bioinnovel Chapter 14: A Warning Shot – Reforms Implemented
Chapter 14: A Warning Shot – Reforms Implemented
The news of the annihilation of the five great families overnight quickly spread throughout the Sui Dynasty.
This news struck like a thunderbolt from the heavens, hitting every member of the gentry in the Sui Dynasty.
They were chopped until they were charred on the outside and tender on the inside, their hearts and minds shattered.
They simply couldn't believe the news was true; the five great families had been completely wiped out overnight.
Those are the five great clans that have been passed down for nearly a thousand years!
It was a behemoth that shared the fate of the nation, wielded immense power, and was even feared by the late Emperor Lin Batian.
They are deeply rooted, their influence extends throughout the world, and they have nearly twenty innate masters under their command.
However, these five enormous creatures were uprooted and vanished overnight.
When they learned from their spies that the heads of the five great families were hanging on the Meridian Gate of the capital, all their remaining hope and hesitation instantly turned into the deepest fear.
The new emperor, Lin Hanzhou, demonstrated his terrifying strength to the entire world in the most unquestionable way.
The power of example is endless.
Once this "role model" was established, Lin Hanzhou's subsequent purge of the remnants of the five major families became much smoother.
Over the next month, most of the five powerful clans that had been entrenched in various counties were uprooted.
It wasn't just the government that took action against them; local gentry and powerful families also joined in.
The actions of the powerful clans and gentry were not only for their own benefit, but also to curry favor with the new emperor, Lin Hanzhou.
They had no desire to provoke this killing god; he held immense power, and helping the remnants of the five great families would be tantamount to courting death.
Soon, another month passed, and the remnants of the five great families within the Sui Dynasty had been completely wiped out.
Perhaps some of their forces, which are still deeply hidden, have not been eliminated, but they no longer pose a threat to the Sui Dynasty.
The five great families have lost their power, and their old era has come to a complete end.
What has arrived is a new era ushered in by the new Imperial Forest Continent.
In the past two months, in addition to eliminating the remnants of the five major clans, the three new policies have also been implemented as scheduled.
With the lessons learned from the five great families, the new policies that were originally fraught with difficulties suddenly became unimpeded.
Those local officials and powerful figures who had previously paid lip service to the new policies suddenly seemed to have become the most loyal supporters of the new policies overnight.
Those counties that delayed the construction of official schools under the pretext of "financial shortage" somehow conjured up large sums of money from somewhere.
Brand new schools sprang up at an astonishing pace.
Grain merchants who secretly manipulated grain prices took the initiative to open their warehouses and release grain, driving down prices again and again.
They were terrified that if the reduction was too slow, Lin Hanzhou would confiscate their property.
The final price was even cheaper than before the new policy, and their faces were full of fawning smiles as if they were "sharing the country's burdens."
The most crucial land reform was rolled out across the country at an unprecedented speed.
Local powerful families voluntarily surrendered the land they had seized, actively cooperating with the government in measuring, registering, and distributing it.
At the same time, no so-called "popular uprising" occurred, and the "rioters" who had besieged the government a few days earlier all disappeared into thin air.
Faced with this 180-degree turn, Lin Hanzhou sneered inwardly.
He knew full well that this was only a temporary surrender under pressure.
These deeply entrenched forces, with their centuries-old ties, are unlikely to give up their interests so easily.
Their roots are still deeply embedded in every corner of this land.
If it's only this bad, they'll come back stronger after temporarily backing down.
Thus, after shocking the world, a massive purge that swept across the entire Sui Dynasty officially began.
Lin Hanzhou issued several imperial edicts with lightning speed.
He ordered the establishment of the Embroidered Uniform Guard in various prefectures and counties within the Sui Dynasty to monitor the entire country.
In addition, he ordered Xuan Ya to lead his secret guards to various parts of the country to work with the newly established Embroidered Uniform Guard to thoroughly investigate all officials.
Anyone who colludes with the five great families, engages in corruption and bribery, shirks their duties, or oppresses the people will be dismissed from their post, have their property confiscated, and be imprisoned.
If resistance is encountered, those with serious circumstances may be killed on the spot!
For a time, officials throughout the Sui Dynasty lived in constant fear.
They no longer dared to collude with local powerful families as before, and all of them became more discreet in their official duties.
I'm terrified that one day I'll hear the words "The Embroidered Uniform Guard is on duty" coming from my doorstep.
Those local tyrants who usually oppressed the people were also targeted by the Embroidered Uniform Guard.
They tried to resist, but they couldn't make a dent in the formidable Jinyiwei (Imperial Guards).
In the following six months, the Sui Dynasty underwent an unprecedented major reshuffle.
More than a third of the former officials were dismissed and imprisoned, including high-ranking officials such as prefects.
Hundreds of local powerful clans and lawless gentry were uprooted.
Countless riches and lands that they had seized were returned to the national treasury and the people.
This great purge, though brutal in its methods, also swept away the long-standing problems of the Sui Dynasty with astonishing efficiency.
As those talented individuals from humble backgrounds, selected through the new imperial examination system, began to fill various positions in the Sui Dynasty.
The new policies implemented by Lin Hanzhou have finally begun to unleash their true power.
On the vast fields, farmers who owned their own land for the first time unleashed an unprecedented enthusiasm for labor.
They work from sunrise to sunset, carefully tending their fields, their faces beaming with hope.
The grain output of the Sui Dynasty doubled in just a few years.
In the bright and clean government schools, the sound of students reading aloud could be heard.
For the first time, countless children from impoverished families had the opportunity to access knowledge.
They are no longer destined to toil in the fields; they now have the possibility of changing their fate through education.
This provided the Sui Dynasty with a continuous pool of talent.
The reformed imperial examination system completely broke the monopoly of powerful clans on officialdom.
Countless talented young people from humble backgrounds stand out through fair examinations and are able to enter the management of the Sui Dynasty.
They brought new ideas and vitality, enabling the entire bureaucratic system to operate efficiently and cleanly.
The social structure of the Sui Dynasty was undergoing a profound and dramatic change.
The aristocratic society, bound by blood ties and social status, is collapsing.
A completely new social structure centered on merit and talent is slowly being established.
The national strength of the Sui Dynasty was rising at an unprecedented speed.
Standing at the highest point of the palace, Lin Hanzhou looked down at the new dynasty he had created with his own hands, his heart at peace.
He knew that an era belonging to him, a truly prosperous age, was about to arrive.
And in this momentous transformation, he completely changed the future of the Sui Dynasty.