Chapter 78: The First Visit to Literary Inquisition (I)
At the end of August, Huo Chong finished his initial layout in Mengyin County and returned to Zibo County. As soon as he held a meeting at the donkey farm, the head of the police came. Huo Chong, who was interrupted, was anxious to continue the meeting, but he still met the head of the police. After all, the head of the police was not a person who didn't know what to do. He had to see Huo Chong immediately, and there must be something he had to say now.
"There's a new magistrate in the county." The captain of the police stated the purpose of their visit.
Huo Chong thought this news was quite important. After completing the tax collection, County Magistrate Lu was promoted.
Without waiting for Huo Chong to say anything, the head constable continued, "The new Magistrate Ma invites Master Huo to come over."
Magistrate Ma was a man in his forties, and his thick glasses proved how much he had strained his eyes to pass the imperial examination. I thought Magistrate Ma would be polite, but he said, "Brother Huo, I heard that you put the 90,000 catties of glass fire that General Wang wanted in Mouping County. Can't Zibo County make it?"
Seeing that Magistrate Ma looked really unhappy, Huo Chong knew that the county magistrate's purpose was to quickly collect enough taxes and silver, and take advantage of Zibo County's advantages to get promoted quickly.
Huo Chong didn't want to answer immediately and couldn't help but think of Magistrate Liu of Mengyin County.
After a cordial conversation with Magistrate Liu, Huo Chong was certain that the magistrate had no feelings about the poverty of Mengyin County, and even felt that the poverty of Mengyin County hindered his official career. In such a poor county, Magistrate Liu's only thought was to leave as soon as possible with excellent performance. Apart from this, there was no other content in the conversation with Huo Chong.
Although he had long known from history textbooks that officials should serve the people, this only existed in the imagination of scholars, and the imagination of poor scholars at that. However, after seeing it for real, Huo Chong was even more disgusted with this shitty era.
The same was true for Magistrate Ma in front of him. When Magistrate Ma blamed Huo Chong for making money for Mouping County, Huo Chong didn't know how to answer. Should he continue to produce solid alcohol there, or follow Magistrate Ma's wishes and transfer all production back?
No matter which one it is, it will not make the situation better. Huo Chong decided to just listen to it and forget about it. However, Magistrate Ma did not mean to let Huo Chong relax. He kept saying that Huo Chong, as a native of Zibo County, did not seek benefits for Zibo County. This practice was wrong and must be corrected.
Seeing that Huo Chong remained silent, Magistrate Ma slapped the table and said, "I'll make the decision. Huo Chong, move all your business back to Zibo County."
Huo Chong couldn't stand being called by his real name. This wasn't the 21st century, so it was fine. Even in the 21st century, no one would call him by his real name unless he was very familiar with them. Only Huo Chong's parents would call him that, and other familiar people would call him "Old Huo" or something like that.
What does it mean that Magistrate Ma can call the people by their real name, "Huo Chong"? Huo Chong couldn't help but ask, "Why?"
"Huo Chong, do you know that you have violated a taboo?" said Magistrate Ma.
Huo Chong was stunned, staring at Magistrate Ma carefully. Who the hell is this person? Is he going to deal with Huo Chong right after he arrives?
Magistrate Ma saw that Huo Chong had no intention of giving in, so he took a piece of paper and put it on the table. Huo Chong took a look and found that it was the charter he had written for Zhong Fu Bao. It was not a big deal, just a charter. But he didn't know what crime Magistrate Ma wanted to use this to prove Huo Chong's crime.
"What do you want to do by using so many incomplete characters?" Magistrate Ma asked, staring at Huo Chong.
"Incomplete characters?" Huo Chong thought for a long time before he figured out what this meant. The simplified characters Huo Chong used were probably the incomplete characters that Magistrate Ma mentioned. The non-incomplete characters were naturally the traditional characters.
Can such a thing be considered a crime? Huo Chong was a little unsure. However, Magistrate Ma actually used this kind of thing as a means to blackmail Huo Chong. It seems that Magistrate Ma did not really take this matter seriously.
Huo Chong said with a smile, "Ma Magistrate, I don't know many words. I will have someone redo this order."
"Huo Chong. What do you mean? Do you think you can write words randomly?" Magistrate Ma scolded.
Huo Chong could only remain silent again. Even if we don't talk about the Qing Dynasty or New China, it's meaningless to tangle with literati on these issues. Kong Yiji also knows the four ways to write the word "hui".
"In the fifty-fifth year, the imperial court promulgated the Kangxi Dictionary, which has regulations on the use of words. What's the meaning of your random use of incomplete characters?" Magistrate Ma continued to ask.
Huo Chong already felt that he was unlucky enough to have such a magistrate. If Huo Chong knew what happened in Jinan Prefecture, he probably would not be so relaxed.
Several Shandong officials had a few printed sheets that someone had found in front of them. One of them asked, "Gao Xuezheng, this handwriting is too ugly."
Gao Xuezheng picked up one and looked at it for a moment, then said disdainfully, "Not only is the handwriting ugly, but it also tries to be detailed. I don't know how the mold was made."
"All of these characters are incomplete. What does Huo Chong want to do?" said another official.
Several people looked at each other for a few times, and saw some emotions in each other's eyes. After a while, someone said: "General Wang has been buying Liuli Fire from Huo Chong..."
"Then we must not let General Wang be implicated by Huo Chong."
"Huo Chong is a reserve official. To deprive him of his official position, we need to get permission from the Ministry of Personnel."
"Then put this in the memorial to the Emperor. The Emperor published a dictionary in the fifty-fifth year, which shows how much he cares about this matter."
"I don't know who this memorial comes from..." the official said, his eyes falling on Gao Xuezheng's face.
Gao Xuezheng thought for a moment and had to speak: "I am the academician, so I will take care of this matter."
The memorial was sent to the capital, and no one obstructed it at any stage. It was processed step by step, neither too fast nor too slow, and finally appeared before Kangxi.
After reading the memorial, Kangxi picked up the charter and looked at it again. He fell into a brief thought. After a while, Kangxi put the memorial into the pile of memorials that must be dealt with seriously. He said to the eunuch, "Call Prince Yong."
After receiving the order from Emperor Kangxi, Prince Yong hurriedly set off. Prince Yong was always known as the cold-faced prince, and at this moment he looked indifferent, and the people around him could not tell what Prince Yong was thinking.
Prince Yong didn't care what others thought of him at this time. He probably guessed a few things that his father had called him for. The first possibility was that his younger brother, the fourteenth, had done something big in Tibet.
There have been reports that the Fourteenth Prince has repelled the generals of the Dzungar tribe and summoned the Panchen Lama to hold an enthronement ceremony, which means that the Fourteenth Prince has regained control of Tibet on behalf of the court.
If it wasn't for this, it was because the policy of "spreading the land tax" that local officials had been implementing over the years during the reign of Emperor Kangxi had become more and more established. My father wanted to take action.
Or maybe my father wants Prince Yong to do some other errand.
When he saw his father, the eunuch brought him a memorial. After Prince Yong opened it and read it, his expression changed slightly. He never expected that he was called here and it was related to Huo Chong.
"Fourth Brother, what do you think about this?" Kangxi's voice sounded a little lazy.
Prince Yong lowered his head quickly, thinking quickly in his mind. After a while, Prince Yong came up with an idea, raised his head and replied: "Father, the officials in Shandong are really abominable. But Huo Chong is indeed not good enough."
Kangxi looked at the other memorials in his hand and asked calmly, "Which side do you think should be dealt with?"
Prince Yong knew that this was his father testing him, just like the last time his father suddenly came to his Prince Yong's Mansion, he actually wanted to test the Fourteenth Prince.
How can I make my father satisfied? Prince Yong lowered his head again and thought quickly. After thinking for a moment, he remembered what Huo Chong said at that time. "The workshops in the capital are reliable. If the Fourteenth Master wants to rely on me, I am unreliable."
If it was between Huo Chong and the Shandong officials, Huo Chong was definitely the unreliable one. Even Huo Chong understood this truth, so Prince Yong could certainly understand it.
Looking up, Prince Yong replied, "Father, I think we should tell the Shandong officials that this is not the way to use literary inquisition. We should not look at the words, but what is written."
After hearing Prince Yong's answer, Kangxi chuckled. He put down the memorial in his hand, drank a sip of tea, and then continued to ask: "Why do you say so?"
"The Shandong officials probably have long disliked Huo Chong. This time they are just taking advantage of the situation." Prince Yong continued to answer.
"Then why not reprimand the Shandong officials directly?" Kangxi asked, changing to a more comfortable sitting position.
"Reporting to the Emperor, I have read the rules written by Huo Chong, and there is no arrogance or rebellion in them . They are all written in vernacular, and it is unclear what he is going to do. Even when it comes to taxation, it is said that he first collected some kind of blessing money, twice a year, and refunded the excess and supplemented the shortage. It should be Huo Chong who paid the tax silver on behalf of the court. Although most of the characters are incomplete, Huo Chong has never been to school, so what can he write?"
"Well. The name Huo Chong... hehe... it's better not to mention it." Kangxi said with a smile.
"If the Shandong officials think Huo Chong's handwriting is not good, they can just send a teacher to teach him how to write. Sending this here may seem like they are taking care of Fourteenth Brother, but that's not the case."
"Humph!" Kangxi snorted, "How do you think you should give instructions?"
"If it were me, I would ask the Shandong officials whether Huo Chong has any vacancies to fill."
"Ha! Haha!" Kangxi laughed loudly.
Prince Yong felt relieved when he heard his father's laughter. After Kangxi finished laughing, he picked up his pen and wrote some comments on the memorial. Then he said to Prince Yong, "Fourth Brother, Huo Chong is unreliable. You can use him but not trust him. But as long as he doesn't go to the road of death, there is no need to force him to death. Officials will do whatever they want if they are not punished. Now you have to let them know what you are thinking."
"Yes." Prince Yong replied with his head down.
"Go and see your mother," Kangxi ordered.
An hour later, Prince Yong's carriage left the palace and headed for Prince Yong's mansion. Prince Yong's face was as cold as frost, and the servants dared not breathe. This was probably the case every time Prince Yong met Concubine De. If the servants caught Prince Yong's attention at this time, they would probably be punished.
Just as the servants thought, Prince Yong was very unhappy. After seeing his mother, he found that she had lost her appetite, so he tried to persuade her, but she refused to listen.
It would be fine if he just didn't listen. What Prince Yong felt from his mother was that she only had Fourteenth in her heart, and not Prince Yong at all.
My mother, Concubine De, gave birth to three sons for my father. The fourth son was my mother, Concubine De's eldest son, but he was sent to Tong Jia when he was less than a month old and was raised by her alone.
When Prince Yong was twelve years old, Tong Jia died, and the young Yongzheng observed mourning for three days. After that, he was sent back to his biological mother, Concubine De.
At this time, it was as if Prince Yong was not in the eyes of his mother, Concubine De, and her eyes were all on Yongzheng's half-brother Yinzhen. It was as if only her brother Yinzhen existed in the world, as if Yinzhen was her son, her only son.
From then until now, it has always been like this, always like this, always like this!
Every time my mother saw Prince Yong, she felt as if she was facing an outsider. As soon as she saw the fourteenth brother Yinzhen, the smile she had never given to Prince Yong would naturally appear. Even as long as she heard the fourteenth brother Yinzhen's voice from afar, the coldness on my mother's body would immediately dissipate.
But even if she was smiling at her fourteenth brother Yinzhen the moment before, when she turned to face Prince Yong, the smile would disappear naturally. It was as if Prince Yong would never deserve a smile from his mother, Concubine De.
This time, too, the mother, Concubine De, was completely immersed in the various anxieties brought to her by the fourteenth brother Yinzhen's expedition. But when she heard Prince Yong talk about the achievements of the fourteenth brother Yinzhen after the expedition, the mother , Concubine De, immediately smiled again.
That was a smile directed at his fourteenth brother Yinzhen who was thousands of miles away. As for Prince Yong, his son, in the eyes of his mother Concubine De, it seemed as if he did not exist and had no meaning of existence.
Anger and sadness churned in Prince Yong's heart and finally fell on one person.
Huo Chong, this bastard! It was Prince Yong who saw him first and even spared Huo Chong's life. As soon as this bastard had the chance to see the fourteenth brother Yinzhen, he immediately offered the formula. And he took advantage of the fourteenth brother Yinzhen's stupidity and tricked him into keeping Huo Chong as an official.
Huo Chong is not only cunning, but also lazy. After he became an official, he only thought about how to accumulate wealth and did not work hard on his studies. He deserves to die!
But the emperor didn't care about Huo Chong's cunning and laziness at all, and thought that Huo Chong could be let go. How did this guy do all this? Prince Yong felt a little confused.
He is a guy whose handwriting is as bad as a dog's, whose words are not pleasant to listen to, and who likes to be smart. But he can always be safe and sound. If I have the chance in the future, I will definitely teach Huo Chong a lesson!
With this decision, Prince Yong put the matter aside for the time being.
Unexpectedly, half a month later, an official who supported Prince Yong together with his uncle Longkodo came to pay a visit to Prince Yong, and his words were full of tentative questions about Huo Chong.
After careful inquiry, Prince Yong found out that his father Emperor Kangxi had really used Emperor Yongzheng's words and asked the officials in Shandong to look at the content of the text when conducting literary inquisitions, and not to focus on whether the words were well written.
Prince Yong was pleasantly surprised. His father actually completely accepted his judgment, which proved that his judgment was in line with his father's thoughts. He was happy for a moment, but then he remembered that Huo Chong, the bastard, was free again. Prince Yong said coldly: "Don't the officials in Shandong know how to read? Why do they ask so many questions about what the emperor said?"
