Dugong

Chapter 129 Sweet vs. Salty
Government office.

Li Ping'an sat casually in the main seat, flipping through the salt transport office's account books for the past few months, and asking Eunuch Wu, the salt supervisor of Songjiang Prefecture, for details.

Such as the amount of salt produced, the price of official salt, and emerging salt merchants, etc.

With changes in government and officials, wealthy merchants rose and fell in succession.

In just six months, the new salt merchants have become incredibly wealthy, while the old ones have gone bankrupt. Reform is no joke; it is bound to be accompanied by bloodshed.

Li Ping'an asked, "Who are the owners of these new salt merchants?"

Eunuch Wu replied, "Most of them are high-ranking officials in the court or prominent families in Jiangnan. Without powerful backers, it is difficult for them to smuggle salt to other prefectures on a large scale."

"Our family has been running around for a year, but nothing has changed."

Li Ping'an felt inexplicably displeased. He glanced at the bowing officials of the government office and suddenly asked, "Lord Xie, do you think Grand Secretary Zeng runs any businesses?"

Prefect Xie said in a deep voice, "My teacher is incorruptible, lives a simple life, and never touches money or material possessions."

"Jie Jie Jie!"

Li Ping'an chuckled mockingly a few times and instructed, "Little Yu... um, Little Chen, after returning to the capital, thoroughly investigate whether Grand Secretary Zeng is truly incorruptible."

Xiao Yuzi had been sick and died for more than two months, but because of his past habit of ordering people around, he would occasionally call out the wrong name.

The passing of Hao Gan'er caused Eunuch An to grieve for several hours.

Xiao Chenzi was very jealous of Xiao Yuzi's favor, and cursed inwardly that even after someone was dead, there was still no peace. He bowed and accepted the order.

"Don't worry, Godfather, I will keep a close eye on Grand Secretary Zeng day and night."

Prefect Xie was sweating profusely, praying in his heart that his teacher was true to his word, otherwise, if his patron fell, he would suffer a terrible fate.

Li Ping'an closed the ledger and looked at the few men among the eunuchs.

"Your Highness, lead 5,000 troops to encircle and suppress the Salt Gang. Kill all the ringleaders, imprison the rest, and confiscate their wealth for the Salt Transport Bureau."

"As ordered."

Zhao Lian accepted the order and left. He easily defeated several hundred Salt Gang disciples with a tenfold military force, a feat that could be considered a free credit.

Li Ping'an looked at the biting wind outside the door, which swirled and danced with snowflakes. The snow in Jiangnan was not like the huge mines in the capital, but more like willow catkins drifting in the wind.

He tightened his collar and exhaled a puff of white breath.

"Once we finish investigating the case, we'll be heading back to Beijing!"

The eunuchs had different expressions. Some of them had served in front of the emperor and missed the splendor of the palace, while others, who came from humble backgrounds, longed for the wealth and luxury of Jiangnan.

Eunuch Xia quickly put on a smiling face and stepped forward to congratulate him, saying, "Sir, your trip to Jiangnan has been fruitful in investigating the traitors and reforming the salt administration. His Majesty will surely reward you handsomely upon your return to the capital."

"We are His Majesty's servants; we do not seek rewards for our service!"

Li Ping'an had long been in the habit of speaking words of loyalty, even shouting "Long live the Emperor!" in his dreams at night. However, this time, he was truly serving without expecting anything in return.

At twenty years old, how much further can a director of the three prisons be promoted?

Or perhaps His Majesty has already rewarded us, with chests of gold bricks dazzling the eye and fields stretching as far as the eye can see.

The eunuchs were very good at reading people's expressions and listening to their words. They keenly sensed the meaning behind Eunuch An's words and bowed their heads, not daring to say a word.

……

The next day.

Li Ping'an inspected the salt transport office and chatted cordially with the officials on duty.

These officials either came from the Imperial Horse Administration, such as Eunuch Wu, the Salt Commissioner, and Eunuch He, the Revenue Commissioner, or were transferred from generals of the Beijing Garrison, such as the Director of the Salt Administration and the Salt Patrol Captain.

The entire yamen was staffed by Eunuch An, and the salt tax was directly linked to the Ministry of Revenue and the Imperial Treasury, bypassing the Songjiang Prefectural Government.

Prefect Xie had no control over the salt transport offices and dared not interfere, not only in Songjiang Prefecture but also in other prefectures.

It may slowly corrupt and erode in the future, at least after Eunuch An falls from power; otherwise, the 3,400 members of the Li clan will serve as a cautionary tale.

The sheer number of people was more intimidating than any repeated orders from the imperial court.

evening.

Li Ping'an hosted a banquet at the Salt Transport Office, inviting officials, gentry, and wealthy merchants from the prefectural city. During the banquet, he ordered Eunuch Xia to bring a brocade box.

When it was opened in front of everyone, it contained snow-white salt grains.

"This is snow sugar, a tribute from the Western Regions. It has a sweet taste. I would like to invite you all to try it." The once lively and bustling banquet suddenly fell silent. The officials and gentry looked at each other, wondering what Eunuch An meant.

Li Ping'an looked to his right: "Lord Xie, would you like to try it first?"

Prefect Xie politely declined, saying, "I would not dare to presume to offer tribute snowflake candy without His Majesty's grace."

Li Ping'an's gaze turned cold. He didn't press the matter further, but turned to look at everyone and asked in a cold voice.

"Who wants to try the taste?"

"This humble subject has come."

Li Yifang stepped forward loudly, first kneeling and kowtowing, then grabbing a handful of salt and stuffing it into his mouth, a look of enjoyment on his face.

"This is truly delicious candy! I have never tasted anything so good before. If it weren't for your kindness, sir, I probably would never have been able to eat it in my entire life!"

After saying that, he smacked his lips, as if he still wanted more.

Li Ping'an praised, "I've heard of this business. With a manager like you, it's no wonder it's thriving."

Upon hearing this, the others hurriedly stepped forward to eat the salt.

"Sweet, so sweet!"

"This candy is a rare and precious item..."

The box of salt was quickly devoured; most of the officials and gentry had tasted it and echoed its praise.

Some officials used the excuse that they were old and had a different sense of taste, so they couldn't taste sweetness or saltiness.

A few officials who remained seated, such as Prefect Xie, relied on their powerful connections in the court and watched with disdain as the crowd put on their act and made a fool of themselves.

Li Ping'an memorized everyone's words and expressions, accepted the wine offered by his godson, raised his cup high, and said.

"Gentlemen, drink to your heart's content!"

The banquet quickly returned to its lively atmosphere, but after tasting both the salty and sweet flavors, the people naturally split into three groups.

The flatterers and sycophants became sworn brothers, while the upright and the aloof chatted and laughed.

He neither took a part nor stayed away, silently drinking his sorrows away.

Only time will tell which is better.

The banquet ended at midnight, and Li Ping'an returned to the rear office of the prefectural city to rest. There was a special guesthouse there for imperial censors.

Prefect Xie had already sent people to clean up the mess, fearing that he might have neglected Eunuch An.

Mao Shi.

As dawn approached, the city of Taizhou was utterly silent.

The young man stood bowing outside the door, pondering for most of the night how to please Eunuch An and become his godfather to fill the vacancy left by Xiao Yuzi.

Everyone knows that Xiao Yu died a violent death, yet people still flock to him like moths to a flame.

"Yesterday I heard Grandpa An say that if you have money, you should buy cultural things and collect antiques and calligraphy in your spare time..."

Just as I was pondering this, I suddenly heard a scream.

"There are assassins!"

Immediately following were the sounds of clashing swords and shrill screams. In the hazy morning mist, dozens of white figures leaped onto the rooftops and charged towards the rear of the government office along the ridge.

The eunuchs were startled awake and immediately stepped forward to meet the enemy, each using their martial arts skills to kill the white-robed man.

The newcomers were no match for the eunuchs, yet they still charged forward fearlessly.

A dozen or so men entangled and attacked a beast with eyes flashing red light, using its legs when its arms were broken, and its head when its legs were broken, biting and banging its teeth, a fight to the death.

The young man had already entered the room to report, only to find Eunuch Xia sitting cross-legged on the bed.

"Where is the Lord?"

"We don't know."

Grandpa Xia slowly regulated his inner energy. After years of martial arts training and few battles, his skills had become somewhat rusty.

"According to reliable intelligence, the remnants of the Li family have conspired with salt gang rebels to stage a rebellion. I have been ordered to guard the prefectural government office!"

(End of this chapter)