A son who doesn't resemble his father? Love you, old man, see you at Xuanwu Gate!

Chapter 282 Counterinsurgency
Guanzhong, Nanshan.

Relying on the natural defenses of the southern Qinling Mountains, thousands of bandits gathered here.

In the dead of winter, the bandit leader, Cong Zong, gathered more than thirty leaders, large and small. They formed a circle of five people, with two whole roasted sheep, golden brown and shiny, hanging on an iron frame in the middle, surrounded by mountains of wine jars.

The leaders drank from large bowls, chopped meat with short knives, and shouted loudly, creating a noisy scene.

When everyone was sweating and their faces were flushed, the leader, Congzong, stood up and shouted, "Silence—I have something to say!"

The shouts stopped abruptly, and all eyes turned to the mighty and wise leader.

The imperial court lifted the land ban, encouraged the people to come down from the mountains, and offered them the incentive of exemption from crimes and taxes and the opportunity to cultivate land. This indeed swayed the hearts of many bandits, and it can be said that it hit the bandits' "Achilles' heel".

People who are bandits and thieves live in constant fear. If they could live a peaceful life, who wouldn't want that?
In Guanzhong and beyond, countless bandits descended from the mountains and returned to the lives of ordinary people.

However, most leaders and chiefs were unwilling, even though the imperial edict guaranteed that past crimes would be forgiven and all sins would be pardoned. Those who had committed countless crimes and shed countless blood still felt uneasy and were always worried that the court would settle accounts.

Furthermore, having enjoyed the pleasures of robbing and plundering, getting rich without working, having plenty of gold and silver, and indulging in lavish feasts, why would they be willing to live the austere life of ordinary people?

They toil away cultivating the land, treating it like a god or an ancestor, wishing they could live in the fields, yet the harvests are often disappointing. All year round, they can only eat some meat and drink some wine during festivals. Is this the life of a human being?
However, the will of the people was hard to defy. Not long after the edict was proclaimed, some petty bandits took advantage of the night to go down the mountain. After all, the good days of the leaders and chieftains had nothing to do with them.

The leader of the Gaozong clan had anticipated this event and was waiting for his bandits to sneak down the mountain. He expected to capture the few minor bandits without any problems.

Contrary to expectations of a "mountain-style punishment," in front of everyone in the mountain, the leader first untied the bandits, and then, choking back tears, spoke to the wavering bandits about "reality."

They were all forced to come to Nanshan.

The land annexation in the Han Dynasty developed rapidly, spearheaded by the powerful and wealthy elites of the Han Dynasty.

More than ten years ago, the emperor's maternal uncle Tian Fen colluded with Li Shangxiang, the Prefect of Jingzhao, to seize and cultivate hundreds of hectares of grassland. The Prime Minister Dou Ying "accumulated wealth and his family made a living from farming. When he became rich and powerful, he bought up to four hundred hectares of land, all of which were irrigated by the Jing and Wei rivers and were extremely fertile and of high quality."

In addition, nobles, officials and powerful families seized large amounts of land, and powerful landlords also intensified their annexation of land.

“The number of wealthy people in Guandong increased, and they acquired more fertile land and exploited the poor.”

In Guanzhong, the wealthy families often have three or four hundred diners at each household, and their other products are countless.

The power of merchants has greatly increased again. Wang Junfang, Fan Shaoweng, Wang Sundaqing, Fan Jia, Zhiwang, Rushi, and Jushi, all from Chang'an and the surrounding counties, are all wealthy merchants with assets of tens of millions.

Besides monopolizing the profits from the salt wells in Sichuan and Chongqing, Luo Pou also traveled between Chang'an and Sichuan, lavishly bribing the powerful relatives of the emperor, Wang Gen, and the favored minister Chunyu Chang. Relying on their influence, he lent money at exorbitant interest rates in various prefectures and kingdoms, and no one dared to default on their debts. These wealthy merchants, in collusion with landlords and officials, drained the people of their livelihoods.

Officials, powerful families, wealthy merchants, and other prominent figures built grand mansions, gardens, and brocade robes, adorned themselves with bells and drums, and provided female musicians, indulging in extravagant lifestyles.

Even the dogs and horses kept as pets had to be taken out for walks every day to prevent them from becoming too fat, because they ate too much millet.

Then, Congzong asked his bandits two questions.

How did the family's fertile fields get lost before they went up the mountain?

After descending the mountain, will the cultivated land truly belong to them?

Before his bandits could answer, Congzong recounted the plight of the Han people once again.

The luxurious lifestyle of the powerful and wealthy is built on the cruel exploitation of ordinary people. Although the vast majority of farmers toil all day long, they still live a miserable life worse than cattle and horses.

Countless farmers were threatened with "seven deaths" or "seven extinctions".

The so-called "seven losses" include: "heavy burdens on county officials, additional taxes and rents", "corrupt officials taking public office and accepting bribes without end", "powerful clans and wealthy families nibbling away at resources without restraint", and "harsh officials imposing corvée labor, disrupting the farming season".

The so-called "seven deaths" included "cruel officials beating and killing," "severe punishments," and "unjust framing and extermination." Tens of thousands of farmers, tormented by the "seven deaths," went bankrupt and fled, becoming homeless vagrants.

Congzong told all the bandits that going down the mountain meant returning to the strict laws of the court and entrusting their lives and property to cruel law enforcement officials.

The bandits, who couldn't even figure out the two questions of going up and down the mountain, were frightened by the scene their leader described after descending the mountain. They angrily cursed the dog emperor, the dog officials, and the damned court.

Seeing that the thieves were willing to cooperate, Cong Zong said that as long as they did not go down the mountain, none of these problems would occur, and all the laws of the Han Dynasty could not be applied to them. Those prefects and magistrates who could exterminate entire families and destroy entire households could be killed if they wanted to.

The bandits' resolve hardened, and they all declared they would never leave the mountain. Congzong knew that words alone could not sway them, so he immediately announced that the bandits would have meat and wine with every meal.

This drove the petty thieves completely mad.

Just as the leaders were filled with doubt, the chief explained a simple truth to them: if the people of Guanzhong become rich, what will happen to them?

The answer lies in the subsequent raids on the countryside. The people of Guanzhong, who had a bountiful autumn harvest, robbed once more than they had robbed ten times before.

All the bandits were eating meat and drinking wine, and Congzong's prestige reached an unparalleled level.

Emperor Taizong clapped his hands and said, "The Crown Prince is in power in Chang'an. The dog emperor wants to restore the throne and asks us to raise an army, attack Chang'an, and regain the throne. He promises us high-ranking positions, riches, and endless glory afterward. What do you say, are we going or not?"

"Speak freely!"

With a loud "whoosh," the leaders of the cave erupted in chaos, with one shouting, "I'm going to seize the throne from my son? What kind of 'I'm' is this?"

"Hahaha, of course he's a senile old man!"

"Fine, I'm fighting this brat, and you want me to be your killing weapon? What the hell?!"

"That's wrong. The dog emperor wants to give me high-ranking positions, riches, and glory. Who cares who seizes the throne or who fights whom? We'll storm into Chang'an, kill those brats, and all the gold, silver, and women in Chang'an and the palace will be ours!"

"What's it like to be the emperor's woman?"

The mention of women instantly aroused the leaders, who shouted with flushed faces, "Kill the prince and seize the women!"

"Kill the crown prince, seize the women!"

"Let the leader be an emperor too!"

"Why can someone with the surname Liu be the emperor, but my chieftain can't?"

"Wouldn't that make the leader a dog emperor?"

"..."

Seeing the situation becoming increasingly chaotic, Congzong waved his hand and said again, "Since that's the case, then we shall..."

Just now.

The bandit guarding the cave entrance suddenly "flew" in, a long, deep wound across his chest that exposed bone was striking. Before he could land, the bandit was already dead.

The next moment, Fu Gang, the Prefect of Jingzhao, walked in and sneered, "So it was you who gathered a crowd to rebel, plotted to assassinate the emperor, and kidnapped and killed the Prefects of Liaodong and Liaoxi!"

Cong Zong: "?"

(End of this chapter)