Chapter 95: Plum Blossoms 5: Jiang the Duke of Zhuguo and Jiang the Yanzhou
"Thank you for your hard work today."
Song Yanze was standing beside the desk at this moment, holding up his wide robe sleeves, clenching the brush with his elbow and wrist, and completing the last word.
No one dared to reply to him.
There were many people lying in front of his desk, and some were kneeling on the ground with pale faces. The imperial envoy guarding the yard was busy holding the petitions he had written earlier and handing them to them for signature.
Some of them looked weak and cold sweat broke out on them and their hands trembled when they saw the words on the document. The imperial envoy then helped them to press their fingerprints and sign.
This Lord Song doesn't use force or knives or guns, he just attacks people's hearts.
Who now hasn't figured out where the faint rumors in the Ministry of Revenue come from?
This Lord Song had already gotten a thorough understanding of their situation early on, and was even quite familiar with the conditions in various places, especially the wealthy areas in the south.
In this situation, whatever they were thinking seemed so ridiculous. No matter how they tried to cover it up, they could be wiped out by just one sentence from him.
Jiang Tingyuan walked in with an oil-paper bag in his hand and his hands behind his back. As he walked through the corridor, he kicked over a clerk who was shaking with his hands and was reluctant to sign.
Song Yanze was scanning the papers in his hand. He was busy from morning till night and had hardly eaten a grain of rice. He was the only one in charge of all the officials in the Ministry of Revenue.
He breathed a sigh of relief, at least he had the exact amount. He was not that smart, he only knew four or five percent of it, the rest was a lie.
Plus the intimidation of the Imperial Court here.
He sat back in his chair, rubbed his eyes, and pressed his forehead. Once the tension had passed, he felt tired and hungry.
"Do you want to eat?"
Just as he was thinking about it, an oil paper bag tied with a hemp rope suddenly appeared in front of him, hot and with the aroma of pepper and salt.
"It is better to obey than to be respectful."
Song Yanze swallowed his saliva and his eyes lit up instantly. The snacks in Jiangnan area like to be sweet, such as mare's milk cake, milk skin sesame cake, and lotus cake.
He just loves salty food and has been craving it for a long time.
He stretched out his hand and was dragged away. Jiang Tingyuan then saw him turn his head to look at him, and then he started to tear the oil paper and spread it on the table.
Song Yanze was about to take it and eat it, but then he hesitated.
It's strange to say, but as soon as Jiang Tingyuan saw him frowning, he knew to take the initiative to give him a handkerchief.
As he handed it over, he frowned in disdain and made a "tsk tsk" sound, but this action seemed too natural.
Song Yanze took it subconsciously, wrapped it with a handkerchief and pinched it before he was willing to eat it, and he had to stay away from the desk. Even if he was very hungry, he maintained an elegant demeanor, eating in small bites, not in a hurry, and always paying attention not to make any mess.
Jiang Tingyuan folded his arms and watched him eat. He reached out to take off his official hat and casually placed it on the desk. Only then did he see the red mark on his forehead.
“The skin is too tender.”
Lord Song, who followed the rule of not talking while eating or sleeping, didn't want to argue with him, so he turned his back to eat. However, this guy folded his arms and turned around to continue looking at him.
"Don't submit these petitions for now."
Song Yanze was stunned and looked up at Jiang Tingyuan, with a mixture of surprise and confusion.
Jiang Tingyuan stretched out his finger and pressed his forehead, looking down at him, a little helpless, a little angry, this smile was too complicated. Song Yanze didn't understand, and after eating the cake in his hand, he moved away from him.
At this moment, the hall of the Ministry of Revenue had already been cleared, those who should be detained were detained, and those who should be released were temporarily released. The Ministry of Revenue had to operate, and it was not realistic to transfer people from the Hanlin Academy at this time.
And letting them go, leaving a gap for them to catch their breath, pass information to each other, and struggle a little, will also be helpful in finding evidence against them.
As soon as Chen Zhuang was brought up, Song Yanze quickly took it in his hand and looked at Jiang Tingyuan vigilantly.
"Commander Jiang, please make it clear."
This petition was immediately sent to the emperor, so that he could understand that there were great profits to be made by investigating the Ministry of Revenue.
"I understand Lord Song's original intention of stepping into this muddy water." Jiang Tingyuan did not stop him, but just chuckled.
"When an official serves, his first goal is fame, second is profit, third is serving the public, and fourth is serving the people."
"There are countless people like the first two, and most of them are mediocre and know how to protect themselves. The third type is the best, and they are called powerful ministers. The fourth type has only been around for a few people throughout history."
"Master Xiao Song, do you know what their endings are?"
When Song Yanze heard him suddenly talk about the ways of being an official, his brows relaxed, his fingers slowly smoothed out the wrinkles on the paper, he understood in his heart, and answered him slowly.
"But most of them don't die a good death." He said with a light laugh, a carefree look on his face.
"Commander Jiang wanted to remind me that these complaints not only concern the people in the court, but also local officials and gentry, and even the royal family."
Corruption and corruption are naturally give and take, seeking personal gain and trading power for money.
Local gentry were unwilling to pay taxes, so they bribed officials, and the officials of the Ministry of Revenue thought of collecting more taxes from the people under their own pretexts. The reselling of official grain was not clean, and merchants were involved.
This would anger the public, and the emperor would not care about the life or death of his tool. Most likely, he would let him accomplish this task and then execute Song Yanze to appease the public anger.
This is not uncommon nowadays.
"Lord Xiao Song is not afraid of death, but I can't bear to see a rare person like Lord Xiao Song die."
Song Yanze had understood this truth long ago, but he really didn't care. Jiang Tingyuan looked at him with a gentle look, familiar yet strange, which reminded him of an old friend for a moment.
I felt relieved and remained silent for a long time.
"Commander Jiang may not be free from selfish motives, right?"
Jiang Tingyuan simply nodded and admitted it. "Of course I have selfish motives. If you overturn the table, it will certainly make the people behind me worried."
Song Yanze was choked by his overly frank words and subconsciously thought he was joking.
"You... aren't you afraid that I'll tell others?"
The commander-in-chief of the Imperial Court is a "pure minister" who only works for the emperor and has the emperor as his immediate superior. He has already secretly taken refuge with someone in the court.
"Can you speak it?" Jiang Tingyuan asked him again.
Song Yanze really wanted to say why not, but he felt itchy and uncomfortable in his heart, so he couldn't say it, and only said one sentence.
"I...I don't want to get involved in your power struggles. I just want to do something for the people."
Jiang Tingyuan stared at him and smiled: "Then do what you want to do and what you are good at. For the rest, just listen."
Anyway, I will always be behind you to protect you.
Song Yanze himself did not intend to submit it so rashly, but he was always wary of Jiang Tingyuan's attitude.
But if he hadn't brought people here to keep the situation under control today, things wouldn't have been so smooth.
Although he was annoyed by his chattering, Song Yanze knew very well that Jiang Tingyuan had not done anything bad to him. Instead, he took good care of him in every way.
Song Yanze himself always felt a vague sense of familiarity with him, and unconsciously allowed him to get closer.
Song Yanze has chosen to trust him temporarily. After all, he will not prevent him from getting this thing done.
*
These days, Jiang Tingyuan has been busy sending people to the local area to arrest and interrogate people, and he also has to keep an eye on the developments in Kyoto.
Song Yanze was also busy. He had to check the account books again to find detailed evidence. He also had to question the staff of each department of the Ministry of Revenue one by one, and from time to time he had to go out of the city to the warehouse of the Ministry of Revenue to check the truth.
Lianxin brought over some hot water and seeing that her master was still busy, she couldn't help but persuade him.
"Sir, please go to bed early. Don't you have to go out of town tomorrow?"
Song Yanze tracked down a warehouse that was suspected of storing and reselling government grain, which was of great importance. If he could get the account book of income and expenditure, he could send someone to weigh the stored grain and verify it.
Combined with the confessions that Jiang Tingyuan had pried out from several officials and merchants, Hu Zhong would have no way of denying his crime.
Song Yanze was still reading documents and only responded with two or three sentences.
This itinerary was of course kept secret. Only Jiang Tingyuan and he knew about it. Even the coachman didn't know about it. He could only listen to Song Yanze's instructions tomorrow.
"Sir, the concierge said that a servant handed you a note."
Song Yanze frowned slightly and unfolded the paper.
"Mr. Jiang, the Duke of Zhuguo."
His hand tightened and he immediately burned the note. The title of Zhuguogong was hereditary, but it was no longer valid in this generation. There were no capable people among the clan members, but they were also well-known members of Li Heng's party.
Jiang Tingyuan... Duke Jiang of the State, but Jiang Tingyuan said he was from the Jiang family of Yanzhou?
"Lianxin, you are familiar with the noble families in Kyoto. Do you know if there is any relationship between the family of Governor Jiang of Yanzhou and the Jiang family of Zhuguogong?"
"My lord, you have asked the right question. The Yanzhou Jiang family is a branch of the Zhuguogong Jiang family. I vaguely remember that Zhuguogong Jiang family also adopted a bastard son into the Yanzhou Jiang family."
"This matter involves the private affairs of the harem, so there is no movement. The concubine's illegitimate son was born to a singing girl, and his mother was a slave until her death. The family of the Zhuguo Duke is large, so no one cares about this matter."
"But our old lady has a very close relationship with the Jiang family of Yanzhou and has mentioned it before."
Jiang Tingyuan... No way? But why did this person send such a note?
Remind him to beware of Jiang Tingyuan? If he is a member of the Jiang family, he is likely to be pro-Li. Jiang Tingyuan took Luo Jian down, and to some extent, he was also protecting Li Gelao, which makes sense.
With the key person in hand, we can do whatever we want.
He didn't doubt how Jiang Tingyuan would treat him just because of this note, and he wasn't at the point of trusting Jiang Tingyuan completely.
Song Yanze had this thought until the next day when he arrived at Ogura. As soon as he got off the carriage, all the staff were waiting for him at the door, as if they had expected it.
Song Yanze's heart sank and he quickly walked into the lobby. Surprisingly, the account book was already on his desk.
He flipped through a few pages at random. Everything was in order and he could not find any flaws. The grain in the warehouse was not inferior or of good quality. White rice and brown rice were neatly classified and arranged, with their weights clearly stated.
He pointed at people at random and asked them questions, and they all answered fluently.
If he hadn't known that they had problems, he would have really thought that there was nothing wrong here. With so many granaries and in such a short time, they couldn't have achieved this level.
Unless they knew in advance which granary Song Yanze would go to.
Jiang Tingyuan, could it be you?
Song Yanze's heart sank, but he did not arbitrarily assume that Jiang Tingyuan must have leaked the secret. He casually threw the account book back on the table, picked up his cloak and walked out, simply not checking it out.
He walked out with his cloak gathered, told no one to follow him, and went out for a walk along the path leading his horse.
Although he said nothing, several officials had already begun to frown and look at each other. One of them looked at an imperial envoy in black clothes and a red shirt in the convoy and secretly glanced at him.
The warehouse had been reselling government grain for many years, and the people and grain merchants in the nearby counties could not have been unaware of it. Moreover, to make up for such a large deficit overnight, the only way was to borrow grain from the wealthy and powerful.
He had also checked and found that most of the rice was new. He was 90% sure. As long as he asked carefully, he would definitely find some clues.
He was in casual clothes today, dressed like a scholar, which made it convenient for the visit.
He led the horse and walked slowly along the ridge of the field. In the paddy fields on both sides, some people were raising seedlings, while others were busy planting rice.
An old man was sitting on the ridge of a field with a worried look on his face, while in the field was a little kid who was no more than ten years old working.
Song Yanze stopped, harnessed the horse without saying a word, rolled up his sleeves, and took off his shoes and socks.
"Old man, I am a scholar from the south, and I would like to ask you for something to eat." Song Yanze spoke in the Huizhou dialect, smiling warmly and kindly, and was naturally likable.
"Anything is fine, brown rice or wheat bran. Can I help you with the work?"
"It's not that uncle is unkind, it's just that all the grain here has been requisitioned, and they said they would return it in four or five days, and they would give us more grain. It's been six or seven days, and every household has been unable to make ends meet."
"Uncle, it's okay. I'll help you."
Song Yanze loved cleanliness and was also particular about elegance, but he was never a scholar who stayed in the study. When he was in Huaizhou, he often helped out, and he tied his shoulders with skillful and capable movements.
"You, a fair-skinned young man, are actually capable of doing this."
Song Yanze smiled and took the opportunity to ask a few more questions, and in no time he got a general idea of what was going on. In the end, he still had to eat the bran biscuits that were rough and choking.
He was not favored since childhood, but he was raised by his grandmother and had a life of luxury. However, he did not frown at all, and ate everything up with the water bag and a smile.
Song Yanze asked as he walked, and when he arrived in the town he went to see the grain store, only to find that the number of people and quantity allowed in had been limited since a few days ago.
This is really, he came well prepared and was waiting for him to come.
It was getting late, and Song Yanze led the horse back. All the way, there was no smile on his face. He frowned and thought. Sometimes he didn't want to doubt Jiang Tingyuan, and sometimes he thought it was smooth and reasonable along this line.
bass!
Song Yanze's heart tightened. He had just walked into the woods when it was already dark and he seemed to hear a sound of breaking air.
Song Yanze's heart was beating faster and faster, and he immediately dodged and jumped into the lush grass on the side. As soon as he dodged, an arrow fell on the place where he had just stood.
Song Yanze's heart was pounding. Brother Xiaoyan had taught him some Kung Fu, but he had never learned it seriously.
If the opponent only has one person, then even if there are ten of them, he still won't be able to defeat them.
He took a deep breath, forced himself to calm down, hid in the bushes and peeked out. OK, four.
He was quite familiar with that man's face. He was one of the imperial envoys sent by Jiang Tingyuan to escort him.
Jiang Tingyuan!
Song Yanze's mind was in a mess. You'd better be wronged!
Otherwise, I will not let you go even if I become a ghost!
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