Jinyi Town Mountains and Rivers

Chapter 79
For the officials who committed crimes, Fusi Prison in Jinyiwei North Town used to be the most dangerous place, but also the safest place.

It is said that this place is dangerous because there are various appalling punishments in the prison.When the prisoners entered this place, most of them had to confess.

It is said that this place is safe because the prison is heavily guarded.When officials commit crimes, it is inevitable that someone will want them to shut up and kill them.Entering the imperial prison is like buying a life-saving talisman.If you want to go to heaven in the Imperial Prison, unless you have the emperor's will.Prisoners don't have to worry about being silenced at all.

But a few months ago, Ding Wang was poisoned to death in the prison.

A few months later, Wu Liangyong, the former salt transport envoy, was also poisoned to death in the imperial prison.

There is only one possibility—that there is an inner ghost in Fusili, Jinyiwei North Town.

He Liu's head hurts a little.Just now he wanted to report to Commander Lu Bing to interrogate Wu Liangyong and ask him to confess who was behind Sifang Tea House.

When Wu Liangyong died, the clues were cut off.

He Liu said to Deputy Envoy Wang: "Actually, it is the responsibility of your salt transportation office to cancel the privately traded salt quotations. Deputy Envoy Wang, you are only doing your duty by canceling these batches of salt quotations. As for the 5000 taels of silver—— Sifang Teahouse has a lot of money, they are willing to give it to you, we Jinyiwei are too lazy to meddle in this business. Forget it, let's go first."

Deputy Wang knelt on the ground and kowtowed as if he had been granted amnesty.

He Liu and Lao Hu went out of Yanyun Yamen.

As soon as the two returned to the imperial envoy, Hu Zongxian, governor of Zhejiang Province, found them.

"Something has happened!" Hu Zongxian said.

Hu Zongxian is the kind of person who doesn't change his face when the mountain collapses in front of him.He said that "a big event happened", and there must be a big event happening.

He Liu asked Hu Zongxian: "What happened?"

Hu Zongxian said: "Taizhou has a big case of extorting the Japanese! Qi Jiguang seized three large ships full of private salt along the coast of Taizhou. The private salt shipped from the Japanese country! The buyers from the Ming Dynasty were stolen by everyone from the Qi family army when they traded with the enemy. Win! The buyer turned out to be Mabutang, the head of the Salt Merchants Association!"

He Liu was shocked: "Mabutang? A law-abiding businessman who has been in the official salt business for generations actually bought private salt from the enemy?"

Hu Zongxian nodded: "To be a Japanese is to rebel. There is a big rebellion case in Zhezhi, and I, the governor, should naturally investigate it to the end. But Mabutang is the head of the Salt Merchants Association. If he is arrested, the salt market will inevitably Chaos. The national treasury is empty, and it is all supported by the salt tax collected from the salt market! The salt market is in chaos, and the court situation is naturally in chaos."

He Liu asked, "Where is Mabutang now?"

Hu Zongxian said: "He is being escorted to Yangzhou."

He Liu asked again: "What does Hu Butang mean by telling me this?"

Hu Zongxian said: "Sixth, it is your Jinyiwei's special skill to investigate and deal with the treason case. I hope you can intervene and deal with this Japanese case. I am worrying about the military pay of Qi's Army and Yu's Army. I really don't have the energy to distract myself. This case. My request is very simple. The culprit can be dealt with strictly, but the results of this case must not affect those law-abiding salt merchants. The private salt dealers made money and put it into their own pockets. Those law-abiding salt The merchant earns more than half of the money he earns and hands it over to the imperial court."

He Liu smiled: "Let me try to take care of it."

Six days later, Yangzhou government government prison.

The first owner of the Salt Merchant Association, wearing a shackle and shackles, was struggling to chew on a yellow cornbread in the prison.

The cell door opened, and He Liu walked into the cell.

"Boss Ma, please stay safe." He Liu said to Ma Butang.

Ma Butang threw the half-eaten cornbread on the ground: "Master He, do you think I look all right?"

He Liu asked straight to the point: "Why did you buy private salt from the enemy?"

Ma Butang sighed: "Because I, the so-called 'richest man in the south of the Yangtze River', has already been forced to showdown by the court one after another, and I am about to go bankrupt!"

He Liudao: "Why did Boss Ma say that?"

Ma Butang said: "The imperial court has always regarded our salt merchants as a silver box. The imperial court is in a bad situation and needs to use silver. It has always taken silver from the silver box at random—forcibly paying taxes to the salt merchants in various names. I After doing some calculations, in the past ten years, Mabutang alone has donated 80 million taels to the imperial court. The season for salt production has come, but the money left in my hand is only a mere 3 Ten thousand taels. Collect salt from the salt farmers, then buy salt and sell official salt... What can 3 taels of silver do? I can only take the risk and buy illegal salt from the enemy at a low price and put it in my salt store I sold it as official salt. Alas, unfortunately, my luck was a little bit bad, and I was caught by General Qi’s men."

He Liudao: "Stupid, Boss Ma! If you buy illegal salt from Zhejiang or Zhi, you will only be charged with reselling illegal salt. At most, you will lose your head. Buying illegal salt from the enemy has become a conspiracy, and everyone will be executed!" "

Mabutang laughed and said, "Buy private salt from Zhejiang and Zhi? Do you know that in the south of the Yangtze River, there is an alliance of private salt dealers called the 'Salt Gang'. They control the entire Zhejiang and Zhi Illegal salt business. They will never let a grain of illegal salt fall into the hands of people other than the Salt Gang.”

He Liu asked: "Salt Gang? Why didn't I hear you mention it last time I saw you?"

Mabutang smiled wryly: "Misfortunes come from the mouth, and diseases come from the mouth. Last time we met, I didn't tell the adults because I was afraid of causing more trouble. But now I am a repeat offender. Anyway, I am dead. Why don't I drag those people before I die?" It forced those of us who were serious salt merchants to be buried with us."

He Liudao: "Well, then Boss Ma knows everything he can say."

Mabutang said: "There are six largest private salt dealers in the south of the Yangtze River. The identities of these six private salt dealers are secret. They form the 'salt gang'. They first buy private salt from salt farmers, and then go there Sifang Teahouse buys illegal salt at a low price. They cover private salt with official salt and sell it to two capitals and [-] provinces. Because the price of salt in Sifang Teahouse is only half of the official price, their cost is lower than ours The price is [-]% lower than ours, but the profit is [-]% more than ours. It is also "official salt" with salt quotations. They sell it at a low price, and we serious salt merchants sell it at a high price. Naturally, the common people Buy theirs. It's going to make us serious salt merchants so happy."

He Liu asked, "The identity of the six private salt dealers of the Salt Gang is secret? It's as if you didn't say anything."

Mabutang gritted his teeth and said: "I only know the true identity of one of the private salt dealers—that is Lu Da, the governor of Nanjing Jinyiwei!"

He Liu asked: "How do you know that Lu Zhenfu envoy is one of the six private salt dealers?"

Ma Butang said: "Because he recruited me as a partner two years ago and asked me to be the seventh member of the Salt Gang! I was stupid at that time. I thought I was an official salt merchant for generations. I'm sorry for being a private salt dealer." The ancestors of the family! Now that I think about it, it is really ridiculous. The imperial court has almost squeezed the oil from us official salt merchants, so why should I pretend to be aloof? It would have been nice if I joined the gang at that time. Why bother Baba ran to buy private salt from the enemy?"

(End of this chapter)