Worldly courts

Author: Wan Yan Shao Yuan
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-01-01
Features: As the ancients said, "All affairs under heaven begin in the prefectures and counties." The prefectural and county offices are not only the barometer of the rise and fall of the world but also a microcosm of the entire ancient official world. Here, the ordinary and the hidden, the grand and the sordid, are displayed in the most vivid manner. This is an encyclopedic read about the grassroots government of ancient China, narrated in colloquial language, detailing the "strange current" and "hidden rules" of prefectural and county offices over two thousand years.
An ostentatious display that high-ranking officials cannot afford but local petty officials can; the subtlety of "the Yellow History demands money, while the Censor does not" and "the mistress loves money, while the master does not"; the intricate game of interests where officials must not offend the powerful, "even if your officials are as clear as water, how can you compete with the slippery officials like oil?"; the pervasive methods of exploiting the people, such as determining household ranks, assigning corvée labor, the "flowering of thieves," and the money from lawsuits; the various benefits of those who "eat the imperial grain," including irregular fees, disaster relief funds, and fundraising donations; the preaching of "imperial edicts" on the eight-character walls and the latest gossip; holiday balls, work meals, and the sounds of the "lioness roaring in the east" from agency dormitories—all the details of life; the peculiar interview method of selecting prefectural and county officials based on physique and appearance; the careful efforts of anti-corruption measures, such as the warning stele, the integrity allowance, and even preserving the skin of corrupt officials as specimens.
This is also a book about the world and human nature. Though the office may be small, it contains much of the world! As the ancients said, "All affairs under heaven begin in the prefectures and counties." The prefectural and county offices are not only the barometer of the rise and fall of the world but also a microcosm of the entire ancient official world. Here, the ordinary and the hidden, the grand and the sordid, are displayed in the most vivid manner. This is an encyclopedic read about the grassroots government of ancient China, narrated in colloquial language, detailing the "strange current" and "hidden rules" of prefectural and county offices over two thousand years.