Da Tang: Father, can I resign?

Chapter 125 Li Ming is crazy, he wants to create a new Tang Dynasty

In the ruins of Zhangjia Village, the Red Turban Army dug out several more living people.

They were like zombies, wrapped in great fear and grief, completely numb and could only tremble with their arms folded.

"Grandma!"

Aunt Wu rushed to a huge "black charcoal" that was almost unrecognizable as a human being, and cried heartbreakingly.

After crying for a long time, she stood up resolutely.

Just then, a cold voice sounded from behind.

"You go alone to die, don't take others with you."

I...Auntie Wu was choked.

After a while, she squeezed out a few words from between her teeth:
"Murong Yan killed my family and my comrades! Could it be that I..."

"I will help you get revenge, provided you listen to me." Li Ming's tone seemed to have a special magic.

A small child, amidst a pile of charred corpses, was surprisingly calm.

This scene made Aunt Wu shudder.

But deep in my heart, a glimmer of hope inexplicably arises.

There was something wrong with this child; she had sensed it since the first time they met.

But, what does it matter?

As long as, as long as...

"I……"

But Li Ming didn't wait for the shy Aunt Wu to respond. He walked away on his own and went among the stupid bandits, doing ideological work one by one.

"Follow me and beat Murong!"

"You all have been ruined by Murong, don't you want revenge?"

"Don't lose heart, you will win."

When everyone is confused, there is one person who can stand up and take the initiative to take the responsibility.

This gave this group of bandits, who were on the verge of collapse, a backbone.

Even though he's just a child.

But the bandits who roam outside the law are actually the most materialistic people.

Just speak based on your ability.

No matter who it is, as long as he can lead everyone, he is the leader.

And Li Ming has already proved his ability.

They can carry loads, cure illnesses and save lives, and also get food.

What more could a group of bandits who were cornered could ask for?
"Okay, we'll listen to you." The bandits clasped their fists towards Li Ming, as if they were recognizing their new master.

Li Ming looked at Aunt Wu: "What about you?"

Aunt Wu nodded and said nothing.

It is meaningless to cling to the airs of being the "leader's daughter" or trying to seize the dominant position in this desperate situation.

Quite the contrary, now that Murong Yan has completely joined forces with the provincial government, this fragmented "rebel army" is on the verge of collapse.

The so-called "leader" is just a hot potato that no one dares to take over.

If the child wants it, he can take it.

"It's good enough if my sister can nod."

Li Ming smiled at her playfully and turned to the surviving villagers of Zhangjia Village.

"You guys, do you want revenge? Do you want to pee in Murong Yan's skull?"

The villagers looked at him in amazement.

"If you want, just follow me and you'll have food to eat."

After saying that, he turned around and walked out of the village.

One, two, all the living people present followed his footsteps unconsciously.

…………

After hastily burying the dead, Li Ming led the remaining bandits and the remaining Zhang villagers and plunged deep into the Yanshan Mountains.

Zhangjia Village could no longer be used as a stronghold because the government troops had already figured out the location and could easily be ambushed.

No one spoke along the way.

Everyone felt extremely heavy in their hearts and was extremely confused about the future.

Li Ming took the initiative to break the silence and talked to Aunt Wu:

“Are there any other villages in the mountains?”

Aunt Wu nodded and said nothing.

"Are there any villages where the gap between the rich and the poor is particularly large?" Li Ming asked.

There was finally a hint of life in Aunt Wu's dull expression, it was confusion.

She obviously couldn't understand what the words "rich-poor gap" meant.

"Well, that is to say..." Li Ming thought for a while:

"In a village, there is only one person who is very fat and wears very nice clothes, while everyone else is very poor."

Aunt Wu understood now and nodded briefly:

"Wuli Township."

Li Ming snapped his fingers:
"That's where we'll go."

Aunt Wu shook her head, her voice filled with resentment:

"We were stationed in that township before, but were later driven out by the township head."

Li Ming was confident: "No problem, I will give them an irresistible price."

Aunt Wu was very confused:
"Wuli Township is right on the edge of the mountain, closer to the official road and the county town than Zhangjia Village. Isn't it dangerous?"

"It's not dangerous. That's Murong Yan's blind spot." Li Ming analyzed:

“From the other side’s perspective, after launching a fatal attack on the Red Scarf bandits, what would the remaining bandits do?
"It's nothing more than a desperate counterattack or escaping into the mountains.

"We chose a third way between the two, focusing on the unexpected."

This does not answer Aunt Wu's question at all:
"Aren't you afraid that the villagers will betray us?"

Li Ming's mouth curled up: "Don't be afraid."

Aunt Wu didn't know where the child's confidence came from.

But she still led the team to the place.

Because he is the leader.

As Aunt Wu said, the geographical conditions of Wuli Township are better than those of Zhangjia Village.

The slope is gentle, with farmland everywhere, and even vegetables are planted in the gaps between the hills.

Moreover, the population and scale here are much larger than the natural villages in the mountains.

This is a township formed by the merger of five villages.

However, the houses here are similar to those in Zhangjia Village and are dilapidated.

On the Feng Shui treasure land halfway up the mountain, there is a courtyard rising from the ground, which is out of tune with the surrounding low houses.

"Tsk, why are you here again?"

The village chief, with a big belly, was very disdainful of this group of defeated soldiers.

Looking at his expression, Li Ming finally understood why Aunt Wu thought of Wuli Township first.

The whole village is skin and bones, except for the village chief who is fat and plump.

She even wore brocade silk, which was rare even in Pingzhou.

The village chief sensed the child's cunning look and was ready to report to the police.

But when he saw this group of bandits with donkeys carrying large bags of food, he had another idea -

Eat them up first, then report to the authorities.

"Mr. Murong just sent me a letter. Report any intelligence you have about the Red Turban bandits to him."

The village chief's eyes were squeezed into two slits by his fat flesh, revealing a cunning light: "Sheltering bandits is a serious crime. If you want me to shut up, you should know what to do, right?"

He made the gesture of a copper coin.

I will take advantage of you all and then give Murong Yan some face. Hahahaha... the village chief was calculating happily.

"Of course, of course we know what to do."

Li Ming nodded and made a gesture of wiping his neck to the bandit:
"kill him."

"Varied……"

The village chief didn't have time to say anything before his thick neck was stabbed through.

The bandits are here to take advantage of the situation!
The villagers scattered like birds and beasts.

It is impossible to risk one's life to avenge the village chief.

They just want to keep their little fortune.

Li Ming climbed to a higher place and shouted to the villagers who were in a mess:

"Don't be afraid, I won't hurt you."

The villagers ignored him.

"I'll give you some land!"

These two words seem to have a special magic.

Everyone fell silent, looking at this mini bandit with half belief and half doubt.

Li Ming let out a long breath, and the corners of his mouth slowly curled up:
"The land that the village chief has taken from you will be distributed to everyone. The wealth he has plundered will also be returned to you."

…………

Aunt Wu felt like she was dreaming.

Suddenly, the Red Turban Army quickly occupied an entire township.

The population and arable land far exceed those of a village deep in the mountains.

There are even oxen for plowing.

Before that, the Red Turban Army couldn’t even take a break here!

After killing the village chief, the new leader stabilized the situation with just six words:
Hit local tyrants and divide fields.

It's simply magic.

How did he know that the village chief had embezzled most of the village’s land?
How did he know that the villagers dared not speak out against the village head’s wrongdoings?

The bandits who have been wandering around in these mountains for most of their lives don’t know this!

In the past, because we were afraid of causing trouble, we foolishly cooperated with these village heads and landlords!
"Brother Ming, what should we do next?"

The four little ones gathered together to discuss countermeasures.

Li Ming put forward his thoughts:

"If we want to break out of Murong Yan's encirclement and connect with Yingzhou, we need to accumulate strength and manage our existing territory."

The three nodded, indicating that there was no problem.

"So, let's divide the land here equally and restore the equal-field system in Wuli Township," Chang Sun Yan suggested.

He was indignant at the village chief's wanton annexation of land.

At the same time, he was very confused.

Why is it that land annexation is the norm wherever one goes, while the equal-field system is hardly ever implemented?

It seems that the equal-field system only exists in legal documents.

"I...have another idea." Li Ming said slowly:

“Land annexation is the norm. Even if the land is divided equally among the people, it will eventually be concentrated in the hands of a few.

“When large households annex land, they conceal their population, as happened in Pingzhou, and the government cannot collect taxes.

"With insufficient tax sources and financial collapse, dynasties will periodically perish."

The three little ones said that what Ming Ge said made sense, but at the same time they felt that it seemed a bit far-fetched from their current situation.

"I want to do a social experiment." Li Ming touched his chin.

“The land in Wuli Township is in our hands. Farmers can cultivate the land but cannot buy or sell it.

"Ten households formed a group, and each group was given a working ox and iron farm tools.

"Of the farmers' harvest, 30% is used as rent and tax. If farm tools or oxen are damaged, the whole group will compensate according to the price. If the oxen give birth or the farm tools are repaired, we will buy them back at the original price.

"How about this arrangement?"

"Sure, sure." Fang Yize and Yuchi Xunyu agreed without even thinking about it.

However, Chang Sunyan vaguely felt that Brother Ming’s idea seemed... a little wild.

The equal-field system and the rent-and-labor system, the cornerstones of the Tang Dynasty, were all kicked away by him.

The poll tax that had been in place for thousands of years was also abandoned and replaced by a tax based on harvest.

Isn't this starting from scratch?
They have land and people, and now they have their own political power.

The direction of the script is a bit weird.

Isn't this a smaller version of Wagangzhai? !
"Ming...Brother Ming." Chang Sun Yan felt extremely uneasy.

Why did Your Highness rebel?

Li Ming looked at him steadily and said:
"You've seen a lot of the chaos in Pingzhou along the way, right?"

Chang Sunyan was stunned and nodded.

"Who do you think is the culprit?"

"Isn't this... Murong Yan?"

"It's my father."

Chang Sun Yan couldn't help but take a deep breath.

Li Ming said slowly:
"Murong Yan's tyranny and extortion were based on his private army, and a large portion of the wealth he plundered was also used to support his private army.

"Why did the court allow him to raise private soldiers?"

Chang Sunyan answered intermittently:

"To defend against foreign enemies?"

"That's right." Li Ming nodded:
"So, to a certain extent, Murong Yan's various perverse actions are actually taking the blame for the Tang Dynasty."

The imperial court should have been responsible for levying heavy taxes and maintaining a large army of tens of thousands of people to guard the border.

Now, the conflict has shifted to Murong Yan, who is attracting the people's anger.

Everyone in Pingzhou was cursing Murong Yan. Even the mountain bandits targeted Murong Yan, and the government became invisible.

But who would have thought that the root cause of everything was actually the imperial court?

"Father's political manipulation is really great." Li Ming couldn't help but smile bitterly:
"But such inaction has brought suffering to the people, and also to you and me."

Chang Sunyan was speechless for a moment.

Li Ming's expression became serious:

"Since I am in charge of Liaodong, I must fundamentally change the chaos in this place, bring this place back under governance, and allow the people to live like human beings again.

"Do you still think this is a rebellion?"

This time, Chang Sunyan shook his head firmly:
"Brother Ming, just give your orders."

Li Ming let out a long breath:
"Okay, you three will be busy in the coming days.

"Fang Yize, you are the best at mathematics and are in charge of finance and land surveying.

"Yuchi Xunyu, you and your grandfather have studied the art of war and are responsible for training the local militia.

"Chang Sunyan, you are my secretary general, responsible for the transmission and implementation of government orders."

The three children were immediately full of energy:

"Yes!"

"And the most important point." Li Ming said:

“In the process of governing Wuli Township, we should keep our eyes open, discover talents in grassroots governance, and absorb them.”

The three of them looked at each other and nodded heavily:
"it is good!"

(End of this chapter)