Chapter 82 Freedom
Anyway, when the news spread throughout Yanzhou, Li Zhoumu was much more active this time. He ran to the Zheng family to discuss and said directly to the head of the Zheng family:
"He is a useless man and very crazy. If you continue to make trouble like this, it will become a thorn in his side.
He doesn't care about his life, and he takes three thousand soldiers to fight, what will your Zheng family do?"
The Zheng family knew who they were talking about without even saying the name.
To be honest, now that things have come to this, the Zheng family also regrets it.
If I had known that the Prince of Li was so crazy and a disabled person, I would have given Chen Yunniang to him.
The situation has become so embarrassing that more than a thousand tenant farmers have been captured in the border town and forced to do hard labor like oxen and horses.
Zheng Yun, the temporary head of the Zheng family, said with great sorrow: "Is it my family that wants to cause trouble with him? My lord, go to the foot of the city wall and take a look. He actually pushed the seriously injured servant of the Zheng family directly under the foot of the city wall."
"It was clearly written that one hundred taels of silver were required to redeem one person. If the money was not paid, the person would be thrown into the Zheng family's ancestral tomb after death."
"Is this something a human would do? Now the whole city is saying that my Zheng family doesn't take the lives of our tenants seriously."
"How could he do this? My Zheng family has been in Yandi for a hundred years and has never encountered such a shameless person!"
Lizhou Mu agreed with Zheng Yun's words, but even though he agreed, the King of Li was clearly a scoundrel who didn't mind spreading his secrets to everyone.
I have made up my mind. If you have the guts, you can make trouble again! The stupid ones are afraid of the arrogant ones, and the arrogant ones are afraid of those who don't care about their lives.
He had no ties and was free from all dangers, and with three thousand soldiers under his command, the worst that could happen was a fight to the death.
But the Zheng family doesn't want to fight. They are a noble family in Yan area. Would they use a jade bottle to fight against a tile like you?
"I can negotiate with them. Just name a price and I'll go and exchange people with him."
"Just give him Chen Yunniang's indenture. She's just a lowly concubine. Why did she come back after causing such a disgrace to the family?"
Zheng Yun wanted to say that she wanted to come back to be buried with him! But she thought that Li Heng was an official appointed by the imperial court, and he turned a blind eye to the matter of burying people alive with him, but she still couldn't say it in public.
He said angrily, "The Zheng family can give Chen to him, and the Zheng family can buy back the seriously injured tenants, but he must release all the Zheng family members he has detained."
Li Heng came to the border town with Chen Yunniang's indenture contract and the Zheng family's demands. Before he went to find Jinsui, he went to the Lidawuxian restaurant to eat a bowl of fish ball soup with four spoonfuls of chili sauce.
I put down the bowl with satisfaction after eating until I was sweating profusely. I accidentally saw the salt shaker on the stove, which turned out to be filled with the best green salt.
Li Heng was surprised and said, "King Li is willing to give the green salt to your restaurant."
The chef smiled and said, "This is not given by the prince, but by our salt bearer."
Li Heng thought of Yan Shiyi and his eyebrows twitched twice. I heard that the Yan family had a falling out with the King of Li. It seems that the rumors are not credible.
After knowing Li Heng's purpose, Jinsui took over Chen Yunniang's indenture contract, gave it to Chen Yunniang in public, and announced that she was free from now on.
Chen Yunniang knelt on the ground and cried bitterly. Cheng Yu stayed beside her silently but did not comfort her.
Because Cheng Yu knew that what she needed was a good cry, to vent out years of grievances with tears.
When a baby is born, clean water is used to wash away the blood stains on its body; when a person is released from prison, willow twig water is used to wash away the dirt; when a person returns home after a long journey, mugwort water is used to wash away the unclean dust. Today, Chen Yunniang is using tears to wash away the past and regain a new life.
Many women from the Tuntian Camp gathered around Chen Yunniang, rejoicing for her and wiping tears with her.
Recently, they have been making dim sum and running a snack shop together. They are as close as sisters and are all happy that Chen Yunniang is no longer a slave.
Even Li Heng sighed in a fake tone: "After all the hardships, happiness comes. Miss Chen is still young and has a bright future ahead of her."
Jin Sui bowed and said, "Thank you, Lord Li. I accept your favor."
Li Heng hurriedly smiled and said, "I dare not, but since Your Majesty has accepted a favor from me, then listen to me and make peace with the Zheng family!"
Jin Sui nodded generously: "Okay! As long as they stop taking living people as burial companions, and buy back the injured, instead of wasting their medicine and food here, I promise not to retaliate against the Zheng family."
Li Heng smiled and said, "Of course. With your humble servant watching, no one in Yanzhou would dare to bury a living person with him."
Jin Sui smiled, neither mocking nor exposing, just squinting her eyes and looking at Li Heng.
Li Heng was frightened. With such a powerful man by his side, he could not just ignore the dirty things done to the gentry in the future.
“The Zheng family has agreed to pay for the injured, but the Zheng family tenants who have been detained by the prince are requested to be released.
It's autumn harvest time, but you detained the people, and there's no one to cultivate the Zheng family's fields!"
Jin Sui took the opportunity to say, "Of course I will release them! I am not an unreasonable person, it's just that the Zheng family came to attack the city, causing my border town to suffer heavy losses."
"Sir, please take a look at this list. As long as the Zheng family pays compensation, I will release the person."
“Speaking of autumn ploughing, I was just about to talk to Lord Li about it. My border town is also short of manpower.
I heard that there are many refugees in the nearby mountains. If there are refugees willing to come down the mountain to the border town, I am ready to take them in and open up the wasteland. I wonder if this is in accordance with the rules?"
Li Heng sneered in his heart. As far as he knew, King Li had recently taken in a lot of refugees to dig canals and reclaim wasteland, and now he was telling him about it in a hypocritical manner.
Isn't it just to use the negotiations with the Zheng family to force him to recognize the legality of the identities of those refugees?
He thought about it and said, “It is only in accordance with the rules that people stay in the prince’s fiefdom.
Just don’t run around. If you run to another place and your identity isn’t recognized, it would be so pitiful if you get caught and killed.”
Jin Sui raised his eyebrows, this meant that people could stay in the border town, but they could only be citizens of the border town, and other states and cities would still recognize their status as refugees.
Jin Sui didn't argue with him much. The so-called truth is only within the range of cannons, and now, the truth is in the hands of those with strong fists.
Now I am weak and can only submit. When I have strong soldiers and horses in the future, it will not be you who do not recognize your identity as border residents, but my border town that does not recognize you!
"Okay! Don't worry, sir. The people of Border Town are all kind-hearted and will not cause any trouble for you.
Come, take a look at this list, and let the Zheng family pay the price, and the matter will be settled."
Li Heng choked. He carried the list with him. This meant he had already planned to ask the Zheng family for compensation!
When he saw the number, he was able to accept it and did not ask for an exorbitant sum.
But when this list was passed to Zheng Yun, he started to curse:
"As expected, all eunuchs are greedy for money! One hundred thousand taels, why doesn't he just come to the Zheng family and rob them?"
Li Heng disagreed: "It was indeed you who sent people to attack the border town first. If he really sued you in front of the emperor, he could even accuse your Zheng family of rebellion."
Zheng Yun was angry and helpless. If only he had been able to unite his relatives and friends to fight King Li again.
But now that they know that King Li is a eunuch, they feel that they should not fight him any further, and it would be best to settle the matter with money.
(End of this chapter)
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