Author: Yushan
(1) Small doors have large levels
In the fourth story of "Dream of the Red Chamber", "The Gourd Monk Judging the Gourd Case", a mysterious figure appeared, he was a lowly person, he was not among the four people of the scholars, peasants, industrialists, and merchants, according to the ancient rules, the household was untouchable, and the descendants did not even have the qualifications to participate in the imperial examination, but they were familiar with the unspoken rules of the official field, resourceful, and gave advice to Jia Yu Village, holding the chief with one hand, holding the small people with the other hand, entering and leaving, and playing with ease.
He, who was so lowly that he had no name or a name, was called a doorman. It's like a title like "Passerby A". What is a "door"? It is the ancient servant who waited for officials in the official office. The "Yu Cong Kao" (Qing, Zhao Yi) has a "menzi" clause: "The so-called menzi in this world are the unworthy servants who serve tea and hold clothes in the dental department." ”
The level of this "lowly servant" is not low.
Jia Yucun relied on Jia Zheng's recommendation to grant Ying Tianfu, and as soon as he took office, he encountered a lawsuit for human life, Jia Yucun was about to issue a signature to take someone, the door "made the eyes" to stop it, Yucun was suspicious, and invited him into the secret room. I don't mention it. Jia Yucun asked why he didn't let the signature be issued, and the doorman said, "Since the old master is honored to be appointed to this province, hasn't he copied a 'talisman' of this province?" So he showed and explained in detail the amulet, telling the importance of the Affiliation family. He also clarified the facts of the case, pointed out Jia Yucun, "Sail along the water, make a whole person, put the case to rest, and in the future it is better to go to see the Jia Fu Palace"; Jia Yucun hesitated slightly, and he also said, "The big husband moves from time to time", "Those who seek luck and avoid murder are gentlemen", and encourage Jia Yucun to be generous and betrayal of righteousness, and pervert the law and arbitrarily sentence. Jia Yucun superficially shirked, but in fact acted according to the plan.
You see, who is in charge of this Heavenly Palace? Sir? Or slavery?
Through this case, Jia Yucun strengthened his relationship with the Jia family's Wang family, but what about Menzi?
A small doorman, he took the salary of a lowly servant, but every day he carried a talisman and the heart of the chief, what did he want? Is it a solid and honest Bawang Jia Yu Village is good? Believe it or not, I don't believe it anyway. He's not going to do any good in it, it's really a hell of a living thing. This Head Xue Family, that Head Feng Family, after eating the plaintiff and eating the defendant, this door will definitely gain something.
In a case, we can see the energy, wrist, and influence of the door. How could he have such a great ability? This brings us to a large group represented by this figure, the Xu officials.
(2) Imperial power and Xu officials share the world
Guo Songtao of the Qing Dynasty said: "The Western Han Dynasty and the Prime Minister share the world, the Eastern Han Dynasty and the eunuchs share the world, the Tang and the Later Fantasy Fan Town share the world, the Northern Song Dynasty and foreign countries share the world, the Southern Song Dynasty and foreign countries share the world, the Yuan and the traitors fan monks share the world, the Ming and the Prime Minister eunuchs share the world, and the current dynasty shares the world with Xu Shi." ("Bamboo Sawdust")
Xu Shi is generally called Xu Shi. Counties have county orders, and the government has government officials, and those who run errands, or manage money and grain, or manage servitude, or manage documents, all belong to Xu officials. Although they work for the government, their status is not that of an official, and they are somewhat close to the clerks in today's organs at all levels. In fact, it is still different - because the Xu officials are not formally organized, which is only equivalent to hiring personnel. Even if this unorganized recruiter shares the world with the imperial power? Do they have such a? Yes.
Although those who entered the eunuchs by profession read poetry and books, they did not necessarily understand the practice of law, money and grain, and the local power structure. Therefore, they had to rely on Xu officials who were both professionally familiar with the procedures and had deep ties with local forces to do things for themselves. The policy is carried out by the Xu officials, who are the real cornerstone of rule and the basic mechanism for maintaining the operation of the state apparatus. The entire state apparatus and bureaucracy are inseparable from the group of Xu officials for a moment.
They are between the officials and the people, they are subject to the officials, and they also support the officials and the people, and they are the hub of the connection between the officials and the people. Although the social status of these Xu officials is not high, they hold real power and have great benefits. Because the policy is in their hands, they have to rely on them to do errands; and the ordinary people and the lower-level institutions basically have no opportunity to have direct contact with the leadership, and they rely on the Officials for everything. This gives them a lot of room to operate.
(3) How much xu officials know about the misfortune
Guo Songtao must have felt it, we don't know how he was angry with Xu Guan, however, Xu Guan's power was not unique to the Qing Dynasty, it was actually a common cause of history, and it came from itself. Although Xu officials undertook many specific tasks of the operation of the administrative machine, because of their low social status, low treatment, and difficulty in promotion, it was impossible to expect them to have a high moral standard. In social life, it is basically a destructive dark force.
In what ways are the evils of xu officials?
- One of the evils: the cruelty of the small people
Needless to say, how heavy the taxes of the various servitudes borne by the small people are, must first pass the pass of Xu officials. Far away, those who remember the situation of the old society before liberation should be clear about the severity of this. The source of the empire's wealth is nothing more than small people, and there is no room for negotiation between money and grain and taxes, but it must also be peeled off by the Xu officials who handle it. Because the above is the real receipt, and do not care about you this and that, but from the hands of small people to collect, concentrate, in the transfer, distribution, the cost of which is amazing, not to mention that everyone has to share a piece of the pie, more out of the fancy "envy", not all of them are transferred to the head of the small people.
Like "Chatting? The fame in "Promoting Weaving" can't help but abuse the small people, and as a result, people are making a lot of money in their work, he is doing it, and he is miserable, almost killing his whole family. Therefore, it is not that the ancients discriminated against Xu officials, but this industry, and good people really can't do it.
And when we were in junior high school, we all studied Du Fu's "Stone Trench Official", writing that the little official forcibly pulled a husband, entered the house in the middle of the night, frightened the old man to escape over the wall, and finally arrested the old woman. The remnants of the Xu officials can be seen. There is an old movie, a black-and-white film, "La Zhuang Ding", which exposes the evil government of la Zhuang Ding during the War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression, and focuses on portraying the ugly face of a group of low-level officials in the township public office who are cruel to the people and making money, which can be used as a reference.
-- The second evil: manipulating justice
This aspect is the most lucrative, because when it comes to a lawsuit, no matter which side is a pig and sheep to be slaughtered.
Like this door in "Dream of the Red Chamber", it is bound to be skilled in controlling lawsuits and taking over litigation. He is very familiar with the unspoken rules of the powerful family and the official field, and he has a clear understanding of the situation of the plaintiff, the defendant, and the personnel involved in the case.
Fang Bao's "Miscellaneous Records in Prison" of the Qing Dynasty records that the prison guards tortured and blackmailed prisoners, and all kinds of situations were unbearable to see; and the means of perverting the law were even more appalling. As long as enough money is given, the death row inmates who are about to be sentenced to death can be fished out and replaced by others to die, "With this chapter, the prison words are not easy, and the two people who are single and have no relatives at the end of the case are easy to get, and it is only easy to sneak up when they are sealed." Is there any risk in doing so? No. Even if the chief finds out that he has killed the wrong person, he does not dare to ask, because he cannot bear this leadership responsibility, and will only cover up the past.
Even the judiciary has fallen, and the world is completely dark, and there is no light at all.
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Because of the control of interests, the fact that Xu officials are hereditary or controlled by fellow villagers is often formed in the localities or departments, and the power is even greater and more stable; moreover, officials have tenure and various systems to avoid suspicion, while Xu officials have been in office for a long time, and every time they create such a pattern as "officials who fight iron and flow water", the officials are strong and weak, and the officials cannot govern the officials, and the Xu officials can influence, and even coerce the chiefs, and they have the advantage in sharing the loot, and become the actual emperor of the local or departmental land.
In the Qing Dynasty, Zhu Kejing's "Miscellaneous Knowledge of The Temple" records one thing: during the Daoguang years, there was a jinshi named Yun Shilin, who served as the prefect of Changsha and the governor of Hunan. Once, before entering the examination, he once drank in a tavern, and occasionally heard a Xu official at the neighboring table say to people, the official field is like a car, I and other officials are like people who drive a car, the chief officer and subordinate officer are like mules, we whip them, tell them to go to the left and they dare not go to the right. Yun Shilin listened, and secretly "sighed" in his heart.
In fact, this kind of thing is a bystander's obsession, and the authorities are clear. In the eyes of outsiders, officials and officials are respected and judged from top to bottom, how can they be confused? And being in the bureau, it is neither "strange" nor "sighing": how can those who are officials leave these officials under their command to carry out their work? Who do they not rely on?
Xu officials are powerful, not only will they blackmail the chief of the department, as long as the errands are related, they can all collude interests, a division of power can also be exchanged for very profits, and a single gap can also drill a bottomless pit.
Zuo Zongtang recovered the triumph of Ili and went to the household department to write off military expenses, and a small scribe in the household department actually asked for benefits in a dignified manner, and did not give it, right? It doesn't matter if you don't give it, but so many account books, you have to check them one by one, which one can't be checked for ten days and a half months, the state's money can't be sloppy, we slowly calculate, you come back after two years old -- the grand officials of the tang dynasty can't stand it, and obediently stuff money.
Feng Guifen of the Qing Dynasty talked about the power of Xu officials, and once said: "Prefectures and counties are known as possible, officials are not allowed, Si cannot be satisfied, and those who are as small as they are." The Qing Dynasty governor knows that it is okay, the official is not allowed, the Si is not allowed, and the small one is also small. The Son of Heaven knows that it is possible, and the official knows that he is not, and his those who are not cannot do so are half-hearted, so their power is above the prime minister, and so is his nobility. ”
These words were said concisely and clearly, and without Xu Officials nodding, let alone the governors of prefectures and counties, the secretaries of state and county, and the local governors, it was the will of the Son of Heaven, and it was difficult to carry them out. Although Xu's status was lowly, his real power exceeded that of Zaifu.
In "Dream of the Red Chamber", why this door is so full of arrogance, it is easy to understand. When he spoke to Jia Yucun, he always had a lecture tone, and from time to time he "sneered", which was very strong, and he had the vague intention of holding the chief hostage.
It's just that he is a halfway monk - so to speak a bit funny, in fact, halfway is still vulgar, not long after entering the industry, has not yet formed a very stable force, and finally was "found by Jia Yu Village, far away from him", who told him to understand the past of the chief, and so arrogant, who told him to meet Jia Yu Village, such a tyrant. This also truly reflects the symbiotic and strife relationship between the chief and the Xu officials, whose power expands and invades the chiefs; the chiefs have the skills to also clean up the Xu officials.
-- For the fourth reason, collude with criminal syndicates and evil forces
Take Song Jiang in "Water Margin" as an example. It was originally a small abbot in Yuncheng County, and it belonged to Xu Zheng without a doubt.
What is the specific business of the Oshi Division? That is, copying various documents, equivalent to today's clerks. A clerk, however, is inextricably linked to the underworld, and everyone on the rivers and lakes praises "timely rain". What is "timely rain"? It is willing to help, willing to throw money everywhere, the scientific name is to fight righteousness and loose wealth.
Where did Song Jiang come from with such great ability? Although the Oshi is small, the post is important, the documents up and down are in hand, and a lot of information is mastered, and many aspects are needed. Underworld and evil forces and criminal gangs are particularly needed.
Song Jiang handed Chao Gai a message and let go of a robbery gang, how much was he paid? - Gold one hundred and two.
Have a concept?
According to today's market, gold 300 yuan / gram is not much to count. According to the investigation, one pound in the Song Dynasty was equivalent to about 0.598 kilograms now, and at that time, one pound was sixteen two, then,
One or two = 1 kg / 16 = 0.598 kg / 16 = 37.375 g,
100 two = 3737.5 grams, 3737.5 grams of gold, equivalent to the market price of about 1121250 yuan.
(Song Jiang and Yan Boxi)
That's right, in a word, you can earn more than a million. Just this Song Jiang still does not receive. He said, "And you are in the cottage, waiting for Song Jiang to lack coils and come to take it." ”
In other words, I want to eat slowly, and don't think that this little money can buy a single. In fact, what Song Jiang later obtained from Liangshan was far more than one hundred taels of gold. To save money in righteousness, we must first get rich.
You see, as a little Xu official, you can step on the black and white roads, sit in the door and work, but collude with the evil forces behind your back. Inform criminal gangs and make black money; then use black money to bribe criminals and expand their personal power. The government still expects them to do things, and the world is not chaotic!
Ancient politics, no matter how the change of dynasties and generations is refreshed, relies on Xu officials to carry out political people, this has never changed, and it has never established an effective supervision system, resulting in the vicious expansion of this group, and the good things in the world are all destroyed; the bad things in the world are made worse. So as the old saying goes, the car and boat shop foot teeth (衙), innocent should also be killed. Regardless of the first few, the latter one is said to have two words: tooth (intermediary) and ya (xu official). Reflected: the world's bitter officials have been suffering for a long time!
Are there any officials today? As a group, it certainly does not exist, and now it is a society ruled by law, and everyone is equal. But has the phenomenon similar to Xu officials' misappropriation of power and the law completely eliminated? I always suspect that there are still residues left, or I don't always hear people say that the scriptures are good and bad for the crooked monks; and I say that so-and-so departments have ugly faces, ugly words, and difficult things. These are afraid that these are the poisons of the Xu official culture, and it is better to sweep them all away.
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