Huangming

Chapter 475 Jiangnan in Turmoil, Thunder Awaits (Bonus Chapter for 800 Monthly Tickets!)
The vermilion gate of the Yan family mansion was smashed open with a loud crash. Amidst flying wood chips, countless rioters surged in, raising hoes, kitchen knives, and wooden sticks high in their hands. Their roars shook the old locust tree leaves in the courtyard, causing them to fall in a rustling sound.

"Kill Yan Kuan! Divide his property!"

Shouts rose and fell, mingled with the screams of the women and the pleas of the servants, instantly transforming the once peaceful and luxurious Yan Mansion into a living hell.

Yan Kuan huddled in the shadows of the corridor, wearing a gray cloth top.

It was something he had temporarily taken from the servants' quarters; it was covered in dust and looked completely different from his usual dark silk robe.

His hair was disheveled, and his face was covered in soot from the stove, but his hand gripping the pillar was still trembling uncontrollably.

He had just tried to sneak out through the back door with a few servants, but was recognized by a sharp-eyed rioter.

That was a former weaver from the Yan family, who had been kicked out of the house because she owed the Yan family money for grain. At that moment, she was rushing towards him with red eyes.

"That's Yan Kuan! He's pretending to be a servant and trying to run away!"

Orito's shout was like a thunderclap, instantly drawing everyone's attention.

The rioters surged forward like a tide. Someone reached out and grabbed Yan Kuan's gray cloth jacket, ripping it hard to reveal the silk undergarment he hadn't had time to change out of.

"Hero, spare your life!"

Yan Kuan fell to his knees with a thud, his knees hitting the bluestone slab. He winced in pain, but he ignored the pain and just kept kowtowing and begging for mercy.

"I, Yan Kuan, am willing to give you a thousand taels of silver! No, two thousand taels! Just spare my life, and you can take whatever silver you want from the manor!"

The crowd parted to make way, and a burly man walked over, a scar running from his brow bone to his jaw on his face, carrying a bloodstained long knife in his hand.

It was none other than Li Kuiqi, a pirate from Guangdong.

He was originally wandering the seas off Songjiang with a few ships, intending to rob some cotton merchant ships, but upon hearing that a civil uprising had broken out in Songjiang Prefecture, he immediately led his men ashore.

He had no interest in joining the rioters in "opposing the imperial court," but he coveted the wealth of powerful families like the Yan and Wang families.

The slogan "Down with the local tyrants, distribute the land" was merely a ploy to get the rioters to work for him so he could confiscate the homes of these wealthy families.

"A thousand taels of silver?"

Li Kuiqi sneered and patted Yan Kuan's face with the back of his knife. The blood from the knife smeared onto Yan Kuan's face, feeling icy cold.

"Your Yan family's treasury has more than 100,000 taels of silver in cash alone. You're offering a thousand taels to a beggar?"

Yan Kuan's face turned pale, and he quickly changed his tune: "Ten thousand taels! I'll give you ten thousand taels! Go get it now!"

He struggled to get up, but Li Kuiqi stepped on his back, causing him to feel dizzy from the pain.

"take?"

Li Kuiqi leaned down and whispered in Yan Kuan's ear, his voice filled with greed and cruelty.

"If I kill you, all the wealth of the Yan family will be mine. Why bother talking nonsense with you?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Kuiqi suddenly raised his long sword, and with a "whoosh," blood splattered all over the ground.

Yan Kuan's head rolled onto the bluestone slab, his eyes still wide open, filled with resentment and disbelief.

He never understood until his death that the popular uprising he had instigated would ultimately become his own death warrant.

He spent a long time calculating the situation in Jiangnan, but he never expected that he would be defeated by a pirate.

Li Kuiqi kicked Yan Kuan's corpse aside and brandished his long sword:

"Brothers! Rush them! Women, silver, cloth—distribute it all!"

The rioters went berserk instantly, pouncing on the flock like hungry wolves.

Someone rushed into the inner courtyard, kicked open the doors of the women's rooms, and screams and cries rose and fell.

Someone pried open the lock of the warehouse, and when they saw the shelves full of silver and bolts of Songjiang brocade, their eyes widened, and they frantically stuffed the silver into their arms.

Some people even rushed into the kitchen, overturning rice and flour bins, scattering grain all over the floor, but no one cared.

All they cared about were treasures that could be directly exchanged for money.

The women of the Yan family suffered the most.

Yan Kuan's wife, holding her young son, tried to hide in the wardrobe, but was dragged out by the rioters. Her jewelry was torn off, her clothes were ripped to shreds, and she was brutally humiliated.

The maids of the Yan family were not spared their fate either, and were surrounded and pulled by several rioters, their cries heart-wrenching.

The male servants tried to resist, but were beaten to the ground by the rioters with wooden sticks and kitchen knives. Before long, the courtyard was filled with corpses, and blood flowed into the drainage ditch through the cracks in the bluestone slabs, staining the moss inside red.

In less than an hour, the Yan family mansion was emptied of its contents.

Some people carried boxes full of silver, some held several bolts of brocade, and others carried antique vases treasured by the Yan family, their faces filled with the ecstasy of getting something for free.

But Li Kuiqi was still not satisfied with these spoils of war.

He had already found out that Wang San, the clerk of Songjiang Prefecture, also had a lot of silver hidden in his hands and was an "accomplice" of the Yan family.

"Bros!"

Li Kuiqi jumped up the steps, holding Yan Kuan's head in his hand, and spoke in a loud voice.

"That old bastard Yan Kuan is dead, but there's still a parasite left to deal with! Clerk Wang San, he colluded with Yan Kuan to extort money from the people, and his family is even richer than the Yan family! Come with me to confiscate Wang's house!"

"Seize the Wang family's property!"

"Kill Wang San!"

The rioters, already bloodthirsty, immediately followed Li Kuiqi out upon hearing his words. Carrying their looted treasures and wielding their blood-stained weapons, they surged towards Wang San's mansion like a turbid torrent.

No one remembers the original purpose of the "petition," no one remembers the slogan of "opposing oppressive government," only the most primitive greed and violence remain, spreading on the streets of Songjiang Prefecture.

Wang San was still hiding in his residence, plotting how to explain things to the important figures in Nanjing.

Hearing the roar outside, he was about to send a servant to check when the door was kicked open.

Upon seeing the surging mob and the bloody head in Li Kuiqi's hand, Wang San's legs went weak and he collapsed to the ground.

He finally understood that Yan Kuan's fate was his own end.

As the sun gradually set in Songjiang Prefecture, the evening glow dyed the sky blood red.

The fire at Yan's residence was still burning, cries and screams rose again at Wang's mansion, the streets were filled with looting rioters, the government officials had long since disappeared, and the garrison soldiers remained stationary.

This popular uprising, instigated by gentry, exploited by pirates, and driven out of control by rioters, completely broke free from everyone's control and ran rampant across the land of Songjiang Prefecture like a wild beast.

Moreover, the unrest was not limited to Songjiang Prefecture.

The flames of war in the Jiangnan region have spread along the Grand Canal.

Along the Maple Bridge in Suzhou, beside the salt fields in Yangzhou, and in the mulberry gardens of Huzhou, everywhere were out-of-control rioters, and everywhere were cries of arson, murder, and looting.

This popular uprising, which began with instigation by the gentry, had long since escaped all control, and like a flood bursting its banks, it shattered the order of Jiangnan.

The chaos in Suzhou was even worse than in Songjiang.

After the flood, the alleys in the western part of the city, where weavers lived, were already full of wet clothes that could not be dried and children who could not fill their stomachs. The gentry’s words, “The government wants to collect cloth to offset taxes,” ignited the long-standing resentment.

But when the rioters smashed down the gate of the weaving bureau, they found it was already empty.

The government office's silver and raw silk had been moved in advance, leaving only a few empty rooms.

At this moment, a group of bandits claiming to be "Zhang Shicheng's former subordinates" rushed in. Their leader was Chen Liu, a habitual criminal with a scar on his face and carrying a rusty curved knife.

"Don't just stare at the empty government office! Those gentry families are the ones with real money!"

The rioters, as if waking from a dream, followed the bandits and rushed towards the gentry's residence on Pingjiang Road.

When the vermilion gate of the Gu family was smashed open, Master Gu was still burning letters he exchanged with the Donglin Party in his study. Before the letters in the brazier had burned out, the rioters rushed into the house, pinned him to the ground, and stole the antiques on the shelves and the silver notes in the chest.

Madam Gu tried to hide while clutching her jewelry box, but was dragged away by several rioters. Her jewelry was scattered all over the ground, and her robes were torn to shreds.

The worst off was Donglin Academy.

This spiritual stronghold of the Jiangnan gentry was set ablaze by rioters and members of the White Lotus Religion. The thousands of books in the library crackled and burned to ashes in the fire.

The stone tablet in the courtyard was overturned, and the plaque inscribed with "Establish a Heart for Heaven and Earth" was trampled under the feet of the rioters.

The salt fields in Yangzhou were in complete disarray.

The salt workers were already complaining because the salt merchants withheld their wages and the government levied additional salt taxes. The gentry secretly whispered that "kill the salt merchants and divide the salt warehouses," which made them envious.

But when the salt workers smashed up the mansion of the salt merchant Wang and looted the sea salt from the salt warehouse, they didn't know how to end the situation.

At this time, the "holy woman" of the White Lotus sect arrived with her followers, holding yellow paper with talismans drawn on it. She claimed that "following the Heavenly Father will bring food and money." She took thousands of salt workers with her and headed towards Taizhou. Along the way, she smashed official post stations, robbed grain ships, and even passing merchant ships were not spared.

The yamen runners sent by the Yangzhou prefect were surrounded by rioters as soon as they arrived at the salt field. Their fire sticks were taken away, and the soldiers were so frightened that they abandoned their armor and fled back to the city, even losing their official hats in the process.

In the mulberry gardens of Huzhou, silkworm farmers, instigated by local gentry, surrounded the government-run raw silk warehouses, only to have their newly acquired raw silk stolen by pirates mixed in with them.

The pirates sailed their small boats back and forth along Taihu Lake, plundering Huzhou and then Suzhou, making the chaos even worse.

Urgent reports from all over Jiangnan were being sent to Nanjing like snowflakes.

The instigator of all this, Zhou Qiyuan, the governor of Yingtian, was pacing anxiously in the second hall of the Nanjing governor's office.

He was wearing a rumpled official robe with ink stains on the cuffs, and his usually neatly combed beard was now a mess, sticking to his chin.

"Trash! They're all trash!"

Zhou Qiyuan suddenly swept the teacup off the table, scattering shards of celadon porcelain all over the floor.

His original plan was so good: let Songjiang, Suzhou and Yangzhou revolt in turn, Yuan Keli would send troops to quell them, and once the government troops left, let the rebels rise up again. This would be repeated, keeping Yuan Keli busy and making the court think that Yuan Keli was "incompetent to pacify Jiangnan". In the end, the emperor would be forced to transfer Yuan Keli away, and Jiangnan would still be the domain of their Donglin Party.

But what about reality?

Yuan Keli remained motionless, like a stone.

For ten days, rioters outside Nanjing caused chaos. The Beijing garrison, commanded by Duke Zhang Weixian, was stationed thirty li outside the city, but the garrison gates remained closed. The imperial guards under the command of eunuch Gao Qiqian patrolled only within the city, turning a blind eye to the unrest outside.

Yuan Keli hid in the Censorate's office, never showing his face, only occasionally letting out news of "summoning officials for a meeting to announce the imperial edict."

"Where are Yuan Keli? Gao Qiqian? Zhang Weixian?"

Zhou Qiyuan roared at his subordinates, his voice hoarse with anxiety.

"Are they just going to sit idly by and watch Jiangnan descend into chaos?!"

The subordinate lowered his head, not daring to reply.

Everyone knows that Yuan Keli commands 100,000 troops of the Beijing Garrison. If he gives the order, quelling these rioters would be no difficult task, but he refuses to do so.

Only now did Zhou Qiyuan fully understand that the chill he had deliberately ignored had crept up his spine, making him feel cold all over:

Yuan Keli, or rather His Majesty, had no intention of quelling the rebellion.

What they want is chaos in Jiangnan, the more complete the chaos, the better.

The chaos was so great that the mansions of gentry were burned down and their property looted; the foundation of the Donglin Party was destroyed; and the old order in Jiangnan was completely wiped out.

At that time, Yuan Keli will lead the Beijing garrison to send troops out again, under the pretext of "suppressing bandits and saving the people," to reshuffle the Jiangnan region. From then on, Jiangnan will no longer belong to these gentry, but to His Majesty.

"What a cruel heart..."

Zhou Qiyuan staggered back a step and leaned against the cold wall, his eyes filled with unbelievable despair.

"This disregards the lives of millions of people in Jiangnan!"

He suddenly sat up straight, a look of frantic struggle flashing in his eyes.

We can't just give up like this!
He also had officials in Jiangnan and connections with the Donglin Party!
If we unite and impeach Yuan Keli for "sitting idly by while the bandits grew" and "intending to rebel," we might just wake the court up!

"Somebody come!"

Zhou Qiyuan shouted towards the door, his voice filled with final resolve.

"Immediately send someone to the Censorate to tell Yuan Keli that if he does not send troops to quell the rebellion, Jiangnan will be completely finished!"

Furthermore, convey my message that officials in all prefectures and counties of Jiangnan should immediately submit memorials impeaching Yuan Keli.

He was accused of dereliction of duty, condoning rioters, and his actions were tantamount to treason!

the other side.

Inside the council chamber of the Nanjing Garrison Command.

Yuan Keli sat on the rosewood chair on the left, the cuffs of his scarlet official robe unconsciously creased from his grip.

The pre-Qingming Longjing tea in the celadon teacup in front of him was still steaming, with the leaves floating gracefully on the surface. But he didn't even touch the rim of the teacup with his fingers, staring only at the map of Jiangnan spread out on the table.

He circled the locations of Suzhou, Yangzhou, and Songjiang on the map with a red pen, and next to the circles were the small characters "the chaos began ten days ago" and "the bandits numbered over ten thousand" written in haste, the ink still wet as if they had just been added.

"Supervisor Gao."

Yuan Keli finally broke the silence, his voice carrying a barely perceptible urgency.

"The White Lotus Sect is coercing salt workers to Taizhou, and pirates are plundering raw silk in Taihu Lake. If we don't send troops soon, the fire will reach the walls of Nanjing!"

Gao Qiqian sat in the main seat, his face appearing even whiter than before, thanks to the python-patterned eunuch robe he wore.

Upon hearing this, he slowly picked up the teacup in front of him, gently scraping the surface of the water with the lid to remove the foam. His movements were so slow that it was as if he were appreciating the tea set rather than being in the midst of chaos.

"Minister, please calm down."

He took a small sip of tea, his tone indifferent.

"This fire has only just begun to burn brightly!"
If the fire isn't burning hot enough, how can you force out all the insects hiding underneath?

As he spoke, he pulled out a stack of neatly folded secret reports from his sleeve, the oil paper covers bearing the subtle patterns of the Embroidered Uniform Guard.

He spread the secret report on the table and pushed it in front of Yuan Keli and Zhang Weixian:
“Look, over in Songjiang Prefecture, the old residence of Grand Secretary Xu from the Jiajing era still stands. The rioters only robbed the newly promoted gentry, and didn’t dare touch those who were deeply rooted.”

Although the mansion of the Wang family, salt merchants in Yangzhou salt fields, was smashed, their silver vault had already been moved to the countryside.

The chaos hasn't reached the point of being 'out of control' yet.

Zhang Weixian sat on the right, dressed in the everyday clothes of the Duke of England, with a jade belt around his waist.

He hadn't spoken until now, then frowned and spoke, his voice steady as a bell: "The town supervisor's words make sense, but what if... the fire goes too far and burns the people? We can't bear the responsibility."

He was a military general who had seen many wars, but he was most afraid of "man-made chaos".

When rioters lose control, it is ultimately the innocent people who suffer.

Yuan Keli picked up the secret report, his face growing even more grim:

"I'm not afraid of chaos, I'm afraid that this chaos will be exploited by others!"

Zhou Qiyuan was instigating behind the scenes, and the Donglin Party members were secretly telling us that if we delayed, they might use the "public resentment" to impeach us for "condoning bandits."

At that time, His Majesty's side...

"I'm here for His Majesty."

Gao Qiqian interrupted him, put down his teacup, and his eyes suddenly sharpened.

"Don't worry, Minister. If the sky falls, there are tall people to hold it up."

If we really want to investigate, we should say that this chaos was caused by our Jinyiwei's poor investigation and failure to identify the instigators in advance.

The crime of a mere eunuch guarding the town is less serious than one that affects the military and political affairs of Jiangnan.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Keli and Zhang Weixian were both stunned.

They knew Gao Qiqian was His Majesty's confidant, but they didn't expect him to be willing to take all the blame upon himself.

"That's it!"

Yuan Keli clenched his fist tightly.

"His Majesty has shown me great favor. Let alone just accepting the charge of 'failure to investigate properly,' even if I were to bear the blame for 'condoning chaos,' so what?"

He pushed the secret report back onto the table, the anxiety in his eyes gradually fading, replaced by a resolute look.

"Now is not the time to hesitate."

The Embroidered Uniform Guard has thoroughly investigated the evidence that Zhou Qiyuan instigated the riot.

The list of gentry who colluded with rebels and salt merchants who conspired with pirates is also here.

He pointed to the list attached to the end of the secret report, on which more than a dozen names were marked in red ink, all of whom were prominent gentry and figures from Jiangnan.

"Taking advantage of this chaos, we can uproot these parasites one by one!"

Aren't they afraid of 'imperial power extending to the county level'?

Didn't you want to turn Jiangnan into your own backyard?
This time, let's show them that Jiangnan belongs to the Ming Dynasty, not to them!

Seeing that he had made up his mind, Zhang Weixian slowly nodded.

"The troops of the Beijing garrison are already prepared. As long as the minister gives the order, the rioters in Suzhou and Songjiang can be quelled within a month."

Those gentry hiding in the shadows can also be apprehended.

Suppressing the rebellion was the pretext; eliminating the corrupt elements and taking control of Nanjing were the real goals.

What good is it if Jiangnan is prosperous and stable if it is not under His Majesty's control?

All the wealth generated here was taken by these gentry from Jiangnan.

The Jiangnan region may suffer some damage after the war.

But once the Jiangnan region is rectified, its tax revenue may be several times, or even ten times, that of its previous prosperous days!
Moreover, all this money can be collected by the imperial court and put into His Majesty's hands.

to this end
What if the people of Jiangnan suffer a little and take the blame?

Gao Qiqian glanced at their expressions, a faint smile playing on his lips, and picked up his teacup again:

"That's right. What we need is not 'quickly quell the chaos,' but 'using the chaos to eliminate the root cause.'"

Once Zhou Qiyuan and his ilk are arrested, and evidence is presented showing that they incited the people to riot, the people will naturally understand who the real culprit is.

"Then we can send troops to appease them and distribute relief grain. We can still win back the hearts of the people in Jiangnan."

The eyes of the people are discerning.

But at the same time, they are sometimes foolish.

As long as they have enough to eat, they won't dare to cause trouble.

Waiting for the situation in Jiangnan to stabilize.

For them, this may be the time when the good days are truly coming.

"Let's get started as soon as possible, without delay!"

The chaos in Jiangnan continues.

But this time, amidst the chaos, a plan had already been devised.

A fire burning at the parasites is quietly brewing a thunderous strike, taking advantage of the momentum of the civil unrest.

Yuan Keli gazed at the night outside the window, with only one thought in his mind:
Even if I have to take the blame, I will clean up this mess in Jiangnan for His Majesty and for the Ming Dynasty.

PS:

Dizziness~~
I feel really sick~
o (╥﹏╥) o
(End of this chapter)