More than 30 miles east of Huzhou City, is a very prosperous town, this town called Zhili is not only the most famous raw silk distribution center in Huzhou, but also the largest silk textile center in the local area, almost every family has a loom, and women can weave silk skills.

Since the imperial court began to promote the rating of raw silk and encouraged the centralized trade of raw silk and the large-scale scale of silk weaving, the economy of raw silk and silk has become more developed. However, because of the large number of local gentry involved in the raw silk and silk industry, they not only controlled the local raw silk and silk trade, but also often defaulted or even refused to pay taxes.

As a result, the government not only failed to collect reasonable taxes from Zhili, but also dragged down the evaluation of officials due to the rising number of public security cases due to the increase in the local foreign population. Sometimes they have to be driven by these gentry to handle cases, and they put a lot of money in them. As a result, the local officials regarded the area as a nuisance, and always took a laissez-faire attitude towards local affairs, leaving the local gentry to manage themselves.

Of course, the fact that the local gentry defaulted on or even refused to pay trade taxes did not mean that those foreign merchants and local merchants did not have to pay taxes. It's just that this tax turned into all kinds of bad rules and fees, and went into the pockets of the local gentry.

More than 200 years after the founding of the Ming Dynasty, the Jiangnan region has also been peaceful for more than 200 years, and prosperous towns like Zhili can be said to abound around Taihu Lake. However, such prosperity belonged to the gentry, not to the court and the common people at the bottom.

For example, in Shengshe Village in the south of Zhili Town, there are two of the most famous local gentry, and they are also the surnames of Min and Ling, famous families in Huzhou. There are as many as five people from the two families who have held the position of Shangshu in the past, and how can a local official provoke such a famous family.

And the gentry often talk about benefiting the countryside, but in the final analysis, they just want to run a base for their families. In order to establish their supremacy over the territory, these gentry were repulsive to all foreign forces, even the power of the government.

They can tolerate their own house slaves bullying a foreigner, and they will never agree with the government's practice of running to their own territory to administer justice to the foreigner. Maybe sometimes they will show a charitable appearance, giving porridge and clothing to the affected people, and paving the way for the local people, but all this is just to cover up, and they are daily exploiting the essence of the village.

Five or six miles out of the north gate of Zhili Town, between the river and the official road, there is a tea shop built of green bamboo thatch, and there are five or six tables in the shop. However, there were no people on the official road in the afternoon, so except for five or six tea customers, the tea shop seemed a little empty.

The tea customers in the shop are very strange, everyone is just drinking tea, but rarely talking to each other. Although it is already the middle of September, the sunshine in Jiangnan is still **, and the three people who were exposed to the sun by sitting at a square table at the entrance of the shop, even if they drank tea in a big gulp, they were sweating beads on their faces.

The pale-skinned young man sitting on the east side of this square table suddenly knocked the tea bowl in his hand heavily on the square table, he stood up and said angrily: "Okay, if you don't go, I'll go by myself." I don't believe that the Ming Dynasty really has no royal law, and the robbing women in broad daylight have become local gentry. I want to see if this Huang Yanli dares to confront me face to face. ”

After the young man finished speaking, he turned around and stepped out of the shop, and was about to walk towards the village in the northwest, when the yellow-faced man on the north side of the square table suddenly shouted, "Hopefully." ”

Sun Kewang, who was opposite him, immediately rushed out, and pressed the young man from before him to the ground with three strikes and five divisions. The young man immediately shouted in disbelief: "If you are not willing to uphold justice for me, why do you want to stop me? I said a month and a half ago that I would wait, and I will wait until today, do you want to wait until Huang Yanli destroys my mother's body, and then arrest someone to investigate the case..."

The yellow-faced man was Zhang Xianzhong, and after listening to the young man's rebuke at this moment, his face was pale but he had nothing to refute. After all, he didn't know why he said so well before leaving Beijing, but when he was about to take action against the gentry who were harboring bandits, the above began to rebel again.

"Take him to the river in the back, brainwash him, and calm him down." Zhang Xianzhong said angrily to several subordinates. When Sun Kewang and two Jinyi guards dressed as tea guests dragged the young man down, the tea shop finally quieted down, but the shouting and scolding of the young man from behind could be faintly heard.

Zhang Xianzhong always felt that there was a nameless fire burning in his chest, he looked at the tea bowl in his hand for a long time, and then said to his subordinates who pretended to be the shopkeeper: "Bring me a jar of rice wine, this damn weather is not cool at all..."

Looking at the scolding Zhang Xianzhong, this subordinate hesitated, but still didn't dare to dissuade him, and went directly to the back of the counter and took out a small jar of rice wine. Three bowls of rice wine fell into his stomach, Zhang Xianzhong still felt depressed, and just as he was about to pour the fourth bowl, he suddenly stopped his movements and listened attentively.

"What's going on? When did Jiangnan have such a large team of horses out on patrol. Ah Liu, go out and see, what's going on. Third, go and call them back. Zhang Xianzhong immediately put down the wine jar and quickly arranged it for his subordinates.

Ah Liu, who went out to visit after a while, ran back and reported to Zhang Xianzhong breathlessly: "It's the army coming, but the smoke and dust are too big, and I can't see which officer or soldier is coming." ”

Hearing that it was the official army, Zhang Xianzhong was much more relieved, and the last thing he was afraid of as a Jinyi guard was the official army. While beckoning his subordinates to take their places, he sat at the entrance of the shop and watched the movement on the road outside. A few minutes later, a cavalry group of more than 100 people stopped in front of the tea shop.

Looking at the generals who led the dismounting, Zhang Xianzhong finally stopped pretending, got up and greeted him and said, "Cui Baihu, you brought them over, but are you going to act?" ”

Cui Baihu, who came closer, smelled the smell of wine on Zhang Xianzhong's body, and only frowned, then let go of his brows and said, "Yes, Commander Xu ordered us to start acting, and first arrest a few families for crimes." There are more than a dozen crimes committed by the Huang family in this Yellow Building, and they take his house first, so as to deter Xiaoxiao and prevent those sinners from resisting the laws of the court again. Lord Zhang, you have been squatting here for the longest time, how to arrest the criminals, please show me. ”

Zhang Xianzhong thought about it in his heart, and then made up his mind and said: "Cui Baihu and I brought 50 people to enter from the main gate, Sun Kewang and Zhao Zongqi took 30 people to guard the back door, and the rest of the people were monitored outside the village to catch the fish that slipped through the net..."

With Zhang Xianzhong's order, the cavalry that stayed in front of the tea shop immediately divided into three teams and rushed towards the village in the northwest. Huanglou Village is a large village of more than 300 households, the north of the village is close to Taihu Lake, ninety percent of the population of the village is the same clan as the surname Huang, so it is a village with strong combat effectiveness in the vicinity, and has never lost in the battle for water and land.

However, this kind of fighting group formed on the basis of clans is obviously difficult to compete with the army. In particular, this time it was the troops who were transferred from the north, not the local military households. Although the 1st and 2nd Shanghai Garrison Divisions were all eliminated from the Beijing battalion, it was more than enough to suppress the clan forces formed spontaneously in Jiangnan.

When a member of the Huang family stopped at the entrance of the village in an ignorant manner, trying to ask the intention of the army that wanted to rush into the village, but was cut down by Zhang Xianzhong mercilessly, the villagers who were still watching the excitement on the street suddenly fled back to their homes. No one dared to come out again to stop the army from entering the village.

In fact, there is only one family in the northernmost part of the village, which is the Huang family, the target of Zhang Xianzhong and his party. The Huang family occupies more than ten acres of land on the edge of Taihu Lake, which looks like a sturdy small city from the outside, and the back door of the Huang family is a small wharf leading to Taihu Lake, which can be said to occupy the geographical advantage.

It's just that Zhang Xianzhong's team came too fast, and they didn't give the Huang family time to react at all, and when someone got the news and wanted to close the door, Zhang Xianzhong had already rushed to the Huang family's door with people. Looking at the servants of the Huang family who wanted to close the door, Zhang Xianzhong immediately stepped forward, and the mount under his crotch raised his front hooves and slammed on the door, knocking several servants who closed the door to the ground.

Looking at the Huang family, whose middle door was wide open, Zhang Xianzhong, who was riding on a horse, raised his anger and shouted: "Jinyiwei handles the case, and those who dare to obstruct it will be punished for the same crime." Now everyone is on my knees and not allowed to move around, and anyone who dares to disobey the order will be killed. ”

Under Zhang Xianzhong's thunderous means, the servants of the Huang family immediately knelt on the ground one by one, and a few who wanted to run to the back hall to report the news were quickly shot by the intruding officers and soldiers. The heavy courtyard was opened by the officials and soldiers everywhere, and the people in the courtyard were driven into the vestibule.

Huang Yanli and his family were brutally driven out of the backyard by several officers and soldiers, and even Huang Yanli's son, who wanted to flee from the backyard, was taken back by Sun Kewang.

Looking at the fierce and vicious officials and soldiers, Huang Yanli, who had been scolding just now, couldn't help but weaken his tone, and said to Zhang Xianzhong: "What heinous crime did my Huang family commit to ask Jinyiwei to take people?" Even if the emperor wants to punish me, there should be a crime, right? ”

Zhang Xianzhong glanced at him and said, "What crime have you committed, don't you know yourself?" You bully the market in weaving, squeeze the price of silk and weavers, and raise the price of raw silk and silk to sell to foreign merchants. If someone bypasses you and goes to those silk and weavers, you will either burn the goods or disappear without explanation. Even the slightest complaint from the local silk and weaver households will be beaten up by your instructors. Are you embarrassed to ask others what sin you have committed? ”

The corners of Huang Yanli's mouth twitched, and he replied without giving in: "Bullying and dominating the market may be because I am not strict in disciplining my subordinates and setting fire to people, I dare not admit it." This lord can't listen to the words of a scoundrel and blame my family for the crime..."

Just as he was denying Zhang Xianzhong, Sun Xiucai, who was sweating profusely, suddenly ran over and grabbed his collar and asked, "Where is my lady?" Where have you been hidden? I saw her here 10 days ago, where is she now? ”

"What's your lady? Why is your lady in my house? Aren't you crazy..."Huang Yanli was frightened, and quickly broke Sun Xiucai's hands and pushed them out.

Sun Kewang, who was standing on the side, suddenly began to tremble when he saw the two maids in the Huang family's daughters hearing the dispute between the two, and he couldn't help but quietly tell his father-in-law about this discovery. Zhang Xianzhong glanced at the two maids, and asked Sun Kewang to take the two maids down to ask them separately.

Half an hour later, Sun Kewang led someone to carry out a female corpse from the back garden that had not yet decomposed, and when he saw the appearance of this female corpse, Sun Xiucai immediately pounced on it and cried. As for Huang Yanli, after seeing the female corpse, he fell to the ground and couldn't speak anymore.

Zhang Xianzhong glanced at Huang Yanli contemptuously, and then said to his subordinates on the side: "Go and call the prefect of Huzhou Mansion over, ask them to send someone to participate in the interrogation, seal everything here as one, and hand over the book to Lord Xu..."