People in the Tang Dynasty valued trust and promises.
But the words on the sign are like knives, killing people, tearing people's faces, throwing them to the ground, trampling them, crushing them. What kind of humiliation and hatred is this? The strange thing is that no one in the mansion came out to stop it.
Wei Zheng couldn't help but look at the mansion. There were four people holding the door, but their noses were bruised and their faces were swollen. Their faces were frightened, as if they had been beaten. How could this be?
Thoughts flashed through his mind, and Wei Zheng stepped forward and shouted: "I, Wei Zheng, the imperial censor, asked me, what happened here?"
The four gatekeepers exchanged glances, and one of them stepped forward and explained anxiously: "When Mr. Wei asked, these people suddenly appeared and blocked the door to demand debts. The younger one drove them away, but was beaten violently by another group of people.
A meal.”
"Have you ever attacked the mansion?"
"No!" the other party said honestly.
"Where is the master of your house? Let him come out to see me."
The other party quickly said: "Back to your lord, my master has left the house and his whereabouts are unknown."
Wei Zheng's face changed slightly, and seeing that nothing could be said, he came to the refugees and asked, "Why are you waiting here?"
At this time, several strong men hurried over, followed by two people. The two pushed a cart with a stove and other making tools on it. A strong man signaled the car to stop and told the two: "Do it now."
Put more bread and meat, everyone must be fed, this is money, don’t worry if it’s not enough.” He threw it away.
One person caught it, nodded and bowed, and promised: "I promise that everyone will eat well. We will do it right away. We will do it right away."
The two of them moved down the stove and other tools and prepared to make scones on site. Wei Zheng became more and more curious when he saw this scene. He looked at the strong man who had just spoken and asked, "Who are you?"
But the other party knew Wei Zheng, clasped his fists and explained: "I am ordered by the King of Han to protect these people from being bullied."
"Are you sent by the King of Han?" Wei Zheng's expression changed, and he pointed at the refugees and asked, "What about them?"
"They are refugees who suffered a disaster and came to Chang'an to seek a living. They were hired by the owner of the department store to collect debts. They are provided with three meals a day and have a place to live. They don't have to do anything else. They only need to guard the door and hold up a sign."
Wei Zheng was so shrewd that he guessed the twists and turns in an instant. This was to add trouble to the department store, take the opportunity to ruin the reputation of the people behind the department store, and kill the Shandong aristocrats and Jiangnan gentry. It only cost them three meals a day, which was too much.
Cruel.
These are refugees who cannot survive. They will do anything if they have a stutter, not to mention eating three meals a day, meat pie, and they will not go to any lengths. Anyone who dares to drive them away will end their livelihood. They will definitely resist. Once large-scale riots occur,
The label of being forced to rebel by the government and the people cannot be shaken off.
Too cruel!
No wonder the owner of the mansion ran away, he didn't dare to mess with him.
Next to him, Liu Dewei, the Secretary of the Ministry of Punishment, was also a mature man. He heard it clearly and thought about it. His face turned bitter and he looked at Wei Zheng for help.
Wei Zheng was worried that he didn't know how to resettle the refugees, but now it was better. He pretended not to see Liu Dewei's eyes and continued to ask: "How many refugees have been hired?"
"There are eighteen people in the Department Store Pavilion owner, and there are a total of eighteen mansions. Each place has nearly a hundred people, and I'm afraid more will be hired later. The King of Han does not want to see the people suffering, but thousands of people eat, drink, and eat with money. The King of Han said,
For normal debt collection, this fee is caused by the department store's default, so they have to pay for it, so there is no need to save it."
Cruel, too cruel!
Wei Zheng didn't know what to say. He mourned for a moment of silence for the owner of the Department Store Pavilion in his heart and asked: "According to the contract, there are still five days. If the Department Store Pavilion fails to deliver the goods after five days, it must pay a fine. Doesn't it mean that everyone is here?"
Stay for five days. Will the King of Han tell you how to arrange the refugees after five days?"
Wei Zheng didn't care whether the Department Store Pavilion paid or not, but the refugees were a big hidden danger. If they were not handled well, trouble would happen in Chang'an City.
The strong man shook his head and said: "I don't know that. Our duty is to take care of everyone's food, drink and safety."
At this time, Liu Dewei couldn't bear it anymore, pulled Wei Zheng aside and whispered: "How... is this inappropriate?"
Wei Zheng looked at the refugees, who were staring intently at the pancakes being made. He kept swallowing in his throat. It looked like he hadn't eaten for several days, but no one came forward to rob him. He had not lost his true nature and turned into a unruly citizen. He felt a little bit in his heart.
He was determined and asked: "Have they violated the law of Zhenguan by gathering here?"
The Zhenguan Law does not stipulate that people are not allowed to gather or sit in meditation.
Liu Dewei smiled bitterly and shook his head.
Wei Zheng continued to ask: "Did their behavior of holding placards break the law?"
It's just a sign. It doesn't hurt anyone, it's not noisy, and the etiquette is orderly. Liu Dewei can't blame it. He smiled bitterly and said: "Not really, it's just the content on the sign?"
"Has the content ever been fake?" Wei Zheng asked rhetorically.
"This..." Liu Dewei didn't know what to say. The time has not yet come. The department store cannot be considered a breach of contract. It cannot be said that it will not pay back the money, but it is true that it cannot deliver the goods as scheduled. It is just telling the truth in advance. The key is to arrest people.
, what crime will he be sentenced in the future?
Spreading rumors and slandering?
As soon as the delivery time comes, the department store will break the contract. Even if there is no slander or rumors, not to mention that the arrested people have to take care of their food and arrange a place to live. The refugees want someone to take care of them. This is not just a few people, but hundreds of them.
After thinking about it, Liu Dewei felt a little embarrassed.
Wei Zheng continued to ask: "Has it ever been within the confines of a private residence?"
"No!" Liu Dewei couldn't open his eyes and lied. The refugees were sitting quietly on the street. They were just close to private houses and not within the gate of private houses. It was not considered an intrusion.
"Have you ever called me by name?" Wei Zheng continued to ask.
"This... never!"
Wei Zheng continued to ask: "Mr. Liu, you are not at the door of your private house, and you are not naming names. You are just sitting quietly on the street and holding up a sign. Whose interests do you think these refugees are infringing on? Which Zhenguan Law has been violated? Are you not afraid of causing trouble?
If there is a civil unrest, just arrest people."
A group of refugees who can't survive. If they really arrest people, there will definitely be trouble. Then they will be accused of forcing the people to rebel. What is this? Liu Dewei smiled bitterly and said: Mr. Wei, but this is not good after all?
"Everything has two sides. There are refugees running around in the streets. They can't survive but they can do anything. It will still be your criminal department that will worry about you then. Now they are just sitting here quietly. It does not affect order and will not cause trouble.
Wouldn't it be nice if someone took care of the food? If you're worried, you can arrange for someone to keep an eye on the situation. As for other things, someone else will worry about it." Wei Zheng was smiling all over his face, and he was in an inexplicably good mood.
I thought of many possibilities, but I didn't expect that Qin Huaidao's trick of using refugees would not only kill people, but also violate the laws of Zhenguan. It was simply too damaging.
Liu Dewei looked at the quiet refugees and nodded silently.
Suddenly, a group of people rushed over and beat the refugees.
The incident happened suddenly, and the refugees were caught off guard, and several of them fell down on the spot.
The people from the Criminal Department rushed to stop him, and the strong men sent by the King of Han also rushed forward.
However, this group of people fled with great speed. It looked like they were veterans who were well prepared and familiar with the terrain. They disappeared into the crowd in the blink of an eye.
Seeing this scene, Wei Zheng's face turned cold and he looked at Liu Dewei.
Liu Dewei's face was burning, and he was ashamed. These people were not only beating the refugees, but also their own faces? He angrily shouted: "Master Zhao, bring someone to help me catch the murderer. I won't let you go, so go quickly."
"Follow the order." An official from the Ministry of Justice quickly accepted the order with his fists clasped, and led his men to catch up.
However, Wei Zheng saw something fishy and warned in a low voice: "It came suddenly and left even more suddenly. This is a threat, an intimidation, and an attempt to scare away the refugees. It is most likely related to the people in the department store."
"Mr. Wei, what you said makes sense." Liu Dewei's eyes also darkened, and he actually did it in front of him. How could he do it? If he doesn't regain his position, how can the majesty of the Criminal Department exist?
At this time, someone among the refugees came out and shouted angrily: "It must be them. They want to scare us into leaving. Let's talk about whether we should leave or stay."
"Stay, of course!"
"Where can we go?"
"Without anything to eat, we won't survive tonight."
Everyone responded one after another with excitement.
The person who just stood up to speak shouted: "If we don't do anything, why should others take care of us? Besides, several of our people have been injured. This tone cannot be tolerated. Let's rush into the mansion and ask them to hand over the murderer."
.”
"Yes, hand over the murderer!"
"We can't survive anyway, our people can't be beaten in vain."
"Can't bear it!"
Everyone became more and more excited and looked at the mansion of the general manager of the department store not far away, which was filled with fierce light.
Thinking of not being able to survive tonight without Meat Panzi, thinking of one's own people being beaten and neglected, and thinking of a hopeless life, everyone's heart surged with anger and their eyes turned red.
"Come in and demand an explanation!"
I don't know who yelled, and everyone immediately exploded and rushed forward.
Most of the people from the Criminal Department had just been mobilized to catch the murderer, but the few remaining people could not stop the excited refugees. The scene was in chaos for a while, and they rushed forward screaming.
Wei Zheng was a little confused when he saw this scene. He always felt that something was wrong. He couldn't help but look for the strong men sent by the King of Han just now, but found that none of them were missing. He didn't know if he rushed into the mansion and shouted: "Master Liu, hurry up."
Arrange people to stop it, and send someone to notify Nan Yasi to mobilize troops. There may be a civil uprising."
Liu Dewei also realized that the problem was serious. Once a bunch of miserable and desperate refugees rushed into the mansion, they would not only grab whatever they saw, but the casualties would be trivial. He quickly arranged for someone to go to Nan Yasi to report the news.
He yelled at the subordinates who stayed behind: "Come in and stop him, so that you can comfort him, but don't use a knife."
"Yes, you can't use a knife." Wei Zheng quickly added.
If it really happened, it would definitely be even messier.
But how can we appease the out-of-control public anger without going under the knife?
Everyone in the punishment department looked at each other, not knowing what to do.
"Why don't you go quickly?" Liu Dewei urged.
Wei Zheng was worried that there would be a big mess, so he strode forward and shouted: "Everyone, follow me!"