Chapter 81 Pei Han Rebellion

Chapter 81 Pei Han Rebellion

Chapter 81 Pei Han Rebellion
Pei Yuan returned to the food shop with an expressionless face, followed by Song Chunniang, who was full of energy and carrying a bag.

After they finished eating, Cheng Leixiang took the initiative to pay the bill.

Seeing this, Pei Yuan also calculated his income from the journey south.

Hu Ang, the deputy envoy of the Huguang Censorate who had just robbed someone, got more than 600 taels of silver. He also got several dozen taels of silver from taking private jobs with Cheng Leixiang and from later seeking reimbursement from the Nanjing Jinyiwei. The painting of erotic ladies by Tang Bohu that Sun Keding gave him should also be able to be sold for a hundred or so taels of silver. All in all, he had 800 taels of silver in his hands.

Sun Keding has now gone to Yangzhou to extort bribes from the merchants heading north. He is expected to gain a lot, and he will definitely take the lion's share of the money.

Although Cheng Leixiang and Chen Toutie also drank the soup, they each received about two hundred taels of silver.

So, this is the benefit of taking advantage of your position.

If he were in the capital, waiting for the few taels of silver every month, Pei Yuan would probably have collapsed from debt long ago.

As for embezzling tax money and running to Huai'an to do something big, this matter can only be handled by Han Qianhu.

Only she has enough manpower to accomplish this, and only she can keep this secret completely.

Now all the risks and capital are borne by Han Qianhu. How much Pei Yuan gets at that time will depend entirely on Han Qianhu's wishes.

It cannot be blamed on Pei Yuan being timid and not daring to play, but this matter involves the payment of four or five hundred thousand taels of silver, which is something Pei Yuan, with his small physique, cannot afford.

What does four or five hundred thousand taels of silver mean?

If we apply the estimates in various time-travel novels, a few tens of thousands of taels of silver to marry an oiran is really nothing.

There is no need to use "Hangzhou's No. 1 Lady" as a general equivalent here.

At the end of this year, the Minister of Revenue submitted a memorial to the emperor complaining about his poverty.

The memorial said that since the civil unrest in Bazhou, bandits had been attacking and robbing everywhere. In order to quell the rebellion, the imperial court had assembled more than 200,000 soldiers and more than 300,000 war horses from the imperial camp, border towns, and local garrisons. The cost of food and horse feed was more than 900,000 taels in the sixth year of Zhengde alone.

In other words, if Huai'an succeeds in this vote.

In just a few days, the money they earned was enough to support "more than 200,000 officers and soldiers and more than 300,000 war horses" for half a year!
To put it another way, the money was enough to allow the Ming court to start a war for him and create a separate "Pei-Han Rebellion" in the seventh year of Zhengde.

If Pei Yuan had used the knowledge from his previous life and held on longer, he would have learned this name in his history class in junior high school.

Thinking of this, Pei Yuan couldn't help but put his hands on his hips.

Cheng Leixiang and Chen Toutie didn't know why the boss stopped walking, and they looked at each other in confusion.

Song Chunniang was full of doubts.

Why is he so proud?
Is that considered big or small?
Song Chunniang had never made a comparison, but she felt as if she had lost a powerful weapon to fight back against Pei Yuan.

Fortunately, Pei Yuan also knew the importance of each matter. Although he was very proud, he did not dare to reveal anything to his subordinates.

The post station system in Jiangnan was not affected by the rebellion and remained efficient and smooth.

According to Pei Yuan's estimation, if everything went well, they could reach Suzhou in two or three days.

However, Pei Yuan knew that this matter could not be rushed. They were going to Suzhou now, on the one hand to stabilize the eunuch who was the governor of Suzhou and Hangzhou weaving factories, and on the other hand to attract attention and cover up Han Qianhu's secret actions.

The four of them went to a post station outside the city and took the horses with an official document issued by the Nanjing Jinyiwei.

Pei Yuan originally planned to go directly to Suzhou via Zhenjiang, but Chen Toutie, who usually spoke little, said, "Sir, I used to work with the East Factory in Nanzhili, and I have some experience on the road."

When Pei Yuan heard this, he knew that Chen Toutie was trying to express a different opinion in a tactful way.

He didn't mind and said directly, "Tell me about it."

Chen Toutie then told Pei Yuan, "Yingtian Prefecture has six government offices from Nanjing, and many officials travel back and forth on business. The surrounding post stations are very tight on accommodation and food. When we were getting the horses just now, I took a quick look inside, and the post station here was already full of people."

"Besides, passing Zhenjiang, to the north is Yangzhou, and to the east are prosperous places such as Changzhou, Suzhou, and Songjiang. Many scholars who travel for study often stay at government inns. Some of these scholars rely on their own fame, some rely on official certificates from their relatives, friends, and teachers, and some buy them from idle officials."

"We, the Jinyiwei, are not afraid of them, but if we are not right, it will not be easy to drive them away. If we cannot rest at the post station, it will be difficult to sleep in the open air along the way."

After Chen Toutie said this, Pei Yuan understood.

The six ministries in Nanjing still had control over the officials in the south. For example, the Nanjing Ministry of Personnel controlled the selection and assessment of officials in the south, the Southern Ministry of Justice also controlled the criminal justice of the various provincial governments in the south, and the Nanjing Ministry of Rites controlled the imperial examinations, culture and education in the south...

With so many officials coming and going, it would naturally put pressure on the public guesthouses around Yingtian Prefecture.

In addition, as culture and education flourished in the south, many scholars with good backgrounds loved to travel and study, which squeezed out a lot of public resources.

What Chen Toutie said sounded nice, but how much deterrent power could low-level Jinyiwei like them have in front of those civil servants?
You know, when the emperor was discussing things with his ministers, even the commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, who held the seal, could only stand aside and serve like a slave.

If they dare to act arrogantly in such a place, the final result will be that some big boss may come out from somewhere and make them leave in disgrace with just a few words.

Away from the official inn, besides not being able to enjoy free food and lodging, changing horses was also a big problem for them.

Horses are very delicate creatures. They can really run when they are running, but if you don't take good care of them after running, they will basically be useless.

Pei Yuan then asked Chen Toutie, "Do you have any good ideas?"

Before Chen Toutie talked about this matter, he already had an idea in mind.

He said to Pei Yuan, "Sir, why don't we go to Lishui and Liyang, and then go directly to Suzhou from the water post station in Yixing County via Taihu Lake. This way, we can avoid the busiest post road and be more comfortable along the way."

Pei Yuan didn't know anything, but when he saw Chen Toutie speaking confidently, he immediately praised him, "Toutie is truly my Sleeping Dragon."

The four of them immediately adjusted their direction and headed towards Lishui.

Perhaps because of the temporary change of route, Pei Yuan changed his planned slow pace and sped up his progress.

When we arrived at the post station outside Lishui City, it was already past three o'clock in the afternoon.

Pei Yuan deliberately went to the post station to take a look and saw that it was fully occupied.

He looked at the list he had requested from the postmaster, and sure enough, there were many people on it whom he could not afford to offend.

Cheng Leixiang came over and asked, "Sir, are we going into the city or heading towards Liyang?"

Pei Yuan looked at the sky and decided that if he wanted to go into the city he would have to leave the post horse here.

Going back and forth is just a waste of energy.

He thought for a moment and said, "Let's go to the next inn. There are only four of us, so we can definitely find a place to sleep."

The four of them changed horses and continued along the road.

This time we were in a hurry and we didn't dare to delay on the road.

Pei Yuan was originally worried that Song Chunniang would not be able to handle such an urgent march, but after looking back several times, he discovered that Song Chunniang was riding the horse more easily than he thought.

As the sky gradually darkened, Chen Toutie, who was riding in the front, pulled the reins.

"What's going on?" Pei Yuan walked around to the front and immediately noticed what was happening.

Next to the avenue, a large post station with several courtyards was seen burning fiercely.

Many residents were crying and shouting, grabbing luggage and supplies from inside, and some postmen were busy organizing firefighting. Pei Yuan looked at it for a few times, then at the sky, and asked Chen Toutie with a slightly ugly expression, "Is there any other place to stay nearby?"

"The post station is gone, but if we continue to go towards Liyang, there is a courier shop where we can stay. Otherwise, we can look for a village nearby where people can live."

Jijiaodi's shop mainly delivered military intelligence and was more like a sentry post in the wilderness.

It would be more reliable to find a village to stay overnight.

Pei Yuan was completely confused about the situation here, so he said to Chen Toutie, "You lead the way."

This time the sun was about to set, so the four of them hurried on their journey.

After walking about four or five miles, Chen Toutie exclaimed, "Sir, look!"

Pei Yuan rode his horse forward in a hurry and saw smoke coming out of a small earthen courtyard in the distance. Judging from the extent of the burning, it had already been completely burned down.

The soldiers who were supposed to be guarding here were nowhere to be found.

Pei Yuan broke out in a cold sweat.

He whispered to Chen Toutie and Cheng Leixiang who had followed him, "Something's wrong."

Pei Yuan absolutely did not believe that there could be such a coincidence that two places caught fire accidentally.

If you set fire...

If someone said that someone set fire to the post station, Pei Yuan might believe it to some extent.

After all, those who can live in the official inn are either rich or noble, and if you find the right opportunity, you can really make a fortune.

However, the imperial court's Jijiaodai was guarded by only two or three veteran soldiers, and at most they kept one or two replacement horses, and there was nothing valuable at all.

Who would target this place for no reason?
Cheng Leixiang had a lot of experience in the martial arts world, so he quickly reminded them, "No matter what, let's leave here as soon as possible."

Pei Yuansu was a person who valued his life, so he naturally followed the advice. He then asked Chen Toutie, "What about the nearby villages?"

Chen Toutie scratched his head and said, "It's hard to say. I've only been here a few times with the East Factory. Why don't we look for them?"

Pei Yuan looked at the sky which was about to turn dark and said decisively, "Let's stop looking and go back."

"Go back?" The three of them were a little surprised.

Pei Yuan said, "You can't imagine it, and others can't imagine it either. Besides, even if the post station was burned down, at least there are so many people there, which is better than the four of us running around in the wild."

The three of them were moved when they heard this.

So everyone hurried back while they could still vaguely see the road.

After walking a few miles, Pei Yuan suddenly felt a chill on his face.

I reached out to touch it and caught a falling raindrop.

Pei Yuan was surprised and asked, "It's raining?"

This year, both the north and the south encountered drought. The emperor even issued an internal decree personally, requiring Yingtian Prefecture and Shuntian Prefecture to pray for rain at the same time.

Why is it raining now?

Pei Yuan remembered that it was the chief palace master of Chaotian Palace who said that praying for rain would not go smoothly.
Could it be that the exposure to the sun and the whipping had taken effect?
Then Pei Yuan reacted and yelled angrily, "Damn it, it's raining, let's go!"

It is now the end of the sixth year of Zhengde, and it is the middle of winter.

Pei Yuan and the others did not bring any rain gear or raincoats. Even though the south was a little warmer, they would be soaked by a cold rain and would be in great pain.

But this winter rain comes even more suddenly than in summer.

Pei Yuan was so anxious that he almost thought that all the rain in Nanzhili fell here. Moreover, the rain seemed to be mixed with rice-sized pieces of ice, which hit his cheeks painfully.

From the time Pei Yuan noticed the rain to the time it began to pour down, it took less than half a cup of tea.

The four were soon drenched by the freezing rain.

Pei Yuan felt as if all the heat in his body was being taken away by the cold rain. He was shivering with cold and could only curl up on the horse's back as best he could.

What's worse, as the rain got heavier, the roads started to become muddy.

Cheng Leixiang rode his horse closer and reminded loudly, "Sir, do you want to hide under a tree?"

Pei Yuan was still thinking, and decisively refused, "It's winter now, where can we find trees to shelter us from the rain? The longer we delay, the more trouble we will have. When the cold wind blows, we will freeze to death. We have to hurry back to that post station."

Cheng Leixiang shrank his head when he heard this and said nothing more.

Fortunately, this place was not too far from the post station. After a while of awkward trekking, the four of them finally saw the courtyards that had been mostly burned down.

Perhaps the freezing rain came in time, and the inn was lucky enough to still retain a few rooms.

But the place was already packed with people, and even under the eaves of some broken bricks and tiles, there were people hiding from the rain in a panic.

As the four men rode their horses closer, a postman wearing a straw raincoat called out, "Who are you?"

Chen Toutie stepped forward and shouted, "Jinyiwei is on duty!"

The postman, who had been trying to put out the fire for a long time and was drenched by the freezing rain, looked at the fire from a distance and shouted angrily, "This place has been burned down. Let's go somewhere else."

Upon hearing this, the four of them drew their swords.

The postman was so frightened that he nearly fell down, and hurriedly ran back to hide under the eaves.

Pei Yuan's teeth were chattering from the cold, but he forced himself to cheer up and reminded, "Be careful, something strange is going on today."

The four men held embroidered spring swords in their hands and rode their horses forward cautiously, as if they would rush forward if they saw the situation was not right.

A man dressed as a postmaster came out hurriedly.

It was just the crackling sound of the ice particles hitting the tiles that made Pei Yuan unable to hear clearly what he was shouting.

Pei Yuan and the other three are in extremely bad condition right now, and are also the most alert.

Pei Yuan whispered to the three people, "If there is anything wrong, take action first!"

Cheng Leixiang and Chen Toutie both agreed. Song Chunniang said nothing and was staggering on her horse. Although her martial arts skills were good, her physique was weak and the freezing rain almost took half her life.

At this moment, the sound of horse hooves was heard from another road.

Then, more than a dozen dark figures on horseback rushed towards the post station in a panic in the rainy night.

Then a deep and loud voice came from the horse riders, "Huashan Sect's Yue Qingfeng is traveling with his disciples. The freezing rain is unbearable. Can you stay here for a night?"

(End of this chapter)