When northerners talk about the Wu and Yue regions south of the Yangtze River, they often think of the 480 temples of the Southern Dynasties, the countless towers shrouded in mist and rain; the vibrant beauty of river flowers at sunrise, redder than fire, and the river as green as blue in spring; the melancholy of a field of tobacco, a city filled with wind and catkins, and the rain when plum blossoms turn yellow...
Yangzhou has been a very famous city since ancient times. There are many adjectives such as "Yangzhou in March with fireworks" and "With a wealth of one hundred thousand taels, he rides a crane to Yangzhou", and there are also many poems about Yangzhou.
However, when Zhu Youxiao arrived in Yangzhou at this time, he had no intention of wandering around. He came to Yangzhou to cause trouble, so how could he wander around?
The reason why he ran to Yangzhou so quickly was simply because he was afraid that the news from Nanjing would spread.
Once the news from Nanjing gets out, things will be difficult to handle. In this case, running directly to Yangzhou is the best option.
When Zhu Youxiao arrived in Yangzhou, no one knew about it. It can be said that he came quietly.
Zhu Youxiao took a boat, dressed up as a rich young man on a trip, and came directly to Yangzhou.
After arriving in Yangzhou, he naturally moved into the Lichunyuan in Yangzhou.
As the name suggests, Lichunyuan is the property of the Jinyiwei in Yangzhou, or in other words, Chen Hong’s property in Yangzhou.
At the same time that Zhu Youxiao moved into Lichunyuan, people from all over Yangzhou began to move in. In addition to Zhu Youxiao's guards, there were also people transferred by Zhu Youxiao.
For Zhu Youxiao, nothing is more important than his own safety.
As night falls, Yangzhou becomes brightly lit. Compared to Nanjing, Yangzhou is even more lively.
But Zhu Youxiao was not in the mood to appreciate it. Standing by the window on the second floor, holding a cup of tea in his hand, Zhu Youxiao took a sip from time to time.
Behind Zhu Youxiao, several people stood obediently. In addition to Chen Hong and Wei Chao, there were also Qi Yuangong and Xu Xianchun.
In addition, there is another person who is relatively unfamiliar.
This person is naturally the person in charge of Yangzhou Lichunyuan, his name is Wei Changsheng.
He was in his thirties, quite wealthy, and had a mustache.
At this time, Wei Changsheng bent his body slightly, put his hands in front of him, stood there with a serious expression, and his face was full of respect.
He really had to be disrespectful, as no one here was someone he could afford to offend.
Zhu Youxiao glanced at the people behind him and asked, "Have you arranged everything?"
"Your Majesty, everyone has been arranged," Wei Chao said quickly. "The people from the Ministry of Justice are staying in the back courtyard, and the others have been accommodated in the inns on either side. No one has noticed."
This time when we came to Yangzhou, we were not only investigating the businessmen, but mainly the officials.
Under such circumstances, it was naturally impossible for Zhu Youxiao to come alone, nor was it possible for him to ask the Jinyiwei to investigate.
The Jinyiwei were responsible for arresting and interrogating people, and they were very good at this, but they were not good at other things.
Leave professional matters to professionals, Zhu Youxiao understood the truth of this sentence very well.
Now hearing that all the officials had been arranged, Zhu Youxiao nodded.
This thing can start now.
Zhu Youxiao turned around, glanced at Wei Changsheng and said, "Yangzhou is a good place. You'll know once you take a look. Have you been living well in Yangzhou these past few years?"
After hearing this, Wei Changsheng hurriedly took a step forward, his heart pounding.
His Majesty said you're doing well, which is something to ponder. Are you not putting your heart into your work?
If Your Majesty were to have such thoughts, not only would his future be in jeopardy, he might even lose his life.
Wei Changsheng quickly said, "Your Majesty, since arriving in Yangzhou, I have not dared to slack off in the slightest. I can say that I have been working day and night. I hope Your Majesty will understand."
"I never look at these things." Zhu Youxiao said calmly, "I look at the results."
"If you can accomplish this this time, that's good. How much do you know about Chen Zhenglin, the Yangzhou Transport Commissioner? Has he committed any crimes, or accepted any bribes?"
Zhu Youxiao looked at Wei Changsheng and said casually, "Don't tell me you know nothing after spending so many years in Yangzhou."
There are many things in this world that are done by deceiving the superiors but not hiding them from the subordinates. Just because the superiors don’t know something doesn’t mean the subordinates don’t know it either.
What's more, after Wei Changsheng arrived in Yangzhou, he had the cooperation of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and the Embroidered Uniform Guard. If he couldn't find anything, then there would be something wrong.
"Your Majesty, Chen Zhenglin is a relatively upright official and never accepts bribes. However, he has always been fond of showing off his knowledge and has a strong liking for celebrity paintings, calligraphy, antiques, and other such things. Therefore, the salt merchants have taken advantage of this and have given him many fine gifts over the years."
"Chen Zhenglin especially likes women with red sleeves, and the salt merchants have been catering to his tastes over the years, sending several women to his house every year. This is no longer a secret in Yangzhou City."
As Wei Changsheng spoke, he looked at Zhu Youxiao cautiously.
Seeing that Zhu Youxiao's expression did not change, Wei Changsheng continued, "This is the trend in Yangzhou. The salt merchants are very extravagant and do a lot of things on a daily basis."
"Whenever there's a poetry and literary gathering, these salt merchants will also donate money to sponsor it. They're quite busy during the annual imperial examinations. And whenever there's a talented person emerging somewhere, they'll also give some money and a person, usually a beautiful woman they've trained."
"These women are trained from a young age, and are proficient in everything from music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and songs. They are also very beautiful. They are also very tactful in their daily greetings and greetings, and can be said to be no less than the ladies of wealthy families. Such beautiful things as red sleeves and fragrant beauties are very common in Yangzhou City."
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