lady, please calm down

"If the prince hadn't come to the rescue, Tao Chunlai would have been killed long ago when Shouchun City was destroyed! But he didn't know the reward. It was this person who took the lead this morning, slandering Madam Cai for embezzling Lin'an Dynasty's compensation! I have a look, It’s time for the Anfeng District Prosecutor’s Office to investigate Tao Chunlai!”

The early morning of August 12th was the morning of Chenshi. During Chenshi, officials from the Anfeng Dynasty such as Ruan Xianfang, Chen Jing'an, and Zhang Shuye had already arrived at the algae garden outside the city.

Ruan Xianfang, who had no foundation at all and only relied on clinging to the King of Chu to get the position of Minister of the Ministry of Personnel of the Anfeng Dynasty, was particularly excited because Tao Chun came to criticize the side concubine of the King of Chu in the early dynasty.

I'm afraid the King of Chu won't feel his loyalty!
Chen Jing'an, on the other hand, acted much calmer, "When Tao Chunlai was an official in Huainan, he was famous for being smelly and tough. This person has a reputation for integrity. Even if the local prosecutor's office is dispatched, it will be difficult to find out. It's better not to do anything. move!"

Ruan Xianfang regarded himself as a hawk under the King of Jin, but Chen Jingan was the nominal head of the officials of the Anfeng Dynasty. Civil servants were naturally disgusted with the secretive and uncontrollable secret service, even if it was the minions of the King of Jin.

Although it was inconvenient to object openly, Chen Jingan had the attitude of not using the District Prosecutor's Office as much as possible.

Tao Chunlai was Chen Bokang's same age and good friend, and he was Chen Chu's protector, so he would not punish him for such a trivial matter.

But Chen Chu smiled and said: "We have indeed taken advantage of the 'filial piety gold' given to the Supreme Emperor by the Lin'an Dynasty, why don't we let others talk about it?"

The Lin'an Dynasty's filial piety gold of 1.5 million taels was indeed occupied by Cai Hua, and most of it was transferred to Mao'er in Huaibei as a reserve fund for the four major banks to continue to issue cargo invoices to support food and wages in the northwest battlefield.

Twenty percent of the expenditure was given to the new army organized and trained by Jiang Huaixiong and Han Shizhong. Cai Hua kept the rest of the army in her own hands and cooperated with Cai Si and others in the small-scale experimental land reform in the name of a trading company.

The one or two hundred thousand taels originally planned to be left to Chai Ji to repair the yard were not even squeezed out.

But Chen Chu said, "We do have the filial piety gold," and he took the initiative to take the blame on himself.

Seeing Chen Chu taking responsibility for Cai Hua, Chen Jing'an weighed it up and finally said: "Yuan Zhang, Chai Ji has been in prison for many years, which has already worn away the heart of a king. What he wants is nothing more than a mansion and a beautiful maid. If he can get delicacies, Let’s raise some money and help him build a garden.”

Chen Jingan's words were indeed considered from the perspective of Huaibei. After all, an obedient puppet was worth tens of thousands of soldiers, and it gave Chen Chu a reputation for morality.

Just to raise pigs and feed them some coarse grain feed, a majestic emperor doesn't have much to build a yard.

Chen Chu nodded when he heard the words, but said: "What Xiang Chen said is true, but how many taels can we expect to squeeze out? The Supreme Emperor has suffered in the north for many years. If he wants to build it, he must build a magnificent courtyard to be worthy of the royal family." "

“Where does the money come from?”

"Coming from Lin'an, the peace agreement between Lin'an and Anfeng has been completed, but Lin'an betrayed the alliance first and invaded Huaibei, which is not yet over."

Chen Jing'an was not surprised at all by Chen Chu's words.
Last year, Huaibei stopped the offensive after taking Huainan because of insufficient troops after successive battles. For more than half a year, Jiang Huaixiong and Han Shizhong trained troops in Qizhou and Luzhou respectively. Chen Jing'an knew that there would be another battle in the future.

It's not that the bad breath in Huaibei hasn't come out yet, but because the Lin'an Dynasty occupies the most prosperous half of the Yangtze River in the world, but does not have the corresponding power to protect it.
Just like a young child walking through a busy city with gold and silver in his arms, can we be blamed for this?

But Chen Jingan didn't expect to be ready so soon. After thinking for a while, he said: "The blockade of Qiantang Bay in Lin'an has just been lifted at the beginning of the year, and the people are feeling at ease. Yuan Zhang sent troops south, so he still needs to think of a crowning reason, so as not to make the people of the Southern Dynasties feel uncomfortable. We are warlike”

Chen Chu immediately turned around and told Xiao Yi, "Please come in, Mr. Li."

When he heard the term "big stall" which was full of quackery, Chen Jingan immediately guessed who this person was, the Huaibei Military Commander, who had been traveling outside the military and political system.

But Huaibei senior officials knew that this secret espionage agency, which only dealt with external affairs, played a decisive role in the expansion of the Huaibei system.

In the eighth year of Fuchang, the Huaibei rebellion was suppressed, in the eleventh year of the rebellion in Tokyo to seize the direct descendants, and in the second year of Xuanqing's reign, the Jin Dynasty's Yuzhou changed its flag.
This is only what they vaguely know, and they don't know how much they don't know.

However, this group of people only obeyed the orders of the King of Chu.

Huaibei civil and military officials knew very little about them.
When Li Mulezi, dressed in civilian clothes, appeared in the hall, Chen Jing'an even took the initiative to offer his hand to him.

Zhang Shuye and Ruan Xianfang who were present were confused. They didn't understand why Chen Zaizhi, who was quite proud in his heart, was so respectful to such an unattractive middle-aged man.

When Chen Jingan was in Huaibei, as the first aide to the King of Chu, he had several encounters with the top officials of the mysterious military command.

I know that the two "Second Lis" of the army, Li Ke, the second officer of the army, went to Nanjing of the Jin Kingdom as early as last year and were responsible for monitoring and controlling the Jin Kingdom Crown Prince and Chai Yuanyi.

Li Mulezi, a big stall owner, has been staying in his hometown in Caizhou. This time he suddenly came to Anfeng. He must have already made plans for Jiangnan.
"Brother Mule, there are no outsiders here, please tell us about our arrangements in Jiangning Mansion."

"Yes! Your Majesty, Brother Luo led the backbone of the Cao Gang into Shitoujin Pier in February to serve as laborers. Madam Ding, along with Xue and other daughters, went south with the Huainan refugees as early as the beginning of the year and have now entered the Jiangning official camp. spinning field.”

At three o'clock, Chen Jing'an, Ruan Xianfang, and Zhang Shuye left the algae garden.

After walking out of the mansion, Chen Jing'an suddenly stopped and turned around before getting on the sedan chair and called out, "Shang Shu Ruan."

Ruan Xianfang, who had already opened the sedan curtain, heard the call, quickly lowered the sedan curtain, trotted a few steps, bowed deeply, and said with a disgusting smile, "What are your orders, Prime Minister Chen?"

Chen Jing'an quite looked down on this person who had the good fortune to serve as a minister of Jin Qi's Zhou Dynasty in the past three years. However, thinking that the other party was Yuan Zhang Eagle Dog, he still maintained a warm expression, but his words were not so polite, "You and I are the same." When you are an official in the court, you need to know that everything has laws and regulations. The King of Jin uses you so that Lord Ruan can check for leaks and fill the vacancies. Don't just think about pleasing the King of Jin, lest the King of Jin will listen to the wrong things."

Ruan Xianfang's waist was bent even lower, and his flattering smile remained unchanged, but he said: "Mr. Chen, this low-ranking official is stupid and doesn't understand what Prime Minister Chen is saying. Please make it clear to Mr. Chen."

Chen Jing'an stood with his hands behind his back, gradually becoming displeased, "Just now, Mr. Ruan opened his mouth to secure the prosecutor's office, but kept silent to the prosecutor's office! The minister is guilty, and he has his own Dali Temple to inspect and judge the case. The prosecutor's office there acts secretly and does not respect the law." , is it a blessing to the country if it becomes powerful?”

"Xiang Chen."

Ruan Xianfang stood up a little straighter and said with a puzzled look on his face: "The District Prosecutor's Office is the sword in the hand of King Jin. What it does is what King Jin wants to do. Could it be that what Mr. Chen means is that King Jin wants to do something to him?" Disadvantage to the country?”

"."

Chen Jing'an looked down at Ruan Xianfang for several breaths from a high position, and suddenly laughed, "Sir Ruan's loyalty to the King of Jin is a lesson, and we old people from Huaibei can't compare to it!"

At this moment, Chen Jing'an still couldn't tell that Ruan Xianfang was pretending to be confused, so he couldn't help but make a sarcastic comment.

But Ruan Xianfang seemed unable to hear his boss's strange aura, and his smile became more flattering. He even turned around and bowed his hands to the algae garden, and then said: "I have been in chaos for half my life, but with the help of the prince, I suddenly see the blue sky through the clouds and mist. This is how I say , The prince is Xiaguan’s reborn parent! In terms of talent, Xiaguan is far inferior to the Prime Minister, but in terms of loyalty, Xiaguan’s love for the prince is evident!”

Ruan Xianfang was extremely respectful, but his words were soft yet thorny.

The Anfeng District Prosecutor's Office targets officials. The reason why Chen Jingan is naturally vigilant towards such secretive organizations stems partly from the desire to limit monarchical power that has been engraved in the bones of civil servants for thousands of years.

On the other hand, this kind of institution that travels outside the law is better off in the hands of the wise master. Once the successor is unworthy or partial, the destruction that this sharp blade can cause will easily overturn the society.

If Chen Jingan was a little selfish, he was considering it from the perspective of the entire civil service system. But unexpectedly, Ruan Xianfang actually cut himself off from the civil service and was determined to be the family dog ​​of the King of Jin!

Chen Jingan's interests were naturally closely aligned with those of King Jin, and he was worried about the collapse of the system.

Even if Ruan Xianfang doesn't get along well, Chen Jingan can't do anything about him. If he really takes down this person by force, let's not say whether Yuan Zhang will defend him, but it will definitely have a great impact on the harmonious relationship between the two of them, who are both teachers and friends. Based on this thought, Ruan Xianfang's step was also clever.

At least, a foreign minister with no foundation could gain a certain influence in the court just by relying on the merit of obeying the King of Jin.

After thinking about this clearly, Chen Jing'an laughed and said: "Sir Ruan, when planning your career, you should also pay attention to your career! Farewell"

"It's easy to go, Mr. Xiang."

Ruan Xianfang nodded and bowed, and personally helped Chen Jing'an open the sedan curtain.

Not far away, seeing Chen Jing'an getting into the sedan chair, Zhang Shuye got on his horse. Although the temporary court of Anfeng was small, there were still undercurrents, but he would not participate in any of them.

The King of Jin asked him to be the Deputy Privy Envoy because he was here to fight. The King of Jin said that not only would the Jiuzhou be reunited, but the Jin people's home base and the towns in the northwest would also be returned to the Jin Mau.

Reset the guardians of Anton and Anxi, and return to the territory of the prosperous Tang Dynasty!

If this goal is achieved, Zhang Shuye will die without regrets
Right now, the autumn offensive codenamed 'Lack of Money' is about to begin.

August fifteen.

The beautiful land in the south of the Yangtze River, the imperial state of Jinling. The meandering wind brings green water, and leads to the Zhulou Tower
Jiangning, formerly known as Jinling, has been one of the most prosperous places in the south of the Yangtze River since its capital was established in the Six Dynasties.

There are wealthy businessmen and scholars everywhere in the city, and there are endless rows of lanterns and boats along the Qinhuai River.

On this mid-autumn festival, maple leaves are red everywhere and tourists are everywhere.

The haze brought about by the change of ownership in Yangzhou on the other side of the river at the beginning of the year has been dissipated a lot.

However, all this has nothing to do with the weavers in Guiyi Alley.

Since the cotton spinning industry in Huaibei flourished, spinning mills that were far more efficient than home weavers quickly became popular in Huainan.

At the beginning of the year, Huainan fell, and many textile farm owners with official backgrounds moved their looms southward and gathered in Jiangning, where water transportation was convenient, to rebuild factories.

Guiyi Alley is the densest place with the largest concentration of textile mills in the city. Within a three-mile-long alley, there are more than 30 large and small spinning mills and more than 7,000 weavers.

Among them, the government-run "Tianhe Textile Factory" is the largest, with nearly a thousand weavers.

In mid-autumn August, the river breeze is already cooling, but the Y-shaped workshop of Tianhe Textile Factory is extremely hot and stuffy.

More than two hundred people were crowded into a workshop that was fifty or sixty steps long and wide. Fine dust and thin cotton shavings were flying in the sun. The loud tinkling and clanking noises from hundreds of spinning wheels were mixed with the sound of two people from time to time. Coughing.

Lin Qiaoer, a weaver in her twenties, blushed from the heat, but her feet under the loom were still stepping on the pedals rhythmically. She skillfully passed the shuttle through the warp threads with her right hand and pulled down the weft board with her left hand.
A set of movements flows smoothly and has a unique sense of beauty.

But Lin Qiaoer looked extremely embarrassed, soaked in sweat, and her thin clothes clung to her skin, feeling sticky and uncomfortable. While waiting for a piece of cloth to be woven, Lin Qiaoer, who was extremely thirsty, turned to look at the large vat filled with water in the corner of the workshop, but licked her lips and resisted the urge to drink water.

It just so happened that Sister Xue, who was on the loom next to her, had also finished weaving a piece of cloth. Taking advantage of the opportunity for her coworkers to help the two men change the spindles of the loom, Sister Xue quickly looked around, quietly untied a thin bamboo tube from the leg of her trousers and handed it over, "Qiao'er. Girl, drink some water quickly, don’t let that mangy dog ​​see you!”

"Sister, please drink. I'm not thirsty."

"You're very polite to me, please take a sip!"

Sister Xue couldn't help but put the bamboo tube into Lin Qiaoer's arms. The latter quickly glanced at the supervisor Lai Youde who was guarding the water tank, then lowered his head and took a sip, and then looked up at his sister Lin Zhi in front of him. Son
Because the distance was too far, Lin Qiaoer finally gave up the plan of throwing the bamboo tube over.

Clean water is not valuable, but it is not cheap in Tianhe spinning factory. To prevent the yarn and cotton from getting wet, no one is allowed to bring water into the factory. If you are thirsty, you can only buy water from the supervisor.

A bowl is worth a penny. This is no longer cheap for Lin Qiaoer, whose daily salary is only seven pennies.

After secretly returning the bamboo tube to Sister Xue, Lin Qiaoer glanced worriedly at her sister in front of her. Lin Zhier was only twelve years old and was at the age where she was snoozing.

However, the spinning mill required seven hours of work every day, and Lin Zhier did not get enough sleep. She often dozed off while sitting in front of the loom during work.

Last month, because of this, I ruined a piece of cloth and was whipped several times, and my monthly payment was deducted for two months.
"Child, child!"

Calling in a low voice twice cheered up her sleepy sister. Lin Qiaoer then turned to Sister Xue and sighed: "Sister, the Huaibei textile farm you mentioned only works four hours a day, and there are also holidays. But is it true?"

Sister Xue hid the bamboo tube again and replied in a low voice: "Why did I lie to you? The spinning wheel in our workshop can only spin six spindles at a time. The spinning wheel in Huaibei Changfang can spin twenty-four spindles. The four of us An individual's work can only be as efficient as that of others. Because of this, the cotton cloth in our textile factory cannot compete with the cotton cloth in Huaibei. The unscrupulous proprietor can only squeeze us to reduce costs so that he can compete with Huaibei."

"Hey, sister knows so much."

Lin Qiaoer sighed, her feelings for Huaibei were quite complicated. In the past, when Huaibei cotton was not popular, officials worked as laborers at the docks, and she spun cloth at home, so she could barely manage to eat and drink.

But in the following years, Huaibei cotton was sold in the south of the Yangtze River. Not only was the quality better than what she weaved at home, but the price was also much cheaper.

From then on, life at home became worse and worse day by day.

At the beginning of this year, Guiyi Alley was recruiting workers, and Lin Qiaoer was forced to take her younger sister to work as a weaver.

But after half a year, let alone saving money, I couldn’t even take care of food and clothing.

But Lin Qiaoer didn't dare to ask for resignation. Working in the textile field, plus the coolie money earned by officials, he could still survive. If he resigned, people like them who had no land outside the city would be afraid. To starve to death.

The people who fled from Huainan at the beginning of the year are still waiting outside the city. Some are starving to death every day. When winter comes, I am afraid it will be even worse.

"Hey," Lin Qiaoer sighed again, "What an end to this day."

Sister Xue next to her heard the sound and sighed too, but said: "Sister, do you still remember Mrs. Ding from the spinning farm next door?"

"I remember."

Lin Qiaoer's mind immediately pictured a lady in her twenties. This lady was a very good person. She would always be eager to help anyone whose family was in trouble.

Just like this time, my sister's wages were deducted, and her parents' family couldn't take the blame. It was Mrs. Ding who used her own wages to support the Lin family's emergency, so that the family could make a living.

This Lady Ding knows a lot and is said to be literate. Every night, she organizes the workers to become literate and talk about truth.

Anyway, Lin Qiaoer heard from Mrs. Ding why she was still poor after working hard all day long.
Lin Qiaoer didn't quite understand what she heard. Later, because of hard work, she hadn't gone to Mrs. Ding to learn literacy for a long time.

This Lady Ding is fine everywhere, but she has a scar on her face, which is a pity.

Sister Xue lowered her voice and said mysteriously: "Ms. Ding organized the sisters to form a trade union in the factory next door. Do you want to join us?"

"Or even a union?"

"The union is... to organize us sisters and negotiate terms with the boss together."

"Negotiate terms?"

"That's right! At least let the venue cancel the water money and rope bed money first!"

The price of drinking water is this penny for a bowl of water. As for the rope bed, the workshop has a two-quarter-hour break every afternoon, but the weavers are not allowed to stay in the workshop during the break. There are only a few shade trees outside the workshop that can avoid the scorching sun. , the owner pulled some hemp ropes on the tree. If anyone wanted to rest, he would lie down on the ropes and squint for a while.

A penny for a quarter of an hour
No money, not even the shade of a tree.

Even Lin Qiaoer, who is used to being submissive, felt it was unreasonable, but still subconsciously asked: "Will the boss agree?"

"We are organized just to fight them! Not only do we need free water to drink, but we also need to strive for holidays and shorten working hours in the future, just like those in Huaibei! The weavers in Huaibei are human beings, are we not human beings?"

After Sister Xue finished speaking, she looked at Lin Qiaoer expectantly, but the latter hesitated and quickly shook her head. She had heard that the owner behind Tianhe Textile Factory not only included Jiangning's generals, but also adults in the court.

How can we fight with such a proprietor?

They can crush us to death with just one finger.
Lin Qiaoer smiled awkwardly and just said: "Sister, let's work according to our responsibilities. What if the boss doesn't let us do it? Recently, I heard my man say that he followed a brother Luo in Shitoujin. The gangsters have been beaten away from the dock, and no one will take any more money from them. I think life will be easier in the future."

Lin Qiaoer's voice became lower and lower, and she was asked to fight the boss. She didn't have the courage, but Mrs. Ding and Sister Xue were both very nice people, so she didn't dare to follow them into the union, which made her feel a little ashamed.

Sister Xue sighed and said no more.

The look of the two whispering finally aroused the idea of ​​​​the supervisor Lai Youde.

Lai Youde strode over and saw the two of them sitting in front of the loom without working. He couldn't help but became furious. He took out the leather whip from his waist and hit Lin Qiaoer on the shoulder. He scolded: "My boss supports you with seven cents a day. Is that right?" Do you want to be lazy?"

Sister Xue standing next to her quickly stood up and protected Lin Qiaoer, smiling apologetically and saying, "Master Lai, please don't be upset. Our two looms are changing spindles. Once we've done that, we'll continue working."

Only then did Lai Youde realize that he had misunderstood the other party, but he still cursed arrogantly, "You sneaky lazy fools, if my employer hadn't been kind enough to give you a job, you would all have died of starvation."

"Yes, yes," Sister Xue couldn't help but smile.

After Lai Youde walked away, Lin Qiaoer bared her teeth and looked at the whip marks on her shoulders, which were not deep, but after the oily skin was broken, it was as painful as a scorpion sting when it was soaked in sweat.

Lin Qiao'er did not dare to complain. After the spindle was reassembled, she quickly got down to work.

About a quarter of an hour later, Lai Youde inspected here again. Lin Qiaoer moved quickly, fearing that he would be whipped again. He didn't let out a sigh of relief until the other party walked over.

But then, Lin Qiaoer discovered that the little girl in front of her was standing in front of the loom and couldn't help but fell asleep, and seemed to have fallen asleep again.
Lai Youde was not far away, so Lin Qiaoer couldn't even remind him loudly.

Watching Lai Youde walk up to his younger sister, the former immediately noticed the "lazy" Lin Zhier. Just now, he tried to pretend to be an uncle in front of Lin Qiaoer and Sister Xue, but failed.

This time, I found my target.

I saw him suddenly fly up with a kick. Lin Zhi'er, who was thin and frail, already twelve years old but looked to be only about ten years old in height and weight, was kicked out in a daze.

Then, Lai Youde rounded his arms, and the whip struck Lin Zhi'er like raindrops.

Lin Zhi'er had woken up and subconsciously curled up to protect her head and face, but her first reaction was not to beg for mercy. She just begged in a young female voice: "Master Lai, I was wrong, Master Lai, I was wrong, don't hold me captive again." wages."

Lin Qiaoer was so eager to protect her sister that she didn't care about anything else, so she quickly got up and ran over.

With just a few whips, the thin clothes had been ripped out, and the bright red whip marks were clearly visible inside.

Lin Qiaoer suppressed her fear and stood aside for a few seconds, but Lai Youde, who was on top, didn't stop. She finally rushed forward to save Lai Youde's arm and cried: "Master Lai, go around her once, and if you hit her again, she will be killed." , I can no longer work for the proprietor."

Lai Youde threw Lin Qiaoer aside with a swing of his arm, turned around and cursed: "If you beat me to death, I will beat you to death! I can't pay you 1,800 yuan. There are many people outside the city waiting to work for the master. Beat me." Find me after you die! If you dare to stop me, I will also fire you!"

Lin Qiaoer was knocked unconscious and sat on the ground. I don't know if it was because of the sentence "If you beat me to death, I will beat you to death." A violent unknown fire suddenly rose in her heart, which she couldn't suppress.
The next moment, Lin Qiaoer casually picked up a shuttle for weaving from the ground. After getting up, he walked in front of Lai Youde in two steps. The latter felt something, and when he turned around, he saw a shuttle with two pointed ends coming towards him. .

"We are human beings, not just cats and dogs that we kill randomly!"

This sentence seemed to be squeezed out from Lin Qiaoer's chest. It contained violent rage, long-suppressed resentment, and a trembling voice caused by excitement.

Immediately, the shuttle flew into Lai Youde's eyes.

With a scream, other supervisors scattered in the workshop whipped their whips and rushed to the place where the incident occurred.

Looking at Lai Youde, who was covering his eyes and rolling crazily on the ground, Lin Qiaoer felt as if he was just waking up from a dream, and was so frightened that he quickly threw away the blood-stained shuttle.

Then, he looked at the surrounding workers with fearful and helpless eyes.

But this time she got into serious trouble. The co-workers looked away and ignored her plea for help.

At this time, Sister Xue suddenly led a group of female workers to protect Lin Qiaoer in the middle, and shouted to the supervisors who were surrounding her from all directions: "Just report to the official, no one is allowed to touch my Lin family girl before the official comes!"

Then, Sister Xue turned her head and whispered to her companions: "Go and tell Mrs. Ding quickly! Contact Luo Dongtou again, the opportunity for trouble has arrived!" (End of Chapter)