Zhuang Chao's eyes were still wide open after his head was chopped off by Xia Pingan, as if he couldn't believe that the newly appointed provincial governor of Daozhou dared to kill him.
Blood spurted out from the neck of the headless body a foot high. After swaying twice, it fell to the ground, stirring up a cloud of dust.
Seeing this scene, the servants of Long Cloud Mountain Manor who were holding sabers, swords, and sticks were completely peed in their pants.
The officials of the Provincial Governor's Mansion were also greatly frightened. They had thought that Xia Pingan was just a civil official who had been demoted to Daozhou because he was an advisor. Who would have thought that Xia Pingan was so decisive that he was not inferior to a general?
Before they returned to the Provincial Governor's Mansion, Xia Pingan had already killed two people in a row.
This newly appointed provincial governor dared to fight with the prime minister in the imperial court. It was said that he was finally spared because the crown prince and the students of the Imperial College pleaded for mercy to His Majesty. However, he was even more difficult to deal with when he arrived at the provincial governor's mansion. His means and courage were definitely not something that could be fooled by ordinary people.
A servant's hand trembled as the stick in his hand fell to the ground. With a pale face, he immediately knelt on the ground and begged, "Don't, don't, don't kill me …"
Seeing that some servants had dropped their weapons, the other servants followed suit and hurriedly dropped their weapons to the ground before kneeling down and begging for mercy.
This provincial governor had even killed the master of Long Cloud Mountain Manor. If he wanted to kill small shrimps like them, he only needed to say a few words.
It's none of your business … "Xia Pingan threw the blood-stained Tang Saber to Xue Yue who was also dumbfounded. After that, he said loudly to the people around him," Lead the way for me. Go to the manor and see where the kidnapped children are. All the officials of the Provincial Governor's Mansion, follow me in to rescue the kidnapped children. All the yamen runners, guard the entrances and exits of Long Cloud Mountain Manor. Without my order, nobody is allowed to enter or leave … "
Hearing Xia Pingan's words, those old foxes who were on tenterhooks in the Provincial Governor's Mansion suddenly let out a sigh of relief. The Provincial Governor said that the chief evildoer had been executed and the threat was never investigated, which meant that he didn't intend to investigate them further in Daozhou. If he really wanted to investigate, this matter involved too many people. The Provincial Governor even took them in to "rescue the kidnapped children", which meant that he treated them as his own people and gave them a chance to make meritorious deeds.
Of course, if they followed the provincial governor in to "rescue the kidnapped children", they would have enough evidence to kill one person with a stick and one with a sword. It indicated that they all admitted that those children were "kidnapped". From then on, all the officials of the Provincial Governor's Mansion had to make a unified statement on this issue. They had to make meritorious deeds together and shoulder the responsibility together.
If they dared not follow the provincial governor in, they might become the second Wang Qi. Additionally, in such a situation, the provincial governor even thought about having the yamen runners guard the gate of Long Cloud Mountain Manor in case those commoners were instigated to commit robbery, smashing, and burning after entering the manor.
Such a provincial governor made those officials in the Provincial Governor's Mansion both respectful and fearful. They didn't dare to have any thoughts about him.
Seeing Xia Pingan walking towards the gate of Long Cloud Mountain Manor with those servants, the officials of the Provincial Governor's Mansion also followed him in. Being afraid of being left behind, those yamen runners of the Provincial Governor's Mansion also guarded the gate of Long Cloud Mountain Manor to maintain order and prevent those restless commoners from entering together.
"Where are those kidnapped children? Take me there!" Xia Pingan asked the moment he entered the manor.
Seeing a group of officials and yamen runners from the Provincial Governor's Mansion rushing in with murderous intent, the "armed guards" in the manor were so scared that their faces turned as pale as quails. However, nobody dared to stop them; instead, they all lowered their heads and stood aside.
The manor was very big and had a rich atmosphere. After a group of manor servants took seven or eight turns, Xia Pingan finally arrived at the backyard of the manor and saw the children who had been kidnapped.
Even those who were stone-hearted couldn't help but tremble when they saw the scene in the backyard of the manor.
It was recorded in the history books that the dwarves were trained in the Taozhou by placing the stolen children in jars to limit the child's growth and development, so that the child would grow into a dwarf and be artificially disabled. Previously, Xia Pingan had some doubts when he saw it in the history books, but now that he saw it, he couldn't help but almost cry.
This method of training dwarfs was extremely cruel …
Xia Pingan saw about fifty to sixty children, all of whom were placed in iron jars of various sizes. The tallest iron jar was less than three feet tall, while the smallest iron jar was only about one foot tall. Only the children's heads could be seen from the iron jars. All of the children's limbs were curled up in the iron jars like pickled vegetables, unable to move at all.
Someone was watching them. Those children who dared to cry in the iron jars would be slapped with wooden boards.
In addition to those children who were put in iron jars, there were 20 to 30 dwarfs who were less than 1 meter tall. Like clowns in a circus, they were being trained to learn all kinds of fancy acrobatic skills such as wielding swords, jumping balls, standing upside down, walking on ropes, dancing with huge beasts, playing with sparrows, riding poles, fighting between humans and beasts, seven sets, spreading fish dragons, playing with lions, swallowing knives, spitting fire, etc.
The person in charge of training here was an old man. When the old man heard that Zhuang Chao's head had been chopped off by the new provincial governor, he was so scared that he immediately knelt down. Those who were training dwarfs also knelt down and kowtowed in front of Xia Pingan. They were so scared that their faces turned pale.
Those dwarfs who were being trained didn't know what to do and could only stand at the side.
"Sir, please understand. It's really not our business. I'm only here to listen to the manor lord's orders and help him train the dwarfs to be offered as tribute to the imperial court. We really don't know anything else …"
Xia Pingan took a deep breath. "Get up first and release those children who are trapped in the iron jars …"
"Yes, yes, yes …"
Those people hurriedly released those children who were trapped in the iron jars one by one.
Those children were trapped in the small iron jars. They had to defecate and pee in the jars. Many of their bodies had already festered. Most of them had various skin diseases.
Snakes and insects were also released from one of the iron jars together with the children. Those children who were trapped in the iron jars had already been bitten by snakes and insects.
"Why are there snakes and insects in the iron jars …" Xia Pingan asked that old man.
"Sir … this … this is our ancestral training method. Those who don't listen to us will be thrown into the iron jars. Those snakes and insects will bite people but won't kill them …" That old man explained to Xia Pingan while trembling. "When other children see things being thrown into the iron jars of those who don't listen to us, they will also be obedient. Additionally, they won't feel uncomfortable being locked in the iron jars …"
Throwing snakes and insects into the iron jars was a form of psychological training. Originally, those children would feel uncomfortable about being locked in the iron jars. However, if those children found that there were no snakes or insects in their iron jars, they would feel very lucky. Bit by bit, they would develop the habit of being obedient and become dwarfs physically and mentally.
"How long do these children have to stay in the iron jars?"
"When they reach 16 years old, their bodies will stop growing. They won't be locked in the iron jars anymore. After that, they can be released to train various acrobatic skills …"
"How do they sleep?"
"They sleep standing up in the iron jars …"
Turning healthy children into dwarfs over a period of ten to twenty years, turning them into "tributes" and "specialties" and sending them to Chang 'an for the entertainment of the Emperor and those rich and powerful families. This was the ugliest thing that happened in the "golden age of the Tang Empire" and had been going on for more than a hundred years.
In Chang 'an, it was an insignificant entertainment for the emperors. But in Daozhou City, it became a mountain that pressed down on the heads of countless people in Daozhou City. Whoever dared to oppose it would be an enemy of the Tang Empire, the imperial court, the emperor, and all the officials and local tyrants in Daozhou City.
The local officials in Daozhou City, in order to get rich and curry favor with their superiors, did not care about the lives of the local people. They forcefully started this "project" and turned Daozhou, which originally did not "produce" dwarfs, into the "hometown of dwarfs" of the Tang Empire.
Xia Pingan wanted to kill someone, but he did not know who to kill …
After calming himself down, Xia Pingan directly ordered the official beside him. "Go to the city and find a doctor to treat the children here. At the same time, seize and count the property of Changyun Villa. Then find the parents of these children and have them come to take them back …"
Hearing this, an official beside him could not help but step forward and remind him worriedly in a low voice, "Your Excellency, it's almost time to pay tribute. Daozhou used to pay tribute to the Imperial Court every year. If Your Excellency releases all these people, the Observer and the Imperial Court will ask why Daozhou has no tribute. How will Your Excellency deal with that? This is no small matter … "
In this era, if a local official dared to refuse to pay tribute to the Imperial Court and the Emperor, it was not as simple as remonstrating. This was a challenge to the order of the entire Imperial Court and officialdom. It would definitely set off great waves, and at the same time, they would also be under great pressure.
The official who reminded Xia Pingan wanted to let Xia Pingan know that this matter was not so easy to handle.
It was easy to release these people now, but what about the tribute of Daozhou? To an official, paying tribute was the most important matter.
"This year, Daozhou will not turn the children of Daozhou City into dwarves and offer tribute to the Imperial Court. This matter of tribute is self-imposed. If the higher-ups want to investigate, I will bear all responsibility. I will not implicate everyone. Even if the Imperial Court takes my head, my decision will not change …" Xia Pingan firmly declared to all the officials in the Provincial Governor's Residence. "As an official, I must bring prosperity to a region. This is my creed, and I will encourage all of you!"
The officials of the Provincial Governor's Residence were all stunned by Xia Pingan's words. This Provincial Governor dared to refuse to pay tribute.
If Daozhou City refused to pay tribute, it would inevitably shake the entire officialdom of the Great Tang and Chang 'an.
After their shock, the officials of the Provincial Governor's Residence looked at Xia Pingan with a different feeling. For the sake of the people of Daozhou City, the new Provincial Governor had already cast aside his life.
After being silent for a short while, an official suddenly bowed deeply to Xia Pingan with a complex look, "As long as Your Excellency is still the Provincial Governor, this humble official will be at Your Excellency's disposal …"
"This humble official will be at Your Excellency's disposal …" The other officials of the Provincial Governor's Residence also bowed deeply to Xia Pingan and said in unison.
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