Chapter 217: Battle for the Pear Tree, Yang's House Servant
"Has this ever happened before?"

Li Xuan asked Cao Yi.

He had only acquired the orchard a few days ago.

The moment he took over, the ripe fruits in the orchard would also belong to him.

Li Xuan didn't think that anyone would take the initiative to make trouble for him.

"Replying to the General, nothing like this has happened before."

Cao Yi replied to Li Xuan.

They used to be a government orchard, managed by a gardener.

Although the Garden Order was only an official outside the imperial court, there was a Garden Supervisor above him who was in charge of a large area and was a sixth-rank official.

Above it is the Sinong Temple.

"Are you sure you contacted the vendor first?"

Li Xuan asked again seriously.

"Every word I say is true. I dare not speak nonsense. As early as seven days ago, I determined that the first batch of pears could be picked in seven days, so I went to the East Market of Chang'an in person and contacted ten pear vendors. They agreed to drive to the pear orchard to pick pears before noon today. The pear trees owned by the general are all of the best quality. You have tasted them. The pears are large, crisp, sweet and juicy. They are the best products to be sold to princes and nobles. They have always been the first choice of vendors..."

When Cao Yi explained to Li Xuan, he stepped forward and handed over some papers: "General, this is the document we agreed with those merchants."

The two orchards, pear and date orchards, are called Dongshan Garden and cover an area of ​​49 acres.

The cherry and peach orchard, known as Xishui Garden, covers an area of ​​68 acres.

The fruit trees in these two orchards were carefully selected and are the best in the world. Sometimes people from the imperial palace would come to pick fruit.

Li Xuan took the receipt.

It is written in black and white that these vendors would never dare to go against the government easily.

"Come with me and take a look."

Li Xuan gave Cao Yi a horse and took the Jinwu Guards and personal guards to another orchard to find out the situation.

Across a hill is the original official garden, Dushan Garden, where pears and plums were mainly grown.

Those who were rewarded with official gardens by Li Longji were either prime ministers or favorite ministers.

Ordinary private gardens were in a rather messy state, as many were coveted and taken away by the wealthy and powerful and eunuchs.

In general, the soil in the southwest of Mount Li is fertile and suitable for growing fruits in this temperate monsoon climate.

……

The orchard adjacent to Dushan Garden is Zitu Garden, which is also an orchard mainly producing peach and pear fruits.

In the Tang Dynasty, these two kinds of fruits were not only eaten as fruits, but also used to make fruit wine, snacks, and drinks. They also had beautiful meanings, so they were very popular among the people of Chang'an.

This garden was awarded to Prime Minister Pei Yaoqing by Li Longji in the 23rd year of Kaiyuan.

Before his death, Prime Minister Pei Yaoqing handed over the orchard to his son Pei Fan.

With this orchard, Pei Yaoqing's descendants will have no worries about food and clothing.

But it just so happens that Zitu Garden and Dushan Garden are closely adjacent to each other.

Not long ago, a dozen boundary stones dividing the two parks suddenly grew legs and moved westward.

This move was not a big deal, as the Pei family lost more than a thousand pear trees.

Pei's orchard was originally as big as Dushan Garden.

Now almost all the pear trees in the orchard belong to Dushan Garden.

The person who managed Pei's orchard went to argue with the people in Dushan Garden and was tied to a tree and beaten severely, almost to death.

Since Yishou County, where Pei Fan worked, was not far from Chang'an, he immediately returned to check after receiving the news.

This matter was very tricky for Pei Fan because the orchard next door belonged to Yang Qi.

Yang Qi was one of the "Five Yangs". In the fourth year of Tianbao, he married Li Longji's 21st daughter, Princess Taihua.

Princess Taihua was born to Consort Wu Huifei. She was granted a fiefdom of one thousand households, a rare treatment for princes and princesses. This shows how much Li Longji doted on Princess Taihua.

The combination of these two identities made Yang Qi the most favored man among the Yang family.

He rose from an ordinary commoner to become the Junior Minister of the Imperial Guards and the Commandant of the Imperial Concubine's Wife at a young age. He was granted the title of Silver and Green Guanglu Doctor and wore purple clothes.

With such a status, and the fact that power came too quickly and his virtue could not bear it, Yang Qi was indulgent to his followers, even the servants.

If a servant performs meritorious service, he will be greatly rewarded.

If a household slave made a mistake, he would be protected.

Yang believed that beating a dog also depended on the owner. If a servant made a mistake, Yang had to deal with it, even if it was murder or arson.

Therefore, the servants acted aggressively and without any scruples. Even the third-rank purple-clothed and fifth-rank red-clothed officials had to give way when they saw Yang's servants clearing the way.

None of the powerful people in Chang'an were respected by Yang's servants.

The dignity and the law were all trampled upon. The government and the people were in disorder!
But the Yang family was extremely powerful, and the wealthy and powerful in Chang'an were afraid of bringing disaster upon themselves, so they kept silent.

Pei Fan was an official outside and had heard that Yang was favored, but he didn't know how domineering Yang's servants were.

Only a few years after his father passed away, part of the family property he left behind was taken away, and he couldn't swallow this.

I have made up my mind that if I don’t come back, I will go to the saint and complain.

He still understood the meaning of the phrase "pressing for an inch".

This time they were able to move the boundary stone and take away more than a thousand pear trees from his family. They dared to take all of them at once.

"Ah Lang, this is the boundary stone erected by the Yang family. Do we really have to move it again?"

In the pear orchard, Pei Fan, along with several servants and more than twenty hired laborers, ordered the boundary stone to be moved back to its original position.

But these servants and laborers were afraid and dared not move.

The last time I moved, I was beaten badly by Yang's servants. The government didn't care and only recognized the boundary stone.

"I am an official appointed by the imperial court and the son of the prime minister. Do servants think they can rob my pear tree? Damn! With me here, they dare not act so presumptuously!"

Pei Fan said sternly.

But when Pei's servant came to the boundary stone, he hesitated and did not move.

The hired farmers are only paid to do the job, so naturally they won't do anything wrong.

"coward……"

A young man who had just come of age ran over behind Pei Fan, snatched the hoe from the servant, and prepared to dig the boundary stone.

He is Pei Ying, the son of Pei Fan.

He worked vigorously and dug to the root of the boundary stone with just a few hoe strikes.

"Brother, I'm coming too..."

Pei Fan's daughter Pei Lingxi also ran over and started digging the soil.

This is the pear tree left by her grandfather.

She had also seen peach and pear blossoms bloom, and they must not be taken away by evil people.

The servants felt ashamed when they saw the young master and the young lady taking the initiative to work.

They also gritted their teeth and cooperated, digging out the boundary stones one by one.

The farmers held the boundary stone and walked through the pear trees to reach the original dividing line.

But when the pears were ripe, such a loud noise naturally alarmed the Yang family servants in Dushan Garden.

Yang's servant was selling pears, putting baskets of pears on the cart. The vendor was obviously a "customer", but at this moment he was trembling with fear.

He was afraid of angering Yang's servants and bringing disaster upon himself.

"Manager, the Purple Earth Garden next door has moved the boundary stone back again!"

A servant came running over to report.

"What? They are so bold as to steal my pear tree."

Seven days ago, the garden supervisor came to re-rule and changed the land deeds. Legally, the thousands of pear trees belonged to Dushan Garden.

Zituyuan really doesn't know how to appreciate your kindness.

The steward immediately stopped the transaction and called the servants. Forty or fifty servants picked up sticks and farm tools, ready to teach Pei a lesson.

He had just been rewarded by Yang Qi for helping him obtain thousands of pear trees.

I thought the matter had been settled, but I didn't expect Pei to still be so presumptuous.

"Ah Lang, the Yang family servants have rushed into the garden."

The Pei family servant who was on the lookout ran over to report to Pei Fan.

"Don't panic! We are just taking back my pear tree."

Pei Fan asked his servants to calm down.

His son Pei Ying even picked up a hoe, looking ready to fight at any time.

"How dare you take the pear tree from my garden? Don't you think highly of the princess and her husband?"

When Yang's steward arrived, he did not take action immediately, but took the initiative to question Pei Fan.

"Don't spit blood at me. These are my pear trees. They were gifted to my father by the saint. You are stealing what the saint has gifted you, which is a crime of great disrespect!"

Pei Fan shouted at these servants in an extremely angry tone.

After their father passed away, my elder and younger brothers both served as officials in other places.

Therefore, only he can defend the precious wealth left by Pei Yaoqing, otherwise he will not be able to face his father in the afterlife.

"A saint is busy with all kinds of affairs, how could he care about such trivial matters? Besides, with the written document issued by the garden supervisor, this pear tree belongs to my Yang family."

"Judging from your clothes, you seem to be a respectable person. I'll give you a chance. Move the boundary stone back to where it was moved from!"

The steward felt that Pei Fan was quite magnanimous, so he did not attack him directly, but gave him a warning first.

"This is my pear tree. Go back."

Pei Fan's son Pei Ying was a young man with a hoe in his hand. He took a step forward and cursed in his words.

"Brothers, these people stole my pear tree. Arrest them and send them to the government."

Manager Yang lost his patience and gave an order.

Seeing this, the farmer Pei Fan had hired before was frightened and simply dropped his farm tools and ran away.

They were not servants, they were just helping to earn some wages, and it was not worth risking their lives for that little money! Pei's servants naturally could not retreat. Even if they were timid, they had to protect their young lady and master behind them.

Pei Lingxi clenched her fists. She was just a weak girl who wanted to help but was afraid of being a hindrance.

Pei Fan felt a sense of loss in his heart, and he quickly shouted, "I am the governor of Yishou. Don't you know what it means to insult an official appointed by the imperial court?"

These servants were indeed frightened. They stopped and looked at the steward.

They have never seriously attacked an official appointed by the imperial court!

"The county magistrate cannot seize my orchard! If you catch him, let the orchard supervisor deal with him!"

The manager thought, how dare a small county magistrate be so arrogant?
Pei Yaoqing has been buried for many years.

Although the current Prime Minister Pei Kuan also has the surname Pei, one is Wenxi Pei and the other is Jishan Pei. Their relationship can only be traced back ten generations or more by looking through the family tree.

"How dare you!"

Pei Fan was furious. These Yang family servants were lawless.

"Lingxi, let's leave here first..."

Pei Fan didn't want to suffer a loss, so he pulled Pei Lingxi and ran away. He planned to write a memorial to impeach Yang for indulging the servants and use fair means to regain more than a thousand pear trees.

"Butler, will this matter become a big deal?"

The servant next to him spoke to the housekeeper Yang, a little worried.

"The Garden Supervisor has already redefined the boundaries of Dushan Garden and Zitu Garden. What do we Yangs have to fear?"

"They are too naive. The scope of the orchard is not measured by the boundary stone, but by power. They are a family that has passed its prime and does not even have a purple robe. They still want to compete with our Yang family for the orchard. They are overestimating their own capabilities."

The steward sneered.

Just when he thought Pei would retreat, Pei Ying became more and more angry and did not leave with Pei Fan.

“Give me back my pear tree!”

Pei Ying rushed towards a servant of the Yang family, holding a hoe.

"what……"

With a scream, the Yang servant was knocked down by a hoe.

Fortunately, Pei Ying did not use the hoe blade.

It was originally just a matter of the Yang family taking advantage of their power to bully others, and the conflict escalated in an instant.

Instead of being afraid, a group of Yang family servants pounced on Pei Ying like hungry wolves.

"Grandpa..."

Pei Lingxi looked back inadvertently and immediately called out to Pei Fan.

"Stop...go help Dalang."

Pei Fan saw that his son had already started fighting with Yang's servants, so he didn't care about anything else and immediately ordered the servants to go forward and rescue him.

"They were the first to start. Arrest them and send them to the authorities."

Manager Yang shouted fiercely, and this time he was serious.

If they beat up the Yang family members and it brought shame to the Yang family, the prince consort would definitely blame them.

But Yang's servants underestimated Pei Ying.

Although Pei Ying was a young and inexperienced man, he was very skilled in wielding a hoe.

In a short while, four or five servants were knocked down.

Seeing that Pei Ying was rather ruthless, the other servants simply surrounded him and did not dare to approach him.

But it was extremely difficult for Pei Ying to escape.

Because Pei had only a few servants, they couldn't rush over at all.

While the fight was going on here, Li Xuan came to between Dushan Garden and Zitu Garden.

"Are you a pear vendor? Why did you break your promise and not go to Dongshan Garden to buy pears? Are the pears from Dongshan Garden not good enough?"

Li Xuan rode his horse to the side of many carriages and pointed at the merchants with his whip.

From their attire, it was easy to tell that these were businessmen.

Merchants dress better than common people, but their temperament is submissive, even worse than that of noble servants.

Scholars, farmers, industry and commerce.

In this era, both court officials and literati and poets looked down on businessmen.

This kind of contempt even extends to historians, who generalize based on a single case.

"It's not that we don't want to, but the people from Dushan Garden forcibly stopped us and forced us to buy pears from Dushan Garden. The pears from Dongshan Garden are better and cheaper, so we had no choice!"

The merchant saw Li Xuan and his men riding tall horses, wearing swords and carrying cavalrymen. He didn't know what they were for, but they were not easy to mess with, so he quickly replied.

They also did not want to lose their credibility, so when their carriage was halfway there, it was spotted by a blue-clothed servant from the Dushan Garden.

These blue-clothed servants were just looking for pear merchants. After learning that these vendors were also pear merchants, they immediately asked them to buy pears from Dushan Garden.

Originally the vendors disagreed, and they had already contacted Dongshanyuan.

Unexpectedly, the blue-clothed servants of Dushan Garden threatened them and claimed that they were Yang's men and that if they provoked them, they would not be able to survive in any market.

After hearing this, the vendors were frightened and had no choice but to follow them to Dushan Garden.

Moreover, the price of pears from Dushan Garden is 30% higher than that from Dongshan Garden, so they have no profit at all.

But facing the extremely powerful Yang family, they dared not speak out.

In Chang'an today, when people mention the Yang family, they are inevitably referring to the imperial concubine's brothers and sisters, the "Five Yangs."

"Whose orchard is this? How dare you do this?"

After hearing this, Li Xuan became even more dissatisfied and pointed at Dushan Garden and asked.

"It's the orchard of Prince Consort Yang's family!"

A businessman answered Li Xuan.

"Where are the Yangs?"

Li Xuan immediately knew who it was, Yang Qi.

This is not surprising. If Yang Qi's servants did not know that Dongshan Garden had changed hands, it is understandable that they robbed the merchants. In history, Yang's servants committed many crimes.

"It seems that there is a dispute with Zi Tu Garden, and he is fighting with the people from Zi Tu Garden in the garden..."

A businessman answered Li Xuan.

"You are General Li..."

A businessman thought Li Xuan looked familiar and suddenly called out Li Xuan's identity.

As soon as he finished speaking, some businessmen also felt that Li Xuan looked friendly.

Before, Li Xuan was walking on Suzaku Street wearing armor, but now he is wearing a round-necked robe without even a hat.

But the cavalry behind them made them feel that this was General Li.

"It's me, Marshal!"

If he was a merchant in Chang'an, it wouldn't be surprising to recognize him. After all, his two trips were too high-profile.

"I pay my respects to General Li..."

When the merchants learned of Li Xuan's identity, they all bowed down.

A person's reputation is like a tree's shadow. Although Li Xuan is noble, he has never bullied others. On the contrary, his heroic deeds are commendable.

In the two capitals, many common people had the opportunity to study. When the powerful and wealthy families hated Li Xuan, these insightful families were full of admiration for Li Xuan.

"No need to be so polite! Dongshan Garden and Xishui Garden are orchards gifted to me by the saint! Throw Yang's pears out of the car and buy them in my orchard. My steward will sell them to you according to the price on the receipt!"

Li Xuan said to these businessmen, and finally reminded them: "Don't be afraid of their revenge, I will teach them a lesson!"

"Yes...thank you, General Li..."

With Li Xuan's guarantee, the vendors were delighted and thanked him again.

The threats from those Yang family servants are not as important as General Li’s words.

General Li is a marshal commanding 300,000 troops and is the most trusted minister of the saint.

"Go get everyone out of the orchard. I want to find out who ordered them to intercept the vendors who were buying my pears!"

Li Xuan gave orders to the captain of the Jinwu Guard.

"As ordered!"

After the captain of the Jinwu Guard received the order, the imperial guards under his command dismounted and headed for the garden.

At this time, after Pei Ying defeated more than ten people, he was finally defeated by the other side because of their large numbers.

He was hit on the arm by a stick, his hoe fell to the ground, and then he was knocked down by Yang's servants and beaten violently.

Several of Pei's servants were also pinned to the ground and beaten with black and blue faces.

Pei Fan's face turned pale with anger. This was his own son, so he rushed forward regardless of everything, ready to rescue him.

But as a mere civil servant, he was no match for the Yang family's servants and was subdued immediately.

At this point, the Yang family's servants became jealous. They saw that Pei Lingxi was a beautiful young lady and wanted to surround her and tease her.

Pei Lingxi was horrified. She wanted to help her father and brother, but she was powerless.

Just when she had no way to advance or retreat and the Yang family servant was about to pounce on her, a group of Jinwu guards in iron armor arrived.

The momentum of the Jinwu Guards shocked the entire audience, and all actions of the Yang family servants were forced to stop.

Pei Lingxi thus escaped the disaster.

Manager Yang was horrified. He had a keen eye and could tell the identities of these Jinwu Guards, one of the Twelve Guards, who usually patrolled the city of Chang'an.

What happened on their side was at most a minor fight, how could it alarm the imperial guards?

At most, it would be officers and soldiers from the county government who would come!
"General, what does this mean?"

Manager Yang relied on his status and wanted to speak with a straight face.

"The general has ordered that everyone be taken out, whether they are standing or lying down."

The captain of the Jinwu Guard ignored the officer and gave orders to his Jinwu Guard soldiers.

(End of this chapter)