A powerful minister of the Song Dynasty

Chapter 160 The Emperor Urges Updates (Second Update)
"Brother Twelve, there are five people. We need to think carefully about who to find."

Zhang Fangping sighed.

"Go find Song Shou, the magistrate of Song. He will definitely be able to help you with this matter. At the very least, there are the teachers in the academy."

Song Xuan naturally didn't care about the matter of the guarantor.

Even Master Wang Zhu could guarantee him. With so many candidates, it wasn't like one person could only guarantee one candidate.

Many people are cross-guaranteed. After all, the gentry class today is always a minority.

Zhang Fangping responded at first, then said with some concern:
"Twelfth Brother, we have to go to Song Tongpan for many things. Isn't that too much trouble for him?"

"Don't worry. If someone is willing to help you once, they will often help you a second time. Of course, you just have to be careful not to push your luck."

Song Xuan then added, "For something like this, if you ask Song Tongpan for help, he will be really happy."

"understood."

Zhang Fangping thought about it and felt that his twelfth brother was right.

Song Xuan observed the crowd on the street and saw that someone was paying attention to him.

He didn't know whether he was from the Imperial City Bureau or a killer that Gu Zimo had seen before.

Tomorrow is a day off, and I'll just follow Qu Ze outside to identify people, so I can be prepared.

When I returned to the bookstore, Gao Zunfu hurried to meet me.

In fact, he had just received news from the government.

The emperor questioned.

Journey to the West is such a good storybook, why didn’t Song Shier write it?

On the contrary, Song Xuan wanted to sell this crappy Story of the Stone. There were too many women chattering about it, and it was boring.

Gao Zunfu did not dare to delay in answering the emperor's questions.

How would he know why Song Xuan didn't write?
Gao Zunfu came to Song Xuan's shop in a hurry, wanting to inquire about the progress of Journey to the West.

However, the shopkeeper said that his young master was preparing to take the examination, so he did not write it in time, and he did not want to deal with the readers who liked this story in a random manner.

Gao Zunfu got the answer and was about to leave.

But when I thought about it, if the government asked when I could write a new one and I couldn’t get anyone to answer, wouldn’t this thing be a failure?

So he had been waiting for Song Xuan, wanting to ask for a definite answer.

"I'd like to let this gentleman know that I'm going to take the exam in a month. I guess if I have to write another chapter, it will probably be after the exam."

Gao Zunfu remembered this incident and then politely asked Song Xuan where he bought the glass.

It would be beneficial to pretend that he values ​​his business very much and of course not let Song Xuanbai put in any effort.

Song Xuan was polite:
"If this guest wants to buy it, feel free to come to me with the money. I will not easily disclose the channel information no matter what."

Gao Zunfu understood, but he really didn't find out anything about it.

So after saying goodbye, Gao Zunfu returned to his accommodation and began to write a reply to the emperor, reporting Song Xuan's answer and also mentioning the conversation between Song Xuan and the local wealthy merchants.

Of course, the more important thing is that these wealthy merchants have no respect for Yan Shu, the prefect of Yingtian Prefecture.

The shopkeeper Tao Hong came over and said that Gao Zunfu had been waiting here for a while. He guessed that he wanted to come and talk to him on purpose to make a better impression.

As for the fact that the emperor also liked to watch Journey to the West, it was not within Tao Hong's consideration at all.

Song Xuan also felt that Gao Zunfu thought so.

Would a person like Liu E, who has a strong desire for power, like to watch the story of Sun Wukong rebelling against 100,000 heavenly soldiers and generals?

Impossible to think about!

As for Song Xuan's judgment of the Song Dynasty royal family, it was also wrong.

Although Liu E had a strong desire for power, she did not suppress Zhao Zhen.

She knew clearly that if she did not have this son and replaced him with another son of the royal family, her desire to stay in power for a long time would be illicit.

Moreover, once a member of the royal family ascends the throne, he will not be as tolerant of her actions as Zhao Zhen!
"Don't let your guard down."

After Song Xuan finished speaking, Tao Hong continued, "Zhang Tuiguan is waiting for you in the study."

"Ok."

Song Xuan didn't expect that Zhang Kang would be able to come back so soon after his survey.

When Song Xuan went in, he found that the originally white and plump Zhang Kang had turned into a big black fat man.

Even compared to before, her face is much thinner.

"Zhang Tuiguan, you are really going to suffer!"

"Hahaha."

Zhang Kang is not afraid of hardship.

Deep down in his heart, he had a strong desire to climb up, which supported him.

As long as the flood control work is effective, all the suffering we have endured during this period will be completely worth it.

"I am dedicated to the imperial court and cannot endure such hardship. How can I possibly do this?"

Zhang Kang greedily poured the cold drink into his mouth.

He has been missing this these days.

"belch."

Zhang Kang burped before speaking:

"Twelve, your shop is open again."

"I looked down there for a while and saw quite a few people were buying."

Zhang Kang took out the lottery ticket in his hand:
"Can this thing really win the prize?"

"What a joke." Song Xuan hung his cloth bag aside.
"If you can't win the prize, why would so many people come to buy it?"

"That's true."

Zhang Kang put away his lottery ticket and then complained:

"The Stone Records you wrote is boring. It's all about family matters. And the Twelve Golden Hairpins don't sound very pretty from the description."

Song Xuan chuckled and said, "Don't neglect the main point for the sake of the trivial. Selling this three-star lottery is the right thing to do. That talk is just an extra."

"Hey."

Zhang Kang naturally knew how Song Xuan’s shop assistants promoted the product outside, which was completely the opposite of what he said.

"Your business is so hot, aren't you afraid that someone will take advantage of it?"

Zhang Kang poured himself another glass of cold water:
"Song City is no small town like Lema. The power structures there are complex and intricate, and there are many people who are eyeing your business."

"Zhang Tuiguan really has a sharp eye."

Song Xuan sat over and poured himself a glass of cold water:
"Some people have started to contact me, but I just spread the word that the cost of doing this business is very high, and not everyone can do it."

"how?"

Of course Zhang Kang knew that Song Xuan had a talent for business.

Otherwise, wouldn’t Lema Town’s reputation as the “timely rain” be in vain?

That means you have to keep spending money.

"The two transparent pieces of glass on the lottery machine are worth a fortune each, and this ensures trust."

Zhang Kang hadn't thought about it that way originally, but only came to his senses after Song Xuan reminded him.

Such a large piece of transparent glass is indeed rare in the world.

"Straight bitch!"

"How much money does Song Twelve have?"

"wrong."

"Those two pieces of peerless glass are hard to find even if you have money!"

In this way, Song Xuan directly raised the cost for others to prevent this infinitely.

Zhang Kang would not blurt out his inner thoughts. He said calmly:

"I don't quite understand. How can those two pieces of glass prove trust?"

"Zhang Tuiguan, can you think about this? How can we make everyone feel that the betting game is fair?" "Of course, under everyone's watchful eyes!"

After Zhang Kang finished speaking, he understood.

He also raided gambling houses and saw how they played.

In order to control the wins and losses, the dealer will often make secret moves.

"Can you control which number wins the prize?"

"I can't control it, otherwise how can I say it's all luck."

Zhang Kang nodded slightly, secretly admiring Song Xuan's real ability.

But he was certain that even if Song Xuan did not control who would win the prize, he would always be the one who made money.

"What a good deal!"

Zhang Kang drank the cold drink again: "It's your turn to make a fortune, Song Twelve."

"Two cents, that means in the long run, it will make money. Right now, it's all invested and I haven't even recovered my original investment."

Even to Zhang Kang, Song Xuan didn't say anything about making a lot of money.

Zhang Kang took out the water map he had drawn, compared it with the water map drawn by Song Xuan, and described it to him.

There are quite a few rivers around Songcheng that need to be re-dug.

Where to throw away the silt and sand is another huge expense.

In addition, the people have to perform labor service during the off-season, so repairing the river will definitely not be completed in one or two years.

"Official Zhang needs to make a good plan and do it according to the timeline."

Song Xuan thought for a moment and said, "As for river sand and silt, they can also be sold for money."

"Ok?"

Zhang Kang was worried about how to ask for money from his superiors, knowing that this was no small project.

If you can save money, you will naturally stand out among a large number of river management officials.

"I hope Shi Er Lang can teach me!"

Zhang Kang immediately stood up and saluted Song Xuan.

"Hey."

Song Xuan didn't expect that Zhang Kang had become so agile after being away for a long time.

Maybe if he runs around the construction site more, he can lose some weight.

"Zhang Tuiguan, you and I are friends. Friends help each other. How can you be so formal?"

Zhang Kang chuckled:
"Now I'm begging you, Song Twelve. Even if you don't care, I have to keep this in mind. Otherwise, how can we get along in the future?"

Song Xuan did not hide it:

"The river sand and silt can be sold to the government nearby. They can either be used to repair the city walls, or taken to the saline-alkali land to improve the soil, or used as materials for building river embankments. We can't let it go to waste, right?"

"Sell it to the government?"

Zhang Kang took a breath of cold air.

I really didn't expect Song Xuan's idea to be so explosive.

"It's not appropriate."

Zhang Kang explained everything to Song Xuan.

The river sand was originally dug out by the people who were doing labor service, so it belongs to the government.

If he resells it to the government, won’t everyone condemn him?
This is a really bad idea.

"How about this: the government sells it to temples and encourages them to expand or renovate. The government can make money, and the people can also earn money by working there."

"When temples buy construction materials, other merchants can also make a profit and pay more taxes."

Song Xuan stretched out his finger:

"I'm just giving an example. It doesn't have to be sold to temples. It can also be sold to county schools or academies in various places. There is always a demand for buildings."

"According to my experience, the imperial palaces are all built similarly. His Majesty isn't particularly interested in palaces, so there's only a demand for buildings like this right now. They can absorb the river sand dredged from several water systems."

"Ah."

Zhang Kang felt that what Song Xuan said later was what could really solve the problem.

As for the idea of ​​transferring money from one hand to the other, it was completely nonsense even if he was talking nonsense.

"Well, I will write a summary of the suggestions and send it to Prefect Yan."

Zhang Fangping had also finished his shower by this time and called them to go downstairs to eat.

After Song Xuan sent Zhang Kang away, he was not in a hurry to study. Instead, he took out the letter written by Cao Liyong.

In the letter, he revealed some things about the prime ministers, such as whether your behavior of buying storybooks openly but selling lottery tickets secretly violated the laws of the Song Dynasty.

Cao Liyong guessed that this was a counterattack by Dou Chou's forces. You are lucky to have met me. I will guarantee you in front of the Queen Mother and the Emperor.

Seeing this, Song Xuan couldn't tell the truth from the false for a moment.

However, judging from the two times he came into contact with Cao Liyong, he behaved quite loyally.

You won’t really fall in love with me, will you? Then we’ll have a show of trying to find a son-in-law from the list, right?

Song Xuan had no choice but to pick up his pen again and write a reply to Lao Cao.

I once again emphasized that I had studied the laws of the Song Dynasty a long time ago and I would never do anything that violates the law.

Asking your daughter whether she is pretty or not is always a joke.

In fact, Cao Liyong had someone draw a portrait of his precious daughter when he returned, but he never sent it out.

After all, people call him Minister Cao, how could he be so impulsive?

Even though Cao Liyong was only provoked by the words in Song Xuan's letter at the time, after he went to the palace and calmed down, he still knew what to do.

Finally, Song Xuan wrote: If you are on a business trip, come to my place for dinner. I will prepare some grilled lamb skewers for you, and I guarantee you will enjoy it.

……

"Forehead."

Song Xuan got up from the bed, full of youthful vigor.

"You bastard, I kind of miss that goddess, Sister-in-law Gu."

Song Xuan washed his face diligently, refreshed himself for a while, and waited for Qu Ze to come.

On Wenmiao Street.

Sun Fu was setting up his stall. He felt a little hungry and dizzy.

He was already 33 years old and had taken the imperial examinations three times, but unfortunately he failed to pass any of them and was one of those old failures.

Or if he continues to take the exam, he will still fail.

The only reason his descendants were able to become officials in this life was because of Fan Zhongyan’s recommendation.

At this time, Sun Fu was traveling to Yingtian Prefecture for study, and he also wanted to visit Fan Zhongyan and ask him for some help.

It would be fine if he was alone, but he also brought his old mother with him to study.

His father died early and the family had no money left, so he simply sold his only residence and took his mother on a trip so that he could take care of her more easily.

Failing the imperial examinations three times really tormented Sun Fu's mentality. At this time, he was only 33 years old, but his hair had already turned gray.

Sun Fu worked hard to smooth the table, sat on a broken chair, and basked in the sun, hoping that a few guests would come to write letters today.

He wanted to earn some money and buy some food for his mother.

Sun Fu had already made up his mind that if no customers came by the afternoon, he would go begging.

As long as you are alive, what does a scholar’s ​​face matter?
His repeated failures in the imperial examinations had long since eroded the pride in his heart.

If I could pass the imperial examination successfully, my mother wouldn't have to suffer with me all the way, right?

"What a pity! It's one thing to have such a miserable life, but why am I so unwilling to live up to my expectations?"

Sun Fu tilted his head back, trying his best not to let his tears fall.

(End of this chapter)