Chapter 128: Observe the truth

After a sound passed, the yard suddenly became a sensation. More than a hundred people were used to the door. Four soldiers stood solemnly with spears, staring coldly at the people coming over. Under the gaze of this gaze, everyone stopped involuntarily.

The powerful people in these places were even more nervous. The soldiers under Li Erlang had such qualities, which indirectly proved that Jiaozhou Camp was a powerful soldier completely different from their concepts.

Just as he was thinking, Li Meng appeared at the door, smiled and said:

"It's cold and the land is freezing. The villagers are waiting here. It's because I am negligent. I am just responsible for local defense and peace. It has nothing to do with you. I don't know what you are going to come here!"

Li Meng was wearing leather armor and a knife around her waist. He was dressed in military uniform. His expression was gentle, but he pretended to be confused with his understanding. But no one below dared to say it out loud, so he could only say in a lingering manner:

"Mr. Li sent troops to suppress bandits in the twelfth lunar month, which is really a blessing for us. Although the weather is cold, I feel warm!"

"Jiazhou Yingrenyi Army sent troops, and we, the local people in our hometown, also have to see what we can do."

"The patriarch asked me to prepare fifty pigs and sheep for each to give to the adults. I hope the adults will accept it with a smile!"

Seeing Li Meng appear, a group of people were in a sensation, either greeting or handing out gifts. Li Meng sneered in his heart. The so-called government and literati shared the world. The upper class was civil officials at all levels controlled the power, while the lower class was these great clans and powerful people controlled the place. If the prefectures and counties were not assisted by these great clans, everything would not be done.

Jiaozhou Camp is currently just a deterrent. If it is to say it is a firm control, there are obstacles for these people. I originally thought that this opportunity to suppress the bandits and wipe out some of them, but who would have thought that this wine came to the door. Li Meng still smiled on the surface, and gently greeted a gentry in front of him. The gentry still looked like a scholar, wearing a silk gown, and kept praising Li Meng there. This time was a benevolent act. Li Meng asked with a smile:

"Where does this person come from?"

Seeing Li Meng ask, the man's expression became even more popular, and he held his fists and bowed:

"The villain is Qiu Shugang from the Qiu family in Tingkou Town, Pingdu Prefecture. The head of the family is my brother. This time our Qiu family came to send 20 taels of silver to the adults, 20 taels of cows and horses, and some ordinary gifts. I hope everyone will accept it with a smile."

This gift is nearly 500 taels of silver, which is really not light. Li Meng nodded and said with a smile:

"Qiu family in Tingkou Town, Oh, I remember, it's the host of a pack of gold in Jiaolai River. I heard that the boss of a pack of gold is the third child of your Qiu family, more than 300 strong men with swords and guns. It's really amazing. Yesterday someone told me that this pack of gold has become a good citizen recently, and it's all in the village. This is the same. The Chinese New Year is coming soon, don't work so hard."

The kindness of Li Meng said seemed to be a family-related thing. When Master Qiu Er smiled when he heard the first sentence, he looked very glorious. After hearing it, his face became more pale and his knees could no longer support him. He knelt on the ground, trembling like a sieve.

The only way for local tyrants to deal with the above is to make the above deaf and blind. If you don’t get useful news, you will naturally not take effective actions. But now Li Meng is clear about the following news. He explained the situation of the Qiu family in Tingkou Town, so why didn’t Qiu Laoer be afraid?

Li Meng ignored the person kneeling on the ground and walked directly to the next one. Their answer was heard by the people around him. Everyone was frightened. Seeing Li Meng coming over with a smile, she felt cold all over her body, but she didn't dare to dodge, but she heard again:

"Where are you here again, this inmate?"

"Return... the adults say that, the villain is Peng Kui from the ancient city."

"Oh, Peng Kui from Guchengji, I have heard of you. You are the boss of the Peng family's horse team. It's not simple. More than 200 horse teams are more than my Jiaozhou camp. I heard that your father also said in Guchengji that the court has a royal law, and my Peng family is a royal law in this ancient city. Tsk tsk, so majestic!"

With a "puzzle", another one of them knelt down here. Peng Kui kowtowed repeatedly on the ground, dared not say a word of refutation, but just begged for mercy there:

"Mr. Li, Lord. The little man is really a good person. Don't listen to the rumors outside!"

Li Meng still had a smile on his face, but the words in his mouth had nothing to do with this expression. He said with a smile:

"You Peng Kui still meet with the heads of several Dalianzi in Dengzhou, saying that if Jiaozhou camp comes to attack and the several companies work together to harass him, he will definitely not let him go. I wonder, why didn't you see your majesty when Kong Youde came here?"

The thick and powerful man Peng Kui, who was taller than Li Meng, just knelt on the ground and kowtowed, and he was so scared that he couldn't even speak. Li Meng said as he walked, he was as clear as a family. As long as someone here lives, the family was carrying it out, Li Meng immediately told them about the power and armed scale of their family, and even had very private taboos. Not long after, the yard was still lively and quiet.

There were almost no people standing there. After the dozen people Li Meng said at the beginning, the people behind him did not dare to wait for Li Meng to say it, and just knelt on the ground.

Li Meng took a few steps back, with no smile on his face, and said:

"I have finished speaking, what do you guys say?"

At this moment, whoever dared to say something more was terrified, and they all leaned down and knelt on the ground in fear. The scene was quiet for a while, and then Li Meng said coldly again:

"Since you don't say it, then Li will continue to talk. Starting from today, Jiaozhou, Gaomi, Jimo, Pingdu, the landlords and gentry are classified as the third grade of the upper, middle and lower grade, the upper grade is thirty, the middle and lower grade is thirty, the middle and lower grade is thirty, the middle and lower grade is thirty, the lower grade is thirty, the lower grade is thirty, the lower grade is thirty, the lower grade is thirty, the lower grade is thirty."

As soon as he finished speaking, even the gentry and powerful people who were afraid of it were in an uproar. Their relatives and children were produced every year, which was the lifeblood of local tyrants.

The main income of the powerful is the land. One of the disadvantages of the financial problems of the Ming Dynasty was that many people did not need to be a job to pay food. For example, scholars with fame and fortune, the powerful people everywhere in the world in the Ming Dynasty took advantage of this loophole, and Jiaozhou was no exception. When hearing that Li Meng wanted to take one of them, it would be like someone to cut him off on him, and no one would be willing to do so.

The big clan is domineering in the local area, relying on many family members and dozens of relatives and children. That is even more like cutting off the firewood from the bottom of the pot and hitting the key point. If it is an ordinary person's order, he will just draw some from the vassal tenants and strong men. But Li Meng was so clear about the situation of each household, how to deceive him.

Everyone was in an uproar, thinking that you, Li Meng, are so powerful, we are all afraid, but we can't bully people to such an extent. Isn't this a way out of people's back?

Li Meng narrowed his eyes and listened to the growing louder and louder voices below, and said calmly:

"If you don't want to give it to me, I will lead the troops to take it away, let's disperse!"

With a wave of his hand, he turned around and entered the yard. The salted soldiers in the yard shouted in unison:

"see a visitor out."

After shouting, he retreated regardless of the situation and left these powerful men and their representatives in the yard. After Li Meng's last words, the uproar stopped suddenly. These people seemed to have been poured with a basin of cold water on their heads, and they didn't know what to do for a while.

The powerful men kneeling on the ground looked at each other, their faces changed, and they didn't know what to say. After a while, someone got up from the ground and left dejectedly.

On the seventh day of the twelfth lunar month, Li Meng listened to Wang Hai's report in the living room, and Wang Hai spoke there:

"Peng Kui from Guchengji left on a fast horse the night before yesterday. The Qiu family left last night. The rest of the families were going to the salt bank, preparing to let the two shopkeepers stand out and say whether the price can be reduced, and that there are fewer production and population."

Li Meng nodded, thought about it and said:

"Talk slowly and let them think about it. We are not in a hurry here. The deadline is on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Don't these people look at the scenery? I'll give them time to see the scenery!"

After saying it warmly, Li Meng said to Wang Hai again:

"Pay the orders and start on time on the eighth day of the twelfth lunar month, and prepare all the new and old salt dippers for defense."

This was a military order. Wang Hai agreed solemnly and hurriedly went out to pass the order. After inquiries from the merchants who operated various businesses in the local area and were protected by Li Meng, as well as the help of the powerful locals selling private salt, Li Meng was able to understand the details of these powerful landlords everywhere.

The Qiu family in Tingkou Town and the Peng family in Guchengji are the two largest bandits in the south of Laizhou Prefecture. The Peng family's power even covers most of Dengzhou. After all, it is a team of more than 200 horses, which can carry thousands of people.

The so-called top tyrants were on the ground of Laizhou south of Pingduzhou, which was the Peng family and Qiu family. How could they be willing to have a great foundation and be taken away by outsiders?
Chapter completed!