Chapter 884 0879 [Under the Emperor's Sword, All Beings Are Equal]

Arrest people directly?

Everyone present was shocked.

Given the great reputation of the Yimen Chen family, the normal process should not be like this. Bargaining is necessary for doing business, let alone splitting up the family.

The emperor should first send an imperial envoy to commend the Chen family, and then propose the splitting up of the family and relocating them. Moreover, they should discuss it well, fully listen to the opinions of the Chen family, and finally make concessions to reach a result that everyone is happy with.

Yes, the Ming Dynasty was splitting up the family crazily in the north, but can those families compare with the Chen family?

A hundred years ago, the Yimen Chen family was split into 291 parts and moved to various parts of the country to exchange land.

But the remaining 47 parts of land, distributed in the five counties of De'an, Dehua, Jianchang, Ruichang, and Xingzi, are still controlled by the Chen family members who stayed in Jiangxi. This does not include various shops, temples, theaters, clinics...

One piece of land is a village!

The family members who stayed in Jiangxi did not split up, regardless of whether they were the main branch or the side branch. The highest person in control is the head of the family (clan leader), and below him are the heads of each branch. They send people to the village to serve as the village head, and also send people to manage other movable or immovable properties.

During the Southern Tang Dynasty, there were more than 700 members of the Chen family of Jiangzhou Yimen.

Fifty years later, the family population doubled directly.

After another sixty years, it had increased to nearly 4,000 people, and they had never divided the family property.

So the court ordered the clan to be split and relocated. At that time, about 3,300 people were relocated, and more than 500 people remained in Jiangxi. A hundred years later, the more than 500 people who stayed behind multiplied to about 3,000 people again!

One village after another, the land was annexed by the Chen family of Jiangzhou Yimen, and the villagers became tenants under the control of the Chen family.

Although there were only 3,000 members of the clan, they controlled tens of thousands of farmers, and they were distributed in a large area of ​​five surrounding counties.

If he took action directly, wouldn't Wei Liangchen be afraid of causing trouble?

When Quan Bangyan led his troops to guard Jiujiang, Zhong Xiang couldn't take it down after fighting for several years.

Is it true that Quan Bangyan is a master of military tactics?

No.

It is because Quan Bangyan has the support of the Chen family!

Zhong Xiang destroyed schools, killed Confucian scholars, and divided land in Hunan. All these actions scared the Yimen Chen family. They took the initiative to find Quan Bangyan to cooperate, contributed money and people to help recruit local soldiers, and connected with other gentry to work together.

The local soldiers recruited by these gentry burst out with amazing combat effectiveness when defending their hometown.

Although Zhong Xiang's soldiers had religious bonuses, they could not capture Jiujiang City defended by Jiangxi local soldiers.

However, the Ming Dynasty court could win by issuing an edict in Jiangxi. It was nothing more than that the Ming Dynasty would not mess around, would not rob their fields, demolish their ancestral halls, and destroy their schools!

Chen Zongxian was completely stunned. It was not until he was pinned to the ground by the soldiers that he shouted in panic: "General Wei, we can discuss something. Why are you doing this?"

Wei Liangchen had a blank expression on his face: "The Ministry of Justice has no power to execute criminals. You must ask your majesty for approval. The major affairs of the country are military and sacrifice, but you privately offer sacrifices to the Spring and Autumn Society. With all these, you are trying to seize the power of the emperor and usurp the court system! What else is there to discuss? Discuss the emperor's abdication and invite the Jiangzhou Yimen Chen family to ascend the throne?"

"Absolutely not, absolutely not!" Chen Zongxian was trembling with fear.

Another elder said, "General Wei, Chen Dong and Chen Shaoyang from the Inspectorate are also descendants of our Yimen Chen family. We are all family members, so everything can be discussed. There is no need to use force to arrest people."

"Yimen Chen family is all over the country," Wei Liangchen said, "I came here this time on the order of the emperor to clean up the Yimen Chen family in Jiangzhou, and it has nothing to do with other Yimen Chen families. Take them away!"

Several old men were taken to the riverside to board the boat, and the rest of the clan members followed closely and begged.

Not long after, more than 200 scholars, including several-year-old children, rushed from the Chen family's book hall to block the way.

A scholar in his twenties questioned, "My Chen family has surrendered to the Ming Dynasty, abided by the law, and loved the neighbors. What right do you have to arrest people!"

"Is it also abiding by the law to set up a court privately?" Wei Liangchen asked back.

The scholar defended himself, saying, "That was a thing of the past. My Chen family no longer uses private punishment."

Wei Liangchen smiled and said, "Whether he is guilty or not, we will know after the trial."

"You are arresting people indiscriminately and harming the good!" another scholar said angrily.

These scholars rushed forward and tried to surround Wei Liangchen.

Someone else came with villagers, including members of the Chen family and tenants under their control. Some even took hoes and sticks, intending to use force to rescue the clan leader.

Chen Zongxian was almost frightened and shouted, "Go back, go home, don't do anything stupid!"

"Don't worry, parents, we won't sit idly by and watch the cruel officials take you away!" a strong man shouted.

Chen Zongxian roared angrily: "Assholes, quickly disperse. You are not saving me, you are harming me, you are harming the Chen family!"

Wei Liangchen shouted: "The king's flag is here, just like the emperor himself. Anyone who dares to stop it will be regarded as treason and will be killed without mercy. Blow the horn, gather the troops!"

"Woo woo woo!"

The military horn sounded.

The garrison troops and the canal troops left by the river lined up and trotted towards Wei Liangchen.

There were about three or four hundred steps left, and the military whistles suddenly blew one after another.

All the soldiers slowed down and stopped, and re-lined up and moved forward. And bows were strung, swords were unsheathed, and guns were raised horizontally, and they went directly into combat.

The Chen armed forces, who were still hesitating whether to disperse, were immediately scared to death when they saw this.

It is true that they blocked Zhong Xiang in Jiujiang for several years, but they were fully equipped with soldiers and armor and defended the city, and they were afraid that Zhong Xiang would invade Jiangxi, burn, kill and loot. Now they only have hoes and sticks in their hands, and no city walls to rely on, and they don't have to fight. How can they dare to fight with the officers and soldiers?

The tenants retreated one after another, but did not dare to leave for fear of being punished later.

"Disperse, disperse quickly!" Chen Zongxian shouted with all his strength.

Once they fight against the officers and soldiers, it will be a serious crime of rebellion, and the Chen family of Jiangzhou Yimen will be finished.

When the clan leader ordered them to disperse, the tenants immediately dispersed like birds and beasts.

The young men of the Chen clan also dispersed around Wei Liangchen.

Only the scholars of the Chen family were still blocking the way. They did not believe that the officers and soldiers dared to kill the soldiers.

However, Wei Liangchen ordered: "The king's flag is here. Anyone who stops the governor from handling the case will be killed on the spot without mercy!"

The army marched on, even their shields raised.

Chen Zongxian was so anxious that he was sweating profusely and shouted in panic: "Go back to study quickly and don't block the road!"

The officers and soldiers were already more than ten steps away, and the scholars of the Chen family finally collapsed.

Because they discovered that as long as they blocked the road, those officers and soldiers would really dare to massacre the scholars.

The scholars retreated one after another, and the road became clear.

Chen Zongxian's heart dropped, and then he became limp and was dragged to the shore by two soldiers to board the ship.

About 70% of the provincial and county officials at the third level in Nanchang City were brought here by Wei Liangchen. He said to the officials: "Immediately clear the fields in De'an County. If anyone dares to block it, notify the soldiers to arrest them. If anyone resists with arms, there is no need to interrogate him, he will be killed on the spot! After clearing the fields in De'an County, we will go to Ruichang." , Dehua, Xingzi and Jianchang counties.”

Jiujiang Prefecture, established by the Ming Dynasty, had seven counties in total.

Five of them are the territory of the Yimen Chen family. It was not that they had occupied all the land in the five counties, but that they were annexing areas one after another and firmly controlling the countryside by linking villages one after another. It even monopolizes many industries in prefectures and cities, especially the port of Jiujiang, which makes money every day.

Wei Liangchen summoned the elders of the Chen clan who had not been arrested to hold a meeting and negotiate at the Chen clan ancestral hall.

Of course we have to talk, but we must fight first and then be polite, otherwise no one will listen to Wei Liangchen’s words!

Wei Liangchen glanced at the group of elders: "In the chaotic times of the late Tang Dynasty and the Five Dynasties, only Jiangxi was stable. You have been developing steadily in Jiujiang for hundreds of years, and you seem to have forgotten the majesty of the imperial court. Under the emperor's sword, all living beings are equal, but it doesn't matter whether you are a wealthy family or a scholar . Let me introduce to you again, this command flag and this token are collectively called the Wang Ming Banner."

Two flag officers stood up, one holding the flag high and the other showing the flag.

Wei Liangchen raised his voice: "I am in Jiangxi and can mobilize troops at will. I use the king's order to kill people, which is equivalent to the emperor's order to kill. There has been a civil uprising in Ji'an Prefecture, but Jiangxi's Third Division actually concealed it and failed to report it. The emperor was already furious, and the cabinet was furious. I am already furious. If anyone dares to resist Qing Zhang Tian Mu or Tan Ding Mu, I will kill everyone in Jiangxi, even the Chen family in Yimen!"

The elders of the Chen clan who were originally resentful suddenly changed their expressions when they heard these words.

Many guys hesitated to speak. They wanted to complain, but they were afraid of getting killed.

Wei Liangchen continued: "The Chen family must have committed a serious crime by setting up a private court. If it is discovered that you have concealed the acres of land during the marriage, it will be even worse!"

As soon as this statement came out, some people were already worried.

In the Tang and Song dynasties, the Chen family of Yimen in Jiangzhou had the privilege of being exempted from corvee. But in the Ming Dynasty and the New Dynasty, not only did they lose this privilege, but they also had to divide their land into acres and pay labor fees according to the number of acres.

How could they not hide their property?

The rural areas controlled by the Chen family cannot be flooded, and the officials who go to the countryside to farm their fields cannot use their hands freely. Some of the officials are even members of the Chen family or their minions.

Wei Liangchen is not here to kill people, he is here to solve problems.

Blindly pushing Chen to death, the land husbandry work in Jiangxi has to be postponed.

"I'll give you a chance," Wei Liangchen said with a smile. "A chance to make meritorious deeds. It depends on whether you can seize it."

Immediately, an elder from the Chen clan asked cautiously: "What does the Governor want us to do?"

Wei Liangchen said: "I want three hundred people who can write and count, and they must be young people under the age of 25. Follow me to other prefectures and counties to start farming!"

The elders of the Chen clan were stunned.

This job is hot!

Let the Chen family in Yimen, Jiangzhou, send out young people to go to other prefectures and counties to clear their land. If you take your husband seriously, you will definitely offend other wealthy clans. If he gets into trouble, Chen will get more guilty.

Moreover, after the abdication was completed, the Chen family changed from the original "victim" to an accomplice of the governor's oppression of the wealthy family!

Wei Liangchen asked: "Aren't you willing to commit crimes and meritorious service? Then I can only strictly investigate the evidence of Chen's crime."

"We are willing!"

Just when Wei Liangchen stood up and left, the elders of the Chen clan shouted.

For the Chen family of Yimen, they had no choice but to offend other families.

Moreover, the Chen family of my Yi family has been married off. Why aren't your families being investigated?

Let's all be unlucky together!