Great Qing Dynasty talker

Chapter 63 Dad, I am Liu Lu

With the matter of Yi Guan's tomb settled, Li Yu stopped by Lei Hu's tomb.

The tombstone was clean and seemed to have been wiped clean recently.

There are also some wild fruits placed in front of them. Judging from the degree of decay, they are no more than two days old.

Li Yu thought to himself, is the sister-in-law here?Or a crow?
His guess was correct. His sister-in-law came yesterday, and she was alone.

Although their marriage is mixed with many complicated factors, there is still a true love.

As a member of the White Lotus Sect, Lei Wenshi needs to obey the arrangements.

Marry again, for sure!
However, before that, she came here to pay homage to her deceased husband and express her true feelings.

Tell him about his true identity and his helplessness.

Whether you talk or confess, you can always find peace of mind.

When she went down the mountain, she was the backbone of the White Lotus Sect full of fighting spirit.

He was planning an uprising in Suzhou City.

The guild leader has been seeing her frequently recently, and every time she has given instructions.

The latest instruction is to find a safe place to live outside the city and prepare enough dry food for 50 people.

……

In order to complete the order, she repeatedly misappropriated the Tangkou's banknotes.

This caused dissatisfaction among his subordinates.

Fortunately, the crow helped to calm everyone down, and they could barely survive.

After losing Li Yu, Cunjutang has become a second-rate thug in Fucheng.

And Weigetang has become a celebrity in the wealthy business circle of Fucheng.

Anyone who does big business has no problem with disputes. Litigation is commonplace.

Weige Hall has become the first choice of wealthy businessmen.

In Li Yu's words, in addition to being proficient in the laws of the Qing Dynasty, we are also proficient in various unspeakable methods.

always one option fit for you!
Of course, Weigtang doesn’t accept everything.

Anyone who wants to sue the government will be refused.

It's the kind of thing where when you go to court, the master above says, "Who in the hall is suing me?"

For now, Li Yu does not have the strength to administer this kind of justice.

He just wants to make money and then spend it to exchange for steel, guns, men and horses, and fortresses.

Also, bribe important officials and weave a dense network of relationships.

He was very busy, thinking about solving the parts of the flintlock machine, and at the same time considering the preparations for the construction of the Xishan Coal Mine.

Coincidentally, Magistrate Ma was also thinking about Xishan.

At the dinner, he gave a detailed plan.

The deputy general of Lvying Taihu Association was responsible for dispatching troops and warships.

The magistrate of Zhenze County is responsible for finding guides and providing detailed information on the water bandit forces.

Huang Tongpan, on the other hand, was responsible for sitting on Xishan Island, providing logistical supplies, and interrogating prisoners.

……

Ma Zhongyi has a great background and great reputation.

Huang Tongpan and Zhenze County Magistrate were his subordinates, so they were naturally obedient.

The deputy general of Taihu Association, Shi Linglun, was much more cautious.

He did not dare to mobilize troops without the military order of Jiangnan Admiral.

Ma Zhongyi naturally understood and comforted him:
"When the official documents from the Ministry of War arrive at the Jiangnan Admiral's Mansion, the Admiral will naturally issue military orders to you."

"When you go back, clean up the warships and strive to defeat all the bandits in Taihu Lake. Then I will recommend your future."

"General, I will obey your orders. Thank you for your kindness."

The deputy general of the second rank is shorter than the prefect of the fourth rank.

The noble in culture and the low in military were like this in the Ming and Qing dynasties.

After verbal agreement was reached, the banquet came to an end.

Everyone just thought it was Ma Zhongyi who did it to show the imperial court to gain military merit.

Suppressing bandits is a cliché.

As long as the money and food are in place and the officers and soldiers enter the lake, they will definitely gain something, but it will only be a small amount.

Water bandits are just a bunch of poor fishermen and criminal thieves.

When encountering large groups of officers and soldiers attacking, the leaders would hide and flee whenever they could.

In the end, he abandoned his old nest, and there were still some defeated soldiers and unlucky ghosts who took away the gold and silver and flew away.

A few years later, it came back.

Over and over again, this game has been played for 100 years.

Zhenze County is on the east side of Taihu Lake.

The water bandits had to go ashore to buy daily necessities and sell stolen goods.

All this requires the cooperation of local snakes on land.

Therefore, Zhenze County Magistrate can get some general information about the water bandits by asking around.

……

Kunshan County, Suzhou Prefecture.

Liu Lu and his party of three finally arrived home.

Seven years ago, like a lost dog, he embarked on the road to exile.

Seven years later, he returned home in full glory.

Liu Lu was riding on horseback, his back straight.

Wearing a brocade robe, a jade ring on his hand, and his official boots were polished.

Holding back his excitement, he rode his horse to the yard.

The door of the Liu family was open, and there were six banquet tables in the yard. It was Mrs. Liu's 60th birthday.

The guests at the banquet put down their chopsticks and looked at him blankly.

I thought to myself, who is riding the horse?

"Guan Ye, who are you?"

"Bibala Liulu."

The old man of the Liu family looked blank and couldn't understand.

He really didn't recognize that this was his youngest son.

"Master, who are you looking for?"

"Dad, I am Liu Lu."

"Oh, it's really Liu Lu. Damn it, I almost lost my sight."

Mrs. Liu smiled so brightly that her chrysanthemums bloomed, and she looked at her younger son.

"Son, what's going on under your nose?"

"Dad, you don't understand. This is called a Mandarin's mustache. It's a very particular thing. By the way, I have become a national flag citizen now."

"What do you mean?"

"I am a flag man now, raising the flag." Liu Lu wiped his hands with an proud expression.

Once these words were spoken, the effect was extremely good.

The guests in the circle opened their eyes wide in shock and compliments came one after another.To sum up, this kid Liu Lu is too promising.

"Son, how are you carrying this flag? How many people are carrying it?" Mr. Liu really didn't understand, so he wanted to ask what happened.

"The master carried it because I had the grace to save his life."

"Oh, this is a good feeling. Son, are you an official?"

"Yes, now I am an official in the Suzhou magistrate's office. If your relatives or neighbors have any difficulties in the future, just ask."

He successfully earned the compliments of all the guests, which was the highlight of his life.

Liu Lu also sat at the main table and took out a gift.

"Dad, I won't call you dad anymore."

"What the hell?" Mrs. Liu's beard stood up.

"I will call you Ama from now on. This is the custom of our banner people."

After thinking about it, Mr. Liu realized that this was the truth.

Now that he is the father of a bannerman, he naturally has to distinguish himself from other fathers.

It’s good to call her Amma!

……

"Amma, this is my son's wish."

"Just go home when you go home. Why don't you bring any gifts? Hey, what is this?"

"This is called Yu Ruyi, it's for scratching itches." Liu Lu demonstrated.

Old Mrs. Liu suddenly realized that this was a good thing.

From now on, I will take this with me when I go out for a walk.

I'm afraid no one has seen it from all over the country.

"Ama, you have to be more careful when doing things in the future. Our family is not as powerful as it used to be."

"Is it bigger than the Juren in the next village?"

Liu Lu couldn't help laughing and waved his hand:
"Let's put it this way, when our county magistrate sees me, as soon as I stretch out my hand, he has to give me 2 taels of silver."

Wow, the yard is boiling.

Being able to get the magistrate to give gifts is a great thing for an official.

For a time, Mrs. Liu's eyes were filled with complimentary smiling faces and countless toasts.

Within half an hour, he felt like he was floating.

It feels so good to be the father of a banner man!

The Kunqu opera troupe invited for 5 taels of silver also arrived and began to perform babblingly.

Liu Lu saw a woman with a good figure and couldn't help but praise her.

Old Mrs. Liu knew his son very well and asked in a whisper:

"Amma make arrangements for you?"

"No need, now I am a bannerman with status. The imperial court has regulations that bannermen cannot intermarry, otherwise they will be beheaded."

……

After hearing the news of beheading, Mr. Liu sobered up a little and quickly waved his hands to indicate that he would not mention it anymore.

The reunion of the Liu family and his son was naturally a joyful one.

But Zhenze County Yamen Prison was full of bloodshed.

The magistrate arrested more than a dozen people in one go, all of whom had personal relationships or business dealings with Taihu water bandits.

All kinds of torture instruments were brought here.

Three tough talkers were killed as soon as they got up. When they were dragged out, long blood stains were left on the ground.

The magistrate covered his nose with a handkerchief. The smell was really bad.

Signaling a prison officer to continue the torture.

The prisoners were also fierce, waving their whips like windmills.

Finally, confessions began to come in.

"Shuangdao Liu has 4 ships and more than 50 men under his command. There is a tiger crouching cannon whose home base is on Snake Island."

"The Sea Dragon King has 5 ships and more than 200 men under his command, including muskets and a bronze cannon. His home base is on Sanshan Island."

"Water Monkey, there are 2 boats and more than 10 of them, and their whereabouts are uncertain."

The magistrate looked at the confession and felt pleased.

They were ordered to continue the torture and extract all the criminal information before squeezing out their family property.

People can save one life, but they have to pay for it with all their family property.

The prisoners were instantly full of energy and picked up the red-hot iron.

According to the bad rules of the yamen, the property obtained from torture.

The county official gets half of it, the remaining officials get 3%, and the remaining 2% ​​goes to the prisoners.

……

The Qing government was very efficient in suppressing bandits.

Ma Zhongyi's message arrived at the Forbidden City seven days later.

The next day, Qianlong issued an instruction, one word: accurate.

Ten days later, the official document from the Ministry of War arrived at the Jiangnan Admiral's Mansion.

Two days later, the troop dispatch documents from the Admiral's Office arrived in the hands of Shi Linglun, the deputy general of Taihu Association.

Lijiabao.

"On the 20th, the process will be completed?"

"Yes, our court has always been efficient in dealing with banditry." Master Hu nodded and said with a smile. He came here specifically to report the news.

If it is an emergency civil commotion, the time will be even shorter.

Although now, he is sitting on the bench in the government office.

However, the right to know still exists.

He felt that Li Yu needed this information, so he came to be a good person.

"Master Hu, I will not treat my friends badly."

"I know that you are a kind person and you are very loyal to your friends."

Li Yu felt that there was something in his words, so he continued to listen to him.

Sure enough, Master Hu told the whole story:
"I have a fellow countryman who is now supervising customs in Guangdong and working as a guest. He wrote a letter and mentioned that your father, who is sworn to his brother Fucheng, has now taken office."

"Master Hu knows?"

"I only know a little bit."

"When my friends are in trouble, I should help them. This is what I should do."

"No, no, nowadays, there are many icings on the cake, but it is rare to offer help in times of need."

Master Hu seemed to be quite emotional.

This is not the case anywhere in the world.

……

"Brother Li, do you want to legally take over the Xishan Coal Mine?"

"Master Hu, the Xishan Coal Mine is mine and is being mined."

"No, what I said is legal!" He deliberately emphasized the last two words.

(End of this chapter)