As soon as the policy of returning native land to local officials came out, it caused an uproar in the two provinces. Both the chieftains and the people, including local officials, were all surprised.
They originally thought that it was enough for the emperor to kill so many people and confiscate so many houses, but they did not expect that the emperor's ambitions and ideas were so amazing, and he wanted to abolish the chieftain system that had existed for thousands of years in one fell swoop.
Regardless of whether it was the Tang Dynasty, the Meng Yuan Dynasty, or Emperor Taizu of this dynasty, they all tried to abolish the chieftain, but unfortunately they all ended in failure.
Moreover, in every battle between the imperial court and the chieftains, the imperial court never gained any obvious advantage, and instead suffered a lot of losses.
Whether Meng Yuan's horses were fast enough or their scimitars were sharp enough, they could only suppress, but not cure, such a large territory.
Your Majesty is too eager for quick success this time, thinking that after winning two battles and annihilating a few powerful chieftains, everything will be peaceful?
They have been local officials for so many years. Although they are exploiting and oppressing them, they are also targeting the powerless common people and the chieftains who have soldiers and power. They can avoid it if they can.
The reaction of the officials was so great. Of course, the real "victims", the chieftains of all ethnic groups, need not be mentioned.
When they learned that the emperor was in the southwest, they immediately signed a memorial to show their loyalty.
There is also a bit of a threat in it. We collectively oppose it, and it depends on whether you dare to really kill it.
In addition, they used money to bribe many local officials and asked them to write a memorial to explain the stakes to the emperor.
He also bluntly said that if there were no chieftains like them to help the imperial court govern the place, there would be constant conflicts between the various ethnic groups. When it was aroused to a certain point, it would definitely be out of control.
At that time, the imperial court would have to send troops to quell the rebellion, allocate money and food to appease the people, and carry out post-war reconstruction and recovery work, which would require an unknown amount of money.
After Zhu Youxiao read their respective memorials, he threw them into the furnace and burned them in front of the generals and the chieftains who were close to the emperor.
The firelight illuminated the young and handsome emperor's face, and coupled with the atmosphere at this time, Zhu Youxiao looked quite mighty and domineering at this time.
"When I was leading the army in wars and suppressing rebellions everywhere, these people couldn't even let out a fart. Now that I want to reform, the memorials and remonstrances are piling up in front of me."
"I sometimes wonder, are they officials of the imperial court or officials of the chieftains?"
"Are they my ministers or the ministers of these leaders?"
"Do you think I don't know anything about the corruption and bending of the law they committed in the past?"
"I gave them a chance and didn't bother them. Now it's good that they are causing trouble for me."
After saying that, he took off the jade pendant from his waist, threw it to Ma Xianglin who was standing next to him, and said majestically:
"Rui Zheng, take my jade pendant and imperial edict and go outside the camp to mobilize 500 royal guards and 1,000 tiger guards. Take them!"
"I'm leaving!"
Zhu Youxiao has tolerated these local officials for a long time. Previously, he did not go to war because of the fighting on the front line. Now it is time to clean up.
People all over the world say that the officials in the capital court drink human blood and eat human flesh, but little do they know that local officials are much more ruthless than them when it comes to harming the people.
What Zhu Youxiao saw along the way was that no one in Sichuan and Guizhou had a smile on their face.
When he walked into the house where they lived and the fields where they farmed, all he saw were four walls of earth and dry land with overgrown weeds and a serious shortage of food per acre.
This place is far away from the capital. In fact, the court has no control at all. There are officials and gentry here, as well as chieftains and bandits. Interest groups from all sides work together to conceal the truth from the court and bully the people, and do all kinds of evil.
Zhu Xieyuan had a very bad feeling. His Majesty seemed to be too radical. The policy of returning natives to rural areas had just begun, so why did he attack officials again?
There is another question. After all these officials are arrested, who will do the work? Who will implement the policies and supervise the local government?
Regarding this point, Zhu Youxiao had already thought that not only officials, but also those who wanted to be officials were the most indispensable thing in the Ming Dynasty.
More than 20 officials who were dismissed by him in the capital last time have also arrived in Dazhou with his empty chariot. He only needs a decree and they can take office immediately.
He originally thought about letting these people disappear forever, but after thinking about it and comparing them with local officials, he found that these people still had uses.
Although they are also corrupt and oppress good people, at least they are not to the extent of only being greedy and not doing anything.
They dared to criticize the emperor directly and challenge the imperial power, which is indeed worthy of death, but from a side perspective, it is precisely because they have too much ambition for fame and fortune. They want to stand out and become famous all over the world, so they choose the most direct and quick method.
In fact, most of the civil servants in the late Ming Dynasty were guilty of serious crimes, but there were differences and grades among these serious crimes.
For example, if the local officials or the imperial officials are comparing who has a darker and more ruthless heart, there is no doubt that the imperial officials are far different.
Anyone who becomes a Beijing official, especially the younger ones, under forty years old, does not want to improve his reputation and climb up the ladder. (It does not mean that people under forty are young, but that the official age is young. From then on,
The clock starts ticking from the day they become officials. Many people are in their thirties before they become Jinshi, or have just entered the official career.)
Everyone wants to make some great achievements, show off to the scholars, and then enjoy their old age peacefully with their own merits, and wait until they die to leave their name in history.
But when they find that it is difficult for them to make progress and climb up, or when they realize that their abilities are limited and they cannot become high officials, their mentality will change drastically.
A very small number of people will be more strict with themselves because of this, and try their best to improve their abilities and work hard in order to go further.
And more people will give up on themselves and break the pot. Since they have no hope of leaving a name in history and making great achievements, they will completely fall into despair.
After these days of getting along and investigating, Zhu Youxiao also knew a lot about the situation in Sichuan and Guizhou. He also knew which areas were the focus and which areas could be relaxed.
Therefore, in the face of Zhu Xieyuan's concerns and advice, Zhu Youxiao responded directly and decisively:
"The most indispensable thing in this world is people. Could it be that if I killed a few corrupt officials today, the Ming Dynasty will be destroyed tomorrow?"
"All the people in the world will not be able to survive because of these damn things?"
Zhu Xieyuan was speechless in response and had to return to his original position in silence.
After Ma Xianglin received the order, he immediately ordered 1,500 cavalry outside the camp, with 300 people in each team, galloping towards various prefectures and counties to capture the officials and minor officials on the list.