Lin Tailai and Commander Hei chatted until midnight, touching on all aspects of Xuanfu Town.
As long as he does not "maliciously" lead the topic to attack Governor Xu, the black commander will still tell everything he knows.
Seeing that the night was getting dark, and Lin Tailai was about to take a rest, Commander Hei asked cautiously: "How is my adopted son Hei Fenghu doing in the capital?"
The meaning of this sentence is actually to ask about the results of the martial arts test.
Lin Tailai replied: "When I left Beijing, the martial arts test was not completely over, but in the literary test, I gave him the first place."
Commander Hei said with great gratitude: "Thank you very much! I can't thank you enough. I really can't repay you!"
Anyone who knows anything knows that the martial arts test is divided into a literary field and a martial arts field. The writing field determines whether you will stay or leave, and the martial arts field determines your ranking.
If you get first place in the literary field, you will definitely be able to become a martial arts scholar. It's just a matter of ranking.
After being awarded the title of Wu Jinshi, those with official positions will be promoted one level, and those without official positions will be given official positions.
The main reason is that Heixiao's heirs are not prosperous. He had no heirs at that time, so he adopted an orphan from his comrades as his adopted son and named him Heifenghu.
Who would have known that five or six years ago, another son was born, named Hei Yunlong, and the world official who commanded Qianshi would definitely be handed over to his own son in the future.
Then the future of the adopted son Hei Fenghu becomes a problem. If he can pass the martial arts examination this time, it will be equivalent to solving a problem for Hei Xiao.
"It doesn't matter, it's just a trivial matter." Lin Tailai waved his hand nonchalantly, "I think that boy is quite sensible."
Heifenghu was the candidate who called Lin Tailai "old teacher" in public during the entrance inspection.
This put Examiner Lin in a good mood, so he gave him the first place in the literary field without any intention of repaying him, which was equivalent to recommending Wu Jinshi.
That's how things are in the world. In the eyes of a military attache with a grassroots background like Hei Xiao, Examiner Lin could solve the problem with the tip of his pen when he was happy.
Before going to bed at night, Lin Tailai thought carefully about what he was going to do now.
The first thing to do is to "mediate" the internal strife on the right wing of the Beibei. Hei Xiao has already explained the idea clearly. He only needs to exert extreme pressure to get the credit for nothing.
The biggest difficulty is on our own side. After all, there are governors and governors on Xuanda's side, and they probably all want to hold the power of mediation.
If you want to claim credit for your good offices, you must first suppress your own governors.
Thinking of this, Lin Tailai suddenly understood what "when dealing with foreign affairs, one must first settle the domestic affairs".
The second thing is to rectify Xu Shouqian, the governor of Xuanfu.
Originally it was just to help Li Rusong vent his anger, but now that Governor Xu Shouqian has become a competitor for mediation, it is even more necessary.
Oh, by the way, there may be a third thing, which is to inspect Xuanfu Town according to the order. Let’s deal with the first two things first.
Lin Qin sent Tailai to temporarily ignore the third matter, and then began to think about Governor Xu Shouqian.
When he was in the capital, Mr. Zhao from the Ministry of Civil Affairs once told Lin Tailai that last year there was a Kedao impeachment campaign against Xu Shouqian, the governor of the Xuanfu, for being corrupt.
However, someone in the official department defended Xu Shouqian and said that Xu Shouqian was very talented, so in the end Xu Shouqian continued to be employed.
In historical materials, it may be recorded in this way, and it seems to be nothing special, just an ordinary personnel official matter.
But if you think about it more deeply, Xu Shouqian and Zhao Nanxing are from the same hometown, and the core business positions of the bureau are controlled by Chen Younian, Zhao Nanxing, and Gu Xiancheng.
So sometimes it is really hard for Lin Tailai to understand why people like the Qingliu forces, or the future Donglin Party, can confidently criticize others for nepotism and nepotism?
The next day, Lin Tailai said to Hei Xiao: "There were a lot of disturbances yesterday. Today I want to leave your house and find another place."
Commander Hei quickly tried to persuade him to stay: "Could it be that the lower official did not treat the guest well enough and treated the distinguished guest too slowly?"
Lin Tailai said thoughtfully: "I'm afraid it will bring you trouble."
Commander Hei responded: "How can there be trouble? I am not a person who is afraid of trouble."
Lin Tailai thought for a while and then said: "If you have this intention, you can help me with something, a very simple thing."
After coming out of Heifu, Lin Tailai went to the Office of the Ministry of Revenue in Xuanfu near the Temple of Fortune.
There are many institutions and officials in Xuanfu City. In addition to the familiar governors, general military officers, military eunuchs, Wandusi, Xuanfu Sanwei and other yamen, there are also the Household Affairs Bureau, the Criminal Affairs Bureau and so on.
As the name suggests, the Hubu Xingsi is the branch of the Hubu directly stationed in Xuanfu. In fact, there are Hubu Xingsi not only in Xuanfu, but also in all nine sides.
Because the imperial court had to transport a large amount of silver, which was military pay, to Jiubian every year, it set up a household department on the spot to specifically manage the expenditure of these cash.
For example, in Xuanfu Town, this year the imperial court planned to distribute a total of 290,000 taels of silver as annual reward for officers and soldiers, and 180,000 taels of silver for horse prices in the tribute market.
These hundreds of thousands of taels of silver were first transported to the Hubu Banking Department in Xuanfu City, and then the Hubu Banking Department was responsible for distributing and allocating them. Of course, they were not delivered all at once.
Thanks to Zhang Juzheng, the border army's annual silver can still be distributed relatively normally now. When Emperor Wanli fails for another twenty years, the annual silver will begin to be in arrears year by year.
The chief officer of the Hubu Xingsi is called the Governor, and he is also a subordinate officer dispatched and managed by the Hubu. His superior is the Hubu rather than the governor.
Not to mention that the local institutions in Xuanfu are very complicated, and the water is not deep but very muddy.
Lin Tailai first walked around the Temple of Wealth across the street, and then stood calmly outside the door of the Department of Revenue.
The front door here is not big, it can't even be called a "gate", and the decoration is also very simple, so low-key that it doesn't look like the Yamen of the God of Wealth at all.
Lin Tailai said it was understandable. After all, the largest bank in Xuanfu Town was inside, so it was certainly not suitable for publicity.
The place where silver is kept all year round must be heavily guarded, and Lin Tailai would not dare to make any mistakes.
So he showed the imperial edict, and according to the certificate, he was guarded in a three-piece suit, and asked the doorman to send a message to the governor's pay doctor to come out to receive the guest.
The current governor's pay doctor, whose surname is Wen, soon appeared at the door of the office.
He looked at Lin Tailai with confusion on his face. This imperial envoy who was ordered to patrol did not look formal.
Officialdom is very strict about procedures and rules, how can you do things like this? It's like an uninvited guest.
Lin Tailai didn't care what Dr. Wen Zhong thought. After entering the court, he directly asked: "After Jingyin is delivered to the warehouse, who is responsible for issuing expenses?"
If you change it into jargon hundreds of years later, this means: Who is the local financial director?
Doctor Wen replied: "Of course I will obey the governor's instructions."
Lin Tailai nodded and said naturally: "Then from today on, Ku Yin is not allowed to move without my signature."
Wen Langzhong: ""
Mr. Zhuangyuan, what are you kidding about? With a turnover of hundreds of thousands of taels a year, you take responsibility as long as you say you are responsible?
Lin Tailai took out the rectangular imperial envoy's guanfang, took a mark on Wen Langzhong's face, and asked: "The governor's guanfang is guanfang, but my officer's guanfang is not guanfang?"
Wen Langzhong tried his best to explain: "Your duty as a superior is mainly to patrol, check the account books or check the treasury bank.
But regarding daily management affairs and normal transfer procedures, there is no need for the superior to directly interfere."
Lin Tailai took out a document again and handed it to Dr. Wen: "I'll show you something good."
Wen Langzhong took it and unfolded it, and saw that it was an edict from the Ministry of Revenue. It was personally signed and deposited by Wang Zhiyuan, the Secretary of the Ministry of Revenue, and stamped with the seal of the Ministry of Revenue. It was very authentic.
The content of the edict is to instruct the Xuanfu Household Department's Department of Household Affairs to fully cooperate with the order to inspect Lin Tailai, the Xuanfu imperial envoy.
This order did not give any specific instructions. It seemed to be a formal request for "full cooperation," but everyone understood it.
To cooperate without giving your full strength is to fail to cooperate with your full strength.
Wen Langzhong glanced at Imperial Envoy Lin with resentment, "If the envoy has this order, why didn't he reveal it earlier?"
Lin Tailai said calmly: "I originally wanted to get along with you as an ordinary imperial envoy, but I didn't expect that what I got in exchange was alienation."
Wen Langzhong hurriedly defended: "This is not alienation, but involves the issue of responsibility. Responsibility is heavier than Mount Tai. Can it be called alienation?"
If Lin Tailai cooperates fully when he speaks, then all the responsibilities are his own, and if anything goes wrong, he will bear all the blame.
Now that there is an order from the Ministry of Revenue, I fully cooperate with Lin Tailai. The responsibility belongs to the Ministry of Revenue, and I am just executing the order.
Lin Tailai was too lazy to think about it anymore and gave the order directly, "Listen to me now. April is the month when the horse market traditionally opens. Do we need to allocate horse price silver to the border market?"
Wen Langzhong replied: "Yes, the first batch of 60,000 taels has been delivered from the capital to the treasury. The next step will be to transfer it to Zhangjiakou Fort according to the situation in the tribute city."
"Pause for now!" Lin Tailai said simply and rudely.
Wen Langzhong was stunned for a moment and reminded: "We are on the North Road of Shoukou. Before going to Zhangjiakou Fort, the manager of the horse market, Wang Dashen, told us not to delay the horse price.
Could it be that the superior officer doesn’t know that this Wang Dacan is the eldest son of Da Situ.”
Lin Tailai said impatiently: "I am the elder of Wang Dashen! He calls me uncle!"
Wen Langzhong: ""
Sorry, I'm too talkative.
Lin Tailai added: "Go and tell the Mashi people that this year's situation is special. I have been ordered to patrol the border and re-examine the qualifications of the Northern tribes to participate in the tribute market!"
After hearing this, Mr. Wen began to really pay attention to the young imperial envoy in front of him.
This kind of method of raising a big banner and creating an audit link without an audit is like an old bureaucrat at first glance, and we must not continue to despise it.
In fact, if you can't control the bank account of the Ministry of Accounts, these orders are nonsense - you don't care about distributing money, and no one will care whether you approve or not.
But Lin Tailai was sitting in the Judicial Hall of the Ministry of Household Affairs and giving orders, so he obviously had power.
Immediately, Lin Tailai dug out the recent documents from the Department of Household Affairs and told Dr. Wen: "Return all the funds transfer applications signed by the governor!"
Doctor Wen advised: "No, no, it's too unprofessional. Our Duzhi Yamen mainly pays attention to the tactic of procrastinating.
If you encounter unreasonable requests from above, just let them sit and let them gather dust. There is no reason to directly return the originals.
If that is really the case, it would be a bit provocative to the higher authorities, and the approach is indeed inappropriate."
Lin Tailai asked: "Are you teaching me how to do things?"
Mr. Wen sighed secretly. The professional reputation of the Xuanfu Household Department's Department of Finance was probably about to plummet.
Then Lin Tailai looked around the hall again and said, "I'm looking at it. Your courtroom is pretty good. I can use it for my office temporarily."
Wen Langzhong felt that he was going to be depressed and didn't want to talk anymore.
Just today, Xu Shouqian, the governor of Xuanfu, received a mysterious guest from the north.
The guest sitting opposite Governor Xu, with big rings in her ears, a half-arm green brocade coat on her upper body, and a crimson skirt on her lower body, was a beautiful young woman full of exotic amorous feelings.
According to the regulations of the Ming Dynasty, except for border markets, northern captives were not allowed to enter the border walls, let alone go deep into the interior.
Even ceremonies such as tribute and canonization must be conducted outside the border wall by setting up tents and ceremonial platforms.
There was only one exception, and that was Sanniangzi, the largest pro-Han faction among the Beibei leaders. The Ming Dynasty officials tacitly allowed Sanniangzi to quietly operate in the border towns and contact officials in the border towns.
For example, in the past few years, Sanniangzi had a very good personal relationship with Zheng Luo, the former governor of Xuanda. It is said that the two of them got along like father and daughter.
The third lady can freely enter Governor Zheng's living quarters and take away any good things she sees without anyone noticing.
But Zheng Luo had been transferred back to the capital as the governor of the capital camp. Sanniang Zi lost her most trusted boss in the border town and had no choice but to find someone else for support, so she decided to visit Governor Xu.
Although Sanniangzi does not know Chinese characters, she has taught herself to speak Chinese. She is not very fluent, but she has no problem with basic communication.
At this time, she said to Governor Xu: "Can the silver reward sent to Zhangjiakou Fort by the Ming Dynasty this year be increased by half? From 180,000 taels to 270,000 taels?"
The so-called silver reward here is actually horse price silver.
According to the official concept of the Ming Dynasty, the nature of the horse market is a tribute market, the nature of Beilu's horse sales is a tribute market, and the nature of the price of horses given by the court is a silver reward.
Therefore, the official purchase of 30,000 horses at the horse market for 180,000 taels was, in a political context, this: the Ming Dynasty received 30,000 horses from the Northerners as tribute, and then rewarded the Northerners with 180,000 taels.
silver.
Of course, the price is indeed not expensive, and both parties will make money and everyone will be happy.
Therefore, Sanniangzi's request to "increase the silver reward by 90,000 yuan" actually meant that she begged the Ming court to provide 90,000 taels of horse-priced silver more than the original quota, so that the northern tribes could sell 15,000 more horses.
These extra benefits will be used by the third lady to win over some tribes and support her son Butashri's rise to power.
Governor Xu laughed "haha" a few times and replied: "Ninety thousand is too much, how about sixty thousand?"
Then he emphasized: "Madam, can you understand what this court means?"
In addition to her beauty, Sanniang Zi is also famous for her intelligence. How could she not hear that?
Doesn't it mean that he applied for 90,000 yuan from the imperial court, but in fact only 60,000 yuan was allocated?
Then the third lady replied: "Sixty thousand taels cannot be exchanged for fifteen thousand horses. At least seventy-five thousand taels are needed."
Ninety thousand minus seventy-five thousand, the only amount left for Governor Xu to commit corruption is fifteen thousand, and no more.
Governor Xu said dissatisfied: "You can still get the support of this court, is it only worth fifteen thousand taels?"
At this moment, a master came in and whispered a few words to Governor Xu.
Governor Xu's expression changed, and he cursed out loud: "What kind of bastard imperial envoy is this? Where does he think this Xuanfu is?"