"I, the governor, have served two terms now, and it's time for me to give up." Governor Liu said, "After the new emperor takes the throne, there will inevitably be changes in the governors of various places. I have been the governor of Datong for so long, and the new emperor will no longer Let me continue to stay."
Du Wanyuan breathed a sigh of relief and almost thought something had happened to his master.
Governor Liu put down the bowl in his hand and said, "What do you think about Liu Heng, the proprietor of Lingqiu Tiger Flag?"
"Sir, do you want to hear the truth or a lie?" Du Wanyuan said.
Governor Liu laughed and scolded: "Of course I must listen to the truth, otherwise what will I do to you, a staff member."
Du Wanyuan said: "The truth is that Liu Heng, the proprietor of the Tiger Flag, cannot be touched. If he touches it, something will happen. At least you must not touch him before you leave Datong."
"So you also think that the identity of Liu Heng, the proprietor of the Tiger Flag, is related to the bandits?" Governor Liu looked serious.
Du Wanyuan shook his head and said: "I don't know if this person is a bandit student, but he must have used some shameful means to start such a big business in one year. This person is already powerful in Lingqiu. If you don't touch it, it will definitely cause a lot of trouble."
"Is it that serious?" Governor Liu looked unconvinced in his eyes.
Du Wanyuan said: "Students have seen the tiger-character flag mules and horses' convoys. Their bodyguards are all wearing armor, holding blunderbuss, and carrying swords on their waists. To put it bluntly, not even your Fubiao Camp has any I have a bodyguard who is well-armed, and Liu Heng is also the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Lingqiu Iron Farm, and he has many miners in his hands. If there is really a riot, the whole of Datong will be unstable. By then, my lord, you will be dismissed from office at the very least. As a result, I might as well take him back to the capital and put him in jail."
Governor Liu frowned.
Du Wanyuan continued: "Sir, you don't have to worry too much. According to the students, Liu Heng is a powerful man who sits on the ground. Powerful men and women like him can be found in many places in the Ming Dynasty. As long as we don't force him too much, we can live in peace. thing."
"What do you think about using troops against Lingqiu if I follow Li Kaiyang's idea?" Governor Liu suddenly said.
Du Wanyuan's expression changed and he said, "My lord, you must not do this!"
"Why not?" Governor Liu looked at Du Wanyuan in confusion.
Du Wanyuan said: "Li Kaiyang may not have good intentions when he wants to touch Liu Heng, the proprietor of the Tiger Flag. How could he not know about such a powerful person? Since he knows, he still encourages you to take action. If there is chaos in Datong in the future, you will be the first. The first one was questioned by the court, the second one was General Zhang and the magistrate of Lingqiu County, and the only one who benefited was Li Kaiyang."
He was so anxious that he didn't even call out to the deputy commander, but directly called Li Kaiyang's name.
"What you said makes sense." Governor Liu nodded and said, "I also wanted to suppress Li Kaiyang, so I found Liu Heng not guilty in the lobby, otherwise it would just be based on his Liaodong accent. , this officer has reason to doubt his identity."
Du Wanyuan asked: "Then what are your plans next?"
"Wait." Governor Liu said, "When the new emperor recruits me to return to the capital, it is not a good position for the governor of Datong to have such a powerful person."
"Sir, there is a saying that students should not know whether to say or not?" Du Wanyuan looked at Governor Liu.
Governor Liu said: "You have been with me for so many years. If there is anything you can't say, feel free to say it."
"Yes." Du Wanyuan bowed and saluted, and said, "Sir, since you don't intend to touch that tiger-character flag, why not let Liu Heng present Zhi Jing in the next three quarters. He is not short of that little money, but please come back to me, sir." The queen of Beijing needs money to manage her affairs."
After hearing this, Governor Liu pinched the beard on his chin with his hand, looking thoughtful.
Du Wanyuan stood aside quietly without disturbing him.
After a long while, Governor Liu said: "People like him are always a hidden danger. If one day he does something treacherous, I won't be involved."
Du Wanyuan said with a smile: "Don't worry, sir. Powerful men like him exist in many places in our Ming Dynasty. They will not do anything too outrageous. Even if they do something treasonous, as long as it is not under your authority, sir, That has nothing to do with you, sir. At most, it’s just an oversight.”
Governor Liu still hesitated.
Du Wanyuan said in a low voice: "Sir, students have also heard that General Zhang's side collects 10,000 taels of silver from Lingqiu every year."
"Hiss!" Governor Liu took a breath.
His annual salary is only a few hundred taels. Taking into account all kinds of invisible gray income, after deducting various expenses, there is less than a thousand taels left after a year.
But a general soldier can get ten thousand taels of silver from Lingqiu every year.
"Is that Liu Heng that rich?" Governor Liu couldn't believe it.
Du Wanyuan said: "Otherwise, why would Deputy General Li target him? Even if he knew that General Zhang was backing him, he would still attack him. Is it because as long as Liu Heng was removed, he would be able to get a large sum of money from him?" Go to the capital to clear up the relationship."
"Hmph, this Li Kaiyang actually targeted a businessman like this for his own selfish reasons. It's simply abominable." Governor Liu said with dissatisfaction.
Du Wanyuan on the side heard this and knew that his master was moved.
He thought of what Liu Heng had said to him in the restaurant the day before yesterday. As long as the governor was willing to take care of the tiger flag, he, as a staff member, could also get a lot of benefits.
Compared with the Fan family, Liu Heng, the proprietor of the Tiger Flag, was more generous.
The Fan family sent Governor Liu no more than five hundred taels of silver each time, and he, as a staff member, only had the benefit of ten taels of silver. But Liu Heng, the proprietor of the Tiger Flag, gave him 200 taels as soon as he made a move. He also promised that as long as he could persuade the governor, he would give him another 300 taels, and promised to give the governor no less than 5,000 taels every year. There was also Zhi Jing in the other three sections.
Compared with such a large amount of money, the Fan family seems too shabby.
……………………
After coming out of the governor's office, Liu Heng had just returned to the restaurant when he was taken to the General Military Mansion by Zhang Huai's personal guards.
"The common people have seen the adults."
"No need to be polite." Zhang Huai raised his hand and pointed to the seat next to him and said, "Sit down."
"Thank you, sir." Liu Heng bowed again before sitting down.
Compared with the last time he came to the General Military Mansion, the General Soldier was obviously much more enthusiastic towards him this time.
Zhang Huai picked up the blue and white porcelain bowl, blew on it, and said, "Your matter is settled, and the governor will not pursue it. Now you can feel at ease."
"Thank you for your help, sir." Liu Heng bowed.
Zhang Huai said with a smile: "You should thank me, but if you don't have the five thousand taels of silver, the governor may not be able to speak for you."
Liu Heng had a smile on his face.
He knew that if he hadn't given the fifteen thousand taels of silver to Mr. Zhang in front of him, he wouldn't have spoken for him.
Wang Qingyuan on the side said: "Dongzhu Liu, now Deputy General Li will not trouble you again for the time being, but we must hurry up and do what you told the General General last time."
"The grassroots understand."
Wang Qingyuan added: "Originally, the Commander-in-Chief planned to let you go to Guangling to serve as an inspector, but now it is during the national mourning period, so the inspection matter can only be postponed. Fortunately, the Inspector did not delve into your intentions. You won’t be able to use it for the time being.”
Hearing this, Liu Heng suddenly realized.
No wonder he saw Zhang Huai dressed in plain clothes as soon as he came in. He thought that an elder in his family had passed away, but it turned out to be a national mourning.
After Wang Qingyuan's reminder, he remembered that this year's national funeral was particularly lively. The new emperor would die less than a month after taking the throne. It can be said that three emperors and two emperors died in one year.
