On that day, Bao Mian was carried back.
Bao Zheng no longer dared to hand him over to Cao Bin for instruction, so he took him back to his station.
But how can the turmoil in the hearts of young people be locked away by distance?
A few days later, while Cao Bin was at work, Bao Mian came to his door again:
"Uncle Cao, I haven't learned your knowledge yet. I want to learn more by your side."
Cao Bin smiled at him and said, "Do you still want to go to Ruyifang?"
Bao Mian shook his head quickly and said very seriously:
"No, I won't go. I believe I can control myself."
Cao Bin patted his shoulder and said:
"Rongxing, it's a good thing to have confidence in yourself, but don't underestimate the temptations in the world."
"Sometimes, as long as you open your mouth, you can always find a reason for your greed and indulgence."
"For example, for filial piety, loyalty, and the overall situation..."
Upon hearing this, Bao Mian's eyes suddenly lit up and he said:
"It turns out that my uncle's purpose is to train me. Bao Mian understands the saying that a gentleman should be cautious in his independence and will not deceive the darkroom."
Cao Bin nodded enigmatically and said, "It's good that you know."
At this moment, the new judge Wang Tong came to Cao Bin with a sad face and said:
"Uncle, there is no money in the state treasury. I am afraid that the officials will not be able to pay their salaries this month."
Cao Bin was surprised and said: "Among the properties confiscated from the Prince of Xiangyang's Mansion, isn't there some part of the state government that was corrupted? Master Bao hasn't sent someone to deliver it yet?"
Wang Tongpan said with a bitter face:
"We went to ask for it, but Mr. Bao refused. He said that the property confiscated from the Prince of Xiangyang's Mansion must be sent to the court first."
"If the state government wants money, it must first submit it to the court..."
Cao Bin said: "In other words, the money from the state government has been embezzled by the Prince of Xiangyang, and it has become the money of the imperial court?"
Wang Tongpuan nodded and said, "That's what Mr. Bao means, but it will take a long time to wait for the official document to be issued by the court."
He didn't explain all the details. The imperial court was actually very stingy. How could they easily distribute the money they had already received to local governments? Unless there is a big disaster!
Cao Bin couldn't help but complain to Bao Mian:
"You see, this is your uncle. If I had known this, I would not have easily handed over the confiscated property to him."
Bao Mian smiled awkwardly and asked, "What do you plan to do?"
Cao Bin pondered for a moment and smiled: "The wool comes from the sheep. Since it is the money embezzled by King Xiangyang, let them spit it out."
Wang Tongpian said in confusion: "Isn't the Prince of Xiangyang's palace confiscated from top to bottom by my uncle? How can I get the money out again?"
Cao Bin shook his head and sighed:
"I have done a good deed. Although the King of Xiangyang has been convicted, he is still a relative of the emperor, so the funeral must be grand. This time, please help Princess Xiangyang."
As he spoke, he picked up the writing brush and started writing the announcement.
Wang Tongpan and Bao Mian hurriedly stepped forward to watch and saw Yishui speaking in plain language:
Do you want to visit the magnificent scenery of the Royal Palace? Do you want to experience the feeling of staying in a palace? Go help King Xiangyang with his funeral!
Those who wear flags can stay for two nights and need to have a tattoo of one hundred taels of silver. The fake dutiful son can stay for seven nights and need to have a tattoo of one thousand taels of silver...
The two of them were stunned to see that they had sold the palace as an inn!
Although the euphemistic name is to help the palace organize funerals, the actual purpose is to make money.
And if you think about it carefully, this method does not seem to violate etiquette.
You can think of the people who helped with the funeral as servants hired by the palace.
Stay at Wangfu! It is very likely that some wealthy businessmen will not be able to resist the temptation of this gimmick and will actively spend money to contribute.
Only then did Bao Mian understand what his uncle meant when he said that Uncle Zhongjing's behavior was always unbelievable.
Is this something a normal person can come up with?
...But why do I feel a little hopeful?
Wang Tongpan said: "Uncle, are you really going to post this notice?"
Cao Bin rolled his eyes at him and said, "Of course, otherwise, why would I write it?"
As expected, after this notice was posted, it immediately caused a great stir in Xiangzhou, and the people talked a lot.
There is no shortage of rich people everywhere, especially Xiangyang, a big city known as the thoroughfare of seven provinces?
Moreover, the status of businessmen in this era was not high. When they encountered something like this, they were like bees encountering molasses, and they swarmed over them one after another.
After hearing the news, some businessmen even rushed to Xiangyang from other state capitals.
In just three or four days, Xiangyang Prefectural Government received thirty to forty thousand guan of silver, all contributed by people who wanted to attend the funeral of King Xiangyang.
Wang Tongpan was crazy with joy. He didn't expect such a ridiculous idea to be so profitable.
You know, it feels very uncomfortable to be pushed for salary, but now I am finally not short of money.
Bao Mian was also shocked. He never knew that making money was so easy. The state government didn't pay anything, so the businessmen took the initiative to pay.
He had never seen so much money, especially since Cao Bin asked him to manage the accounts.
He felt very excited after so much money passed through his hands.
At this time, Cao Bin had already rushed to the palace of Prince Xiangyang. He thought that he had done a good thing and must inform Princess Xiangyang. After all, he did not want to be an unknown hero.
And those who want to mourn should make careful arrangements to avoid unnecessary trouble...
The imperial envoy went to the camp.
Bao Zheng was watching with Cao Bin's notice.
Zhan Zhao asked:
"Master Bao, are you just going to let Uncle Zhongjing do whatever you want? And Mr. Bao, why don't you find him back?"
Bao Zheng rolled up the notice, squinted his eyes and shook his head:
"Let's see what happens. As long as he doesn't lead Rong Xing into doing anything excessive, I will be happy to watch."
As he spoke, he muttered:
"As for the funeral of King Xiangyang, what Uncle Zhongjing did did not clearly violate the laws of the Song Dynasty, and it was also for the sake of state government finance."
"I won't meddle in other people's business."
Then, he showed a rare smile and joked:
"Actually, the Xiangyang Palace was built by the imperial court and is not a local property of Xiangzhou. Logically speaking, the money earned by Uncle Zhongjing should also be handed over to the imperial court!"
Hearing this, Zhan Zhao seemed to think of Cao Bin's wonderful expression when Bao Zheng went to confiscate the money, and couldn't help laughing.
Bao Zheng waved his hand and said:
"Guard Zhan, please escort some of the money to the state government. I just thought they wanted too much, so I made things difficult for them. Unexpectedly, Uncle Zhongjing found another way."
"Now most of the shops in Xiangyang have been closed, and the people have no livelihood. This is a difficult time for Xiangzhou, so don't be embarrassed."
Zhan Zhao quickly agreed and left...
