Chinese martial arts! Grandmaster

Walking down the street, I smelled the blood in the air and heard the cries all around me.

to be frank,
Chen Jie was also feeling bad.

However, he had seen this kind of thing many times before, so it didn't cause him any emotional fluctuations.

Since his first encounter with refugees in Tianjin.

Then,

Having experienced war and seen more and more dead people, his heart hardened considerably.

Everyone has their own destiny, and he will not interfere with the destiny of others except in war.

Although Ximentang has occupied Hangzhou Prefecture, there are still many things to deal with in the future.

At this time,

Officials in the Hangzhou government office, knowing that Ximen Tang's army had recaptured Hangzhou, all came to the government office to pay their respects to the governor.

After the rebels occupied Hangzhou Prefecture, they did not take any action against the government officials.

The reason is simple: these officials are needed to govern Hangzhou Prefecture, and even the entire eastern Zhejiang region.

The Green Gang's uprising was not for destruction, but to occupy the entire Jiangnan region and divide it from the North.

These officials from Hangzhou Prefecture were all seasoned veterans of the bureaucracy, adept at changing their tune depending on the wind.

Now that Ximentang is in charge, they naturally know what to do next.

of course,

These were all low-level officials. The high-ranking officials of the seventh rank or above had already fled long before the Green Gang raised their flag in rebellion.

Some clerks, such as those in charge of documents, were not even ranked and were considered the lowest-ranking officials.

in fact,

According to the administrative system of the Great Qian Dynasty, it is more accurate to say that it was governed by officials rather than by bureaucrats.

Generally speaking,
Most officials of the sixth rank and above were appointed through the imperial examination system.

Only after passing the imperial examinations will the court conduct various assessments and selections.

Finally, they are appointed and become real officials.

but,

If you let these scholars govern a region, they definitely won't be able to handle it.

In this way, the people who truly governed the local areas were all officials.

The officials were very familiar with all sorts of things happening in the local area.

Therefore, it was common for officials appointed by the imperial court to be sidelined by local officials.

Never underestimate the influence of local officials. Although they may not hold high official positions, they wield considerable power in the region.

Officials were familiar with all kinds of court laws and knew how to exploit loopholes.

in addition,

They had no rank, and therefore no higher aspirations.

However, one thing is certain: the positions of officials can be inherited.

After the father retires, his children can inherit his official position.

Son follows in father's footsteps!

Actually, it originated from the official records and can be considered a welfare benefit provided by the imperial court to its officials.

Officials have no feudal status, but clerks do!
That's right, official positions are not hereditary. Even if the father is a prefect, the children cannot inherit the father's profession.

But officials can.

Some positions, such as constable, yamen runner, clerk, and registrar, can be passed down through generations.

Therefore, many officials are uneducated, lack moral values, and pursue immediate interests.

In order to amass more wealth, they often colluded with wealthy and powerful people to line their own pockets and cause harm to the local community.

The key is,
These officials did not have much of a sense of belonging to the imperial court.

Even if the Green Gang occupied Hangzhou and ruled the entire eastern Zhejiang region and even the Jiangnan area, it wouldn't have much impact on them.

In the end, no matter who is in power, they will all need to manage local affairs.

therefore,

After the Green Gang occupied Hangzhou, they changed their allegiance immediately and joined the Green Gang.

Now, with Ximen Tang defeating the Green Gang and recapturing Hangzhou Prefecture,

These clerks and some lower-ranking officials below the seventh rank began to seek refuge with Ximen Tang.

Chen Jie was well aware of these official systems of the Great Qian Dynasty.

but,

At present, these officials cannot be touched.

As for how to eliminate this problem in the future, it will take a lot of effort.

in addition,

Data on household registration and other basic administrative matters throughout Hangzhou Prefecture were very important for Ximen Hall in managing local affairs.

Therefore,
Chen Jie didn't say much, only thinking that once Ximentang had completely taken control of eastern Zhejiang, he would promote everything implemented in Shandong to other places.

for the rest of the time,

Chen Jie ordered the yamen runners guarding the Hangzhou treasury to take him to inspect the treasury's condition.

Although the rebels looted all the valuables before fleeing Hangzhou Prefecture.

but,

Many of the large items in the treasury were simply too heavy to move.

These things will belong to Ximen Hall from now on, and Chen Jie will naturally arrange for someone to take over them.

Because the Green Gang rebelled and captured Hangzhou, they looted the property of many local landlords and tycoons, including some items purchased from Westerners, all of which were stored in the government treasury.

These items were accumulated by the Green Gang over a long period of time, filling dozens of large warehouses.

When the rebel troops stationed in Hangzhou withdrew, they took everything they could.

But some things were of little use to the rebels, but very useful to Simon.

Like pig iron and other supplies, several large warehouses were filled.

A smile appeared on Chen Jie's face when he saw the supplies in the treasury.

Plunder is indeed a good way to get rich.

From his first raid on the Austro-Hungarian Empire's territory to his capture of the Western Allied Forces, he reaped considerable rewards with each move.

With this batch of pig iron, the Ximentang arsenal can be guaranteed to have no worries about production for several months.

Early the next morning,

Chen Jie ordered all citizens of Hangzhou to assemble in the square for a public trial of the rebels.

Around 10 a.m., more than 100,000 people had gathered in the square.

The vast majority of them are elderly, weak, sick, or disabled people who have experienced hardship in the past few days.

They are the families of the victims, who have been persecuted by remnants of the rebel army and troublemakers in recent days.

With the help of Ximentang, the families of these victims were able to collect the bodies of their loved ones.

Therefore,
In front of the square, rows of corpses lay.

Chen Jie had been imprisoning the troublemakers and remnants of the rebel army that he had previously captured in Hangzhou in the square.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, he wanted to hold a public trial to deter the remaining rebel forces throughout the entire eastern Zhejiang region.

The entire square was filled with people.

After entering the city, Ximentang captured the remaining rebels and troublemakers, who were all chained and made to kneel in the square.

They haven't eaten anything since last night, and they haven't even drunk any water.

At first, they didn't think it mattered.

but,

As time went on, they grew increasingly anxious, unsure of what would happen next.

of course,

Some troublemakers, clinging to a sliver of hope, thought that since they weren't rebels, even if they made a mistake these past two days, no one would notice.

not to mention,
The Great Qian Dynasty is now facing both internal and external troubles and is severely lacking in military strength.

Therefore, the vast majority of people who were captured were persuaded to surrender.

Even if Ximentang wanted to make an example of someone to intimidate the remaining rebel forces in eastern Zhejiang, he would at most deal with the rebel leaders and key members, and would never easily launch a large-scale massacre.

Some troublemakers were even thinking about how to beg Ximentang for mercy later.

At worst, I'll submit to Ximen Tang and save my own life first.

A true man stands between heaven and earth, able to bend and stretch; bowing down to the Western Gate is no big deal. However,

By the next morning, the square was filled with more and more people, and all of them were filled with hatred upon seeing them.

this moment,
Only then did all the troublemakers and remnants of the rebel army realize that something was wrong.

Damn it—

What does Ximentang want to do?
Are they planning to carry out the execution in public in the square?
hiss--!
Many troublemakers couldn't help but gasp, their bodies trembling uncontrollably.

Wow——!
As a path was cleared in the square.

Chen Jie, dressed in the uniform of the Grand Commander of Ximen Hall, walked over from outside the square with Ximen Hall's elite members.

He was accompanied by commanders such as Xue Qian and Liu Ergou, as well as his personal guard.

At the same time, there were also officials from Hangzhou Prefecture.

Upon seeing Chen Jie appear, the people who had been waiting in the square immediately responded, creating a tense atmosphere.

Many people wept openly, and some even shouted:
"My lord, please do us justice!"

"Kill these heartless bastards and avenge us!"

"These beasts must not be let off."

The scene became chaotic.

The surrounding people were crying and shouting, and the atmosphere became tense.

The remnants of the rebel army and the unruly civilians were stunned, their faces turning ashen.

this moment,
It seems everyone knows this is a 'public trial,' and that someone will be beheaded!
Many people were so frightened that they collapsed to the ground, trembling.

There were more than 18,000 rebel prisoners in the square. They were under the command of Shi Jingtang and were captured near Jiaxing Prefecture.

They did not commit any crimes in Hangzhou Prefecture, nor did they harm the people.

Before they were taken to the square, Simon had already told them that this time they were not to be executed.

But when they saw the public trial, many rebels were still frightened.

Generally speaking,
Once it goes to a 'public trial', it will absolutely be a bloodbath.

Many troublemakers, seeing the fully armed Ximentang soldiers around them and the heavy machine guns set up nearby, shouted in fear:

"Sir, sir, spare my life!"

"We were forced into this situation. We didn't harm anyone. Please spare our lives!"

"Don't kill us! We're just ordinary people. We haven't done anything wrong. Please, let us go!"

"Waaah—I have an eighty-year-old mother at home, please, sir, spare me."

"I was wrong, sir, I was wrong, please spare my dog's life."

"My lord, please don't kill me! Please spare me!"

For a while,
The entire square was filled with the wailing and howling of pleas for mercy.

Chen Jie walked past the rows of kneeling rebel remnants and unruly civilians, his gaze turning icy.

He took a deep breath and said in a low voice:
"Today's public trial is not because you joined the rebels."

“A country has its laws, and a family has its rules. Your joining the rebels will be tried by the Ministry of Justice of the Great Qian Dynasty. I will not interfere with you.”

"But you have committed arson, murder, looting, and cruelty against the people in Hangzhou, which is a capital offense!"

"Joining the rebels is not your fault. I know you have your own reasons and are forced by circumstances."

"But two days ago, the main force of the rebels had already withdrawn from Hangzhou and left the eastern Zhejiang region."

"Taking advantage of the turmoil in Hangzhou, you dared to disregard the law and commit murder and arson."

"People must pay the price for the bad things they do!"

"If God won't punish you, then let me do it—!"

Chen Jie pointed to the sky with an air of domineering confidence and spoke righteously.

Then,

He pointed to the bodies of the victims laid out not far away and said in a deep voice:
“You keep saying you haven’t harmed anyone and want me to spare you.”

"These past two days, you've killed so many people in the city. Have you ever thought about sparing them?"

"Many of these people are children, women, and the elderly. How could you do this to them?"

The voice just fell,

Many people in the square cried and shouted:

"Kill them! Please, Your Excellency, do us justice!"

Originally, it was just a few scattered people shouting.

Next, almost all the people started shouting.

Chen Jie looked up at the hundreds of thousands of people in the square, waved his hand, and ordered everyone to be quiet.

He turned to look at the remnants of the rebel army and the unruly civilians kneeling on the ground, took a deep breath, and said:
"Did you hear that? This is the will of the people, and this is the price you will have to pay."

"I have always been fair in my dealings with people. I will not kill you without cause."

“But the crimes you have committed in the past few days have violated a major taboo. It would be difficult to appease public anger if you were not killed.”

"However, I can assure you that your families will not be implicated in the public trial and execution of you."

“Anyone who obeys the law will be protected by Simon Hall.”

"The time has come! Guards, begin the public trial and execution."

Three hundred soldiers stepped out from the ranks of the West Gate Hall.

They were divided into groups of three, with two of them carrying the prisoners and making them kneel before the bodies of the victims.

Another person, holding a musket, stood behind them.

The gun was pointed at the back of the prisoner's head.

Many troublemakers, knowing they were doomed, loudly begged for mercy:
"Let me go, I don't want to die!"

Some even struggled desperately, trying to resist.

Unfortunately, even though their martial arts skills were not weak, they were shackled and had not eaten anything since last night, so where would they get the strength?
Some people, however, had taken life and death lightly, kneeling on the ground without uttering a sound.

"The time has come! Execute!"

Cough cough—cough cough—!
The gunshots rang out, chilling to the bone!
The two soldiers who had been holding the offender released their hands.

The bullet pierced the prisoner's head at close range, and almost simultaneously, the prisoner fell to the ground, motionless.

After the first batch of prisoners were executed, the surroundings were so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The other prisoners were terrified and trembled with fear.

Many people were so frightened that they wet their pants.

After a while,
Two Ximentang soldiers in charge of escorting the prisoners verified their identities and checked whether they were still alive.

If the bullet missed and didn't kill.

Then,

They would then fire another shot.

Public trials of prisoners are a very deterrent thing.

The second batch of public trials then began.

As the gunshots rang out, another hundred people were executed on the spot.

In less than half an hour, the square was piled with corpses, nearly a thousand in total.

The stench of blood permeated the surroundings, creating an extremely oppressive atmosphere.

After all the public trials and executions were over, Chen Jie went to the rebel prisoners he had captured from Jiaxing Prefecture.

The execution scene just now deeply affected all the rebel prisoners.

They were terrified, trembling uncontrollably, fearing it would be their turn.

Chen Jie looked at all the rebel prisoners and said in a deep voice:
"You all know the consequences of the public trial verdict just now, right?"

"This is the price of harming the people and indiscriminately killing the innocent."

“You are very lucky. You did not participate in the burning, killing, looting and arson in Hangzhou Prefecture, and you did not commit any atrocities, so you were able to save your lives.”

“But your rebellion is a heinous crime, and if you are handed over to the Ministry of Justice of the Great Qian Dynasty, you will be executed.”

"However, considering that you were forced into this situation, Ximen Tang will give you a way out."

"From now on, you should serve your sentences and reform yourselves properly, and go to the mining area and oil field of Ximentang to atone for your sins."

"After ten years of hard labor, I'll give you your freedom. Anyone who's unwilling can step forward now, and I'll send you to the Ministry of Justice of the Great Qian Dynasty!"

Wow——!
Upon hearing this, all the rebel soldiers shouted loudly:
"Sir, I want to do hard labor! I want to do hard labor!"

As long as I can save my life, what is a mere ten years of hard labor?
Chen Jie nodded slightly.

More than 18,000 rebels—that's a huge workforce. (End of Chapter)