Chapter 578 Action Day (1)
March 5, 1631, the third day of February in the fourth year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty, Danzhou City.
The fourth day of February is the Waking of Insects in the lunar calendar, and it is the time for spring plowing in the near future. As early as the beginning of the new year, the Haihan Ministry of Agriculture has shipped a large amount of rice seeds from Sanya to carry out rice seedling breeding and propagation in the Danzhou area. Some farmland outside Danzhou City that has been deeply plowed in advance has begun rice transplanting operations.
The ownership of farmland in Danzhou City is far more complicated than that in Sanya. There are both large and small landowners as well as homesteaders who own a small amount of land. Therefore, the management committee faces a lot more pressure when implementing the Haihan land system. . Fortunately, last year, by using the weapon of pirates to seize the city, we have eliminated most of the big landowners who were hostile to Haihan. Although the remaining people were not willing, most of them chose to cooperate with Haihan and participate in Haihan's campaign. "Farm style farming" organized by the Ministry of Agriculture.
The so-called farm-style farming means Haihan provides high-quality grain seeds, formulates regional crop planting plans, and uses large-scale collective farming methods and scientific operating methods to reduce crop production costs. As long as the land owners participating in this kind of cooperation hand over their land to the Ministry of Agriculture for management, the tax rate they need to pay for the harvest on their land is slightly lower than in previous years, and the Haihan Ministry of Commerce will pay a relatively low tax rate. By booking these agricultural products in advance at reasonable prices, farmers do not need to worry about market price fluctuations during harvest season affecting their due income.
In addition to these measures, the various cash crop planting methods mastered by the Haihan Ministry of Agriculture are also one of the reasons why local landowners are flocking to them. Currently, almost all the oils, spices, and novel fruits on the market in Danzhou come from Sanya, and the prices are much cheaper than those shipped from Nanyang in the past. In the promotional content of Haihan Ministry of Agriculture in Danzhou, There is a plan to promote cash crop planting technology to cooperative farmers. This is indeed an irresistible temptation for farmers who want to earn more income from their fields. After all, the income from growing these crops is much higher than simply growing rice and vegetables. .
For the agricultural society of the 17th century, appeasing the emotions of the agricultural population was one of the important measures to ensure social stability. Although there are many academies and prosperous culture and education in Danzhou, the agricultural population is still around 70%. Therefore, if the management committee wants to maintain local stability, it must make achievements in agriculture. The Management Committee considered that directly taking the land back to the public might arouse strong resistance, and after seeking the consent of the Executive Committee, decided to first implement the Haihan collective farming method in Danzhou. After consolidating the local governance foundation , and then gradually complete the reform of land ownership.
But for many local literati in Danzhou, how and what to plant on the land outside the city, and what the harvest will be, do not have much to do with them. What these people care about are often the books in front of them and the next imperial examination - of course now we have to add the recruitment and selection of the Haihan people. After all, as long as they can find a job under the Haihan people, they can also enjoy the comfort of food and clothing. life.
However, not every scholar is thinking about this. Zhang Qianzhi was woken up by his classmates early in the morning to prepare. He and five other academy students will go to the city with Huang Zixing today to attend the Nanhai Restaurant. Birthday party for Zhang Xin, director of Danzhou Management Committee. Of course, although they went there as baggage boys, their actual mission was to place some fire starters inside and outside the Nanhai Restaurant, so as to create chaos so that assassins mixed in with the guests could assassinate leader Haihan.
After everyone had tidied up, Huang Zixing appeared. He specially came to cheer up the group before setting off: "Gentlemen, today's matter is to promote orthodoxy and safeguard our Ming Dynasty! And after the matter is completed, the court will also With the corresponding rewards, you can achieve fame and fortune in one fell swoop! Whether it is public or private, this matter is worthy of your life! I will fight with you in the national crisis today, and if there is glory and wealth in the future, you will also share it. ”
Zhang Qianzhi and several others bowed in response, and then checked the things they brought. The fire starters they carried were inconspicuous, just some oil-soaked cloth strips, wrapped around their arms and calves respectively, and could not be seen at all under their coats and trousers. When used, it is broken into a pile and can be ignited by burning it with an open flame. As for tinder, it is even more convenient. Everyone is given a box of convenient matches produced by Haihan, which can be drawn out and used at any time. Zhang Qianzhi couldn't laugh or cry when he saw it. He didn't expect that these guys who wanted to deal with Haihan would actually use things produced by Haihan.
However, what made Zhang Qianzhi feel slightly relaxed was that none of these people, including Huang Zixing, carried any sharp weapons with them. Zhang Qianzhi was not afraid that they would bring sharp weapons in and hurt someone, but that these guys were inexperienced and would be stiff in their movements due to the sharp weapons they brought with them. It would be bad if someone saw the clues in advance.
Huang Zixing continued: "Don't think that we are alone this time. In fact, as early as a few days ago, several volunteers who were actually responsible for taking action had already lurked throughout the city. After taking action, both inside and outside the city would launch a coordinated attack. The local organizations of the Haihan people can be eliminated within two days. The adults sent by the imperial court will direct this matter, so you can rest assured."
Seeing doubts on everyone's faces, Huang Zixing twisted his beard and said with a smile: "In order to make you feel at ease, I have invited Mr. Zhao, who planned this matter, to meet with you today."
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After a while, a man in a blue robe entered the courtyard, bowed his hands to everyone, and then took out a waist badge from his arms and showed it to everyone: "I am Zhao Ye, Qianhu, Nanjing Town Fusi, Jinyiwei." , I was ordered to come to Qiongzhou to investigate various illegal activities in Haihan. I will report your righteous deeds today to the court one by one in the future, and ask for your credit!"
Zhang Qianzhi stared at this man, thinking that no wonder the security department had been watching the perimeter for so many days and still couldn't find any trace of Zhao Ye. It turned out that he had been hiding in Zhongming Academy! Zhang Qianzhi thought about the situation in the academy and thought that Zhao Ye had probably been hiding in the courtyard where Huang Zixing lived before. Thanks to his patience, he had not shown his face even once for so many days. If we had known that this guy was hiding here, the Security Department should have brought Zhongming Academy to its knees, and there would be no need to waste so much time.
After greeting everyone, Zhao Ye continued: "I will be stationed outside the city today. When things inside the city are completed, I will immediately launch an ambush to take over Danzhou. As for whether it will be successful or not, it depends on your performance today!"
Zhang Qianzhi thought that Zhao Ye was cunning and would not enter the city at all. He would have to find a way to pass the news to his people later and ask them to come to Zhongming Academy to capture talents as soon as possible.
A servant had already hired two carriages to take them from Zhongming Academy to Danzhou City for the banquet. This time, the Danzhou Chamber of Commerce spared no expense. Not only did they invite local politicians and business people, but they also sent invitations to all the academies in Danzhou, inviting the heads of each academy to attend. Naturally, these officials, bosses and academy chiefs also need to bring their entourage, which amounts to hundreds of people at a rough calculation.
Of course, Yan Mingjun and Li Jin were also among the people attending the banquet. The difference was that their residence was not far from Nanhai Academy and there was no need to take a car. However, the Chamber of Commerce sent two sedans to pick up and drop off the two local officials. . Yan Mingjun only brought He Qi and one of his old servants, while Li Jin brought four of his own soldiers who had just recovered from their injuries. Of course, Li Jin wisely did not let his soldiers carry any Weapons, so as not to make everyone’s faces look ugly again.
When the two of them arrived at the Nanhai Restaurant, they were greeted at the door by several businessmen from the Danzhou Chamber of Commerce, but Zheng Zhangxin and others had not arrived yet. Yan Mingjun was chatting with people from the Chamber of Commerce while looking around, but he didn't see anyone wearing the uniforms of the Haihan Militia nearby. He couldn't help but murmur in his heart, could it be that the Haihan people were so trusting that they really didn't care about Huang Zixing's gang? Do people take it seriously?
Nanhai Restaurant is one of the best in Danzhou City in terms of scale. It can accommodate more than forty banquet tables on four floors, which can barely accommodate the hundreds of people attending today's banquet. The top floor is full of private rooms, arranged for today's protagonists and local prominent figures. After Yan Mingjun and Li Jin were brought into the private room and seated, someone brought a roster and asked them to sign it, while their entourage and servants were arranged to sit on the bottom floor.
The two signed their names with pens, and each took out the sealed gift money. Since Haihan Bank entered Danzhou, it has become more convenient to give gifts. You no longer need to carry heavy amounts of money, just put a check from Haihan Bank in the envelope. However, the money they sent was not considered to be out of their own pockets, they were just returning the money that Haihan had sent to their family. Although the two of them had no real power in the local area and the whole city knew that they were just two clay Bodhisattva decorations, the guests who had arrived first followed the etiquette and lined up to come forward to greet them, which was more or less satisfying. A little bit of their vanity. After all, they usually live alone, and few people will take the initiative to visit them. Even if they go out on the street, few people can recognize their identities.
However, their relaxed mood soon became tense again. Yan Mingjun touched Li Jin with his hand under the table: "Here we come!"
The person walking up the stairs step by step was not Zhang Xin, but Huang Zixing. The position he came up to was facing the chairman, and he immediately met Yan Mingjun's eyes. Huang Zixing didn't know that a major change had occurred a few days ago, so he nodded to Yan Mingjun calmly, and then walked over to greet the two of them.
"Huang Zixing, a common man, has met these two adults!" Huang Zixing bowed.
Yan Mingjun cupped his hands and said: "Huangshan has been missing for many days, how is it?"
Huang Zixing responded: "Thank you, Lord Yan, for your concern. Everything is fine! Today is a grand event. You two adults can just watch it!"
Given Huang Zixing's status, he definitely couldn't sit at the main table. After saying this, a waiter came over and led him to another table. Li Jin then lowered his voice and said, "It seems they will still take action."
Yan Mingjun nodded slightly and said: "It doesn't matter, they can commit suicide. He also said, just let us watch."
Li Jin glanced at Yan Mingjun's face and saw that he didn't seem to be upset, so he responded: "Brother Yan, have you figured it out?"
Yan Mingjun responded: "I can't figure it out, so I can only do this! Brother Li, you are right. After all, it is important to save your life. Otherwise, it is not cost-effective to lose your life and be stigmatized!"
If nothing else happens, Huang Zixing and his gang will definitely be found guilty of colluding with pirates to cause rebellion. Although Wang Tom said that day that he would give Yan Mingjun and Li Jin a good reputation after their death, that was just lip service. That's all. Yan Mingjun doesn't dare to pin his reputation on the kindness of the Haihan people. When the time comes, he will be accused of being accused and will be unable to defend himself. Maybe future history books will record something like "In the fourth year of Chongzhen in the Ming Dynasty, Yan Mingjun, the governor of Danzhou, colluded with pirates, caused harm to the village, and eventually died in the internal fighting of pirates." That would really be a stink for thousands of years.
Seeing that almost all the guests who were due to arrive had arrived, but Zhang Xin and others had not yet appeared, Yan Mingjun couldn't help but wonder if the Haihan people were afraid that they would not be able to control the situation, and for the sake of their own safety, they simply did not show up at all. Already? While the criminal was muttering, there was a commotion downstairs, and then he saw seven or eight Haihan people coming up from the stairs surrounded by a group of strong men.
"Everyone has been waiting for a long time. I'm really sorry. I was delayed a little by official business. I'm sorry!" Zhang Xin greeted loudly and bowed to the people around him. It's not that he made up excuses to evade, he was indeed communicating with the base camp on the final plan of action.
After nearly a month of investigation into the Danzhou case, more than 400 people have been identified, and this group is not limited to Danzhou. There are also gangs in Qiongzhou and many counties in Qiongbei. People's accomplices. The opinion of the Ministry of Security is to wait for Danzhou to take action, and all localities will take synchronized actions to arrest these people, so as to avoid slipping through the net to the greatest extent. As the person in charge of Danzhou, Zhang Xin naturally has to assist the military and security departments in mastering the rhythm and proportion of operations.
The people present were naturally wise enough not to hold Zhang Xin accountable. Anyway, a high-ranking official doesn't pay for anything, so it wouldn't hurt to say a few more nice words. At the moment, flattery was everywhere.
"Director Zhang is very busy with his official duties. It is very difficult to find time to enjoy with the people. How can anyone blame him!"
"Director Zhang is too polite. It's the grassroots who came too early, just in time to have a cup of tea to relieve their appetite."
"Director Zhang is still busy with official duties on his big day. Danzhou is prosperous today thanks to Director Zhang and all the Haihan chiefs working day and night. This drive is really admirable!"
Although Yan Mingjun couldn't save face and said some disgusting compliments, when Zhang Xin came to take a seat, he still stood up with Li Jin to greet him very cooperatively. Zhang Xinchao smiled and nodded and said: "You two adults have been waiting for a long time, so please come to the table together! I have been waiting for this banquet for many days!"
(End of chapter)