Four Harmonies and Good Fortune

Chapter 558 It’s her
In the heavy rain, several carriages and horses stopped in front of the Wang Xiangong Mansion.

The Minister of Revenue and the Director of the Department of Finance got out of their carriages and hurried into the mansion.

Upon seeing the Wang family steward, the Minister of Revenue asked in a low voice, "Why did you suddenly summon us, sir?"

The Wang family was strict in its discipline. If it weren't for Lord Wang's prior instructions, the steward wouldn't have dared to reveal the inside story. So he whispered, "You two will know once you go inside."

Tea was served in the study, and the two of them sat down one after the other.

Wang Bingchen then put down the official document in his hand and looked at the Minister of Revenue and the Director of the Department of Finance.

"I heard that during the heavy rain, the price of rice and grain in the market did not rise but fell, so I called you over to ask about it."

If it were just a casual inquiry, it wouldn't have prompted them to come overnight; Minister Wang must have other plans.

The Minister of Revenue looked at the Director of the Department of Finance and immediately recounted the recent events.

“These days, the storage yard is investigating the hoarding of warehouses. Those warehouses are helping merchants to stockpile goods. What should have been the imperial warehouses have become places for merchants to hide their goods. This investigation has revealed that this kind of thing has become commonplace among the warehouse owners.”

The finance official went to the storage yard today to check the situation: "Not only that, but alum was also found in the storage yard."

Wang Bingchen frowned: "Someone is smuggling alum privately, and dares to hide it in the storage yard?" The imperial court strictly prohibits the people from smuggling alum, and the checkpoints are very strict. But unexpectedly, after all the checks, it was found to be blatantly hidden in the imperial warehouse.

The finance official said, "I originally thought the warehouse managers were just after some rent money, but I never imagined they would be so audacious."

“With such an incident, no one dares to be negligent. Kaifeng Prefecture has already dispatched troops to guard the storage yard and is determined to investigate thoroughly.”

Alum could be used to smelt copper and manufacture weapons. During the reign of Emperor Taizu, it was stipulated that anyone who privately sold more than ten catties of alum would be executed. It is conceivable that many officials in the storage yard would be punished.

"This matter has not been investigated or reported yet, so you are unaware of it," said the Revenue Department Director. "In short, it has been discovered that there are hoarded goods and hidden contraband. Just hearing some rumors is enough to intimidate those merchants."

"That's exactly right. Which merchant would dare to hoard goods and speculate on prices? Naturally, they wouldn't dare to inflate prices either."

Wang Bingchen asked, "Why was the storage yard suddenly raided and occupied?"

The Finance Minister reported: "It is a case of new and old merchants in the porcelain trade. When reviewing past accounts, they suspected that the merchants were intentionally hoarding goods and manipulating the porcelain market."

The Ministry of Revenue recorded how Xie Yuyan found the storage yard and how he submitted the complaint to the Market and Exchange Bureau. The Market and Exchange Bureau interrogated the merchants, who confessed almost immediately.

With this precedent, inspecting the storage yard becomes a logical next step.

What seemed like a small matter was like a spark falling into a haystack, which, when swept up by the wind, burned ever brighter.

The Revenue Manager said, "I heard that the porcelain merchants have also submitted a report on their practices and regulations to the Market and Commerce Bureau."

Wang Bingchen immediately became interested: "Have you seen it?"

The Revenue Department Director shook his head. The Market Affairs Department hadn't submitted its report yet, so naturally they wouldn't look at it, much less give it to the Ministry of Revenue or the Secretariat, since these were minor matters.

Wang Bingchen remained silent, and the Revenue Director, unsure of what to do, hurriedly looked to the Minister of Revenue.

The Minister of Revenue said, "What are you standing there for? Have the Market and Commerce Bureau send over a copy."

The finance official hurriedly got up and ran out.

With one person missing from the room, the Minister of Revenue and Wang Bingchen no longer needed to hide their conversation. He said, "Does Your Excellency intend to use this matter to completely solidify the Market Exchange Bureau?"

Wang Bingchen nodded: "Once the market exchange affairs in the capital are established, this policy can be implemented in the provinces..." He stopped there, thinking of the rumors about the Xie family and Wang Yan...

The Minister of Revenue seemed to be able to guess Wang Bingchen's thoughts and said in a low voice, "This is indeed a good opportunity, and this time it is different from the new laws we have implemented in the past." Wang Bingchen raised his eyes.

The Minister of Revenue said, "In the past, we issued decrees from top to bottom, but this time it's from bottom to top... Whether it's the storage yards or the guilds, the Market and Trade Bureau needs to step in to resolve the issues."

This will elevate the market to a crucial position, making it more than just a facade.

The good thing is that it wasn't a few of them who persuaded the emperor and civil and military officials with their words. This matter originated from the market, and they simply solved the problem naturally.

Naturally, they wouldn't be exploited by the old party and cause a rift in factional strife.

Wang Bingchen looked up and caught a glimpse of admiration in the Minister of Revenue's eyes. Wang Bingchen's heart tightened; the Minister of Revenue certainly wasn't praising him, but rather assumed it was at Wang Yan's behest.

Wang Bingchen said, "This matter has nothing to do with Hechun."

The Minister of Revenue was taken aback, then quickly replied, "Of course it's alright. He Chun is still handling cases at the Ministry of Justice; how could he possibly be distracted by these things?"

These words sounded resolute, but there was a hint of concealment in them.

Wang Bingchen frowned: "Have you heard something?"

"No," said the Minister of Revenue, "You're overthinking it." How could this matter be unrelated to Wang Hechun? Only someone from the Wang family could come up with such a scheme.

Hearing these perfunctory words, Wang Bingchen felt a lump in his throat, and a bellyful of words almost burst out of his mouth.

He wanted to say to the Minister of Revenue, "Who knows my son better, me or you? How can you be so sure it's Hechun? Did you see it with your own eyes?"
However, as a prime minister, one cannot arbitrarily beat or scold colleagues, let alone spit on others' faces.

Wang Bingchen stopped talking and continued looking at the documents in his hand, tossing a few to the Minister of Revenue to avoid the two of them awkwardly staring at each other.

The poor Finance Minister braved the wind and rain to run around and finally found the Market Affairs Supervisor. The two of them copied the regulations and reports separately, and then rushed back to the Wang family without stopping.

Standing in the room, the doctor couldn't help but sneeze.

The magistrate of the Market Affairs Bureau was meeting Minister Wang for the first time, and the excitement on his face had not yet faded as he stared blankly at everything around him.

He's really struck it rich! He's met all the Wang brothers, and now he's just one step away from paying his respects to the top scholar.

"Director," the Revenue Officer coughed to remind him, "you know best about the porcelain business, so you should report to us!"

The official bowed again to Wang Bingchen and the Minister of Revenue, and stammered, "This all stems from the old master of the porcelain trade's audit."

He explained everything in detail, clarifying the cause and effect.

The crowd finally got to know the whole story.

The Minister of Revenue felt Prime Minister Wang's gaze fall upon him, his eyes filled with the crispness of knowing the truth. It was practically saying that this had nothing to do with Wang Hechun after all.

The Minister of Revenue awkwardly picked up his teacup: "Did Xie Xing really make all of these?"

The official in charge said, "When the porcelain merchants were promoting the elders, the Market Affairs Bureau sent a clerk to them. Later, when those merchants pressed for porcelain, we all knew about it and could not make a mistake."

The Minister of Revenue smiled apologetically at Wang Bingchen, then looked at the trade records submitted by the porcelain merchants. After a quick glance, he couldn't help but wonder if these trade records... were written by Wang Hechun.
"This doesn't seem like the work of a merchant!"

Wang Bingchen's heart tightened again.

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