Chapter 3 1. The law of corruption of new officials

The first time a new official was educated by sages, the second time he was educated by subordinate officials and human universities; the first education taught officials to be full of benevolence, righteousness and morality, and the second education taught them to be full of male robbers and female prostitutes. 【The Emperor's Discovery】 Zhu Yuanzhang was the founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty. He had begged for food and fought in wars. He started from a horse and won the world in the end. He has a thorough understanding of human relationships and sophistication.Of course he understands that the salaries he sets for officials are not high, so before local officials take office, he often talks to them about how to deal with low wages correctly and how to resist the temptation of corruption and bribery.He will calculate a very real interest account for his subordinates.

Zhu Yuanzhang said that honestly guarding his salary to live is like guarding the spring at the bottom of a well.Although the well is not full, it can draw water every day, and the spring will not dry up.Is the foreign money obtained through bribery really beneficial?You plundered the people's wealth and caused a lot of grievances among the people, no matter how clever the conspiracy is, it can't be concealed.Once the incident happens, you will be locked up in prison to be tortured first, and then sent to a labor camp to serve hard labor after the sentence. Where is your stolen money at this time?Thousands of miles away.Your wife and children may have saved it, or they may not have it at all.Most of the stolen goods are hidden in the hands of outsiders.At this time, if you want to use money, can you get it?Your family has been ruined, and the stolen goods have become someone else's property.Therefore, unclean money is of no benefit①.

Such an analysis of benefits and benefits can be considered thorough, but in fact it did not play much role.The officials sent down, like soldiers charging under the hail of bullets, were hit by sugar-coated shells and fell down row by row.One after another, wave after wave, generation after generation.Later, when Zhu Yuanzhang became emperor in his eighteenth year (AD 1386), this phenomenon was seen many times, and he concluded a rule.Zhu Yuanzhang said, I follow the example of the ancients to appoint officials and send them to all parts of the country.Unexpectedly, when he was just promoted and appointed, these people were both loyal and principled, but after letting him be an official for a long time, they were all treacherous and greedy.I strictly enforce the law and never forgive lightly. As a result, very few people can start well and finish well, and many people die and their families are ruined.

Please pay attention to the sentence in the middle: I didn't expect that when he was just promoted and appointed, these people were loyal and upholding principles, but after letting him be an official for a long time, they were all treacherous and greedy.This is the new law of corruption.All this must be absolute.But in a statistical sense, the law probably does hold.After careful analysis, there is a lot of truth behind the rule Zhu Yuanzhang discovered. 【Secrets of Yamen servants】 After the implementation of the imperial examination system, bureaucrats were mostly scholars.They have read the sage books for more than ten years, and their heads are full of theoretical interpersonal relationships, such as loyalty to the emperor and the people, orderly elders and children, and trustworthiness among friends. human relationship.The sages are unwilling to talk about this kind of relationship, but the subordinate officials and government servants are very clear in their hearts. The fourth chapter of "A Dream of Red Mansions" describes in detail the story of a yamen servant teaching unspoken rules to new officials.This description is a classic.Chairman Mao Zedong regarded "Dream of Red Mansions" as the encyclopedia of that society, and took this chapter as the general outline of the whole book.So I don't avoid long-winded, paraphrase a few paragraphs.

But he said that Jia Yucun went through the back door of Jia's mansion, became the magistrate of Nanjing, and accepted a murder case as soon as he got off the horse.Xue Pan, a son of a well-known local family, beat the small proprietor Feng Yuan to death, robbed a girl, and then walked away. The victim could not sue for more than a year.When Jia Yucun heard about it, he was furious and said: How can there be such a fart!If you kill a person, you will go away in vain, and you can't get it back!As soon as he said that, he was about to issue a signature and send someone to arrest him.At this time, he saw a door next to him winking at him.

After entering the secret room at the back, Menzi and Jia Yucun had several wonderful conversations.Menzi asked: Since the master was honored to be appointed to this province, didn't he copy an official amulet from the province?Yucun hurriedly asked: What is an official protection talisman?I don't know.Menzi said: This is not bad!If you don't even know this, how can you do it in the long run!Nowadays, everyone who is a local official has a private form, on which is written the names and surnames of the most powerful, wealthy and noble gentry in this province, and it is the same in all provinces; I'm afraid I can't even save my life!As he said that, he took out a copy of the official protection talisman, and there was Xue's family on it.

Jia Yucun asked Menzi how to handle this case, and Menzi said, the Xue family and the Jia family who helped you become the magistrate are relatives, why not make a favor so that you can meet people in Jia's mansion in the future.Jia Yucun said: "You are right."But it is a matter of human life, and thanks to the emperor's grace, he was reinstated and reinstated. When he is trying his best to repay him, how can he abolish the law for personal reasons?After hearing this, Menzi sneered and said: "What the master said is not a big truth, but it's just that it can't be done in the world today."Haven't you heard that the ancients said: A man moves with each other according to the time, and he also said: A gentleman is a man who seeks good fortune and avoids evil.According to the master, not only can't serve the court, but also can't protect himself.Also think twice.

Jia Yucun lowered his head for a long time, and finally said that something was wrong, and he needed to do more research. In fact, he completely followed Menzi's suggestion and skillfully freed Xue Pan. Cao Xueqin died in 1764, about 400 years after Zhu Yuanzhang, but the world has not changed much.In the nineteenth year of Hongwu (1387), Zhu Yuanzhang once wrote: Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, none of the government officials in eastern Zhejiang, western Zhejiang, Guangdong, Guangxi, Jiangxi, and Fujian has served their term of office until the end of their term of office, and often they have not yet reached the end of their term of office assessment. time, he committed the crime of corruption.There is indeed a problem of improper appointment here, but to a greater extent, these officials were harmed by the local clerks and servants and those who did not do the four professions (the four professions of scholars, agriculture, industry and commerce), and were influenced and persuaded by them. And lure③.Therefore, when Zhu Yuanzhang talked with the officials who took office, he always warned them to be careful of those subordinates and not let them control the decision-making ④.Looking at Jia Yucun's actual experience, Zhu Yuanzhang's preventive measures are indeed the right medicine, and those subordinate officials and yamen servants are really trying to persuade officials to be bad.They calculated the stakes with the new officials, and they were also clear and thorough, but it was completely opposite to Zhu Yuanzhang's conclusion: Should we stick to principles?Not only can't serve the court, but also can't protect itself.If it is light, you will lose your official rank, or you will lose your life if you fail.You may want to think twice.

【Education of local tyrants】 When a new official takes office, he will also encounter an uninvited teacher. This is a local tyrant.Here, local tyrant is a more appropriate term than landlord and rich peasant.They may be landlords and rich peasants, or they may be businessmen, but they are definitely not honest and timid land rich people.They may not even have a serious job, and make a living by bullying the market or cheating and abducting, which is what Zhu Yuanzhang said are those who teach officials to be bad.In the descriptions of Ximenqing, Zhenguanxi, Zhujiazhuang, etc. in "Water Margin", we can all see the figures of local tyrants.These people are strong local snakes. They have worked hard in the local area for many years and have established a profit distribution structure that is beneficial to them. They are willing to drag new officials into the water and teach them to adapt to and protect this structure.

"History of Ming Dynasty" describes the encounters of two new officials who refused to learn and adapt. There is a man named Xu Jun, who was the director of Yangchun County in Guangdong during the Hongwu period. This official is similar to the current secretary general of the county government.Yangchun is a remote place, and the local tyrants are entrenched and traitorous. Whenever a new official takes office, he bribes and corrupts with generous bribes. In the end, he can always control it. The government is as if it was run by their own family.As soon as Xu Jun arrived in Yangchun, an official suggested to him that he should take the initiative to visit Mr. Mo.Mr. Mo is a local tyrant.I don't know if Xu Jun doesn't understand or doesn't like this.He asked: Isn't this guy a subject of the emperor?If he doesn't come, I will kill him.As he spoke, he showed his double swords to the official.

Elder Mo got scared after hearing the official's tip-off, so he took the initiative to pay a visit to Xu Jun.Xu Jun investigated and understood his illegal activities, and arrested him and sent him to prison.Elder Mo probably thought it was a kind of extortion method, so he gave Xu Jun two melons and several pomegranates, which were stuffed with golden pearls.Xu Jun didn't look at it at all, put torture tools on him, and escorted him directly to the mansion.Unexpectedly, the officials in the mansion were also bribed and let Mo Da Lao go home.In the face of power, Elder Mo has a good temper, and once again presented Xu Jun with those melons and fruits full of golden pearls.Xu Jun was furious again and planned to arrest him again and bring him to justice.At this critical moment, a letter from the government sent Xu Jun away to take up a post in Yangjiang County⑤. Xu Jun is really an upright official.If he accepted the melons and fruits without making a sound, would he really be sent to a labor camp as Zhu Yuanzhang said?Judging from the records in the history books, his predecessors were all bribed and corrupted, and nothing happened in the end.His boss in the mansion was also bribed and corrupted, and he made a big move to let Mr. Mo go home, but it turned out that nothing happened.What can I do if I collect a few melons and fruits?Xu Jun, who doesn't accept melons and fruits, is in trouble.It can be seen that Menzi's account calculation is very correct: not only can't serve the court, but also can't protect himself; and Zhu Yuanzhang's account calculation is obviously problematic. It was also during the Hongwu period of the Ming Dynasty that Daotong of the Mongolian nationality served as the county magistrate of Panyu County, Guangdong Province.The county magistrate is known as the parent of a county and is the highest administrative head of the local area, but there are power systems outside his jurisdiction, which are the army and the nobility. The one who sits in Panyu is Zhu Liangzu, Marquis of Yongjia.Zhu Liangzu was the founding father of the country, and he made great contributions to the conquest and killing. "History of the Ming Dynasty" said that Zhu Liangzu was brave and good at fighting but did not know how to learn, and often violated the law and discipline in his work.However, Dao Tong is a clean and honest official who enforces the law very strictly. No matter what the reason is, he will resolutely resist it. Dozens of local local tyrants often engage in plundering activities in the market, buying precious goods at low prices.If things go wrong, they will be framed in different ways.Daotong strictly enforced the law, cracked down on these city tyrants, arrested the leaders among them, and put them on the street in shackles for public display.So the fight began. These local tyrants knew that Daotong was not easy to teach, so they tried to bribe Zhu Liangzu, begging him to speak up.It should be said that it is reasonable for the local tyrants to do so.Bribes are both a necessary paycheck and an investment.With the backing of Marquis Yongjia, who would dare to mess with him in the future?If no one dares to mess with them, this market is their golden rice bowl, and they will never worry about food and clothing. Sure enough, Zhu Liangzu was seduced and taught by local tyrants.He set out a banquet and invited Dao Tong to eat.During the banquet, he ordered a few words to intercede for the local tyrant chief.Hou's status is above that of a first-rank official, and he is the superior of Daotong's superior.It should be said that to treat guests in his capacity is a compliment to Daotong, the seventh-rank sesame official.But Dao Tong just doesn't know how to flatter.He sternly said: "You are a minister, how can you be enslaved by a villain?"The Marquis of Yongjia refused to accept him.Zhu Liangzu stopped talking nonsense with him, and simply sent someone to destroy the shackles, and released the local tyrant leader who was on the street.This was not over yet, and then he made another mistake and took the same whip. There was a rich man surnamed Luo, who didn't know if he was considered a local tyrant, curry favor with Zhu Liangzu and gave him his daughter.The girl's brother had a backer and did many illegal things, just like a local tyrant.Daotong was punished according to law, and Zhu Liangzu took him away again. Daotong was really angry, so he wrote down these things about Zhu Liangzu one by one, and played Zhu Yuanzhang.The villain Zhu Liangzu complained first, and impeached him with arrogance and rudeness.Zhu Yuanzhang first saw Zhu Liangzu's memorial, so he sent an envoy to Panyu to kill Daotong.At this time, Daotong's memorial also arrived. Zhu Yuanzhang saw what was going on.He thought, Daotong, such a small official, dared to contradict the minister and sue him, this person could be used.So he sent an envoy to pardon Daotong.The two envoys arrived in Panyu on the same day, and the pardon envoy had just arrived, and Dao Tong had just had his head chopped off.Therefore, Menzi's prophecy was fulfilled again: not only the official title, but also his life may not be saved!Daotong, an upright official who disdains to accept re-education, finally paid the price with his life. Normally, this is the end of the matter.There are many princes and princes who do evil and evil, but those who abide by the law are as rare as a feather.Even if Zhu Liangzu was straightforward and took Dao Tong away without authorization, as long as he charged Dao Tong with appropriate crimes, it would not be a big deal.But when you meet Zhu Yuanzhang, the founding king, this matter can't be finished.Zhu Yuanzhang's strict administration of officials can be said to be unprecedented.Killing is only based on a momentary nature, which we have already seen in Daotong's fate.In addition, there are temper tantrums, which are violent and unforgiving.In September of the following year, Zhu Yuanzhang summoned Zhu Liangzu to Beijing, beat Zhu Liangzu and his son to death with a whip, and then personally wrote the epitaph for him and buried him with Houli.The battle between the two rules has come to an end⑥. 【Accept re-education】 I haven't calculated carefully, and I don't know the probability of being exposed and punished for corruption and perverting the law in the early Ming Dynasty.The impression I got while reading is: the closer you are to Zhu Yuanzhang, the higher the probability of being exposed and punished; the probability of being exposed and punished for small officials who are not under Zhu Yuanzhang's direct management decreases step by step.In other words, at the level of provincial and ministerial officials, Zhu Yuanzhang's calculations are more convincing.But at the county level, Menzi's calculations are more convincing.Zhu Yuanzhang's methods of punishing corrupt officials were extremely cruel, beheading, skinning, amputating limbs and gouging out knees on a large scale, creating a large number of unjust, false and wrong cases, and punishing a large number of corrupt officials.Under the bloodbath, the officialdom during the Hongwu period was the cleanest in the entire Ming Dynasty.However, even at the cleanest time, there are still a large number of senior officials who do not recognize Zhu Yuanzhang's account, such as Zhu Liangzu.I estimate that among this group of senior officials who started their careers by rebellion, the proportion of risk-loving investors must be very high, which is not easy to manage. After Zhu Yuanzhang's death, the big account manager was not so capable or caring, and his hands were not as fierce as Taizu's, so Zhu Yuanzhang's algorithm became more and more wrong.However, the new law of official corruption he discovered became more and more effective. The Ming Dynasty system stipulated that officials were not allowed to be officials in their hometowns, for fear that they would be influenced by favors and could not stick to principles.But the subordinate officials and yamen servants must be native-born locals.Not to mention the local tyrants.They are familiar with the local language and customs, have a network of relatives, friends and acquaintances, intricate and well-informed, familiar with various customs, and rely on these customs to make a living and profit.The unspoken rules that are not mentioned in the sage books are inherited and spread by these people.They are living textbooks.With their precepts and deeds and enthusiastic counseling, the study time for officials has been greatly shortened, tuition fees have been greatly reduced, and many troubles of crossing the river by feeling the stones can be saved.This is the realization process of Zhu Yuanzhang's law of degeneration of new officials. The so-called depravity is of course viewed from the standards required by the sages.If we change from the perspective of new officials adapting to society and familiarizing themselves with business, what we see is a process of re-learning and rapid progress, a process of receiving re-education.The first time was to receive education from sages, and the second time was to receive education from subordinate officials and human universities.The first education taught officials to be full of benevolence, righteousness and morality, and the second education taught them to be full of male thieves and female prostitutes. Notes: ① Zhu Yuanzhang: "Da Gao.The fifth appointment of the imperial edict. ②See Volume 2 of "A Brief History of the Ming Dynasty".The original text is: Since I came to the throne, I have appointed officials in Fagu and Brehuayi. How can I expect to be promoted and loyal to me?I understand the charter, but the criminal responsibility is unforgivable.As well as internal and external bureaucrats, it is difficult to keep their posts, and those who are good and capable are few, and there are many who kill their wealth. ③Zhu Yuanzhang: "The Continuation of the Great Edict.Songjiang Yimin Harms the Second". ④Zhu Yuanzhang: "Da Gao.The fifth appointment of the imperial edict. ⑤ See "History of the Ming Dynasty" Volume 140. ⑥See Volume 132 and Volume 140 of History of the Ming Dynasty.