manynovel Chapter 808 Being too smart is not a good thing
Chapter 808 Being too smart is not a good thing
"Sir, those people are so vulgar!" Jiang Ru frowned. How wise and brave is their lord? He is also a romantic and suave young man. How could he be belittled by these people?
"We are all kind-hearted people and have no ill intentions!" Jiang Youzhen just smiled and walked out of the manor.
"Tell Jiang Chuan to keep an eye on the property here and send the account books to me as soon as possible."
Jiang Youzhen reminded them that this was the Salt Gang’s lair and there must be a lot of valuables here.
"Yes!" Jiang Ru accepted the order.
It was already daybreak when Jiang Youzhen took the boat back. The canal was filled with steam, and the scenery in the distance was beautiful, but even if you stood on the bow for a while, you would be soaked by the steam.
This is the case in the south of the Yangtze River. If it is the rainy season, it will be humid all day long.
"Sir, we're here!" Jiang Ru's reminder brought Jiang Youzhen back to his senses.
Fang Zhongyi looked at Jiang Youzhen standing at the bow of the boat. For some reason, he always felt that she was very lonely sometimes. Her parents and sisters were obviously around her, but he felt as if it was difficult for anyone to get into her heart.
After returning to the yamen, Jiang Youzhen did not immediately go to look at the account books and files, but went to the cell.
The prison cells in the government office were recently full, so Jiang Youzhen went straight to the cell at the very edge and looked inside.
The man was wearing a white undershirt, dark brown trousers, and official boots.
However, his undershirt was very clean, and it was obvious that he had not been troubled or tortured.
"Lord Zhou!" Jiang Youzhen called out softly. After leaving him alone for so long, it was time for him to show his abilities.
"Lord Jiang!" Zhou Qing was not surprised to see Jiang Youzhen. He knew that Jiang Youzhen would come to him sooner or later.
"Mr. Zhou just left the mess to me and hid in the cell. Not only could he save his own life, but he could also clear himself of any connection. What a good plan."
Jiang Youzhen sneered. Zhou Qing was just too calculating. That's right! If he wasn't smooth, he wouldn't be able to stay in this position for long.
But being too smart is not a good thing either. You will be indecisive and how can you expect to stay out of trouble?
Zhou Qing hid in the prison just to see which side would win, right?
"Sir Zhou, do you know that the emperor hates people who are idle and do nothing the most? You have been the prefect for many years, but you have allowed the Salt Gang to grow stronger and have done nothing. That is indulgence and even more so, protection. If you don't do your best to eradicate them, then you are in cahoots with them.
Even if you escape, the emperor and the court officials will be dissatisfied with you. You will be demoted at best and exiled at worst. There will be no good result. "
Jiang Youzhen was not exaggerating. The Salt Gang had become a thorn in the emperor's side. Zhou Qing did nothing and allowed the Salt Gang to run rampant. The emperor would definitely not let Zhou Qing off this time.
Zhou Qing smiled bitterly, "How could I not know? But Lord Jiang is far away in the capital, how could he know our difficulties? Don't I want to suppress the bandits? But how much power has the court given me? Lord Jiang can mobilize troops, so can I?"
Jiang Youzhen frowned, "Master Zhou, don't make so many excuses. As long as you report it to the court, the court will definitely find a solution."
"That's right! The court will find a way, but I was killed before the court sent troops. When I took office, the Salt Gang was already in power. Although I am a southern official, I am not valued by the Prime Minister. Who will mediate for me?
Once you enter the territory of the salt gang, there is no one to turn to for help. Can my memorial get out? They have secret agents everywhere, and it is impossible to guard against them at all."
Zhou Qing was in great pain. What could he do? He had not really gone along with the corrupt officials for so many years because he still remembered his original intention.
"Mobilize troops? I guess you don't even dare to mobilize the garrison in Jiang Province? I'm not afraid to tell you that once the court shows signs of mobilizing troops, I'll be the first to die." Zhou Qing sneered.
"Xu Zhanrong's death is indeed regrettable, but I know that this is an opportunity. I don't want to die in office, and I don't want to die at the hands of those bandits. Over the years, I have done a lot for Lin'an Prefecture in secret. If the court wants to punish me, I can do nothing about it."
Zhou Qing shook his head and sighed, then sat on the haystack in the cell.
"But I really don't have your courage, nor your strategy. I am derelict in my duty and incompetent, and I am unworthy of the court's cultivation." Zhou Qing's eyes were moist. He studied hard for ten years just to be able to make money and live in an imperial family.
Originally, he thought that he was lucky to survive after dealing with the imperial court and the salt gang. But when Jiang Youzhen arrived in Lin'an Prefecture, he was very frustrated by his swift and decisive approach.
Unexpectedly, the problems that had troubled him for many years and the threats he had always faced were resolved so easily by Jiang Youzhen.
"If that's the case, then Lord Zhou should have collected a lot of evidence of the Salt Gang's crimes over the years, right? I'll give Lord Zhou a chance to redeem himself. It depends on whether Lord Zhou cherishes it or not."
Zhou Qing was stunned. "Haven't you already taken down the Salt Gang? What else do you want me to do?"
"The Salt Gang has been eliminated, but the gang leader is dead. It will take some time to find out the officials who colluded with the Salt Gang. I need to return to the capital as soon as possible. I believe that Lord Zhou should be able to provide some evidence and a list of names, right?"
Zhou Qing pondered over it, hoping that the court would show leniency. It seemed that he had no choice but to try his best to help Jiang Youzhen eradicate the Communists in the Salt Gang.
"Good! I do have some evidence, and several officials who are suspicious."
Jiang Youzhen said to the side: "Bring paper and pen!"
Zhou Qing quickly wrote down a few names, "There is a mechanism against the wall in the study room in the backyard of my government office. There are secret compartments inside, which contain all the evidence I have collected.
In fact, I was the one who had the most contact with the salt warehouse account books. Although Sun Wei had always been wary of me, how could I be controlled by him? So I secretly investigated a lot of evidence. "
"Thank you very much, Lord Zhou!" Jiang Youzhen took a look at the list in his hand and immediately felt that something was wrong.
Among them were many high-ranking officials, all of whom were from the Salt Transport Commissioner's Office, who were directly involved in the salt transportation and were the easiest to tamper with. Therefore, the most officials on this piece of paper were from the Salt Transport Commissioner's Office.
Jiang Youzhen asked Jiang Li and others to search for evidence in the backyard of the government office, while she herself began to check the account books overnight.
"Have you found the accountant I asked you to look for?" Jiang Youzhen asked.
"Found it. All the accounting offices in the city are here." Fang Zhongyi nodded.
"Then let's get started! Clear all the accounts, especially the Yu family's. I want to see how much the Yu family has earned from selling illegal salt."
The pile of account books in the middle of the room belong to the Yu family, including the Yu family’s assets, all of which need to be settled.
"The private salt of the Salt Gang in Lin'an Prefecture is sold to the Yu family. The price the Yu family gets from him is thirteen wen. However, the Salt Gang does not make any profit, so the Yu family sells it for seventeen to twenty wen."
Fang Zhongyi has already inquired about the prices sold by the Yu family, as well as the small merchants who came to the Yu family to purchase goods. All of these have been inspected and are waiting to be reconciled.
"I'll give you half a day. You must settle all the accounts before dark." Jiang Youzhen glanced at the sky and found that it was already noon.
"But sir, with so many accounts, how can we settle them all in half a day? It's too hasty!" Some accountants said in embarrassment.