Chapter 2383 Under the High Platform

The punishment is the law.

Common people are the first people in Guizhou.

A doctor is a middle-ranking official.

There is a saying that "punishment is not enough for a doctor".

In the sixth year of Taixing, it was the fifteenth day of the first lunar month.

Light sky lanterns.

How many steps do you need to light up a sky lantern?

The first takes out the lamp, the second lights the fire, the third stands up and lights it for everyone to see...

And now, Fei Qian is doing just that.

Fei Qian went to Qinglong Temple and held the first public trial of "corrupt officials" in the Han Dynasty.

The "punishment" is now on the head of the "doctor"...

A group of children were shivering.

In fact, among Chinese people, the phrase "the official cannot be punished" is just like "the people can do whatever they want." There is a certain misunderstanding. Many people say that "doctors cannot be punished" is a protection for corrupt officials in the feudal dynasty, and it means that "doctors" will not be punished or sanctioned for committing crimes. However, in fact, these people do not fully understand this sentence.

The complete sentence should be "If you can't punish the doctor, the person who punishes him is not on your side."

The original text comes from the "Book of Rites", which was written in the middle and late Warring States Period. During the Qin and Han Dynasties, many great Confucian scholars expressed that the sentence "You cannot punish a doctor" was a summary and summary of the current situation of social law enforcement at that time. Summarize.

But is it actually...

Let’s talk about the aspect of “punishment” first.

From the Spring and Autumn Period to the Warring States Period, and up to the present day of the Han Dynasty, officials did not escape punishment for their crimes.

There is this provision in "The Rites of Zhou": "The corpses of scholars are everywhere in the cities, and the corpses of the officials are everywhere in the dynasties." 』

In ancient dynasties, executions were mostly carried out in the streets, allowing people to watch, and the bodies were exposed for three days after the execution. The original intention was to deter crime, warn the world, and serve as an example to others. The execution of crimes committed by a doctor is not carried out in the market, but in the court. This is a kind of differentiated treatment, but it still shows very clearly that officials at the level of "doctor" are still punished by criminal laws, and the place of punishment is stipulated. , it is by no means what later generations understand as "a doctor who cannot be punished" and is exempt from sanctions.

It can be said that in the history of China's feudal society for one or two thousand years, no dynasty has ever governed the country based on the misunderstood view of "punishment cannot be punished" by later generations.

Whether it is from ancient historical documents or from the thousands of years of ancient Chinese social development, it is very clearly expressed that "the doctor cannot be punished" must not be misunderstood as "the doctor commits a crime and is not punished." As for this sentence Why does it mean "no punishment"? It can only be said that some people have been deceived.

The reason why officials cannot be punished does not mean that officials can not abide by the law, or that officials cannot be governed by the law, as some literalists say, but that officials are educated people and should be knowledgeable about books and etiquette, and this "etiquette" , is "self-restraint", and "punishment" is enforced, so officials cannot be like the common people, except for the enforced "punishment", the rest of the "rituals" will not be performed...

To put it simply, "punishment" is the passing line. For all ordinary people in Guizhou, "ritual" is the excellence line. It is a higher requirement based on "punishment". If "punishment" is only used to regulate "doctors" , it would be really rude to let the "doctor" only do the "punishment" part.

In ancient society, the common people did not know etiquette because they had not received formal education, so they could not ask them to consciously restrain their behavior like officials were asked to do.

What the common people face is survival and development, and they are exposed to specific contradictions and conflicts between people. Therefore, they must resolve various contradictions and conflicts between each other under the supervision of the law. One is one, and two It's just two, the right one is what it is, the wrong one is not, there is no way to contain it.

But what "doctors" face is the survival and development of the entire society, the entire nation, and the entire country. Various contradictions and conflicts between each other cannot be treated with a "personal" attitude, because the views on many issues are different due to Depending on their education, experience and other factors, it is impossible for them to be exactly the same, and often even completely opposite. No one can judge who is right and who is wrong at a moment's notice.

This requires "propriety".

Therefore, "doctors" must understand and abide by the principle of "seeking common ground while reserving minor differences". On the basis of respecting each other's opinions, they must respect various decisions made by the management and implement them with all their strength.

If we are right, we will prosper together; if we are wrong, we will be humiliated together.

"Xing" tells "you shouldn't do this", so it is a means of coercion to keep people at a safe distance from each other; "Li" tells "you should do this", so it It is a conscious behavior that allows people to maintain mutual respect for mutual cooperation.

This is the first meaning Fei Qian wants to warn the children around Gaotai...

Fei Qian made a slight gesture and nodded towards Pang Tong.

Pang Tong had a dark face and responded with a serious nod. Then he strode forward, stepped onto the high platform, and looked around under his eyes. He was satisfied when the surrounding area was completely silent and only the flags were crackling in the wind. Withdrew his gaze.

"Uh-huh!" 』

Pang Tong took out a roll of edicts from his sleeves, unfolded it slowly, then looked around again, then focused on the edicts, and began to recite them in a measured tone...

"Everything in the world has its origin. The strength of wood is to strengthen its roots, and the strength of rivers is to dredge their sources. The peace of the people means sufficient food and clothing, and the peace of the court means the Qingming Festival. It is said that if the roots are not solid but seek the strength of the tree, if the source is unclear but the river is far away, if the governance is unclear but the country is peaceful, even the foolish people will not understand it, let alone the wise and wise people. 』

"The men of the world enjoy the importance of the country, live in vast fields, hold high positions, and protect the honor of their heirs. However, if they are not prepared for danger in times of peace, do not abstain from extravagance and frugality, are not virtuous in being generous, and do not have passion to overcome their desires, then they will surely A tree has no roots, just like water has no source. Although it has a good beginning, it has no good end! 』

"Severe punishments invigorate the anger, and benevolent to help future generations." The resentment does not depend on the number of people, but the people should be feared. The boat is not subject to wind and waves, so it is advisable to be cautious. How could it be careless if a running car has a rotten rope? 』

"The punishment cannot be meted out to the officials, but the officials follow etiquette as the rule. How can it be said that there is no punishment, and the king is deceived from above, and the people are deceived from below?" Master, when you see something you want, you should be able to discipline yourself. When you are about to do something, you should stop to calm others. If you are afraid of overflowing, you should accept the river when you are in the sea. When you are lazy, you should start with respect and end with respect. You should avoid slander and evil. You should depose the body to do evil. Don't be happy that you haven't been punished. You should be respectful and reflect on yourself! 』

"The punisher does not establish a dynasty, but simply lets him do what he can, choose the good and follow it, the wise will do his best, the brave will do his best, the benevolent will spread his benefits, and the trustworthy will be loyal to him." Only in this way can we be the leader of the people, the auxiliary of the country, and the courtesy of the world! 』

"..."

Pang Tong continued.

Fei Qian had already withdrawn his mind from the edict and looked at the people around him.

Distance often brings "antagonism", while respect can bring "cohesion".

Facing the same thing, choosing "opposition" or "cohesion" will often lead to different results. For example, when the Han Dynasty faced the threat of the Xiqiang rebellion, the emperor of the dynasty was so anxious that he could not sleep or eat, but these "scholar-officials" in the court felt that this was a good opportunity to force the emperor to make concessions.

When the Xiqiang rebelled, didn't they invade the territory of the Han Dynasty? Aren’t the victims the common people of Han Dynasty? Isn't the emperor the emperor of the Han Dynasty, and the nobles are not the nobles of the Han Dynasty? When the country as a whole is violated and faced with threats, shouldn't we join forces and turn outward?

Even lower-level people know the truth. Fathers, sons, and brothers fight and fight, and even beat each other to death. But when foreign enemies attack, shouldn't we put aside our internal conflicts first and face external threats?

Fate of the nation, everyone is responsible.

Oh, it's just the responsibility of "every man", right?

"Scholar-officials" have no responsibility?

When a society, a country's middle and upper management, faces threats to the country, and at a time when the nation is in danger, there is a life-and-death conflict internally, who is it beneficial to? Are you still thinking about how to put on a show and how to gain some political capital for yourself to move up the ladder?

The filial and honest man lying on the ice begging for a carp, the official who looks like a rat with skin!

What’s even more frightening is that this kind of thing, this kind of example, was actually recorded, regarded as an acceptable political method, and became a fine tradition of these "scholar-officials" in later generations!

Subsequently, "the disaster of party imprisonment" was to clear the name for the sake of clearing the name, and to confront for the sake of confrontation. Everything the emperor did was wrong. Even the farts of noblemen smelled good. Even if it doesn't smell good now, the aftertaste will smell good!

This is the behavior of "emotional confrontation" caused by the loss of "propriety".

Just like the brawlers of later generations, no matter what the truth is, they only judge right and wrong by themselves. If the other party says they are right, they must say it is wrong. If the other party says they are wrong, they must find out what is right.

However, no gold is pure and no one is perfect. Who is perfect? This is why in the face of national peril, no one has the right to escalate his or her personal dissatisfaction caused by various reasons into emotional confrontation for any reason, thus causing suspicion from above and below, social centrifugation, and thus affecting the national plan. s reason.

Some people in the world are born timid, some have bad tempers, some are lustful, some are jealous, and they may have all kinds of things, but it is such imperfect people who build the entire society and support the entire country. , but in order for these imperfect people to form a community, there must be the most basic framework, which is "punishment", and above "punishment", there is "ritual".

As a "scholar-official", he should be more comprehensive than ordinary people. He should not just consider his own interests and express his own truth like ordinary people, but should focus on the overall situation and represent the people! Instead of using the lowest standard of "punishment" to measure yourself, it means that if you have not violated the "punishment", you are not guilty!

Kong Zhongni lamented the collapse of rituals and music, and later scholar-bureaucrats also lamented the collapse of rituals and music, just like this, they can appear noble and pure, but in fact these guys cut off the original sentences of Kong Zhongni, Not only did he distort the sentence "You can't punish a doctor", but he also swallowed the last half of the sentence and didn't mention it at all!

This kind of behavior is harmful to the country and the people, but not beneficial at all!

What's more, this sentence has been distorted in more than one sense...

After Pang Tong read out the edict, Wei Duan, the dean of the Council of Laws and Regulations, appeared.

Wei Duan straightened his neck and read out the latest "Law of Corruption" with a slightly stiff posture...

The "Law of Corruption" integrates the relevant constraints on public power that were originally scattered in the Han Code and formed relatively clear legal provisions for officials. It also specifically added legal provisions for the officials' immediate family members, clarifying the legal provisions for officials. Corruption crimes committed by immediate family members, that is, parents and wives, are equivalent to the crimes committed by the officials themselves.

The nobles in the audience all took a deep breath.

Article 2 clarifies that if there is a recommendation relationship between officials, the recommender shall bear joint and several liability if the recommended person commits a crime. This article was originally included in the laws of the Han Dynasty. It was initially used to detect loopholes in the promotion system of Dengdu, but in fact the enforcement was not strong. It was even simply raised high, put down gently, scolded a few times, and then recommended people. Crying bitterly means you have seen the wrong person, and that's the end of it.

Now, the recommender has to bear at least half of the recommended person's guilt, and may even be in jail.

Then these noble clansmen took a second breath of cool air...

Article 3: Any official who has been dismissed from office and served a sentence due to the "Law of Corruption" will not only be unable to serve as an official again, but also his or her sons and grandsons will not be able to serve as officials within three generations!

This is the so-called "the punisher is not at your side"!

The scene was filled with the sound of the third breath of cool air, and many people coughed due to the cold and dry air in the first month of the year. Inhaling a large amount of it in a short period of time...

These regulations are obviously unfair, but they are actually fair. Fei Qian was even considered "merciful". In later generations, failure to pass the political review was not just a crime of corruption and malfeasance, but failure to pass all crimes!

Needless to say, some of these three additional rules are indeed unfair, but not everything in this world is fair, and it is impossible to find an absolutely fair theoretical system to convince the world, let alone when a society or a country is fair. When people don't know what "propriety" is, there will naturally be no integrity at all between people. At this time, that is to say, when a society or a country cannot use "rituals" to regulate behavior, it can only use "punishment" to enforce laws.

"If you don't know etiquette, you can't stand up!" 』

Fei Qian stood up and slowly looked at the people in the audience.

"A gentleman establishes people, and a villain establishes affairs." If I am not as good as the gentlemen here who have read poetry and books and are familiar with the Five Classics, I can only use the heart of a villain to judge the belly of a gentleman. 』

"Those who establish others restrain themselves and know propriety; those who establish affairs allow themselves to be unreasonable." Having a military background, I know that military affairs are the most important thing for the country. As a military general, you should know how to advance and retreat, know the battle formations, line up flags and drums, and fight in the yellow sand. If you make a mistake, you will lose thousands of lives, your family and country will be humiliated, your country will be lost, the world will be uninhabited, and all the wastelands will be filled with bones! 』

"Therefore, when the war is going on, the soldiers should fight hard for fear of losing their ranks and harming their formation. The commander should be clear and alert, for fear of neglecting orders and hindering progress. The general should tread cautiously on the ice, for fear of making mistakes in his plans. The blade of national destruction! If any soldier harms his formation, behead him! If the school hinders anyone from entering, behead him! Those who will kill the country will be killed! 』

"So...military law is ruthless, but national law...please ask, are lunch boxes ruthless?" 』

The cheering voices of everyone in the audience gradually fell silent.

On the high platform, flags were fluttering.

The sun fell from the sky and shone on Fei Qian.

At this moment, Fei Qian's whole body seemed to be glowing, shining in all directions.

Fei Qian said a very simple truth and an irrefutable reason.

The Chinese nation has been facing crises and threats from ancient times to the present. As a member of the Chinese people, if you do not know how to unite and be orderly, you will only be a gentleman in words and a villain in action. , then it will be difficult to ensure the inheritance of China.

It is precisely because everyone cannot be perfect and has shortcomings and flaws of one kind or another, so we must emphasize the "punishment" that must be strictly observed, and the "etiquette" to pursue, and see everyone We should also see the good side of everyone, and we should also see the bad side of everyone. We should not gloss over our faults and avoid medical treatment. Only then can we have the courage to face our own imperfections, the imperfections of society and the country, and improve step by step until we are better every day. Can make more progress and become more perfect.

"Therefore, the officials in villages and towns are like soldiers, responsible for maintaining their ranks and protecting their formations; the officials in counties and counties are like schools, responsible for communicating with orders and achieving progress; the officials at court are like generals, responsible for planning thousands of miles. Defend the country and protect the borders! What if the soldiers are lazy and the generals are slack? When I and Wei Yuan were formulating this law, they were already kind-hearted and offered relief and exemption. If it is really considered in terms of military law..."

Fei Qian just stood there and had no intention of arguing with the nobles in the audience. He spoke a few words, expressed his position, explained some reasons, and then motioned to Sima Yi to come up and read out the first batch of A confirmed "list of criminals" for corruption and malfeasance.

This also means that there is a second batch and a third batch that are under review or under supervision.

This was what was originally planned, and it was also the last straw that overwhelmed these agitated nobles...

The so-called "large-scale public trial" cannot of course be used to plead guilty in front of the public. Instead, the crime is simply read out, using the simplest and straightforward language, so that all the people present, including the descendants of the gentry and the It’s enough if ordinary people can understand it.

Just like at the Qinglong Temple, it happened to be in the first month of the year, before the busy spring plowing time. These people from all over the country, in the mentality of watching the excitement, crowded around the square and high platform of the Qinglong Temple. fully. At the beginning, both Pang Tong and Wei Duan were somewhat formal in their preaching. Even when Fei Qian came forward to explain, it could not be said to be very straightforward. But when Sima Yi came here, he changed to the common people. The crudest language I can understand...

In addition, he wanted to make things bigger. When Sima Yi read out the charges of the Tian family in Liando, the Zhao family in Linjing, the Zhang family in Nanzheng, and the Li family in Guanghan, although there were no loudspeakers of later generations, they were specially equipped. The soldiers with loud voices spread the news simultaneously, which was enough for the surrounding people to clearly hear the guilt of every crime committed by these people.

When it comes to the various bastard behaviors of these people, including but not limited to accepting bribes, harming people, corruption and bending the law, conspiracy and sabotage, etc., especially when the victims are asked to provide evidence, and these victims are ordinary people, when these When witnesses burst into tears and sternly accuse, it is easy to arouse the common people's hatred and hatred.

The people turned their fear of being harmed into endless hatred. Amidst the screams and questions of the victims, coupled with the intentional guidance hidden in the crowd, the hatred of the surrounding people was aroused like a volcanic eruption. It broke out, with curses and slogans rising one after another, one wave after another.

The noble disciples who originally wanted to say something or argue, now looked around with pale faces. They even began to feel a little scared. The people around them waved their arms and gritted their teeth. It seemed that all it took was Fei Qian on the stage to move his hand. , these people will swarm up and tear them into pieces!

Under such circumstances, these nobles finally lowered their heads, clamped their tails, and shrank their bodies as much as possible, fearing that one of them would be accidentally affected. Of course, it was even less likely that they would have the courage to stand up to these criminals. "What did you say...

At this time, some of the gentry disciples suddenly discovered that these common people could actually cry, shout, howl, and get angry...

It would be... so terrifying.