Back to the Song Dynasty as a tyrant

The next day, Li Zhaoyan and Zhou Hong's news was reported to Southwest Road of Shoujing.

The people in Xiangyang City all praised it, but obviously the two heads couldn't express the importance that the Zhao family attached to this matter.

In the early morning of the eleventh day of May, Hu Quan came over.

Zhao Ning was a little surprised: "The person who mentioned the prison department hasn't left yet?"

"Not yet."

"Why?"

"Yesterday, I went to ask the prison department to understand the situation, but they are still arguing over who to send where."

"What's Liu Zhi doing as a prison envoy? Did he say when he would send someone out to investigate?"

"I didn't give a set time, I just said it was being arranged."

"Arrangements? I think he wants to procrastinate!" Zhao Ning was about to lift the table immediately, and he said coldly: "Go and chop Liu Zhi, the jailer! Just cut it at the gate of the jailer! Everyone watched his head fall to the ground! Anyone who dares not to be present will be executed!"

"Your Majesty, will killing like this..."

"go with!"

"Yes!"

Liu Zhi made an appointment with a few people and was about to go fishing, but was stopped by Hu Quan at the door of the Prison Division.

"Hu Quan?" Liu Zhi smiled, "I heard that you have been a transshipment envoy on Southwest Beijing Road. You are not in the transshipment office, so why come to me when you have time?"

"Liu Xian, what did you say when you saw His Majesty the day before yesterday?"

"What did you say?"

"Do you still need to ask me?" Hu Quan said.

Liu Zhi smiled and said, "Hu Quan, I have my own arrangements, so you don't need to worry about it."

"Arrangement?" Hu Quan looked coldly at the fishing rod in Liu Zhi's hand, "Is Liu Xian going fishing?"

"I don't necessarily need to report to you for what I'm going to do. Although you are a transfer envoy, I'm a prison envoy. You are not my superior."

"Liu Xian, send someone out to investigate immediately, otherwise catastrophe is imminent!"

"A catastrophe is imminent?" Liu Zhi said with a chuckle, "I eat more salt than you eat, don't you just know how to flatter and play the role of an official in front of me?"

Obviously, Liu Zhi looked down on the young Hu Quan.

"Really not going?"

"Get out of the way, the officer also invited a few friends to go fishing."

Hu Quan stopped talking nonsense and said, "Come here, arrest Liu Zhi!"

"Why do you want it! Hu Quan! You are crazy! Even dare to catch me!"

Liu Zhi was brought back to the Yamen of the Prison Division. At this time, the people in the Yamen were either reciting poems against each other, drinking tea, chatting, drawing pictures, and even discussing which girl to go to Yihonglou tonight.

Liu Zhi's cursing voice immediately attracted some officials from the prison department's office, and everyone came out one after another.

Seeing that Liu Zhi was caught, everyone was shocked.

Hu Quan said: "Your Majesty asked Liu Zhi to arrange people to go out to investigate illegal loans. Liu Zhi has not arranged people so far. If he resists the order and fails to comply, he will be executed immediately!"

Liu Zhi cursed: "Hu Quan! Who are you, how dare you kill me!"

"Come on! Cut it off!"

"Hu Quan! I want to see His Majesty..."

Before Liu Zhi could finish his words, a Guardsman drew his sword and came up, and when he lowered the sword, Liu Zhi's head rolled down.

Blood splattered all over the ground, and everyone around was frightened.

Hu Quan said: "Liu Zhi deliberately concealed, deceived the king, and deserved to die! Now I will temporarily take over the criminal and prison department. Please help me quickly to thoroughly investigate the illegal borrowing case on Southwest Beijing Road. Those who follow will be regarded as resisting the decree and will be executed!"

Hu Quan's voice echoed in the prison department, and everyone stood there in fright.

On the same day, the officials of the Department of Prisons and Prisons were almost mobilized.

Hu Quan finally knew why Zhao Guan's family took him south.

This is after an unexpected situation, I quickly make up for it.

In a hurry, Hu Quan took the position of transfer envoy of Southwest Beijing Road, and concurrently served as the envoy of criminals and prisons.

Zhou Jiande was saved from death because of his confession, and both he and Guo Rong are still useful.

Especially Guo Rong, he is the specific executor, among which the land merger, loan, debt collection, etc., are all handled by him himself.

Zhou Jiande was dismissed and his house was ransacked, and Guo Rong's house was ransacked, all of which were handed over to Hu Quan.

In May of the sixth year of Jingkang, a bloody storm suddenly blew up on South Jingxi Road.

The transfer envoys, the promotion of Changping envoys, and the promotion of prison envoys were all executed.

In addition to the landlords and businessmen summoned by Zhou Jiande in the past few days, the city is full of heads.

Later, someone recalled that the loan case on Jingxi South Road was the fuse, and it was not without reason.

The point is that at this time in Tokyo City, no one knows that Zhao Guan's family has killed a lot of people in Xiangyang Mansion.

Moreover, Zhao Guan's family did not turn back to Beijing immediately, but went all the way south again.

His next target is Jiangling Mansion.

Jiangling Mansion is now the main position for land reclamation.

The land reclamation of Jingbei Road is related to the grand strategy of the southeast economic circle, and behind it is related to the marine strategy of the Song Dynasty.

To be precise, this place will next be the Central Economic Circle.

And there is iron ore here.

On May [-]th, Zhao Ning immediately arrived at Xiangyang Mansion and arrived at the border of Jingmen Army Commander Lindi.

A hundred miles further to the south is the boundary of Jiangling Mansion.

Jiangling Mansion (Jingzhou) in the Song Dynasty was the political, economic, and cultural center of Jinghu North Road, and also the hub of the middle reaches of the Yangtze River. It was a veritable big city.

It is said that the population of Jiangling City has exceeded 60, second only to the four major cities of the Song Dynasty, and ranked as the second-tier cities of the Song Dynasty along with Hangzhou, Jiangning, Chengdu and other cities.

In this era, Wuhan in the east, also called Ezhou, was just a very common state capital on Jinghu North Road.

Entering the Jingmen Army is considered to have officially entered the Jianghan Plain.

The field of vision becomes flat, the surrounding lakes are crisscrossed, and the fertile fields extend to the end of the sky.

Zhao Ning couldn't help feeling: "Jing Chao, how much do you know about this place?"

"The minister is from Jiangling Mansion."

"Oh, you are from Jiangling Mansion?"

"Yes."

"Then you should know better."

"The official's intention is to open up wasteland here?"

"Yes."

"There are indeed a lot of fertile fields in Jiangling Mansion, and there are even more places that have not been reclaimed. Just say that this long forest can be cultivated everywhere, and there are rivers and lakes everywhere."

While speaking, Jing Chao suddenly stopped, pointed to the front and said, "Officer, look there!"

Zhao Ning followed his gaze and saw a group of people in front of him running towards this side quickly.

Behind them, more people followed.

Chapter 499 Corvée in the Great Song Dynasty (Part [-])

The people running in front saw that the road ahead was blocked, stopped, and looked back, the pursuers were approaching.

Many people simply rushed into the fields on both sides.

There are wheat fields and rice fields nearby.

The wheat in mid-May is obviously full, and some places are even golden, and farmers can be seen in the field harvesting.

It seems that the lean season will be over in half a month.

Calculated according to the time point, at this time, the various government offices in the north should have already started preparing to collect the summer tax.

By June, officials in the state capital and county will all take action.

Rice in the south will have to wait until autumn.

This is the origin of the ancient summer tax and autumn tax.

Zhao Ning felt very strange, the group of people ran away in a panic, as if they were being chased by wild animals.

The pursuers shouted, "Stop! Don't run!"

Those who stood at a loss in the middle of the road were caught up by the people behind and quickly surrounded.

Some people rushed into the field, held those who tried to escape in the paddy field, and forcibly dragged them back.

"Run! Run again!" A muscular man kicked a fleeing man away, and said viciously, "Running again will break your legs!"

The others were arrested one after another.

"Li Dalang, look over there, someone is coming." A fat man tanned like charcoal said in the ear of the muscular man.

"I saw it, you should count the people first." Li Sui said.

Zhao Ning came over with someone.

Although the two thousand cavalry seemed to be without armor, no one dared to ignore this scale.

Moreover, with the field strength of the Central Guards Brigade, two thousand cavalry can come and go like the wind on the Jianghan Plain, and no one dares to do so.

If you really use your hands, you can push it from Jinghu North Road to Jinghu South Road, and blood will flow like a river.

Zhao Ning was riding a horse, the dust was flying, and the sound of the horse's hooves was like thunder, which was shocking.

Everyone stood there with some worries in their hearts.

After approaching, Zhao Ning glanced around and asked, "What's going on?

Li Sui came out and said, "I don't know where the Shangguan came from?"

Zhao Ning didn't answer directly, but asked, "I ask you what's going on, why are you arresting these people?"

Li Sui replied: "These people have violated the law by fleeing from their husbands without authorization. We are ordered to arrest these people!"

One of the arrested people said: "I am a fifth-class rural household, so I don't need to serve husband!"

"There is no such statement!"

Another said: "I've paid, I've paid my immunity!"

Li Sui said: "Now the fortifications are tight, and everyone must serve corvee!"

"But who will plant our fields, our family is reclaiming wasteland..."

"We don't care about this!" Li Sui said coldly.

After hearing this, Zhao Ning roughly understood.

This incident involved the corvee system of the Great Song Dynasty.

Corvée was something that existed in ancient times.

As the name suggests, ordinary people do free work for the government, such as opening water conservancy, transporting tax and grain, and so on.

However, in the Song Dynasty, the corvee system had undergone great changes.

The square system in the Tang Dynasty was abolished at the beginning of the Song Dynasty, and the sales department developed in the city, and Fangguo households and rural households appeared.

The total amount of fields has greatly increased, the grain output has greatly increased, the technical productivity has greatly increased, the number of water canals has greatly increased, and commerce has become unprecedentedly prosperous.

The handicraft industry also prospered.

At this time, if all the people are forced into corvee as in the past, it will affect handicrafts and commerce.

Seventy to eighty percent of the treasury revenue of the Song Dynasty was commercial revenue. If handicrafts and commerce were affected, the treasury revenue of the imperial court would be affected.

Moreover, there was a special group in the Song Dynasty: the Xiang Army.