Feng Yuan looked slightly startled, and subconsciously said, "The embezzled silver should be returned to the national treasury, the embezzled grain should be returned to the granary, and the seized fertile land should be returned to the people... Why should I collect it all for myself?"
"Brother, you think too simply."
Tang Shun shook his head and said, "The higher-ups have already reached a tacit understanding on which level this case should be investigated to and who should be arrested. All the local officials will be apprehended, and the mastermind, the Han family, will not escape blame. I'm talking about the Han family in Ji County... The head of the Han family in Shangjing City will not be affected."
Feng Yuan didn't say anything. Song Chi had guessed this result before.
It is difficult for this matter to affect Song Shiwen, and the final result can only be compromise, but he still suffered a great loss.
There is a tacit understanding among the people above, and this is also His Majesty's intention. This is why he sent people from the Imperial Household Department.
The Imperial Household Department represents the intentions of His Majesty.
"Since we can't fight for that, then what we can fight for is the stolen silver, grain, and even fertile land. These are all ownerless things. Since you are the chief officer of the land, there is a great chance that you can take them into your own hands."
Feng Yuan questioned: "They are all here for corruption. They take from the people. How can it be ownerless?"
"My senior brother, you are too scholarly. Do you really not understand or are you pretending not to understand?"
Tang Shun said directly, "The stolen silver and stolen goods will be the highlight next. No matter how we investigate, it will be difficult to get around you, the local chief. Then we can take them for ourselves and can't let others snatch them away."
“Why do you want to claim it as your own?”
"Why do you say that?"
Tang Shun said, "Your Highness Prince Qing is now the Pacification Commissioner of Youzhou, but his position is not yet stable. He needs to raise a huge amount of military supplies and food before the war begins next year..."
"What you need to do now is to help His Highness raise funds."
Feng Yuan reacted, "Isn't this just to make me rich?"
"You could say that."
Tang Shun said calmly, "Jiangzhou is a wealthy place, Ning'an Prefecture is the richest in Jiangzhou, and Ji County is the richest county in Ning'an Prefecture. You can't be the magistrate for nothing."
"This year, both summer and autumn grain taxes will be increased by 30%, making collection more difficult. You must set an example, and I, your teacher, will use this opportunity to speak well of you to His Majesty, hoping to get you promoted to the position of Ning'an Prefecture Governor as soon as possible... By then, we'll have truly driven a wedge into Jiangzhou, which is controlled by the Literary Party!"
Feng Yuan didn't say anything.
He found it unbelievable that every word that came out of Tang Shun's mouth was so ordinary, but it was a disaster for the people.
A frivolous 30% tax?
How many people will lose their homes and lives!
Haven’t they ever thought about it?
Feng Yuan asked with difficulty: "Are these the teacher's original words?"
"That's right."
Tang Shun said in a deep voice, "Now that things have come to this, we have no choice but to fully support His Royal Highness Prince Qing in his bid for the throne. Only then can we have a future and survive. The teacher has high expectations of you, and His Royal Highness Prince Qing also values you very much. Don't let the teacher down..."
Feng Yuan was in a trance and did not come to his senses until Han Yu and others were taken away.
"This case will take some time to investigate. Due to the urgency of the situation, only a few of us are here first. In a few days, people from the Imperial Household Department, the Censorate, and other government offices will arrive... and we will conduct a detailed investigation then."
Zhu Ming, the eunuch in charge of the Imperial Household Department, looked at Feng Yuan.
"This case was originally discovered by Lord Feng. I would appreciate your help."
Judging from the tone, they will stay in Ning'an Prefecture for some time.
Next comes the game of bargaining among all parties, and the question of how to divide the spoils.
"Do you have anything else to say?" Zhu Ming looked at the others.
Jia Sicong, a deputy minister of the Ministry of Personnel's Selection Department, said, "The candidate for the Ning'an Prefecture governor has not yet been decided. Until the new governor arrives, County Magistrate Feng will serve as the interim governor."
"After all, Lord Feng has made great contributions in investigating the case, and the Ji County government office is also within the prefectural city, so it's relatively close and can be taken care of."
He said it lightly, but he felt extremely unwilling in his heart.
This is also one of the losses.
However, there is still debate over the final candidate, after all, the position of Ning'an Prefecture is too important.
As it stands, nearly half of the officials in the Ning'an Prefecture government office are involved in corruption, and there are no candidates to be recruited locally, so this loophole was exploited.
Feng Yuan did not feel happy, but instead felt that this position was a hot potato.
He remembered what his teacher said to him before he took office.
"An official's primary purpose is not to serve the people, but to serve himself. If you can't even protect yourself, how can you protect the people?"
Is this true?
He was also confused.
Is the teacher as open and honest as he knows?
He doesn't know either.
He wanted to find someone to talk to and help him solve his problems.
At this time, the first person Feng Yuan thought of was Song Chi.
But Song Chi is not here, so let’s go find Song Chi’s uncle Su Dahai.
right!
After the meeting, I will go to find Lao Su for a drink.
"Let's finish the serious business for now and talk about something fun."
Zhu Ming looked at Xu Zhifeng and asked, "The Jiangzhou Literary Festival was held today. It's over now, right? I wonder who the winner was?"
"It must be Master Ming."
Xu Zhifeng did not shy away from it either.
Everyone knows that the Prime Minister is behind him. The more he avoids mentioning it, the more likely it is that the Prime Minister will think too much.
Especially at this time, as the governor of Jiangzhou, he must boost his confidence.
"Mr. Ming is known as the Little Poet Sage in Shangjing City. Wouldn't it be easy for him to win the first place in the literary competition?"
Xu Zhifeng smiled and said, "Don't worry about everyone laughing at me. I'm also quite curious about the results of the literary gathering. Before leaving, I told Lu Zhoucheng to send me the results as soon as possible if there are any..."
"It should be here soon."
"What Governor Xu said is absolutely right." Zhu Ming also smiled and said, "Mr. Ming's talent is well known in Shangjing City."
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