Zhu Xiaosong knew he was being framed. It was a case of someone else's actions landing squarely on his shoulders, without any prior warning or his consent.
He, who had never visited this estate before, was now being accused of leading a massacre of its gentry and distributing their wealth to the common folk? It was as if Cao Cao dreamt of killing people while he, Zhu Xiaosong, dreamt of fighting corrupt gentry.
Such a clumsy tactic was obvious not just to Zhu Xiaosong, but even to a fool like Qian Long.
Of course, Zhu Xiaosong didn't mind taking on a few more burdens; he figured the more虱子 (lice) he had, the less he'd itch, and the more debts he owed, the less he'd worry.
But he wouldn't carry this burden for free.
Zhu Xiaosong grinned as he led the young and strong men of Menglianggu First Company into the village. Upon reaching the vicinity of the large willow tree at the village entrance, he waved, signaling the men to disperse. He, however, proceeded towards the willow tree with two of his subordinates.
Beneath the large willow tree at the village entrance, several old men in tattered cotton-padded jackets were basking in the sun, while a few half-grown children were running around wildly.
It was unavoidable. Most houses in this era were made of adobe, with leaky walls, and lacked heating facilities like central heating or underfloor heating. Moreover, coal and charcoal were prohibitively expensive. Ordinary families couldn't afford to burn stoves, so they could only soak up the sun to warm themselves a bit.
These old men had already noticed the movement of Zhu Xiaosong and his entourage. Though they wished to flee, they feared causing a disturbance and further angering Zhu Xiaosong. Thus, they could only brace themselves and continue sunbathing. The half-grown children who were running wildly earlier had also hidden behind the old men.
Seeing Zhu Xiaosong, the leader, approaching the large willow tree with his retinue, these old men could no longer feign ignorance and rose to their feet.
The shoulders of these elders were slightly stooped, and their calloused hands didn't know where to rest. Their gazes were filled with bewilderment as they looked at Zhu Xiaosong, their faces attempting a forced smile of appeasement, even flattery, yet behind it lay a deep wariness.
Zhu Xiaosong forced himself to smile as he approached the old men, unsure of what he was feeling.
Upon reaching the old men, Zhu Xiaosong smiled and said, "Esteemed elders, do not be afraid. We are neither soldiers nor bandits; we are merely passing through your estate and thought we might beg for some water."
His authentic Shandong accent quickly closed the distance between Zhu Xiaosong and them.
Judging by their accents, these people, even if they were outsiders, were not from too far away. They claimed not to be soldiers or bandits and spoke politely. Although their origin and intentions were still unknown, judging by the demeanor of their leader, they likely wouldn't resort to murder or arson.
The old men exchanged glances. After a long pause, one of them hesitantly asked, "May I know where you, honored sir, are from and where you are going? Is there anything this humble old man can do for you?"
Zhu Xiaosong felt a pang of discomfort and forced a hearty laugh. "I am only eighteen years old and do not deserve the title of 'honored sir.' Please, esteemed elder, do not address me as such. If you do not mind that we are strangers, you may call me Young Master Zhu."
The old man who had spoken earlier quickly replied, "Oh, oh, this humble old man greets you, Young Master Zhu."
Zhu Xiaosong smiled, then sat down on the ground, pressing his hands down and saying, "Esteemed elders, please do not stand. Sit down, all of you, sit down."
The old men exchanged glances again before sitting down on the ground one by one. No one sat on the stools anymore.
Zhu Xiaosong knew that the old men had not completely shed their wariness and anxieties, so he did not press them further. He simply smiled and said, "The esteemed elder who spoke earlier asked if there was anything he could do for us. Actually, your question has hit the mark."
The old men's hearts tightened. The one who had spoken earlier hesitantly asked, "If there is anything this humble old man can do, please, Young Master Zhu, command me."
Zhu Xiaosong chuckled, "It's nothing much, really. We have been traveling for most of the day and would like to ask for some water on your estate, and perhaps a midday meal."
The elder who had spoken earlier hesitated, then tentatively said, "I see that you have perhaps a hundred men with you, Young Master? A midday meal is no trouble, but our Xu Village is rather poor; we might not have much to offer in terms of food."
Zhu Xiaosong laughed heartily, "Please don't worry, esteemed elder. We also come from humble backgrounds. We will not eat this meal for free; we will pay whatever the cost. And my brothers under me, they also come from poor backgrounds; none of them will harm the villagers."
After speaking, Zhu Xiaosong took out a piece of silver from his embrace and offered it to the old man, saying, "Esteemed elder, please see if this is enough."
The old man dared not accept the silver ingot, but instead repeatedly waved his hands in refusal, "Young Master Zhu, what are you doing? You want money for a midday meal? If word gets out, people will laugh at us Xu Villagers for being impolite."
Zhu Xiaosong grabbed the old man's hand and forcefully placed the silver ingot into it. "Paying for food is only right and proper. Esteemed elder, please do not refuse. If you do not accept this payment, then we would rather not eat at Xu Village."
The old man held the silver ingot in his hand, looking quite bewildered.
Zhu Xiaosong then smiled again and said, "Esteemed elder, please accept it. If you do not, it will make this junior feel uneasy."
The old man hesitated for a moment, then finally said to another old man, "Go to the village and call out. Find a few people who can cook to prepare a meal for Young Master Zhu and his men."
He paused, then added, "Oh, and slaughter my old hen for Young Master Zhu, and see if anyone else has a chicken they can slaughter."
Zhu Xiaosong noticed that although the old man was speaking to another old man, his eyes were constantly observing Zhu Xiaosong's expression. The reason for suggesting slaughtering a chicken was likely the concern that Zhu Xiaosong's group might suddenly turn hostile.
Zhu Xiaosong quickly waved his hands, "Esteemed elder, what are you doing? We are here to have a meal, not to cause trouble in the village. It's good that you have an old hen; perhaps it can lay more eggs for these young brothers."
Speaking of which, Zhu Xiaosong let out another laugh, "They say that starving parents can be outdone by their grown children. Do not laugh at me, but I also come from poverty. When I was as old as these young brothers behind me, I would wake up hungry in the middle of the night and have nothing to eat, not even a窝窝头 (wo wo tou, a steamed corn bun). I know that feeling."
Seeing Zhu Xiaosong's sincerity, the old men finally began to relax their guard. Apart from one old man who went back to the village to call for cooks, the other old men gradually showed smiles.
The leading old man habitually reached for his dry pipe to light it, but then remembered Zhu Xiaosong's presence. He then gave a sheepish smile and said, "You must have seen me laugh, Young Master."
Zhu Xiaosong smiled, took the dry pipe and pouch from the elder's hand, packed it, and handed it back. He then took out a fire starter from his embrace and brought it to the elder's pipe, smiling, "Esteemed elder, smoke as much as you like. Don't mind whether I smoke or not."
The old man, overwhelmed with gratitude, took two deep puffs from the fire. Once the tobacco in the pipe caught fire, he exhaled a long breath of smoke and looked at Zhu Xiaosong, "Where exactly are you from, Young Master? And where are you going?"
Zhu Xiaosong smiled, "Since esteemed elder asks, I shall answer. But I must first state that no matter what you hear, you must not be afraid."
The old man nodded, "You may speak freely, Young Master. I have lived for decades and believe my judgment of people is not entirely poor. Based on how you treat us old folks, I know you are not a bad person."
Zhu Xiaosong slapped his thigh with a sudden exclamation, "You've hit the nail on the head! I am indeed not a bad person!"
Zhu Xiaosong's demeanor made the old men chuckle.
Zhu Xiaosong continued, "I said to be prepared, and I will speak. Do not be afraid—I am the notorious bandit the government is currently seeking, my surname is Zhu, and my given name is Zhu Xiaosong."
The old men who were just laughing immediately stopped. The old man who had been smoking began to cough uncontrollably. The group of people scrambled to their feet, looking at Zhu Xiaosong with shock and suspicion, "You, you are Zhu..."
The half-grown children behind the old men looked at Zhu Xiaosong with fear and anger, their gazes like sharp blades.
Zhu Xiaosong, however, paid them no mind, merely smiling and waving his hands, "Sit down, everyone, sit down. I told you not to be afraid earlier, but I didn't expect you old folks to break your word and still be frightened."
The old men stared blankly at each other, but no one dared to sit down again. Finally, the elder who had been smoking was the first to sit down. After taking a deep puff of his pipe, he asked, "Young Master, have you come to Xu Village because the people of Xu Village impersonated you?"
Zhu Xiaosong smiled and waved his hands, "Let me be frank. I originally intended to visit Xu Village to see if there were any corrupt gentry oppressing our common folk. If there were, I would deal with them. I did not expect the villagers of Xu Village to get there first."
"As for impersonating me, what is that? It's a trivial matter, not worth my attention. Can you still be afraid because of this?"
The old men exchanged glances again. The smoking elder, gathering his courage, asked boldly, "Then why has Young Master come to Xu Village?"
Zhu Xiaosong replied, "Firstly, to see if anyone in Xu Village is willing to follow me to fight the Tatars. Secondly, to visit Xu Village and see which esteemed elders in our village are respected, as I wish to invite them to organize a farmers' association."
The smoking elder asked, "What is a farmers' association?"
Zhu Xiaosong smiled, "This farmers' association, of course, is to speak and make decisions for us common people."
"In the past, this village was ruled by those wealthy and corrupt gentry. They could seize our land whenever they wished, and they decided who would be the Baojia (village head). They helped the government oppress us, not only taking away the grain we painstakingly cultivated but also forcing us to perform corvee labor."
"In other villages, it was I, Zhu Xiaosong, who fought those corrupt gentry and distributed the land to the villagers. But what about our Xu Village? The corrupt gentry have been dealt with, but who should make decisions about the land now?"
"Setting aside everything else, just consider this land—you only thought about fighting the corrupt gentry, but did you consider that the government still holds the land deeds? If a new corrupt official comes and finds the land deeds with the government, what will you do then?"
The smoking elder hesitantly asked, "Then is your farmers' association not afraid of the government?"
After asking, the smoking elder gave a self-mocking laugh, "That's right. You, Young Master, dare to kill officials and rebel; what is there to fear from the government?"
Zhu Xiaosong nodded in agreement, "Isn't that the case? Since we dare to kill officials and rebel, who else fears the Tatar government? To be honest with you, I am killing officials and rebelling, and sooner or later, we will drive out the Tatars."
Speaking of which, Zhu Xiaosong pointed at the half-grown children behind the old men, "If our generation does not drive out the Tatars, these young brothers will grow up to be oppressed by the Tatars."
"Your age, esteemed elder, should have heard of the saying, 'keep your hair, lose your head.' There was a poem that described these young brothers as '垂髫稚子' (chuí tiáo zhì zǐ, young children with hair hanging down), but look at these young brothers, what are they hanging down? Like rat tails!"
"Furthermore, regarding you impersonating me and killing corrupt gentry, do you really think the government cannot guess what is happening? If one or two villages impersonate me, the government might not be able to figure it out, but what if dozens or hundreds of villages impersonate me simultaneously? The government is not foolish!"