Minghechang Town prospered because of the salt field. There are two centuries-old families in the town, the Yu family and the Ye family, who are extremely wealthy and powerful in the local area.
The night is dark, but the crane field tonight feels a bit like the roar of the wind and cranes, and the vegetation is full of soldiers.
Even the Yu and Ye families, who usually like to compete secretly, have put aside their past feud and joined forces today.
On the top of the city, the patriarchs of the two major families and the main heads of each house gathered together, looking solemn.
There were a few more bangs, which sounded particularly crisp in this silent night.
In the distance, a fire dragon lit up, meandering around, and the sound of gongs and drums was heard everywhere.
Many gentry in the city wearing wide robes and long sleeves couldn't help but their faces turned as white as paper, "What should we do?"
"Jiu'an, who are these people?" Ye Hetu, the head of the Ye family, said tremblingly while leaning on a cane. This old patriarch, who has long been out of the family affairs, is already over ninety years old, but today he is also
Still was shocked.
Seventy-year-old Yu Jiu'an handed over the Ye He Tu and called him Uncle Shi, "This is not an ordinary thief, nor an ordinary soldier. Please take a look."
A silk letter was handed to Ye Hetu.
Ye Hetu's eyesight has long been dim, so Ye Danggui, the eldest grandson who is now in charge of Ye's huge medicinal material industry, started to read for him.
"Ningbo Minghe Salt Farm and other officials, as well as the two major families of the Yu family and the Ye family, are listening. I am the general Dingyuan bestowed upon me by Emperor Chongzhen, the chief military officer of Jiaxing worshiped by Emperor Hongguang of Nanjing, and now I am entrusted to King Chongming of Yiyang of the Zhou Dynasty.
In charge of the supervision of the country, I was granted the title of Dong Bo of Zhen. He still wore the seal of General Dingyuan and was granted the title of Prince Taibao, Governor of the Left, and Governor of Zhejiang and Fujian. Chen Wu is also the leader. Now the country is in danger, with the northern barbarians invading from the south, and the situation is in danger. I entrust the supervision of the king of Yiyang to King Yiyang.
According to the decree, I have sent troops and horses to Minghechang to collect food and salary. You are required to hand over one hundred thousand taels of silver, ten thousand shi of rice, and one thousand shi of salt within three days. If you delay or refuse to pay, you will be regarded as a traitor to the captives.
Thief, we will attack the town, burn your houses, kill your people, and leave no chickens or dogs behind!"
Ye Danggui, who was in his early fifties, read the last part, and his voice trembled. This old man, who is in charge of Ye's Pharmaceutical Group and is famous all over the country, is usually called Ye Gong by everyone in the pharmaceutical industry in Beijing and Beijing.
.
Ye Hetu angrily leaned on the ground with his cane.
"Chen Wu, isn't he the flying tiger from Chen Xi in Shangyu, Shaoxing? He, the Chen family in Shangyu, is really shaking. He has a few Qiu Ba in his hand. How dare he threaten our Ye Yu family like this?"
Ye Danggui hurriedly took the ancestor's hand and said, "Sir, the situation is not as good as it was in the past. The world is in chaos now, and Qiu Ba, who has soldiers, cannot be messed with. I heard that Chen Wu has many soldiers and horses, and even at dusk, he can even watch from a distance on the city.
When they pull the cannon, why don't we give some blood and donate some."
When Ye Hetu was young, he was also smart and capable. He opened the Ye family's medicinal material accounts all over the south of the Yangtze River, making it bigger and stronger, and even surpassed the Yu family in terms of ability.
You must know that the Yu family came first, then the Whooping Crane, and then the salt farm.
During the Three Kingdoms period, there was a famous scholar named Yu Fan; during the Sui Dynasty, there was a traitor named Yu Shiji; during the Tang Dynasty, there was one of the four great calligraphers named Yu Shinan. It can be said that it is a thousand-year-old family.
"You can't give it. These people are not officers and soldiers at all. They are obviously defeated rebels. If you give them, they will never be fed. We also have a city wall in this town. Every family has called their servants and young men over. They would rather give out the money.
Rewards should be given to the defenders of the city, but not to the rebel soldiers, otherwise they will rush towards you like a cat that sees a fishy smell."
The old man is old, but his heart is not yet old.
Facing the vague threat from outside, he was very tough, "I think this boy from the Chen family doesn't have many soldiers, otherwise he wouldn't have to be so secretive and just attack the city directly. He really needs artillery."
, they have already launched a bombardment. They are trying to deceive us. If they really open the door, it will be all over. The rebels are more ruthless than the robbers."
Robbers and bandits usually have nests nearby, and they always try to keep a thin line when doing things, and even deliberately raise them. However, these rebels will not care about this. If they seize the opportunity, they will rob them to the end.
Ye Danggui looked at Yu Jiu'an.
Yu Jiu'an just came back from Hangzhou some time ago. After Lu Supervisor surrendered to the Qing Dynasty, he, like many Zhejiang officials and gentry, believed that the Ming Dynasty was dead, so he went to pay homage to the new dynasty's commander-in-chief and seek stability in the future.
I went to Hangzhou, stuffed money everywhere, and finally met a general under Boluo. I accepted the gift, wrote him a note, and gave him a flag of obedience, which was regarded as accepting the Yu family's surrender.
Just after returning home, before I could take a breath, I heard that something had happened in Ningbo. A Lu supervisor came to Taizhou and killed Xie Sanbin, who took the lead in joining the new dynasty in Ningbo. When he went to Hangzhou, Yu Jiuan followed Xie Sanbin in the same boat.
Of.
Before Yu Jiu'an could figure out what to do, some gentry from Cixi and other counties in Ningbo took action. They expelled the puppet officials, took back the government offices, took over the city defense, and even went to Ningbo to meet with Lu Jianguo.
Who would have expected that Chen Wu, the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian under the command of King Yiyang of the Supervisory State, would appear again.
He knew and knew Shangyu and Chen Wu. After all, Yuyao and Cixi were only a few dozen miles apart, and they were all well-known local families. Even if they were detailed, they must be related to each other.
"What do you think is wrong with this world?"
Yu Jiuan stood a little messy in the evening breeze, completely unable to understand the situation.
When Chuang King Li Zicheng invaded Beijing, he thought that the world was dominated by the Dashun Dynasty, and he planned to support Dashun and join the new dynasty.
Who would have known that the Jurchen outside the Pass would soon break into Shanhaiguan and enter the city of Beijing, and the young Emperor Shunzhi would sit on the Dragon Throne of Beijing. King Fu would establish a title in Nanjing and create four high-fan towns, thinking that he might divide the north and the south in the future?
But in less than a year, Emperor Hongguang was captured, and the money and food he paid as tribute was considered to be feeding the dogs.
Immediately another King Lu came out to supervise the country, but before he was ready to go to Hangzhou to pay homage, Lu Jianguo surrendered to the Qing Dynasty.
Seeing that the world still belonged to the Qing Dynasty, he made up his mind to go to Hangzhou to pay homage to the Qing commander-in-chief and paid a large sum of money. Who would have expected that two more Ming Dynasty supervisors would come to the country.
He had heard of the name of King Lu, and he was a young clan member who was lucky enough to ascend to the title after his father and brother died, but King Yiyang had never heard of him, Zhou Fan?
Chongming supervises the country?
However, both Suzhou and Hangzhou in Weiyang were occupied by the Qing army. Is King Yiyang supervising the country on Chongming Shazhou? That would be worse than Lu supervising the country, which has recently made a big splash in Ningshaotai.
"I can't ignore it. Our two families will take the lead in collecting the money. The big households and shops in the city will all share the money. Those with money will contribute. The rest of the people will send strong men to guard the city. If a rebel bandit is beheaded, he will be rewarded with ten taels of silver."
Ye Jiutu was so old that he was about to see the coffin, and he was still extremely tough at this time.
Yu Jiu'an nodded to Ye Danggui, "This world belongs to the Qing Dynasty after all. No matter who is Lu Jianguo or King Yiyang of Jianguo, they will not be able to survive for a few days. We can't mess up our position at this time. I finally managed to
We obtained the obedient flag from Marshal Boluo of Hangzhou. If the thieves are involved, it will be difficult to escape the connection."
"The Ye family is willing to give five thousand taels of silver." Ye Danggui gritted his teeth.
Ye Hetu hit him with a stick, "You bastard, what are you planning to do at this time? If the city is destroyed, these rebels will not give us any way to survive. First go and get 10,000 taels of silver, and then, take the granary
Open it and take the food to the top of the city to cook. Someone has to take turns guarding the top of the city for twelve hours, and there cannot be any slack!"
Yu Jiu'an nodded sadly, "The Yu family is also willing to pay ten thousand taels."
"It's now time. Don't think about this yellow and white thing. First think about how to defend Minghechang Town. Even if the nest is overturned, the eggs will be intact?"
"Should we find someone to go out and talk to them, give them some money, and let them go to another place to collect food?"
"Don't go!" Ye Hetu scolded and sealed all the doors. Those outside were rebels, not a large army. They could only intimidate for a while. If they didn't have a chance, they wouldn't stay long. No one was allowed to go out. Who
If you dare to go out, you are a traitor and will be beaten to death if caught."
With this powerful old guy making the decision, Minghechang Town has gradually stabilized some people's hearts. The two families took the lead in distributing money. Regardless of whether they are willing or not, the rich merchants in the city can only pay together at this time.
Then every household in the city sent strong men to take turns in different shifts.
Fortunately, rice and noodles have been transported up and down the city, and fires have been started to cook. Some people even kill pigs and ducks. The Ye and Yu families have also begun to give out rewards in advance, and everyone on duty can get it first when they go to the top of the city.
One hundred dollars.
He also promised that if he beheaded a thief, he would be rewarded with ten taels of silver, and there were also people who helped him.
Very tempting.
Under the heavy reward, fear was gradually replaced by strange excitement.
outside the city.
Mr. Qian Chen Jun was sitting in a small courtyard on the side of the road. The owner of the farmyard and his family had been killed, and their bodies were dumped in a corner outside the courtyard. However, several rebels lit torches and were busy disemboweling the pigs in the pigpen.
There is a fire burning in the earthen stove in the kitchen, water is in the pot, and pork is being stewed.
"Isn't there any movement in the town?" Chen Jun asked impatiently.
"A group of our brothers have been watching outside a few doors in the town. No one came out, and the doors have been guarded."
"Damn it, the Yuye family is so brave that they dare to resist and refuse to pay?"
"Mr. Qian, did we ask for too much and frightened them? How about we shoot another letter into it? Do you want less?"
"You damn thing don't know anything. This is called asking for prices. If you ask for a thousand, eight hundred taels, then we are no longer beggars. What are we? We are under the command of Zhendong Bo. How can our uncle come this time?
We are not here to rob, but to be the governor of Zhejiang and Fujian. From now on, the entire Zhejiang and Fujian provinces will be guarded by our uncle. Shouldn't we ask these bitches to pay them some money and food to show their respect?"
The guy who was beaten smiled respectfully, "Yes, yes, yes, our boss Qian is uncle's nephew. He will definitely be promoted soon. At the very least, he must be a co-defendant and general. If he becomes a co-defendant by then,
Ning Shao, these damn people have to go out of their way to fawn over us."
A fat guy from a family came over with a freshly unloaded pig's head, "Mr. Qian, is this pig's head stewed or roasted?"
"Such a big fat pig, a pig's head that eats shit, throw this pig's head to me in the town, and attach a letter, saying that before the moon goes to the sky, I will never see the first ten thousand taels of silver again, I
So I went into the city to have lunch, and whoever it is, the Yu family or the Ye family, will end up like this pig head!"
Several people laughed and were very arrogant and proud.
"It's a pity that this big pig has a head." The strong man shook his head.
Another person said, "Mr. Qian, why do you think a prisoner country has appeared in Ningbo? It took over Ningbo before us. What do you think we should do next? Do we want to fight?"
Chen Jun twirled his beard, "Then you have to listen to my uncle. If my uncle says to fight, we will fight. No matter who the hell it is, King Lu or the prisoner."
"Yes, we only obey uncle's orders!" a group of people shouted.
"Come on, let's stew the pork quickly. Didn't you hear your stomach growling with hunger?" Chen Jun scolded with a smile.