They had a great harvest in the county, but they had bad luck on the way back. On the way, Su Ze and his party encountered a "beating" team escorting grain to Fuzhou Prefecture.
The team was huge, with more than fifty people in total, all of them young and strong men. The escorted grain trucks were fully loaded, and a flag embroidered with a gold-rimmed fist logo was clustered in the middle. There were also hanging banners under the flag.
The word "Weiyuan" should be the name of the business.
A gang is a gang of thugs gathered by a group of scoundrels from the market. It is similar to Xiong Wu's Luohan Jiao, and both belong to civil society.
However, compared to the Arhats who are always busy helping out, the business is more stable. Their main task is to escort and escort, which is similar to the escort agencies of the Qing Dynasty in later generations.
Lin Xianyang pulled Su Ze, pointed at the banner of "Weiyuan Fighting" and said:
"Don't get too close. These iron fists are just like gangsters when they leave the city. Don't let them snatch the donkey away."
Su Ze saw that the scattered pedestrians around him had indeed kept their distance from the horse-drawn carriages. The reputation of this group of people was really bad.
Su Ze asked doubtfully: "They have such a bad reputation, who would dare to hand over things to them for escort?"
Lin Xianyang said: "These 'iron fists' are very discerning. These grain merchants in the county are much more shady than them. How dare they take away their grain."
"The iron fist is just for ordinary people."
Well, a bunch of guys who bully the weak and fear the strong.
However, with such a group of gangsters clearing the way in front, the people behind are much safer. Nowadays, there are pirates everywhere. It was just good luck that we didn't encounter bandits when we came here, but it's not necessarily the case on the way back.
The other people traveling together had the same idea. They neither dared to get too close to the traveling convoy nor too far away from them. They just hung on not too far or too close.
But soon, there was a noise in the front, and Lin Liangjun, the lively little carrot, immediately jumped up, fearing that the world would not be in chaos and said:
"What happened? Did we encounter Japanese pirates!?"
Su Ze quickly pressed his mouth. As soon as the word "Japanese pirate" came out, everyone around him retreated in horror. Su Ze quickly said: "Children's words are unbridled, children's words are unbridled!"
Su Ze glared at Lin Liangjun and said, "Go back and tell your brother if you keep talking nonsense!"
However, Su Ze still asked Lin Xianyang to pick up the weapons hidden in the donkey cart and prepare to run away.
At this moment, two soldiers wearing Ming Dynasty uniforms rushed over on horseback and shouted to everyone:
"According to the order of the commander, set up a trap to detect the Japanese!"
Su Ze noticed that the faces of the people around him were even uglier than when they met Japanese pirates. Su Ze looked at Lin Xianyang who was crying and couldn't help but ask:
"Brother Xianyang, what happened to the officers and soldiers setting up a trap to check the Japanese pirates?"
Lin Xianyang waited until the two Ming soldiers left on horseback, and then said: "You can still run away when you encounter Japanese pirates, but you can't even run away when you encounter officers and soldiers."
Lin Xianyang pointed to the bayonet in front and said: "This is the bayonet of Yanping Health. They are collecting 'Japanese donations'. They want more money than the bandits who blocked the road. They sent supplies to our Changning Guard last time."
They robbed 30% of the supplies of the general manager’s motorcade and took them away.”
Su Ze said in surprise: "The officers and soldiers also robbed?"
Lin Xianyang nodded and said: "The commander of the Yanping Guard is a hereditary third-grade military attaché, who is older than the Yanping prefect. This lawsuit will never win."
Su Ze was also speechless. The command post of the same government was specialized in blocking roads and robberies, and even robbed the logistical supplies of friendly forces.
The Ming Dynasty's army has deteriorated to this point. It's no wonder that the Japanese pirate rebellion has been going on for so long.
Lin Xianyang said depressedly: "I only have two coins left with me. If they rob the donkey, Brother Aze must not resist. If the beast is gone, you can buy it again. If you are accused of treason with the Japanese by this gang of bandits, then
But it will delay your future."
Su Ze secretly thought that it was no wonder that the Japanese pirates in the southeast had not been put down for a long time. Not to mention the businessmen who pretended to be Japanese pirates and profited from them, even these local officials and soldiers had made a lot of benefits from the Japanese pirates.
The conflict between Daxing and Yanpingwei at the front ended with Daxing surrendering.
When the traveling convoy passed the checkpoint, the officers and soldiers on horseback began to drive away the scattered travelers who had fallen behind. Su Ze and his party were also driven to the checkpoint.
This was not the first time that the Yanping Guards had robbed him. The checkpoint was specially set up on the official road by the river. By the time travelers saw it, there was no way around it.
The bayonet is a temporary camp set up against the river bank. It is quite organized in front and back. There is an open area behind the bayonet, which is surrounded by wooden stakes. Those who refuse to pay tolls are imprisoned and whipped here.
Insults can also intimidate travelers at the rear who refuse to pay.
Su Ze was even more speechless. If he had the intention to fight the Japanese pirates, he would use all the military techniques passed down by the Yanping Wei family to rob.
Next to the bayonet, a young man wearing brocade clothes and a helmet with a Ming army tassel and flag was drinking tea while being served by two soldiers.
Su Ze saw a small businessman in front of him. Because he couldn't pay the toll of five cents, all his goods were taken away by the officers and soldiers, and he was dragged to the execution grounds and insulted.
Even Lin Liangjun, who was fearless, hugged Su Ze's sleeves.
It was soon the turn of Su Ze and his party. Lin Xianyang saw that this group of officers and soldiers had a huge appetite and would rob anything even if they didn't have five coins, so he was ready to give it a go.
Su Ze clenched his fists, looked around, and activated the "bribery" skill!
The young man who was being served by the officers and soldiers was the leader of this group of people who blocked the road and robbed the officers and soldiers. This donkey was the most important asset of Jiu Gu's family and must not be robbed.
Finally it was the turn of Su Ze and his group. Two officers and soldiers came forward. Su Ze immediately shouted:
"I am in a hurry and have little money on me, so I am willing to exchange things for donations."
Hearing that Su Ze was so well-behaved, the two soldiers laughed and prepared to lead the donkey.
However, Su Ze grabbed the reins and said, "It's not a trade-off."
"If there is anything else valuable, please take it out quickly."
"I want to donate to your leader in person."
The two soldiers were a little impatient, but seeing that Su Ze was dressed like a scholar, they didn't dare to make too much of a mistake, so they said:
"That's our young commander. The rest of you stay here and you go there alone."
Su Ze stood up straight and walked to the young man.
This young man is dressed in a nondescript manner. His helmet with a small flag is a battlefield helmet worn by senior generals, but it obviously does not fit the size of the young man's head.
And the attire he wore was not that of a military general, and the young man looked like he had a weak kidney, so he didn't look like a general in the army at first glance.
In the Ming Dynasty, commanders were the highest rank among hereditary military attachés. Although military preparations were exhausted in the middle of the Ming Dynasty, senior military attachés who wanted hereditary positions had to go to the capital to apply for assessment, and the emperor would personally receive them. This young man obviously could not inherit a military position.
The cold reading skill in the "Fortune Telling" skill was activated, and Su Ze quickly guessed the identity of this young man. He was the son of the current commander of the Yanping Guard, but the kind of son who had no inheritance rights.
When the young man saw Su Ze dressed as a scholar, he said in a joking tone: "If you want to offset the donation, what can you give in exchange for the donation?"
Su Ze took a breath and said: "I will use a hexagram to offset the donation, what do you think, Commander-in-Chief?"