A dozen local wealthy gentry were sitting in a row, all looking flattering.
Li Qing also had a friendly face and looked like he was easy to talk to.
Seeing this situation, the wealthy gentry no longer hesitated and offered numerous gifts, almost all of which were priceless.
Li Qing did not refuse anyone who came and accepted all the orders. The wealthy gentleman was even more happy when he saw this.
After eating and drinking, Li Qing stood up and said: "The Emperor attaches great importance to the Weaving Bureau, and I hope that you will cooperate fully to stop production from now on. The imperial court will purchase your looms, silkworms, and workers at market prices;
Also, you should change the mulberry fields into rice fields as soon as possible. Of course, if you find it troublesome, you can transfer most of the mulberry fields to the court, which is better."
Li Qing looked upright: "It's all for the imperial court and the Ming Dynasty. I hope you all will cooperate fully!"
After a pause, his tone became cold, "If anyone is stubborn and stubborn, don't blame me for being unkind."
The wealthy gentry were stunned and couldn't even believe their ears.
Taking money to do things has been done since ancient times.
Even the kidnappers knew how to collect ransom to release people, but they really didn't expect that Imperial Envoy Li would turn so ruthlessly.
Li Qing didn't give them a chance to argue, so he ordered the accompanying Jin Yiwei to take their belongings and leave.
——
In the living room.
The wealthy gentry all looked ugly and angry. They accepted money but did nothing. This was the first time they had seen such people.
A wealthy gentleman was so angry that he slapped the table and said angrily: "It's too much to bully someone, Lao Wang, or we can kill him."
"Absolutely not."
Wang Lin's head was as big as an ox's. He was also very angry at Li Qing, but he was relatively sober.
He really couldn't bear the consequences of killing the imperial envoy, so he advised: "Calm down, everyone, if he has any good intentions, none of us will be able to live well, otherwise we should just obey him!"
"Follow him?" Mr. Liu said angrily, "How much money will I lose in a year?"
"That's right." Another rich gentry agreed, saying in a bad tone, "Old Wang, have you discussed with the imperial envoy to kill us?"
"Old Wang, your Wang family is the biggest gentry here. If we can't get better, you won't be able to get better either."
"Old Wang, who are you with? I'm so worried. I'll tell you all the things you did."
…
The rich gentry were angry, and blocking their way to wealth would cost them their lives. These people were used to being domineering, and they often did things that violated the law. They could get money to settle the matter every time, and they didn't take the laws of the Ming Dynasty into consideration at all.
"Killing an official is tantamount to rebellion!" Wang Lin said angrily, "If you dare to touch him, your house will be confiscated!"
"It's funny." A rich man was dissatisfied, "Who among you sitting here has never been a high official in your ancestors?
I remember that my old man once killed an imperial envoy without any trouble, but in the end he became a high official. As long as the money is in place, what can be done?"
"That's right. If this imperial envoy doesn't come in, let the imperial court send another one. If he doesn't obey, he will be killed. There will always be someone who obeys."
"Old Wang, do you want to do it?"
"I won't do it!" Wang Lin shouted, "This is no longer the Song Dynasty, this is the Ming Dynasty... Oops, what a fool!"
Wang Lin was so angry that he was dizzy, "You damn people...are seeking death!"
"You have to do it even if you don't want to." Mr. Liu sneered, "I will remember all the nasty things you did for me in exchange for my money."
"That's right. When we were making money, Lao Wang, you took the lion's share. How can it be so easy to get away with nothing now?" Another wealthy gentleman agreed, "I can't let you take advantage of all the good things."
Wang Lin was so angry that his liver ached, but his butt was dirty and he didn't dare to show his face, so he could only persuade him: "You're going to lose your head, do you understand?"
"What are you afraid of? The court doesn't know it was us. As long as we keep it secret, that's all."
"That's right, Lao Wang, you are a prefect after all, why are you so timid?"
Wang Lin nodded helplessly, "Okay, you can figure it out. I'll pay for all the expenses afterwards."
After a pause, he said, "If nothing can be done to stop it, I will make up for one-fifth of your losses. If it succeeds, I will compensate you for the bribe. How about that?"
The wealthy gentry pondered for a moment and nodded in agreement.
When Wang Lin saw this, he breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Okay, then you do it and I will avoid suspicion."
…
After Li Qing listened to the report from Jinyi Baihu, he thought for a moment, wrote a letter, and then sealed it with a drop of fire paint.
"It's urgent to send someone to the capital for eight hundred miles. In my name, I'll ask the Emperor's Minister of Household Affairs to inform the Censor of the Metropolitan Procuratorate and the Marquis of Xincheng, Zhang Fu, to come over."
"Shang Shu?" Baihu took it blankly, "Why don't you inform the commander immediately?"
"It's not necessary for the time being." Li Qing said lightly, "Tell your people to be more strict with their mouths. If this news is leaked..."
He waved the golden token and said, "This imperial envoy has the power of life and death!"
Baihu's heart trembled, and he raised his hand and said yes, "I'll go and make arrangements right now."
"Well, let's go." Li Qing leaned back on the recliner with a smile on his lips.
It was easy to confiscate the house, but he didn't have the energy to deal with the follow-up matters. His task was to build the Weaving Bureau, and the confiscation of the house was just an unexpected surprise.
The reason why people from so many departments were called was to prevent anyone from lining their pockets.
Moreover, he looked at the newly promoted commander of the Jinyi Guards, and he didn't look like a good person. He was worried about letting him take the lead in ransacking the house alone.
The Secretary of the Ministry of Household Affairs handles practical matters, supervises and records the affairs, and the Yushi supervises, plus the fat father-in-law, so that mistakes can be avoided.
He had a hunch that the wealth confiscated from the house this time would definitely be quite astonishing.
The urgent needs of the national treasury are expected to be alleviated.
Li Qing didn't feel burdened. Most of the money of these wealthy gentry was taken from the common people. Moreover, judging from the reports of Jin Yiwei, they often committed evil and did not deserve sympathy.
"Everything is ready, all we need is the east wind!" Li Qing stretched his body and changed into a more comfortable position, feeling contented.
…………
Seven days later, midnight.
After the three girls went to bed, Li Qing meditated and practiced, staying vigilant, as he had been doing these days.
With a high degree of concentration, his hearing was extremely sharp, and he could clearly hear even the soft sound of the breeze blowing through the leaves.
"Shashasha..."
A sound that sounded like leaves or footsteps came, and Li Qing slowly opened his eyes.
Li Qing didn't light a lamp, put on his dark robe and walked out of the wing quietly.
Just like the time in Hongwu's fifteenth year, there was no moon tonight and it was pitch black. Li Qing came to the courtyard first and waited for the killer to come.
Tonight was perfect for assassination, and he knew that a big fish would definitely come to his door.
Sure enough, in just a quarter of an hour, he vaguely saw a blurry black figure climbing over the wall and walking softly.
Seeing that everyone had entered the courtyard, Li Qing no longer hesitated, became angry and shouted: "Here comes someone!"
There were twenty Jinyi guards patrolling outside the Imperial Envoy's Courtyard in two shifts. Upon hearing Li Qing's summons, ten Jinyi guards on the night shift rushed in with lights on.
When they saw a masked man sneaking in, everyone was shocked.
"Protect your lord!"
The seven killers suddenly looked confused. After being stunned for a short time, they immediately took action.
Unexpectedly, they did not escape, but swarmed towards Li Qing.
"Whoosh whoosh whoosh...!"
A guard with quick eyesight and quick hands released the short crossbow in his sleeve in time. The two killers were unable to dodge and were hit by several arrows and fell to the ground.
At the same time, the remaining five assassins also arrived in front of Li Qing.
The sharp blade met the weak light of the lantern, and the cold air was so strong that Li Qing could even see the blue blade clearly.
This was obviously a professional killer. The dagger was quenched with a poison that could seal his throat with blood. If an ordinary person was stabbed, he would not be killed but could still be poisoned.
Unfortunately, they met Li Qing.
Li Qing arrived first and punched the man before the dagger was stabbed, hitting the man's chin accurately.
"Crack--!"
The sound of broken bones was heard, and soon, the sound of painful wails spread throughout the yard.
Li Qing struck quickly and accurately, not giving the killer any chance to react. After he succeeded in one blow, he immediately struck again at the remaining people.
"Bang bang bang..."
In just a few seconds, these killers were all put down, with looks of horror on their faces, and then Jin Yiwei's sword was placed on their necks.
Li Qing clapped his hands, "Who sent you here?"
The leader snorted coldly: "Grandpa is in trouble today. If you want to kill him or chop him into pieces, please stop talking."
Li Qing said calmly, "If you tell me your employer, I will give you a lighter sentence."
"Everything you talk about here is just a word of faith." The killer was very serious, "taking people's money to eliminate disasters for others, this is the rule in Taoism."
Li Qing's face heated up when he heard the words 'take people's money and help them eliminate disasters', then he stepped forward and rewarded each of them with a big mouth.
"It's quite tough to talk, but it doesn't matter." Li Qing said with a smile, "You will talk about it soon."
He calculated the time and estimated that Xia Yuanji, Zhang Fu and the others should be arriving soon, so he said, "Let Ji Gang come to see me."
…
More than half an hour later, Ji Gang, who learned the news, hurried over and breathed a sigh of relief after seeing that Li Qing was fine.
He cupped his fists and said, "What are your orders, Lord Marquis?"
Li Qing took out a list and said, "Catch the people on it."
Ji Gang nodded and asked: "What should I do if I'm caught? Should I kill him or...?"
"Take it to the government office. I will personally resolve the case." Li Qing said, "Also, surround the homes of these rich gentry."
"Hey, okay." Ji Gang licked his lips and asked, "Aren't you going to confiscate their house?"
"The emperor has sent officials to search the house." Li Qing said, "They will arrive soon. In order to avoid suspicion, I also ask the commander to not step into the rich gentry's house to avoid being impeached."
Ji Gang was stunned, and nodded with an ugly face, "What are you talking about, Lord Marquis? Is this official like that?"
Li Qing said with a smile, "I naturally trust commanders who have violated discipline, but you have to avoid suspicion. You don't want to be picked on by civil servants, right?"
"I..." Ji Gang said in a muffled voice, "Thank you, Lord Marquis, for your concern."
"No thanks, go and arrest people!" Li Qing said, "Only arrest the people on the list. The matter has not yet been determined. The method should be gentler. Just arrest the people."
"clear!"
…
They arrested people early in the morning, and Xia Yuanji and his party arrived at noon.
After it was confirmed that the house could be searched, Xia Yuanji flew up happily.