economy!
economy!
It’s still a fucking economy!
The fundamental contradiction of the Song Dynasty was finance, and nothing else. As long as finance was done well, then all issues would be easy to discuss, not fairness and justice. This is why, when the Public Security Bureau and Procuratorate Law first came out, neither Wang Anshi nor Sima Guang cared about the system itself. Fu Bi and others, including Fu Bi, only regarded the Public Security Procuratorate Law as a tool for political struggle.
Later, with the prosperity of Tokyo's commerce, the stability of Hezhong Prefecture, and the increase in fiscal revenue, many of them felt that this might be the way out for the future, and then they began to pay attention to the public security law.
But they attach great importance to the public security and the law, and what they pursue is to improve finances.
In fact, every official knows very well that the outcome of this struggle does not lie in how many cases the two sides handled fairly and fairly within a year, but in finance. Whoever can reduce the burden on the central finance will be the final winner.
It's that simple.
Zhao Xu trusted Zhang Fei, not because of the public prosecutor, but because Qianlong should not use this plan.
Since the goal is very clear and very simple and crude, then work hard in this area.
Therefore, the officials on Jingdong East Road loaned out all the young people's money at all costs to strive for maximum profits. This was all political achievement.
But if you usually do this, it will naturally cause complaints.
Those officials and big landowners are not so easy to talk to.
However, as early as when Bianliang was trialling the exemption law, Wang Anshi and Lu Huiqing had already begun to plan for this, taking advantage of the panic of Bianliang's powerful people to threaten officials in other regions.
If you don't support my new policy, the Department of Self-Declaration and Taxation will come to your door.
Although the exemption law was successful in Bianliang, Wang Anshi knew very well that if this continued, the New Deal would be completely subject to Sima Guang's judicial reforms.
However, Sima Guang and others carried out judicial reform just to oppose the New Deal.
Others did not know that he was going to implement the reform with a person who opposed the reform, but Wang Anshi was definitely not that stupid. He never thought of promoting the success of the Bianliang Exemption Law to the whole country.
But at the time, his threat theory was actually of limited effect.
Because many people believe that it was you, Wang Anshi, who included us privileged people in the tax exemption. If you didn't include us, any declaration would have nothing to do with us. So you are the culprit. Do you have the nerve to accuse others?
At that time, the number of officials who opposed the new law was still increasing day by day.
However, with the implementation of the Public Security and Procuratorate Law in Hezhong Prefecture, local officials gradually realized that this judicial reform is the most terrifying thing. Once officials lose their judicial power, not to mention the power and money, even their lives are in question, and they may face the prosecutor's office at any time. The prosecution, and their relationship, was completely unworkable.
Of course, the fact that they were able to learn about the situation in Hezhong Mansion so quickly was also the result of Lu Huiqing's efforts.
Comparing the two, the new method is really fragrant.
Because the judicial reform is to limit and divide the power of the government, and at the same time introduce a wave of new people to the field, Wang Anshi's judicial reform actually follows the Legalist line. In a sense, it is to strengthen the power of the government, but it will It affected the interests of the gentry class.
To put it simply, judicial reform is a pure loss for officials, while the new law is just a trade-off between gains and losses for officials.
It must be a new method.
Of course, these officials do not have the firm political ideals of Fan Zhongyan and others. They used to be a group of conservatives who defended their own rights and interests. Only on this basis did they consider the national interests.
However, people such as Fan Cunzhen, Su Che, and Su Shi were all ambitious and had very firm political ideals. They would rather be constrained by judicial reform than compromise with the new law.
But this group of people is in the minority after all. Since most local officials support it, this Green Seedling Law was implemented very quickly on Jingdong East Road.
Arriving in Dengzhou soon.
The situation in Dengzhou is similar to that of Jinan Prefecture. It first lends young crops money to the countryside. If the money lent is not much, the government will join forces with the gentry and landlords to share the young crop money.
After Fan Chunren learned about it, he immediately filed an appeal. This was different from the provisions of the Youth Law, but it was exactly what he expected.
However, there are no eggs.
It is impossible for the government to convict itself of violating the law and directly state that this is a government order and your judicial department has no right to interfere.
In addition, it is not that the big landowners and squires were completely forced. Although they were also a little depressed, they all nodded and agreed. After all, the government only gave them two cents of profit. As long as they were released with two cents of profit, , as long as it’s not a loss.
This is better than coming to the tax department!
On the contrary, the situation in Hezhong Mansion is quite different.
The arrival of Han Jiang did restore the prestige of the government, but it was just a peak that passed quickly, and the Qingmiao Law changed directly to work-for-relief.
People who actually borrowed money with collateral went to Ma's Jiekupu.
Compared with the government, everyone still prefers to cooperate with businessmen, at least everyone is equal in status.
This momentum is far less than that of Jingdong East Road. It is still the same as usual. It does not cause too many waves, but everyone can clearly feel that the pace is getting faster and everyone is eager to make money.
In particular, the government began to issue salt banknotes of small denominations to the outside world, further exacerbating this phenomenon.
The situation that businessmen and wealthy households had suppressed for many years finally began to break out under the protection of the public prosecutor and the law.
In the past, most businessmen did not dare to make money so arrogantly. Unless you had connections, the government would definitely come to your door. Those wealthy households were even more pitiful. In order to avoid the Yamen government officials, they not only sold their land, but also harmed themselves, cut off relations with their father and son, and so on.
After the Majia Jiekupu was launched, the land transactions surged rapidly.
Some people want capital for business, so they sell land; some people want to become landlords, so they buy land.
However, under this surface calm, there are hidden crises and more acute conflicts.
These people are not stupid. They know very well that the Green Crops Law is just a cover-up and is not worth mentioning at all. The real threat is always the tax department. They do not pay too much attention to the implementation of the Green Crops Law, but are looking for ways to avoid it. Tax Division.
On the river, a small boat slowly passed by, with two people sitting in the barn.
One of them said: "We in the tax department all live on bonuses. We have divided the areas long ago to avoid being investigated together. No one wants to split their bonuses in half."
Another person said: "So my husband's land is all within your survey area?"
"Yes."
"Are you sure no one else is going to investigate my fields?"
"Won't!"
"Very good! Here are 100 guan and two land deeds of 100 acres. When the time comes, you can take these two land deeds to hand over the contract. After the transaction is completed, we will give you another 100 guan."
"Thank you! Thank you very much! Don't worry, this matter will be taken care of by me."
Pinglu County.
The two convoys met on a narrow mountain road.
"Brother Hu, why did you arrange to do business here? Our legitimate business turned you into a bandit business."
"Well, why else? Isn't it just to avoid the tax department?"
"I've heard about it too, but it's okay if you don't sign a contract. Our two families are so familiar with each other, so there's no need to sign a contract. We won't come to this barren mountain to trade."
"I heard that the tax department is mysterious and ruthless. Let's be careful this year."
"Okay! According to your request, it will all be money."
"It's hard work, because the amount of money is small and easy to hide."
"Is this tax department really that powerful? Are they aware of the transactions hidden in the mountains?"
"There are three things a new official should do when he takes office, but no one wants to pay so much tax, and no one wants to be the first person in the position. Hey, be careful and you will be sailing for thousands of years!"
"That's true. In two years' time, the tax department's methods will probably be clear, and then we can prescribe the right medicine."
During the crazy show of operations by the Hezhong government, the Imperial Court kept a relatively low profile. However, many of the operations of the Imperial Court in the middle also deeply confused the people. Therefore, after the peak of the wave passed, the Imperial Court, jointly with the Procuratorate and the Police Department, held a Hezhong Prefecture’s first Q&A session with the Public Security Bureau.
It is held in the main court.
In the morning, the sun was shining brightly, and the area around the imperial court was now lush and green, with birds chirping and flowers fragrant.
There are huge crowds of people inside and outside the courtyard.
Not only the common people, but also all the officials and landowners came. Although Han Jiang stabilized the authority of the government, the public security, prosecution and law were deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, and their every move was still related to everyone's interests.
Han Jiang did not say to ignore the Public Security Bureau, he just wanted to use the government's advantages to suppress the Public Security Law.
Today he also arrived in person and was quickly surrounded by officials.
Lu Gongru put his hands into his sleeves and asked the officials around him: "What is the meaning of this question and answer session?"
Cai Yanqing replied: "It is said that it is to answer some questions raised by the people."
Lu Gongru was curious again: "But why did he do this?"
Cai Yanqing shook his head, "I don't know much about that either."
He Chunlin hummed softly: "President Zhang loves to sensationalize and confuse the people. They relied on slandering the government to demonstrate their fairness and justice and deceive the people's trust."
Wei Yingfang and the others also nodded.
Han Jiang frowned and said, "Won't you do this?"
He Chunlin said aggrievedly: "The affairs of Han Temple are clear, and the lower officials are still shouldering the important responsibilities entrusted to them by the imperial court. This is not easy!"
The implication is that if we want to become great virtuous people, the imperial court will not let us serve as officials!
The Public Security Bureau and the Procuratorate are not helping to make money. They only need to care about fairness and justice. Of course that is simple!
Han Jiang snorted: "This is just an excuse. The Green Crops Law was originally for the country and the people, but you have lost the hearts of the people. Your previous salt debts, salt banknotes, and salt production reforms have now won the hearts of the people." Respect is a good policy to win the hearts and minds of the people, and has nothing to do with the imperial court. But now in the eyes of the people, it is the imperial court that forces you to do this. I really don’t know whether to call you stupid or praise you all for your excellence. He is high-spirited and honest, and indifferent to fame and wealth."
After saying this, He Chunlin and the others immediately fell silent.
Looking back, it seems that this is indeed the case. These policies were implemented very smoothly, and the people benefited greatly. They were all introduced by the government. As a result, the people were all grateful to the public security organs, prosecutors, and law.
this.!
Why is this happening?
Now they themselves are a little confused.
Lu Gongru, Cai Yanqing, Wang Shao and others all smiled and said nothing.
They all have a clear mind about this.
While we were chatting, we suddenly heard someone say: "Here we come! Here we come!"
Han Jiang and the others looked back and saw Zhang Fei, Cao Dongdong, and Su Che, the three giants of the public prosecutor, procuratorate, and law, walking out of the lobby talking and laughing. They were all young, handsome, and of extraordinary temperament.
Very eye-catching.
It even makes Han Jiang, Yuan Jiang, Lu Gongru and others feel lonely, they are getting old!
Seeing the crowds of people outside, Cao Dongdong was immediately elated and whispered: "Zhang San, question and answer sessions like this should be held more often."
Zhang Fei smiled and said: "I will take you through this a few times, and then you can open it on your own, and your police station should be the one that opens it most often."
Cao Dongdong asked anxiously: "How to say?"
Zhang Fei said: "Because your police station has the most contact with the people, and conflicts are inevitable, you can hold this question and answer meeting to explain the reasons for some matters that the people are concerned about, so as to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings."
Cao Dongdong rolled his eyes, "I understand! I understand!"
Su Che secretly glanced at this guy and smiled to himself, you're such a dandy, you really want to be in the limelight. Once this question-and-answer routine becomes a routine, then your Royal Police will have their hands tied.
During the conversation, the three of them came to the courtyard.
However, this court stage has been slightly changed, that is, the president's seat above is covered with black cloth. The three of them are sitting in the second row, which was the seat occupied by the four little kings before.
This is to give everyone a more intuitive impression that the relationship between the public security organs, prosecutors and law is equal.
After taking a seat, when the outside gradually became quiet, Zhang Fei in the middle said loudly: "Today's question and answer session will become a routine system of our Public Security Bureau. There are two reasons. First, because our Public Security Bureau is a brand new system. , many people do not understand this. This kind of question and answer session is also to increase people's understanding of the public prosecutor's law, including how the Royal Police investigates cases, how the Procuratorate exercises its procuratorial power, and the interpretation of the judgments of our Royal Court.
The second is to increase transparency. This person is not a sage, and no one can make mistakes. We certainly make mistakes sometimes, but compared to ordinary people, we should correct them faster to avoid greater consequences. To increase transparency, that is In order to ensure that if we make a mistake, we can get a timely response, maintain communication with everyone, and reduce unnecessary misunderstandings. "
Many officials heard this and scoffed.
Childish behavior!
Pretending!
No one can say nice things, but the key is whether they can do it.
If you say anything now, it will only make you unable to get off the ground.
This is not the way to be an official!
Lu Gongru couldn't help but sigh: "This son is better than me!"
Guo Kui asked in a low voice: "Why did Magistrate Lu say this?"
Lu Gongru sighed: "Guo Xuanfu, please think about it. If it is stipulated in the army in the future, he will answer the soldiers' doubts regularly and at any time."
Guo Kui lowered his eyebrows and thought for a while, then waved his hand: "I can't do that."
Which soldier has lost a little military pay, and then raises doubts, how to answer this, since ancient times, it has always been about layer upon layer of exploitation.
This cannot be explained.
Lu Gongru said: "I can't do it either!"
Han Jiang whispered to Yuan Jiang: "It seems that this boy has not changed at all. He likes to be unexpected and unconventional."
Yuan Jiang nodded.
Han Jiang added: "You have to be more careful in the future. Cooperating with this kid will always be a mixed blessing!"
Yuan Jiang sighed: "I'm used to it."
"It's really hard for you."
Han Jiang chuckled.
He then heard Zhang Fei say: "However, because there are too many people, if we ask questions one by one in person, a lot of time may be wasted in the process. Therefore, we entrusted the Legal Aid Department to collect everyone's questions and answer them.
Of course, these questions must have been screened. Because time is limited, we can only answer some key questions that involve the majority of people and that we can answer. We do not have the authority to answer questions on behalf of other agencies.
Now is the time to answer, starting with our imperial court. "
As he said that, he picked up a copy, read it, and then looked at everyone with a smile, "It seems that everyone is still very concerned about the previous Qingmiao money matter. The main problem is that some large landowners did not follow the original agreement. Lending money to the villagers at an interest rate of 1.5 cents, and why the imperial court dismissed the government’s prosecution, and why the imperial court did not urge the big landowners to implement the agreement.”
The people nodded frequently.
And why do those landowners look so uneasy? It's hard to get over this hurdle, right?
After Zhang Fei finished reading, he put down the copy and looked at everyone, "Actually, the imperial court has explained these issues to the outside world. Today I will explain them again in a systematic way.
Let us go back to the lawsuit first. The cause of the lawsuit was that some squires and some landowners reached an agreement through patriarchal law, which stipulated that people in their villages could only borrow money at an interest rate of one and a half cents. Then the government issued an injunction prohibiting them from doing so because the government believed that this agreement was against the Green Crops Law promulgated by the imperial court.
In the end, the imperial court ruled that the government's ban was invalid, but that was all. The principle brought about by this judgment is that the government has no right to prohibit anyone from reaching a legal agreement with anyone. It does not matter what their purpose is. Whether they are directed at government policy or not, this is not important and does not involve As long as the content of this agreement is legal, just like our judgment, the government has no right to interfere, and the imperial court has no right to interfere, because this is only an agreement between private individuals. Do you understand? "
Many people nodded slightly.
Zhang Fei continued: "If a landowner fails to effectively comply with the agreement, or directly violates the agreement, only those who participate in the agreement can sue. This is like a sales contract. If one party fails to abide by the contract, if the other party It doesn't matter, if you don't pursue it, others will have no right to interfere, including the government.
This is why the imperial court dismissed the government's prosecution because the government was not a participating party. In the same way, the villagers are not participants. Although the actions of some landlords may affect the villagers, the villagers have no right to sue them.
To put it more simply, they have no obligation to lend money to the people at low interest rates. Only participating squires or other landowners can sue them.
In fact, some squires came to inquire before and wanted to sue those who were unwilling to borrow money. However, according to the content of their agreement, they only agreed on an interest rate of 1.5 cents. There was no agreement that if the villagers asked for help, they would have to borrow money. At present, no landlord lends money to villagers at an interest rate exceeding one and a half cents.
Of course, I don’t think those opportunistic landlords have taken advantage, because integrity is very important. After this time, no one will believe them next time. The Imperial Court still hopes that everyone can abide by integrity, but the Imperial Court can do That's all. "
The big landowners present didn't panic at all when they heard this. In this era, everyone pays attention to contracts. Honesty has a role. Besides, you will still come to borrow if you should, and I don't lack the interest money. .
A scholar suddenly said: "I understand what the Chief Justice meant, but they originally agreed on the basis of patriarchal law, not an ordinary contract. The villagers should also be considered as participants, right?"
"That's a good question."
Zhang Fei nodded with a smile and said: "Our imperial court has also carefully considered this. There are indeed some problems here. The patriarchal law should involve every villager, because the villagers cannot lend at an interest rate of 1.5 cents. Rather than just binding the parties involved in the agreement, the villagers should have the right to sue. Of course, I want to specifically explain here that even if the villagers sue, the lawsuit will definitely be lost because no one has violated this agreement for the time being. They just Choosing not to borrow does not violate the contract.
However, the agreement did not specify the obligations and responsibilities of the villagers from beginning to end. Only a few people signed it to express their agreement. If there were villagers who lent money at an interest rate higher than 1.5 cents, the imperial court would actually It is also difficult to judge them for violating the agreement.
At present, the court's positioning of patriarchal law is similar to family law, but there is a blood relationship between father and son. There is no need to draw up a contract in many matters, and the responsibilities are relatively clear. However, at present, patriarchal law can often restrain the entire township. The villagers are not necessarily related by blood to each other, but are more like a convention among the common people, which leads to unclear responsibilities and obligations. But our imperial court will make some improvements to the patriarchal system. "
Immediately an old man said: "The state has national laws and families have family rules. The judiciary should not interfere with the patriarchal laws."
Zhang Fei replied: "The problem now is that it is not clear whether this sect belongs to family law or national law?"
The old man was silent.
To be honest, he didn't even know.
In fact, this patriarchal system is a family system. It originated from the era of the princes and clans. At that time, the villagers around the big families were their servants. Of course, they had to abide by their family's clan system. But now, due to the decline of the clans and the rise of the gentry, the gentry and the common people Their status also changed from domestic servants to tenant farmers, and the master-servant relationship became a contractual relationship. However, the government needed them as squires to manage the countryside, so they continued to give them this power. In fact, it was between national law and family law. But this is still in conflict with the Public Security Bureau, because the Public Security Law governs everything, and there is a great overlap between civil litigation and patriarchal law, which of course needs to be adjusted.
Zhang Fei added: "Of course, the imperial court does not want to abolish the patriarchal law, but it just wants to clarify the relationship between responsibilities and obligations, because according to what I understand, the patriarchal law is only drawn up by a few people, but the entire village is bound by the patriarchal law, and There is no clear definition of the relationship between the responsibilities of those who carry out the patriarchal law and those who perform the patriarchal law. It cannot be just restrictions without responsibilities, which is wrong."
Many gentry were very dissatisfied with this.
Of course they just want power with as little responsibility as possible.
Anyway, vagueness is best.
In fact, vagueness means the rule of man. The rule of man must also respect the law and follow the rules. But if the law is unclear, then I have the final say in everything. The rule of law requires clear regulations. The clearer the regulations, the better the opportunity for rule by man. The smaller it is.
But the people were very supportive and nodded their heads.
It was hard for the gentry to say much.
They knew that if they continued to fight over this issue, they would not get support, and they could only hope that Zhang Fei would talk about the next topic soon.
Zhang Fei did not dwell too much on this, and picked up the second copy, "As for the second type of issues, they are mainly about contracts. The first is liquidated damages. Regarding this, the imperial court has already explained in the legal report, Some people still don’t understand why there is a penalty for early repayment.
Because the legal system not only protects the legitimate rights and interests of borrowers, but also protects the legitimate rights and interests of creditors. It is difficult for the imperial court to determine whether the creditor has considered the length of time when choosing whether to lend money to the borrower, how much to lend to the borrower, and whether the creditor has considered the time limit. Therefore, the imperial court unanimously held that the loan period is the legitimate and legitimate rights and interests of both the creditor and the borrower and must be protected.
On the other hand, if the creditor needs the borrower to repay the money in advance, he may also need to lose some profits to reach a settlement with the debtor. At this point, the imperial court must protect the interests of the borrower. In the same way, when repaying the money in advance, On the other hand, the imperial court must also protect the rights and interests of creditors.
However, due to moral standards, repaying money in advance is morally better than defaulting on repayment. It is a manifestation of trust. Therefore, the imperial court gave different solutions to deal with such matters.
The borrower can directly refuse the creditor's request to repay the money in advance and repay it when it is due. However, if the borrower takes the initiative to repay the money in advance, the imperial court allows the payment of prescribed liquidated damages to terminate the contract between the two parties.
I would like to say one more thing here. In a business contract, if the contract is terminated early, the other party must be compensated for all losses.
Of course, I still recommend that everyone write it clearly, so as to truly ensure that your interests are not harmed. If it is unclear, the imperial court's decision may not satisfy both parties. "
At this time, an aunt suddenly shouted: "President, I also have a question about this contract."
Zhang Fei raised his head and glanced at the aunt, "What's the problem, aunt?"
"The contract is so important, but I can't read. What if I get cheated?" asked the aunt.
Many people nodded.
Yeah!
This is a big problem.
Zhang Fei smiled and said: "Actually, many people have reported this issue to the Legal Aid Department. I was about to talk about it. Regarding illiterate people signing a contract, the previous method was to find a guarantor or a dentist. That is to say, a third party will read out the contents of the contract, and now everyone can also ask Erbi and Chashiren to help."
A young man immediately said: "But the tooth person and the guarantor may also be bribed by the other party."
"Yes."
Zhang Fei nodded, "Currently, there is no law to supervise this aspect. The government still hopes that the Yaren and the squires can take on this important task, but at present, they are not doing a good job. Our imperial court is also working on this." Study a principle of consideration.
For example, if the contract stipulates that one penny buys one stone of rice, although the contract stipulates this and both parties agree voluntarily, there is obviously a problem with this price and does not comply with the principles of market transactions. In this case, the imperial court can Based on this principle, the contract was determined to be invalid.
But this principle is still being prepared, and many issues need to be taken into consideration. When some people are in urgent need of money, they may want to sell at a low price. But if this principle is in place, then these people may not be able to raise life-saving money because there is no one Dare to buy.
Therefore, we are also considering institutionalizing the guarantor, that is, setting up a notary office outside the Legal Aid Department to provide everyone with notarization of contracts, even estates, etc., but this also takes time to prepare.
Before these systems are perfected, I strongly recommend that you seek help from bookstores and spend a little money to buy peace of mind. At present, bookstores dare not commit fraud because once I find out, they will directly withdraw their official documents. "
The people outside the hospital nodded frequently and looked moved. The imperial court was still the same imperial court. It really considered their needs and gave very detailed explanations.
But most officials have big heads. If you are getting more and more sophisticated, it will become more and more difficult for us to get along in the officialdom.
At the same time, there are also some officials who have an appreciative attitude and are becoming more and more convinced of Zhang Fei's appointment as the president of the court. He can always think of ways to institutionalize some seemingly cumbersome things.
This is definitely an improvement!
"That's pretty much where my questions end."
Zhang Fei looked at Su Che, "Next, Prosecutor General Su will answer your questions on behalf of the Procuratorate."
(End of chapter)
