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Inside the imperial envoy's office in Hangzhou, Yang Lian slowly removed the gauze from his shoulder. The wound had scabbed over, but he still felt a stinging pain when he moved his muscles. He reached out and touched the wound, feeling the rough scab on his fingertips. Birds chirped outside the window, and the early summer sun shone through the window lattice, casting mottled light and shadows on the floor tiles.

"My lord, it's time to change the medicine."

A doctor in brown shorts stood outside the door holding a medicine box.

Yang Lian shook his head: "No need, the wound has healed."

His voice was calm, but unquestionable. The doctor hesitated for a moment, then bowed and left.

Yang Lian picked up the plain official robe on the table. The fabric rubbed against his wound, causing a stinging pain, but he did not frown. After fastening his belt, he took down the imperial sword hanging on the wall and stroked the fine cloud pattern on the scabbard with his fingers.

This sword was bestowed by the emperor himself and represents supreme authority and responsibility.

There were chaotic footsteps and low shouts in the courtyard. Yang Lian walked to the window and saw several Jinyiwei escorting a group of officials through the courtyard. Those people were wearing wrinkled official uniforms, their hats were tilted, and their faces were gray. One of them had weak legs and was almost carried forward by two soldiers. His official boots dragged two marks on the ground.

"Zhao Mingde, the governor of Suzhou."

Yang Lian whispered the name of the middle-aged official who was being dragged away. Three days ago, it was this man who hosted a banquet with singing and dancing, but ambushed assassins in the dark. That knife could have taken Yang Lian's life. If the personal soldiers had not pushed him away in time, he would have been lying there with a corpse.

"My lord, the Duke of England is here!"

Xu Xian, a captain of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, reported outside the door in a very low voice, as if he was afraid of disturbing Yang Lian's thoughts.

Yang Lian retracted his gaze and nodded, "Please."

A moment later, Zhang Weixian strode into the study. He was not wearing armor today, and his dark blue brocade robe made him look tall and straight. The scabbard of the imperial golden sword on his waist shone with a dark golden luster in the sun. This Duke of England was over fifty years old, with slightly frosted temples, but his steps were steady and his eyes were sharp.

"How is Lord Yang's injury?"

Zhang Weixian's eyes fell on Yang Lian's shoulder.

"No problem."

Yang Lian returned the greeting and motioned for the other party to take a seat: "Duke, are you here for something important?"

Zhang Weixian took out a list from his sleeve and placed it on the table: "The list of officials and nobles involved in the seven prefectures and thirteen counties in Jiangnan, a total of 372 families."

Yang Lian picked up the list. The paper felt smooth and thick, obviously made of top-quality rice paper. He opened the first page, and the ink was clear and neat. Each name was followed by a detailed description of his official position, family background, and major crimes. As he flipped through the pages, his brows gradually furrowed. Collaborating with Japanese pirates, hiding land, bribing officials, raising assassins... Each crime was followed by brief evidence.

"Is the evidence conclusive?" Yang Lian looked up with sharp eyes.

Zhang Weixian picked up the teacup and took a sip. "The evidence is irrefutable. The account books, secret letters, and confessions of the pirates have all been sealed up in the Zhenfusi Yamen. Twenty-seven of them are also involved with the White Lotus Sect and have hidden prohibited weapons."

Yang Lian closed the list and tapped the cover twice with his fingertips: "In this case, deal with it according to the law."

"When will we do it?"

"Three days later."

Yang Lian stood up and walked to the window, looking at the outline of Hangzhou City in the distance: "How many troops do we need to mobilize?"

Zhang Weixian put down his teacup and said, "The Imperial Guard can dispatch 800 people, the Eastern Depot 500 people, and I will dispatch 1,200 people from the Firearms Battalion to cooperate. The commander of the Hangzhou Garrison, Chen An, can be trusted. His 3,000 soldiers are on standby at any time."

"enough."

Yang Lian's expression became serious, and he nodded, "Start with Hangzhou, and take them all down overnight, leaving no time for reaction."

Zhang Weixian stood up, and the golden sword and its scabbard made a crisp sound when they collided. "I will lead the team myself. These people have been entrenched in Jiangnan for hundreds of years, and they have many minions. We cannot give them a chance to breathe."

Yang Lian put the list into his sleeve and said, "Thank you, Duke. Tomorrow at noon, all the commanders will come to the headquarters for a discussion."

Zhang Weixian bowed and said goodbye, then turned around at the door and said, "Sir Yang, after this incident, I'm afraid there will be rivers of blood in Jiangnan."

"Enough blood has been shed."

Yang Lian's voice was as cold as iron: "It's just that the blood of the people was shed before."

Three days later, before dawn, the city of Hangzhou was still immersed in darkness, but teams of dark shadows were already moving quietly.

The Li Mansion in the south of the city has high walls and deep courtyards.

Twenty Jinyiwei climbed over the wall silently, and did not even disturb a fallen leaf when they landed. The general flag leader made a gesture, and everyone dispersed and quickly controlled all the entrances and exits.

In the main room, Mr. Li suddenly woke up and felt a chill on his neck. An embroidered spring knife was already placed on his neck.

"Sir Li, on the orders of the Imperial Envoy, please come with us." The Jinyiwei's voice was terrifyingly calm.

…………

The same thing happened in various places in Hangzhou at the same time. In the Zhao family in the east, the Sun family in the west, and the Zhou family in the north... the Jinyiwei appeared like ghosts, dragging the officials and gentry who were still sleeping out of their beds. Some tried to resist, but were immediately pinned to the ground; some shouted loudly for injustice, but were gagged with cloth; some tried to bribe, but the Jinyiwei just sneered.

At dawn, the first batch of prisoner cars had already driven to the Hangzhou Prison. The people were awakened by the noise, and when they opened the windows, they saw fully armed soldiers escorting the masters who were once high and mighty. Those bodies wrapped in silk and satin were now in a state of humiliation, and some of them were not even wearing shoes, walking barefoot on the bluestone slabs.

"Isn't that Mr. Zhou, the salt transport envoy?"

"Look, even the Chief Secretary, Mr. Liu, has been arrested!"

"Oh my god, the world is going to change..."

Whispers spread through the streets, some people were terrified, some were excited, and more were in disbelief.

Over the next three days, the same scene was repeated in the seven prefectures and thirteen counties of Jiangnan. The Jinyiwei, holding arrest warrants with the imperial seal, arrested people according to the list. Soldiers from the Firearms Battalion guarded the city gates to prevent anyone from escaping. The Dongchang guards were responsible for confiscating houses, and boxes of account books and secret letters were transported to Hangzhou.

On the morning of the seventh day, at the city gate of Hangzhou, the line of prisoner cars stretched for several miles.

More than 70,000 people were escorted in batches and were about to embark on the long journey to Ningguta. The cries, curses, and pleas were intertwined, shaking even the sparrows on the city wall to the point of not daring to land.

"My father is a veteran of two dynasties! You can't do this!"

"It's unfair! I want to see the emperor!"

"The child is still young, please let him go..."

Next to the prison van, the Jinyiwei executed orders expressionlessly. Someone tried to struggle and was immediately whipped; an old man collapsed due to exhaustion and was dragged to the side of the road; a child cried and cried, and his mother could only cover his mouth tightly.

More and more people gathered around, and discussions arose one after another.

"I heard that they were colluding with the Japanese pirates. They were responsible for all the tragic incidents along the coast in recent years."

"You deserve it! Last year, the Li family seized ten acres of my paddy fields and forced my father to hang himself!"

"But there are more than 70,000 people. Could there be any innocent people among them?"

"Shh, keep your voice down, the Royal Guards are listening..."

On the tower, Yang Lian stood with his hands behind his back, looking down at everything coldly. Behind him stood Zhang Weixian and several commanders, all of whom were silent.

"My Lord, is this too harsh?"

The young Jinyiwei Captain Wang Huan asked in a low voice: "With 70,000 people exiled, the scholars in Jiangnan might be..."

Yang Lian did not answer immediately. The wind blew the hem of his official robe, revealing the white undershirt underneath. After a long while, he spoke: "During the Jiajing period, Japanese pirates ravaged the southeast, killing hundreds of thousands of people. During the Longqing and Wanli periods, taxes in Jiangnan were in arrears year after year, and the treasury was empty. What role did these people play in this? Do you know?"

Wang Huan lowered his head: "I am stupid."

"Jiangnan's problems have been accumulated for a long time, and they can only be cured by drastic measures."

Yang Lian turned around and looked at everyone, and said slowly: "Today's pain is for tomorrow's peace."

Zhang Weixian nodded: "Lord Yang is right. The key is to appease the people, otherwise it will be easy to change."

"That's exactly what I meant."

Yang Lian took out a document from his sleeve: "I have drafted three measures, please review them."

The document details:

1. The land will be remeasured and distributed among the landless tenants according to population;
2. Reduce and exempt taxes for three years to encourage farming;

3. Set up charity warehouses to provide relief to the poor.

Hangzhou Guard Commander Chen An clapped his hands and exclaimed: "If these three points are implemented, the people of Jiangnan will be reassured."

After reading it carefully, Zhang Weixian said: "When measuring the land, we need to prevent clerks from cheating. I suggest that the Jinyiwei supervise it."

"Just to my liking."

Yang Lian nodded. "Commander Chen, please select literate soldiers to assist in the measurement. Duke, the Royal Guards will be responsible for the inspection. Captain Wang, you will lead the inspection of the counties and prefectures. If you encounter anyone who oppresses the people, execute them on the spot."

Everyone followed the order and left, leaving Yang Lian alone on the tower. In the distance, the last team of prisoner carts was slowly driving out of the city gate, and the dust it raised was blood-red in the sun.

...............

In the following days, Yang Lian traveled almost all the counties around Hangzhou. He personally supervised the measurement of land to ensure that every inch of land was registered. In Yuhang County, he found a clerk secretly tampering with the land deed, and immediately ordered him to be beaten with 50 sticks and stripped of his official title.

As the news spread, surveying work in various places became much smoother.

Notices of tax reduction and exemption were posted all over the streets. Yang Lian required them to be written in vernacular Chinese so that illiterate people could understand them. He also set up appeal offices in each county to deal with cases of unfair taxation. In just half a month, more than 100 unjust cases were redressed and 30,000 taels of tax silver that had been embezzled were recovered.

The establishment of the charity granary was the most complicated. Yang Lian allocated 200,000 dan of grain from the confiscated property and stored it in various prefectures and counties. He personally designed a strict distribution system: each household received grain with a wooden sign issued by the government, which was engraved with an anti-counterfeiting mark; the daily distribution quantity was registered and regularly checked by the Jinyiwei; if a fraudulent claimant was found, the whole family would be punished.

One day, Yang Lian came to the fishing village by the Qiantang River for inspection. In the past, bandits were rampant here, and the fishermen suffered terribly. Now, fishing boats are traveling on the river, and children are playing on the shore, a peaceful scene.

"Master Yang is here!"

An old fisherman with white hair shouted, and immediately the whole village gathered around.

"Sir, thanks to you dividing the land, my family now has food to eat!"

"The food my son received from the charity granary saved my wife's life!"

"My Lord, God!"

The villagers knelt down, and some even kowtowed. Yang Lian quickly helped the old man in the front up:
"Everyone, please stand up. This is the imperial court and the emperor's grace. Yang is just following orders."

The old fisherman trembled and held out a fresh perch: "Sir, it's nothing special, please accept this fish."

Yang Lian shook his head: "Old man, keep it and sell it for money. The court has ordered that officials are not allowed to accept gifts from the people."

Tears welled up in the old fisherman's cloudy eyes, and he held the perch tightly in his rough hands, unwilling to let go: "I feel really bad if you don't take it!"

Seeing this, the surrounding villagers all echoed the words. Some brought out dried vegetables that they had hung out to dry in their homes, some took off the pickled meat hanging around their necks, and they all came rushing towards Yang Lian.

Yang Lian took a half step back, clasped his hands together and bowed, saying earnestly:

"I appreciate the kindness of the villagers, but I cannot violate the law."

His eyes scanned the ragged old and weak people in the crowd, and then fell on a few children holding wild vegetable dumplings. His throat tightened: "If you really want to thank us, live a good life and don't let the children go hungry."

Before he finished speaking, the crowd suddenly became agitated. Several young men knelt on the ground with a plop, and the people around them followed suit.

The white-haired old fisherman trembled on his knees and kowtowed heavily towards the capital: "Your Majesty is wise! Thank you for your grace!"

The sound of kowtows came from the entrance of the village, raising clouds of dust, and loud voices shouted:

"Long live the Emperor! Long live! Long live the Emperor!"

Yang Lian's eyes became hot as he watched this scene. He recalled that when he led the yamen runners to measure the land half a month ago, these villagers were hiding in the straw huts and dared not show their faces.

At that time, nine out of ten houses in the village were empty and the bark on the trees had been eaten clean. It is really not easy to hear the children laughing and see the smoke rising from the roofs now.

"Everyone, get up."

Yang Lian went forward to help him, but was rejected by the villagers. The crowd spontaneously made way for him, and the old fisherman, along with a few respected elders, forcibly escorted Yang Lian to the old locust tree at the entrance of the village.

The tree hole contained rice wine secretly prepared by the villagers. Once the pottery jar was opened, the rich aroma of the wine immediately wafted out.

"My lord, just take a sip."

The old fisherman held up the earthenware bowl and said, "This is brewed by everyone using old rice. It's not a gift."

Yang Lian couldn't resist and took the bowl and took a sip. As the rice wine went down his throat, warmth spread from his heart. Looking at the layers of terraced fields in the distance, the tender green rice seedlings swaying gently in the wind, he suddenly thought of the young emperor in the capital.

As soon as he ascended the throne, he implemented new policies, reduced taxes, and opened warehouses to release grain, which led to the current scene.

"Let's toast to the Emperor!"

Someone shouted, and the villagers raised their wine bowls. The afterglow of the setting sun shone into the ceramic bowls, and the rice wine glowed golden. Everyone knelt down again in the direction of the capital, and the three shouts of "Long live the capital" startled the sparrows on the branches and echoed for a long time among the mountains.

Yang Lian stood at the back of the crowd, looking at the pious backs of the villagers, feeling deeply moved. These people, who worked hard to get by, only wanted to have enough food and clothing. But a decree from the imperial court could make them so grateful.

As the dusk deepened, Yang Lian declined the villagers' offer to stay overnight and set off on his way home with the yamen runners. Behind him, the old fisherman was still holding the perch and chasing it for a long distance, still shouting, "Sir, this fish is most delicious when steamed!"

Yang Lian turned around, smiled and waved, and left the fishing village in the dust raised by the horse's hooves. The sun was setting and the surface of the river was shining with golden light.

Yang Lian was riding on his horse when he heard a fisherman's song behind him: "Yang Qingtian, get rid of the treacherous and corrupt officials, distribute the land, and save the people..."

Wang Huan, who was accompanying him, said with a smile: "Sir, the people call you 'Yang Qingtian' now."

Yang Lian did not laugh: "It's just an empty reputation. Jiangnan's foundation is rotten, and it will take time to rebuild. I'm going to Jiaxing tomorrow. I heard that there are still powerful people hiding their land there."

That night, Yang Lian reviewed official documents at the headquarters until three o'clock in the morning.

Under the candlelight, his face looked particularly tired. The wound on his shoulder began to ache again, but he ignored it.

"Sir, it's time to rest." Xu Xian brought a bowl of hot tea.

Yang Lian took the tea bowl and suddenly asked, "Captain Xu, do you think I did the right thing?"

Xu Xian was stunned for a moment, then said seriously: "Your Excellency enforces the law like a mountain and loves the people like your own children. The people of Jiangnan have witnessed it."

"Then why did someone in the court impeach me for 'indiscriminate killing of innocent people'? Why did people in the clan call the emperor a 'tyrant'?"

Yang Lian's voice was very soft, as if he was talking to himself.

Xu Xian didn't know how to answer and could only remain silent.

Yang Lian put down the tea bowl and said, "Go and have a rest. We have to travel again tomorrow."

The flickering candlelight cast his shadow on the wall, making him look particularly lonely.

The next morning, when Yang Lian was preparing to leave for Jiaxing, Zhang Weixian suddenly came to visit.

"Lord Yang, we received a secret report last night that someone is trying to harm you." Duke Yingguo looked serious, "There may be an ambush on the way back to Beijing."

"Thank you, Lord!"

Yang Lian adjusted the saddle without pausing for a moment, and said with a smile, "As expected."

"I have dispatched a team of elite soldiers to escort you, but it is better to be cautious."

Zhang Weixian lowered his voice and said, "The court has some complaints about your handling of the Jiangnan issue. Although the emperor supports you, the pressure is not small."

Yang Lian jumped on his horse and said: "The evils in Jiangnan cannot be cured without severe punishment. If I am convicted for this, I will have no regrets."

Zhang Weixian sighed, "Take care, Lord Yang. The people of Jiangnan need officials like you."

Yang Lian bowed and said, "Goodbye! Take care, Duke Ying!"

"treasure!!"

The sound of horse hooves gradually faded away. Zhang Weixian stood there, watching Yang Lian's back disappear in the morning mist.

(End of this chapter)