Jiajing Chengming

In Huizhou Prefecture, Ding Yikui and other wealthy gentry who had disrupted the land survey were being taken into prison vans one after another.

This was naturally an unprecedented humiliation for them.

The wooden railings of the prison van were rough and cold. Ding Yikui gripped the railings tightly with his knuckles turning white, his eyes filled with anger and unwillingness.

His clothes were disheveled, his hair was loose, and he no longer had the dignity and composure he once had.

But who allowed them to fraudulently acquire land acreage on such a large scale, and even take advantage of the opportunity of land survey to make the fraud even worse?
Ding Yikui was angry, but helpless.

He looked up at the sky, which was covered with dark clouds, as if even the heavens were laughing at his failure.

Now, as soon as the new prefect Fu Hanchen received the order to conduct a serious survey, all their secrets were exposed.

Fu Hanchen stood at the gate of the government office with a stern look in his eyes, holding a land survey book in his hand with a solemn expression.

The yamen runners behind him stood solemnly on both sides, holding long sticks, and the atmosphere was solemn.

Not only were the hidden fields of these wealthy and powerful people discovered, but their registered fields were also confiscated by the government.

When Ding Yikui thought about how he had done nothing and how the emperor would accuse the Ding family of being disloyal and unkind, he could not help but curse Fu Hanchen as he passed by the government office:

"Fu Hanchen, you are also a scholar-official, and your Fu family is now a family of gentry and officials. You bully the gentry, aren't you afraid that your Fu family will also be bullied in the future?!"

"Aren't you afraid?!"

Ding Yikui then roared again with a look of grief and indignation on his face, his voice hoarse, as if he wanted to pour out all the anger in his heart.

The only people he could threaten now were bureaucrats like Fu Hanchen who were conscientious in conducting land surveys.

Because what he said was true. Bureaucrats like Fu Hanchen who were carrying out the land survey were also members of the gentry class. It was inevitable that their families would have unworthy descendants in the future who would annex land in order to maintain their extravagant lives, thus violating the law.

As a person of the same class, Fu Hanchen should have protected the interests of his own class and the privileges of the gentry class, and prevented them from being caught embezzling land taxes and deceiving the people and their superiors, which would have made the gentry lose face.

This is indeed a problem faced by bureaucrats who carry out government affairs.

It was also a problem that Zhu Houcong encountered when he needed to get things done through the bureaucratic group.

However, the core logic of the bureaucratic machine is to be responsible for the source of power and to obey the orders of superiors unconditionally.

Otherwise, the entire bureaucratic machine will not be able to function.

Although Fu Hanchen was a member of the gentry class, he was also a bureaucrat of the Ming Dynasty and needed to be responsible to the emperor.

Therefore, Fu Hanchen just needed to choose between safeguarding the interests of the gentry class and being responsible to the emperor.

Now that Fu Hanchen has chosen to be responsible to the emperor, he naturally stands on the opposite side of Ding Yikui.

Although Fu Hanchen stood against Ding Yikui, he could not be said to have betrayed his class.

Because the gentry is not a class.

This includes big landlords, big merchants, small landlords, small merchants, even handicraftsmen and self-employed farmers.

Therefore, Fu Hanchen simply betrayed the gentry class.

In addition, not all gentry in the world can manipulate local governments to illegally obtain land and embezzle taxes and silver; only local officials can do this.

Therefore, Fu Hanchen did not feel any sympathy for the Ding family. His family was just ordinary gentry who had just risen from a humble family to a higher status. Their desire for order and a stable country was greater than their desire for land and interests.

After learning the content of Ding Yikui's speech, Fu Hanchen did not take it seriously and even despised Ding Yikui even more:

"If he doesn't undermine national policy, what pretext can this government use to bully him? You actually think the government should protect him, but the government doesn't belong to him."

Fu Hanchen sneered, his eyes as sharp as knives, and then continued to calculate the results of the survey seriously.

For Fu Hanchen, it was only after the land survey that he finally realized how serious the level of local annexation was and how serious the gap between the rich and the poor was.

Therefore, in addition to measuring the hidden fields of the gentry and wealthy families in accordance with the emperor's order and confiscating their property, Fu Hanchen also began to create land registers according to new levels and refund taxes to the over-taxed people.

"After verification, it is true that your family has only 15 acres of land. All the extra taxes and levies previously collected will be returned today." When Hu Zongxian passed by the farmer he had helped in the past, he saw officials coming to the farmer's house. Under the supervision of the staff hired by the prefect, the extra land taxes and levies were returned to the farmer.

The farmer naturally took the silver with great surprise, and was stunned for a long time.

His wife's eyes were also filled with tears of disbelief, and she murmured, "The Emperor has finally sent a good judge."

For the common people of the Ming Dynasty, it was the first time that the government took the initiative to return the silver. After all, the government always complained that the money was not enough, and had never seen the government return or give out money.

Seeing this, Hu Zongxian felt quite happy as if he had also received a tax refund.

He stood aside, watching this scene, feeling filled with emotion.

He now completely understood that it was not impossible to implement the land survey, but it depended on whether the person holding the highest authority had the qualifications to implement such a national policy.

It is obvious that the current emperor is qualified!
"Not for sale anymore, not for sale anymore!"

Tan Laitou, a pawnbroker, had just found a family that wanted to sell their daughter and had agreed on the price, but the girl's father suddenly came out from the inner room and took his crying daughter back.

Tan Lai Tou's face was full of disappointment.

“Why don’t you sell it again?”

"The child's uncle lent us money and brought us news that the government is refunding taxes and returning land, so we don't need to sell the child to pay taxes for the time being."

The girl's father replied with a hint of relief in his tone.

Seeing that the girl was really pretty, Tan Laitou said, "How about I add another ounce?"

He couldn't help but touch his rumbling stomach. As a low-level worker, he hadn't opened his business yet today.

"Do not sell!"

The girl's father shook his head, his tone firm.

Tan Laitou clenched his fists, swung his sleeves and walked away, cursing:

"Damn it, how come it's becoming increasingly difficult to buy a child again like before!"

"Why is the current emperor so kind to the people of the world, preventing me from making a quick buck?"

His voice was filled with resentment and loss.

Hu Zongxian happened to pass by here and heard what Tan Laitou said, so he stopped him:
"Who gave your dog the courage to disrespect the Lord?"

His voice was cold and his eyes were sharp.

Tan Laitou was so frightened that he immediately knelt on the ground and said, "Sir, I am not being disrespectful. I didn't say anything."

His voice trembled and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

"I can't get any evidence from you, and I can't let anyone send you to the government, but as a villager, don't blame me for not reminding you that in this era of a wise ruler and prosperity, don't think of living a good life by drinking human blood and eating human flesh. You must make money in a proper way, otherwise, you will suffer the consequences sooner or later!"

There was a hint of warning in Hu Zongxian's voice.

"roll!"

Hu Zongxian shouted sternly.

"Yes!"

Tan Lai Tou ran away, tumbling and crawling, his back looking extremely miserable.

……

Capital.

Zhu Houcong is meeting Nie Bao, the former prefect of Huizhou, who has become a prisoner and is kneeling in front of him: "Nie Bao, do you admit your guilt?" (End of this chapter)