Before Shen Kuo entered the house, Wang Pang described him as someone who knew everything about astronomy and geography. He was simply an unknown divine man. Su Xiaomei thought to herself, what kind of person is this? Wang Pang said plus ten points. She knew that he was her husband. She praised herself for saying the right thing. When Shen Kuo interrupted her, the little girl burst into laughter.

Wang Pang hurriedly introduced the two of them. When Shen Kuo saw that Su Xiaomei was no outsider, he pulled Wang Pang's arm and said, "You boy, what did we say when we were in the capital?"

"What did you say?" Wang Pang was stunned. "You said you would come to see me in two days, but you waited for more than a year~" Shen Kuo complained.

Wang Pang was shocked, why could this not be sung? However, he also remembered that before his first trip south, he had said that he would wait until he passed by Yangzhou to see Shen Kuo, but that time he went inland and did not pass through Yangzhou. .So Shen Kuo's complaints are not unreasonable. He smiled and said: "Brother Shen, don't be sick. I see you are tossing around with new things, and you probably don't have time to think about me. Haha." He pointed to the armillary spheres displayed in Shen Kuo's study. , clepsydra, furniture and other objects said.

Shen Kuo "touched" these objects that he had carefully modified, "I have been thinking about these things all my life, and I can't change this problem. Isn't it the same for you? I've heard that, you put it The emperor's dragon bed and dragon chair have all been changed. Are you better than me?! Haha!" He smiled and said: "Brother, you see, you didn't notify me in advance of your happy event, and I didn't prepare any gifts. That's it... look at the items here and see what you like, I'll give them to you~"[

Su Xiaomei snickered and said nothing, thinking that Wang Pang had been praising this person for a long time, and she thought that he was just like her husband, not to mention outstanding in talent and appearance, at least a scholar. When they met, Shen Kuo was honest, honest, and round. Huhu, he was a bit unlike a scholar, and he spoke in a carefree manner. When talking about this gift, it was even more interesting. Others gave Wang Bian gold and silver and were afraid that Wang Bian would not appreciate it, but Shen Kuo took this small thing that he had made as a gift. Congratulatory gifts are a bit petty.

Her little thought could not catch Wang Pang's eyes. Wang Pang pointed at the set of Yanji and said to Shen Kuo: "These are Brother Shen's hard work. You rarely give them to others. This is a generous gift. Now I I am planning to build a house here and open a bank branch. I think this furniture combination is good and my wife also likes it. How about Brother Shen give it to me?"

Shen Kuo frowned: "Furniture set?" He suddenly realized the set of furniture that Wang Pang was talking about: "Oh~! You said it was it. Brother, you have such good eyesight. You chose one piece out of thousands and it was not made by me. Something!~"

As soon as she finished speaking, Su Xiaomei couldn't help but laugh. Wang also laughed when he heard it. "Oh? Is there anyone with more clever ideas than Brother Shen?"

Shen Kuo said slightly seriously: "Although I heard that you are flattering me, I am still very happy, haha." The three of them laughed together, and Shen Kuo asked: "Brother, why did you come to Yangzhou this time? What's the matter? What kind of bank branch did you want to open in Yangzhou just now? What kind of business is a bank? And I just heard the guard come to report that the King of Zhennan is coming. What's going on?" This Shen Kuo is worse than a Gaoyou man. The county magistrate is well-informed, which shows that most of his usual thoughts are spent on research.

Wang Pang then told Shen Kuo about his first trip south, being crowned king after returning to the capital, and opening a bank in the capital. Shen Kuo nodded while listening, with facial features that alternated between surprise and joy, and all his expressions were full of excitement. It was written on his face. Finally, Wang Pang told Shen Kuo that he came to Yangzhou this time to understand the situation here. After settling the affairs in Yongzhou, he would dispatch people to open a bank branch in Yangzhou.

After hearing this, Shen Kuo asked: "So how many days will our brothers stay in Yangzhou?"

"Exactly, opening a bank is not a trivial matter. I still need to trouble you, Brother Shen!"

"Hey, you are the King of Zhennan now, what can you do to trouble me?" Shen Kuo curled his lips and said.

Wang Pang smiled slightly: "Brother Shen is currently serving in the army in Yangzhou. I asked about it before I came out of the capital. I am not very familiar with the prefect and general magistrate of Yangzhou. Please help me, Brother Shen."

"Look at you, you are the prince now. It's not easy to meet whoever you want. But, let me tell you, you can meet them when you meet them. After all, they are in charge of the place. But I just understood your bank business. I think there is someone you must meet."

"Who?"

"Li Gefei, the current prime minister's son-in-law?!"

When Wang Pang heard that Li Gefei left, he was surprised and asked: "Uncle Wen is also in Yangzhou? Does he have any position?"

Li Gefei was very familiar to Wang Pang. Even though he was his father's student, he was also his good friend. In addition to Li Gefei being the son-in-law of Prime Minister Wang Gui, Wang Pang also knew that Li Gefei would give birth to a daughter, the famous Song Dynasty talented girl Li Qingzhao. He and I haven't seen Li Gefei for several years, and I didn't expect to meet him in Yangzhou.

"I knew you must be familiar with him. He is not in Yangzhou now, but he is in charge of Huainan East Road."

Wang Pang now has a very good understanding of the local administrative divisions of the Song Dynasty. He knows that the Song Dynasty is basically a two-level system, that is, the prefecture, state, army, and prison are at the first level, and the county is at the first level. The local officials in the Song Dynasty were all appointed by central officials. "Knowing xx affairs" is called "judging xx affairs" by senior officials. With the prefecture as the standard unit, it is often called "knowing the affairs of the army and state affairs of The status of "jing" is similar to that of Tongshou in the Sui Dynasty. Documents issued at the state level must be signed by the state magistrate before they can take effect. The purpose is to restrict the power of the magistrate.

Therefore, when the king wants to handle banking matters, he must have prefects and general magistrates who are local deterrents. But there is a large area above the local area, called "road". The institutions and officials at the road level are Supervisor and Supervisor. Since Shen Kuo mentioned that although Li Gefei was not in Yangzhou, he was in charge of the affairs of Huainan East Road, he was very happy and asked: "Where is he now? What kind of supervisor is he?"

Shen Kuo said: "He is not far away, and he will be coming to Yangzhou in the next few days! He is the right person for you. Now he is in Caosi, and he is the transfer envoy of Huainan East Road. (Caosi is the transfer envoy of Huainan East Road.) The Transport Department, the chief officer is called the Transport Envoy, is responsible for the finance and supervision along the way) Even the prefect and magistrate will look at his face."[

Wang Pang smiled. Since ancient times, the official level has been overwhelming, not to mention the differences between local and central governments. Geng smiled, talking about ancient and modern times, what you want to do is just a network of relationships. Although I didn't have any outstanding projects in my previous life, But he worked hard in the business field and had a thorough understanding of this network of relationships. Not to mention that he traveled to the Song Dynasty and gave himself such a good identity. When he first came to the Song Dynasty, he was young, but he made a lot of friends. Now these people are slow He has become too slow, and he will become the mainstay of the imperial court in the future, so he can do things like a fish in water in this big net.

Seeing that Wang Pang was not in a hurry to leave, Shen Kuo hurriedly arranged a place for Wang Pang to live, and personally went to invite the magistrate and general magistrate to come to see him. Later that day, Shen Kuo sent someone to Wang Pang's hotel to invite Wang Pang to come. The man made an announcement and said that the Yangzhou magistrate and Tongpan had also arrived.

Seeing the entertainment again, Su Xiaomei told Wang Pang to eat less and drink less. Wang Pang said with a smile: "This kind of entertainment is endless. Although Li Gefei is the chief minister, the local people will never neglect it."

The back residence of the Yangzhou government office has courtyards of different sizes. Officials of the Song Dynasty would have official residences wherever they went. The official residences of Yangzhou officials, big and small, were all located in the large and small courtyard groups behind the government office. The king walked through the courtyard and couldn't help but feel I lamented that compared to the solemn and luxurious buildings in the capital, the courtyards and gardens in Yangzhou are more exquisite and meticulous. Emperor Yang of the Sui Dynasty visited Yangzhou three times to open the canal. Although Yangzhou experienced war in the Song Dynasty, you can still see pavilions covered with stars and embankments like willows. The smoke. The halls, pavilions and tower bridges far and near are bright and dark under the cover of willow trees. It also shows the depth and uniqueness of the courtyard.

When Wang Pang entered the mansion, someone had already sent word that the King of Zhennan was coming. The Yangzhou magistrate and the magistrate in the room all came out of the hall to welcome him. When Wang Pang stepped into the courtyard, Shen Kuo greeted him: "Come on. King Zhennan, I will guide you..." He said and pointed to an old man: "This is our magistrate of Yangzhou." Although the old man was sixty or seventy years old, his status was limited. When he saw these two people next to the king, Young men in their early teens also have to bow and salute. "Your Majesty Hu Su"

Wang Pang hurriedly supported him: "Prefect Hu is exempt from the ceremony" he said, but he thought in his heart, why hasn't he retired at such an old age?

Shen Kuo then cited another person: "This is the general judge of Yangzhou."

Seeing that he was in his forties or fifties, the general judge also raised his hands to the king and said, "I am Wang Gongchen."

When Wang Pang looked at this Wang Gongchen, he thought to himself, do I know this person?! If this person is the general judge of Yangzhou, things may not be easy to handle in the future. This Wang Gongchen used to be a Hanlin bachelor, and he also represented three people. Secretary. However, Renzong always disliked what he said and did. For example, when Renzong wanted to implement the "Qingli New Deal" during his reign, Wang Gongchen was the most active opponent. Later, his friends Li Zhang, the transfer judge of Hunan, and Tan The prefecture magistrate Ren Zhuan forcibly bought the jewels of a dead businessman at a low price. After his crime was exposed, he was arrested. Wang Gongchen bribed all the jewels to the harem, but was finally impeached. Now he is a local magistrate. Although He also controls the power of a state, so how can he compare with the officials in the capital? But Wang Pang thought that this person was so resistant to the "Qingli New Deal". He wondered if his thoughts would change after so many years. ?

Four people entered the hall. In the spacious hall, a reception table was placed in the middle of the hall. On the table was a prepared banquet. Everyone invited Wang Pang to take a seat, and after sitting down, they were polite to each other. I heard that Wang Pang planned to visit Yangzhou. The bank, the prefect Hu Su and the general judge Wang Gongchen all read the decree and said in unison: "This is a good thing. If the prince needs to do something, he will definitely do it without hesitation."

Wang Pian raised his glass and said, "I would like to ask all my colleagues to bear with you in the future."

Everyone laughed and drank, and Shen Kuo said: "Your Majesty, you'd better ask these two to bear with me. I will return to the capital after I finish handling the case in hand."

At this time, the atmosphere in the banquet was no longer so formal. Wang Gongchen turned to Shen Kuo and asked, "Why hasn't the case at hand been completed yet? I'm still waiting for you to send a letter to my brother-in-law."

Shen Kuo laughed and said: "That case is a bit tricky. Who are you sending the message to? Your brother-in-law? Isn't that your brother-in-law?"

"My brother-in-law~!" Wang Gongchen insisted again.

Shen Kuo looked at the king and said, "My lord, please tell me first. Is this drunkard Wang Tongpan's brother-in-law or brother-in-law?"

When Wang Pang heard that there was something about Ouyang Xiu here, he saw that even the prefect lowered his head and smiled, and Wang Gongchen was even more proud of himself. While smiling, he said, "The old son-in-law is the new son-in-law; take care of his aunt and aunt."
Chapter completed!