Volume 2: The King's Way Chapter 196 Backlash
Jiao Ling had said before that he knew what kind of person Jiao's mother was - a shrew.
He did understand Jiao's mother, but... he did not understand the shrew!
Before, Jiao's mother had always believed that it was because of Liu Xun's clan daughter that her son was implicated, and Qin Gu's secret mediation made her determined to force her son to divorce his wife - one was the clan daughter of a deposed prefect, and the other was the daughter of the current captain, so of course she would choose her!
As for other factors...they are not taken into consideration.
However, when the news that Bai Tu was optimistic about Jiao Qing came out, the situation had changed. How could Jiao's mother continue to force her son for the sake of Jiao Ling and others?
Of course he had to start a fire and "sacrifice" all the members of the Jiao family so that they could serve as a patron for his son's advancement - now Jiao Ling and others were "not within the scope of consideration".
Jiao Qing is a decent man. If it were him, he would not do such a thing. At most, he would be unwilling to go along with them. However, Jiao Ling wanted to be smart and make a breakthrough through Jiao's mother. The ending was actually doomed from the beginning.
More than 90% of the supporters of clan etiquette, the essence of their "support" is that they believe that "clan etiquette" will make their lives better.
The productivity at that time and the government's management model meant that small families had to rely on large families to avoid being exploited at any time.
When a minority offends clan etiquette, other supporters will stand up and suppress them.
However, for most people, clan etiquette is really in opposition to their own interests. That is another choice, which is similar to "supporting the Han Dynasty" - when Wang Mang usurped the Han Dynasty, wasn't it also a large number of nobles who felt that the Han Dynasty could no longer satisfy their ambitions, so they usurped the throne? But later they found that Wang Mang's new dynasty was not as good as the Han Dynasty...
There are very few people who are truly willing to sacrifice their own interests and protect .
This has been the case from ancient times to the present, and for generations to come.
Of course, being able to make the majority of people believe that this is in their own interest is already a success - whether it is clan etiquette or the orthodoxy of the Han Dynasty, they have all been successful before.
That is why so many people are willing to cheer for clan etiquette and support the Han Dynasty, and are willing to suppress the minority's discordant voices.
That's why Bai Tu always repeats the same old things, trying to make the people believe in him, believe in the General's Office, and believe in the new policy...
Jiao's mother is undoubtedly an ordinary person, and an ordinary shrew at that.
When the clan's interests conflict with her son's interests, she can make a choice without even hesitation.
Jiao family? What?
Three generations ago, there was a small noble family that produced a prefect. Tsk tsk... In the future, if my son is favored by General Bai, he can become a prefect himself! Then my son will be the ancestor of the Jiao family!
Moreover, she has her own shrew-like scheming - what happened today was not caused by Bai Tu and Zhou Yu's advice to her, but she herself has been holding it in until now!
This wave of "backlash" directly dumbfounded those who had previously stood on Jiao's mother's perspective to criticize Bai Tu and defend the etiquette.
Of course, they can continue to refute Jiao's mother and criticize this behavior of a widow who betrays the clan and disobeys the uncles in the clan, which is indeed against etiquette, but ... in the eyes of most people, this will be a typical act of the Jiao clan sacrificing the interests of Jiao Qing to profit for other people in the clan.
On the contrary, the more this matter is brought up, the more it will help Bai Tu to "tear a hole" in other people's hearts. As long as Bai Tu continues to improve productivity and increase the people's trust in the government, this hole will become bigger and bigger.
As for this moment, Jiao Ling and others don’t need to wait until the future, they have already lost everything!
Gao Biao, who instigated the divorce, Jiao Ling, who instigated Jiao's mother to file a complaint, and Qin Gu, who secretly proposed marriage, Jiao's mother arranged everything for everyone. Although Jiao's mother couldn't write, she remembered everyone who had stepped into her house because of this matter, as if they were written in a notebook...
In this case, it is not a question of filial piety, but the old bureaucrats and clans who persecute young people with aspirations and are willing to break up beautiful love. Moreover... their fundamental purpose is most likely to discredit Bai Tu and shake the leadership position of the General of Chariots and Cavalry's Mansion in Huainan.
This script... is actually somewhat different from Bai Tu's plan, but it does make everyone's original entanglements disappear. It can be predicted that public opinion will unite to criticize the Jiao family and other Lujiang officials involved, and successfully complete the establishment of a benchmark negative example of the clan system.
"Master Jiao, do you have anything else to say? And... County Magistrate Gao and Commandant Qin, are they also nearby? Let's all look for them and ask the people involved to come forward to defend themselves." Bai Tu said somewhat listlessly.
Jiao's mother's defection and the killing of five people have directly set the tone for this matter. As for... the specific treatment of several officials in the prefectural government, Bai Tu was not very concerned about it.
This matter is not a big deal, but it is not a small one either. The upper limit is the intention to overthrow the General of Chariots and Cavalry's Mansion, and the lower limit is... moral corruption and deliberate destruction of subordinates' families for profit?
However, at this point, the uncle and nephew of the Gao family, Qin Gu, and several people from the Jiao family could only apologize. They were recognized one by one by the people present, and everyone spitted in front of them.
"Absurd! As officials appointed by the imperial court, you don't think about how to benefit the people and keep the area safe, but instead just do this to gain benefits... You even murdered your own nephew and niece-in-law for your own benefit...
"Okay, okay! Aren't you all elected as officials of filial piety and integrity? Tell me what crime you deserve for such a morally corrupt behavior!" Bai Tu said in a feigned anger.
When Gao Ming and others heard Bai Tu's words, they were frightened at first, but then... they gradually calmed down.
They are so mean and despicable...for their own benefit...they have lost their morals...
On the surface, Bai Tu seemed angry, but... a few smart people heard Bai Tu's hidden meaning.
Bai Tu didn't seem to have any intention of guiding the matter to the "upper limit", but at the same time, they had to admit that what they did was a personal example of the drawbacks of clan etiquette!
Of course, if they were stubborn enough, they could insist that they were going against Bai Tu for their dreams and ideals, and that they were not targeting Jiao Zhongqing. It just happened that Jiao's mother was dissatisfied with Liu Lanzhi. In this way, the damage to the clan etiquette would be relatively small, but...
In addition to Bai Tu's previous assassination, they were at least held responsible for failing to suppress the bandits, so they could basically prepare for their funeral, and no one would protest for them.
so……
"I, I was bewildered and jealous at the time, so I did something worse than pigs and dogs!" Gao Biao immediately cried.
"My lord! I...I was instigated by this evil creature to do such a despicable thing. I feel sorry for Jiao Qing and the people..." After made the same choice.
Except for Jiao Ling, everyone else also condemned themselves and agreed with Bai Tu's words.
Jiao Ling, who was at the center of the conflict, had not spoken yet, which made people nervous.
Although they have expressed their stance, but... after Jiao's mother turned against them, Jiao Ling is the person primarily responsible. If he remains stubborn, the others may still be in danger of being killed!
As for Jiao Ling, he hesitated for a moment, or rather, he said after some choice of words: "My Lord, I am worse than pigs and dogs! Actually... Actually, I had evil thoughts about my niece's wife, so I relied on my clan status to force my nephew to divorce his wife, and deliberately put pressure on Jiao's mother, thinking... I thought that this would be foolproof, and with the protection of etiquette and filial piety, I could fulfill my dirty thoughts. I am worse than a beast!"
No matter they were the onlookers or the accomplices, everyone gasped when they looked at Jiao Ling - are there such shameless people in the world?
This is not just following Bai Tu's words, it is simply helping Bai Tu to bite people!
Even...even willing to admit that he had evil thoughts about his nephew's wife?
The most interesting thing is that the topic is related to clan etiquette later on. Jiao Ling, who wanted to uphold clan etiquette and refute Bai Tu as a stepping stone to advancement half an hour ago, has now turned into a ferocious fighting dog, and even drank a mouthful of shit to quench the poison before biting someone...
It can be imagined that after today, even if Bai Tu will not kill them, but after being dismissed, let alone reinstatement, I am afraid that Jiao Ling will never be able to appear in public again in the future!
Even if Bai Tu had not issued a strict order prohibiting the abuse of lynching, he would probably be the first person to be beaten to death in the Jiao ancestral temple.
However, at this critical juncture, I'm afraid no one dares to touch Bai Tu's tiger whiskers. On the contrary, as long as he can survive today's disaster, at least his life will be safe.
As for the clan? Children and grandchildren will have their own blessings!
Bai Tu was stunned for a long while. He didn't expect Jiao Ling's desire to survive would be so strong...
"Where are the officials from the Ministry of Justice? Those involved will be dismissed on the spot and severely investigated! They will be sentenced according to the law." Bai Tu said after he calmed down after being frightened.
Although Bai Tu said "strictly investigate and deal with the case", what is more important is obviously "sentence according to the law" - that is, at least their lives can be saved.
After all, even if their crimes are thoroughly investigated, according to the tone set by Bai Tu now, it is just "moral degradation".
Such a person would definitely not be able to hold an official position, and might even be subject to corporal punishment, but... legally his crime would definitely not warrant the death penalty.
As for whether he would be lynched by the clan members?
Emmm... Mr. Bai is mighty and Mr. Bai is really good. We must stick to the bottom line and protect the victims like us who are trembling under clan lynching!
Bai Tu really needs them alive now. Things have come to this point, and no matter how they fight among their clans, no one dares to touch them - at least small clans like the Jiao and Gao families don't dare to make trouble at this time.
And they are not stupid. They will definitely leave their hometown after returning.
"Madam Jiao, don't worry. From now on, no one can separate your son or your daughter-in-law. They just need to work steadily for the general's mansion and support the Han Dynasty." Bai Tu said.
Hearing this, Mother Jiao was moved and said, "Luckily, there is Mr. Bai in Lujiang! If there is no Mr. Bai to uphold justice, how can we, an orphan and a widow, go against the uncles in the clan? Before today, I am afraid that there are still many people who would speak for the things I was forced to do before, and it would really cause a big mistake!"
Mother Jiao, who has kept her merits and fame to herself, strikes a critical strike again...
