The gentry riot in the Ningbo prefecture was a wake-up call for Xiao Ruxun.
This was not a simple trifle, but a big movement hidden behind the trifle.
He realized that if he ignored this phenomenon and only focused on capturing the capital, killing Shen Yicheng, and restoring the Emperor to the throne, his uprising would be meaningless. He would only be able to overthrow a regime, but he would not be able to eliminate the people that this regime relied on.
Right now his military strength was strong enough to intimidate this target, but there would come a day when his military strength would weaken. When his military strength was no longer enough to intimidate the target, everything would return to its original state. Daming, there would be no change.
Successive dynasties had proven that what they were doing was nothing more than breaking out at the critical point and redistributing benefits, and then starting the next cycle. If they did not end this cycle, no matter how many times they raised their troops to quell the rebellion, the result would be the same.
Since they had already paid such a huge price and painstaking effort for the northern expedition, they could not pretend that these problems did not happen and fool the past. Otherwise, all of this would be the beginning of the next cycle.
It was time to break the curse of the periodic cycle of reincarnation in China.
But how to break this curse?
Xiao Ruxun could not help but think of Li Zicheng.
This rebel leader who carried out his revolutionary slogan the most thoroughly, he divided the land equally among the peasants who had lost their land, and resolutely refused to collect taxes. He relied on confiscating the land and extorting the peasants' salaries as his source of income.
In the entire ancient history of China, he was the leader who carried out his revolutionary slogan the most resolutely and thoroughly, he was the leader of the peasant rebel army who carried out the most thorough land reform. He did not fail because of his rapid corruption, as some people said, but because he was not corrupted, he still remembered to protect the interests of the peasants.
He used the method of making big promises and having the army assist the peasants. When he went north to attack the Ming government, he did not hesitate to leave the main force of his army in his hometown in Shaanxi to carry out the land reform, forcing many local gentry to commit suicide. The vast number of peasants obtained their land, for which they shed tears of gratitude, their hearts were very smooth.
However, it was of no use. After the defeat, Li Zicheng's troops lost their drive, their fighting strength was sharply reduced. On the way back to his hometown, they were attacked by countless troops organized by the gentry and tyrants, and chased by the Qing army. The gentry colluded with the Manchurian Qing to defeat Li Zicheng, and his main force was basically destroyed.
Who were the members of the team that attacked him?
Other than the servants and private soldiers of the gentry who were not killed, it was clear that there were also many peasants who had received Li Zicheng's favor who had lost their land. Otherwise, the number of people would not have reached such a scale.
The peasants who had received his favor of land reform did not rise up to help the Roaming King, whom they had been longing for, who was on the verge of life and death. Instead, they joined the landlords' armed forces, coordinating with the Qing army to kill Li Zicheng.
By the time Li Zicheng's defeat in Guanzhong was already decided and he tried to make a comeback in the south, he was ambushed and killed by the militia.
The armed militia was not the Qing army, it was not the Ming Army, it was the armed militia, the armed militia organized by the landlords, officials and gentry.
This was very ironic. The revolutionary slogan of equalizing the rich and the poor had been shouted since the Tang and Song Dynasties until the end of the Ming Dynasty. However, the people who really tried to do it died in the hands of these people who hoped to equalize the rich and the poor. Why?
Li Zicheng did not have his own base, Li Zicheng's troops could not keep up, these were all reasons.
But more importantly, Li Zicheng's troops did not promptly turn into a traditional dynasty that compromised with the landlords and gentry who still held the real power in the local area. They did not actively accept the landlords, gentry and gentry into their own leadership class, causing a large number of gentry who had originally pledged allegiance to Li Zicheng to be greatly disappointed.
In addition, when the Manchurian Qing invaded the Pass, they adopted the suggestion of Fan Wencheng and the others, treating the gentry as usual. The gentry felt that they saw hope, therefore they abandoned Li Zicheng and sided with the Manchurian Qing.
They instigated a large number of armed militia to weaken Li Zicheng's power and make him unable to establish a foothold in Guanzhong, allowing the Manchurian Qing to reap the benefits.
The gentry still existed, the gentry was still powerful, and the gentry was still ruling the countryside.
Li Zicheng's troops were at a loss, they were wavering, they had not yet adapted to their sudden change in identity. If the Manchurian Qing had not suddenly attacked, Li Zicheng might still have a chance, but the Manchurian Qing attacked at this critical juncture.
Li Zicheng had not appeared yet, and perhaps he would not appear again, but according to reason, Xiao Ruxun needed to tell Xie He the whole story.
"In the early Song Dynasty, also in Sichuan, Wang Xiaobo and Li Shun revolted. They said, 'My disease is the inequality between the rich and the poor. Today, you should equalize it.' Even earlier, Confucius said, 'I have also heard that there are those who do not suffer from poverty but suffer from inequality; they do not suffer from poverty but suffer from insecurity.'"
Xie He expressed his understanding. "Yes, when this subordinate was in dire straits, I saw too many people. They did not think about how to become rich, they only hated those who were slightly richer and more powerful than them. They did not dare to think about the truly important people."
Xiao Ruxun nodded.
"Therefore, this is our starting point! Qingquan, you asked me how we should start with this matter. My answer is this: start with equalizing the rich and the poor, start with those who hate the rich and hate the rich but have never thought about becoming rich through their own efforts! "
Xie He was taken aback.
"Marshal is talking about those local ruffians, hooligans, and idlers in the marketplace?"
Xiao Ruxun nodded again.
"That's right, it's those people. Their families either have farmland to cultivate or have rented the land of the rich and powerful to cultivate. They have their own property. Although it's not much, they still have some. They have something to look forward to in life, something to worry about. If you go there and tell them that you are going to rob the rich to help the poor, they won't pay attention to you.
But if it's those local ruffians, hooligans, and idlers in the marketplace, they have no property, no proper work, and rely on swindling and robbing to make a living. These people are the easiest to incite, the easiest to bribe, and the easiest to control. They are truly afraid of power, but they don't cherish virtue!
If you have a knife or a spear in your hand, they will listen to you. They will be your thugs, your dogs. If you treat them fiercely, they will be incomparably respectful, and it will be very easy to use them. They are worthless, but they are a rare starting point.
He bribed them, encouraged them, and supported them. He brought them to the villages and settlements to investigate the background and behavior of the big landlords in the villages. He chose the one with the heaviest crimes and went to his house to pick a quarrel and cause trouble, causing conflict.
Then, hide the elite troops in your hands in the surroundings. Once those local ruffians see blood, don't hesitate to immediately take action and capture their entire family. Then, you will appear and bring them to parade them through the streets! "
"Parade them through the streets?"
"Yes! Parade them through the streets and let everyone in the village know. Then, in front of everyone, you will represent our army to announce his crimes and the crimes he has committed. Then, let those local ruffians and idlers go up to him and beat him up, scold him loudly, and finally, behead him in front of everyone! "
Xie He swallowed his saliva.
"This is the first step. The goal is to destroy the image of the landlords who really rule the place. After this step is completed, we can intimidate the locals and establish the absolute prestige of our army.
Then, the second step is to choose those local ruffians and idlers who are the most proactive after tasting the sweetness, as well as the farmers who have few assets, and tenant farmers who don't have their own land. Mix these three types of people together to form a farmers' association.
Then, don't show up in your own name. You have to retreat behind the scenes and secretly take command. Secretly instruct them to act against the next landlords. You have to be fast. Tell them to snatch their land. Only when they snatch it will it be their own. "
After listening to this, Xie He was extremely shocked.
"But Marshal, those local ruffians have no morals. They may do a lot of evil things. If we don't control them and instead promote them, it may have a great impact. We will be very passive in public opinion, which is even more terrifying."
Xiao Ruxun shook his head.
"Qing Quan, that's why I asked you to establish a farmers' association and then hide behind it. We will use the name of the farmers' association to deal with the landlords, not you, or our Zhennan Army. Do you understand?"
"This …"
Xie He suddenly understood. "This is … to make the farmers have no way out?"
"Yes, make them have no way out. It doesn't matter if the ruffians and idlers do bad things. When dealing with the landlords, organize them and drag out the women of the landlords. Let them do what they want in public.
In the name of the farmers' association, let the farmers do it, not you. In this way, the farmers will understand that if they don't do their best to support our army, once our army is defeated and eliminated, they will suffer the same fate. "
So ruthless …
This is really going to form a blood feud that will not end until one side is dead …
Marshal, what do you want?
The more Xie He listened, the more frightened he became.
"Then what if those gentry and powerful people form a group to resist?"
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