The Tianjin Office was busy. Old Bingtou was sitting in the back room writing official documents one by one. Suddenly he felt someone behind him. He turned around and said in surprise: "County Lieutenant."
"There is no need to be polite, Mr. Bing." Xue Bai said, "I want to find a boat to transport some food across the river."
"I'm going to find two reliable boat owners for the county captain to transport it across the river or somewhere else."
"Only across the river." Xue Bai asked doubtfully, "Why doesn't the county build two bridges across the Yi River and the Luo River?"
Old Bingtou led Xue Bai out with his rickety back and said: "Someone proposed to build a bridge, but take today as an example, if there is a bridge, will the county captain hire a boat to transport grain across the river?"
"It's not necessary."
"Then the shipowners and the watermen will have one less business to do? In order to give them more work, the bridge will naturally not be built."
It was still snowing outside, and the snowflakes fell lightly on the water of Yihe River. Both of them tightened their clothes.
"In the 22nd year of Kaiyuan, Prime Minister Pei built three warehouses to transport millet by water. After deducting the cost of building warehouses and opening canals, he still saved 300,000 guan in freight every year. But where does this money come from?
What was saved from the human body?”
"Of course it's the canal work." Xue Bai said.
"After the millet was transferred to the canal, the grain was transported to Chang'an. There was less grain to be transported from Luoyang to Chang'an. However, there were more canal workers, and the fields were lost. The desperate households had to come here to pull fiber, but there were still so many on the canal.
Work? You really can’t pull fifteen miles in one day.”
The two walked to the pier and saw many people squatting by the river in the cold winter, shivering from the cold, waiting for work.
Ren Mulan followed Xue Bai and said: "If the county lieutenant gives me money, I will buy wine for them, and soon a group of people will listen to the county lieutenant."
Xue Bai ignored her. This method of forming gangs would be broken up when trouble came. Otherwise, he would not be able to deal with Gao Chong.
To put it bluntly, the increase he gave to the water workers was just the government water transport wages, so that they could transport the last batch of grain before the river froze, allowing some water workers to have some money to celebrate the New Year. But in the long run, it could not solve the fundamental problem.
.
The land is the foundation. Return the occupied fields to farmers and re-register the households. In the process, we must ensure that the officials are clean and honest, so that people can grow food in the fields and leave enough food to eat.
Thinking of this, Xue Bai thought of what Li Linfu said before going abroad. In order to collect money and food, many famous ministers thought of many good ways. Niu Xianke, Wei Jian, Yang Shenjin, Wang Xian, all of them were experts in financial management.
.
They all looked down upon Zhang Jiuling. The old man used clumsy methods to open a water village in a small village. He opened more than 300 hectares of farmland a year, which was less than one-third of the land of an ordinary gentleman. What did he achieve?
The world is in a state of rapid decline due to clever ways to make money one by one.
"County Lieutenant?"
Thinking too far, Xue Bai came back to his senses and said: "Don't worry, earn some money to survive this winter."
The others didn't know what he was talking about and laughed twice in apology.
Lao Bingtou asked: "I wonder how much grain the county captain wants to transport? How big of a ship is needed?"
"If it's five thousand stones, can it be transported?"
"so much?"
Old Bingtou was surprised and asked again: "Only across the river? How many people did the county captain arrange to move?"
"More than a hundred people."
"How can we move this? If we have carriages and horses, it would be great to be able to transport more than a thousand stones at a time. Five thousand stones will definitely not be transported. We can only transport it in batches or hire more people and horses."
Therefore, such a large-scale transaction cannot be carried out secretly, and the other party will inevitably need a county magistrate.
This is one of the reasons why Xue Bai is confident.
After arranging the ships and waterworks, we were waiting to start transporting grain the next day. The county captain said that these small matters could be easily solved.
However, Xue Bai was not qualified to inspect the county's warehouse and free warehouse, so transporting five thousand shi of grain had to rely on the Song family's reputation.
~~
Song Mian took an account book and looked through it for a long time. The account book was very old, more than ten years old, and the paper and ink at the front were all yellow and faded.
This is Guo Wanjin's original book. It records the number of copper coins he received from the Song family each time, how much goods were exchanged, and how many were given to officials at all levels in Henan Prefecture. In addition, the accounts of smuggling iron and stone for Gao Chong and selling prisoners of war are also
Write it down above.
All codes are used, for example, copper coins are written as millet, and prisoners of war are written as leather.
From the private minting of copper coins to the intricate network of relationships behind it, everything is recorded in the book.
The account book was thrown into the stove. The fine white rattan paper rolled up in the fire and soon turned into ashes. Song Mian looked at the fire and let out a long sigh of relief.
Maybe it wouldn't matter if Wang Yi handed it over. It wouldn't matter if he handed it to the governor of Henan, the governor of Jingzhao, the three provinces and six ministries, the left prime minister, the right prime minister, or even a saint. Who cares about this? But it is troublesome after all.
He was not afraid of Xue Bai copying it. If it was copied, it would no longer be evidence. In short, it would be clean if it was burned.
A steward came over and reported: "Xue County Lieutenant has arranged the ships and canal work, and wants to transport grain."
Song Mian took out a box and said, "Give this to Magistrate Lu and let him transport 1,600 stones first."
"Not five thousand stones?"
"Gao Chong has escaped, how can we pay for his previous two shipments? My efforts are not in vain. We agreed that each of us will get one-third."
"Will Da Lang come forward to say hello to the Diao brothers? I'm afraid Xue County Lieutenant may not be able to subdue such a strong man."
"If he can't even do this, why should he cooperate with us?" Song Mian said: "The Song family has helped enough, he should also be somewhat capable."
~~
Noon the next day is the agreed trading time.
Two boats, a large one and a small one, docked on the south bank of the Yiluo River together, with the big boat's stern connected to the small boat's bow.
The big ship carries grain, has a deep draft, and has a sampan set up on the pier; the small ship is just anchored in the river, like a little duck around an old mother duck.
Xue Bai was on a large ship. He looked to the south and saw no carriages and horses carrying iron and stone in the snowy sky.
Twenty-five men served as escorts, and more than a hundred laborers were preparing to move the cargo in the bottom cabin.
After making arrangements, Shi Zhong came to Xue Bai's side and asked, "Will Mr. Lang go there first? The other party is a strong man, and I'm afraid it will be dangerous if he takes action."
Xue Bai looked thoughtful and asked, "What if I talk to the Diao brothers in person?"
Shi Zhong waved his hand and said: "In my humble opinion, Langjun will have to talk to them sooner or later, but don't do it too hastily. We have just dealt with Gao Chong now, and these strong men are at their most vigilant. Just like taming a horse, you should first
The best thing is to let the horse get familiar with the pasture. First, complete the transaction smoothly in the name of Gao Chong, and then gradually get familiar with it, and it will not be too late to discuss cooperation."
"That makes sense."
Xue Bai nodded.
Shi Zhong waved the boat on the river to approach and arranged for Xue Bai to go over. The boat was not carrying cargo, only Lao Liang, and Ren Mulan was escorting Gao Chong.
The reason for this was that they were worried that Gao Chong would suddenly raise his voice and ask the Diao brothers to rescue him during the transaction. By moving the conversation away, if Gao Chong dared to make any unusual move, he could be stabbed directly.
Gao Chong still had a sack on his head and didn't know about this arrangement. But he felt the shaking of the deck under his feet and guessed that there was no cargo on the ship.
"You didn't bring any food, did you?"
"Shut up."
"I'm doing it for your own good. There are so many of them. If they don't have food to survive the winter, they can do anything."
Xue Bai happened to be back on the ship. After hearing this, he asked: "Do you want them to kill people?"
When Gao Chong heard his voice, he had to brace himself and said, "My life is in your hands. Of course I hope everything goes well."
Xue Bai didn't believe it and said to Lao Liang: "If he does anything strange, kill him."
First of all, it needs to be made clear that it is useless to use Gao Chong as a witness to expose An Lushan's major rebellion.
No pity.
Gao Chong could feel Xue Bai's coldness, and his heart trembled slightly, and his original expectations turned into a faint uneasiness.
After a while, several figures appeared in the wind and snow on the south bank. They came on horseback and did not bring a carriage yet. Apparently they wanted to observe them first.
This attitude seems a bit cautious, at least he is not someone who can deliver the goods carelessly.
~~
Diao Bing raised his hand, stopped the people behind him, and said, "Ageng, come forward with me."
"Okay." Diao Geng rode forward, pointed to the big ship, and said, "The food is on that big ship. Let's just move it down and transport the iron and stone up."
"Where's Gao Chong?"
"He was being hunted and was still hiding. I didn't see him this time. I only had someone give me a message."
"Let's get on the boat and take a look first."
The two brothers were also brave. They drove their horses to the riverside, dismounted and boarded the boat to check the grain.
Xue Bai stood on another ship and watched this scene, then turned to look at the figures of more than a hundred people in the distance, with a look of contemplation in his eyes.
He ripped off the sack from Gao Chong's head and asked, "Are those brothers Diao Bing and Diao Geng?"
In fact, he was sure without asking him that he had seen Diao Geng in the dark, and the person who could make Diao Geng follow him must be Diao Bing.
"yes."
Gao Chong looked around and was a little surprised to see the Diao brothers boarding the boat without anyone.
Xue Bai felt this surprise and asked: "If I capture them now, can I control the hundreds of people they brought?"
"It's hard to say," Gao Chong said, "But we may not be able to win. They have very good water properties."
After a while, the Diao brothers carefully inspected the grain in sacks in the cabin, walked to the side of the ship, and looked around.
Xue Bai took the dagger from Ren Mulan's hand, placed it behind Gao Chong, and personally escorted him there.
"Let them move the goods, nothing more needs to be said."
"good."
Gao Chong then also walked to the side of the boat and met the Diao brothers across the boat, while Xue Bai followed him with a dagger.
At this time, the plow workers were all resting in the bottom cabin, waiting to move the cargo, but no one noticed this.
"Mr. Gao County." Diao Bing cupped his hands and said, "Are you in such an embarrassing situation?"
"Don't worry about it," Gao Chong said, "move away the food first, move the iron and stones to the boat, and go back to Erlang Mountain!"
When Diao Bing heard this, he frowned and looked around, looking a little more wary.
"Gao Xiancheng, you and I have known each other for many years. Now that you have fallen into the water, are you trying to drag our brothers into the water?"
"Even if you can't trust me, you should trust my adopted brother. He..."
Gao Chong wanted to say more, but Xue Bai had already put the dagger forward at the back of his heart, so he had to stop talking and said: "He won't lose you, just move the goods."
Diao Bingze glanced at Xue Bai and asked, "Who is this?"
"You don't have to worry about what my people are doing."
"Let's move the grain down first, and then move the iron and stone up. Does the county magistrate think it's okay?"
"good."
Diao Bing glanced at the laborers again, finally called his men over, and he and the laborers began to move the goods in full swing...
This scene made Gao Chong very disappointed.
He knew that Xue Bai would definitely kill him if he asked him "What's going on with Li Longji" at every turn. But he still had a glimmer of hope. Xue Bai asked again and again how to trade with the Diao brothers, which made him unable to help but yearn for help.
He escaped with this deal. For this reason, the courage to die that he had summoned several times was suppressed.
He endured the humiliation in order to create conflict, but if the current situation continues, this deal will probably end smoothly. After that, Xue Bai will contact the Diao brothers and Fan Lao, and it will be easier to establish trust.
They must be allowed to fight.
Gao Chong thought like this and looked at the big ship opposite. He was very familiar with the ship because it was his smuggling ship. Now Li San'er's confidant who was originally on the ship has been captured and replaced by an ordinary ship.
Waterworks.
But just by looking at the depth of the draft, he could roughly estimate the weight of the food on the ship...it would not exceed two thousand dan.
Gao Chong swallowed, knowing that Diao Bing would raise doubts about the amount of food later. Therefore, when Xue Bai ordered him to retreat to the cabin, he did not act rashly and retreated.
He waited for a long time and finally heard Diao Bing's cry.
"Gaoxian Cheng."
The opportunity has come.
Now more than a hundred of Diao Bing's men are on the opposite boat. As long as Gao Chong can jump to the opposite side, he can ask them for help.
"I'll explain." Gao Chong stood up.
"I didn't let you move." Lao Liang pushed him down.
Xue Bai had already walked to the side of the ship again to talk to Diao Bing.
"The county can only take out this grain for the time being." Xue Bai said, "It's enough for you to last through the winter. How about we pick up the next batch in spring?"
"Are you trying to default on your debt?"
Xue Bai said: "You only brought more than a hundred people with you when you set out. You must not have expected the current situation. It is possible that you may not even be able to bring back a grain of food. The current situation is special, so it is best to wait until the news has passed.
good……"
Gao Chong listened in the cabin and felt that Diao Bing might be persuaded.
After all, so much iron and stone has been transported, whether to transport it back again or bring enough food for the winter. This is a choice that a discerning person can make.
Gao Chong glanced secretly to the left and right, and there were only Lao Liang and Ren Mulan beside him.
Lao Liangshi came to protect Xue Bai and looked towards the side of the ship; Ren Mulan held a short knife against Gao Chong seriously.
"County captain, be careful, Diao Bing has a crossbow." Gao Chong suddenly remembered the matter and warned him.
Lao Liang frowned and strode outside the cabin.
When Gao Chong saw him walking away, he knew that his only chance had come. He jumped and dodged Ren Mulan's dagger. He really didn't take this little girl seriously.
"He is the county captain Xue Bai, and he wants to catch us all!"
"Help me escape, and you will be rewarded generously!"
"Quickly, kill them!"
After shouting three loud words, Gao Chong stared at the wooden railing closest to the boat, preparing to jump out. As long as he swam to the shore, he would be protected by Diao Bing's hundreds of men... and he would be free.
At the same time, Diao Bing was also startled and hurriedly exclaimed: "Brothers! Fuck you!"
Hearing this call, Gao Sheng was overjoyed.
It was worth it for him to endure the humiliation...
"puff."
Ren Mulan rushed down and slashed Gao Chong's buttocks with a knife; in front of him, Lao Liang also turned around, his face still calm.
Gao Chong couldn't care about anything else and wanted to escape again. He was stabbed again in the foot and finally fell to the ground. He really didn't expect that a little girl could be so cruel and decisive.
Before he could get up, Lao Liang came over and stepped on his back.
Gao Chong's head has already reached the side of the boat, and the Yiluo River is right in front of him. Unfortunately, he is only one step away from success.
He had to suppress his annoyance and start thinking about the situation again - "Now that Diao Bing and others have been aroused, Xue Bai can only hold me hostage and let me comfort Diao Bing..."
Sure enough, Xue Bai came.
Gao Chong raised his head, suppressed the madness in his heart, and said quickly: "I was wrong, Lieutenant Xue County, I can persuade them to stop."
"puff."
Gao Chong watched helplessly as the dagger stabbed into his heart, feeling a little dazed for a moment.
He was a little angry and thought, Xue Bai, aren't you afraid of angering Diao Bing and others?
In addition, he felt that Xue Bai still needed him. Tieshan's matter had not been resolved yet, and there were still many things that had not been handed over... It was Xue Bai who said that they had to be handed over.
"You...my adopted brother..."
Gao Chong judged that Xue Bai should at least keep him until Gao Shang came. It should be noted that Gao Shang would definitely come, and then Xue Bai would have one more bargaining chip.
Until his death, he considered himself to be of great importance.
~~
"Boom!"
Diao Bing's men all drew their swords one after another, like frightened birds.
"The government is going to arrest us!"
Immediately afterwards, a human head was thrown to Diao Bing's feet and rolled on the ground. His expression was still lifelike, with shock on his face and a self-righteous arrogance in his eyes... Gao Chong was like this when he was in Huaizhou.
Such an expression.
The one who threw the head was Lao Liang. He stood on the opposite boat and shouted loudly.
"Everyone, stop it! Gao Chong is dead and the case has been closed. You can donate his head to the government to be credited with your merits!"
If Gao Chong is not dead, there is no guarantee that he will not add fuel to the fire and encourage these smugglers who have become frightened.
But since he died, these people had no reason to save him...unless they were willing to avenge him.
No matter what the waterman in the bottom cabin heard at this time, all he had to do was say that Gao Chong had been found, and the case would be closed.
"Put down your swords! Back away."
Xue Bai's men holding swords also took a few steps back, no longer putting pressure on the smugglers.
The situation calmed down a bit.
"I am Xue Bai, the captain of Yanshi County. Do you want to go back safely with food, or do you want to keep your lives here?!"
Diao Bing was still calm. He patted his brother and asked, "What does Xue County Lieutenant want to do when he deceived us?"
"It's just business." Xue Bai said: "I don't want you to have no food to eat in the winter. The county office just needs to forge a batch of farm tools."
"Don't you want to arrest us?"
"Why are you being arrested?"
"Making meritorious service."
"Did I use Gao Chong to perform meritorious service? Who is he and who are you? Did I use him to lure you out?"
Xue Bai asked these questions, but when Diao Bing didn't answer, he asked again: "Diao Bing, how about we come over and talk in private?"
Diao Bing did not agree immediately, but calmed down.
He thought for a while and ordered everyone to put down their swords.
"Brother," Diao Geng said, "we don't even know him."
"Don't cause trouble again and cause trouble to the handsome man."
"Okay, but don't go past me either."
"It's okay, he's an official. If he wants to deal with a little guy like us, I just had you and my brother killed. You continue to lead people to move things, and I'll go meet him."
After the two brothers calculated their plans, Diao Bing deliberately gave the new county captain a show of strength. Without putting away his knife, he laughed and said: "Xue County Lieutenant, how dare you bring the boat over?!"
"Lean over."
Lao Liang actually wanted to remind Xue Bai to be careful about the Diao brothers avenging Gao Chong, and Xue Bai had already given the order.
Afterwards, there was a sound on the deck, and Diao Bing jumped over.
He then put away the knife and said, "The county captain is so courageous."
It is actually rare these days that ordinary people are not timid at all when meeting officials.
Xue Bai said: "Let's talk over there. I'm new here. Let's set some rules."
"good."
Diao Bing walked across the deck and took a look at the headless body that was still bleeding.
After sitting down, he first asked: "Are Xue County Lieutenant afraid that I will avenge Gao County Cheng?"
Xue Bai was looking at the pair of straw sandals under Diao Bing's feet and said: "The reason why I dare to kill him is because I judge that you are not from the same group."
"I have known Mr. Gao Xiancheng for more than ten years."
"You still call him 'Gaoxian Cheng' after more than ten years?" Xue Bai said: "You are a nostalgic person, and so are your shoes. You still call Fan Lao 'Shuai Tou', but you don't have the old name for Gao Chong."
"I said acquaintance, not very familiar."
"Do you recognize someone named 'Zhuang Asi' next to Gao Chong?"
"The new one in the past two years? A tall, tall man from the North?"
"Well, Gao Chong and Zhuang Asi ran away together. Zhuang Asi couldn't run anymore, so Gao Chong killed him to silence him." Xue Bai said: "I just saw that you brothers are different. More than a hundred people are coming, and you are the leader.
How can I go to the ship to check it out in person?"
Diao Bing smiled and said: "The villain's hands are all stupid with mud legs, and his mind seems to be blocked by mud, and he can't do anything. If you ask them to come and see, what can you tell? You have to do it yourself.
.”
"I've heard about what happened to you in Huaizhou. What Fan Lao did back then was a good man. It's a pity that what Gao Chong has done in recent years is shameful. He can still conspire with Nuya for such an old orphan in the nursing home.
Lang Luo sold out, and his interests have made him darker than most officials. What qualifications do he have to talk about rebellion... Oh, what do you think?"
"I don't know what a health care center is." Diao Bing said: "My handsome head doesn't have a noble face, so who is he? A handsome head has a noble face."
Xue Bai felt a little relieved.
He had speculated that if these people on Tieshan Mountain were really on the same side as Gao Chong, Gao Chong would not have to use the "five thousand stone grain" trick to provoke conflicts, even if Diao Bing's men suffered heavy casualties.
"Do you know that Gao Chong sold you just now? I now know that you are hiding in Erlang Mountain."
"I understand." Diao Bing said, "He wants me to do it."
Xue Bai asked: "You need food? Why not buy it in Yancheng?"
"But we can't buy it. The county lieutenant must not think that Iron Mountain is ours. The government is focused on collecting taxes, and there are several big bosses in it. Otherwise, how can we cover it? Isn't the bulk of the iron stones dug out every year allowed to be donated? Shuai
The heads that can be taken out for smuggling are used to feed everyone."
Xue Bai only half believed this. Life in Tieshan was not easy, but it was better than those on Caohe.
"You also gave the copper materials to the Song family?"
Diao Bing laughed twice and scratched his head.
He's smarter than he looks.
Xue Bai rolled out a bunch of coins and said, "I know everything. I also cooperate with the Song family."
Diao Bing was surprised and finally looked at Xue Bai with admiration and said: "Tongshan is government-run. I don't know how the copper materials were obtained. Anyway, the commander told us to transport them. There are many impurities in these coins."
...It has to be like this.”
He took a copper coin, held it with his fingers, and broke it hard, breaking the coin in half.
It's hard to say whether the counterfeit coins are brittle or not, but the strength of his fingers is indeed strong enough.
"Half a cake was wasted." Diao Bing muttered, and then said: "The villain Xue County Lieutenant wants to ask, can you give us food? Since the beginning of autumn, we have transported three batches of iron and stone to Yanshi.
A total of five thousand stones of grain."
"To be honest, there is no reason for Yanshi County to bear the responsibility for what Gao Chong took away before."
"Xue County Lieutenant thinks..."
"I'm an official, not a merchant bargaining with you!"
Just now I wanted to appease Diao Bing and express my feelings, but to truly promote cooperation, we must have principles.
"The Yanshi County Office will not pay a debt for a person who is unworthy of the people of Yanshi."
Diao Bing fell silent.
He was not good at arguing with others. Once upon a time, a policeman came to his house to demand taxes. After arguing for a long time, he persuaded him to sell his sister. Without saying a word, he picked up a stone and smashed the policeman's head.
However, Xue Bai had a plan and said: "One thousand six hundred stones of grain will be enough for you to eat for a whole winter. When spring comes, you will transport another batch of iron and stone to trade in exchange for grain. You will never starve."
"I can't explain it to the handsome man."
"Gao Chong, Guo Wanjin, and Li San'er, their heads are not enough to explain?" Xue Bai said: "If you can transport five thousand shi of grain, or divide it into batches, or hire people, you must have the support of an official figure like me.
, so if you want this batch of grain, you have to trust me. And as long as you trust me, I won’t treat you badly in the future. So wouldn’t it be enough to transport a whole winter’s grain this time?”
"this……"
Diao Bing was not stupid, he was considered very smart among ordinary people, but he was still confused by Xue Bai's words.
"Do you understand this?"
Diao Bing looked up at Xue Bai, his forehead wrinkled.
There are two choices before him, either transport the food away and complete the transaction first; or, use the knife...
Xue Bai waited patiently for this answer.
After hearing Fan Lao's deeds, he thought that Fan Lao would be someone he could win over, because there were too many smart people in the government and the public who could figure out ways to make money, but there were too few fools who were willing to go to jail for the sake of farmers.
Of course, those few words are actually difficult to use as a basis. They are more based on intuition based on that little deed and a few details of today.
Before the transaction started, Xue Bai was thinking that maybe he should talk to the Diao brothers in person. He believed that there was an opportunity between the two parties.
Now the sincerity is shown.
"Xue County Lieutenant, I really don't understand your reasoning." Diao Bing said, "Anyway, our batch of iron and stone will be exchanged for your batch of grain, right?"
"You can also say that."
"That's good."
Diao Bing only thought that he had lost money on the first two batches of iron stones he gave to Gao Chong or asked Gao Chong to get them back. He was now transporting the grain back to let the people in Tieshan have a good year. This was the real thing.
Xue Bai wanted more. He looked Diao Bing up and down, and his eyes fell on the pair of straw sandals.
When he decided to come to Henan, he wanted to see the victims who could be bribed with a piece of cake. After seeing it, he felt that all they needed was a field... Most farmers are really suitable for farming.
Suitable for killing people.
Only a small number of them can hone themselves, and these are the people in front of them.
Just as they wanted his food, he wanted their people.
So Xue Bai smiled and said: "Let's make a good relationship this time."
The more than 7,000 words today are a complete plot and will not be divided into chapters. Please vote for me, please vote for me~~