Chapter 237: 235. Wretched Beast

Guangxin was a large prefecture, with its administrative seat at Shangrao County and six subordinate counties: Yushan, Yongfeng, Yanshan, Xing'an, Yiyang, and Guixi.

Prefect Xie Lijing did not sit idly in the prefectural seat but led the local militia out to take the initiative.

Along the way he ordered county magistrates and gentry to raise troops, but the militia recruited by day would slip away secretly by night. After the militia barely exceeded a thousand, word of the rebels arrived and they instantly scattered, leaving only a few hundred again.

Atop the walls of Yiyang.

Xie Lijing looked at the rebels outside the city, then at the few dozen militiamen left beside him. These few dozen militiamen were all he had to use; the runners of Yiyang County had all fled, the county magistrate had probably slipped back to his hometown, and no one at all was willing to stay and defend the city with the prefect.

"Open the gates and surrender."

Xie Lijing's choice was remarkably strange: he had a few militiamen open the city gates, led the others himself to keep order, and at the same time had the county yamen's treasury and documents guarded.

When Xiao Zongxian led his troops into the city and learned that the Yiyang county magistrate had fled and the Guangxin prefect was in charge here, he immediately came to pay his respects: "Many thanks, venerable sir, for keeping order and protecting the county yamen!"

Xie Lijing, however, said: "I eat the sovereign's grain and serve the sovereign's cause; I will not join the rebels. Kill me or bind me, as you please."

"I will neither kill you nor bind you. You are a good official," Xiao Zongxian said.

Xie Lijing answered with a cold laugh and said no more.

Xiao Zongxian was somewhat embarrassed. He ordered the man properly looked after, then went to attend to official business.

Three days later, Xiao Zongxian received word and only then learned that Xie Lijing was already resolved to die, having taken neither a drop of water nor a grain of rice in those three days.

Xiao Zongxian hurried over at once, only to find the other man gaunt and haggard. He sighed: "Venerable sir, why bring this suffering upon yourself?"

Xie Lijing did not speak.

Xiao Zongxian said angrily: "If you refuse to eat again, once I take the prefectural seat, I will assuredly unleash a massacre."

Xie Lijing finally made a sound, his voice hoarse: "You won't."

"Obstinate and unenlightened," Xiao Zongxian barked an order. "Men! Force-feed him gruel. Once he's full, gag his mouth, bind his hands and feet, do not let him take his own life, and send him back to Ji'an to be dealt with by the Regional Commander!"

"You whelp, you dare... mmph..."

Starved for three days, Xie Lijing had little strength left. Two soldiers pinned him down and his mouth was forced open.

Cold gruel was forced down his throat; some sprayed from his mouth, some choked out through his nostrils, his face and neck everywhere covered with gruel-water and grains of rice.

Xiao Zongxian could not be bothered with him any longer. Before the New Year, he had to occupy the entire Guangxin Prefecture — this was a dead order issued by the Military Affairs Court.

Leaving a small number of grain-transport auxiliary troops to garrison Yiyang, Xiao Zongxian immediately divided his forces. He led the main force east, taking Xing'an and Shangrao — the Guangxin prefectural seat — along the way, then dividing his troops again to take Yushan and Yongfeng. He also dispatched a flanking force to occupy Yanshan.

Xing'an County originally belonged to the territory of Yiyang County. During the Jiajing years, because it abounded in porcelain production, it was established as a separate county.

One can well imagine how well its porcelain sold.

The kilns here were collectively called the Hengfeng kilns; during the Republican period they simply changed the county's name, directly naming it Hengfeng County after the kilns.

Taking Guangxin Prefecture would raise Zhao Han's fiscal revenues to another level.

Xing'an County abounded in porcelain, and the counties that followed — Shangrao, Yushan, Yongfeng, Yanshan — all had thriving papermaking industries.

In terms of market scale alone, during the mid-Ming, the papermaking workshops of Yanshan, Yongfeng, and Shangrao counties combined numbered only one-fifth of those in Yushan County.

By the late Ming, however, Yanshan County had overtaken them from behind and was already showing signs of surpassing Yushan County.

Why did this happen?

Because the civil officials and eunuchs were wreaking havoc, breeding a great swarm of parasites, and causing the imperial court to be unable to collect taxes normally.

Including the Fei clan's papermaking workshops, all of these belonged to "private workshops," which the authorities could manipulate at will. The official workshops, aside from the government paper mills established by the court, also involved the issuing of other official-workshop licenses.

Only by bribing civil officials and currying favor with eunuchs could a merchant obtain an official-workshop license; such merchants were commonly called "contract brokers."

Once they had the papermaking license issued by the authorities, they did not make paper themselves. Instead, they took orders from the court and various local government offices, forcibly purchasing paper from private paper mills — often on credit and at suppressed prices — hoarding paper and manipulating the market.

The private paper mills of Shangrao and Yushan counties suffered the worst, being driven into mass bankruptcy. Yanshan County, being farther away, instead saw its papermaking industry flourish as a result.

By the late Ming, however, the tentacles of the "contract brokers" had reached Yanshan, and the paper merchants of Yanshan were also tormented beyond endurance.

The previous Guangxin prefect, Zhang Yinggao, had precisely because he submitted a memorial calling for the abolition of this practice that he won the strong support of the gentry across several counties and was able to recruit and train several thousand militiamen.

After Zhang Yinggao was defeated and took his own life, the "contract brokers" sprang back to life, and now no one could control them!

Zhao Han was thoroughly clear on the situation here and had therefore given instructions long before.

After Xiao Zongxian took the prefectural seat, he immediately launched a massive roundup of the "contract brokers," confiscating the entire family properties of these bloodsuckers who squatted atop the merchants.

This act won universal acclaim. In the four counties of Shangrao, Yushan, Yongfeng, and Yanshan, every paper merchant became a diehard supporter of Zhao Han.

Immediately after, Xiao Zongxian promulgated a decree: henceforth, when the authorities purchased paper, "contract brokers" would no longer be appointed; each household need only reserve a portion to sell to the authorities.

These paper merchants truly did not lack those few orders from the authorities, because orders from Jiangnan alone already made Guangxin paper unable to meet demand.

As the New Year approached, the paper merchants of the four counties gathered in Guangxin Prefecture — among them many Fei-clan merchants — and actually presented Xiao Zongxian with a Myriad People's Umbrella.

At the same time, these merchants cooperated hand in hand with the land redistribution.

The counties of Guangxin Prefecture all had more mountains than fields; grain income counted for nothing. So long as Zhao Han did not recklessly disrupt the papermaking industry and even helped them wipe out the "contract brokers," these merchants would gladly donate all their landholdings.

As for the many tea plantations, Zhao Han had already formulated a policy: distribute the land for free, distribute the tea plants for a fee.

Each tea plant was valued at a set amount of silver, with the authorities putting up the money to buy them. After the land was distributed to the tea farmers and tenant farmers, the tea farmers and tenant farmers would pay in annual installments, slowly repaying this money to the authorities.

Landlords forced to give up their tea plantations would automatically receive tea-trading licenses and enjoy tax concessions for ten years.

…

Henglin, the Fei clan ancestral residence.

Hu Dinggui did not continue as constable of Nanchang County. After the army expanded, he was now able to command five hundred troops.

Bringing his flanking force to Yanshan, Hu Dinggui did not attack the county seat but went straight to the Fei clan ancestral residence to make trouble.

"Old Master, terrible news! The rebels have surrounded our family estate!"

Fei Yuanzhen had been awake for half a month, terrified and dazed the whole time, convinced he could not escape this calamity.

He had guessed right.

In every town, one household of evil gentry had to be selected for property confiscation, to vent the peasants' grievances.

Here in Hekou Town, Zhao Han had personally designated Fei Yuanzhen's household! As for the other Fei clan branches, there were too many people — just divide the family property, and beyond the land redistribution, no further trouble was permitted.

Fei Yuanzhen had a household slave tie a rope around him and said: "Only when I am dead will that Zhao fellow let the Fei clan go."

The household slave had meant to dissuade him, but hearing these words, he immediately helped fasten the rope and roughly hoisted Fei Yuanzhen onto the stool.

Fei Yuanzhen, trembling and tottering, placed his neck against the rope.

Suddenly old tears streamed down his face — he truly feared death, he had not yet lived enough. Standing on the stool, he hesitated a long while, unable to harden his heart, always feeling he might yet wait and see how things turned out.

His trusted household slave, however, could wait no longer, for the rebels had already broken through the gate. He simply stretched out a foot and kicked the stool away.

"Bang!"

The stool toppled over. Fei Yuanzhen successfully hanged himself, his two legs thrashing and kicking without cease.

Once Fei Yuanzhen stirred no more, the trusted household slave suddenly wailed in grief: "The Old Master has hanged himself! The Old Master has hanged himself! Wuwuwuwu... Old Master, how could you be so driven to despair!"

Hu Dinggui led his troops charging in. Seeing the corpse still gently swaying, he curled his lip and said: "Everyone residing in this compound — seize all the masters for public trial. The household slaves are to be screened: any who committed crimes will all face public trial; those who committed no crimes may receive land!"

The Goose Lake Fei residence.

Fei Yuanyi, hearing that Fei Yuanzhen's household had been confiscated and that Fei Yuanzhen himself was dead, was instantly terrified into icy numbness and hid in the inner quarters, not daring to come out and face anyone.

The second and third sons of this family — that is, Fei Yinghuan's two younger brothers — were, however, dancing and gesticulating with joy.

Haha, they could divide the family property now.

It did not matter that the land had been seized; the Goose Lake Fei clan still owned many commercial shops, and at the foot of the mountain there were several paper-making workshops.

When the peasant association personnel arrived, the two brothers welcomed them warmly. They even brought out their wives and children, knelt facing westward outside the gate, and shouted: "Long live Mr. Zhao! Long live Brother Han!" Then they stood up and said, "Gentlemen of the peasant association, let us first divide the family and split the property. The fields won't run away — they can be divided any time!"

At this very moment, Fei Yinghuan had already departed early. He was going to Ji'an Prefecture to spend the New Year with his wife.

Otherwise, Fei Yinghuan would surely have been so furious he would have beaten his two younger brothers.

Fei Yuanyi had been hiding in the inner quarters, but upon hearing of this, he immediately seized his walking stick and charged out: "I'll beat you two unfilial sons to death!"

The second son, Fei Yingqi, hastily dodged away and ran to hide over by the peasant association.

The third son, Fei Yingke, however, was unafraid and even argued confidently: "Father, do not be like this. Dividing great clans and splitting property is a rule laid down by Mr. Zhao. Mr. Zhao is your grandson-in-law — how can Father take the lead in disobeying his orders?"

Fei Yingqi also chimed in: "Third Brother speaks the utmost truth. Brother Han is a man destined to become Emperor. His undertakings have their own order and method, and we should all follow that order and method in our actions. Brother Han has said that great clans must divide and split their property — does Father intend to rebel against Brother Han?"

Fei Yingke then said to the peasant association personnel: "Gentlemen of the peasant association, please come inside first. I will immediately take you to tally the family assets."

"Yes, yes, gentlemen of the peasant association, please do come in!" Fei Yingqi was also brimming with enthusiasm, regarding the peasant association as the Buddha or Bodhisattva who had come to save them.

If the family did not divide, although the property nominally belonged to everyone, Fei Yinghuan decided everything. The two of them were merely kept like small fry.

Fei Yingqi's eyes darted about. Suddenly he sprinted into the residence, shouting all along the way: "Brother Han has become the King of Jiangxi and is giving land to all household slaves under Heaven! From now on you are free men, no longer serving as servants to anyone. Come out quickly and receive your land!"

Fei Yingke also rushed into his own inner quarters and told his wife to release the household slaves at once. They now fervently supported Zhao Han's policies.

The peasant association members looked at one another in dismay. They already knew that this was the home of General Zhao the Second, and also the maiden home of the Lady. It was just that, well, this family was truly... beyond words.

"Wicked beasts! Wicked beasts!"

Fei Yuanyi, leaning on his walking stick, cursed furiously, then bent his knees and knelt upon the ground, wailing and sobbing as he invoked his ancestors.

(End of Chapter)