The sun rose normally the next day, and the next day, more than a dozen stores in front of the Suzhou Mansion were closed.

Beneath the eerie calm is a constant undercurrent.

Now this matter is no longer just a matter of commercial tax, but has become a contest between the imperial power and private capital.

It's just that the contest seems ridiculous—like a blade brandished with countless gold, silver, and jewels, like a strongman with bloodied hands shouting and "Plant you to hack me".

In fact, this is also true.

Since some people dare to die, then some people dare to bury them.

There are a total of fourteen shops, all of which have been sealed without exception - since they are not opened, they will not need to be opened in the future.

It's not just that it's as simple as affixing a seal, but there are also guards in front of each shop.

Each shop is guarded by six guards in turn, and no one wants to take a step closer, because it is a military need, who dares to spy on military secrets?

Luo Zhong and the other owners of fourteen shops gathered together again, and this time, fourteen people directly chartered a restaurant called Zui Dongpo.

This time, everyone's faces looked ugly.

Jin Lianghui asked with a gloomy expression: "Brother Luo, the soldiers over there?" ”

Luo Zhong snorted and said angrily: "What about returning to the guard, my brother-in-law can't count on it at all now." ”

Not to mention that Luo Zhong's brother-in-law, Guo Bin, the deputy commander of Suzhou Wei, has now been removed from his post and reduced to a thousand households.

And his sister is not easy to get along with, and in the past two days, she has been going to her home to scold herself for affecting her brother-in-law.

However, it was too late to say anything.

Even if Luo Zhong went over the sorted account books himself, the government still ignored them, just checking the original accounts little by little, ignoring his gestures.

Even if he said he was willing to pay the tax, he didn't see anyone who was really in charge.

And Zhao Yihai, the only one who can play a role in passing the word, because he was ruthless in the Eight Immortals Tower last time, now even the door is looking at himself with his nostrils: "My master said that he is not here!" ”

It's just too much of a deception.

If it weren't for the fact that Qianhu still had a certain deterrent effect, Luo Zhong now doubted whether these dozen or so people would join forces to tear themselves apart.

After all, he took the lead in the first place to boycott the market, and the matter has fallen to this point, and there is obviously no room for turnaround.

Seeing that Luo Zhong said that there was no hope on the other side of the guard, Jin Lianghui spoke: "Then what should I do according to Brother Luo's wishes?" ”

Luo Zhong said: "If I knew, I wouldn't be drinking here." Today, during the day, I asked someone to hand over the account book, but the government didn't even pay attention to it. ”

In fact, it's not just Luo Zhong, everyone else is the same.

On the first day, there was no day sheet, and the seal was affixed in the afternoon.

When these people move around again the next day and find that there is no sewing for their own activities, it will become inevitable that they will be soft.

However, this softness was convinced, but no one paid attention to it at all.

That's why there were fourteen people sitting together and drinking.

Jin Lianghui was about to speak, but the door of the restaurant was kicked open with a bang, and even the restaurant guy who was sitting behind the door was knocked and rolled on the ground.

Jin Lianghui's words were interrupted by this loud noise, and he was unhappy in his heart, and looked up downstairs, but saw that there were torches pouring in downstairs, and it was a hundred households of Jinyiwei in Suzhou who rushed in with his men.

The fourteen people on the restaurant looked at each other, and their hands and feet were a little numb.

How bad Jinyiwei's reputation is, Da Ming knows it personally.

Now this group of living Hades is smashing open the door of the restaurant, these people?

Just when Luo Zhong, Jin Lianghui and the others were anxious, Liu Bingjun, a hundred households in Jinyiwei, had already led his men to the second floor of the restaurant.

When he arrived at the table, Liu Bingjun looked at the wine and food on the table that had not moved much, and sighed loudly: "Look, it's a pity that such a good wine and food is not it?" ”

After finishing speaking, the dozen or so people standing next to him did not stand, but directly pulled a stool and sat down.

Luo Zhong saw that Liu Bingjun was sitting right next to him, so he immediately bowed down and said with a smile: "Hundred households have worked hard, why don't you just have a drink?"

The villain's brother-in-law is a thousand households of Suzhou Wei, and he is also in the army with the hundred households? ”

Liu Bingjun casually took a sip of the wine glass, and said with a smile: "Well, it belongs to the robe, so naturally he should take some care of his brother-in-law." You see, the official didn't take people directly, enough to save face, right? ”

Luo Zhong smiled and said, "Enough, naturally enough." ”

After Liu Bingjun put down the wine glass, he asked rhetorically: "The official gave face, but someone didn't give the official face, and even slapped the official in the face, what do you say should I do about this?" ”

Luo Zhong struck a sudden moment in his heart, and continued to smile and said, "The adults are laughing, laughing." ”

Liu Bingjun drank another glass and burped before saying: "Look, Your Majesty ordered Gonggong Liu to serve as a tax envoy to collect taxes, but some people are unwilling to pay taxes, and they still want to make trouble for Gonggong Liu, isn't this a slap in the face of the official?" ”

Luo Zhong slapped himself lightly in the face, and said with a smile: "The adult has spoken, the villain is confused for a while, isn't this discussing with your peers to send the account book to the yamen." You see? ”

Liu Bingjun squinted his eyes and smiled: "Really? ”

Luo Zhong continued to bow down and said, "Naturally, it's true, your old man can send someone to the villain's house to have a look, and the account books are ready." ”

Liu Bingjun chuckled, but slapped Luo Zhong fiercely, and asked with a smile: "My old man?" This official is only 30 years old this year, am I an old man? Are you looking forward to Lao Tzu's early death? ”

Luo Zhong was furious in his heart, but he dared not say anything in anger, and in the end he still bowed down and smiled: "Yes, yes, yes, the villain is stupid, and he makes the adult angry, he should be beaten, he should be beaten." ”

Liu Bingjun's face looked a little better, and he didn't care where Luo Zhong and the other fourteen people were fighting, he just drank by himself.

It wasn't until he was full of wine and food that Liu Bingjun hiccuped again and said, "Let's go, follow the official." ”

Luo Zhong asked cautiously, "My lord?" Don't know where to go? ”

Liu Bingjun smiled evilly: "What, you still want to go to prison?" Don't pee on yourself and see what you are! ”

Luo Zhong was secretly happy in his heart, but he was shattered by Liu Bingjun's next two words: "Prison!" ”

After Liu Bingjun finished speaking, he got up and went directly in the direction of downstairs, regardless of whether Luo Zhong and the others followed, but waved directly to the captains of the brocade guards he brought.

The lieutenants of the Jinyi Guard, who had received the order, rushed up and beat them first, and then tied them up with ropes and walked towards the location of the Suzhou Mansion Prison.

According to the Da Ming Law, in fact, these fourteen people are already dead.

Those who steal the official documents of the various yamen shall have a hundred rods and tattoos; Those who have avoided it will be judged seriously; Those who are engaged in military aircraft and money and food are all hanged.

and if he destroys official documents, he shall have a hundred rods; Those who have evaded it will be judged seriously, and those who will do military aircraft and money and food will be hanged; When the official knows and does not commit the same crime as the offender, he does not know it, and does not sit; those who are mistakenly destroyed will be reduced by three grades; He who appears because of water, fire, or thieves does not sit.

Whoever deceives for the preparation of books and increases or decreases shall be beheaded.

In other words, according to the statistical laws and regulations on account books in the Da Ming Law, Luo Zhong and others are all capital crimes.

As for the others, such as those like Han Xufeng, who have made some running accounts, at worst it is enough to betray and behead, and at worst it is said to be a hundred rods.

As for whether the hundred sticks will be dead or alive after being beaten, it can only depend on the fate of the individual.

If the above doesn't want these people to die, it's actually not a to be beaten with a hundred and ten sticks.

If the above wants these people to die, they will often not breathe after thirty or forty sticks.

This is also the reason why it is said that it is good to practice among the yamen.

If you don't want to suffer and die, you often have to spend more money to buy your life. And the practice is about the wealth of the law, and if you have money, isn't it easy to practice.

However, Kou Shen didn't feel that he was good at cultivating, but felt extremely tormented.

Liu Jingzhou looked at Kou Shen's face and knew that Kou Shen was entangled, so he smiled and said, "Lord Kou has softened?" ”

Kou Shen, who was wandering outside the world, was awakened by Liu Jingzhou's words, and only after coming back to his senses did he say: "Fourteen people, not fourteen chickens." And if you kill these fourteen, will there be any more in the future? ”

Liu Jingzhou didn't care and said: "It's just a monkey to kill chickens, if you can't set an example, even the monkeys will be killed together."

As for whether there is one later, if there is, it will be killed again, and it will be killed until there is no more. ”

Kou Shen felt that he couldn't communicate with this dead eunuch, although the two of them had been working together quite happily, but the dead eunuch's murderous nature was too heavy, and he only knew how to kill simply and rudely, and he didn't think of any other way at all.

Governing a big country is like cooking a small fresh, can you solve the problem by killing alone? Didn't you see that even His Majesty the Emperor has softened so much now, and he is no longer blindly killing?

In line with the idea of not arguing and awkward if you can cooperate happily, Kou Shen still explained: "If it is said that the problem can be solved by killing alone, Emperor Taizu Gao killed no small number of people back then, but it did not stop. ”

Liu Jingzhou smiled: "Master Kou thinks our family doesn't know about this problem? In fact, before our family left, the emperor had already explained, don't worry. ”

After finishing speaking, Liu Jingzhou changed his tone again, and said with a solemn expression: "The emperor actually doesn't want to kill so many people, but since the emperor of the apocalypse was here, this Ming matter has not been broken.

Whether it is a natural disaster, or those slaves, if they are not careful, they will lose the country. But what are the faces of those people in the Donglin Party and the Fushe, you Kou have been in Suzhou Mansion for so many years, and you have a good idea, right? ”

Kou Shen nodded and said: "The official naturally knows something, but he is not afraid of Gonggong Liu's jokes, the official has been in a coma for so many years, in fact, it is also the result of being suppressed by the people who have been restored."

In the entire Suzhou Mansion, there are many people who don't know about their officials, but there are few people who don't know Zhang Pu and Zhang Cai, from high-ranking officials and nobles to peddlers and pawns. ”

Liu Jingzhou clapped his hands and said: "Ah, these people act unscrupulously, without a king and a country, if they still want to compromise with them at this time, it is tantamount to seeking skin with a tiger, only a quick knife to cut through the mess, and the general trend of the world to get rid of it is the right way."

Lord Kou thought about it, if His Majesty hadn't gotten rid of those bastards of the Donglin Party and the Restoration Society, what would the Southeast Land look like now? Your Master Kou was born in Shaanxi, and how many people starved to death in Shaanxi after the great drought last year?

If His Majesty hadn't killed those people, how much would Shaanxi have starved to death? It is true that you can't use tiger and wolf medicine for severe cases, but sometimes, it really can't be used without strong medicine. ”

Kou Shen nodded.

Regarding Liu Jingzhou's words, Kou Shen agrees in some aspects. For example, the situation in Shaanxi during the drought.

His hometown is in Xi'an, Shaanxi, and there are a few relatives who have fled to join him, so Kou Shen has a deeper feeling about the disaster in Shaanxi than other officials from the Di newspaper.

If it weren't for Emperor Chongzhen's purchase of a large amount of grain, if it weren't for Emperor Chongzhen's ruthless efforts to deal with so many corrupt officials and corrupt officials in advance, the people who starved to death in Shaanxi would definitely not be as much as they would have seen from the newspaper.

At least there are only a few thousand people on the newspaper, and if there is no timely disposal, the number of people may roll upward.

Tens? Hundreds of thousands?

Kou Shen didn't even have the interest to think about it anymore.

After thinking about it for a while, Kou Shen said, "Then the official will sentence all these fourteen people to beheading according to the laws of the Ming Dynasty?" Wait until the fall to be executed? ”

Liu Jingzhou said with a smile: "Our family is just a tax envoy and eunuch, except for the matter of taxation, the rest has nothing to do with our family, and Lord Kou will deal with it according to the law of Da Ming." ”

Kou Shen nodded, and was also very satisfied with Liu Jingzhou's attitude.

At the very least, during the period of time when Liu Jingzhou, a dead eunuch, was promoted to the post of tax envoy, he didn't have to worry too much about whether the eunuch would interfere in the affairs of the government.

Kou Shen and Liu Jingzhou were drinking tea and laughing in the back office of Suzhou Mansion, and the fourteen people who were arrested and the homes of the fourteen people were fried.

The mess is arguably the best description of the situation in the homes of these fourteen people.

It's just that most of the close friends who came and went in the past are gone, and it is useless to even take the money to the government prison.

The jailer, who would not have looked at it in the past, is now so high up that he almost looks at people through his nostrils.

Let the good words be said, how much money is stuffed, whether it should be useless or useless - the good words are laughed at, and the silver money weighs in the arms of one or two small pieces, and what should the rest be.

Anyway, if you want to go in and visit, it's not the slightest possibility.

But the situation is very strange.

Because normally, these fourteen people are capital crimes, and even if the family is not implicated, the family should have been raided at this time, let alone the account books or something.

But now there was no movement at all, as if these fourteen people had been forgotten in the prison after they were arrested.