Top Scholar

Chapter 140 Stirred up a hornet's nest!
At the same time, a crooked boat slowly went upstream and docked at the pier of Erlangtan.

Chengji Distillery's last boat of the year arrived as scheduled.

On the pier, the men of the Cheng family, who were preparing to receive the ship and unload the cargo, saw the captain's solemn expression and assumed that he, like them, was angry about the profit sharing.

No sooner had the boat docked than the captain jumped off the boat and strode off toward the village.

"Is Uncle Jiu in a hurry to relieve himself?"

"Alas, it's clear that times are tough now. Even taking a dump has to be done within the family..." the clansmen sighed.

However, the boat captain, Uncle Jiu, did not head south, but went straight to the north.

"Did he get confused?" The clansmen were puzzled as they watched his figure disappear into the streets and alleys where the Su clan lived.

~~
The boatman, Uncle Jiu, ran all the way to the house with the words "Poetry and Wine to Welcome the New Year" pasted on its door and pounded on it.

"What are you doing?!" The Su clan members cautiously poked their heads out, and when they saw that it was the Cheng family, more than a dozen men quickly surrounded them.

"Where is that family?!" Uncle Jiu said, catching his breath. "I have an urgent message from the county!"

"I've gone out to visit relatives." Su Youpeng stepped forward from the crowd and held out his hand, saying, "Just give me the letter."

"I'm carrying a message: Su Youma invited Erlang wine and someone died, so he was arrested by the authorities!" Although Uncle Jiu despised that shameless guy who always used banknotes as payment for boat fares, he could still tell what was important and what was urgent.

"What?!" The Su clan members were immediately in an uproar.

"Please explain yourself clearly!" Su Youpeng raised his hand, and the clansmen all fell silent.

“I don’t know the specifics. When the ship was leaving, my niece Cuicui ran to me crying and told me to come back and tell her the news… Oh, and she also said that on the night of the accident, everyone only drank three cups of wine, three qian three fen per cup, and when they left his house, none of them were drunk,” Uncle Jiu said.

"Is there anything else?" Su Youpeng pressed.

"I'm so busy rowing that sparks are flying, how can I care about asking about anything else?" Uncle Jiu shook his head and said, "I've already delivered the letter, I have to hurry and tell my elder brother!"

After saying that, he hurriedly returned to Nantou.

"Damn it! It must be those same people from the county!" The Su clan members immediately thought of what happened to the He brothers last year, and they were all furious, shouting with rage:
"It's one thing for them to bully the He family because they have no one to rely on! But they've come to bully us! They've picked the wrong people!"

"That's right, there are three hundred people in our Su family. We don't even know who's bullying whom!"

"Alright, alright, calm down." Su Youpeng stopped the agitated clansmen and instructed Su Youming, "Go tell the clan chief that I'm going to town to inform Brother Youjin!"

Having said that, he led out his donkey and trotted off towards Taiping Town.

The clansmen followed Su Youming to the ancestral hall!
~~
"What?!" The old clan chief, who had thought he could finally have a joyful and peaceful Spring Festival, was furious upon hearing the news!
"Damn it! It's definitely those same people from the county!" the usually composed and dignified old clan chief cursed.

"It's one thing for them to bully the He family because they have no one to rely on! But they've come to bully us! They've picked the wrong people!"

"That's right, there are three hundred people in our Su family, we don't even know who's bullying whom!" Su Daji, who rushed over upon hearing the news, immediately grabbed his weapon! The entire Su clan was clearly in complete agreement on this matter!
"Ring the bell!" The old clan chief slammed his cane on the ground and roared, "Summon the entire clan!"

The clanging of the bells soon echoed throughout Erlangtan.

All the Su clan members who were still unaware of the situation put down their work and, with the elderly and children in tow, flocked to the ancestral hall.

As for those who already knew, they had already arrived ahead of time.

In the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, apart from the six branches, the Su family's seventeen branches, two hundred and seventy-three adults, and one hundred and seventy-two minors, a total of four hundred and forty-five people, gathered inside and outside the ancestral hall!
Of course, there are about a hundred children under the age of twelve who are not counted by the clansmen, which is why they keep talking about 'three hundred' people.

With Su Dan's help, the old clan chief stood on the eight-immortal table placed at the entrance of the ancestral hall and shouted loudly to the clansmen, who were three layers deep inside and outside:

"Just now, I received news that a man named Youma invited people in the county to drink our Erlang wine, and each person only drank an ounce! The next day, the authorities said that someone had died from drinking it and arrested him!"

"Damn it! It's definitely those same people from the county!" The clansmen who had just heard the news all had the same reaction, which just goes to show how powerful genes are.

"It's one thing for them to bully the He family because they have no one to rely on! But they've come to bully us! They've picked the wrong people!"

"That's right, there are three hundred people in our Su family. We don't even know who's bullying whom!"

The old clan chief had to raise his hand and press down several times to barely stop the clansmen's angry roars.

"It seems everyone has the same idea as me. They're not here for the horses, but for our Erlang wine!" The old clan chief slammed his cane down, making a dull thud.

"Some people just can't stand to see us living a good life!" Su Daji roared in agreement, "They want to kill our Erlangjiu!"

"Kill them!" The roar of the clansmen shook the ancestral hall, causing dust to fall.

"What happened to the He brothers back then shows that those people are extremely vicious. I'm worried that the Sixth Branch family will suffer, so I've decided to take some people to the county to support them!" The old clan chief looked around the room and said, "We won't force anyone during the New Year. Raise your hand if you want to go!"

Everyone raised their hands in a flash! Even elderly people in their sixties and seventies, and children as young as six or seven, were no exception... "Good! Very good!" The old clan chief nodded in satisfaction, and then said, "However, we don't need so many people. Those who are too old or sick, and those whose children are too young to withstand the bumpy ride, should not go."

After much deliberation and selection, he decided to take only three hundred people to the county town!

"Go home now, bring all the food for the New Year, and pack your bedding too!" The old clan chief waved his hand and said, "Come back in an hour, and we'll go to the county town for the New Year!"

"Yes!" The clansmen dispersed upon hearing the order, and returned to the ancestral hall in less than half an hour.

At this moment, the old patriarch also opened the armory and began distributing weapons.

The Great Ming Code contains the following explicit text:
"Any privately owned armor, badges, fire tubes, cannons, flags, or signal sashes that are prohibited from use as military weapons shall be punished with eighty strokes of the cane for each item, with the punishment increasing by one degree for each additional item; bows and arrows, guns, knives, crossbows, harpoons, and pitchforks are not prohibited."

Moreover, the Su family was a military household, and after a century of accumulation, their armory was quite rich, with all eighteen kinds of weapons... In fact, they had armor, shields, and firearms, but they dared not show them unless they were fighting for the imperial court.

The three hundred tribesmen, regardless of age or gender, each chose a weapon that suited them, and then formed a column, following the old tribesman as they marched out of Erlangtan.

~~
Such a commotion naturally alerted the Hundred Household Office.

Upon hearing the report from Commander Shi, Commander Zhou was completely stunned. "You little bastard, are you going to risk your life?"

"Sir, stop them quickly, or things will get out of control," the centurion said anxiously.

"Stop it my foot!" Commander Zhou said soberly, "You're right, someone in the county wants to touch Erlang Wine, isn't that digging up the Su family's lifeline?"

“That’s right. The Su family has had bad luck for ten years, and this year they finally turned things around.” Commander Shi nodded and said, “If I were in their shoes, I would have fought just as hard.”

"Then you still dare to stop me?" Zhou Baihu glared at him.

"What can we do if we don't stop them?" Commander Shi said with a bitter face, "If something goes wrong, we'll all be in trouble!"

"Tell the brothers to get ready and follow them. We'll see what happens," Commander Zhou said after a moment's thought. "Report this immediately and let Commander Qian make the decision!"

~~
Such a commotion at Erlangtan naturally alerted Scholar Cheng, who lived on higher ground.

"Is the Su family planning a rebellion?" Cheng Xiucai was initially puzzled: "They don't have enough people. They'd have a hard time even taking Taiping Town."

It wasn't until Cheng Chengcheng brought concrete news that he suddenly realized what was going on, and a long-lost smile appeared on his face as he said, "Hahaha, what did I tell you? If the dike is higher than the bank, the waves will surely break it! They're so ostentatious, they'll get into trouble sooner or later!"

"Does Father mean we should just sit and watch them suffer?" Cheng Chengcheng asked, frowning. "That's not appropriate, is it? After all, it's my sister's business."

"Idiot! Only a fool would fall into the same trap twice! If you stand by and do nothing now, wouldn't you be completely severing ties with Lanlan?" The dejection that had accumulated on Cheng Xiucai's face all winter vanished instantly! Like a hungry tiger that had been lying in wait for half a month, he finally spotted his prey!

The old gentleman's eyes lit up again, and he said:

"Haven't you all been telling me to reconcile with her? It's not that I disagree, but I've been waiting for the right opportunity, and now is the best opportunity!"

"Father is right!" Cheng Chengcheng realized he had misunderstood and said happily, "This is indeed a good opportunity for reconciliation! Father is the only scholar in Erlangtan, and an expert who has taken lawsuits all the way to the provincial level! If we lend a helping hand now, my sister will definitely not refuse!"

"Of course! In all of Yongning, no, in all of Luzhou, no one is better at handling lawsuits than me!" Scholar Cheng laughed triumphantly, though there was still a hint of schadenfreude in his voice...

~~
Down the mountain, Grandpa Cheng had also gathered his eight sons and grandsons.

“Cui Cui’s family has suffered a disaster, and as her father, I have to go there.” The old man from the Cheng family sighed, “Who among you is willing to come with me? I won’t blame you if you don’t go.”

"What are you saying, Father?" Cheng Chengzhi shouted. "Cuicui is also our sister. How can we act like Uncle's family and make ourselves a laughingstock?"

"Yes, we'll definitely go together!" The children and grandchildren patted the bundles on their backs and said, "We're all ready."

"You, Cheng Chengzhi!" Cheng Xiucai's voice rang out from the doorway. "How dare you speak ill of your third uncle behind his back?"

"Third Uncle, I..." Cheng Chengzhi was stunned and speechless, not knowing how to explain, not expecting that Cheng Xiucai had heard him.

"Alright, enough with the explanations!" Scholar Cheng said sternly, "This time, I'm going too!"

"Really?!" Old Master Cheng exclaimed in surprise, "Third son, you've finally had a change of heart?"

"Hmph, don't think you're the only one who cares about your daughter!" Scholar Cheng snorted. "If you say that again, I'll get angry!"

"Haha, good, good, don't worry, your brother won't say anything more to you." Old Master Cheng was overjoyed and waved his hand, saying, "Let's go!"

The two families then merged into one, and a dozen or so people filed towards the pier on the riverbank.

P.S. We're off! Didn't expect this turn of events, did you? Haha, this isn't a frustrating book, because it's set in the Zhengde reign...

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(End of this chapter)