Chapter 2209

After Dai Yingfan came into contact with the Jindun gang for a few days, he discovered that they were not actually heavenly soldiers and generals with three heads and six arms, but Han Chinese like himself. The difference was that they had all received extremely systematic military training, and many of them

With varying degrees of actual combat experience, coupled with advanced weapons and equipment, their combat effectiveness is indeed far beyond that of ordinary martial arts bodyguards.

How are these people trained? Of course Dai Yingfan doesn't expect to steal teachers from Yuan Tao, otherwise he wouldn't have to spend a lot of money to send people to Zhoushan for training. However, he can observe up close how Yuan Tao assigns tasks, deploys defenses, and directs operations.

, he felt that he also learned something from it, and his admiration for Yuan Tao grew day by day.

"Shop Manager Yuan, now that this matter is over, are you willing to stay in Yangzhou? I have discussed it with my brother, and I am willing to pay 20,000 taels of silver every year to hire Shopkeeper Yuan as the head coach of the seven major surnames. In addition, we can also provide gifts outside Yangzhou City.

A house serves as the local residence of shopkeeper Yuan."

After finally waiting for an opening, Dai Yingfan took the initiative to mention his intention to continue to hire Yuan Tao. This was different from the current employment method. Dai Yingfan hoped to hire Yuan Tao personally for his own use, rather than simply continuing the transaction with Jindun.

Not only does it provide a well-paid position, but it also gives away housing. The conditions proposed are not bad.

The reason why the Dai family is willing to offer such high conditions is mainly due to Yuan Tao's ability. The Dai brothers are convinced that Yuan Tao's ability is enough to train a powerful force for the seven surnames, so that they will not have to spend a lot of money in the future.

You can send people to Zhoushan for training. You can train as many people as you want. The conditions offered to Yuan Tao may seem expensive, but considering the actual results, it is actually a very cost-effective deal.

Of course, the Dai brothers also knew that Yuan Tao's status in Jindun was not low, and he was also a figure highly valued by Haihan's senior management. They were not willing to leave Haihan easily, so they offered a high price as soon as they came up, hoping to impress them.

Yuan Tao.

Yuan Tao was stunned for a moment, then smiled and said: "Thanks to Boss Dai, Yuan doesn't have such great ability, he just tries his best to complete the task. Yuan can't afford the position of head coach of this team, so he should hire someone else."

!”

Yuan Tao's reaction was not beyond Dai Yingfan's expectation. He didn't think that such a thing could hit it off immediately. If Yuan Tao was such a rash person, he might not be able to hold his current position.

Dai Yingfan continued to advise: "Shopkeeper Yuan doesn't need to reply immediately. You might as well think about it slowly. If there are any conditions, you can also bring them up for discussion. Shopkeeper Yuan believes that we are fully sincere in this matter."

Yuan Tao declined politely: "I don't doubt Boss Dai's sincerity, but I'm afraid there is no need to discuss this matter. When your people return from Zhoushan, they can form and train their own militia. If you still feel powerful by then,

If he is not arrested, then he will be sent to Zhoushan for training."

The conditions offered by Dai Yingfan are of course very generous, and the remuneration far exceeds Yuan Tao's current income level. But the question is, is it worth giving up his bright future for this money? Yuan Tao obviously does not think this is a good deal.

.

He is now the semi-colon shopkeeper of Golden Shield. If he takes another crucial step up, he will be able to break through the ceiling and become a truly high-level figure. At that time, he may even have the opportunity to gain a wife and a son, and benefit his descendants.

If your children want to join the officialdom in the future, the threshold will be relatively low. Even from an economic perspective, as long as you move up to another level, the income may not be worse than the price offered by the salt merchant.

And what can you get by giving up your future in Haihan and working for a salt merchant? In the short term, your income will indeed increase a lot, but if you want to return to Haihan for development in the future, I'm afraid everything will have to start all over again. Yuan Tao is now a

Only one foot has stepped into the privileged class of Haihan Kingdom. As long as you stay in Jindun, you will have the opportunity to move up. How can you be so short-sighted that you give up your bright future for money.

Dai Yingfan couldn't help but feel a little disappointed after hearing this answer, but he also knew that this kind of thing could not be forced. Anyway, he left a message here. If Yuan Tao's thoughts changed in the future, there might still be room for negotiation.

Yuan Tao's attention was not focused on these messy things at all. He was very clear about his mission and responsibilities when he came to Yangzhou, and he also knew that the current situation was far from being optimistic. Although he successfully repelled the opponent's

A night attack, but he didn't think that his opponent would give up just now, and would definitely plan the next attack against the seven surnames.

Now that he is in the light and the enemy is in the dark, it is difficult for Yuan Tao to take proactive measures to prevent his opponent from launching an offensive. He can only try to build the fence as firmly as possible so as not to leave too many opportunities for the opponent to take advantage of.

As long as the people he is responsible for protecting do not leave Daijiazhuang, Yuan Tao is still very confident that he can protect them. Even if an army comes to attack this place, as long as the number of troops on the battlefield does not reach a thousand people, he is sure to repel the opponent.

Gain buffer time to evacuate Yangzhou.

The battle in Daijiazhuang did not cause any noise in Yangzhou, and there was no relevant news at all in the market. It was obvious that the other party was unwilling to publicize the matter after suffering this embarrassing loss, so it seemed calm. This

This also makes the salt merchants of the seven major surnames feel a little relieved, thinking that after causing the opponent to suffer this time, they may be able to calm down for a while. As long as the last few months are delayed, the situation is expected to change between offense and defense, and there will be no need to be like this again.

I am so passive now.

But it seems that the direction of things will not be so satisfactory. The tree wants to be quiet but the wind is not stopping, and a new storm is brewing.

The business of Qingfeng Tower in Yangzhou City suddenly improved slightly, which made Shopkeeper Ge no longer look as sad as he did a few days ago. Although the Huizhou salt merchants still did not appear in Yangzhou City, other salt merchants entertained local officials with banquets

But there are inexplicably more.

"Duan San, look how many private rooms have been reserved for tonight!"

Shopkeeper Ge leaned on the bamboo chair behind the counter and asked leisurely with his legs crossed. He actually knew the situation, but he always wanted to hear this happy news again.

"Shopkeeper, all the private rooms are fully booked today!" Duan San reported with a happy face: "Master He, Master Wang, and Master Lu have reserved the three most expensive private rooms, saying that they want to invite Mr. Guan.

Let’s have dinner. There are several tables of people who have made reservations, saying they are coming to hear the news.”

"Hear the news? What news?" Shopkeeper Ge didn't react for a moment.

"That's what Mr. He and the others wanted to discuss at the banquet for the officials!" Duan San lowered his voice and said, "I heard it has something to do with those people who haven't shown up in Yangzhou City recently!"

Shopkeeper Ge suddenly said: "Are you talking about the seven surnames? It is related to the future direction. These small salt merchants have to find a way to find out the news."

Duan San was slightly surprised and said: "Shopkeeper, it seems that you have also heard the news this time?"

Shopkeeper Ge snorted and said: "Do you really think that I guard this place every day and don't know what's going on outside? The Seventh Surname has not been showing up recently. I heard that it was a big deal! Other salt merchants have been in the past few days.

By hosting various banquets for officials, I must be trying to find out the inside story... In my opinion, these seven surnames are probably going to be in trouble!"

Duan San asked: "How can this be seen?"

"You are still too young!" Shopkeeper Ge said earnestly: "Look at the patrons who have held banquets in our restaurant these days. They are all the ones who don't deal with the seven surnames on weekdays. They are so anxious to give gifts to all kinds of gods.

The incense money is obviously related to the seven surnames, and it is probably digging a hole for the opponent!"

Duan San hesitated and said: "You know so much about the shopkeeper, could it be that you have eavesdropped on their conversations in the private room these days?"

Shopkeeper Ge glared and said, "Can I, the dignified shopkeeper of Qingfeng Building, do such a despicable thing? Don't talk nonsense outside and cause trouble for Qingfeng Building. No one can protect you then!"

Duan San knew that he had made a mistake and quickly agreed, but in his heart he felt that this was probably the truth. Whenever someone entertained local officials at the Qingfeng Building, Shopkeeper Ge would always find an opportunity to go in to say hello and toast. During this period, he heard some

A few words of news are perfectly normal.

"Gungungun, go check out the food preparations in the kitchen. Don't delay the evening banquet!" Shopkeeper Ge waved his hand impatiently and drove Duan San away from his eyes.

Shopkeeper Ge will pay special attention to some rumors and news on the market. This is not because he loves gossip, but because he wants to feed back valuable information to the boss behind Qingfeng Tower, the prefect of Yangzhou Prefecture. The relationship between salt merchants

Competition is just daily life in Yangzhou, but it involves officials from all walks of life so frequently. In his opinion, it is obviously a sign that something is going to happen, so he pays special attention to it.

The Seven Great Surnames hired Haihan people to come to Yangzhou as bodyguards, and the Shanshan-Shaanxi salt merchants have now moved out all their official connections. This is probably a battle between the two sides. But shopkeeper Ge believes that no matter what, the Seven Great Surnames are just common people after all.

It was impossible to compete with the Shanshan and Shaanxi salt merchants who had more official connections, so he insisted that the seven surnames were going to be unlucky.

However, Shopkeeper Ge does not dare to express his views publicly, because his attitude may be interpreted as the prefect's intention in the eyes of the outside world. This is very dangerous, and his remarks are very likely to be misunderstood by people with ulterior motives.

To take advantage of it, shopkeeper Ge warned Duan San not to publicize this.

As for what kind of pit the Shanshan Salt Merchant would dig for the seven major surnames, Shopkeeper Ge even guessed a bit. After all, the most officials hosted by the Shanshan Salt Merchant in the past few days were people from the Salt Industry Yamen. This was obviously to follow their life roots.

The child took action.

Shanshan salt merchants have spent thousands of taels of silver in Qingfeng Building in the past few days, but the silver they gave away in the private rooms is probably several times that amount. People from all walks of life who heard the news also gave Qingfeng

The building has brought a lot of business. Therefore, although the main consumer force of Huizhou salt merchants has been missing in recent days, the business of Qingfeng Building has returned to a better state.

That night, an unknown and unconfirmed news came from Qingfeng Tower. The Salt Transportation Department of the Huaihe and Huaidu capitals had found evidence that seven major surnames were selling illegal salt, and would investigate these major salt merchants in the near future.

As soon as the news came out, the price of private salt on the black market in Yangzhou immediately rose by three points. There were even gambling stalls that immediately opened a handicap, allowing gamblers to bet on which of the seven surnames the Yanzheng Yamen would start investigating. Of course.

, who dares to open such a handicap without fear of offending others must be a gambling stall that has close relations with Shanxi and Shaanxi salt merchants.

However, most of the small salt merchants responsible for distribution still took a wait-and-see attitude after receiving the news. After all, the two major salt merchant groups have been fighting for more than a year or two, and no one can do anything to the other. If the seven major surnames are in decline today, they will stand up to the mountain.

On the side of the Shaanxi salt merchants, the Shanxi salt merchants will be in trouble in the next few days. If they want to stand on the opposite side again, they will probably have to shed a layer of their skin. So everyone has the same idea, waiting to see how the situation develops, and then

Decide whether to take sides.

Only one day later, this rumor became a fact. The Salt Transportation Department of the Huaihe River and Huaihe River issued an official document stating that some local salt merchants were found to be suspected of selling illegal salt, so they temporarily stopped exchanging salt quotas for these salt merchants.

, and will seal up the stores and warehouses under the names of these salt merchants to facilitate evidence collection and investigation.

This official document is not just a formality. The three branches of the Lianghuai Capital Transfer Salt Transportation Department, the eleven inspection departments, and the thirty salt fields must all participate in the action. This means that the official document

The businesses of the salt merchants listed in will be completely suspended until the facts of the case are found out.

How big the specific impact will be can be seen from the supply areas of Huai'an salt. At this time, the areas where Huai'an salt passes include Yingtian, Ningguo, Taiping, Yangzhou, Fengyang, Luzhou, Anqing, Chizhou, Huai'an Jiufu, and Chuzhou

, Hezhou and Hezhou, as well as parts of the jurisdiction of the two chief secretaries of Jiangxi and Huguang, several state capitals in Henan, etc.

Every day that business is suspended will cause huge losses to these big salt merchants. Even a rich country cannot afford this kind of indefinite shutdown.

As for whether we really need to investigate these salt merchants, that is actually not the point. After all, no salt merchant's butt is completely clean, and the benefits that the Yanzheng Yamen has received from the salt merchants over the years are not small.

The amount is so high that no one will have a good life. Therefore, the effect of this official document is not fully implemented in accordance with its content. It only temporarily bans the shops and warehouses of Huizhou salt merchants, and prohibits them from transporting in any way during the investigation.

and selling salt.

This news was sent back to Daijiazhuang shortly after the Yanzheng Yamen posted an official notice in Yangzhou City. Even though Dai Yingda was calm, he did not dare to neglect this time and immediately summoned the seven major surnames currently in Daijiazhuang.

The heads of the family met together to discuss countermeasures. Of course, they also did not forget to invite Yuan Tao, a foreign aid. Yuan Tao's opinion was also needed on how the seven surnames should respond next.

"Everyone must have heard about it, right? The enemy has no intention of leaving any room for us this time, and has transferred everything to the Salt Transportation Department. If we don't deal with it carefully this time, I'm afraid we won't even be able to keep our jobs.

Yes!" Dai Yingda said this and slapped the table hard, as if he wanted to use this to vent his dissatisfaction.
Chapter completed!