Chapter 59: The Rise of the Two Counterfeiters in the Bookstores Across the Land
"Gentlemen, my younger brother is hot-headed and inexperienced in officialdom. He has offended you all, and I apologize on his behalf. I'm sure you are all learned scholars who understand the ways of the world and won't hold it against this uneducated fool." After settling Liu Yongfu and the other two, or rather putting them under soft detention, Yang Da Old Master came to the cabin where Tang Jingsong and others were being held with a smile all over his face. He bowed to the officials who were sitting on the deck with bated breath.
Behind him, dozens of two-meter-tall bodyguards held rifles with bayonets, looking at those guys with ill intentions. In this situation, who else dared to say anything? Except for Tang Jingyuan and Wan Guoben, all the others, including that Manchu official, quickly stood up and trembled as they expressed their complete indifference to Yang Feng.
To be honest, these guys have been completely disheartened since they cut off their braids and no longer consider any other prospects. Now they just want to survive, so when Yang Feng comes to make amends, they naturally hasten to follow suit.
"Ah, that's right, this is what it means to have read the classics." Yang Feng said with a thumbs up, then pulled out a piece of paper from his pocket, looked at it with some satisfaction, and handed it over to the nearest official.
"There's a little article here, although it can't be considered a masterpiece, but it's still some hard work. I'll trouble you all to copy it once, sign your name on it, and stamp it with your seal, then you can go back to doing your official duties as usual. As for today's matter, let's just pretend it never happened." The man said with a sly smile.
That official took a glance and his face immediately turned pale, his hands shaking as he knelt down to Yang Feng at that moment.
"Sir, Lord Yang, I have an 80-year-old mother at home and young children who are still breastfeeding. Please show mercy and spare my life!" The man knelt down at Yang Feng's feet, crying and wailing as he hugged his legs, while a nearby bodyguard quickly came over to pull him up.
"What are you doing, sir? My brother just asked you to copy a small article, how can you drag in the old mother and child?" Yang Feng said discontentedly.
Tang Jingyong picked up the paper from the ground and his face changed color as soon as he saw it.
"Overthrow Qing and Restore Ming"
In the 38th year of Jiajing in the Ming dynasty, a great calamity befell China. The bandit Li Zicheng rose to power and usurped the throne, bringing suffering to the Chinese people for three generations until his grandson Chongzhen. He took advantage of the chaos caused by the rebel leader Zhang Xianzhong to seize control of the Central Plains, slaughtering countless people in Yangzhou for ten days and killing millions of people during the Three Massacres of Jiajing. His rule was illegitimate and he was incompetent, bringing suffering to the people under his tyranny. By the time of Yongzheng, all corners of the empire were suffering from his cruel policies, and righteous citizens rose up in revolt. The country was in turmoil, with foreign invaders roaming freely and strong enemies surrounding it on all sides. Eventually, the country perished, becoming a laughing stock for the world. Although there were one or two traitors who helped him cling to power, the national situation grew more precarious by the day, and the country teetered on the brink of collapse. Today, with the old empress dowager in power, corruption runs rampant, and treacherous officials fill the court. The people are eager for change. This is precisely the moment when we sons and daughters of China should rise up, overthrow the Qing dynasty, and restore our great Chinese nation. I urge all patriots to take action!
Tang Jingyong's lips trembled as he finished reading, and with a venomous gaze at Yang Feng, he said, "You might as well kill us!"
"Mr. Tang, rest assured, I'm a very kind person, even seeing dead cats and dogs can bring tears to my eyes, how could I possibly kill someone? However, my previous behavior was indeed somewhat improper, in case any of you reported me, although it's not a big deal, I would just continue being a rich man abroad, but it would still be a small regret. So if anyone doesn't write this thing, then I'll have to send him to a place where he'll never have the chance to report me again."
My brother has many industries abroad, for example Kuwait, Western Australia, yes, Western Australia is quite suitable. Do you know what place it is? In the past, British people liked to throw convicts there and let them fend for themselves. It's a bit like our Ninguta, but much worse than our Ninguta, because there are still cannibals living there now.
I have several mines there, it's a good place to exercise your body, I see that you all look weak, maybe exercising can make you live a few more years. As for cannibalism and the like, don't worry, I also have mercenaries watching over them, those mercenaries are said to be descendants of the long-haired people who escaped from China to America, it must feel very familiar to see fellow countrymen." Yang Feng finished speaking with an evil laugh.
A group of officials, if they had the guts, might have even spat in his face and given him a few more years to live. They called us cannibals, long-haired remnants, and forced us to work as laborers in the mines. With our physique, it's a wonder we could survive for half a year - it's a miracle our ancestors' tombs aren't emitting smoke yet.
It's no longer necessary to make a choice, either being strangled by him and living on, or being sent to a desolate place where birds don't even shit and tortured to death. Everyone here is smart and won't make the wrong choice. As the official from earlier gritted his teeth and took the pen and paper held by a black-clad guard behind Yang Feng, others also stood up and began to transcribe in a daze.
Only the official was left staring at Yang Feng with a bewildered expression.
"Write this!" Yang Feng handed him a lengthy literary report filled with restricted content, and the male and female protagonists were naturally this official and Concubine Yi.
"Write properly, you must be careful when writing, if it's not good enough, you'll have to rewrite it." He held his staff and walked among the crowd like a proctor, looking at those officials who were copying with their buttocks on the ground.
It's quite satisfying to think of this trick, which not only wipes his own butt clean but also allows him to grasp Taiwan's officialdom in a short period. Those who can become officials are generally not too muddled-headed, even if they're those parasites who climbed up using the wild boar skin cloak of virtue, their instinct for seeking benefits and avoiding harm is still very clear. With this kind of leverage in hand, and then occasionally giving them some small benefits, it's likely that their loyalty will become worthless.
Otherwise, it's also a hassle to deal with these guys in the future. These officials are basically useless except for official business, but they're experts at all sorts of trivial things. If we're fighting the Japanese upfront, it would be very troublesome if they're sabotaging us from behind.
Tang Jingyong and others finished copying the article that could lead to their families being confiscated and beheaded in a daze, one by one got up shakily, looking like a group of dogs with their spines removed. As for the official who was full, due to the length of the article, it took him half an hour to finish copying.
Mr. Yang was very satisfied with the answer sheets they handed in, and it could be seen that these guys had a good foundation in calligraphy, and each article was written with a flourish, but there were more ink dots when they were nervous, however, he wasn't a nitpicky person, considering their mental pressure, this didn't need to be demanded.
"Someone, pass on my order, set up a feast, I want to get drunk with all of you gentlemen until we're satisfied!" This guy looked through all the copies in his hand and then shouted to the guards behind him with satisfaction.
