Zhang Yang can be regarded as a practical person. He can quickly complete the tasks ordered by Zhang Yi and never ask questions. Seeing that the selection of county soldiers was going smoothly, Chen Chong had other things to do, so he left Xu Cirang behind.
He assisted on the side and returned to the prefect's mansion first.
As soon as he arrived at Xihe County, he went without stopping and immediately issued an order: apart from the chief clerk, Wu Guanpu and others who had resigned with Xing Ji in Xing Ji Mansion, he summoned the current Li Shi Ling, Gao Lang Ling, Lin County Magistrate and the former Xing Ji.
All the officials under the government were there. When they returned from the governor's office, officials at all levels had basically arrived. According to a rough calculation, there were still about forty people left, enough to hold a meeting.
There was no need to go into a lengthy meeting. After getting acquainted with his subordinates, he introduced his entourage to them. Yang Hui had served as Fu Xie's director of Hanyang County. Chen Chong believed in Fu Xie's vision, not to mention that Yang Hui was not far away.
After escorting Fu Qian for thousands of miles, he simply let Yang Hui continue to serve as the chief registrar of Xihe County. Xu Shu, Shi Tao, Meng Jian and others were still young, so he asked them to help Yang Hui, starting with the records.
As for the three disciples of Zheng Xuan, Chen Chong spent time with them and made arrangements after knowing their character. Liu Yanfeng was excellent in appearance and good writing, but he did not like practical matters and had a lonely personality.
Since he was straightforward, it was really not suitable for him to be entrusted with important tasks, so Chen Chong temporarily asked him to serve as a literary advisor; Sun Qian was eloquent and treated people like a spring breeze. In just a few days, he was able to get along well with his colleagues. What is more valuable is that he has a bottom line and can discuss matters as they arise.
Not easily swayed, Chen Chong handed over the heavy responsibility of supervising the postal service to him; Xu Ci traveled all the year round and was well-educated and knowledgeable, but he was also very willing to spend money, and when he was stubborn, no one could pull him back.
Chen Chong is in charge of money and food.
Wei Yan was puzzled and said: "Mr. Chen, everyone is performing their duties, but I don't see you giving me an official position."
Chen Chong reached out and patted his shoulder and said with a smile: "Didn't you promise to protect me and kill the enemy? Chang Wen, just practice martial arts and study hard and become an enemy of ten thousand people for me. If this trip goes well, you
Even if you are a young hero and a champion, I am afraid that Yun Changlai will respect you even more in the future."
Wei Yan always knew Guan Yu's temperament. He was sympathetic to the people and sympathized with the head of Guizhou, but he was also arrogant. Except for a few people, he almost never admired others. His colleagues had a headache for him, but they were very impressed with Wei Yan's temperament. He said excitedly: "
Chen Jun, don’t worry, I will never relax for a moment, but when will Chen Jun send troops?"
Chen Chong shook his head with a smile and said, "Just wait a moment. I still have some arrangements before sending out troops. If I am not 70% sure, I cannot act rashly."
Then the meeting got down to business. Chen Chong asked the magistrates of the three counties whether they could detain the family members of the thieves in prison. Whenever there was a rebellion, if the relevant family members did not join the thieves, they would most likely be taken into custody by the government and it would be difficult for them to end well. Therefore,
Every time there is an uprising and rebellion, most farmers will choose to drag their families with them, but there are always exceptions. What's more, after being displaced and not knowing their future, and it is difficult to leave their homeland, there are always many wives and children of the rebels staying in the country. Moreover,
After the rebellion, the government was stretched thin and had no time to take care of the families of these rebels, so they could only detain some of them.
The three of them totaled up and found that about five hundred people were detained. Five hundred people was not a small number. Even if Chen Chong was the prefect of a county, it would be quite risky to deal with it. However, this risk was purely related to his official career.
Chen Chong had no influence at all. He directly ordered: Bring all 500 people to the prefect's mansion the day after tomorrow.
The magistrates of the three counties were completely unsure of the new envoy's thoughts, but it was not a difficult task, so they all followed the instructions truthfully. On the third day, a bizarre scene occurred in Lishi City. The gate of the dignified prefect's mansion was opened wide.
Only officials and dignitaries can enter the Zhumen, and now three groups of prisoners have entered. Most of the prisoners are young children and women, and all of them are disheveled and do not look like human beings. The county people pointed on the street and guessed: It is rumored that the prefect is going to
The governor issued a military order to defeat the Baibo bandit army within half a year. I am afraid that these rebels will not end well.
The prisoners who were escorted into the prison obviously thought so too. After living in prison for a few days, all dignity and spirit were wiped out. All they wanted in their minds was to survive for a few more days. Now that they couldn't survive, with a sword at their side, there was really no hope at all.
None. Many people were walking on the road, suddenly wailing and refusing to leave. In the end, the soldiers could only stand up and drag the people into the mansion.
However, there is no swordsman in the mansion as everyone guessed. There are only five large pots, each with seven or eight bamboo cages stacked on top. The soul-stirring aroma of noodles wafts out of the bamboo cages, and the prisoners are
I never had a full meal in prison, but I barely managed to survive. Now, when I smell the fragrance, my mouth is full of sweetness, my index fingers move, and I feel an unbearable pain in my stomach. The soldiers who escort the prisoners usually just barely survive.
We had enough food and clothing, but this was the first time I smelled such a fragrance, and I couldn't help but swallow saliva.
Unknowingly, when Chen Chong, Wei Yan and others moved out the tables and chairs, and Chen Chong finished setting up, they found that the scene was quiet. Everyone looked at him silently, their eyes full of flattery and hope. Chen Chong secretly laughed in his heart, this is all.
You can see that I am here to be a living Bodhisattva.
He was not wearing official robes on this trip, but was dressed as an ordinary Confucian scholar, with a white turban and a green rainbow on his waist. He had a kind face. He looked like just an ordinary young scholar. He sat down and looked at everyone's eyes and knew that this
They couldn't listen to anything they said, so they signaled to Wei Yan to open the bamboo basket first and distribute the steamed buckwheat buns first, one to each person, including the yamen on site.
The cage drawer was opened, and a stream of white steam steamed up, and the fragrance accumulated in the cage spread out, almost causing a commotion. Fortunately, most of the people present were women and children, and they were not excited to see the fully armed soldiers.
The idea of causing trouble was that the government officials wanted to take advantage of the opportunity, but Chen Chong severely stopped them. Then he ordered a new basket to be brought in the backyard, and once again said loudly to everyone present: "Don't be anxious, everyone, eat a steamed bun first [1],
There’s still more left after eating.”
Buckwheat is a coarse grain and is cheap, but this is the first time that everyone has seen steamed buns: they are soft and hefty when you hold them in your hands. When you bite into them, they are steaming and scalding your mouth. After chewing a few more mouthfuls, the sweet and fresh taste comes to your heart.
This feeling of fullness and satisfaction made the poor people present suddenly feel the urge to burst into tears.
People at the bottom don't pay attention to what they eat, especially if they are very hungry, they will gobble it up like a wolf. After a while, everyone's hands will be empty. Chen Chong smiled kindly, pointed to the cage behind him, and said slowly to them: "Everyone
Don't worry, look, we are still steaming steamed buns here, and everyone will have something to eat later. I don't think I need to say more, everyone should be able to tell, I am the newly appointed governor of Xihe, you call me Chen Chong
That's good. It's still some time before the steamed buns are cooked, so Chen Chong wants to bother you all first. Chen Chong also has something to ask for, and hopes that you can help me."
Although they had already guessed Chen Chong's identity, when the prisoners heard that this young man was the new prefect, they couldn't help but burst into confusion. Chen Chong waited for everyone to calm down and continued: "I believe everyone has heard about it.
Well, I just arrived in the county the day before yesterday, so I went to ask the governor for orders to eliminate the banditry in the county, and the governor agreed. But how to eliminate it? After thinking about it, I was quite worried, and felt that murder was unavoidable.
Yes, so I arranged for the magistrates of the three counties to bring you here..."
Before the words were finished, several people on the field wailed: "It's unfair! Sir, we are not thieves! It's unfair! Please spare our lives, sir." But it was a few peasant women who said this,
They couldn't help but cry in front of everyone. The other prisoners felt sad and turned their heads away, unable to bear to look.
Chen Chong walked down quickly, helped these people up, and said some kind words to persuade them, and said with a smile: "Why are you doing this? I haven't finished speaking, how can you be wronged?" On his sleeves.
It was stained with gray and black, but he didn't care. He stood up and looked around everyone, scanning everyone's eyes and faces. He suddenly sighed and said: "It's just that in today's world, how can it be summed up by the word injustice?"
"I know that there must be people here who have been wrongly accused. How can there be no wrongful convictions? It's just that all of you here abide by the king's laws and want to live. How can you really be completely innocent! Who has not resisted the tax? Who has not?
Did you escape the service?!"
At this point, the people here felt the same and they all lowered their heads and shed tears. Chen Chong's emotions surged for a moment and he couldn't restrain himself, but he was still smiling when he shed tears: "I invite you all to come here because you understand this and live.
It is really difficult for everyone to go down there. Two hundred years ago, there were 200,000 people in Xihe County, but now, there are only 20,000 people who are still in the records."
Chen Chong pointed to the papers on the table and sighed to everyone: "There are only 20,000 people in a county, how ridiculous! But even with 20,000 people, I had to lead troops to kill some of them. At that time, there were still 10,000 people here.
"Really?" Chen Chong said angrily: "It is truly absurd to govern the people so well that the seas and rivers can be clear!"
He calmed down his expression, bowed once to the prisoners, twice to the government officials, and three times to the sky. Then he forced himself to say calmly: "Therefore, I am willing to pardon you and let you go home. I just want you to do me a favor. If there is anyone at home,
If you are a thief, I hope you can persuade him to come back. I don’t know anyone who is a thief in my family. I also hope you can persuade him to come back. As long as they leave the thief army, I will forget the blame and forgive them all!"
"If there are still people who continue to be thieves, I hope you will report the name of the thief to me when the time comes. No matter what happens to him in the future, I will not implicate you."
Chen Chong raised his hand and signaled Xu Shu and others to take out several boxes of wooden documents, which Chen Chong ordered to make overnight. There were no other signs on them, only a seal with the four characters "Yingchuan Chen Chong" written on them.<
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Chen Chong sat back at the table and said with all the sincerity he could: "Starting from today, the door of my prefect's mansion will be open for two months. You will hand these wooden certificates to your husband, father, son. No matter who he is,
No matter what I have done in the past, as long as I hold the wooden document and enter here, I will put the blame in the past, record every returning martyr, restore their household registration, and help everyone resettle."
"I will always wait here."
【1】Steamed buns: During the Han Dynasty, as grinding mills were widely used, steamed pasta became popular all over China. At that time, they were collectively called "cakes". The word "mantou" was first seen in Shu Guangwei's "Bake Fu" in the Western Jin Dynasty
" said: "At the beginning of the third spring, when the yin and yang meet, the cold has disappeared, and the temperature has not reached the heat. It is time to enjoy a banquet, so it is appropriate to set up the mantou." However, there are also rumors left in the south. When Zhuge Liang went south to conquer Menghuo, he used noodles to
People's heads were used as sacrifices, and steamed buns were homophonic to "mantou", hence the name. In fact, they were often called steamed buns at that time.