Red Mansion: I am Jia Lian

Chapter 451 It’s the end of the year, time to crack down
"There are a lot of strangers around recently. People in the farm have caught several of them and handed them over to Captain Long Jin." Jia Yun now has the style of a big shopkeeper. When facing Jia Lian, he always slightly bends his waist.

"Just send him to Long Jinwei. If we send him to the Bingmasi, people will gossip about him and maybe accuse me of abusing lynching. We must keep a close eye on things here. I don't know how many years I can earn this money." Looking at the farmers busy in the vegetable fields, with satisfaction and relief on their faces, they must be thinking about what to buy for their wife and children with the money they earned today.

Well, there is a hard rule for recruiting workers here. You must have family members and a local elder as a guarantor.

Since it concerns their income, farmers spontaneously organized themselves to strictly guard against and prohibit the outflow of technology.

This thing actually doesn't have any high-tech content. It just uses glass to keep in light and burns coal to keep warm. The design of the shed is also very particular, and it must have a windbreak wall.

In this regard, the utilization rate of land is actually not high. The problem is that it's winter now. If you can grow something, why bother about it?

When Jia Lian was called by the emperor to ask whether the technology could be spread, he was not in a good mood, which showed that the emperor was under considerable pressure.

I don’t know about other things, but there has been a lot of commotion over at the clan house. Why should Jia Lian be the only one making money? Everyone is watching.

Ni Er, who was standing aside, finally got the chance to speak: "Second Master, the Black Tiger Gang had a fight with someone over buying vegetables. No one died, but more than a dozen people were injured."

Jia Lian was stunned when he heard this, and asked, "Why didn't you report it to the authorities? Are the people from the Wucheng Military Department just there to eat and do nothing?"

Ni Er whispered, "The Shenji Camp didn't allow us to report it. They said they were preparing several hundred brothers, bringing weapons, and looking for an opportunity to strike hard!"

"Nonsense, are you kidding me by mobilizing the army? Go back and tell them not to mess around. If they get caught, I won't be able to save them. Tell them to stay out of this matter!"

Ni Er's original intention was to report to the authorities and follow the official channels so that no one would have anything to say. But the soldiers in the Shenjiying were not happy and dared to touch our people.

After all, many family members of the Shenjiying are engaged in this business, and they want to make some money before the end of the year so that they can celebrate the New Year.

"That's what I meant. After all, there are many big shots behind them." Ni Er hinted cautiously. How could Jia Lian not know?
"It's the end of the year, and it's time to improve the security of the capital." Jia Lian said with a cold expression, turned around, mounted his horse, and returned to the Five Cities Military Command.

All the imperial censors were summoned to the meeting, and Jian Renda was the most active.

"The New Year is coming soon. There are more petty thefts on the streets, and some mass public security incidents have also increased. All the things have been reported to me. In order to ensure that the people of the capital can have a stable and peaceful New Year, I will join forces with Long Jinwei to carry out a severe crackdown. If the news of today's meeting is leaked, all of you will be held jointly responsible."

Jia Lian said this, but in fact he was reminding them that if they had connections, they should inform the other party immediately to avoid being hurt by mistake.

A group of imperial censors said that there would definitely be no problem.

After the meeting was over, Jia Lian turned around to look for Xia Shouzhong. Xia Shouzhong had been living a very comfortable life recently, as he had gotten a good job after a trip to Sichuan.

Xia Shouzhong was also very happy to see Jia Lian, and took the initiative to greet him: "It's been a while since we last met. How are you, Lord Jia?"

"What a bullshit! Dozens of people have been injured just to earn some rent. Long Jinwei, please help us, and work with the Five Cities Army to launch a crackdown on illegal crimes."

Jia Lian's words were righteous and stern. Xia Shouzhong was very smart. Hearing this, he lowered his voice and said, "I have heard about it too. It seems that someone is jealous of your winter vegetable business."

Jia Lian said nothing, looking at him calmly. Xia Shouzhong smiled awkwardly and said, "We know that Datou is a saint. Well, you tell me the time and bring me a list. We guarantee that they will spend the New Year in Beiya Prison."

Jia Lian said, "Lord Xia, if I were you, I would go to the palace to see the emperor right away."

Xia Shouzhong was startled for a moment, then he showed gratitude and clasped his hands, saying: "You are right, it seems that I have been a little too proud recently, Lord Jia's reminder is good. You sit here and drink tea and wait, I will be there soon." He left as soon as he said it. Xia Shouzhong was in his fifties and walked very fast.

He met the emperor smoothly. Xia Shouzhong kowtowed and knelt to pay his respects to the emperor. Emperor Chenghui had been collecting a lot of money recently and was in a good mood. He smiled and asked, "You old dog, I haven't seen you for a while."

Xia Shouzhong was shocked when he heard this. He was really too arrogant and almost ruined the whole thing.

Xia Shouzhong quickly explained: "Saint, there is something going on. I have been watching it and I am a little hesitant. Should I take action to deal with it?"

Emperor Chenghui put down the pen in his hand, took off his glasses, and said calmly: "Stand up and talk slowly. I want to see what can make the eunuch Longjinwei, the pen holder, feel troubled."

Xia Shouzhong quickly stood up, walked behind the emperor, stretched out his hand to pinch his shoulders, and explained as he did so: "The people below reported that several families united to destroy Jia Lian's vegetable stall. Now, there was a fight, and dozens of people were injured. I sent people to investigate carefully and found that there were several groups of people involved, including several princes and several important officials from the clan affairs office."

Emperor Chenghui listened with an expression that did not change. He closed his eyes as if he was enjoying it. The words he spoke were filled with indifference: "What are you going to do?"

Xia Shouzhong whispered, "No matter what the people above think, they still need people to do things. I thought I would invite these people to Longjinwei for a few days of tea, and then notify the Wucheng Bingmasi to arrest the people who are doing things below. Please rest assured, Saint, I promise not to beat or scold them, and provide them with good food and drink."

"Bah, these shameless things, are they worthy of being fed and well fed? Let them eat steamed buns, and ask the cook to add some bran in them to soothe their throats." Emperor Chenghui seemed calm, but he was actually angry.

You guys are after my money, but you dare to attack me? Dozens of people were injured, and the medical expenses will be borne by them.

"By the way, don't forget to ask them to pay for their meals and say that I asked you to collect it. They are a bunch of people who can't eat enough or take enough." Emperor Chenghui gritted his teeth and became angrier the more he thought about it.

I was originally thinking about whether I should bring them together and give them some benefits, but I didn't expect that my advice would have no effect and they would just resort to small actions.

Emperor Chenghui also personally wrote an edict to Xia Shouzhong, asking him to organize clan members and some royal relatives to hold a tea party before the New Year.

Tell others that this is an opportunity for everyone to sit together and build relationships.

It was getting late when he left the palace. Xia Shouzhong returned to the North Yamen and after meeting Jia Lian, he boasted about his achievements.

Jia Lian looked at him with a half-smile, which made Xia Shouzhong feel a little uncomfortable showing off. He then said calmly, "I am waiting for good news from Lord Xia."

Things are different now. It is really inappropriate for Jia Lian to have too close a relationship with Xia Shouzhong.

Xia Shouzhong obviously also sensed this, so he did not bear any grudge against Jia Lian, and did not even send him off.

Jia Lian returned to the government office, gathered his men, and prepared overnight. Everyone came back to wait for orders. At night, Jia Lian slept directly in the government office, and together with the five censors, he listened to the plans of the leaders below.

The Wucheng Bingmasi were keeping an eye on Long Jinwei, so Xia Shouzhong sent someone with a letter to invite him to dinner early in the morning.

For these people, the visit of Captain Long Jin was like a night owl entering the house, which meant nothing good.

Everyone followed him out of the house, one by one, even the two uncles of the emperor. As soon as the people were called away, the women and children in the family went to the palace to see the queen and inquire about the news. They wanted to find out what the men in the family had done to attract the Dragon Guard. Then, the Five Cities Army was mobilized in large numbers to arrest people according to the intelligence they had obtained in advance. With the information provided by Ni Er, they could arrest people accurately.

The Wucheng Bingmasi did not just arrest those who had caused trouble for Dongcai, but also some more active social groups. Petty thieves, those who broke into houses and picked locks, those who bullied others, those who extorted money, those who violently collected debts, and those who ran gambling dens were all arrested.

In one day, Long Jinwei only invited dozens of people to have tea, while Wucheng Bingmasi arrested thousands of people.

After these people were arrested, those with serious problems were transferred to the Ministry of Justice for handling based on their crimes, while those with minor problems were directly sent to suburban counties to dig sand. The brick factories were also short of workers, so they could not be fed for nothing.

The crackdown campaign lasted for seven days, and Jia Lian also stayed in the yamen for seven days. In fact, he had nothing to do, just sitting there to see who dared to show their teeth, and then he would slap them to knock out a few teeth.

Unfortunately, Long Jinwei acted first and frightened so many people that no one dared to speak out.

Xia Shouzhong had it easy. He found a big house, locked everyone in it, and provided them with plenty of big bowls of tea. When it was time to eat, he had steamed corn bread with rice bran added to it.

You don't want to eat, right? No problem, just take it away. You didn't eat the first meal, will you eat the second meal, will you eat the third meal?
Anyway, I have given them instructions, so no matter how loud they shout, just ignore them. Just rush out, show your knife, and scare them back.

At the beginning, these people were really restless. They were used to a life of luxury and delicious food, so they couldn't bear to eat steamed bread. They kept clamoring for this and that.

Unfortunately, no one paid any attention to them. They could eat the steamed buns as they pleased.

There is a smart man here, King Zhongshun.

After he arrived at the Beiya, he was quiet and didn't say a word. When it was time for dinner, he gritted his teeth and ate his steamed buns.

Others were mocking him, but King Chungshun did not defend himself, but just smiled. He did not persuade others to eat with him.

By the evening, the people in the room were too hungry to speak, and Prince Zhongshun was constipated, so he squatted on the toilet and struggled with himself.

I can only say that this is a sin that must be endured. If you don't endure this, you won't be able to go home for the New Year. Didn't you see that there is no news coming in from outside?
In fact, these people all knew that without the emperor's order, they would not dare to kill Xia Shouzhong.

But no matter what, I have to struggle before I can give up.

The next day, Prince Zhongshun ate more carefully because there were stones in the steamed bread and his back teeth were almost broken.

Some others started eating too. They had to eat as it was too uncomfortable to be hungry.

There was still a small number of people shouting that they did not believe that Your Majesty would starve them to death, and they insisted on enduring.

On the third day, they finally couldn't bear it anymore and started eating. While eating, they cursed the cook for his poor cooking skills. They didn't even dare to curse Xia Shouzhong.

Why? I know it all.

Prince Zhongshun, who had the best performance, was called out early in the morning of the fourth day and never came back. Everyone was terrified. Was he being taken to the market?
The atmosphere in the prison room became more serious, and everyone began to get restless.

It was getting dark and the person still hadn't returned. The two uncles-in-law couldn't stand it anymore and made a fuss, insisting on seeing Prince Zhongshun.

No one paid any attention to them.

In fact, Prince Ren Zhongshun was sent out early in the morning, and it was Xia Shouzhong who sent him out personally. When he sent him out, he explained: "I know that you didn't get involved. Isn't this something we can do? We need someone who can calm the situation down inside."

King Zhongshun thanked Xia Shouzhong with a smile, and went home in a leisurely manner. He had been waiting for this day. How long had he been ignored?

As soon as the man got into the sedan chair, a eunuch stopped him and went into the palace.

"You have suffered a lot these days. You are good and can understand my painstaking efforts." Emperor Chenghui praised King Zhongshun directly when he met him.

King Zhongshun did not complain, but said with a smile: "It is what I should do."

Emperor Chenghui was very satisfied with his attitude, nodded and said: "Some royal relatives, relying on their status, don't know how to advance or retreat. I will only give them a slight punishment. You have to make another trip to represent me and go around to each family. Give each family 5,000 taels of silver so that they can prepare for the New Year with peace of mind. You too, after the New Year, you should go out and move around. You have been idle at home all the time, and your muscles and bones have been damaged by idleness."

King Zhongshun immediately knelt down and kowtowed nine times to thank the emperor for his grace.

After sending away King Zhongshun, Emperor Chenghui just sighed. He still had to use his own family members. No matter what their character was, their loyalty was not a problem.

The Five Cities Army launched a severe crackdown, and the most embarrassing thing was Shuntian Prefecture. Because Jia Lian didn't pay any attention to them at all, and nothing was passed through Shuntian Prefecture, Shuntian Prefecture had to submit petitions one after another to apply for joining.

Emperor Chenghui commented as follows: What have you been doing so far?
Shuntian Prefecture was really miserable. When the second prince was around, they were able to hold out for a few days. But when Li Yuan went to Chang'an, they lost their support and became losers again.

[The crackdown (income-generating) campaign has achieved a successful result. The people of Beijing all applauded the campaign and praised the Wucheng Bingmasi for providing a safe and happy life for the people.]

Shameless Jia Lian continued to write articles to occupy the moral high ground in newspapers.

During the seven-day crackdown, not to mention the people in the mansions, even dogs had to keep their tails between their legs when they went out.

As the end of the year approaches, a sudden snowstorm occurs. A team of knights, braving the snow and wind, escort a convoy and appear at the city gate.

These knights all have fierce and murderous looks on their faces, and you can tell at first glance that they are not someone you want to mess with.

Niu Jizong, who was hiding from the snow in his car, also looked very proud. When he was stopped for inspection at the city gate, he frowned and asked unhappily, "Why did you stop?"

"What are you doing? I crawled back from the pile of dead bodies in Jinchuan and Xiaojinchuan, and now I have to endure this kind of humiliation here?" The subordinates who were unwilling to be inspected started shouting, and some of them even showed their knife handles.

You know what, on the way back, they really were rushing around recklessly, they were used to it.

When the gatekeeper saw that this group of people were very arrogant, he took out his whistle and blew it hard.

The sharp whistle sounded far away in the wind and snow. A group of soldiers rushed out of a nearby house, quickly lined up behind the doorway, holding spears and pointing them at the group of people.

(End of this chapter)