"If he doesn't return his land for a day, he won't leave Loucheng for a day? Until he kills the four major families! His tone is not small, it scares me!"
"Sir, Zhang Yunxiu is an abandoned son of the imperial court. It's hard to say whether he can leave Taicang alive! How dare you trust him! With things like that in Suzhou, the little emperor should know who should be messed with and who shouldn't be messed with! Where is Taicang? Son, I have been here for generations, so it is not their turn to act wild!"
Taicang Prince's Mansion, entering the courtyard at the age of sixteen.
In the living room next to the east wing, there were two masters and servants standing.
Wang Heng, who was dressed in brocade and looked noble, was holding a freshly torn official document in his hand. The official document was stamped with the seal of the Jinglue Mansion. It was said to be Zhang Jinglue's notice to the people of Taicang.
Wang Heng rubbed the jade ring on his finger, suddenly rubbed the official document in his palm and threw it to the ground.
"Zhang Juzheng's youngest son really doesn't know how to live or die, how to advance or retreat, and he won't stop until he sees blood!"
"Master, please calm down. The Zhang family are all like this. They are just like his father. They keep talking hard even when they are about to die... They killed Brother Tang Zhengtie No. 100 for God's sake and cost the master tens of thousands of taels of silver. The brothers can't swallow this breath." !”
Halfway through the story, the slave brought up the matter of arson:
"Master, tonight the moon is dark and the wind is high, set a fire and burn them to death!"
Wang Heng raised his arms and said seriously:
"Don't worry, just play with them."
The servant said anxiously: "Lao Shen, the wood seller, said that the Tatars are training a new army in Ezhou and have recruited tens of thousands of soldiers and horses. When they are ready, we will have a hard time. Without further ado, since we have negotiated with the imperial court If you have a falling out, if you don't do anything, kill all the inspectors and go to the Japanese country."
Wang Heng narrowed his eyes into a thin line:
"Lao Zhou, I asked you to prepare last year. Are the ships ready? How many ships can Zheng Sen send to pick us up?"
Old Zhou caressed his beard and smiled: "Master, we have already prepared it. We are all in Songjiang Mansion. On the first day of April, when the southeast wind blows, we will go to Kyushu with Master Songjiang Ma. Master Zheng has prepared more than a hundred blessing boats. Finish moving things.”
"If you can't move it, burn it. Don't leave any bricks or tiles for Liu Zhaosun."
Wang Heng looked around at the expensive furniture placed in the living room and sighed slightly: "The old house in Taicang has existed for three hundred years. I didn't expect that it would be destroyed in my hands in the end. Old Zhou, remember to burn this compound too!"
Lao Zhou nodded heavily and said with regret:
"It's a pity that there are still hundreds of thousands of acres of fertile land. We can't install it or take it away. It's really a crime to leave it to those mud-legged people!"
Wang Heng waved his hand to signal not to talk about these sad things again, and then asked:
"How much do we charge for a boat?"
The slave held out three fingers and said tremblingly: "Three hundred taels."
"Three hundred taels?"
"Yes, sir, Mr. Zheng Sen's accountant asked for three hundred and fifty taels, and he only got this amount by talking a lot."
Snapped!
Wang Heng picked up the tea cup and smashed it on the ground:
"Niang Xipi! The cost of building a lucky ship is only 3,000 taels. One trip to pull goods will only charge 300 taels, and a hundred ships will cost 30,000 taels! Pirates are pirates!"
Mr. Wang smashed the teacup and was furious. Then he picked up the teapot and smashed it on the ground. The maid next to him screamed and ran away.
"In these years, without the help of the Wang family, how could the Zheng family's southern goods be sold? If you ask for thirty thousand taels, why don't you go and grab it!"
"Sir, Zheng Sen was defeated by Wu Aheng last year and lost thousands of ships. How could he dare to come out to rob? The cat is in the Japanese country. A few days ago, by mistake, he went to Dengzhou to rob. He didn't get much, but he was beaten to death by the Qi army. I have lost a lot of money, and I definitely want to get it back from us..."
Wang Heng was furious, pointed at Lao Zhou and cursed:
"Shut up! If you don't speak, no one will think you are mute!"
Lao Zhou couldn't hold it any longer, pointed at the official document on the ground and said:
"Sir, you haven't finished reading what Zhang Yunxiu wrote. There is more to come."
"What else?" Wang Heng said angrily.
"Written to the people of Taicang,"
Old Peripheral said, unfolding the official document that was crumpled into a ball.
"Those who cooperate with the government and actively expose and report the crimes of the wealthy gentry will be rewarded with a hundred taels of silver and kept secret. After the purge is completed, priority will be given to the distribution of land..."
Wang Heng raised a contemptuous smile on his lips.
"You want to overthrow the Taicang Wang family just because you want to encourage the weak? I'm talking nonsense."
"Zhang Yunxiu also said, Master, you are the culprit by inciting the wealthy gentry to fight against the new law and colluding with the gangs. Within three days, he will behead you and let the people in the city watch carefully."
Wang Heng looked up to the sky and laughed as if he had heard a great joke.
"Zhang Yunxiu wants to behead me within three days? With his remnant soldiers of less than 200 people? What does he want to do? What can he do?"
Lao Zhou echoed: "The master is right. Zhang Yunxiu is so anxious now that he wants to kill the master."
Wang Heng murmured to himself: "He said he would kill me in three days?"
"Master, why should you worry? Gao Jianli wanted to assassinate Ying Zheng back then!"
The master and servant laughed.
"He has no evidence of the Wang family's tax arrears, so why should he attack the Wang family in Taicang? I'm not afraid of the tough ones! The Wang family in Taicang is impregnable, easy to defend and difficult to attack. If three to five hundred people attack, it won't be defeated unless they fight for seven or eight days. , he came here to die! Before we leave Taqi, we want to give Liu Zhaosun a surprise."
"What do you mean, sir, to strike first and kill the goose that lays the goose to lay the eggs for this old guy?"
Wang Heng quickly waved his hand: "It's too cruel to kill the chicken to retrieve the eggs. After all, I have read the books of sages. How can I do such a harming thing?"
The so-called killing of chickens to extract eggs means to castrate people first and then cut them off... Over the years, countless Taicang tenants have been killed by "killing chickens to extract eggs" because they offended Wang Hengxia.
"There is no need to kill the chicken or collect the eggs. Let's play with him first. Hasn't he always been thinking about the two hundred thousand acres of fertile land of the Wang family? Let him come here and talk about his parents-in-law at the banquet. Tomorrow, I will be Xiang Yu! Let’s have a Hongmen Banquet!”
Lao Zhou said worriedly: "Sir, what happened to King Xiang in the end..."
Wang Heng slapped the house slave on the face and said angrily:
"Stop talking nonsense, I want to kill Liu Bang this time. Hurry up and make arrangements and find some good hands. If you miss the big deal, I will kill the chicken to take the eggs and sell you to the Qinhuai River as a male prostitute!"
Old Zhou has a beard and rough skin like the willow bark on the edge of the Qinhuai River. He is obviously not suitable for special occupations.
This is the master joking with himself.
"Sir, what if someone named Zhang doesn't dare to come tomorrow?"
Wang Heng chuckled: "Don't you dare to come? That's better. From now on, whatever Mr. Jinglue says will be nonsense, and no one will listen to him! He can't stay in Taicang any longer!"
~~~~~
Nanjing, Forbidden City.
The first ray of sunshine in the morning shines on the stone lion at the entrance of Wenhua Hall.
Everything wakes up.
The morning bell echoed over Stone City for a long time.
At the end of the secret room, Dongfang Zhu and his famous generals were waiting quietly.
"Before sunrise, your majesty practiced for an hour. Master Zhang said that my emperor is about to attain enlightenment."
Dongfang Zhu lowered his voice and patiently explained to the general.
Zhao Shujiao, who had a frosty face, was puzzled:
"Father, what is attainment?"
The father-in-law had a look on his face and told the truth mysteriously:
"He will become an immortal, and his longevity will be as long as the emperor's. He will always protect his subjects."
Zhao Shujiao nodded blankly.
~~~~
"How far has your Majesty reached in cultivation?"
In the main hall of Wenhua Hall, the Supreme Emperor held his breath and concentrated, his body relaxed, like a god.
"There is only light around me, and time and space no longer exist... I do not feel the joy of attaining enlightenment. On the contrary, I am surrounded by a kind of desolate sorrow, which exceeds the limit of what I can bear."
"General Zhao is back?"
Zhao Shujiao stared blankly at the half-human, half-immortal Supreme Emperor in front of him, hesitating on how to salute. He clasped his hands and was about to kneel down.
"no."
In early February, the Eighth Corps, stationed in Shandong, defeated the group of Japanese pirates who invaded Dengzhou and killed more than 300 people.
Unfortunately, Wu Aheng's navy failed to provide timely assistance, and most of the Japanese pirates escaped by chance.
The maid came forward to offer tea, Zhao Shujiao reached out to take the tea cup, and Gu Dong drank it in one gulp.
The Supreme Emperor held a whisk in his hand and said with a smile:
"This is the fairy tea donated by Master Li of Wudang Mountain. It is produced in Taizi Slope. It is inspired by the aura of heaven and earth and takes the essence of the sun and moon. Try it. Is it any different from the tea you drank in Dengzhou?"
The tea cup in front of Zhao Shujiao had reached the bottom. The palace maid smiled awkwardly and brought another cup.
Zhao Shujiao only took a slight sip this time, but he didn't taste any difference yet.
There was only half a cup of tea left and she wanted to drink more. Dongfang Zhu winked and the maid stepped back.
The Supreme Emperor put down his fly whisk and said to his old subordinates:
"I have temporarily handed over the state affairs to Emperor Guangde and let him take care of it. When I have some free time, I will study the art of immortality with the Taoist priests."
Zhao Shujiao said, not knowing how to respond. After thinking for a while, he put down the tea cup and said bravely.
"Your Majesty will be blessed with great blessings and will live a long life."
"No, I don't want to live to be a hundred years old, I want to live to be five hundred years old. I want to see the iron hooves clanging across thousands of miles of rivers and mountains. I wish that the world of fireworks will be peaceful and happy."
"I have found the art of immortality."
Zhao Shujiao was speechless.
"I have reviewed the ancient books and know that the new shogun Tokugawa Iemitsu was transformed by an evil dragon. Killing him will not only avenge Yuan Chonghuan, but also help me become an immortal."
Dongfang Zhu talked about the Longsha Prophecy. Although Zhao Lijiao was a military commander, he also heard about this legend.
Unexpectedly, the legend turned out to be true.
In this case, why did you transfer yourself back to the south instead of preparing to conquer Japan eastward?
The Emperor's words were concise and concise:
"There's something big going on in the south of the Yangtze River. Emperor Guangde can't suppress it. I'm calling you back and letting you go to conquer Japan."
Zhao Shujiao said uneasily:
"Your Majesty, what's going on in Taicang Prefecture?"
The Supreme Emperor nodded to Zhang Dong, and Zhang Mazi quickly said:
"It was very difficult for Zhang Yunxiu to implement the new law in Taicang. The local wealthy people killed dozens of people sent to Taicang."
Zhao Shujiao looked serious. He had no good impression of the wealthy families in Jiangnan.
"To clear one's father-in-law is to ask for land, food, and housing from the wealthy gentry. And these three things are the life of the wealthy family, so they have to fight against Da Qi."
Liu Zhaosun is an immortal.
"General Zhao, do you know who Zhang Yunxiu is?"
Zhao Lijiao didn't know much about Suzhou and Hangzhou's strategy, which was newly promoted by Emperor Guangde.
"He is Zhang Juzheng's fifth son,"
"It's actually Queen Zhang Taiyue!"
Like many people, Zhao Shujiao respected Zhang Juzheng, the prime minister at the time of his rescue.
"Yes, he is now the God of Wealth of your Eighth Corps."
Zhao Shujiao was dumbfounded.
Liu Zhaosun asked: "How much will the Eighth Corps expand its troops this spring?"
Liu Xingzuo blurted out: "Your Majesty, as of March, the Eighth Corps has recruited 1,000 new soldiers."
"Only a thousand people? Apart from the artillery regiment, you are at the bottom, right?"
Zhao Shujiao's face turned red.
Shandong has experienced wars for a long time. After the White Lotus Sect was in trouble, the Ming army was in trouble. After the Ming army was in trouble, Zheng Sen was in trouble.
The rebellion has continued on and off for more than ten years.
After years of war, even the prosperous areas above and below the canal, such as Jining and Linqing, have suffered a sharp decline in population and withered markets.
The court's food and salary will not be distributed to the various corps until the second half of the year. The situation of other corps is slightly better. The Eighth Corps is stationed in Wendeng. It would be good to ensure the rations of the veterans.
"Becoming an Immortal in One Step"
Expanding the army is really difficult.
Liu Zhaosun patted Zhao Shujiao on the shoulder and said sincerely:
"Zhang Jinglue is in Taicang and Suzhou, risking his life to find food and soldiers' pay for you. With the fields, food and money, the navy can expand and have more ships. Therefore, I say, he is your God of Wealth."
Now, the God of Wealth is dying.
Zhao Lijiao knew very well that last year, the Qi army and Zheng Sen fought a bloody battle in southern Liaoning. Although the navy won a tragic victory, almost half of its ships were lost. The failure to completely annihilate the Japanese pirates in the Dengzhou battle was also due to insufficient naval forces.
"Last month there was a rebellion in Suzhou. Emperor Guangde mishandled the situation and pushed the First Corps up. The rats were not completely dealt with. Now that Nanjing has no soldiers available, they can only send trainers to reason with them. There is no reason for fists. It doesn’t make sense. I’m a little disappointed...”
"The purpose of sending the Eighth Corps south is to ask you to go to Taicang and wipe my son's butt."
Zhao Shujiao clenched his fists with both hands, slapped his chest and said:
"I will definitely rescue Zhang Jinglue. I will go to Taicang immediately!"
As he spoke, he stood up.
"Don't be anxious yet, I have one more thing to ask you."
The Supreme Emperor took down a copy of the Tao Te Ching and looked through it under the bright whale oil lamp. He saw that governing a big country is like cooking small delicacies.
"Are the Taicang Wang family involved in this matter?"
Zhang Dong recalled for a moment and then replied: "Your Majesty, several big families in Taicang are involved. Wang Heng is their leader. He killed all our people."
Zhang Dong didn't have a good impression of Wang Xijue's son.
At that time, Wang Heng was drawing autopsy diagrams in the coir raincoat. Zhang Dong and Wang Heng had very bad tempers and could be said to be incompatible.
"It's a pity that Wang Xijue, a famous prime minister, gave birth to such a son," the Supreme Emperor sighed.
Zhang Mazi carefully looked at the Supreme Emperor. According to his understanding, whenever Liu Zhaosun started to sigh, someone would die.
"At that time, Wang Heng did not like the customs of Liaodong and resigned many times, saying that he wanted to go back to Songjiang Prefecture to eat seabass (Note 1). I gave him the opportunity to retire to the countryside and become a worldly master. He could have continued painting. In the future, he will become a great talent like Wen Zhengming and Dong Qichang. I never expected that this guy would do such a disaster in Taicang, reach out to the sky, meddle in things he shouldn't be involved in, and even kill my people."
"Zhang Dong."
Liu Zhaosun's eyes were bright and he looked like a god.
"His Majesty."
Zhang Dong looked up at the Supreme Emperor, who was a head taller than him.
"I like Painter Wang's skill very much. You and Liu Xingzuo, take all the troops of the Raincoat Guards and follow General Zhao to Taicang. Kill those who deserve to be killed. Painter Wang, we must capture him alive, cut off his hands, and use saltpeter." , sent back to Nanjing, I want to keep it as a souvenir."
Note:
1. "Shishuo Xinyu·Jian Shu": Zhang Jiying was sent to Cao Cao, King of Qi Dynasty. When he was in Luo, he saw the autumn wind blowing. He thought about the solitary vegetable soup and seabass meat in Wuzhong, and said: "Life is so precious that you can enjoy it. How can you control the number of officials?" You have traveled thousands of miles to get a title?" Then he ordered him to drive home. When the king of Qi was defeated in Russia, everyone at the time saw an opportunity.
