Liu Mu searched the two commoners, confirming they carried no weapons. At Zhu Ping’an’s signal, he stepped aside to keep watch, leaving the two commoners alone with Zhu Ping’an.
Seizing the chance to speak privately, the two commoners eagerly shared their urgent news.
“Lord Governor, I’m the head of the seventh *jia* in Dongshan Village. One of our young lads, the nephew of Old Fourth, betrayed his master and joined the Japanese pirates. Last night, he secretly passed us a message. He said the pirate leader Xu Hai is furious about the ten-household registration and mutual guarantee law you’ve implemented in Zhejiang. He says, Lord Governor, you’re cutting off their roots and eyes. Xu Hai plans to attack the villages and towns that have strictly enforced this law tomorrow, vowing to leave no one alive—not even chickens or dogs!”
One of the thin commoners spoke anxiously.
“Lord, our Dongshan Village is a model village. My nephew said our village is one of the pirates’ targets. If I hadn’t been kind to him before, he wouldn’t have taken pity on us and snuck over last night to warn me to flee with my family. But my clan, relatives, and extended family are all in the village—how could I abandon them to save only myself? So I told our *jia* head, who told the village head, and he sent us to report to you, Lord Governor.”
The other commoner added urgently.
“The pirates want to sabotage the ten-household registration and mutual guarantee law,” Zhu Ping’an said, immediately grasping Xu Hai’s intent. This was a tactic to kill the chicken to scare the monkey, intimidating Zhejiang’s people and undermining the law.
“Please, Lord Governor, you must save our village! The pirates are coming tomorrow!” the two commoners pleaded, dropping to their knees.
“Rise, please. Protecting the people of my jurisdiction is my duty. I will ensure your village’s safety,” Zhu Ping’an said, quickly helping them up and reassuring them.
“Thank you, Lord Governor! Thank you!” The two commoners, relieved by Zhu Ping’an’s promise, thanked him repeatedly.
“Which other villages or towns are the pirates targeting? Do you know?” Zhu Ping’an asked calmly after soothing their nerves.
“Our neighbouring Shangpo Village is also a target, but we don’t know about other villages or towns. My nephew didn’t say, only that they plan to slaughter the model villages and towns enforcing the ten-household law until blood flows like rivers and nothing is left alive,” the two commoners said, scratching their heads. They only knew of Shangpo Village.
Model villages and towns strictly enforcing the ten-household registration and mutual guarantee law…
This clue was enough. Zhu Ping’an knew exactly which villages and towns excelled in implementing the law.
“My good fellows, thank you for bringing this critical information. I won’t publicly commend you to avoid pirate retaliation. Mu Ge’er, take them to the civil office to collect a reward of twenty taels of silver—ten taels each,” Zhu Ping’an called to Liu Mu in the distance, instructing him to arrange the reward.
“No, no, Lord Governor! We didn’t come for a reward. We just want our village to be safe,” the two commoners said, waving their hands.
“Rewarding merit and punishing faults is the way to maintain order. If I don’t reward your contribution or punish wrongdoing, wouldn’t I be a negligent official?” Zhu Ping’an said with a smile, insisting.
“Thank you, Lord Governor! Thank you!” The commoners, delighted by the unexpected reward, thanked him profusely.
“Go home with your reward and rest easy. I’ll arrange everything to ensure your village is safe and prepare a surprise for the pirates—one they won’t return from!” Zhu Ping’an assured them.
Liu Mu led the two commoners to the civil office to collect their silver, while Zhu Ping’an returned to his study to examine maps.
Xu Hai’s attempt to sabotage the ten-household registration and mutual guarantee law showed it had struck a vital nerve. The law was a cornerstone of Zhu Ping’an’s strategy to eradicate the pirates, and he would not allow Xu Hai to destroy it. If Xu Hai succeeded in massacring model villages and towns, creating a reign of terror, other communities would fear slaughter and abandon the law.
Dongshan Village was in Jiashan County, Jiaxing Prefecture, which bordered Songjiang Prefecture. It wasn’t surprising the pirates chose it as a target.
Though the commoners didn’t know the other targeted villages and towns, their clue—that the pirates aimed for model enforcers of the law—was enough for Zhu Ping’an to deduce the likely targets.
The ten-household registration and mutual guarantee law was one of the two matters Zhu Ping’an had devoted the most effort to recently.
The other was training Zhejiang’s new recruits.
As northern Zhejiang had suffered the most from pirate raids, Zhu Ping’an had focused heavily on implementing the law there, issuing frequent directives to local officials and deploying the most inspectors.
Due to the real threat of pirates and Zhu Ping’an’s attention, northern Zhejiang had the best implementation of the law in the province.
The standout regions were Jiashan County, Pinghu County, and Haiyan County, with Jiashan County leading the way.
Dongshan Village and Shangpo Village, mentioned by the commoners, were model enforcers in Jiashan County, alongside Hechi Village and Xitang Ancient Town, which were also exemplary.
These villages and towns led Jiashan in reports, resulting in the arrest of nearly a hundred suspected pirate collaborators.
In Pinghu County, Zhao Family Village and Wang Family寨 were also model enforcers.
In Haiyan County, Qingfeng Town stood out. Its residents had reported two local gentry families for colluding with pirates. Zhu Ping’an had sent Liu Dadao with a hundred Zhejiang soldiers to assist the Haiyan magistrate in investigating. The investigation confirmed the gentry’s collusion: under the guise of merchant caravans, they harboured over a hundred pirates. These pirates, posing as traders, would disappear for periods, claiming to be “sourcing goods,” only to return with a dazzling array of items.
In reality, their “sourcing” involved joining external pirate bands to pillage, with the stolen goods being their “merchandise.”
No wall is impervious. These pirates caused trouble in the town—some boasted about their killings, others let secrets slip in arrogance, and some drunkenly revealed the truth.
Their goods were inconsistent, often miscellaneous, and some bore bloodstains.
Many townsfolk pieced together the truth.
After the ten-household law was implemented, people in the same *jia* and locals reported them.
Upon verification, Liu Dadao led a hundred Zhejiang soldiers in a night raid on the gentry’s homes, catching over a hundred drunken pirates red-handed. They seized over ten thousand taels of silver, fifty bows bows, over two hundred Japanese swords, axes, curved blades, longswords, and other weapons, as well as over thirty suits of armour.
The culprits and loot were undeniable!
