The Australian Revolution of 1828

May 28, 1828, Xunyang County Government Office.

Three days later, Wei Guochang used War Minister Tanai Dat as a breakthrough point to successfully capture eight other accomplices and seized 11000 taels of gold, 630,000 taels of silver, and 250,000 mu of farmland from their families.

In addition to the 13 traitors who had previously "colluded with foreign powers," their families were also found to have 3000 taels of gold, 23 taels of silver, and approximately 9 mu of farmland.

Through two targeted raids, a total of 22 traitors were captured, and a total of more than 18000 taels of gold and 105 million taels of silver were seized. The estimated cultivated land area is roughly 51 mu.

According to the existing gold and silver exchange currency system in Hanyang, 18000 taels of gold could be exchanged for 43 silver dollars, and 105 taels of silver could be exchanged for 210 silver dollars, for a total of 253 silver dollars.

Moreover, in places like Xunyang, where there are many people but little land, the arable land is quite fertile, so the land price is not the same as in Hanyang. According to the market price, it is 10 silver dollars per mu.

With 510 mu of arable land, one could obtain at least 51 million silver dollars.

It can be said that through this move, Wei Guochang not only made up for the various military expenditures, but also indirectly eliminated most of the old feudal remnants in Xunyang County, and completely cleared away the troubles in the governance of Xunyang County.

As for the remaining small portion of feudal remnants, they were mainly composed of low- and middle-ranking officials. Without the high-ranking officials and nobles at the top, these families were completely scattered and no longer a threat.

Although they control 37 mu of farmland in Xunyang County, they clearly lack the capacity for cooperation. If they hadn't been so arrogant that day, dealing with them would have been easy.

Overjoyed, Wei Guochang exclaimed as the seized goods filled the courtyard of the county government office, "Your Excellency, all the wealth accumulated by these families over hundreds of years is here!"

"They're a bunch of parasites, even worse than the Qing Dynasty."

On this small island of only 5620 square kilometers, all the arable land has been seized by dozens of families. Even the simplest act by ordinary people can touch the interests of these high-ranking officials and nobles, demonstrating the extent of the corruption.

Luo Bingzhong agreed wholeheartedly, pointing to the seized stolen goods, and said, "Guochang, we must also remember this lesson and never be like these people."

"To possess such vast wealth and yet fail to use it to develop the military is nothing short of a desecration of wealth. If Hanyang possessed such wealth, it would undoubtedly be far more powerful."

"We will register all this money and, except for a portion to be kept as military funds, hand it all over to Hanyang."

As the county magistrate of Xunyang under the jurisdiction of the Governor-General's Office of Hanyang, Wei Guochang was aware of this and understood Hanyang's predicament.

Protecting personal interests at the expense of Hanyang's interests is futile. Without strong military capabilities, no amount of personal wealth will be of any use when facing powerful foreigners.

Especially since this world is still in a stage where the strong prey on the weak, if Hanyang is lost, individuals will not only lose their wealth, but may also lose their lives.

Moreover, Wei Guochang had come from such a situation and deeply understood the importance of Hanyang's strength.

It was for this reason that Wei Guochang was selfless and determined not to allow anyone to hinder Hanyang's rise to power. He declared with righteous indignation, "Your Excellency, I will take care of it immediately and will not fail in the slightest."

That's exactly the kind of attitude he wanted. Ever since their conversation on the ship, Luo Bingzhong had greatly admired and appreciated Wei Guochang's character, saying, "Guochang, then I'll leave it to you!"

"However, there's one more thing that I need you to keep an eye on personally."

Wei Guochang, however, was quite frank, appearing to accept any offer, and said decisively, "I will obey the magistrate's orders without question!"

His tone was firm, with almost no objections.

As the superior, Luo Bingzhong didn't mince words and said, "We just sent 1500 laborers over a while ago, which is far from meeting the needs of the various mines."

"I plan to send all the tenants from these 22 families over together. I'd appreciate it if Guochang could make the arrangements."

The 22 families of tenant farmers number over 10000 households, with a population of approximately 60000, which is roughly a quarter of the population of Xunyang County.

If all of them were sent to the various mines in Hanyang, it would be a significant boost to the workforce. However, organizing such a large population in a short period of time, without their consent, would be extremely difficult.

After a moment's thought, Wei Guochang agreed without questioning Luo Bingzhong's decision at all.

However, considering the confiscated farmland, he asked with some doubt, "Your Excellency, if we send it all over, Xunyang County will probably be empty, and no one will be able to cultivate the land."

Luo Bingzhong did not evade the question, but instead told Wei Guochang his decision in detail, saying, "There is no need to worry about this. I will petition the Chief Justice to allow some of the Chinese immigrants from Xunyang County to settle here."

"If we can leave 10000 Chinese people here seven or eight times, we can completely change the population structure of Xunyang County and thus effectively control Xunyang County."

"Even if Xunyang County experiences further setbacks, it will not be lost."

This plan was quite ruthless; it can be said that it seized upon the contradictions in Xunyang County and completely eliminated future troubles.

Having understood Luo Bingzhong's original intention, Wei Guochang readily agreed, saying, "Your Excellency, just wait for my good news!"

"Even if they are unwilling, I will send them to Hanyang. If anyone gathers to rebel, my sword will drink blood."

Previously, we could send a group of tenants there through recruitment, but these tenants are used to farming and their current pace of life, so they may not be willing to go.

For the sake of Hanyang's development, these tenant farmers had no choice but to resort to violence.

After a detailed discussion, the two agreed on the matter and prepared to take action in the next few days, dividing all the tenants into men and women and sending them to Hanyang separately.

Men could go to the mines, and women of marriageable age could get married.

As for the underage boys, they also had a place to go, which was to live in the mines. The underage girls, on the other hand, stayed in Hanyang to learn Mandarin and knitting, in preparation for their future work in textiles and marriage.

With all the relevant matters arranged, Wei Guochang then went to work on the registration and record-keeping.

At this moment, a man, accompanied by several attendants, hurriedly arrived at the county government office from Xunyang Port. After being announced, he finally met Luo Bingzhong.

As the temporary head of the county government, Luo Bingzhong personally went out to greet him: "Brother Zhenghe, I only knew that the General Constitutional Council would send someone to take over the position of magistrate of Xunyang County, but I did not expect it to be you who came in person."

"Please come in!"

The visitor, Zhang Zhenghe, is a descendant of Zhang Juzheng, the Grand Secretary of the Ming Dynasty. He was born on August 16, 1800, in Bozhou Prefecture, Anhui Province. He is 28 years old and 5 years younger than Luo Bingzhong.

Zhang Zhenghe was overjoyed that his good friend from years ago, who had worked with him on immigration, had come to succeed Luo Bingzhong as county magistrate. He said, "Brother Bingzhong, this is not my fault."

"To be honest, I didn't expect that either."

"At the beginning of the year, after the Chief Justice took office, I was transferred to the position of Deputy Director of the Civil Affairs Department, and I was hoping to make a good impression. But less than three months later, I was transferred to be the Magistrate of Xunyang County!"

The two walked and talked until they reached the main hall of the county government. Only then did Zhang Zhenghe put away his smile and say, "Brother Bingzhong, I am here to convey the latest instructions to you on the orders of the Chief Censor."

"Luo Bingzhong is hereby removed from his position as acting magistrate of Xunyang County and ordered to return to Hanyang to report for duty. The former deputy director of the Civil Affairs Department is hereby appointed to succeed him as magistrate of Xunyang County. The handover must take place on the day this order is issued, without fail!"