Qing Yao

Chapter 202 Let's go, let's borrow money at high interest rates.
Three thousand taels is no small sum.

It's like replacing Zhao An's BYD with a Rolls-Royce.

Vice General Wen's gesture was remarkably generous.

However, Zhao An could not accept the money. He understood the principle that one is obligated to accept gifts and favors.

Now that they've received three thousand taels of silver from Lord Wen, how are they going to make them bleed money out of them later?

The canal transport office owed the canal workers seventy to eighty thousand taels of freight fees. Was this money paid out or not, according to the accounts?
It's best if the money isn't in the account yet; even if it's New Year's Eve, we can ask the finance department to expedite the bank transfer.

The government office needs to make payments, and even if the money shop closes down, it still has to open for business.

But if the accounts show that the money has been paid and the funds have been allocated, but the canal guild, as the second party, has not received the money, then where did the money go?

It was just that the money was divided up among the officials in the Grand Canal Transport Office!

Zhao An suspected that the money was mostly divided up privately.

If the Grand Canal Administration cannot settle the outstanding freight charges, Zhao An's struggle against it will end in vain, and he will be unable to establish his tough "decision-maker" image as Zhao Shaojun, or build absolute prestige in the Yangzhou branch.

As for the ordinary members of the gang at the bottom, they didn't even know about the dirty dealings between the gang's higher-ups and the canal transport authorities; they only knew that the canal transport authorities owed them unpaid freight fees.

Just like the workers of later generations, they knew nothing about how the factory dealt with the government, but they remembered clearly how much wages the factory owed them.

Whoever pays their wages is their savior and benefactor.

Zhao An acted as the "trailblazer" who led his fellow workers in demanding their unpaid wages.

Rough words are not rough.

Don't be fooled by the fact that the lowest-ranking members of the gang might only receive two or three taels of silver per person after receiving the shipping fee. These two or three taels are the biggest halo of Zhao Shaojun's character, which is that he can shoulder heavy responsibilities, withstand pressure, and lead the Yangzhou branch brothers to move forward bravely.

Therefore, Zhao An couldn't possibly be blinded by the three thousand taels and choose to call it quits. That would have too much of an impact on his public image and would have weakened the prestige he had painstakingly built up with the Jiao family.

Vice General Wen's understanding was that the young censor might find the position too small. Thinking about it, it made sense; this kid had been making waves lately, and it was said that he had even changed his status from a commoner to a bondservant, so his future was undoubtedly bright.

Judging from his posture just now, he seemed quite determined. So, he must be unwilling to risk his bright future for three thousand taels.

There is only one solution to the problem—pay more money.

Vice General Wen gritted his teeth and added two thousand taels, making it a total of five thousand taels.

That's quite a lot. Last year, even with the deduction of military pay and the government's bonus, Deputy General Wen only received less than 20,000 taels of silver. 5,000 taels of silver accounted for a quarter of his annual income!

If we were to describe Vice General Wen as a country, then the hush money he gave to Imperial Censor Zhao would account for more than 25 percent of that country's GDP.

It's caught up with military spending and education expenses.

While offering more money, he subtly implied that he had no other intention than to ask Censor Zhao to cross out the fact that the grain transport workers had suffered a defeat in his report to the Emperor. This incident never actually happened; the grain transport authorities had always maintained a tolerant attitude in their dialogue with the grain transport workers. It was only because the differences in the interests of both sides were too great that the dialogue had never been successful.

"I understand what you mean, sir, but this puts me in a difficult position."

Zhao An knew that Vice General Wen was sincere. After all, he was going to report that the grain transport commissioners couldn't even beat the grain transport workers. Others might have to wait a while before something happened, but Vice General Wen would definitely be transferred from his post and investigated by the court immediately.

It should be noted that since the old master ascended the throne, he has been extremely strict in dealing with officials who have lost battles. Even if a Manchu bannerman was once favored, he could be killed, arrested, or exiled at will if he suffered a defeat.

Moreover, he was a Han official, and one who couldn't even beat a laborer.

Rather than saying that Vice General Wen took money to keep quiet, it would be more accurate to say that he took money to save his life.

I wonder if Vice General Wen has paid the fine for his crime. If he hasn't, it could be a real problem.

However, this was not what Zhao An cared about. He came here to resolve the matter in one fell swoop, not to collect gifts.

Furthermore, it's not worth it to make him stop for a mere five thousand taels.

If we added a zero, maybe we could just let it go. The New Year is almost here, and there's no point in dragging it out any longer.

If it's not enough, we can always borrow some from the old man; the money comes from the old man anyway.

Old Ding had this idea before, and Zhao An had tacitly agreed.

However, after Lao Ding came to Huai'an, he was not valued by the canal transport authorities, and no one talked to him. Therefore, his idea of ​​sacrificing himself for the greater good could not be realized.

"As long as there are no problems on Lord Zhao's side, there will be no problems elsewhere. Lord Zhao can rest assured on this point!"

Vice General Wen reassured Zhao An, saying that even the governor-general was unaware of his defeat, so how could the emperor possibly know?

If you don't say anything, and I don't say anything either, or if we do say something, we'll downplay it, and then everyone will be happy.

In the Jianghuai region, there were only a handful of officials who could submit memorials to the emperor. Theoretically, if these officials didn't report it, the matter wouldn't exist.

As for the dead and wounded officers and soldiers, it's easy to handle. Just give them some compensation and disability money to keep them quiet. If you're really ruthless, you can even erase their military status from the roster.

Anyway, there are plenty of positions available for those who don't actually receive salaries.

The canal is windy, and it's not uncommon for soldiers to capsize and drown during routine training exercises.

This also fully demonstrates that Vice General Wen was not just going through the motions, but was strictly implementing the imperial military training system and rigorously overseeing training.

What's the big deal about a few people dying or getting injured during training?

It's better than going to the battlefield and being wiped out.

“Logically speaking, it would be impolite for me not to accept your kind offer, but you must understand that His Majesty sent me here because of the canal's interruption. If this matter cannot be resolved immediately, even if I try to be discreet for you, the court might still send someone else.”

Zhao An's meaning was very clear: what you, Deputy General Wen, need to do now is to quickly cooperate in settling the affairs of the canal workers and restoring canal traffic, otherwise the investigation teams from Beijing will keep coming.

How many five thousand taels can you afford at that time?

So you think you can bribe the entire investigation team?

To address the root cause of everything, if you only treat the symptoms, even if you, Vice General Wen, have a lot of bank deposits, it won't be enough to show your respect.

“What Lord Zhao said is very true. I will discuss this matter with Lord Wu. The canal workers will definitely not delay any longer.”

Vice General Wen wasn't lying to the young Imperial Censor Zhao; he genuinely felt that the matter couldn't be delayed any longer, or who knew what would become of it.

This time, the Emperor sent a seventh-rank censor to take a look, and he was able to handle it. Next time, if he sends a minister or a high-ranking official, he'll risk his life to resolve it.

If it were someone like Wang Jie or Qian Feng who came, he wouldn't even be able to keep his head.

"Since you've said so, sir, I have no choice but to comply."

Zhao An sighed softly and silently accepted the silver note. He had no choice; if he didn't take it, Vice General Wen would definitely worry that he would report him to the court, and the matter would be stuck with him instead of moving towards resolving the issues that benefited the canal workers.

Although Zhao An didn't say anything, Vice General Wen's mood immediately brightened up like a sunny day.

After accepting the silver note and putting the other party at ease, Zhao An had some questions to ask. The first question was how much the canal transport office owed the canal gangs for transport fees.

After hesitating for a moment, Vice General Wen told the truth that it was about 80,000 taels.

Zhao An immediately pressed for details about whether the 80,000 taels had been transferred.

"This..." Deputy General Wen stammered. Although he did not manage the specific operation of the canal transport office, he received a share of the canal transport profits every year, and the share was not small. How could he not know where this money went?

“If you don’t tell the truth, sir, then I won’t be able to accept this silver note.”

Zhao An casually reached out to take out the silver notes that were already in his pocket.

Deputy General Wen hurriedly said, "Lord Zhao is no stranger, so it's alright to talk to you about these matters."

According to him, the 80,000 taels had already been divided up privately by officials of the Grand Canal transport office, and he received 6,000 taels.

The so-called "canal transport dividends" actually refer to the annual tributes received from various branches of the canal transport guild, as well as the extortion income from passing canal boats and merchant ships by the canal transport authorities' subordinate agencies.

This cake bowl is huge, costing millions of taels every year.

In addition, officials also embezzled funds from this. For example, a low-ranking official of the ninth rank could embezzle and receive bonuses of no less than several thousand taels of silver each year.

Therefore, the Grand Canal Transport Office was known as one of the three most lucrative government offices.

Huai'an is considered poor; in Tongzhou, even a low-ranking official in the Grain Office or the Granary Administration earns tens of thousands of taels of silver annually.

Some brokers can earn tens or hundreds of thousands of taels of silver a year, making them happier than the prefect.

Because the private sale of grain was common practice there.

As a result, the Manchu bannermen in Beijing had to eat a lot of grain mixed with sand or mold every year.

The money has already gone through the legal reimbursement process, there is no official claim for unpaid freight, and the silver has already been distributed. So who will pay the 80,000 taels for freight?
Old Ding's "one-for-one" plan also won't work, because the two cannot be offset against each other.

I can't possibly have to pay 80,000 taels of silver myself for those corrupt officials in the Grand Canal transport office.

Zhao An was a little unwilling and was pondering this when he heard Old Ding's indignant voice coming from the next room. It seemed that he had been arguing with the councilor in charge of water transport.

They quickly went over with Deputy General Wen to "mediate the fight."

Old Ding and Wu, the councilor, got into a fight. Ever since his grandson-in-law was called in for a talk by Vice General Wen, Wu had been trying to persuade him.

Wu, the councilor, had long known that Lao Ding had come to negotiate with them on behalf of Yangzhou Prefecture and the canal gang, but he had previously refused to pay attention to this lowly county magistrate.

Now, however, they have to take this minor county magistrate seriously, because he has even produced a letter written in blood. In addition, the newly appointed imperial inspector has also arrived in Huai'an, and he can no longer afford to waste any more time.

Taking the opportunity, Lao Ding put forward Zhao An's three conditions.

First, the canal transport office released the detained members of the Yangzhou branch of the canal gang. Wu, the councilor, readily agreed. Although the men were imprisoned in the Huai'an prefectural government office, he had already contacted the Huai'an prefecture, so they were not killed.

The second point is to waive the previous extortion of 100,000 taels of silver from the canal gang. Wu, the councilor, was hesitant about this.

There is doubt as to whether the exemption should cover a certain amount or be a complete exemption.

The third point is to settle the freight charges owed by the canal transport authorities to the canal gangs. Wu, the councilor, disagreed with this. His bottom line was that the person could be released and some "tribute" could be waived, but the so-called freight charges were absolutely nonexistent.

The money has already been paid out, so where is he supposed to find another sum?

We can't possibly collect the divided silver from each person individually.

He was willing, but the people below him weren't.

If the Governor-General finds out about this, Wu, the Councilor, will definitely be in big trouble.

Therefore, Wu Canzheng's proposed solution was for the high-ranking officials of the canal transport guild to contribute 80,000 taels of silver to cover the transportation costs.

Old Ding would definitely not agree. If the canal transport office didn't pay a single penny, wouldn't his trip have been in vain, and wouldn't his blood have been shed for nothing?

He insisted that the Grand Canal Administration provide 50,000 taels, and he would then coordinate with the prefectural government and the canal gangs to raise another 30,000 taels to resolve the matter first.

As the two argued, Wu, the councilor, said angrily, "I, a dignified councilor of the grain transport department, am doing you a great favor by sitting here and talking to you, a county magistrate. Don't be ungrateful."

This angered Old Ding. "You think you're so great just because you're involved in politics? Do you even know what my grandson-in-law does?"
Enraged, he smashed the bowl, showing no respect whatsoever, leaving Wu, the councilor, behind.

When Zhao An and Deputy General Wen came in, there was another broken teacup on the ground, which had been smashed by Councilor Wu.

The two officials, who were about the same age, were glaring at each other, which was a bit outrageous.

"Why are you two so angry? Everything can be discussed. You are both officials, so we should value harmony above all else."

With a smile, Vice General Wen stepped forward and persuaded the councilor and county magistrate, who were standing in a standoff, to sit down.

Why is Lord Ding behaving this way with Lord Wu?

Zhao An asked out of curiosity as an outsider, but actually wanted to find out from Lao Ding what Wu Wenyun's bottom line was.

Old Ding immediately explained the situation.

"The canal transport office does not owe the canal gang any transport fees, but Lord Ding insists that the office settle the fees. Even if I want to resolve this matter, I am powerless to do so."

Wu, the councilor, was ashen-faced, unaware that Wen Qing had already told Zhao, the censor, where the 80,000 taels had gone.

Wen Qing felt a little awkward, so he pulled Wu, the councilor, aside and whispered a few words to him.

"You've told me everything?"

Wu, the councilor, frowned.

Wen Qingze said, "He accepted five thousand taels from me; he's not an outsider."

Wu, the councilor, nodded, looking troubled. "Then what should we do? Where am I supposed to get 50,000 taels for them?"

"If the shipping guild doesn't get the freight fees, this matter will have to drag on. We can't really drag it out until the Governor-General returns, can we?"

Wen Qing was also in a bind. If he had known that the Canal Gang would dare to go all out and cause trouble for them this time, he would not have listened to Wu Wenyun and tried to extort money from the Yangzhou branch of the Canal Gang. As a result, he caused such a big commotion.

Just as the two were finding the situation difficult, Censor Zhao, after discussing with Magistrate Ding for a few moments, also spoke up. He essentially said that regardless of the facts, since the canal gang was insisting that the canal transport office settle its outstanding fees, in order to prevent the situation from escalating, the canal transport office should first come up with the money to resolve the matter.

"My lords, if I may be so blunt, but if this matter drags on any longer, I fear you will both be implicated. You must manage to scrape together the 50,000 taels, and I urge you, Lord Ding, to find a way to cover the remaining 30,000 taels. Otherwise, even if I am willing to help you, I am afraid I cannot guarantee your safety."

Zhao An's words were not a threat, but a reminder.

"I understand what Lord Zhao means, but fifty thousand taels is really too much. Where am I supposed to find the money?"

Wu Wenyun's softened attitude was naturally related to Zhao An accepting five thousand taels from Wen Qing; after all, a friend of a friend is a friend.

Vice General Wen also expressed his difficulty, saying that there was too much money, and that the money had been privately divided among all the officials of the Grand Canal Transport Office except for the Governor-General, so there was no reason for him and Councilor Wu to pay for it.

Zhao An thought for a moment and said, "I have a suggestion that might solve your big problem."

"What proposal?"

Wu and Wen's eyes were both drawn to Zhao An.

"You two can borrow money in the name of the Grand Canal Administration and find a way to pay it back slowly next year. If it is inconvenient for you to borrow in Huai'an, I can introduce you to borrow in Yangzhou."

This time, Zhao An's attitude was sincere, and his gaze was upright.

(End of this chapter)