King of Han Dynasty of Ming Dynasty

Chapter 315 Intricate relationships, all reasons

"Did you see the waistband?"

"I shouldn't need to say more about my identity."

"Don't worry about someone's retaliation later. As an officer, if you know anything, just tell me."

"I will definitely be able to keep you safe."

"But if you dare to fool me on these matters, or you are still unwilling to tell me what you know."

"hey-hey."

"I can't believe it. I really want to let you have a taste of my methods."

"How to choose, I believe you are a smart person and should know."

"Am I right?"

While talking.

Ji Gang's eyes narrowed unconsciously, and a cold sneer appeared at the corner of his slightly raised mouth. He looked straight at the slightly dull Yi Cheng official who was shocked by his belt.

Then, Zhu Gaoxu, who was sitting slowly at the head table, also spoke at the right time:

"No doubts anymore, right?"

"Go ahead."

"If you speak well, tell me what you know honestly. If you speak well, you will be rewarded."

As soon as he finished speaking, he waved his hand towards him, and the guard following him took out two large silver ingots worth ten taels directly from his arms and placed them directly in front of the Yi Cheng official.

On the other hand, Yi Cheng, who was kneeling on the ground, slowly recovered from his daze.

At this moment, Yi Cheng's heart was full of mixed feelings, he couldn't help but feel a storm, and he was frightened to death.

At the same time, Yi Cheng couldn't help but secretly have some speculations in his heart.

I just looked at Ji Gang's identity badge.

Ji Gang was a personal soldier and confidant of Emperor Yongle, but such a person could only follow Zhu Gaoxu, and did not even have a chance to sit at the main table. He seemed to obey the orders of the unknown man in brocade in front of him.

One can imagine how distinguished the middle-aged man in brocade clothes in front of him is.

Thinking of this, Yi Cheng also gave up the struggle at this moment, and he definitely did not dare to hide anything.

Then, he simply organized his thoughts and prepared to talk about everything he knew:

"Your Honor."

"Linchuan Fucheng refined salt problem."

"This little man has heard from the gossip."

"Our large Linchuan Mansion has a total of four major merchants."

"Two of them are real merchants, namely the Zhang family and the Wang family. They are also the earliest merchants to start their business in Linchuan Fucheng. They can be traced back as far as the reign of Emperor Hongwu."

"The other two"

Having said this, he paused, with a hint of embarrassment in his expression, and his words became a little hurried, and said:

"This. This is just what I heard and it has never been confirmed."

"My lord, just listen to it with pleasure. I can't guarantee the merits of this."

After hearing this, Zhu Gaoxu and Ji Gang couldn't help but look at each other.

Everyone is not a fool, and they all understand what Yi Cheng is saying right now.

Immediately, Ji Gang, who was sitting beside him, couldn't help but nodded slightly to express his approval:
"rest assured,"

"Let's just treat this matter as a casual chat between us."

"It doesn't matter if it's just hearsay or whether it's true or not."

"If we want to investigate, we will verify it ourselves. You don't have to worry about this, just say it."

Got a positive answer.

Yi Cheng couldn't help but let out a long sigh of relief, then simply sorted out his thoughts, gritted his teeth as if he had made some kind of determination, and said:
"The other two businessmen are the Li family and the Yuan family. They started their business much younger than the Zhang and Wang families. They are considered to be rising stars in Linchuan Fucheng."

"However, although Li and Yuan are rising stars, their development momentum is extremely fierce."

"It has only been a short five or six years since its emergence."

"The industries it covers, coupled with the accumulation and power of all parties, have gradually surpassed the Zhang and Wang families."

"In many cases, the established Zhang family and Wang family were overwhelmed, giving up a lot of profits and interests, and were unwilling to conflict with the Li and Yuan families."

"Hey"

Having said this, Yi Cheng couldn't help but sigh slightly, and a trace of resentment and disgust flashed through the depths of his pupils and even between his eyebrows, and he said:
"It is precisely because of the sudden rise of the Li family and the Yuan family that the Zhang and Wang families were overwhelmed. They gave in step by step, trying not to conflict with them as much as possible, and gave up many interests."

"As a result, almost all the major businesses in Linchuan Fucheng are controlled by the Li and Yuan families."

"Many of the prices set by Zhang and Wang in the past have at least doubled or even increased several times since Li and Yuan gained power."

"It can be said that the lives of the people in Linchuan City are getting worse every day."

"My official has heard from people that due to the favorable terms offered by the imperial court for the refined salt auction, Zhang and Wang, in order to obtain the imperial court's blessing, bet all their family property on whether they would participate in the auction, hoping to obtain temporary benefits. The right to sell refined salt in Chuanfu City.”

"but…"

"Although the two companies were successful, it seems that the court did not fulfill the promise on the imperial list and provide corresponding protection to the salt merchants they captured."

"After Zhang and Wang acquired the entire refined salt sales rights in Linchuan Fucheng, just after they returned to Linchuan Fucheng, the two families were imprisoned on various groundless charges."

"Now it can be said that I don't know whether I will live or die, and it can be regarded as a real loss of family and family."

"And the two families joined forces and emptied all their wealth. For some reason, the rights to sell refined salt that they worked so hard to acquire ended up in the hands of the Li family and the Yuan family again."

Say it.

He cautiously raised his head and looked at Zhu Gaoxu and the two, feeling the coldness radiating from them.

Yi Cheng seemed to have thought of something in an instant, and was suddenly frightened out of his wits. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead crazily, and he trembled and spoke hurriedly:
"My lord, please forgive me."

"Your Majesty. Your Majesty made a mistake in your speech and was talking nonsense for a while."

"Absolutely. I don't have any opinions about the imperial court."

"I also ask your lords to forgive me."

After that, he kept kowtowing.

No wonder he was so frightened.

Mainly after he finished speaking, he realized that he only cared about his own pleasure, his own comfort, and venting his resentment.

Didn't even notice.

What he said was mixed with dissatisfaction and disappointment towards the court.

He completely forgot that the identity of the two people he was facing when he was complaining was that one of them was Ji Gang, the commander-in-chief of the Imperial Guard, who showed him his identity badge. The other person, although he did not know his identity, was able to reduce Ji Gang to a foil and follow him carefully. The people around you must have extremely noble status.

Under such circumstances, as a little Yi Cheng, how could he not be afraid.

Zhu Gaoxu, who was sitting in front, saw Yi Cheng, who was nearby and kowtowed in fear and uneasiness, how could he not see through the reasons for his worries and fears?
But for something like this.

Zhu Gaoxu didn't think there was anything wrong. People's lives were not good. What's wrong with a few complaints?
Isn't this a common thing?
When he was tricked by Emperor Yongle, was he angry and complaining differently? Thinking of this, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but smile, waved his hand at him, and said:
"okay."

"Don't worry about this, I forgive you."

"No one will argue with you."

"It's just some words."

"but."

Having said this, Zhu Gaoxu paused, his eyes narrowed, and his expression suddenly became extremely solemn. The conversation also suddenly changed, and he asked in a deep voice:

"Just now, I saw in your words that the rise and start of the Li and Yuan families seemed to be full of weirdness."

"The two new families are able to overwhelm the established and well-established Zhang family and Wang family."

"And I heard that in the entire Linchuan City, no matter whether they are friends or colleagues, there seems to be no one named Li or Yuan, and the wives and concubines of the two families have nothing to do with them, right? ?”

"Then why do officials in Linchuan City turn to the Li family and the Yuan family who seem to have no background?"

"I wonder how much you know about the secrets involved, and what can you say about it?"

This statement came out.

Yi Cheng couldn't help but be stunned for a moment. Under the gaze of the two people, he slowly came back to his senses. There was a flash of struggle in his eyes, and then he gritted his teeth and said:

"Return to my lord."

"This situation seems to have nothing to do with the Linchuan City officials, nor does it have anything to do with the officials or even the family members."

"I wonder, sir, have you ever thought about whether this is a cover-up and a scapegoat deliberately supported by others?"

"The purpose is to clear away all relationships openly."

"Thus achieving an ulterior purpose."

"Otherwise, I really can't imagine why the originally prosperous Zhang and Wang families would shy away from the new Li and Yuan families."

"And the officials of Linchuan City are standing behind the Li and Yuan families, covertly and covertly."

"There are many twists and turns in this matter. If you want to know the exact answer, you can only ask the principals of Zhang and Wang. As participants, they should know better than anyone what interests are involved."

"That's all the official knows and hears."

Say it.

He bowed his head honestly, bowed respectfully, and stood aside.

After Yi Cheng revealed what he knew slightly, Zhu Gaoxu and Ji Gang couldn't help but look at each other.

It is undeniable.

Yi Cheng's words are now consistent with the information they collected before and the bits and pieces of information they combined.

It seems that the water in this small Linchuan city is really not that deep.

The dirt hidden in it and the intricate exchange of various interests were far more than they knew or imagined.

Thinking of this, Zhu Gaoxu couldn't help but sigh in his heart:
"Interesting. Interesting. Getting more interesting."

"I have to admit that the wisdom of the working people is really endless. Although the official position is not big, they spend more time playing than anyone else."

After a brief moment of silence, Zhu Gaoxu waved his hand to Yi Cheng, who was standing cautiously aside, and said:

"good."

"I'm very satisfied with your answer."

While speaking, he reached out and picked up the two ingots of silver on the table, threw them towards Yi Cheng's position, and continued:

"It was agreed just now. If you say it well, you will be rewarded."

"Take these twenty taels of silver."

Seeing the silver ingot flying towards him, Yi Cheng was slightly startled and subconsciously reached out to catch it.

Then, he reacted instantly, waved his hand quickly and said:

"Thanks to your honor, this is the blessing of a lowly official."

"How can I get the adult's silver?"

While Yi Cheng was speaking, he couldn't help but look a little frightened, pretending to put the silver ingot in his hand back to its original place.

Seeing this situation, Ji Gang, who was standing aside, couldn't help but subconsciously frowned and scolded:
"Sir, let you hold it. Just hold it with peace of mind."

After hearing this, Yi Cheng, who had just stepped forward, was stunned on the spot. His eyes subconsciously looked at Zhu Gaoxu and Ji Gang, and he could clearly feel that they were sincere and not fake. He smiled coquettishly and bowed quickly. He bowed and said:

"Your Excellency, thank you for the reward."

The voice just fell.

Outside the rainy and rainy inn, there was suddenly a burst of noise.

Swish swish.
The soldiers resting in the room immediately unsheathed their swords, cocked their arrows and crossbows, and rushed out one by one like cheetahs. They moved very quickly, relying on the favorable terrain around the entire post station to quickly form a battle formation. , protecting Zhu Gaoxu who was sitting on the main seat behind him.

Ji Gang, who had just stood next to Zhu Gaoxu, also took a few steps to the gate of the inn. He looked outside with great vigilance and vigilance, and then shouted loudly to the outside:

"Who is coming?"

"Send your name quickly."

As the voice of questioning spread throughout the sky.

In the drizzle, a group of officials in official robes did not dare to hesitate at all. They looked at the inn with extremely serious expressions, saluted with great respect, and then replied loudly:

"I know Duan Li from Linchuan City."

"I, Linchuan Fucheng, will pass judgment on Liu Wan."

"See Prince Han."

There was a sound of greetings and greetings.

In the lobby of the station, Yi Cheng, who had just received two silver ingots, could not be overjoyed. He froze on the spot. The two silver ingots he held tightly in his hands, which had not yet been put into his arms, fell to the ground in fright.

Then he looked at Zhu Gaoxu with a look of astonishment and disbelief. He was so shocked by his identity that he almost fainted and said tremblingly:

"You, you."

"Are you Prince Han?"

After listening to the question, Zhu Gaoxu smiled noncommittally, chinned his head and said:

"Replacement guaranteed."

"The purpose of my visit this time is to see who is so brave and dares to go against the imperial court and ignore the laws of the Ming Dynasty."

"Taking force and plundering, destroying people's lives."

"What you just said is very useful to me."

"Don't worry. After this, let me find out the reason."

"We will try our best to keep the various prices in Linchuan Fucheng the same as before."

At this moment, Yi Cheng completely ignored the promise in Zhu Gaoxu's words and had no intention of listening to what he said. His head was completely shut down, but he still knelt down instinctively and said in a trembling voice:
"Wei...Wei Chen, pay your respects to Prince Han!"

(End of this chapter)