Chapter 54 Lao Jiang In March, Zhu's eighty-one troops came to Wujiazhuang and defeated them with one drum.
It is unknown how long the drum was beaten for.
Anyway, those sneakers sent from far and near Wubao to inquire about information, no matter they arrived early or late, all they saw was a broken gate and a bumpy brick wall.
Wujiazhuang has been destroyed.
The owner of the village, Wu Youcai, didn't even have time to send a messenger for help.
After the news spread, those Wubao towns within two hundred miles of Xuzhou north of the Yellow River that had refused to pay money and food to the Xuzhou Red Scarf immediately changed their minds.
According to the quantity requested by the Xuzhou Army, they loaded the cart with twice as many copper coins and grains and sent them to Sesame Li's camp at starry night.
At the same time, he sent his confidants carrying generous gifts and rushed to Wujiazhuang to express his congratulations to Zhu Bayi.
To prevent the latter from succeeding, he would stew his own Wubao away with a spoonful of it.
However, what made the fort masters and village masters very uneasy was that no matter how thick the gifts they sent out, the confidants they sent out could not see Zhu Ba11 at all.
However, they were blocked by a soldier named Xu Hongsan, who asked everyone to put down their gifts, and then go home to wait for disposal.
As for whether General Zhu will come to fight, how he will let everyone go, and what will happen to Wu Youcai, the owner of Wujiazhuang, and his sons, they will not respond at all.
"They should not all be killed."
Liu Er, the gun and stick instructor in Liujiazhuang, which is forty miles away from Wujiazhuang, wiped the dust from his head and reported uneasily to Liu Laoquan, the leader of the village, "The little one was at the gate of Wujiazhuang today. many After taking a few glances, the watchtower on the left side of the gate collapsed, and there were five or six damaged areas on the walls on both sides of the gate, but no blood was seen on the walls or under the walls. , the smell of blood is not too strong.
It’s not too strong, that is, there is the smell of blood.
If there is the smell of blood, it must mean that someone has killed someone.
Otherwise, how can he show the power of Xuzhou Army?
Moreover, this bandit broke Zhuangzi, how could he give the suffering master a chance to seek revenge?
Thinking of this , Liu Laoquan, the owner of Liujiazhuang, let out a long sigh, shook his head and said, "Oh, my old brother Wu, he has lived so smoothly in this life, and he doesn't know how to bow his head when he should.
This time, I'm afraid he will be buried in the grave after death."
There was no one who offered incense before.”
"Oh, who says it's not the case."
Liu Er, the gun and stick instructor, sighed along with the village owner and whispered in agreement, "If he had surrendered before the red scarf thief came, he wouldn't have been such a pity for the tens of thousands of guns.
The family's wealth has all fallen into the hands of Zhu this time."
"I'm afraid that Zhu doesn't want to give him a chance to surrender."
Liu Laoquan sighed again and continued to shake his head gently, "Among these forts on the north bank, Wujiazhuang is the richest.
And the leaders of the red scarf thieves are also I was born poor, and I was worried that I couldn't find an excuse to wash my hands. .
Master Wu took the lead in not paying them money and food, which was exactly what they wanted.
It was a pity that after the military disaster, it would be great to have only two copper-smelting and iron-smelting furnaces left in the village.
The scale of the past, I don’t know how many years and months it will take.”
Speaking of this, he suddenly remembered something.
He looked at the dusty gun and stick instructor Liu Er and asked in a very low voice, "When you went there, did you see smoke coming from the chimney behind Wujiazhuang?
I mean Those furnaces for smelting copper and iron, didn’t the red scarf thieves destroy all of them?”
"This" Liu Er frowned and thought hard.
When he went to Wu's Village during the day to find out the red scarf thief's next move, he really didn't pay attention to whether the thick and big stoves behind the village were still smoking.
However, when the owner asked, he couldn't truthfully report that he hadn't noticed.
After pondering for a moment, he replied in a very low voice, "Yes, there should be smoke coming from the furnace.
As you know, the biggest feature of the Wujiazhuang area is that smoke and dust billow all year round.
If there are furnaces for smelting copper and iron, If there is no smoke, people will notice the difference at a glance.”
"That's weird.
Could it be that the Zhu Thief wants to occupy Wujiazhuang for himself and open a furnace for refining ore there?"
Liu Laoquan was slightly startled when he heard this, and a confused expression immediately appeared on his face.
"Refining it by yourself is not as convenient as grabbing it.
Besides, he is the only one hanging in Hebei right now.
Since the officials in Tengzhou dare not mess with him, and the soldiers of the imperial court pass by one day, they will not allow him to continue to show off in Wujiazhuang.
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Could it be said that they He broke Zhuangzi, captured the Wu family father and son, and then released the four father and son, forcing the Wu family village to continue to smelt copper and iron for them."
"Impossible" Liu Er, the gun-stick instructor, immediately denied, "We are forced to have no choice but to secretly deliver money and food to Sesame Li.
After all, even the government itself does this.
Even if the court knows about it in the future, it will turn a blind eye."
One eye can be seen.
Working for the Red Scarf Army would not be tolerated by the imperial court.
If not, it would be the next disaster in Peixian County.
In order to survive for a while, the Wu family and his son had to involve the entire clan and thousands of men and women in Zhuangzi.
Isn’t it too short-sighted?”
"Who knows?"
Liu Laoquan shook his head vigorously, but no matter how hard he shook his head, he couldn't get any results.
Based on his life experience, he would rather be killed by the Red Scarf Army than offend the Yuan Dynasty.
Those who were killed by the Red Scarf Army were only a few fathers, sons and brothers, one family.
If you offend the Yuan Dynasty, even the clan execution will be a blessing.
If you don't do it right, the neighbors, the entire Zhuangzi, and even all the people in the surrounding villages and towns related to Wujiazhuang will die.
But Liujiazhuang and Wujiazhuang were married before.
His second son, Liu Yong, married Wu Yinggu, the eldest daughter of the second wife of the Wu family.
Thinking of this, Liujiazhuang sighed again, grabbed the bell at hand, shook it, and called in the entourage who had been waiting outside the door, "Go, find some people."
A strong woman will go to Lao Er's house and temporarily send Lao Er's family to the small courtyard next to the ancestral hall.
Wait for the exact news from Wujiazhuang to be sent back to Lao Er. " "This is it."
The followers showed a bit of unbearable expression on their faces and agreed in a low voice.
Everyone knows that the so-called resettlement is actually to put him under house arrest and wait for the news.
Even if the Wu family father and son were killed by the red scarf thief, the second young lady would still be considered a loyalist and still have a bowl of food in the Liu family.
If the Wu family father and son really join the Red Scarf Army, I am afraid that the second young lady will be sent back to the Wu family, or she will be locked up in the small courtyard next to the ancestral hall forever, and will never be able to stand out again.
"Such a big Zhuangzi, thousands of lives, what can I do?"
Maybe to explain to Liu Er, maybe to make himself feel at ease, Liu Laoquan groaned to himself.
"How about we go around Wujiazhuang again?
Anyway, the red scarf thieves haven't blocked the road.
If we go around more, we might be able to find out more information."
Liu Er, the gun and stick instructor, was also very worried.
Unable to bear it, he approached Liu Laoquan and suggested in a low voice.
"Go ahead and put ten coins in your account and take it with you to protect yourself on the road.
If you have any news, come back and let me know immediately."
Liu Laoquan thought for a moment and nodded in agreement.
"By the way, if you see the Red Scarf Army coming towards our house, no matter what, send me a letter in advance.
Our Liu family cannot follow in the footsteps of the Wu family."
"Yes, I understand."
Liu Er saluted and walked backwards out of the study.
Then he went to the account room to withdraw a sum of copper coins, rode on his horse, and went out in a hurry to find out the news.
Strangely enough, this time, he stayed around Wujiazhuang for three days.
For three days, the ore refining furnace in Wujiazhuang never stopped for a moment when it was supposed to be smoking and turning on.
In the farmland surrounding Zhuangzi, there were actually people driving buffaloes to the fields, as if nothing had happened in Zhuangzi.
The more Liu Er looked at the gun stick, the more surprised he became.
Finally, he couldn't hold it any longer.
He bravely approached a farmer who was working in the field, lowered his voice and asked, "Hey, my brother, are you from this village?"
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"?"
"Why not?"
The farmer raised his head, gave him a stern look, and responded loudly, "Aren't you Mr.
Liu from Liujiazhuang?
Why did you arrive at the gate of Zhuangzi and why didn't you go in and sit here squatting in the wild all day?
Don't you mind the insect bites?
"?"
Unexpectedly, the other party actually knew him.
Liu Er's face turned red when he was told that, and he explained nonchalantly, "I, the owner of our village, was worried about Wu, owner Wu's safety, so he sent me, sent me here to inquire about his old man.
Excuse me, Excuse me, brother, is Master Wu still alive?"
"You young man, what are you talking about?"
The farmer was furious when he heard this, his eyes widened and he yelled, "Of course Mr.
Wu is alive.
He has never done anything harmful to nature.
How could he be short-lived?
But some people , humph, if you refuse to save yourself and still say sarcastic words, you will be punished sooner or later."
"Well" Liu Er was scolded until his face turned red, but for the safety of his village, he had to swallow his anger, "Brother, brother, please keep your mouth shut, keep your mouth shut.
We, the owners of our village, didn't wait.
After sending the troops over, I heard that the Wu Village has been broken up by the Red Scarf Thieves.
Why did the Red Scarf Army not give the old village owner Zhu Bayi a hard time?
Why did he suddenly start to be kind?
" "Why are they not difficult?
Do you think they are living Bodhisattvas?"
The farmer seemed to have known that Liu Er would ask this question.
He responded loudly according to the answer he had prepared in advance, "Our village owner was captured after fighting hard.
We were originally prepared to Who is determined by death?
Unexpectedly, Zhu Laowen was so cunning that he robbed the village owner of all his family's savings.
He also threatened the village owner with the lives of all the villagers, asking him to sign a city-wide alliance with him and pay him a large sum of copper and iron every year.
Otherwise, they will kill everyone in Zhuangzi."
"Damn it" Liu Er felt the same and cursed loudly.
After scolding me, I felt that something was not right about this matter.
Using the lives of tens of thousands of men, women, and children in the village to force Master Wu to surrender, it is understandable that Master Wu surrendered to the red scarf thief.
If the court asks questions in the future, it cannot pursue it too harshly.
However, what can an alliance under the city do?
After the red scarf thieves left, the Wu family did not continue to pay them copper and iron.
What could they do?
While he was confused, he heard the farmer say loudly, "Not only that, the evil thief also took the eldest son as a hostage.
He said that if he did not receive the second wave of copper and iron in two months, he would cut the eldest son in two.
Alas, it’s a pity that our village owner has been doing good deeds throughout his life, but when he gets old, he ends up like this.”
He actually took Wu Liangmou, the next owner of Wu Family Village, as a hostage.
This Zhu Bayi's methods were really vicious.
When Liu Er heard this, his heart was filled with sympathy for the Wu family.
But this was fine, the Wu family had an explanation to the court, and the Red Scarf Army did not kill the whole Wu family without leaving any trace.
The daughters of the Wu family who are married outside will not be divorced by their husband's family because their natal family has a relationship with the red scarf thief, or they will be imprisoned and ready to be handed over to the government at any time.
Everyone will get what they need, and the world will be peaceful.
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Compared with those Zhuangzi who were washed away by gangsters in the past, the current ending of Wujiazhuang is not the worst.
After sighing with the farmer for a while, Liu Er finally jumped on his horse and ran back to report to his farm owner.
"Stupid Pig" When the farmer saw his back disappearing, he immediately abandoned the buffalo and trotted back to Zhuangzi.
Together with other farmers who came out specifically to spread the news, they went to the housekeeper Wu Fu to report the results and receive the reward they had agreed upon in advance.
"Master already knew why they came."
After listening to the farmers' reports, the housekeeper Wu Fu curled his lips and said disdainfully.
Immediately, he ordered the accountant to distribute rewards to the farmers immediately.
He tidied up his clothes, ran back to the study quickly, and reported the news to the head of the family, Wu Youcai.
When I entered the study, I found that the eldest son Wu Liangmou, the second son Wu Liangtian and the third son Wu Liangfang were all there.
Their eyes were red and there were tears on their faces.
Looking at the old owner Wu Youcai, he had just wiped away his old tears.
When he saw the butler come in, he waved his hand and commanded with a forced smile, "Third brother, hurry up and move a chair for Uncle Fu.
What happened these days, thanks to Your Uncle Fu tried his best to help us, and our family got through this."
"Don't dare, don't dare."
Wu Fu immediately waved his hands like windmills, "Little man, little man, I only follow the master's instructions.
Master, if something happens to you and the young master, little man, little man will come in shortly."
"No need."
Wu Youcai stood up and grabbed Wu Fu's sleeve, "Uncle Fu, please sit here.
We, father and son, want you to be a witness to what happened today."
"Ah" Wu Fu, the housekeeper, was stunned when he heard Wu Youcai's solemn words, and sat down on half of the chair with his buttocks bent.
Wu Youcai smiled at him, suddenly straightened his body, and said loudly: "Our Wu family has never been separated since we came here.
Calculating, it has been more than seventy years in total.
Today I will The boss sent Governor Zhu as a hostage, but he actually wanted to spread the rumors."
"Ah" the housekeeper didn't expect to hear a big secret related to the rise and fall of the family.
He was stunned, stood up suddenly and was about to walk out.
"Sit down."
Wu Youcai glanced at him and ordered without refusal, "Actually, if I don't tell you these things, it's impossible to hide them from you.
The reason why I want the eldest son to go and let the third son stay to take over my position as the head of the family. .
In my father’s heart, I think that the third child is better than his elder brother.
Uncle Fu, you should keep these words in your heart.
When I am no longer around, remind the second child and the third child to let them go.
Always remember that the boss was handed over for the sake of this family."
"Yes, yes" Butler Wu Fu did not dare to leave anymore and stood there, his eyes red and sweating profusely.
"The reason why the boss is asked to be a hostage is because the boss has a reckless temperament and is suitable for aggressiveness but not for being conservative.
The third child's character is exactly the opposite of the boss's.
He is more than conservative but not enterprising enough.
Boss, you followed Zhu Although the general was said to be a hostage, the family wanted to protect itself.
It is inevitable that you will be removed.
But considering the more than 20,000 kilograms of copper that I will send to him in the future, Zhu Ba11 cannot really treat you as a hostage, and what if you follow him?
The sky is flying, and don’t forget, don’t forget, there are still your two brothers here by Shanyang Lake
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