Chapter 93 Section 4: Cruelty to Civil Officials and Gentleness to Generals

Zhu Yuanzhang has always been known for his strict discipline in leading troops in administration.After the founding of the People's Republic of China, his style was further developed.The officials concealed the official documents and did not report such details, and the "Da Gao" actually stipulated that all delays should be made.After the founding of the country, he carried out several large-scale centralized purges of civil servants, such as "recording (screening) the case of officials in the world" in the fourth year of Hongwu, the "empty seal case" in the eighth year, the "Guo Huan case" in the eighteenth year, and the "Guo Huan case" in the tenth year. In the nine years of "arresting officials who have been harming the people for many years", and in the twenty years of "crime and false speech", the momentum is extremely large.

The empty seal case occurred in the eighth year of Hongwu (AD 1375).According to Zhu Yuanzhang's regulations, the local government must report the local financial accounts to the Ministry of Households every year. The number must completely match the figures held by the Ministry of Households before it can be passed. If there is any error, the entire accounts will be completely rewritten.The provinces are six or seven thousand miles away from the capital, and three or four thousand miles closer. In order to reduce trouble, officials from all over the country bring blank form books that have been stamped with big seals, in case the account books are rejected and rewritten on the spot in the capital.

Of course, this situation is considered illegal, but in fact it is not harmful.Because the local government seals on the account books are all seam seals, that is, there is only half a seal on each page. This kind of blank paper cannot be used to forge other official documents.Officials from all over the country do this every year, and it has become a habit. Unexpectedly, this customary practice would bring catastrophe to officials all over the world.One day in the eighth year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang discovered this situation by accident.He thought it was because officials all over the world despised his regulations, and they were furious, so a big prison was set up for a small incident, and all officials related to this matter in the provinces lost their heads from the Minister of the Ministry of Households Zhou Su down.Wu Han said in "The Biography of Zhu Yuanzhang" that the empty printing case killed tens of thousands of people.

Another shocking case is the Guo Huan case.In the eighteenth year of Hongwu (AD 1385), someone reported that Guo Huan, the right servant of the household department, and others had colluded with local officials to "invade official food", that is, secretly took the country's tax and food for themselves.Zhu Yuanzhang sent people to investigate and found that the situation was true. Guo Huan and other officials embezzled a total of seven million shi of official food.This case led to the loss of the heads of Zhao Mao, Shangshu of the Ministry of Rites, and the left and right servants of the Sixth Ministry. There were tens of thousands of officials and wealthy households implicated and killed in various provinces.

In addition to these major cases, there are also small and medium cases every year.In daily life, Zhu Yuanzhang killed civil servants, he really did whatever he wanted, and he was as happy as he was, and swayed with all his will.He was unhappy for a while, and hundreds of thousands of people might lose their heads, so Hongwu once became a hell for civil servants. However, for the heroes, Zhu Yuanzhang was unusually tolerant and gentle.His harsh and stern personality made it impossible for him to ignore the illegal behavior of the heroes, but the declaration of sharing wealth and honor with the heroes has just been released. He does not want to use these "small stories" to destroy his good image of "treating the heroes generously". So he took both hard and soft tactics.

The soft hand is education. After the initial establishment of the world, Zhu Yuanzhang realized the importance of improving the cultural literacy of the villagers. After all, each of them is already a duke and earl. His high status and great power?Therefore, as early as October of the third year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang set up study classes for the heroes. He stipulated that on the first and fifteenth day of each month, he would find scholars to give lectures to the generals in turn and tell them how to become a qualified general. How do the senior ministers abide by the etiquette of the emperor and his ministers, "how many people are loyal to the emperor and patriotism, and the way to protect the family is rising without knowing it."

At the beginning of Hongwu, Yushi Yuan Kai said: "Today's decision has been made. Those generals who are in the capital may not fully understand the etiquette of the emperor and ministers. I would like to extend the governor's mansion to those who are familiar with the classics and learn the ancients. Every time the generals look back at the early court, they will go together. All the halls listened to lectures on the classics and history. The loyalty and patriotism of the common people and the way to protect the family are rising day by day." Taizu deeply believed that, so he ordered the provincial government to invite Confucian scholars to tell the story with the generals at Fanzhi in the Meridian Gate.

In addition to giving lectures, Zhu Yuanzhang also specially organized people to write books for ministers.In the eighth year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang edited a thick book called "Zi Shi Tong Xun", which is a "Daming National Code" that all people (including monks, nuns, etc.) must abide by. The second chapter is "Chen Dao Zhang", which is divided into 17 articles such as "loyalty and filial piety, don't deceive, and don't hide", which specifically stipulates how ministers should be loyal to their duties.Zhu Yuanzhang awarded this book to each of the heroes, and ordered them to study hard, so as to compare their own behaviors, find gaps, and make corrections.

In addition to education, he also took a slightly tougher move, that is, starting from the family members of the subordinates who restrained the hero, to build a firewall between the hero and the death penalty. In the sixth year of Hongwu, Zhu Yuanzhang ordered the Ministry of Industry to cast an iron list, that is, an iron bulletin board, on which were cast provisions restricting the prince's family.In the iron list article, Zhu Yuanzhang discussed his view of heroes like this: From my perspective, in ancient times, the records of emperors and the biographies of heroes, the emperor's intention to protect and sympathize with heroes may have a beginning but never end, so that loyal and good men will not be spared from misfortune, and it is sincerely sympathetic.There is a wise lord, who treats heroes with a heart as bright as the sun and moon, and treacherous officials cannot be divorced. Therefore, the monarch and his subjects can spend their entire lives in peace, have a rock-solid security in the community, and enjoy endless wealth and honor in the home of heroes. I am very envious.There is also a wise king who is eager to preserve meritorious deeds, but domineering ministers, relying on their meritorious deeds, have committed many evils, and they are tired and unwilling to kill them.

And if the master has the virtue of tolerance and benevolence, and the ministers have the heart of loyalty and goodness, but each of them is seldom aware of each other, why not?The heroic officials and servants rely on the powerful and oppress the good, and the ministers cannot observe what they do, resulting in vertical and horizontal.It is well known that criminal officials have committed crimes in enforcing the law, but it must be worse for loyal and good ministers, especially slaves.His monarch cannot clearly understand the mind of the minister, so he will call the minister to make him.If so, appeasement is meritorious, some people explain it without asking, some people give a little warning to their servants, and they don’t know how to tell the heroes what their servants have done. Once it is not tolerated, it will be harmed, and this gentleman does not know why.

At that time, although the heroes had a loyal heart, they could not be prosecuted. If they were guilty, they would blame their king, why?It is also from slaves and servants who do wrong outside, and when they come back, they say yes. The ministers are appointed to the court, or the elders are leisurely, and they are villains, so they can hardly persuade them. The heart of love will generate suspicion and resentment, which will affect the body, and often have it.Or the emperor thought of the meritorious service and exempted him from the crime, and his slaves reported to the minister: "Your majesty cannot tolerate the public, so it is useless to ask the slaves and others." To be executed.This minister cannot examine the faults of his subordinates, so it can be said that the monarch and his ministers have lost both. That is to say, he wholeheartedly wanted to protect the heroes, so that the emperor's family could enjoy the peace of a rock, and the hero's family could enjoy endless wealth, and they became a good story for each other.But he also knows that reaching this realm is not easy. First of all, "the domineering minister, relying on his meritorious service, has committed many evils, and he is tired and excused", and the emperor finally "killed him as a last resort".Although this is "self-defeating", it is still a tragic matter after all, so he should try his best to avoid it. In another situation, the emperor has the virtue of benevolence, and the heroes have a heart of loyalty, but it is inevitable that the servants of the heroes rely on the powerful, oppress the good, and do whatever they want.Some emperors would think of the merits of the ministers and ignore the situation, which intensified and finally had to blame the ministers. Or the monarch and his subjects had no other intentions, but a villain provoked them, which caused the monarch and his subjects to become suspicious, and finally drew their swords against each other. Therefore, he "concerned about the servants of the prince's house, who have been infected with stubborn trends and offended the national code, and now declare the law with an iron list." There are nine specific contents of the Iron Bulletin: First, those who command thousands of households, hundreds of households, Zhenfu and general banners, small banners, etc. inside and outside are not allowed to privately receive gold, silk, clothes, money and things from princes.Those who are given by the princes, the first offender will be exempted from their crimes, and the third offender will be exempted from death once, and they will be ordered to conscript. Second, all officials such as princes and princes are not allowed to serve privately in the army unless they are under a special order. Those who violate it for the first time will be exempted from crimes and attachments, and they will be exempted from death once for the third offense.Those officers and soldiers who dared to have their own will obey, with a staff of one hundred, sent to Hainan to fill the army. Thirdly, those who occupy the houses of princes and princes and occupy the mountains, lakes, tea gardens, reeds, gold, silver, copper and iron smelters of the officials and the people will be exonerated for the first offense and the second offense, and the third offense will be exempted from death once. Fourth, all guards inside and outside the army are not allowed to stand and wait at the head of the prince's gate unless it is time to go out for an expedition. Fifth, all the people who are in charge of the village of the hero's family are not allowed to rely on their power to bully the people in the countryside. Those who violate it will have their faces stabbed and their noses cut off. Bai, and his wife were all sent to Nanning to serve as an army. Sixth, all the families of meritorious officials, tenants in the fields, guanzhuang, cadres, firemen, servants and their relatives, etc., who rely on their power to oppress the people and seize the land property and property, will be punished according to the law of relying on the power to bully the people. Seventh, all households of princes and marquises, except those who have already registered with the officials, except for those who have given Dingyi, Zhanhu, and Diantian households, who dare to privately entrust their servants and cover up the envoys, will be beheaded. Eighth, the families of dukes and lords, relying on power and magnates, oppressing the good and the good, using money in real contracts, and robbing people's fields, houses, and breeding livestock, will be exonerated for the first offense and given half of the living salary for the second offense, and stop their salary for the third offense , The four crimes are the same as those of the common people. Ninth, the family of a meritorious official shall not accept the land and properties donated by others. Those who violate it for the first time will be exempted from crime, and will be given half of the living salary for the second offense. Although this iron list is very strictly stipulated, it is actually quite polite. Although Zhu Yuanzhang has taken strict precautions against all kinds of illegal and criminal situations that may occur in the heroes' homes, he has always been careful not to directly touch the heroes themselves.