It is said that Zhu Tong of Japan received a letter from Liu Shu. After reading it, he hid it in his arms and said to the messenger: "I understand. You can rest first." Naturally, the messenger didn't know what their general wrote. Judging from Mr. Zhu's expression, it was not surprising.
It seemed like something big happened, so I went down.
A few days later, it was the seventh day of Liu Dong's reign, and the Lu State would send off the deceased for burial. Liu's relatives in Japan also held a grand memorial ceremony on the same day, and all the important officials and generals arrived. After the ceremony, Zhu Tong set up a plain banquet to entertain all his colleagues.
Everyone did not eat wine, but drank tea while reminiscing about Liu Tong. After tea for three rounds, Zhu Tong asked everyone to be quiet. Everyone had guessed that something was going on today, so they all stopped using their chopsticks.
Zhu Tong sighed: "The old general passed away, and the whole country was sad. The most young general among them lost his father and was injured to the point of collapse. It's so pitiful." As he said that, he took a handkerchief to wipe his tears. Everyone cried with him, and the whole hall was full for a while.
After sobbing for a while, Zhu Tong said sternly, "It's just that the deceased has ascended to the immortal world and is not the one who lives in the mortal world. After all, the Lu country has to rely on the general to support it. Although Japan is hanging overseas, the general is still the only one who follows the lead."
"
Only then did everyone realize that he was here to establish his authority on behalf of Liu Shu, and they all raised their tea cups and said, "It turns out that he is doing the work of a dog and a horse for the general!"
Zhu Tong nodded: "Very good. I hope everyone will always remember this sentence." Everyone swore and swore allegiance.
After a while, there was a general who was dizzy at the generals' table. Someone laughed and said, "I heard that people get drunk by drinking tea. Could it be that the general is drunk by tea?" As soon as he said the words, he himself turned around under the light. After a while,
All the generals at the table were top-heavy and spinning. One general shouted: "No! There is something in this tea!"
Zhu Tong smiled and said: "As the saying goes, one emperor and one minister. Generals, it's time to hand over military power. The general will not treat you badly."
There was an old general who had fought with Liu Tong all his life. He couldn't hold on anymore and was about to lie down. He shouted: "We have followed the general through life and death. Why should the young general deal with us!"
"Didn't the general say that?" Zhu Tong stood up and said coldly, "The old general is gone, so what do you mean by calling the general the young general?"
The veteran's head was gradually getting confused at this moment, and he cursed: "The general was so wise in his life, but he gave birth to such a black-hearted white-eyed wolf. As soon as I die, I will destroy my old department, and there will be no good ending..."
Zhu Tong shouted: "Shut up! Whoever talks nonsense and slanders the general again? Don't blame me for not caring about the old general's face!"
The veteran laughed loudly: "If you resort to such ruthless means, why do you care about face?" After speaking this with a strong breath, the veteran fainted.
Zhu Tong smiled coldly, stood with his hands behind his hands, and watched the generals on the table fall down one by one. He shouted: "Take them down and put them in a safe place. Don't wait too long for any of them!"
They agreed loudly, and suddenly a group of soldiers like wolves and tigers rushed in from the back hall, and captured all the generals of Liu Dynasty in Japan. The civil servants were stunned. Most of them were Zhu Tong's own people.
Zhu Tongnai glanced down and said loudly: "Everyone, don't blame the truth for using thunderous means. It cannot be destroyed or established. In the history books, there are many cases where the young master was held hostage by the old ministers." Everyone then woke up from a dream and expressed their opinions to Liu Shu one after another.
Loyalty. Although many officials disapproved of it, it was difficult to say whether it was right or wrong, so they had no choice but to say nothing.
More than ten days after Liu Shu Fuling returned to Lu, a group of young generals led their own soldiers across the sea to find Zhu Tong. Everyone knew that these people would stay in Japan, and secretly guessed where they would be resettled.
Unexpectedly, they would replace all the Japanese generals.
The generals sent by Liu Shu immediately began to reorganize the army after gaining military power. The former barracks were all disrupted, and the soldiers were transferred to various places and reorganized according to squads, platoons, companies, battalions, regiments, brigades and divisions. After the reorganization, the power of the old military camps disappeared.
In the yamen, Zhu Tong also transferred some personnel and transferred some people from the state of Lu. All the old officials of Liu Tong were also eliminated.
The leading generals have been under house arrest in the Liu Mansion. Zhu Tong sent someone to send a message to themselves and their families: the general said that they will be free to leave after half a year and go wherever they want. There is an old general who will listen.
He laughed loudly: "The general has given birth to a good son! He is rich! He is better than the general!"
On the other side, Liu Shu waited patiently for Zhu Tong to come back to take charge of the situation. After waiting day after day, there was no news from Zhu Tong, and Liu Shu jumped anxiously.
Several large households in Lu State were preparing to move out of Lu State and go to Zhao State. When Liu Shu heard the report, he shouted: "Don't let them leave! Send troops to stop them!"
Liu Qian shook his head and said: "No. They hired the Taiping Bodyguard Bureau from the capital as bodyguards."
"So what!"
Liu Qian sighed: "The Taiping Escort Bureau is actually the private soldiers of the Jia family in Rongguo Mansion. Their firearms are better than ordinary officers and soldiers. We can't stop them."
Liu Shu was stunned. After half a day, he said feebly: "Then we can only reduce taxes first."
Liu Qian smiled bitterly and said: "It will be useless if you only reduce the tax a little; if you reduce it too much, the money for raising soldiers will be..."
Liu Shu held his head and said, "Go and persuade me. If you can, stay with me. If you can't, just leave it alone."
Liu Qian took the order and came out of the study room outside the Liu Mansion. When he turned the corner of the corridor, he heard someone shouting "Master Liu". He saw a person flashing out from behind the crabapple tree outside the corridor. He rushed over and pressed his hands to say hello respectfully. He took a closer look.
, it was a steward surnamed Song next to Liu Shu. This man was extremely loyal and trusted by Liu Shu. Liu Qian did not dare to neglect, and said with a cupped hand: "It turns out to be steward Song. What a coincidence."
Manager Song smiled and said: "It's not a coincidence. I have something to ask Master Liu, and I have been waiting for a long time."
Liu Qian hurriedly asked: "What's the matter?"
Manager Song invited him to sit on a rock behind the rockery and said, "The general is so worried that he can't sleep these days. I heard that the Yan State canceled our taxes?"
Liu Qian said: "The tax rebate subsidy for us has been cancelled. In the past, merchants from Yan State purchased goods from Lu State and could pay less tax than purchasing goods from elsewhere. Now this benefit has been given to Zhao State."
Manager Song said: "I have been helping the uncle manage the business for so many years, but I have never heard of this? When did the Yan State give this benefit to the Lu State?"
"It's been there a long time ago," Liu Qian said, "It's not just this, there are many things. They even sent us an official letter."
"Oh?" Manager Song said, "How come not only the slaves have not heard of it, but also the gentlemen of the trading company have not heard of it? It was not until Yan Guo canceled the order that everyone knew about it."
"You don't know?" Liu Qian frowned, "Theoretically, I should have informed you."
Manager Song said: "The servants really don't know! So many trading houses were caught off guard."
Liu Qian ordered one of his clerks: "Go to the Yamen to get the tax refund documents from the early years of Yan State."
The clerk whispered: "Sir... that thing has been there for a long time. I have forgotten where I put it. I'm afraid it will be difficult to find it."
Liu Qian glanced at him: "There are so many files, I don't expect people to remember them. Isn't there a catalog? Just check the catalog." The clerk hurriedly agreed and left.
Liu Qian sat and told Manager Song about the preferential policies that Yan State had given to Lu State in the past. The more Manager Song listened, the more frightened he became: "Yan State treats us so well?! Why!"
Liu Qian shook his head: "I don't know. But I won't give these if I say I won't." He looked up to the sky and sighed.
Not long after, the clerk got back a thick document bag, which contained official letters on preferential policies sent by Yan State to Lu State in recent years. Manager Song looked at them one by one and found that there were indeed many kinds of preferential policies. After being stunned for a long time, Song
The steward also sighed and said: "Obviously, it was made into a gourd based on the gourd that Guan Zhong banned Lu Jin in the Spring and Autumn Period. We lost." Then he bowed deeply to Liu Qian, shook his head and left.
The clerk packed up the document bag and said to Liu Qian: "Sir, why have I never seen these? You shouldn't have shown them to me."
Liu Qian said: "These are newly made in the past three or four months. If you haven't seen them, they are unusually tight."
The civil servant was stunned: "Sir, these..."
"Fake." Liu Qian stood up and said, "Making fake documents is a profound knowledge. Although you adults, I don't know how to do it, but fortunately there are people who do."
The civil servant stayed there for half a day and laughed dumbly. He followed Liu Qian a few steps and said with a low smile: "Sir, the pile of scrap copper and iron they robbed from Qi State without any effort a few days ago must have been made out of nothing?" Liu Qian said with a low voice.
He looked at him with a smile but said nothing. The clerk smiled again.
In less than two months, Liu Shu had left the federation helpless. Naturally, his brothers would not be idle, and they used various banners to look for trouble every day. Liu Shu gritted his teeth. But God waits for no one. Liu Shu had a headache.
At this time, Liu Tong's other sons were all crowded with guests. There were rumors all over the streets. Some said that Liu Shu's dirty talk had offended King Yan, and some said that he was arrogant and domineering and offended Jia Cong. Anyway, once Liu Tong died, the Federation would
It must be Liu Shu's fault that he fell out against Lu. Liu Shu himself only resented the book when it was in use, and spent every day in his study checking ancient scrolls.
In early April, the leaders of more than twenty guilds in the Lu State requested to see Liu Shu, asking him to provide ways to deal with the sudden commercial sanctions imposed by the Chinese Federation. Liu Shu had no idea at all, so he simply disappeared.
On April 20th, the merchants of the State of Lu suddenly went on strike. The shops in Jinan, the capital of the country, were closed, and neither the people nor the government had anywhere to buy anything. The whole city was in chaos. Liu Shu had never heard of such a thing in the world, and was shocked.
It took a long time to recover. Soon, Liu Qian and other important officials gathered in the study outside Liu's residence to discuss matters, and everyone came up with ideas.
Liu Shu was having a headache when he suddenly heard a commotion outside. A waiter opened the curtain and went out and said, "General, what happened?"
A senior attendant outside shouted: "It's okay..."
And there was a woman's voice: "I want to see the general! The old lady can't even eat the shrimp!"
The commander shouted: "Shut up! The general and your lords are discussing important matters!"
Liu Shu said solemnly: "Let her in."
Suddenly the woman came in and said aggrievedly: "General, the old lady loves shrimps the most. Once the shrimps are dead, they are unpalatable, so you have to buy them alive. But now the fish market is closed for some reason!"
You talk about live shrimps, but you can't even buy dead shrimps..." An official killed the chicken and wiped his neck and winked at her. She didn't even notice and just complained. Liu Shu's face was getting darker and darker.
Liu Qian was so anxious to take action on the case: "What should I do? I'll beat you again and again, but I won't be able to do it. I'll keep talking and won't listen!"
Liu Shu said angrily: "Mere merchants still want to rebel! Find the leaders of the strike and put them in jail!"
Liu Qian stumbled and said: "You can't do it! The leaders are all guild leaders. They have so much money in their hands that the government can't afford to offend!"
Liu Shu's face suddenly became murderous, and he said solemnly: "There are no common people in the world that the government cannot afford to offend. There are not enough nobles and clans, let alone merchants. Scholars, farmers, industry and merchants, merchants are the lowest."
Liu Qian shook his head repeatedly: "Businessmen are the richest! The government even accuses them of collecting taxes."
Liu Shu lightly twitched the corners of his lips: "If you put all the rich men in jail, you won't be afraid that they won't pay taxes." After saying that, he picked up his feet and walked away!
All the officials looked at each other. "This..."
Liu Qian walked around in the room. After walking in circles for more than ten times, an official couldn't help but said: "Master Liu, do we listen to the general?"
Liu Qian stamped his feet heavily: "How could I know!" After a long while, he sighed, "He is the lord! If you don't want to listen... you have to listen." He sighed again. "It's okay, just kill the chicken to scare the monkey."
The yamen officers were immediately sent out. The officials of the heads of the various guilds knew about it. The officials were like wolves and tigers, holding up long knives and kicking open the doors of each house. Every wealthy man who usually had fine clothes and good food had his necks tied with iron chains.
, were sent to prison with great fanfare. In the evening, Liu Shu heard the report that all those who should be arrested had been arrested. Master Liu asked if he wanted to be interrogated. Liu Shu sneered and said: "I will be imprisoned for a few days and then I will be honest." He thought that tomorrow, each family would be arrested.
The shop will inevitably be opened, and the sons and brothers of all the masters will have to come to beg for mercy tonight.
The next day, the doors of shops all over the city were still closed. But all the shops had banners hung up overnight. Some had red letters on a black background, some had yellow letters on a blue background, and some had black letters on a white background, all with the same sentence.
Words: non-violence and non-cooperation.
All the officials were still gathered in the study outside the Liu Mansion, but Liu Qian did not come. After discussing for a long time, there was still no way. Suddenly someone outside shouted: "Master Liu is here." Everyone looked at the door together.
I saw Liu Qian hurriedly enter the house, bowed to Liu Shu and said: "General, the leader of the strike this time has been found out by our ministers."
Liu Shu stood up immediately: "Who!"
Liu Qian said: "It's a descendant of the general, named Liu Feng."
Liu Shu frowned: "I have never heard of this person."
Liu Qian said: "This man's experience is not simple. In his early years, he opened an antique shop in Shu, specializing in the sale of stolen goods, and he knew many bandits and horse thieves. In those years, relatives of the emperor of Shu were rampant and often bullied merchants. Liu Feng secretly
A 'merchant party' was organized, and they invited bandits to avenge the businessmen who were bullied by the government and the royal relatives. This business party became bigger and bigger. Except for the son of the King of Shu who dared not touch him, he dared to kill the father of his favorite concubine.
Everyone from Shu merchants has joined this party."
An official thought: "I seem to have heard of the name Liu Feng."
Liu Qian said: "I have been the prime minister of Qin for several years."
Liu Shu was shocked: "What?!"
Liu Qian said: "The King of Qin once worshiped him as his prime minister to manage the affairs of the country. During the years when he was in power, he frequently made good policies and the Qin State's national power increased greatly. However, he resigned and left Qin the year before last."
Liu Shu hurriedly asked: "Why?"
Liu Qian smiled bitterly and said: "Wei Chen guessed that it was probably because the merchant party had become a phenomenon in Qin State and he wanted to go elsewhere."
The room was silent for a moment. After a long time, Liu Shu gritted his teeth and said, "I knew it! A businessman who pursues profit and fears power dares to cause such a big thing. Someone must organize and instigate him. Where is this person now?"
Liu Qian lowered his head slightly: "At Fourth Master's house."
Liu Shu was stunned for a moment and said softly: "What?!"
Liu Qian sighed: "At Fourth Master Liu Ge's house."