pdf-ebookys Chapter 466 The Real Beggars' Sect
Chapter 466 The Real Beggars' Sect
When we arrived at the last two Beggar Gang strongholds, we saw beggars everywhere, scattered in twos and threes, each holding a broken bowl and a walking stick, with long dishevelled hair, and sometimes a few of them would braid their hair into pigtails.
Li Changxiao walked slowly among them, and his eyes swept over them, and he found that what Liu Qier said was not wrong. This Beggar Gang had already grown to a certain size, and the hierarchy and order were strict.
Broken bowls, wooden bowls, stone bowls.
Broken stick, wooden stick, bamboo stick.
A broken bowl and a broken stick are the lowest, they are beggars at the entry level. A stone bowl and a bamboo stick are the highest, if compared to a sect, they should be at the level of "elders".
We continued walking. Since this Beggars' Gang had already formed an organization, it must have a profit model. Just begging for food was definitely not enough.
Just as he was thinking about it, a dirty and smelly beggar rushed over. Li Changxiao dodged sideways, and the beggar lost his footing and fell to the ground, uttering a wail.
After a few seconds, he stood up with the support of a wooden stick. This beggar had a broken bowl and a wooden stick, which made him a little higher than the beggar with a broken bowl and a broken stick, but he was already very old, with a hunched back and half of his body buried in the ground.
"Sir, are you selling meat or something else?" The beggar was only halfway to Li Changxiao's waist. He tried his best to raise his head and rubbed his palms together.
"You old son, what kind of meat do you have to sell? Get out of here quickly and don't block my way." Liu Qier drove him away impatiently.
We are all beggars, we can sell meat, it's good enough to fill our stomachs. Besides, if we want to buy meat, why do we have to come to your poor place?
"Oh, if he's not selling meat, then is he selling information?" The old beggar scratched his head, grabbed a few lice, and squeezed them to death. Just as he was about to throw them away, his eyes rolled and he threw them into his mouth instead.
It's still a piece of meat.
"What kind of meat do you have? Please introduce it to me first." Li Changxiao asked.
He scanned the area with his spiritual sense and found that the person he was looking for was not there.
Although this beggars' stronghold is strictly hierarchical and orderly, different from other places, it is not very large in terms of its area.
He roughly estimated that most of the descendants of the three families in Qingrao City had returned home, but several legitimate descendants had not been found yet. For example, the son of the head of the Jia family and the younger brother of the daughter of the Jia family had not been found yet.
If he is not dead, he is most likely in the Beggars' Sect, perhaps becoming a beggar or a businessman.
Li Changxiao was actually quite interested in the Beggars' Sect in Qingrao City. He had come into contact with many martial arts sects, including the high-ranking Dayan Hua Sect and the Sword Sect that specialized in swordsmanship. There were many different sects, each with its own strengths.
Li Changxiao knew clearly that the "meat" the old beggar was talking about was not meat in the normal sense.
When the old beggar heard that there was a chance, he smiled and said shyly, "Well, I just tried it a few days ago. I'm still a little rusty, but I got a piece of meat."
"Since you are interested, why don't you come and have a look?"
Li Changxiao nodded, and the old beggar led the way, shuttling through the streets and alleys. Most of the houses along the way were owned by ordinary residents. Occasionally, they would meet people traveling to find a job, but they would come in groups of two or three. This was a beggar stronghold, and with so many beggars, the place was in chaos. The local people were miserable, but they dared not say a word.
It won't last more than half an incense stick.
We came to a small house. The door was closed, with a rope tied to the door handle and a stone on the ground blocking the way.
The old beggar untied the rope and pushed away the horizontal stone. This series of actions cost him half his life and his face turned red.
When he pushed open the wooden door, a faint odor came over. The old beggar smiled awkwardly and made a "please" gesture.
Li Changxiao stepped into the room and heard a whimpering sound coming from the depths. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw half a grown boy with his wrists and ankles tied tightly with hemp ropes. His wrists and ankles were then tied together in pairs, making it impossible for the tied boy to stand up. He was forced to lie prone with his hands and feet facing the sky and his face facing the ground. Sometimes it was difficult for him to even turn over.
Liu Qier clapped his hands and suddenly realized that the "meat" referred to people. He widened his eyes and looked at the old beggar, saying, "I didn't expect you to be so bold. You dare to do such a job?"
"You're old, don't you want to live?"
Although Liu Qier was questioning, there was no contempt in his expression. If one looked closely, one would find that he was mostly surprised and admiring.
"Pah, pah, pah. What nonsense are you talking about? I, an old beggar, will live to be a hundred years old." The old beggar said disdainfully, "A little beggar like you has no connections. If you do things recklessly, you will only seek death. I am different. Our Beggars' Sect is different."
"Then tell me, why is that different?" Liu Qier asked.
"That's all different." The old beggar rolled his eyes back and forth, looking proud, and pointed his finger to the sky.
"Is that the only one?" Li Changxiao asked.
"Hey, sir, you have big hands and feet."
The old beggar became even more excited, so he looked at Li Changxiao again and saw that he had an extraordinary demeanor and must have no shortage of silver, so he said, "If you want more, follow me to the headquarters outside the city. There are still a lot of dog meat, mutton, and pork there. They are very delicious. As long as you buy this piece of pork from me, I will take you there."
"How much?" Li Changxiao asked.
"Three... no... ten... bah, fifteen taels of silver." The old beggar asked for a huge sum of money.
"Sure." Li Changxiao replied readily.
The old beggar beat his chest and stamped his feet, saying that the amount he shouted was too little. If he had known, he should have shouted out twenty taels.
Li Changxiao paid the money, but he only took out one tael of silver, which was the only one tael he had. But the dream technique had secretly influenced the old beggar, making him think that this was fifteen taels of silver.
The old beggar wiped his saliva, wrapped up the silver, and held it close to his body, not daring to leave it for a moment. Then he took Li Changxiao and walked towards another stronghold.
On the way, the old beggar took the silver and became more talkative, talking incessantly as he walked.
He introduced to Li Changxiao that in addition to selling meat, the Beggars' Gang could also sell information, stolen goods... and many other things. They were varied and strange, and there was nothing they wouldn't sell, except what you couldn't imagine.
Moreover, the Beggars' Sect is spread throughout the entire Dayu Kingdom, and not only in Dayu Kingdom, but also in other surrounding countries.
At this point, the old beggar smiled proudly and said, "The Beggars' Gang, it's not an exaggeration to say it's the largest gang."
Even the old emperor was helpless against them. Years ago, the Empress Dayu issued three orders.
First, update the household registers in various places. Second, issue orders to open up wasteland. Third, issue conscription orders for beggars.
These three orders are all aimed at the Beggars' Gang. Generally speaking, the members of the Beggars' Gang have no land to farm and no work to do, which is why they have fallen to this point.
Also, because he moved around, he was not in the household registration and was an illegal resident.
Therefore, the empress updated the household register to give them legal status, and then issued an order to reclaim wasteland, and the wasteland would belong to them.
Finally, a conscription order was issued, and those who were conscripted could be allocated land after they were discharged from service.
After this set of operations, it was indeed effective. A large number of homeless beggars were turned into soldiers or farmers, but the Beggars' Gang was not affected.
The empress was furious and issued the fourth order, ordering the extermination of the Beggars' Sect. During that period, the Beggars' Sect did disappear, but soon revived.
The old beggar then said to Li Changxiao that dog meat refers to men, coolies, and laborers, mutton refers to fair-skinned and beautiful women, which are the most expensive, and dog meat refers to children.
He told Li Changxiao again.
The strongholds in Qingrao City were mostly used to collect intelligence, gather information, and spread news. The real stronghold of the Beggars' Gang was actually outside the city. Because of the siege by officials some time ago, they got wind of it and left the city early.
There were more than ten pieces of meat locked up there for him to choose from. If he had money, he could take all of it. They had many uses, such as being a medicine slave, a blood slave, or a servant. Worse still, even if it was used for secret sacrifice, it didn't matter.
The old beggar winked and told Li Changxiao a secret. From the rich to the poor, even officials were no exception. Many people, in order to seek wealth and fame, would buy "meat" to offer sacrifices to the heavens. Don't look at this method as crude, but it is very effective.