Chapter 83

The news of Qin Feng standing up for the people quickly spread. As he led the people towards the Cui family's residence, many more joined in.

"So, that's the place..." The old man, Wang, pointed with a trembling hand.

Qin Feng looked in the direction of the Cui family's courtyard wall, where a row of tree shadows stretched out. These shadows came from the towering trees behind the wall. The sun slanted, casting a cool, pleasant shade. However, at that moment, there was not a single person under these tree shadows. Not far from these shadows, by the roadside, many people gathered under the trees, looking around.

At that moment, the vermilion gates of the Cui family's residence were tightly shut, while many suffering people gathered outside.

This made Qin Feng furious, and he couldn't help but exclaim, "Bones of the starving lie by the roadside, while the rich feast behind their red gates!"

This famous line, which vividly summarized the current sharp social issues, spread quickly once Qin Feng spoke it.

Cao Yuan and Liu were surprised and looked at Qin Feng with new respect. The great poet and statesman Cao Cao sighed and said to Yuan Shao and Liu Bei, "Just from this one sentence, we can see Brother Zijin's deep understanding of the world, which is beyond the reach of ordinary people!"

The people, moved by the deep concern in Qin Feng's words, first those whose families had been taken, fell to the ground in supplication. Soon, many more joined, all saying in unison, "We beg General Qin to help us."

The people are the most lovable in the world, the foundation of the nation and the people. Qin Feng hurriedly went forward to comfort and help them up.

At this moment, a cold snort came from behind. Qin Feng, who was helping the people up, turned around and saw that a group of servants had come out of the Cui family's residence. The leader, with a sinister face and a small mustache, was surrounded by his servants, who were doing something. After they dispersed, a wooden sign was planted on the ground.

"That's Cui Shirong, the one who led the people to take our families!" The people were angry but dared not approach.

Cui Shirong, disdainful, only looked at Qin Feng and snorted, saying in a strange voice, "You must be Qin Zijin?" Without waiting for Qin Feng to answer, he mocked, "Do you know that my master is a high-ranking official of the court? My master said that this matter is entirely reasonable. You, a small military officer, should not meddle in local affairs."

"Is kidnapping people also reasonable?" Qin Feng, who often acted unreasonably himself and had seen many unreasonable people, had never seen anyone as unreasonable as this. He was furious, drew his sword, and shouted, "Seize these people! Seize them..."

"Understood!" Xu Chu and Dian Wei, who hated the powerful who oppressed the people, immediately led the Dragon Guards to pounce.

Although Cui Shirong was vicious, he had never seen such ruthless soldiers. He was instantly terrified, his face pale, and with a scream, he turned to run back into the residence. But his legs were weak, and he fell several times.

"Wait, Dian Wei, Xu Chu! Brother!" A hand pulled Qin Feng back.

Qin Feng turned around and saw Cao Cao. Cao Cao said, "Brother, Cui Lie, the head of the Cui family, is a high-ranking official of the court. If you act rashly, you will be in prison within two days, and all your efforts will be in vain."

Yuan Shao also urged anxiously, "Brother, no fighting, no fighting."

Liu Bei, scratching his head in frustration, cursed in his heart, "You two idiots, why are you persuading him? If he dares to use force at the residence of a high-ranking official, it's like rebelling. Tomorrow, the imperial decree of punishment will arrive. Being stripped of all positions and thrown into prison to await execution in the autumn would be a light sentence."

However, Cao Cao and Yuan Shao, who were dedicated to the country and the people, could not stand by and watch Qin Feng make a fatal mistake.

Qin Feng's face was dark and uncertain. The Han dynasty's system was still in place, and the warlords had not yet divided the land. "Come back..."

Although Xu Chu and Dian Wei were eager to tear these villains apart, their lord's command was paramount, so they stopped and withdrew.

After being helped up by his subordinates, Cui Shirong, seeing that Qin Feng did not dare to act, became emboldened. His pale face turned red, and he shouted, "Qin Zijin, this is the residence of a high-ranking official. Do you want to rebel?"

At the mention of rebellion, even the people could not help but shudder. They feared the power of the Cui family, and now Qin Feng was the only one who could help them. Therefore, although there were thousands of people on the scene, it was completely silent, and all eyes were on Qin Feng.

For Qin Feng, anger was useless and would only make the enemy more arrogant. It seemed that he could only resort to a verbal battle. Calming down, he smiled, sheathed his sword, and said, "If it's reasonable, then explain how kidnapping people is reasonable."

The people, hearing this, echoed, shouting, "Kidnapping people is a violation of the law, how can it be reasonable?"

Cao Cao, with a stern face, said, "You villain, forcing people into slavery has already violated the laws of the Han dynasty!"

Cui Shirong, backed by a powerful family and in a time when the system was still intact, was not afraid even facing Qin, Cao, Yuan, and Liu. He laughed and said, "This was a voluntary agreement. These peasants used the shade of our trees but couldn't pay for it. My master, being benevolent, only asked them to work off their debt."

At this point, Cui Shirong was indignant and shouted, "We didn't even charge interest. They could work their whole lives and still not pay off the debt. In this case, my master is the one who is losing out."

This theory shocked everyone on the scene.

Yuan Shao couldn't help but say, "You villain, with your silver tongue, explain how this was a voluntary agreement and how much the people owe you?"

Cui Shirong, unhurried, walked to the wooden sign written by Cui Lie and pointed, saying, "Look for yourselves. Everyone is reasonable, so I don't need to explain more."

Everyone, including Qin Feng, couldn't help but look.

Upon seeing it, the scene erupted in chaos.

"What does it say?" asked a peasant who couldn't read.

Liu Bei, eyes wide open, exclaimed, "An inch of time is worth an inch of gold!" His large ears flapped, and he immediately understood. "My goodness, so expensive?"

Everyone was shocked. Even the peasants understood the simple and clear words. They couldn't help but look at the tree shade by the wall of the Cui family's residence. An inch of time was worth an inch of gold!

Cui Shirong, smug, pointed at the words and read, "An inch of time, an inch of gold. See? No cheating, no kidding." He couldn't help but think, "Master is master, the method he thought of is top-notch!"

Qin Feng's eyes twitched. He had seen shameless people, but never anyone as shameless as this. He angrily said, "You..."

"What about it? You used our tree shade, so you have to pay!" Cui Shirong, smug, twirled his left mustache.

"I..."

"What about it? I didn't even charge interest, which is already very considerate!" Cui Shirong, twirling his right mustache, interrupted and continued, "It's just two hundred people. Give me twenty feet of gold, and I'll release them."

Cao, Yuan, and Liu were all shocked. They thought, "Twenty feet of gold, even your Cui family doesn't have that much money."

Liu Bei's large ears flapped like an elephant's, thinking, "Finally, I've seen someone more shameless than Qin Zijin. Now, Qin Zijin has met his match. His reputation and position are gone. I wonder what he will do now!"

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