Guangdong is in chaos!

Since the sixth year of Chongzhen, Changle County, which was the first to break out against grain and taxes (sorry everyone, was deceived by the map, and later learned that Wuhua County was called Changle County. The storm quickly spread down the Hanjiang River.

In Meizhou, Pingyuan, Dapu, Longchuan, Heyuan, and Zijin, there were reports everywhere that peasants rose up to resist grain and taxes, and all localities killed officials who went to the countryside to collect grain and taxes, causing civil revolts.

However, what can also make officials at all levels in Guangdong a little more reassuring is that Liao Dongzhi and Wu Liuqi, these mutinous people, only know how to wander around the countryside and rob the ruins of market towns, but they dare not move at all for the prefectures and counties.

However, this kind of wind trend along with the cold wind from the north over the south of Wuling, all the way to Xinfeng, Fogang, Yingde, Qingyuan and other places, from the provincial capital Guangzhou more and more. The other road is towards Huizhou, Chaozhou, Haifeng, Lufeng, Shantou and other areas. The gentlemen of the four townships were so shocked that they packed their bags and packaged, put a pillar of incense on their ancestors in the ancestral hall, and fled into various state capitals and counties with gold and silver to avoid this civil unrest.

Coincidentally, the so-called blessings and disasters are not singular.

Just when people were worried about the tide of anti-grain and anti-tax movement that came from northeastern Guangdong along the Hanjiang River, another bad news came. In Foshan, just a stone's throw away from the provincial capital of Guangzhou, one of the four famous towns known for its smelting and manufacturing of iron tools, a popular uprising also broke out.

For the peasants in the countryside, the annual collection of land rent, money, grain, and taxes was three sharp blades hanging over their heads, and for ordinary citizens and craftsmen such as blacksmiths and smelters. Taxes, taxes, and apportionments are also the three sharp blades.

When the tax collectors took the tax books and asked the owners of the smelters and the workers of the blacksmith shops to pay the 9 cents tax according to the Liao salary levied from the 48th year of Wanli, and then pay the 1 cents and 2 cents of the silver standard raised from the fourth year of Chongzhen, the blacksmiths in Foshan were furious!

Using charcoal as fuel to smelt pig iron, make wrought iron, and manufacture all kinds of iron tools is inherently more expensive than using a small blast furnace to smelt iron with coke as fuel in Nanzhong, not to mention that the Nanzhong Army has adopted technical means such as water drainage to reduce labor costs. Moreover, from ore mining, coke smelting, blast furnace ironmaking, and steelmaking, it is a combination of modern technology and enterprise management concepts. The cost of intermediate link consumption is minimized. The smelting industry in Foshan, on the contrary, not only has to pay high prices for raw materials such as ore and charcoal, but also has to pay various floating taxes. An even more staggering cost is the filial piety and dotting of officials in all aspects.

In addition to these. It's an errand sent by the government. Not only the required construction period is tight, the quantity is large, and the quality standard can be described as picky. The most important point. The wages given were extremely low, and the wages from the top were deducted from the hands of the officials at the bottom, and there was not much left. Even so, these troublesome imps are still begging for some regular money.

In this way, the iron smelters in Foshan will be 20 or 30 wen more expensive than the Nanzhong wrought iron appliances sold on the streets of Guangzhou, and very few of them can be sold at the same price.

This is a peculiar phenomenon.

Because of technical and production organization reasons, the iron smelting in Foshan itself is much higher than that of their counterparts in Nanzhong. There is no cheap ore, no coke, no small blast furnace, no meat rice for two meals provided by the government, and no cotton clothes provided by the government as labor protection clothing, so we can only rely on reducing labor costs as much as possible to make a living.

What's even worse is that the export of iron tools in Nanzhong is the implementation of the so-called policy of levying first and then retreating, that is, the iron sold to Guangdong and Guangxi does not need to pay taxes. Foshan's iron-making industry not only does not have these preferential policies, but is also regarded as a cash cow by the government. As soon as something happens, a large number of apportionments will fall on the heads of every iron-smelter.

As a result, the men who smelted iron and struck iron sadly found that no matter how desperately they worked hard to make iron, no matter how much iron they smelted, no matter how many exquisite, strong and excellent iron tools they created, they still could not avoid starvation and bankruptcy! No matter how hard you try, you can't make money!

When I heard that in addition to paying a tax of nine cents, I also had to pay a tax of one and two cents of silver (this is a trick played by the officials, according to modern parlance, it is double counting and double collection. The tax of 1/2 cents is an increase of 3% on the basis of the regular tax of 9 cents, not an increase of 1/2% all at once. But the tax collectors cleverly enforced the two standards separately. The blacksmiths swung sledgehammers and tongs and knocked the tax collectors out.

When the beaten tax collectors tried to escape in the streets, the ironsmelters who had rushed to hear the news enthusiastically left them here.

The blacksmiths of Foshan, under the leadership of the head of the guild who was the first to wield a hammer, began their own anti-tax and anti-donation activities.

For a time, the blacksmiths who held their own weapons and the peasants who held various agricultural tools echoed from north to south to pose a huge threat to the prefectures, cities and counties.

When people were anxiously thinking about the ancestral tablets and the incense in the ancestral hall, and the osmanthus trees in the house furniture, the news came from Guangxi even worse.

Not only did the people in Guangxi rise up to resist grain and taxes, but local officials such as the local prefect, which was a major feature of the locality, also took advantage of the situation to raise troops and rebel and loot the prefecture capital and county seat. They are much more aggressive than the converts. The Tu Prefect's Mansion and those large and small village heads in Miao Yao Xitong were mixed with the popular rebellion armed forces who rose up to resist grain and taxes, and they did not disturb the New Year's thoughts of officials in Liangguang and Guangzhou.

"Damn! Originally, I thought that I would collect the floating harvest and fire consumption, and take the silver dollar into the provincial capital to deal with the Governor Xiong, so that I could change places for Lao Tzu, but now it's good! ”

More than one local official jumped to his feet in the secret room and cursed.

However, there are also those who take the opportunity to blackmail and seek some benefits for themselves.

"Your Excellency. It's no problem to ask the brothers to go out and fight the mobs who have risen up to resist food and taxes. However, now that the Chinese New Year is approaching, most of the brothers' arrears have not yet been paid. In addition, is it not to get a cotton coat for each of the brothers under the mark. How many pairs of straw sandals? Can't we let the brothers go to war hungry and without clothes?! ”

In the past, they bowed their heads in front of civilian officials such as military garrisons and prefects in various places, and even if they were third-rank guerrillas, they would carry bows and arrows in front of fifth-rank soldiers like servants, but today they can't see it at all.

One by one, they sat in front of them, talking and laughing loudly, just putting their own difficulties. Seeing that this group of rude warriors in front of them was so presumptuous in front of the scholars, the officials at all levels all gritted their teeth and hated it, and they hated that they could not eat the group of puppets in front of them alive one by one in order to relieve the hatred in their hearts.

However, even if Yan Shen is named, he has removed the official position on the head of this group of guys. It's a big deal to go home with hundreds of dozens of family members. Relying on the private wealth accumulated over the years, we are still living a good life, but what should we do as scholars? Do you want us to fight like this group of rough warriors?! No! Absolutely not! We scholars have always been in the middle of a strategy. Win a thousand miles away! This kind of thing to go into battle and kill the enemy. Of course, it is still up to this group of martial artists to follow our strategy!

Many people began to miss the scenery of Emperor Jiajing when he was in the dynasty and the scene when Emperor Wanli was in the court. No matter whether it is you Qi Jiguang or Yu Dayou, when you see the civil officials, you have to be close to you. Kneel after kneel. Even if it is a gift, the gift list must be written with the word "so-and-so" under the door. But now? One by one, they dare to sit on an equal footing in front of those of us who have come up from the imperial examination!

However, no matter how much you scold, you must first calm down the chaos in front of you, otherwise the above will be investigated, and the first unlucky thing is that this group of civil officials is not good at governing the place.

So the two sides began to bargain.

"Make up the arrears and pay another three months' military salaries. A month's salary. ”

"In addition to military salaries, each of the brothers will be issued a set of cotton clothes and three pairs of straw sandals."

"Also, please allocate the money to purchase a batch of weapons, it is said that the thieves everywhere have robbed all the big families, and the equipment in their hands is quite sophisticated."

Listening to the conditions put forward by this group of officers on different occasions, the adults who have read the books of the sages are sideways, "In the end, they are all a group of rude men who only know how to fight, and every word is a word for money!" ”

However, the reason that the soldiers and horses did not move the grain and grass first, naturally there was no need for others to sue the gentlemen, and after some bargaining, the civil and military attaches finally reached an agreement to make up for the arrears and pay one month's military pay and one month's favor. A cotton coat and two pairs of straw sandals, and the money was allocated to buy weapons.

It is tentatively scheduled to send troops to suppress bandits on an auspicious day in the first month.

How could this little situation between civil and military officials be concealed from Li Peiting, who had been operating in Guangzhou for many years? To put it mildly, as long as he wants to know, he will know which concubine's room Lord Wen Can is spending the night in tonight, or which little minister he is singing a backyard flower with. As for what underwear the concubine was wearing, and what color and style she bought from the Han Yuan firm, he would know. If you want to go deeper, even how much is Lord Xiong's combat power, what postures he has adopted, whether there are flowers such as Guanyin sitting on lotus and taking fire across the mountain, someone will report to him.

From the messenger on duty in the signing room, Li Ergongzi obtained all the copies of the documents of the Liangguang Civil Rebellion and the Tusi Tuguan Rebellion, and then summarized these documents with the information collected by the merchants in various places, and the situation of the civil rebellion and the Tusi rebellion in the entire Liangguang area was completely presented on the map drawn by the Han and Yuan merchants.

Soon, this situation report was sent to Hue by clippers and handed over to Shouhan.

After carefully inspecting the fire paint on the envelope, Shouhan clearly knew from the date on the envelope which hidden language booklet was used. He opened the very tightly sealed iron cabinet in the study, and searched for it one by one with his index finger, "Ye Qi, Lin Wenbing, Zhang Xiaobiao, well, Li Peiting." "In a few received the hidden word booklet (in fact, it is a code book!) On the cabinet of the important expatriate person, Shouhan found Li Peiting's name.

With the help of the Cryptic Booklet, Shouhan spent an afternoon translating this tantric recital. Good boy! I can't imagine that the power of rice and vegetable oil is no less than that of 100,000 soldiers! For several years in a row, we have imported rice, iron products, vegetable oil, sugar and other materials to the two Guangxi regions, and finally waited for today's results!

"Mo Yu! Mo Yu! ”

Mo Yu, the commander of the guard battalion on duty outside the gate, heard the call, and immediately appeared at the door of the signing room with a few arrows, but he did not come in, according to the rules set by Shouhan. The signing room is a confidential place, and no one is allowed to enter it, of course, this person does not include Xiao Huamei and her younger siblings.

"My lord! Please advise! ”

Mo Yu's military regulations were strict and he saluted the Han and asked him for the tasks he had assigned.

"Inform me and discuss it tomorrow! The household division, the military division, the warehousing department, and the battalion office all need to be in charge! ”

"Ladies and gentlemen! Today is the twenty-fifth day of the lunar month, two days ago is the day of everyone's sacrifice, and there are five days before the New Year! Chongzhen's six years should be over! ”

Looking at the members of various departments who were inserted one after another, he couldn't help but feel a burst of pride and pride in Shouhan's heart. That's what my team is all about. My Agency!

"However, I have to tell everyone not to bother with calculating how much dividends I should share this year, and how much I have due and payable. We're going to get ready for war! ”

Although there were no major fluctuations. There were no loud noises and whispers. But from everyone's eyes and expressions, Shouhan saw a trace of confusion and incomprehension.

"Lord, aren't we at war all the time?" Finally, someone was puzzled. "Fight the Dutch, fight the pirates, fight the Sultan and the Tu King who are not subject to the king, and those tribal chiefs in the new area, the whole army will hardly go without a fight!"

Shouhan glanced at the man, and vaguely remembered that this person seemed to be a Chengxuan in charge of education in the Ministry of Rites.

"When I said that I want to fight, I didn't plan to lead the fleet to recover Luzon after the middle age of the plan, nor did I purge those who disobeyed Wang Hua in the new area, but the use of troops in the Liangguang region!"

As soon as this remark came out, it caused an uproar!

For more than ten years before, the Nanzhong Army held high the banner of the Ming Dynasty and used it to conquer the Quartet. Now I heard from the mouth of the commander that he wants to use troops against the two Guangzhou, is this clearly a rebellion? This bend makes many people unable to turn for a while.

However, there are also those who are famous, and immediately feel that this is a good opportunity to follow the dragon. "Listen to the lord! Willing to be a striker! As long as the lord gives an order, it will not take half a month after landing, and the lord of discipline will sit safely in Wuyang City, and give orders to Liangguang! ”

"Nonsense!" Shouhan's eyes scanned over the place where the discordant sound was made, and it immediately became quiet.

"What I said about using troops against the two Guangzhou, is it a rebellion?!"

"There is a turbulent tide in Guangzhou, and there will inevitably be a large number of refugees and displaced people going south, and your household department and inspection department must be ready to accept these refugees, and there will be no more refugee waves and plague outbreaks affecting each other!"

Li Peilin, who sat in the first seat on the left, as the chief historian in charge of administrative affairs, actually played the role of prime minister, and his words naturally had different weights.

"Not bad. In order to help put down the chaos between the two provinces, we will send personnel to this area and send battalions to it. ”

This has already been said very bluntly, under the banner of helping each other to quell chaos, at least internally, in fact, it is still an act of expanding one's own strength.

"Therefore, the household division, the etiquette division, the inspection division, the military division, and the battalion office must formulate a plan according to their own responsibilities and report to the signing room, so as to make a unified plan and arrange and raise funds."

Hearing Shouhan say this, several scribes sitting in the corner of the signing room worked hard to make meeting minutes in the book, so that they could be consulted and archived in the future.

"What I said below, you all put it in my head, don't write it down on paper!"

In order to avoid the historian from writing straight and preventing him from leaving an infamy in the history of the Qing Dynasty after a hundred years, he revised history from Li Shimin, until the great Qing Dynasty, and even Qianlong's public money to travel to the south of the Yangtze River to eat and drink was said to be a prosperous scene, and Ming Wuzong spent his own money to go to Shanxi to fight, and he was scolded for hundreds of years and couldn't raise his head.

Could it be that our lord has some surprising behavior?

"First, the Arsenal and Warehousing Department will check all kinds of materials, from grain to all kinds of non-staple food, knives, guns, equipment, artillery, gunpowder, cloth, armor, flags, medicines, etc., and report them to me before sealing."

"Second, the military department and the battalion office, check the army, check how many battalions can be drawn from the garrison barracks in various places, from the battalion officers, sentry officers, team officers to the first commander, and also, calculate the number of soldiers and officers of our army from the two Guangxi origins, and see how many can be extracted, and report to me before the seal."

"Thirdly, in addition to preparing to accept refugees, the household division is to raise military salaries and military supplies, and there must be no temporary shortage. Lisi, through the guò school, opera, Nanzhong Business Daily and other channels, publicized the interests of our army and the Liangguang Rebellion, so that people know that if our army does not intervene, then we will be the next to cause chaos! ”

"Fourth, it's still your military division and battalion office. Our army wants to go north to Guangxi to quell the chaos and defeat those Tusi Tuguan and other characters who are the cause of trouble, but there is a roadblock in front of him, and it is almost time to get rid of him. Let's see which force is appropriate. ”

"What the lord said, but the small court of the Mo family that is entrenched in the Thanh Hoa area, has received the kindness of the lord, and survives on one side?" Hearing that Shouhan decided to use soldiers against the Mo family, everyone couldn't help but have their eyes glowing, this is the best opportunity to build up their merits!

"When they were there to make trouble with locusts and buy grain from us on credit, the lord felt that God had the virtue of a good life, and he couldn't bear to suffer from it, so he bought it on credit, and he didn't want to spend a few years in a row, and he never saw a penny of grain!"

In an instant, even the reason for sending troops to eliminate the Mo family was found! (To be continued......)