frightfiction Chapter 638 What's the point of just making scarecrow figurines?
Chapter 638 What's the point of just making scarecrow figurines?
Emperor Zhu suddenly felt that some dog didn't seem very smart.
Yes, I, Lao Zhu, like to take advantage of deals, but am I the kind of person who will be interested in any deal?
Those high-minded but incompetent people at the Imperial College?
Before becoming officials, they talked about speaking up for the people and upholding morality and righteousness. But once they become officials, all they seem to care about is how to make money.
And what's with this talk of assigning people to nearby positions, saying that the people behind them are all highly capable? This kind of nonsense might fool Chang Heizi and Lan Yu, but it's not enough to fool Zhu Chongba.
Pooh!
Thinking of this, Emperor Zhu suddenly frowned and asked, "There's a question I just can't quite figure out."
Yang Shaofeng was slightly taken aback and asked, "What's the problem?"
Emperor Zhu said, "In the fourth year of Hongwu, a total of twenty-six students from your Ningyang County passed the imperial examination. Of these, twenty-five were appointed as county magistrates, and the remaining one, Zhou Jingxin, served as an assistant secretary in the Secretariat."
Yang Shaofeng nodded.
Of the twenty-six students, twenty-five started as seventh-rank officials, and Zhou Jingxin even started as a sixth-rank official, a position that would make countless people envious.
Emperor Zhu continued, "What we're curious about is, how come none of these twenty-six people have been recklessly stealing?"
Of the twenty-six officials, apart from Zhou Jingxin, whose situation was rather special, the remaining twenty-five county magistrates had plenty of opportunities to make money.
Ironically, none of these twenty-five county magistrates tried to embezzle money.
Instead, they all worked tirelessly to reclaim wasteland, build roads, plant trees, and set up workshops in their own areas, essentially copying everything that scoundrel had done in Ningyang.
Is this normal?
This is definitely not normal.
As the saying goes, different kinds of people are born from the same rice.
These twenty-six people all came from humble backgrounds. They weren't so poor that they were destitute, but they certainly didn't have homes.
Having barely eaten a full meal since childhood, how could these people not think of making a little money when they suddenly became county magistrates in charge of a region?
Don't talk about reading the classics, and don't talk about establishing a future for the people.
Officials from the Imperial College and other places have almost shouted these slogans until they are hoarse, but those who are meant to be corrupt will still be corrupt.
When asked about Emperor Zhu's question, Yang Shaofeng pondered for a moment before replying, "As for this matter... I've spoken to them about it a few times."
"The first thing I told them was that there are no free lunches, and that they should always think back to their childhood."
This is just a tired, tired piece of nonsense.
At the very least, Emperor Zhu wouldn't take that statement seriously.
Yang Shaofeng continued, "The second point is that the common people have long been exploited into poverty, and even if they wanted to squeeze money out of them, they couldn't squeeze out much. If they really wanted to make money, they should at least make the common people rich first, so that they could squeeze out more money."
Emperor Zhu's expression froze slightly, and for a moment he didn't know how to comment on Yang Shaofeng's words.
You might say he has no conscience, but he knows that ordinary people have long been exploited into poverty.
But if you say he has a conscience, this scoundrel says he'll plunder the people after they've become rich.
motherfucker.
No wonder the people in the imperial court all called him Yang the Madman.
That's really crazy.
Emperor Zhu was internally ranting, while Yang Shaofeng continued, "The third sentence is that if anyone dares to lay a hand on the common people, I will dig up their ancestral graves and, incidentally, make them famous throughout Ningyang County."
Emperor Zhu's eyes lit up immediately.
Yes.
What's the point of just turning them into scarecrow figurines?
At most, it's just a scare tactic for the succeeding officials.
These corrupt officials, once they die, do they even care about the officials who succeed them?
On the contrary, this bastard's method was more effective. He directly dug up their ancestral graves so that their ancestors would have no blood offerings, and at the same time, he would ruin their reputation in the village, making their relatives and friends unable to hold their heads up.
Alright, I'll write to Biao'er later.
In any case, an order has been issued to build Shenming Pavilions in various places, where the people will be informed of the court's movements and the laws will be explained.
Later, we'll add another one: to glorify corrupt officials.
Let's make them infamous for eternity!
……
As the old saying goes, once a person exceeds ten thousand, there is no end in sight.
Not to mention an army of 50,000.
Xu Da and Lan Yu prepared to leave Ningyang County and officially led their men towards Beiping Prefecture.
Yang Shaofeng stood by the roadside, watching Emperor Zhu pulling Xu Da and giving him instructions, and then looking at Lan Yu next to Xu Da who looked like a silly goose, and couldn't help but spit out a hateful "Pui!"
"I knew there were no good people in the Governor's Mansion."
"To steam buns and boil eggs for an army of 50,000, only the Duke of Wei could come up with such a thing!"
Standing next to Yang Shaofeng, Jin'er smiled and said, "From before the New Year until now, Duke Wei has not eaten a single bite of roast goose for two or three months, so naturally he is unhappy."
Yu'er, always eager for a good show, chimed in, "This wasn't just Duke Wei's idea; my godfather also put in a lot of effort."
After a slight pause, Yu'er looked at Yang Shaofeng and asked, "Husband, have you figured out how to deal with the Duke of Wei? His eldest daughter's matter is over, we need to think of a new way."
The commander of the Imperial Guards of the Prince Consort's Mansion and the lame man, who were following behind Yang Shaofeng, both lowered their heads deeply and even wanted to cover their ears.
Princess Fuyang was referring to the troubles caused to the Duke of Wei.
But is my husband the type to only mess with one person?
Even His Highness the Crown Prince, the Duke of Han, and the Earl of Chengyi, who are far away in the capital, might be subjected to some turmoil.
Just as the commander of the personal guards and Lame Wu were secretly grumbling, Yang Shaofeng chuckled and said, "Think of a new way? This time, I don't need to bother the Duke of Wei. Someone else will drive him crazy."
Yu'er's eyes lit up, and she asked, "Who?"
Yang Shaofeng sneered and said, "Who? Of course, it's his good son-in-law."
"The Fourth Prince's greatest ambition is to become the Crown Prince's Grand General of the Northern Expedition. This time, he has the opportunity to go to Beiping Prefecture with the Crown Prince, and he will inevitably ask the Duke of Wei for advice on how to wage war along the way."
"The key point is that he had just been engaged to a female scholar from the Wei State Duke's family before the new year. Every time the Wei State Duke saw him, he would feel sad."
Yu'er's eyes widened: "So that's why my husband kept speaking well of the Fourth Prince. He was waiting for the Duke of Wei to come here."
Yang Shaofeng gave a soft snort: "My father-in-law didn't like me back then. He could find all sorts of ways to torment me. In his anger, he could even scold me a few times because he was my father-in-law and had the moral high ground of loyalty between ruler and subject."
"But the Duke of Wei is different. Although he is also the father-in-law of the Fourth Prince, the Fourth Prince is a prince, and the Duke of Wei is a subject. So he can neither hit nor scold him, and he has his own grievances."
After explaining a few words to Jin'er and Yu'er, Yang Shaofeng turned his gaze to Lao Deng and Xu Da not far away.