Fusu was sitting at the table.
His mind has completely calmed down.
But there is still confusion.
He picked up the tea bowl, took a sip gently, held the tea bowl in the palm of his hand, and said: "What Mr. Ji said earlier gave me some clues, but I haven't completely clarified it yet. Mr. Ji, can you explain it in more detail? One or two.”
Ji Heng put down the tea bowl, found a comfortable position, and lay down.
He said: "As for this shipwreck, I have already said it before. It should be regarded as three incidents."
"And from your point of view, there are actually two things going on."
"Taking a broader view, this kind of thing is actually about dealing with problems and solving them."
"It's just that everything is dealt with in one piece."
"The common people can think so briefly, but the government cannot be so general."
"A shipwreck is a shipwreck."
"Salt and iron are salt and iron."
"They are actually two different things."
"What I told you before was only for cases involving special cases."
"The most important thing about case handling is not to follow other people's ideas, but to actively step out of the routine, look at these things with a bolder and broader perspective, and then handle the case and seek out some ordinary and hard-to-detect things. clues."
"You are the eldest son and have never served as a warden, so you are not familiar with this business."
"You may not be familiar with it, but Meng Yi, as a Tingwei, is unaware of this. This may be a problem."
Fusu's expression changed slightly.
He certainly understood the tone of Ji Heng's words.
Because of his family background, Meng Yi became an official of the First Emperor as soon as he became an official. Then when he was old enough, he directly entered the Tingwei Mansion to serve. It is true that Meng Yi's talents are sufficient, but he lacks relevant grassroots experience. , and lacks the corresponding functional qualities, so the chief officer in charge of the Tingwei Mansion will seem a bit frivolous.
It's just that this situation is very common in North Korea and China.
Ji Heng ignored Fusu's expression and continued: "The third incident I mentioned earlier."
"It's actually the finishing touch."
"Handling the case is not difficult at all."
"The hard thing is finding clues, the hard thing is finding evidence."
"Once a breakthrough is found, it is easy to follow the clues to find other evidence, and then directly characterize this case."
"The key difficulty in dealing with this problem lies with the merchants."
"The merchant has been planning for a long time. It will not be easy to pry the merchant's mouth open. And the first thing is not to investigate, but to judge whether the merchant is guilty or not."
"I'll let you decide whether the merchant is guilty or not."
"That's it."
"Your answer is 'beyond suspicion'."
"If the merchants were not involved, it would just be an accident."
"That's the end of the case."
"If the merchant is really involved, then we need to conduct further analysis to judge the merchant's behavior and what the merchant's intention is."
"Seeking wealth? Revenge?"
"If you are looking for money, what kind of money are you looking for?"
"How is revenge planned?"
"In my personal opinion, merchants do have a desire for revenge, but such a grand revenge is unlikely. There are so many participants. Merchants are a group of fierce and jealous people. From time to time, they will secretly be wary of other merchants and join forces to target the government. , basically unrealistic.”
"It's impossible to be so bold."
“So the chances of making money are higher.”
Fusu nodded.
He also acknowledged this.
The merchants were greedy for money, but they did not dare to confront the government.
If the government really finds out that he intends to retaliate, then it will not be a question of money, but a question of whether he can survive.
Ji Heng took a sip of tea and continued: "To make money, what kind of money you are looking for, and how to design it, these are all things you have to consider. Only by thinking comprehensively and making a comprehensive review of the matter can we solve this case. Have a clear understanding.”
"That's all."
"Only in order not to worry about others."
Fusu took a deep breath.
He was impressed by Ji Heng's insight and calmness.
If Ji Heng hadn't sorted out the matter completely, he might not have thought it was so profound.
He thought for a moment and said: "Salt and iron are beneficial in themselves."
Think of this.
Fusu's eyes lit up and he said: "If this is true, the merchants may have secretly transported the salt and iron away long ago. What sank was only an empty ship, or it only contained a small amount of salt and iron. If this is true, the government should severely crack down on smuggling." Sales, and strict inspections along the road, may be able to follow the clues and recover all the salt and iron.”
Fusu looked quite excited.
If these salt and iron could be found, wouldn't the salt and iron gap in Guanzhong be solved immediately?
Ji Heng shook his head and said with a smile: "Smuggling and selling are indeed possible, but in my opinion, this possibility is not too great. The government can predict it, and the merchants can also guess that this time they can quietly smuggling The transportation of salt and iron is mostly connected with local officials, so it is difficult to find out anything."
"Even if the government intends to investigate, how long can it be kept on guard?"
"Ten days, half a month, longer?"
"If the government can afford this energy, can the people of Guanzhong afford it?"
"If I were a merchant, I would be very quiet during this period and would not do anything. When this trend passes, it would be very profitable to sell it privately in Guanzhong or transport it to Guandong. Why bother to sell it in Guanzhong? Are you going to take risks on the cusp of such a storm?”
Fusu looked embarrassed.
He also knew that he was being too whimsical.
Ji Heng said: "In addition to the profit from the salt and iron itself, there is also the idea of forcing the government. The merchants have suffered heavy losses. The new ships and their own losses, etc. are all a big expense. They can completely blackmail the government and do something to them. Give tax breaks.”
Fusu was thoughtful.
He also gradually understood.
This may be the merchant's true intention.
Transporting salt and iron is a huge expense that the government cannot afford, so the transport costs can only be borne by the merchants themselves. However, most of these merchant ships were destroyed, and building the ships was also extremely time-consuming. They could have put it off again and again. Taking advantage of the people's panic, they gradually forced the court to give in.
Fusu's eyes turned cold and he said coldly: "I will never let these merchants succeed."
Ji Heng glanced at Fusu, shook his head, and said with a chuckle: "It's hard to go against public opinion. If you don't target the merchants and let the situation develop, you won't be able to give in when the time comes."
Fusu's face darkened.
He looked at Ji Heng with a strange look in his eyes.
"This is the idea given by the gentleman. He went to investigate in a pretentious manner and pretended that he would not stop until something was found. This was actually using the power of the government to put pressure on the merchants and force them to do so. Had to give in.”
Ji Heng smiled and nodded: "This is a game of interests."
"Following the rules is not good for the court, so merchants need to be allowed to make mistakes in panic."
"If you want businessmen to make mistakes, the only way is to put pressure on them step by step."
Fusu thought for a while and asked curiously: "If this matter is handed over to you, what will you do?"
Ji Heng frowned slightly, shook his head and said: "This kind of thinking is meaningless. People can't stay calm all the time. After making a decision, making timely corrections is the key."
"Sir, do you think merchants will be fooled?" Fusu asked.
He was still a little worried.
Ji Heng moved his body so that he was lying flat on the recliner, and said with a relaxed expression: "Yes."
"Why?" Fusu asked.
"Because they are businessmen." Ji Heng said calmly.
Fusu frowned.
He couldn't understand it.
Ji Heng, however, had no idea of saying anything more. He simply closed his eyes and began to rest with his eyes closed.
Fusu smiled bitterly and didn't ask any more questions.
Instead, he sat quietly indoors and tasted tea quietly.
But my thoughts have flown outside.
at the same time.
Wei Sheng has already conveyed Fusu's order to the Young Mansion of Tingwei Mansion.
Upon hearing the order from Wei Sheng, Meng Yi was immediately stunned, his eyes filled with disbelief and confusion.
The eldest son just gave the order earlier, why did he change his mind in less than half an hour? Moreover, this idea was so ridiculous that it completely ignored people's livelihood.
This was completely different from the eldest son he knew.
The same goes for Duch.
The two of them went to find Fusu at the same time.
However, Wei Sheng did not inform Fusu's whereabouts, but only asked the two of them to carry out the plan. He also said that the eldest son had his own arrangements.
Meng Yi and Du He looked at each other, with deep worry in their eyes.
What Fusu did was just nonsense.
If this was spread, wouldn't it cause an uproar, and how would it end?
Meng Yi's eyes were solemn and he said passionately: "Master Du, what do you think of the eldest son's order? This move is simply ridiculous. If word spreads, won't it chill the people of Qin? I think this move is absolutely unacceptable, and I suggest you report it immediately His Majesty."
"Let His Majesty decide."
Du He stroked his beard, his eyes heavy, and asked doubtfully: "Meng Tingwei, don't you think the eldest son's temporary change of heart is a bit unusual?"
"The eldest son is so kind-hearted that he really doesn't care about the life and death of the people?"
"Besides."
"The eldest son changed his mind too quickly."
"The eunuch also said just now that this was a solemn order from the eldest son. It means that the eldest son was not impulsive, but after some consideration. However, we are not allowed to know what the eldest son's thoughts are."
Meng Yi frowned and said in a serious voice: "No matter what the eldest son thinks, it is inevitable that there will be a shortage of salt and iron in Guanzhong."
"How can we do nothing about this?"
Du He thought for a while, then shook his head and said: "I don't think this matter is that simple. The eldest son seems to be deliberately ignoring people's livelihood, and almost all his attention is devoted to putting pressure on merchants. Perhaps the eldest son wants to start from Merchants are looking for loopholes."
"The merchants are highly suspicious of the shipwreck in Huai County."
"We cannot rule out the possibility of self-inflicted theft."
"If we can take the opportunity to ask for some information, we may be able to 'recover' the salt and iron that sank into the water."
Meng Yi's eyes moved slightly.
He said softly: "Master Du thinks the eldest son did it intentionally?"
"Just want to put pressure on businessmen?"
Duhe nodded.
He looked around and lowered his voice: "In the past six months, the eldest son has changed a lot. Compared with the impulsive and arbitrary behavior in the past, he has become much calmer and calmer."
“And sometimes inaction is just action.”
"I think we should obey the orders of the eldest son."
"Strictly investigate merchants!"
"Perhaps the eldest son will give us an unexpected result."
Meng Yi glanced at Du He for a few times, and after pondering for a while, he had no choice but to nod.
"I hope so."
(End of chapter)
