Chapter 67

The conflict at Lotte Trading Company has now reached a fever pitch. The three lines of human barriers, under the assault of hundreds of grieving citizens, have become perilously fragile. The guards have repeatedly asked Xiao Letian for permission to counterattack, but he has forbidden it each time.

"Stay your ground. I want to see what this farce will turn into..." Under Xiao Letian's strict orders, the three lines of guards, forming a semicircle, have been pushed back and are now blocked at the entrance. Outside are the enraged grieving citizens, and behind them are the merchants of Lotte Trading Company, who are staring at each other in fear.

"Xiao Letian... You, you, you still refuse to surrender? If you turn yourself in now, you might still have a chance to live..." Huang Juren tried to incite the crowd, but before Xiao Letian could speak, a guard slapped him, loosening his back teeth. Xiao Biansun, seeing the guards of Lotte Trading Company act so brutally, shrank back and swallowed his words.

Xiao Letian surveyed all the merchants in the trading company and said coldly, with the composure of a man who remains calm even when Mount Tai is collapsing before him, "The day before yesterday, all of you merchants, Huang Juren, and Xiao Biansun met secretly at the Coastal Tower. Weren't you discussing how to deal with me? At that time, didn't you say you had a powerful backer in the capital? Where is that powerful backer now?"

"Yesterday, all of you big bosses gathered at the Four Seas Cargo Station. What did you discuss? Do I, Xiao Letian, need to repeat it? Do you think I'm ignorant of what you're doing today?"

Xiao Letian's eyebrows were now raised, and he looked at these people as if they were a bunch of idiots. It was just a million-tael silver competition, and they really thought their plan was grand?

"As for you two..." Xiao Letian stared at Huang Juren and Xiao Biansun as if they were already dead. "Do you really think I don't know about the串联 (串联 means '串联' or '串联' in this context, which refers to the coordination or collusion) you've been doing these past two days? Who is the fool here, me or you? You'll see soon enough..."

Just as Xiao Letian was berating these mindless attackers, suddenly the entire Tanggu city seemed to explode like a bomb. A deafening roar rose to the sky, making the hundreds of grieving citizens seem insignificant in comparison.

"A civilian uprising! Another civilian uprising..." The merchants in the room were all frowning. The last time a group from the capital came to inspect, it sparked a civilian uprising of over a thousand people. Although they were eventually persuaded to leave, the sub-prefecture and the military office still collected 30,000 taels from the merchants to quell the unrest.

Today, it looks like the scale is at least three times larger, and their wallets are going to hurt even more.

Everyone was wrong; they had completely underestimated the madness of Huang Juren and Xiao Biansun. This time, they had incited all the people they could, at least 8,000 if not 10,000.

Huang Juren glared at Xiao Letian like a venomous snake, thinking to himself, "When there are tens of thousands of people, anything can happen. Don't blame me for being ruthless; blame yourself for offending a powerful figure and for your ruthless counterattack. I can't let you live..."

Tanggu city in the early Tongzhi era was actually a town of over 10,000 people. Including the surrounding residents who came to make a living, the daytime population was no more than 20,000. Now, over 10,000 people were pouring in from the earth, shouting all sorts of slogans, their eyes more excited than during the New Year.

"Get the second devils out of Tanggu! Xiao Letian is a demon sent by the foreigners, the one who wants to build that inhumane industrial zone, which will harm our people..."

"We can't let them succeed. These believers in foreign religions have evil scriptures etched into their bones. One look from them and they can steal your soul. Don't you believe it? The foreigners have a device called a camera that can capture your image. How can it trap your soul..."

"Kill the second devils! We don't want the damn special zone. The machines inside are powered by the sacrifice of young boys and girls. They are man-eating monsters..."

"Three dou of rice, three dou of rice... We want to eat white flour buns..." Hmm? It seems something strange has been mixed in.

Tens of thousands of people came from the northwest of Tanggu, from the direction of Huang Juren's house. While the initial thousand tenants were lured by the reduced rent from the Huang family, the reasons for the other citizens joining were more complex.

First, the superstitious beliefs controlled the ignorant masses. In the feudal dynasty, the people deeply believed in Buddhism, Taoism, and various ethnic religions. When someone told them that the industrial special zone would disrupt the feng shui and even steal souls, over 90% of the people would believe it without question.

Second, the power displayed by the foreigners with their warships and cannons was too overwhelming and difficult for the people, including the upper echelons, to understand. This provided fertile ground for all sorts of strange and superstitious rumors.

Third, the herd mentality of the Chinese people, which had not changed in thousands of years, played a role. These unthinking farmers would only follow the lead of the literati, clan leaders, and fellow villagers. When thousands of fellow villagers incited them to take to the streets, few could remain calm and analyze the situation. Most would actively join in.

A civilian uprising is that simple.

The entire Tanggu city was on the brink of chaos. Smart merchants were already boarding up their doors. In such a situation, only a fool would do business. There was no barrier between a civilian uprising and a riot.

The foreigners in the harbor were also afraid. What were these Qing 'natives' gathering for? In the colonies of various countries, there were no shortage of examples of native uprisings that killed citizens of the civilized world. The foreigners fled to the docks, boarding ships, pulling up the gangplanks, and lining the decks with guns and even opening the hatches of the cannons.

The merchant ships that crossed the vast sea had their own armed forces, capable of breaking through the encirclement of countless pirates. These ships were already quite formidable.

Lotte Trading Company was now at the center of the storm. Smart people were fleeing, while the frenzied masses were gathering. The streets were filled with the cries of "Let's go, let's go," as if killing Xiao Letian would earn them a 500-tael reward.

The people in the trading company were now restless. The merchants' faces were pale, and as the wave of curses grew closer, they could feel that this was going to be a big deal. At this moment, a clerk from one of the shops burst in from the back door, fell to his knees, and started crying out.

"An overwhelming number of people, tens of thousands, are rushing in. Boss, run for your life..."

The trading company was immediately in chaos. Some wanted to escape, some wanted to go home to protect their property, and some were at a loss as to what to do. Niu Zhang, seeing the chaos, sighed and slapped himself. "Why did I get involved in this mess?"

Lotte Trading Company had gathered all the top merchants in Tanggu. As these people tried to rush out, Xiao Letian suddenly jumped onto a chair, drew his revolver, and fired a shot.

"Are you all ready to die? There are tens of thousands of bloodthirsty rioters outside. They don't care about your status; they only know that you have money..."

The gunshot and the roar woke up the crowd. Everyone was stunned. Yes, this was a civilian uprising, a riot of tens of thousands. There was no reason to be given, and no one would be held accountable for your death. At that moment, all the merchants were furious with Huang Juren and Xiao Biansun, regretting their actions.

Under Xiao Letian's orders, a group of burly men rushed in from the back, carrying bundles of weapons—steel knives, spears, wooden shields, and even dozens of foreign guns. They distributed the weapons to the guests, and in no time, over a hundred guards were fully armed.

Luo Huo now had over thirty musketeers, standing in three rows, ready to follow Xiao Letian's orders.

At this moment, all the guests were terrified. What kind of merchant was this, who had over a hundred private soldiers hidden in the back on the grand opening day? And he even had musketeers? Niu Zhang glanced and closed his eyes, slapping himself repeatedly. He truly regretted it.

Huang Juren and Xiao Biansun were shaking like leaves. They finally understood why the powerful figures in Beijing were so wary of Xiao Letian. This man was not just a scholar; he was a thug and a warlord! The sky of the Qing Dynasty had not changed, but he was planning a rebellion. Who gave him the courage to display his armed forces in public?

The same question floated in everyone's mind, but no one dared to ask, as the killing intent in the room was something they had never encountered in their lives.

"Everyone listen. The distinguished guests here are the cream of the crop, the elite of Tanggu's merchants. We must protect them. We need to do business with these big bosses in the future. Now, Tanggu is in chaos, and it's not safe. We will escort the distinguished guests to the harbor, to the Lucky Number..."

"Ah..." The merchants in the room were stunned. What was Xiao Letian planning? Was he going to kidnap all the merchants in Tanggu? Huang Juren immediately understood. He slapped his forehead, breaking out in a cold sweat.

This was a miscalculation. He never thought Xiao Letian would have this move. He had connections with the French and was planning to take the city's merchants as hostages! If he took them to the French merchant ships and anchored them in the sea, he could sit back and watch the chaos in Tanggu, and the blame would not be on him.

Thinking of this, Huang Juren went mad, jumping up and shouting, "Bosses, shopkeepers, don't fall for it! Xiao is trying to take us as hostages, to kidnap us overseas..."

Just as Huang Juren was screaming like a madman, the sound of hooves and footsteps came from the street outside. At the critical moment, the highest military official of Tanggu, Commander Ma Bao, finally arrived with his troops.

"With me here, who dares to act rashly... Oh, damn, someone has a private army? This is a rebellion... Boys, surround them, disarm them, and if they resist, kill them without mercy..."

Huang Juren and Xiao Biansun, upon hearing Commander Ma Bao's voice, fell to the ground and crawled out, crying, "Commander Ma, save us... Commander Ma, save us..."

Xiao Letian, looking at the two spineless dogs, spat out, "I spit, who dares to disarm me..." He stood at the entrance, protected by his guards, and shouted, "Commander Ma! I'm sorry, but today, there are 40