In all the counties and county-level cities in China, many of the largest counties have a population of more than 1 million, and the total population of some counties even exceeds 1.5 million. But in china's ancient society, a county only had a population of a few hundred thousand. At the same time, the county's pawn is Qipinzhi County, and there are only a few dozen servants in the county. So, relying on these dozens of servants, how does the Lord of Zhixian manage so many people in the county? Seriously, Zhixian has many ways to ensure the stability of a region.
First, let's talk about the power of Seven Pinchi Counties. In a county, lord Zhixian has absolute power. Lord Zhixian is responsible for the county's economic, prison, public security, money, grain, taxation and other aspects of the work, as for the Eight Pin County And the Nine Pin Lord Bo, they basically belong to the shaking head of the old man, and the power in the Yamen is not large. In one county, there were some petty officials and servants. The petty officers were responsible for the writing work, and the servants were responsible for the security of the whole county. How many servants are there in a county? Seriously, even those counties with large populations have only sixty or seventy servants at most. In ordinary county seats, there are generally thirty or forty servants.
In ancient society, there were often large families ranging from a few hundred to thousands of people, and if there was a contradiction between the county and these big families, relying on dozens of servants could not solve the problem at all. So, what about lord Zhixian who is responsible for maintaining law and order in the whole county? Please note that the servants and petty officials are all organized, and there are records in the official department, and there cannot be more than one. In addition, minor officials and servants can be hereditary, so it is often the case that the son inherits the father's business. The fact that there are dozens of servants in the county does not mean that there are only a few dozen people working, because each servant has a few to a dozen or so helpers.
Helping idle people is a social idle person who relies on assisting the servants to work and mix meals. The helpers have no salary and must find their own way to earn extra money at work. A county has dozens of servants, and there may be hundreds of helpers. In the later period of Qing rule, a small peasant uprising broke out in a county in Sichuan Province, and ZhiXian gathered nearly 1,000 servants and helpers from all over the county to successfully suppress this small uprising. In addition, during the Ming and Qing dynasties, each county would have an army of about three or four hundred people stationed.
These armies were not the main field forces, but the ones responsible for policing. According to the regulations, a county has 3 inspectors, and each inspection manages more than 100 people. Although the combat effectiveness of these officers and men is not strong, the armed force of a few hundred people can deter the clans everywhere. However, these security forces are subordinate to the prefect, and the prefecture has no power to directly mobilize. Although there are only a few dozen servants in the county, from another point of view, both the helper and the security forces can play a role in maintaining law and order. Dozens of servants are basically concentrated in the county seat, so how to ensure the security of each township? For each village, the imperial court still had a way.
First of all, in the era of very small population flow, a township suddenly came to a foreigner, which is very conspicuous. If a foreigner stays or stays, he or she must present a road guide issued by another county. If there is no road guide, neither hotels nor ordinary farmhouses will take them in. Because once a case occurs, the hotel or farmer is also responsible. There are no servants in the townships, so what if there is a major case?
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the imperial court implemented a strict lijia system. For example, if one family is robbed, the other 9 families around must come to the rescue. Otherwise, the imperial court will also hold it accountable. Therefore, although there are no servants in the local area, the security is very good. In the townships, there is still a force, that is, the local gentry. The local squire has a great influence, and if there is friction and dispute among the people, as long as it is not a major case, it will generally find a local squire for mediation. After all, if you disturb Lord Zhixian because of all kinds of trivial things, Lord Zhixian may be very unhappy. Perhaps, a killing stick can't be avoided.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the population of each county ranged from tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands. In those economically bustling areas, a county may have a population of several hundred thousand. However, some counties in the northwest and southwest may only have a population of tens of thousands. Although everyone is a Seven Pins County, the difference in regions directly affects the future. Generally speaking, Zhixian is the absolute authority of the whole county, and no one can shake the Lord of Zhixian County, so there is a saying that "breaking the family and knowing the county, destroying the door house Yin". However, some Zhixian are very miserable, that is, Zhixian county, which is the same city as the county capital.
For example, the prefect and the zhixian are working in the same city, facing their superiors every day, and the life of the zhixian is not good. According to the regulations of the imperial court, zhixian and prefects could not meet casually except for meetings. However, the prefect has the power to evaluate, that is, to evaluate the work performance of each county. The examination language of the prefect greatly affected the promotion of the prefects. As for those provincial capitals and counties in the same city or the governor's county, the status of Zhi County is even more embarrassing.
For example, in Xiangfu County, Kaifeng Province, Henan Province, Henan Governor, Kaifeng Prefect and Xiangfu Zhi County work in one city, facing the Erpin Inspector, if the Inspector guides the work, ZhiXian certainly does not dare not listen. In Wuchang County, Wuchang Province, Hubei Province, the Governor of Huguang, the Governor of Hubei, the Governor of Wuchang and the Zhi County of Wuchang worked in one city, and in the face of the Governor and the Governor, the Prefect and the Governor were greatly restricted. Especially in Wuchang Zhi County, as a seven-pin official, there is really no advantage in the face of the feudal officials of one or two pins.
As for the several zhi counties under the jurisdiction of Suncheon Province, they are even more bitter. Because at the foot of the Heavenly Son, the imperial court and the six ministries and nine secretaries gathered, and the Seven Pinzhi County did not even have the most basic right to speak. Therefore, when electing officials, Zhixian wanted to work in a county that was far away from the capital. Because, in such a county, Lord Zhixian was the real Emperor of The Earth. There are many more stories about ancient official positions, and the author will talk to you slowly in future articles.