A series of questions left Wang Dali speechless once again.
Lu Yinxi was right. Under normal circumstances, the location of the government granary was rarely known to ordinary people, let alone a peasant like him. If it hadn't been for the natural disaster in Yangxian, Wang Dali's name might have always been associated with the yellow earth, and then, as time went by, turned into an insignificant grain of sand in the long river of history.
But there were no ifs in this world. The natural disaster in Yangxian was a fact, and Wang Dali would always be involved with this place, whether in a positive or negative light.
"Not willing to talk?"
The blade of the knife playfully tapped Wang Dali's cheek. Lu Yinxi's insults became more and more obvious, causing Fang Qinhu and Lu Hu to can't help but look sideways. They probably never expected that the Fourth Miss could be so... bold.
On the contrary, Shang Luoshu remained very calm, with the corner of his mouth even slightly upturned.
"Fine. Since you're not willing to talk, I'll do it for you! The granary robbery was actually a joint plan between you and Xia Shouzheng, right?"
"Bullshit!"
Wang Dali's face instantly flushed red. He tried to get up and argue but was pushed back by Fang Qinhu. However, he didn't give in at all with his words.
"That corrupt official Xia Shouzheng doesn't even deserve to be my ally. This whole thing was clearly Lin Dazhuang and him setting me up behind my back!"
Another mention of Lin Dazhuang!
Lu Yinxi gave Shang Luoshu a look. Her expression gradually became playful, and her tone deliberately drawn out: "So there's someone named Lin Dazhuang..."
"You..."
Wang Dali immediately realized that he had been tricked into speaking. A look of humiliation flashed across his face. He wanted to resist, but after looking around at the situation, his heart gradually calmed down.
Finally, he completely gave up struggling.
"I'll tell you everything I know."
"All of us ended up in this situation because of Lin Dazhuang and Xia Shouzheng!"
A few months ago, continuous heavy rain in Yangxian had destroyed all the crops. Not only did the imperial court not show any understanding, but it also suddenly increased the tax. Those who couldn't pay would have to be beaten with fifty boards.
For farmers who relied on the weather for a living, this was undoubtedly a death sentence.
So, the heroic Wang Dali decided to lead the villagers to the prefectural office to seek an explanation. Somehow, the news spread, and in the end, over a hundred people gathered.
Wang Dali, who had been dealing with the yellow earth for more than twenty years, thought that they could have an equal negotiation with Prefect Xia on the same platform.
Little did he know that in the end, they didn't even get to see Xia Shouzheng, and several of their villagers were injured by the yamen runners. This action was like pouring a bucket of oil on the already burning fire in the villagers' hearts!
It was at this moment that Lin Dazhuang appeared.
Don't be fooled by his honest - sounding name. In fact, he was a slippery and untrustworthy person. On normal days, Wang Dali wouldn't even give him the time of day.
But that day, his anger had burned away his rationality. After being provoked by Lin Dazhuang's words, he led everyone to rob the granary. Then they encountered the city's defenders and retreated outside the North City Gate.
Several villagers in the prison were captured at this time.
At this point, Wang Dali's voice stopped, and his face showed a bit of hesitation. Lu Yinxi took this opportunity to press on, not giving him any chance to relax.
"You haven't finished your story, right? You haven't told me how Lin Dazhuang and Xia Shouzheng set you up behind your back."
This was a memory that Wang Dali was reluctant to mention. He closed his eyes and endured for a moment, then spoke again.
"During that granary robbery, we stole a lot of grain. At that time, Pingqiang was in a similar situation, and Yangxian was far from other counties and towns. So..."
"So you thought that Yangxian would fall into a temporary food shortage, and you could use this to threaten Xia Shouzheng?"
Shang Luoshu took over the conversation. Wang Dali nodded slightly. "At that time, everyone guarded the grain very tightly and was extra vigilant towards suspicious people..."
It was also at this time that Wang Dali noticed the suspicious Lin Dazhuang.
After hesitating for a moment, he carefully followed him and then saw him meeting with the yamen people and revealing the location of one of their grain storage places.
Finally, he saw him lying in a pool of blood...
To be honest, it was impossible for Wang Dali not to be afraid when he saw Lin Dazhuang die in front of him. But then he also realized that Lin Dazhuang and that corrupt official Xia Shouzheng were in the same group!
He had fallen into a trap!
Once he thought along this line of thought, some abnormal things during the granary robbery became normal!
For example, the defenders who came to stop them were well - trained, but they still let a group of country bumpkins escape. Now it seemed that it was on purpose!
"But it seems that the people following you don't know the relationship between Lin Dazhuang and Xia Shouzheng?"
Lu Yinxi raised a question. Otherwise, the middle - aged woman wouldn't have had that attitude when she mentioned Lin Dazhuang's name.
"Because I didn't tell them. If they knew the truth, would they still stay with me outside the city and persevere?"
Wang Dali made sense. If the villagers knew that the granary robbery was a scheme by the government, with their hatred for Xia Shouzheng, they would probably rush into the city and fight him immediately.
So, as their leader, Wang Dali chose to keep it a secret. He even didn't allow the name Lin Dazhuang to be mentioned, not knowing that he was just a complete pawn.
If it weren't for Xia Shouzheng's intentional indulgence and promotion, this group of people might have been wiped out long ago!
At this point, Wang Dali's story was completely told.
He seemed to still be immersed in his emotions and looked dejected. Then he heard Lu Yinxi's sneer.
"So, even at this moment, you still naively think that as long as you don't compromise and keep fighting, Xia Shouzheng will reduce your taxes and release the captives?"
Lu Yinxi could see that Wang Dali had courage but no strategy. He had been led around by others throughout and had a kind of naivety deep in his bones.
Sure enough, he was very suitable to be a pawn!
Guangling, Jiangnan
Apart from Pingqiang, this was the closest place to Yangxian. Most of the refugees who fled from Yangxian or Pingqiang would pass through here.
As a result, rumors about the natural disasters in Yangxian and Pingqiang, the exploitation by the local prefects, and the imperial court's indifference and disregard for life gradually spread in this area and even showed a trend of intensifying.
Guangling was located downstream of the mother river of the Great Qi. The local people had personally experienced the tragedy of the mother river breaking its banks and destroying their homes a few years ago. So they could empathize most with the experiences of the people in Yangxian.
When they went through that back then, the current emperor had not yet taken power. It was the Regent King who sent people to rescue them, and then reduced taxes and helped rebuild their homes.
Now, the emperor had already taken charge of the government, but he treated the people of Yangxian like this... If one day, Guangling was unfortunately hit by another natural disaster, would the emperor treat them the same way?
For a moment, a chill ran through the hearts of the people in Guangling.
"Sigh, if only the Regent King were the emperor!"
No one knew who started it, but soon this sentence was accepted by everyone in the area and began to spread in Guangling, and then further and further.
The Regent King's Mansion, Capital City
A white pigeon flapped its wings and flew towards Guangling with its master's letter.
There were only two words on the letter: Act!