After three years, Li Hao came to Master Qin again, and it really felt like it had been a long time.
When he left here, Li Hao was just a small character.
Now that he has returned, he has reached the fourth rank of officialdom, and can be said to be a middle-level backbone in the Great Song Dynasty.
Suppressing his mood, Li Hao planned to walk towards the mansion, but he just got closer.
Li Hao found that Master Qin was already standing outside the house as if he had known that Li Hao would come.
Seeing this situation, Li Hao quickly stepped forward and said, "Students are paying homage to the teacher. Why are you standing outside the house?"
Master Qin was very happy to see Li Hao. After looking him up and down, he joked: "You are a high official in the imperial court now. How could I not come out to greet you?"
Li Hao said: "What the teacher said makes me feel ashamed. No matter when the time comes, you will be my teacher.
I am the only one who welcomes you, so there is no reason for you to welcome me.
Why don't we go in and talk? It's getting cold now, so don't hurt yourself. "
Then he helped Master Qin all the way into the main hall. At this time, Li Hao realized that nothing had happened in this courtyard in the past three years, and everything was still the same as in Li Hao's memory.
After entering the room and sitting down, Li Hao said, "How have you been in health over the past three years?"
Master Qin said: "Everyone is fine, no illness or disaster.
As for you, I heard that you have been on the battlefield twice and you didn't suffer any injuries. "
Li Hao said: "No, I took the troops with me both times and took command. I didn't need to charge into the battle myself. I didn't even scratch my skin."
Hearing Li Hao's words, Master Qin was very happy, and then they chatted for a while.
Li Haocai asked about his doubts: "Teacher, you were just waiting outside, were you waiting for me to come over? How did you know I was coming back today?"
Master Qin explained: "Since you left the capital, officials from Yangzhou have been more diligent in coming to my place.
They also sent someone to inform me of your arrival in Yangzhou today.
Originally, they wanted me to go to the city gate too, saying that I could meet you earlier.
But I thought that if you arrived in Yangzhou today, you would definitely come over, so I was too lazy to move. "
Li Hao knew that Master Qin did this for his own good. If he really went to the city gate, it would be inconvenient for Li Hao to refuse many things because of his kindness.
But before Li Hao finished sighing, Master Qin asked: "This time the government asked you to check the salt tax. Have you ever asked your senior brother?"
Hearing this, Li Hao's heart skipped a beat. Li Hao understood that Master Qin would not mention this matter for no reason, especially since he linked his senior brother to the salt tax investigation.
Between the words, it seems that the Yan family really has a problem in this regard.
So he said directly: "Originally, I thought about asking senior brother for help, but someone reminded me in the middle.
My uncle from the Sheng family had served as a magistrate in Yangzhou, so he didn't invite him.
But he couldn't tell the specific situation. He didn't know if the teacher knew something here. "
Master Qin replied: "I don't know the specific circumstances of this matter, but Uncle Yong should have found something while he was in Yangzhou.
It's just that he had no right to intervene in matters related to the salt road. He also sent several memorials to Bianjing for this matter, but there was no news, so he couldn't let it go. "
Hearing this, Li Hao couldn't help but said: "Mr. Yongshu knows, but I went to find him before leaving Bianjing.
He didn't mention what happened to me, and he didn't even object when I asked my senior brother to come with me to investigate the salt tax. "
Master Qin shook his head and said, "I don't know the reason for this. Maybe after you finish your work and return to Beijing, you can ask him in person."
After finishing speaking, he paused and then warned: "I am saying this to you today to remind you that you must handle this matter impartially and not neglect official duties for personal reasons."
Li Hao naturally agreed to Master Qin's request, but he didn't want to talk about this topic for the time being.
Then he changed the topic and talked about the reform.
For Master Qin, implementing reforms has become an obsession. An important reason why he resigned and retired was the failure of Qingli's New Deal.
Therefore, Master Qin was very touched by this topic and said, "I have already seen this matter from Uncle Yong's letter.
He also gave me a copy of your reform strategy in the letter, and I have been studying it these days.
The strategy you wrote is really good, so the officials and several princes have high expectations for you.
This salt patrol is a test for you.
This time you are not only doing it for yourself, but also to make a good start for the reform. You must do this well. "
Li Hao solemnly said: "Teacher, don't worry, I will do my best on this matter and will not meet the teacher's expectations."
Now that the words have come to this point, Master Qin then asked Li Hao what his specific thoughts were during this salt inspection.
Li Hao said: "In fact, there are only four parties involved in the private sale of salt, namely salt road officials, salt merchants, water transporters, and the bottom salt field salt households.
As long as one of these four pieces can be eliminated, the rest will be easy to investigate, but I haven't thought of the specific measures yet.
So I decided to ask for directions first. I believe they must have been prepared before I arrived.
In this case, I will follow their wishes and knock on all four of them, and wait for them to make a move before striking back. "
Master Qin said: "That's good. Now that you are showing them, no matter how dark they are, it is a good thing to muddy the waters first.
And they can't really be monolithic, and they might just let you seize the opportunity. "
Having said this, Master Qin couldn't help but warned: "But there are some things that you have to be careful about when handling them. These officials in Huainan are all implicated even if you don't tell them.
But 90% of the time there is, and every move you make in Yangzhou is probably within the scope of their surveillance. "
Li Hao replied: "Teacher, don't worry, I naturally understand this. This is why I want to live in my own house.
Most of the people I serve in the house now have signed death contracts, just to prevent them from reaching in.
As for the people watching outside, they don’t dare to be too presumptuous, otherwise if I catch someone, they should be careful about me taking advantage of the situation. "
But at this time, Li Hao thought of the pacifiers and Tixing who did not appear today, so he asked: "Do you know the pacifiers Zhao Cong and Tixing Chen Chen on Huainan West Road?
Are they related to the salt tax? "
Master Qin said, "I'm not familiar with these two people. I'm afraid you have to check it out yourself."
While Li Hao was talking to Master Qin, a group of Huainan officials here were also discussing how to deal with Li Hao.
Just at this time, the news that Li Hao had arrived at Master Qin's place also reached here.
I just heard the Chuzhou Zhizhou say: "It's a pity that Master Qin didn't join us, otherwise it would have been much easier to deal with Li Hao."
The Yangzhou magistrate said: "It's a pity, do you know who that Master Qin is? He is very familiar with Ouyang Xiu and Han Qi. To bring him in rashly will do more harm than good."
But when the Chuzhou Zhizhou saw this, he retorted, and a quarrel broke out later.
Seeing this situation, Wang Youqian said: "Well, there is nothing to argue about this matter. Now Li Hao has brought people down to inspect the salt tax. He was personally appointed by the official, and he has the support of several great ministers behind him.
If there is no harvest, not only him, but also the officials and princes will not give up easily. It is hard to say who will come next.
So I asked you to come together today because I want to discuss how much share you will all give up this time so that Li Hao can leave. "
After hearing this, the people below fell silent, all observing their noses with their eyes and their hearts without speaking.
Wang Youqian was not annoyed about this, but said: "Since everyone has not thought about it now, there is no rush to order.
We must retreat, but we cannot retreat so easily, otherwise others will only think that we are easy to bully.
Before retreating, he still had to let Li Hao hit a wall to let him know the importance. "
Then the specific deployment began: "During this period, private salt shipments will be reduced.
After all, the troops of the Dianqian Division are now in Suqian County, which is close to the Haizhou, Chuzhou, and Lianshui armies. They must not be caught.
In addition, the salt field must be strictly guarded and no random people are allowed to approach.
As for the salt merchants, they must be especially controlled. Li Hao is from Yangzhou, and the man named Cheng Shi is his subordinate.
It was fine elsewhere, but the boat capsized in the gutter up here. "
Everyone agreed to Wang Youqian's instructions, and then Wang Youqian left people to do their own things.
Early the next morning, Li Hao had just gotten up when Cai Xiang came over.
He said that he would take people out now and go directly to the salt field in private to have a look.
This matter had been agreed upon yesterday, but Li Hao did not expect Cai Xiang to be so active.
Originally, he wanted to ask if he could help, but Cai Xiang said that Li Hao did not need to arrange a simple trip with a light car.
So Li Hao didn't force it, and simply let Cai Xiang mingle among the servants who were out shopping, and then left.
As a result, as soon as the person was sent away, someone came to find him again.
Li Hao asked his servants to lead him to the main hall first, and then had some breakfast before going over to talk.
Cheng Shi was sitting on a chair rather reservedly. Li Hao walked into the main hall and said, "Mr. Cheng, we haven't seen each other for three years. You are getting richer and richer."
Cheng Shi said: "Isn't this a drag on your luck? Whether it's the soap business or the soap business, it's been doing very well these years."
Li Hao naturally knew about this, after all, his dividends had been growing gratifyingly in the past two years.
However, Li Hao also knew that Cheng Shi came here today not to talk about this matter, and at the same time he didn't want to make any detours.
He said directly: "Oh, you only manage these two businesses, okay? I heard that you have now joined the salt industry.
This is a big business, and you can make much more money than selling soap and toilet soap. "
Cheng Shi quickly explained: "What Mr. Li said, I was just dragged into the salt store business. If Mr. Li doesn't want me to do it, then I won't do it."
Hearing this, Li Hao smiled and said: "What you said, whether you do this business or not has nothing to do with me.
But you should also know that I am here to patrol the salt, and I hope you can help me. "
Cheng Shi replied: "Master Li has a destiny, so of course I should give my full assistance, but I actually don't know much about the salt industry.
However, I know a person who is quite familiar with these times, and he also led the way when I came in. Besides, you also know this person. "
Hearing this, Li Hao was really curious. Although Li Hao knew that Cheng Shi was in the salt business, he really didn't know how he got into it.
So he asked, "I know someone with such great powers. Let me tell you."
Cheng Shi said: "An Lingxu from Anjia."
Hearing this name, Li Hao immediately remembered that the Anjia in Dashu Village were actually engaged in the business of selling salt, and Li Hao had always known about it.
But Li Hao didn't expect that the An family would drag Cheng Shi to do this business together.
However, Li Hao didn't care about this trivial matter, so he said directly: "In that case, why not bother Master Cheng and help me go back and ask if Master An is willing to help me."
I thought Cheng Shi would agree immediately, but I didn't expect that Cheng Shi would remind you at this time: "I will naturally bring it to you, but An Lingxu has a changeable mind, so it is best not to believe everything he says. "
This made Li Hao amused and said: "I didn't expect that in your mind, he is such a character, so you still cooperate with him."
Cheng Shi explained: "As long as you make money by doing business, it doesn't matter what kind of person he is.
As long as my support is still there, then the cooperation can continue to show off. "
After hearing this, Li Hao said: "Okay, Mr. Cheng is sincere, so please help me pass on the message. No matter what choice the An family makes, I will remember your favor."
Cheng Shi replied: "Okay, then I will go find An Lingxu when I go back."
After saying that, he stood up to say goodbye and left Li Mansion.
After the others left, Li Hao saw that it was getting late, so he summoned Sheng Hong and the others to discuss how to conduct an inventory.
At this time, Sheng Hong noticed Cai Xiang's absence and asked, "Where has Judge Cai gone? Why didn't he come?"
Li Hao said: "Oh, I have something to ask Judge Cai to find Yang Wenyuan and the others. They set off early in the morning and it will probably take a few days to come back."
After hearing Li Hao's explanation, no one found it strange.
After all, Li Hao is the final person in charge of how to arrange this matter.
When everyone arrived, Li Hao said, "Everyone knows our purpose of going south this time.
It is to pay off the missing salt tax. If you have any thoughts on this, you can speak freely now. "
After hearing Li Hao's question, the people below responded very positively, but they were of little use.
To sum up, it is necessary to investigate the dirty work of Yanyin and the salt farm and find evidence of selling illegal salt.
Seeing that no one had any better suggestions, Li Hao said, "Okay, in that case, let's do what everyone said.
We divided into three teams. One team went to inspect the salt fields. Uncle Sheng led the team to patrol the major salt fields along the coast to see if any problems could be found.
Another team went to Chuzhou to check the accounts of the transshipment department and cargo services to see if there were any errors or omissions in the salt import and the actual quantity of salt produced.
The remaining few people will stay with me in Yangzhou to attract the target's attention. By the way, I will meet with the big salt merchants to see if any of them are willing to abandon the dark side and join the bright side. "
Everyone heard the arrangement and had no objections. After dividing into teams, they went down to pack their things and prepare to embark on the journey again.
However, when everyone left, Li Hao still left Sheng Hong alone and said, "My uncle is going to inspect the salt field during this trip, so we might as well make more noise.
Judge Cai has already gone over for a private visit. Uncle can help Judge Cai and attract other people's attention.
But it should not be too arrogant and arouse suspicion. The uncle may still need to grasp the appropriateness. "
Sheng Hong said: "I see, don't worry, I will definitely take care of this."
After arranging the two parties, Li Hao went to find Wang Youqian and talked about inspecting the salt field and checking the accounts.
Wang Yougan agreed: "This is also right. I happen to be going back to Chuzhou, so why not let them go with me, and I will have someone to look after me on the way.
And whether it's the salt field, or the transshipment department and the cargo department's accounts, everything is strictly guarded.
If not informed in advance, misunderstandings may easily occur. "
Li Hao said: "Of course I understand this, so I came to trouble Mr. Wang."
Then Wang Youqian asked again: "I wonder which matter Mr. Li is responsible for this time."
Li Hao said: "I have arranged candidates for these two matters, and I will stay in Yangzhou for the time being.
After all, I finally came back, so I just wanted to rest for two more days. "
Wang Youqian was naturally aware of Li Hao's explanation, and knew that it was not homesickness, but that he clearly wanted to target the weakest salt merchant in the chain.
However, Wang Youqian and the others had already made arrangements and were just waiting for Li Hao to make a move.
After agreeing on a specific time, Li Hao went back to his house and informed everyone of the news.
Then when the agreed time came, Li Hao personally sent someone to follow Wang Youqian to Chuzhou on errands.
After that, Li Hao completely relaxed for a few days. He took people to wander around Yangzhou City when he had nothing to do, and occasionally went to talk to Master Qin alone.
A break
The attitude of taking a leisurely vacation left everyone confused.
Because in Wang Youqian's view, Li Hao had just sent out two teams to investigate, which made a big fuss.
Logically speaking, he should have taken action, but Li Hao didn't. He looked like he had nothing to do, which made everyone more worried that he had some conspiracy.
Quickly send people to give instructions everywhere, asking all relevant people to be careful and not to show up.
Little did he know that this played into Li Hao's plan. Before that, Li Hao asked people from the Cao Gang to contact the people in the Cao Gang who had sneaked in in advance, and took this opportunity to see who was connected to this matter.
Of course, Li Hao also took the opportunity to get in touch with Zhang Fu and gave him the same order as a double insurance.
But on the surface, Li Hao always looks calm and relaxed.
But what Li Hao didn't expect was that Li Hao never had expectations for the accounting trip.
In the end, it really gave Li Hao an unexpected harvest, so that Li Hao had to quickly lead people all the way to Chuzhou.
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