Chapter 168 People Join Forces to Protest

Chapter 168 People Join Forces to Protest

"The Gu family is utterly despicable!"

Jiang Yutang raised her voice in anger, then quickly covered her mouth and asked in a low voice, "Then what should we do now? Those guys surnamed Gu probably won't let this go easily."

"Don't rush."

Jiang Jiuze pressed down on her shoulder, his tone calm: "What I can think of, Lan Zhou can naturally think of too. He's in the thick of it, he sees things much more clearly than we do, so don't tell anyone else about this."

He paused, then continued, "I have a close friend in the court. I'll write him a secret letter later to ask about the recent developments in the capital and the Gu family's specific plans. That should be enough to find out the truth."

Jiang Yutang nodded, her anxiety easing slightly.

With Jiang Jiuze's help in gathering information, they might be able to avoid this turmoil originating from the capital.

But the journey is long, and perhaps before the letter arrives, an accident will happen first.

Jiang Yutang smacked his head hard, telling himself to stop worrying about troop deployment from the capital.

Things will work themselves out; there's no use thinking about it too much.

The plot of the original book kept replaying in her mind.

After the court lost Cheng Lanzhou, the war in the northern border suffered repeated defeats, and several cities were lost. Only then did they think of recalling him to serve. However, the book only briefly mentions his refusal, without mentioning the process and consequences of his refusal.

She could only pray silently that Cheng Lanzhou would also escape safely this time and that everything would go smoothly.

Suppressing her anxiety, Jiang Yutang focused on managing the shop.

But on this day, she had only been gone from the shop for a short time when she went to check the revenue accounts of the past few days with Jiang Sumin. When she returned, she was shocked by what she saw and felt a chill run down her spine.

The wooden door of the convenience store was kicked askew, the shelves were overturned, and snacks were scattered all over the floor.

If it weren't for the solar panels in the backyard, they would probably be broken into pieces by now.

A dozen or so people surrounded him, whispering amongst themselves, their faces full of resentment.

When Jiang Yutang saw Jiang Shengan lying on the ground, he rushed over to help him up. Yun Shi was wiping away tears and trembling all over.

She reached out to support Jiang Shengan's waist, her voice trembling, "Father! How are you? Mother, what happened?"

Madam Yun choked back tears as she explained, "Seven or eight men in official robes came just now, saying they wanted to collect 'shop rent tax.' We said we'd never heard of paying taxes and disagreed. They got angry and started smashing things. Your father tried to stop them, but they pushed him down..."

"Taxes?" Jiang Yutang frowned, her tone full of doubt.

"This land was specially applied for by Cheng Lanzhou from the military camp. I paid someone to level the land, and the cement houses were built by ourselves. It is neither government property nor a private residence for rent, so why is there any talk of rent or tax?"

The people around looked at each other, their eyes filled with hesitation and fear.

An elderly woman next to her sighed helplessly: "Madam Cheng, this tax was suddenly started four years ago. At that time, the African swine fever had just ended, and everyone's houses were empty. Where would we get the money? They said they would smash things and take away livestock if we didn't pay. We had no choice but to endure it until now."

"Smashing the shop is one thing, but why did they have to hit people!"

Jiang Yutang was furious and hurriedly checked Jiang Shengan's injuries. When she touched his lower back, Jiang Shengan gasped in pain.

Her eyes welled up with tears, and she said with heartache, "Just give them the money they want. You don't have to argue with them."

Jiang Shengan, clutching his aching back, sighed breathlessly, "Those were the goods you worked so hard to transport back. Why should they be given to those officials for nothing? I'm not reconciled!"

Jiang Yutang's tears welled up instantly. She wiped them away, stood up abruptly, and spoke clearly to the people around her.

"We can't let them continue to do whatever they want! The taxes are collected illicitly, and their beatings are outrageous. We have to get justice!"

Since Jiang Yutang came to Danzhou, the soap, fertilizer, and medicine he brought have helped the people a lot, just as Cheng Lanzhou said.

Her prestige was far greater than she had imagined.

Hearing Jiang Yutang say this, the people felt as if they had found a pillar of support and responded enthusiastically.

"Mrs. Cheng is right! We'll go with you!"

"We can't take it anymore, or they'll start riding on our necks!"

Jiang Yutang clenched his fist and said firmly, "I'll discuss this further when I get back, and then we can all discuss it together!"

Back in the tent that evening, Jiang Yutang told her family everything that had happened.

Jiang Sumin was so angry that he slammed an abacus on the table, making the dishes rattle.

"These corrupt officials! They're always short of money when they're keeping accounts, and I always try my best to make up the difference for them. Now they're even bullying my family!"

Jiang Yutang stared at him blankly, then turned her gaze away, thinking to herself:

Fortunately, this happened in ancient times. If this were done in modern times, it would be considered cheating on accounts and being forced to work on a sewing machine.

Jiang Songzhi's face was ashen, his fingers clenched into fists, he remained silent but his eyes were full of anger.

Mu Shi held Xiaoxiao in her arms, her eyes reddening with anger: "How could they bully people like this!"

With red eyes, Yun applied a hot towel to Jiang Sheng'an's old wound.

Zhu looked at them anxiously and asked cautiously, "What should we do? It's just a small shop now. If we really open a clinic in the future, won't we need even more?"

Before everyone's anger had subsided, Jiang Songzhi suddenly remembered something and asked, "Have you told Huaiyu about this?"

Jiang Yutang nodded: "I have already asked a familiar soldier in the camp to pass on the message."

"This is troublesome," Jiang Songzhi sighed. "With Huaiyu's temper, she'll probably come to our door and cause a scene. If things get out of hand, we'll only give others something to talk about."

Jiang Sumin scoffed disdainfully, "Let them make a scene! At worst, I'll just get a military punishment. It's better than holding my anger in and letting them bully me!"

“That’s true, but it’s not a long-term solution.” Jiang Songzhi shook his head with a wry smile, turning his gaze to Jiang Jiuze, who had remained silent.

"Jiu Ze, do you have any reliable insights?"

Jiang Jiuze looked up and met Jiang Yutang's gaze.

The family members all assumed that Jiang Yutang would ask Cheng Lanzhou to intervene, since he was a military general and could suppress local officials to some extent.

Jiang Jiuzhe shook his head slightly at her, and she pursed her lips and nodded gently, indicating that she understood.

"This matter is actually very easy to resolve."

Jiang Jiuze spoke slowly, his tone calm yet carrying an undeniable power: "Call my third brother over later, and have him find a few quick-witted soldiers to disguise themselves as local residents and guard the shop. When those officials come to cause trouble again, have them all gang up on them and beat them up. Don't go too far, but make sure they remember the pain. Do this a few times, and they will naturally not dare to come back."

As soon as he finished speaking, the tent fell into an awkward silence.

No one expected that Jiang Jiuzhe, who was always gentle and resourceful, would come up with such a direct and brutal method.

Even Jiang Sumin, who advocated "making a scene," was stunned, his mouth agape for a long time without uttering a word.

Jiang Songzhi paused for a moment, shook his head helplessly, and then showed a hint of appreciation: "That is indeed a straightforward method."

"This is the simplest and most effective method right now."

Jiang Yutang nodded vigorously in agreement: "Second Brother is right, this is just the beginning. Beating up a few officials is nothing. The key is to follow this line and find out the group of corrupt officials who are plundering the people's wealth. Only by wiping them out in one fell swoop and solving the problem at its root can the people live in peace."

Her words calmed everyone down.

What the people want is not temporary relief, but long-term stability.

Just then, Jiang Huaiyu's furious shouts came from outside the tent: "Where are those corrupt officials? I'll break their legs!"

The group exchanged smiles, knowing that the first step of the plan was about to begin.