Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 86, People’s Dispute

Lin Mansion,

After thinking for a long time, Lin Ruhai finally came up with a solution.

"We can find those respected people in the streets and alleys of the city to endorse us, clarify the rumors spread by the Huaiyin thieves, and then double the inducement to recruit young and strong people. In addition, we can also ask for the servants of the big and famous families in the city to help defend the city."

Wei Yinghong frowned.

The first one is easy to find a respected person to endorse it, but the second one, asking for slaves from a big family, is a bit difficult.

The major families in Yangzhou have countless slaves and servants, all of whom are strong and healthy. If these people can be used to defend the city, they will definitely be more suitable than those thin ordinary people.

But if we do this, we will inevitably offend these families.

They will never agree to it easily.

Wei Yinghong expressed his concerns.

Lin Ruhai said:

"Extraordinary times call for extraordinary measures."

"But we can start with the Zheng and Wang families first. They will not dare to refuse. Then we can ask the other five salt merchants. With these families taking the lead, it will be much easier for the remaining families in Yangzhou."

Wei Yinghong thought about it for a long time and finally made up his mind.

"Okay, I'll do it right now!"

There was no time to lose, so Wei Yinghong immediately sent people to prepare.

Suddenly, the police drums sounded at the east gate.

The sound of cannon fire rang out!

The bandits came to attack at night again!

The soldiers defending the city, who were exhausted after a day of work, had to hurriedly put on their armor and climb up the city walls to defend the city.

Wei Yinghong looked at this scene, and the sadness in his eyes became even heavier.

"Do your best and obey fate."

……

But in Yangzhou city, there is a lane called Wangting South Lane.

There was a storyteller named Ma Erye at the end of the street in Wangting South Lane. He was old and of high seniority. He was usually kind to his neighbors and had some knowledge, so he was quite respected.

That night, Mr. Ma was working by lamplight to sort out his manuscript.

Look at what this manuscript is. It is "The local bully bullied the good farmland, and the Marquis of Huaiyin angrily killed the grain collector."

This is the song that the people love to listen to the most, because the people dare not rebel against the officials, so they like to listen to the stories of others killing officials for comfort.

Previously, this was illegal and strictly prohibited from being spread, until Fang Yong surrendered to the court and was allowed to spread.

Suddenly, there was a fierce knock on the door outside.

“Boom boom boom boom, Ma Laoer, Ma Laoer!”

Upon hearing this, Mr. Ma Er did not dare to delay. He quickly put away the manuscript and went to open the door.

Behind the door appeared a middle-aged man with a face full of flesh and a black mole under his eyelid.

Mr. Ma was familiar with this person. He was Sun Wan, the inspector general in the mansion.

The so-called Jianxiu was an official without rank, who was responsible for handling daily basic affairs of the local area, and therefore had more dealings with the people.

"Inspector Sun, how come you have time to come to my place?"

Master Ma asked with a smile.

Sun Wan had a cold face, pulled out a document from his arms, and said:
"This is the document issued by the government. You must memorize it quickly and read it to the villagers when we recruit soldiers tomorrow. There must be no mistakes!"

Ma Erye took the document and saw at a glance that it was full of slanderous words about Fang Yong. Ma Erye was reluctant, but he didn't dare to show it, so he could only accept the document and nodded in agreement.

Seeing this, Sun Wan warned again: "This is a document personally drafted by the prefect. There must be no mistakes. Do you understand?"

Upon hearing this, Master Ma nodded and said:

"Don't worry, I know that I will not delay the prefect's important affairs."

Sun Wan then left with peace of mind.

After Mr. Ma Er returned, he took the document and looked at it over and over again, unable to sleep.

The manuscript was full of false statements, saying that the local bandits enslaved the people and forcibly collected heavy taxes. The imperial court collected two out of ten taxes, while the local bandits collected seven out of ten, which was several times more than the imperial court!
What a joke. Not to mention that the grain production in General Fang's territory is twice that of the imperial court. Just look at the imperial court's tax system. It is said to be 10% tax and 2%, but in reality it is distributed to the local areas, with layers of exploitation and heavy taxes. Added together, it is almost 10% tax and 10% tax, and the people are extorted. How dare you say that General Fang's taxes are heavy.

They also said that local thieves had deceived the people into transplanting rice from other fields together to pretend it was a good omen.

Ha, I'm afraid the person who wrote this document has never been to the fields.

He had personally gone to the fields outside the city and seen that the rice in General Fang's fields was tall and big, and looked like corn from a distance. How could such rice be disguised?

Ma Laoer had been a good man all his life, making a living by his cooking skills, but now he was old and wanted to deceive his fellow villagers like this...

"no!"

Master Ma sat up.

If he really told his fellow villagers what was written in this document, he would never rest in peace.

At that moment, Mr. Ma Er looked at the words on the document and wrote a manuscript overnight, praising General Fang in opposition to the original.

At the hour of Chou, Master Ma finished writing, covered his headscarf and went out in the night.

Master Ma turned two streets and came to the home of his eldest disciple Hou Yun. He handed the manuscript to the disciple and ordered him to spread the truth to the people nearby in secret.

After the eldest disciple Hou Yun learned what had happened, he agreed and quickly copied a copy.

Master Ma left his eldest disciple's house, turned a street, and went to find his second disciple, Chang Liang.

Chang Liang copied another copy, and Ma Erye left his second apprentice's house, turned two streets, and went to look for his junior apprentice Zhu Fang.

Zhu Fang was not at home. It turned out that Zhu Fang and Ma Erye were from the same school and were both famous storytellers in the neighborhood. Naturally, they also received documents from the court.

Perhaps it was a mysterious connection between the two brothers, Zhu Fang did something almost the same as Ma Erye, and now Zhu Fang is on his way to his apprentice's home.

Seeing this, Master Ma went to find his third disciple again...

In this way, when the time for conscription came, even though Ma Erye explained the contents of the document vividly in front of the villagers and said every word for the content that slandered Fang Yong, the final response was still mediocre.

The people learned the truth in advance and naturally did not want to join the army and die.

Fortunately, the other side's strategy of recruiting slaves from large families was successful.

The Zheng and Wang families were the first to respond, and the other salt merchants had to follow suit because they had evidence of collaborating with the enemy. Seeing this, other dignitaries in the city could not help but give face to the prefect Wei Yinghong, so they also sent some people out.

There were as many as a hundred people, as few as dozens or a dozen, and in the end, they gathered together less than two thousand people.

A large number of slaves were sent to the city walls. As slaves, they had no right to resist and could only bite the bullet and resist the attack of the Huaiyin army.

At the west gate of Yangzhou, Zhou Shuan’s troops are responsible for the main attack today.

Boom boom boom!
Bricks were broken and blood and flesh flew everywhere.

A shell grazed a man's head, and when he fell down, only his nose was left.

Some slaves were so frightened when they saw this scene that they wet their pants.

The tragedy on the city wall was far beyond these people's imagination.

Zhou Shuan used artillery to suppress the defenders on the city wall. Some soldiers were responsible for the assault, while other soldiers dug a pit under the corner of the city, preparing to dig out a corner, and then put in a large amount of explosives to blow down the city wall.

The soldiers defending the city were extremely anxious when they saw this scene, but under the suppression of artillery and a large number of Huaiyin troops, it was difficult for them to stop it, so they could only quickly report the news to Ji Quan.

(End of this chapter)