Chapter 14 Section 1 Crackdown on "Leapfrog Petitioning"

On the seventh day of April in the 22nd year of Qianlong's reign (1757), the emperor drove to Jiantouji at the junction of Jiangsu and Shandong.Having just finished his second trip to the south and returning north, Qianlong was in a good mood sitting in the big sedan chair with the curtains opened.Early spring is often the time when his poetry flourishes. Looking at the green fields, he is brewing poems in his heart. Dajia stopped suddenly, and there was a noise in front of him. In the Sanshuigou next to the newly repaired imperial road, there are two dove-shaped people kneeling, who can be seen as two disaster victims at a glance.They held up two pieces of paper, apparently to sue the imperial court.

The emperor ordered someone to take them to the sedan chair. The two knelt in front of the emperor, trembling, speaking thick Henan dialect which was even more difficult to understand because of their nervousness.It took a lot of effort for the emperor to understand that they were from Xiayi County in the west of Henan Province, and their names were Zhang Qin and Ai Henian.They said severe floods had hit western Henan and people had been displaced.Xiayi County Magistrate Sun Mo and Henan Governor Tule Bing'a and other officials colluded to conceal the disaster.The common people couldn't survive anymore, so they took the courage to sue the imperial court.

Qianlong frowned.Why is it Xia Yi again? Regarding the flood in Xiayi County, Henan Province, the emperor already knew a thing or two before the two victims of the disaster filed a petition.When he visited Shandong this time, the former Jiangsu chief envoy and retired official Peng Jiaping greeted him in Shandong, and he had already reported it to him. Peng Jiaping himself is from Xiayi, Henan. He said that the western part of Henan has suffered disasters for many years, and this year is especially serious. The people are starving for food, but the local officials are indifferent.Therefore, Tule Bing'a, governor of Henan Province, was innocent.

Qianlong didn't really believe Peng Jiaping's report.Because first, Tule Bing'a has always been appreciated by Qianlong because of his shrewdness and obedience.Second, according to the imperial court guidelines, retired officials at home should keep themselves safe and not rely on their high-ranking officials to interfere with local public affairs.Peng Jiaping's actions are suspected of violating this provision.Third, the emperor has always hated Peng Jiaping.What Qianlong hated the most was that officials formed gangs to form cliques, but Peng Jiaping liked to do this very much.During the Yongzheng period, he had a disgraceful history of relying on Yongzheng's favorite Li Wei and attacking Li Wei's political opponent Ertai, so Qianlong had a bad impression of him.Qianlong later said: "Furthermore, Peng Jiaping is a lackey of Li Wei's family. He has a vicious temperament and has the most clear grievances. In the past, whenever the performance was correct, Yu Ertai and E Rong'an all tried their best to slander him. Therefore, I deeply despised him as a person." ("Donghua Records of the Qianlong Dynasty")

The emperor's first reaction was to stare at Peng Jiaping deeply for a while with suspicious eyes.He first judged that this was a conflict between Tule Bing'a and Peng Jiaping, and Peng took the opportunity to exaggerate and fall.As the emperor, Qianlong reminded himself every minute not to fall into the trap set by the officials and become a tool for their struggle. Peng Jiaping's expression was calm, as if he had a deep understanding in his heart.So we must first find out the truth of the matter, and then deal with it.Therefore, he ordered Tule Bing'a, who came to Shandong to greet him, and Peng Jiaping to investigate the disaster situation on the spot, and then report to him together.

At the same time, the emperor took a very secret measure.He sent one of his attendants, the shrewd and capable Yuanwailang Guanyinbao, disguised as a businessman, to go deep into Xiayi, Henan, to investigate the disaster situation on the spot. This measure typically reflected the emperor's administrative style. On the third day after Avalokitesvara set off, the scene of the imperial petition mentioned at the beginning happened. Although "love the people like sons", Qianlong did not encourage his people to sue imperial court. Emperor Qianlong and Ming Taizu Zhu Yuanzhang were very similar in being lenient to the people and strict to officials.However, their political ideas are significantly different.

Because of his poor background, Zhu Yuanzhang has a strong populist tendency.During the Hongwu period, some highly popular officials were dismissed for crimes, but the local people stayed in the way.After Zhu Yuanzhang found out, not only did he not blame the people, but he judged that the official must be a good official, and he was not only released, but even promoted. Not only that, Zhu Yuanzhang directly used the political enthusiasm of the people at the bottom to monitor officials.He said that if a good official is framed by others, the truth cannot be made public, and he would allow "virtuous old people in the city and villages to go to Beijing to make a performance in order to preserve their safety."

Qianlong did not appreciate Zhu Yuanzhang's political romanticism.He believes that the words of the little people are not all credible, and the wisdom of the little people cannot be relied on.If the praise of the people will promote the promotion of officials, isn't it easy for Chinese officials to fake public opinion?If ordinary people can come to Beijing to sue officials at will, then wouldn't these foolish people easily become tools of officialdom struggle?So he said: "Small faults are not enough to be arrested, but since they are officials, they should be excused from the court. If the tribesmen are begging to stay in the customs, they will be dispatched suddenly, and it is the transfer of gangsters who have dethroned the handle. Fuck it, what kind of political system is formed? The Ming ancestors rewarded and promoted them all here, which is tantamount to leading them to commit adultery. If the cunning officials and the people see the meaning, the traffic is confused, what is the source of the abuse? Isn't the country's law, officials and government all bad because of it? "("Imperial Criticism of Past Dynasties Tongjian Collection")

As an emperor who tried to control everything with power, what Qianlong loved most was order and stability, and what he feared the most was the spontaneity of the people, but sometimes he took the initiative to go deep into the masses.For example, during this southern tour, when he saw people in ragged clothes, he would call them to his car, ask them why they were poor, and order them to be rewarded.But he can ask from the top down, but the bottom-up people take the initiative to expose the mistakes of the magistrates to him, which makes him very unhappy.The operation of national politics must be based on strict political discipline. If the people have grievances, they should petition at all levels according to the regulations, and should not go directly to the emperor. "Even if the local officials and government affairs have not compromised, and the governor, Sidao, and Zhao Busenlie, they should report the facts and listen to the trial quietly, how can they have nothing to accuse?"

He has always had a strange feeling about these people who complained.Maybe what they said was the truth, but what was revealed in their eyes was all stubbornness and rebellion.Dare to challenge their parents and officials, dare to look into the eyes of the emperor, it can be seen that they are not the people who keep their own laws.These are the people who will take the risk if the world is in trouble.Encouraging them is undoubtedly planting instability in national politics.Therefore, some emperors in history liked to engage in "political shows" in which the imperial court judged cases and defended the people, but Qianlong never did this.

The appearance of these two victims made him believe that Peng Jiaping's words had some basis, and it was impossible for ordinary people to openly lie in front of the emperor.But throughout the ages, the principle of handling petitions has not changed.With one approval, he handed over the two men to Tule Bing'a, governor of Henan Province, and ordered him to try them seriously. Just two days after the first incident of impeachment, on the ninth day of April, the emperor and his party walked to Zouxian County, Shandong, and suddenly another person who sued the impeachment appeared on the side of the road, also dressed in rags, with the same accent from Western Henan .After questioning, it turned out that another person from Xiayi, Henan, named Liu Yuande, also came to complain about his parents' government-run relief. Emperor Qianlong's face suddenly became very stern. Two successive complaints from Xiayi people touched his sensitive nerves.Considering that Peng Jiaping is also from Xiayi, is this just a coincidence?In Qianlong's political career, he has never encountered two consecutive incidents of the same purpose.The emperor, who was accustomed to crisis thinking and conspiracy thinking, immediately judged that this was probably an organized and premeditated political activity.In other words, it is very likely that the retired official Peng Jiaping is planning behind the scenes to let these ordinary people continue to come forward and take advantage of the drought to bring down Xiayi County Magistrate Sun Mo and Henan Governor Tule Bing'a that they dislike. If so, then the nature of the matter has changed.It turned from a plaintiff's lawsuit against the impeachment to a political conspiracy in which the local gentry used and colluded with the common people in an attempt to overthrow the court officials.If this is the case, it is an extremely ominous new sign in the political life of the empire. This is a typical example of the subordinates committing crimes against the superiors and subverting the political order of the empire.If left unchecked, it will inevitably become a political disease. The emperor, who has always paid attention to preventing the incipient development, decided to eradicate this symptom firmly. The emperor ordered someone to lock up Liu Yuande and interrogate him carefully.He was determined to dig out the Peng Jiaping, whom he never liked, from the back of this case, and it would be best to turn it into a prison that shook the world and kill everyone, because the Qing Dynasty especially needs a strong warning at this moment. While admiring his achievements in prosperity, the emperor also clearly sensed that the Qing Dynasty was in danger. The main reason for the instability of the Qing Dynasty was population pressure. Population growth would have been the strongest evidence of Qianlong's prosperity.But unlike other prosperous times in history, Qianlong's prosperous period was a poor one.In the heyday of Kaiyuan in the Tang Dynasty, "the rice was fat and the corn was white, and the public and private warehouses were full of fruit."And it is said that during the reign of Wen Jing, the common people in China were also very wealthy. Every household rode horses, and all of them rode stallions. Anyone who rode a female or a pony would be laughed at by everyone. "Historical Records Ping Zhun Shu" contains: Up to now (referring to Emperor Wudi of the Han Dynasty) he has been on the throne for more than 70 years. During the more than 70 years of Han Xing, the country was fine, except for floods and droughts, and the people provided enough for their families. ) Yu (open-air barn) is full, and the government treasury has more money.The money of the capital is huge, and the string that runs through the money is decayed and irreversible.The millet of Taicang (a large warehouse in the capital) Chen Chen Xiangyin was full of dew and accumulated outside, until it became rotten and inedible.There are horses in the streets and alleys of the common people, and there are groups among the rice paddies, and those who ride (male horse) are bestowed (repelled) and cannot gather (at that time, everyone rides a male horse, and if there are female horses mixed in, they kick each other Bite, so he was repelled from the outside and did not walk with him). There is absolutely no similar record in the prosperous period of Qianlong. "Xingguo County Chronicle" records that during the Qianlong period, many farmers in Shaanxi "sell food and buy clothes every year. Because of the cost of clothing, food has been halved. There are many people who are more difficult than food, but those who are short of clothes. A lot".Hong Liangji also said that in the later years of Qianlong and Jiaqing, peasants "worked hard all their lives, and lived their lives like emperors, but those who were self-satisfied were worried about ravines, and those who were unworthy were in danger of being robbed all their lives." Why?The reason is actually very simple.Although the total grain output during the Qianlong period was the highest in history, the per capita output was still at a historically backward level. The main purpose of traditional agricultural production is not to improve living standards, but to raise as many people as possible. Even if the increase in population is at the cost of lower living standards, the Chinese are willing to do so.The population growth rate in traditional Chinese society was often higher than the increase rate of grain production level, and this feature was more obvious during the Qianlong period. It was this population miracle that caused the embarrassment of the Qianlong Dynasty.On the one hand, a prosperous population has always been the most powerful proof of governance achievements and national strength. On the other hand, population growth has also brought about various problems.Although the total grain output in the Qing Dynasty was the highest in history, the per capita was the lowest.According to Wu Bin's article "On China's Ancient Grain Security Issues and Its Influencing Factors", the per capita grain consumption in the Qin and Han Dynasties was 985 catties, 988 catties in the Sui and Tang Dynasties, 1457 catties in the Song Dynasty, 1192 catties in the Ming Dynasty, and only 780 catties in the Qianlong period. catty. Population pressure has led to an unprecedented struggle for survival. Due to population growth, the contradiction between more people and less land has become more and more prominent.Landlords kept raising their asking prices and increasing land rents, which became more and more unbearable for the poor.There is a case record that in the early years of Qianlong, a piece of land in Luzhou, Sichuan, was paid to the landlord for rent of 8 shi and 5 dou every year.After only four years, the landlord raised the rent to 24 shi.Another case shows that a piece of land in Huanggang, Hubei, originally charged 3 shi for rent, but after two years, the rent rose to 6 shi.Land rent soared so sharply that those tenants living at the bottom of society could not bear it and had to rise up to fight. In the sixth year of Qianlong (1741), Chongming, Jiangsu and other places reduced production due to wind disasters. Tenant Lao Shi Er took the lead in not paying the landlord's land rent, and organized the surrounding tenants to expel the landlord who came to collect the rent.With the help of Baozheng, the landlord arrested several tenants who did the tricks and locked them in private prisons. Lao Shier organized the people to "burn down the owner's apartment and Baozheng's house wantonly" to rescue the arrested people. Soon, Jingjiang County also demanded rent reduction and rent resistance.In August of the sixth year of Qianlong, Sha Jiucheng, a poor man in Jingjiang County, and others "gathered together a large number of people, entered into private contracts, and issued orders to stop the market in an attempt to coerce officials into reporting disasters, exempting food and relying on rent." In addition to rent resistance, tax resistance struggles are also becoming more common.Due to the general impoverishment of farmers, more and more people cannot afford land.In the twelfth year of Qianlong (1747), farmers in Luoshan County, Henan collectively resisted the tax. When the money and food are finished, the guards are not allowed to chase after the old debts."In the thirty-second year of Qianlong (1767), a large-scale anti-tax struggle also occurred in Jiangyin County, Jiangsu Province. A bunch of commissioners abandoned the court, and the mountains piled up in an instant. The thieves frightened them with big words, almost to a catastrophic change." Although economically generous to farmers, especially the poor, in terms of political rights, Qianlong was the most stingy and harsh emperor in history.He tried his best to protect the farmers' right to subsistence and food and clothing, but never allowed farmers to have the right to political expression. Because what the ruler loves most is stability, and the core means of maintaining stability is to maintain the norms.Once the rules are disordered, the ruler is bound to be threatened. Therefore, Qianlong had two contrasting faces for the common people: For "good people" who keep their own law and order, he "treats them like children". As for the "unscrupulous people" who do not keep their duty, he regards them as enemies and wants to get rid of them quickly. It should be said that the ups and downs of popular struggles were an inevitable manifestation of the economic and social development of the Qing Dynasty.The expansion of economic aggregate and the change of economic structure will inevitably lead to increasing economic conflicts and economic disputes.At the same time as the economy develops, the people's political awareness and awareness of rights are also simultaneously awakened, and some spontaneous rights protection organizations have emerged in society. This is a normal social phenomenon, and it is also a rare opportunity for the development of political civilization. During the Qianlong period, in the economic conflict between landlords and tenants, tenants showed more and more organization.They connected with each other on the basis of common interests, reunited by means of acting, competitions, bloodshed, and alliances, and fought against the landlords in an organized way.In some places, organizations such as the Iron Ruler Association, the Oolong Association, and the Changguan Association have emerged.In the eighteenth year of Qianlong (1753), Du Zhengqi, a tenant farmer in Shaowu, Fujian Province, etc. "knotted dozens of scoundrels, and repeatedly made troubles with the landlord. An iron ruler, an iron ruler will."In some places, guild halls were set up to elect tenant chiefs and even organize armed forces to openly confront the landlords.The self-organization of Chinese civil society has reached a new stage. Faced with this situation, Qianlong's first reaction was fear. In Qianlong's view, "the trickle will not stop, it will become a river, if the sprout is not cut, it will find the axe".During the Qianlong era, all mass gatherings were regarded as hostile incidents.In order to prevent the erroneous progress, he must "capture the head of the evil to warn the remaining evil" at the "beginning of the turmoil of the crowd".Qianlong stipulated that it is strictly forbidden to form alliances among the people, strike the market, and gather crowds to assault officials. If there are forty or fifty people, then "regardless of the leader and follower, the law will be enforced." In the sixth year of Qianlong (1741), more than 2,000 workers in the Baoquan Bureau of the Ministry of Finance, which is equivalent to today's banknote printing factory of the Ministry of Finance, stopped the furnace and went on strike because they opposed the foreman's deduction of wages.The infantry commanded the yamen to send troops to repress them, and the workers "went up to the mounds in the factory, throwing bricks and tiles and shouting", and the officers and soldiers shot shotguns at the unarmed craftsmen.Afterwards, Emperor Qianlong also felt that the officers and soldiers were not effective in suppressing them because they did not kill a few people. Zhu criticized: "It is very cowardly to deal with it! Such troublesome people, even if they are shot one or two times." Shu Hede and other people who are in charge of the visit must be severely punished, and the rest will be policed." He has severely cracked down on the anti-tax and rent resistance behaviors spontaneously organized by the "troublemakers", and he will never be soft-hearted. After news of Lao Shi’s second anti-tax incident in Chongming, Jiangsu Province was reported, Emperor Qianlong commented: “Such savagery should not grow long, and we must get a report of the real criminal.” , put in prison and wait for execution after autumn." In the thirteenth year of Qianlong (1748), Suzhou rice merchants hoarded grain and raised prices. Gu Yaonian, a commoner, peacefully went to the government to petition, asking officials to control grain prices to ensure that the poor could survive.In order to show his respect to the Qing government, he deliberately "bound his arms" and knelt down in front of the magistrate.However, the government, adhering to the principle of Qianlong not to retreat an inch from the people who took the initiative to claim their rights, even arrested Gu Yaonian and put him in prison.The people of Suzhou were so angry that they came to the government to demand the release of Gu, but the government severely suppressed and arrested 39 people in a row.The matter was reported to Qianlong, and the word "gathering people" in the memorial made Qianlong very vigilant.He said, "Because there have been many cases of gathering crowds recently, the Ministry of Penalties has made a decision to immediately execute the law according to the example of Shaanxi, Gansu and Gansu people gathering crowds."Therefore, Gu Yaonian and others were executed by Suzhou officials on the lobby. Against such a background, many incidents in which disaster victims in Xiayi County, Henan Province sued their bosses became extremely important political events in Qianlong's eyes. Sure enough, as the emperor expected, under severe torture, Liu Yuande, a victim of the disaster, confessed that he came to sue the imperial court. The toll was not paid by himself, and he could not afford it. .These two people encouraged him to bring down the county magistrate, saying that this would be a great thing for the benefit of the whole county. Qianlong was not satisfied with the result of this trial because Peng Jiaping was not dug out.The emperor intuitively felt that Peng Jiaping had something to do with this matter, and only by involving Peng Jiaping, could this case become bigger and create a shocking effect across the country. Just after the emperor issued the order to continue the trial of Liu Yuande and arrest Duan Changxu and Liu Dongzhen at the same time, Guanyinbao, who had made an unannounced visit to Henan, returned. Guanyinbao is one of the emperor's most trusted confidantes.He was loyal, quick, and thorough in his work.Hearing his return, the emperor hurriedly summoned him. After a few days of seeing each other, Guanyinbao's appearance changed drastically.The new lake silk long gown that he put on when he went out in micro-clothes was already covered with a layer of dust, and his face was much thinner than when he was out. He rushed forward, greeted him, and replied: "Your Majesty, the disaster in Xiayi is not an ordinary flood, but a catastrophe that has never happened in a hundred years!" Guanyinbao reported that it has been two years since Xiayi and the nearby Yongcheng County were hit by disasters. Due to the unregistered years and the stagnant water, it is still impossible to plant seeds this year. urban and rural.Due to years of severe disasters, the situation of the poor is unsightly.There are beggars everywhere in the county town, but starvation is everywhere in the countryside.The price of goods in the whole county is extremely high, only the price of people is extremely low, and the streets are full of people who sell their sons and daughters.In order to prove his findings, he also deliberately bought two children in the disaster area. "Oh? How much did it cost?" the emperor asked. "Four hundred and eighty characters." The four hundred and eighty wen at that time was equivalent to ninety-six yuan now, about the price of a roast duck. "What? Two children added together?" "Yes." Guanyinbao said, took out a piece of paper from his body, and presented it to Qianlong.Qianlong took it over and saw that it was a deed of sale with a clear price. The emperor was silent for a long time, and waved his hand: "You go out first." Guanyinbao retreated silently, turned around, and exited the hall. The emperor was embarrassed.It seems that the magistrate is indeed guilty.He originally thought that what Xia Yi suffered was an ordinary disaster, but he didn't expect it to be so serious.Tule Bing'a and Sun Mo have deceived the emperor and disregarded the lives of the people to such an extent, it is really outrageous.It must be dealt with seriously, so that the people will be angry and the officials will be suppressed. However, if the titles of governor and county magistrate are taken off because the common people sue the imperial court, it will inevitably set an extremely bad precedent in the Qing Empire.This legendary event of "civilians overthrowing the governor" is bound to become explosive news and quickly spread throughout the country.Originally, the current political situation of the Qing Empire was unstable, and struggles against taxes and rents occurred one after another in various places.If this matter spreads again, it will be like adding fuel to the fire. Wouldn't it greatly encourage the spontaneous struggle of the people? After careful consideration, the emperor made this decision: First, deal with local officials seriously.Tule Bing'a was dismissed and sent to Uliasutai to serve as an army.The county magistrates of Xiayi County and Yongcheng County were also dismissed, pending further interrogation, in order to warn other disaster officials. Second, Peng Jiaping was ordered to go home immediately, and he will not be allowed to interfere with official affairs as a gentry.Liu Yuande, Duan Changxu, and Liu Dongzhen were handed over to the governor of Shandong for interrogation, and they must find out whether there are other envoys behind them. It seems that each hit fifty boards. The emperor also issued a meaningful decree to the people in Henan: And tell all the common people, so that they know that I love and love Li Yuan, the meaning of one body, each of them should be safe, and wait for the relief.When the governor and the magistrate were dismissed, I sent people to visit closely. For the sake of rectifying the officials, I didn't complain at first because of Peng Jiaping's melody, nor because of one or two troublesome people.If this increases the risk of abusive behavior, coercing officials, and interfering with relief services, it will be self-inflicted crimes, and it will not be able to bear the kindness of the state. ("Records of Emperor Gaozong of the Qing Dynasty") It means that the handling of this case was because I had insight into everything and found out on my own initiative, not because of Peng Jiaping's report, nor because of the "one or two unscrupulous people" filing a lawsuit.If anyone in the future follows the example of these "troublemakers" and offends others, he will be severely punished by the state. This edict reflects the emperor's dilemma in the face of enthusiasm for civil political participation. Facing the turbulent public sentiment, Qianlong went all out to build high dams and restrain them in the "Gangji" river course. So, if the people at the bottom are wronged, can they just wait to die? Qianlong believed that under such circumstances, the masses have the right to petition.However, it must be within the national policy and must be carried out level by level. It is not allowed to "leave the petition", let alone adopt dangerous methods such as "gathering" and "making troubles".The emperor's theory was, "If the common people in this place, if they can't afford to be wronged, they should go to the superior's yamen to sue, but if they dare to gather a crowd to go to the office and fight one after another, this trend will not last long." "Should go to the superior's Yamen to sue", this is the only way for ordinary people to deal with corrupt officials prescribed by the emperor.That is, you have to take the grievance to the system and find a solution. The problem is that the grievance mechanism in the traditional social system is often ineffective.The most common way to deal with the petitions of ordinary people at the bottom is to be sent back to the grassroots for processing by the superiors.What if "going to the superior's yamen to file a complaint" is rejected and sent back to the county lockup system? In September of the 29th year of Qianlong (1764), Liu Zhouyou, a citizen of Xinning County, Hunan Province, went to the magistrate to sue the magistrate of Xinning County for personal fraud.The county magistrate of Xinning took advantage of his power to take personal revenge and imprisoned Liu Zhouyou.The county people couldn't bear it, and they went on strike to protest, and the matter was reported to the emperor. In this case, the emperor issued the following instruction: Although the case of resisting officials involves a department, it should be intervened and dealt with, and the correctors must be punished first.As for the officials who deserve to be punished, they should not only seek to punish them, but we must prevent the culprits from committing crimes because of this. That is to say, for cases where the common people resist the government, even if the common people are justified, they must be severely punished.And the treatment of officials should not be too heavy.Because if the officials are severely punished, the common people will definitely be encouraged, and they will intensify in the future, which will further encourage the "evil tendencies" of "resisting from below to above".In Qianlong's own words, "if the people make trouble and go to the county magistrate, it will make the wind worse." This logic of Qianlong also received another clear explanation when dealing with the Xiayi County incident.In another edict to Xiayi people, Qianlong warned the people like this: The prefectures and counties are the parents of the people. If the people criticize their parents, how can I listen to one-sided words and open up the trend of coercion.For example, although a grandfather loves his grandson, he will not let him rely on his kindness to rebel against his parents. Officials are the parents of the people, so the emperor is naturally the grandfather of the people.Of course, the grandfather loves his grandson, but when the grandson is against his parents, what would a wise grandfather do?Obviously, he would never encourage his grandson to rebel against his parents.Because, if you rebelled against your parents today, you will rebel against your grandfather tomorrow.Isn't this obvious? Therefore, as a grandson, even if he is wronged by his parents, he can only bear with injustice, and wait for his grandfather to discover his parents' mistakes and punish them one day, instead of taking the initiative to go to his grandfather and complain about his parents.If you take the initiative to report, it means that the grandson does not observe filial piety and cannot "hidden the son for the father".Originally, the grandfather wanted to reprimand his parents, but when he heard the grandson's public report, he would suppress it first, so as not to make the grandson look bad. At the same time, he had to hand over his grandson to his son and let him handle it properly.He knew that his son knew how to deal with his grandson so that he would remember not to make trouble again next time. Sure enough, as Qianlong expected, his "son" was not good at disaster relief, but he was extremely politically talented in dealing with the "grandson" rebellion. Qianlong ordered Liu Yuande, Duan Changxu, and Liu Dongzhen to be handed over to the governor of Shandong for trial.The governor of Shandong immediately sent a letter to the magistrate of Xiayi, that is, the Sun Mo who was repeatedly accused by the people of Xiayi, ordering him to immediately arrest Duan Changxu, a scholar, and Liu Dongzhen, a martial artist, and escort them to Shandong. The dismissal order has not yet been handed down from the province, but Sun Mo already knows that his black hair will be lost soon, so he knows very well how to handle this case.Instead of sending yamen servants to arrest people as usual, he personally led his troops to the scholar Duan Changxu's home and ordered a thorough search of Duan's home, especially for books and articles. He knew that the emperor was particularly interested in the prison of words.These scholars have long-standing habits that are hard to change. They will definitely write some diary articles and the like, and these articles will have one or two sentences of complaints and hope if they are not neat.If one or two lines of evidence of them cursing the government are found, the case will be upgraded to a political case, and he will probably get away with it, or at least his crime will be reduced. Sure enough, the yamen servants found a few pages of documents in Duan Changxu's bedroom, which turned out to be copies of Wu Sangui's call to arms when he rebelled against the Qing Dynasty.This call to arms was widely circulated eighty years ago.Eighty years later, Duan Changxu still retains it. Isn't this a great rebellion? Sun Mo felt like he had found a treasure, so he flew a horse and reported this "result" to Tule Bing'a.Tule Bing'a added more fuel and vinegar, and reported it to the emperor with an urgent document of eight hundred miles. Qianlong attached great importance to this.On the one hand, he regards any signs of political anti-Qing as a major enemy. On the other hand, he feels very inappropriate after each slapped 50 on the Xiayi incident two days ago.Because the secret reports from all over the country have been circulated, saying that although the emperors each hit 50 big boards, the news that "the common people overthrew the governor" still seemed to have grown wings, and it immediately spread throughout the provinces of the Qing Dynasty. Those who dared to sue the imperial court The civilians in the country have become heroes in the hearts of the people of the country.People in many places heard the news and were going to Beijing to sue. The emperor then decisively took the following measures: First, Sun Mo, the magistrate of Xiayi County, and Tule Bing'an were able to solve such a major anti-Qing case, and "are still capable of doing things."The merits of solving major anti-Qing political cases are not the same as those of minor misdemeanors such as tabooing disasters. Second, Fang Guancheng, the governor of Zhili, was ordered to go to Henan to thoroughly investigate this major case with Tule Bing'a, especially to find out where this call for action was copied from, and whether there were other organizations or reasons behind it. The emperor also inexplicably emphasized this sentence in the edict: "Order Fang Guancheng and Tule Bing'a to go to Peng Jiaping's house to search the house to check whether the Peng family also has this false call." And immediately ordered Peng Jiaping to go to Beijing to wait for the emperor Inquire in person. Obviously, the emperor must implicate Peng Jiaping, a retired second-rank official, in the case before he can give up. On April 26, the emperor returned to the Old Summer Palace, ending his turbulent southern tour.He summoned Peng Jiaping.Under strict scrutiny, Peng Jiaping confessed that there were indeed several unofficial histories of the late Ming Dynasty in his home, such as "Luhe Jiwen", "Japanese Begging Teachers", "Yubian Jilue", "Zhuzhongzhi", "Nanqianlu" and so on. several. However, the results of Fang Guancheng and Tulebing'a's copying of the family's home were quite different from Peng's account. It turned out that Peng Chuanhu, the son of Peng Jiaping, had already burned all the "forbidden books" in the family after hearing the letter from the family. But Fang Guancheng also had results.He said that after interrogation, Liu Yuande confessed that his imperial certificate had been shown to Peng Jiaping's nephew Peng Xing, which proved from the side that Peng Jiaping was indeed related to the imperial certificate incident, and the emperor's judgment was correct. The emperor was basically satisfied with the result, and he knew that the conditions for a major case were basically met. After discussions, the ministers believed that the nature of this case was serious and must be dealt with seriously. "The local scholars and people in Xiayi County, Henan Province, are accustomed to tyranny, and they are capable of litigating. Called by oneself", so Duan Changxu should be executed Lingchi according to the crime of treason.Because Duan Changxu had no children, he could only send his wife Si and concubine Chen to the family of heroes as slaves. After all, the emperor was merciful, and announced that he would "leniency" the Duan family, and his wife would be exempted from entering the government. Regarding Peng Jiaping, the emperor used his private collection of rebellious books to "give him a lenient order to commit suicide."Peng Chuanhu, the son of the Peng family, beheaded the prison guard and executed after autumn.Confiscate houses, clothes, utensils, etc. in the family property and enter the official.According to the report of the Henan chief envoy, Peng Jiaping's family property included more than 190 pieces of antiques and jade, more than 700 pieces of silk, satin, felt and brown clothes, and more than 80 calligraphy and painting scrolls, all of which were sent to Beijing. "As for the deposit of more than one thousand taels of silver in the box, it is very difficult to trust. Fan Xiang, the family member of the Iraqi steward, and others have been called to investigate one by one. Although it is confirmed that this number is confirmed, but whether there is any hidden deposit or not, the prefecture and county are still ordered. Further confirmation and strict investigation." As for the thousands of acres of land owned by the Peng family, the emperor's handling method was very strange: Since you are willing to stand up for the poor, then distribute your land to the "poor people in the area" and fulfill your good wish for you! In this way, the emperor expressed his attitude towards retired officials and local scholars who were restless and defended themselves, and stood up for the people.He believes that such a result is enough to eliminate the adverse effects of the incident of "people overthrowing the governor". The emperor also specially ordered local officials to go deep into the people to understand the people's reaction to this handling.According to the Henan chief envoy's report, after hearing that Peng Jiaping's fields were rewarded to the poor, the common people agreed that Peng Jiaping's death deserved more than guilt, and the emperor was absolutely right. "Kneel to listen to the preaching, kowtow enthusiastically, and the joyous voices move the ground, calling this great benevolence unprecedented in the ages, the sky is high and the earth is thick, unparalleled, but I wish Guozuo billions of years, and I pray for it to be played on behalf of me. Waiting for words." Zhili governor Fang Guancheng and others reported that after the case was resolved, the common people admired the emperor's sageness and gratitude for the emperor's great kindness. They hated Peng Jiaping and others very much. "Leapfrog petition". "According to the people of the people, since our grandfather, we have enjoyed the blessings of the pilgrimage to peace and the grace of raising our elders. We have lived and worked in peace and contentment for more than a hundred years. Respectful to the emperor who loves the people like his own son, he will show mercy to all the sufferings of the people. I Even though you are ignorant, you are also conscious. If you don’t know how to respect the emperor, how can you live in this world? It’s really unexpected that there are Duan Changxu, Si Shi, and Chen Shi who are so rebellious and scum. Now I have received the decree. How can we wait for the small people in the wild to repay the emperor's kindness? From now on, we can only wash our hearts and minds, and encourage each other to be kind. Fang Guancheng said: "The ministers and others saw the sincerity of his love words, and the old people kowtowed and sobbed. The disaster was sincere and there was no pretense." Seeing this, a smile appeared on the corner of Qianlong's mouth. After showing his martial hand forcefully, the emperor used his other hand.He ordered that all agricultural taxes owed by Xiayi County and other four counties in western Henan over the years be exempted, and all taxes this year will also be exempted.The emperor also sent capable personnel to go deep into the west of Henan to investigate the reasons for the severe disasters here for many years, and planned to cure them by building water conservancy and other methods. At the same time, Tule Bing'a was transferred to Beijing immediately, and he was dismissed as governor in a dignified manner.The county magistrates of Xiayi and Yongcheng were still dismissed and questioned, as a warning to other officials.