After Song Chao, the head of the Song family, took a sip of tea, he asked his son Song Lijie opposite, "Is your daughter-in-law feeling better?" Do you want to call the doctor again? ”

Song Lijie said with some embarrassment: "Don't call the doctor anymore, the lady is much better, but it's still a little unrefreshing."

When she recovers, I will let her ask her to say goodbye to her parents. ”

Song Chao put down the cup and said in a deep voice: "I know, your daughter-in-law is complaining about me in her heart, complaining that I didn't help her mother's family, so I am not happy." ”

Song Lijie was even more embarrassed and said, "Dad, Ayin didn't mean that. She's just ......"

Song Chao interrupted his son's words, "Needless to say, I also watched her grow up, and I know her thoughts very well."

I don't blame her for resenting me, because this time it is indeed our Song family's fault.

The Ning and Shao families have been friends for many years, and your father-in-law, Shao Shiming, is a classmate and friend of mine who has been studying together since I was young, and he has a deep friendship with him.

That's why I made a marriage contract with your father-in-law early, so that you could marry his daughter and marry the two families for a hundred years.

Our two families are not only world friends, but also in-laws, logically speaking, this time the Shao family is in trouble, and our Song family should help out.

But I really didn't dare this time, Lijie. ”

Song Lijie asked with some hesitation: "Dad, is the Ning family really so domineering?" ”

Song Chao smiled bitterly: "This Ning family is not only domineering, it is simply terrifying and terrifying.

Not only me, but most of the Jiangnan clan knew too little about the Ning family and didn't know what terrible they were about at all.

Some time ago, I sent someone to the Northeast to inquire about the news, and only then did I know what they were doing in the Northeast.

A few years ago, in the northeast, the Ning family also carried out a sweep of the families in the northeast in the name of re-measuring the land and checking the hidden households.

At that time, there were also many families in the Northeast who rebelled fiercely against the Ning family's investigation, just like our Jiangnan clan.

Due to the strength of the Ning family, they did not dare to rebel in person, so they incited a large group of civilians to make trouble everywhere to resist the investigation.

Do you know how the Ning family coped? ”

Song Lijie didn't say anything, staring at the audience very curiously.

"The Ning family actually let the soldiers disguise themselves as rioters, and then broke the sneak attacks carried out by the powerful families who participated in the instigation of the riots.

In this purge, many families were beaten to the point that their families were destroyed.

What's more, even the whole house was slaughtered, and the chickens and dogs were not left.

And not only the own family involved in the incitement, but even the side branches were also implicated.

Many families were really exterminated and have since fallen.

This time in the investigation of Jiangnan, the Ning family only took action against the family involved in the rebellion, and did not involve the entire family, which can be regarded as mercy.

If they had done the same thing as in the Northeast, there would have been more than a million people who would have died this time. ”

"Is the Ning family really so ruthless?" Song Lijie was shocked.

Song Chao said with a solemn expression: "You see that the soldiers of the Ning family are divided into two ways, and along the way, they meet gods and kill gods, and Buddha and Buddha, it is enough to see that they don't care whether their hands are covered with blood at all.

What's even more terrifying is that the Ning family has a strong army and firearms to assist, and no one in the world can help them.

Let's ask such a Ning family, what else can't they do?

When the Ning family used force to pacify all the Jiangnan families who rebelled, I had already persuaded your father-in-law Shao Shiming to stop fighting with the Ning family, otherwise he would only suffer the loss.

But your father-in-law didn't listen to my advice, and continued to work with other families to spread all kinds of rumors and rumors about the Ning family.

As a result, not only did it fail to produce results, but it was also beaten back by the Ning family and convicted of raiding the house on other charges.

It can be seen that the Ning family has already laid a lot of eyeliner here in Jiangnan.

If we make the slightest move, they will soon notice.

Your father-in-law and those people thought that they were acting secretively and would not be easily discovered, but in fact, everything was already in the hands of the Ning family.

If our Song family comes to help the Shao family this time, it is very likely that we will also be targeted by the Ning family and become the next family to be cleaned up.

That's why I said, I really didn't dare to make a move this time. ”

After hearing this, Song Lijie said with a look of resentment: "This Ning family is so domineering, I don't believe that there is no one in the world who can cure them." ”

Song Chao smiled bitterly again: "You are also a person who has read books, you should have heard the phrase 'those who win the hearts of the people win the world'."

Although the Ning family offended many Jiangnan families this time, they won the hearts of a large number of people, which is the most clever part of their move.

They first used the newspaper "Qiu Zhen Bao" to defend themselves, and then used the two policies of land division and tax exemption to buy people's hearts, which of course easily won the favor of those untouchables.

Those untouchables originally regarded the Northwest Army as a flood beast and everyone feared it, but through the publicity of the "Seeking Truth", more and more untouchables began to look forward to the arrival of the Northwest Army, so that they could be divided into land and exempt from taxes like everyone else.

This recruitment and buying people's hearts is indeed vicious, and it is also an unguardable conspiracy.

As long as the Ning family has the support and support of these untouchables, then they don't have to care if we, the Jiangnan family, are loyal.

The current Ning family is already full-fledged and invincible.

If we family members want to avoid becoming a thorn in the side of the Ning family, the only way is to say 'obedience'.

There is nothing else we can do. ”

After hearing his father say these words in a heavy tone, Song Lijie couldn't help but have an indescribable sense of panic, as if a completely strange unknown world appeared in front of him.

……………………

The feelings of Song Chao, the head of the Song family, have actually become a reality that more and more Jiangnan families have to accept.

After the Ning family's two-way purge, almost all the Jiangnan families who participated in the rebellion were wiped out.

Not only was the family property confiscated, the parties were beheaded one by one, and their families were also demoted to military households, and even their civilian identities were lost.

At this time, all the Jiangnan families saw clearly that the Ning family was different from the Xie family, and it was not a family that could sit down and discuss the conditions at all.

Under their domineering attitude, you will either accept obedience or your family will be ruined, and there is no third way to go.

Even those families who were obedient on the surface, but were unwilling to ruin the reputation of the Ning family behind the scenes, were cleaned up by the Ning family on various charges.

You know, even a person can hardly be innocent in his life, let alone a large family that has lasted for dozens of generations, and it is too easy to find out the sin.

The Ning family used this method of turning over old accounts to give those families who spread rumors a certain amount of guilt, and then sent them to prison to slowly clean up, and the Shao family was one of them.

Not only that, the Ning family also listed the crimes of these families in detail in the "Seeking Truth", so that all the people hated and complained about them, and made these families become street rats that everyone shouted and beaten.

In doing this, the Ning family not only wants to eradicate the family that opposes them, but also to ruin their reputation, so that they have no place to turn over, which is the real murderous heart.

The strength and methods of the Ning family made the surviving Jiangnan families feel both cold and afraid.

After this round of rectification, the power of all the big families has become weaker than ever, and almost all families have to clamp their tails and behave as people, so as not to become the next target to be eliminated.

When these originally high-ranking families relented, the inventory work was immediately smooth.

When the officials in charge of re-measuring the land and checking the hidden households carried out the inventory in various parts of Jiangnan, no one dared to stop them, and they were all very obedient.

Once it was discovered that there was indeed an encroachment on the state-owned land, the families not only immediately returned the land, but also cooperated very well to make up for 20 years' rent and 3 years' grain production.

Even those self-owned fields that evade taxes by various means promise to pay taxes according to the law from now on and never be in arrears.

His attitude is respectful and his actions are very different from before.

There is no way, these wealthy families are really scared and frightened by the fierce and ruthless Ning family, where do they dare to say anything.

Of course, they don't dare to disagree on the surface, but what they think in their hearts is another matter.

In fact, all the families that have been inventoried have shrunk their net worth by at least half.

Not only is the public land that was swallowed before gone, but also a lot of fines and grain compensation have been paid for it. What's more, many of the originally tax-exempt self-owned fields have to be re-taxed, which is not an ordinary loss.

Almost every head of the house has blood dripping from his heart, but there are words of suffering.

Compared with the unspeakable suffering of the clans, more and more people are looking forward to the arrival of the Northwest Army.

As the content of the report in the "Qiuzhen Bao" spread by word of mouth, many people already knew that wherever the Northwest Army went, it would be divided into local land and exempted from taxes for a year.

In addition, the local people who have already implemented these two policies will also run to tell each other, so that many people who were originally skeptical finally believe that this is true.

As a result, many civilians who have not yet enjoyed these two policies have changed from their original panic to looking forward to the early arrival of the Northwest Army every day, but fortunately, they also implement these two benevolent policies.

In particular, the policy of tax exemption for one year has won the most popular support.

After all, there is only a limited amount of land that can be divided, and only a small number of people can get it.

For the common people, who have long been overwhelmed by all kinds of heavy taxes, this policy of tax exemption for one year is the real timely rain.

For a time, not only did all the people look forward to the coming of the Northwest Army, but the prestige of the Ning family was rising day by day.

At this point, the entire inventory plan has been considered a complete success, and all that remains is some finishing touches.

Ning Zhiyuan, as the minister of supervision, needs to preside over the overall situation, and cannot stay outside all day.

So he left the finishing touches to Xiao Zhijian and others on the Western Front, and then he returned to Xinjing with the army of the Eastern Front.

In this expedition, the Ning family not only conquered all the Jiangnan families, but also gained a lot of people's hearts through the two policies of land division and tax exemption.

In addition, the previous work of attracting people back to their hometowns has been carried out smoothly in various places, and many vaccinated displaced people have returned to their hometowns to resume farming with peace of mind after being sure that they will not be infected with scattered sores.

Ning Zhiyuan, the prince of Zhenguo who returned to Beijing at this moment, can be said to be popular and in the limelight.

At this time, the eldest princess Qingping, who has always been accustomed to being a person, together with Princess Yanfang and others, proposed again that they wanted to ask Duke Ning to succeed him as the unification and ascend the throne as the emperor.

After all, this is the second time that the two princesses and the ministers have persuaded them.

Ning Zhiyuan, who was persuaded for the second time, calmed down and once again refused to ascend the throne on the grounds of his lack of virtue.

This matter was quickly published in the "Seeking Truth", letting everyone know that this was the second time that Ning Gong had refused.

Although many shrewd people know that this is Ning Zhiyuan's practice of retreating, this matter still caused a lot of commotion among the people in various places.

In particular, many of the people who benefited from the two policies of land division and tax exemption generally believed that Ning Gong was fully qualified to be the new emperor.

After all, for the vast majority of ordinary people, it doesn't matter which emperor is the emperor. The important thing is whether the new emperor will raise taxes and how much taxes, which is the most vital thing.

Now the Ning family not only does not raise taxes, but also takes the initiative to exempt taxes for a year, and even takes out part of the public land and distributes it to the people, such benefits are really visible and tangible.

The so-called butt determines the head, so the people of Jiangnan generally hope that Ning Gong can sit in that position.

On Xinjing's side, Ning Zhiyuan, who was temporarily idle, decided to do something he had wanted to do for a long time: publicly execute the Xie family.