Ming Dynasty: A mere unruly commoner is rebelling against the heaven?

Chapter 198 Xuanfu Yang family was destroyed in an instant!
There are more and more people on the parade ground, more and more food, and more and more silver!

Miserable roars and sad whimpers echoed one after another on the parade ground.

All those who were rushed to the parade ground to watch the execution felt a chill in their hearts and looked around nervously, not knowing what would happen next.

At this time, the number of people waiting for their punishment on the parade ground had reached 90,000.

And the number of people is still increasing continuously.

Among these people, some were military officers from Xuanfu, and their families from three clans.

There are not many people in this group, only more than 3,000 people.

The highest-ranking officer among them was Zhou Hongyi, the deputy commander-in-chief of Xuanfu.

Last night in prison, the Eastern Depot sentencing him to the heaviest punishment possible.

At this moment, Zhou Hongyi's spine had been broken by the Dongchang thugs, and he could only lie on the ground like a dead dog.

Behind him were all his family members in Xuanfu, a total of thirty-seven people.

The bandits led by Ma Jinzhong found a total of 70,000 taels of silver and deeds for more than 6,000 acres of land in Xuanfu in his house.

The food filled several warehouses, enough to feed three thousand people for a year.

Zhou Hongyi heard the cries of his wife, children and mother, and he knew that his family was right behind him.

But now his body was covered with wounds, and there were only a few healthy bones in his body. He didn't even have the strength to look back!

The only thing he could do now was to desperately roll his eyes, begging to see his loved ones one last time before he died...

In addition to these officers and their families, there are also soldiers who participated in the mutiny and their families.

There are as many as 40,000 people in this group.

Among them, 3,700 were rebels who participated in the mutiny and then surrendered.

There were 13,271 families of the 3,700 surviving rebels.

The remaining 20,000 or so people were the families of the rebels who had been killed by the Ming Expeditionary Force.

They were the most excited, crying, praying, confessing and begging for mercy.

These rebels feel the most regret in their hearts.

The other officers followed Yang Tong in mutiny because they were all in the same boat and they had no choice!
But these rebels do have a choice!
Unfortunately, because of their greed, they took a wrong step and ended up with their family broken up!

When these rebels looked at their families behind them, the regret in their hearts reached its peak.

All of this is their own fault!

They not only harm themselves, but also their families and their clans!

Pain, hatred, remorse, and regret are no longer enough to describe the feelings in their hearts.

Although the rebels were not being tortured at this moment, they had already fallen into hell in their hearts!
The remaining 50,000 people were the families of Yang Tong's personal troops who participated in the attack on the camp.

This group of people has the largest number and is still increasing.

They have different demeanors and expressions.

Some were crying bitterly, some were heartbroken, some were frightened, and some were crying and begging for mercy.

But no matter which one, no matter how hard they try, they can't change their current situation.

Everyone was forced to kneel on the training ground and await their fate.

Of course, the most important person to be executed this time was Yang Tong, the general of Xuanfu.

After receiving Zhu Youtang's order, Liu Jin personally led the East Factory's men to arrest the nine clans of Xuanfu.

At the same time, Yang’s house was searched!
In fact, there was a prerequisite for Zhu Youtang to order them to arrest three clans or nine clans.

That means these people have to live in Xuanfu.

After all, Zhu Youtang now let Gao Shun's Xianzhen Camp take over the city defense of Xuanfu.

Without Zhu Youtang's order, no one could enter or leave Xuanfu.

Moreover, time was limited, as Zhu Youtang had to preside over the execution at three quarters after noon.

Those who lived outside Xuanfu would not be able to be captured and brought back to Xuanfu before noon.

Therefore, the families captured by the West Factory, the East Factory, and Xu Chang were all those living in Xuanfu.

But this does not mean that they will let these fish that slip through the net go.

After today's execution, the guards from the East and West Factories will still find these people and execute them according to Zhu Youtang's order!
When Liu Jin brought the East Factory's men to Yang Tong's private residence in Xuanfu and conducted a house search.

Even Liu Jin was shocked by the wealth in Yang Tong's house.

Boxes of silver were shipped out, and dozens of rooms were filled with jewelry and antique paintings.

Yang Tong's wealth is incomparable to those high-ranking ministers in the capital.

Although the ministers and chancellors held high positions and great power, they did not have long-term and stable means of making money.

How much money can you make just by embezzling and relying on the filial piety of your subordinates?

If I were to meet an emperor like the late emperor or the current emperor again, I would not be able to collect much dirty silver.

Yang Tong is different. His means of making money are rich and stable, and the amounts are huge.

One smuggled arms, one collected salaries without doing any work, and one withheld food and wages from his soldiers.

These three things alone brought Yang Tong hundreds of thousands of taels of silver every year.

Even if we deduct the money distributed to his subordinates, Yang Tong’s annual income is still an astronomical figure!
When calculating Yang Tong's property, Liu Jin sent out eighty men to count the number continuously.

Compared with the wealth of Yang Tong's family, the number of Yang Tong's family members is pitifully small.

What is unbelievable is that although Yang Tong was extremely wealthy, he only had one wife at home and no concubine.

And Yang Tong only had one son, Yang Kui, and two daughters.

His parents are also dead.

Although Yang Tong does not have many direct relatives, his extended family is a large one.

Yang Tong's uncle was Yang Hong, the former general of Xuanfu.

After Zhu Qiyu ascended the throne, Yang Hong led 50,000 Xuanfu soldiers into the capital, and was quickly promoted to Marquis of Changping by Zhu Qiyu.

After that, Yang Hong stayed in the capital and never left. He died in the capital and his tomb was also built in the capital.

He was the general commander of Xuanfu, but he led his troops into the capital without the emperor's order, and then stayed in the capital, simply not taking the emperor Zhu Qiyu seriously.

After leaving Xuanfu, Yang Hong quickly began to promote his relatives.

Yang Hong's son Yang Jun was promoted to the position of Left General of the Central Army, in charge of the military affairs of the Five Army Commander-in-Chief's Office.

Several of Yang Hong's nephews were also promoted one after another.

Yang Neng was granted the title of Wuqiang Earl and promoted to Commander-in-Chief, in charge of the Shenji Camp in the capital.

Soon after, he was promoted to the position of Assistant Commander of the Rear Army, and served as the Left Lieutenant General, stationed in Xuanfu.

Yang Xin was conferred the title of Zhangwu Earl, promoted to the position of Jindudujianshi, and appointed as the Left Deputy General of Xuanfu to assist in the garrison of Xuanfu.

Yang Tong was still young at that time, less than twenty years old, and he was not granted a title. Instead, he was promoted to the position of deputy commander and led troops to garrison Huailai.

In addition to these people, there were also a large number of Yang clan members who were stationed in various border towns by Yang Hong.

In Yang Hong's family, except for his wife, daughter, and nanny who were unable to lead troops, the rest of the people who were able to go to the battlefield were promoted to border town officers.

From then on, Yang Hong completely took control of all military affairs in the border town.

History records that Yang Hong's father, son and brothers all wore general seals, and his family had three marquises and barons. The most famous generals at that time were from the Yang family.

The phrase "three marquises in one family" is used to praise the contributions of Yang Hong, his sons and brothers.

However, the Yang family was not completely purged by Emperor Yingzong during the Tianshun period.

Several of Yang Tong's cousins, including Yang Neng and Yang Xin, are still active in the border town.

Their descendants also hold important positions in various border towns.

As for why Emperor Yingzong did not completely purge the Yang family, one reason was that the Yang family was already powerful at the time and controlled the defense of the border towns, making it difficult for Emperor Yingzong to take action.

The second reason is that Yang Neng was a strong supporter of Emperor Yingzong's restoration!
That’s right, in the eighth year of Jingtai, Yang Neng rebelled again together with Shi Heng!

This time, they did not rebel against Emperor Yingzong, but against Yu Qian.

The reason for their rebellion was the uneven distribution of interests between them and Yu Qian.

Yu Qian was a native of Jiangnan, so after he gained control of the power, he was definitely more inclined towards Jiangnan.

He and northerners like the Yang family have different interests.

As I said, there are no eternal allies, only eternal interests.

The relationship between people and between forces is always changing with interests.

Therefore, after Emperor Yingzong was restored to the throne, he immediately exterminated Yu Qian's three clans.

Instead of being purged, Yang Neng was promoted to a higher position and made the Left Commander-in-Chief of the Right Army and concurrently the Commander-in-Chief of Xuanfu.

In this way, the Yang family escaped the purge during the Tianshun period, took deep roots in the border towns, and expanded their business.

Zhu Youtang now wants to kill all nine clans of Yang Tong, which means he wants to completely cleanse the Yang clan in the border town.

This way, too many people are involved.

The thugs from the East Factory went around Xuanfu, arresting all members of the Yang family.

Screams were heard one after another in Xuanfu. This group of Yang clan members who had been dominating Xuanfu for decades,

Liu Jin personally returned to the military prison and carried Yang Tong, who looked like a pile of rotten meat, to the parade ground.

Of course, he did not forget to bring along Xu Pu and Liu Daxia, the two ministers.

When Yang Tong was carried to the parade ground, the rebellious officers and soldiers on the parade ground, as well as the civilian soldiers watching the execution outside the parade ground, all let out cries of shock.

They could never believe that the pile of rotten meat carried onto the parade ground belonged to Yang Tong, who used to have the final say in Xuanfu.

When Yang Tong was put on the parade ground, a steady stream of members of the Yang family were taken to the parade ground.

The Yang family is the number one family in Xuanfu, and there are so many important figures in it.

The common people of Xuanfu know quite a few of them.

"Isn't that Lord Yang Jin? He's the owner of the largest tea shop in Xuanfu, how come he was also arrested?"

"Look! Lord Yang Qi has also been arrested. He is the big boss of the silk business and has also been arrested."

"And Yang Yu, the owner of the largest porcelain shop in Xuanfu, didn't escape the disaster either!"

"And Yang Lun, Yang Lu, Yang Fang... How come they are all from the Yang family?!"

"..."

The onlookers were surprised to find that none of the Yang family members in Xuanfu seemed to have been spared.

They were all caught in one fell swoop by the East Factory's thugs, and all the members of the Yang family were taken to the parade ground one by one!
(End of this chapter)