Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 211

In the thick fog in the early morning, groups of people were surging.

The small city of Yunyang suddenly came to life from the dead silence of winter.

Xu Liang, who was carrying firewood, walked among the crowds. The journey down the mountain was always in a state of high tension for him.

The reality is that the process of going down the mountain went very smoothly, and the soldiers at the checkpoint let me go without even asking a question.

On the contrary, when entering the mountains, the inspection is extremely strict.

Xu Liang, who saw everything clearly, felt extremely heavy.

Xu Liang is not a careerist, he just wants to lead his brothers to live a life without being bullied.

The number of people under him has never been large. While others were busy growing the team, he was busy building the stronghold, hiding food and hoarding supplies everywhere like a squirrel. According to his experience, when officers and soldiers come to fight, they can't stay in the mountains forever, right?

Xu Liang also led people to open up wasteland and cultivate land in the valley, using a group of miners as farmers.

Anyone who knows about mining knows that this is a production activity that requires great organization.

If you don't listen to the instructions, you may easily get into an accident. Being a miner in this era is really not about having your head tied to your belt.

A group of highly organized, unafraid of death, and mostly young men, their combat effectiveness is definitely top-notch among the chaos.

What is not known is that Wu Han once thought of annexing Xu Liang's troops and led people to ambush Xu Liang's troops.

As soon as the fight started, I realized something was wrong. They were clearly ambushing one side, and Wu Han's men were also known as desperadoes. At first, the other side was slightly confused, but Wu Han took the advantage, and after a while the fight turned around. Xu Liang's men were not many, but they were united and highly organized. They stood firm like a rock in the huge waves. After surviving the difficult period, Xu Liang's troops launched a counterattack and fought against Wu Han's troops.

The first to retreat was the large number of Wu Han troops. If it were not for fear of too many casualties, Xu Liang gave up the counterattack and evacuated on his own initiative. Maybe the results will be even more exaggerated. Just like that, Wu Han felt that he could no longer stay in Yunyang and had to fight his way out of this barren land. He was really afraid of Xu Liang's revenge. Now you understand why Wu Han ran away under Nanyang City, right?
You can't beat a group of miners, how dare you challenge the Beijing camp? Just bully officials like the prefect of Xiangyang and steal money and food.

Following the flow of people, Xu Liang moved slowly, with a load of firewood on his shoulders, steady and effortless.

Jia Lian, who has been working with the grassroots for a long time, has a good eye for seeing people. He praised him at just one glance: "What a strong man!"

The pillar next to him was very unconvinced: "Where, why didn't I see it?"

At a small stall on the roadside, Jia Lian took a sip of porridge from a bowl and said calmly: "Ask the guy who carries the firewood."

He is an expert at cutting people off from pillars, but he is definitely not good at working. So I didn't think Xu Liang was that outrageous, but not Jia Lian. He was carrying more than a hundred kilograms of firewood without touching anyone else, and his control of power was so precise. It's really called lifting a weight but taking it lightly. He carried the load of firewood just like holding a stick.

Xu Liang, who was blocked by the pillar, had a simple smile on his face: "The guest wants to buy firewood?"

After looking at Zhuzhu carefully, he said: "My master said you are a good warrior, but I didn't realize it. There are so many people here, it's a pity that we can't compare. Come with me!"

"Guest, I want to sell firewood. There is no salt at home. My mother-in-law is waiting..."

A bunch of money was thrown over, and Xu Liang, who was holding firewood on his shoulder, caught it steadily with one hand. Zhu Zhu nodded when he saw it: "There is something."

The two of them looked at each other. The moment Xu Liang was stopped, his heart sank, wondering what went wrong.

After a follow-up conversation, I realized that there was a misunderstanding. They were not here to catch rebels.

Despite this, Xu Liang, who is thoughtful, still wants to figure out what went wrong and be seen deeply.

The breakfast shop is newly opened and sells porridge and vegetable buns. The oil residue in the bun filling is the most popular.

Jia Lian doesn't like fried food, but just drinks a bowl of porridge here. After all, one more customer means more profits for the business and more popularity in the market. Mr. Jia comes to this stall and drinks a bowl of porridge every day, and the effect is absolutely good.

The stall owner was the mother-in-law of an old official in the government office. During the riot, her children escaped. The two old people took their two grandsons and hid in Tibet until Mr. Jia came to the city and recruited new officials. The old official was able to come out again because he was familiar with the situation. , quickly gained trust.

When he learned that Jia Lian wanted to set up a market and asked about opening a breakfast stall, the old official took over the job. Jia Lian asked the army to keep the oil residue when pressing oil and give it to the old official as a contribution. .

What Jia Lian sees as worthless oil residue is extremely fishy in the eyes of ordinary people.

Xu Liang put down the firewood and saw Jia Lian pointing to the seat opposite him and sat down unceremoniously. Jia Lian pushed over a plate of steamed buns and said, "Eat, for a good man like you, it is God's injustice if you don't have enough to eat."

After a short silence, Xu Liang said: "The world is unfair, don't blame God." After saying this, he was really rude, picked up a bun, and took a big bite. Half of the bun was gone. Just for a moment, Xu Liang had countless thoughts running through his mind. Take down this scholar-looking guy and fight his way out of the crowd?
Jia Lian didn't really care at first, but with the change in the expression on the guy's face and the words he spoke, Jia Lian became concerned.

This guy is not easy!

A plate of six steamed buns as big as a fist, this guy ate it all in just three ounces, and the porridge was not too hot. He drank two bowls of it. After putting down the bowls and chopsticks, Xu Liang looked at Jia Lian: "How do you call such an adult? "

From the beginning, Jia Lian felt that this warrior was good and could enrich the team of generals. After all, the current situation in Dazhou was not peaceful. It is really important to have a force in your hand that you can pull out to fight at any time. There are many people in the capital and it is not easy to recruit reliable people. However, it is different in other places. People who have nothing to do with the capital will not be brought back as spies.

It was an unintentional move, and now it looks like it's going to pay off unexpectedly.

With a smile on his face, he felt a little worried in his heart. The person was right in front of him. He suddenly wanted to do something bad. He made a mistake when he went out without taking the guy with him.

"It's Jia Lian! I'll take care of all the affairs of Yunyang Mansion for the time being." Jia Lian knew that the person coming was simple, so he didn't hide it.

"Xu Liang, a common man, makes a living by mining." Xu Liang also directly pointed out the carriage and horses. What he regretted was that the load of firewood was a bit far away, so he couldn't reach out and take out the hatchet to kill this dog official. Ah, no, this is not a dog officer, that’s okay.

"When you came here, did you see the notice on the market bulletin board?" Jia Lian saw that he had no intention of getting angry, and his smile became even wider and more genuine.

"Yes, but I killed the dog officer of the Yunyang magistrate." Xu Liang's answer was also very true. Jia Lian still smiled after hearing this; "It's a joke, he should have died. He found out about Jiang Chaozong and the county magistrate's activities and didn't report it. If you still make money together, you will be punished by the court. Now that you are dead, it will be easier for his family. But you can't use the name Xu Liang. You have to change it. Get a corpse and pretend to be a witness. , no one dares to question it.”

"Why?" Xu Liang asked strangely. After all, he killed officials and rebelled, and he could still be forgiven.

Jia Lian knew that the worries in his heart could not be persuaded by a few words, but must be determined by actions. But he still patiently explained: "According to the investigation, you killed a prefect and robbed some food, but did not harm the people. You and your subordinates are relatively conscientious, so you can entertain them. Ding Damu cannot do that. Yes, although he was forced to rebel, he allowed his subordinates to plunder the people, rape women and children, and kill innocent people indiscriminately. His sin is unpardonable. "

One is one, two is two, Jia Lian said it clearly, Xu Liang understood it, but he couldn't believe it.

"You don't have to answer me now. I'll have someone take you through the border when you go back. There's a shortage of salt in the mountains, so bring more."

After Xu Liang was silent for a while, he said in a low voice: "My lord is a good official. There are too few officials like you."

Jia Lian was silent after hearing this, looking up at the sky, unable to calm down for a long time.

Bureaucrats, gentry, evil officials, and bullies may not all be in the same group, but when they stand together, they must strip off the last rags of clothing from the people and steal the last morsel of food. They deserve to die!
Looking at Jia Lian who was in a heavy mood, Xu Liang didn't know how to comfort him. He was telling the truth, but the truth didn't sound good.

"It's boring, let's change the topic. Zhu Zhu, go get a load of salt." Jia Lian turned around and said. The last servant around him had left. Zhu Zhu had already noticed that something was wrong. He glared at Xu Liang with an unkind look, stood up and said angrily. go.

"What do you want to talk about, sir?" Xu Liang didn't know what to say, so he had to ask first. He was not a fool. He knew that Jia Lian asked Zhu Zhu to leave to give him peace of mind. It is said that Mr. Jia is extremely noble and cannot be compared with ordinary officials.

It would be a lie to say that Xu Liang was not moved. People have put their lives in their own hands, why don’t they feel relieved?

"I heard that there are a lot of iron ores here. The characteristics of domestic iron ores are similar. They are low-grade and difficult to mine. I don't know much about the situation in Yunyang, but according to the reports I have seen, one million kilograms of iron can be produced every year. That’s a lot.”

Xu Liang shook his head when he heard this: "It's more than a million kilograms. It should be that the mine owner has lost 50,000 shi. When there are many people in the mine, there can be more than 3,000. There are more than a dozen furnaces set up. But even if nothing happens, next year The output will also drop a lot, and the good ore is basically hollowed out. If you dig further, you will have to dig deeper, and the mountain will explode. "

specialized!

"How is the safety?" Jia Lian also asked a professional question.

"It's not good. Things happen more than a dozen times every year, and three or five people die each time. It depends on luck. Once, a piece of the mountain collapsed and more than a dozen people were buried, but none of them were rescued. It was half a year after they were dug out. This is It’s not God’s fault, nor is it the mine owner’s fault. They have to be fair about losing our wages.”

Xu Liang has his own moral system and code of conduct, and such people are actually easy to deal with. The difficult thing is Ding Damu, the kind of person who doesn't want to set the bottom line as a human being, and there's nothing you can do to me.

"I estimate that I won't be able to serve as an official in Yunyang for long. After I leave, your affairs will be difficult to solve. If you don't want to go down the mountain, then don't go down. I can't guarantee that my appointed prefect is a human being. "

Xu Liang was confused by Jia Lian's words: "What else can I be if I'm not a human being?"

"Maybe he's a beast, maybe he's a scumbag. Who knows? What I can do is admit that everything in your mine belongs to you and all the miners, and issue official documents. If the future prefect wants to cause trouble, you can Using my banner may not work, I can’t guarantee that. There are too many people who are blinded by greed.”

Zhu Zhu came back and brought a salt dealer. Jia Lian said to Zhu Zhu: "You accompany Xu Zhuangshi and see what he wants to buy. The money will go to the government's account and come back to me for reimbursement." After saying that, Jia Lian hugged Xu Liang. He said: "I am busy with official duties and cannot accompany guests. I apologize."

Xu Liang swore that he had never seen such an official in his life. He was dignified and dignified, without any sense of arrogance. He was looking at the other person levelly. Unlike the scholar I had seen before, his chin was raised to the sky.

After Xu Liang stood up, he made a formal 90-degree salute: "My lord, thank you for your hard work. Please walk slowly."

Jia Lian walked through the market alone with his hands behind his back, strolling leisurely, the sweat on his back felt cool and sour.

In the capital, as new news from Yunyang arrived, Emperor Chenghui was in a much better mood, or in other words, good news continued to come after winter.

The former was the final confirmation from the Western Regions. Wang Ziteng led his troops to defeat the rebellious tribe in the Blackwater River, beheading 3,000 people and capturing 18,000 people. Most of the chaos in the southern border of the Western Region will be decided in one battle, and the rest is to recover the remaining troops. The old Anxi area to the west of Congling, which had been experiencing some back-and-forth, once again regained stability as the news spread.

Wang Ziteng predicted that after the governor of the Western Regions takes office, teams from various regions will be established, and the army will be ready by the end of next year.

Although there were no reports of great victory in Yunyang, Jia Lian's actions made Emperor Chenghui deeply happy. He had never had a good way to deal with the bad things after the local civil uprising, but now it seems that it is OK. In the future, if there is another civil unrest in the local area, this will be done.

Of course, people must be used well. For an official like Jiang Chaozong, one talent can do more harm than a hundred mediocre people.

At present, the Western Region can solve the problem of food and grass by itself, and the medicines consumed are also manufactured in local factories. It can be said that the bottomless pit in the Western Regions has finally come to an end, and we can start to deal with the case of Wu Yuhui, the governor of Shaanxi and Gansu.

Wu Yuhui was ordered to return to the capital and was already on the way. Perhaps he felt that something was wrong and kept writing letters to the capital. The road was also dragging. With a cat-and-mouse mentality, Emperor Chenghui was not in a hurry and let the people accompanying him Don't be in a hurry, just wait and drag slowly.

As the saying goes, if you have the ability, you will die on the road.

There is also good news. Although the gentry in Liangjiang are still making trouble, they are much less active.

Yesterday the eldest son of the Zhen family came to Beijing and went straight to Xishan Imperial Manor. He really didn't see me as the emperor in his eyes.

Liang Daoyuan, the second assistant and minister of the Ministry of Etiquette, came to see him again, again because of matters related to the prefect of Yunyang.

But this time the situation changed a little. When Emperor Chenghui looked at the list, there was only one name, Jia Yucun?
"Well, this person is a direct minister." Emperor Chenghui had an impression. In the thirty-eighth year of the Supreme Emperor, Jia Yucun impeached the then Shangguan for corruption and was directly dismissed from office. Later, when he became a teacher at Lin Ruhai's house, he must have followed the Jia family's path. Was this what Jia Lian meant? I have to ask.

"Who recommends this?"

Liang Daoyuan was waiting for this sentence and replied with a smile: "A few days ago, Jia Cunzhou came to see him, mentioned the matter of Jia Yucun, and asked about opportunities to fill the vacancy. I thought, it has been five years since Jia Yucun was dismissed. He has enough qualifications, so if he goes to Yunyang, he will not be brought to political ruin. He can serve for two terms and then adjust after the overall situation is stable. "

(End of this chapter)