I Xiaoxiong

There are only two people sitting in a warm hall in the Shuwang Mansion with multiple doors.

The host is Zhao Lingqing, King of Shu, and the guest is Fu Jinchuan, Marquis of Wu'an.

Compared with the grand banquet half a month ago, this table is naturally far inferior, but for the private banquet of the two of them, it is definitely considered rich.

There are ten kinds of dishes of various colors, as well as various snacks and melons and fruits. The wine includes Jiannan shochu, which is a specialty in central Sichuan, and private brews collected by the Prince of Shu.

While eating, Fu Jinchuan praised the chef's craftsmanship, while the King of Shu cheerfully introduced the recipes and origins of various dishes to him.

As for eating, Fu Jinchuan still admires the king of Shu. It can be said that this prince is not only delicious, but also knows how to eat, and even knows the process of these dishes.

"Gourd chicken, before cooking, the chicken is tied up with a thin rope. After the three processes of cooking, steaming, and frying, the skin of the chicken is golden, and the meat is soft and bone-free, which can maintain the original fragrance of the meat. It is said that it was originally named in Guanzhong. Wei's official family's practice"

"This is Soaked Oil Cake, also called Jian Feng Xiao, which is said to be named after Emperor Taizong."

Fu Jinchuan, who ate at this table, was extremely satisfied and full of praise.

Seeing that Fu Jinchuan had such a good appetite, the king of Shu was also very interested, and the conversation between the two also extended from the food in front of them to other places.

"To tell you the truth, although I was born in Shangjing, when I was a few years old, I went to Sichuan with this former king. It has been decades, and I have only been to Shangjing a few times. This Shangjing is like a foreign land to me. How many times have I returned to Beijing? I didn’t like the food this time, to put it bluntly, there is nothing delicious in the capital, it’s not as good as this Chengdu.”

Fu Jinchuan was not happy to hear what the King of Shu said, so he put down his chopsticks and said, "My lord wants to say that there is no good food in Shangjing, but I absolutely cannot agree to that. When you go back to Shangjing, what are you eating? Not all of them. The arrangement of Guanglu Temple? Have you heard that there are four major unreliable things in Shangjing?"

The King of Shu also became curious when he heard this, "I've never heard of this before. I would like to hear more about it."

"The four big names in the capital are unreliable. They say 'articles from the Hanlin Academy, swords and guns from the Arsenal, tea soup from Guanglu Temple, and prescriptions from the Taiyuan Hospital'"

"Anything else to say?"

"This is natural. The articles of the Hanlin Academy are too empty, and the military weapons of the Arsenal are all fake goods, and many of them are unusable. Many of the imperial cooks and imperial doctors are hereditary. As long as the relationship is in accordance with the tradition of the dynasty to take over the father's position, their cooking and medical skills can be imagined."

People in Shangjing knew these words, but although the king of Shu was born in Shangjing, he has been in Chengdu since he was a few years old. During his visit to Beijing several times, he only felt that this was the best place in Shangjing. So much difference?

But I didn't study it carefully. After all, when the clan went to Beijing, how could they care about eating and drinking?
"Here in the capital, if you want to say that the food is delicious, you have to eat it on the street, the miscellaneous food in the night market, you can eat it from the beginning to the end without spending two taels of silver, and there are 72 authentic stores, each with its own signboard Craftsmanship is waiting for you, my lord, to return to Beijing next time. If I am in Shangjing, I must take you to appreciate the food and drink in Shangjing."

The king of Shu also laughed and said, "That's it, it's a deal, it's a deal."

The two had almost eaten, and the gossip was almost done, and the King of Shu changed the subject and started talking about business.

"Master Hou came here today to save my face. He is a straightforward person. I don't want to come here. Our second son, this useless thing, brought a crossbow when he went out to shoot and hunt, but was taken by thieves. That night, Lord Hou Assassinated, the culprit should have used that one. This is also my fault. I was negligent in discipline. And our second child, when I was the governor, sold tens of thousands of acres of military settlements privately. These two things The thing is that I have no way to teach my son. There is nothing I can do about it. This useless one is my son-in-law, who was registered as a son long ago. I can only put aside this old face and protect him. I don’t know if Lord Hou can have a lot of Let him go. From my side, there must be a big thank you."

The king of Shu said it directly, Fu Jinchuan liked this kind of honesty, but he really couldn't give him this face.

"My lord, you are an elder, so I won't hide it from you. The two things about your son are no longer a matter of whether I let him go or not. You don't think that such a big thing happened, my lord. Can Cheng Si hide it from His Majesty and Donggong and not report it?"

When Zhao Lingqing heard this, he frowned. He knew how sensitive the eyes and ears of Huangcheng Division were.

Assassination of the Jiedu envoy, whether it is the Jiedu envoy's yamen or the imperial city secretary, has to follow up with the capital to talk about it, and the imperial court will definitely send people to investigate and secretly visit.

What is happening now is that the son of the King of Shu has all the witnesses and material evidence involved in it, and there are so many people who know it that it is difficult to cover up the matter.

Even if Fu Jinchuan doesn't pursue the face, but there is no reason for him to follow the matter down, right?
After all, this time the assassination was directly aimed at him, and it was fatal!Not chasing after your Shu Palace to seek justice is already giving the sky a big face, but it is risky to let people follow you, just for the sake of your family's worthless son?
Picture what?

The person in front of me has been a Jiedushi in his 20s. He seems to be an important minister of the imperial court. He is a junior whom His Majesty admires very much. He has a holy family and is a close friend of the Eastern Palace. What kind of extra can be used to let this Lord Hou help cover it together?
Zhao Lingqing frowned, not knowing what he was thinking, Fu Jinchuan took a sip of the tea he just served, and then said: "I have a word here, maybe it's not very pleasant, I don't know if the prince wants to hear it or not."

Zhao Lingqing said: "Your Majesty, although you say, honest words are good for the ears, and good medicine is good for the disease. Although this king is dull, I still understand the truth."

"So let me just say it straight. Before I entered Shu, the East Palace had told me that the current court is in a difficult situation, and the wealth is not going on. A few years ago, there was a rebellion by the king of Wu, so that Jianghuai's taxes will be directly reduced by half. Fortunately, it was the confiscation of the land and floating wealth of the Buddhist temple that allowed the court to tide over the difficulties. On the side of Central Shu, the taxes have never been paid in full in the past few years. The meaning of the East Palace is the meaning of Your Majesty. , is to let the taxes in the middle of Shu be paid in full.”

Zhao Lingqing didn't know why Fu Jinchuan suddenly brought up this issue, so he could only explain: "Although I was in charge of the government in the middle of Sichuan, the salt tax and land tax of each family were paid according to the amount registered by the court, even if some were not registered. , it’s not something I can do.”

What the King of Shu said was a direct showdown. There are some things that he just can't solve. Does he know that these big households concealed the truth?For sure.

But what can he do?
There are too many big households in the world concealing the number of hidden properties, and it is even one of the long-standing problems that the court urgently needs to solve.

His status as the king of Shu is very noble, and it is impossible for people to willingly take out the money that has already been pocketed.

"I understand this matter. I will solve the tax issue myself, but there is one thing I want to remind the prince. The wealth of the palace is already enough to be called a rich country. This may not be a good thing."

Zhao Lingqing frowned even more when he heard this, but didn't say anything.

"My lord is a smart person, so I should understand the principle of willingness to give up. That's all I have to say. I believe my lord will make a clear decision, so I won't say more. Thank you lord for your hospitality today."

After Fu Jinchuan finished speaking, he also left. Zhao Lingqing personally sent him away from the gate, and saw with his own eyes the hundreds of soldiers accompanying him.

"There is such a big ostentation in the city, and I don't know who it is for."

The eldest son Zhao Yuanchun quietly came behind Zhao Lingqing, muttering in a low voice, not worried that Zhao Lingqing would hear his words.

And Zhao Lingqing just turned his head and looked at him, he didn't reprimand or question him, but just sighed.

But it made Zhao Yuanchun's heart skip a beat. Could it be that he, Aye, and Marquis Wu An didn't agree on a deal today, and something went wrong?
Or the lion of Marquis Wu'an opened his mouth wide?
"Aye. Just now"

Zhao Lingqing didn't speak, just sighed, then patted him on the shoulder, then turned and entered the house, ignoring him.