Cai Ji left the small cloth bag and ran away. Wan Ruo picked it up and weighed it, and there was a crisp jingle sound.
She deliberately smiled and saluted Gu Shengchao and said: "Master Gu is so majestic. Someone is giving you gifts when you first come here. How should you deal with it?"
Waving his hands, Gu Shengchao said shyly: "Madam, don't entertain me anymore. Of course, I can't accept it. I will go and observe them secretly to see what they are plotting."
After saying that, he ducked out and chased Cai Ji after him. Cai Ji did not go far and returned to the backyard of the county government office. Gu Shengchao quietly went up to the house and hung upside down from the eaves, just in time to see clearly.
County magistrate Huang Qinshou was waiting anxiously. When Cai Ji came back, he asked in a low voice: "How is it? Is that man on the road?"
"Don't worry, I think he is a poor guy based on how well he is dressed. Moreover, this man's wife is obviously older than him, and she looks like she has some skills. This man is probably an intruder. Maybe he was acting coquettishly here just now. It's just henpecking. If Huang County Magistrate invites him to drink a few more times, he might be able to let him go." Cai Ji sat next to Huang Qinshou and told him what he was thinking.
Huang Qinshou was overjoyed and said: "Come on, come on, he doesn't have this good fortune, let's continue drinking flower wine."
The dancers skillfully sat on their laps and fed them wine. One of the dancers even put the wine in her mouth and fed it to Huang Qinshou herself, which made him laugh and be overjoyed.
Gu Shengchao couldn't stand it anymore, so he turned over and sat on the roof, waiting patiently.
About half an hour later, several disheveled dancers came out of the room, and then Cai Ji staggered out. When going down the steps, my feet were unstable and I fell forward. Fortunately, there was a government servant on duty in front of me to help me, so I could barely stand.
Huang Qinshou also staggered out and ordered: "You guys send Cai Tuanlian back, the remaining wine and meat are yours." He hummed a little tune and was carried back to the house to rest.
Two other people helped Cai Ji get into a carriage and drove out.
It was dark, the road was bumpy, and the carriage was not moving very fast. With Gu Shengchao's strength, it was more than enough to follow behind.
The carriage drove forward for about an incense stick and stopped at the door of a deep house. A government servant knocked on the door knocker. Someone opened the door and came out, helping Cai Ji inside. The two drove back the same way.
Gu Shengchao found out the other party's address and knew that Cai Ji was sleeping when he returned drunk, so he returned to the inn at night.
He told Wan Ruo what had happened, and Wan Ruo said angrily: "These two people are working together in collusion. You can imagine how miserable the local people's lives are."
Gu Shengchao sighed: "Si Cheng Jin Anchun suggested that I come here. From his eyes, you can see his helplessness about this place. He hopes that I can do something. It seems that we have come to the right place."
Wan Ruo threw the money bag left by Cai Ji to Gu Shengchao: "Here are twenty taels of silver, you can do what you want!"
Weighing the money bag in his hands, Gu Shengchao mocked: "No wonder everyone wants to be an official. This is how promotion and wealth come about."
The two took out the atlas of Oushui County, discussed it together, and decided to start the verification from the nearest Xiakou Village tomorrow.
Gu Shengchao led everyone to measure in Xiakou Village for several days, and finally calculated that the cultivated land was about 3,000 acres. However, the statistical document indicated that it was only more than 2,000 acres, of which 1,200 acres were owned by King Wu Palace, and the remaining Nearly half of the 800 acres were owned by Lizheng and the squires, and only 400 acres were public land.
In just a few days, one village gained more than a thousand acres of fertile farmland. Calculating this, the number of unreported crops in the entire dynasty is absolutely staggering.
When everyone was ready to call it a day, the squire in the village led a group of villagers to gather together. The villagers were all carrying hoes, rakes and other farm tools, blocking the road aggressively.
"My lords, please stay. I am the clan leader here and I have something to discuss." The first elder stood in front.
"What's the matter?" Gu Shengchao saw the unkind appearance of their visitors and knew that conflict was inevitable.
The clan leader cupped his hands and said, "I wonder how much farmland you have actually measured?"
Without talking nonsense to them, Gu Shengchao said directly: "More than three thousand acres, just a little more."
The patriarch was lukewarm and said with a threatening tone: "We know best how many fields there are in our village. I'm afraid there is something wrong with the drum truck in your records."
"Yes, there's something wrong with their car."
"They came to bully us on purpose."
"Smashed their car."
"Okay, if I don't like them these days, I should have taken action long ago."
"Smash!"
"Smash!"
The villagers were so excited that they rushed forward waving their farm tools.
"Presumptuous!" Gu Shengchao shouted angrily, stopped them and scolded them: "Are you going to rebel?"
The clan leader did not stop his villagers and said coldly: "Since ancient times, the law has not punished everyone. They are all reckless farmers. We don't dare to bear anything if anything happens."
Scanning the crowd with sharp eyes, Gu Shengchao understood that they were not farmers, but skilled men pretending to be farmers.
The farmers have been working hard under the sun all year round and have not enough to eat. They are all black and thin. On the other hand, these people in front of me are fairer than my subordinates who are engaged in surveying and mapping. They are strong and they can tell that they are from martial arts.
"Which one of you is a farmer? If you have the ability, go to the fields and do some practical work. You are obviously a farmer but you are pretending to be a farmer. What are your intentions?" Gu Shengchao did not hesitate to point them out directly.
"Don't talk nonsense to them, just do it." Taking advantage of the large number of people, one man swung a rake and smashed the head of Gu Sheng Chao down on his face.
Gu Shengchao was not polite, dodged and kicked the opponent in the leg, and he immediately flew out.
"Crack", the man's thigh bone shattered.
"Ah!" The man screamed in mid-air.
"thump!"
"Bang!"
"oops!"
The man fell backwards, knocking down several people behind him. Gu Shengchao's kick was so powerful that it was like beating an ox across a mountain. No matter who the man met, everyone was also unlucky. Either the chest ribs were broken, an arm was broken, or a leg was broken.
He flew out alone and knocked down most of them.
"Anyone who dares to interfere with the imperial official's orders will be killed without mercy!" Ancient Sage Chao stood majestically on the road.
Wan Ruo stood side by side with him, protecting him.
The murderous intent of the two men filled the air, and everyone shuddered.
The clan leader originally wanted to bully others by taking advantage of the large number of people, but he didn't expect to lie down most of the time when they met each other. He was also frightened and suddenly lost the confidence he had just now.
Gu Shengchao and Wan Ruo walked side by side. No one dared to stop each other under the murderous aura. They all quietly stepped aside and opened a passage for them to pass smoothly.
The night they returned to the inn, Cai Ji came uninvited. Without saying a word, he left a money bag and left in a hurry.
Wan Ruo opened the purse and checked, this time it was fifty taels of silver.
"Fifty taels of silver buys more than a thousand acres of fertile land. Do you think this business is a good deal?" Wan Ruo shook his head and sighed.
Gu Shengchao also lamented: "I have lived in the rivers and lakes since I was a child. The people have been exposed to wind and sun and worked hard for a whole year, and they can barely fill their stomachs. When encountering drought or flood disasters, or locusts passing through, there are no grains." Even if we survive the cold winter after the harvest, we will run out of food in the spring, and we have to go out to beg. But this will delay spring plowing, and we will not be able to catch up with the next season, and whether we can survive is a question."
Wan Ruo weighed the money bag: "Eaters are soft-spoken and short-handed. I like this free money, but it's hot to the touch!"
"Then leave it alone. I want to see how long it takes for them to be delivered." Gu Shengchao banged his fist twice on the table.
Everyone rested in the inn for two days and chose a village to continue the measurement. This time it was even more unsatisfactory. They ran into trouble only halfway through.
The elderly men and women in the village walked to the well paths in the fields and lay there in a mess, making it impossible for trucks to pass.
Gu Shengchao and the others didn't need to be very precise in their surveying and mapping. They had to calculate a rough range first. Without the cart, it would be far away if they relied solely on a rope ruler.
If it were a strong man, Gu Shengchao would not be afraid and would just speak with his fists, but a group of frail and sickly old people had to tolerate it. Judging from their slender appearance and sallow complexion, they are all honest farmers. Someone behind the scenes must have used some method to instruct them to cause trouble.
You can't do it forcefully, you can only do it wisely.
Gu Shengchao and the others stopped working and set up tents in the fields, where they lived and ate with these people.
Everyone has three urgent needs, including eating, drinking, and diarrhea. The old people could still persist on the first day, but the number of people decreased on the second day, and more than half of them did not come on the third day.
Even so, Gu Shengchao and the others still couldn't start work. It would be unforgivable to bump into any old man. The only way was to fight with them.
Gu Shengchao was not idle, since he couldn't work anyway, so he and Wan Ruo patrolled the village to find the mastermind behind the scenes.
After observing for a few days, they learned that most of the people in the village were surnamed Gao, and that all major matters and minor matters were basically handled by the Gao Yuanwai family. Gao Yuan's family has a lot of land, and his sons run noodle shops and wine shops in the village. They also have industries in the county, and they can be said to be the dominant ones in the village.
In this case, the mastermind behind it has nothing to do with them.
For several days in a row, the door to Gao Yuan's house was closed, and Gu Shengchao could not find anything suspicious.
Three days later, only a few old men were left blocking the road. Seeing that they were beyond their capabilities, they could not hold on for a few more days.
Gu Shengchao and Wanruo went to the village for a walk in their free time. Maybe the other party was afraid of them, because the village was quiet and few villagers moved around. Occasionally I met a few, but I also stayed away from them when I saw them while walking in a hurry.
The sun had just turned westward, and the few remaining elders were too weak to do anything, so they went back early.
Gu Shengchao ordered Jin Anchun and Jiang Yongtuo to lead everyone to continue surveying and mapping. He and Wanruo sat under the shade of the trees at the entrance of the village, staring at the gate of Gao Yuan's wife's house, and did not return to the temporary tent until sunset.
As soon as he picked up his rice bowl, he whispered to Wan Ruo: "I remembered, you wait here, I'll be back soon."
Wan Ruo understood: "We have been watching for a few days, and those old people can no longer stand it. They must take advantage of our relaxation to discuss the next step."
Gu Shengchao walked out of the tent, pretending to go to the fields for convenience, and made a large circle to the outside of the courtyard wall of Gao Yuan's foreign home.
Sure enough, the door opened a crack, and a black shadow sneaked in.
He poked his head out of the door, looked at it, and then closed it.
