As soon as the words fell, another wailing rang out outside the lobby. More than a dozen warehouse managers who were waiting to be killed shouted grievances one by one, saying that their salaries were low, their tasks were heavy, and their basic treatment was similar to that of long-term workers in large households, so they should not be counted among the officials at all. Wang Ermao thought it was funny when he heard it, and he didn't correct this absurd statement. After a little muttering, he ordered loudly: "Since you don't want to die, I want you to do something for me, are you willing?" ”

"Yes, yes, one hundred and twenty villains!" Tang Sicang took a few steps forward on his knees, his head like pounding garlic. "The king can use us, and it is a blessing for us. You just give the order, and I'll go to the soup and fire, and I won't give up! ”

"You don't have to wait for me to go to the soup!" Wang Ermao pursed his lips and sneered, "I want to teach the person surnamed Zhang how to be an official, and open a warehouse in this Liyang City to release grain." Since you guys have been in charge of the treasury for many years, you don't steal from your own house every day. Naturally, you should know which grain cellars have relatively new rice millet and which grain cellars are full of old rice......"

"Big, big, the king doesn't dare. No, no, no, the king, kill me, I don't dare to touch the grain in the official warehouse! Before Wang Ermao finished speaking, Sicang Tang Decai lay on the ground and howled again, "Opening the official warehouse privately, that's a big crime to be punished by the clan." Your lord, you can be gracious and let go of the small one. The little one will be a cow and a horse in the next life, and he will repay your grace! ”

Wang Ermao was angry and funny, slapped the startling wood hard, and shouted, "Shut up for me!" This official puts food and cares about you chickens and dogs. Last year, Yang Xuangan and Li Xu moved food casually, didn't the dog emperor do anything to you? Don't tell me you didn't take care of last year's granary. If you guys push back any longer, Lao Tzu won't need you. I don't believe that with such a big Liyang City, I can't find a few people who are willing to work for Lao Tzu! ”

The so-called no, it is naturally a knife to cut things. Tang Sicang and the others didn't dare to beg for mercy anymore, and while wiping tears with red eyes, they confessed in a low voice, "The king spares his life, the king spares his life, I will listen to your orders." But just a few of us......"

Wang Ermao frowned, "What's the matter, there are still fewer suspects?" Lao Tzu doesn't need your help to move food, Lao Tzu only needs you to keep accounts next to you. How much was moved out in total, and it was recorded for Lao Tzu one by one. If anyone dares to secretly swallow it, Lao Tzu will definitely want him to look good! ”

Tang Sicang was so frightened that he wiped the cold sweat on his head, and agreed repeatedly, "Don't dare, don't dare!" A small sure stroke is a clear record! He shouted loudly, but he secretly wondered in his heart, "This group of robbers, they will grab food when they grab food, and what are they doing with accounts?" ”

"Liu Laosan, you take twenty brothers and escort this group of dog officials to the granary to prepare first!" Wang Ermao waved his hand and ordered Liu Laosan, who was pretending to be a servant, to escort Tang Sicang and his men away first. Then he looked outside the lobby and ordered in a low voice, "Invite me to come up with the head of the team!" ”

"Take Zhao Kidnapper!" The pro-soldiers joined in the fun and shouted at the top of their voices.

The head of the team, Zhao Guizi, was captured at the city gate a few hours ago, and is kneeling in the snow waiting for death at the moment. Suddenly, I heard someone in the hall shouting my name, thinking that the time limit had come, my leg was crooked, and I collapsed directly on the ground. Two wolf-like soldiers grabbed his arms and dragged him up the hall. As soon as he let go of the handle in the center of the lobby, Zhao Kidnapper immediately buckled the stone crack on the ground, and refused to get up again.

"The king, the king spares his life. The small ones are meritorious, the small ones are meritorious! He cried as he struggled.

Wang Ermao was stunned by this person's words, and asked casually: "I never knew you, what credit do you have?" ”

"The villain, the villain was deceived by the king, and the king was put into the city as a hungry person!" Holding on to the last ray of hope, Zhao Guizi cried and defended. "The small, the small one has an eighty-year-old mother, and there is a child under the age of one......"

"And how old are you?" Wang Ermao was amused and continued to interrogate.

"There are five small ones in the Chinese New Year's Eve today!" Zhang Guizi answered honestly. Then he immediately realized that it was impossible for a thirty-five-year-old man to have an eighty-year-old mother in his family, and it was difficult for the child to meet the indicator of only one year old, so he kowtowed and continued to mourn, "The whole family of the little one is supported by the little one, and if you want to kill the little one, the king is equivalent to killing the whole family of the little one." The little magnified king entered the city, and there was no merit and hard work..."

"Who said they were going to kill you!" Wang Ermao waved his hand impatiently, "Let me ask you, are you familiar with the residents of Liyang City?" ”

"Little ......" Zhao Guizi wanted to reply that he was not completely familiar, and he was afraid that he would be stabbed because he was useless. After hesitating for a moment, he boasted: "The little errand has been around for more than 20 years, and he is familiar with the situation in the city. If the king gives me some more old brothers, I guarantee that even a mouse will be dug up for you! ”

Wang Ermao thought for a while, and ordered very simply, "I will transfer all the officials in Liyang City to your control, and send a few more people to assist you." Which one is disobedient, you cut me with a knife! ”

Zhao Guizi felt that he had escaped death and was still in power, so he immediately came to his senses, puffed up his chest and responded, "Big, what the king wants the small ones to do, the small ones will do whatever they want!" ”

Wang Ermao nodded, and ordered with a smile, "You take all the servants to Liyang Cang to assist in putting grain, and all the people in the city can receive 200 catties of rice or millet each." If someone is greedy and pretends to receive it, you are responsible for finding out the Fa-rectification! ”

"Small, small!" When Zhao Guizi heard that he was just leading people to maintain order, his spirit became more and more vibrant. Turning his head to look at his colleagues who were still kneeling outside, he admired his luck.

"You go down and pick people first. Whoever is willing to follow you to maintain order, whatever you choose. Pick the rest, Lao Tzu cut it directly! Wang Ermao waved his hand and ordered Zhao to retreat.

The officers and catchers outside the lobby were already overjoyed when they saw the chance to live, which one dared to refuse to accept it? Seeing Zhao Kidnapper approaching, he immediately prayed with a smiling face, "Brother Zhao, Brother Zhao!" "Zhao senior, Zhao senior" "Kidnapper brother, kidnapper brother!" It made Zhao Guizi dizzy, like stepping on thousands of white clouds. Having picked this, it is hard to refuse that. Unconsciously, he picked out all the officials and whites in the yamen, and stood behind him in several rows.

"You yourself can receive 200 pounds of grain per person. Thickness is arbitrary. Wang Ermao didn't care, smiled, and commanded loudly.

"Thank you, the king!" The officials did not need to be trained, and replaced the word "adult" with "king", which was shouted smoothly and neatly.

"But you'll have to wait to help carry the food out. Lao Tzu doesn't have so many people under his command, so he can't do this hard work! Wang Ermao nodded and continued to command.

No matter how tired you are from carrying food, it is better than losing your life. The servants agreed repeatedly, and they didn't dare to show any perfunctory look on their faces. Wang Ermao called his confidant brother Yuan Shouxu and ordered him to take more than 50 brothers to escort the servants to the granary to wait. Then he called Zhang Wenqi's master and ordered him to draft a notice in the name of Julu Ze Zhang Da, informing the people to go to the gate of Liyang Cang early tomorrow morning to receive food. Immediately afterwards, he found a bunch of servants and idlers from the back house of the Taishou Lord, and ordered them to post the grain notices everywhere.

Outside the lobby, there are also a group of idlers who ask for Zhang Wenqi's life, these guys originally made up their minds to repay Zhang Wenqi's kindness with death, but at this moment, seeing that the bandit leader not only did not kill Zhang Taishou, but knew what everyone needed better than Zhang Taishou, one by one they were depressed, and they no longer dared to claim to be righteous and dare to speak.

Wang Ermao ordered someone to bring them together to the lobby, and said with a smile: "Zhang Junshou gave you a bowl of porridge to eat, and you were so grateful that you couldn't wait to sell your lives to him." Lao Tzu gave you 200 catties of food per person, so that your family could survive this disaster year, did you also express it to Lao Tzu? ”

The idlers were so ashamed that their faces were red and their necks were thick, and they stumbled for a long time, and finally someone took the lead in responding: "Lord Zhang is willing to give porridge and put grain, I don't know how many people in Liyang City rely on two bowls of porridge a day to survive." I waited for his favor, so naturally I couldn't watch him be killed in a daze. King, you dare to open Liyang Cang to help the elders in the city, of course we owe you a favor. In the future, as long as you give me an order, no matter what you do, even if it is to block knives and arrows, we will never frown! ”

"You have a conscience!" Wang Ermao grinned, "Come on, untie all the ropes on their bodies." Give each of them a stick and go out into the street to help maintain order. ”

Immediately, a soldier stepped forward and cut the rope with a knife. The idle men moved their arms that were tied and numb, and bowed down again, kowtowing, "King Xie doesn't care about a few of us!" I can't wait for anything to repay, but I have a word to tell the king, I don't know ......"

Wang Ermao made a gesture of please, "Say it, I'll listen!" ”

"There is no danger to defend around Liyang City, and it is very vulnerable to attack. If the king could have gone one step earlier...... the idlers looked at each other and admonished very righteously.

"This, this official knows!" Wang Ermao gave up his hand very sincerely, "You wait to maintain order, take the water and fire sticks in the yamen, and use it as a credential!" Zhu Laogen'er, you will be the leader of them for two days first. If you encounter someone who dares to cause trouble, no matter who he is, you will beat me to death. ”

Zhu Laogen'er, the leader of the pro-soldier gang who was watching Wang Ermao's trial, heard the task, and hurriedly stepped out of the queue and clasped his fists at it, "You have to order!" No shame guaranteed! ”

"Go ahead!" Wang Ermao got up with a smile and sent Zhu Laogen'er and the righteous idlers away. Then he looked down again, and there were very few people kneeling in front of the hall, smiled, and asked loudly: "What do you usually do, report your name to Lao Tzu, lest Lao Tzu greet you one by one!" ”

After nearly an hour of trial of the case, no one has been pushed out to be killed. The captured Liyang officials were no longer as panicked as before, and when they heard Wang Ermao's question, they looked at each other and reported to their homes in turn according to the usual speaking habits.

Liyang City suffered a military disaster last year, so the official configuration at this moment is relatively refined. In addition to the captured county guard Zhang Wenqi and the county guard Gao Shen who died in battle. Today, there are more than ten officials who can still be called, including Cao Kaiji, the chief secretary of Guangchu, Wang Qixian, the chief secretary of Cao, and Han Shouzhi, the treasurer. And most of them took office after Liyang City was recovered by Li Xu last year, and they didn't have time to do anything wrong.

Wang Ermao's original intention was not to kill people, so he did not carefully look for the faults of these officials. first straightened his face and frightened him, then sighed, and said with a pleasant face: "I, Zhang Jiajun, have never killed innocent people, and the rumors you heard in the past were made up by people. Since you dog officials haven't done anything bad, I'll spare you all today......"

"King Xie, King Xie is not killed!" The officials were not as backbone as Zhang Wenqi, so they quickly knelt down and thanked them.

"Get up, don't be like kowtowers!" Wang Ermao waved his hand and ordered with a smile. "Since the official has released you, you have to do something for the official. Who is rich and who is not rich in this city, I guess only you know best! ”

"Great, if the king needs to raise funds, just pack it up with us!" The officials took care of everything, lest Wang Ermao be impulsive, and immediately changed his words after the enthusiasm.

"I don't raise funds. I need to raise a large livestock. Mules, horses, and donkeys will also be there. Several adults immediately went to the rich family's house to discuss with them, and said that Lao Tzu would exchange grain with them for livestock. How many stones and rice a head of livestock, the price is whatever they want. Speaking of this, Wang Ermao raised his face and emphasized gloomily, "But there is one thing, no one wants to hide their secrets from Lao Tzu." If there is a big animal that refuses to sell it to Lao Tzu, but Lao Tzu hears the call of the livestock. Lao Tzu sent people to kill it directly, men, women and children, not a single one was left! ”

How dare the officials who escaped death say "no" and take over this task head-on. In order to prevent them from doing their best, Wang Ermao deliberately selected a batch of more delicate ones from the brothers under his command, one by one, and escorted the officials to carry them out. When you see a low thatched house, you can bypass it all. When I saw the high-walled compound, I went up and knocked on the door directly.

The rich families in the city had seen this kind of battle before, and when they heard the officials convey the order, they did not dare to open their mouths, so they casually said a number and brought out the big cattle of the family. There are also a few people who hide the mules and horses without opening their eyes. Zhang Pig Belt Man searched again in the second half of the night, and anyone who dared to hide livestock privately and not sell it really blocked the door and killed it cleanly.

Throughout the night, Liyang City was tossed and jumped. By the end of the next morning, the search and killing had ended. After all, this place is a county seat, and there are many wealthy people in the city. All the cattle added up to seven thousand. Wang Ermao was very "reasonable", and really ordered people to carry out the grain in the warehouse in Liyang, and notified the rich households to come to collect it. At the same time as cashing in the rewards for the rich families for their mules and horses, they opened the doors of the warehouses and distributed rice, wheat, and grain to the people of the city.

This time, the people of Liyang can be regarded as the New Year, and they are so happy that they even ignore the smell of blood in the air. Help the old and the young to come to receive food, lest their family underreport a mouthful of people and receive 200 catties of food. Team leader Zhao Guizi also shook his spirits and tried his best to maintain order. The existing greedy people are not enough, and the ruffians who came to claim it again after receiving it once were immediately pulled out and handed over to the "heroes". The "heroes" don't know what the punishment is, and if they catch these greedy guys, as long as the evidence is true, they will be stabbed in the head. After more than a dozen bloody heads were cut off, no one dared to defy the law, and the entire team receiving food was in order.

After pouring water for a day and night, the grain in Liyang Warehouse was only reduced by one percent. The next morning, even the people who lived within thirty miles of Liyang City were alarmed, and they came in groups to help the old and the young. did not get Wang Ermao's order, Zhao Guizi and others did not dare to refuse, in line with the principle of doing good deeds, everyone who came to receive food was filled with their pockets. If so, the atmosphere inside and outside the city is more and more lively, and there is joy almost everywhere, I just hope that the officials and soldiers will never arrive, so that the "good men" will always guard the granary.

The happy days always passed too quickly, and the grain release operation lasted for four whole days, and on the fifth day, Tanma and the people sent the news of the appearance of a large number of officers and troops on the other side of the Yellow River. At the same time, another team under the banner of Wuyang County soldiers also rushed to Tangyin, less than fifty miles away from Liyang City.

When Wang Ermao heard the news, he immediately ordered someone to stop putting grain. Recruit the strong men in the city, pick up the polished rice and fine wheat in the Liyang warehouse, bag it, and carry it on the back of the livestock from the "charity sale" of the rich households. Immediately took Zhang Wenqi from the prison, handed over the official robe, the seal letter, and the account book of the grain expenditure in the past few days to him, and asked him to keep it and deal with the imperial court.

"You opened the Liyang warehouse to release grain and saved tens of thousands of hungry people, which is also a righteous act!" After freezing in the prison for a few days, Zhang Wenqi had long lost his original hard bones, sighed, and sighed in a low voice. "But Zhang's life was also buried for your righteous deeds. And what is the use of this seal? It's better for you to give Zhang a knife before the arrival of the official army, and let Zhang have an explanation with his family! ”

"I said, why are you so dead?" Wang Ermao, who had recovered his rogue costume, also regained his original appearance when he spoke, "No one saw it, you wouldn't say that you secretly gathered your subordinates and snatched Liyang City back while I was unprepared?" Don't say that you've never deceived your superiors, if you don't deceive your superiors, you can't be this county guard! ”

"You, you ......" Zhang Wenqi was speechless when asked, stammered for a long time, stomped his feet, and turned back to the yamen. Wang Ermao smiled at his back, turned on his horse, led his troops, drove the livestock, and went straight to the West Gate.

Out of the west gate, Liyang City and Liyang Cang are equivalent to returning them to the official army. Zhang Zhupi was a little reluctant in his heart, looked back, and asked in a low voice, "Brother Ermao, are we really not going to set fire?" So much food left for the people of the imperial court is enough for them to eat for several years! ”

Wang Ermao shook his head with a wry smile and responded in a low voice, "Didn't you listen to the dog official, Yang Xuangan didn't burn, Li Xu didn't burn." If the two of us burn Liyangcang with a fire and return to Juluze, those brothers who have been digging in the soil and eating children will say to their faces that we are doing a good job, and behind our backs, maybe how to poke our backbones! ”