The south gate of the outer city of Zhongdu.

In the open space outside the Hongwu Gate, a large group of shirtless craftsmen with oily sweat gathered here.

They surrounded several overseers in long robes, and the crowd was furious and loud!

At the front of the crowd, a bearded craftsman grabbed the placket of the overseer of the Ministry of Industry and asked: "Enter your mother, the old men have not received wages for several months, and you turtle sons still drink flower wine and visit the kiln every day!" ”

"Say, did you embezzle the wages of the old men?"

The craftsmen shouted: "Speak quickly! Don't talk about beating you turtle son! ”

The overseer was caught breathless, and struggled: "His Majesty the Emperor hates ...... the most It is corrupt officials and corrupt officials...... Lend me ten guts and I'll ...... I don't dare......"

The Ministry of Industry is building the Hongwu Gate, Chaoyang Gate, Tushan Gate, North Zuojia Gate, four city gates, and eighteen water gates.

It's been three months since the start of work, and I haven't seen a copper plate.

An old craftsman asked, "When will you be paid?"

The overseer was choked and struggled, "You, you let me go first...... I, I'm going to talk about it......"

The bearded craftsman grabbed him: "Okay, you say!"

The overseer was pushed back a few steps before he could stand still.

After tidying up the placket of the official robe a little, the supervisor immediately shouted: "This official is the seventh grade of the Ministry of Works, you dare to ......."

The bearded craftsman angrily grabbed him again: "You are still shaking your official authority with Lao Tzu!" ”

The overseer immediately admitted and said embarrassedly: "If you have something to say, your wages will not be ......paid until the court allocates the silver."

The bearded craftsman shouted: "It's been three months, when will the court be able to set aside the silver?"

"I don't know......," said the overseer, grimacing.

"Don't know?"

"I really don't know, the money from the Ministry of Industry is given by the Ministry of Households, and I am a seven-grade small office, where do I know the decision above......"

The craftsmen clamored: "If I don't pay my salary, my family will starve to death......"

Someone proposed: "Go to the imperial city to find the king!"

The people of the Ming Dynasty called the prince the king.

Several of the emperor's sons are still in the imperial city of Zhongdu, and they must ask for an explanation!

A scrawny old craftsman in the crowd shouted: "The forbidden wall of the imperial city cannot be removed, and the head will be cut off!" ”

The bearded craftsman said irritably: "What is there not to go? Cutting off your head is death, starving to death is death! ”

He raised his arms and shouted: "Come with me, go to the imperial city to find the kings for wages!" ”

The craftsmen responded violently: "Go wow, go to the kings!"

The raging crowd had just moved and suddenly stopped.

Just in front of them was a murderous army.

A few steps away, stood Jiangxia Hou Zhou Dexing with a frosty face.

The craftsmen were horrified to find that so many officers and soldiers had popped up around them at some point.

They stood there gloomily, without a sound, only the dense swords and spears glittering white in the sun!

The boiling voices suddenly quieted down, so quiet that people were stunned!

"Lord Hou......"

The overseer shouted, and rushed over as if he had seen his father.

"Get down on your knees!"

Scanning at this group of craftsmen, Zhou Dexing's cold voice seemed to be squeezed out of between his teeth.

The bearded craftsman glanced around, a look of resentment in his eyes.

Eventually, he slowly came to his knees.

Behind him, all the people slowly knelt down......

Zhou Dexing sneered: "You guys, dare to make trouble?" ”

The bearded craftsman raised his head, tried his best to control the tremor of the muscles on his face, and defended: "Master Hou, we didn't make trouble, we just wanted to ask for wages......

Zhou Dexing sneered: "A group of slutty things are also worthy of talking to Benhou, come on!" ”

The soldiers behind him shouted: "Here! ”

Zhou Dexing pointed to the craftsmen: "Take down ten of the disobedient people at the front and execute them all!" ”

The pro-soldiers responded violently, rushed up like a wolf and a tiger, and the two pro-soldiers set up a craftsman and dragged it out!

The bearded craftsman struggled and scolded: "You turtle sons, Lao Tzu has not committed a capital crime, why do you cut Lao Tzu ......?"

A craftsman who was only a teenager was also set up by his own soldiers, and he was so frightened that he cried desperately: "Mother! Come and save me! Come and save me! ”

The kneeling craftsmen were in a commotion, and many people stood up one after another.

"Why, you still want to rebel?"

Zhou Dexing gave an order, and the officers and soldiers behind him immediately raised their swords and spears and moved forward in unison.

The craftsmen did not dare to step forward.

The officers and soldiers dragged the ten craftsmen to the side, lined up in a row, knelt down according to them, and raised their snowy broadswords......

The supervisor of the Ministry of Works, who was watching the excitement on the sidelines, hurriedly stepped forward to stop it when he saw that he was going to kill someone: "Master Hou......"

"It's none of your business, get out of the way!"

Before he could say anything, the sword flashed, and ten heads spurted blood and rolled down the dust......

Many of the craftsmen closed their eyes and hung their heads deeply.

Zhou Dexing glanced at the craftsmen: "Let me tell you, Benhou Xinshan only killed ten people today, and if you find any troublemakers, you will not be left behind, and they will all be killed!" ”

After saying that, he turned over and left.

A group of officers and soldiers trotted away after them, leaving only a patch of blood and ten corpses.

Uncontrollable sobs rang out from the crowd.

Jiang Xiahou is right, the artisan household is lowly, the status is lower than that of the private household, and the father has to succeed the son, and the service is forever full, and he is not allowed to participate in the imperial examination.

In the eighth year of Hongwu, due to the huge construction project of Zhongdu and the serious exploitation of Shangguan, the craftsmen launched a struggle.

Someone cursed under the Fengyang Palace and was killed by Emperor Zhu thousands.

But since then, the imperial court has abandoned the plan to build the capital of Fengyang on the grounds of "labor expenses".

This year, I don't know what's going on, and suddenly I have to build the outer city gate and the eighteen water gates.

It's still the same as always.

If you resist a little, you will be killed!

"What's going on? Who killed the people? ”

Another group of men came, led by several young men in armor.

Several princes have just returned from hunting.

Zhu Yunxi caught a glimpse of the old craftsman wearing only a pair of shorts, and the thin upper ribs protruded.

The old craftsman knelt there, shivering all over, not knowing whether it was cold or scared.

He dismounted, walked over, lifted the old man up, took off his cloak and put it on him.

The old man looked at Zhu Yunxi in horror and couldn't speak, and his body trembled even more.

Glancing at the corpse lying in a pool of blood not far away, Zhu Yunxi frowned and asked, "Old man, what's going on here?" ”

was beheaded outside the central capital, and no one reported to the official, it seems that it was done by officers and soldiers......

"I have a sick wife and a ten-year-old grandson at home, and they are all counting on me to feed ......"

The old craftsman looked at the corpse lying there not far away, and did not dare to continue.

His inexplicable words made Acting King Zhu Gui grow for a while: "You just say who killed, we will make the decision for them!" ”

No one spoke.

Discover an official ......

Zhu Yunxi pointed to the overseer who was shrunken at the city gate: "You, come here!" ”

"How could I be so unlucky!" The overseer looked bitter and had to trot all the way down.

Seeing that he was wearing an official robe, Zhu Quan immediately shouted: "Say! ”

Looking at the cannibalistic craftsmen, the overseer hurriedly pointed to the corpses and said, "They followed the gangsters to provoke trouble and commit chaos...... It was Jiang Xiahou who ordered them to be killed as an example......"

Jiang Xiahou again?

The overseer explained: "Jiang Xiahou is in charge of the Central Capital Left-behind Division, and it is his duty to suppress the riots. ”

Say, tell the story as it is.

There were craftsmen there, but the overseers didn't dare to add oil and vinegar, so they had to throw the pot on the ten dead craftsmen.

"These villains, inciting everyone to riot, trying to take people to the imperial capital to harass the kings, the crime is unforgivable!"

The overseer knew that the sons in front of him were the sons of the dragon and the grandson of the dragon.