At the end of the Han Dynasty: a stingy husband from his hometown

Chapter 110 Zhi Cai Said Huang Rang

After the heavy snow, the lives of poor families and refugees became increasingly difficult.

Inside the pile of firewood near the broken water in the east of the city, there was a thin boy curled up inside, his body already slightly stiff from the cold.

As a homeless child, if there is no snow, he can still find some food in the mountains and forests, or go to the city to find some leftovers, and he can barely make ends meet.

However, this heavy snow made the boy unable to survive at all, and he was about to freeze to death in the haystack, becoming another number who died of famine in the late Eastern Han Dynasty.

"rustle!"

"rustle!"

At this moment, the sound of footsteps trampling on the snow came, but it was a little girl who was only ten years old, walking towards the firewood pile with one foot deep and one foot shallow.

Although the girl was homeless, she at least had a worn-out thick piece of clothing that could barely withstand the severe cold of winter.

She had taken a fancy to this pile of firewood and wanted to hide in it to survive the heavy snow.

But when she saw a person curled up inside, she stopped in place, a little bit in a dilemma.

"Hey, are you still alive?"

The girl shouted a few times with some caution. Seeing that the figure in the pile of firewood did not move, she walked up cautiously.

This winter, she had seen too many dead people to be afraid at all.

She only thought that if the person in front of her died, she would drag him out and throw him into the snow, so that she could hide in the firewood pile and spend the most difficult days.

But when she opened the little boy's body and felt his weak breath, she hesitated.

She looked at the boy's slightly weakened but handsome face, but after all, she still couldn't wipe out the last trace of kindness in her heart.

From her shabby package, she took out half a broken bowl and a lump of black food that was unrecognizable.

After struggling for a long time, she finally gritted her teeth and broke off a small piece of food, dug some snow into the bowl, and soaked the food in it.

After the food was soaked and softened, the girl opened the boy's mouth with force and fed the food into the boy's mouth bit by bit.

The boy who was struggling on the verge of life and death suddenly felt that there was something in his extremely hungry stomach.

Even the outside of the originally cold body seemed to be wrapped in warmth.

He struggled to open his eyes, but found that he was being hugged tightly by a girl with a dark face, and beside him was half a broken bowl that had been licked clean.

The boy was smart and quickly guessed what was going on.

He didn't care about the stench coming from the girl's body. Instead, he hugged the girl lightly and swore in his heart: "I will repay the grace of saving my life today with this body."

This boy was the thin figure who attacked Zhou Qi with stones at the gate of the county town.

It was also Zhou Qi's child who was the first to speak out in support at the county government office.

The snow has not melted for a long time.

Just when many refugees were struggling to the brink of death, news came that someone was giving porridge by the Jueshui River in the east of the city.

This news immediately made many refugees ecstatic. They dragged their weak bodies and rushed towards the east of the city desperately.

The little boy looked at the empty food and the girl who was somewhat feverish and unconscious.

He gritted his teeth, and finally dragged his frail body and carried the little girl on his back to the location of the porridge shed in the east of the city.

He knew that if they couldn't eat hot food, the two of them would definitely not be able to survive the heavy snow.

Next to the porridge shed in the east of the city.

Xi Zhicai sighed softly as he watched the gathering of more and more refugees.

Next to him, Xu Chu, dressed as a farmer, was leading 20 people from Xujiazhai to maintain order.

With the shock of Xu Chu and others, the refugees who came to receive the food queued up obediently, and no one dared to step forward to snatch it.

As for the fifty soldiers recruited by Zhou Cheng, Chen Wen and others, they were staying with Zhou Jin at this time, pretending to be water bandits and waiting for opportunities.

When Xu Chu led people to maintain order, he happened to see the boy carrying the little girl walking towards this side with difficulty.

When Xu Chu saw this, he couldn't help but feel pity. He stepped forward and pointed at the little girl on the boy's back and asked, "What's wrong with her?"

The little boy said out of breath, "Caught a cold and had no food to satisfy our hunger, and fell into a coma."

Xu Chu sighed slightly when he heard the words, and then took the two of them directly to the porridge shed, and ordered someone to serve them two bowls of porridge without asking them to line up.

"We came early, why let them jump in line?"

Unexpectedly, Xu Chu's behavior immediately aroused dissatisfaction among some people in the queue, and some people immediately criticized him.

Hearing this, Xu Chu walked to the front of the queue with a big knife in his hand and said in a deep voice: "The porridge shed is opened by the head of my family. You can give it to whoever you want. If you are not satisfied, you can leave."

When the refugees heard what Xu Chu said, they immediately fell silent and did not dare to say anything more.

Xi Zhicai took in everything and asked Xu Chu in a low voice: "These refugees are very pitiful. Why did Zhongkang only show mercy to two children?"

Xu Chu cupped his fists and said, "Although the other refugees are pitiful, they are all adults."

"It is not easy for these two children to survive in the ice and snow."

"My assistance to them is just a little effort. For them, they may be able to survive because of this, and Anfeng County can also leave two more children."

Hearing this, Xi Zhicai couldn't help but look Xu Chu carefully, and said to himself: "Xu Zhongkang seems to be reckless, but in fact he is as careful as hair. Ming Gong is only a county magistrate, and he can have such heroes as Dian Wei and Xu Chu under his command. It seems that I did not follow the wrong person."

In this way, Xi Zhicai served porridge on the banks of the Dueshui River in his own name for three consecutive days. He saved countless lives in a short period of time, saved a lot of people in Anfeng County, and gained the gratitude of many refugees.

This kind of porridge donation didn't stop until the snow melted.

It's not that Xi Zhicai is stingy, but there are too many refugees. Even though the porridge they give is very thin, they still consume a lot.

Moreover, the food in Anfeng County is controlled by the big families. If Xi Zhicai uses up all the food, he must deal with these big families.

In a secret water village somewhere in Jueshui.

Xi Zhicai looked at Zhou Jin who had rushed back after a long journey, and asked, "Have you contacted Huang Rang, the leader of the Lujiang thieves?"

Zhou Jin drank a few mouthfuls of water, first wiped off the water stains on the corners of her mouth, and then said excitedly: "We've made contact."

A smile appeared on the corner of Xi Zhicai's mouth, and said, "Will they agree to my conditions?"

Zhou Jin nodded heavily and said, "How could they refuse such a good thing?"

Xi Zhicai stood up, looked at Xu Chu and Zhou Jin and said, "In that case, I will make an appointment with Huang Rang to gather at the bank of the Guanshui River at the foot of Dabie Mountain in three days to work together."

Three days later.

Huang Rang, the leader of the Lujiang bandits who once gathered hundreds of thousands of people to revolt in history, led more than [-] people to the agreed place.

The water bandit Zhou Jin, who had been waiting here for a long time, hurriedly brought Xi Zhicai, Xu Chu and others up to greet him.

Huang Rang was tall, with a strong aura on his body, his pupils shrank when he looked at the water bandits who were densely packed with more than a thousand people.

When he saw Zhou Jin coming, he immediately strode forward to greet him and said with a smile: "Where is the great talent that my brother is going to recommend to me?"

Zhou Jin pulled Xi Zhicai over and said, "This is my sister Xi Zhicai."

Huang Rang looked at Xi Zhicai carefully, and said: "Brother Zhou Jin, Mr. Yan is a great talent, he can help me achieve success, don't you know?"

Xi Zhicai smiled slightly and did not answer Huang Rang's question directly. Instead, he asked in a neither humble nor arrogant manner: "Your Excellency gathered in the Dabie Mountains to recruit bandits, recruit refugees, and make friends with Jiangxia barbarians. Your plan is not small, right?"

Huang Rang laughed loudly, and said, "Mr. really has sharp eyes."

Xi Zhicai said seriously: "I have something to say. I wonder if you would like to hear it?"

Huang Rang said, "Sir, please tell me."

Xi Zhicai said: "Today we are ignorant, eunuchs are in power, corrupt officials are tyrannical, powerful families oppress good people, so that the people are displaced and starve to death everywhere."

"This year's severe cold has caused countless people to freeze to death, and people's resentment is boiling."

"It is precisely because of this that there are more and more talents falling into the grass in the Dabie Mountains, and there are also countless water bandits in the Dabie Mountains. Do you think so?"

Huang Rang couldn't help but nodded when he heard this.

As the leader of the Lujiang bandits, he gathered more and more subordinates, so he naturally knew the reason. It was basically because the common people were forced to live, so they had no choice but to go up the mountain and fall into the grass.

However, Huang Rang is recruiting more and more bandits, and the supply of food and grass in the village has begun to be insufficient.

Especially this heavy snow made Huang Rang feel a huge crisis.

If they can't find another way out, the Lujiang thieves will not only continue to expand their power, but it will be difficult to even maintain the current scale.

It is for this reason that when Zhou Jin found Huang Rang and claimed that he was willing to lead more than a thousand water bandits to seek refuge and recommended talents to solve the current dilemma, Huang Rang readily accepted it.

Naturally, Zhou Jin didn't have more than a thousand water bandits under his command.

But Xi Zhicai took advantage of the heavy snow to give porridge before, not only to help the people, but also to recruit refugees.

More than a thousand refugees changed their appearances and directly became water bandits in name. This can also increase Zhou Jin's bargaining chips so that Huang Rang won't underestimate him.

as predicted.

When Huang Rang came over with more than [-] people under his command and saw the more than a thousand water bandits led by Zhou Jin, his attitude changed drastically.

He was obviously much gentler than when he met Zhou Jin before.

Xi Zhicai continued to talk eloquently: "The so-called soldiers and horses have not moved, food and grass go first. Your Excellency wants to plan big things, but you have no food in hand, how can you do it?"

Huang Rang hurriedly asked, "Where do the grain and grass come from?"

This question directly hit Huang Rang's Achilles' heel, so it's no wonder he was so excited.

Xi Zhicai asked: "Have you never thought of attacking Anfeng County?"

Huang Rang couldn't help but shrink his pupils when he heard this.

He stared at Xi Zhicai and said in a deep voice: "Anfeng County has been wiped out by the previous county magistrate. It has long become extremely barren. Even the county government treasury may not have enough food."

Xi Zhicai smiled and said: "Most of the land in Anfeng County is in the hands of the wealthy gentry, why do you insist on being attached to the county government treasury?"

Hearing this, Huang Rang shook his head and said, "Sir, you only know one thing, not the other."

"Although the gentry in Anfeng County have a lot of money and food, the big families marry each other, build docks privately, raise domestic slaves, farm when they are busy, and train soldiers when they are free. It is extremely difficult to deal with."

"Thinking to rely on my subordinates to break through the Wubao of the major families and snatch food and grass is tantamount to wishful thinking."

It has to be said that although Huang Rang is just a bandit leader, he has a very clear mind and knows how difficult the local gentry is.

Especially in these remote places, there are tycoons from the Dabie Mountains and Lujiang Bandits nearby. They have long considered guarding against bandits, and Wubao has been built to be impregnable.

Several big families are married to each other and can gather thousands of slaves.

If they rely on Wubao to resist foreign enemies, and rely on the mob who are bandits, it will be as difficult as heaven to break it in a short time.

The reason why Zhou Qi was timid after coming to Anfeng County was because he knew how terrifying these tycoons were.

Xi Zhicai continued to seduce: "If I can gather [-] people for you, can I break through the fortresses of the major families and grab food?"

Huang Rang's pupils shrank, he stared at Xi Zhicai, and asked: "Can you really gather [-] troops for me?"

Xi Zhicai said seriously: "If we cannot gather [-] people for you within seven days, please behead me!"

Huang Ran was overjoyed when he heard this, but he quickly calmed down and shook his head and said: "Even with thirty thousand soldiers, but lacking armor, weapons, and crossbows, they are still a mob. If you want to break through the major family forts in a short time, it is impossible." .”

"If the daily routine is delayed, food and grass will be unsustainable, and thirty thousand soldiers and horses will collapse without fighting."

"There is enough food and grass. If we delay for a long time and wait for the county soldiers to kill him, what will we do?"

"This Huang Rang has some brains, he is not a reckless person."

Xi Zhicai thought to himself, but with a bright smile on his face, he said: "Don't worry about the food and grass. Not all the gentry in Anfeng County have the ability to build Wubao."

"Even if some gentry built Wubao, they may not all be very strong."

"Your Excellency, you can first divide your troops to defeat those small gentry, gather the food and grass they have accumulated in one place, and then besiege several big families with peace of mind. This will solve the problem of food shortage."

Huang Rang said: "Having said that, sir, have you ever thought about how to deal with Lujiang County soldiers?"

Xi Zhicai said unhurriedly: "If there will be no county soldiers coming, do you still have other worries?"

Huang Rang couldn't help being a little dazed when he heard the words, then shook his head and said: "The county guard knew that I led [-] people to attack Anfeng County, why didn't he send troops to help?"

Xi Zhicai lowered his voice and said, "The only one who can ask the county magistrate for help is the magistrate of Anfeng County."

"Anfeng County is located in a remote place, not close to the county government. If I can tell you about the help of Anfeng County Magistrate, and secretly press down the official document for help, your Excellency may break through the fortresses of the major families within a month?"

Huang Rang was shocked when he heard this and said: "Since he is the head of Anfeng County, how can he secretly help me?"

Xi Zhicai said calmly: "I'm afraid your Excellency doesn't know that the first day the new Anfeng County Magistrate entered Anfeng County, he had a grudge against the Zhu and Huang families, and the two sides have become mortal enemies."

"If your Excellency can get rid of the Zhu and Huang families, the Anfeng County Magistrate will not ask for help. How can he ask the county magistrate for help?"

Huang Rang frowned and said, "Although that's the case, isn't he afraid that I will attack the county and kill them all?"

Xi Zhicai asked: "What's the benefit of killing Anfeng County Magistrate?"

Huang Rang didn't know how to answer.

Xi Zhicai said in a persuasive manner: "What you want is nothing more than money and food. Whether we can break through the county seat is not important."

"If the county seat is captured, the county guard will definitely lead troops to conquer. How can a mere [-] people be able to stop the well-equipped county soldiers."

"If you only kill the wealthy gentry to seize money and food, and then deliberately get busted by the county magistrate and escape into the mountains to develop in peace, you will not only get the benefits of money and food, but the Anfeng County Magistrate will also gain a name, why not do it?"

Xi Zhicai's words were like the temptation of the devil.

If this is the case, Huang Rang can not only get [-] soldiers and horses, but also wantonly plunder the major gentry in Anfeng County without any worries.

Such a beautiful thing, almost no one can refuse.

However, Huang Ran still suppressed his greed, looked at Xi Zhicai carefully, and said in a deep voice: "Who are you, and what do you want?"

Huang Rang was by no means a brainless person who was able to become the leader of Lujiang thieves with more than [-] people gathered together from a down-and-out son of a wealthy gentry.

The cake Xi Zhicai drew was too big, which aroused Huang Rang's vigilance.

He vaguely felt that he seemed to be being calculated by someone.

Huang Rang pressed the handle of the knife and stared at Xi Zhicai with cold eyes. If the opponent couldn't give a convincing reason, Huang Rang didn't mind killing him on the spot.

Xi Zhicai sensed Huang Rang's change, but he didn't panic in the slightest, bowed solemnly to Huang Rang, and said, "To tell the truth, I'm now an aide to the Anfeng county magistrate."

"Today's conversation with Your Excellency is not only for business affairs, but also for personal enmity."

Huang Rang frowned slightly when he heard the words, but put down his right hand holding the handle of the knife instead, and asked, "What is business, what is personal enmity?"

Xi Zhicai said seriously: "I have said before that the county magistrate has a grudge against the wealthy gentry of Anfeng County. However, the county magistrate is alone. If we want to get rid of the wealthy gentry of Anfeng County, we can only do so with the help of external forces."

"Anfeng County has a radius of more than a hundred miles. The only person who can help the county magistrate is your Excellency."

Huang Rang nodded slightly and asked, "Then what is personal hatred?"

Before Xi Zhicai could say anything, Zhou Jin immediately said angrily: "My sister went back to her hometown to visit relatives and encountered a big change in the family. She and my brother were both killed by the former county magistrate and the Zhu and Huang families. How could my sister not avenge such a blood feud? "

When Huang Rang heard this, he suddenly realized that he remembered Zhou Jin's introduction to Xi Zhicai.

It wasn't until this moment that he fully believed Xi Zhicai's words, and immediately asked: "Since the county magistrate wants to join hands with me secretly, what request does he have?"

A cold light flashed in Xi Zhicai's eyes and he said: "The first thing I want you to do is to get rid of all the wealthy gentry in Anfeng County."

"All the money and food taken will belong to you. The county magistrate just doesn't want to be an official here in the future and be restricted and threatened everywhere."

Huang Rang secretly lamented the county magistrate's harshness, but still patted his chest and said: "Since the county magistrate ordered it, I will do my best to handle this matter."

Although this move could help the county magistrate get rid of his opponents, it would also be of great benefit to Huang Rang, so he readily agreed.

Xi Zhicai continued: "In addition, when you raise your troops, you must not kill innocent people indiscriminately, and you must not plunder the property of ordinary people, otherwise the county magistrate will not be able to explain to the county magistrate in the future."

Huang Rang frowned slightly when he heard this, but he still nodded and said: "Most of my subordinates come from poor families, how can they harm ordinary people? As long as they can get enough money and food from the wealthy gentry, they will definitely do no harm to the common people."

Huang Rang is also clear.

Nowadays, ordinary people have no money and food in their hands. They can't grab anything at all, so they simply give the county magistrate a face.

The two of them talked about this, and things were basically settled.

Xi Zhicai immediately stretched out his right hand and said, "It's so wonderful that you will benefit and the county magistrate will be named?"

"Snapped!"

The two hands clapped together, and Anfeng County would also be in trouble.

(End of this chapter)