The rise of the poor

Chapter 729 Taicang's Late Night Cafeteria

At noon, the earth turned into a cauldron of alchemy under the fan of Emperor Jiajing, and the air filling the sky and the earth was like steaming fireworks. The whole sky and the earth were scorched, and it was so hot that it was hard to breathe.

The domesticated vicious guard dogs in the Taicang silver warehouse lie in the shade of the trees sticking out their bright red tongues, and the nostrils of the horses in the stables are particularly big...

Compared with the heat outside, there is a room in the Taicang Bank, which is like a paradise, as cool as spring.

There was an old dog outside the room, lying on the crack of the door, curled up comfortably and sleeping soundly.

There is a reason why this old dog is lying on its stomach against the sun outside the crack of the door. The cool air that overflows from the crack of the door from time to time is much cooler than under the shade of the trees outside.

From the outside, the room looks unremarkable.

It's too inconspicuous.

It is no different from other warehouses in Taicang Bank. It is a very ordinary structure of blue bricks and red tiles. There is no decoration on the outside. It even looks more dilapidated than other warehouses. There is a small and medium-sized door plaque with peeling paint on the top of the room. , with the uniform number of the warehouse with "Jiyou" written on it.

There is a saying that goes, "Gold and jade are outside, and gold and jade are inside".

This room is just that.

Don't look at the simple and unpretentious outside, but the inside of this room is unique, a luxury that ordinary people can't imagine.

The room is very spacious, with two warehouses connected together. The room is brightly lit. In the center is an exquisite indoor spring pool and water corridor. The water corridor is carved with small bridges and flowing water. A rockery stands in the middle of the spring pool. The spring water flows down like a waterfall, meanders through six small bridges, passes through an S-shape along the water corridor, and then hides underground.

There are potted green plants around the water corridor, and more than ten pots of ice cubes are placed, exuding a slight coolness, making the whole room cooler.

Indoor and outdoor, it seems like every season, the temperature difference is ten degrees, just like turning on the air conditioner in modern times.

In the middle of the room, there is a table for a banquet that is just opening. The tables and chairs are all made of huanghuali wood.

Amber wine, luminous glasses, gold and jade bottles, emerald plates...

The food is picturesque, the wine is like a spring, and the table full of delicacies is rare in the world. Even the finned abalone can only be placed in an inconspicuous position on the wine table, and is rarely eaten by people.

Such a feast is just an ordinary working meal for the eight people present. They are all officials and managers of the Taicang Bank. This is their "late night cafeteria". Just come here for a "simple" "working meal", like today.If someone has a happy event or something, they will add a few dishes and wine on top of the "work meal", which is not a good food or wine for them, that is, Yan Bao Shen Wing and the like The home-cooked food, that is, the decades-old daughter red nothing more.

It was noon at this time, the outdoors were as hot as a stove, and the indoors were cool and comfortable. The banquet was full of people, so the atmosphere was naturally relaxed and happy.

Sitting at the head of the banquet was Mr. Zhang, the Minister of Treasury of Taicang Bank. Mr. Zhang has been the Minister of Treasury for five years.

Mr. Zhang is about 50 to [-] years old. He is elegant and well-maintained. His face is like a crown jade, gentle and elegant. He holds a Suzhou fan made of gauze and silk in his hand.

However, no one dared to underestimate the inadvertent light in Mr. Zhang's eyes.

The Ming Dynasty implemented the two-capital system. Mr. Zhang was the Minister of the Nanjing Household Department, and the Nanjing Household Department was responsible for collecting the taxes and grains of Nanzhili, Huguang, Jiangxi, and Zhejiang provinces (the tax grains paid by these provinces accounted for half of the tax grains of the Ming Empire. ), and at the same time responsible for water transportation, salt introduction, survey and cooperation, etc., Mr. Zhang, as the servant of the Nanjing household department, has a good relationship with Yan Shifan, so he was appointed as the Minister of Taicang Bank Treasury.

The other seven people at the banquet were also senior executives of the Taicang Bank. The two sitting on the left and right of Zhang Guanku were the doctors of the Taicang Bank, and the other five people on the table were all treasurers of the Taicang Bank.

The eight people at this table are the senior management of Taicang Bank.

The Ming Dynasty had a strict management system for the Taicang Bank. There was a treasury minister who was in charge of the Taicang Bank.Below the minister of treasury, there are two doctors, and several treasurers, and then there are eight treasury officials, and there are several treasury officials and fifty treasury soldiers under the treasury.

The Taicang Bank is the fattest meat in Ming Dynasty, and the positions in the Taicang Bank are naturally jealous and drooling.

Let’s not talk about the officials in charge of the treasury, just the treasury soldiers who work here. Every treasury soldier is a mouth-watering fat vacancy. The number of treasury soldiers is a constant 50, and a batch is replaced every five years. When he was in the army, every post in the warehouse was watched eagerly by hundreds of related households.

Every Kubing has a strong enough relationship, or is a relative of a certain person or a confidant of a certain person. Even so, to seek this position, one has to use all means and spend a lot of money to buy joints. In order to obtain a hard-won Kubing position.

The same is true of the treasury soldiers, and the relationship between the officials in charge of the treasury here can be imagined.

"Tsk tsk, the stewed bear's paw is better today than the stewed pig's trotters. Chef Wang really lives up to his reputation. He is indeed a famous top chef in Liaodong."

Zhao Dingtian, a doctor in Taicang, took a bear's paw with chopsticks, shook it into his mouth, opened his mouth and took a bite, the juice from the bear's paw splashed in his mouth, and the delicious smell immediately poured into his internal organs, aftertaste for a while, it was very Satisfied with emotion.

"Hehehe, Mr. Zhao, you are only half right. Chef Wang's culinary skills are on the one hand, and on the other hand, Mr. Zhang doesn't even think about where the bear's paw recipe came from." Another Taicang Doctor Jia Xu joked with a smile.

"Oh, what prescription? Where did it come from?" Doctor Zhao Dingtian asked very interestedly.

"For hairy ones, dig the ground and make a pit, put lime and half in it, put your palms inside, add lime, and pour cold water on it. After the hairs are over, stop cooling, pick them up, the hairs will be easy to remove, and the roots will come out immediately. Wash and soak, Soak the rice swill for one or two days. Wrap it in lard and remove the oil. Tear off the strips and stew the pork with the world’s dragon meat and underground bear’s paw. It’s better than immortal treasures, and gluttonous people should not miss it.” Doctor Jia Xu tasted a dragon well. Tribute tea, knocking on the table, silently recited in cadence.

"So particular. Old Jia, you haven't said where you got the prescription from." Doctor Zhao Dingtian clicked his tongue, and then asked where Fang Zi came from.

"Thanks to Mr. Zhang for not taking care of himself with a broom, you and I are all blessed." Jia Xu, a doctor in Taicang, cupped his hands to Zhang Guanku.

"Thank you, Master Zhang."

Hearing the words, all the people present bowed their hands to thank Zhang Guanku.

"You guys, if you want to thank you, please thank Jia Langzhong. Jia Langzhong discovered this prescription in one of my collections." Zhang Guanku stroked his beard and shook his head with a smile, pointed at Jia Sku with a smile and said. .

There was laughter at the banquet, and everyone was drinking and drinking.

"Hey, speaking of which, how is the inspector appointed by the court doing now?" Liu Treasurer at the wine table couldn't help asking after thinking about this incident.

"Hehehe, Liu Treasurer, what are you worrying about? It's not that you haven't come to inspectors in previous years. One term after another, it's still the same. Hold a meeting, look through the ledger, check the files, the worst thing is Take a look at the scene, point out the work, and then collect some members and leave." Another money treasurer smiled without worry at all.

"But I heard that this year is different. The Holy Majesty has set up a cross-check system. I'm afraid this time the check will be serious." Liu Treasurer hesitated.

"So what, I don't even think about it. How deep is the water here? No matter how many ships come, they will all have to float on it." Treasurer Qian next to him said meaningfully.

"Hehe, Liu Kushu doesn't know yet. I'm afraid the inspection team appointed by the imperial court has already been wiped out." Doctor Jia Xu looked at Liu Saku, with a smile on his mouth, as if the inspection team was just a joke in his eyes.

"Ah?" Liu Siku was taken aback, and then his eyes lit up.

"The inspector is sending Liu Guangzuo home to Ding You. The deputy envoy Qu Tongyang had a stroke last night, and Yushi Sinan was beaten with the imperial staff. He will not be able to get out of bed in a few months. If nothing happens to Mr. Gao Ruigao, There should be an 'accident' in this meeting, of course, I don't need to tell you the reasons for this, as for the young Zhu Ping'an, naturally he doesn't need to bother too much." Jia Xuru, a strategic strategist, smiled profound.

"Hehehe, it's good to be interesting, and don't think about who is above us." The corner of Qian Siku's mouth pulled out a perfect arc.

"Hush, keep quiet, who is above us? Of course the one above is the Holy One." Taicang Langzhong Jia Xu clasped his hands to Xi Yuan and said reassuringly.

"Of course it's His Majesty, of course it's His Majesty." Qian Treasurer looked very understandingly, laughed dryly, and replied repeatedly.

"Haha, Zhu Ping'an must have been too scared to leave the mansion because of successive accidents at his superiors." Another treasurer Zheng said with a smile.

"No, I still want to see what the champion looks like. Besides, someone from the inspection team must come."

"That's right, there must be one person in this inspection team."

"Let's spare some time to deliver the ledger to Master Zhu some other day, so let's coax Master Zhu to come here."

The atmosphere at the wine table became more relaxed, and everyone laughed and joked without any pressure, and there was a feeling that the inspection team was wiped out during the chatting and laughing.

At this moment, there was a knock on the door outside.

Boom, boom, boom.

Three long and two short.

Everyone at the wine table heard the knock on the door, and their laughter continued. The three long and two short knocks on the door were the agreed signal, and they belonged to us.

"Who is it?" Taicang doctor Zhao Dingtian raised his voice and asked.

"Master Zhao, I'm Sun Kushu. Just now the guards outside told the legend that there was a man named Zhu Ping'an outside, who said he was the inspector of the Taicang Treasury and asked to enter the treasury for inspection."

Sun Kushu's voice came through the crack of the door outside.

"What? Zhu Ping'an is here?"

"Why is he here?"

Everyone in the room was taken aback, and then fell silent for an instant.

(End of this chapter)