Chapter 274: Centripetal Force Led by the Xie Family
After Xie Yuchuan offered sacrifices on behalf of Han Qiguang, Han Qiguang's mental state remained excited until the afternoon.
The work that the convicts needed to do today was no different from that of the day before. After breakfast in the morning, the escorting officials counted the work that needed to be completed today again, and then distributed it to groups of five to ten people at a minimum, and ten to twenty people at a maximum.
There are big and small jobs, dirty and tiring jobs, and easy jobs.
The Xie family doesn't care about the size of the job. With Xiong Jiushan's mindset, Xie Yuchuan feels that the easy jobs will not be left to the Xie family.
The heavy work is very hard in the cold winter.
Even the villagers in Wulibao were too lazy to reinforce the fortress in such a climate and the cold wind. When they encountered a group of convicts being forced to work by the officials, the villagers were still quite happy.
I really hope they can stay a little longer and finish all the hard work in the fort, so that they won’t have to suffer when spring comes next year.
The idea was all good, but soon the people in the fort received news from the manager of the Tian family one after another.
"I heard that the bandits from Qinglong Village are going down the mountain?"
"Who knows if it's true or not? They're making threats all over the city every day. The wanted posters at the government office are like a toy, useless."
The villagers were notified and started to get busy, no matter whether it was true or false. They ate and drank from the Tian family's food, and the master was worried, so they did whatever they were asked to do.
They reinforced the outer walls, lit the boiling stove, increased patrols near the granary, went up the mountain to cut wood and went down the mountain to sharpen arrows...all of a sudden, everyone inside and outside started moving.
The Tian family's actions were on the verge of death. As a court official, Xiong Jiushan watched the Tian family's actions and endured it again and again. He still asked his subordinate Cheng Ye to call the other party over.
Ever since the Tian family drove back from the city, Tian Su'e had already discussed with her family that if things didn't go well in the city this winter, they would retreat to the fort and spend the winter there.
The eldest master of the Tian family was still in the city, and the second master of the Tian family came back with the accountant to discuss with Tian Su'e.
He chatted till the middle of the night and fell asleep because he felt too tired. When he woke up, he found something strange in the fort. Then he believed the news brought back by the servants. His eldest niece had really invited a group of soldiers and convicts to live in the fort.
Master Tian Er had lived for most of his life and had never thought of such an idea.
I was very nervous. "We are just ordinary people. It's not easy to fool the soldiers to come and stay. I hope it will be difficult to send them away after inviting them."
Tian Su'e said calmly, "The escorting officers and soldiers are different from the others."
"He is also a man in official attire. We never associate too closely with officials."
"Second Uncle, in today's world, it's not easy for us ordinary people to make enemies with bandits. The government has the right to do so, and it's the government's responsibility to eliminate evil. Lord Xiong and his men don't care about local affairs, and the county government won't blame them. They are in charge of the fort, and they will always have to consider it. We just have to pay a little more for carriages, horses, money and food. The masters have both money and money, so we can also borrow some of their help to avoid disaster. The fort is peaceful, the Tian family is peaceful, and the counters are stable. When big brother and his men come back, we will have both people and goods, and our Tian family will have the capital to spend."
Master Tian Er asked, "Are we also responsible for the food and lodging of these prisoners in the fort?"
"It's just some porridge and wild vegetables. I think it's worth it to exchange a small amount for a big one." Tian Su'e didn't think that this little bit of food would be a big burden to the Tian family, not to mention that they were not going to stay for long.
Master Tian Er looked out the window and pointed at a group of convicts being forced to work by the police. "Since we've given them rations, why are you still letting them do this?"
Tian Su'e said calmly, "That's what Lord Xiong and the others meant. They're probably worried that the prisoners might cause trouble if they have nothing to do."
"Working in exchange for food is not bad." The second master of the Tian family suddenly felt that his family was not at a loss.
Tian Su'e did not express any opinion, but thought to herself that if this happened, she would not have the nerve to pay less for food when the team set off one day.
As Master Tian Er watched, he discovered something interesting.
"Among those exiles, there are some who stand out from the crowd."
Tian Su'e lowered her head to check the account book with the old shopkeeper Tian Qing. When she heard what her second uncle said, a surname flashed through her mind.
Tian Qing looked up at her and said, "If you have any ideas, I'll let you know."
She did have some ideas, but… "Let's see."
"What are you looking at?" Master Tian Er heard the noise and turned around to look at him with his hands behind his back.
Tian Su'e put down her brush and looked up, saying, "Among those fugitives, there are the descendants of the Xie family that were rumored before."
"Which Xie family?"
"The one in Beijing."
Master Tian Er suddenly realized, "That Xie family!"
"Yeah, that Xie family."
Master Tian Er was in a good mood. He talked about how his smart and decisive niece was suddenly willing to take in a group of fugitives that others were afraid to avoid in the family fortress.
It turns out that the drunkard's real intention is not to drink.
Master Tian Er, who had misunderstood for a moment, looked at Tian Su'e again, and I don't know how many filters he added to his eyes that he had created in his mind.
Only the shopkeeper Tian who was beside Tian Su'e knew that this was purely a coincidence. The eldest lady's original intention was really to use the power of the "government" to fight against the unscrupulous bandits in Qinglongzhai.
Disturbing the people is a small matter, disturbing officials is a big matter.
His master is eager to help Boss Wan make a big deal out of this. If the matter gets out of hand, it will not just be a personal grudge. If the personal grudge cannot be resolved, he will just add fuel to the fire and make it bigger. It will become so big that the government will be eager to get rid of it as soon as possible, and the Tian family will have no chance of survival.
If you can't beat the tiger, lure another wild tiger into the mountains.
This was a risky move, so Tian Su'e hadn't dared to ask the Yucheng government for help. The magistrate in the yamen couldn't even protect himself, let alone help the Tian family. However, there was always a way out, and the vast escort team passed by Wulibao.
She calculated the time in between, and used the tiger's skin and the banner to intimidate Wanlichun day by day.
But unfortunately, something unexpected happened.
Tian Su'e didn't expect that among this group of fugitives, there was actually someone carrying extremely sweet sugar with him.
Tian Su'e has been influenced by the sugar and tea business for generations since she was a child. From the samples brought back by Tian Qing, she intuitively felt that the opportunity to change the fate of the Tian family might be hidden in that bag of sugar.
A woman's natural intuition makes her cautious before big events.
She had an uncertain premonition that this bag of candy was like bait to the Tian family. She didn't know what price the other party hoped the Tian family would pay.
A moment's hesitation and the day is gone.
Under the close watch of the officials, the convicts helped to build fortifications in the fortress. With yesterday's experience, more people volunteered to help the Xie family today.
Xie Yuchuan never refuses anyone, and the Xie family is willing to pay anyone who is willing to help.
Many people gritted their teeth and quickly finished their work, and then saved some energy to come to the Xie family to "ask for work". The remuneration varied from person to person, and the Xie family did not provide much money, food, cloth and medicine, but they could afford it.
Among all the fugitives who came here, the Xie family was the "richest" family except the Chai family.
Old Madam Xie did not say anything and let Xie Yuchuan do it. The Xie family did not hide their care for him.
Many people, because of the job of helping, invisibly moved closer to the Xie family.
"In this way, with more exchanges, the general's words will surely be more powerful." Zhang Dayi said when he saw this trend.
Xie Yuchuan's eyes were calm.
"Xiong Jiushan may not be happy to see this happen."
Han Qiguang said jokingly, "This is different now, that is different now. He is very conflicted now."
Several people smiled at each other.
A few snowflakes suddenly fell.
Everyone looked up and saw it was snowing again!
Xie Yuchuan looked up, and heard the voice of the family god:
"Will you show me the moon tonight?"
A hint of warmth appeared in the deep black eyes.
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