The county magistrate Xiang Bi was enjoying the cool weather in the inner courtyard of the county government office. There was a small table beside him with rice wine and preserved meat on it.
The maid fanned herself aside, drank some wine from the magistrate, and fell asleep without realizing it.
"Mr. sir, sir..." the old slave came over and called out softly.
Xiang Zhixian is still sleeping. There seems to be beautiful things in his dream, and he has a smile on his face.
The old slave asked the maid to step back, gently tapped Xiang Bi on the shoulder, and said in a loud voice: "Mr. Bai Aisi, I need to see you for something."
"Um...oh." Xiang Zhixian finally woke up.
The old slave repeated: "Bai Yasi wants to see you."
Xiang Zhixian sat up straight, straightened his clothes and said, "Let him come in."
Not long after, Bai Chongwu followed the old slave in. His plump body suddenly leaned forward, and he knelt on the ground and cried: "Your Majesty, you have to make the decision for me, the Bai family! Uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu..."
Magistrate Xiang was confused and said hurriedly: "Quickly stand up and speak."
Bai Chongwu was still lying on the ground: "Last night, bandits from Heifeng Village came to Shangbai Village with open fire and plundered. My family's money and food were robbed, my grandmother was frightened to death, and many people in the village were killed..."
"Is there such a thing?" Xiang Zhixian was shocked.
Bai Chongwu continued: "There were two thieves who were caught by the villagers. They... they said that they ordered the county magistrate and Zhu Zhuzhu. I work in the county government, how come I don't know the county magistrate is a person? That is absolutely unbelievable.
But the rumors have spread, and the villagers are making trouble and refusing to pay taxes anymore. Even in several nearby villages, the people are frightened and confused. They don’t believe it was the county magistrate who instigated it, but they believe that Master Zhu is not involved!"
"Of course not me!"
Xiang Zhixian stood up in confusion and hurriedly defended: "I am a serious Jinshi, how can I collude with the bandits?"
Bai Chongwu added: "Li Erlang of the state judge family was injured in six places on his body because he fought hard against the thieves. Fortunately, with the blessing of his ancestors, Li Erlang finally saved his life."
Xiang Zhixian, who had just stood up, felt like a bolt from the blue. His legs became weak and he sat back down.
If you don't give Li Tongpuan an explanation, your career will be ruined!
Jinshi in the Song Dynasty were not valuable because there were too many of them, and it depended on the attributes of the official who sent them.
When Xiang Bi passed the examination of the second-level Jinshi, he was initially promoted to the rank of ninth-rank general and official, Nanhai county captain. He went around for several years and gave gifts to officials in the capital, and then he was promoted to the eighth rank of political minister and Xixiang.
County magistrate.
Although Li Hanzhang's father was also from the eighth grade, he was Xuanyi Lang.
Congzhenglang only selects people.
Xuanyi Lang is a capital official!
The promotion speed of Beijing officials is very fast, and the assignment has nothing to do with the rank. Even the ninth rank can serve as the governor of the state.
When Su Shi was the magistrate of Mizhou, he was just a seventh-ranking official in the capital.
"It was definitely not my instigation!" Xiang Zhixian emphasized again.
Bai Chongwu gritted his teeth: "It's impossible for the county magistrate to do such a thing, but it's hard to say that Mr. Zhu is a rebel. Heifeng Village has been here for many years. He only robbed passing merchant ships and never robbed nearby villages.
.How dare they do this if there is no one in the county government to instruct them?"
As if grasping a life-saving straw, Xiang Zhixian slapped his thigh and said: "I have long felt that that guy is not a kind person, but now it is true that his evil nature is hard to change!"
"Please make the decision, county magistrate!" Bai Chongwu cried.
He swore to the magistrate: "I will definitely make decisions for the people, and will never allow thieves and bandits to cause trouble. However... Zhu Er has an official status, so he cannot be taken down immediately. He must be aware of the court before he can do anything."
He knew that Xiang Bi was stalling for time, but what he said was not wrong. He really could not deal with the chief arbitrarily. Bai Chongwu retreated and asked for the next best thing: "Please ask the county magistrate to gather the local soldiers to eliminate the scourge of Heifeng Village!"
Xiang Zhixian slapped his thigh and said, "We must suppress the bandits."
Bai Chongwu added: "We can't use all the army soldiers. Zhu Er is also the county captain. He has colluded with the bandits. Either use Baojia soldiers, or ask the state to send patrol troops."
"It's feasible, recruit Baojia rural soldiers to serve as archers temporarily!" Xiang Zhixian quickly expressed his position.
There were two police-like systems in the Song Dynasty, one was called the Inspection Department and the other was called the County Lieutenant Department.
Not every county has an inspection department. In less densely populated areas, only two or three states have one inspection department. In places close to the capital, one county has one inspection department.
If you ask the magistrate to mobilize patrol troops, you will have to alert the magistrate, which will make the matter completely serious.
The magistrate, who was not comparable to the county magistrate, had certain power to recruit troops, so he said to the magistrate: "I will issue an order tomorrow. Each township will select eighty soldiers, and the county government will select another twenty soldiers. Two hundred and sixty people are enough."
?”
Bai Chongwu said: "If it is not enough, Shangbai Village can recruit fifty soldiers. The village has been robbed, and every family wears sackcloth and mourns. The villagers have become sworn in with the thieves!"
"This will definitely defeat the thief," Xiang Zhixian said.
He also asked his servants to get some silver money and forced it into Bai Chongwu's hands as a personal solace payment to the Bai family.
After finally sending Bai Chongwu away, Xiang Biku sat in the shade of a tree in a daze.
He is about to cry at this moment. He will definitely not be able to pass this year's performance assessment.
Suppressing bandits costs money. How can the landlords pay taxes honestly if they allocate money and food?
If a county magistrate wants to be promoted, he must pay enough taxes for at least three consecutive years. If the tax amount is not enough, then forget about anything.
But Magistrate Li Tong was in charge of collecting taxes. If he offended this person, even if he paid, it would mean that he had not paid. He had to kill the bandits first, explain to the state magistrate, and calm the hearts of the country squires.
"Why don't you die on your own, that bastard Zhu Er!" Xiang Zhixian became angrier as he thought about it.
He didn't care whether it was Master Zhu's instigation or not. Anyway, he had to find someone to blame and vent his anger on, and Zhu Zongdao, who was a rebel, was the best candidate.
what to do?
what to do?
Xiang Zhixian was distraught. He got up and walked around. Suddenly, he had a flash of inspiration: If he couldn't figure it out, he could ask someone to show him the way.
"Bring Bai Yasi back!" Xiang Zhixian ordered his servants.
After a while, Bai Chongwu left and returned.
Xiang Zhixian stopped pretending and asked straight to the point: "Does your Majesty have any good ideas to help me get out of this predicament?"
Bai Chongwu lowered his head and said: "The people in Heifeng Village are not bandits."
"What is it if it's not a mountain bandit?" Xiang Zhixian asked in confusion.
"They were rebels," Bai Chongwu said in detail. "Zhu Zongdao was forced to recruit people, but he never gave up on his traitorous intentions and colluded with the bandits to rebel. Even the husband of Li Tong's family was injured by the rebels. The county magistrate worked hard without caring about his own life.
, led the local soldiers to quell the chaos bravely, and finally wiped out all the rebels. Zhu Er, the leader of the rebels, also committed suicide out of fear of his crime!"
The magistrate Xiang was dumbfounded when he heard this.
Bai Chongwu continued: "Xixiang County is plagued by wars and disasters, and the people are suffering terribly. You can ask the court to reduce taxes. Otherwise, if the taxes are pushed too far, civil unrest will inevitably occur again."
Xiang Zhixian was silent.
He had only one choice, letting Master Zhu take the blame, which would not only help calm the people and put an end to the chaos, but also avoid the negative responsibility of tax collection.
If there are rebels under your own rule, you can also blame it on your predecessor, who was the county magistrate.
It was Zhu Zongdao who was the one who forced the former magistrate to rebel, and it was Zhu Zongdao who was the one who recruited peace from the previous magistrate. Now this man has surrendered and rebelled again. Although Xiang Zhixian has a small blame, the court has no reason to blame him.
Unruly people come out of poor mountains and bad waters. Xiangzhi County was really frightened by these unruly people. He stood up straight, straightened his clothes, bowed to Bai Chongwu and said, "Thank you very much, sir, for your advice. I can't thank you enough!"
…
Blessings to the house.
"Is Bai Zongwang dead?" Master Zhu asked.
Xiaobai said: "He is indeed not dead, but his mother was scared to death."
Master Zhu asked again: "Have you ever fought?"
Xiaobai said: "I'm not too sure. The news is very confusing. Some said that dozens of bandits died, and some said that hundreds of villagers died. I sent people to Heifeng Village to inquire, but they were not allowed to enter the mountain.
.The bandits there are all panicking, fearing that something big has happened, and the leader of the village, Yang Jun, is probably dead or injured."
"That's good!"
Zhu Zhu actually clapped his hands and laughed: "With the loss of troops and generals, Black Wind Stronghold will be easy to capture. When I gather all the troops and horses, and destroy the stronghold in one fell swoop, won't it be a great achievement? By then, I will be so majestic, which official will dare to be disobedient.
, which landowner dares not to pay taxes?”
This guy is evil-hearted and just uses bandits as guns.
It's best if you can kill the old white man. If you fail, then turn to the bandits.
The young white man's companion smiled and said: "I wish you a wonderful plan."
Zhu Zhushu said: "I will not forget your benefits. When Heifeng Village is destroyed, the government will be responsible for arranging households and all the people. I will sell some of the good fields around Heifeng Village to you at a low price. I also want some, and the remaining
The next one will be given to the magistrate."
Xiaobai said: "I want tea mountain."
Zhu Zhu said: "If the tea mountain is not given to the county magistrate, I will get 70% and you will get 30%."
"You are fair and righteous!" Xiaobai was overjoyed.
If Li Hanzhang hadn't been killed by bandits, Zhu Zongdao might have fulfilled Zhu Zongdao's wishes. Because he was also the county lieutenant, it was his duty to suppress bandits, and he could have full authority over this matter.
The next day, Master Zhu was summoned to the county magistrate.
When Xiang Zhixian met, he asked: "Did you know that Shangbai Village was robbed by bandits?"
Master Zhu looked surprised: "Where did the bandits come from? They actually ate the heart of a bear and the gall of a leopard."
Xiang Zhixian said: "It is now widely spread that you are colluding with bandits."
"That's absolutely not the case!"
Zhu Zhushu was filled with righteous indignation and said: "Please allow me to recruit rural soldiers and go immediately to exterminate the bandits. Only in this way can I prove my innocence."
Xiang Zhixian said: "You don't have to go."
Zhu Zhu stood up suddenly, held up his hands and said: "I am the chief, and it is my duty to lead troops to suppress the bandits. I cannot be restrained by a few rumors. County Lord, if I don't suppress the bandits myself, won't I be forever?"
Carrying the stigma of colluding with thieves? I ask the county magistrate to fulfill his promise!"
Youyou asked the county magistrate: "Did you know that the husband of Judge Li Tong's family was a guest in Shangbai Village a few days ago? He was injured in six places on his body and almost died under the knife of the thieves. He also interrogated the captured thieves. The thieves said
, you and I secretly instigated it."
"Li...the husband of Li Tongpan's family?"
Master Zhu was dumbfounded. From beginning to end, he had no idea that Tongpan's son had been to the Bai family.
He told the magistrate: "Before the bandits are suppressed, you must stay at home and do not move around at will. I also know that you are innocent and will intercede with you. If you move around randomly, if the suppression of the bandits fails, there will be more
There are rumors that you secretly passed on the news to the bandits. By then, even I won’t be able to protect you."
Zhu Zhu wanted to defend himself, but he opened his mouth and swallowed back his words. It took him a long time to hold back one word: "Yes!"
The general judge of Yangzhou was an extremely important person to Master Zhu.
Zhu Zongdao staggered out of the county office. The sunshine today was particularly dazzling, but he felt a chill in his vest.
how so?
Why did the husband of Li Tongpan's family come to visit Bai's family?
