After breaking through the Yan family's village,
After pushing down the thick wall, Shou Yulou put out the fire,
Then, he entrusted some of the volunteer army's staff officers and those in the Chamber of Commerce who were good at calculation to count the goods. The remaining people..,
Took care of the people inside and outside the village and tied them up in the open space in front of the village.
Previously, they had received news from the spy..,
The volunteer army had long known that in the village, there were about a thousand people in the main courtyard of the Yan family.
The Yan family's young ladies, young masters, old masters, and madams..,
Even including some of the reputable concubines..,
There were only a few dozen masters, except for the hundred or so personal maids and manservants.., More than two hundred servants, and the remaining five hundred people were all low-level servants who lived around these few dozen masters and served them for a living.
In the Yan family's village..,
The Yan family was the local emperor.
But today, not long after..,
Even the young ladies of the Yan family were escorted out,
They knelt on the ground. Old Master Yan's most beloved daughter was even more delicate and delicate.
She was like a flower,
She had a willow-like figure,
Her skin was so delicate that it could be broken by the wind,
She was a model of someone who did not do any household chores.
But the volunteer army still tied her up. The young lady revealed an expression as if she was about to break down. It was as if she had never been so frightened,
She trembled with fear and shed tears. She was really "pitiful.".
Lin Daiyu stood behind Lin Ruoshan. When she saw her like this, she pursed her lips and felt a little pity in her heart.
After an unknown amount of time, the people who counted the Yan family's assets returned. The soldiers and commoners carried out boxes of gold, silver, jewelry, and stacks of land deeds. They reported that there were a total of twenty-four courtyards in the village, with a building area of about 40,000 square meters. There were more than five hundred buildings and kilns of various kinds.
The person who counted the number of people at the scene frowned and said, "Sir, the number of people is not right. The Yan family's register said that there were 1,100 people. There are only 1,500 people here, and there are still 50 missing. "
Shou Yulou asked someone to hold a knife horizontally and asked the Yan family's old master, "Who else is in your family?"
When Laoye saw that the stronghold with high walls and courtyard was unexpectedly broken through, he was scared witless and did not dare to utter a single word.
The madams and young ladies of the Yan Family were raised in the inner chamber. They only knew how to enjoy themselves and did not care about these things. They did not know a single word about most of the people in the manor. The young masters of the Yan family spent their days eating, drinking, whoring, and gambling. At most, they collected rent, but they couldn't remember the faces of all the people in the stockade.
Shou Yulou was too lazy to ask any more questions. He ordered his men to search again.
At this moment, a young soldier came back from the Yan family's manor and replied, "Sir, we found a few people. But … "
He scratched his face, and a troubled expression appeared on his face. "I'll have to ask the sisters to go …" He then whispered a few more words.
Female soldiers would definitely come to such a scene. In the past, more than once, the volunteer army had neglected the distinction between men and women, and had asked the male soldiers to guard the women of the landlords.
Who would have thought that some of the women of these nouveau riche families would commit suicide by banging their heads against the wall? Just because a "strange man" touched her, she felt that she had been "insulted".
Hence, from now on, the volunteer army would have to bring along female soldiers for such operations, just in case.
Shou Yulou called for a few female soldiers who were not young anymore. With a troubled expression, he looked at Lin Daiyu, who was wearing a veiled hat. "I heard that Mister Xiaoxiang knows the Yunnan dialect and is literate. Can you help me?"
Lin Daiyu had learned the Yunnan dialect during the time she lived in Yunnan. She had a good memory. In less than half a year, she was already quite familiar with the dialect of several places. She also knew that she was the only literate woman in the allied army present. Hence, she said politely, "I won't refuse." Then, she took the registration booklet and followed the female soldiers of the volunteer army.
The soldier who led the way led Daiyu and the others all the way. They saw that the residence of the Yan Family's masters, other than the part that had been burned down, was a large house with three or two floors. The garden attached to the main building was the place where the young ladies and masters played. It was a magnificent place with red walls and colorful walls, and lamps hung high.
It was really exquisite. Lin Daiyu was born in a noble family with three generations of marquises. She had to admit that the flowing water was really ingenious.
When they reached the periphery, the place where the personal maids and manservants rested was a small house with green tiles and white walls. Further outside, there were horse sheds and cow pens. Beyond that, most of the places in the stockade were just dilapidated small mud houses and fields.
In most areas of the village, among the tenant farmers of the Yan Family, no matter if they were male or female, old or young, she could not find anyone who wore decent clothes. She could not find any woman who was not barefoot.
After passing through a few gardens, they reached a horse shed in the periphery. The soldier stopped and said, "We're here." He motioned for them to go in, but he stood outside and did not go in.
The horse shed had not been taken care of for a few days. It stank, flies flew everywhere, and straw was piled up.
When Lin Daiyu went in, she was first shocked and then shocked. No wonder the little soldier was in such a difficult position.
It turned out that in addition to the horses in the horse shed, there were a few skeletons of old and young women who were covered in blood in a dark pile of straw in the corner. The grease on their bodies was a foot thick. They were dirty, their hair was disheveled, and their bodies were naked. Daiyu thought that they were monsters at first, but when she went in, she realized that they were women.
Among them, there was a pregnant woman. Her lower body was covered in blood, and there were a few pieces of what looked like rags under her body. She was constantly moaning, as if she was in labor.
She was an unmarried woman and had never seen such a scene. She was stunned for a moment.
Among the female soldiers behind her, there was a big sister who was a head taller than Daiyu. She angrily cursed something in her native language, then rolled up her sleeves and went forward. She asked her sisters to borrow outer garments and put them on the women. She also asked them to look for clean cloth to cushion the pregnant women.
Seeing the mess in front of her, Daiyu was stunned for a moment. When she came back to her senses, the tip of her nose was sweating. She hurriedly took off the outermost layer of her skirt and said, "Big sister, I was hiding at the foot of the mountain before and did not participate in the attack. My clothes are clean."
The leading female soldier did not hesitate. She took it and thanked her. She took it and put it on the pregnant woman. Then she went out and asked the little soldier outside to find a stretcher, hot water, clean scissors, towels, and so on.
When the women were carefully carried to the open space outside, several female soldiers used clothes to surround a simple tent. There were painful screams coming from inside.
Lin Daiyu's hands and feet were cold. She was dizzy for a while. Then she calmed down and asked the women who had already put on clothes, "Who are you?"
The women looked dull. They were timid when they were led out of the horse shed. After a long time, seeing that Daiyu and the female soldiers did not raise their hands to fight, a few fragmented words floated out from their throats. Daiyu listened carefully. It was difficult to distinguish what they were saying, "Bodhisattva, bless us."
The leader was the oldest. She was in her sixties. Her hair was white. She was so old that she could hardly stand. However, she was the clearest. Her name was Ah Xiang. She could speak clearly.
Ah Xiang looked at the face of this "female Bodhisattva". She regarded her as the same existence as her mistress. She fearfully and intermittently told her. They were all mother, daughter, and sister of the same family. Their ancestors owed the Yan family a debt, so they were sold here. They were the servants of the Yan family for generations. They were responsible for some chores like taking care of the animals.
Daiyu asked why they were in the horse shed.
Ah Xiang, on the other hand, was confused. She did not seem to understand why she asked.
From Ah Xiang's mother when she was young, to Ah Xiang, to her daughter, to her granddaughter, four generations did not live in a house. Wherever they worked, they would sleep. The horse shed, the cow pen, under the eaves, and the corridor were their living quarters.
It was the same whether it was windy, rainy, snowy, or sick. However, they were not allowed to stay in the places where the masters came and went. The mistress despised them for being dirty and would punish and chase them away.
Ah Xiang's mother gave birth to her in the cow pen and died soon after.
When Ah Xiang was three years old, she replaced her mother to work for the Yan family. When she was fourteen, she gave birth to her daughter in the horse shed.
Her daughter gave birth to her granddaughter in the pig pen.
Now, her granddaughter gave birth.
Lin Daiyu's pen trembled. She drew an ink mark on the register. She asked them, "Where is the husband?"
Ah Xiang said, "There is no husband." When it was time for them to give birth, the Yan family would occasionally mate with other men who were as poor as them.
When they got pregnant, those men went back to work.
As she spoke, Ah Xiang's toothless mouth opened. She actually smiled. She said that when she was young, that man would give her a flower he picked from the field.
That was the only warmth on her wrinkled face until now.
Seeing her smile, Daiyu, who was originally very pained and angry, felt a little relieved. She asked, "Do you know where they went?" If these women were willing, they could ask Mr. Shou to find them and make them husband and wife.
Ah Xiang thought for a moment, but showed a fearful expression. She pointed to the ground.
.....
Shou Yulou saw that they had brought back a few ragged, weather-beaten women. Hearing Lin Daiyu's low voice, she said with red eyes, "I remember. These people have no surnames. They are the slaves of the Yan family. "
These women came late. They were arranged to be in front of the female family members. They happened to be close to the young ladies.
The revolutionary army did not care about the difference in the status of the captives, so they did not care.
However, the young ladies could not stand it. They screamed and hid from these women.
These women made the young ladies look even more radiant and beautiful, delicate and pitiful. Lin Daiyu's heart had always been affectionate, but at this moment, it was as hard as stone. She turned her head away and did not look at the delicate faces of the young ladies anymore.
The remaining forty-six people were found one after another.
The ten people were found in the dungeon below the magnificent building. They were tenant farmers who owed the Yan family rent because they were sick. Their bodies had swelled up from soaking in the water dungeon.
There was also a servant girl, who the Yan family's servants had confessed that she had been beaten by the master yesterday and had hanged herself.
There were also a few servants of the Yan family who hid in the warehouse. During the search, there was a pleasant surprise. They found the secret underground warehouse of the Yan family. It was different from the thin and weak bodies of the farmers outside the Yan family. The warehouse was full of food, and some of it was even moldy.
However, the remaining thirty people were nowhere to be found.
The master of the Yan family said, "Who knows what happened to the poor people in the village?" There were some who owed debts and were fed to the dogs or starved to death in their own homes.
Lin Daiyu was silent the whole time. When she spoke, she was almost gritting her teeth. "Don't look for them."
Shou Yulou and the others looked at her in surprise.
She closed her eyes and pointed to the ground.
Most of the people in the volunteer army were from poor families and had been in the military for many years. They immediately understood when they saw her action. Some of the experienced businessmen from the Blue Silk school also understood. Only some of the young businessmen from the Chamber of Commerce were confused.
When twenty to thirty skeletons were dug out from the ground, there was an uproar. Lin Daiyu closed her eyes and did not dare to look at them with a pale face.
The soldiers of the volunteer army told their allies in the Chamber of Commerce that this was a reserved project of many rich people and landlords — burying them alive. Many people from the clans and villages who dared to take the lead in resisting them were buried alive and suffocated to death. Before they died, their eyes protruded and were bloodshot. Their faces turned purple. This was one of the most painful ways to die.
The young Blue Silk students were stunned.
After the number of skeletons was checked, they basically gathered the people. All of the Yan family's assets and the number of people. It was also clear.
In the Chamber of Commerce, the young people from the Blue Silk school who were participating in the volunteer army for the first time were already gritting their teeth and muttering, "Gold is full, silver is full, and it's all piles of flesh and blood."
Shou Yulou passed down the order to put up a notice. From tomorrow onwards, the land would be cleaned up. Suddenly, someone reported that Ding Shihao was here.
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