As a person in the officialdom, there should be no causal relationship between youth and vigour. I was thinking: Maybe I haven't fully adapted since I changed from the top position to the deputy position now.
But Mayor Yin is a lesbian after all, and she is a pretty good person, so I said to her politely: "I just went to Mayor Wen's place. I was not calm enough about what happened today. Now my heart
I feel very ashamed inside.”
She said: "What are you ashamed of? Some people are like that. They think they are snobbish in Shangjiang City, so they don't take others seriously. I am also a local. Don't I know what kind of person Jiang is?
?Using employees’ wages to pay for his father’s project, only he can do such a thing! I really don’t understand why these people are so courageous.”
I was very surprised: Could it be that the project was done by Mayor Jiang’s father? No way? No matter how stupid he is, he wouldn’t dare to do that? I hurriedly said: “Mayor Yin, let’s not talk about this on the phone.
Are things okay?"
She immediately smiled and said: "Mayor Feng, I have a hot temper. Don't be surprised. I will come to your office right away."
I don’t think this is good. After all, today’s meeting has just ended. If the two of us are together, others will think that we are engaging in a clique. I said: “Mayor Yin, if you don’t have anything else that is particularly urgent, we can wait for another day.
Let’s talk about this matter again. Some things have passed and I don’t want to talk about them behind my back anymore.”
She asked me: "Do you really want to allocate the wages of all employees in the city this month to that project?"
I smiled bitterly and said, "Mayor Wen made the decision, and I can only execute it. I made it very clear at the meeting today."
She hurriedly said: "But, how can I face those grassroots workers? I used to say that I would temporarily lend everyone a month's salary, but later it turned into a donation. In the past, it was for building roads and bridges. The workers felt that
It’s understandable, but this time the situation is different? It’s about repairing the conference center! I’m very worried that this matter will cause dissatisfaction among everyone.”
I was very surprised, "Didn't I say it was a loan? How could it be turned into a donation?"
She said: "The executive meeting of the government talks about borrowing, but the heads of the units below talk to employees about donations. Which department head dares to tell his employees that it is borrowing? Then he will pay it back by himself.
?”
I immediately understood: This is simply deception. Although the result of the study by the government executive meeting is that it is a loan, everyone knows in their hearts that the money will not be repaid, but the responsibility is borne by the heads of the various departments below.
That's all. No wonder Mayor Yin is so angry.
I couldn't understand why some people were so courageous, let alone why Mayor Wen would agree to do that. I sighed and said, "Mayor Yin, you and I are both deputy officers, and there are some things that we can't do anything about.
"
She said: "You are a member of the Standing Committee of the Municipal Committee. Isn't there a Municipal Committee above the municipal government? You have to raise this matter at the Standing Committee."
I smiled bitterly and said: "Today's meeting has been like this. I don't want others to think that I am deliberately trying to make trouble with someone. Didn't Mayor Yuan already remind me? Why bother? Yes, why should I?
?”
She immediately said: "No, I have to talk to you about this matter face to face. Mayor Feng, I was very happy when I heard that you were coming to us as the executive deputy mayor, because I have known you
situation, I hope you can change something, but why are you so timid and fearful?"
I smiled bitterly and hung up the phone, which was considered a kind of agreement on my part. But now I also wanted to talk to her, because I found that I really didn't know much about the situation here.
She came quickly, and as soon as she came in, she said to me: "Mayor Feng, no, you should talk about this matter at the Standing Committee, and I don't believe you have the heart to set aside employees' wages like that.
, you will also go to the countryside from now on, let me see how you face those people below."
I didn’t want to talk about this matter directly with her, because it was really a headache. I asked: “Is that project really done by Mayor Jiang’s father?”
She nodded, "Although it was apparently the project won by another company, everyone knows that it was the company his father was affiliated with."
I shook my head and said, "Where's the evidence? You can't talk about such things casually."
She said: "The project managers are all from his father's company. Do I need to say more?"
Although I think what she said is probably true, I still shake my head, "Maybe that company hired these people to help manage it. These are two issues. Mayor Yin, this cannot be done without definite evidence.
Just say it casually. And I don’t believe that Mayor Jiang is so courageous, and Mayor Wen will not condone such a thing. Also, since Mayor Jiang dared to propose a month’s salary loan to employees at the meeting,
, I don’t think he would have that much courage no matter what. Besides, wouldn’t he be in danger if the people below really got into trouble? I don’t think he would take such a risk.
risk."
She smiled faintly and said: "From ancient times to the present, how many officials are really afraid of the common people? What's the point of deducting one month's salary from employees? Didn't the yamen in ancient times add tax items at will? They all know something about it.
, if the common people were not desperate, they would never rise up in rebellion. What's more, many of our employees rely on this job to support their families, and they are not willing to lose their jobs for this one month's salary.
"
Her words immediately reminded me of the story I heard told to me by someone I didn’t know. I didn’t know whether it was Lin Yi or Lin Yu, or maybe someone else——
In the late Qing Dynasty, after dismissing Yuan Shikai from his post, Zaifeng personally acted as the generalissimo to command the imperial guards and took control of military and political power. Later, Zaifeng appointed several of his younger brothers as ministers of navy, army and military consultation. After taking
After taking the above major military and political measures, Zaifeng thought he had the situation under control, so he dismissed Li Shunde, director of the Jinpu Railway General Office, and other Han officials from their posts, and tried again to replace them with Manchus.
When Zaifeng asked Zhang Zhidong for his opinion, Zhang said: "No, public opinion does not belong to him." Zaifeng insisted, but Zhang added: "Public opinion does not belong to him, and it will change drastically." Zaifeng said disapprovingly: "There are soldiers."
Zhang Zhidong had nothing to say, and sighed after Zaifeng left: "I don't want to hear the news of the country's subjugation."
Zhang Zhidong's prediction was correct. Zaifeng, who refused political reform and insisted on suppressing Han officials, and the regime he represented were completely abandoned by Han officials after Yuan Shikai was deposed.
This incident can illustrate a problem: the most important thing for a successful politician is to be clear about the balance of political forces in his era, as well as the political aspirations of the vast majority of people in that era. Anyone who despises public opinion or tries to rely on personal political power to change
Any attempt to restructure social and political power is doomed to failure.
You know, soldiers are actually the sons of the common people.
It is a pity that the rulers of the past dynasties believed too much in the power in their hands. Isn't every major social change and dynasty change in history the result of bureaucrats ignoring the political demands of the majority of people and despising public opinion?
It is a pity that history will always repeat itself. No, to be precise, history will not repeat itself, but it should be: history is always surprisingly similar.
This is a vicious circle that cannot be escaped for thousands of years. What is causing this? And if we study history seriously, we will find that many things in history are repeated and reincarnated day after day, year after year.
With.
The emperors faced the entire empire and had to maintain the operation of the entire state machine. Of course, they could not do without the bureaucrats at all levels. The bureaucrats had to help the emperor herd sheep and cattle, so bureaucrats were also called "herders" in a certain period.
For example, Xuzhou animal husbandry, Yizhou animal husbandry...
These "shepherds", large and small, may not all have the same thoughts as the emperor. They may be violating the emperor's imperial edict of "carrying destiny to heaven", or they may form different factions in the court, forming so-called "party struggles", such as during wars.
The War Faction, the Peace Faction, the Eunuch Party and the Donglin Party of the Ming Dynasty, etc. Generally speaking, a smart emperor will not let one faction become powerful alone, but will keep the strength of the two factions balanced. If it is broken
With this kind of balance, if one faction becomes powerful and has real power, the emperor will become a puppet. If the two factions maintain a balance, then the emperor's status and power will be consolidated to the greatest extent. Once one party wants to fight for imperial power, the emperor will use the other party to fight for imperial power.
One faction comes to contain the power of this faction, thereby maintaining its absolute authority and rule. Isn't this the case in today's society?
In "Water Margin", after Song Jiang went to Liangshan, he gradually took away the power of King Chao Tian and finally replaced him. This was actually the result of the imbalance between the old and new forces in Liangshan. Not every emperor could completely control the situation, and there would always be a few who appeared from time to time.
The powerful minister came out. The powerful minister Cao Cao appeared, so he took the emperor to order the princes, and then Cao Pi usurped the Han Dynasty. Later, the Sima family became prosperous, so they followed the same example, and the Jin Dynasty succeeded the Wei Dynasty. What a similar history! There were also emperors who took over the powerful ministers.
Those who were governed were Yu Wenyong of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, who had Yuwen Hu in charge, and then he took charge of it himself. Kangxi had Ao Bai put in charge, and then he took charge of it himself.
History is always strange, and what has happened will always happen again. For example, Comrade Yang Jian, Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty, robbed the country from the orphans and widows of the Northern Zhou Dynasty, and Zhao Kuangyin, Taizu of the Song Dynasty, robbed the country from the orphans and widows of the Later Zhou Dynasty.
The strange thing is that the two dynasties that were robbed of their kingdoms had the title of "Zhou". Before they were replaced, they were poor orphans and widowed mothers. Generally speaking, the emperors of a dynasty can be divided into three categories: Entrepreneurship
The emperor, the Shoucheng emperor and the subjugated emperor. The dynasty had just been established, and the entrepreneurial emperors generally worked hard, recuperated, and worked hard to govern. After the dynasty was stabilized and consolidated, the Shoucheng emperors began to sleep on the prosperous foundation created by the late emperor, and were proud and complacent.
, finally the subjugated emperor appeared, indulged in excesses, implemented tyranny, and ruined the great country.
After the Qin and Han Dynasties, the lifespan of a relatively long dynasty is generally two hundred to three hundred years. The Western Han and Eastern Han Dynasties each existed for about two hundred years; the Tang Dynasty lasted about three hundred years; the Ming Dynasty lasted for 276 years; and the Qing Dynasty lasted for two hundred years.
Sixty-seven years, why are the lifespans of dynasties so similar? Why did the founding emperor confer the title of king on his descendants, so why did vassal cuts and rebellions occur repeatedly? The Seven Kingdoms Rebellion in the Western Han Dynasty, the Eight Kings Rebellion in the Western Jin Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty's Jingnan
Servant, isn't it the same play?
Not to mention the big recurring events of changing dynasties, there are some same phenomena in different dynasties. For example, in each dynasty and each generation, the emperors lived deep in the palace, and they were often surrounded by beauties from the harem,
Either they were eunuchs, so the political forces represented by relatives and eunuchs derived from these two things emerged. Because the ministers were too far away from the emperor, the emperor had to rely on the people around him. If he did not rely on relatives, he would have to rely on eunuchs. The demise of the Western Han Dynasty
Mainly because of the corruption of foreign relatives, Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty. In fact, Wang Mang was a man of good personal quality and cultivation. His goal was to realize the ideal communism described in ancient books. As a result, the reform failed, the war failed, and he became a slave.
The thieves reviled by history. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, foreign relatives and eunuchs appeared one after another. The power of the two declined and the cycle of reincarnation began again and again. Later, "ten permanent servants disrupted the government" appeared. Then in order to plot the death of eunuchs, Dong Zhuo went to Beijing, and the world
There was great chaos. It can be found that the Eastern Han Dynasty was directly destroyed by eunuchs, but eunuchs still appeared in later generations to disrupt the government. Even the illustrious emperors of the Tang Dynasty were poisoned to death by eunuchs. In the Ming Dynasty, there was a great eunuch who was nine thousand years old and established the emperor Liu Jin.
Later, Wei Zhongxian appeared, and these guys were all messing around with the manuscripts in the court. Why did the scourge of eunuchs appear repeatedly in history? There was also Empress Lu, Wu Zetian became emperor, and Empress Dowager Cixi listened to politics behind the curtain. How similar are these? Why did history repeat
Is this happening again?
"The cunning rabbit dies, the lackeys are cooked, the birds are gone, the good bow is hidden, the enemy country is destroyed, and the counselor is dead." Why do the events of massacre of heroes repeat themselves repeatedly in history? The most powerful massacres of heroes are probably Liu Bang and Zhu Yuanzhang. Why
It happened that these two emperors both fought hard to become emperors from commoners who had nothing. Why were the emperors who were not born in commoners not as good at killing the heroes as Liu and Zhu who were born in commoners? Why is history repeating itself again?
History will not repeat itself, but it will always be surprisingly similar. This is what Mark Twain said. And even today, this sentence is still applicable.
Recall that more than a hundred years ago, Emperor Guangxu launched the Reform Movement of 1898, which was ended by the Empress Dowager Cixi. Some people always accuse Cixi of being reactionary, but if you calm down and think about it, Guangxu and others frequently dismissed officials and carried out radical reforms. In fact, it was
Very isolated.
They lacked a certain amount of mobilization and strong support from the bureaucracy. And their reforms relied on a few figures with reform ideas, so there was no consensus within the group, let alone the support of the masses.
Politicians with ideals, even if the ideals they pursue are really lofty, still need secular support, because reforms touch the actual interests of others, and these people may not necessarily have the same ideas as you.
When it comes to concrete interests, they will temporarily abandon their ideas and pursue interests.
We see that when reform fails, people always lose their jobs. When reform succeeds, those who reap the fruits are not necessarily those who adhere to their ideals. Those powerful people who follow the general trend of reform, seek benefits, and attack others are the ultimate beneficiaries.
This is the cruelty of history.
Similarly, after Cixi's death, the young emperor Puyi ascended the throne. Puyi's father Zaifeng became the regent to supervise the country and continued to implement the New Deal. He forced Yuan Shikai to retire. Because after Cixi's death, Zaifeng could not control this powerful figure.
Strengthening centralization of power is correct, but removing some powerful political figures and using mediocre royals to govern the country will make it difficult to implement the New Deal. (To be continued)