Chapter 279 Cleanup
"Chang Wei Bo killed Chen Jian, the commander of Jinwu Youwei, and then captured dozens of people. The entire Jinwu Youwei army was in awe."
"Chang Wei Bo then sent his head to the various guards. Now the guards are in peace."
"understood."
Emperor Jiajing looked a little thin, especially when he turned around, everyone saw the extra white hair on his temples.
"Tell Qingzhi to go home and rest."
"Yes."
When Jiang Qingzhi received the news, he was patrolling the four gates.
Zhu Xizhong was with him, and unexpectedly Cui Yuan also came.
"Is Lord Chang Wei worried about the rebellion of the guards outside the capital?" Cui Yuan looked much more haggard.
"It is said that the gentry families in the capital area have a large population. If they gather together, they will form a large army." Jiang Qingzhi put his hands on the city wall. "There are also temples. It is said that most of the good farmland in Fujian is now in the hands of temples. Is this true?"
Cui Yuan said coldly: "Do you think it's inappropriate?"
"Local gentry annexed land and took in people. Can those fields and people pay taxes? Have they ever served in the army?"
Seeing Cui Yuan was silent, Jiang Qingzhi said sarcastically, "Among those who are trying to steal the Ming Dynasty's women, is there a prince consort?"
"It has been like this for thousands of years." Cui Yuan said calmly, "Also, you, Jiang Qingzhi, also have land. Have the servants in your family paid taxes and served in the army?"
"Haha!" Jiang Qingzhi smiled.
Cui Yuan rarely gained the upper hand, and immediately began to chase and kill: "Since Chang Wei Bo is dissatisfied, why don't you set an example yourself?"
Jiang Qingzhi looked into the distance calmly.
Zhu Xizhong quietly pulled Cui Yuan over.
"What does Duke Chengguo want to do?" Cui Yuan was old and could not withstand his torture.
"If Qingzhi paid the taxes on his family's land and the labor fees for his servants, how many people would be so eager to eat your flesh!"
Cui Yuan shuddered. Damn, Jiang Qingzhi had such a bad temper, he might really dare to do this.
……
"What is this money spent on? Taxes, labor service money..."
Li Tian looked through the account book and looked up and asked Fucheng.
Fu Cheng said, "My wife, our family has some land outside the city, and every year the lord has people pay the taxes. In addition, every member of the family has their annual labor service converted into money and paid."
Li Tian asked in surprise: "Why do we have to hand it in?"
Fu Cheng shook his head. He didn't know what Jiang Qingzhi was thinking.
……
There is no need to delve into the original meaning of the saying "If a man does not work for himself, he will be punished by heaven and earth". In folk culture, the meaning of this saying is: human nature is to be selfish, and if it is not for oneself, then he deserves death.
Jiang Qingzhi is not the kind of person who sees things in black and white. In his eyes, Zhu Xizhong's reaction is nothing more normal.
In Jiang Qingzhi's eyes, taxes and population are the foundation of a country, but it is obvious that the scholar-officials and gentry, who are regarded as the pillars of the Ming Dynasty, have been undermining the foundation of the Ming Dynasty.
"Long Wilbur."
A Jinyiwei climbed up to the top of the city wall, "Brothers, we found a den where rumors are spread. The enemy has crossbows..."
This thing is obviously not something the Jinyiwei can deal with.
"Crossbow?" Zhu Xizhong's eyes narrowed.
Cui Yuan was also horrified, "That thing is a forbidden item!"
The range and lethality of a crossbow are incomparable to those of ordinary bows and arrows. When used for assassination, the success rate can be increased tenfold.
"Go and see."
Outside a house in the north of the city, dozens of Jinyiwei were nervously holding various simple shields and waiting for orders.
More than a dozen men in the house were waiting for the last moment with gloomy faces.
"Don't think that surrendering will have a good result. The prince is dead, and the emperor needs a place to vent his anger and sorrow. If we surrender, we will be tortured first and then executed..."
A middle-aged man holding a long sword said gloomily: "If we die now, someone will take care of our wives and children, and we will live a worry-free life. If you surrender..."
He turned his eyes and said, "Wang Er, whoever dares to surrender will be killed."
"Yes." A tall man responded.
"There are Jinyiwei outside, why don't we rush out!" Someone said, "Hiding here means death, rushing out also means death, at least kill a few of them to take the blame."
Many people are not actually afraid of death, what they fear is the process of waiting for death.
The middle-aged man hesitated.
"At least let the dog emperor see how fearless we are."
The middle-aged man nodded, "Then get ready and rush out."
Da da da!
There was the faint sound of horse hooves outside, and then someone shouted, "It's Long Wilbur."
The middle-aged man's face turned pale instantly, "It's Jiang Qingzhi who's here."
The man said, "Killing Jiang Qingzhi will surely shake the capital."
The middle-aged man gnashed his teeth and said, "Jiang Qingzhi's men were able to fight against Altan's cavalry outside the Great Wall and win the battle. How can we be his opponent?!"
"We can surrender!" the man said sinisterly, "When he lets down his guard, we can suddenly attack..."
"What a trick!"
Jiang Qing got off his horse and the captain of the Jinyiwei came to greet him, "Greetings, Lord."
"How?" Jiang Qingzhi asked.
"We caught a few people who spread rumors, tortured them and found our way here. Just as we were about to charge in, a crossbow exploded inside..."
The captain took out a crossbow and showed it to Jiang Qingzhi, "One of our brothers was shot by an arrow, and now we don't know whether he is alive or dead."
"Get ready to knock on the door." Jiang Qingzhi ordered.
"My Lord, be careful with the crossbow arrows!" the captain kindly reminded.
Jiang Qingzhi waved his hand, and the captain slowly turned around, and saw a team of archers coming up.
The archers drew their bows and arrows and slowly raised them towards the yard.
What the hell!
The captain stepped back subconsciously.
Someone under his command exclaimed: "Are these officers and soldiers?"
The Jinyiwei might be better at fighting alone, but when it comes to system operations, Jiang Qingzhi feels that he can teach Lu Bing to be a better man in a matter of minutes.
"We surrender." someone shouted from inside.
"Throw the crossbow!"
Sun Bu Tong shouted.
After waiting for a while inside, two crossbows were thrown out over the wall.
Then the gate opened, and more than a dozen men were seen kneeling in the yard, trembling.
"Good!" The captain's face was flushed, thinking that he had accomplished a great success.
A team of soldiers rushed in and the dozen or so people raised their hands.
"My Lord, please." The captain said with a smile.
Jiang Qingzhi walked into the yard.
In an instant, a loud shout was heard.
"kill!"
More than a dozen men suddenly jumped up.
Sun Bu Tong went to meet them with his guards.
Jiang Qingzhi walked around the fighting and entered the room.
There were traces of burning letters on the ground. Jiang Qingzhi checked, but unfortunately, there was not a single trace left.
The centurion looked up accidentally and suddenly found that the painting on the wall was swinging violently. He shouted, "Be careful!"
If something happened to Jiang Qingzhi here, Emperor Jiajing would certainly vent his anger on the Jinyiwei.
If things go wrong, Emperor Jiajing might think that this is a trap set by the Embroidered Uniform Guard for Jiang Qingzhi.
In an instant, Baihu's hair stood on end.
There was a hole behind the painting. A thin man rushed out of the hole, holding a long knife in his hand, and rushed straight towards Jiang Qingzhi.
Jiang Qingzhi raised his eyes and frowned slightly.
When the captain heard the sound of swords being drawn, the sword lights immediately formed a line of defense in front of Jiang Qingzhi.
Blood spurted out and a body fell heavily to the ground.
Mo Zhan put away his knife and stepped back, standing beside Jiang Qingzhi again.
It was as if he had not moved at all just now.
The thin man fell to the ground, still twitching, his eyes full of disbelief.
In this split second, Mo Zhan made a follow-up move and actually killed him first.
This reaction and speed of attack made Baihu compare himself with him.
Then he shook his head.
"This is a hideout of the enemy. Ask people to investigate the neighbors and find out who goes in and out on a daily basis. Be more detailed." Jiang Qingzhi said.
"Yes!"
Jinyiwei is a professional at this kind of work. Jiang Qingzhi smiled after he finished speaking, "I am being nosy."
The captain smiled awkwardly, then whispered, "Master, we got some news a while ago." He glanced outside the door and saw no one, then continued, "Someone said after drinking that the first priority is to kill Jiang Qingzhi..."
You don't have to guess who can say this.
"Those people have lost their patience." Jiang Qingzhi smiled, but there was more coldness in his eyes.
If you want to save the Ming Dynasty, you must stand against those people.
Jiang Qingzhi has been quietly accumulating strength. He knows that his future road will be difficult, so he wants to survive as long as possible.
Isn't it the right way to develop slowly?
The scholars and officials were also hiding quietly, waiting for their opportunity.
The prince's departure for school was the good opportunity they had been waiting for.
"Chang Wei Bo." The palace eunuch came and brought the Jiajing Emperor's order, "His Majesty orders you to go home and rest!"
It seems that Dao Ye is completely sober.
Jiang Qingzhi felt relieved, glanced at the captain, and nodded slightly to express his gratitude.
The captain watched him being escorted away and said softly, "I once thought about doing something for the Ming Dynasty, but now I have no choice... But I don't want to see people like Long Wei Bo suffer misfortune."
A rider rushed into the alley, asked about the situation, and finally asked the centurion alone: "The commander asked what Jiang Qingzhi looked like?"
The captain barely hesitated, "Very tired."
"understood."
After a while, the news reached Lu Bing's ears.
The overall situation has been decided, and everyone starts to make their own calculations.
"The crown prince has passed away, and Prince Yu is almost certain to be the crown prince. Prince Yu is Jiang Qingzhi's disciple, but he doesn't like him?"
Lu Bing was a little puzzled.
Afterwards, the centurion's words were conveyed to the ears of Emperor Jiajing almost verbatim.
"I understand." There was still sadness in Emperor Jiajing's eyes, but there was a little more relief.
If a person is happy, he will be energetic even if he has not slept for several days and nights. Jiang Qingzhi was exhausted because he was sad about the death of the prince, so he ignored the good news that his disciple was about to become the prince.
This is as sentimental as Emperor Jiajing.
Huang Jin lowered his head and thought that Jiang Qingzhi was indeed lucky!
A lie told by a centurion made Jiang Qingzhi completely unaware that he had gained a huge benefit.
"Lao Mo, that knife strike was as fast as lightning!"
Sun Bu Tong was still afraid, "If you were a little slower, Master would be in danger."
"Yeah!" Mo Zhan hummed.
"Aren't you afraid that you will fail to intercept?" Sun Bu Tong asked.
That indifferent face remained, “Yeah!”
"Can you say one more word?"
"it is good."
Sun Bu Tong rolled his eyes and said, "I'm not curious. If you are sure, we can cooperate with each other when we encounter problems in the future."
The cold face moved, "He can't succeed as long as I'm here."
(End of this chapter)
