Chapter 43 A Critical Moment
Everyone wants to be a benevolent and righteous ruler, and everyone wants to be praised by the people in his fiefdom rather than condemned.
That's right.
However, benevolence and righteousness are qualities of a person, not a means of ruling.
Facts have proved that abusing benevolence and righteousness, especially when the Liu father and son had just taken control of the chaotic fiefdom of Yinzhou, was extremely dangerous from the very beginning.
Being benevolent and righteous to a part is different from being benevolent and righteous to the entire fiefdom.
Therefore, since ancient times, wise rulers who were decisive in killing and conquering were not necessarily benevolent and righteous from the beginning. They would choose to be cruel first after conquering, and then they could ensure long-term benevolence and righteousness.
Liu Zheng suddenly remembered a sentence.
"The severe situation and the new home have made me build strong barriers and be on guard against the whole country."
of course.
Yinzhou is not yet a country, but in today's world of vassal kings, the military and political affairs are relatively independent. Therefore, the county magistrate's office is equivalent to the ruler.
Rulers must be cautious when trusting others or taking action.
so.
The realistic question of kindness and cruelty is now placed before Liu Zheng.
Because of the time travel, Liu Zheng has always had an extraordinary fondness for the peasants oppressed by the aristocratic families, so in any political decree, he deliberately suppressed the aristocratic families and supported the peasants. This is how he gained a reputation of "benevolence and righteousness" in Yinzhou.
But now it seems that he was really wrong.
Benevolence and righteousness make these peasants' hearts swell and no longer fear the county magistrate's office. In this way, the county magistrate's restraint will be like a mere formality. There will even be a more terrible, bloody reality hidden behind it. If you feed these peasants today, they will be grateful to you, but if you let them starve tomorrow, they will overthrow you. Because they will think that offending a benevolent ruler is more reckless than offending a ruler who makes them afraid .
so.
Liu Zheng suddenly realized.
In terms of single-round ruling power, making people fear is actually more useful than being kind. However, this fear cannot be too excessive, or it can turn into hatred. A qualified ruler is one who makes people fear without hating him. This is not that difficult to achieve.
This goal can be achieved as long as the rulers do not plunder or occupy the people's property and wives and daughters.
This truth can be verified in the ancient cases of Genghis Khan and Han Bani.
Both of them commanded a large army, so they didn't care about their reputation for cruelty. However, it was precisely this reputation for cruelty and ruthlessness that enabled their armies to obey orders and capture cities.
This made them both respectable and feared in the hearts of the soldiers.
simply put.
The question of being loved or feared. It can be seen that people’s love for the ruler depends on the people’s own will, but fearing the ruler depends on the ruler’s will!
Since ancient times, a wise ruler must have acted on his own will rather than being kidnapped by these people!
That’s why Zheng Yueru said that.
"The more merciful you are, the more arrogant they become!"
"Brother Liu, Brother Liu..."
Liu Zheng was lost in deep thought when Zheng Yueru's voice rang out again, startling him awake gritted his teeth and said, "Miss Zheng, please go back to the county lord's mansion and ask Qin Changfeng to bring a hundred soldiers here!"
"good!"
Zheng Yueru ran to the temple without saying a word and rode back to the county mansion on horseback.
At this time, the situation over there had made Liu Zheng furious again.
A group of big men tore the woman's clothes off and beat and kicked the landlord named Tao Cui. Many villagers watched but dared not even breathe.
Some people felt pity, some joined in the kicking, some just watched the fun, and some tried to please Captain Wu.
The dragon slayer eventually becomes the evil dragon!
Liu Zheng witnessed a very funny and sad history of the evolution of human nature today.
"Alright, let's all go! Take her back to me!"
Captain Wu looked impatient when he saw so many people.
Several lackeys responded in unison, touching and scratching the woman with evil smiles on their faces.
It will take some time for Zheng Yueru to go back and forth. Liu Zheng was anxious. If she was taken back by Captain Wu, would this woman still have a chance to survive?
He gritted his teeth and shouted, "Stop!"
Everyone looked at him and realized that he was an unfamiliar stranger.
Captain Wu looked alert and shouted, "Who are you? How dare you shout and yell in Majia Village?"
The farmers also picked up their weapons and were about to attack.
Liu Zheng suppressed his fear and walked over with a proud look on his face: "You are Captain Wu, right? I am Deacon Liu from the County Marquis' Mansion, and I am here to read out the decree!"
Everyone was shocked.
Captain Wu, in particular, took a serious look at Liu Zheng and saw that he looked like a scholar in his fine clothes and temperament. He said in a softer tone, "It turns out to be Deacon Liu. Come in, come in! What other orders do you have? I will definitely convey them to the entire Majiazhuang!"
Seeing that his trick had worked, Liu Zheng deliberately coughed, "Why, I'm here to read out the decree, but I don't even have a sip of tea?"
Captain Wu dared not neglect it, and quickly signaled to his lackeys to deal with the situation on the spot, then he shook hands with Liu Zheng and said with a smile: "Sir, please come in, please!"
"This production team's decree will benefit the people! Five Yinzhou plows and four cows are already in place!"
"The steward must tell the county lord the voice of our people!"
Captain Wu took the lead and a group of farmers followed. It looked like a very happy scene.
Captain Wu wanted to see the decree several times, but Liu Zheng had no idea what he could do.
He deliberately delayed time, saying that he wanted to walk around the village. Captain Wu did not doubt him and took Liu Zheng around. The village, farmland, farmers' homes, Liu Zheng was like a leader who came to inspect, and he also learned about the sufferings of the people.
poverty!
Still poor!
Liu Zheng watched and shook his head.
Then when he came to Captain Wu's house, he sneered in his heart.
It's only been a few days... He's just become the team leader, and his house is already a big mansion. It seems that it was either stolen from the landlord or seized from the village head.
As soon as Liu Zheng entered the large house, he saw several Yinzhou plows and four cows in the yard. He immediately frowned and asked, "Captain Wu, why are all the production team's tools in your house?"
Captain Wu's face changed slightly, and he laughed: "Deacon Liu, you don't know that most of the farmers in Majiazhuang are unruly. Since the establishment of the production team, people come to fight for this Yinzhou plow every day. In order to keep it safe, we can only put it here temporarily."
Troublemaker?
Liu Zheng was at a loss whether to laugh or cry. Is there anyone here more cunning than you?
But he couldn't say anything, so he could only nod and say, "These tools should belong to the production team, and no one is allowed to handle or distribute them privately!"
Captain Wu quickly responded.
"Have you arranged the order of use of spring ploughing tools?"
Liu Zheng asked.
Captain Wu's face changed slightly, and he hesitated: "It hasn't started yet."
“What about the distribution of labor?”
"It's not ready yet..."
"Snapped!"
Liu Zheng was so angry that he slammed the table hard. This was not an act. The situation in front of him was actually the same as Zheng Yueru had guessed... Seeing that spring plowing was about to begin, these things had not been implemented yet, how could he not be angry? Just as Zheng Yueru said, the promulgation of this production team's policy might even affect spring plowing!
Liu Zheng thought this guess was a bit exaggerated before, but looking at the current situation, this guess is not excessive at all!
“Ah, this…”
"Deacon Liu, we..."
Captain Wu was so frightened by Liu Zheng's attitude that he broke out in a sweat.
How could they have the time to do this? Since the landlords were defeated, they have not had time to enjoy themselves. Seeing that the spring ploughing was about to begin, Captain Wu was actually anxious.
However……
Looking at the younger brothers who follow him and show off their power, how could they do such things?
I'm afraid there are not many people who can read!
No one knows how to do these paperwork and forms!
"What a bunch of rubbish! When I return, I will report the truth to the county lord!"
Liu Zheng was extremely angry at this moment. This was equivalent to slapping himself in the face!
Captain Wu's face changed immediately.
A few lackeys also looked at him angrily.
"Deacon Liu, where is the decree you mentioned?"
Captain Wu suddenly remembered this incident and looked at Liu Zheng coldly.
"Do you have the county magistrate's office documents?"
Another question.
Liu Zheng's expression changed slightly.
At this time, several lackeys finally reacted and stood up suddenly: "Okay, so you are a fake!"
"Tell me, where on earth are you from?"
"The county magistrate's office cares about the people, how could there be such an aggressive person?"
"This must be a fake!"
Liu Zheng saw a ferocious look flashing across Captain Wu's eyes, and immediately felt something was wrong. This guy probably knew that he would not get a good result when he returned to report on his work, so he had evil intentions in his heart.
"How dare you!"
Liu Zheng shouted angrily.
However, this is a troublemaker. If he had a little legal restraint in his heart, he would not have become so arrogant. Captain Wu scolded: "This must be a spy from the enemy country. Brothers, arrest him and bring him to justice. If he resists, he will be killed without mercy!"
When the lackeys heard this, they all responded in unison, drew their swords and rushed towards Liu Zheng. Liu Zheng had never seen such a scene before, so he was so scared that he hid under the table. When the swords came, he turned the table over to block the swords and ran away.
"Chase me!"
Captain Wu was determined to keep this guy in Majia Village. Although he didn't know who this guy was, he witnessed him robbing a woman today. If this matter was reported to the county mansion, he would definitely not be able to cover it up. It would be better to kill him and destroy the body. In this remote place, who would know about it? When the county mansion came to ask, he would just pretend not to know.
While thinking about this, Liu Zheng had already run to the village.
Captain Wu shouted a few times, and a group of farmers began to search for Liu Zheng's whereabouts, blocking Liu Zheng's way from all directions.
Seeing that there was no escape, Liu Zheng made up his mind, jumped onto a mound, and shouted loudly: "I am the county marquis' son Liu Zheng, who dares to touch me?"
There was a commotion among the group.
The son of the county marquis?
In the hearts of the people, he is a "benevolent and righteous king"!
Captain Wu roared with a dark face: "He is just a spy, and he dares to pretend to be Master Liu. Kill him without mercy!"
A group of people are in a dilemma.
Captain Wu was furious. He swung the long knife in his hand and chopped it towards Liu Zheng's head.
At this moment, the war horses galloped and the whole village seemed to shake.
Everyone looked in horror and saw a group of cavalry attacking.
"How dare you!"
"Qin Changfeng is here, who dares to hurt my young master?"
Seeing Liu Zheng trapped, Qin Changfeng roared angrily and threw the spear in his hand with force. It seemed to be carrying the power of thunder and flew towards Captain Wu.
boom!
The knife in Captain Wu's hand was knocked down by Qin Changfeng.
