The rain welcomes the cold.
After several autumn rains, the world became cooler and colder.
Not long after the last meeting, someone in the city suddenly reported that officials had violated orders. Over the past few days, hundreds of officials in Xianyang, large and small, were imprisoned.
There was an uproar in Xianyang.
For a while.
People at all levels of government are in panic.
In the streets and alleys, people were commenting and discussing what the imperial court had done from time to time.
To the east of the city is Shang Shangfang.
In the central area of Changyang Street, there is a high-rise pavilion with several overlapping courtyards.
The residence is extremely spacious.
now.
In a large house, an old man with white hair and a crown of hair was sitting on the mat. His face was neither sad nor happy, making it difficult to see his emotions, but his eyes were looking at the door from time to time, as if he was expecting something.
There were many middle-aged people sitting in the room, all of them frowning, looking like they were about to be in trouble.
Just when the atmosphere was stagnant, a burst of footsteps suddenly sounded outside the house. Everyone hurriedly followed the sound and saw a middle-aged man in red brocade with a white jade pinned to his waist, quickly entering the room.
The crowd gathered loudly.
"How is Brother Zhong doing?"
"Has the court found anything about us?"
"Did any of the officials who came in reveal us?"
"."
Everyone around was asking questions.
Feng Zhen ignored the people around him, strode to the white-haired old man, bowed and said: "Father, this time things may be a little difficult."
One word fell.
The surroundings suddenly became quiet.
The white-haired old man's eyes were slightly cold, he looked around indifferently, tapped the ground with his bamboo stick, and said in a cold voice: "I'm not dead yet? What's the big deal?"
"What storms have I, Feng, not gone through in these years?"
"The affairs of the imperial court can scare you like this without even saying a word about it?"
Everyone lowered their heads, but did not dare to argue.
Then the white-haired old man looked at his eldest son and said in a deep voice: "Now tell me everything you have heard."
“Be sure to be thorough.”
Feng Zhen nodded, took a deep breath, and said solemnly: "Father, the situation may be really different this time. I just heard that the government seems to have really found out about us in the past few days."
"Officials who have had contact with us have been impeached and imprisoned in the past few days."
"And the management is very strict. I inquired from several parties, but I didn't find out much useful information. However, I secretly communicated with several other companies. Most of the officials involved in the incident were very close to Yantie."
"Before several officials were arrested, there was secret news that the DPRK was investigating salt and iron merchants."
"I worry"
"This time it's aimed at us."
Feng Zhen's eyes were full of worry.
The white-haired old man's eyes were uncertain. After thinking for a while, he shook his head and said, "I don't think it's that simple. We, the Feng family, are merchants. Since the late Zhou Dynasty, the status of merchants has been getting lower and lower. If the government wants to target us, there is no need to do this. The next best thing."
"Just come to the door and arrest him. What can we, the Feng family, do?"
"Then what does father think the government intends to do this time?" Feng Zhen asked curiously.
The white-haired old man Feng Dong shook his head and said solemnly: "I can't guess."
"This time the government is very strict in its work and does not allow outside prying eyes. It is possible that a careful plan has been planned for a long time. We, the Feng family, can only take it one step at a time."
"What should we do now, father?" Feng Zhen asked.
"wait."
"Wait?" Feng Zhen frowned.
After hearing this answer, everyone started shouting anxiously.
"Father, can this wait?"
"This is related to the fate of our entire Feng family!"
"If the government really attacks us, wouldn't we be waiting to die if we keep waiting like this?"
"."
Feng Dong sneered and said indifferently: "What do you know?"
"As the saying goes, when soldiers come, they will block it, and when water comes, the soil will cover it."
"This is an ancient method."
"Now that the government is unclear about the situation, if we act rashly, we will only make mistakes in panic. Moreover, if the government really wants to kill us, will we, the Feng family, still survive?"
"Although the Great Qin has declined."
"But it's not our fault!"
Feng Dong's voice was not loud, but it was very impressive.
He has been in charge of the Feng family for decades and has high prestige in the family.
After thinking for a while, Feng Zhenning said: "Father, I can actually understand that my brothers are worried. It's just that I can't figure out the government's attitude this time, and I feel a little uneasy."
"If the government is for money."
"Of course I, Mrs. Feng, are not afraid of this."
"After more than ten years of running Guanzhong, I, Feng, have accumulated a lot."
"I'm afraid that the government will not only focus on money."
"You still want to die!"
"Judging from what we have learned in the past few days, the government has obviously noticed us, and most of the officials who have close contact with me, Mr. Feng, are in jail. It is impossible for them to hide it for me, Mr. Feng."
"I, Mrs. Feng, will be involved in it, it's just a matter of time."
"It's just that we need to find out now what the government thinks of us. If we just find out those officials and us by the way, then maybe it's easy to tell. If not, I, Feng, may have a hard time telling."
Feng Zhen was worried.
In the past few years, as his father Feng Dong was in poor health, the clan's business was basically handed over to him. He had to travel out from time to time, so he had a deeper understanding of the current situation in Da Qin.
But today there are signs of unrest in the world.
In recent years, the First Emperor has been overjoyed in his achievements and engaged in military warfare. The world has been filled with complaints. In addition, in recent years, the First Emperor has become increasingly obsolete, and killings have become more and more frequent.
If you don't protect everything, it will fall on you.
Why is he not afraid?
Although Feng Dongnian was old, he remained calm. After pondering for a moment, his eyes flashed with light and he said decisively: "Nothing will happen to me, Mrs. Feng."
"Father, why is this?" Feng Zhen asked doubtfully.
Feng Dong knocked on the case, with a sharp look in his eyes, and said: "The officials who have close contact with me, Feng, have been in jail for a long time. If the government really comes for me, Feng, or the merchants, Can you guys still talk here now? I'm afraid they would have been arrested and imprisoned long ago."
"So the government's purpose is not to kill people."
"It's about making money!"
"And the plan may not be too small."
Feng Dong snorted coldly and said indifferently: "You mentioned before that someone once spread the information privately that the government is secretly investigating the salt and iron merchants. What kind of troublesome existence are we merchants? Can the court investigate for ten and a half days?"
"This news may have been released intentionally by the government."
"It's just to make us panic."
"Use this to ask for a price!"
"Now the Qin Dynasty is not as good as in the past. With the increase in people's wealth every year, it has already reached the limit of servant farming in the head of Guizhou, and there are even more complaints in the local area."
"So the government has decided to target us."
"Trying to take money from us."
"Everything the government is doing right now is just a bluff to scare us and then seek more money. Most of what the government is investigating is the money and food of our major merchants."
"The government only cares about money?" Feng Zhen was a little surprised.
Feng Dong smiled and stroked his beard and said: "It should be like this. The government can indeed kill people, but how can the dead be as valuable as the living? My Feng family has been mainly engaged in salt in recent years, but behind the scenes, I have always loaned money to Guizhou and hoarded it. Food, fields, these are not noticed by the outside world.”
"Although I, Mrs. Feng, have been hiding something, I can still see it clearly in the eyes of the government."
"However, the government does not know exactly where the land deeds, land deeds, and loan bonds are hidden, and the government does not know how much I, Feng, have profited from them."
"The government is short of money."
"If I, the Feng clan, are killed, the government will only get a few hundred gold on the books, but the government will not get any of the thousands of gold that my Feng family has secretly hidden."
"In the eyes of the government, killing someone is obviously not worth it."
"But given the current situation, if I, Mrs. Feng, want to escape unscathed, I will probably spend a lot of money."
"How much does father think we will pay?" Feng Zhen asked tentatively.
Feng Dong had dark eyes and did not speak. He glanced at the people in the hall, pondered for a moment, and said in a deep voice: "At least a thousand gold."
"So many?" Feng Zhen was a little shocked.
At present, one gold in Da Qin is equivalent to about 444 yuan, and a thousand gold is equivalent to more than 400,000 yuan. This is no longer a small amount. Even the wealthy Feng family will inevitably feel a little distressed if he takes out a thousand gold in one go.
Feng Dong frowned and said displeasedly: "Shuzi, do you think this is just a small profit? Is a thousand gold a lot? If I weren't afraid of being too ostentatious, I would even donate six thousand or ten thousand gold!"
Feng Zhen was stunned.
Don't know why this is.
Feng Dong snorted coldly: "The world is exhausted today, and there are already signs of riots in Guandong. It will only be a matter of time before the world becomes chaotic. I, the Feng family, have been in Qin for more than ten years and have already taken root in Qin."
"Now that the Qin government is in dire straits, they are targeting us. Doesn't this prove one thing even more?"
"What's the matter?" Feng Zhen was a little confused.
There was a hint of greed in Feng Dong's eyes, and he said ferociously: "The bottom class has no money to collect!"
Feng Zhen's expression froze.
Then he seemed to have figured out something, and there was a touch of excitement in his eyes, and he bowed and said: "Father has a unique vision, but in the end I was short-sighted. I was so greedy for this small profit that I almost missed this big and fat one."
"It really shouldn't be true."
"That's what my father taught me."
Seeing Feng Zhen react, Feng Dong nodded happily.
Now that the government relies on plundering merchants to get money, doesn't that mean that there is no more money to be collected from the bottom?
The lower class people don’t have money and food, but if Feng has money, they can lend money and let Qian Shou use their fields and houses as collateral. Qian Shou cannot make ends meet. In a few years, all these fields and houses will fall into Feng’s hands.
The longer Da Qin can hold on.
The more benefits he, Feng, will gain from it.
The Feng family currently controls part of the salt pond. If he can seize a large amount of land while the world is still in chaos, even if the Qin Dynasty overthrows in the future, the Feng family will still be safe and sound.
You can even find an official position in troubled times.
Isn't this more meaningful than a thousand pieces of gold?
Feng Dong looked at everyone in the room and ordered: "During this period, let the people in the clan calm down a little. Don't touch those behind-the-scenes things, and the loan money will be released a little slowly."
"Don't interact with people from the government anymore."
"Go and collect more money and food, and keep your account books clean."
"If the government wants money, just give it."
"As long as the government is satisfied, it doesn't matter how much money you have. If the money is gone, you can make money again, but if the people are gone, then there is nothing."
"Did you hear clearly?"
I will finish this little climax tomorrow.
(End of chapter)
