Ma Qing's concerns were very reasonable. Following Liu Jiqian's transfer, Shenzhou officialdom ushered in a major adjustment, which even had a certain purge purpose.
He guessed very accurately that all the chief officials in Shenzhou, Prefecture and Three Counties were unlikely to remain in office. What he guessed wrongly was that the outcome would not be transfer, but beheading.
Feng Shan, the magistrate of Xinyang County, and Wu Changlin, the magistrate of Yingshan County, along with several state officials, were all taken away and executed. They were first beheaded and then interrogated, and then they were clearly informed to the people of Shenzhou. Of course, in name, they were bullying the emperor and monopolizing power.
Corruption, bribery, and violation of the law harm the people.
What this treatment wants to express to the ignorant people at the lower level is that Shenzhou's bad government and the suffering of the people are all caused by these corrupt worms. It has no direct relationship with the construction of Taikang Palace. Even if there is, it is this group of corrupt officials.
Blind the sight and hearing.
All in all, the emperor was also a "victim", he was also innocent, and his glorious image could not be tarnished. At the same time, the emperor was also very angry, and he had just killed him, brought order to the chaos, and brought peace to the people of Shenzhou.
As for how many people this set of nonsense can fool, and how far the goal can be achieved, it is not the old emperor's main consideration. The old emperor deeply understands the truth that the common people are easy to bully, and it is easy to appease the bullies. In comparison, the powerful
Bureaucrats are even harder to deal with.
Therefore, the Shenzhou incident could not just pass like a breeze. He had to show something, just like he had done repeatedly, killing the chicken to scare the monkeys.
If Liu Jiqian did what he did in Shenzhou everywhere, the Han Dynasty would not be able to withstand much trouble. Letting Liu Jiqian go or even give him a promotion would be a bad start.
Therefore, the old emperor could only use some less representative chickens to warn the monkeys all over the world. Before doing such a thing, he first weighed whether he was Liu Jiqian, whether he had that kind of relationship, and whether the person he met was someone like Taikang Palace.
event
In fact, if Luan Jia hadn't still been in Shenzhou, the stability and prosperity of Shenzhou was related to the majesty of the emperor, and the old emperor would have wanted to clean up Shenzhou from top to bottom.
Of course, it is not impossible to do that. After all, the old emperor has no shortage of people at the moment. Among the accompanying ministers, there are a lot of people with local experience. Just pick a few people, low-ranking and high-ranking, and have the power to control state and county affairs. They can solve the problem.
.
However, the old emperor did not want his trip to Shenzhou to be too bloody.
The most shocking thing about the whole process was Ma Qing, the former magistrate of Luoshan County. Two of the three magistrates were cut off, and he was the only one left. He didn't think he was anything special. The only difference was that he saw opportunities.
Quickly, he followed Liu Jiqian's footsteps. Therefore, when the transfer order was issued, even if he was demoted to Chuzhou in southern Zhejiang as a county magistrate, he thanked him profusely and knelt down endlessly.
At least if his life is saved, there is still hope. What's more, in terms of "personal ethics" as an official, Ma Qing is the same as Liu Jiqian. Not to mention he has none, but he rarely seeks personal gain. In this regard, he is still very clean.
Unlike the other two counties, which are full of shit.
As the initial turmoil subsided, the situation in Shenzhou gradually stabilized, a large amount of resources continued to pour in, and the prosperity of Xinyang was still steaming. The old emperor could also relax a little and stay in Taikang Palace to enjoy the coolness.
However, after all this turmoil, how can one sit still!
It is true that the old emperor's actions in handling the Shenzhou affairs showed a hint of twilight, conservatism and even ignorance. However, all the experiences from the south still deeply touched him and even stung him.
A proud heart.
The old emperor was indeed lazy and lax, but he did not sink to the bottom after all. When it came to issues involving imperial power and rule, his high sensitivity was only covered with dust, which does not mean that he completely lost it.
consciousness.
Looking back on the old emperor's life, it can be said to be magnificent, but it is not necessarily true to say how many ups and downs there were. It can be said that except for the worries and repetitions in the early years, the old emperor's subsequent life has been relatively stable, and he has not experienced too much.
A big setback.
Even the two large-scale Northern Expeditions of Qianyou and Kaibao were just historical surges. Success or failure was not fatal to the Han Dynasty or the rule of the old emperor.
Since the beginning of his rule, the old emperor has been on the right path and achieved a series of brilliant and great victories that are recognized by the world. He himself has been immersed in them and reveled in his achievements.
Let the facts speak for themselves. The old emperor can be regarded as the only emperor through the ages. However, if we put aside these auras and analyze his person and experience, we may be able to draw another conclusion.
The wise and powerful people in the early years were to protect the nascent Northern Han Dynasty and the Liu family's wealth and lives; the youth's forge ahead and diligent pioneering were to unify the country and restore peace to the world; in middle age, they became suspicious and suspicious, and they also had troubles in government affairs.
Although he was negligent, he was resolute and thorough in controlling power and maintaining rule, with clear goals; but in his later years,
As the saying goes, times create heroes, the hero of the old emperor was precisely created in time, and was favored by God for a long time. However, the changes in his later years, especially in recent years, may ultimately only point to one point: he is also a mortal body.
Not much more advanced than his "peers".
The old emperor always maintained a sense of crisis, was highly vigilant about everything, and was good at summarizing and reflecting. In addition to Empress Fu's reminders and advice, he kept his wisdom fresh for a long time.
Otherwise, based on the behavior of the old emperor in recent years, after the success of Kaibao's Northern Expedition, he would probably be in trouble, and there would be no golden age in those ten years.
After waiting for the talisman to pass away, the old emperor no longer had anyone to "check and balance" him. In addition to his unabated desire for power and undiminished desire, he had slacked off in other aspects. The reasons were all-round, including a lack of goals, a decline in thinking, and a decline in his body.
Not available.
Even now, it is difficult to tell clearly when the old emperor's change began and how it developed to the present level. The death of Fu Hou was only a turning point on the surface, and the change in his mentality may be traced back
Arrive earlier.
After the Shenzhou incident, the old emperor had a rare opportunity to reflect on these things and do some self-reflection on themselves. It was far from the level of sudden awakening, but the process was really painful, and I felt very sad in my heart.
Despite the suffering, the old emperor still found it difficult to face himself.
On the other hand, if you stay in this luxurious and magnificent Taikang Palace, what kind of truth can you reflect on? Even if there is any, it is just a conjecture.
So, the old emperor, who was always uneasy in his heart, suddenly remembered Wang Yuchen's previous inquiry? How long had it been since he had personally seen things, observed the people's sentiments, seen the country of the Han Dynasty with his own eyes, and seen what the living conditions of the Han people were like?
"Wen Huan, where is Wen Ji?" On this day, the old emperor suddenly asked.
If it were Yantuo, faced with such a sudden problem, he would probably just open his mouth and say nothing else. He could clearly handle all the big and small things around the old emperor.
It was more difficult for Hood. He had to make inquiries first before he could give the result. However, the old emperor didn't have much objection to Hood's slowness. It was good to do his duty.
Yan Tuo is too shrewd and too keen, which leads to too much selfishness and too many personal considerations, and in the end he even loses his life.
The response may be slow, but Hu De's efficiency is not low. He only made the old emperor wait for more than a quarter of an hour before returning his order: "Back to the official residence, Wannian Hou is hunting at the foot of the mountain, and His Highness Wenji is studying in the palace."
After hearing this, the old emperor pondered for a moment and immediately said: "Studying and practicing martial arts are done in the capital! This palace is so dazzling that people can't open their eyes. How can you read books?"
Without waiting for Hu De's reaction, the old emperor immediately reached out and ordered: "Inform the two of you to clean up and follow me on a patrol tomorrow!"
"The officials are on patrol!" Hu De was surprised and quickly said: "I will inform others to make arrangements now."
"What are the arrangements?" Seeing this, the old emperor immediately interrupted him angrily: "What can you tell by setting up a grand ceremony?"
Well, not long ago, the old emperor noticed the strangeness of the people of Shenzhou with the same grand guard of honor, and the strangeness of the people in Shenzhou was already covered up. If it were not covered up, then what would be the current situation of the people's livelihood and sentiment in Shenzhou? This may be what the old emperor wanted to explore.
The old emperor thought so, but Hu De was shocked. The old emperor wanted to go on patrol incognito. How could this be done? After Wei Wei thought about it, he bit the bullet and asked for instructions: "Except for the two royal highnesses, I don't know who the official family wants." Who will accompany you, who will escort you, and where will you patrol?"
Listening to these questions, the old emperor became a little impatient, but he also knew in his heart that he couldn't really go on inspection secretly, otherwise the people around him would not dare to let him out even if they died.
After pondering for a while, he said: "Let Wang Xuanzhen take Wang Qinruo with him, and let him lead me around Shenzhou, and talk about it, and the others will not be alarmed. As for the escort, who is on duty in front of the palace today?"
"Go back to the official's house, battalion commander Li Jihe!"
"Let Li Jihe pick a team of guards to accompany him in civilian clothes and escort him at his side!" the old emperor ordered: "As for where to go, it matters where you go!"
"What about Taikang Palace? If the ministers ask about your concubine, how should you explain it?" Hood was still full of doubts.
"It's just a patrol, why are there so many worries?" The old emperor was completely annoyed: "If you tell me, I'm in a bad mood. I won't see anyone in the next few days!"
"Yes!" Seeing that the old emperor's patience was almost worn out, Hu De did not dare to be verbose anymore and could only respond helplessly.
Can the atmosphere be the same whether this person is present or not? Can it be concealed from others? The dignitaries of the Han Dynasty are not blind or deaf. The old emperor does not see anyone for a month, but as long as the person stays there, they can grow old.
Honestly.
But these people, how could Hu De dare to express them, he could only arrange them according to the old emperor's wishes. Hu De was in a heavy heart. On the other hand, Li Jihe, who was appointed by the old emperor to escort him, was honored and also doubled.
Feeling pressure.
First of all, whether to report it, whether to deploy from the inner army to the camp, and whether to let these immediate superiors know. If not reported, if something goes wrong while the imperial commander is on patrol, his little arms and legs cannot bear it, but
If he retaliates, wouldn’t he immediately violate the holy will?
As for who to choose, the escort plan, etc., it is secondary. No matter how the atmosphere of the army has changed over the years, the basic quality of the guards is still excellent, and the manpower is absolutely guaranteed.
No matter how troubled the people below were in doing things, the old emperor kept his word. Early the next morning, when the sky was dark, he set off in high spirits. He even rode a horse in person, which was rare. Under the shroud of morning light and dozens of followers,
Accompany me and go down the mountain.
What the old emperor didn't know was that before he set off, the senior dignitaries accompanying him basically knew about his private visit. They didn't care whether they knew more or not, but the news was received. What's more, even the old emperor left.
We all know the time and staffing of the palace. The only uncertainty is the whereabouts and purpose. After all, it depends on the mood of the old emperor.
Xinyang is naturally not the destination. The old emperor has also heard about the liveliness there during this period. He is no longer interested in the prosperity that has surged to the point of being false. On the contrary, after returning to Beijing, it will attract people's attention.
Let’s see what Xinyang is like.
The only remaining counties are Yingshan and Luoshan. Comparing the two, we naturally tend to favor Luoshan, otherwise the significance of bringing Wang Qinruo would be meaningless.
Xinyang can be called a land of plenty, with a large population, rich products, and good scenery. There are mountains, water, lakes, tea, and stories. These are also important considerations for the location of Taikang Palace.
However, the situation in Luoshan, which is also under the jurisdiction of Shenzhou, is a little less than satisfactory. The first is transportation. The old emperor has always been proud of the "straight roads" of the Han Dynasty. Those wide and smooth roads are like blood vessels.
, connected all parts of the Han Dynasty, conveyed instructions and orders from the center, and was also an important symbol of the centralization of power in the Han Dynasty.
But in fact, the construction of straight roads is limited to major cities in Dahan and some key transportation places. Due to practical conditions, Dahan has only taken a small step in transportation construction, and in recent years, in the construction of straight roads,
The more we repair, the more perfunctory it becomes. Until construction costs drop significantly and construction technology improves, it will be difficult to make any major breakthroughs.
The transportation from Xinyang to Luoshan is really difficult to describe. There are both water and land transportation. The Shishui River stretches from southwest to northeast and flows to Luoshan. This is the first choice for many people to travel. As for the land official road, it is narrow and irregular.
There are many dents, fractures, and potholes, and your stomach will be emptied if you walk around.
It was the rainy season, with continuous heavy rains, and the roads were muddy for a long time. The old emperor who chose to take the land route also suffered a lot. He was tired from horseback riding and it was not easy to ride in the car.
At that time, I lamented that the Han people still needed to work hard to build bridges and pave roads.
Only 20% of Luoshan County is plain area, mainly distributed in the Huaihe River and Shishui Basin, and the cultivated land area is even less. The county's registered cultivated land is less than 120,000 acres, and the per capita cultivated land is more than four acres. But the per capita data, look at
Just look and see how it reflects the real level.
This is still data on paper, and according to Wang Qinruo's explanation, even if the hidden land is included, it is difficult to exceed 200,000 acres.
Among the cultivated land, some abandoned land had to be plowed out. This attracted the attention of the old emperor. In this peaceful era, when the population grew, he would only complain about the lack of land. When there was no disaster or harm, how could there be such a situation as abandonment?
Wang Qinruo's answer directly silenced the old emperor. The reason is very simple. The competition for cultivated land and population is the same as in most parts of the country. Luoshan County has experienced a population surge in the past thirty years. Today, the number of registered Dingkou in the county has exceeded
Thirty-five thousand people.
Among these people, the strong labor force is always in abundance. However, in the competition for this elite population, the landlords and old wealthy people have perseverance, while the bureaucrats have little perseverance as their positions are transferred.
Over the past few decades, we have seen that the number of homesteaders has continued to decrease, and the number of registered acres has been accompanied by an overall increase in population and cultivated land. The extra population and land have naturally been absorbed by those powerful landlords.
Wang Qinruo had nothing to hide from the old emperor, so he immediately made the old emperor furious when he explained what he knew about the development of Luoshan County in the past thirty years.
All along, the old emperor believed that he was fighting against those bureaucrats and landlords, fighting against land conflicts, and fighting against the almost unstoppable trend of historical development.
To this end, he has actually done a lot and carried out a lot of reforms, but the situation in Luoshan County once again slapped his old face. What he thought was to lay a solid foundation for the Han Empire and the Liu family.
The enhanced background is really just wishful thinking.
The old emperor asked Wang Qinruo very angrily, what were these local officials doing, and why did they not crack down on these repeated tyrants to restore the authority of the government.
Wang Qinruo's answer was very bold and practical. How could a new official resist the clan? In the past, it was not that there were no strong magistrates and county magistrates, but they could suppress them for a while. Once they were transferred, it would be difficult to replace someone with a slightly weaker one.
What's more frightening is that some people simply choose to make peace with local powerful people in order to seek fame, fortune, political achievements, and even rule and security require their cooperation.
The old emperor knew that what Wang Qinruo said was reasonable. Compared with the powerful clans that had taken root for decades or even hundreds of years, it was indeed not easy for a county magistrate who served for three to five years to suppress the powerful local clans for a long time.
And the official system is one of the most striking features of the centralized court. In this regard, one can only take advantage of it and tolerate small harm. And the struggle between the government and the powerful can only maintain a dynamic balance in the short term. In the long term,
It seems that the expansion of the power of local clans is inevitable. Even the so-called balance must be under the environment of strong central authority.
This is the truth, but for a person like the old emperor, it is extremely difficult to get him to accept it. He was holding back his dissatisfaction and wanted to vent it. The old emperor asked: "I heard that Naluoshan County Magistrate was appointed.
His performance is good, but what kind of governance method does he have for the powerful clan?"
At this moment, Wang Qinruo knew in his heart that the future and fate of Ma Zhixian might lie in a few words. Thinking of the scene when Ma Qing stormed into the house and took him away, Wang Qinruo wanted to take revenge here.
But after a brief whim, he was extremely restrained and calm. Wang Qinruo also knew that accompanying the king this time would be an adventure for him. It was related to his official career, so he should be more cautious in his performance.
Therefore, resisting the urge to retaliate, Wang Qinruo replied in a pertinent tone: "Although the governance of Mazhi County is lenient and even relies on local big families, it does not compromise blindly. The overall situation of the county has always been in control.
It’s under control!”
Hearing what Wang Qinruo said, the old emperor's expression improved a bit, and he couldn't help but glance at him in surprise. After pondering for a while, he asked: "How is the tax reform in Luoshan? How is the progress of the land clearing?"
After hearing the question, Wang Qinruo looked embarrassed, hesitated a little, and answered honestly, but made little progress. This once again angered the old emperor. The tax reform policy had been implemented nationwide by the imperial court. It has been more than a year, but there has been no progress.
, Xiaoxiao Luoshan County is about to turn upside down?
Although he was frightened by the powerful old emperor, Wang Qinruo still tried his best to calm down, explained calmly, and carefully pointed out that in the past two years or so, Luoshan County's main energy was focused on dealing with the state government's transfer order, and all resources were concentrated in Taikang
Regarding the palace construction matters, other aspects were naturally neglected.
So, the old emperor was choked again, and went around and around to Taikang Palace. He really didn't expect that the impact of the construction of Taikang Palace would deeply cover all aspects of local governance, even the imperial reform plan.
Can be delayed.
There was a moment of impulse, and the old emperor wanted to issue an edict to burn down the Taikang Palace. This was probably because his dusty shame came back into play.