Hai Rui was holding back his anger, but he couldn't retort to Xiao Feng and could only swallow his anger.
He was not afraid of Xiao Feng's official position, but as soon as he said "Everyone in the world has a parent", he turned around and Xiao Feng pulled out an old man and beat him on the face until he was swollen!
Hai Rui could not wait to rush into the prison and perform a small operation on Lao Bahui himself, making him pay a heavy price for undermining him and slapping him in the face!
But Hai Rui was Hai Rui after all, not Yan Shifan. He would not put personal grudges above rules, so he could only snort heavily, bow his hands, and turn around to leave.
The magistrate had already said a lot of flattery and compliments, and he strongly invited Xiao Feng to have a simple meal at his home that evening. Xiao Feng patted him on the shoulder, and the magistrate immediately bent down like a little spring child.
"Your county is probably not an official of the Strict Party. Firstly, I have never heard of you, and secondly, you have been the county magistrate for a long time. Your official reputation is not bad, but you have not been promoted. You don't think you are a member of the Strict Party."
The county magistrate smiled and said: "The lower official is timid and dare not join any faction. Moreover, the lower official thinks that it is good to be the county magistrate. In this small place, he is the one who is superior to others.
If you don't take the initiative to seek refuge, no one will care about wooing you. The official is too young. Xiaguan's family is not poor, and my wife's family is also a landowner, so there is no need to scratch the land.
Everyone takes it, this and this, hey, if you take a little bit, you can live a decent life.
This life is good, but the higher you go, the more dangerous it becomes. Maybe even the bones will not be able to return to their hometown. I don’t expect to go higher."
When Xiao Feng heard what he said honestly, he couldn't help but laugh and said: "People say that if you stand for a long time, you will be strong if you don't have desires. Since you don't seek promotion,
, why are you trying to please me so much? You can live as tough as Hai Rui!"
The magistrate shook his head repeatedly: "How can Hai Rui be an ordinary person? A lower official will never be able to imitate him, let alone a lower official. I guess there is no one like him in the court.
It only takes 500 years for a person to appear. If he is lucky enough to survive, he will definitely be a high official in the future, and he might even leave his name in history!
As for the lower officials, to be honest, no one dares to offend the superior officials. I don’t ask for anything else. I just ask that the adults don’t promote me to an official position, so that I can rest assured and be the county magistrate for the rest of my life.”
Xiao Feng is both angry and funny. It's true that there are no wonders in the world. Others are flattering others just to get promoted, but this guy is flattering just to avoid being promoted.
But thinking about what happened in the court over the years, Xiao Feng suddenly felt that maybe the magistrate was a truly smart man.
Xiao Feng originally wanted to promote him as his assistant, but now that he thought about it, he felt that it was better not to force others to do anything, so as not to harm them.
Is it too much for a person who is considered a good person and a good official to just live his life peacefully in this world?
Xiao Feng felt that it was not excessive, and he respected this idea very much. Although he could not help the world, he could at least take care of himself, and he could be regarded as a gentleman.
Xiao Feng patted the magistrate's shoulder again: "Okay, I promise you, I will let you be the county magistrate for the rest of your life. I won't eat anymore, I have a place to eat."
Judging from today’s conclusion of the case, your wife is as interesting as you, so you two can stay together until old age in peace, hahahaha!”
Xiao Feng took Zhang Wuxin down to the lobby. There was a soft sound of banging bracelets in the back hall. The county magistrate's wife came to Xiao Fengxing from a distance.
A blessing gift.
Zhang Wuxin is a martial arts practitioner who consumes a lot of money. He followed Xiao Feng around for a long time and was really hungry. Seeing Xiao Feng bumping around like a headless fly, he couldn't help but persuade him.
"Brother Xiao, if you don't want to eat the food left by others, where is your place to eat? Or go to the bun shop in front."
Xiao Feng shook his head and pointed at the back of Hai Rui who had just found him, walking steadily in the distance, with a smirk on his face.
"I heard that buying meat for his mother's birthday is a big deal. You buy some pork head meat and soy sauce beef, and we go to his house to eat."
Zhang Wuxin grinned, saying to himself that you have a really weird temper. If you don't go away when people greet you with a smile, you insist on sticking to Hai Rui's cold ass.
The key is that if you look at Hai Rui's face, you will know that his butt is definitely colder than the person who just went to the toilet thirty-nine days ago.
Hai Rui's yard was not far from the county government office. He returned home gloomily. He first went to see his mother and told her what happened at the county government office today.
After hearing this, my mother nodded and said, "Mr. Xiao, I've heard people say that he does have Taoist skills, and it's not a lie.
But according to what you say, this person does not follow the etiquette and laws, is arrogant, and is a young man in a high position, which may not be a good thing."
Hai Rui nodded in agreement: "Actually, from a child's perspective, Xiao Feng is already a rare talent in the court.
He is good at literature and martial arts, he is a good scholar in literature, and he can drive away Tatars in martial arts. As a young man, he did not get high positions just by invitation.
What's more, everyone in the civil and military circles of the dynasty knew that the Yan Party was monopolizing power and harming the country, but no one dared to act like a horse. When Du Xiaofeng came out, he first defeated Zhao Wenhua and then defeated Yan Shifan, forcing the Yan Party to restrain himself. This can be regarded as a contribution to
country.
It's a pity that this person is a member of the Taoist sect after all. He won the king's heart by cultivating immortality and practicing Taoism. His tree is not good.
Right, the more beautiful the fruit, the more powerful the poison."
At this time, Hai Rui's wife walked to the door of the house, wiped her tears and said, "Mother-in-law, sir, the food is ready. It's time to eat."
The mother-in-law raised her head and glanced at her daughter-in-law, sighed and said nothing, then walked to the stone table in the yard and sat down. Hai Rui stood aside respectfully and waited until his mother sat firmly before sitting down.
His wife also sat down and looked into the room from time to time. Hai Rui had a sullen face and said nothing, just waiting for his mother to pick up the chopsticks to eat first.
Someone knocked on the courtyard door, and the servant of the family hurried over to open the door: "You two, who are you looking for?"
Hai Rui's house is just an ordinary courtyard, not a complex compound. Xiao Feng looked around and saw Hai Rui's family sitting in the courtyard, and smiled and spoke.
"Brother Hai, it's too late to meet you in court today. I wonder if it's convenient for me to pay a visit?"
Hai Rui was taken aback. He didn't know what had happened to the governor, and why he came to his home. But he was a man of rules, so he couldn't turn away the official's visit.
Hai Rui glanced at his mother, who nodded, and Hai Rui stepped forward to salute: "Your Excellency, your visit to this humble abode is a blessing. Unfortunately, your family is having a meal, so I would like to invite you to serve tea in the front hall."
Xiao Feng shook his head: "It doesn't matter, I haven't eaten yet, so let's eat together."
Hai Rui was stunned, this governor must be too shameless! He even asked him to serve tea in the front hall, but he still insisted on squeezing his way to someone else's table to eat!
But you can't say that you are not welcome to eat at my house. In desperation, Hai Rui had no choice but to order his servant to bring over two sets of bowls and chopsticks.
Hai Rui's wife hurriedly stood up and avoided it. Xiao Feng knew that he and Hai Rui were not close to each other yet, so he also
He didn't stop him, he just divided a portion of the pork head meat and soy sauce beef in his hand and asked the servant to deliver it to Hai Rui's wife.
Hai Rui frowned when he saw that Xiao Feng had brought a lot of meat, but seeing that his mother didn't say anything, he just let Xiao Feng put the meat on the table. But when he saw the beef, Hai Rui couldn't help it.
"Sir, the court has issued an order that it is a crime to slaughter farm cattle privately. Although buying and selling beef in the market is not a crime, everyone knows very well that there are so many sick and old cattle to kill? Aren't all cattle slaughtered privately?
.
Although we, the officials, cannot completely prohibit illegal things, we should set an example and practice it, and try to eat as little beef as possible. Do you think so, sir?"
Xiao Feng smiled and looked at Hai Rui's mother: "Old madam, do you think so too?"
When Hai Rui's mother faced an official like Xiao Feng, her expression was calm, neither humble nor overbearing: "Sir, I mean the same thing. What do you think?"
Xiao Feng smiled faintly: "I think the old lady's view is biased. She only sees one, but not the other."
Hai Rui suddenly changed his expression. It was clearly his opinion and his mother only agreed with it, but Xiao Feng pointed the finger directly at his mother. This was hard for Hai Rui to accept.
But with Xiao Feng's identity, let alone arguing with his mother on an equal footing, even if his father was alive, it was normal. He had to follow this rule, so he had to bow his head and remain silent.
Hai Rui's mother was as normal as ever: "I would like to hear your advice."
Xiao Feng picked up a piece of beef and looked at the clearly visible texture on the beef: "Why can't farm cattle be slaughtered privately?"
Hai Rui's mother said: "The most important thing in the world is grain, and grain production is nothing more than farming. Cattle are the main force in agriculture, and people are greedy.
If you want to kill farm cattle privately, it will lead to famine and disaster."
Xiao Feng nodded: "Since cattle are the main force in agriculture and farmers will not slaughter them privately for the purpose of cultivating land, why do they need the government to control them with regulations?"
Hai Rui's mother said: "Of course ordinary farmers don't do that, but there are always a class of stubborn people who are greedy for profit and take desperate risks. They may steal or rob them, or they may take advantage of the poverty situation of farmers to buy cattle and slaughter them privately in order to make huge profits."
Xiao Feng smiled and said: "Since the old lady said that those who slaughtered and sold cows privately were stubborn and lawless people, and the government arrested these people, why should we call on everyone to eat less beef for these people? Isn't this because they stop eating because of choking?
"
Hai Rui's mother glanced at Xiao Feng, wondering whether he was really confused or pretending to be confused, but this was also a good opportunity to persuade Xiao Feng.
In her opinion, Xiao Feng is a good person with faults. It would be a good thing if he could get rid of his faults.
"Your Excellency is a Taoist, and I read several books when I was young.
It is said in the "Tao Te Ching", 'If you don't respect the virtuous, the people will not fight; if you don't value hard-to-find goods, the people will not steal; if you don't see the desirable, the people will not be confused.'
It can be seen that Taoism also admits that if you want to eliminate chaos, you must first start with people in high positions and play the role of leading the trend, isn't it?"
Xiao Feng smiled and nodded: "The old lady is knowledgeable, but her understanding of this sentence is not comprehensive. 'Inexpensive and hard-to-find goods prevent people from stealing.' There have been many interpretations in the past. I also have an explanation. Please give me an explanation.
The old lady corrected me.
Goods are valuable because they are rare, and the superiors take advantage of the situation to achieve the purpose of balancing. For example, gold is valued by the superiors because it can be exchanged for all things, so the people also value it.
If the Ming Dynasty declares that gold is useless and cannot be exchanged for anything from today on, then the gold will become useless scrap metal. This will certainly prevent the people from stealing, but the Ming Dynasty will also be in chaos.
What's more, there must always be goods circulating in the world, and people must always trade money. Even if gold is not expensive, silver must be expensive, and if silver is not expensive, copper and iron must be expensive.
Therefore, the value of gold has nothing to do with whether it is valuable to the superior or not. It is because it is rare and suitable for trading, so it is valuable. I wonder if the old lady thinks so?"
Hai Rui's mother thought for a moment and nodded: "What you said makes sense. However, gold is a special case and it is indeed difficult to replace it with anything else.
But beef is just one type of meat that people eat. If they don’t eat beef, they can still eat mutton, chicken, and pork. And beef is not rare, and it is by no means comparable to gold.”
I would like to add that my friends have always corrected me that I should not talk about pigs tomorrow, and I am deeply grateful. It’s just that this book is published on multiple platforms, and there are many previous mistakes that I can’t correct. I can only make mistakes and continue to be pigs.
Xiao Feng smiled and said: "According to the wishes of the old lady, first of all, the example I gave must be food, and secondly, this thing cannot be a rare thing, right?"
Hai Rui's mother smiled and nodded. Xiao Feng put the piece of beef in his mouth, chewed it carefully under Hai Rui's dissatisfied eyes, and then spoke slowly.
"Old madam, what do you think of Ming Dynasty's salt policy?"
Hai Rui suddenly raised his head and looked at his mother. The smile on Hai Rui's mother's face also froze. They never expected that Xiao Feng would make a sharp turn and lead the topic directly to this fatal trap!
Salt is a strange thing not only in the Ming Dynasty, but also in all dynasties. This thing is not rare
, and it’s not hard to find. If it were liberalized, it would definitely be cheaper than cabbage.
But it just so happens that such a thing, which is neither rare nor rare, has been firmly grasped by rulers of all dynasties. It is a treasure!
Doesn’t it mean that people in high positions should not set the trend? Well, old lady, please tell me in front of your son why people in high positions regard salt as a rare commodity and let the common people spend a lot of money to buy it?
It's not that Hai Rui and his son dare not tell the truth. Both mother and son are not afraid of death. But the problem is that from the bottom of their hearts, they feel that there is no problem with salt administration in previous dynasties. This is necessary for the great cause of the imperial government to govern the country!
After being silent for a long time, Hai Rui said: "Sir, my mother is old and the examples are biased. The discussion in the Tao Te Ching is naturally not as authentic as the Taoist sect and is not as thoughtful as yours."
Just talking about the matter, if the people in power don’t regard beef as a delicacy, then the people will naturally reduce their consumption of beef and save more cattle. Isn’t that a good thing?”
Seeing that Hai Rui's mother had stopped speaking, Xiao Feng did not ask any further questions. He turned to Hai Rui and said, "Brother Hai, which one is more or less today than when Taizu ascended the throne?"
Hai Rui was stunned. Is there any need to ask? "Sir, the current population is twice what it was when Taizu ascended the throne."
"What about today's famine disaster and when Taizu ascended the throne? Which one is more and which one is less?"
Hai Rui made a mental calculation in his mind: "It's roughly the same. Where there are natural disasters, there will be famine. Where there are no natural disasters, there will be famine."
Xiao Feng nodded: "It stands to reason that the population has doubled, but the land has not increased. There should be famine everywhere."
Hai Rui shook his head and said: "But it is not such a simple algorithm. If the population doubles, there will naturally be more wasteland cultivated.
Food production will naturally increase."
Xiao Feng smiled and said: "So we are not afraid of eating food, we are only afraid of natural disasters, but are we afraid of eating cows?"
Hai Rui was stunned: "This, this is different. The Central Plains area is suitable for farming, but not for grazing. It is possible to produce more grain, but it is difficult to increase the production of cattle and sheep."
Xiao Feng picked up another piece of beef and ate it deliciously. Although Hai Rui was used to a simple diet, it was difficult to control human physiological reactions. Seeing Xiao Feng eating deliciously, he couldn't help but swallow his saliva.
.
Hai Rui's mother was very dissatisfied and glared at her son. Hai Rui lowered his head in shame, and then saw a movement in his mother's throat, and she probably swallowed.
"Brother Hai, what do you think of the imperial court's trade with the Mongols and Jurchens?"
These words scratched the itch of Hai Rui. In this regard, Hai Rui was quite contradictory. He advocated severely attacking the aggressors, but also opposed militancy. Therefore, Hai Rui maintained a neutral attitude toward mutual trade.
"Beyond the Great Wall, there are many tyrannical and ambitious people, so we must guard against them for a day. However, our Ming Dynasty is suffering from internal and external troubles, and the people are in urgent need of rest and recuperation, so mutual trade is an expedient measure.
Your Excellency put aside personal grudges and advocated mutual trade, so that the north could gain peace, and the imperial court was able to fight against Japanese pirates with all its strength. I admire this move very much."
Xiao Feng nodded: "But if you want to trade with each other, you have to do business. If you want to do business, you have to be mutually beneficial. Business that makes one-sided profits will not last long.
The Mongols and Jurchens are willing to accept silk, tea, porcelain, ironware, and pottery from the Ming Dynasty. What do you think they can sell to us?"
Hai Rui thought for a while: "War horses, what the Ming Dynasty lacks most are war horses! Just ask them to sell more war horses!"
Xiao Feng Diandian
Head: "But war horses are their legs to them. Even if they want to trade with the Ming Dynasty again, they will not cut off their own legs."
Like the people in the Central Plains, they also have to eat. To eat, they have to graze cattle and sheep. They cannot use all the pasture to raise horses.
Therefore, selling war horses alone is not enough to support trade. They also need to sell cattle and sheep to really start the business.
If the Ming Dynasty only wanted their horses and not their cattle and sheep, then they would think that the Ming Dynasty was taking the opportunity to weaken them and finally eliminate them.
This kind of mutual trade cannot continue, so we have to buy cattle and sheep. These cattle and sheep come to the Ming Dynasty, and the Ming Dynasty is not suitable for grazing, so what else can they do if they don’t eat them?”
Hai Rui didn't expect it to be so profound. He looked at his mother, and Hai Rui's mother also looked at Xiao Feng with admiration.
I didn't expect that this man would be so far-sighted at such a young age. No matter whether what he said was completely true, at least it sounded reasonable.
Xiao Feng picked up another piece of beef and said leisurely: "Brother Hai, do you know why we are all human beings? For a long time, people from the Central Plains have been unwilling to go on expeditions to the grasslands, deserts, or the sea unless someone comes to visit us?"
Hai Rui really couldn't keep up with Xiao Feng's rhythm, so he could only guess: "The Central Plains is the place where Confucianism flourished. It knows etiquette and justice, understands integrity and shame, and does not raise unjust soldiers."
Xiao Feng smiled softly, which made Hai Rui feel that he was offended: "Maybe, but the deeper reason is that the Central Plains is too rich and has everything, so it is difficult for others to covet it.
If there is a land rich in beautiful women, the lustful king will never forget to take it into his territory; if there is a land rich in fine wine, the wine-loving king will never forget to take it back.
Under the rule.
Therefore, to make the Central Plains people like to eat beef and mutton and eat more beef and mutton, they will never forget it, that area should also belong to the Ming Dynasty."
These words were so harsh. Hai Rui and his mother looked at the plate of beef with soy sauce in front of them suspiciously. How come, you, Xiao Feng, eating a plate of beef here, are you showing your great feelings for the country and the people?
I have to say, if the Ming Dynasty City Wall was half as thick-skinned as yours, the nomads wouldn’t be able to get in. But what he said is so reasonable that it’s hard to refute!
Xiao Feng gave the old lady a piece of beef: "So, old madam, please have a piece. The Ming Dynasty will not cause chaos in the world just because you ate a piece of beef with soy sauce."
The old lady smiled helplessly and served her meat as Xiao Feng. It was quite respectful and she had to give her face. She immediately put it in her mouth and started eating.
Well, it was indeed delicious. When Hai Rui saw his mother eating it, he put down his arrogance and picked up a piece to eat.
At this time, a woman's sobs could be heard in the room, as well as a very small voice that was obviously worried about being heard by people outside.