Infrastructure masters in the red building

Jia Fang returned to Taoyuan Village and went to the two captains of the inspection team, Zhao Wuguang and Wang Erlang, for a meeting.

After Zhao Wuguang got married, he was in good spirits and cheerful all day long on happy occasions; Wang Erlang seemed relatively quiet and didn't talk much.But as soon as the two sat down in front of Jia Fang, they immediately concentrated on listening to Jia Fang's instructions to them.

"Among the people who came to Taoyuan Village recently, is there any suspicious outsider that deserves your attention?" Jia Fang asked.

"An outsider acting suspiciously?" Zhao Wuguang and Wang Erlang looked at each other.

Wang Erlang spoke first: "Recently, the market in Taoyuan Village is very prosperous. Every time there is a market, there are a lot of people who come to the village. As for what you said, you act suspiciously..."

"Even after entering the stockade, I don't go to the market. I just look around, but only go to our villages to survey the terrain and memorize the roads..."

When Jia Fang said this, Wang Erlang and Zhao Wuguang immediately understood. Zhao Wuguang pushed the table and said loudly, "Could it be that there are bandits in the village?"

Wang Erlang also quickly asked: "'Pufeng' came out to 'step on the plate'."

"Pufeng" was originally a dialect in the Yujiang area, which means "robber", and "stepping on the plate" naturally means stepping on the spot.

Jia Fang nodded, feeling very satisfied: It seems that the two inspector captains know something about banditry, so there is no need for a layman like him to command at will.

However, Wang Erlang and Zhao Wuguang looked at each other, both of them looked very solemn, and at the same time they dragged their chairs to stand up, fisted at Jia Fang, and said, "Master Jia, let's talk it over for a while, and then talk to you, okay? "

Jia Fang let the two go on their own.After a while, Zhao and Wang called him back.

Wang Erlang spoke first: "The third master is right. Our Taoyuan village has become rich recently. In addition to running a fair, there are more goods and money. I'm tempted by our village. Wuguang and I have roughly thought about these ideas."

The first is to strengthen the management of the foreign population in the village: people who come to Taoyuan Village from other places, the time to enter Taoyuan Village is uniformly stipulated as Maozheng, and the time to leave Taoyuan Village is three quarters of the unitary hour.People who stay overnight in Taoyuanzhai need to register their identities, check the road guides, and accept inquiries from the inspection team.

The second is to strengthen the investigation of several main intersections in the village: mainly pay attention to unfamiliar foreigners, and focus on those who linger here and observe the roads of Taoyuan Village.

The third is to strengthen the defense force of Taoyuan Village itself. The inspection team organizes young and strong in the village to form a militia team, which patrols the village on a daily basis, and calls on the people living on the edge of each village to raise more dogs, so that they can bark a few times at night. Call the police or something.

Jia Fang heard them say these three things, nodded and smiled, "Thought it all out."

Wang Erlang and Zhao Wuguang immediately puffed up their chests, and they were very proud of being praised by Jia Fang.

But Jia Fang said: "Let me mention one more point! I call on everyone to do a temporary evacuation drill."

He has already made a request to the old village chief: bring more people to the karst cave in the back mountain, slightly modify it, and change it into a "hidden" cave that is invisible from the outside, but can accommodate about 2000 people inside, and supports hiding for about two days. safe house".

At the same time, Jia Fang called on the villagers of several villages in Yujiang to search other places close to the mountains in their spare time to see if they could find similar caves.According to common sense, there should be many such caves in this area.

The "temporary evacuation drill" he suggested is to simulate how the people in the village should respond in the event of an attack on Taoyuan Village:

For example, Qingfang Bridge, the only access on the Qingfang River, should lift the bridge deck to prevent foreign enemies from passing through.Other main paths were sent to guard the defense; at the same time, the women and children took the necessities prepared in advance and retreated to the "safe house" in an orderly manner. The remaining men would consider how to fight back after protecting the women and children and retreating.The specific plan includes warning to Wuyuan County, and depending on the situation, Jia puts down orders to mobilize the Pingnan camp's army, etc.

Wang Erlang and Zhao Wuguang were both amazed when they heard this: they couldn't think of such an idea.

Jia Fang laughed: "Don't scare everyone when you inform. You must make it clear that this is just a drill—but you must also be serious. After all, the banditry is real and everyone needs to take it seriously."

As a result, the five administrative villages of Taoyuanzhai were led by the inspection team to organize "drills" respectively.

The overall situation is that the villages of Xinyu are in a better situation. After all, people have only experienced a big migration before, and they know exactly what gold and silver are worth bringing with them at home; and Taoyuan Village, which has been stable for 30 years, suddenly told them that they might experience it again. A large-scale banditry, immediately panicked.

The "rehearsal" in Xinyu villages was quickly successful, while Taoyuan village was in chaos-this made Zhao Wuguang feel that there was another "light" missing, and his face was dull.Fortunately, the population of Taoyuan Village is limited after all. Village head Tao led the inspection team to door-to-door to talk about it, and each family understood it. After another rehearsal, it was a logical success.

And Taoyuan Village also showed that it was loose on the outside and tight on the inside. On the surface, there was nothing wrong, but the management was secretly strengthened inside.

The inspection team has strengthened the inspection of outsiders, especially those who are newcomers—this group of people is easy to identify. Head back to Taoyuan Village.

At this time, members of the inspection team will step forward to inquire, and after clarifying the origin, they will criticize and educate and impose fines.Those who appeared extremely suspicious during the question and answer were immediately repatriated and asked to leave Taoyuanzhai immediately.

In addition, the main road of Taoyuan Village, the entrances of each village, and the path leading to the back mountain have all increased the manpower for inspection.

After several days passed, there was no news about "bandits" and "bandit troubles".There were not many suspicious people who came to Taoyuan Village, and if they saw them, they could roughly ask where they came from.

And Taoyuan Village is closely connected with the surrounding villages and towns, and even the village chiefs can communicate with the postman on a daily basis.Neighboring villages did not find any clues related to "bandits" and "thieves".

The "banditry" in the south seems to exist only in Jia Fang's imagination.

Jia Fang: Is that true?

In Wuyuan County, Liu Lixing soon heard about his younger sister's marriage through reliable sources.The young man jumped up immediately, and all the matters that his uncle Liu Minghua had given him to register Zhangtian were also thrown at hand.Liu Lixing didn't stop, he rushed directly to Liu Minghua's house, knocking on the door vigorously: "Mother, mother—"

It was not Liu Lixingniang who opened the door, but his uncle and grandmother, who belonged to Liu Minghua's family.As soon as the door was opened, Liu Minghua's face was full of smiles, and he said, "Lixing, why come here when you have time? It just so happens that I have a happy news to share with you, so I'll tell you. It's early this morning. There was that magpie standing on the top of the tree, chirping at your sister's house..."

Before she finished speaking, Liu Lixing had already bypassed this uncle and grandma, came to the courtyard of Liu Minghua's house, and shouted loudly, "Mother, sister—where are you?"

Liu Lixingniang opened the door in surprise, followed by Liu Xiaomei.

Liu Lixing didn't say a word, he held one in his left hand and the other in his right, and said loudly, "Mother, sister, let's go, let's go home!"

Liu Minghua's family was taken aback. She got her husband's order that this couple of widows and weak women must not be let go.Liu Minghua's family decided to delay the attack: "Lixing, why don't you leave without waiting for your uncle to come back and say something?"

Liu Lixingniang also said: "Lixing, we have bothered your uncle for so many days, we have to say thank you before leaving. Besides, mother and sister's things have not been packed yet..."

Unexpectedly, after Liu Lixing said a word, he dragged his mother and younger sister and walked out sullenly, without giving them any chance, and brought the two women back to his home.

After arriving at his own home, Liu Lixing closed the door, and then heaved a long sigh of relief.Liu Lixing's mother immediately complained: "Lixing, what's the matter? You hurriedly brought your mother and younger sister back, and your uncle and grandma even gave your younger sister a lot of things, but they didn't have time to clean them up, so they were all thrown over there. "

"Your uncle and grandma also said that they have already made a good relationship with your sister. If you are so quick-tempered and always like to offend others, what should you do!"

As soon as Liu Xiaomei heard the word "Said relatives", she immediately lowered her head, blushed, and held on to the corner of her clothes without making a sound.

But Liu Lixing stomped his feet, and said to his mother: "You still talk about my younger sister's marriage, those people in the Liu family will sell my younger sister later, are you still counting the money?"

When Liu Lixingniang and Liu Xiaomei heard this, their faces immediately turned pale, and they looked at Liu Lixing.

Seeing that these two seemed to have finally calmed down, Liu Lixing hurriedly brought his mother and younger sister into his main room, asked them to sit down, and then slowly said word by word: "Mother, those members of the Liu family told my sister to the Zhao family. A direct descendant."

Liu Lixing nodded and said: "Mother already knows. Your uncle and grandma said that the Zhao family has a great career and is a direct descendant. When the younger sister marries, she will be the young mistress."

The corners of Liu Lixing's mouth turned up, revealing a bitter smile: "But that direct descendant is crippled."

"Ah—" Liu Lixingniang exclaimed.Liu Xiaomei's head drooped even lower, her face instantly turned blood red, and then faded completely to pale.

"Mother, my son is already an official in Wuyuan County. When he sees the county magistrate, he just bows down and salutes. There is no need to kneel down. And what kind of family is the Zhao family? The Zhao family used to control many county officials. position, but most of his family members are unlearned and incompetent, and they can’t even get a basic diploma, so they lost their official jobs like this.”

This was what Liu Lixing was most dissatisfied with about this marriage. It was obvious that his future was on the rise, while the Zhao family was on a downhill road. Why did he tell his sister to the Zhao family, or to a cripple?

This is obviously planning for the interests of the Liu family, but let's do it, why use his sister's life in exchange?Their brother and sister were brought up by their widowed mother since childhood, Liu Lixing was very confident that he never owed the Liu family anything.

So he is not reconciled, he believes that his younger sister will not be reconciled to being manipulated in such a way!

But Liu Lixingniang said: "Lixing, you are able to work in the Wuyuan County Yamen because of your uncle and grandpa's help. Without him, you would not be able to get this position."

Liu Lixing became anxious and raised his voice: "Mother—"

"I was able to work as an errand not because the clan supported me, but because I passed the diploma exam by myself. Didn't you see it? The clan also called several children from the direct line to take the exam together, but they I didn’t pass the exam... Mom, it’s me, it’s your son who studied books day and night in the days before the exam, and learned to write and count on the slate in front of our house without paper..." He tried his best to correct The concept of motherhood.

"I studied so hard back then, but I never thought of replacing my sister as a pawn in the clan."

Liu Lixingniang was completely startled, looking at her son's face, she was speechless.In recent days, she has been indoctrinated by Liu Minghua's family a lot, always about how the Liu family is, how the mother and son should be grateful, and at this moment, Liu Lixingniang woke up after what her son said.

But Liu Xiaomei raised her face at this moment, looking at her brother with gratitude and trust in her eyes.

"Mother, I told you a long time ago that my little sister is looking for her husband's family. Let's go back to participate in the blind date meeting in Taoyuan Village next time. We can see at a glance what kind of character, talent and family background the other side is suitable for my little sister." I know. Why do you have to ask for it in the clan."

Liu Lixingniang murmured at this moment: "Isn't this... Taoyuan Village is not happy to accept bride price?"

"Mother—" Hearing the betrothal gift, Liu Lixing felt even more speechless, "So what if you receive the betrothal gift? Why don't you let your younger sister be taken to Taoyuan Village as a dowry? Don't tell me you will rely on this money to provide for your retirement in the future?"

Liu Lixingniang was choked up by him and couldn't speak a word.Only then did Liu Lixing slow down his tone, and said: "Besides, Taoyuan Village does not prohibit all betrothal gifts, but does not advocate such high-value betrothal gifts that exceed the usual standards. Mother, you are always worrying about such trivial matters."

"That's why I came to the door today to bring out my mother and younger sister first. No matter what happens to this matter, you two can't continue to live in Renfu and be seduced by others."

At this time, Liu Lixingniang was calmed down by her son's words, but she still felt uneasy when she thought of the arrangement in the clan, and she said: "Lixing, think about it, the job you have has something to do with your uncle, if we If you refuse to accept this marriage, will it be detrimental to your errand... How could your uncle, the elder of the clan, let you go..."

Liu Lixing thought about it, and for the first time felt that what his mother said made sense: "That's right, since the uncle said that he had made an agreement with the Zhao family, but if the Zhao family hired us later and refused to continue, the clan would definitely have trouble with us. It's true. Figure out a way."

The Liu family members were silent for a moment, thinking about their own problems, Liu Lixing scratched his head when he thought about his troubles, but he couldn't think of a good way out.

Unexpectedly, the Du family who lived next to the Liu family knocked on the door at this moment: "Lixing, Lixing, come to my courtyard!"

Liu Lixing immediately covered his mouth, thinking: Oh no, just now he quarreled too loudly with his family, and Father Du will teach him not to be filial to his mother again later.

The Liu family and the Du family have been neighbors for many years. After the Liu family's father passed away, the Du family watched Liu Lixing grow up, and there was much care and guidance on weekdays.This time it must be Father Du who wants to criticize Liu Lixing.

Liu Lixing didn't make a sound on this side, but Old Man Du on the other side said in a hoarse voice: "Get out of here, Lixing bastard."

Liu Lixing had no choice but to follow what Father Du said and rush to the next door to Du's house.Unexpectedly, as soon as he entered the door of Du's house, Father Du "opened" the courtyard door behind Liu Lixing, and Liu Lixing saw a middle-aged man who looked like a scholar sitting in the main room of Du's house.

He had been around the Wuyuan yamen many times, so he naturally knew that this person looked ugly, but he was actually a big shot in the Jiedu Shifu's office, Jia Fang's chief aide, Zheng Boyi.Liu Lixing quickly saluted.

Zheng Boyi put down the teacup in his hand, and said with a smile, "Are you worrying about your sister's marriage?"

Liu Lixing was even more speechless, regretting in his heart: the quarrel was so loud just now that the guests next door even listened.

He nodded helplessly, but Zheng Boyi smiled and said, "I came here just for you today."

Liu Lixing was stunned: How can there be such a person who doesn't enter his own house, but stays at his neighbor's house and asks the neighbor to come and find him?

But he was not stupid, and immediately understood the other party's intention: to cover up people's eyes and ears, and not let the Liu family know.

Look at people, how thoughtful they are! ——Liu Lixing's heart immediately became excited again, he immediately arched his hands, bowed his head to Zheng Boyi, and said loudly: "Please Mr. Zheng for advice!"

Facing Liu Minghua, the elders of the Liu family asked in surprise, "That kid Lixing took his mother and younger sister home?"

Liu Minghua nodded speechlessly: "After that, his old lady took her daughter to visit relatives."

Liu Shihan frowned: "Liu Lixing Niang... a widow, she begged to come to the clan when she was desperate, how could she have relatives to rely on?"

He looked at Liu Shilin, who also felt suspicious.

Liu Minghua hurriedly explained: "I've come back, I've already returned to Wuyuan. It's just... said that I was stung by a bee near the bee farm in Taoyuan Village, and now my face is so swollen that I can't see anyone, and I keep it at home all day long. "

"Stung in the face by a bee?" What is this called? ——Liu Shihan and Liu Shilin frowned at each other, both of them felt that this was too incredible.

"When I came back, my nephew and daughter-in-law went to see her. She was fit and well-dressed. It must be Miss Liu, but she kept her face covered and couldn't see anyone." Liu Minghua added.

"Has Lixing met anyone before?" Liu Shilin asked seriously.

Liu Minghua shook his head: "Whether it's in the county office or when he returns to his own home, there are always people staring at him, and he has never seen anyone suspicious."

The two elders of the Liu family were relieved, and one ordered: "Keep watching. If the Zhao family proposes a marriage, they should delay it first, and don't push that kid too hard."

The other warned: "Minghua, you must be careful these days and keep an eye on Lixing - he has seen the fish scale book in the clan. Once he says it, our clan will be over."

Liu Minghua knew that this matter was of great importance, so he quickly responded: "Nephew, don't worry."

Liu Shilin and Liu Shihan looked at each other, one said: "It's just a few days!" The other said: "What tricks does Mr. Jia have, if you can't use it now, it will be too late."

The Liu family mobilized hundreds of children to follow Liu Minghua and the county magistrates to work together in the field. With the "help" of the original fish scale book, the compilation of the new fish scale book will be completed soon.With the new fish scale book, in the future, the annual grain tax of each household in Wuyuan County will be equivalent to being fixed.

If Jia Fang approves of this new book of fish scales, then what he did with Yuan Hua in Wuyuan County, cleaning up the county officials, and promoting diplomas will be meaningless, just like a joke.

Obviously, the Liu family didn't think that Jia Fang would allow them to collect this year's autumn Fu so easily.

But they couldn't think of what Jia Fang would do and what he could do to change the current situation.