Hearing this, Nie Chen smiled and said,
"I killed the county magistrate and the county guard because these officials were a slut for the common people. I couldn't stand what they were doing, so I raised an army in anger. If I do this again, what will I have to do with Liu Hu and his like? What’s the difference?”
"Your Excellency is so honest, and I admire you. Your Majesty, I came with my official seal to present you to you, and on behalf of Jinping County, I am willing to surrender to you. I ask you not to attack the city and disturb the people. Peace is the most important thing, so as to avoid the chaos of war."
Now it seems that the lower official is using the heart of a villain to judge the heart of a gentleman.
With the nature of an adult, how could he possibly cause trouble to the people? "
Nie Chen smiled and said,
"Master Zhao is indeed overly worried. You should take back this official seal. You are the county magistrate appointed by the imperial court. We are not rebels. We are still loyal to the Dafeng imperial court. We are all a family.
I heard that Mr. Zhao has managed Jinping County quite well, so let’s continue.
As for the banditry, you can post notices or send envoys to various villages to tell them that the governor will give them a chance. They will accept the recruitment and be incorporated into the army. They will have food to eat and money to take. If they don't comply, I will A large army will inevitably be sent to conquer.
Using both hard and soft tactics, some people will be tempted, and some stubborn bandits will be dispatched to exterminate them after I capture Guiling Pass. By then, it will be too late for them to surrender.
In addition, Magistrate Zhao was also asked to post notices throughout the county, saying that we are recruiting soldiers, and they will be well-paid and will not deduct military pay. Each soldier will have a monthly salary of five coins.
There is no limit to the number of people, as long as they are young and strong, the more the better. "
Hearing this, County Magistrate Zhao nodded. He didn't expect that he originally came to treat death as if he were going home and use his head to exchange for the livelihood of the people. Unexpectedly, he didn't die and could continue to be an official. Master Nie assigned him as soon as they met. task.
What a resolute and resolute person he is.
"Your Majesty, this is a wonderful plan. It not only solves the banditry problem, but also allows the people who don't have enough to eat to have a livelihood. It can be said to kill two birds with one stone."
"The main reason is the lack of troops. We not only have to defend Weihu County, but also expand outward. According to my idea, the four counties have to recruit 100,000 troops each and form an army of 400,000."
Hearing this, Zhao Dezhu was shocked and said,
"Ah? An army of 400,000? These... people can be recruited. After all, there are many people who have no food to eat. How can one county support so many troops with just the tax revenue and food?"
Nie Chen smiled slightly and said,
"Master Zhao, you don't have to worry about this. We have our own ways to make money. Don't worry, I won't force the people with arbitrary taxes and levies."
"In this way, I can rest assured. Since your Excellency has said this, I can feel free to recruit troops."
Zhao Dezhu sighed,
"With good officials like you, the people of Weihu County finally have hope."
"Speaking of which, I'm also curious. Didn't you write a letter to Liu Hu before? Liu Hu is also a soldier. Why didn't he send troops to suppress the bandits?"
Hearing this, Zhao Dezhu sighed and said,
"We didn't need to recruit so many troops before. If we couldn't solve the people's employment problem, banditry would naturally increase.
The tax revenue of a county is limited. Not only does it have to support tens of thousands of troops, but it also has to be paid to the court and paid to King Andong. There is not much money left, so naturally it is unable to suppress bandits. "
Nie Chen sneered and said,
"Bullshit, you're not telling the truth. Liu Hu is not short of money, he is not short of soldiers, and he is not short of experience in leading troops to fight. If he really wants to be ruthless in suppressing bandits, will banditry be so rampant?"
Seeing Nie Chen being so direct, Zhao Dezhu hesitated for a moment and said,
"Presumably, adults should also know that suppressing bandits is a very profitable thing, right?"
"Well, yes, when the Qingshui County magistrate used to suppress bandits, he had to collect a wave of taxes from the people before going to suppress the bandits. After capturing the bandit stronghold, he could seize a lot of loot."
Hearing this, everyone looked at Ma Niubi again.
Ma Niubi turned his head and grunted,
"Look at what I do, look at what I do, isn't it just that I was killed twice? Why do you keep mentioning it?"
However, Zhao Dezhu shook his head and said,
"No, sir, such tricks to make money are too low-level. Let me tell you how the magistrates of Longxing and Tiantai counties did it.
If there is banditry in the county, which disturbs the people and makes their livelihood difficult, the people must go to the county government to file a complaint and ask the county magistrate to suppress the bandits, right?
But there can only be a thousand people at most in the county, and some even get 80% of the salary on empty wages, and there are not even 200 people. How can we suppress the bandits in such a situation?
I'm afraid that if the bandits haven't been suppressed yet, they will be suppressed instead.
In this case, we can only ask for help from the county, and then the county will send troops to suppress the bandits. Everyone will be happy, right? But many bandits are farmers who are busy farming and robbing in their spare time.
As soon as the officers and soldiers arrived, they broke into pieces and either went into the mountains or went home to the village.
Don’t the officers and soldiers know about this situation? So what do you think the officers and soldiers should do? "
Everyone listened attentively, and Nie Chen couldn't help but reply,
"Can we only withdraw?"
"Sir, you still don't understand. The officers and soldiers are here, how can they go back empty-handed?
They also know about this situation, so they rush to the village, and guess what? "
"Kill all the villagers?"
Weng Qiuchan asked immediately.
"No, how is it possible to massacre civilians? They will knock on the door of every house and ask if there are any bandits harboring here. Those who pay are considered good citizens, and those who do not pay are considered bandits. They will be beheaded directly and go back with their heads. As a military meritorious service.
After this wave, they gained a lot. Then, they went to the county magistrate and said that we would help you suppress bandits and solve your troubles. Don't you agree?
The county magistrate has to get paid, right? Where does the money come from? Aren’t they still plundering the people?
As a result, the bandits have not been suppressed much, but the people are getting poorer and poorer. Our Weihu County is close to the border, and the people are already brave, but they have no way to survive. What should we do?
Just be a bandit. If others can rob me, I can also rob others. More people will abandon the people and join the bandits.
When the bandits saw the officers and soldiers suppressing the bandits, the thunder was loud and the rain was small, so they naturally became more rampant. They even dared to rob caravans, kidnap and extort. "
Hearing this, Nie Chen turned away with a guilty conscience. He had done this kind of thing before.
"This is not over yet. When county magistrates from various places saw that they could make a fortune by suppressing bandits, they formed their own township warrior groups and called on the people to contribute money and strength.
After the group training was established, people had to pay for food and horses, so the county magistrate had more reason to collect money from the people. They didn't have the courage to suppress bandits, but they still had the courage to expropriate money in the name of suppressing bandits.
As a result, more and more people are becoming more and more miserable, and those who once clamored to suppress bandits have no choice but to become bandits. "
