The hot summer is coming to an end, and the cool autumn wind is blowing on the mountains and fields in the north. The green mountains and forests have been dotted with some yellow leaves at some point. When the farmer is resting on the field ridge, he looks at the fruitful crops, and the satisfied smile in his eyes cannot be concealed. I have begun to look forward to the beautiful scene of the full grain.
Smoke and dust splashed on the official road leading to Qingzhou City. A team of more than 20 riders was burying their heads on the road. Several officials in front of the team were dressed in green and green civilian robes, with copper fish belts hanging around their waists. The first two officials It is wearing a scarlet official robe and wearing a silver fish bag.
The farmers in the crop fields beside the official road raised their heads when they heard the movement, and waited for a while after seeing the team, with a look of admiration and awe on their faces. But he didn't find it strange, and quickly looked away.
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A knowledgeable farmer can roughly tell the grades of these officials. Those who wear turquoise official robes will not exceed the sixth rank. A member of the fourth and fifth ranks, to say the least, is also a high-ranking official in the state.
These days, I often see such a team rushing from the official road to Qingzhou City, and the farmers are used to it. Recently, a major incident happened in Pinglu, and the people with a little information can find out one or two things. I heard that King An is going to send troops to the Central Plains to fight against Zhu Wen. He has mobilized more than one million soldiers from all sides.
Such a large military operation will affect the whole body, and all states and counties must cooperate closely to mobilize animals, capital and civilians to transport food, fodder and supplies to the front line. There are rumors that King An took advantage of the opportunity to assign tasks to the states and counties, and summoned some important officials from the states and counties to meet them in Qingzhou, and wanted to personally reward them for their hard work.
When a large army goes out, morale comes first. Not only the soldiers of the three armies must fight the enemy bravely, but also the civil servants in the rear must actively prepare for the battle. Without morale, how can they work hard to ensure the supply of supplies? That requires working overtime or even day and night.
To boost morale, it is nothing more than rewards and punishments. At this time, King An personally met and rewarded the chief officials of the prefecture and county. Although it was a little hasty, it was an appropriate and necessary move.
The autumn wind was brisk, but the sun was still hot. A young official with bushy eyebrows and big eyes was sweating all over his head. He heard the discussions and conversations of the farmers beside the road. The color of worry.
His name was Zhang Wence, and his style name was Kunxing. He was thirty-two years old at the time and was the county magistrate of Wei County, Weizhou under the jurisdiction of Wei Bo Jiedushi.
Weizhou is not Weibozhi Prefecture, and the governor's office of Weizhou is not in Wei County but in Ji County, but Wei County is a serious county. Unlike ordinary county magistrates who worship Qipin, Zhang Wence is an official rank of Zhengliu, and his status can be said to be prominent .
The reason why Wei County is densely populated is because the place is rich, and there is only one reason why Wei County is rich: it is located on the bank of the canal, and the west end of Yongji Canal is in Wei County to connect with the Yellow River.
However, success is also rich and failure is also rich. The affluent Wei County gave Zhang Wence an extraordinary status, but it also brought him many hidden dangers, and now he is facing an unprecedented disaster.
When he looked at the people beside the road just now, the reason why he looked worried was because his words aroused his thoughts.
"King An summoned local officials to Qingzhou City not just to reward us... Rewards and punishments, rewards and punishments can inspire morale and control people's hearts, but I am destined to be the one to be punished." Zhang Wence thought Here, I couldn't help but look sad.
Zhang Wence is a serious young official, and being able to worship the sixth rank to govern the government and Wei County proves that he is not bad in politics. In fact, he has managed Wei County very well. Since he took office, he has been diligent in political affairs and sleeps all night. It can be said that he has exhausted his energy. Therefore, although it has only been less than half a year, the people in the county have already praised his virtuous name.
However, for any official, doing things well is not the most important factor in gaining political achievements and getting promoted. Although Zhang Wence is still young, he has been an official for many years. He knows very well that only when his superiors think that you are good and that you have a future, can you be truly good and have a real future.
He was able to be the county magistrate of Wei County at the age of thirty-two, which means that he did not do badly before, and he was able to curry favor with his superiors.
Although Zhang Wence comes from Confucianism, he is not a pedantic scholar who only knows about benevolence, righteousness and morality, but does not know how to adapt. It is difficult for a pedantic scholar to gain a foothold in a governing world, let alone a troubled world.
Zhang Wence's consistent principle of doing things is not only to be a good parent officer, but also to take care of his own future. Serving as an official benefits one party. This is the minimum moral upholding of Confucian scholars, and it is also Zhang Wence's bottom line for being an official. Unable to make decisions for the people, his official robes are not practical.
Similarly, on this basis, he abides by the rules of the officialdom, and he is absolutely unambiguous about the gifts he should receive, the gifts he should give, and the flattery he should give to his superiors. Although he sometimes feels sick and uncomfortable, he can bear it.
There are also times when I can't help it. After all, the faces of some higher-level officials are sometimes more stinky than feces. Pretending to be a grandson is not something everyone can do.
Before his death, his father took him by the hand and asked him, "Is it easier to take care of yourself alone, or to help the world as a whole?"
He replied: "It's easy to be alone."
His father asked why.
Zhang Wence replied: "To be good for one's own life, you only need to live in a study, but to help the world, you need to work hard."
"No, you're wrong." His father shook his head.
The dying old man solemnly told him: "It's not difficult to shout benevolence, righteousness and morality, and it's easy to spit on officials who do evil and evil. It’s nothing more than not being in power, and the family has no money. Many times, they can gain a good reputation, be respected by the villagers, and even be listed on the list of Confucian sages and handsome men, and be praised by future generations.”
"The really difficult thing is to bury the ideal of benevolence, righteousness and morality in one's stomach, greet the officials who do evil and do evil with a smile on their faces, and sit on the saddle with the villains and villains, and talk to them and call them brothers and sisters. The most difficult thing is that in this situation You can still stick to the ambition of a Confucian scholar, you can solve the difficulties of the people, you can save the suffering of the people, you can bring happiness to the people, let them live and work in peace, report the truth and know the etiquette, and repay the king's kindness!"
Zhang Wence was silent for a long time.
The old man held Zhang Wence tightly with his skinny hands, looked at the beams of the house and sighed, "It's so easy to be a clean person who seeks fame and fame, and lives in peace and happiness, but it's so difficult to be a competent official who can benefit one party! It's not a skill to be able to live with the situation. , the one who can endure suffering with this heart is a real hero!"
"Kun Xing, you have read so many books of sages and sages, and learned so many policies of governing the country. If you don't become a competent official, what will the common people do? Scholars of my generation, who make meritorious deeds and words, meritorious deeds always come first. .The credit goes to the community and the benefits go to the common people, so you are not in vain as a scholar!"
After the old man said these words, he never opened his eyes again.
When he was dying, he grabbed Zhang Wence's hand vigorously.
... Zhang Wence has always remembered his father's earnest teachings, and dare not relax for a moment.
He is in the officialdom, and he has been looking for a balance between being an official and doing things, being the top and being the bottom. In the previous years, he has always mastered this balance.
However, the balance is always broken.
In many cases, the balance point simply does not exist.
Zhang Wence thought that he could always stand in the gray, but once he entered the officialdom, especially when he was in power in troubled times, when he wanted to keep his own color, he found that the road in front of him was already either black or white.
Everything happened in this half year.
Wei County is not only a place of prosperity, but also a place of crisis.
The danger comes from the other side of the Yellow River.
Across the river from Wei County is Huazhou, the seat of the Yicheng Army Jiedushi's governing state. The county seat of Wei County is very close to Huazhou, only a few tens of miles away.
The Jiedu Envoy of the Yicheng Army in Huazhou is adjacent to the Jiedu Envoy of the Xuanwu Army in Bianzhou. Since Zhu Wen took office, the Jiedu Envoy of the Yicheng Army has been wooed by Zhu Wen through various means and has become a solid wing of the opponent. In the middle period when the Pinglu Army sent troops to Hedong, the Xuanwu Army once joined forces with the Yicheng Army Chen Bing to cross the Yellow River, intending to cross Hebei.
In those days, Wei County was shrouded in the cloud of war. Every day, many local tyrants, gentry and common people came to the county government anxiously to inquire about the situation. Everyone knew that once the Xuanwu and Yicheng armies crossed the river, Wei County would bear the brunt of it, and would inevitably suffer from military disasters, death and wealth.
During that time, Zhang Wence was restless, unable to eat during the day and sleepless at night.
Later, because the Pinglu army's offensive was too smooth, Zhu Wen saw that Hedong had no chance to take advantage of it, so he sent his troops eastward to attack Qingzhou, and Wei County survived by luck.
After learning that the Yicheng and Xuanwu armies had withdrawn, Zhang Wence, who was standing at the top of the city and looking at the Yellow River, was different from the common people embracing and celebrating, and couldn't calm down for a long time.
The Yicheng and Xuanwu armies have withdrawn this time, but will they come again in the future
Wei County is too close to Huazhou.
If the Yicheng Army sent fine cavalry to cross the river, they would be able to rush to the city of Wei County in one day.
After all, the Yicheng Army is a feudal town army, and there are many monks in the training period. If they come to attack Wei County, Wei County's poor troops, tiny monk power, and low city walls and simple city defenses are not worth it at all. Might be defensible.
The opponent only needs a wave of offensive, and Wei County's defense line will be breached, and there will be no way for reinforcements to arrive.
Will Yi Chengjun come
Zhang Wence frowned.
Zhu Wen was hostile to King An, and the Yicheng Army was the first to join Zhu Wen's feudal town, and Wei County was known to be rich, so even if the Yicheng Army would not attack Wei Bo easily, would they plunder Wei County, kill people and steal money
Zhang Wenchou stood silently for half a day, and did not go down to the city until dark.
He has made a decision.
He wants to protect the people of Wei County.
So he rectified the military defense.
The bad thing is that he was an official before, and he was valued by his superiors. He also did a lot of practical things and was praised by the people. He has great authority and prestige, so he did this smoothly.
In just one month, he recruited 3,000 young men to repair the county defenses, dig deep ditches, and build high walls, while building fortifications along the Yellow River, building early-warning beacon lines, and even organizing the people in the village to respond to the war. A drill is necessary.
The result is a waste of money.