Chapter 31 Fengxian Charity Performance
When the dust settled in Fengxian City, the crimes of Lu Liang, the former prefect of Fengxian City, were exposed to the public.
A prefect actually collected more grain taxes for himself, embezzled and accepted bribes, and colluded with villains to torture innocent people into confessing. If you count all the details, the entire desk would almost be full.
In addition, Feng Guangwei submitted the account books he found in the prefectural government office, and Lu Liang had no chance of turning things around.
Things couldn't have gone so smoothly. After all, Lu Liang had occupied Fengxian City for many years, and as the prefect, he was in charge of the military affairs of Fengxian City. Even if Feng Guangwei had the emperor's token, Lu Liang had been accustomed to abusing his power in Fengxian City over the years, and he thought he was far away from the emperor. If he ordered all his soldiers to capture Feng Guangwei before everyone knew that Feng Guangwei came to Fengxian City on the order of His Majesty, even if Feng Guangwei had secret guards around him, they would not be able to resist.
But there is no "if" in everything. From the very beginning, Lu Liang was deceived by the big promise painted by Feng Guangwei, and his fate was doomed.
All the officers and soldiers under Lu Liang's command were sent by him personally to various places in Fengxian City to work for Feng Guangwei. The domesticated officers and soldiers gathered in the prefectural government were no match for Feng Guangwei at all. After Feng Guangwei seized the initiative and took out the imperial token, Lu Liang had only one fate.
Feng Guangwei held the emperor's token, so let alone arresting Lu Liang directly, he could also act as the prefect when Fengxian City was flooded. Feng Guangwei's method of dealing with local powerful and wealthy families was to intimidate and threaten them. If they wanted to use force against him, they had to first consider whether the soldiers they raised in the mansion could defeat the officers and soldiers of the prefect's mansion, not to mention Feng Guangwei who treated the officers and soldiers of the prefect's mansion as nothing.
Yan Xuanyu's edict was issued from the capital, and only after it arrived in Fengxian City did Feng Guangwei truly become the prefect of Fengxian City.
After Feng Guangwei became the prefect of Fengxian City, he immediately took measures to intimidate the local powerful and wealthy, and also brought up many unjust cases. Now that the flood disaster has just passed, it is the time when Feng Guangwei's prestige has greatly increased, and his deeds are spread by word of mouth among the people and he has gained the trust and reliance of the people.
For a while, the sound of drums beating from the government offices in Fengxian City never stopped.
With Lu Liang as a comparison, Feng Guangwei appears to be an honest official who hates evil and is a good official worthy of the people's love.
There were a total of two memorials sent from Fengxian City to the capital, one was placed in front of others, and the other was read by Yan Xuanyu alone.
In the memorial that Yan Xuanyu read, he couldn't help but be surprised to see some of Feng Guangwei's methods of handling the Fengxian City incident. Feng Guangwei's strategies and methods of dealing with local powerful people were far beyond Yan Xuanyu's imagination.
After reading Feng Guangwei's letter twice, Yan Xuanyu realized how important it was to select useful people and make use of them, just like Feng Guangwei, who could play a role in Fengxian City far beyond his imagination.
However, the court still needs some people to stir up trouble.
For example, Prime Minister Jiang’s faction.
On the surface, Prime Minister Jiang hardly interacts with officials and has always been known as an honest official in the court. However, how can he gain a foothold in the court without power?
Yan Xuanyu felt that the amazing thing about Prime Minister Jiang was that he had not attracted the attention of most officials in the court, yet he was able to become the Prime Minister steadily all the way. This seemed to be a suspicious point.
The last incident of the blue-robed official and this incident of Yuan Kang returning to the capital must have been secretly manipulated by Prime Minister Jiang.
But there is one thing that Yan Xuanyu still doesn’t understand, so let’s not talk about it for now.
...
Yuan Kang traveled all the way and arrived in the capital after the emperor's birthday.
Yan Xuanyu had been thinking about how to treat Yuan Kang after he asked for an audience since before the Emperor's birthday. After all, this concerned the border and military power. However, Yan Xuanyu waited day after day, but until the Emperor's birthday was over, he still didn't hear the palace people bring the news of Yuan Kang entering the palace.
Yan Xuanyu stopped being polite and asked Li Zhongxian why Yuan Kang hadn't arrived in the capital yet. Only then did he hear from Li Zhongxian that it would take fifteen days to get from the border to the capital even if riding at full speed.
Yan Xuanyu: .....
Only then did Yan Xuanyu notice a problem, that is, the transportation in the Zhou Dynasty was very underdeveloped.
The connection between Fengxian and the capital was not obvious, as the area between them was relatively well developed, and even without an official road, there were still roads. The capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty was to the east, and Cangyan City, where Yuan Kang was stationed, was to the west. The lack of transportation from the border to the capital was very obvious.
In ancient times, post stations were generally built to ensure that urgent messages could be delivered quickly. However, in the Zhou Dynasty, there was not even a single unobstructed official road, let alone a post station.
This seems very unreasonable to Yan Xuanyu. Even if it is an imaginary world, there should be some logic, okay?
Yan Xuanyu held his forehead. "If you want to get rich, build roads first." This is the truth that practice has taught us.
Originally, Yan Xuanyu was still thinking about what to do before the imperial examination. Now, there is no need to worry about it. He can just build a few official roads first.
Nowadays, there are all kinds of people in the court, and it is not even certain who has ulterior motives. Yan Xuanyu has not yet established a firm foothold. The method he adopts now is to do something "stupid" when someone notices that "something is wrong", making them feel that although Yan Xuanyu has undergone some subtle changes after ascending the throne, a person's character cannot be changed after all.
...
Many self-proclaimed superior scholars in the world say that the common people are ignorant, but they know whoever is good to them, and they will trust him.
After receiving Yan Xuanyu's letter, Feng Guangwei knew that the next thing to do after the flood was over would be a big deal. Many villages in low-lying areas were flooded, many people's houses collapsed, and their limited property was completely destroyed. It was almost impossible to survive in such a situation.
When Yan Xuanyu and Feng Guangwei were communicating, they mentioned the "charity performance". Feng Guangwei also learned from the emperor's words about the recently popular Jixiang Theater in the capital, as well as the new popular plays in the capital. So he immediately reached an agreement with the owner of a mansion in Fengxian City. Feng Guangwei requisitioned the mansion for the charity performance and would pay the owner of the mansion corresponding rent.
Now that Feng Guangwei is the prefect of Fengxian City, he can naturally invite wealthy families and officials in the city to come. They can bring their families and donate as much as they wish. Even if they don't donate, Feng Guangwei will not say anything. These are all made clear by Feng Guangwei in advance.
Feng Guangwei also wanted to use this opportunity to quickly restore Fengxian City, which was in a depressed state, to its former state, so that the people could better return to normal life after the flood.
The mansion is open to the public. Those who receive the invitation can sit inside. There will be servants guarding the door, and ordinary people can also stand outside and watch.
Mr. Wang was a wealthy man in Fengxian City, so he naturally received the prefect's invitation to the charity performance.
He quickly went to see his friend Mr. Zhao and asked him if he would go. Mr. Zhao smiled and said, "Why not?"
Wang Yuanwai was stunned: "So Brother Zhao went there?"
"Although Feng Guangwei has cut off a lot of our financial resources, it's easy to guess what officials like him are thinking when dealing with them. Feng Guangwei disdains using despicable tactics. If you want to go, go ahead." Zhao Yuanwai invited Wang Yuanwai to sit down and drink tea. "This is freshly brewed tea. Would you like some?"
Wang Yuanwai was naturally not polite. Some time ago, two of his shops that were not legitimate were taken back by the government. He went to ask for help from people he knew in the government, but found that those people had been stripped of their official uniforms. He was very anxious and angry. After he finished drinking, Wang Yuanwai smacked his lips and said, "Good tea."
After saying that, he asked the servant to make another pot.
"You won't be able to drink it tomorrow." Mr. Zhao said, and then he instructed the servant who went down to make tea, "Don't make too much. Bring the remaining few packets to me tomorrow morning."
Wang Yuanwai sneered, "Why, are you trying to curry favor with me? I'm afraid Lord Feng won't buy your tricks."
Mr. Zhao took a sip of tea and shook his head. "My dear brother, the people should not fight against the officials. If it were someone like Lu Liang, we would just flatter him and give him gold and silver. But when it comes to someone like Feng Guangwei, we can only make friends with him as gentlemen."
Mr. Wang pouted, but ultimately did not refute what Mr. Zhao said.
After Feng Guangwei became the prefect of Fengxian City, he acted decisively. Originally, relying on Feng Guangwei's courtesy to them, several people wanted to fight for some benefits, but they were beaten by Feng Guangwei and could not get up.
Be it a minor official or a wealthy family, they were all silent upon seeing this, but people's hearts were still unsettled and they still had many small thoughts.
Although many officials and wealthy families in Fengxian City were at odds with Feng Guangwei because he had touched their interests, Feng Guangwei was an upright man who kept his word, and they believed what he said. Therefore, almost all the invited guests came on the day of the charity performance. It was the first time for them to hear the term "charity performance", and many people came to watch the fun. Besides, all the prominent figures in the city had come, so wouldn't it be a loss of face for them if they didn't come?
The charity performance was also mentioned in the notice, and many ordinary people also wanted to join in the fun, so there was a huge crowd outside the palace.
...
Yan Xuanyu was delighted when he received Feng Guangwei's letter. He performed a play he had just rehearsed for Feng Guangwei, which echoed the rumors in Fengxian City before.
After receiving the letter, Feng Guangwei immediately found a drama troupe in Fengxian City, which led to the current charity performance.
The play they were filming was the story of the Jiang girl that Yan Xuanyu had secretly sent people to spread in Fengxian City.
The story now goes like this -
Not long after Jiang's daughter got married to her husband, it rained heavily outside Fengxian City. Her husband, a young man in the village, was taken away by the government to harvest grain in the fields. Later, a man named Feng came here and took the laborers to repair the dike and lived and ate with them.
Next is the perspective of Jiang's daughter. Jiang was anxiously waiting for her husband, but there was no news from him, so she asked around.
After a lot of effort, the newlyweds finally met each other, but the husband Fan Xiliang said that he wanted to go with Lord Feng to guard the dam and rescue people trapped in the flood.
Of course, Ms. Jiang was unwilling, but Fan Xiliang talked to her for a long time. He said that if everyone thought like this, no one would be willing to go, and the people of Fengxian City themselves were unwilling, then who would come to save Fengxian City?
Mrs. Jiang was moved by her husband. As many homeless people were resettled outside the city, Mrs. Feng organized women to do work outside the city, so she went to help, hoping that she could be like her husband.
Until one day, Jiang's daughter learned the news of her husband's death from a laborer. It turned out that the flood broke the dike, and her husband and others guarded the dike to prevent more water from pouring into the plains. In the end, they succeeded in saving a village from being flooded, but Jiang's husband was swept away by the raging flood and disappeared.
As time went by, the rain gradually stopped and the flood receded. Jiang's daughter stood by the riverbank where her husband had disappeared, waiting every day. Finally, one day, she heard a familiar voice...
Yan Xuanyu knew that this story had its shortcomings, but after careful consideration, it was the story that best suited the current physique of the people in Fengxian City.
As Yan Xuanyu expected, the people of Fengxian City who had never seen this kind of "drama" were attracted, and more and more people gathered outside the mansion.
The invited people in the mansion sat in the front, so they naturally saw the most clearly and felt the most deeply.
Some of the things mentioned in the play actually happened, including the place names and people's names, so even though it was said at the beginning that this was a fictional story, everyone was willing to believe it was true.
When Jiang's daughter and her husband held hands and looked at each other at the end, even Wang Yuanwai and others couldn't help but have tears in their eyes.
After the play, it was time for fundraising. Feng Guangwei had already said that the money from the charity performance would be used to help people outside the city rebuild their houses. Some people who had originally refused to donate donated with tears in their eyes, and even donated more than those who had intended to show their appreciation before!
For example, Mr. Zhao stared at Mr. Wang and whispered, "What's wrong with you? Didn't you say you wouldn't donate? Why did you give so much?!"
Wang Yuanwai stammered, "I...I don't know what happened. After watching the show, I got impulsive..."
He then made up an excuse for himself: "This money is used to help the laborers like Fan Xiliang."
Mr. Zhao: “…”
Originally, Feng Guangwei only planned to raise some silver from the rich families, because the rich families were not short of money, and the donations were just a drizzle for them. However, the people outside the mansion were different. They were just ordinary people, so when some people wanted to give copper coins, Feng Guangwei refused.
Who would have thought that later on, as if they had agreed on it, more and more people would leave their things outside the mansion!
One copper coin, two copper coins, a small roll of linen, half a basket of vegetables...
Things piled up more and more outside the charity performance venue, and soon the ground was covered with copper coins. Most of the people disappeared without a trace after putting them down, and it was impossible to find out who had left them there.
Feng Guangwei had no choice but to ask the officers and soldiers to put the things away, and asked the clerk to record them one by one.
All the invited people witnessed it all.
People's emotions are easily affected by the surrounding situation, especially after watching "The Jiang Family Daughter," in which laborers tied ropes around their waists and continuously patched up the broken part of the embankment; there was also a "thrilling" rescue scene - in the surging flood, people on rafts finally rescued those trapped on the roof after many twists and turns...
If a rich person gives some money, it certainly won't arouse any thoughts in people's minds, but when a person who is not rich gives out the best thing for himself, then the meaning is great.
Just like what was happening before his eyes, Feng Guangwei and his officers and soldiers were picking up the copper coins scattered on the ground - they did not come from a certain person, but belonged to the people of Fengxian City, as well as various things placed on the ground: half a basket of wild vegetables, an egg...
Even if one is a person with a hard heart, he cannot remain cold at this moment and can only feel moved.
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