Gou was a member of the imperial family in the late Ming Dynasty

Chapter 534 Autumn Wind
After chatting for a while, Zhu Qiuqi served tea to see the guest off.

Fan Sanbo was certainly not blind, and he immediately stood up to say goodbye. But before he left, he told Zhu Qiuqi that he would host a banquet tonight to welcome him, and hoped that Zhu Qiuqi would be able to attend the banquet. Zhu Qiuqi frowned slightly, and after a moment of hesitation, he agreed.

Seeing that Zhu Qiuqi agreed, Fan Sanbo finally felt relieved. After Fan Sanbo left, Zhu Qiuqi winked at Liu Bo, and Liu Bo nodded in understanding. He walked around the yard for a long time before coming back.

About an hour later, a servant came to invite Zhu Qiuqi, saying that Fan Sanbo had invited him to a banquet.

Zhu Qiuqi, who was well prepared, stood up immediately, accompanied by Liu Bo. The two of them left the courtyard and headed towards where Fan Sanbo lived not far away.

After a while, they arrived at the place. Fan Sanbo was already waiting at the door. When he saw Zhu Qiuqi and his party coming, he hurried forward to pay his respects, apologizing for not being able to come in person and asking Zhu Qiuqi to forgive him.

Waving his hand, Zhu Qiuqi said it was okay, and then walked into the yard.

The courtyard where Fan Sanbo lived was slightly larger than the one where Zhu Qiuqi lived. After all, he was half the head of the Fan family. Fan Sanbo was already married and had a wife, concubines, and a young daughter, but they were never seen. After all, it was not convenient for female family members to show their faces in public, and Zhu Qiuqi didn't care about it.

When they entered the house, the banquet had already been set up, with a table full of delicacies from land and sea and fine wine. Fan Sanbo invited Zhu Qiuqi to take the seat of honor, and he sat at the lower seat. Because Liu Bo was a member of the Imperial Guard, Zhu Qiuqi asked him to sit down in front of Fan Sanbo. Liu Bo thanked him and then sat to Zhu Qiuqi's left.

After sitting down, Fan Sanbo entertained the two guests, especially Zhu Qiuqi. After all, the other party had a different status, he was a newly appointed provincial governor, and before coming to Shanxi, he was a censor in Beijing. From the time they met until now, Zhu Qiuqi had not directly stated his purpose. Although he said verbally that he was visiting, Fan Sanbo naturally did not believe that a third-rank official would visit a businessman's home on his way to take office.

According to what Zhu Qiuqi said before, he came to Fan's house because someone instructed him to do so when he left Beijing. If Fan Sanbo guessed correctly, the other party was here to extort money, and what he was after was nothing more than the Fan family's money.

This was nothing, since all Ming officials were like this, the only difference was the size of their appetites. The higher the official rank, the greedier they were. When arranging the banquet, Fan Sanbo had thought about it and was prepared to spend a little. As long as Zhu Qiuqi's request was not excessive, he would give him a small amount of silver, which was also a filial tribute from the Fan family.

The position of Censor was one of the three local offices, namely the Provincial Administration Office, the Censorate and the Military Command Office.

The Provincial Administration Commission was responsible for local government affairs, including local administration and taxation. In a sense, it was the highest-ranking of the three commissions, equivalent to a senior official. The Provincial Inspection Commission was responsible for inspecting the various prefectures, assessing the administration of officials, and was in charge of criminal law matters within a province. In this sense, it was equivalent to a senior official who was also the head of the Political and Legal Affairs Commission.

As for the Duzhihuishisi, it was simple. It was the highest officer in charge of the local army, which was the garrison, equivalent to a senior official and military district commander.

The structure of the three local offices was established by Zhu Yuanzhang and has continued to this day. The governor was not a permanent official position at first, but was a temporary position for inspectors sent by the emperor to supervise local administration.

However, as time went by, the original three-bureau structure was no longer suitable for current local management. Gradually, the temporary position of governor became the highest-level official in charge of managing a province on behalf of the central government. His status exceeded that of the three bureaus and was above them.

This situation has become a routine from the Tianqi period to the Chongzhen period, resulting in the Three Departments' power in the local areas being less than before. But even so, the status of the Anchashi, one of the Three Departments, is still not low. After all, the Three Departments are one of the actual highest officials in the court to manage the local areas. Fan Sanbo dare not offend such a high-ranking official.

Accompanying Zhu Qiuqi to drink, Fan Sanbo was very cautious, and kept probing Zhu Qiuqi's cards in his words. Zhu Qiuqi didn't care. After a few drinks, he relaxed and started chatting and laughing, talking about some interesting things in Beijing, and asking Fan Sanbo about the situation in Shanxi.

As a member of the royal family, Zhu Qiuqi naturally had more sources of information than ordinary people, and he was also accompanied by Liu Bo of the Embroidered Uniform Guard. The Embroidered Uniform Guard was more familiar with all the major and minor affairs in the court. After talking with him, Fan Sanbo had no doubts at all and became more convinced of the other party's identity.

When Fan Sanbo saw that the atmosphere was about right and began to ask the other party about the real purpose of coming to Fan's house, Zhu Qiuqi, who was already slightly drunk, sighed first and then spoke out. He told Fan Sanbo that this time he came to Shanxi to serve as the Provincial Surveillance Commissioner because Emperor Chongzhen had nominated him. Before that, there were many things in Shanxi. There was a mutiny in the army, and the Shanxi army was scattered, resulting in the imprisonment and execution of the former Shanxi Governor Geng Ruqi and the general Zhang Honggong.

Xian Kejin was the next governor, but he was dismissed from office and sent back to his hometown to live as an ordinary citizen after serving for less than three months. After Xian Kejin was dismissed, the former censor Song Tongyin was transferred to be the governor of Shanxi, and the position of censor became vacant. Considering the special situation in Shanxi, Zhu Qiuqi was entrusted with the important task and sent to the local area to serve in this position.

Before leaving Beijing, Emperor Chongzhen specifically instructed him that the current situation in Shanxi was not very good, and asked him to solve the problems in Shanxi as soon as possible after taking office.

First, there was the Shanxi Army mutiny. Although all the Shanxi Army in the capital fled, some were captured and wiped out by the local authorities. However, most of the Shanxi Army who fled either joined the bandits or occupied the mountains, which caused great hidden dangers.

Secondly, Wang Jiayin, Gao Yingxiang and other bandits in Shanxi have occupied Ningxiang and Shilou, threatening the surrounding areas of Taiyuan Prefecture. The court is now preparing to send troops to encircle and suppress them. The new Shanxi general will arrive in Shanxi soon. Once the new general arrives, the encirclement and suppression of the rebels will begin. Although Zhu Qiuqi is not responsible for military affairs as the Shanxi Provincial Surveillance Commissioner, public security issues are within his jurisdiction. In addition, the court is currently short of financial resources and needs money and food to fight. Before leaving Beijing, Emperor Chongzhen specifically instructed Zhu Qiuqi to cooperate with Governor Song Tongyin to raise money and food to stabilize the local area after he takes office.

"So that's how it is. Lord Wu is favored by the Emperor. With Lord Wu coming to Shanxi, our Shanxi territory will naturally be safe and sound. The bandits will be wiped out and peace will be restored to the people of Shanxi. Here, I would like to offer a toast to Lord Wu." Fan Sanbo suddenly realized and raised his glass to Zhu Qiuqi.

Zhu Qiuqi waved his hand, picked up the wine glass in front of him and took a sip, but said nothing.

Liu Bo at the side took over the conversation and said with a smile: "Lord Wu is indeed favored by the emperor and has been entrusted by the emperor to take up his post in Shanxi. However, the situation in Shanxi is complicated at the moment. It is not easy to quell the rebellion and eliminate the bandits. After Lord Wu takes office, he will need the help of the people of Shanxi. This is not only a matter for the emperor and Lord Wu, but also a matter for Shanxi itself. What do you think, Mr. Fan San?"

"That's right, that's right!" Fan Sando nodded repeatedly. He knew that Liu Bo was deliberately trying to warn him. It seemed that his guess was right. The only thing he wanted from the Fan family was money. He was looking for a reason to ask him for money.

When setting up the banquet, Fan Sanbo had thought about this matter and made some preparations, but he still didn't know how big Zhu Qiuqi's appetite was. The Fan family could certainly afford the money, but being able to afford it and how much to give were two different things. If they gave too little, the other party would be dissatisfied, and if they gave too much, the Fan family would also feel pain. The money of the Fan family didn't come from the wind, but was earned through hard work in business. How could they take the money away with just a few words? Even if Fan Sanbo was willing, his father Fan Yongdou would not be happy!

Thinking about it, Fan Sanbo prepared to test it first, and immediately said, "This is not only the imperial order, but also Lord Wu's love for the people of Shanxi. My Fan family has lived in Shanxi for generations, so we naturally cannot stand idly by. Lord Wu wants to raise money and grain for the court, and the Fan family, as a member of the Shanxi people, is naturally responsible. However, my father is not at home now, so I will make the decision for my Fan family and am willing to pay 3,000 taels of silver and 200 dan of grain. Is that okay?"

"How much?" Zhu Qiuqi seemed not to have heard clearly and asked in a daze.

Fan Sanbo was shocked. Did he say too little? But three thousand taels of silver plus two hundred dan of grain was not a small amount. Was Zhu Qiuqi dissatisfied with this?

Fan Sanbo immediately repeated it, and then explained with some trepidation: "Although the Fan family is a merchant family, business has not been good in recent years due to the chaos and war. There are many people in the family and the expenses are high. We can barely come up with these now. But don't worry, Lord Wu. Since you have asked for it and it is a demand from the court, the Fan family will naturally spare no effort. I will write a letter to my father later and ask him to raise some more money and food from Zhangjiakou..."

At this point, Fan Sanbo paused and continued, "My father is the head of our Fan family. Only my father can make the decision on the transfer of large sums of money and grain. The Fan family will definitely help Lord Wu solve this problem. I wonder how much money Lord Wu needs? If it is convenient, you can tell me directly. If our Fan family is unable to do so, we will also contact the families in Shanxi to raise money and grain for the court, especially the Zhang family and the Wang family. These two families have always stood together with our Fan family. Together with the other merchants, I think we can solve Lord Wu's problem."

As soon as these words came out, Zhu Qiuqi sneered in his heart. This Fan Sanbo really deserves to be the son of Fan Yongdou. Although he put himself in a weak position when speaking, the meaning of his words revealed other meanings.

What he said just now was nothing more than a reminder to Zhu Qiuqi not to be too greedy, and to give a real number if he wanted to extort money. He also put Zhu Qiuqi before the court, meaning that no matter how much Zhu Qiuqi wanted, the Fan family would satisfy him as long as it was not excessive.

As for the needs of the court and the need to send troops, Fan Sanbo did not mention them at all. In addition, Fan Sanbo also brought up the Zhang and Wang families in Shanxi, using these words to remind Zhu Qiuqi that the Fan family is not without foundation. The Fan family and the Zhang and Wang families have been friends for generations, and the three families advance and retreat together. If they go too far, the Zhang and Wang families will definitely take action, and the Zhang and Wang families are not as easy to talk to as the Fan family. You must know that these two families have a high status in Shanxi, and they are big families that have produced cabinet ministers, and their students and former officials are all over the court. Let alone Zhu Qiuqi, a mere provincial governor, even the big men in the court have to think twice.

(End of this chapter)