Guide to traveling through the Northern Song Dynasty

What does Ju Ming lack most now?

Officials who are willing to obey!

A guy who spends money to donate his official position can still have an official position without taking office.

For example, if the envoys of the third class who are over seventy years old should retire but do not want to retire, they will be allowed to serve as casual officials. How could those old men actually take up their posts at such an age? They all stay in the capital and get paid for nothing.

Qian Chen did not enjoy the prosperity of Wuyue, but came to suffer in the barren land of Jinzhou. What is he planning?

Of course I want to do something.

Qian Chen has been in Jinzhou for two years. He has a lot of friends and friends, and he can find a few useful people even if he is digging for gold in shit.

In the most prosperous restaurant in Jinzhou, Qian Chen opened a private room. He didn't invite any friends, but only six people he thought he could have a close relationship with.

The little lady who sells songs is called over, and everyone listens to music and eats wine.

After a banquet, someone said, "Brother Qian has something to say."

Qian Chen waved the singer to leave and raised his glass: "You all know what kind of person the new prefect is. The prefect wants to do things, I have to do things, and you also want to do things. If you do things seriously, you will inevitably offend others. Now The one who wants to offend is Party Cai, and the general magistrate of Jinzhou, Li Daochong! Those who are afraid can go out, and we will still be friends from now on. Those who are not afraid, just stay and have a drink."

"What am I afraid of? I'm going to do it with Brother Qian!" The first person to express his stance was an official from the state government.

"Yes, we are not afraid, people will die and birds will fly to the sky!"

The rest responded one after another.

They were all unsuccessful in the state government, otherwise they would not hang out with Qian Chen, and they were considered trustworthy by Qian Chen.

Now there is an opportunity in front of you. If you seize it, you may be able to turn around, but the price is the possibility of revenge from Cai's party.

"Okay, so loyal!"

Qian Chen slapped the table and said, "After finishing this meal, follow me to see the prefect!"

…

At this moment, Ju Ming was summoning an official.

The imperial court also had to assign secretaries to Zhizhou, because Zhizhou was not allowed to hire secretaries privately.

The secretary in charge of Jiedu Prefecture must have a Jinshi background.

Ordinary states are equipped with observation envoys, and there is no requirement for family background. But there were so many Jinshi that by the end of the Northern Song Dynasty, even the envoys were all Jinshi. (The fathers of Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi served as the Runzhou Observation Envoy.)

Their duty is to assist Zhizhou in completing secretarial, entertainment and other tasks. They can be understood as the Secretary-General of the City W. At critical moments, they can also intervene in government affairs and justice.

"In what year did you become a Jinshi?" Zhu Ming asked.

Wu Mao, the observation envoy, replied: "Five years of Chongning."

Ju Ming said: "You are in the same class as the traitor Cai Hao, why don't you let him help you?"

Wu Mao smiled bitterly: "If he could support him and support him for eleven years, why would I still be an envoy?"

Ju Ming asked: "The previous magistrate of the state collected tribute indiscriminately. Did you participate in it?"

"I participated, but I didn't participate." Wu Mao replied.

"It's okay to speak frankly," Ju Ming stared at this person, "Don't say you don't have any money."

Wu Mao quickly averted his eyes, lowered his head and said: "The official document to collect tribute was written and sent out by me. I advised you, but the prefect didn't listen. The prefect also gave me benefits, but I didn't get much. , If you don’t take it, you will anger the prefect.”

This is a confused official with a little conscience. Historically, Wu Mao has been in trouble with him all his life.

When I was in charge of the bookkeeping, there was a famine, and the people looted corn, causing a stampede. He had no ability to provide food relief, so he could only use lime to draw lines to let people queue up to buy food to prevent unnecessary deaths and injuries.

When he was the county magistrate, wealthy households privately owned polder fields, causing the polder embankments to burst. He did not dare to arrest the gentry directly, so he could only write a notice asking him to surrender. The gentry sent several scapegoats, but he turned a blind eye and went to relieve the people with fines.

During the Jingkang period, he tried many times to no avail, and then he didn't bother to talk anymore.

The Jin people supported Zhang Bangchang to proclaim himself emperor, and Wu Mao also wrote a form of persuasion to join him. Then he committed suicide in shame, but was saved again. Probably because he was stimulated, he began to curse the officials who worked for the Jin people regardless of life and death. He was then sent to the Kingdom of Jin, where he was left to eat and wait to die.

He was sent back to the Southern Song Dynasty in a daze and became the magistrate of Mingzhou, but he actually started to have sex with him again. The soldier was arrogant and constantly asked for money. Wu Mao did not dare to offend the generals, but did not want to exploit the people, so he handed over all the money he could.

Just let him go against Party Cai like this?

Ju Ming asked: "I want to stop Hua Shi Gang, what do you think?"

Wu Mao replied: "That's right, it's a blessing for the people."

Ju Ming added: "From now on, the tribute will also be collected according to the fixed quota. What do you think?"

Wu Mao cupped his hands and said, "The prefect is kind."

Ju Ming said: "It is up to you to write these two official documents."

Wu Mao was about to speak but then stopped and immediately accepted the order: "Yes."

Zhu Ming added: "Write another report letter to the Criminal Division and Changping Division of South Jingxi Road, saying that I have seized several kilograms of gold and it is not consistent with the gold class of Heng Public Security Bureau. They want the gold back. I will send people to Jinzhou to investigate. If they don’t want it, I will serve as this year’s tribute."

Wu Mao bit the bullet and asked, "Do I need my signature?"

"Yes, you and I will sign together." Zhu Ming smiled.

"Yes." Wu Mao did not dare to object.

This is an honest man with a weak character who was forced by Ju Ming to take sides.

He couldn't refuse at all, because he was Ju Ming's direct subordinate and the secretary-general of Ju Ming's state government.

And deep in Wu Mao's heart, he believed that Ju Ming was right and should treat the people so kindly. This concept comes from the Confucian benevolent education he received since childhood.

He himself did not dare to go against Party Cai, but someone pushed him from behind, so he gained some courage again.

This kind of courage is not great, because with Ju Ming standing up for him, he imagined that he would not be retaliated against.

At the same time, he was mentally prepared to be retaliated against, which would be nothing more than being demoted to a remote place in the countryside. He even somewhat expected that he would be able to pray for the people and practice the principles taught to him by the sages.

My mind is full of twists and turns, and my emotions are extremely complicated.

Ju Ming continued: "From now on, you will inspect the warehouse on my behalf, once a month. I will check from time to time. If it is not correct, it will be considered that you and Li Tongpuan have joined forces to commit corruption."

Wu Mao opened his mouth wide, his expression ugly, a bit like crying.

There are some warehouses that Zhizhou can open at will.

But for more warehouses, the key is in the hands of the magistrate, and the magistrate only has the power to supervise.

From now on, asking Wu Mao to supervise the warehouse is equivalent to directly talking to Li Daochong, the general manager. Li Daochong must regard Wu Mao as Ju Ming's confidant.

"Go and draft the official document. Once it's done, give it to me for review." Ju Ming smiled.

That smile made Wu Mao's chest feel cold. This Zhizhou was too tough.

After pacing away from Huangtang, Wu Mao came to Jie Shi Pavilion unknowingly.

"You have a salary and a salary, and the people anoint the people. The people are easy to abuse, but the gods are hard to bully."

The precept stone engraved with these sixteen characters was the standard feature of every state government office in the Song Dynasty.

Standing blankly in front of Jieshi Pavilion for a long time, Wu Mao read the sixteen characters again and again. Suddenly, his blood surged up, and he was about to plead for the people and fight wits and courage with those traitors.

Wu Mao rushed back to the office excitedly, studying ink while thinking about the words and sentences for the official document.

Studying ink has the effect of calming the mind. As he studied it, Wu Mao calmed down and suddenly felt a little scared. That's the Cai Party, and it's very difficult to defeat him. What if he is thrown to Qiongzhou? I heard that there are cannibals on the island.

Moreover, his family was in decline, and he still shouldered the important task of revitalizing the family.

This guy had too much inner drama, and after dawdling for half an hour, he finally gritted his teeth, picked up a pen, and began to help Ju Ming draft an official document.

After finishing writing, I went to the Huangtang, but there were already people inside.

Qian Chen was recommending people to Ju Ming: "Prefect, this is Wang Jia, a guest general from Yaqian."

"Meet the prefect!" Wang Jia stepped forward immediately.

Officials in the state government are divided into three categories: Yaqian, human officials and other categories. They are as complicated as the official positions in the Song Dynasty.

There are 13 levels in front of the government office, 10 levels in civil service, and other staff are even more chaotic. When it was most bloated, the total number could reach five or six hundred. Xining and Yuanfeng cut it twice, and now there are still three or four hundred people left.

The Wang Jia in front of me is a guest general in Yaqian and belongs to the "Kesi". Responsible for the reception and delivery of officials at the Yamen, judicial arrests in the city, etc. Sometimes he is also sent to meet and deliver officials from other places.

Ju Ming asked: "What kind of errand are you doing among the guest generals?"

Wang Jia replied: "I used to be a minister in charge of the Xiang Yu, but later I offended my superiors and was transferred to guard the signing hall."

This is roughly equivalent to being assigned by the director of the street police station in the urban area to work as a security guard in the government affairs center.

Qian Chen said: "I bought a house in Jinzhou City, and Wang Jia worked as a waiter there. I got to know him as soon as we went there."

"Very good." Zhu Ming nodded and smiled.

Qian Chen introduced again: "This is Guo Wenzhong, the deputy criminal case officer."

Guo Wenzhong also came forward to pay homage. He was a clerical official, which can be understood as the deputy section chief in charge of clerical affairs in the Municipal Justice Bureau.

The six people were introduced quickly. They were all middle-level officials, or officials who originally belonged to the middle level but were demoted to the bottom.

Senior officials would only eat and drink with Qian Chen and treat him as a scapegoat.

Qian Chen himself looked down upon low-level officials.

Ju Ming said: "You six, please do your job first. Once you have the opportunity, I will definitely arrange for you to do something (promotion)."

"Thank you, Prefect, for your cultivation!" The six of them were all smart people, so they could naturally hear the hidden meaning.

Ju Ming added: "Each of you recommend five more people, regardless of their origins, whether they are literate or not, and even those who have never been an official. The only thing is that they must be obedient and smart."

"Yes!" The six people were even more happy. They could take the opportunity to recommend their close relatives.

Zhu Ming said to Wang Jia: "Since you have been a minister of Xiangyu, can you recognize some powerful people? Remember, the kind who have never oppressed the people. As long as you have never oppressed the people, you have committed a murder."

Wang Jia asked: "How many people does the prefect need?"

Zhu Ming said: "Twenty people are temporarily selected, and they are all recruited as rural soldiers to protect Qian Biejia and patrol the counties."

Wang Jia promised: "I will find twenty of them within five days."

"Very good, you can go back and do your own work." Zhu Ming smiled.

Everyone bowed and left.

Ju Ming waited for someone to complain and stuffed a letter of complaint into the public opinion box.

Once there is an unjust case, we can take the opportunity to deal with a group of officials, and then promote the six officials recommended by Qian Chen, and the thirty officials recommended by those six officials.

There may be treacherous people among these officials, but it doesn't matter to Ju Ming, he just needs some who are willing to obey.