Liu Heng left the meeting hall. At this time, Zhao Wu followed from the side and said, "Dr. Xu and the others are here."
The person he spoke of, Dongzhu Xu, was one of the directors of the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce and the owner of Lingqiu Iron Works who was the first to cooperate with Tiger Character Banner.
"Take them to sign for a mortgage room." Liu Heng explained.
Zhao Wu slowed down, turned around and retreated.
Just when Liu Heng returned to the signing room, Zhao Wu came in from the outside with several directors from the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce.
"My place is really shabby. I've neglected a few of you. Please take a seat." Liu Heng said with a smile, and then said to Zhao Wu, "I'll serve tea to a few directors."
Zhao Wu quit the signing room.
None of the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce directors who came to the signing room sat down. Li Lidong, one of them, said with a bitter look on his face: "Mr. Liu, you have really hurt us people."
Liu Heng showed a hint of surprise on his face and said, "What does Mr. Li mean by this? I don't quite understand."
Yang Yuqian on the side said in a bad tone: "Don't pretend to be confused at this time, Dongzhu Liu. When the matter has reached this point, I don't believe that you, Dongzhu Liu, haven't received any news."
"When things have reached this point, you must give us an explanation." Fatty Xu, who was leaning against the wall, said with an ugly expression.
Liu Heng frowned slightly and said: "Even if you want to accuse me, you still want me to understand what happened. Who among you can tell me first what happened? Even a person like Xu Dongzhu who doesn't want to go out can Come to Xujiazhuang in person."
Many fat people are relatively obese. They usually only stay at home and rarely go out.
Li Lidong, who was standing at the front, said: "Dr. Liu, it's pointless for you to pretend you don't know anything now! We have been cooperating with your Tiger Flag for several years, so why are you still hiding it from us at this time?"
"What you are saying is that we have nothing to do with your Tiger-Character Banner if you want to rebel, but you shouldn't drag us along with you. We are just the iron farm owners of Lingqiu, and we cannot do this kind of rebellion." Yang Yuqian He said with a dissatisfied tone.
Fatty Xu who was standing by the wall said: "We don't dare to pay attention to the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce. We only ask Dongzhu Liu to return the iron yard in Dongshan to us."
After the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce was established, the entire iron yard in Dongshan was handed over to the hands of the Tiger Flag. The iron furnaces and miners were also directly managed by the Tiger Flag, while the directors and shareholders of the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce only followed the Tiger Flag to share and run the iron yard. Benefit.
"When did our Tiger Flag rebel?" Liu Heng asked back, his eyes scanning the faces of the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce directors in front of him.
Yang Yuqian said: "At this time, Dongzhu Liu, please don't be slow. The Datong Inspector has already handed over the details of your rebellion. Now no one in Datong knows that your Tiger Flag is going to rebel."
"And the thousands of soldiers that your Tiger Flag sent out not long ago. If you didn't want to rebel, why did you raise so many private soldiers?" Li Lidong also said.
Fatty Xu raised his palm the size of a cattail leaf fan, cupped it towards Liu Heng, and said: "Dr. Liu, we can't control your Tiger Flag rebellion, and we don't want to get involved. We also ask Dongzhu Liu to give us a way to survive and return the iron field to us. .”
They came here this time just to go back to their own iron farm, and from then on they parted ways with Tiger Flag and no longer had any contact with them.
Liu Heng walked back behind the table, bent down and sat down, put his hands on the table, and said: "Others don't know what happened to those thousands of soldiers. As directors of the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce, you should know better. Without these soldiers, who would guard the safety of the iron yard, and who could ensure the safety of the iron goods on the road? It is precisely because of these soldiers that you can sit at home safely and receive money. Since the establishment of the Dongshan Chamber of Commerce, You deserve your silver, my tiger-character flag has never been less than you guys by a copper!"
"You can't say that. Although there has never been a shortage of money, Dongshan Iron Field does not need so many soldiers to protect it. Everyone knows what is going on with these soldiers. Dongzhu Liu does not need to use these words to prevaricate us. "Li Lidong was impatient. As soon as Liu Heng finished speaking, he was the first to refute.
Liu Heng did not see any dissatisfaction on his face when he heard this, but said with a smile: "Dongshan Iron Station naturally does not need so many guards, but the world has become increasingly unstable in recent years, and traveling caravans naturally need only a few guards. If we want to increase the number, thousands of soldiers may seem like a lot of people, but they can be divided into each caravan, but it is not that much, and sometimes it is not even enough."
"It's useless to tell us these words. We are not the imperial court. Now the imperial court believes that your Tiger Character Banner is treason. We are different from you, Dongzhu Liu. We are the people of Lingqiu. We cannot commit treason with you and behead someone." Yang Yu Qian said aloud.
Fatty Xu cupped his hands and begged: "Please, Dongzhu Liu, please let us go because we helped you deal with the Xu family in the first place."
Liu Heng raised one arm and put it on the back of the chair behind him, and tapped the table with the fingers of his other hand. After a long time, he said: "I understand the purpose of your visit. They are worried about being liquidated by the court and want to fight with Hu." Zi Qi broke off contact.”
Fatty Xu nodded hurriedly, the fat on his face swaying as his head moved.
"Yes, that's what we mean." Li Lidong admitted frankly.
Yang Yuqian didn't speak this time, but just rubbed his palms with both hands.
"Why do you think the court will let you go?" Liu Heng asked suddenly, and then said, "You have made a lot of money following the Tiger Flag these years. Not only the people in Lingqiu know about it, but also the Xuanfu and Many businessmen in Taiyuan know that even if you want to disconnect from the Tiger Flag now, do you think the court will believe it? Will the businessmen from Xuanfu and Datong believe it? Will the people of Datong believe it?"
After asking three times in a row, the room became quiet.
Fatty Xu's face turned pale, and he slowly slid down against the wall and sat on the ground.
Liu Heng glanced at him contemptuously and continued: "You have no way out. Only if the tiger-character flag is alive can you survive. If the tiger-character flag dies, you can only accompany him and be punished by the court."
"We did not rebel, nor did we participate in the rebellion. You are the one who wants to rebel." Li Lidong pointed at Liu Heng and shouted excitedly.
Liu Heng shook his head slightly and said with a smile: "Do you think the court will believe this? Will the government believe it? I'm afraid everyone wants you to be unlucky. If you are not unlucky, how can they have the opportunity to raid your home and take profits from you? benefit."
Li Lidong opened his mouth and wanted to refute, but in the end nothing came out. His whole figure seemed to have aged by more than ten years.
Zhao Wu walked in from outside, holding a tray with a tureen on it.
However, no one was in the mood to touch the tea sent by Zhao Wu at this time.
Liu Heng tapped his fingers on the table a few times and said, "Proprietors, you have no way out. Instead of arguing with me here, why not go back and think about how to prevent the Tiger Flag from being liquidated by the court."
