decentralize power, starting from the reign of Emperor Zhenzong of Song, that the posts of General Manager and Pacifier were separated. The General Manager was no longer a permanent post, but only a Pacifier was posted at the border, and the civil power was handed over to the Transport Commissioner, which caused the General Manager and Pacifier to fall from the altar.

However, there is no pacification envoy in the interior, but there is a permanent one at the border. Since the governor is not a permanent envoy and focuses more on military affairs, the pacification envoy pays more attention to disasters and civil unrest and also has certain military powers, which leads to the pacification envoy at the border having greater powers.

Unless the imperial court temporarily establishes this position in charge of military and political power along the route, just like Fan Zhongyan did when he first went to the northwest to serve as the governor of Shaanxi Route, the pacification envoy will have the highest rank.

Youyan Road is a newly established border road of the Song Dynasty. Although Cui Yi, as a semi-military commander, cannot directly intervene in the local area, he has a huge influence.

Zhao Jun arrested him directly, as well as Tang Jie, the chief of the Censorate, who was equivalent to the highest-level supervisory official. Two fourth-rank officials were taken down in front of everyone. Both the information given and the reasons were incredible.

"On my way here, before I even reached Youyan, I received a document from the Constitutional Council saying that someone had reported you under your real name, saying you were involved in corruption. Everyone in the world knows that I have no tolerance for official corruption."

Zhao Jun said calmly, "But I never arrest people without reason. I need evidence to arrest corruption, so today is not a formal arrest. Instead, we will follow the usual practice of isolating you for investigation. When the investigation is completed and proves that you are innocent, the Constitutional Court will publicly clarify your case, which will be regarded as the court clearing your suspicion. But if there is a problem with the investigation."

As he spoke, a cold gleam flashed in his eyes and he glanced at Cui Yi sideways. His expressionless look made Cui Yi shiver uncontrollably, and his legs seemed to begin to tremble.

According to historical records, Yi was corrupt and treacherous wherever he went, and his behavior became worse as he grew older. In Fengxiang, the Transport Commissioner Xue Xiang was forced to investigate and he had no choice but to go to Hezhong. He asked to retire as the Vice Minister of the Ministry of Justice.

Cui Yi was greedy and cunning wherever he went, and became even more cunning when he got old. When he was in Fengxiang, Xue Xiang, the transport commissioner, severely investigated him, and he had no choice but to go to Hezhong. He requested to retire and retired as the assistant minister of the Ministry of Justice.

Zhao Jun naturally didn't know, but before he arrived in Youyan, he did receive an official document from the Political System Council. The censor of Youyan Road reported it to the Central Censorate, and then the Censorate submitted the document to the Political System Council, which then passed it to him.

Since the imperial court does not allow impeachment without reason, if the censors and censors report impeachment, there must be certain evidence. Therefore, this means that the reporter is likely to have evidence of Cui Yi's guilt, so naturally he has to be arrested.

However, the procedures still have to be followed. Now, the imperial court does not arrest corrupt officials directly, but isolates and investigates them first, which is commonly known as "double regulation". After the investigation is thorough, they will convict according to their crimes. Ultimately, it still has to be carried out according to the procedures.

"Is Wang Shougui here?"

Zhao Jun asked again.

A middle-aged man with a white face and no beard stepped out from the crowd and said respectfully, "I am here."

"I'll stay in Rongcheng today. You can come over later."

"Yes."

"Okay, let's talk about it after we get into the city."

Zhao Jun waved his hand: "It's so hot now, don't stay outside the city for too long."

"Yes."

Everyone bowed their hands.

Zhao Jun returned to the carriage and the team slowly entered the city.

Soon the group entered Rongcheng.

Zhao Jun did not move into the Rongcheng County Government Office, but instead moved into the Rongcheng Posthouse, which was a guesthouse.

Except for Cui Yi and Tang Jie who were isolated and detained in the backyard, the rest of the officials were resting in the front yard, waiting to be summoned by Zhao Jun.

It was noon, and the first person Zhao Jun wanted to see was Wang Shougui.

He was the official in charge of Youyan Road. The title of his official position was rather complicated, generally called "Zou Ma Cheng Zheng", commonly known as a military supervisor along the way. He was below the transport envoy, deputy envoy, judge, criminal justice official, academic official, and grain official, and above the prefecture officials. He was of the fifth rank and was a person of low rank but great power.

Moreover, Wang Shougui has another identity, that is, a eunuch. In simple terms, Wang Shougui is the eunuch sent by the court to supervise the army in Youyan Road.

Although Zhao Jun had previously reformed the army and abolished the military supervisory system, he only abolished the military supervisory power during daily periods and the wartime command power of the military supervisory power. In other words, in wartime, the military command power was given to the generals, and the military supervisory power was not allowed to interfere.

However, the post of military supervisor still existed. For example, when Fan Zhongyan recaptured Youyan, the court sent Wang Su and Zhu Yunzhong as military supervisors. In theory, the war between Liao and Song was not over yet, so although Fan Zhongyan returned to the court, the court still sent military supervisors to stay in Youyan.

At this moment, Zhao Jun was in the middle hall of Rongcheng Inn. He had just gone into the room to change his clothes and washed his face to get rid of the dust on his body. Then he went to the hall and asked someone to call Wang Shougui in.

(End of this chapter)