Chapter 220 Standing on the Wind (please vote for me)
There were really only a few days until the tax collection started. Hai Qingtian had no choice but to ask someone to call Lin Tailai again.
Just a Jieyuan, if you want to control the governor's selection, you won't be able to do it so easily!
However, they received a report saying that Lin Tai came to claim that he was ill and could not come out of the West Garden.
So for the sake of the overall situation, Hai Qingtian had no choice but to hold back his anger and go to the city again, recently coming to the Zhongshan Prince's Mansion for the third time.
When I walked into the West Garden, I saw a tall and majestic figure sitting in the pavilion by the pool, with a beautiful and charming woman beside him.
It seems that Lin Jieyuan's illness is just a mental illness and does not affect the physical body.
"Zhao Ji, you are already the number one among the twelve beauties of Jinling, what else are you dissatisfied with?" Lin Tailai said.
The person called Zhao Ji is obviously Zhao Caiji, a Jinling beauty who has a close relationship with Zhang Youyu and Lin Tailai, the plastic master and apprentice.
She complained to Lin Tailai: "Although after Ma Xianglan retired, the slave family was nominally the first among the Twelve Hairpins, but now the most popular socialite is Yin Qing!"
Lin Tailai said casually: "After all, I am seven or eight years younger than you. Isn't it normal that the market is more prosperous than you?"
Zhao Caiji brought up Pink Fist but reluctantly put it down, accusing her and saying, "This is all your fault!"
Lin Tailai said in surprise: "What does this have to do with me? I have never praised her!"
Zhao Caiji replied: "She is the only person in Nanqu who dares to scold you. Many guests go just to hear her scold you!"
Lin Tailai was dumbfounded, could this also be a reason to become popular? Did he scold himself for being so popular? What did he do wrong?
Zhao Caiji continued to accuse: "The key is that you didn't care, which is equivalent to allowing her to do this!"
Lin Tailai comforted her and said, "It's not that I condone her. In fact, there are several reasons for this.
I promised Yunjian Dong Qichang not to cause trouble to her anymore. But now I am being watched by Hai Qingtian, so it is inconvenient for me to go out and cause trouble.
Besides, I was the one who humiliated her first, but now that I am a Jie Yuan, it would be disrespectful for me to compete with her."
Zhao Caiji frowned and said, "Why did I hear from the people in the Duke's Mansion that you wanted to change your spicy taste and fell in love with her? You were also thinking of bringing her to Xiyuan."
"No!" Lin Tailai said: "For things in your industry, look for the reasons from yourself, don't always blame me!"
Zhao Caiji stood up and said: "Since you don't care, then I will solve this matter myself!"
Then Lin Daguan became interested again and asked: "How do you want to solve it?"
Zhao Caiji replied: "I am going to find a few famous people to write a drama.
Do you still remember that your feud with Mr. Li, the eldest son of the Marquis of Linhuai, started from here in the Nu family?
So this drama is the legendary story between you, Mr. Li and the Nu family!
For the sake of the slave family, you were framed by Mr. Li and killed out of Nanjing, and then returned to Nanjing for revenge, finally ending happily."
Lin Tailai gritted his teeth and said: "Let's see who dares to write this drama, be careful I am ruthless with my iron fist!"
Zhao Caiji laughed a few times, "I'm going to ask Zhang Youyu and his brother Zhang Fengyi to write this play. What can you do to them?"
Based on Lin Tailai's understanding of Zhang Youyu, this old pervert would definitely be happy to take on this job.
Forget it, forget it! It’s not a bad thing to be written into a drama anyway, it can increase your fame and legend.
Looking up, he saw Hai Rui standing outside the pavilion with a straight face. Lin Tailai quickly stood up and greeted him:
"The old man didn't say a word when he approached, so I was not prepared."
Hai Rui was too lazy to talk nonsense and asked directly: "What do you think about the candidate for governor of Jiangnan?"
Lin Jieyuan blinked his eyes a few times and replied with a serious face: "I have always stated my position. Regarding the candidate for the new governor, I only recognize and trust you, the boss!"
Hai Rui shouted impatiently: "People who are honest don't tell secret stories, so you don't need to use this hospital as a cover anymore!"
Lin Tailai added: "If you don't want to be the governor, you can recommend someone else. But it is best to meet several conditions to make the transition smooth."
Hai Rui sneered: "What conditions? Specify height, appearance, weight, age?
Don’t list any so-called conditions, just tell me who you like?”
Lin Tailai said dissatisfied: "This is about official business, but the boss has preemptively brought personal emotions into official business. Is he worthy of the emperor's trust?"
Could it be that in the eyes of the boss, I am just a person who is just for his own selfishness and does not care about the overall situation?"
Hai Rui: "."
Now I can really understand the meaning of "My Buddha is compassionate, but I also have the angry eyes of Vajra".
Lin Tailai took the opportunity and began to say: "The first condition is that the candidate must be a mature and prudent person, not young and impatient.
The current situation in Suzhou requires care and patience. If you are impatient, you will only add fuel to the fire and do bad things.
At the same time, he cannot be someone who is nearly sixty years old and may not be interested in doing errands and living perfunctorily.
Therefore, it is best to choose elders who are over 60 years old but have proven to be still practical in their work.
Sir, just tell me, is this condition correct?"
Hai Rui didn't say anything and continued to ask, "What else? Tell me all."
Lin Tailai said: "The second condition is that the candidate must be someone familiar with the local customs and customs of Jiangnan.
Today, the situation in Suzhou Prefecture is very complicated, and people who are not familiar with the place cannot handle errands well.
So the new governor must have been an official in Jiangnan or be from a place near Jiangnan! Sir, are you right?"
Hai Rui couldn't express any objection. This condition was very reasonable and there was nothing to argue with.
Lin Tailai then went on to mention the third condition: "The candidate must have a certain reputation in Shilin and have certain Shilin connections in various counties in Suzhou. Only in this way can public opinion be reversed."
Regarding this condition, Hai Rui cannot say that it is unreasonable.
Local public opinion comes from Shilin, and having connections in Shilin will certainly help to calm down the disturbance as soon as possible.
Lin Tailai added: "The last condition is that the candidate should be someone who had opposed Zhang Jiangling back then!
Although this condition is completely useless for current affairs, it is conducive to getting approval as soon as possible and taking office as soon as possible."
Hai Qingtian was speechless for a moment. Lin Tailai was really thoughtful and had even considered this point.
Everyone in the officialdom knows that today's Emperor Wanli likes to use people who opposed Zhang Juzheng and were demoted by Zhang Juzheng.
After coming back to his senses, Hai Rui suddenly asked: "What do you think of Zhang Jiangling?"
Lin Tailai replied: "If you have done great service to the country, you are much stronger than all the ministers today!"
If someone else asks about it, I don't dare to make any random comments for fear of spreading the word.
But in front of the boss, I still dare to say a few words of truth!"
Hai Rui did not continue the topic about Zhang Juzheng and thought about it for a while.
He went through all the officials of the third rank and above in Nanjing City in his mind, but he could not think of anyone who fully met these conditions.
Then he asked: "How can there be such a person in Nanjing City? Are you just entertaining this court?"
Lin Tailai reminded: "Of course there are people who meet the conditions, such as Zhao Xueshi, who is also the Imperial College Supervisor!"
Upon hearing this person, Hai Rui reacted immediately.
He had long heard that when Lin Tailai was in Nanjing, he got very close to Zhao Zhigao, the boss of the Imperial Academy, for some reason, which was hard to understand.
Then I matched Zhao Zhigao with those conditions and found that they were completely consistent.
Mature and prudent, a native of Zhejiang next to Jiangnan, he had scholarly connections while working in the Imperial College of Nanjing, and was demoted from the capital for opposing Zhang Juzheng.
In other words, these reasonable conditions seem to be tailor-made for Zhao Zhigao.
So Hai Rui said disdainfully: "After all, it's him! You can just name him directly, why bother pretending to put out a bunch of conditions first!"
Lin Tailai explained: "The selection conditions I proposed are not to introduce Bachelor Zhao, but to prepare for you, Mr. Boss."
Hai Rui: "???"
Lin Tailai explained in more detail: “With these conditions that increase rationality, you can gain some self-comfort.
Specifically, it can make you feel in your heart that we have indeed recommended a very suitable talent, and that we have not done anything wrong to the country or violated morality.
You won’t feel depressed because you are forced to recommend the candidates I nominated.”
Hai Qingtian came to Lin Tailai with anger, but he didn't expect that when he left, he took more anger with him.
Returning to the Metropolitan Procuratorate, Hai Rui looked through Zhao Zhigao's inspections over the past two years. All this information was available in the Procuratorate.
But I found that this person looked like a conscientious old scalper, and he was definitely qualified to be a governor.
To put it bluntly, even if this person lacks ability, he can still handle it with Lin Tailai's help.
Then Hai Qingtian met Zhao Zhigao in person. After talking with him, he felt more and more that Zhao Zhigao was not a cunning person, but rather a loyal elder.
Moreover, after Zhao Zhigao offended Zhang Juzheng, he had served as a local official for several years and had a good understanding of grassroots work, so his talents were definitely sufficient.
So from all aspects, there is indeed no problem with Zhao Zhigao as a candidate for governor.
So Hai Qingtian was confused again, how could someone like Lin Tailai recommend Zhao Zhigao?
One is an opportunistic and cunning young man, and the other is a loyal and capable elder.
As the saying goes, people of the same kind flock together, and Lin Tailai and Zhao Zhigao don't seem to get along.
Hai Qingtian followed the sudden feeling and sighed: "How can I become a thief when I am a beautiful woman?"
Zhao Zhigao: "???"
When did the upright and stern Hai Qingtian learn the yin and yang? Is this character going to collapse?
"We are not well-educated and made a blunder. Don't be surprised, Master Zhao." Hai Rui quickly put his words back.
Then he added: "This college just wants to ask, how did you, Xuexian Zhao, get together with someone like Lin Tailai?"
Zhao Zhigao replied: "Because Lin Tailai is the only person who is willing to get close to me in recent years and actively advises me."
Hai Rui couldn't help but fell into deep thought. Could it be that his treatment of Lin Tailai was based on superficial appearance?
Time was running out, so after Hai Rui consulted with Wei Guogong, Nanjing's Minister of War, and Nanjing's Minister of Personnel, he recommended Zhao Zhigao to the imperial court.
Then finally in mid-October, after the tax collection began, the imperial court rushed to send an edict to Nanjing, promoting Zhao Zhigao to the title of censor of Youqiandu, prime minister of grain storage, governor of Yingtianfu and other places, which is commonly known as governor of Jiangnan.
Then Zhao Zhigao quickly set off for Suzhou City, and Lin Tailai also wanted to follow Zhao Zhigao back to Suzhou.
The main reason is that when things have reached this point, the Jiangnan governor who is most valued by Lin Daguan has been "obtained", and the rest does not matter.
For example, the exact number of years the Xi family members were sentenced to and where they were exiled, or the specific time when Linhuai Marquis Li Yangong was dismissed from office, were all insignificant matters that did not require Lin Tailai to keep an eye on them every day.
It is more important to follow Zhao Zhigao back home in glory and harvest the fruits of victory.
Moreover, after the autumn harvest, the slack time for farming has arrived. According to the practice of this era, the slack time for farming is also the time to work on projects.
Lin Daguan, who is concerned about the infrastructure construction in his hometown, is eager to return to his hometown and contribute his efforts to the construction of infrastructure in his hometown.
He was afraid that if he went back too late, he would not have the chance to contribute to the construction of his hometown this year.
Lin Tailai accompanied Governor Zhao all the way.
Governor Zhao looked back at the Stone City that had disappeared from sight, and couldn't help but ask: "Now we should be able to tell you how to calm down the storm, right?"
The premise for his previous agreement to serve as governor of Jiangnan was that Lin Tailai was willing to help resolve this tax protest.
Suzhou government's tax resistance has always been a traditional art and is also rich in unruly people. Any official who encounters such a large-scale anti-tax public opinion after taking office will find it very difficult.
If it weren't for Lin Tailai's sworn guarantee, Zhao Zhigao wouldn't want to wade into this muddy water.
Lin Tailai said confidently at this time: "If it were at other times, it might not be easy to handle.
But times make heroes, and even a pig can stand on the current trend. Oh no, I mean it is not difficult to be the governor.
The first step is to exempt money and food to appease people's hearts!"
Zhao Zhigao turned around and wanted to shout outside the cabin, turn around, go back to Nanjing, and resign!
The exemption of money and food that Lin Tailai just said is just useless nonsense!
In the face of the tax war, all fools know that exempting money and food is most effective!
But is this realistic? If you want to be exempted from having to bear one-sixth of Suzhou's grain supply, be careful that the imperial court exempts you first!
"Mr. Zhao, don't worry! Listen to me!" Lin Tailai said quickly, "What if what I say is that you should first waive the money and food arrears accumulated in the past ten years?"
As mentioned in the previous article, Suzhou Prefecture has very heavy taxes, but it is difficult to collect them all. If you can collect 70% of the quota every year, you are considered qualified.
Since it is not collected in full every year, there are taxes owed every year. Over the years, Suzhou Prefecture often owes the court several million dan.
Every few years, when the tax arrears accumulated to the point where it was impossible to recover them, the court was often forced to exempt them once.
Zhao Zhigao was not a novice with no knowledge of government affairs. After being reminded by Lin Tailai, he raised his head and asked professionally:
"When was the last time the imperial court exempted Suzhou Prefecture from tax arrears?"
Lin Tailai replied: "In the third year of Wanli, the governor of Jiangnan and the Ministry of Household Affairs had a fierce quarrel over the tax arrears of the Suzhou government.
At that time, Zhang Jiangling, the prime minister, took the initiative to exempt Suzhou Prefecture from all taxes owed over the years in order to calm the dispute."
Zhao Zhigao said thoughtfully: "It's been ten years since the third year of Wanli, so it's time to be exempted again."
Lin Tailai said: "In the past ten years, Suzhou Prefecture may have owed millions of dan in taxes.
The court also knew that it was impossible to recover these tax arrears, but if they continued to default on the taxes, it would affect the court's prestige.
Therefore, the best way is for the imperial court to take the initiative to issue an edict to exempt Suzhou Prefecture's millions in tax arrears as usual, which can also save the imperial court's face and build a reputation for good governance.
And don't forget, Mr. Zhao, there are two Suzhou people in the cabinet now, one of whom is the chief minister.
Therefore, by assuming the position of governor at this time, Mr. Lao is standing in the spotlight. It is not difficult to appease the people with this opportunity to petition for exemption of tax arrears.
Then we can get the Jinongcang and mobilize the grain stored in the Jinongcang to make up for part of the gap. It is still very easy to fool the people."
The more he thought about it, the more he thought there was something wrong. Zhao Zhigao couldn't help but open his eyes wide and looked at Lin Tailai in disbelief, as if he were looking at a monster.
How can a person who is less than twenty years old and comes from an ordinary farmer's family know everything about the operating mechanism of the imperial court?
How can any ordinary person so clearly recall the three-year exemption in Wanli, and then be keenly aware that now ten years is another cycle?
I was reminded of a book review by a book friend from Wuxi who said that he couldn't bear the people in Wuxi being bullied by the people in Suzhou and abandoning the book. I said it wouldn't be a problem if he read a novel. If everyone was so sensitive, this novel would be impossible to write.
In addition, continue to ask for monthly votes. If you don’t ask, you will lose your ranking! There are no recommendations recently, so I can only rely on the list!
