"You can't say that. If the court takes action, it will be too late." Yang Yuqian said.
Master Jia's words did not reassure him.
"Sir, if you have any way to distance yourself from the Tiger Flag, you might as well include us. It's hard to say anything else. We still have some money." Fatty Xu said.
Yang Yuqian on the side agreed: "Yes, we have money. As long as the master needs money, we are willing to provide the money."
In the past few years, they have followed the Tiger Flag, and each family has made a lot of money.
Now they don't lack money, but they lack people who can pull them out of the quagmire of Tiger Flag.
"If money could settle the matter, I would have used money to settle things long ago." Guo Binchang said in a bad tone.
As soon as these words were said, several squires present looked at each other.
Master Jia beside him sighed.
They are not the only country squires who want to distance themselves from the Tiger-Character Flag. Their eldest husband also wants to distance himself from the Tiger-Character Flag, but it is difficult to distance himself from this relationship.
"I understand." Fatty Xu was the first to react and said immediately, "In that case, I won't disturb the eldest master and will take my leave."
As he spoke, he stood up from the bench with great effort.
The few squires around him, led by him, also stood up from their seats.
"I'll take my leave."
Several squires bowed to Guo Binchang and then walked out together.
Guo Binchang said nothing and kept watching these squires walk out of the back office.
"Oh, these people actually want me to save them, but I don't know who to ask for help yet!" Guo Binchang sighed.
He, the county magistrate, has obviously been abandoned by other officials in Datong. In the future, when the imperial court orders the tiger-character banner to be dealt with, he will be the best scapegoat.
"There is an old saying that the ship will be straight when it reaches the bridge. If the tiger-character flag conquers the Tumote tribe, it is no longer the simple business name it was at the beginning. Maybe the court will not take action against the tiger-character flag." Master Jia said with relief. .
These words also comforted myself.
Once something happens to the county magistrate Guo Binchang, he, the master, will not be able to escape either. Even if he is not beheaded, he will end up being exiled from the army. Even if he is lucky enough to escape, he will have to live a life of anonymity in the future.
"I hope so!" Guo Binchang agreed casually, but did not take Master Jia's analysis seriously.
On the other side, several local squires came out of the county government office and gathered in front of Fatty Xu's carriage.
Fatty Xu, who was wide and fat, could not stand for long and got on the carriage first.
"Dongzhu Xu, I think the county magistrate Guo Binchang is in trouble. He may not be able to help us. If he wants to survive, he can only think of other ways." Li Lidong said while looking at the carriage.
Yang Yuqian, who was standing next to him, said: "How about we go to Datong Mansion together and find a way to meet Governor Li. If the governor helps us, no matter how the Tiger Flag thing develops, our family can keep it. .”
"This is a good idea, but none of us have any connections with Li Xunfu," Li Lidong said.
Fatty Xu in the carriage stuck his head out, looked at the person behind him, and said, "Proprietor Wang, you haven't spoken much since you entered the county government office. Can you also tell me your opinion?"
At this time, Yang Yuqian and Li Lidong simultaneously turned to look at Wang Shuochen, who was silent beside them.
The Yang family, the Li family, and the Xu family have always been the closest to each other. Wang Shuochen used to be just a small ironworks owner in Dongshan. Later, under the care of Tiger Character Banner, his business expanded, and he gradually became more involved with the other families. The relationship between the three families is getting closer and closer.
But in terms of relationship, it was still not as good as the other three, so Yang Yuqian and Li Lidong were always talking, while Wang Shuochen just listened to a few people talking.
However, when his name was mentioned at this moment, Wang Shuochen said: "The governor is too high. We are just local squires in Lingqiu. We can't reach as high as the governor. We barely used money to bribe the people below the governor. The governor also He won’t see us, and it’s very likely that he spent his money without using it for anything.”
"Yeah, that makes sense." Fatty Xu in the carriage nodded.
As people like them, they still have some status in a small county like Lingqiu, but in front of local officials like the governor, they are no different from ordinary people.
"Then what should we do? We can't wait to die!" Yang Yuqian frowned.
Wang Shuochen said: "We don't necessarily have to wait for death. We can follow the tiger-character flag. As long as the tiger-character flag does not fall, we will be fine. Of course, if you are afraid, you can also flee with your family and escape to a different place." Where I know you, you might be able to escape.”
"Who among us doesn't have dozens of families in his family, where can we escape!" Yang Yuqian frowned deeply.
Li Lidong, who was standing next to him, also said: "Although the Tiger-Character Flag is powerful, it is ultimately not as good as the imperial court. Once the imperial court takes it seriously, the Tiger-Character Flag will probably be destroyed. If you follow the Tiger-Character Flag, your family will be confiscated and your clan will be exterminated in the future."
Obviously neither of them is optimistic about the Tiger Flag.
Wang Shuochen chuckled and said: "Do you think we have other choices? Don't forget, the Tiger Character Banner has already rebelled once. We all had a share in it at the time. Now it is impossible to clear up the relationship. .”
"It's different now." Yang Yuqian retorted. "At the beginning, the Tiger Character Banner only faced the border troops from Datong and Xuanfu. If the imperial court took action, it would definitely remember the lessons learned back then. If it did not move, it would Already, if you move, the army will come and eradicate the Tiger Flag in one fell swoop."
Wang Shuochen showed a sneer on his face and said: "Since you guys don't think highly of the Tiger Flag, I won't say more. I hope that you can clear your relationship with the Tiger Flag in the future, so I won't bother you and take my leave. "
After saying that, he turned around and left without looking back.
"You!" Yang Yuqian pointed angrily at Wang Shuochen.
It's a pity that Wang Shuochen didn't look back at all and walked straight away.
Li Lidong next to him advised: "Good words can't persuade a damn ghost, so Brother Yang doesn't need to be angry with this person."
"Humph, we have long seen that this person is not of the same mind as us, so we should not have won over him in the first place." Yang Yuqian flicked his sleeves bitterly.
Li Lidong advised: "Okay, okay, if you don't want to be angry with this kind of person, let's think about what to do next. Guo Binchang can't be counted on. Let's see if there is any other relationship that we can move forward with."
"Yes, that's exactly what's important." Yang Yuqian nodded.
Fatty Xu on the carriage said at this time: "Let's go back first and ask each other to see if we can build relationships with officials in Datong or other places."
"That's all it can do." Yang Yuqian sighed.
Soon, several people got into their own carriages and left on the street outside the Yamen.
