Immortal Cultivation and Life-Saving Guide

Chapter 68 Wei Xi (completed)

"Mrs. Du's eldest brother is the treasurer of the Mint. When I was at Lord Du's house, I heard a lot about exchanging official silver for gold." Qin Feng confirmed Wei Xi's idea.

"Large gold mines are heavily guarded, but towns like Tangkou provide a ready-made loophole that can be exploited."

Wei Xi thought of the county magistrate's box of gold and asked, "So, those barbarians are exchanging it for gold? Where did they get so much official silver?"

"I'm worried that someone in the court is colluding with the Hu people," Qin Feng, who had the sharpest political sense among the three, expressed his greatest concern. "The government silver is strictly controlled, and it's impossible for ordinary people to obtain a large amount of it."

"Merchants and landlords were required to submit to audits every two or three years. To this end, a special examination for mathematics was held every three years to recruit officials specifically for auditing accounts. Each county government office was to have two accountants. The Jucheng Accounting Office and the Minting Office were independent, and accountants were sent there every year to review the accounts."

"If Tangkou Town secretly exchanged gold for official silver, such a large expenditure," Qin Feng shook his head and said, "it is unlikely to be concealed."

"What's wrong with this emperor?" Lian Gouqie was a little puzzled. "Why is he so strict about gold and silver?"

Wei Xi also had this question. This was the first time she learned about this today, and she hoped Qin Feng could answer her questions.

Qin Feng smiled bitterly, "Most of these are reforms implemented during the reign of the late emperor. When he was still young, he overthrew his brothers and ascended the throne, not even sparing his own elder brothers."

"The late emperor had great ambitions, strong tactics, and far-sightedness. The official silver system and the spiritual gold exchange system were just part of his many initiatives to clean up the bureaucracy, strengthen imperial power, and enrich the country and strengthen the people. More importantly, these two systems provided a large amount of military funds for his wars."

"The current Dongyi prefectures were conquered by the late emperor," Qin Feng recalled his father's sighs, feeling mixed emotions. "Even the Boluo Kingdom is related to the late emperor."

"The current Queen Mother of Boro is Princess Anfu, the granddaughter of the late emperor's eldest brother. During the struggle for the throne, the royal family was divided, and this granddaughter was the only one left from the late emperor's eldest brother's branch. Thanks to the late emperor's mother, Queen Mother Yin, interceding for her, the infant Princess Anfu was able to survive and be raised by Queen Mother Yin."

"Then, during the five-year campaign at Nanjiang, the late emperor was already troubled, and then the northern barbarians wanted to take advantage of the chaos to rob. I won't go into the twists and turns in between, but in the end, the Boluo tribe asked for the princess' hand in marriage, and the late emperor sent Princess Anfu to the Boluo tribe for marriage."

"I didn't expect that Princess Anfu, who had been quietly working in the palace, would control the Boluo tribe within a few years, then unify the Hu people on the northern grasslands and establish the Boluo Kingdom. Later, Princess Anfu defeated the string of princes left by the old princess and supported her son to ascend to the throne."

After hearing what Qin Feng said, Wei Xi finally understood the relationship. Thinking of the royal tent that Lian Gouqie mentioned, could it be that the Queen Mother of the Hu people was coveting the gold in Tangkou Town?

"Hearing this today, I just remembered that what Boluo lacks is not only gold and silver mines, but also iron mines. Ironware has always been produced in abundance in Ju State and Dongyi, and Ju State has strict management of iron ore circulation."

"Boluo and Ju were constantly at odds, and Ju was wary of iron ore flowing into Boluo. Even if the Hu people had access to official silver, they wouldn't be able to use it to buy large quantities of ironware."

"Firstly, it's easy to trace the official silver. Secondly, who would sell the ironware privately? Who would accept the official silver? I'm afraid the purpose of exchanging it for gold is to convert the official silver into cash and buy the ironware."

As soon as Qin Feng finished speaking, there was no sound in the room. The three of them knew that it would be difficult to get away with this.

Wei Xi's mind raced, and after thinking for a moment, he said, "Just as Qin Feng said, I still have three questions."

"The first is how County Magistrate Cheng got the gold and kept it for himself. You two saw it too. The box was not filled with gold dust!"

"The second question is, did County Magistrate Cheng know that the people he was trading with were Hu people?"

"The third question is, does the magistrate know about this?"

"The previous magistrates of Tangkou Town were often replaced. If he was in cahoots with County Magistrate Wei, he probably wouldn't have been replaced so frequently." Qin Feng expressed his inference.

Lian Gouyu also spoke up, "County Magistrate Cheng mentioned the Huan River. I'm afraid he's using the river sacrifice to control Tangkou Town's gold resources?"

"That County Magistrate Cheng doesn't seem like a generous person. Is it possible that those county magistrates were forced out because he didn't want to share his profits with others?"

Wei Xi looked at Lian Gouyu, who held the upper hand in intelligence, and said, "It's hard to say now. After all, we haven't seen what the river sacrifice is like, and we haven't found the magistrate."

"Also, there's one thing we should be wary of," Wei Xi said, with a rare look of worry. "The magistrate of Tangkou Town changes so frequently. Is it true that the Suzhou government office is completely unaware of this?"

Even Gou Xie and Qin Feng's expressions changed upon hearing this. Wei Xi continued, "If the Suzhou government knows about this, are they calling in the cultivators to investigate, or do they think they're suitable for them to wade into this mess?"

The more the three of them thought about it, the more questions they had. It was already past midnight, so they took turns to rest. After all, Tangkou Town was now turned upside down by them, and if something really happened, it would be good for someone to respond in time.

Wei Xi woke up after half past the hour of the next day. Yesterday, Lian Gouqie insisted that she and Qin Feng sleep in the bed, while he slept on the floor.

Wei Xi moved her stiff neck. She planned to go to Doctor Li with Qin Feng and Lian Gouyi today to inquire about County Magistrate Cheng's past, and by the way, try to sneak to the Huan River at night to find out.

If it weren't for the sustainable development of Lian Gou Xie, the chosen scout Lian Gou Xie might have to visit the county government office for the second time tonight. When the three woke up, Wei Xi said he would go to see Doctor Li today.

"This County Magistrate Cheng is quite resourceful," Lian Gouqie said jokingly. "Tangkou Town is under his control. There aren't even any beggars on the streets, and even the most informed people aren't there..."

Lian Gouqie shook his head as he spoke, and at this moment, the waiter made a grand entrance with his men.

"Hello, two immortal masters." The waiter greeted them politely and then let the two soldiers behind him come forward.

"Masters, someone broke into the county government office last night. The magistrate was seriously ill and frightened, so he sent us to protect you."

Wei Xige pretended to be a beggar, but he knew very well in his heart that the county magistrate might have suspected the three people, but without solid evidence, he took the opportunity to put them next to him for surveillance.

Qin Feng and Lian Gouqie tried to refuse in every possible way, but the two soldiers just refused to give in and just stood there blankly.

When you're under someone's roof, you have to bow your head. Besides, Wei Xi didn't kick their calves, and Qin Feng and Lian Gouqie didn't insist on doing so, allowing the two soldiers to guard the three of them.

It seems that Doctor Li escaped today.

In the end, Lian Goujie closed the door angrily.

Wei Xi yawned and couldn't wait to get into bed and catch up on his sleep.

Wei Xi slept soundly, but Qin Feng and Lian Gou Xie were extremely anxious. The former was loyal, while the latter was worried about his life.

When Wei Xi woke up, the sun was setting in the west. She heard Qin Feng arguing with the two soldiers, and Lian Gou Xie was standing beside her to join in.

"We came here to help with flood control under orders from the government. Who gave you the guts to put us under house arrest?"

Qin Feng insisted on his domineering personality at this time, and Lian Gou Xie went into the house when he heard some noise.

"What did you come up with during the argument?" Wei Xirang Lingyin asked in a low voice.

"No, these two people let Qin Feng scold them, and just said that the river sacrifice would begin in two days, and there should be no trouble, so let us be patient." Lian Gou Xie was still a little exhausted at this moment, and his voice was weak.

Looking at the paper-made Lian Gou, Wei Xi suddenly asked, "You two were arguing like this, but didn't they go to the county government office to report it?"

"No, he just kept watching us." Lian Gouqie replied.

Wei Xi nodded, raised his chin and said, "Go and ask for dinner, and don't let Qin Feng make a fuss. Oh, and dinner should be for five people."

Lian Gouqie felt strange, but Wei Xi started to pretend to be a frightened mute child again. He went out and pretended to be impatient as Wei Xi said and stopped arguing.

When dinner came, Qin Feng sat aside with a sullen face, not moving his chopsticks.

Lian Gouqie pulled the two soldiers to the table. After a few attempts at refusing, they started eating with their chopsticks.

"How about we both order some wine so that the Immortal Master won't be so bored." One of the triangular-eyed soldiers suggested after taking a sip of the cold tea in the room.

"That's not necessary. The sect is strict and doesn't allow us to touch these things." After Lian Gouqie finished speaking, he saw the two soldiers' eyes widened and they fainted.

"What's going on?" Qin Feng was very surprised and reached out to feel the breathing of the two people.

"I put medicine in the tea." Wei Xi shook the small medicine bottle in his hand and said loudly.

　I finished finishing up yesterday's unfinished chapter. I was really sleepy yesterday.

　　Wei Xi: Surprised?

　　This chapter is also known as "The Past of Jucheng"

　　
　
(End of this chapter)