amaotonovel Chapter 220 Our sister is so thoughtful!
Chapter 220 Our sister is so thoughtful!
Liu Jizu immediately panicked.
Biao'er?
Zhu Chongba was the emperor, so who could be the person he called Biao'er?
That must be the current crown prince.
How dare I make the current crown prince and his four younger brothers kowtow to me?
However, Emperor Zhu Chongba pressed Liu Jizu down into a chair and said with red eyes, "Old Master Liu, I sincerely want these children to kowtow to you. Don't stop me, or I'll never feel at ease for the rest of my life."
Empress Ma also bowed to Liu Jizu and advised, "Old Master Liu, please don't stop him."
At that moment, Zhu Biao, along with his second, third, fourth, and fifth brothers, knelt down.
Zhu Biao solemnly cupped his hands and bowed to Liu Jizu, saying, "This humble one, Zhu Biao, thanks you, Old Master Liu, for your great kindness back then!"
Zhu Lao Er, Zhu Lao San, Zhu Lao Si, and Zhu Lao Wu also bowed to Liu Jizu, saying, "We thank you for your great kindness back then, Master Liu!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the four brothers, led by Zhu Biao, kowtowed deeply to Liu Jizu, performing the three bows.
After Zhu Biao and his five brothers, including Zhu Lao Er, stood up, Zhu Chongba released his hand from supporting Liu Jizu, pulled over a stool and sat down. Then, he grasped Liu Jizu's withered old hands and sighed, "Old Master Liu, you've grown old too."
Liu Jizu nodded and hummed in agreement, but said nothing more. He just held Zhu Chongba's hand tightly and wept.
After a while, Emperor Zhu Chongba continued, "Actually, after I became emperor, I thought about going back to see him, but the Tartars haven't been completely driven away yet, so I don't dare to leave the capital for the time being, and things have been delayed like this."
"The reason we invited you to the capital this time is partly for the marriage of my two daughters, and partly because Chongba wanted to meet you, Old Master Liu, so we could have a good talk."
As Emperor Zhu Chongba finished speaking, Liu Jizu's previously suppressed curiosity was reignited.
After careful consideration, Liu Jizu tentatively asked, "Your Majesty, who exactly is this Yang Shaofeng, that he is able to marry two princesses?"
Emperor Zhu Chongba laughed and said, "He is a very capable person. Apart from always causing trouble for us, there is really no fault with him."
After praising Magistrate Yang a few times, Emperor Zhu Chongba changed the subject and asked Liu Jizu, "Old Master Liu, what has our hometown been like these past few years? Have the local officials treated the people well? Have they been encouraging agriculture and sericulture in a timely manner? Are there any exorbitant taxes or levies?"
Liu Jizu nodded slightly and replied, "It's good, it's good. The encouragement of agriculture and sericulture was timely, and there were no exorbitant taxes or levies. The lives of ordinary people are much better than under Hu Yuanshi. Now, the people of Fengyang all praise you as a good emperor."
Zhu Chongba said, "That's good. As long as the people are doing better, we can rest assured."
After talking with Liu Jizu for a while, Emperor Zhu had Liu Jizu taken outside the palace to be settled.
Just as Liu Jizu left, Emperor Zhu Chongba looked at Empress Ma and said, "Sister, what we just talked about with Old Master Liu has given me an idea."
Empress Ma was slightly taken aback and asked, "What are your thoughts?"
Emperor Zhu said, "I'm thinking of having each prefecture and county select a few old farmers to come to the capital so I can meet them in person and see if they are satisfied with the officials in their respective prefectures and counties, whether there are any wealthy and unscrupulous gentry oppressing them, and what they lack in their daily farming, or what they need the court to help them solve."
Empress Ma fell into deep thought after hearing what Emperor Zhu said.
Logically speaking, an emperor only has a few channels to learn about the situation in local prefectures and counties.
One way is to look at the work reports of local officials. You don't need to think twice; there's definitely nothing bad in them. Even if there is, it's just something written for the emperor to see, so you absolutely can't take it seriously.
Another method was to send imperial inspectors to various prefectures and counties to conduct inspections. By comparing the reports given by the imperial inspectors with the work reports of the local prefectural and county officials, many problems could be identified.
But who can guarantee that the imperial inspectors won't collude with local officials?
The third is that the emperor would travel incognito to visit the common people and see for himself.
However, this method can only exist in imagination. After all, an emperor has to deal with a lot of official business every day. Where would he have time to go out of the palace to make an incognito visit?
Even if I manage to squeeze out a little time, I can only take a stroll around the vicinity of the capital; I can't go to places a little further away.
There's an old saying in officialdom: "Three lifetimes of misfortune, and you'll be a county magistrate; three lifetimes of evil deeds, and you'll be a provincial governor; three lifetimes of heinous crimes, and you'll be a capital city magistrate."
The term "attached county" refers to nearby counties, also known as the capital county, which is located in the same place as the county seat, prefectural city, provincial capital, or capital city.
This statement certainly illustrates that the county attached to the city was under the watchful eye of its superiors, with complex interpersonal relationships, making the county magistrate's job difficult. However, it also reflects, from another perspective, that the officials in the county attached to the city dared not act recklessly.
Unless it is the end of a dynasty, when the imperial court's control over local areas is almost zero, the emperor's decrees cannot leave the capital, and even the county magistrates in the surrounding areas no longer take the emperor and the imperial court seriously.
Therefore, even if the emperor went on an incognito visit, he would most likely not see anything.
Aside from these three methods, the emperor, confined to the inner palace, had no real contact with the situation on the ground. His so-called understanding of the people's conditions could only rely on the memorials from officials or simply some books. He would then make decisions on a whim, and in the end, it was hard to say whether he would help or harm the people.
The way Emperor Zhu Chongba summoned local elders to the capital was similar to the method of sending out imperial inspectors, which should have solved the problem to some extent.
Of course, summoning the elderly to the capital carries the same risk as the possibility that the imperial inspectors might collude with local officials. These elderly people summoned to the capital might be specially selected by the officials, and they might also have been bribed in advance. Even if they were not bribed, they might not dare to speak frankly about some local problems.
However, just as the imperial court knew that sending out inspectors might lead to them being bribed by local officials, it still sent them anyway. As long as the emperor summoned these elderly people to the capital for questioning, the local officials would not dare to act too recklessly, because they could not guarantee that these elderly people would not change their minds at the last minute.
Thinking of this, Empress Ma smiled and said, "That's a good idea. Why don't you think about it carefully and see how to avoid the officials picking candidates in advance, or how to coerce and entice these old people in advance? As long as these two problems can be solved, the administration will be much better."
As Empress Ma finished speaking, Emperor Zhu Chongba was overjoyed and grabbed her hand, laughing, "My sister is so thoughtful!"