Chapter 785 Who is the enemy and who is the friend?
The Sheep Tripe Alley behind Yangzhou Chaoguan is winding and intricate, just like sheep intestines.
If you are not a local, you will never dare to come here.
It's easy to walk in, but hard to get out.
The first store at the intersection of Yangdu Lane is known to everyone.
On this day, it was raining heavily, the dirt roads in the alleys were muddy, and sewage flowed across the streets. No one would go out unless there was something urgent.
There was a knock on the broken wooden door, which made the people inside the house a little dissatisfied.
"Who is it?"
The firewood door was opened from the inside, and a tall man steadied himself and looked at the intruder warily.
Outside the courtyard gate, a handsome young man held an umbrella. Although his trousers and shoe uppers had long been soaked in mud, he looked calm and composed, like a fairy in a painting.
Behind the young man, a dozen tough warriors had already spread out to prevent anyone from getting close.
"Dare I ask if it's Brother Shi who is the Tiger at the Pier?"
"Who are you……"
The strong man was a little nervous, and instinctively felt that these people seemed to have a good background.
The young man smiled slightly.
"Brother Shi, since you are eating pier food, how will you eat this bowl of rice in the future? I am here to ask."
Shi Dake's heart was beating like thunder, with a hint of panic at the same time.
"The dock gang has always had the final say. You have found the wrong person."
The young man was not surprised.
"What if the trough gang disappears?"
Shi Dake felt as if he had been struck by lightning, and was dumbfounded, as if he had seen a god.
"Young people don't know how powerful the sky is. Do you know how powerful the Cao Gang is? Those people are ruthless and kill without batting an eye. Anyone who dares to offend them will be ruined. Don't try to harm me."
The young man put away his umbrella and walked into the yard from Shi Dake's side.
Shi Dake instinctively blocked it, but in vain.
He rubbed his eyes and couldn't figure out how this young man got in.
The young man turned his back on guests and took the initiative to sit down at the main table, just in time to see the food on the table.
There was less than half a bowl of brown rice left and a plate of stewed wild vegetables. There was no smell of oil or meat.
Shi Dake's mother-in-law was sitting on the other side of the table holding a half-year-old child, too frightened to move.
Shi Dake jumped back into the house to protect his wife and children.
"who are you?"
The young man pointed to the stool next to him and motioned for him to sit down.
"It doesn't matter who I am, what's important is that such a hard life... hasn't Brother Shi had enough?"
Seeing the young man's playful eyes looking at the crude and simple meals, Shi Dake couldn't help but feel short of breath.
"This is how people who make a living at the dock live."
"But this is wrong."
The young man spoke slowly, but with an undeniable toughness.
"You people have been in the wind and rain all day long, working hard and sweating, but you don't even have enough to eat. Are you willing to do that?"
Shi Dake gritted his teeth.
"This has been the rule on the dock for hundreds of years, what can we do?"
The young man chuckled.
"Is it because of the Cao Gang? The Cao Gang is greedy and takes all the benefits, so you can only suffer from hunger and your children can't even study."
What he said is true.
Shi Dake lowered his head, unable to refute, but he did not dare to express the bitterness in his heart.
"Brother Shi, I'm not afraid to tell you that I'm from Shandong. The Cao Gang teamed up with merchants to disrupt the market and cut off transportation. You deserve to die. You coolies have been oppressed by the Cao Gang. If you want to live a good life, please give me a happy word. If so,
After the gang is finished, you can come out and work hard. From now on, the rules on the dock have changed."
Hearing that Shandong was going to deal with the Cao Gang, Shi Dake's heart was beating fast and uncontrollable joy oozed from his bones.
"The Cao Gang has more people and more power, so it's not easy to deal with them."
The young man threw his head back and laughed.
"Can a mere Jianghu gang be able to outnumber an army?"
When he said this, Shi Dake finally understood.
That day the new army entered the city, and he secretly went to see it.
He had never seen such a mighty and majestic army in his life.
No matter how powerful the trough gang is, they are nothing more than a mob.
Is it really going to be all bittersweet?
"What should we do?"
The young man did not expect much from him.
"Among the coolies at the dock, Brother Shi is highly respected and respected by everyone. To deal with the Cao Gang, you don't need to risk your help. All you need is that after the Cao Gang is destroyed, Brother Shi can gather all the coolies to restore the smooth flow of the canal."
Hearing this, Shi Dake couldn't help but let go of his worries.
If the young man asked him to follow him to deal with the gang, he would not dare.
After all, under the power of the Cao Gang these years, these unarmed coolies still dare not take action.
But after they lost the gang, they no longer had to worry about working hard.
"Your life is too hard. When the trough gang is over, new rules will be implemented on the dock. In short, we are all human beings and we have to live our lives."
Shi Dake's eyes filled with tears and he nodded heavily. When he didn't raise his eyes easily, he faintly noticed the sky to the east...
It’s sunny!
Taizhou is an important salt-producing place in the Huaihe River Basin.
People here are all dealing with salt.
Therefore, next to the salt farm, as far as the eye can see, there are all dilapidated and low wooden sheds.
All the salt workers live here.
When you get up early and go out, you can go to work. After a hard day's work, you will get a meager income. You can barely make ends meet, and there is no more.
Looking at this dilapidated scene, Chen Jie was deeply touched.
At the beginning, he was just like these people, living a life that was worse than death, with no hope at all.
Later, Cheng Xiaoer took Mayor Fu to the door in person, which also brought new life to Qingdao's salt workers.
Today, he is the general manager of Shandong Salt Industry Company.
After receiving Zuo Menggeng's transfer order, Chen Jie came over at night to prepare for taking over the Lianghuai Salt Farm.
The last stop is Taizhou.
"The Ji family is so powerful that they can cover the sky with only one hand here. Anyone who dares to resist will be beaten to death, and the government will not pursue him."
The impoverished salt workers soon opened their hearts when faced with Chen Jie, who came from the same background.
Who in this world doesn’t want to live a good life?
Who wants to go hungry?
But they are afraid.
What are you afraid of?
I'm afraid of those aristocratic families who monopolize the production and sales of salt.
These families are as wealthy as the rest of the country, and their power is as high as the heavens. They are known locally as local emperors.
They wanted to resist, but they didn't have enough strength.
Now enough power has come.
Chen Jie said confidently: "The Ji family will not survive tomorrow. Without the Ji family, the salt farm will be reformed and a salt industry company will be established. And you will be the first batch of employees of the company. The company will build you new houses and give you
You pay monthly. There is only one requirement, and that is to work hard and ensure the production of salt. Can you do it?"
All the salt workers looked at me and I looked at you, and they quickly came to a consensus.
"As long as the Ji family is finished, we will all listen to Manager Chen."
Seeing the sun emerging from the dark clouds, the bright sunshine filled the earth.
In the endless salt field, the white salt flowers are more dazzling than silver under the reflection of the sun.