Ma Erniang's Splendid Pastoral

Chapter 218
Feng Jiangyi smiled: "You young couple are going back?"

"Yes, master, you came at the wrong time." Ma Min'er glanced at her cousin, then at Feng Jiangyi. He came at this time, probably partly for Zhao Yuyan, and partly for the sake of taxation. However, this is a major national event. It is not appropriate to find her or Xia Zhen, so I can only laugh and laugh. .

"You child, you can't stay with the master." Ma Qifeng saw that his daughter was talking casually and without a clue, so he had to speak.

"Haha... Brother Ma is better."

Xia Zhen stepped forward and bowed to Grand Master Feng, "Grand Master Feng, if you don't mind, come with us to the Prince's Mansion?"

Feng Jiangyi stroked his beard and smiled, "Zi'an, Erniang, are you free, come with me?"

Go around?Ma Min'er immediately understood that Master Jiang wanted to take the couple there, and turned to look at Xia Zhen.

"Since the grand master wants to transfer, of course the juniors can only accompany him." Xia Zhen didn't care, since everyone in the capital said he was a fool, and a fool wandered around, no one dared to block the way.

Feng Jiangyi didn't expect Xia Zhen to be so straightforward. Although he was stunned for a moment, his expression didn't change. He still smiled and looked at Fengyun calmly, "Er Niang, what about you?"

"Then find a small restaurant and knock on your wife for lunch."

"Small restaurant? Okay, no problem." Feng Jiangyi nodded with a smile.

Seeing that their words were almost finished, Ma Meier took a step forward and saluted, "Old Master——"

"Madam Zhao, don't worry, Mrs. Zhao will come back when it's time for her."

"Yes, old master, I already know."

Feng Jiangyi nodded, "Go back with peace of mind."

"Yes, old master!"

Feng Jiangyi took Xia Zhen and his wife to the Bada Hutong, which is the most popular pink flower alley in the capital, where the bustling and gentle township is located. In the criss-crossing alleys, there are many high-rise buildings and shops, and the winter sun shines on the brightly colored pavilions and cornices. above, making this piece of prosperity even more eye-catching and dazzling.

Probably during the daytime, there are not many people in front of these bustling high-rise shops.

"Hey, didn't you mean the alley? Why is it the same as the street!" Ma Min'er was puzzled.

Feng Jiangyi replied: "The streets here are narrower than the main street, and each building and store occupies a larger area, just like a house, so the street looks narrower."

"So people call the streets here alleys?"

"Yes, that's right." Feng Jiangyi nodded and smiled back.

Ma Min'er said: "It must be very lively at night."

When Feng Jiangyi and Xia Zhen heard her words, they smiled and did not answer.

"Xia Zhen, what are you laughing at? Have you been here before?" Ma Min'er asked with her lips curled up.

Xia Zhen looked towards the side of the street, as if she didn't hear the little daughter-in-law's question.

Ma Min'er approached him, pulled the back of his hand and pinched him, "Have you been here?"

"Are you asking me something?" Xia Zhen turned her head.

"Hmph, I've been here since I've been here, what are you pretending to be." Ma Min'er pinched him again.

"Well, I've been here." Xia Zhen nodded calmly as if it wasn't the back of his hand that pinched her.

"Hmph." Ma Min'er took his hand and turned around, "Master, have you been here?"

"Of course I did."

"Ah... ah..., old master, you are in my heart, but you exist like a god, how can you come to such a place?" Ma Min'er yelled.

"Haha..." Feng Guangyi raised his head and laughed loudly, "You should still regard me as an ordinary person."

"No." Ma Miner pursed her lips.

"Haha..." Feng Jiangyi looked at Xia Zhen, and turned his gaze to both sides of the alley meaningfully, "Whether it's a merchant, a rich gentry, or a high-ranking official, even a commoner with a little money, they all like to come here to live and dream."

"Master, are you here too?"

Feng Jiangyi looked at the high-rise buildings beside the street while walking: "What do you think, Er Niang?"

Ma Min'er looked at the brothel by the street, the red lantern hanging high must have been extremely gorgeous in the night, "A person like you, Grand Master, always knows what you are doing, so if you come to this kind of place, most likely For entertainment, there is still a little half..."

"What's the other half?"

Ma Min'er turned her head to look at Grand Master Feng, and grinned, "Let you be drunk in the arms of a beauty, let you inflate wantonly, and let your sense of superiority in identity and status be fully reflected, am I right, Feng Tai?" division?"

Feng Jiangyi, who is nearly [-] years old, walks around. Not only does his slightly chubby figure not make him feel bloated, but even on the contrary, it makes him show his demeanor as a powerful person almost perfectly.

"Girl, do you know how long it takes a person to understand what you just said?"

"Sometimes, you don't need time to comprehend."

"..." Feng Jiangyi was slightly surprised.

Ma Min'er grinned, "Books, read more, and you can comprehend all the flavors of life."

"Maybe." Feng Jiangyi was full of emotion, "Here is making money every day..."

"Master, stop..."

Feng Jiangyi looked at Ma Min'er with a broken smile: "You can't let me finish talking!"

"Master..." Ma Min'er pursed her mouth, "Master, you are the grand master, you are the brawn of the country, this is your business, it has nothing to do with me or Xia Zhen."

Feng Jiangyi stopped and looked at the people on the street, they were either hurrying or shaking their heads, "Look at him..." He raised his finger to a hurrying person, "Er Niang, guess what?" Why is he in such a hurry?"

Ma Min'er followed his fingers and looked over. A middle-aged man in his 30s and a servant were walking hurriedly while arranging his robes. She looked towards the brothel behind him, "I overslept in it, Either they ran away for official business, or they were afraid that their family members would ask them where they went last night.”

"He's a businessman."

"Ah...Master, can you see this too?"

Feng Jiangyi smiled, "I haven't heard that people become mature with age."

"Oh, yes." Ma Miner smiled, "Master, your tax reform has been carried out in a gentle and gentle way from the beginning, but this way is effective for ordinary people and businessmen, but for Integral families don't work, do they?"

"That's right, Erniang, you talk about you. I only said the first sentence, and you know the next sentence. If I don't talk to you, who else can I talk to?" Feng Jiangyi looked helpless.

"Talk?" Ma Min'er laughed, "Master, you don't want to talk, you want to dig something out of me."

"Then can you dig something for me?" Feng Jiangyi directly stated his purpose of finding her.

"Teacher, to be honest, my comments and gossips are the same as ordinary people's on this important matter of the country. You don't have to think it's good."

Feng Jiangyi said: "Er Niang, this old man is not a person who stands tall and doesn't know what ordinary people are. Ordinary people can have such insight as you? I don't believe..."

Uh... It's really getting big. In the future society, just find a place where people gather, and everyone discusses national affairs. It's really more exciting than professional consultants. What do you say?

Oh, this is an ancient society, the literacy rate is not high, and people's knowledge is really limited, well, she admits that she has more knowledge than people of this era.

"Master, what do you want to do? Borrow troops from Xia Zhen, beat them up, and tell them, hey, pay the tax quickly, or you will be beaten down one by one, so that you can't open a building or run a business?"

Xia Zhen looked at Feng Jiangyi, "Then these aristocratic families will sue the grand master for treason, and destroy me by the way."

Feng Jiangyi shook his head: "Even if the old man wants to do this, you Xia Zhen will not follow me."

Ma Min'er asked back, "Then what do you want to do, master?"

"Think of a way to make Bada Hutong spit out money."

"That's what you think."

Feng Jiangyi shook his head again and again: "Uh... no, no, I'm old and I can't turn my head anymore, help me think about it."

"Master, you can't think about it, find your think tank, why don't you support them?"

"...Uh... Well, I have tried it, and the methods they come up with are not always satisfactory."

Ma Min'er asked: "What you said is unsatisfactory means..."

Feng Jiangyi laughed and replied: "It's just to prevent these great families from joining forces to mess with me, and then I can collect some Ku Yin for the Holy One."

"Master... Master, you are finally telling the truth!" Ma Min'er's two eyebrows almost turned into eight characters.

"You won't look down on me, will you?" Feng Jiangyi asked nervously and cautiously.

"That's not true. Everyone seeks advantages and avoids disadvantages."

"But you still regarded me as a god just now!"

Ma Miner sighed, "Master, stop talking, I know what you mean, you just want to collect taxes while not touching the fundamental interests of these people, in order to strike a balance!"

"That's right, Erniang is the one who knows me."

Ma Miner glanced at Xia Zhen.

Xia Zhen smiled.

Ma Min'er pursed her lips, "Master, let's go shopping. If I go too far, I won't be able to think of ideas. You can't blame me."

"Understand, understand." Feng Jiangyi was very happy to see Ma Min'er let go.

Ma Min'er thought for a while and said, "That Mr. Xiao shut Zhao Ge'er, and he is the leader of the Eight Great Hutongs. Why don't we start with him?"

"The old man also has this intention."

"Oh." Ma Min'er stared at the old man, "Master, you won't lead me into the pit, will you?"

Feng Jiangyi smiled: "Er Niang, don't worry, I am the person appointed by the Holy One to be in charge of taxes, so I have the right to guarantee the safety of people around me."

Ma Min'er nodded, "It's almost noon, let's find a small restaurant for lunch."

"I invite you to the big restaurant..."

"If it's Qing? Lou?, I'll go!"

"Forget it then." Feng Jiangyi glared at her, asking randomly.

-

Liu Zaili seemed to be attached to Xiao Lin today, and he didn't leave after breakfast.

Xiao Lin pursed his lips, "Liu Zili, you've been busy recently!"

"good!"

"I went to participate in the first birthday yesterday, and today I ran to my place and sat for a long time. Is it so free?"

"Ah."

Xiao Lin raised his eyebrows, "I heard that you lived in the Ma family when you were in the north, have you met the second lady of that family?"

Liu Zaili glanced over, "Your news is not less than that of my Long Xingwei!"

"My surname Xiao is not the only one who knows about the fact that you went to Ma's house to help someone celebrate their first birthday, maybe everyone in the capital knows about it."

"The whole capital knows that it's other people's business. What I'm interested in is that you know."

Xiao Lin said lazily, "You also know the guests in my building. They see me, they have nothing to say, and they always tell me a lot of things. I don't know."

People like them, who don't know who, Liu Zaili didn't even bother to talk to him, picked up the teacup and sipped it one after another.

Xiao Lin was playing with the jade pendant hanging on his waist, his peach blossom eyes were half-smile, and he didn't want to take the initiative to speak.Neither of them spoke, Ruo Da's room suddenly became silent, and it seemed strangely quiet.

It was only when the servant replied that the eerie silence was broken. The two raised their eyelids, and the servant of the two entered the room one after the other.

"There are no rules, let the guests come first." Xiao Lin's voice was not high, and he said slowly.

"Yes!" The boy backed away in fright.

Liu Zaili's servant approached him and whispered into his ear, "Xia Zhen and his wife went to Bada Hutong with Feng Taishi, and now we are having lunch in a small street restaurant not far from Bada Hutong." .”

"Eat in a small restaurant?"

"Yes, it is said that Princess Beijun likes to shop for delicious food."

That's true, Liu Zaili raised his eyes and asked, "That small restaurant?"

"Shu Kee Small Restaurant."

"Well, I see."

The servant bowed respectfully and backed out again.

Liu Zaili stood up, looked at Xiao Lin, "Thank you for your breakfast, goodbye!" After speaking, he went straight out of the room without waiting for his response.

The servant who retreated to the back watched Liu Zaili's men leave, and then stepped forward, "Master..."

"Is the news to be reported the same as his?"

"Yes, sir!"

Xiao Lin lowered his eyes, the light in his eyes suddenly turned cold, the knuckles of the hand holding the jade pendant turned white, "Liu Zaili... Feng Jiangyi..."

-

This is a very clean and tidy small restaurant with a small facade, but it is different from many small shops in the capital. It is not deep and narrow, giving people the feeling of being cramped with no end in sight. It is open to the street and welcomes customers. , is not very big, but because the white board wall is used to cut off the back hall, it looks spacious and bright. There are two rows of six tables, two on the left and one on the right, clean and tidy. When entering the store, there is a sense of spaciousness, brightness and comfort.

Ma Min'er had finished eating, she turned her head and looked again and again, full of praise for this small restaurant, "The owner of this restaurant is definitely a person who is full of enthusiasm for life."

"How do you know?" Feng Taishi asked with interest.

"The so-called extreme delicacy is in the folks. I often take Xia Zhen to small restaurants to search for delicacies. I have seen many small restaurants, but I have never seen such a clean and transparent small restaurant."

Taishi Feng also followed Ma Miner's gaze to look around, even stood up, stretched out his hand to touch the corner of the wall, looked at his fingers, "spotless."

Ma Min'er laughed, "Look at the pictures and stickers on the whiteboard wall."

Grand Master Feng took a closer look, "It's not a famous sticker."

"Haha..." Ma Min'er couldn't help laughing, "Master, why don't you save a frame?"

Grand Master Feng stared at the little girl, then carefully looked at the hanging pictures and stickers, "It's a bit artistic."

"For such a small shop, these moods are refined."

"Erniang is right. It seems that this store owner is indeed a person who knows how to live."

"I don't know if the shop owner is a man or a woman?" Ma Min'er looked at the shop waiter.

The waiter stepped forward and grinned, "Thank you for the compliment, my boss is a woman."

"Oh——" Ma Min'er was surprised but not surprised, "What a wonderful lady boss."

The waiter in the store immediately stepped forward, seven points warm, three points cautious: "If the proprietress's young daughter is not in the store because of illness, I will definitely come out to see you after hearing such a compliment from the guest officer."

Ma Min'er smiled and said: "Wufang, Wufang, as long as the Yangchun noodles and Dalu noodles here are delicious."

"The guest officer is right." The waiter grinned.

Today they are a group of people, although they are dressed in ordinary clothes, but the people in the capital can still feel that they are either rich or noble. Ma Miner is more and more interested in the owner of this shop when she sees that she is neither humble nor overbearing. She must be a wonderful person. Otherwise, he wouldn't have trained such an excellent waiter.

"Master, eat and drink enough, let's go."

Feng Jiangyi nodded.

Xia Zhen took the little daughter-in-law's hand casually, and the group left the small shop together.

The shop waiter followed them away, stood in front of his hanging paintings, and said to himself, "Why did those people just talk about the artistic conception and not the words, okay? But Madam is so talented in my heart..." He seemed unwilling, " Is this what Madam said, there are people outside of people and there are days outside of heaven?"

-

As night fell, the Eight Great Hutongs were brightly lit, luxurious and exquisite carriages and horses came and stopped at the entrances of various buildings.

There is no place where the prosperity can be compared with this place. Under the prosperity, there are various forms of the world and the nature of human relations. Some people will rise to the top here, and some people will never recover here. This is simply the heaven on earth.

Standing in a certain street, Feng Jiangyi said, "Er Niang, it's your turn to make an idea."

Ma Min'er really didn't want to get involved, and struggled again: "Master, this is a major issue related to the national economy and the people's livelihood, I don't think I can get involved at will, why don't you find someone else?"

Feng Jiangyi shook his head and stared, "Didn't you say 'nothing can be broken, nothing can be built'? You've already started it, and now you want to let it go, it's unreasonable."

"Uh..." Ma Min'er was blocked at once, that's right, who let me take the lead in smashing the shop.

Feng Jiangyi said again: "Don't worry, I will take all the responsibility."

"Master..."

"I'm getting old, don't worry, I can protect you."

"Master..."

Seeing that she still refused to let go, Feng Jiangyi said something in his heart, "My thoughts and methods have been bound by my sophistication, I need the unscrupulousness of you young people, only the things that come out of this way can be effect."

"Master, you..." Ma Min'er didn't expect him to think like this, "I..."

"Say it, really, even if it's nonsense, I'll listen to it."

"..." Ma Min'er's hair was covered with black lines, "Master, how dare you."

"For the sake of money, I went out with Huo."

"Mother..." Ma Min'er turned around and hugged Xia Zhen, "I don't want...I don't want..."

Xia Zhen stretched out her arms to hug the little daughter-in-law, looked at Feng Jiangyi who was full of expectation, and put her forehead on the top of the little daughter-in-law's head, "Let's go home."

-

In the night, the largest and most prosperous green in Bada Hutong?building? ——On the top floor of Huaman Building, Xiao Lin sat crookedly on the couch, listening to several stewards taking turns answering the questions. They didn't leave the room until midnight.

The stewards had just left when the attendants came in and approached him quietly, "My lord, the people of King Yanjun are staring at Xia Zhen and his wife."

"Is it always, or recently?"

"Master, it's just these two days."

Xiao Lin narrowed his eyes: "It seems to be because of Zhao Yuyan."

"My lord, is he a member of the surname Zhao, or did he fall into a well..."

Xiao Lin interrupted the steward: "Don't worry about this, Feng Jiangyi has been with Xia Zhen and his wife all day today?"

The steward replied: "Yes, Lord, at noon, after they finished eating at the Shuji snack restaurant, they continued to visit Bada Hutong, but they just walked on the street and didn't enter a certain one. They didn't go until dark. Let's separate and go back to our homes."

"Xia Er's idiot asked his mother-in-law to smash 36 restaurants. Feng Jiangyi followed this matter and reformed the taxation. Small businesses and hawkers have achieved results. Now he wants to touch the shops of the aristocratic families, and he also wants to touch these eight big alleys..."

"Master, these Eight Great Alleys are not..."

Xiao Lin raised his eyelids and glanced at the attendant, he was too frightened to say anything.

-

The early morning of the 21st day of the twelfth lunar month in the Great Wei Dynasty seemed to be different from usual. The entire streets and alleys were filled with people from the military and horse divisions of the five cities. With the help of Bing Ma Si, they methodically recorded the small vendors in the morning market, as well as the vendors who delivered ingredients at the back doors of major restaurants, and Bada Hutong was no exception.

All the alleys of the Eight Great Alleys are filled with Bingmasi people, and the leaders are all the leaders of Bingmasi. While they are maintaining order, the petty officials meticulously record the goods of the vegetable vendors. For those who exceed the number, let them pay the tax immediately.

"I'm sorry, you haven't paid the taxes, and you can't let your food be delivered in the alley. Please go to the Yamen to complete the formalities before coming..."

"We grow our own vegetables in × Wangfu Zhuangzi, what kind of tax do we have to pay?"

The little official replied solemnly: "Whether it is the household department of the Six Ministries, or the Guanglu Temple in the Jiuqing (in charge of the palace guards and attendants, in charge of the meal tent after the Northern Qi Dynasty, and in charge of the meal in the Tang Dynasty) Taifu Temple (in charge of money, grain, gold, etc.) Silk and other currencies), there are regulations in every place, the prince’s mansion, the rich and powerful Zhuangzi produce, or produce for their own use, once there is a takeaway, it is treated as a business, since it is a business, you have to pay taxes, this is also the law.”

"..." The steward of X Wangfu Zhuangzi blinked, "But...we have always been like this..."

The little official said: "In the past, no one cared about it. Now Grand Master Feng is in charge. If you have any dissatisfaction, you can go to the Yamen of Jingzhao Mansion to complain to Grand Master Feng, or you can go to your master and let them directly Look for Grand Master Feng, but now, please pay the tax when it is due, if you don’t pay, please take these dishes back!”

When the steward wanted to make a fuss, the soldiers and horses immediately stepped forward with swords and spears, and the steward dared to do so.

……

Not long after he fell asleep, he was called up by his subordinates. Xiao Lin's gloomy face could kill people. He stood at the intersection and looked at the Feng family not far away.

Feng Zhiping raised his hand, arched his hands towards Xiao Lin who was in the distance, and gave an apologetic smile.

Xiao Lin walked up to him lightly, and smiled, "Father and son teaming up, isn't it good?"

"It is our duty as ministers to solve problems for the Holy One." Feng Zhiping raised his hand again and returned with a smile.

Xiao Lin narrowed his eyes, "You don't know who the owners of Bada Hutong are!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Xiao, who they are has nothing to do with me. It's the Chinese New Year, and I'm just maintaining law and order in the capital."

"Hehe..." Xiao Lin grinned, turned around and left.

(End of this chapter)