Chapter 76 Section Three

Shang Yang went to Shangyu to inspect, but did not see the prince Yingsi who had returned from wandering. Since he was named Shangjun, Shang Yang received successive "Letters of Inviting Shangjun to Supervise" from Shangyu county magistrates, and presented Shangyu's people's Wanmin Letter again and again, requesting to pay fief taxes to Shangjun's mansion.Shang Yang felt very uncomfortable.He presided over the reform, and one of the most important laws was the implementation of the county system.The premise and foundation of this system of prefectures and counties is to completely abolish the aristocratic hereditary system of dividing land.It was only in consideration of the actual situation of the Qin State that a modification was made, retaining the highest form of reward, "fiefdom", but also minimizing the relationship between the lord and the fief, clearly stipulating that the lord has no right to govern the fief, and even more No power to levy taxes.In fact, it is to preserve "fiefdom" only as the highest title of a monarch's reward.Shang Yang knew this best.As the planner and implementer of the reform to strengthen the country, he won the highest title of monarch, and also won the fiefs of thirteen counties that matched the title.Shang Yang also accepted the title and fiefdom very calmly, because he knew very well that this was only the highest title of a national hero, not the actual territory.When "rewarding military exploits and farming" became the most powerful decree for the country to motivate the government and the public, if I was the first to resolutely decline the title award, who else would dare to accept the state's conferment with peace of mind?

In doing so, hypocritical morality will gradually overwhelm the strictness of the legal system, and the government and the people of Qin will be confused again.As a thorough legalist, Wei Yang hates the pedantic national policy of "rewarding meritorious deeds and granting benevolence to those who have committed crimes".He very consciously and clearly implemented heavy rewards and heavy punishments in the Qin State. He did not hesitate to reward for meritorious deeds, did not show mercy to those who committed crimes, practiced laws like a mountain, and integrated the government and the opposition.Shang Yang firmly believes that only in this way can people's courage and passion to serve the country be stimulated to the greatest extent, and the evil desire hidden in people's nature can be suppressed and destroyed to the greatest extent.This is exactly the principle of "great benevolence is not benevolent" that he repeatedly told the officials, and it is also the fundamental point of his resolute opposition to Confucian "benevolent government".During the implementation of the legal system, Shang Yang repeatedly stated to the county and county government offices that the common people were not allowed to "resign rewards"!Those who fear rewards must fear death; if they dare not accept the honor and title they deserve, they will certainly not die bravely when the country is in danger.This is Shang Yang's conclusion on those who "reward".

But this is the case, how can Shang Yang resign himself?The law does not allow it, and neither does his own character. Today, county officials and common people in Shangyu seem to have forgotten the original intention of the new law.They were grateful for the reform of the Shang monarch, thinking that the Shang monarch deserved the land, and it was only natural for the common people to pay taxes to their benefactors and heroes, and they even couldn't ask for it.This kind of "good people tide" that was about to sweep Qin State made Shang Yang feel deeply disturbed.He didn't have time to wait for Qin Xiaogong to come back, so he rushed to Shangyu with Jingnan and ten armored knights.

They did not take the road from Nanshan Fengshui to Shangyu, but crossed Lantianyuan and entered Shangyu. At that time, Shang Yang entered Shangyu Mountain from this road to investigate, and knew that this area was the most impoverished place in Shangyu.He wanted to see along the way, how much has the poor merchants changed?It was mid-autumn, and as soon as I went to Lantianyuan, I saw the verdant hills stretching to the end of the mountains with large golden bean fields and valley fields sandwiched between them.On the hillsides and valleys, dots and dots can be seen everywhere, and sometimes the long and high-pitched folk songs of farmers can be heard.Obviously, the farmer has already started harvesting.Shang Yang looked around all the way, his eyes became moist.The barren hills and ridges that were inaccessible back then have turned into a rich mountain village full of trees, beans, valleys and tea in the past 20 years.After crossing the Lantian Plateau and entering the Danshui Valley, the Yangchang Trail in those days has been greatly widened, and it has become a wide official road where two cars can be staggered.A bird's-eye view of the river valley on the official road on the mountainside, one village after another is surrounded by green trees and valley fields, the smoke is curling up from the kitchen, the cows and sheep are bleating, no need to ask, it is also a scene of living and working in a prosperous and well-off way.Bypassing Gaoguan, heading southeast, you entered the official road leading to Shangyu County.

Suddenly, a long string of ox carts drove towards him, there were more than twenty of them, and each cart was filled with bulging linen bags.Do common people pay food?It's not time yet.A business trip?How can the man who rides the horse and escorts the chariot look like a black-clothed official?Does Shang Yujun transport grain to Xianyang?The government did not order to adjust Shang Yuzhi's grain.Shang Yang felt strange, so he glanced at Jing Nan.Jing Nan understood, immediately took the lead and stopped the bullock cart.The escort in black in the middle of the convoy saw this, galloped over, and shouted loudly, "Who dares to stop an official car in broad daylight? Aren't you afraid of being punished by the new law?" Jing Nan bowed his hands to Shang Yang on the side of the road, and then gestured to the escort. do please.

The officer in charge of the chariot looked to the side of the road, rolled his saddle off his horse, and fell to the ground. "My servant, I don't know that the Lord Shang is coming. I hope you will forgive me." Shang Yang said lightly, "Get up. Let me ask you, how much is the grain truck going to do?" Where are you going? What are you going to do?" The little official clasped his hands and replied, "Go back to Lord Shang, the villain was ordered to take five thousand dendrobiums of grain and go to Heilingou, Shang County, for relief." The autumn harvest is just around the corner, so how can we talk about disaster relief?" The official quickly replied: "Returning to Lord Shang, Heilingou is not a natural disaster, but a man-made disaster. My county magistrate thinks that he has made great contributions to the reform, and he has been helping for two years." Shang Yang said coldly. Said: "How far is it from Heilingou?" The little official pointed to the mountain pass in front of him, "Going back to Lord Shang, it's less than fifteen miles, just enter the mountain pass."

Shang Yang thought for a while, "I'll go to Heilingou with you." He turned around and ordered to the guard general, "Take my token immediately, and order Shangyu County Magistrate to go to Heilingou immediately." "Obey!" The guard general galloped away. The ox caravan walked very slowly, and just after entering the mountain pass, the county magistrate Shang Yu rushed over with a few officials on flying horses.Shang Yang reined in the horse's reins and listened to Shang Yu's stammering narration with a gloomy face, he couldn't help feeling a chill in his heart.

Heilingou is one of the most famous villages in the state of Qin since the reform. Like Bai Village in Mei County, it is well known to both the government and the public.The difference is that Bai Village is a farming branch of the old nobles of the Qin State in the hinterland of Guanzhong, and is famous for its many events.Heilingou is a new Linong (slave) village in poor mountains and wild mountains. It is famous for its hard work and law-abiding and is often rewarded by the government.Ten years before the reform, there were less than 50 households in Heilingou, and six of them were awarded titles, five were dukes, and one was made knights.In the entire state of Qin, Heilingou is the village that has won the most "farming titles".Village Zheng Heijiu is the only one among the more than ten thousand villages in the Qin State who has been awarded the title of Master, so one can imagine his great reputation.When Shang Yang investigated the Qin State, Heilingou had already fled to only a dozen families.When Prince Yingsi studied here incognito, Heilangou was in a booming period.Shang Yang, as a great leader in charge of state affairs, was so excited and emotional every time Heilingou was awarded a title.In his heart, Heilingou is a living example of Qin's reforms motivating the people!

Who would have thought that such a meritorious village could turn into a hungry village within three to five years? According to the county magistrate Shangyu, the change of Heilangou started from the village of Heijiu.Hei Jiu sent his only son to the army, hoping that he would make contributions to the country and make his family shine.Who would have thought that the simple and honest Heimao fell off a cliff and died before he could go to the battlefield during the training of the new army!When the bad news came, the Heijiu couple did not cry or cry, and even resolutely resigned from the government's pension.The government and the villagers all admire Hei Jiu and his wife for their sense of reason, and the county magistrate Shang Yu gave Hei Jiu a bronze plaque of "great righteousness and high style".Unexpectedly, since then, Hei Jiu's temperament has changed drastically, and he became addicted to alcohol. He even built a brewery in the village, and often recruited a group of bachelors or young people to get drunk.Gradually, the people in Heilingou became lazy and greedy, and their farms and business affairs were abandoned.At first, the villagers and the county government were grateful for Hei Jiu's past benefits, and they all took care of him, thinking that he would definitely change his mind and cheer up.But year after year, Hei Jiu seemed to be soaked in wine, wandering around drunk all day, crying and laughing, not crazy or stupid, just not doing his job properly.After three to five years, there are more and more poor people in Heilangou, and it has returned to the old state, desolate and dilapidated.Many villagers wanted to flee to another country, and they were afraid of the crime of leaving their nationality in the new law.There is no choice but to stick to it in the village.The county magistrate of Shangyu was originally a Confucian scholar in South Korea. He was known for benevolent government and caring for the people. Shang Yang met him.

"Why didn't you report it to the government?" Shang Yang didn't show any expression. The county magistrate wiped his sweat again and again, "Returning to Shang Jun, the subordinate officials thought that the matter of a village was small, so they decided to make decisions without authorization." "Three years, how much is the official ration?" "Returning to Lord Shang, 13,000 dendrobium is worth a hundred yi in gold. Shang Yu did not use the government's military rations." "Have you ever thought that doing so violates the new law?" Shang Yang suddenly became strict.

The county magistrate was already flustered, but at this time he was even more at a loss. Qiji Ai said: "The law, no, it does not violate the laws of nature. The government's disaster relief, yes, is the benevolent government of heaven. It is similar to the law, and there seems to be accommodation." Shang Yang said coldly: "Go into the village. See your benevolent government." The escort officer and Shang Yang's guards have summoned the villagers to the threshing ground.In the past, the field was full of grain and haystacks during the autumn harvest, but now it is overgrown with weeds.The villagers huddled together in ragged clothes, all of them were yellow and thin, the men smelled of alcohol, and the women were unkempt, and there was an atmosphere of poverty and despair in the field. Shang Yang scanned the wretched crowd with sharp eyes, "Who is Black Nine? Come out!" A panting man emerged from the dark crowd. He was white-haired, bloated, and his thick nose was covered with red and conspicuous distiller's grains. He was full of alcohol and ignorant fear, and his red face was dripping with sweat. , looked abrupt and grotesque in this group of blue and yellow withered crowd.He staggered to the front, knelt down, bowed his head deeply, panting heavily, without saying a word. Shang Yang frowned in disgust, "Are you Muramasa Heijiu? Zao Shijue?" Hei Jiu still panted and nodded, without making a sound. "It was you who started the bad habit of drinking together all the year round, exhausting the villagers' millet, and wasting thousands of acres of fertile land?" Hei Jiu panted harder and harder, but just nodded frequently. "After the official relief, you became more lazy and took the whole village to eat official food?" Hei Jiu still just nodded, but beads of sweat had already dripped to the ground. Shang Yang asked coldly: "Father of the villagers, do you have an excuse for what Hei Jiu did?" With a sound of "Wow!", the crowd beat their chests and cried bitterly, their endless shame made them unable to lift their heads or speak.The county magistrate, officials, and guards of Shangyu couldn't help bowing their heads sadly.Only Hei Jiu didn't cry, and knelt there like a piece of wood. Shang Yang shouted sharply: "Don't cry! Stand up!" The villagers suddenly silenced, looked at the cold Shang Yang in horror, and lowered their heads deeply involuntarily. Shang Yang said coldly: "The decrees of the State of Qin cannot be doubled. Law enforcement does not avoid the high and the low, and will never show favor outside the law. This truth has been known to both the government and the public for twenty years. Rewarding farming and fighting and punishing laziness are the core of Qin's new law. Fundamentally. Hei Lingou village is responsible for Hei Jiu, neglecting his duties, indulging in evil desires, causing a wealthy and hard-working village to become famine and impoverished, an unforgivable crime. Come, arrest Hei Jiu, and execute the law on the spot!" The armored guard responded with a bang, and lifted the fat and bloated Hei Jiu up.The villagers opened their eyes wide in fright, and suddenly fell to their knees and cried, "My lord, forgive Muramasa and let him reform himself—" "Immediate Fa-rectification!" Shang Yang sternly shouted, without looking back. Four guards escorted Hei Jiu to the stone roller on the sidelines.Hei Jiu hissed and shouted: "Hei Jiu should die! Hei Lingou descendants, don't learn from Hei Jiu!" He put his thick head on the top of the stone roller.The guard's sword light flashed, a white head rolled down, and blood spurted out more than ten feet away! The faces of the villagers in the field were pale and they were silent, as if in a nightmare. "Hei Jiu! Wait for me—!" Suddenly, a disheveled, white-haired old woman rushed out of the crowd crying, hugged Hei Jiu's body, and slammed headfirst into the stone roller!The blood-stained old woman smiled with difficulty, her lips twitched and wanted to say something, but she couldn't, so she lay down on Hei Jiu's chest. "Sister-in-law Hei--! What a sister-in-law--!" All of a sudden, men, women and children burst into tears, knelt down and kowtowed to the old woman's corpse.Obviously, they were far less shocked and saddened by the death of the old woman than Hei Jiu's death! Shang Yang turned his back to the mournful and weeping crowd, clenching his teeth tightly.Shang Yang suddenly remembered that when he first stepped into Shang Yu's poor country, Hei Sister-in-law was a lively and innocent village girl, and Hei Jiu was a simple and honest young man. The love between the two of them is a beautiful myth in this remote village.Just when Shang Yang was about to leave the village, they got married.They are poor, but they are full of longing for a better life.Shang Yang remembered that he gave the newlyweds ten iron coins, and the lively and innocent Hei Gu sang a folk song for him, saying that he, "Mr. Passing", was their lucky star!Later, in order to secretly protect Ying Si, Shang Yang sent Jing Nan to visit Shangyu Heilingou many times, and he knew that Heijiu and his wife were already good village officials who were deeply supported by the mountain people, and they were the shining stars of the village leaders in the state of Qin. Bright star!Who would have thought that today, he personally beheaded Hei Jiu, and that virtuous, capable, bright, bright and kind Hei Sister-in-law who was kind to almost every passer-by and villager also went there.How did she know that he was that "Mr. Passing Pass" back then... Shang Yang felt pain in his heart, and tears welled up in his eyes! But Shang Yang did not soften his heart. Amidst all the crying, he suddenly turned around and said sharply, "Put Shang Yu County Magistrate under arrest!" The villagers suddenly stopped crying and looked at Shang Yang in horror, at a loss as to what to do. Shang Yang said coldly: "The county magistrate of Shangyu neglected supervision and made the people lazy; he abused the benevolent government, violated the new law, and opened the evil example of the Qin State's new policy. It is an unforgivable crime! Shangyu county magistrate, the law will be executed on the spot!" As soon as Shang Yang's stern sentence came to an end, the villagers of Heilingou fell to their knees, "My lord, the county magistrate is a good man! Please forgive him this time." Several gray-haired old men kowtowed and begged, "My lord! , the county magistrate is kind to Heilingou, let us die, I am willing to serve the sentence for the county magistrate!" Shang Yang waved his sleeves, "The law is merciless, execute the sentence immediately." The county magistrate of Shang Yu was already pale and paralyzed on the arm of the armored guard, hissing loudly, "Under the ages, why is there such an absurd law of benevolent government and punishment? Shang Jun, are you willing to be a cruel official, leaving a stink in history?! " Shang Yang sneered, "Without your pedantic and benevolent government, how could Heilingou's vicious laziness come about? As a law enforcement officer, he doesn't think about following the law, but only cares about fame and reputation. It is really an ant's nest on the legal levee. Are you all like you, wouldn’t the levee of the rule of law collapse? The country is rich and powerful, why should Shang Yang fear the name of cruel officials? Execution!” With a flash of sword light, another head fell to the ground!This is the second head of the county magistrate of Qin State.It was the first time that the villagers of Heilingou saw with their own eyes that the Hehe county magistrate was beheaded like ordinary people. His hair was all splayed, he was sweating profusely, his mouth was open but he was silent. Shang Yang ordered the black-clothed officials, "Stay in Heilangou and lead a hundred soldiers to supervise farming for one year, and you are not allowed to distribute official food relief! Before the next year's harvest, you are only allowed to urge the villagers to hunt and gather to save themselves. One year If there is a change in the future, you will be promoted to the noble with great merit. If there is no change, you will be severely punished according to the law." "I respect the order of the Lord Shang!" The black-clothed official lifted his spirits. "Brothers and sisters in Heilingou," Shang Yang said impassionedly, "From now on, you will go hunting and gathering in the mountains to save yourself and make a living like the ancestors in ancient times. When the seeds are planted, the government will distribute them to you according to the amount of land. Seeds. But there is absolutely no food relief. If you don’t want to wash away your shame, you can run away. Qin will never force bloodless cowards to stay! If the shame is washed away and the rich livelihood of Heilingou is restored, people Everyone is a meritorious minister, and everyone is promoted to the first rank. Life and death, honor and disgrace are all in your own hands. The benevolent government of the government cannot save you, only you can save yourself. I believe that the people of Heilingou are not cowards ——!” The silence in the arena was abnormal, people's panic disappeared miraculously suddenly, and pairs of bewildered eyes gradually brightened up, as if an ignorant drunk suddenly woke up after drinking a slap in the face.The ragged, disheveled, hunchbacked and wretched crowd straightened their waists, and their eyes were ignited with a flame of confidence. With a wave of Shang Yang's hand, the cattle caravan full of food rattled away from the village.As the sun goes down, men, women and children in Heilingou watch the food trucks that sustain their lives gradually go away, but they stand motionless, like warriors facing death, solemn and tragic... Suddenly, an old man shouted: "Clean up guys! Go into the mountain—!" "Clean up guys—! Enter the mountain—!" People shouted desperately, scrambling to run away. It was dark and the autumn wind was howling.The men, women, and children of Heilingou carried thick pine torches, and helped the old and young into the mountain with their shoulders and hands.Shang Yang immediately went to the entrance of the village and silently saw them off until the meandering torch disappeared into the vast mountains. Shang Yang turned around and looked at the dark village. With a wave of his hand, the horse team galloped towards the mountain road in the south.