lady, please calm down

Chapter 360 Mr. Luo, aged fifty-nine

On the eighth day of March, Chen Bokang, accompanied by Tao Chunlai, the magistrate of Shouchun County, went out of the city to inspect the crop disease situation.

The group set out from the county town and traveled ten miles north until they reached the bank of the Huai River. As far as they could see, all the wheat fields that should have been green had turned into withered yellow a month early.

This color does not represent the naturally mature golden color, but the withering caused by an untreated disease.

Tao Chunlai was originally a spokesman for the central government. Later, the leading war faction was purged by Prime Minister Qin and others in the imperial court. Tao Chunlai was demoted to any county magistrate in the border area.

Even if his career is in vain, he still can't change his hot temper.

He and Chen Bokang were old acquaintances. The latter quickly changed his family after Qin Xiang gained power, which was disgraceful.

At this time, regardless of the disparity in official ranks between the two, he said rudely: "Mr. Chen transported six thousand dan of grain yesterday, but he refused to sell it at a fair price. Could it be that he also wants to follow Mr. Wanqi's father-in-law to eat some leftovers?"

Tao Chunlai naturally knew that the squires in several counties along the river were working together to control grain. In February and March of the spring famine, grain prices were the highest in the year, but serious diseases broke out in Shouchun, Changfeng, and Dingyuan counties along the river at this time.

The squires headed by Luo Jinyi were plundering the few grains left on the market, and at the same time using their respective connections to block grain routes and prevent grain from being transported to several counties.

Under such circumstances, panic quickly spread in the market, and families, regardless of whether they were short of food or not, started frantic buying.

Hearing the sarcasm in Tao Chunlai's words, Chen Bokang was not angry and just asked: "What's the price of food in your county now?"

"In the spring of previous years, the most expensive price per kilogram was only twelve or thirteen cents. Yesterday evening, the price of grain had risen to twenty-seven cents! And many grain shops had no grain to sell! It is a beetle that has mistaken the country and wants all the people in the four counties along the river to sell themselves. Are they slaves and maids?"

Tao Chunlai became more and more anxious as he spoke.

Also, as early as February, he had gone to the court to mention local diseases and wanted the court to allocate food for disaster relief.

When the matter was discussed in the court, someone said that Huainan was stable and there were no refugees or bandits, so how could we come to provide disaster relief?

Tao Chunlai was very angry. He asked for disaster relief to prepare for the visible months to come. Although food prices soared in February and March, with the help of last year's food reserves, people would not starve to death on a large scale.

But this disease has completely destroyed the local crops. There are no refugees now, but there will be no new food to eat in more than a month. It will be strange if there is no chaos by then!

What the adults above mean is, don't push me when there is no chaos. Only after there is chaos, you are qualified to talk about disaster relief and quelling the chaos.

Tao Chunlai couldn't bear to watch the turmoil brewing under his rule. A few days ago, he invested part of his own money and mobilized local gentry and businessmen to donate money to purchase grain from other places.

But before the money was collected, some squires signed a letter saying that he was inviting people to buy people's hearts and exploit the gentry.

The matter ended in vain, and Tao Chunlai received a reprimand from the court.

Therefore, I have been very angry recently and took the opportunity to spray it on Chen Bokang's face.

Chen Bokang is quite determined to do whatever he wants, and he is not annoyed when his subordinates get angry. On the contrary, Tian Qinghou, a student on the side, is not worthy of standing in for the teacher!

Tao Chunlai was so quick to scold him, but he didn't know that his mentor was pretending to be a monkey in front of others in order to get these six thousand stones of food!

Are Luo Jinyi and his gang of squires easy to fool?

They originally wanted to make the counties along the river short of food, so that they could close the net in May and June and plunder the counties.

The day before yesterday, my mentor sent Ma Chao to receive the [-] shi of grain obtained by selling his official position, and transported it to Shouchun County.

But yesterday afternoon, as soon as the grain was put into storage in Shouchun, the housekeeper of Luo Jinyi's family came to the door and asked what was the purpose of transporting this batch of grain to Shouchun?

He also repeatedly explained that he could not sell grain in advance and had to wait for the gentry from the four counties along the river to act together.

That aggressive attitude simply didn’t take the teacher seriously!

Tian Qinghou felt very aggrieved for Chen Bokang, who was at odds with each other.

Here, Chen Bokang looked at the lifeless wheat fields and suddenly asked, "Ji Sheng, can the people survive until May?"

Tao Chunlai heard Chen Bokang call his cousin, and felt a little emotional. They were both the main fighting faction back then, and they had the experience of fighting side by side in the court.

It was a sigh of relief, but Tao Chunlai's statement was unambiguous and categorical: "I can't survive it! In recent days, there have been occasional reports of people starving to death in the countryside. Without government relief, there will be a large number of old, weak, women and children this month. Become a starving corpse!"

Whenever there is a famine, the old and the weak must be the first to starve to death, followed by women and children.

The reason why the squires are sure that the people can survive until May is that the young and strong can survive until May. By then, they will be dying of hunger. As long as they release food before they make a desperate effort, they can not only gain prestige, but also use it. Take in many young men who sell themselves for food and feed them a few meals. These people become strong laborers.

As for the old and weak, they are naturally the defective products that have been eliminated.

Without the ability to work, what do landlords do to support them?

On how to tame the people, these squires have accumulated experience over thousands of years.

There are also those who accidentally slip up, and the result is turmoil sweeping the world.

Chen Bokang pondered for a long time, and seemed to be making some plans in his mind. Just when Tao Chunlai was waiting a little anxiously, he suddenly said: "Tomorrow, Ji Sheng will arrange for people to open porridge shacks outside the four gates of Shouchun, East, West, North and South. Women, children, the old and the weak! The young and the strong organized themselves to harvest and destroy the diseased crops and replant other crops."

"Good! I would like to thank you for all the people in the county!" Tao Chunlai, who had been suffering from internal and external injuries recently, finally saw some hope. His eyes turned red with excitement, but then he realized a problem and said doubtfully: "Sir, It’s already March, and it’s too late to replant crops!”

Chen Bokang turned to look at Huaibei across the river. "It is said that there is a golden bean in Huaibei with a yield of one or two thousand kilograms per mu. It can be boiled or steamed and is very filling. It can be planted in March and April."

"Ah? Huaibei is the land of the fake King of Qi and Chu, how could he be willing to give me seeds!" Tao Chunlai said in surprise.

"It all depends on human effort. Alas."

He kept saying that everything depends on manpower, but in the end he couldn't help but sigh. This sigh proved that Chen Bokang also knew how difficult this matter was.

They had known each other for many years, but Tao Chunlai stared at Chen Bokang rudely for a long time, as if he wanted to get to know this old man again. Now in the wild, without a wall, Tao Chunlai finally couldn't help but asked in a low voice. , "Master Chen, by taking refuge with Prime Minister Qin and Master Wanqi, is it possible that you are making false concessions to them?"

"Uh hahaha, Ji Sheng, Ji Sheng is as sincere as he was when he was young. Hahaha"

What Chen Bokang laughed at was that Tao Chunlai had been an official for most of his life, but he still spoke so childishly and straightforwardly. No wonder he wasted half his life.

Then he added abruptly, "If you want to do something, you need power, and you must first keep this black hat."

On the ninth day of March, four porridge shacks were opened outside Shouchun City, and people's support began to be organized at the same time.

That day, Chen Bokang stayed in the post house without leaving the house. He was waiting for someone from the Luo family to come to the door.

On the second day of March, he deliberately mentioned in front of the highly suspicious He Huanfeng that Luo Jinyi's family was in Huoqiu County, and he was indeed hiding a rather sinister intention.

He expected that He Huanfeng, who even dared to assassinate the emperor, would definitely seek trouble from Luo Jinyi.

Although Chen Bokang didn't think He Huanfeng could succeed, he would divert Luo Jinyi's attention as long as he could cause panic in the Luo family, the head squire.

I just took this opportunity to quickly complete the disaster relief work.

Unexpectedly, after so many days, everything was calm in the Luo family.

Chen Bokang looks smooth on the outside, but is actually quite conceited on the inside. He has not doubted his judgment so far.

But if the judgment was good, then why didn't He Huanfeng take action?

Could it be that he was afraid of the battalion of Xiang troops near the Luo family?

The matter had not yet been figured out, but on the afternoon of the day of grain distribution, the steward of the Luo family came to the door. March [-]th was Luo Jinyi's fifty-ninth birthday, and the squires from several counties along the river would attend the banquet in person.

Butler Luo took the opportunity of sending the invitation to ask Tao Chunlai, the magistrate of Shouchun County, where he got the food to open the porridge shed.

Chen Bokang only said that he didn't know that the food was in his hands anyway. No matter how dissatisfied Luo Jinyi was, he couldn't take it back.

The excuse of 'I don't know' will definitely not fool the squires.

But there are always things that must be done. Even if He Huanfeng failed to stir up the situation in Huoqiu as he imagined, he, Chen Bokang, could not just watch the old, weak, women and children starve to death.

When Butler Luo saw that Chen Bokang refused to admit it, he just smiled and said: "There will be a banquet at You hour on the [-]th. Please remember to attend the banquet, sir. The wise men from several counties and villages want to get close to you."

"County squires", Chen Bokang's move ruined their plans to make a fortune. Although Luo Jinyi could not do anything to him, Chen Bokang could not touch Luo Jinyi.

In short, the birthday banquet on the [-]th is not a good one

That night, Chen Bokang tossed and turned in the post house, thinking carefully about the next way to deal with it.

It was not until midnight that he was about to fall asleep, but only half an hour later, he was awakened by a rapid knock on the door.

He put on his clothes and got up, but outside the door was a panicked Tian Qinghou.

As soon as he opened the door, before Chen Bokang could ask questions, Tian Qinghou stammered: "Old teacher, something bad has happened! There is a fire in the granary outside the city!"

Chen Bokang's vision went dark. He supported Tian Qinghou to steady himself, and the next moment he rushed out of the post house barefoot.

Shouchun is located on the border, so even if there is a big event, the city cannot be opened in the middle of the night.

As they ran all the way to the south city wall, they saw the flames of the granary three miles away soaring into the sky, forming a giant torch on the black ground.

Three miles away, it seems that you can feel the burning breath coming towards your face.

"Food! Food for the people in my county!"

Tao Chunlai, who was also disheveled, beat his chest and slapped the battlements desperately. His palms were scratched by sharp brick edges, as if he didn't notice.

Chen Bokang's face was flickered by the fire in the distance.

Tian Qinghou wiped his tears and said, "Captain Ma is still guarding the granary."

The next day, the hour.

The granary in the south of the city has turned into a white field, with ruins and broken walls, green smoke curling up, and the smell of burned grain filling the air.

The relief effort just started yesterday, but today when the people arrived with their families, they found that the food had been burned out overnight. The psychological gap of having just seen a little hope and then quickly being disillusioned made them panic and angry.

Tao Chunlai took the government officials to appease the people, but the effect was not great. Someone in the crowd threw a piece of dog shit, which hit Tao Chunlai right in the face. The government officials pretended to scold him, and only a few people stepped forward to arrest the man who threw dung, but they were blocked by a group of squire servants who were mixed in with the people.

More government officials hid aside and watched the excitement, snickering from time to time.

Some smart people, including the flowing county lord and the iron-clad squire, have figured out that this matter is a battle of wits between the county lord and the officials outside the Yuan Dynasty.

The county magistrate will be transferred as soon as his term of office expires, but these police officers still have to stay in the local area. Who would offend the country gentry for the sake of the county magistrate?

For a moment, Tao Chunlai was in a panic.

At the old granary site, Chen Bokang sat on a stone, looking at the charred blackness, silent.

In the middle of the hour, several followers dug out seven or eight charred corpses in the rubble. Tian Qinghou endured the discomfort and found the word "Fu Bo" on the simple knife held by one of the corpses, and he burst into tears.

The teacher's bodyguard, Ma Chao, claimed to be a descendant of General Fubo Ma Yuan of the Han Dynasty. Ma Chao's name was changed when he became an adult.

The word "Fubo" on the blade was also engraved by him with his own hands. It was not only the little captain's encouragement to himself, but also his expectations for the future.

The majestic man who originally weighed more than a hundred kilograms was burned into only forty or fifty kilograms of coke.

Tian Qinghou wrapped the person in a cloth, hugged him to the teacher, and sobbed: "Teacher, Captain Ma has been found."

Chen Bokang took a steady look, his face expressionless.

After the grain was delivered to Shouchun, because he was worried about the safety of the granary, he asked his bodyguard Ma Chao to bring seven followers to live in the granary and guard it together with the Shouchun officers.

When Tian Qinghou saw that the teacher was silent, he couldn't help but said anxiously: "Teacher, the guards guarding the warehouse were not seriously injured last night. Those who died were all our people. Captain Ma was holding a knife before he died! This matter was definitely not what these guards said." If a fire breaks out in the middle of the night, it's not as simple as putting it out."

Chen Bokang still didn't speak. Tian Qinghou was depressed and couldn't explain why it was so difficult to be an official. His mentor, Tao Chunlai, the magistrate of Shouchun County, clearly only cared about the people and didn't want them to starve to death.

But the squires made obstacles at every turn, and the public servants refused to cooperate. Even the common people, seeing the granary destroyed, actually vented their grievances on Tao Zhixian!

When I was feeling sad, I lowered my head and saw that the teacher was still barefoot. After a long night of tossing, his feet were covered with mud and black ash.

Tian Qinghou couldn't help feeling sad, and immediately took off his shoes and put them on for the teacher.

It wasn't until Tian Qinghou put the shoes on Chen Bokang's feet that the latter came back to his senses. He lowered his head and took off his shoes again, "Qinghou, you keep your shoes on."

"Teacher, you can wear it. The students are young."

"No. You put it on so you can go on your way."

"On the way?"

"Well, I have a task assigned to you by my teacher. Can you come over?"

"Teacher, please speak!"

"Go to Huoqiu and find the county magistrate Lou Yuxing."

"Teacher, what are you doing with him?"

Tian Qinghou wiped away his tears, leaving a streak of black ash on his face. Chen Bokang stared at him for a while, as if he was making his final decision, "Just say, I sold five thousand shi of grain from Huaibei to come here. Asked Does he want to make a fortune with me?"

"When did the teacher have five thousand stones of food?" Tian Qinghou asked in surprise.

"Just say so. If he is interested, let him organize people to pick up the goods at Pengjiadu on the night of the [-]th."

"Oh"

Tian Qinghou still didn't understand what the teacher wanted to do, but he stood up as instructed, put on his shoes again, bowed to the teacher and Ma Chao's corpse, and turned to leave.

Chen Bokang sat looking up at the long blue sky for a long time, and finally his eyes fell back on the charred corpse, and he said in a low voice: "The person with the word "Jian" standing next to Luo's store is Lou Yuxing's brother-in-law. If Lou Yuxing wants to secretly receive food, We can only use them. On the [-]th, Luo Yuan will have a birthday party and Jianzi camp will leave the camp. Next, we will see if He Huanfeng has the courage."

March [-]th night.

After several small sampans docked at the unnamed Yedu on the Huainan River, the historian brothers Dalang, Wulang and Qilang jumped ashore with more than [-] red men.

The white-haired rat who was responsible for the reception came up to him. Shi Qilang couldn't help but said excitedly: "Old Bai! The prince has something important to do for our brothers!"

"Is that what you call me, Lao Bai? No matter how big or small you are! Call me Brother Bai Yutang!"

The white-haired rat laughed and cursed, then turned to the relatively stable Shi Dalang and said: "There is a big deal this time, and the boss specially called you here."

"Where is the prince? When will we take action?" Shi Dalang spoke concisely and to the point.

But Shi Wulang laughed out loud that the prince had summoned his brothers to come over for something. What a recognition this was!

Naturally, he was very proud.

That night, everyone met at a stronghold in Caobang.

"The time to start is on the night of the [-]th. Wu Tong, you lead the Wushi brothers to set fire, and be sure to burn out an isolation zone for the infected crops. Su Shengye, give your Sanshi brothers to take the people of Lugezhuang to the ferry at night. Yao. Son, you are good at water and are responsible for cross-strait relations. Don't let the rescue ship be delayed. Others, follow me to Luojiadian."

As soon as they heard about this, they knew that Luojiadian was the main battlefield. Wu Tong and Fan Guanghan immediately clasped their fists and accepted the order. Only Shi Qilang bargained with a shy face: "Your Majesty, let my fifth brother be in charge of contact! I will go to Luojiadian with Your Majesty. kill!"

Shi Wulang slapped his younger brother on the back of the head and cursed: "You will do whatever I ask you to do! You are talking nonsense."

Everyone couldn't help but feel happy, and at the same time, their hearts were a little surging!

The prince's plan is to burn the crops, lead the people, and then go to Luojia Store overnight. Wouldn't it turn Huainan upside down!

On the night of the second day of March, Dabaojian was persuaded by the white-haired rat to come back and told Chen Chu the truth about the past.

This dull man opened his heart for the first time in several years, and Chen Chu got drunk with him.

Wan Qixi attacked Dabaojian's wife and daughter first, which meant putting his own family members in the killing field.

There is no reason why you can only kill my family, but I cannot touch yours.

On the night of the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Chen Chu accompanied Dabaojian to visit the outside of Luo's store, but the military camp two miles away did make Chen Chu a little more cautious.

If you are in an enemy country and are entangled by Xiang troops, it will be a big problem.

For this reason, Chen Chu spent a few days arranging manpower, and specially summoned subordinates from the Huaibei army who were skilled and good at doing dirty work to come in batches.

to make sure nothing goes wrong.

Therefore, Chen Chu finally explained: "In short, when you enter the Luo family, there are no taboos except adultery!"

He said it calmly, but in reality he was full of murderous intent. If there was enough time, the Luo family might be wiped out.

Some people didn't know the cause of the matter and were still wondering how the Luo family had offended the prince; some people knew the reason and couldn't help but look at the big sword standing in the corner.

In the next two days, Chen Chu personally walked the retreat route, and then he felt relieved and waited for the full fifteenth month.

Unexpectedly, just after nightfall on the [-]th, the white-haired rat responsible for watching outside the Luojia store suddenly came to report. The Jianzi camp next to the Luojia store took advantage of the night to leave camp and headed northwest!

Chen Chu only took a few breaths to make his decision. An invitation would be better than a chance encounter!

Now that Jianzi camp has left camp, why wait for the full moon!

Immediately, Shi Qilang was asked to cross the river overnight and ordered the receiving ships from the other side to come ahead and wait.

Wu Tong and Fan Guanghan, who each had their own tasks, also acted in advance.

At midnight that night, the Huaibei Army, divided into three groups, lurked outside Luojiadian from three directions: south, west, and north.

Since yesterday, the Luo family's mansion has been decorated with lights and colorful decorations, and the white-haired mouse has found out that Luo Jinyi is celebrating his birthday tonight.

But when Chen Chu approached, he still didn't expect the birthday banquet to be so large.

The Luo family's deep house was brightly lit and the crowd was bustling. The banquet had been held for two hours, but there was still an endless stream of guests outside the house, with cars, horses and sedans stretching for more than a mile.

This scene frightened the white-haired mouse, and he couldn't help but whisper: "Master! Do you want to change the date?"

Chen Chu shook his head without thinking and said: "Wu Tong and Fan Guanghan agreed to take action at the same time! It's too late to change the time, it's today! Later, Lao Bai will lead people to remove the strong men outside, and then take action at the same time. "

Hearing what Chen Chu said, the white-haired rat didn't do what he wanted anymore. He smiled and licked his lips, "This Master Luo is fifty-nine years old and will not live past his sixtieth birthday!"

(End of this chapter)