Just when Sushun and Shengbao were stunned by the scene in front of them, several Hunanese who had come over at some point were chatting in Mandarin with a Hunan accent that these two men from Beijing could understand. It is still the content that Sushun and Shengbao are most interested in.
"Who is this Mr. Zeng? Why is he dressed like Confucius in the portrait?
"Don't you know him? He is Zeng Wenfu, the brother of Zeng Disheng, the Hunan League Training Minister!
Zeng Guofan’s brother? No wonder he looks so similar, and he doesn’t even look like a good person!
While Sushun and Shengbao despised the appearance of the Zeng family in their hearts, they turned to look at the two Hunanese who were talking.
I saw that the two of them both looked like scholars, one was tall and one was short, one was thin and the other was fat. They were wearing rather elegant gowns, holding folding fans in their hands, with some odds and ends hanging on their belts, and on their heads. They all wore hoods that were one size larger and tied with ropes around their chins. At first glance, it was obvious that they were afraid that the hoods would be blown by the wind, exposing the braids underneath.
It seems that these two people are devoted to the Qing Dynasty!
Sushun and Shengbao recognized the identities of these two people in their hearts, so they pricked up their ears and listened carefully.
The tall and thin scholar didn't seem to believe that it was Zeng Guofan's brother who came to Changsha. He asked with confusion on his face: "Zeng Disheng's brother? Is it true?"
The short and fat scholar nodded and said with certainty: "Of course it is true. Doesn't Brother Tan know that his younger brother is from Xiangxiang? My elder brother just came to Changsha from Xiangxiang County to sell rice, and he happens to be in the same class as Mr. Zeng San. Along the way, I followed Master Zeng San's fleet. I saw things over there in Xiangxiang very clearly.
The tall and thin scholar asked in confusion: "If Zeng Disheng is not the minister of the Hunan Youth League, what is his brother doing in Changsha?"
The short and fat scholar said, "Don't you know this? Zeng Disheng is a descendant of Zengzi, and his family has practiced Confucianism for generations. What do you think those who have practiced Confucianism for generations after Zengzi should do most in today's world?"
The tall and thin scholar said seriously: "Aren't you loyal to the emperor and patriotic?"
Sushun and Shengbao felt the same way, and their eyes on the tall and thin scholar became much friendly.
The short fat man shook his head and said: "No, Zengzi was the orphan of Confucius and one of the five great saints of Confucianism. After Zengzi, who was born today and has a province of regiment training, shouldn't the most important thing he should do is to restore his clothes and crown? Do you want to perform Zhou rites?"
Replace your clothes and perform Zhou rituals?
Sushun and Shengbao were shocked when they heard this
Does Zeng Guofan really want to rebel?
The tall and thin scholar said: "Repairing the clothes... Oh, it looks almost like Confucius in the portrait! It is indeed something that should be done. But how do you do this Zhou etiquette?"
The short fat man sighed, with a sad look on his face: "Alas...
The tall and thin scholar asked: "Brother, why are you sighing?"
The short and fat scholar said: "How can you not sigh? The Zeng family has already implemented the well-field system in Xiangxiang County!"
The tall and thin scholar asked: "The well-field system? What is the well-field system?"
The short and fat scholar said: "The well field system means that a well is divided into nine equal parts, one for the public and eight for the people."
"I know this!" said the tall and thin scholar, "Is the Zeng family still planning to ask farmers in Xiangxiang to cultivate public land?
The fat scholar waved his hand: "Hey, of course that's impossible. The so-called well fields are actually equal fields!"
"Juntian?" The tall and thin scholar's expression changed, "Isn't this the same as the Taiping Army?"
"Alas," the fat scholar sighed again, "That's not true!"
He went on to say: "The public land of the Zeng family is converted into tax grain, but it is not one-ninth, but fifteen percent per hundred. It is an iron-clad tax, with no fire consumption, no loss of color, and no need to send it to the county seat. Now there are well fields around Hetang Township, so taxes and grains can be paid directly to Hetang Township."
"Isn't this the same as the Taiping Army's territory?" said the tall and thin scholar, "If I remember correctly, the Zeng family is also a big land owner, right? If they do this, what will happen to their own fields?" The fat scholar sighed: " Of course they should be divided together! As Zeng Disheng said, if you want to merge the fields, please start from the land of the Zeng family!"
"What?" The tall and thin scholar was shocked, "Is Zeng Disheng crazy? In order to regain his clothes and perform Zhou rites, he even gave up his own land?" "It's not that he is crazy..." said the fat man, "but that Zeng Disheng knows that in today's world, one cannot live in peace unless he travels to the mine fields."
"How do you say this?" The tall and thin scholar looked puzzled.
The fat scholar sighed and replied: "Zeng Disheng said that the root cause of today's great chaos is that there are too many people and not enough land... The eighteen provinces of Han Dynasty only have one hundred million acres of land to support forty million people. The people have long since ceased to worry not about scarcity but about inequality. Instead, the poor will starve to death sooner or later. Only equal land can keep them alive! If there are tens of millions of people in the world who will starve to death sooner or later, how many of them will die of hunger and black heart? If you are unwilling to live in peace and prosperity...then the world will be in chaos!"
"This, this, this." The tall and thin scholar shook his head repeatedly, and for a moment he didn't know what to say. Sushun and Shengbao, on the other hand, turned pale and their lips trembled slightly.
Zeng Guofan made his words so clear, it seems that he has decided against him!
Before the two of them could recover from the shock, the blockade of the intersection had ended.
Seeing that the two of them were still standing there like two logs, Fatty Wu hurriedly stepped forward and said: "You two, you two, don't be in a daze...you can go!" Sushun and Shengbao came out of their shock. , followed Fatty Wu and continued to the Angel Mansion.
The street outside Angel Mansion is full of beggars, all old and weak, few young and strong... These are probably not wanted by the Taiping Army. Even those who are strong in body and weak in heart have gone to rebel! There are several porridge shops on the street. Factory, now is the time to put out porridge, and the beggars are all lining up to eat porridge - in fact, they are slowly starving to death!
The shops on both sides of the street are still depressed, most of them are closed, and only a few shops selling firewood, rice, oil and salt are doing good business.
There were many more Taiping soldiers patrolling the streets than in other places, and they all looked quite strong. When patrolling the streets, they were lined up in a straight line, and every soldier's movements of shaking hands and raising feet looked... They are neat and uniform, and at first glance they appear to be in excellent spirits. None of the facade Luan Yiwei in Beijing can compare with them.
Fatty Wu led his men and drove the pigs and sheep to a side door of Angel Mansion. He took out a document and handed it to the guard guard. A Taiping soldier who looked like a small leader took the document and glanced at it without asking Wu. If the fat man wanted a door package, he would wave his hand and let him drive the pigs and sheep through the door.
Fatty Wu waved to his subordinates, Sushun, and Shengbao, and then they drove the animals through the door together.
Just inside the door is a large courtyard. There are a lot of firewood piled in the courtyard, and there are also about ten large trucks carrying vegetables and rice. A female battalion officer of the Taiping Army seemed to have been notified by his subordinates, and took several female soldiers with him. Smiling Yingying came out of a room that seemed to be a kitchen.
The female battalion officer was pretty pretty, with a plain face, and a particularly graceful figure. She was quite familiar with Fatty Wu. She chatted a few words with Fatty Wu in Hunan dialect, while her men ordered pork and goat. After counting the number, he reported it to the female officer in Hakka, which even Sushun and Shengbao could not understand.
The female officer smiled and said to Fatty Wu in Hunan Mandarin: "Boss Wu, come with me to the accounting room to get some money!"
Fatty Wu thanked him with a smile on his face, but he did not give a single tael of silver as a thank you gift - Fatty Wu had told Sushun and Shengbao earlier that the Taiping Army of the Angel Mansion in Changsha City was very disciplined and would accept bribes. It cannot be said that such behavior does not exist, but it is also extremely rare.
Sushun and Shengbao didn't believe it before, but now they have seen it with their own eyes. This Taiping Heavenly Kingdom also has the meaning of a new dynasty and a new atmosphere.
Fatty Wu, Sushun, and Shengbao all pretended to be Fatty Wu's master and cashier, and followed him to settle the bill, so they could follow the female officer through the Angel Mansion.
The Angel's Mansion was the original governor's yamen, and it occupies a huge area! However, the security inside the mansion is also quite tight. If I hadn't followed the female officer, I would have been able to win, and Su Shun would have been unable to move even a single step.
Shengbao and Sushun followed for a while, and suddenly arrived outside the lobby of Angel Mansion. Some kind of ceremony seemed to be being held here. There were many male and female Taiping Army officials in red scarves and red robes. Only a man in a hood and blue robe stood at the lobby door. Outside, facing the crowd, Shengbao took a solemn look at the man. All he saw was an evil face with hanging eyebrows, triangular eyes, and high cheekbones. It was none other than Zeng Guohua.
Zeng Guohua held an unfolded scroll in his hand, as if he was about to read some article.
At this time, the female officer stopped outside a private room next to the lobby. The door of the private room was closed, and there seemed to be no one inside. It seemed that she had been waiting for a while.
Chapter completed!