There was a large open space outside the Xie family's mansion. On both sides were the minions of Liang Shan Po. Each of them held a torch, illuminating the surroundings as if it was daytime.
A flagpole was erected outside the gate, and an apricot yellow flag hung on it. The words 'Justice for Heaven' were so eye-catching in the fire.
In the middle of this empty land, there were already three to four hundred villagers gathered. At a glance, all of them were young and strong. Eighty percent of Xihou Village's able-bodied men were here.
Fortunately, when the people of Liangshan came in, they didn't go around killing and looting. They also declared that they would only kill Xie Baozheng and wouldn't do anything to the ordinary villagers. Therefore, under the invitation of Du Qian and Song Wan, some people gathered their courage and came over.
Of course, this was only limited to the young. The elderly, women, and children were still hiding at home.
The gazes of these young and strong villagers would occasionally occasionally look at the Xie family's mansion, and then fall on the apricot yellow flag. Their faces were more or less filled with nervousness.
When Xie Bao, whose hair was disheveled, his face bruised and swollen, and who was only wearing a single layer of clothing, was thrown out of the gate, the hundreds of people in front of the Xie family's mansion were silent.
All the villagers present found it hard to believe. This miserable old man in front of them was Xie Baozheng, who was usually rude and overbearing, snatching people's land and taking away their property?
Everyone looked at Xie Bao Zheng's two sons, as well as the Xie family's womenfolk, who were all tied up and pushed out. Only then did they believe the facts in front of them.
Xu Fengwu took a step forward and cupped his fists at the villagers. He said,"Fellow villagers, I'm Xu Fengwu, the Stronghold Master of Water Lake Liangshan. I've disturbed you tonight and suffered a fright in the middle of the night.”
"However, there is no need to be afraid. We came here tonight to avenge our brothers and get rid of this evil old man Xie. We have no intention of violating everyone.”
"Everyone here is a local of Xihou Village, so you should know what happened to my brother Xie Gensheng. He was a good citizen, but because this old dog wanted to seize his family's land, his parents were killed by this old dog.”
Xu Fengwu stepped on Xie Baozheng and shouted,"Xie, you caused my brother's family to be destroyed. Now that the entire village is a witness, what else do you have to say?”
"Great King, spare me! Spare me!" Xie Bao was wailing like a dog with a broken spine, looking for a chance to live.
"If you tell me that you are useless, let's see if this brother of mine will forgive you!”
Xu Fengwu let go of Xie Baozheng and asked someone to pass a steel knife to Xie Gensheng."Xie Gensheng, I'll leave this old dog to you.”
Xie Gensheng silently took the steel knife and looked at Xie Baozheng with hatred, wishing he could swallow him alive.
"Gensheng! Root Life! I've ruined my conscience in the past. I'll return the land to you now and repair your parents 'graves. As long as you let me go, I'll promise you anything!”
Looking at the gleaming steel knife, Xie Bao was begging for mercy and struggling to stand up, but he was held down by Ruan Second and Ruan Fifth.
"It's easy to spare you. I'll just pay with my parents 'lives!”Xie Gensheng roared in rage, and the steel blade in his hand suddenly chopped down. With a puchi sound, Xie Baozheng's head was chopped off.
Xie Baozheng's scream came to an abrupt halt, blood gushing out of his broken neck like a fountain, his head rolling away, his face still maintaining a look of disbelief.
This bloody scene scared the Xie family's women so much that they screamed. The surrounding villagers could not help but feel a commotion.
Xie Gensheng threw down his steel knife and strode to Xu Fengwu. He knelt down and said,"Thank you for making the decision today and letting me take revenge for my parents. In the future, no matter what, as long as you say the word, I won't frown.”
Xu Fengwu helped Xie Gensheng up and comforted him. Then, he said to the villagers,"Fellow villagers, it's not that my Liangshan Mountain has killed the innocent. There are a few brothers in my village who were originally from Xihou Village. If they weren't forced into a corner by this old dog, why would they become bandits?”
"Let me ask everyone, should this old fellow surnamed Xie be killed?”
As soon as Xu Fengwu finished speaking, there was silence inside and outside the manor. However, not long after, someone shouted,"He deserves to be killed!"
Everyone immediately looked in the direction of the voice. It was a dark-skinned young man, a typical peasant man.
As this person started, a few more people shouted that they should be killed. Then, more and more people shouted. In the end, everyone was driven by him and roared.
It was like an invisible wave that brought with it a strong sense of indignation that swept through the entire arena. The Ruan Brothers, Du Qian, Song Wan, and the Liang Mountain lackeys couldn't help but have their expressions change slightly, and they felt their hair stand on end.
What was public opinion? What was the will of the people?
This was it!
In the past, Xie Baozheng used his power to run amuck in the village, bullying men and women, taking things by trickery, and committing all kinds of evil. The villagers were afraid of his power and did not dare to make a sound.
Now that Xie Baozheng's head had been chopped off, the entire Xie family was about to be finished. What was there for the villagers to be afraid of?
The resentment that had been suppressed in his heart for a long time erupted at this moment.
For a moment, the villagers were agitated and began to denounce Xie Baozheng's sins. They did not even let his two sons off. Some even wanted to rush up and attack him.
Fortunately, Xu Fengwu had ordered his lackeys to stop these villagers. Otherwise, the Xie family's men and women, old and young, would have been beaten to death.
"Everyone, please be quiet for the time being!”Xu Fengwu raised his voice and pressed his hands down. The agitated crowd immediately calmed down.
"I believe you know better than me how many bad things Xie Baozheng and his family have done. You will be the judge of who is guilty and who is innocent tonight, but you are not allowed to slander anyone.”
As soon as Xu Fengwu finished speaking, the villagers immediately clapped and cheered. Then, they listed out the crimes one by one. Not only did Xie Baozheng's two sons not do anything, but even his wife had done many bad things.
The housekeeper and some servants of the Xie family were usually the lackeys of this father and son trio. They were people who helped the tiger and were hated by the villagers.
On the other hand, Xie Baozheng's two daughters-in-law seemed to have just gotten married and hadn't had the time to do anything bad, so they managed to survive.
Xu Fengwu didn't want to make things difficult for them and asked his subordinates to let them go.
As the grand assembly of the judges went on, Xu Fengwu let Xie Gensheng and the others carry out the execution. Soon, more than a dozen heads appeared outside the Xie family's mansion, which attracted the applause of the villagers.
The commotion made the elderly, women, and children who were hiding at home look around curiously. Some even quietly came over to watch the commotion.
After the Judgement Meeting ended, Xu Fengwu asked someone to carry a box over. Inside were many land deeds or loan sharks 'deeds. The bright red fingerprints were evidence that the villagers had been exploited.
Land Land annexannexation was a chronic disease of the past dynasties.
However, during the Northern Song Dynasty, the Zhao family did not stop the annexation of land. Hence, those with money and power desperately annexed the land in the hands of the common people.
The common people who became tenants after going bankrupt usually had to pay various taxes in addition to the rent to the landlord. Most of them could barely make a living.
Thus, when they encountered a natural disaster, the people did not have the ability to resist the disaster and could only become disaster victims or raiders.
Under the watchful eyes of the villagers of Xihou Village, Xu Fengwu burned the title deeds and deeds into ashes.
The villagers who had been forced to borrow money from the loan sharks felt relieved. They cried tears of joy and even knelt down to kowtow to Xu Fengwu.
Xu Fengwu asked the villagers to get up and said loudly,"Fellow villagers, this tyrant surnamed Xie has been executed. We should also leave. However, before that, regardless of gender or age, anyone in the village can come and collect two stones of grain. Consider it my apology for disturbing everyone tonight.”
Two stones!
The villagers standing in the open space couldn't believe their ears.
What was wrong with the world now?
Not only did this bandit help to get rid of the bullies, but he also wanted to send food to them. Even the government had never shown such kindness.
A stone in the Northern Song Dynasty was equivalent to 60 kilograms in the future, which was 120 catties.
If a family of four could get 960 catties of grain, even if they worked hard for a year, they might not have such a harvest.
For a moment, all the villagers in Xihou Village were stunned.
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