Jinling City, the back garden of Jinling Lecture Hall, and the Humble Administrator's Garden.
Although Lin'an was nominally the "capital" of the Song Dynasty, since the spring of the first year of Xingqing, when the imperial court implemented the New Deal on Jiangnan East Road, Jinling had been the residence of Emperor Zhao Hong of the Song Dynasty, and the number of visits increased day by day.
The Humble Administrator's Garden in the back garden of Jinling Martial Arts Hall became the daily place where the emperor handled government affairs, so that the ruling officials and ministers of the imperial court often had to go north to Jinling City to report and discuss matters.
Just after the Lantern Festival, the spring was cold and the garden was quiet. Xu Shouchun, a member of the Anti-Corruption Department, was pacing back and forth outside the Imperial Study Room. It could be seen from his frown that he was anxious and uneasy.
The bandage on his neck was bright red, which seemed to be caused by leakage from the wound.
"Dad, don't be anxious, it's not right to let His Majesty see it."
Xu Liang looked at the guards in the cloister and courtyard, and whispered advice from the side.
Uncle Zhou Ping was dedicated to the affairs of the Intelligence Department, while Xu Liang was in charge of all matters of the Anti-Corruption Department and became the de facto chief of the Anti-Corruption Department.
"I have failed the emperor's favor, and I feel really uneasy!"
Xu Shouchun looked at his son and felt helpless.
Appointed by the emperor and recommended by Zhou Ping, he went to Quanzhou, Fujian Province to investigate "smuggling" and corruption in collusion between government and businessmen. Unexpectedly, he got off to a bad start, but something went wrong in the middle.
During the undercover investigation in Fujian and Quanzhou, the investigation made great progress. During the period, he was attacked by hundreds of unknown gangsters. Most of the accompanying guards were killed and injured. Several members of the Anti-Corruption Department were killed. Even he was injured by an arrow. Fortunately, his vitals were not injured.
If it hadn't been for the desperate resistance of the guards and his preparations, he might not have been able to come back.
They deceived the superiors and deceived the inferiors to smuggle a large amount of overseas items; colluded with officials and businessmen to devour the court's taxes; extorted and extorted foreign ships from coming back...
Once the matter is exposed, they will kill people and silence them in an attempt to cover up the fact of committing crimes. This can be described as crazy and makes people angry and frightened.
"Dad, it all depends on people. You have tried your best, but you were seriously injured. Don't worry, His Majesty will not blame you."
Xu Liang comforted his father. This was indeed not his father's responsibility.
"Your Majesty has shown kindness to you and my father, and you will never be able to repay it with death. The job was not done well, and so many people were killed or injured. You have let down the Emperor's kindness!"
Xu Liang was speechless for a moment. My father was an upright man who wanted to make a career, but he didn't know that these people were extremely vicious and all of them were desperadoes.
He glanced towards the study, and there seemed to be a voice coming from him. He didn't know who Zhao Hong was talking to in the room.
The king of the Song Dynasty conquered the south and the north, all industries in the country were prosperous, and the national power was growing day by day. You can imagine the hard work of the emperor.
"Deputy Chief Xu, Your Majesty invites you two to come in!"
Dong Songchen came over and whispered to Xu Shouchun and his son.
"Eunuch Dong, is your Majesty okay?"
Xu Liang grabbed Dong Songchen and asked softly.
"Deputy Chief Xu, the governors are talking about things in the northwest these days. Your Majesty is in a good mood."
Dong Songchen's words made Xu Liang secretly relieved. The father and son looked at each other and followed Dong Songchen into the study.
"Your Majesty, the money and food needed to implement compulsory education in Sichuan Road alone is 6 million guan, accounting for almost 10% of the total taxes in Sichuan. If the Jiangnan and Zhejiang roads are added up, the total is 20 million guan. It is really too much. Got it!"
Entering the room, the white-haired Prime Minister Xue Ji, frowning and grimacing, was talking to Zhao Hongxu.
Zhao Hong was noncommittal and nodded slightly to Xu Liang and his son. Xu Liang knew it well, and sat down on the chair at the bottom with his uneasy father.
"Your Majesty, as of the end of the month, there are 1.8 million school-age children in Sichuan Road alone, about 2,000 schools, and more than 8,000 teachers. Including Liangzhe Road and Jiangnan Road, the number of students has reached more than 3 million. In terms of education expenditure alone, The tax expenditure amounted to more than 20 million yuan."
The show of true virtue in power came to the prelude and said, I couldn't tell whether he was happy or worried.
"That means that compulsory education has been implemented. It's exciting to think about 3 million students."
Zhao Hong laughed and then said:
"Xue Qing, everyone, don't worry about how much money you spent. The benefit behind education is that it can bring countless talents to our Song Dynasty. And talents are the foundation for the prosperity of our country."
Thanks to the benefits of the New Deal implemented by Sichuan Road, Liangzhe Road and Jiangnan Road, compulsory education can be implemented in an orderly manner. Although the imperial court and local government officials were not financially wealthy, he had no hesitation in promoting compulsory education.
Education is the foundation of a country, and talents are the foundation of a strong country. The irrefutable truth that has been proven by later generations will never be out of date in any era.
"Everything is difficult at the beginning. Although compulsory education has begun to be implemented, the next step is the focus. That is to implement compulsory education and continue it for decades. By then, it will not take three or five generations to complete the Song Dynasty. The truly world’s most powerful country will be superior to any other country in the world, and no one can bully it.”
Zhao Hong was talking eloquently, and the Xu family and his son below were sweating coldly.
In the face of Zhao Hong's ambition, the small things in Quanzhou, Fujian Province were too insignificant.
"Your Majesty, if we want to implement compulsory education throughout the Song Dynasty, then one normal school may not be enough."
Zhen Dexiu shook his head and frowned.
In the Song Dynasty, apart from Jinling Normal School, there is no second normal school. The first crash course of Jinling Normal School hollowed out Taiyuan College and recruited many local elites. Despite this, Jinling Normal School only enrolls 2,000 students a year and is unable to cope with the huge demand for teachers.
"Jinling Normal School, in addition to the first phase of the crash course, the second and third phases are also one-year crash courses, trying to absorb the best students from various states and counties. Starting from the fourth phase, the number of students enrolled will be expanded to 3,000 , the semester is set to be three years and will not change.”
Sure enough, Zhao Hong thought about it and said it.
"Starting next spring, we will set up a normal school in Chengdu and Lin'an City, Sichuan, with an enrollment of 2,000 students each. The three-year semester will not be accelerated. In addition, starting from next spring, the Jinling Martial Arts School will expand its enrollment to There are 2,000 people, and the Sichuan Martial Arts Hall has expanded its enrollment to 1,000 people. Compulsory education was popularized in the Song Dynasty, and physical education teachers in various schools had to keep up."
Sichuan has a population of more than 10 million, accounting for one-fifth of the entire Song Dynasty. It is very necessary to establish a normal school.
As for Lin'an City, taking into account southeastern Fujian, Guangdong and Zhejiang, they are both densely populated places. It is reasonable to have a normal school.
The ruling officials received the decree one after another, with different ideas.
Zhen Dexiu glanced at Zhao Hong, feeling secretly frightened.
Take Jinling Academy, after being trained by those so-called "physical education teachers", everyone is energetic and neat, but they feel that they are less polite and more aggressive.
Which one is better or worse, only God knows.
"Your Majesty, Hexi Zhizhi envoy Fan Zhong reported that the remaining Mongolian troops in Hexi have been driven out of Yumen Pass and the west of Yangguan. By the end of the month, a total of 300,000 people from Sichuan have immigrated, and there are still Sichuan people going there one after another. Fifty thousand people moved into Hexi, and Yu Jie's 50,000 officers and soldiers guarded the counties and cities in Hexi. There were also more than 100,000 Xia people who fled back to Hexi. On the entire Hexi Road, there were 100,000 officers and soldiers of our Song Dynasty, nearly 400,000 civilians, and horse farms. The land taken over by our Song Dynasty officers and soldiers has reached more than three million acres."
Xuan Zhen, Minister of the Ministry of War, played in a loud voice. He was afraid that Zhao Hong would ask questions, so he followed up and said:
"Your Majesty, Cui Yushang, the envoy of Sichuan Province, reported that nearly 700,000 shi of grain have been transferred to Hexi on the Sichuan Road. By winter, 1.5 million shi should be transferred. There are also merchants who have transferred grain and other items, which are not included in the report. .”
Zhao Hong nodded slightly.
1.5 million shi, 500,000 people, 3 shi per person, about 600 kilograms, which can be carried until next spring when the flowers bloom.
Occupying an area of Hexi, there was no gain at all. Instead, 1.5 million shi of money and food had to be transported, which was equivalent to 4 million guan of money and food. It was equivalent to the blood transfusion of the entire Sichuan people to Hexi. Cui Yu, the Sichuan envoy, did not disappoint him.
Fortunately, Hanzhong's farming operation was successful; fortunately, the Song Dynasty also had continuous blood transfusions overseas.
"Send an order to Fan Zhong to properly resettle the refugees and not let anyone starve to death or freeze to death. From now on, there will be no Xia people. All the people in the land west of Hexi are Song people."
The Mongolian army entered Hexi and burned, killed and looted. The Xia people were in dire straits and not even a single one of them survived. In the huge Hexi area, including the Xia people who fled, there were only a few hundred thousand people, which shows the loss of population.
He suddenly remembered the famous saying of an American general during World War II:
What a bloody war!
"Your Majesty, all the 20 million treasury bonds issued have been sold out, and they can barely be used for next year's expenses. But in three to five years, the bonds will expire and the treasury will be empty. How should we deal with it then?"
Zhen Dexiu frowned and said, secretly regretting why he listened to the emperor's "coaxing" and issued so many national bonds.
"Three to five years from now, will my country, the Song Dynasty, still be what it is now?"
Zhao Hong laughed.
Is it really thankless for Da Song to run overseas?
Moreover, even if the national debt cannot be repaid when it matures, just issue new national debt.
After the discussion, all the ministers left one after another, but Zhen Dexiu was left behind.
"Director Xu, tell me the whole story."
Zhao Hong looked at Xu and his son, noticed the blood on Xu Shouchun's neck, and said warmly.
This man with a violent personality is still an official.
Ever since the discovery of various shortcomings in Fujian's Quanzhou Port last winter, which was delayed by the war at Shukou, I didn't expect that six months later, not only had the Quanzhou issue not been resolved, but an attack on a member of the Anti-Corruption Department had occurred.
Being so audacious and refusing to kill is not enough to make the people angry and to get rid of the hatred in their hearts.
"Your Majesty, I have already found out that the Xia family, Tian family, Lin family, and Yan family, the four major families in Quanzhou Prefecture, colluded with merchants, smuggled goods, and evaded customs duties. Those who attacked me and others must be the perpetrators of these four families. It’s just that I have no evidence. Please punish me, Your Majesty.”
Xu Shouchun stood up and played, cautiously.
"Xu Shouchun, you are loyal to state affairs and upright. You are a capable official of our Song Dynasty. You are not guilty. Please tell me the situation. How many people were killed or injured?"
Zhao Hong gave the middle-aged man relief.
In order to handle the case, even I almost got involved. Such officials are the conscience of the world. There is a huge difference compared to those corrupt officials who are only greedy but do not do anything. They are full of official airs and abuse the people.
"Back to Your Majesty, 13 guards were killed and 3 were seriously injured. Two members of the Anti-Corruption Department were killed and one was seriously injured. Even Director Xu was seriously injured, but fortunately he was not in critical condition."
Zhao Hong's words calmed Xu Shouchun down, and Xu Liang on the side quickly continued.
"Director Xu, are you okay?"
Zhao Hong asked with concern.
"Your Majesty, I'm fine. I'll go to Quanzhou again after requesting orders, and I will definitely bring the lawbreakers to justice!"
"It's okay. Don't be impatient. Just sit down first."
Zhao Hong waved his hand gently and turned his head to look at Zhen Dexiu.
"Zhenqing, what do you think?"
Zhen Dexiu once served as the prefect of Quanzhou and was a native of Fujian. He was still the son and daughter of Zhao Rushi, the current prefect of Quanzhou. He is more familiar with the situation in Fujian.
"Your Majesty, Xia Zhongyu is the commander of the left-wing navy, Tian Xiaocai is the commander of Quanzhou, and the Lin family and the Yan family are big families in Fujian, so it is difficult to deal with them. Besides, Director Xu has no evidence that these people committed crimes, so it will be difficult to deal with them!"
Zhende showed a difficult expression, but pointed out the problem.
"What evidence do you want? Just the amount of smuggling, the collusion between officials and businessmen, and the deception of superiors and subordinates are enough to defeat the law. Do the four great families really think that they are the "Four Young Masters of the Warring States Period"?"
Zhao Hong looked livid and said coldly:
"Send a secret order to Wu Qian, asking him to arrest Xia Zhongyu and kill him if he encounters resistance. You and Director Xu will take the imperial army and my king's sword and go to Quanzhou in person. Tian Xiaocai and Lin Yan's family will be handed over to them. You. Again, if there is resistance, shoot without mercy!"
National affairs are disturbing one after another, but these troublemakers still make trouble all day long, treating the Song Dynasty court as nothing, which is intolerable.
"Your Majesty, Yan Rong from the Yan family in Quanzhou is as timid as a mouse. I have some friendship with him. Perhaps we can start with this person."
Zhen Dexiu looked at Zhao Hong and said it bravely.
"Your Majesty, Quanzhou Magistrate Zhao Rushi is seriously ill and may not be able to survive for a few more days."
The emperor was decisive in killing and determined. At this time, there is nothing to hide one's clumsiness.
"Is Zhao Rushi seriously ill?"
Zhao Hong was taken aback and nodded immediately.
"Okay! Mr. Zhen, it's up to you to decide this matter. Just go ahead and do it."
No wonder the Shipping Department in Quanzhou City is in a mess. It turns out that the chief officer is seriously ill. It seems that I blamed Zhao Rushi a little.
Zhao Hong looked at the old fox Zhen Dexiu and said thoughtfully:
"True Lord, give the guards and subordinates who died in the line of duty a generous burial, comfort their families, and send the pension to their families as soon as possible."
After telling Zhen Dexiu, he looked at Xu Shouchun, and Zhao Hong's voice became softer again.
"Director Xu, I am very pleased that you are loyal to the state affairs and have not changed your original intention. I will give you a reward of 200 guan as a token of appreciation. It is urgent for Quanzhou Port to return to the imperial government. After completing this errand, you will promote Quanzhou. City Shipping Department, let’s also serve as the anti-corruption chief of Fujian Road.”
He never treats those who truly serve the country and the people poorly.
As for the "Four Young Masters of Quanzhou" who act recklessly, smuggle and violate the law, what awaits them will be merciless suppression.
