Ji Tang

Chapter 648 'First the tiger came, then the jackal'

"Okay, everyone has gone away, get out of the way!" Old Man Li's eyes rolled around, and his clothes looked helpless.

The city gate official figured that time was almost up, so he waved his hand for everyone to disperse.

Everyone knew it was too late now, and their mood instantly dropped.

Ma Zhou stepped forward and said: "Don't be too sad, everyone. The Marquis will definitely be reused in the capital. Although he leaves Xuanzhou, it will definitely benefit more people."

"Who are you? I don't know whether others will benefit from this, but the departure of the Marquis is the biggest loss for us Xuanzhou people."

Ma Zhou cupped his hands and said, "Wansheng is the governor of Xuanzhou appointed by the imperial court!"

"What? Are you the new governor?"

Everyone looked at each other in confusion. Seeing that this man was only in his thirties or forties, could this be done?

When they compared him with Ji Song, they immediately shook their heads and were not very optimistic about the new governor.

Ma Zhou was also a little confused. What did he mean by shaking his head without saying anything?
But he soon understood, and saw that everyone did not look at him, but said to the city gate officials: "Now that the marquises have left, it's time for you to open the city gate and let us in, right?"

But who would have thought that the city gate official said helplessly: "Don't embarrass me. The Marquis just ordered that the city gate will open an hour later today. Just wait for a while!"

"What? An hour later? How can that be done?"

Everyone was immediately anxious and pulled the city gate official to insist on letting him open the city gate.

But they were unmoved. As time passed by slowly, everyone became more and more excited. When they saw Ma Zhou with a helpless look on his face, he rolled his eyes.

"Although the Marquis is gone, isn't the new governor here? I only obey orders. As long as the new governor gives orders, I can only obey orders. I believe that even if the Marquis knows about it, he will not blame him."

Everyone's eyes lit up, yes, the Marquis is gone, but isn't the new governor here, and he gave the same order.

As a result, the people who had just ignored Ma Zhou immediately surrounded him.

Ma Zhou was also dumbfounded. He looked at the relieved city gate official on the side, and then looked at the people who loudly clamored to open the city gate themselves. Suddenly, one head and two people were bigger.

Seeing that more and more people were gathering together, he had no choice but to do it.

"Open the city gate!" Ma Zhou said helplessly.

What can he do when he encounters such a group of people who are not afraid of trouble?
The city gate officer was waiting for his words. As soon as he finished speaking, the city gate officers, who had been impatient for a long time, opened the city gate in an instant.

Before they could react, people outside the city and people inside the city swarmed in.

But one wants to go out and the other wants to go in, but now they are both squeezed under the city gate and unable to move forward or retreat.

Delaying the opening of the city gate for an hour was enough to let the people in the city know that Ji Song was leaving.But no matter whether they threaten or intimidate, they just won't open the city gate.

Even the parents of the soldiers came to persuade them, but it was useless. Everyone was choked by the Marquis's instructions and had nowhere to vent their anger.

Even the threat of severing the relationship between father and son will not work.

It can be expected that a beating will be inevitable when I get home tonight.

Everyone sees that this is not a solution. Now those who want to get in can't get in, and those who want to get out can't get out.

I don't know who shouted: "Everyone, please stop crowding. The Marquis and his family will not be able to move very fast. If any of you have horses, hurry up and chase them!"

Everyone was silent for a moment, but then the people behind rolled their eyes and ran back quickly!

"Quick, bring the horse quickly!"

The wife was a little confused. Why was she so anxious?
"I don't have time to explain to you. The Marquis ran away and left us alone." The wife was stunned for a moment, but she quickly came to her senses.

Mr. Hou?Who in Xuanzhou can be called a marquis?

Who else besides Ji Song, the governor of Xuanzhou?
So, this time, without any urging from her husband, she slapped her son on the back of the head while he was still stunned.

"Why are you still standing there? Why don't you hurry up and get the horse? Your father is old. You go after him. If you can't catch him back, let's see how I will deal with you."

Only then did the son suddenly realize that his family was about to starve to death, and it was Lord Marquis who saved him. How could such a good official run away?
The couple breathed a sigh of relief when they saw their son leaving.

This scene was staged everywhere in Xuancheng.

As the people in Xuancheng have become rich in recent years, they have higher pursuits.The Tang Dynasty valued military merit above all else, but not everyone could go to the battlefield.

The Tang Dynasty implemented the government's military system. You had to prepare your own horses, food and grass, and prepare your own weapons and armor.Therefore, serving as a soldier in the Tang Dynasty is really not something that ordinary people can afford.

But Xuanzhou is different. It is rich here, so anyone who is interested in military exploits will prepare horses to practice riding and archery.Therefore, there are not many horses in Xuancheng.

Ma Zhou stood on the city gate tower. In a short period of time, there were hundreds of knights leaving Xuancheng. If he hadn't sent someone to stop them, there would be no one knows how many knights there would have been.

"Your Majesty, don't blame them. It was just that the life before was too hard. After the Marquis came, life became like this, so..."

The Governor of the Prefecture, Shi, was from a noble family. Looking at the actions of the common people and then seeing the quietness of the noble family, he suddenly felt a little ashamed.

During the years that the Marquis has been in Xuanzhou, it is not just ordinary people who have benefited, people from aristocratic families have benefited much more than them.

Whether it is ironware sales or Mingzhou trading, they have made a lot of money, but look at what they look like now?

Compared with the common people, they are more like white-eyed wolves.

"It's okay, I'm not that narrow-minded. The Marquis was my role model when I was in Chang'an, and he is still now."

"But I believe that with the foundation laid by the Marquis, if I can't bring Xuanzhou to a higher level, then I am incompetent."

"Even if I don't get scolded by the people, I won't be able to stay in Xuanzhou anymore."

Chang Shi was a little dumbfounded when he heard this, and asked cautiously: "Mr. Shi and the Marquis know each other?"

Ma Zhou looked at him with a half-smile, as if he could see his heart.

"Does Si Nongsi know? When the Marquis left Si Nongsi, I was the one who took over."

Chang Shi was stunned at first, but then he seemed to think of something and was suddenly shocked.

"you you."

He pointed at Ma Yiyi and was speechless for a while. It was so shocking. If other aristocratic families knew that this person was here, they might not be able to sleep at night!

Now he remembered, Ma Zhou was the one who was in charge of the Agriculture Department and opened up Longxi, Shuzhong, and western Jiangnan?
It's not that he is ignorant, but that everyone knows that Si Nongsi is in full swing in recent years, but the young minister in charge of Si Nongsi rarely shows up, and some have even never heard of him.

Looking at the smiling Ma Zhou, Chang Shi felt as if he shot himself in the foot.

They finally got rid of Ji Song, who was weighing on top of them, but now someone even more difficult to deal with came.

It's not that Ma Zhou is more powerful than Ji Song, but that this is the sword in the hands of the real emperor. How many aristocratic families have there been in recent years?
He was no longer in the mood to talk to the governor at this time. He was destined to not be dealt with, and there would be nothing to talk about.

But he had to tell his family about this as soon as possible, otherwise he shook his head and didn't dare to think about it anymore.

Why did the emperor dislike the Xuanzhou family?Otherwise, why did you send this person here?
(End of this chapter)