Three Kingdoms

Hedong.

Anyi.

In a manor in the east of Anyi City, Pei Mao was sitting in the lobby with several disciples of his clan, and he also asked some questions to assess the academic performance of these disciples.

Not long after, a disciple from the clan handed over the paper. Pei Mao looked at it briefly, nodded, and said: The previous articles were often far-fetched and even unsightly. The current article has clear usage and clear regulations, which can be called good. also……

Although this member of the clan immediately tried his best to maintain an appearance of being neither arrogant nor discouraged in victory, he couldn't hold it back. In the end, he grinned happily and then retreated happily.

When Pei Mao was about to say something and explain, he suddenly saw a figure shaking in the corridor, so he changed his words and said: Today's class will be suspended for now. In ten days, I will teach again.

Thank you, Master...

I'll take my leave.

Several disciples quickly saluted Pei Mao, and then slowly retreated. When they arrived at the entrance of the lobby, they met Pei Hui, who had just arrived, and said goodbye to each other.

Father... Pei Hui glanced sideways at the few clan members who were leaving and said, are there any talented people among them?

Pei Mao stroked his beard and said, maybe one or two... Chang'an, how is it?

Now that the entire trend has begun to change, Pei Mao feels that the examination system seems to have become inevitable. Even if there are changes in the future, it is not a big problem to make some preparations in advance. Even if it is to raise some points within the clan, The academic growth and progress of the family is also good, so a small cram school like this was opened, specifically to train a few side children of the clan who are somewhat talented.

After hearing Pei Mao's question, Pei Hui's eyes swayed from side to side.

Pei Mao understood and waved his servant to leave first.

Pei Huicai said: This time the hussar is probably going to be cruel...

Hearing this, Pei Mao's face darkened slightly.

This time, among the Pei family, naturally some people went to Chang'an for reference, but they did not expect that during the reference process, they got smart and participated in the trouble, and even burned down the Zuixian Tower, putting themselves in jail. To the Pei family.

What did Fengxian say? Pei Mao asked. Of course, this question is not about the other person. The question is about Pei Jun and Pei Fengxian.

Pei Hui couldn't help but snort, obviously he didn't feel very good about Pei Jun, and then said: He just talks less, does less and moves less...

Pei Mao was silent. Pei Jun has been following Fei Qian for a long time, so although Pei Mao is the head of the family, he will also ask Pei Jun for his judgment on this matter.

This time, the Chang'an riots seemed to cast a haze over not only the Pei family, but also many other families.

If every family is interested in the examination system introduced by Fei Qian, that is not necessarily the case. After all, the examination system is still a new thing for these families that have survived in the Han Dynasty for decades or even hundreds of years.

Faced with such a new problem, naturally everyone has different views and opinions. Some think it is good, some think it is not good, and some, like Pei Mao, look at it coldly, neither expressing good nor disapproving. Okay, hold the chips and make them click, but don’t bet easily.

Speaking of which, Pei Mao has already invested a lot in General Hussars, and it won't be a big deal if the whole family is involved. So there is no need to fight for anything extra, but others are different, such as Pei Xi's team.

Pei Xi is Pei Mao's brother, who has died.

When Pei Xi ascended to the position of the head of the family, he naturally put in a lot of effort, and suffered a lot of losses when fighting with others. However, Pei Xi did not have that luck. He contracted an illness and died within a few years of being the head of the family. Naturally, he suffered a serious setback. Pei Mao waited for a while, and easily and neatly took the owner of the family into his arms.

Although Pei Mao had helped Pei Xi before, it was obviously not as much as Pei Xi had paid. And the houses that originally competed with Pei Xi had suffered too much damage before, so naturally when Pei Mao took over, they would not pay as much. Resistance is powerless.

Um?

It is not a personal injury, but a damage to property. After all, in a noble family, there are elders and voting, but it is more like the later generations of the Disai system. If the money is spent, it will be like running water.

Pei Xi's family was busy managing funerals, and the Han Dynasty paid great attention to such trivial matters. As a child, if you didn't accompany your parents in a funeral and your family would go bankrupt, you would be embarrassed to say hello to others!

Then Pei Xi's son Pei Yuan was buried with him until the hall was empty, and he had to observe mourning for another three years. After the mourning was completed, of course the family's wealth was also buried with him, and there was no benefit to the head of the family at all.

How can Pei Xi remain calm even if he gives in?

Therefore, this time, two of Pei Xi's disciples went to Chang'an for reference. They originally thought that they could take this opportunity to get rid of some unfavorable situations, but they did not expect that because of their eagerness for quick success or confusion, they would be involved in In this chaos, he was arrested.

When the situation first started to change, many wealthy families did not respond immediately. One was that these wealthy families and surnames generally had deep foundations and large numbers of people. There were as few as a hundred people in the family, and as many as a thousand people. , even if the Qiusi didn’t arrest them this time, there would still be some unscrupulous people among them who would steal and end up in jail, so they didn’t immediately get angry and jump up and down...

And according to the concepts of these big families, most things like this are delayed for a long time, and even some changes are measured in months. Therefore, many people, including Pei Mao, are preparing to fight a protracted war. As a result, Unexpectedly, the situation changed rapidly. Before many of them had figured out how to deal with it, the situation seemed to have solidified. If they wanted to insert an eye, send a message, etc., they were no longer able to stop it. Went in.

This hussar... Pei Mao slowly spit out these words, not sure whether they were praise or criticism.

Father, I'm afraid this is a big room... Pei Hui was just about to say something when he heard a servant outside the courtyard reporting that Pei Yuan had come to see him.

Pei Mao glanced at Pei Hui. Pei Hui understood, stood up, and turned to the back hall to avoid it. Pei Mao paused for a moment and said in a loud voice: Please!

Uncle! Please save your nephew from water and fire! When Pei Yuan came up, he took the lead and then banged his head on the wooden floor in the lobby.

Pei Mao grinned secretly, and then said: Nephew, please get up, please get up quickly...

Uncle! Mr. Pei is in trouble this time! Pei Yuan raised his hands and said, please let your uncle make the decision!

Pei Mao opened his eyes wide and then put on a surprised expression, oh? What happened? Why did my nephew say this?

Pei Yuan narrowed his eyes slightly, uncle, don't you know what happened in Chang'an?

Pei Mao shook his head decisively and said: How can I know about the third assistant in Chang'an when I live at home and cannot leave the hospital?

Pei Yuan coughed slightly, swallowed the cold snort, and then told Pei Mao what happened in Chang'an as if he didn't know anything.

Pei Mao was so shocked that he almost wanted to leave the table, and then asked: How is the safety of General Hussar? Could this have harmed your body?

Hearing these words, Pei Yuan's eyes almost fell out of his head, and he replied in a depressed tone after a while: "Uncle!" All is well, General Hussar! The people who suffered were the children of the Pei family!

Pei Mao looked like it would be a sunny day if the Qiusi was well, and smiled happily, as long as the Qiusi was fine... Huh? As the wise nephew said, who among the clan members was in trouble, but was injured by the mob? hateful! A certain person must have gone to the hussar and asked him to punish these rebellious people, which made the disciples of the tribe feel so bad!

Pei Yuan was not stupid, and Pei Mao was pretending to be confused. He was so angry that the corners of his mouth trembled, and then he said coldly: So, uncle wants to sit back and watch and ignore the life and death of the children in the clan?

Pei Mao also immediately turned his face, faster than flipping through a book, someone just sitting back and watching the life and death of his family members? Why do you say this! If you can't say one or two things, you will definitely be punished for insulting the head of the family and disrespecting the elders!

Pei Yuan first handed over his hands to apologize, and then said: This is not just one or two children in the clan, but it is the key to the entire Pei clan! In ancient times, people were polite and could not punish a doctor. Today we use labor force to drive away the scholars, but in the Ming Dynasty the Qing Dynasty will wipe out all ethnic groups and reduce them to Guizhou!

It is a class privilege to not be punished as a doctor.

In ancient China, there was a very strong privileged hierarchy of official positions. For example, the departments of departments, counties and departments... er, that's wrong, they were the three gongs and nine ministers, the governors of various counties. Then according to the different statuses of these three ministers and nine ministers, different levels of courtesy were formulated. Even if they are the same nine ministers, there is a strict seating order for positions of different sizes, and they cannot sit randomly.

Officials at different levels have insurmountable rankings and treatment, such as whether they can marry wives and concubines, what kind of courtyard layout they live in, whether they can be equipped with guards, whether they have secretaries, cooks, and servants, what kind of cars they take when traveling, and how many sides they fight. Flags, etc., all depend on the level.

At the same time, the level of rank also determines the amount of wealth. According to incomplete statistics, during the four years of Zhongping in the Han Dynasty, among the billionaires of the Han Dynasty, more than nine levels were descendants of high-ranking gentry officials. They were involved in all important areas of the country, controlled a large amount of money and real estate, and controlled more than nine levels. The local area also firmly controls the size of the carrot pit in the court.

During the period of Emperor Ling of the Han Dynasty, the Han Dynasty did not have bad harvests every year, but also had abundant years. But why were there still food shortages everywhere and soaring food prices?

In fact, it was because the grain was not collected by the court, but by the noble families, and the noble families controlled the vast majority of the grain output and adopted the market starvation method to hold up the market price of grain.

In order to obtain more grain, the court had to provide grain subsidies to large noble families. Each time it collected taxes of ten shi of grain, the court exempted large households from two dou, and even gave more exemptions and subsidies in some special times. These The exemptions and subsidies have always only reached the level of the gentry at most, and have never really reached the fields. Even if some fish slip through the net, they are only two or three five baht, so that those who have worked hard year after year can The farmers are so grateful that they thank the sky.

Some wealthy families with surnames in the countryside can even control local security and military affairs. All county soldiers, supervisors, etc. that were originally under the leadership of the state have all become their private armed forces. They can be dispatched by Wai Wai Zui, and can even cross counties to injure them. Crimes related to the reputation of a noble family should be brought directly to the perpetrators. Like Tai Shi Ci...

With such privilege and rank, once you get used to enjoying it, how can you be willing to give it up?

This time, the hussar general Fei Qian punished the troubled students with forced labor, which broke the original class privileges, forcing these nobles to have to lower their heads and engage in hard labor like ordinary Guizhou heads.

Pei Mao frowned and listened to Pei Yuan's ramblings, and then said in a deep voice: Our Hedong Pei family is not an ordinary family, and we cannot be harmed by ordinary sins! However, even if he is not guilty, man-made disasters are inevitable! The merits and demerits of this matter should be considered carefully by your worthy nephew!

Speaking of this, Pei Mao's expression became more solemn. Do you think it was only the Pei family who suffered during the Chang'an rebellion? Do you think it's the hussar who insists on suppressing the gentry's children? Everything needs to be looked at its origin! It's just that Qiusi is asking for a lot of money. We'll pay you back when we land! Looking at the Hussars' rise from the north, what is not foresight? Is this a rash move?

Guanzhong's Wei family, Du family, and other families have all lived in Sanfu for a long time, but no one took any action in this matter! Pei Mao's eyes were shining brightly. If the Pei family suddenly rose up at this time, it would be a sin not only for the two or three sons, but also for the whole family!

Pei Yuan was shocked and angry after hearing this. He was silent for a moment and argued: If this is true, we should fight! Otherwise, if Qiaoqi takes advantage of it, we will have no place to stay!

Pei Mao shook his head and said, "The punishment cannot reach the masses, and the law cannot command the people. The hussar general's move may not be without the intention of judging the public situation and the situation. However, if there are any outliers in each family who act rashly, they will be the first to bear the brunt." !

Pei Mao stared at Pei Yuan and said that he was talking about you.

Pei Yuan still had an angry look on his face.

Pei Mao pondered for a moment, then lowered his voice and said: "You were raised in the courtyard and taught well in the room. Without the wind and rain, it is inevitable that you will not be able to observe the current situation and have no plan when encountering problems... This matter is big if it is said to be big, and it is small if it is said to be small. Qiusi is dedicated...

Hussar is always good at forbearing, moves like thunder, and is fond of scheming. You think you can understand Husband's thoughts. This punishment is to invade the noble clan and chaos the distinction between the soldiers and the people. How can you know that Hussar has other plans? Just wait for others to fall into your trap! In the past, when a hussar was assassinated, if he were an ordinary person, he would be furious and the ground would be red for thousands of miles. However, the hussar would not attack, and even surrendered to the assassin. What do you think? What happens after that? Everyone in the world praises Hussar for his ancient chivalrous style, but who is willing to assassinate Hussar again?

Pei Yuan was silent.

Sigh... Pei Mao shook his head and sighed, if it weren't for the sake of his eldest brother... Even if he couldn't understand the conspiracy, couldn't he know what was going on? Now the Hsiu have taken over the Shangshutai of Xijing and divided them into Shandong and Shanxi. It has been decided. Nowadays, all these things are just to stabilize the place and distinguish the good from the bad! The first is to strike a chord, then grab the tail of your hand and go straight to shake the mountain and knock the tiger! The methods are coming one after another, and they are extremely swift, just like the way of using troops, act with dignity, if you don't move, you will be defeated, if you move, it will be a disaster! At this moment, if there is any movement, it is the hunter holding the bow and stretching it behind him! I am here, watching the changes of the three assistants in Guanzhong, and I am already dripping with cold sweat, but you... ugh...

After hearing this, Pei Yuan's expression was still solemn, but his eyes were indeed a little wandering, but he couldn't say anything to compare with Pei Mao.

After Pei Yuan left, Pei Hui walked out of the back hall and returned to the main hall. He frowned slightly and said: Father, I'm afraid the eldest brother may not be willing to listen...

Pei Mao smiled and said nothing.

Pei Hui was stunned, but said with some worry: If this happens, wouldn't it be implicated...

Pei Mao shook his head and said: If the implicated method is used, I am afraid that the hussar soldiers will have arrived at the door by now!

Pei Hui was stunned. His father's intention was to hustle... Wouldn't he make a grand execution?

Of course... Pei Mao nodded and said. Isn't this an obvious thing? If the Cavalry General Fei Qian wants to dig deep for those who are implicated, I am afraid that the case will never be finalized now, but will be delayed until enough people have been implicated before the final judgment is made. .

Everyone knows that this yamen is open and money is pouring in. If it delays for one more day, it is natural that there may be an extra amount of money income. However, Qiaoqi has set the tone of the general handling opinions so quickly. In fact, from another perspective Saying it is also showing an attitude...

However, Pei Mao does not need to elaborate on these things.

Pei Mao deliberately acted like he was afraid of the hussars when Pei Yuan was there, which was actually a strategy.

From Pei Jun's message, in addition to doing less and taking less action, it also conveyed another meaning, that is, Pei Jun did not receive any impact because Pei's two or three children were arrested, so it was marked In fact, Qiusi is not targeting everyone this time, but it does not mean that Pei will not move at all, but it is risky to move. Since some people jump out and seem to want to move, Pei Mao does not mind following the trend.

Pei Hui immediately nodded and said, "Now that the child understands, he will tell his children to pay more attention and not to get involved..."

Pei Mao nodded and said: Go!

Pei Hui took the order and left.

Pei Mao looked at the desolate branches in the courtyard with fallen leaves due to the sudden drop in temperature, and couldn't help but sigh in a low voice: The severe winter is coming...

But when Pei Yuan turned around and left the Pei Mao Manor, he couldn't help but let out a sigh, as expected! They don't care about our life or death, but they say that the hussar is so powerful that it cannot be touched lightly!

Pei Mao took over the position of head of the family. As a member of the big family who worked hard but got little benefit, Pei Yuan naturally had a lot of resentment in his heart, but he just tolerated it on weekdays. Now he has to see the Cavalry General Guanzhong. I thought it was a good opportunity to take the big exam, so I jumped out of it, not just to fight against the so-called second and third sons who were involved in the turmoil.

Pei Yuan no longer has the wealth that he had when his father Pei Xi was alive. Naturally, it is impossible for him to use any money to win over people and gain popularity. However, for Pei Yuan, he cannot give up just because he has no wealth. The pursuit of a higher level!

Since he has no wealth to gain popularity, Pei Yuan can only find another way. Speaking uprightly and being chivalrous and courageous are naturally the best ways to gain fame...