[Quick Crossing + Red Mansions] I have a strong desire to survive

But it is said that Jia Zhu told Jia Min that he found something that was not good for the heirs, and he directly blamed this blame on the royal family - if Jia Zhu directly told Jia Min that Mrs. Wang had prepared those things for her, even if It was Lin Ruhai who wanted to keep Jia Zhu, and Jia Min wanted to drive him out with a broom.So let the royal family be the one who takes the blame.

Jia Min broke into a cold sweat when he heard this, and after Jia Zhu left, he invited Lin Ruhai to the back house and learned from Lin Ruhai what Jia Zhu said.Lin Ruhai immediately accepted Jia Zhu's reason - when he talked with Jia Zhu just now, he suspected that no matter how hard Jia Zhu was in his heart, he shouldn't die at a young age, and now it makes sense.

The royal family simply doesn't want to see the heirs of those veteran officials who founded the country flourish!

Funny no, not funny at all!The most unreasonable thing in this world is the royal family, and the people who can share adversity but not wealth come from their family.Those veterans who founded the country were all people who followed the grandpa/grandfather to conquer the world, and they shared the same troubles and sorrows as his old man.Their descendants, because of the glory of their ancestors, will continue to share the wealth and honor with the current royal family.

The royal family is still having a great time fighting for it. The more children born in the honorable family, the more people will share their wealth with them?Therefore, it is not impossible for the royal family to make these noble families have fewer or no births.

Thinking of this, Lin Ruhai was horrified. His family was also a fourth-generation prince. Although his generation was born in the imperial examination, he was considered honorable at root.Is it really a coincidence that I only got a brother Tang when I was nearly half a hundred years old, and I was so weak that I was about to go there?

A sternness flashed in Lin Ruhai's eyes, it had better be a coincidence, otherwise, as a courtier, he really didn't know what he would do to protect his heir.

Unaware that Lin Ruhai was half-blackened by his own stimulation, Jia Zhu felt that he had settled down in Lin's mansion, so he wrote a letter to Beijing, and there was only one letter. Everyone reading it together could enhance their relationship, right?

In the days that followed, Jia Zhu followed Lin Ruhai to the Yamen every day, meeting people with him, watching him fight wits and courage with officials and salt merchants in Yangzhou and even the entire Jiangnan Province.To say that Lin Ruhai really has two talents as an official. He patrolled the salt in the south of the Yangtze River, which was tantamount to taking food from the salt merchants and local officials.

The Zhen family is now very powerful in the south of the Yangtze River, and most of the people in the officialdom are drawn by the Zhen family to the camp of the four princes. Lin Ruhai is still able to maintain the salt tax to a level that increases slightly every year despite many obstacles. I have to say that this IQ is enough.

Jia Zhu watched from the side with both admiration and sadness. Such a capable minister had already been made an outcast by the emperor, let alone roasting him on the fire. In the end, he didn't even keep a trace of his blood. If he said it, no one would say it. believe.

Jia Zhu felt that since he came to Yangzhou and wanted to collect more supplies, he should start with salt. This thing is very needed in the last days. Even if it can't be used directly, it is just a matter of carrying out several replacement reactions.But if you want to collect salt, you have to increase the production of salt. Otherwise, in this era of extremely low salt production, he collected all the salt here, and the common people would all become white-haired girls.

In order to make the appearance of sun-dried salt method justifiable, Jia Zhu had to quietly find a fake master, and it took two months to complete a dilapidated and incomplete ancient book "worms eat rats bitten". method.

Jia Zhu, who was "as if he had found the most precious treasure", presented this book in front of Lin Ruhai: "Uncle, if this method can be implemented, the price of salt will drop sharply, and there will be no need to worry about private salt anymore. And when salt production increases, the salt tax will also increase." It can be increased accordingly, and tax money will not be reduced too much due to the drop in salt prices."

Lin Ruhai flipped through the book, read it again and again, shook his head and said, "Some records have been eaten by insects and rats, and we have to try it to see if it works."

Jia Zhu had only a general understanding of sun salt, so when making this "ancient book", the phenomenon of insects eating rats appeared.Now that Lin Ruhai said that he wanted to experiment, he took the initiative to ask Ying to take someone to experiment with changing the salt from decoction to sun-dried salt.

Lin Ruhai did not immediately agree with Jia Zhu to test it immediately, but first wrote a confidential letter and reported it to the emperor.It was only then that Jia Zhu discovered that he lacked experience in the officialdom—not all people benefited the country, but whether it benefited the country or not, the era of the family and the world was up to the emperor to decide.

Fortunately, the emperor was well-known, and after getting Lin Ruhai's secret book, he knew that if the method of drying salt was successful, he would definitely get a great mark in history, so he readily agreed to let Lin Ruhai try it out quietly.

It was halfway through October when I got the emperor's approval. Although the rainy season in the south of the Yangtze River was over, the sun was not so full, so it was not a good time to dry the salt.However, the emperor approved it. It is not a personal wish to dry out the salt as soon as possible.

Jia Zhu resigned from Jia Min, whose health was getting better, and brought two servants and ten healthy servants given by Lin Ruhai to a place called Sheyang.This was originally a land of salt production, but now the method of decoction is still used to extract salt, which is labor-intensive and has a low output. There is still a deadline for the court to ask for salt. The salt households are miserable and sometimes run away.There are also people who commit crimes from other places and go to Sheyang to join the list of boiled salt.As long as the local officials have salt to collect, they will turn a blind eye to the refugees, and they will not bother to check the ins and outs of the refugees.

In order to prevent himself and the others from being regarded as refugees, or being caught cooking salt, Jia Zhu asked people to buy a big house in Sheyang County with great fanfare, and bought a dozen healthy-looking servants. Bought a large stretch of beach.

From the county lords down to the people in Sheyang City, they all know that there is a grand master in their county, who spends a lot of money, but he is a bit stupid. He bought a large beach instead of a house or a farm. Catch the sea without grabbing territory with others?

Thinking about it this way, many people are attracted to this Mr. Jia and intend to make friends with him.I don't want Mr. Jia to be a bit weird, it's fine if he doesn't visit his parents and officials when he goes to the place, he doesn't make good neighbors and friends, and follows those servants to the beach he bought every day.

No one would be surprised if he just went to the beach to see the scenery. Everyone thought he was from the mainland. It makes people feel that this guy is not good at thinking—the beach is full of fine sand, and it is not an exaggeration to say that not a single blade of grass grows. Does he still want to farm in it?

Don't have money and nowhere to spend it.

Just when everyone was talking about Jia Zhu being stupid and rich in money, Jia Zhu finally took the greeting card and went to meet Yuan County Magistrate, the parent of the county.The county magistrate Yuan wanted to put on an official air, but the master hurriedly persuaded him: "Young Master Jia, he used the name of the Rongguo Mansion in Jingli when he bought the beach, so he must not be a relative of the Rongguo Mansion."

Although most of the officials in Jiangnan fell to the Zhen family and the party of the four princes afterward, Yuan county magistrate did not have that qualification - the Zhen family had a high vision. Although the county magistrate was a county parent, although Sheyang produced salt, this For several years, Lin Ruhai had been watching closely, and the salt tax was very difficult to deal with, so the county magistrate Yuan couldn't get into the Zhen family's eyes.

However, the Rongguo Mansion and the Zhen family were old relatives, and County Magistrate Yuan knew about it.If this Mr. Jia is really from the Rongguo Mansion, even if it's just a side branch, he can also use him to get in touch with the Zhen family.At that time, the officials of Yuan County Magistrate will be able to do it easily.

"Hurry up and ask the county to welcome you." County magistrate Yuan is a person who can let go of his figure.

The master smiled slightly when he heard this, and asked County Magistrate Yuan to go first, and followed him to the front of the yamen. He saw a young man, tall and tall, wearing a sapphire blue Shu brocade straight gown, and the jade belt around his waist was greasy and brilliant, and he was indescribably romantic and wealthy. .

Even if he is the son-in-law of the Rongguo Mansion, his demeanor is nothing more than this.County magistrate Yuan and the master looked at each other, and they both bowed their hands in salute: "I heard Mr. Jia's name earlier, and seeing you today will make you feel like a spring breeze."

Jia Zhu smiled slightly, that smile seemed to have just revealed her cheeks, and it seemed that the people who saw it had closed their eyes and arched their hands: "Please forgive me for disturbing Mingfu."

If you call yourself a student, you have fame, and it's only natural that you don't kneel when you see the county magistrate.County magistrate Yuan didn't take it seriously, and invited Jia Zhu to enter the Yamen to divide the guests and hosts into a seat. Handwriting."

Jia Zhu had the kind of smile on his face again: "It's just for the sake of living comfortably and using it with peace of mind. It's not a big deal. It's really a big deal in a prosperous place in the south of the Yangtze River." .”

County magistrate Yuan shook his head: "It is said that the south of the Yangtze River is rich, but it is not a land of fish and rice everywhere. In places like Sheyang, the crops cannot grow, and only some salt is produced, and the court officials buy and sell it. It is difficult to pay all the taxes in a county.”

Jia Zhu listened and nodded: "It's not a day for Guixian to think so. The Shangguan understands that he won't force the county magistrate too much."

County Magistrate Yuan sighed: "The Shangguan is not persecuting, and there are the Salt Administration and the Ministry of Internal Affairs..." At this point, he stopped talking, a little annoyed at his quick talk-the root of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is in Beijing, and the root of Rongguo Mansion is also in Beijing. Who knows what the relationship between the two is.

Jia Zhu frowned slightly when she heard this. It is natural for a salt-producing county to have an opinion on the salt administration, but it is not right to have an opinion on the Ministry of Internal Affairs.Sheyang didn't have any decent specialties to pay tribute to, and the House of Internal Affairs couldn't get involved with County Magistrate Yuan.

Even if he didn't understand, he naturally had to ask. After Jia Zhu asked, Yuan County Magistrate smiled wryly: "Young Master Jia doesn't know something. It is a matter of honor to produce a tribute here, but it is also a matter of destroying a family. The tribute must first go through the government, the province, then the ministry, and then the Ministry of Internal Affairs. If anyone in the middle says that the quantity is wrong and the quality is not as good as in previous years, even the county magistrate of this place can do it. gone."

"In order for people to find faults, we have to invite men from all walks of life to try it out. Often, one piece of tribute is brought into the palace, and ten pieces are not enough to prepare on the way. But the money from the Ministry of Internal Affairs is only the price of that one piece. So it is better The county magistrate, managing the Ministry of Internal Affairs, is not for the sake of paying tribute to the things in his own place, but to ask the masters of the Ministry of Internal Affairs to look down on them."

It turns out that this is the case, that is, to ask for a card when you eat.Jia Zhu nodded clearly, but the master was secretly worried.The county magistrate of my own family obviously wanted to talk to Mr. Jia, so why did he just pour out the bitterness?Besides, Mr. Jia is just a son. He was also called a student to the county magistrate just now. It is obvious that he is not an official. What's the use of complaining to him?

Listen to what Mr. Jia said: "It's hard for County Magistrate Yuan to worry about the people so much. The people of Sheyang are blessed to be under the rule of County Magistrate Yuan."

County Magistrate Yuan waved his hand after hearing this, and said to Jia Zhu: "If the common people can eat enough, I, as a county magistrate, will be worthy of my elders. If you are not afraid of Mr. Jia's laughter, since Mr. Jia came to Sheyang, how many people Tell me that you spend a lot of money, so I might as well collect more tax money from Mr. Jia, so as to ease the urgent salt tax. I didn't agree, just to let Mr. Jia stay in Sheyang for a while. Don't ask for anything else, Mr. Jia buys food from the county every day, enough to support more than a dozen shops."

Such a sincere county magistrate was beyond Jia Zhu's expectation. He took a careful look at the county magistrate Yuan, and felt that the person's expression did not seem fake, so he smiled again. This time the smile lasted a little longer, and the master felt that this Mr. Jia must be a direct descendant of the Rongguo Mansion.

"Magistrate Yuan, don't worry, I had some disputes with my father before I went out, so I walked a little farther away. Fortunately, the old lady and wife love me, and the money is not afraid of me, as long as I can give birth and take care of myself. That is the county magistrate Yuan It’s okay to stay in Sheyang for a while longer.”

The words were not without arrogance, but both County Magistrate Yuan and the master felt that this was the style of everyone's sons, and they all smiled and nodded, and the relationship between the few seemed to be brought closer by this.

Jia Zhu took the opportunity to tell her why she came: "The county magistrate Yuan is worried that the people will have enough to eat. I have something to do. I want to hire more craftsmen from the county and pay some wages in addition to taking care of the food. It's just that It took a long time to hire people, and I was afraid that those craftsmen would have to work hard, so I came to discuss it with the county magistrate."

It turned out that this was the case. County magistrate Yuan took a look at the master, saw him nodding slightly, smiled at Jia Zhu and said, "Young master Jia gave them a way to get money, how could this county block it? When it comes to labor, the county Apart from repairing the city wall, there is no labor to do, and in previous years, ICBC was directly charged for work.”

Jia Zhu sneered inwardly. When he didn't talk about business just now, the county magistrate was still full of worries about the people's food, and when he talked about business, he had to pay for it.He is not short of this money, but he can't have as much money as others want.

After some bargaining, the two parties agreed that Jia Zhu would hire a hundred people in villages and towns near Sheyang County.However, County Magistrate Yuan had to explain clearly to those people that they were doing work for the county, and they were not allowed to go home without Jia Zhu's permission, nor could they tell their family members what their work was.

County magistrate Yuan was also a little curious about what Jia Zhu asked these people to do. After asking, he knew that Jia Zhu was just a fault of everyone.

Who knows that the master at home thinks he is whimsical, and let him concentrate on the imperial examination and not be distracted by foreign things.The two fathers were so proud of this, so Mr. Jia ran away from home with his people, and he had to make a real chapter to show his father.

It's just that he ran away from home, and he didn't bring many people with him, and they were all rich and powerful slaves. How could he make a living as a rough envoy? After a few days, he was already complaining, so Young Master Jia had to hire people from the local area.

County magistrate Yuan couldn't help curling his lips when he heard this. The difference between people is just a matter of reincarnation.I am successful in my studies. I was a second-class Jinshi in my 30s, and I was successfully elected as an official. I am not unsatisfied.

But when he took office in the county, he only brought three or four people with him, and even the master was left behind by the previous county magistrate.But Mr. Jia, he didn't bring a few people with him when he ran away from home, and there were more than a dozen people to serve him. When he came to the county, he bought another ten people. Where can people compare?

If you can't compare, then flatter.County magistrate Yuan felt that his guess was true, but he still wrote a letter to his year in Beijing.Although I don’t think I’m at a disadvantage now, I still have to ask the truth, and I can’t make offerings to fake Buddhas as real Buddhas.However, this letter could not be updated within a day, and County Magistrate Yuan still had to support Jia Zhu well before the news came back.

For the time being, magistrate Yuan believed that he was just taking a gamble with his father, and that he had the private money from his grandmother and mother in his hands. He vowed to test something to prove himself to his father, so Jia Zhu could do it freely. .

The people in Sheyang County are indeed suffering. Many families are salt households, and they have been making salt for generations.The income from cooking salt every day is not enough for food and clothing. In a year when the salt quota is insufficient, the whole family may lose their heads.In order to continue the bloodline, after many families gave birth to a boy, they did not give him a household registration, similar to putting the land on the hidden household of a powerful family.Once something happened to the family and was questioned by the government, the one who did not have a household registration could still survive, which was regarded as saving a trace of blood for the family.

But it is not without disadvantages, that is, besides boiling salt, there are very few other jobs to do on the ground in Sheyang. Those men without household registration have no one to work everywhere.Now when Jia Zhu is talking about recruiting people, people who hear the news are crowded, wanting to get a meal job from him.

Jia Zhu asked her two servants, Wu Ming and Wu Liang, to be guards. They recruited strong men under [-]. They paid eight copper coins a day to manage the meals, and there were even more people who came to line up to work.

After recruiting 100 people, Jia Zhu called a stop and asked Wu Ming to lead the 100 people to do what he and others used to do—leveling the beach.Now in Sheyang County, the news about Jia Zhu people being stupid and rich in money spread even more widely. Every day, people watched the western scene and watched Wu Ming and others flatten the beach.

Wu Ming will be treated like a monkey every day, wishing that he would be valued by his uncle, so he didn't go out of Beijing with him.It's too late to say anything now, this place where the birds don't shit is a hundred and eight thousand miles away from the capital, it's not working every day, and the land is not working, there is no other way to think about it except to follow the orders of the uncle honestly.

But there is still resentment, Wu Ming is even more faceless than Jia Zhu every day, and he scolded the workers who went to work. When those workers saw him, their strength was exhausted, and within a few days , I bought a beach more than ten miles in size, and it was all leveled.

Then I invited Jia Zhu to check and accept it, but Jia Zhu suddenly discovered the problem: the flattened beach is a little higher than the sea level, and it is idiotic to want to lead the sea water directly into the salt pond: the two brothers Wu Ming are as natural as Jia Zhu. Growing up in Rongguo Mansion, even though he was a slave, he didn't know how to farm. When Jia Zhu asked Pinghai to flatten the beach, he made the salt pond.In order to make the old man Jia Zhu happy, the beach was built as flat as possible, and the salt pond was repaired as large as it was.

Then what Jia Zhu saw was a flat beach, piled up sand embankments, and unreachable sea water in the distance...

It was obvious that they had done useless work, and Jia Zhu was not discouraged. He asked Wu Ming and Wu Liang to ask those workers, whoever could think of a labor-saving way to pour sea water into the large ponds that were repaired, would reward them with a tael of silver.

There are only eight copper coins for a day's work, and one tael of silver for an idea. The craftsmen's thinking has diverged. The most stupid way is to carry the shoulders, and it will be rejected internally.Then there are also those who say that they dug the channel, and some who say that the salt pond was rebuilt, and so on.

At this time, Lin Ruhai sent someone to deliver a letter to Jia Zhu, telling him to go back to Yangzhou, and Jia Zhu handed over the matter of leading the sea water into the pond to the ten people that Lin Ruhai gave him, and the ten newly bought servants also took care of him. Staying to help, I took Wu Ming and Wu Liang back to Yangzhou.

Wu Ming was very puzzled: "Master, why didn't you leave the little one behind? I'm familiar with those things. If Yang Sen and the others take over, I have to re-acquaint myself with it." Why don't you just let those people take the credit for yourself?

Jia Zhu knew very well that the two of them were playing small calculations, if it wasn't for their dedication this time, Jia Zhu could have kept them in the saltworks for the rest of their lives.

"After I return to Yangzhou this time, I won't stare at Sheyang every day." Jia Zhu thought the car was bumpy, didn't read a book, just closed his eyes and rested without opening them, and said softly.

Wu Ming was very surprised: "The uncle is not here, why do you still throw in so much money?" The county magistrate bought it for 200 taels without any trouble. There are many ICBC.

I am just throwing bricks, whether I can attract jade or not, I still have to look at Mr. Shi Lin, the patrol officer, Jia Zhu's positioning is very accurate, and I don't bother to explain to the servant, just continue to close my eyes and rest.

I closed my eyelids all the way, and then returned to Yangzhou. I went to Jia Min and learned that there had been a letter from Beijing. Li Wan gave birth to a boy on the seventh day of October, and Jia Zheng named him Lan.

"You have a son too, do you want to go back to Beijing?" Jia Min asked Jia Zhu with a smile.Now she likes her nephew from the bottom of her heart. Since he came, her family's health has improved visibly with the naked eye. It was the weakest brother Tang before, and now she is running away with joy.

Jia Zhu shook her head: "I have agreed before leaving home, if my uncle is willing to give me advice, I will study with my uncle."

Jia Min sighed after hearing this: "You men, how can you understand a woman's mind." After speaking, he remembered something, and his face darkened.

Jia Zhu smiled: "Although I don't understand, but if a man wants to protect his wife and children behind him, he must stand on his own. In a place like Beijing, there is nothing my aunt doesn't know. Without an official body, how can I stand? .”

Jia Min also knew what he was telling the truth, so she didn't try to persuade him any more, she just said that she had already delivered something to Beijing for him, if he had anything else to send, just get ready and send someone to deliver it. Then he drove Jia Zhu to the study to meet Lin Ruhai.

Although he has only been away for more than a month, Lin Ruhai's state seems to be different from before he left: "You are back, I heard that the beach has been leveled out in your place, so you should act quickly." After speaking, he laughed twice, as if he really Be happy to act quickly for Jia Zhu.

Jia Zhu also smiled slightly: "The magistrate of Sheyang County is not in a difficult situation, and the manpower is easy to recruit, so the progress is faster."

"County Yuan's mouth is broken, but there are still people in his heart." After Lin Ruhai said this, he said to Jia Zhu: "After you left, I also sent people to Binhai, and acted according to the book. The day before yesterday Only then did I get the letter that salt crystals really started to appear in the salt pond there." The corners of his mouth curled up slightly at this point.

Jia Zhu naturally knew that Lin Ruhai wouldn't just let himself, an inexperienced person, experiment - the emperor made a decree, so he had to produce the results as soon as possible, and he couldn't make a big deal for the emperor, right?Looking at it now, Lin Ruhai still has capable people in his hands, but I don't know who gave him the man in the hands of the seemingly polished Xunyan Yushi.

Seeing that Jia Zhu heard this, Lin Ruhai didn't express any displeasure, nor was he annoyed by others, so he raised his evaluation of Jia Zhu by two points in his heart, and explained to him kindly: "I have lived in the Yanzheng for these years, and I saw the people eating The difficulty of salt, I also wanted to increase the salt production, but unfortunately I couldn’t find a way. After you sent the ancient books that day, I sent people to Binhai, Yingtai and other places to test. Just because I was afraid that it would not work, the places I chose were biased. A little bit."

It was precisely because he knew that Lin Ruhai would let people experiment, Jia Zhu was not in a hurry, and it was also because he knew that Lin Ruhai would not make a big fuss, so Jia Zhu wanted to make it known to everyone.Now that Lin Ruhai is about to succeed here, it's enough for Jia Zhu to attract other people's attention. There is no need to let Jia Zhu stay in Sheyang, lest he really become a target for others.

"Thank you, Uncle, for your love." Jia Zhu solemnly thanked Lin Ruhai. She didn't think it was wrong for him to push herself to the front: Lin Ruhai and Jia Min had the same relationship. This was when she was Jia Min in her life. knew.Over the years, Jia Zheng has been the home of the Rongguo Mansion, not to mention helping Lin Ruhai, and even wanted to drag him into the water several times. Now that Lin Ruhai can treat him like this, he has done his best.

Seeing Jia Zhu being so upbeat, Lin Ruhai nodded in relief, "I asked you to do something this time to test your character. Now it seems that you can hold your breath and do things well."

Jia Zhu had already stood up and bowed to Lin Ruhai: "I wonder if uncle can accept Zhu as a disciple now?"

Lin Ruhai nodded in satisfaction: "Of course I will accept it." After speaking, he asked someone to go to the back house and tell his wife to prepare a family banquet. After agreeing on the date, he would post a post to invite people to watch the ceremony and accept his disciples.

Although Jia Min didn't know that Lin Ruhai had brought Jia Zhu to work, and she had carefully instructed him why she wanted to hold a teacher apprentice banquet, but it didn't prevent her from handling the matter thoughtfully and satisfactorily.There were not many people from Jiangnan official circles who came to the banquet, but there were quite a few of Lin Ruhai's classmates in the same year. Jia Zhu, who has dealt with him for several generations, had to praise: the old fox hides deeply enough.

From then on, Jia Zhu realized how superficial Lin Ruhai's confusion was when he led his own affairs and instructed him to study, but it was just some truths that people in the world can understand after thinking twice.

What Lin Ruhai teaches and guides him to do now is the experience of this old official for many years. Jia Zhu feels that his previous lives have been wasted when he learns it.Not to mention anything else, just to say that negotiating taxes with salt is something that ordinary people dare not think about. Not only did Lin Ruhai do it, let the salt merchants pay one-tenth more salt tax every year than the previous year, but also let the salt merchants If they are grateful to him, they have to be admired.

The most terrible thing is that Lin Ruhai is not a person who is as clear as water and as clean as a mirror. He also has a lot of gray income, but no one thinks that he is corrupt, and there is no voice of criticism in the court. Sacred Heart can do it.

Jia Zhu looked startled, asked questions when she didn't understand, and made up for the dangers of the officialdom by Lin Ruhai's side. Even on New Year's Day, she only studied books and returned to Beijing, and she didn't say a word of greetings on weekdays.

Lin Ruhai saw that he was gentle and considerate when he got along with Jia Min, Daiyu and others. He was so kind to his biological parents, and he didn't even ask Jia's mother, so he knew that Jia Zheng and others were hurting their hearts too hard. , Now no matter how many things are sent, no matter how many people are sent to serve, it will not be able to make up for it.

I couldn't help but rejoice that my initial temptation was reasonable, otherwise such a proud disciple would have fallen into someone's hands.If he hadn't taken Jia Zhu into his family, he wouldn't have known how to deal with the catastrophe on Daiyu's fifth birthday.

Whenever I think of what happened on Daiyu's fifth birthday, Lin Ruhai still can't help feeling chills in his heart: the monk Dao who appeared out of nowhere that day scared both Lin Ruhai and Jia Min, but was questioned by Jia Zhu's righteousness. Speechless, being directly struck by the sky thunder to wipe out his soul, Lin Ruhai always thinks of it, and feels lucky that his disciple is so worth it.

The secret decree in front of him is a bit of an eyesore.

This secret decree was the emperor's reply after receiving Lin Ruhai's report that the sun-dried salt experiment was successful, and the output was several times that of the decoction method.In addition to asking Lin Ruhai to give a detailed report on the method of drying salt, the superiors praised Lin Ruhai for sharing the emperor's worries and benefiting the people, and said that the emperor saw Lin Ruhai's contribution and would soon have a decree of grace.

Lin Ruhai could guess what the decree was, it should be a promotion for him, or it might be a promotion in Beijing.If this decree had been issued before the salt drying method failed, Lin Ruhai would feel that it was the emperor's love for him, but now he just feels that he has a breath in his heart, unable to spit it out or swallow it.

In the reply, the emperor did not ask whether the salt drying method was to be promoted, nor did he mention who would hand over the salt drying method and the two mature salt farms once Lin Ruhai left Yangzhou.

The success of salt drying and the increase in salt production may be a good thing for the common people, but for the royal family that controls Jiangnan with salt tax, it is a mixed blessing.How can I think that the emperor will vigorously promote sun-dried salt just because the emperor approved the experiment?

Lin Ruhai smiled wryly, and ordered someone to invite Jia Zhu over.There was nothing to hide, so I told Jia Zhu about the matter, and asked him: "In your opinion, is this salt farm waiting for the saint to send someone to take it over, or is it going to be handed over to the local government now?"

Unlike Lin Ruhai, who still had a little fantasy about the emperor, Jia Zhu knew what kind of piss the emperor was, and he smiled at Lin Ruhai: "I think it's better to maintain the status quo for the time being. The sage always holds something in his own hand." Just rest assured."

Lin Ruhai understood what he meant, and it was even more difficult to maintain respect for the emperor. He sighed and lowered his voice a bit: "I thought that with the increase in salt production, the people would no longer eat light food, but they would have enough money to get enough food and clothing. Who knows... ..."

This is just a complaint, and everyone who listens to it knows that if the emperor really intends to promote it, it will not take a day for the salt drying method to be achieved, and Lin Ruhai has not reported it once. How can there be only two salt drying farms now?

Jia Zhu waited for Lin Ruhai to finish speaking, and then said: "In the land of Sheyang, the people all know how to dry salt. Even if the court doesn't build salt farms, it will be easier for salt households to pay salt, and I won't be hungry. It's always a good thing." .”

Yes, there is also the Sheyang salt field that Jia Zhu opened with great fanfare. No matter whether it is an experiment or a finished salt, it is all under the noses of the people in Sheyang. Everyone can learn it just by watching.

"At that time, you had to make the incident of salt drying known to everyone, because you thought about it today." Lin Ruhai used affirmative sentences, not interrogative sentences.Jia Zhu didn't care too much: "Although a sage has a good name, he values ​​the throne more." Compared with whether the common people can afford to eat salt, the emperor is more concerned about sitting on the dragon chair.

Lin Ruhai smiled self-consciously: "Forget it, I'm not as clear as you. Presumably you chose the place in Sheyang because you were sure that County Magistrate Yuan has some integrity, so you won't increase the salt tax easily."

As for the county magistrate who charged hush money for recruiting, Jia Zhu really didn’t care about whether he was honest or not, as long as the magistrate Yuan understood the situation clearly——Jia Zhu never returned to Yangzhou after being recalled by Lin Ruhai. Pass Sheyang once.

But the salt farm has been safe and sound, and no news has spread to Yangzhou or Jinling.It can be seen that Yuan County Magistrate knew Jia Zhu's identity, and he also had scruples about this identity. Jia Zhu's 200 taels of silver were not in vain.

After Lin Ruhai complained, he knew that the emperor had no room for bargaining if he wanted to let him go to Beijing.Jiangnan is not a good place, so it is a good thing to leave early.Therefore, he whispered the matter to Jia Min, and asked her to pack up the valuable things, and Jia Zhu escorted them to Beijing first, otherwise the family would bring too many things when they returned to Beijing, which would attract people's attention.

In less than half a month, Jia Zhu boarded the official ship bound for Beijing, accompanied by two servants, Wu Ming and Wu Liang.Counting that he stayed in Yangzhou for two years, it's time to return to Beijing - next year, it will be the year of the Grand Competition, and after studying with Lin Ruhai for such a long time, it's time to give it a try.

It was an official ship, and the trip went smoothly. After half a month, Jia Zhu had already landed in Tongzhou, but there was no one to pick him up.Wu Ming felt annoyed, and murmured: "It's not that I sent the letter back home early, why didn't I even see a person, such things, how can I see them?"

Jia Zhu glanced at him, then at the coolies on the pier who had been staring at her group, and said to Wu Liang, "Go book an inn and book a yard." This time, the person on board should be half of the Lin family's wealth, if there is any loss , I can't explain to Lin Ruhai.

After hearing this, Wu Liang went to the inn. Lin Cheng, who was sent by Lin Ruhai to accompany the boat, said to Jia Zhu, "Master, shall we unload the things now?"

Jia Zhu looked again at the coolie who was still staring at the official ship, and nodded: "Be careful, the first box of things to get off the ship will be guarded."

After finishing speaking, a coolie stepped forward and asked with a smile on his face, "Master, do you want to unload the goods? Our brothers are famous for their quick hands and feet, and their feet are steady. I guarantee you that there will be no bumps."

Lin Cheng looked at Jia Zhu, and asked himself, "How many copper coins are unloaded in a box?"

The coolie was good at listening to what he said, so he stopped laughing, and said seriously: "Master, you are joking, and you are all pointing at this tool to support the whole family. I will send you to the inn for a box of one penny."

Jia Zhu didn't even frown when she heard this: "Would you like to send me the Jingzhong Inn as well?"

The coolie grinned, knowing that what he said just now was too full: "The uncle is entertaining the little ones. Tongzhou is still far away from Beijing. If a penny is sent to Beijing, the little ones don't talk about wives and children. They're all starving."

Jia Zhu stopped talking, and Lin Cheng replied to him: "We have someone on our own, so I won't bother you."

The coolie widened his eyes: "What, don't bother me, you just bargained with me just now, are you entertaining me?" Just after finishing speaking, a group of people huffed and gathered around, the boss with wide eyes, regardless of what had already entered In September, they left their shirts open, deliberately letting people know that they are not easy to mess with.

Lin Cheng and Wu Ming kept Jia Zhu behind them, and smiled at the leading coolie: "Brother, let's make a point of recruiting, we are an official ship."

Wu Liang, who had already gone to the inn for a face-to-face meeting, happened to see this situation when he came back, and asked Jia Zhu with his eyes. Seeing that he had no other indications, he didn't come forward, and just pretended to watch the fun outside.

After hearing what Lin Cheng had said, the coolie head spat on the ground in disdain: "Hey, the officials out there who are as big as sesame seeds are going to use an official boat to go to Beijing to give gifts. I don't even look at the feet of the emperor, is it you?" The place where the wings are placed, a group of bumpkins, it is still your small place, and the county master is the boss?"

Not only Lin Cheng, but even Jia Zhu made him amused. This is an old wharf. Seeing that no one picked up them, he thought that he had no foundation in Beijing, so he wanted to pay a sky-high price for a penny to move a box of things. Come.

"Uncle Zhu?" A surprised voice came from the outside: "You have returned to Beijing, and I didn't hear our uncle mention it." As he spoke, a person squeezed in from the outside. Jia Zhu looked and didn't recognize him, so he asked