In order to fully control the place, the first thing to deal with is the various guards.

Fortunately, today's guards, nominally several prefectures combined, have a considerable number of troops, and there should be more than 10,000 people, but the actual number of troops is only a few thousand.

Combat effectiveness, not to mention, is no different from ordinary people.

And several commanders have been hereditary from generation to generation since the beginning of the Ming Dynasty, and they have long been vassals of the family, and there will be no room for resistance at all.

So soon, the guards of the Great Wall, which several provinces relied on, completely defected.

As for the battalion soldiers, it is the same ending, General Taijin Yan has already defected to the family, and General Ning Shao is vacant, but his subordinates have also defected to them.

……

"What's going on?"

"Didn't I say that the people should be requisitioned and repaired? After all these days, why is it still so tattered? ”

The prefect of Ningbo Mansion had a grim face, and he stood in front of a house, which was the courtyard of the official family he said, and said.

However, the house is ornately decorated, and the style of construction is not like a temple, but more like a private mansion, with a little old and broken backyard.

The official on the side wept and replied in a low voice:

"Mansion ...... I took my brothers to recruit the people, but the so-called mayor of the other side beat us with a stick...... Yandao, Yandao The prefect's own yard, they are not obliged to help you repair it, and the servitude of the imperial court is not used for this. ”

"Several towns, all of them are so rampant."

"Not only that, he, they say...... From now on, even if it is a servitude of the official family, they will not be respected. ”

The official spoke, and there was still a deep incredulity in his words.

Not only because this person dared to be so presumptuous to the prefect, and he directly told the other party's behavior of using public weapons for private purposes, but also because of the other party's wild words, he even thought that he had heard it wrong.

You must know that conscription is the obligation of the people of the Ming Dynasty! Even if you pay the labor tax, if the court fails to recruit enough people, it can directly levy and send you.

The only people who can avoid forced labor are the homeless and the thieves.

Wanderers, definitely not, these guys are safe and sound.

That can only be ......

Thinking of this, the official couldn't help but shudder.

When the prefect heard this, his eyes widened, and his heart was full of shock.

Although many of the towns under the control of the Yan family have been based on the orders of the family for a long time, at that time, after all, there was no idea of opposing the imperial court, so in some administrative, judicial and other affairs, after all, they still obeyed the prefect and the prefect of the county.

After all, if these officials go to the imperial court and explain some things here, even if they are Yue Guogong, they will be in trouble, and even attract the suspicion of the emperor.

Although they themselves also have clan laws and rules, they are limited to their own clansmen, and if others commit crimes in the town, they are still handed over to the county government. In fact, this is also the norm of the rural clans of the Ming Dynasty, and they can't afford to be honest.

Even if these family rules are too complete, they are not similar to the ordinary and simple village rules and village customs.

The prefects and counties are also interested, and they know that this clan is not easy to mess with, and after receiving the money, they naturally won't say anything more. So over the years, on the whole, the cooperation is still very good, and the family has a lot of autonomy, but it does not make the prefects and counties feel completely hollowed out and have nothing to do.

The two sides have developed a delicate balance.

But now......

With the last trace of luck in his heart, the prefect sent someone to invite the patriarch of the Yan family to inquire in person.

"Literally, sir." The patriarch calmly took a sip of tea and said with a smile:

"You don't have to count on those guards and battalions, the commanders and generals have already been arranged."

"You can rest assured, filial piety will definitely not be less, originally it was not only 10,000 taels of silver a year, I will add it to 15,000 taels a year for you."

"We will still pay the tax, but we will not bother your servants to collect it, we will send it to you."

After all, this is a major place for finance and taxation, and if it suddenly disappears, it will definitely attract attention.

As for how much to pay, it depends on the opinions, you must know that in recent years, due to the breeding of potatoes and sweet potatoes, the harvest has been much better, but Yan Ling obviously does not intend to take advantage of them.

"Moreover, we will not move the county seat and the capital city, you have absolute authority here. But again, don't go to our township to look for trouble...... Otherwise, today's events will only be polite. According to our clan law, these bullying guys are enough to stay in prison for ten or eight years. ”

The clan elder understated their request.

The prefect was a little stunned when he heard this, and for a while, he was speechless.

These guys, not only do they not intend to serve as conscripts, but even the officials sent by the imperial court want to be imprisoned by private law, which is to set up a private court!

"You're complicit!" The prefect's white beard shook violently, and these words popped out from between his teeth:

"Now retreat, this official can still be regarded as ignorant!"

It's one thing for him to love money, but he doesn't want to lose his power and become a puppet because of a little money. You must know that with the wealth of Ningbo Mansion, if it weren't for the Yan family to restrain him, it would not be a problem to fish hard, tens of thousands of taels of silver a year.

Not only that, if this matter is known by the imperial court, they will be finished, and they will not be able to pull a charge of rebellion when the time comes.

That's the sin of destroying the Nine Clans! It's not worth it for a little money.

Moreover, when he looks at these guys, he is not bent on rebellion. If it openly occupies the prefecture and county seat, it will really be a rebellion, and the other party does not, which proves that there is still room for communication.

So he still wants to negotiate, he really doesn't want to cling to the bandits.

"Your Excellency is also a scholar, and you also have the reputation of showing off your talents, how can you do such a big rebellious act?"

He looked at the old man and said:

"Don't you know the truth of loyalty?"

"Zhongjun?" The clan elder smiled:

"That Your Majesty Wuxing? Lord Shousuke, but the bones are not cold. ”

"The Fuzun asked me if I knew the truth of loyalty, but I wanted to ask the Fuzun if I knew that 'the king regards the minister as a sibling, and the minister regards the king as the heart; The king regards his ministers as grass mustard, and the ministers regard his ministers as enemies'? ”

"What's more, in today's world, is it still the prosperous era it once was? It is already full of smoke, and the people are struggling to make a living. In this case, what is there to be loyal? ”

The prefect froze in place.

After all, this is also true.

With Yan Chenhao's death and the surging of rumors, many officials of the Ming Dynasty have now been shaken by the thoughts of the loyal monarch.

After the death of Duke Yan Wenzhong (Yan Chenhao 谥文忠), there were no more direct ministers in the imperial court. This rumor among the people is not empty talk, and many officials have already made self-preservation a top priority before doing business.

He wanted to refute, but he couldn't speak, and finally could only whisper:

"It's the other way around, it's the other way around......"

But then, as if he had thought of something, a gleam flashed in his eyes.

Revealing the Secret of the Crime of Treason...... This great credit is even enough for him to directly rise several levels in a row.

But then, he thought again, since the other party dared to have a showdown with him, how could he not guard against this?

They have been operating here for 100 years, and their roots are far deeper than anyone can imagine. If your own messenger is discovered......

They will definitely not hesitate to kill, especially now that even the guards have taken refuge in them, and there is no one to check and balance.

The more he thought about it, the more frightened he became.

He looked up at the clan elder and saw the other party smiling and looking at him.

Even if you don't say yes today...... He glanced at the patriarch's guard, only to feel that the other party's body was murderous, and the sword at his waist seemed to be about to be unsheathed at any moment.

The prefect took a deep breath and finally made a difficult decision:

"Fifteen thousand taels is not enough, I want twenty thousand taels!"

When the clan elder heard this, he immediately laughed:

"Deal."

(End of chapter)