Ming Dynasty: Domination of the World from the Imperial Examination

Chapter 172 A bird in the hand is worth a thousand in the bush! (Part )

Qiu Yue was executed.

This is one of the oldest traditions in China.

The Chinese have continued this tradition since the Xia and Shang dynasties.

Lüshi Chunqiu says: "The first month of autumn is the beginning of autumn. In this month, laws are revised, cases are decided, the guilty are punished, and the punishment is strict. The heaven and earth begin to be solemn and cannot be full."

This tradition has lasted for thousands of years and has not faded much.

However, the current dynasty did not fully comply with it. At least when Zhu Yuanzhang wanted to kill, this so-called tradition could only give way to the emperor's power. However, this time Zhu Di executed corrupt officials in the autumn, which satisfied the tradition.

When the notice was posted, the news spread quickly.

As the former capital of the Yuan Dynasty, Beiping had very spacious streets and alleys. But now people kept pouring in from all directions, and even the spacious streets were now packed with people.

And more people came one after another.

The people who came here wanted to see if any of the officials who had oppressed them had been killed.

If so, it would be the most enjoyable thing in recent years.

Today, the streets of Beijing are deserted.

West City.

Xia Zhibai didn't go to see it.

Zhu Di actually invited him, but after thinking about it, Xia Zhibai still refused.

The killing scenes were nothing to look at.

Just a blow to the head.

At most, the people around would become more ferocious and crazy after seeing the blood.

Of course, the impact of the bright red blood is still very strong.

Xia Zhibai didn't go, but Heiwa did.

Dalu and others didn't go either.

They have seen too many murder scenes like this.

During the Yuan Dynasty, nobles killed people, officials killed people, and after the Yuan court was defeated and fled, many people died while fighting among the people. After the Ming Dynasty came to control the world, many people were killed in this area as well. As a minority tribe, they have experienced too many bloody scenes.

They don't want to see any of this at all.

Ma Tao and the other teenagers woke up. They did not sleep well last night and were often awakened by the strong wind and thunder outside. Even after washing their faces with cold water, they still looked a little listless.

They looked a little dazed.

Just standing there all alone.

At a loss.

But they kept looking towards the door, their eyes filled with worry and fear, as well as pain and desolation. They were no longer young and had long passed the age of ignorance. They also knew what was happening in the city today, and most of their fathers and clansmen would meet with unexpected events.

It's just that they dare not show their sadness.

But the whole person seemed to be lost and spiritless.

Xia Zhibai taught Dalu and the others some new words, then turned around and looked at Ma Tao and the others and said, "Cry if you want to. I don't have so many rules or particularities here. Merchants, especially the big merchants who have been entrenched in the area for decades, have blood on their hands. Not many people will sympathize with their deaths. The only thing I ask of you is that you don't hold hatred in your heart."

"What's past is past."

Ma Tao and other young men lowered their heads, as if they did not hear Xia Zhibai's words.

After a while, the sound of crying was heard.

Not a moment.

They all burst into tears.

The sound of their crying was not very loud, and some of them even clenched their teeth to prevent their crying from being heard.

Xia Zhibai shook his head.

Some things you need to rely on yourself.

It is not terrible to have nothing, what is terrible is to become devastated.

Especially when you know that all your family members except yourself were killed, this kind of cruel mental and physical torment is not something that everyone can endure. But this is the game of life, and once you get involved, you have to keep playing.

until
Total failure or death!

Xia Zhibai had no sympathy for salt merchants such as Ma Wenhua.

He has no filter for businessmen. If he does, it would only be hostility and vigilance.

Modern businessmen dare to directly violate the law under the supervision of the law, let alone the Ming Dynasty. In today's era of widespread selective law enforcement and the court's difficulty in effective supervision, except for the peddlers who make a living from door to door, all the merchants with doors and houses are bad people and their hands are stained with blood.

This is the fact.

Xia Zhibai didn't pay much attention to Ma Tao and others.

His mind was on a map, which he had drawn when he had visited the iron mine some time ago and roughly walked around the area.

After continuous adjustments over the past few days, some outlines of the factory area have been added.

He has been in Peking for some time.

However, the iron mine had never had a chance to start construction. One reason was that there was really not enough manpower. The people were either busy with the autumn harvest or were conscripted by the government to serve in the army. It was impossible for him to call on the people to participate in the construction of the iron mine at this time.

Secondly, the miners from Yingtian Prefecture have not arrived yet.

Xia Zhibai has already figured out everything about the construction and development of the iron mine.

Peking is a good place.

Beiping used to belong to the Secretariat during the Yuan Dynasty. In the first year of Hongwu, the Secretariat was divided into Dadu Road, Baoding Road, Hejian Road, Zhending Road, Shunde Road, Guangping Road, and Daming Road, and then changed to Beiping Prefecture, Baoding Prefecture, Hejian Prefecture, Zhending Prefecture, Shunde Prefecture, Guangping Prefecture, and Daming Prefecture respectively.

In the following years, the Ming Dynasty continued to change. It was once changed to Shandong Province, and then separated and established as the Beijing Xingzhongshu Province.

It was not until the ninth year of Hongwu that the Beiping Province was changed to the Beiping Provincial Administration Commission.

And then it was officially confirmed.

Today's Peking is different from that of later generations. It is not yet the capital, so naturally there is no poverty belt around the capital. Without the halo of the capital, the area known as Hebei by the world will not have so many development restrictions. There is iron and coal, which are enough for the Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun to develop for a long time.

At least in the steel industry, Peking will no longer be suppressed.

The economy in the north can also be greatly boosted.

Xia Zhibai's current positioning for the North is very simple, which is to focus on the development of the steel industry. As for light industry, the North is indeed no match for the South. It is not a problem of the people, but of the population. The population of the South is much larger than that of the North. In an era when transportation is not smooth, the market in the South is too large.

It's simply incomparable to the North.

What Xia Zhibai is currently considering is making use of the resources in the north.

Give priority to the development of the North, develop the North's economy, and thus force the South to change.

As for diving into the south, Xia Zhibai had never considered it.

The south, especially Jianghuai, is not a place that ordinary people can set foot in. Even Zhu Yuanzhang, such an iron-fisted man, would still run into trouble in places like Jianghuai.

In places like Jianghuai, the power of meritorious officials is too great, there are too many interest groups, and the local forces are intertwined and deeply rooted. The imperial court does not have enough power and cannot regulate them at all. A fierce attack will only result in one side gaining while the other loses, and it will be like one side taking over.

Treating the symptoms does not cure the symptoms.

Zhu Yuanzhang obviously also knew this problem.

They have been trying hard to eradicate the influence of Jianghuai, but they can't study as well as other places, can't pass the exams, and can't even do the "selection of filial and honest officials". As for the economy, they are far behind Jianghuai.

Even though Zhu Yuanzhang imposed higher taxes on the Jianghuai region.

Still doesn't have much effect.

Local officials, powerful people, and landlords had plenty of ways to transfer these taxes to the people. Zhu Yuanzhang's series of fierce attacks also caused local people to mourn Zhang Shicheng and the emergence of an "anti-Ming" trend of thought. After a series of unsuccessful operations, Zhu Yuanzhang finally stopped.

Start by trying to cut from the court branches.

Judging from the historical results, Zhu Yuanzhang still failed.

The economic base determines the superstructure. The South is too rich, far surpassing the North. This will inevitably lead to more talents in the South, because the South has more money and better educational resources. No matter how much Zhu Yuanzhang suppresses it, it will only scratch the surface and the situation will recover after a while.

In fact, the harsher the suppression, the stronger the rebound will be.

The territory of China, from the original Guanzhong and Hebei to today's Jianghuai, has experienced a lot of changes. However, due to the climate and the closure of the northwest's foreign trade routes, Guanzhong has completely fallen into a slump. The only country that can stand up against Jianghuai is Hebei.

The north will also be Xia Zhibai's long-term strategic location.

Xia Zhibai regained his composure.

He rolled up the drawing in his hand.

Judging from the time, the people sent by Yingtian Prefecture should arrive in the next few days.

creak.

The tightly closed door was pushed open.

Heiwa walked in with a lost look on his face, followed by several young men. Their clothes were very tattered, not even fully covering their vital parts. Several little beggars looked at the people in the yard nervously, and when they saw Dalu and the others with beards on their faces, they were so scared that they took a few steps back.

Seems to have bad memories of the Semites.

Xia Zhibai raised his eyes.

He took a few glances at these little beggars and guessed that they should be the "helpers" that Heiwa met while walking around the city during this period.

Heiwa walked over dejectedly and said, "Brother Xia, my people were robbed by the government. The government announced today that some fields outside the city will be distributed to beggars in the city. Many people I have met during this period have accepted the arrangements of the court and chose to settle down in Bei'an."

"I"

Heiwa's eyes were a little red and he looked very aggrieved and uncomfortable.

Xia Zhibai laughed and consoled him, "Isn't this a good thing?"

"A bird in the hand is worth a thousand in the bush. Happiness is contentment. Their choice is not wrong. Compared with the empty words I gave, the court gave real farmland. If it were me, I would also choose the farmland."

“This is enough to support the family.”

"With land, I will have food and clothing, and I can start a family and a career."

"If you really consider them as friends, you should be happy for them."

"But they clearly agreed on it before." Heiwa was still a little angry and felt that he was being backstabbed.

Xia Zhibai touched Heiwa's head and said with a smile: "You, sometimes you take things for granted. You did come from a beggar family, but they didn't go through the things you did. Is it really that hard to choose between having a full meal every day and having a full meal every day?"

"There's no need to get too hung up on it."

"Isn't there anyone willing to listen to your advice?"

"Why don't you introduce yourself?"

Hei Wa wiped his face, looked at the people beside him, smiled again, and said, "That's right, if they don't want to, then they don't want to. There will always be someone who is willing. Brother Xia, let me introduce you. This person is Li Zi, this one is Fang Huan, and this one is..."

Heiwa introduced these people in detail.

All young.

Xia Zhibai smiled and nodded, and took the initiative to extend his hand to signal: "I am Xia Zhibai, thank you for collecting information for me in the city recently. I, Xia Zhibai, will not break my promise, and will give you a brand new life in the future."

"You are welcome to join."

(End of this chapter)