After Li Jie returned from Linpu, he learned that Chen Bin had sent someone to deliver a message earlier. He had returned to the Chief Secretary's Yamen and asked Li Jie to go to the Yamen tomorrow.
The next day, when I arrived at the Chief Secretary's Yamen, I saw Huang Chengqiang waiting at the entrance of the Yamen.
When Huang Chengcheng saw Li Jie's figure, he said with a smile: "Tanhua Lang is really punctual. Master Fantai is doing morning exercises in the backyard. Come with me."
When I came to the courtyard, I saw Chen Bin holding a big spear. It was used to pierce, stab, and wrap. It seemed to be alive in Chen Bin's hand. The spear was flying up and down, like a dragon and a snake, changing unpredictably with every move.
Having entered the realm of transformation, Li Jie thought that if he fought with Chen Bin, he would be defeated after a hundred moves. His crazy and unapologetic aura was really frightening.
After finishing the drill, Chen Bin slowly stopped working. He exhaled like smoke for a long time. He turned to Li Jie and said with a smile: "Shenzhi, please go to the side hall to wait for a while and let me change my clothes."
In the side hall, a maid had made tea and brought it over. Li Jie waited for a while while Chen Bin changed into a green Confucian robe and walked into the side hall. He sat down and took a sip of tea from the tea stool.
, and then asked: "Careful, can Shangli Salt Farm and his party gain something?"
Li Jie sighed softly: "It is not optimistic. Among the four major kitchen households in the country, dynasty and civilians, the one with the heaviest household service is the salt household. Among the stove households, only one or two are rich, and nine out of ten are poor.
The Shangli Salt Farm has been doing well because the sun-dried salt method has been reintroduced in recent years, but most of the households still live in a state of scanty clothing and lack of food."
Chen Bin knew the actual situation of Zaohu very well, and said in a serious tone: "Yohu lives on the beach, without wind and rain, and is exposed to smoky sun and constant cold and heat. In winter, the cold wind bites the bones, and in summer the scorching sun burns the skin. The salt area of Fujian
If this is the case, how can we talk about the two Huaihe and the two Zhejiang provinces?"
"Sir, it's not just that. There are far more children from the third-class households of the civilian army and craftsmen who have passed the exams than those from the Zao household. Social studies around the salt field are often in decline, and it is very difficult to go to nearby prefectures and counties to study Confucianism. The imperial court stipulates that if you study in the local prefectures and counties,
Without industrial household registration, it is impossible to go to school. Even if Fu Zao can send his children to school, there are still many people who are excluded. The suffering of Zao households is that their future is bleak and there is no hope at all. Most of the Zao households I saw along the way have dull eyes and numb faces.
.”
Chen Bin heard the words and said: "In the previous dynasty, there were five transportation departments in the world. There was a special school in Hedong called the salt affairs school. The transportation school was suspended at the beginning of the dynasty. It was not until the Zhengtong years that the old system was restored. Maybe this is a solution.
There are many ways to do this, but there are also many obstacles."
Li Jie said with a firm face: "If we want to change the situation of the deterioration of the salt law, the education problem of Zao households cannot be ignored. Only by working hard to improve their living standards can we stimulate their enthusiasm for work. Changing fried salt to sun-dried salt is the top priority."
The most important thing is that if the problem of guarding is solved, the income of the imperial court will be guaranteed, and the resistance to establishing a movement school will be much smaller."
Chen Bin picked up the cup and took a sip of tea, and said slowly, "There are many changes in the salt method, so don't rush for success. By the way, the new salt-drying method you mentioned before can now be put into trial?"
I think Ambassador Qian who came to Shangli Salt Field did not dare to slack off on this matter. After all, if the test was successful, the pressure on his side would be reduced.
"When Xiaguan left the Shangli Salt Field before, he asked the salt field ambassador to conduct verification. He just changed the original manual watering to the power of the tide. The problem should not be big. I think there will be news in a few days. I am afraid that I will wait for the news to come back.
I was already on my way back to Beijing that day."
Chen Bin was surprised when he heard that Li Jie was leaving recently: "Why are you leaving in such a hurry? Calculating the distance, you still have half a month of vacation left, right?"
Li Jie nodded: "Xiaguan's parents will also return to Beijing with me this time, and they will bring more things with them on the way back. I'm afraid I'll miss the time, so I'll probably prepare to leave tomorrow or the day after."
"I see. I will send you a message as soon as there is news from the salt field. When Mr. Xu Ge asks, you will be able to answer. However, the saltiness of the sea water varies in different places. How do you plan to solve it?"
Li Jie held the pearl in his hand and slowly said: "If the saltiness of the seawater is not enough, you can add brine in advance to increase the concentration. When the saltiness is enough, it can be exposed to the sun to turn into salt. When taking out the salt, do not scrape it all, leave it behind every time.
Apply a thin layer and it will become more salty over time."
Chen Bin suddenly realized when he heard this: "It's so simple. I didn't expect that the method of drying salt can be used in all major salt areas. This method saves countless firewood. This alone is worthy of vigorous promotion. The difficulty lies in the private salt behind it."
, I don’t know if you have any good ideas?”
Li Jie smiled helplessly: "The benefits of salt are huge. It is impossible to completely eliminate illegal salt. Even the method of frying salt cannot suppress the proliferation of illegal salt. Compared with the stable areas on the border, illegal salt is not enough.
However, it is not that there are no temporary strategies. As long as the merchants are not trapped in the defensive branch, countless merchants will respond to the opening. The merchants can get a sufficient amount of salt from the court, and the number of people who sell private salt to buy their heads will also increase.
To reduce.”
Chen Bin was thoughtful, and after a moment he said: "There is no rush for this matter. I don't have a particularly good solution for the time being. If I have any suggestions, I will write them down and pass them on to you in a letter."
The two then discussed for a while until Huang Qianqian came to report that there was an important matter that Chen Bin needed to handle. Before leaving, he told Chen Bin about the possible problems with Ambassador Qian at the Shangli Salt Field.
Chen Bin nodded and said he understood. The salt farm was probably the hardest hit area for corruption, so he was not surprised. Upon seeing this, Li Jie said goodbye.
"Your Excellency, you still have some important matters to deal with, so I won't bother you too much. I'll write to you in the future."
Chen Bin signaled to Huang to see him off, and then hurried off to deal with government affairs.
When Li Jie returned home, he saw that the yard was full of boxes. After looking through them, he found that most of them were items that were rarely used.
"Mom, don't bring these things that are not commonly used. It's not advisable to bring too many things on this journey of thousands of miles. Just go shopping when you get to Beijing. I went to the clan before to solve the problem of future income.
Already."
Mrs. Wang was stunned when she heard this, and then solemnly warned: "You have a bright future in officialdom now. You must not get involved in business affairs, otherwise you will be looked down upon by your colleagues."
Li Jie smiled slightly: "Don't worry, the specific affairs are handled by the clan. The children only need to wait for the dividends. The elders of the clan still know how to measure this. I can't say that this income will make a fortune every day, but it is enough."
Our family can live freely in Beijing."
Mrs. Wang didn't care how much money Li Jie could earn. She felt relieved after hearing this: "That's good, that's good. As long as it doesn't affect your career, it doesn't matter how much you pay. The money at home is enough for us to spend in Beijing."
.”
On June 1st, when the neighbors saw Lin and his wife going to the capital together with Li Jie, they all looked envious.
"The Lin family has given birth to a good son! When he becomes a high official, the couple will go to the capital to enjoy their blessings!"
"If I had a son like this, he would wake up laughing even in his dreams." (Whoever has yellow urine, wake him up quickly)
"Hey, wake up, stop daydreaming, your little brat is the only one who can have a sweetheart, so he'll be in trouble!"