Ming politicians

() The restoration and reconstruction work in Mengjin County has been exceptionally smooth. The number of disaster victims and refugees who came to Mengjin County has increased significantly. At the peak, there were more than 10 people. It is impossible for Mengjin County alone to have so many victims.

Su Tiancheng knew very well that many people came from other places, and his purpose was that the more people who came, the better.

The disaster relief work in Henan is not so easy to carry out. It has the interests of the local government. Su Tiancheng has curbed the local government to the greatest extent by doing this.

Slowly, the magistrate of Henan Province had some opinions. Seeing that the silver was flowing out like this, and it fell to the end, there might not be much left in the government. After this situation lasted for half a month, the chief envoy and governor of Henan Province also had opinion.

They feel that this time the imperial court's disaster relief excludes the local government. The county magistrate of Jiangning County in Yingtian Prefecture is not a great person, and if they are officials of the third rank or above in the imperial court, they would not dare to express their opinions casually.

The impeachment memorial reached the imperial court.

Su Tiancheng also got the news, of course it was from Jin Yiwei.

During this disaster relief, he seemed very lonely. All he thought about were the interests of the victims and refugees. It can be said that he was under pressure and opposed the officials of Henan Province.

Doing so is actually very dangerous. If he turns a blind eye and turns a blind eye to hand over most of the silver taels to provincial officials, or directly to the governor, he might get a lot of praise.

But he won't do that.Did that, not for long.Henan is about to become a hard-hit area. The lack of food and the successive disasters have caused more and more farmers to have enough to eat. As a result, there are so many rebellious farmers that they can't take care of it just by relying on relief.This time, if you have money, you must make the most of it.

Farmers are actually very kind, as long as they have a way to survive, they are absolutely unwilling to rebel.

The more people who come to Mengjin County, the more farmers get money.

Farmers in Henan are very self-conscious.Those who participated in the dredging work were all young and strong, and the elderly and children were hardly seen, let alone women. Many farmers understood that it was the imperial court helping them.For one day of work, not only food, but also a subsidy of three taels of silver. After ten days, it is three taels of silver.Relying on these money, the whole family can barely make ends meet for a year.These silvers are all used to buy grain, a total of six to seven shi of grain.

They know that if they give up a position, they can save their family.

Moreover, the inspector censor is organizing the grain and lowering the price of grain as much as possible. The wheat noodles that used to cost five coins a stone have dropped to four coins.

The effect of disaster relief is slowly showing. First, refugees from all over Henan, including farmers, rushed to Mengjin, then Huaiqing, Weihui, and Zhangde, and later, farmers from Kaifeng and Ruzhou. Hearing the news, they rushed over, and more and more farmers gathered in Mengjin.

Earth-shaking changes have taken place in all parts of Mengjin. Farmers do things without being lazy or slippery. They are honest. The silt is also the fertilizer in the farmland. The cleared cultivated land is covered with a layer of air-dried silt. Veterans are very clear.

A month later, the silt along the road was almost cleaned up, and it was early September.

Su Tiancheng basically completed the task of disaster relief.

The construction of various parts of Mengjin is very good. If someone comes here and sees it suddenly, they will never believe it. Three months ago, there was a flood here.

After the construction work was over, the victims left Mengjin County one after another. Of course, they all left with a lot of money, and many of them also brought the seeds for the coming year distributed by the government.

Of the 100 million taels of silver brought in, more than 70 taels were spent, leaving nearly 30 taels of silver.

After discussing with Yan Zizhang, Su Tiancheng and Yan Zizhang planned to hand over all the money to the Henan chief envoy Si Yamen.

Mengjin and Henan Province no longer need the money.

After all, there are Guide Mansion, Runing Mansion and Nanyang Mansion and other places, and they haven’t received much relief. The remaining silver taels can be invested in these places, and it’s almost the same. As for whether it will really reach the hands of the victims, God knows.

Xu Eryi, head of the Ministry of Industry, came to Mengjin County suddenly.

When Su Tiancheng saw Xu Eryi, he was very surprised. When he learned that Xu Eryi represented the imperial court and came to inquire about things, he already had a plan in his heart.

Xu Eryi was very serious, even though there were only the two of them in the second hall of the county government.

"Lord Su, on behalf of the imperial court, I would like to ask you a few questions, and you must answer them truthfully."

"The first question, the imperial court appointed you as the censor to be in charge of disaster relief in Henan. Why have you been in Mengjin all this time and didn't visit other places?"

"Reporting to Mr. Xu, the disaster in Mengjin is the most serious. I have a heavy responsibility on my shoulders, and I dare not delay at all times. If it is said that the disaster relief this time only cares about Mengjin and does not take care of other places, I will never admit it. , There are no more than 20 disaster victims in Mengjin County, but the number of disaster victims who have been rescued by officials has reached [-]. May I ask where those disaster victims come from."

"How can you be sure that these people are disaster victims?"

"All the disaster victims who came to Mengjin had the guides from the government, and the subordinate officials also sent sergeants to various places to inquire about the situation, proving that these people had indeed encountered disasters. They came to Mengjin to do things and got silver coins. , can maintain the life of the family, and the officials think that this kind of relief is the most appropriate way."

"Second question, since you came to Henan for disaster relief, why don't you rely on the local government to fully understand the situation, but make a decision on your own?"

"The lower officials have always relied on the local government. The official's plan is divided into two steps. The first step is to relieve the victims to the maximum extent. This requires personal practice and mastery of the situation, rather than listening to local reports and doing a good job. , The second step is to organize the disaster victims at the local level and carry out self-help in production. If all these things are entrusted to the local government, the lower officials have failed the emperor's expectations and the imperial court's great trust."

After two questions.As soon as Xu Er looked at Su Tiancheng, he didn't speak for a long time.

"Master Xu, do you have any questions? The officer is waiting to answer."

"Okay, there is no need to ask the following questions, Kun Yuan, I have a truth. I don't know if you like to hear it, but the disaster relief must depend on the locality."

"Teacher, the students also have a truth. It is necessary to rely on the place, but the students must maximize the benefits for the victims. This is done. Even if the disaster relief work in the future is not effective, the farmers can survive."

"Aren't you afraid of offending many colleagues?"

"It would be a lie to say that we are not afraid, but if the farmers have nowhere to go because of ineffective disaster relief work, or even become bandits. Or join the ranks of bandits, students would rather offend many colleagues."

Xu Eryi's lips trembled.

"Okay, well said, the old man didn't misunderstand you, Kun Yuan. Don't worry, when the old man goes back, he must argue with reason. If you are so loyal, you will be impeached. What's the reason? I hate these officials in Henan. Always think about your own interests, and what you are staring at is the disaster relief money allocated by the imperial court. This old man is ashamed to talk to them. You can do it boldly, and this old man will support you."

"Student thanks teacher."

"Kunyuan, don't talk about it. It should be the old man thanking you. It has been two days since I arrived in Mengjin. The old man went down to have a look. The situation is very good. The people call you Qingtian Bodhisattva. The face of the victims who I saw was ruddy, I admire the imperial court and think that this disaster relief is real, and all the money has been spent on them."

"The students haven't done enough. It's a pity that the time is too short. They will return to the capital in a blink of an eye. If it takes longer, the students will definitely spend all their money on the victims of the disaster."

"The old man understands your mood, enough is enough. Although the old man has been an official for so many years, although he has a bad temper, he has seen a lot of things. You can't learn from the old man. Too straightforward is not enough. You still have to be flexible. some."

Su Tiancheng looked at Xu Eryi, looking very surprised.

"Hehe, people change."

After finishing the business, Xu Eryi's expression became serious again.

"Kun Yuan, during this period of time, some things happened in the imperial court. Min Hongxue, Minister of the Ministry of Officials, was dismissed from his official post. Crown Prince Shaobao and Zuodu Censor Chen Yuting were also dismissed from official posts. The imperial court may have to recommend it publicly. "

Su Tiancheng looked at Xu Eryi, but didn't speak.

"Lord Zhou and Lord Wen, neither of them can please them. After fighting back and forth, they are both hurt. How can the emperor not understand these things, and each hit [-] big boards. I don't know if the court can calm down a little bit in the future."

"Students thought that it would not stop."

"Kun Yuan, why do you think so?"

"Party struggles within the imperial court have always existed. It is impossible to eliminate these struggles. The students think that when the country is in crisis, the civil and military ministers can put aside their previous suspicions and work together to tide over the difficulties. It is considered very good. If At critical moments, still thinking about interests and fighting, that is an unforgivable sin."

"Kun Yuan, you are not simple, you can have such an analysis, well, your disaster relief mission has been completed, you don't need to go back to the capital to renew the order, take Xiaoqi Battalion, and go straight back to Jiangning County."

Su Tiancheng was a little sad. He didn't go back to the capital, which meant that there were still people who spared no effort to impeach him. The emperor was in a dilemma, so he had to let him go back to Jiangning County directly. Unexpectedly, there was a lack of basic justice in the imperial court. No wonder Xu Eryi had such a big opinion , Thinking of fighting for himself in front of the emperor.

What happened next was beyond his expectation.

Yan Zizhang actually spoke good words for him. During Xu Eryi's investigation, Yan Zizhang sought truth from facts and believed that the disaster relief work in Henan was very good, and Su Tiancheng took the greatest credit.

As for Deng Hui, who has always followed Su Tiancheng, he was still a little frightened. Su Tiancheng was decisive in attacking. This was the first time he had seen such a hero, especially in the disaster relief work in Henan, he did very well. He admired it from the bottom of his heart, and he couldn't think of such a good way.

When it came to his own future, he was uneasy, but as time went by, he slowly made up his mind to follow Su Tiancheng, as long as he was loyal, he would surely have a bright future.