Fu Shanhe

Chapter 293: Officialdom Struggle
After receiving the official document, Min Kaifeng was completely stunned.

Soon after the northern barbarians besieged the city, the military and political power in the city fell into the hands of the army that came to support the king.

The original army defending the city was disarmed after withdrawing from the city wall.

Everyone did hard labor, either reinforcing the city walls or transporting supplies.

Li Mu gave a legitimate reason: to prevent the northern barbarians from colluding with internal and external forces to seize the city.

Although they were dissatisfied with this power grab, the reality was too cruel.

The defenders opened the city gates and welcomed the "Northern Tartar Army" more than once in previous battles.

There was much complaint in the army, and no one could guarantee that the defenders would not be bribed by the northern barbarians.

In comparison, the army that supports the king is much more reliable.

They all came from Guangdong and Guangxi, and the northern barbarians could not reach them.

I am unfamiliar with the place and have no connection with any of the forces in the city.

Even if there were Northern barbarian spies hiding in the city, they wouldn't know who to give the money to if they wanted to bribe someone.

After the transfer of power, the burden on me was lightened and I had fewer things to worry about.

After a few good nights of sleep, Min Kaifeng felt that this result was not bad.

The army coming to support the king is a guest army and will leave after the battle. The loss of power is only temporary.

Unexpectedly, just over a month after the comfortable life, something unexpected happened again.

He had also heard that unscrupulous merchants were hoarding goods, causing prices in the city to soar.

However, Min Kaifeng didn't take it seriously. If he could afford food, he would eat it. If he couldn't afford it, he would starve.

The life and death of ordinary people has nothing to do with him as the governor. What the world lacks the least is the people.

The occasional sympathy that arises is only fleeting.

It is impossible to expect him to offend the gentry behind the unscrupulous merchants for the sake of a group of common people.

Regardless of faction, regardless of whether they are honest or not, they are surprisingly unanimous on this issue.

Those who are not ruthless cannot stand firm in the court.

If you meddle in other people's affairs, you may lose your job at best, or be disgraced and fall into an irretrievable situation at worst.

The situation changed with the arrival of the official documents.

Things are hidden in the dark and everyone can pretend not to see them, but once the lid is lifted and they are put on the table, no one can sit idly by.

If you don't handle it properly, you'll be laying mines for yourself.

Political enemies in the court will not give up the opportunity to take advantage of someone's misfortune.

The censor's impeachment memorial would fly into the imperial city like snowflakes.

It is also a big hassle to deal with.

Destroying someone's wealth is like killing one's parents.

The northern barbarians were wreaking havoc and everyone suffered heavy losses.

The gentry and unscrupulous businessmen all wanted to take advantage of this opportunity to make up for their losses.

If we investigate carefully, we will offend too many people.

Once the backlash starts, he, the governor, won't be able to stop it.

One person cannot bear the blame alone.

Min Kaifeng realized that the situation was not good, and decisively summoned officials in the city to visit the bedridden Governor Jia.

No matter what, Jia Xiaochen is the governor of Shandong.

Even though he is now bedridden and unable to handle government affairs, he must take this person with him.

If problems arise later and the court holds people accountable in the future, it will be good for someone to take the blame.

……

"Ahem, ahem...

Old man, this disease... I'm afraid I can't survive.

cough... cough...

I'll ask my colleagues to handle the affairs of the government.

Cough, cough, cough..."

Jia Xiaochen said breathlessly.

Although he didn't know what happened, his years of experience in officialdom told him that it was bound to be bad news when so many people came together.

Being a patient himself, he didn't mind pretending to be in a more serious condition.

If the situation continued to deteriorate, he would die in bed.

He should bear the main responsibility for the deterioration of the situation in Shandong, but this is only a matter of personal ability.

As long as I die, the court will not pursue the matter further.

If you are lucky and the situation is reversed, you can work hard to cure the disease.

The fainting in the yamen earlier was just due to anger, not some terminal illness.

The illness before my eyes is half real and half pretended.

"Governor, please take care of yourself!
The Governor's Office can't do without you.

You can rest assured that we will handle the specific affairs of the yamen here.

If you have different opinions, please raise them directly and we will base our decision on your opinion!

Your Excellency the Governor, you need to rest.

My Lords, let's get started right away. We can't delay the governor's rest time."

Min Kaifeng responded immediately, not giving Jia Xiaochen any chance to refuse.

If it were normal, they could have had a heated argument, but now it was different, as he was playing the role of a patient.

If he argued with reason at this time, the fact that he was pretending to be sick would soon be exposed.

Then the issue of ability will become an issue of political stance.

In order to avoid taking the blame, Jia Xiaochen chose to pretend to be unconscious.

"Your Excellency the Governor, Your Excellency the Provincial Commissioner, the prefectural government has just received an official document from the army that is supporting the emperor.

They asked us to severely punish unscrupulous merchants and calm down the prices in the city as soon as possible.

They speculated that these unscrupulous merchants had defected to the Northern Tartars and were deliberately raising prices in the city to create chaos.

And behind this, some gentry and officials in office were also involved. ..."

After Cheng Junfeng finished speaking, everyone's faces turned gloomy.

At this moment he suddenly understood why the governor had dragged them to the governor's bedside to discuss matters.

The problems pointed out in the official documents of the army to support the king were too serious.

During the war, raising prices was a capital crime punishable by death, and now the Northern Tartar spies are involved.

If they suppress the matter and do nothing about it, they will all be suspected of colluding with the Northern Tartars.

The country was lost and the imperial court needed someone to take the blame and be held responsible for the invasion from the north.

Their weight is a little lacking, but as long as their backers in the court are involved, they will be heavy enough.

As long as there is suspicion, you will be the target of all parties.

"Master Cheng, you wouldn't collude with the Northern Tartars!
That group of businessmen, at most, wanted to make money.

In my humble opinion, it would be better to identify a few of the main culprits and impose fines on them to serve as a warning to others."

The Tongzhi of Jinan hurriedly defended himself.

Deep down in his heart, he began to curse.

How could a group of military generals be so good at putting accusations on others? They leave absolutely no way for anyone to survive.

But he had no choice; he had to help people after taking their money.

Otherwise, if he offended the noble families in the city, he, the Tongzhi, would be dead.

"Zhou Tongzhi is right, there are not so many northern barbarian spies, they are just a bunch of profiteers.

The best strategy is to arrest a few people to serve as a warning to others and stabilize people's hearts as soon as possible.

The news of Nanjing's fall is spreading like wildfire in the court, and the government must dispel the rumor as soon as possible! "

The Censor followed up.

Prices in the city skyrocketed, and everyone present was implicated to some extent.

Letting them handle the matter is bound to lead to a smoothover.

If it weren't for giving face to the army that was coming to support the king, they wouldn't even want to find a scapegoat.

Seeing someone start, a group of officials spoke up to help defend.

"My Lords, I'm afraid things are not that simple.

Other problems are easy to solve, but how to solve the problem of stabilizing prices?

You know, because prices were too high, some people had already taken risks and were thinking of attacking the city walls for life-saving military rations.

Hundreds of people were captured from the army that was sent to support the king.

Admiral Li sentenced them all on the spot to exile.

Including immediate family members, the total number is more than 2,000.

Now that you are writing this, you want us to give an explanation.

Otherwise, they will have to deal with it on their behalf.

You should know what it means if something like this happens!"

Governor Min Kaifeng said helplessly.

The reason why we gathered all the people here is not to see them trying to smooth things over.

The main purpose today is to have these people put pressure on the merchants in the city.

The people do not fight against the officials.

Even if ordinary businessmen have backers, they still have to consider the consequences of offending them.

As long as the prices are calmed down, the previous problems will not be a big deal.

"They dare!"

"Military officers interfering in government affairs is a serious crime punishable by death.

Unless Marquis Wuyang is crazy, he..."

Halfway through his words, the Jinan Tongzhi immediately realized the seriousness of the problem.

Although Marquis Wuyang was the commander-in-chief of the army supporting the king, he was still a civil servant.

The ones who issued the letter were only his subordinates, and it was obvious that he was saving face for them.

If the situation is not handled properly, Marquis Wuyang will personally intervene and take over all affairs in the city.

The crime of "colluding with the northern barbarians" will fall on them.

The subsequent affairs were taken over by the Jinyiwei.

Given the current situation, it is almost impossible to escape unscathed once you enter the Imperial Prison.

"Governor, these merchants in the city have great backgrounds.

If we really pursue this matter further, I'm afraid we won't be able to bear it.

It is better to let everyone lobby and communicate first, and if no agreement can be reached, then take extraordinary measures.”

Cheng Junfeng glanced at the comatose Jia Xiaochen and suggested.

Everyone understood what he meant and reacted instantly.

Since the governor has fainted, he cannot come out to object.

Then this order was issued by the governor.

With someone to take the blame, even if the person behind the scenes wants to take revenge, Governor Jia will be the one to take the blame.

Seeing that everyone had a unified stance, Jia Xiaochen realized that the situation was not good and coughed twice in a hurry.

"Now that we have the result, we will not disturb the governor's rest!"

After saying that, everyone immediately said goodbye and left, completely ignoring Jia Xiaochen's protest.

Seeing this scene, Jia Xiaochen, who was already full of anger, was so angry that he was speechless.

No matter how slow his reaction was, he knew that he had been sidelined by the people below him while he was recuperating.

These people came over to discuss matters, seemingly respecting his opinions, but in fact they were just making him take the blame.

But he couldn't stop it.

……

(End of this chapter)