Chapter 441 Robbed Again

Zhao Jun's first stop out of Beijing this time was Youyan.

The Youyan area was recovered only two years ago, and governance is a top priority.

But since we are passing through Hebei, we naturally have to shoot rabbits and inspect the current environment in Hebei.

He did not choose to take the canal waterway, but the official road overland, just to facilitate work along the route.

The carriage went all the way north, not to Fengqiu, but to cross the Yellow River from Ji County via Jujube.

Because Zhao Jun also wants to go to Wu'an Iron and Steel Plant to see the situation there.

The trip was uneventful.

Everywhere along the way, local officials, Yushitai, and the Imperial City Department would come and report.

A combination of the three, plus follow-up visits and surveys. As long as any one of them doesn't match up, you can see that there will be clues in the local area.

However, there is nothing special along the Yuanwu, Suanzao, and Xucheng routes.

The local security, official integrity, and various construction projects are all excellent. Even if there are security incidents or corruption, they will be dealt with immediately.

It can be said that even if there are problems locally, they are just normal problems. There is no such thing as a product of the combination of politics, business and politics.

There is no protective umbrella, no oppression of good people, and no injustice. Even the arrogance, domineering, and rude behavior of grassroots officials that is widespread in the world is extremely rare.

Everything is developing on the normal path.

If Zhao Jun was a conspiracy theorist, he would probably suspect that there was something fishy going on, and he would imagine that there was a huge hand behind the scenes.

But in fact this is normal.

Because this is the Gyeonggi area, under the jurisdiction of Kaifeng Prefecture, under the emperor's feet.

Especially since the last time Zhao Jun was robbed in Fengqiu, the court has cracked down on him many times.

joke.

Zhao Jun was robbed by the local evil forces, and the army was dispatched to destroy him. If the local government fails to take action, wouldn't it be a suicide attempt?

Therefore, the counties surrounding Gyeonggi Province treat the problems of their own counties with a desperate attitude.

It is basically impossible for the powerful landlords and ruffians and evil gentry to do evil again.

Officials are more afraid of corruption and abuse of power.

It can be said that there are almost no people around Gyeonggi, let alone the evil forces, even the gangsters on the streets.

Once there are people who are idle and do not work or farm, the government will really arrest them and send them to build bridges, pave roads, and build various facilities.

There were even merchants passing through this county who had to be slapped twice by the government officials if the local vicious dogs barked at them.

In this case, something is wrong.

The performance of all the counties in Kaifeng Prefecture that Zhao Jun passed along the way was very good, which made him very satisfied.

So every time I went to a place and saw the situation, I praised him and gave some speeches to encourage local officials and let them keep up their efforts.

After five or six days, the team arrived at the ferry of Ji County. After crossing the Yellow River, they reached the county seat of Ji County, and then headed north to Wu'an.

Nowadays, construction is going on all over the country. Although the official roads in the North China Plain do not use cement roads, the rammed earth roads are also very neat and wide, and the convoys can be said to move quickly.

If we don't have to stay in the local area for two or three days to carry out work and investigate the local environment, the distance from Bianliang to Jixian is less than 100 kilometers, and two days is enough.

In the early morning of March 12th, the motorcade slowly arrived at the ferry in Ji County. Everyone got off the carriage, looked at the ferry from a distance, and saw the ferry boats.

The Yellow River has had many ferries since ancient times, and the ferry industry is necessary for north-south transportation. There are small boats for ordinary people and large passenger ships for business travelers, and the prices are naturally different.

There were more than 300 people in their party, so they chartered two large passenger ships locally. After boarding the ships with their luggage and carriages, they set sail straight to the other side of the river.

Zhao Jun and others also took off their official uniforms, put on ordinary clothes, and pretended to be passing business travelers in disguise for a private visit.

At this moment, the waves of the Yellow River are vast and the water is turbulent.

Everyone stood on the deck, leaning against the railing and looking at the scenery on the other side several miles away.

"Although the water in the river is not yet clear, it is much better than before. It is not turbid but not so yellow. The management of the upper reaches is still very effective."

Zhao Jun put his hands behind his back, and the breeze blew, causing the corners of his clothes to fly.

Yang Gao once went to Xixia as an envoy and saw the situation in the upper reaches of the Yellow River. He said: "This is all caused by the good management of the Zhiyuan to prevent the loss of sediment."

Zhao Jun knew that he liked to flatter him. After all, Hu Su once said that he wanted to join the powerful because of his happiness. He smiled and said: "No need to compliment me, I just gave the order to control desertification and rivers. The credit belongs to the people who plant trees and build rivers."

"Yes Yes Yes."

Yang Gao agreed with a smile and nodded.

Yang Cha said: "Zhiyuan, can we really hide it from the local officials by traveling incognito like this?"

"Of course I can't hide it, but it's a time difference."

Zhao Jun said: "Everywhere I go, I don't notify the local government. My whereabouts are not fixed, and no one knows where I am going. Even if the officials know that I am going on patrol again, it will be difficult for them to track my whereabouts." , when I find out, I can basically make an unannounced visit there for a day or two, and that’s enough.”

"I see."

Yang Cha suddenly realized.

Zhao Jun smiled.

Of course he knew it would be difficult to conceal his tracks.

But communications were underdeveloped in this era. How could local officials know where he had gone without notification from the court?

Even if the officials of the previous county learned of his arrival and took huge risks to immediately send people to notify the officials of the next county, it would be difficult to make it in time.

What's more, human nature is selfish. Unless the officials from the previous county have deep interests entangled with the officials from the next county, who would commit suicide to do this?

Once discovered by Zhao Jun, the end will definitely not be much better.

Therefore, it is difficult to conduct a private visit incognito, but it is still easy to make a time difference for a day or two after arriving in the next county so that local officials do not know so quickly.

All you need to do is send people to check the local area, ask questions, and listen to the voices of the people, and you will naturally understand what the situation is like in this place.

Therefore, he does not worry about being deceived when he gets there. Only when he encounters problems can he solve them before they happen.

"This road is still peaceful, which shows that the local governance is good."

Zhao Jun said: "But our first stop is Youyan. The situation there is a little more complicated. We can analyze it first, and we can talk about specific analysis of specific problems."

"Listen to the teachings of the Academy."

Everyone's face was very serious.

Along the way, their biggest gain was being able to listen to Zhao Jun’s analysis.

Because Zhao Jun's words hit the key points every time, making things that they couldn't understand suddenly become clear and clear.

I heard Zhao Jun say: "Why should I go to Youyan? Because the Liao Kingdom has ruled Yanyun for hundreds of years, and it has only been two years since its return, and people's hearts have not returned, so I must go to the local area to see the situation."

"Although the imperial court has sent officials, local governance still needs to be negotiated and jointly developed with the major families, and the imperial court has to appoint these major local families to maintain order."

"It can be said that the Youyan area is not completely under the jurisdiction of the imperial court, but is co-governed by the major local families. This is not unacceptable to the imperial court."

"But what the imperial court wants is local stability and people's support for the Song Dynasty, rather than just recognizing the local wealthy families and not knowing what the imperial court of the Song Dynasty is."

"Come."

After saying that, Zhao Jun looked at everyone and smiled and said, "Tell me, how can we solve the problem of Yan Yun's people's attachment?"

To put it simply, it is actually how to solve regional loyalty and people’s sense of belonging.

The Sixteen Prefectures of Yanyun were separated during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period. It has been more than a hundred years now. The local Han people have been separated from the Central Plains Han people for several generations.

Just like the overseas Chinese in later generations, many of their ancestors went overseas to develop during the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China. How many of them still consider themselves Chinese?

So it’s unrealistic to want people’s hearts to fall in love quickly.

At present, the Song Dynasty court combined with the local conditions and in order to prevent overly radical policies that would cause resentment among the Han people in Yanyun, it jointly ruled with the local big family forces.

One is to send court officials to govern and promote the benevolent government of the court.

Second, appoint those who surrendered earlier, such as the Han family in Yutian, the Liu family in Changping, the Ma family in Yilu, and the Zhao family in Lulong, in order to stabilize the people's hearts.

But doing so is equivalent to co-governing Yanyun with aristocratic families during the Jin Dynasty, which is very detrimental to the central government of the imperial court.

Therefore, Zhao Jun is now taking exams for everyone in the school, and he has other reasons.

Yang Gao was astute, thought of this, and immediately said: "How can the imperial court allow local nobles to co-govern? This has seriously affected the imperial court's majesty in the hearts of the local people, and the subordinates feel that they can be attacked."

He thought these words won Zhao Jun's heart.

Unexpectedly, Zhao Jun just glanced at him and said nothing.

Wang Anshi said solemnly: "No."

"Why?"

Yang Gaolue said with some dissatisfaction: "It is no longer the Jin Dynasty. The court's law is the king's law. How can the nobles and the king's law be placed side by side?"

"The court did this for the sake of stability. If a local family affects stability, it is right for the court to eradicate them."

Wang Anshi said: "But if those families have high prestige in the local area and are very popular among the people, then eradicating them will only cause instability, which is obviously not advisable."

"Well, I thought that was the case too."

Li Xiaoji is the grandson of Li Di. He has been exposed to the situation since he was a child and has a certain perspective on the overall situation. He said: "The imperial court will definitely not allow local families to become powerful. However, if Yan Yun attacks them just after joining, it will only make the people panic."

"Forehead"

Yang Gao wanted to say something else.

Zhao Jun nodded and said, "Yes, Jiefu and Boshi are right, but Daozhi still hasn't seen the essence of the matter."

He continued: "Of course I also want to get rid of these local families, but if they are beneficial to the country and the local area, then they can be kept temporarily to maintain national stability."

"This only requires strengthening the authority of the local government, improving the government's status in the hearts of the people, and slowly weakening their influence, so that the weight of the court is higher than that of local families."

"After a few decades, everyone will be used to the governance of the imperial court, so naturally no one will remember them."

"certainly."

Having said this, Zhao Jun paused and then said with a smile: "If these families are unpopular in the local area and often do evil and oppress the people, then tell me, what should I do?"

Now everyone figured it out with their toes.

Chen Xiliang immediately said: "Eradicate them to calm the people's hearts!"

"Exactly."

Zhao Jun laughed and said: "In fact, it is easy to win over the people. Whatever the people want, the court will give them."

"The hearts of the people are honest and their wishes are simple."

"They have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear. There is no one above them to bully them. They are satisfied if someone can provide them with justice."

"As long as the court can do all this, the people will naturally be loyal to it, and Yanyun, which left the Central Plains a hundred years ago, will naturally be integrated into it and truly become one."

"And what we have to do is to let the people of Yanyun understand. The court had no choice but to not let them go home for a hundred years, but the court has never forgotten them."

"Now that they are back, the court will treat them equally. Whatever the people of the Song Dynasty have, they will have. There will be absolutely no discrimination, and there will be no more harsh politics and oppression."

"In this way, the people of Yanyun will probably gradually identify with the court, and will also regain their Han identity and no longer have any gaps with us."

This is the purpose of Zhao Jun's first stop in Yanyun this time.

Although the Sixteen States of Yanyun became the territory of the Liao Kingdom for more than a hundred years, the culture and thoughts of both sides have not been completely separated, and there has always been a traditional Confucian ideology there.

It's just that the people of Yanyun are actually very uneasy now. They don't know what their future fate will be.

The most intuitive example is when Hong Kong returned in later generations, many Hong Kong residents were very nervous about such a situation. It's not that they are unpatriotic or don't admit that they are Chinese, but they don't know how China will treat them.

Later, the central government came up with the "one country, two systems" plan, implementing Hong Kong people governing Hong Kong, continuing the previous strategy, letting Hong Kong people know that the country did not intend to make drastic changes, which appeased people's hearts.

Today's Yanyun is the same.

They have been accustomed to the identity of Liao people, and suddenly became Song people. They lack a sense of belonging for a while, and naturally have a trace of resistance and defense against the governance of the court.

And there are generally two ways to dispel such concerns and defenses.

One is to solve it through time and education, slowly integrate, develop local education, and let the next generation change this kind of thinking through ideological education.

After a few decades, the identity transformation is basically completed.

Just like when the Qin Dynasty just unified, the survivors of the six countries did not agree, and soon there was a violent resistance and uprising.

But when the Han Dynasty was established, it slowly integrated and unified for hundreds of years. By the late Eastern Han Dynasty, there was basically no seven country people, only one identity left-Han people.

The second is to know what the local people want through benevolent politics, solve their difficulties, and let them know who is good to them.

The common people are generally simple. Even if there are ungrateful people, they take it for granted that they are treated well. However, such people are only a minority after all. Most people are grateful to anyone who treats them well.

Just like Liu Bei was born in a commoner family, but he insisted on benevolence and righteousness in the troubled times, and finally founded the Ji Han Dynasty and divided the world into three parts.

If the local people are oppressed, then help them solve the oppression.

If they can't eat enough, help them build a complete agricultural system, distribute means of production, help them cultivate the land and feed themselves.

If they can't drink water, help them dig ditches, dig wells and repair rivers, so that they don't have to worry about water.

The court solves their needs and helps them develop and build.

Then the people will soon realize that the current Song Dynasty court is completely different from the Song Dynasty court that used to take advantage of the people.

The problem of belonging is naturally solved.

"The prefect is brilliant!"

"Sometimes we think too complicatedly about problems. The prefect's words are sharp."

"As the prefect said, to look at problems, we need to see the essence through the phenomenon."

Everyone was convinced by Zhao Jun's foresight, and his insights also made them suddenly enlightened.

The way of looking at problems naturally became different.

Zhao Jun just smiled and didn't say anything.

They thought this was Zhao Jun's strategy, but they didn't know that sincerity was the killer.

Be sincere to others, and others will be sincere to me.

If not, why did the people in the base area during the Anti-Japanese War support our party so enthusiastically?

Everyone was talking.

At this time, the fleet gradually approached the north bank.

However, just when they were about to reach the north bank ferry, more than 20 small boats suddenly floated out from a tributary full of reeds on the upstream bank of the Yellow River, and rushed towards them like flying.

There were more than ten people on each small boat, and there were probably two or three hundred people in total. They had a clear division of labor and quickly moved together, with the momentum of surrounding the two passenger ships.

The captain on the ship clapped his hands and said worriedly: "It's bad, we encountered pirates, what should we do."

In an instant, Zhao Jun frowned.

What does it mean?

Every time I go out, I have to be robbed.

Can the public security of the Song Dynasty be improved?