Outside the south gate of Gaoyou City, Monkey is wearing a bamboo hat and sitting in an open-air tea tent, drinking herbal tea while squinting and listening to the conversation of two businessmen next to him!
"Brother Zheng, have you heard that the city of Xuzhou was destroyed, all the rebels who occupied the city were killed, and all the people in the city were implicated... Oh, what a sin!"
"Hmph! That's what they deserve! Why should Duanduan help the rebels defend the city? It's a pity that a sugar shop I owned in the city was also destroyed!"
When the monkey heard this, a cold light flashed in his eyes.
Just as he was about to stand up, he suddenly heard someone at another table start to slap the table and said angrily: "Two businessmen, they are obviously cruel and unscrupulous Tatars who killed my Han people, how dare you ridicule me!"
The monkey followed the sound and couldn't help but secretly praise it.
The speaker is a man in linen clothes and linen shoes. He is short and strong, not angry and intimidating. There is another man sitting next to him, tall and majestic!
The businessman surnamed Zheng became furious, stood up and shouted: "What a coward, who are you? How dare you disrespect the imperial court!"
The short and stocky man picked up the chair and was about to rush over, but was grabbed by his companion next to him.
The businessman surnamed Zheng shouted: "Come here, come quickly, someone is going to rebel!"
The short and stocky man said to the burly man next to him: "Brother, if you stop me from doing anything, let me kill him!"
The burly man said: "Now is not the time, let's go!" He left the tea money and pulled the short and sturdy man away quickly.
The businessman surnamed Zheng shouted for a long time, but no one came to help him. He was angry and said to the companion: "Brother Wang, why didn't you help me just now?"
The businessman surnamed Wang squinted his eyes and said sadly: "Brother Zheng, don't worry, I didn't move just now because I recognized their origins. Let's go to the government to file a complaint, I don't think they can escape!"
The businessman surnamed Zheng asked happily: "Who are they?"
"Hehe, I don't know the short one, but the tall one's name is Zhang Jiusi. He is a salt leader in Baiju Chang. He is very famous in Baiju Chang. I heard that he is still selling smuggled salt secretly!"
The businessman surnamed Zheng was overjoyed and said bitterly: "Damn, it turns out they are two lowly salt men. Come on, brother Wang, let's go to the city and report them now!"
As soon as he stood up, a man in brown clothes came towards him and bumped into him. The businessman surnamed Zheng's pupils widened and his lips trembled, as if he wanted to say something.
The businessman surnamed Wang was startled for a moment, then saw his companion's back turning red. He was frightened and got up and ran quickly.
When passing by the monkey, his feet were suddenly shaken and he fell to the ground.
The man in brown clothes let go of the businessman surnamed Zheng. Only then did everyone see clearly that he was holding an iron rod in his hand. The man surnamed Zheng was pierced into the heart by the stick and lay on the ground with only air coming out but not in.
The crowd started screaming and running away!
The man in brown clothes walked neatly behind the businessman named Wang, and before he got up, an iron rod was inserted from the back of his neck.
The businessman named Wang trembled all over and could no longer move.
The man in brown clothes pulled out the iron rod, glanced at the monkey, and said, "Thank you for your help, righteous man!"
"Why do you want to kill them?" Monkey sat on the chair and asked with a smile.
The man in brown clothes said calmly: "I have heard of Zhang Jiusi's name a long time ago and know that he is a good man and cannot be killed by these two treacherous villains!"
The monkey raised the tea cup and praised: "What a man!"
The man in brown clothes glanced at the direction of the city gate. A group of Yuan soldiers were running towards this direction and said with a smile: "My name is Li Boxheng. I heard that Zhang Jiusi is planning something big and is going to surrender to him. Are you going?"<
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The monkey stood up, took out a money bag from each of the two businessmen, threw one to Li Boxheng, and said with a smile: "Thank you, but I already have a job!"
He untied the horse rope tied to the tea shed, got on the horse, and stretched out his hand towards Li Boxheng: "I'll give you a ride!"
Li Boxheng smiled and said: "I have my own way to escape, you don't have to worry about me!"
The monkey stopped talking and started galloping. Li Boxheng took the tea money and put it on the table, and then started running wildly. The speed was not much slower than that of a galloping horse!
When the monkey returned all the way to Jiangdu City, it was already the next night.
When he arrived outside the Oriole Garden, the monkey noticed that there was a plaque hanging outside the big house next door with the two characters "Shen Mansion" written on it. It was expected that the owner had returned to live here.
There were several large carriages parked outside the Oriole Garden, and a group of strangers were transporting baskets of cabbage from the garden and loading them into the carriages, with wild boars and others assisting them.
The monkey was overjoyed. Seeing this, the cabbage was successfully sold. When he asked the wild boar, he learned that the price was only twenty cents per catty. He frowned and felt a little disappointed.
The wild boar glanced at him and said, "The price has almost caught up with the price of grain. Why are you dissatisfied?"
The monkey said: "But Yingtao radish sells for one tael per pound, isn't it too much of a difference? Why do the village master and military advisor still grow this thing?"
The wild boar stared at Bian Ying's men transporting cabbage, and said in a low voice: "What do you know? There are more cabbages than radishes in an acre of vegetable land. This time we harvested 400 shi of cabbage, and the military advisor ordered to leave 100 shi
, sold for three hundred shi. A total of six hundred taels of silver were sold, which is one hundred taels more than Yingtao radish!"
The monkey was stunned and couldn't believe it. He ran towards the house with a gust of wind, asked where Zhang Yangquan was, went straight to the outside of the study, called out, and went in.
The Qin sisters were also in the house. The monkey didn't care about being rude and asked urgently: "Commander, did our cabbage...really sell for 600 taels of silver?"
Zhang Yangquan smiled slightly and said: "Yes."
In fact, due to the lack of chemical fertilizers and pesticides, the output of both Yingtao radish and cabbage has been greatly reduced. Cabbage is only one-third, and Yingtao radish is only one-fifth. Otherwise, it can be more profitable.
The monkey suddenly knelt on the ground and said loudly: "Master of the big village, master of the second village, military advisor, can I bring all my brothers and their family to the village?"
His brother's family lives in Zhenjiang and is struggling to make ends meet due to rising food prices. Monkey could not help him if he wanted to before, but now that he sees a bright future for the village, he is interested.
Little did he know that this request alerted both Zhang Yangquan and Qin Lingjun. The two looked at each other and thought of another way to expand the village.
"Monkey, get up, we agreed to your matter." Qin Lingjun raised her hand and said: "I asked you to go to the North to investigate the situation of the refugees this time. Will you gain anything?"
The monkey was overjoyed and said hurriedly: "Everyone has heard that Xuzhou has been captured. Zhao Junyong and Peng Da led the remaining troops to escape. The Tatars ordered the massacre of the city, and many people on Huai'an Road began to flee south!"
Qin Lingsi glanced at Zhang Yangquan and pouted: "You predicted it again!"
People in this period were used to the Mongols massacring cities, so they didn't react much. But Zhang Yangquan felt heart-wrenching and was speechless for a moment.
"Then let's do it with both hands. While asking the villagers to contact their relatives and friends to seek refuge, we will send people to take in the refugees. What do the military advisors think?" Qin Lingjun said thoughtfully.
"Yes, yes." Zhang Yangquan nodded: "Monkey, do you have any other news about Zhao Junyong and Peng Da?"
The monkey hurriedly said: "Yes, I heard that they fought a battle with the Tatars in Qingjiang!"
"Win or lose?"
The monkey grinned: "Those Tatars were originally the defenders of Shanyang. They only had about 10,000 people. They thought they could get a bargain, but they were defeated by the Red Scarf Army. The Red Scarf Army took advantage of the situation and occupied Shanyang!"
Qin Lingjun glanced at Zhang Yangquan and said, "Shanyang is not far from Gaoyou. Do you think the military advisor will attack Gaoyou Mansion?"
"No, we can't defeat it even if we attack!" Zhang Yangquan said firmly.
The massacre in Xuzhou proved that the Yuan history records were accurate. Gaoyou was Zhang Shicheng’s stage, and it was not Zhao and Peng’s turn to take over.
Qin Lingjun stood up and said: "Then I will go back to the village to make preparations. The scale has suddenly expanded to 3,000 people. There are a lot of things that need to be prepared!"
Zhang Yangquan said: "Thank you for your hard work, Master Dazhai, please be careful on the road."