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

Chapter 112 Four Years
It has to be said that the head of the Peng family does have some tricks.

He first threatened the arrival of county soldiers, which not only made the bandits fearful, but also stabilized the hearts of the people in Wubao.

The court of the Han Dynasty has accumulated power for hundreds of years, and the people have great trust in the county soldiers.

Don't look at Huang Rangxiao's gathering of [-] people, but in the eyes of most people, if the imperial army arrives here, the bandit army will inevitably be doomed.

After the threat, half of the family wealth is used as a temptation.

Pengjiawu Fort is extremely strong, with sufficient food, grass, and water sources. It is almost impossible for the bandit army to break through in a short time, and continuous strong attacks will inevitably cause heavy losses.

If half of the Peng family's money and food can be obtained without bloodshed, most of the bandit troops will probably agree.

Even Huang Rang himself was a little shaken after hearing Peng Zun's words and couldn't help but focus on Xi Zhicai.

Seeing this, Xi Zhicai took a few steps forward, and said in a low voice: "The leader must not be deceived by his words. He said that he is willing to give half of the family's wealth and food, but no one knows how much money the Peng family has accumulated except themselves. ?”

"What the chief worries about is none other than the soldiers of Lujiang County."

"However, with the help of the county magistrate in private, the soldiers of Lujiang County will never come. We can surround Pengjiawu Fort and plan it slowly."

Huang Rang suddenly realized what he said and said, "If you hadn't warned me, sir, I might have been deceived by a villain!"

Huang Rang immediately scolded the head of the Peng family: "You are a thief who is harming the people. I am not attacking Rujiawu Fort for money and food, but to eliminate harm for the people."

"Don't make any noise as a thief. If you don't surrender, let's wait for the entire clan to be wiped out!"

After saying this, Huang Rang ordered people to attack Pengjiawu Fort.

The Patriarch of the Peng family saw that things could not go well, and immediately shouted at the many private slaves behind him: "The thief is not greedy enough, and he is determined to destroy the Peng family. If we don't fight to the death, how can we survive the day Wubao is destroyed?"

"Everyone, please fight bravely to kill the enemy. When the county guard leads the troops to kill the traitors, I will reward you with half of your family wealth. As long as you fight bravely to kill the enemy, you will have no worries about food and clothing for the rest of your life!"

"Those who are disabled in battle will be rewarded [-] yuan, and the Peng family will support them for the rest of their lives."

"War dead will be rewarded with 20 yuan, and the Peng family will take care of them."

As the leading big family in Anfeng County, the Peng family is usually domineering to the outside world, but they are very good to the private slaves and tenant farmers in their own family.

The more big the family is like the Peng family, the more they know how to make the family last forever.

These private slaves who were usually favored by the Peng family, when they heard such a huge reward, their eyes turned red and they all shouted to express their joy.

The darkest thing in the world is that there is no hope. Even if you work hard every day and your body is always under high load, you still have difficulty eating, and you still have no way to own a house of your own.

The so-called money touches people's hearts.

If you can earn enough money for a lifetime, not to mention the poor people in this era, even in Zhou Qi's era, there are probably many people who are willing to gamble.

Compared with the hardships and hardships of life, sometimes human life is not so valuable.

Seeing this, the head of the Peng family breathed a long sigh of relief.

The power of the Peng family in the county government is far inferior to that of Zhu and Huang. Most of their savings are hidden in the warehouse in Wubao. If they lose these, the Peng family will definitely plummet.

That's why.

He didn't transfer most of his direct descendants to the county government like Zhu and Huang did. Instead, he prepared to defend Wubao and fight to the death.

If the fear of private slaves and tenant farmers cannot be eliminated, it will be impossible to hold Wubao.

Seeing everyone's performance now, the Patriarch of Peng's family only put his heart into his stomach.

Seeing that Huang Rang had ordered a strong attack, he was stopped by Xi Zhicai.

He said to Huang Rang: "Pengjiawu Fort is strong. If we are attacked by force, we will suffer heavy losses. The brothers under my command are not well-trained men. If they win, they will swarm up, and if they lose, they will disperse."

"To capture Pengjiawu Fort, you can only do it wisely, not by force."

Huang Rang asked humbly: "Please teach me, sir."

Xi Zhicai said with a smile: "So, so, so and so, although it will take a little time, we can capture Wubao without bloodshed."

There was a well in Pengjiawu Fort, and the method of cutting off the water could not be used, so Xi Zhicai decided to adopt a conspiracy and use the strategy of exhausting troops to continuously undermine the enemy's will to resist.

In this way, the bandit army, relying on their superiority in numbers, launched a feint attack on Wubao regardless of day or night.

If the defenders in Wubao did not defend, the bandits would carry dirt and pile dirt against the wall of Wubao. Even if the defenders in Wubao fired arrows, the bandits would still hold simple wooden shields and continue to pile dirt.

Obviously, the bandit army wanted to build a slope directly outside the Wubao and enter.

This approach may seem stupid, but it fits the existing situation very well.

Because Wubao is not as tall as a city wall, with the strength of Huang Rang's men, even if the defenders in Wubao tried their best to block it, it would not take three to five days to build a road.

Not only that.

Whenever the northwest wind blows, Xi Zhicai asks people to set fire to the northwest of Wubao, burning firewood that has been soaked in water and mixed with human and animal excrement.

As a result, the Wubao is full of thick smoke and stench every day.

The Wubao garrison, whose morale had been boosted by the money and silk, was exhausted after several days of torture by the bandits and had no fighting spirit.

Seeing that three days had passed and the earth slope was about to be piled up, everyone in the Wubao was suddenly panicked.

At this moment, Huang Ran appeared under the Wubao again and shouted to the inside: "The earth slope will be piled up today. If you don't open the door and surrender, when the Wubao is breached, no chickens or dogs will be left behind!" "

"I know that you are waiting for reinforcements from the county guard, but you may not know that the people sent by the county government to ask for help from the county guard have already been intercepted and killed by us. It is impossible for the reinforcements to come!"

Huang Rang's words seemed to be the last straw that broke the camel's camel's back. The already physically and mentally exhausted and fear-filled Wubao defenders completely collapsed their psychological defenses.

On that day, the head of the Peng family and all the descendants of the Peng family were killed, and the slaves and tenants of the Peng family in Wubao opened the door and surrendered.

Huang Rang followed Xi Zhicai's advice and did not wantonly kill. Instead, he looted all the wealth accumulated by the Peng family over the years, and then went straight to the Zhu and Huang families.

What happened in Peng's family was spread deliberately by Huang Rang and others, making the Zhu and Huang families all know about it.

Huang Rang led the crowd to surround the two Wubaos just now, and the private slaves inside rebelled, murdered and surrendered. However, most of the direct descendants of Zhu and Huang hid in the county government office, which temporarily saved their lives.

After Huang Rang's rampage, all the major gentry in Anfeng County, except those who hid in the county, were almost completely slaughtered.

Anfeng County Government.

Zhu Bao, the county magistrate, and Huang An, the county lieutenant, led the gentry who had long since hid in the county seat, and surrounded Zhou Qi's room with water.

They shouted angrily: "It's been so long since we sent out the request for help, why haven't the county guards sent reinforcements yet!"

No wonder these people are so angry.

The foundations of all the major families were almost destroyed. Even if the bandits finally retreated, it would be almost impossible for them to return to their previous appearance.

The reinforcements from Lujiang County, which they placed high hopes on, have not yet arrived in Anfeng County. It is no wonder that these people have directed their anger at Zhou Qi, the county magistrate.

Facing the accusations from everyone, Zhou Qi just watched with cold eyes.

Right now these people are grasshoppers after autumn, if Zhou Qi is willing, he can slaughter them all now.

However, Zhou Qi did not want to bear the reputation of massacring the gentry. Even if these gentry really deserved to die, Zhou Qi should not have done it.

Zhou Qi pretended to be helpless and said: "Both the Zhu and Huang families sent people to follow Xiang Bode to the county governor's office to ask for help, but they did not come back. I don't know why."

Just when the gentry wanted to denounce Zhou Qi, they suddenly saw a bloody domestic slave rush in and shouted at Zhu Bao: "It's not good, someone colluded with the bandit army and opened the city gate. Tens of thousands of bandits The army has already entered!"

Everyone's face turned ashen when they heard the words, and they were ready to flee the county as soon as possible without even caring about asking Zhou Qi for his crimes.

Unexpectedly, they had just rushed to the door, but they were stopped by Dian Wei leading dozens of people.

Huang An had a bad temper and shouted, "Get out of the way!"

Dian Wei stared at Huang An coldly with two halberds in his hands, like a beast about to choose someone to devour, his eyes were extremely terrifying.

Huang An was intimidated by Dian Wei's momentum and could not help but take two steps back. However, he did not dare to continue shouting at Dian Wei. Instead, he turned to look at Zhou Qi who was slowly walking towards him and asked: "What does the county magistrate mean by this?"

Zhou Qi said in a cold voice: "You are a county captain. When the bandit army invaded the city, you did not organize the soldiers and civilians to resist the enemy. Instead, you wanted to escape."

"With this alone, I can kill you here for escaping from the battlefield."

Huang An couldn't help feeling slightly suffocated when he heard this.

He looked at Zhou Qi's cold eyes and suddenly felt a chill in his heart. He said: "The county town has been destroyed. Staying here will only lead to death. There is no need for us to stay here."

The rest of the gentry said one after another: "We don't have any official positions, so please ask the county magistrate to let us go!"

Zhou Qi shook his head and said: "Nowadays, most of the soldiers in the county are private slaves of major families. If you let them go, Anfeng County will definitely fall."

"This official wants to lead the county officers and soldiers to fight to the death with the bandits, and no one is allowed to leave the county office."

"If the official wins, everything will be suspended; if the official loses, we will all be buried with the county!"

After Zhou Qi finished speaking, he strode away immediately regardless of the shouts and curses of the gentry. Several gentry tried to force their way out, but were killed by Dian Wei on the spot.

Until then, Zhu Bao and Huang An felt that something was wrong.

But they looked at Dian Wei who was blocking the door fiercely, even though their hearts were full of hatred, they couldn't do anything about it.

They didn't even know when Zhou Qi's men gathered so many troops.

This is not to blame for Zhu Bao and Huang An's carelessness.

Since Huang Rang led [-] people to ravage Anfeng County, they have focused all their attention on their family's Wupu and Huang Rang.

The monitoring of Zhou Qi has been relaxed a lot.

They originally thought that Zhou Qi should stand with himself and others when facing Huang Rang, the leader of the Lujiang thief.

Never thought that Zhou Qi was their worst enemy.

The shouts of killing are getting closer.

Zhu Bao, Huang An and others were all terrified. Seeing that Huang Yang had rushed to the county government office with the bandit army, Dian Wei suddenly fled in panic with his subordinates.

When Zhu Bao and Huang An saw this, they cursed one after another.

They did not dare to delay, and followed Dian Wei and others, trying to escape from the county.

"Choo Choo Choo!"

however.

As soon as they rushed to the street, they saw dense arrows coming towards them, but Huang Rang, Zhou Jin and others were already waiting for them.

A hail of arrows killed most of the gentry, and those who were lucky enough to survive could not escape the massacre that followed.

Seeing that the noble gentry in Anfeng County had been completely slaughtered, Zhou Qi walked straight to Huang Rang with Dian Wei and his trilogy.

After Huang Ran saw Zhou Qi, a bright smile appeared on his face and he was ready to step forward to say hello.

Unexpectedly, Zhou Qi suddenly pointed at Huang Rang, and shouted sharply: "Thieves are raging in Anfeng County, massacring wealthy gentry at will, heinous crimes, do you know that your life is not long?"

Huang Rang was a little dazed at first, then looked up to the sky and laughed: "All the wealthy gentry who have been in Anfeng County for more than a hundred years have been slaughtered by a certain person, and the county seat has been breached. Who can kill me, who dares to kill me?"

As soon as Huang Rang finished speaking, he heard Xu Chu who was standing around with a knife shouting loudly: "If someone can kill you, so will dare to kill you!"

"Pfft!"

When the knife fell from his hand, Huang Rang's body was already separated.

Xu Chu held Huang Rang's head, came up to Zhou Qi and knelt down on one knee, and said loudly: "I have heard of the prestige of the county magistrate, and I had no choice but to follow Huang Rang to revolt. If the county magistrate can pardon the crimes of my brothers, I am willing to surrender! "

Xu Chu's murderous act shocked everyone.

Whether it was Huang Rang's old troops or the newly recruited refugees who were later recruited by Xi Zhicai, they all felt their heads were buzzing and they didn't know what was going on.

Just when they were confused, they happened to hear Xu Chu's voice.

At this time, Xi Zhicai and Zhou Jin looked at each other. The two of them, along with Zhou Jin's old men, also knelt on the ground and shouted loudly: "If the county magistrate is willing to pardon our crimes, I am also willing to surrender!"

Seeing this, Zhou Qi personally stepped forward to help Xu Chu, Xi Zhicai, and Zhou Jin, and said loudly: "I know you were forced to rebel, as long as you sincerely surrender, the houses and fields vacated by the gentry's homes will be destroyed. After the inventory is clear, I will distribute it to you and others."

"I also promise you that as long as I serve as the head of Anfeng County, I will never let people freeze to death or starve to death in the county again!"

With Zhou Qi, the county magistrate's promise, Xu Chu, Xi Zhicai, Zhou Jin, and the water bandits under his command all called the county magistrate wise.

Those refugees who were coerced were forced to rebel. If they could survive, they would naturally not want to engage in the beheading business.

When they saw that the big leader was dead, the other leaders asked to surrender one after another. They also put down their weapons and knelt on the ground to show their submission.

As for the old department under Huang Rang's command, he was originally loyal to him.

However, since they did not receive a reward last time and were severely punished by Huang Ran, these people began to complain about Huang Ran.

Seeing that the overall situation was settled, even though they wanted to make trouble, they didn't have the guts to do so, so they could only kneel down and beg for surrender reluctantly.

that's it.

The news that the new county magistrate single-handedly stopped tens of thousands of rebel bandits and persuaded them to kneel and surrender quickly spread throughout Lujiang County.

At this time, Zhou Qi had almost become a household name in Lujiang County, and even the county governor issued letters of commendation and condolences.

The wealthy gentry were eradicated by the rebels. Even if there were some side branches and some fish that slipped through the net, they would not be able to make any trouble.

In addition to helping and resettling the refugees, Zhou Qi also posted a list to encourage the people to sue the gentry in Anfeng County. As long as the evidence is convincing, the people who were oppressed by the gentry before can be compensated.

Not only that, but the fields appropriated by the gentry can also be returned to the victims.

The big families have been doing evil for a long time, and the people have engraved their hatred into their bones. With Zhou Qi, the county magistrate, as a solid backing, countless people have sued at once.

Many people who had been forced to lose their families once again owned houses and land.

Including those refugees who were resettled and distributed land, almost everyone in Anfeng County was grateful to Zhou Qi. Zhou Qi's reputation had climbed to its peak in just half a year.

Four years passed in a blink of an eye.

Anfeng County, which was originally poor, withered and chaotic, has now become bustling with traffic and extremely prosperous, with an endless stream of caravans coming and going.

In the newly built house in the east of the city, a newlywed couple looked at the grain harvested at home, with happy smiles on their faces.

"Ergou, I still feel like I'm still dreaming."

The boy who was called Ergou pulled the girl into his arms, his eyes were full of pampering.

This boy is now 17 years old. He is the child who attacked Zhou Qi with stones at the city gate. Now he is married to the little girl who saved him.

To this day, they have not forgotten the cruelty of the winter four years ago.

If someone hadn't given porridge at that time, and if the county magistrate hadn't returned the fields, houses, and money that had been robbed to the Chen family, they might have starved to death long ago.

The boy named Ergou, whose real name is Chen, was a nickname given by his parents in order to make their child easier to raise.

Although the Chen family was not a big landlord, they were considered self-cultivated farmers with considerable assets before.

However, because of a lawsuit involving the Zhu family, the Chen family was not only squeezed out of the last remaining money by the former county magistrate, but also all the fields and houses were embezzled by the Zhu family.

Even Chen Ergou's parents were killed by the Zhu family in prison.

In the entire Chen family, only Chen Ergou managed to save his life because of his young age and became a wandering beggar.

He had a deep hatred for the officials at the beginning.

That's why at the gate of the city, after learning that Zhou Qi was the new county magistrate, he threw stones angrily.

However, after the county government decided the case, Chen Ergou could already feel that the new county magistrate was different from the previous magistrate.

The wealthy gentry in the county were slaughtered by the bandit army. Chen Ergou looked at the official document posted by the government. Out of trust in the new county magistrate, he almost did not hesitate to report the previous murder of the Chen family.

The government investigated the old case in detail, and not only returned all the land, property, and money occupied by the Chen family, but also gave some compensation.

His parents were avenged, and Chen Ergou got everything he deserved, and he burst into tears at that time.

Since both he and the little girl are too young, they have no ability to take care of the fields.

The government also specially assigned two farm laborers to help them cultivate the land, but they had to draw a certain amount of harvest as compensation for their labor.

In four years, the two children have grown up and got married, and their lives have become happy.

"Cao'er, we're married, so we can't stay out of the household registration. I plan to go to the government to register in two days, so as not to affect the future development of our children."

The girl named Cao'er heard the words, but she looked worried, and said: "If you register your household registration, you must pay taxes truthfully in the future."

Ergou rubbed Cao'er's head and said with a smile: "If other people are officials in Anfeng County, we will naturally have to be careful about excessive taxation. But since County Magistrate Zhou is here, what does it mean if he just pays taxes normally?"

After Zhou Qi pacified Anfeng County and resettled the refugees, he took into account the imperial court's taxes and did not force everyone to register their household registration.

He just made a secret household register in Anfeng County. These people who were not naturalized could live in Anfeng County and did not have to pay taxes to the court.

However, they need to pay taxes to Anfeng County.

This tax is far lower than the court's original tax.

The reason why Zhou Qi did not completely exempt them from tax is to let these black households gradually get used to being ruled. Paying taxes is the best link.

Although the tax is not heavy, it can let them know that they are under the jurisdiction of Anfeng county magistrate.

In addition, Zhou Qi also wanted to enrich the county treasury, because he had too many things to do and needed a lot of money.

However, as Anfeng County gradually stabilizes, many settled refugees have gradually gained some surplus wealth, and many people have taken the initiative to register their household registrations.

Although black households can pay less taxes, it is not a long-term solution.

Zhou Qi did not stop those who voluntarily requested to register their household registration, because the increase of household registration in the county is also a good achievement.

Feeling the warmth from the big hand above her head, Cao'er narrowed her eyes slightly, and whispered: "Your Majesty decides everything."

With his wife's approval, Ergou continued: "The two of us have grown up, and I think that after this year, we will no longer hire people to help us plow the fields, so that we can save a lot of money for the next meal."

Unexpectedly, Cao'er suddenly opened her eyes wide when she heard this, grabbed Er Gou's hands and shook her head vigorously.

"The county magistrate has set up a college to teach people to study for free throughout the county. Langjun has been smart since he was a child and his academic performance is among the best. How can he give up halfway?"

"Compared with more floating money at home, I would rather Mr. Lang succeed in his studies and be able to serve as a small official in the countryside in the future."

After hearing his wife's words, the smile on Ergou's face became brighter.

He originally wanted to continue studying, but he was worried that it would delay family affairs and make his wife dissatisfied, so he spoke to test her.

I never thought that my wife was so reasonable.

He hugged Cao'er tightly in his arms, and said decisively: "Finally, I have the opportunity to study for free. Since Cao'er supports me, I must succeed in my studies, not only as an official in the countryside, but also in the county." .”

"If I can be reused by the county magistrate, I will have no regrets in this life!"

Cao'er put her arm around Ergou's waist and encouraged, "Lang Jun, you can definitely do it!"

In the county office, Zhou Qi looked at the information collected by Zhou Jin, and sighed after a long time: "Taiping Sect activities are becoming more and more frequent. If my memory is correct, the Yellow Turban Uprising should break out soon."

He put away the information, opened the door and looked into the distance with complicated eyes.

　Some brothers say that the update is slow, and some brothers say that there is only one update. Let me explain here.

　　Although the number of chapters has become smaller, the number of words is definitely quite a lot. For example, this chapter has [-] words and contains several plots.

　　If we also engage in those vain things, this chapter can also be divided into three chapters, right?

　　I did this to increase the average subscription, because if there are more chapters, the average subscription will definitely be lowered. Many new authors like to do this.

　　The Yellow Turban Uprising broke out in the next chapter, and I was still hesitating whether the protagonist should continue to develop or participate in it.

　　If I were the protagonist, I would definitely choose to continue. From the perspective of the novel, not participating in the Yellow Turban Uprising always feels like something is missing.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)