Chapter 560 How to disrupt a reform? !
The divinely blessed new policy has caused scholars all over the world to be excited. This is what they wanted.
However, the powerful people in the counties and prefectures were naturally unwilling to do so. They were even furious and directly denounced it as "tyranny" and "evil laws."
Some people who lost their temper even directly called Wang Mang "a treacherous minister who brought chaos to the world and should be executed to thank the world."
Luo Qi tried his best to restore the land grant system in the six traditional counties of Guanzhong, hoping to start the land grant system from Guanzhong first.
This was because the power of the Guanzhong royal family was still extremely strong, especially with troops loyal to the royal family stationed there, they were able to effectively quell the rebellion.
But this is not the case in Kanto. The situation in Kanto can only be described as a mess.
As the imperial edict was issued to counties and kingdoms, the reactions from various parties varied.
The officials in Donghai County were all worried about this imperial edict. If they did not implement it, the court would definitely hold them accountable. If they did, how could they carry it out?
The number of officials in the Han Dynasty was extremely small, or it can be said that there were not many officials in ancient dynasties. It was not because they did not want to have more officials, but because the court could not afford to support them.
Especially as the population gradually increases, more and more officials are needed, but the finances will gradually deteriorate as the dynasty lasts longer. This two-way deterioration will cause any ancient dynasty to lose control of the grassroots.
Any decentralization of power is a forced act and a compromise made out of helplessness.
Without the support of the powerful clans below, they could not even go down to the counties and townships, let alone confiscate the lands of these powerful clans.
“The court has been asking me to survey the land and take back the country, but how can I survey it? How can I take it back?
The people on the other side are doing our work. If we hand them a knife and ask them to kill themselves, do you think they will fight back with the knife?"
In the end, he could only ask the county chief, Cui Yi, the governor of the two thousand stones, who was the master of everything in the county.
"Shangguan, what should we do about the imperial edict?"
Facing the worried faces of the crowd, Cui Yi sat calmly and said calmly: "What else can we do?
We are loyal subjects of the court, so we must follow the court's orders without compromise. Besides, the character of Lord Jujun is like that of a saint, so how could he make mistakes?"
After hearing Cui Yi's words, everyone in the room looked at each other with some surprise in their eyes. This was not the same Cui Yi they knew.
Cui Yi acted as if he hadn't noticed the expressions of these people, and continued to speak loudly: "Pass the order down, and let all the officials in the county take action and don't slack off.
The royal land system was strictly enforced, and land deeds throughout the county were confiscated, no matter if they belonged to the powerful or the common people, household by household.
I know that the county is short of manpower, so I will temporarily recruit those students from the county.
After confiscating the land, I will distribute it impartially so that every citizen gets a fair and just share of the land.
There are also court decrees that require officials, wealthy businessmen, and powerful families to be more frugal. The powerful families enjoy abundant fish and meat, while the common people cannot get enough to eat. This is not what the sages expect.
I am also deeply saddened by this.
The court said that the reason for this was that powerful merchants profited from speculation, which made the people unable to bear the burden and their little money was not enough to fill their stomachs. Therefore, the Equalization and Stabilization Office was strengthened, and the court unified the buying and selling to ensure that the people had enough food and clothing. I deeply agree with this.
The order was passed down to confiscate all the grain, cloth and other items in the county and have them allocated by the government.
Um.
Leave 10% of the grain for the people in the county. After all, it may take some time to allocate it, and the people cannot lack food.
There is also a decree abolishing slavery, which is truly the act of a sage!
Immediately notify all the major families in the counties and tell them to set those slaves free. The Han Dynasty governs the world with filial piety. Elderly people over seventy years old, even if they are commoners, do not need to kneel when they see Your Majesty.
There are so many slaves over fifty years old in the big families who are still selling their bodies. Releasing these people first, allowing them to live out their days in peace and enjoy family happiness, is in line with the Han Dynasty's principle of filial piety.
The merits of the court should be known to the people of the world. I am very worried that the merits of Your Majesty and Lord Jujun will be damaged because of some insignificant hard work.
When you go down to do things, you must tell the people and the nobles that this is all the grace of the court and the credit of the great king!
I would never dare to take credit for anything!"
After Cui Yi finished speaking, there was silence in the hall, and no one dared to breathe. Seeing this, he frowned and said righteously: "What are you still doing here?
Do you dare to delay the great cause of the imperial court?
Please finish it as soon as possible. The court is waiting to see my result!
When you go down to do your work, please keep a clear record of how much land you have confiscated and distributed, how much effect you have achieved in equalizing the distribution of taxes and how many slaves have been released. Write it all down for me!"
Now everyone in the hall was awakened from their dream, and they were left with only deep respect for the county governor. They all bowed and said, "Yes!"
After everyone left, Cui Yi slowly picked up the tea and took a sip, saying leisurely: "Governing for the people is the way of the saints."
There are many counties and prefectures in the Han Dynasty, and the situations in each county are different. Some county governors rely entirely on local powerful families to maintain their positions. The relationship between the two sides is mutually beneficial. It is natural and reasonable for such county governors to take action against the powerful families.
Faced with the imperial decree, these county magistrates dared not do nothing. After all, they had the Embroidered Uniform Direct Inspector, the Provincial Governor, and the Inspector General who could appear between the counties and kingdoms at any time.
This soon evolved into the government using this decree to forcibly seize the people's land, with the intention of redistributing it.
If you ask why it has not been distributed yet, the answer is that the land has not yet been fully confiscated and the conditions for distribution are not yet met. Just be patient and wait.
But soon, tenants from wealthy families began to cultivate the confiscated prime lands.
The cruelest thing was not the direct confiscation of land, but the confiscation of food, which was simply forcing the people into a desperate situation.
This completely exploded the countryside, a bloody conflict broke out almost instantly, and the flames of uprising were ignited in an instant.
In the county government, Cui Yi was so happy looking at the results of this period of time. His political achievements were definitely among the best among all the county governors.
He also took this opportunity to plunder the best land. The knife of distribution was in his hands, so it wouldn't be excessive to give himself the largest piece, right?
He didn't have the courage to actually implement reforms or to turn against the big families in the county.
He didn't want to be suddenly shot with an arrow from the dark while he was parading in the streets one day.
However, he had the courage to make money in the name of reform, and he could also directly blame the court.
"I am only doing this according to orders!"
Cui Yi was thinking happily, as for the so-called Great Tongzhi era, he would probably believe it when he was young, just like those foolish scholars.
"County Governor, there are rebels in many places in the county. In a short period of time, tens of thousands of people have gathered and their ferocity is overwhelming. What should we do?
Should we report this to the court?"
There was a flash of panic in Cui Yi's eyes. Reporting this to the court would definitely not work. Now that he had just started the reform, and such a big thing had happened, wouldn't it make him appear incompetent?
How can he get promoted in the future?
They are just some armed refugees, and it is easy to suppress them. Compared with the imperial court and the big families, the fighting power of these ordinary refugees is too weak.
So he immediately said angrily: "These villains, the current saint is ruling the world and sending down the rain, but instead of repaying the country and being loyal to the emperor, they actually started a rebellion. Quickly send the county soldiers to suppress them."
After the messenger left, Cui Yi paced back and forth, pondered for a while, and then said to his confidant: "We can't waste these lives, this matter still needs to be reported to the court.
It was said that some treacherous villains were unwilling to cooperate with the reform and even plotted a rebellion, which has now been suppressed.
The reform in the county is proceeding in an orderly manner. I will do my utmost to implement the reform so that your Majesty's grace can reach every corner of the county and every citizen can be grateful for your Majesty's kindness. I will never let your Majesty down.
Bring more gifts to the people around the general, gold, silver, jade, and beautiful women. Didn’t a merchant bring a beautiful woman from the State of Wu to me some time ago?
Bring him to Chang'an and ask him to speak well of me. I don't believe it. The general himself is a saint. Are all the people around him saints as well?
And all the eunuchs in the palace, please send me a gift."
After hearing this, the confidant left the court. Cui Yi thought for a while, still feeling a little uneasy, and then thought of the Empress Dowager Zhao's family. He curled his lips and said contemptuously: "A family that suddenly rises because of a woman must be a group of nouveau riche. As long as I flatter them a little, I can play with them in the palm of my hand."
Despise it psychologically, but take it very seriously in action.
After all, she is the Empress Dowager.
Although it is always said that power comes from below, that is only from a macro perspective. In a well-ordered society, status naturally comes with unlimited power.
Even the Luo family took the Empress Dowager's marriage request seriously. Cui Yi, who was a high-ranking official of the Han Dynasty, was just a grasshopper that could be crushed to death in front of the Empress Dowager.
It's simply not worth mentioning.
Cui Yi may have the ability to do things, but he is unwilling to do it because he does not need to. He only needs to write beautifully and then bribe all the supervisors with benefits. Those who are unwilling to accept will be sent away or die in an accident.
From a county magistrate to a county governor, they all did the same thing and never failed.
“This is the way the world is!”
Cui Yi smiled while twirling his beard, with an infinitely cold look on his face, and wrote on the paper, "Your Majesty, I wish to ask how Her Majesty the Empress Dowager is doing..."
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When the decree was passed to the prefectures and counties, the evil officials in the counties were timid, fearful of the powerful and hated the common people. The more they pressed, the deeper they invaded. The powerful had fields stretching across the fields, leaving the poor with no place to stand. The rich had fat worms growing on their rice, while the poor had nothing to eat. The government offices were closed, and all five commodities were collected and paid at a fixed price. Even a foot of cloth was not available. The people could not bear this fate, so they rose up and took up arms. - "Han Shu·Shihuo Zhi"
(End of this chapter)
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