The corn, which was originally green, dried up after the east wind blew. When the wind blew, the corn field rustled and the heavy ears of corn nodded continuously.
At this time, the corn was not completely ripe, but due to the limitations of harvesting, the farmers would not wait for the corn to turn golden before harvesting. At that time, how many grains of rice would be lost when harvesting the ripe corn? Wasting food would be like being struck by lightning.
The farmers, men and women, old and young, all went to work together. They bent their backs and unhurriedly cut along the way. The corn stubble behind them was the same height, as if it had been measured with a ruler.
The children followed behind, neatly bundling the harvested corn, then carrying it to the cart at the end of the field. They had to handle it with care, so as not to drop the corn. Parents would occasionally look back. If they saw the children casually throwing the corn into the cart, they would feel sorry for them and scold them.
Rich people had ox-carts with big wooden wheels, pulling a cart full of corn stacks. The ox-cart creaked as it moved along the deeply rutted yellow road. The ox-cart driver held a big whip as he followed the ox-cart. He puffed out his chest and belly, and as he walked, he sang a sour song in a high-pitched voice, "Hear my brother's singing, warm body on the cold windowsill …"
The poorer families had to rely on manpower to pull the cart. A sturdy man pulled the cart in front, his hair tied into a sheep's belly and a handkerchief, as if a pair of white horns had grown out of his forehead. His strength was also as great as that of an ox. The children followed behind. When they went downhill, they bounced and played, and when they went uphill, they stuck out their buttocks to help their father and brother push the cart.
There were many empty fields in the village. Over the years, they had been flattened by large stone rollers. They had long been flat and smooth like mirrors. The harvested crops were placed on the fields. Some people were threshing the corn and bean pods with flail, which had been scorched by the sun. Seven or eight people, each holding a flail, stood in a row. The flail rose and fell in unison, crackling like they were singing.
There were also people who drove a few cows to trample back and forth on the fields covered with crops. The millet grains and beans would fall one after another in the constant trampling. When these crushed millet stalks and bean seedlings were picked up, the bare ground would be covered with grains. They would sweep them together and use dustpans to remove the dust.
This was a village in Yanzhou's Linzhen County. Under the shade of a tree by the side of the yard, a dozen or so people dressed in different clothes were resting. They were chatting and laughing as they watched the farmers work. Judging from their attire, these people were not from the town. It was said that they came from the city of Luoyang, where the Emperor lived, and wanted to go to the west to buy furs from foreigners.
Many of the people in town had never left the radius of five kilometers from the village in their entire lives. They didn't even know the name of Luoyang. It was only when the knowledgeable Old Master Lizheng explained it to them that they understood what it was. Master Li Zheng had to go to the county town every year, so he was someone who had seen the big city.
Although the villagers had little experience, they were simple, kind, and hospitable. Hearing that these people lived in the same city as the Great Emperor, the farmers were in awe of these well-dressed noble guests. In front of these guests, even the most boorish men became reserved, for fear that they would be laughed at if they did something inappropriate.
However, as long as they were a little further away from these distant noble guests, they immediately regained their composure. As a matter of fact, the man who was gently lashing the oxen's back with a small whip was happily singing, "Moo moo come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come, good come …"
Who could imagine that when he was stopped by a guest who was more beautiful than a girl and whose skin was smoother than the buttocks of a newborn baby, he would be so embarrassed that his face turned red. Li Zheng's surname was Chen, and his name was Chen Dashan. He flashed a mouthful of yellow teeth at Zhang Changzong with a simple and honest smile, "Nobles, don't mind them. They are all country bumpkins who have no experience."
Merchants did not have much status in Luoyang, but in his eyes, they were nobles. Furthermore, these nobles were very generous. They had only rested in the village, but they had casually given them many things. Although they were only needles and thread in the eyes of these nobles, they were only needles and thread.
Beside the young man who was more beautiful than a girl was an extremely handsome man. He sat on a wooden stump and said to Chen Dashan with a smile, "Chen Lizheng, your village has had a good harvest this year."
Chen Dashan beamed and said, "That's right. It wasn't like this when I was young. These years, thanks to Grandpa the Land's blessings, the weather has been good, and the harvest has been better every year. Our days have become more and more enjoyable."
Zhang Changzong lightly said, "The taxes will only be handed over after this batch of grain is harvested, right?"
Chen Dashan blinked his eyes in confusion, "Ah? What did the nobles say? "
This nobleman did not look as easy to talk to as the other nobleman. Chen Lizheng felt somewhat uneasy when speaking to him. He felt that although this nobleman was sitting on a small stool, he was even more impressive than the county's old master. He had seen the county's old master before. Once, when he entered the city to hand over the grain, the county's old master had opened a hearing. He had squeezed through the crowd and taken a glance from afar.
Yang Fan said with a smile, "It's rent."
Chen Lizheng was enlightened as he said, "Oh! Nobleman said rent. That's right, we have to hand it over after this batch of grain is harvested. Our village has already harvested a crop of wheat, but the government does not harvest wheat. They only collect millet and millet. We eat the wheat ourselves, and the millet and millet are harvested to pay rent. If there's any surplus, we can exchange it for oil and salt. "
At this time of year, the main crops in the north were millet and millet. Some areas with sufficient water also planted rice. Although wheat was an exotic crop, it was also a dryland crop, but it required more irrigation than millet and millet. In addition, back then, the flour processing industry was backward. Normally, people cooked wheat like rice and millet before consuming it. It didn't taste good, so the poor people ate wheat rice.
At that time, officials eating wheat rice was seen as incorruptible. Children eating wheat rice during the mourning period was seen as sincere mourning. If someone left wheat rice for themselves to eat for their elders, they would be scolded for being unfilial. Wheat's status in China's food system was only established during the middle and late Ming Dynasty. Thus, the government collected taxes mainly on millet, and the wheat could only be eaten by the farmers themselves.
Yang Fan and Zhang Changzong looked at each other and asked with a smile, "Oh, how many mu of land does your village have? How much do you have to pay rent every year?"
…
After understanding the local villagers' harvests and rent payment over the years, Yang Fan and Zhang Changzong led their men and left. This was already the fourth village that they had visited.
After Yang Fan and Zhang Changzong received the emperor's secret order, they made meticulous arrangements.
Although the people in the Three Yang Palace were the nobles of the highest level and might not have spies from the Hidden Sect, they still laid down layers of smokescreens just in case. Yang Fan's disappearance was because he had returned to Luoyang to investigate the water situation and prepare to report to the Emperor when the water level receded. This information was only known to the upper echelons, and anyone who wanted to find out would be able to find out.
Right now, Luoyang City was like a city of water. There were officials everywhere dealing with the aftermath, and it was a mess without any order. Even if someone received the information and wanted to go back to spy on Yang Fan, they would have to have the ability to find Yang Fan first. As for Zhang Changzong's disappearance, it was much simpler. He was originally in the inner court, and not many officials could see him. Apart from the eunuchs and maids by the emperor's side, who else knew that he wasn't in the palace?
After Yang Fan and Zhang Changzong secretly left the Three Yang Palace, they immediately split into many groups. Apart from their group, the rest of the groups were all misdirection. They headed towards Sui Prefecture, Yan Prefecture, Dan Prefecture, and Tong Prefecture respectively. However, their final rendezvous point was in Yan Prefecture. According to the time, they should be gathering here by now.
Before Yang Fan set off, he sent someone to send a letter to Gu Zhuting, asking her and her siblings to rush over from Feng Prefecture. They were his capable assistants, and he naturally had to keep them by his side at this crucial moment. As for Feng Prefecture, there was nothing more to investigate, and he would let those corrupt officials be complacent for now.
Originally, when Yang Fan was investigating Dan Prefecture and Feng Prefecture, he used methods that were half in the open and half in the dark, and he was half official and half pugilistic. However, when he noticed that there was an even more shocking conspiracy in the Yanzhou Prefecture, he didn't need to be so cautious anymore. In the face of absolute power, there was no room for schemes. Right now, he could use the simplest and crudest method to achieve his objective.
As long as he could confirm the existence of the case in Yanzhou and arrest those local corrupt officials, he would be able to follow the clues and investigate further. The corrupt officials in Feng Prefecture would have nowhere to hide.
The north and northwest regions were originally the focus of the Hidden Sect's operations, and they would definitely have countless connections with the local officials. Once this world-shaking case was settled, it would definitely deal a heavy blow to them. In this way, he would be able to strike at the corrupt officials and the Hidden Sect's influence. It could be said to be killing two birds with one stone.
In the carriage, Zhang Changzong spoke excitedly, "General Yang, these places have been having good harvests every year, and the commoners have been paying taxes every year. However, the imperial court hasn't even received a single grain of tax. Yet, they receive Governor Xie's petitions for disaster relief every year, and they even have to allocate funds for disaster relief. This is obviously feigning disaster relief. Can we make a move and arrest them now?"
Yang Fan smiled and nodded. "Minister Fengchen is right. It is time for us to make a move!"
Zhang Changzong had traveled a long and arduous journey. Although there were people taking care of him, it was truly tiring for him to eat, wear, and travel. He originally thought that it would be fun to leave the capital city, but now that he thought about it, it was truly meaningless. The only thought that allowed him to hold on until now was to pretend to be an upright official and arrest people wantonly. This game was very interesting.
Now that Yang Fan finally agreed to make a move, Zhang Changzong couldn't help but be wild with joy. He immediately pulled on the wall of the carriage, and with a 'ka la' sound, a hidden compartment popped out. Zhang Changzong took out a heavy iron box from the compartment and placed it on the table.
When the box was opened, there was a yellow silk cushion at the bottom. There were twelve independent compartments. The first six compartments were square, and the last six were rectangular. In the square compartments, there were a total of six golden tortoises lying quietly. In the corresponding rectangular compartments, there was a roll of snow-white paper that was tied with a yellow ribbon.
The tortoise was the tortoise talisman, and the paper was the imperial edict.
With these two items, he could mobilize the troops and start a bloody storm!
…
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