novelaction Chapter 349 A common man's rage, blood splattered five steps away.
Chapter 349 A common man's rage, blood splattered five steps away.
As Lu Gengyu spoke, he became increasingly agitated. He stood up, and everyone saw that he was indeed lame, with one leg higher than the other. He accused Lu Gengyu, saying, "Throughout Qiongzhou Prefecture, from the prefect to the various counties, officials fear Qiongzhou Camp like the plague. Ordinary people only know General Liu of Lingao and have no idea about the current emperor. Shouldn't this lawless and disruptive traitor be eliminated? I, Lu Huayu, am just a lowly county magistrate. I can't do anything to him in the official capacity. After resigning, I'm just a commoner with no way to appeal. But even a commoner's anger can lead to bloodshed. I'm willing to give my life if it means taking his life."
After listening to Lu Gengyu's account, Sun Yuanhua couldn't help but ask, "Even if you have reasons like the hatred of a fallen city or the grudge of a broken leg, is it really necessary to resign from your official post and abandon everything to come to Gao to fight General Xia to the death? The court appointed you as a local official to serve the people and benefit the region, not to let you act like a hero with reckless courage..."
Lu Gengyu replied bitterly, “What Mr. Chuyang said is perfectly clear to me. If it were just these kinds of things, I might have tolerated it. If I can’t afford to offend him, I can simply avoid him and honestly encourage agriculture and sericulture to benefit the people. But this traitor has ordered people to mine the iron ore in Yayu Ridge, using high wages as bait to lure the people of the county into mining and smelting iron for him. Now the people only know how to earn wages and have no heart for farming. The fields are all abandoned, and we can’t collect summer taxes and autumn grain at all. Prefect Qin was already dissatisfied with me, and now he is using the opportunity of paying taxes to reprimand me repeatedly. He also gave me a low performance evaluation. Even if I don’t resign, I’m afraid I won’t be able to serve as magistrate for long…”
So that's how it is. Sun Yuanhua finally understood the real reason behind Lu Gengyu's seemingly absurd actions. The fall of the county seat was one thing, since Shi Ying's troops didn't retaliate extensively after entering the city, and no one investigated the responsibility for Changhua County's loss. The broken leg, while frustrating, was an accident and not worth killing to vent his anger on. Furthermore, he had no recourse; his colleagues and superiors were wary of the Qiongzhou Camp and even tried to stop his "righteous act." These things, though frustrating, didn't affect his position as county magistrate. What truly drove Lu Gengyu to despair was the relocation of Qiongzhou Camp's industries. They shifted the focus of their steel mills to Changhua, utilizing the geographical advantage of the iron mines to mine and smelt iron nearby, recruiting a large number of local people as laborers. This affected the county's tax collection and ultimately dragged down Changhua County's performance evaluation, making promotion impossible and even jeopardizing his position as county magistrate.
Upon hearing this, Liu Ye's hatred for Lu Gengyu lessened slightly. Lu was merely a rigid bureaucrat impacted by the industrial revolution, deeply resentful of the old policy of prioritizing agriculture over commerce. His governing philosophy remained stuck in the "farmer, mountain spring, a little land" era; once deviated from the traditional governance model of thousands of years, he was completely lost. Compared to Shimazu Chiyo, his assassination attempt was utterly amateurish. Even without Shimazu Chiyo's intervention, Liu Ye should have been able to guarantee his own safety. Could it be that he, with all four limbs intact, couldn't outrun a cripple?
Yan Guang, standing nearby, couldn't help but say, "You're such a blockhead! The people toil in the fields all day long, and at the end of the year they barely have enough to eat and wear. Now we've built a steel plant in Changhua, allowing the local people to earn wages that are several times higher than before. Isn't that a blessing for the people?"
Lu Gengyu stubbornly retorted: "The iron mine will eventually be exhausted. People can't expect to receive wages for generations. When the job is gone and the fields are abandoned, how will the local people survive?"
Sun Yuanhua nodded to himself. Regardless of whether Lu Gengyu's viewpoint was right or wrong, at least he considered the future of the people while also considering his own official position, which was commendable. This man was worth saving.
Liang Xiaoming couldn't help but join the debate: "Changhua's soil is severely desertified, barren, and not fertile enough. Moreover, it has a high salt content, making it unsuitable for growing grain. If you ignore the reality and insist that the people 'work from sunrise to sunset,' you will only fall into a vicious cycle of becoming poorer and poorer by planting more crops."
Lu Gengyu paused, speechless. Indeed, the yields of Changhua's fields were very low, far below those of the surrounding prefectures and counties. Successive county magistrates had been replaced like a revolving door because they couldn't collect enough grain taxes, resulting in poor performance evaluations. No one seemed able to solve this problem. Lu Gengyu had no good solution either. For the past few years, the summer taxes and autumn harvests had been a nightmare for him; he simply couldn't meet his grain tax targets.
Sun Yuanhua gently advised, "Your idea of encouraging agriculture and sericulture is not wrong, and your desire to pay the full amount of grain tax to serve the court is also not wrong. However, the fertility of the land varies from prefecture to prefecture, and the yield per mu varies, so it cannot be generalized. If it is really as Brother Liang said, that the land in Changhua is barren and unsuitable for cultivation, then earning wages through your own abilities to support yourself is also a way out."
Lu Gengyu said in a low voice, "But what about taxes..."
Yan Guang snorted: "The wages at the steel mill are generous. With that money, people can buy grain from surrounding counties and prefectures, and pay taxes in silver. There's no rule that taxes can only be paid in grain; paying in silver in full is also acceptable."
Lu Gengyu opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a word. These people talked all at once, which at first glance seemed unorthodox, but upon closer inspection, it wasn't entirely unreasonable.
Sun Yuanhua turned to Liu Ye and pleaded, "General, the magistrate of Changhua was only confused for a moment. And since you are unharmed, I dare to plead for him and ask you to spare his life."
Liu Ye hadn't expected Sun Yuanhua to ask for help, and he hesitated, unsure whether to refuse outright or agree.
After hearing Sun Yuanhua's words, Yan Guang, wanting to show off in front of the general, said slowly, "If we let him go today, any Tom, Dick, or Harry will have the guts to assassinate the general. Anyway, even if we fail, we won't be in any danger."
Sun Yuanhua retorted, "If we kill anyone who offends the general, then we could kill the magistrate of Chengmai and the prefect of Qiongzhou as well. Killing officials is detrimental to the general's reputation. Whether he becomes a pillar of the court or contends for the throne, he will need the support of the official class. Do you know the story of buying bones for a thousand pieces of gold?"
Liu Ye had to admit that Sun Yuanhua was right. Since they had spared the Chengmai magistrate who had insulted him and the prefect who had attacked Lingao, letting the former Changhua magistrate go seemed reasonable. Without touching core interests, letting these officials go would serve as a powerful example of "buying bones with a thousand pieces of gold" when they marched inland, making it much easier to win them over. After all, the Qiongzhou camp's strategy wasn't about directly rebelling and becoming king; officials from the imperial court still had significant value.