People who love to watch TV novels may often see the plot of exile. The so-called Son of Heaven was angry, and millions of corpses were ambushed, not to mention exiled. So while watching, have you ever wondered why the prisoners would not escape on the way? There are only two or three guards in general, and the exile route is very far away, there are many things to eat and sleep on the road, and there is always a chance to escape, but it seems that it is rare to see a plot in which a prisoner successfully escapes. So why is this?
In fact, as a kind of ancient criminal law in China, the origin of exile is very early, it has begun to take shape in the Qin and Han Dynasties, and it has developed very well by the late Southern and Northern Dynasties. Since the Sui Dynasty, Liu, along with flogging, rods, disciples, and death, formed the new five punishment system, which lasted until the end of the Qing Dynasty. As a punishment that has undergone continuous changes and development for more than 1,500 years, the exile system must have its particularity and guarantee in order to be imprisoned in ancient times.
First of all, the prisoners simply do not have the physical conditions to escape. The person to be assigned will certainly wear torture equipment, handcuffs and shackles, and a wooden shackle on the neck, which will weigh dozens of pounds in total, and there will be special guards to escort them. Exiled prisoners are usually not given preferential treatment, even if they have been high-ranking officials or have a wealthy family member before leaving, it is difficult to relax in the exile process. Exile is generally distributed to remote and poor barren lands, where mountains are high and the road is far away, and it is common to walk for several months from the place of liberation to the destination. Moreover, the amount of food that prisoners eat has strict regulations, which will ensure that prisoners will not die of hunger, but they will definitely not be able to eat enough. Along the way, the wind and food were open, running day and night, hungry, even the strong officials could not stand it, let alone the prisoners who had been wearing shackles. Moreover, many of those who are generally exiled have lived a good life and have not suffered any hardships, and it is not easy to wait for an opportunity to escape during the exile process, that is, it is not easy to rush to the place of exile without dragging their legs.
Secondly, the ancient exile system has a certain degree of perfection. Before the exiles were solved, news had been received everywhere on the way, and the portraits had long been scattered everywhere, and even if they escaped by chance, they would not go far and would be discovered nearby. Moreover, most of the prisoners exiled in the later period will be tattooed on their faces, and at a glance, they will know that they are the ones who have been assigned. What's more, in ancient times, it was a household registration system, and whoever came from where they came from, they had to rely on a plate, which is equivalent to our current IDENTITY card, and only by having a "pass" could they freely enter and exit the city gate. Moreover, the mobility of ancient personnel was relatively small, and suddenly a ragged stranger came running, and it would not be long before the village chief, the pavilion chief, the security chief, and the chief of the village would receive the news, and as long as they found that the shape was suspicious, they would be arrested and taken to the county court immediately.
Then there is the ancient people who paid attention to family honor and disgrace, and one person tied one door. Although he was exiled, if he escaped, the whole family would be implicated. Therefore, for the safety of the whole family, the vast majority of prisoners will not easily escape, especially some prisoners from large families, not only for the sake of family life, but also for the glory of the family.
Finally, there is always a glimmer of hope in the exiled prisoners. Some prisoners are allowed to return to their places of origin after serving their sentences in exile for more than a certain period of time. And if you are lucky enough, in the face of the new emperor's ascension to the throne, the big marriage, the great victory of the war, etc., it is not impossible to pardon the world under the great joy of the dragon, after all, people are alive, everything is hopeful.
Although the exile seemed miserable, he was driven and tortured along the way, and after arriving, he worked for several days and his life was in danger. However, in ancient times, due to the completeness of the system, there were still very few prisoners who fled during the exile, and the vast majority of prisoners would choose to be honestly assigned rather than being caught after escaping, so exile was the most deterrent criminal law in addition to the death penalty.