amaotonovel Chapter 145 Is there no justice left? Is there no law left?!
Chapter 145 Is there no justice left? Is there no law left?!
There were 216 wounded soldiers in Ningyang County. Sixteen of them were assigned to work as yamen runners by Chang Yuchun when Magistrate Yang first arrived in the world. Later, Xu Da assigned another 200, of whom dozens of those with relatively intact hands and feet were assigned to work as yamen runners by Magistrate Yang. The remaining 100-plus were assigned to various villages and communities to settle down and farm. They were also responsible for patrolling and maintaining order in their respective villages and communities, essentially serving as unofficial yamen runners.
It was precisely because of this arrangement that the people of Ningyang County were so peaceful and there were no petty thefts or other such misdeeds. As a result, Magistrate Yang's workload was greatly reduced, and he had more time to lie low and do nothing.
Now that some of these wounded soldiers are getting married, Magistrate Yang Shaofeng has to show his appreciation.
Or to put it another way, even if he didn't consider keeping these people as beasts of burden, Magistrate Yang still had to consider his personal safety. After all, he had offended quite a few people, and if some fool were to risk his life for his, the presence of these wounded soldiers would at least guarantee Magistrate Yang's safety.
"One tael of silver, half a bolt of cloth, one pound of sorghum syrup, and one pound of pork."
"It's alright. At most, it's only a hundred or so taels of silver, plus a few dozen bolts of cloth, a hundred or so catties of sorghum candy, and half a pig. That's enough for the four gifts. Even if Old Deng doesn't throw out his gold coins, I can still afford it."
"Well, give each family two cans of pork, a set of cups, plates and bowls, and two glass cups. These things can be provided by the workshops and farms in the county. They're not worth much. It's alright."
"Do we have to use red eggs for the wedding? Each family needs at least three to five pounds, right? Do we have to write the character '囍' on red paper? Damn it, with so many people getting married at the same time, how long will it take me to write all those '囍' characters?"
"..."
The more Magistrate Yang thought about it, the more troubled he became. In a fit of anger, he simply got up, found a blanket, went to the courtyard, and lay down on a recliner, pretending to be dead.
Damn it, I, the county magistrate, am still a bachelor. It's one thing for these old rascals to get married and find wives before me, but now I have to worry about them.
Is there any king law?Are there any laws?
Just as Magistrate Yang was inwardly complaining, the yamen runners who were guarding the front courtyard of the county government office hurriedly ran to the back courtyard with a letter, bowed to Magistrate Yang, and said, "Your Excellency, there is an official document."
Yang Shaofeng took the official letter with great curiosity and carefully checked the sealing wax before opening it.
The official document was very simple: because the case of Chen Er's levirate marriage had such a terrible impact, after careful deliberation by the officials of the court, it was decided that the magistrates or prefects of various places would conduct an assessment of all levirate marriages that had already taken place. If both parties were willing, they could do as they pleased; if one party was unwilling, the government would grant them a divorce.
Yang Shaofeng spat, inwardly cursing the officials in the court for being no good, all of them wanting to treat him, the county magistrate, like a beast of burden, while continuing to read.
After careful deliberation by the court officials, Emperor Zhu Yuanzhang of the Ming Dynasty approved the complete abolition of all Hu customs and rituals. Han people who had already changed their surnames to Hu were required to change them back within one month of the arrival of the official document. Those who failed to do so within the deadline would be punished with twenty strokes of the cane and their names would be forcibly changed by the local magistrates and prefects.
At the same time, the use of non-Han languages was completely banned in all regions, and all clothing had to be restored to Han Chinese attire. All old non-Han clothing was abolished. If any non-Han people wished to use Han names or register as Han citizens, they were free to do so.
In short, Emperor Zhu Chongba originally only planned to pilot the policy in Ningyang County, but after the Chen Er marrying his sister-in-law case, Emperor Zhu and the court officials changed their minds and decided to immediately abolish all Hu customs, Hu etiquette, Hu language, and Hu clothing.
Tsk tsk.
It seems that Chen Er's life is quite important. At the very least, it made Zhu Yuanzhang and the officials in the court determined to completely abolish the customs, etiquette, language and clothing of the Hu people. Isn't this also a kind of way to make a name for oneself in history?
However, Zhu Chongba and the officials of the court left behind a good reputation, while Chen Er left behind a bad one.
In addition, the official document also included the handling opinions for Wu Zude, the prefect of Yanzhou, and the Chen family members. Because Chen Er was a troublemaker under his jurisdiction, and Wu Zude, as the prefect of Yanzhou, failed to discover it in time, he was fined three months' salary. However, because he discovered the hidden truth behind the case when he interrogated the Chen family members, he was rewarded with three more months' salary. In the end, it was equivalent to neither rewarding nor punishing them.
As for Chen Er, that bastard hanged himself outside the Ministry of Justice, causing extremely bad consequences. So his body was left in the wilderness. His clansmen were all exiled to Lingnan to reclaim wasteland because they helped him kill his brother, seize the Chen family's property, and help him forcibly marry his sister-in-law. They weren't even given the chance to come to Ningyang County to work as laborers.
Magistrate Yang was very satisfied with the result.
After all, Ningyang County is known as a kind and benevolent county, and the people there have been certified as kind and benevolent by Chang Yuchun and Xu Da. Even if they need laborers, they don't need the kind of black-hearted and rotten people like the Chen family.
It's a pity about Wu Zude, the prefect of Yanzhou. After all, when Chen Er and his clansmen did those terrible things, it was still under the rule of the Tartar government. No matter what, they shouldn't blame Prefect Wu.
However, Prefect Wu Zude was extremely satisfied with the punishment, and even gained a profound understanding of the meaning of his name because of it.
What is ancestral virtue? This is ancestral virtue, the accumulated virtue of my ancestors that has brought me such good fortune. Compared to the previous prefect of Yanzhou, who was dismissed from office in less than half a year because of a children's rhyme in his jurisdiction, and whose entire family was exiled to Ningyang County to do hard labor, I, on the other hand, have such a big case as Chen Er hanging himself in the Ministry of Justice, yet the final result is nothing more than no reward or punishment. Isn't this the accumulated virtue of my ancestors?
No, Prefect Wu felt that it couldn't be said that it was all due to the good deeds of his ancestors. After all, he was quite clever. At the very least, he had signed his name on the official document of Magistrate Yang requesting the abolition of the Hu customs, and later he personally wrote an identical memorial. Otherwise, no matter how much good deeds his ancestors had done, it wouldn't have saved him.
Of course, Magistrate Yang had no idea that Prefect Wu was having so many thoughts running through his mind. After all, the imperial court had sent an official document, and Yang Shaofeng, the magistrate of Ningyang County, had to take corresponding actions.
For example, a meeting could be convened with the heads of the eight communities and sixteen neighborhoods to explain the spirit of the imperial court, and then they could go back and tell the people about it.
For example, during the period before winter, Magistrate Yang personally visited each village and neighborhood to collect statistics on the changes in each village and neighborhood, and also personally explained the spirit of the imperial court to the people.