Chapter 2983: Give in
After Mr. Song waited for Mrs. Song to leave, he thought for a moment and decided not to return to the study. Instead, he went to the next courtyard and called a servant over, saying, "Find an excuse to go to the study and invite Master Song over."
"yes."
Song Zhubu came over confused, not understanding why Mr. Song left County Magistrate Bai and ran next door to meet him privately, no, to have a private meeting with him.
Song Zhubu didn't want to go against Bai Shan at this moment. He felt that leaving him alone in the study for too long was not a good idea, so he reminded him, "Uncle, it would be bad to keep County Magistrate Bai and the others waiting there for too long, right?"
Mr. Song looked up at him and said, "You seem to be quite considerate of County Magistrate Bai."
Song Zhubu frowned slightly, feeling that the words were a bit unpleasant, but he couldn't tell what was strange about them. He could only look at Master Song with confused eyes.
Mr. Song lowered his eyes and took a sip of tea. He slowly put down the teacup before asking, "Sanlang, we are family after all. You heard what County Magistrate Bai said just now. What he wants now is not the salt field, but the land of our Song family. So, tell your uncle the truth. What is the situation of the salt field over in Dajiawa?"
Song Zhubu perked up, remembering the news he had just overheard. He lowered his voice and said, "I heard that County Magistrate Bai has discovered a new method for making salt. It doesn't require boiling salt, and it doesn't require firewood. It can still produce sea salt, and the yield is not low. The salt reserves in Dajiawa are now enough to deliver to the Governor's Office, and there's even some left over."
Mr. Song clenched the teacup in his hand and asked, "Why didn't you tell me earlier?"
Song Zhubu frowned. "I just found out this morning, Uncle. County Magistrate Bai is different from County Magistrate Lu. He has the Crown Prince standing behind him. We should not confront him head-on. I heard that he plans to close the Longchi Salt Works and build a ferry there."
"The people we have stationed at the saltworks are completely useless. If we continue to oppose him..." He paused and said, "It seems we have no way to oppose him. If he closes the Longchi Saltworks, we can't continue to make salt, right?"
Without the endorsement of the county government, it would be considered as smuggling salt, a serious crime that would result in the confiscation of property and extermination of the clan.
The Song family in Beihai County does not have such ability. They can secretly cook a large amount of salt and hide it. Bai Shan himself is not blind.
Mr. Song stared at Mr. Song, making him feel uncomfortable. He moved his body, avoiding Mr. Song's gaze, and asked, "Uncle, what's wrong with you?"
Mr. Song looked at him for a long moment, then pulled up the corners of his mouth and smiled, "Nothing, County Magistrate Bai is indeed amazing, very patient. He has such a good thing in his hands, but he is willing to give it out now."
What's even more capable is that he can invite the prince to support him. If the nobles from the capital had not arrived, even if he had a new salt-making method, Master Song could still throw money at Qingzhou City. Even if he could not fight against Bai Shan, at least he would not be killed like he is now.
Even his own nephew betrayed him.
Mr. Song stared at Song Zhubu and said, "Sanlang, our Song family has spent a lot of effort to push you to this position of Zhubu. No matter when, you must remember that you are a member of the Song family!"
"Uncle, what are you talking about? I certainly haven't forgotten my last name. Do you still suspect that I've forgotten my roots?"
Mr. Song laughed heartily, stood up, walked over to him and patted his shoulder, "Don't think too much, I didn't mean that. It's just that today is my birthday, and I saw County Magistrate Bai's youth and potential, and I felt a sense of emotion. I don't know when my Song family will produce such a person."
That's difficult. Bai Shan is from a noble family, and the Song family can't even get close to his family background.
As Chief Clerk Song lowered his eyes and began to think, Master Song had already withdrawn his hand, clasping it behind his back, and the smile on his face faded. "Let's go and meet our County Magistrate Bai."
Bai Shan and County Magistrate Fang were drinking tea in the study. He was not at all anxious about his master's disappearance for such a long time.
County Magistrate Fang felt a little uneasy. He walked to the door and looked outside, then turned back to Bai Shan and asked, "Sir, are the Prince Consort and Master Yin getting impatient waiting up there?"
Bai Shan only looked up and said, "Don't worry, there's no rush. It's a whole day, and we're only at the beginning."
It's said to be a whole day, but who would really stay for a whole day after coming to celebrate a birthday?
Don’t most people just eat a meal and leave?
It's already past noon...
County Magistrate Fang was feeling a little anxious when Mr. Song came back with Chief Clerk Song.
This time, Master Song was much more straightforward. He smiled and said to Bai Shan, "I understand what the county magistrate means. You mean that as a native of Beihai County, if Beihai County needs anything, the Song family will do its utmost."
Bai Shan was overjoyed upon hearing this and said with a smile, "Master Song is righteous. The people of Beihai County will all remember the contributions made by the Song family and Master Song. But don't worry, His Majesty and the court have regulations. The court, local government offices, and gentry all have official documents for redeeming land. This county will definitely not let the Song family or Master Song down. How about paying for the redeemed land according to market price?"
Mr. Song curled his lips and agreed.
It is said that it is based on the market price, but there is no fixed market price. Beihai County is poor, the land is relatively stable, and it is rarely transferred.
Not to mention the vast tracts of land like the Song family's.
The reason why their family was able to grow to such a size was that they spent money to buy a large amount of wasteland for reclamation during the reigns of the previous two county magistrates.
Wasteland is different from open land.
Open land is land that has never been cultivated, and wasteland is land that was cultivated in the past but later became abandoned because it lost its owner and was generally reclaimed by the county government.
However, most of the reclaimed land will be handed over to the headmen and villages under their jurisdiction, and will be distributed when their male adults reach adulthood.
This is the wasteland that Zhou Silang and his friends in Qili Village were allocated.
Qili Village had suffered disasters in the past, and many people had died. In addition, the land was left barren by the war in the previous dynasty. Some of the wasteland looked like open fields, full of weeds.
After Zhou Silang and others grew up, the village would organize land reclamation and distribute the wasteland to them.
Many of the wastelands in good locations in Beihai County were occupied by several larger families such as the Song and Zhao families. The previous county magistrate did not pay much attention to it and sold a large amount of wasteland, so that when Bai Shan wanted to distribute land to adult people, he could only get less good wasteland, or even reclaim open land that had never been cultivated.
He wanted to relocate people from other places and promised to give them land. The land he gave out had to be able to grow food. This was too bad. Not to mention it was cheating people, what if the people turned around and left as soon as they saw the land?
So he needed a lot of land.
I originally wanted to update both chapters at once, but I found that there seemed to be a lot of gaps, so I'll see you at ten o'clock.
(End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
