Chapter Fifty-Three: Originally of the Same Root

  The upstairs became quiet again, and Li Mengyang said:

  "Everyone, tomorrow I'm going to recruit apprentices. If any of your children are willing to come and aren't afraid of hardship, as long as they pass my test, I'll take them all in. My salt shop is a great place for kids to learn."

  He waved his hand and left, leaving behind people who were not in the mood to drink or eat. They thought that Salty Stick's big move was to recruit people, and it must be for today's exclusive sales and card-setting preparations. If their own brothers and nephews were inside at that time, they would inevitably have to make some concessions.

  Besides, this salt army is famous for its prestige, but among these young people, there are also those who knew the roots of the past. They were just poor military households from Ling Mountain Garrison, honest and simple farm children. Who would have thought that they would become such heroes now? Every time I go to Ling Mountain Garrison to buy salt, I hear those people talk with envy about the young military sons who joined the salt army and their families, saying that they are well-paid, and their families enjoy happiness together. Some even say that a few of these young men were not good at studying and were frivolous in the past, but after joining the salt army, they have become obedient and filial children, following rules everywhere.

  How about this, adding Li Meng and Li Er Lang would be a good choice. The salt merchants, salt smugglers, and salt peddlers on the second floor all have several relatives and younger brothers, and these younger brothers, due to their families' private salt trading, have good living conditions and are often not easy-going characters. Just worrying about no one being in charge, Li Meng and Li Er Lang look like heroes, wherever they are placed, it's reassuring. At this point, many people decided to hurry back home to report the news.

  Li Meng went downstairs, and the twenty or so people who were eating at a table on the first floor all stood up. Wang Hai was the first to move, and when he saw Li Meng come down, he waved his hand. These people picked up the knives and axes that were leaning against the edge of the table and followed him out the door. Li Meng furrowed his brow and turned back to say:

  "Take some things and wrap them up, there are many people in the provincial capital!"

  These young men, upon hearing this, were all busy finding things to wrap up, some took off their outer garments, while others had nothing to bundle up. Lin Zhanggui, who was resting on the first floor, couldn't bear to watch and called out to his apprentices to bring over some steamer covers from the back, which finally solved the problem.

  Wang Hai Zheng was in his growth spurt, only half a year's effort, because he exercised every day and improved the quality of his diet, so he became more robust, catching up with Ma Gang's height. Moreover, due to his hard work and dedication, his skills in the salted fish rod were among the top few, earning everyone's admiration. Normally, he would put on a serious face, pretending to be an adult.

  The noise from the second floor was loud enough to be heard clearly on the streets opposite the Shao Hai Building, Wang Hai followed behind Li Meng and couldn't help but ask:

  "Brother Li, our life is now better than ever before. Yesterday, I heard the master say that we earn more than ten times the silver of the Mu Yan Wang every year. Why do we still need to put in so much effort?"

  Hearing this, Li Meng was taken aback and walked a few steps forward before suddenly bursting out laughing. He turned around and patted Wang Hai's shoulder, saying:

  "What's the point of living if not to make life better, to come to this world and make oneself and those around them live more comfortably, have a better life. People always want something they don't have."

  Wang Hai nodded his head, apparently not quite understanding, but still said very solemnly:

  "I don't understand, but if Brother Li tells me what to do, I'll do it."

  Li Meng nodded with a smile, walking and talking, this group of people had already turned onto another street. The small state city was just that, only a few decent streets. In Li Meng's impression, the prosperity of this Jiaozhou City at this time was far inferior to modern-day Ligezhuang, Wangtai Town, and Hongshiya.

  But walking on the street, the shops on both sides, a section of bluestone road, pedestrians coming and going, despite the different clothes, building styles, even the way of talking, Li Meng still felt a sense of being in the city, this feeling always made him feel particularly comfortable.

  The shops in Jiaozhou City are mainly located on a street around the Zhi Prefecture Government Office, and there are also many shops along both sides of the Xiao Baihe River that runs through Jiaozhou City. After all, being by the river makes it more convenient to transport goods by water, and there are often tourists on the riverbank, making business easier to do.

  At this time, both sides were almost green, and the amount of water in the river was also sufficient. Walking along the shore was very comfortable. Li Meng and Wang Hai left the twenty or so salt guards far behind them. As they walked, they suddenly saw a group of people gathered together, shouting and scolding non-stop.

  The Chinese people's habit of gathering to watch excitement has not changed from modern times to several hundred years ago in the Ming Dynasty, and it is still the same now. Passersby on the road are all excitedly going over to watch.

  Li Meng wasn't a saint either, and he wondered what was going on with the crowd gathered under the bright daylight. He took a glance at the store and found it was an ironwork shop where he had bought some short swords a few days ago. He stood tall, looking inside from outside, and saw the ironwork master and several apprentices surrounding someone, punching and kicking.

  The person being beaten looked like an apprentice from the ironwork shop, but why was he being beaten? The onlookers were all cheering loudly. Li Meng found it strange and leaned forward to listen more clearly to the chaotic cheers, only to realize they were shouting "Beat the Liao dog to death".

  That man covered his head and face, curled up his body, only crying and begging for mercy somewhere, not daring to fight back. The Liao dog is the Liao people, the people of Jizhou North and the land outside the pass are also called Liao people by the Ming people. Of course, in modern times, they are all called Northeasterners.

  Li Mengyi didn't react for a moment and thought it was still the Liao State of the Song Dynasty...

  Dengzhou Prefecture was poisoned by Kong Youde for nearly two years, and Laizhou Prefecture also suffered a lot of repercussions. Pingdu Prefecture was once breached. Kong Youde was originally a general under Mao Wenlong in Liaodong, and his subordinates were naturally all military households and soldiers from Liaodong. These people killed nearly 100,000 people in Dengzhou Prefecture. Except for a few hundred young women who were left as camp prostitutes, the rest of the people in Dengzhou City were either killed or eaten as food during the siege.

  The Ming army gathered a large army to besiege Denglai, and these government troops were not strictly disciplined units. As a result, the local people suffered a second disaster. In this way, the people of Denglai hated Kong Youde, the ringleader, to the bone, and also deeply resented the Liao soldiers who had rebelled with him.

  "This scoundrel pretended to be mute, I took pity on him and that's why I let him stay. Who would have thought that today this scoundrel suddenly spoke up, with a Liao dog accent! It's really unclear what kind of intentions he has for coming to my shop. Today, even if it means breaking the law, I'll beat him to death!"