White-robed Minister

Chapter 129 0127 [The Case Gets Bigger and Bigger]

Some things are not hard to find out.

In just one day, the two clerks, who had been scolded by Xu Lai and forced to stay at an inn, brought back very accurate information.

"It's not just a matter for one or two merchants; all the cloth merchants in Gushu County are involved," the clerk said in a low voice.

Xu Lai sighed, "Ah, that makes sense now. The Bian River runs through Gushu County, making transportation extremely convenient, and silk from Jiangnan can be transported here quickly. It's very difficult to control the price of silk; one or two merchants can't handle it all. I'm afraid even Gushu County alone can't handle it all, and I wouldn't be surprised if all the counties in Yingtian Prefecture were involved."

Another clerk said, "The judge is brilliant; even Songcheng County, where the prefectural seat is located, has been reduced to selling silk right under our noses!"

Zhao Qian muttered, "No wonder the price of silk in the prefectural city has skyrocketed. I thought it was because silkworm production had decreased in the southeastern regions."

The government also needs to conduct price assessments every ten days, and Zhao Qian is directly in charge of this matter.

Zhao Qian reported the prices to the military registrar, who then reported them to the prefect, and finally to the three central government departments for filing.

This kind of ten-day estimate simply involves understanding market prices and providing guidance for the future. The government will not interfere arbitrarily, and even if prices are skyrocketing, it is difficult to take administrative measures.

Silk, in particular, had little impact on ordinary people, and the government was too lazy to use its reserves to stabilize prices.

Before the summer tax was levied, the price of silk in the prefectural city was around 900 wen per bolt. Half a month later, it rose to 1100 wen—this was a normal price fluctuation, and it wouldn't be surprising if it exceeded 1200 wen.

A month later, the price rose to 1500 coins, and then hovered around 1600 coins.

The fact that farmers bear three or four times the burden does not mean that the market price in the prefectural city has increased three or four times. We also need to take into account the retail price that small vendors sell in the countryside, as well as other hidden losses suffered by farmers.

The market price has risen from 900 coins to 1600 coins, which is indeed ridiculously expensive, but not entirely unreasonable. If production in the southeast is reduced, coupled with hoarding by merchants, this price can be considered normal.

"The price of silk in Yingtian Prefecture has skyrocketed, and merchants from other places will inevitably follow suit. How are they squeezing out these merchants?" Xu Lai asked.

Zhao Qian, the Registrar of the Imperial Household Department, said, "That's simple. When merchants from other places bring silk, local cloth merchants can refuse to accept it. If the merchants can't sell the silk, they still have to pay storage fees, so naturally they won't stay here indefinitely. When other merchants hear this, they won't transport silk to Yingtian Prefecture to make a profit anymore."

Judge Wang Ke sighed, "We shouldn't investigate bribery anymore; it's a waste of effort. If I were the county magistrate, I would never accept money privately."

"Why?" Xu Lai asked.

Wang Ke chuckled and said, "Since all the cloth merchants in the county are involved, let them pay more of the usual fees. The officials of Gushu County don't need to accept bribes directly; they can just divide the money among themselves."

The regular fees paid by shops to the government were considered a form of unspoken, gray income.

Xu Lai received a share every month, but he donated it to the Minister's Treasury.

The entire operation by the officials and cloth merchants in each county was now vividly clear in Xu Lai's mind:

The heads of cloth merchants in various counties of Yingtian Prefecture secretly colluded to hoard silk. They then persuaded the county officials to convert the summer taxes into silk. Once the counties announced the conversion, the price of silk immediately skyrocketed.

Merchants from other regions, hearing that silk prices had risen in Yingtian Prefecture, would undoubtedly rush to transport silk there. However, they couldn't retail it themselves; they had to wholesale it to local cloth merchants. But the local cloth merchants simply wouldn't buy it, leaving the out-of-town merchants with no choice but to accept their losses and leave.

The local cloth merchants, large and small, had already distributed their profits under the coordination of their respective guild leaders.

Big merchants make big profits, small merchants make small profits.

These merchants would then pay the county government an extra amount as usual, which the county officials would directly pocket without recording in any of the county government's accounts. Even private bribery was no longer necessary; it could be done openly.

Moreover, it was common practice to convert summer taxes into silk, and in areas where silkworms were abundant, this was considered a convenient measure for the people. They also exercised restraint, and the price of silk did not double, remaining within the tolerance range of the regulatory officials.

With all these maneuvers combined, they won't attract the attention of higher-level officials at all!

"Should we go back?" Wang Ke was already feeling scared.

Because the case they were investigating involved not only the county magistrate of Gushu County, but also all the officials and cloth merchants in the seven counties of Yingtian Prefecture.

There might even be powerful and influential families involved.

Zhao Qian was also afraid: "This matter is of great importance and must be reported to Prefect Gong. Moreover, it will be difficult to find out the results, since the officials' bribes are obtained through the regular distribution of profits. Which official doesn't receive a share of the profits—"

Wang Ke looked at Xu Lai: "Xu Qianpan actually took it, but then donated it to the Minister's Treasury."

"How can that be the same?"

Xu Lai questioned, "The regular allowances distributed to officials in each county this time were obtained by exploiting and oppressing the rural farmers!"

Zhao Qian and Wang Ke fell silent.

They actually wanted to investigate, since these customary funds were distributed directly within the county and could not possibly be handed over to the prefecture. Zhao Qian, Wang Ke, and others didn't receive a single penny.

But they were afraid!

Having offended the local officials of seven counties, will this year's summer taxes still be collected? If the prefecture fails to collect the summer taxes, it will affect the performance of all officials, including Prefect Gong Dingchen.

Xu Lai said, "The summer tax in Yingtian Prefecture is collected starting at the beginning of May and must be paid by the fifteenth of July, and delivered to the prefecture by the thirtieth of July. The summer taxes from two counties have already been fully transferred to the prefectural treasury, and the rest will be done soon. Let's not act rashly yet, and check the accounts after the thirtieth of July. There are only a few days left."

Wang Ke said, "The accounts can't be checked; money is usually not transferred through the accounts."

Xu Lai glanced at him: "If the government doesn't keep accounts, do you think the shops won't? Just go and check the accounts of those cloth merchants!"

""

The shops not only kept accounts, but they did so openly and honestly. They treated the regular fees as legitimate business taxes and didn't see anything wrong with it.

Every check is accurate!

That evening, Xu Lai wrote two letters and gave them to Bu Chao to deliver back to Tianfu City: "Give this one to Prefect Gong. If he hasn't taken any action by the first day of the eighth month, then give the other letter to the Judicial Commissioner Shen Qi! In the meantime, secretly inquire about the silk and summer taxes in the prefectural city."

"I will definitely deliver the letter." Bu Chao was filled with excitement, feeling that he was about to do something big.

Xu Lai instructed him, "Pretend to be sick tomorrow and don't follow us. After we go to the county government office, ask the innkeeper for directions to a local doctor. Under the pretext of seeing a doctor, quietly leave the county town without being noticed."

"Understood." Bu Chao wrote it down carefully.

Bu Chao felt he should take initiative, so he said to Xu, "I can actually pretend to be sick and say I'm going out to have fun. If you find out I didn't come back at night, and then scold me for only carousing, that way it will be even less suspicious."

Xu Lai laughed and said, "That's a good idea. Even if you don't return for several days, people will assume you're staying in a brothel."

In another room, Wang Ke and Zhao Qian were still discussing things.

Wang Ke said anxiously, "Judge Xu is too meticulous. I'm afraid something bad will happen. It's obvious that all the officials and cloth merchants in the seven counties of Yingtian Prefecture are involved. How are we going to investigate?"

Zhao Qian was also terrified: "When I first left the prefectural city, I thought it was just a small case. I never imagined it would escalate to this extent!"

"What should we do?" Wang Ke asked.

Zhao Qian retorted, "How would I know?"

They were unwilling to get involved with Xu Lai in this mess, nor did they intend to tip anyone off.

Because there are so many people involved, it's difficult to destroy evidence; it's easy to uncover the truth. They didn't receive any benefits, so it would be ridiculous if they got implicated later by tipping someone off.

After frowning for a while, Zhao Qian said, "Whatever Judge Xu wants to do, we'll just follow him. He'll take the blame if things go wrong; we're just acting on orders. If we can really make a contribution—so what if we offend the powerful families of Yingtian Prefecture? As long as we can get through these two years, we can be transferred to other places to serve as officials."

"yes!"

Wang Ke also figured it out: "Even among those powerful families, none of them still hold official positions in the court, and they only resent Judge Xu. As for us two small fry, people probably won't even remember our names."

Understanding this, the two immediately felt relaxed.

If there's any trouble, let Xu take the blame; if there's any credit, they can bask in the glory.

A sure-fire way to make money.

They even became more motivated. Zhao Qian said, "We should each restrain our subordinates and promise them some benefits, making sure nothing leaks out. We should also pay for the soldiers who came with us to eat well, so they won't disobey us when it really matters."

"Okay, it's settled then!" Wang Ke immediately agreed.

The next day, very early in the morning.

Xu Lai, in his usual "impotent rage," pointed at Bu Chao and berated him: "What can you do besides eat? I put you in charge as a personal attendant, and you make mistakes every other day!"

Bu Chao clutched his stomach, looking pained, and said, "My stomach really hurts."

"Find a doctor yourself, don't bother me!" Xu Lai stormed off to the county government office.

Bu Chao stayed alone at the inn and asked the cleaning staff, "Where are the taverns, inside or outside the city? The wine has to be good, but not too expensive."

His accent was so heavy that the servant didn't understand him the first time he spoke.

Bu Chao had to repeat it twice before the servant finally understood and recommended several taverns to him.

Bu Chao stretched and yawned, pretending to be a rogue, and muttered to himself as he walked, "I'm dying to be forbidden from drinking."

After walking a few steps, he went back and asked the servant, "Where are the most brothels?"

The servant said, "There are some near the north dock, but the brothels there are quite expensive. If you want something cheaper, there are the most in the east of the city."

Communication was difficult, and they had to repeat themselves several times before they could finally make themselves clear with gestures.

Because it was so difficult to speak, his voice grew louder and louder, and people in several nearby rooms could hear him.

After leaving the inn, Bu Chao first wandered around the east of the city, making sure no one was following him, before turning to head northwest.

He didn't actually take a boat.

Because he didn't know when the passenger ship would start running, and his accent was too obvious, asking around too many times would definitely attract attention.

From Gushu County to Yingtian Prefecture, it's only about 40 li (approximately 20 kilometers), and you can travel along the Bian River, so there's no need to worry about getting lost. Bu Chao walked briskly along the river, turning into a jog when he reached the countryside.

Around noon, he had already run back to the government office and presented Xu Lai's official document to request an audience with Gong Dingchen.

Gong Dingchen received the letter and found that Bu Chao was standing there without moving, so he opened and read the letter on the spot.

After reading the letter, Gong Dingchen's expression was quite interesting.

First came anger. He issued three official documents forbidding any county under his jurisdiction from altering or disturbing the people. As a result, not only did Gushu County act recklessly, but Songcheng County also disobeyed him right under his nose, and it was very likely that all the counties would disregard the prefect.

All seven county magistrates treated the prefect like a fool!

But in his anger, Gong Dingchen also felt that Xu Lai was being nosy.

Because these county magistrates were relatively restrained and did not impose much additional burden on the farmers, the burden remained entirely within acceptable limits. Even if the prefectural government became aware of this situation, it generally wouldn't intervene.

Then he felt relieved that Xu Lai was at least not a hothead; he hadn't immediately launched a major attack and knew to wait until the summer taxes were collected before taking action. Otherwise, the summer taxes in Yingtian Prefecture would probably have been a complete mess today.

If it were a young Gong Dingchen, he would definitely roll up his sleeves and get to work, fully supporting Xu Lai in thoroughly investigating the case.

But given his age, Gong Dingchen has too many concerns now.

Gong Dingchen said to Bu Chao, "Go back to the back of the hall and wait. I will give you an answer tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?" Bu Chao asked, afraid he had misheard, and quickly confirmed.

Gong Dingchen nodded: "Tomorrow."

Bu Chao bowed and withdrew.

Gong Dingchen returned to his residence ahead of time and summoned his advisors and son to discuss the matter.

The advisor said, "It is highly likely that the seven county magistrates colluded this time. Even if they didn't, the heads of the cloth merchants in each county did. Such private collusion and disobeying the prefect's orders will severely damage your prestige in Yingtian Prefecture if you don't take action."

"right!"

Gong Fugui said, "Father, you must take care of this matter. If you don't, those county magistrates will treat you as a mere figurehead, and they will become increasingly outrageous in the future."

Gong Dingchen sighed, "Alas, of course I know I must intervene. But how far should I investigate? That's what's giving me a headache. There are too many powerful families in Yingtian Prefecture, and I'm afraid it will implicate the imperial court. The court is already chaotic enough; I don't want to add fuel to the fire."

"We can't let Magistrate Zhuang and Transport Commissioner Wang know in advance," the advisor reminded him. "Both of them have connections with powerful families in Yingtian Prefecture."

Gong Fugui suddenly suggested, "Why don't we ask the Chief Justice Shen Qi to step in? He needs to establish his authority, so we can bring him along as well."

Gong Dingchen looked at his son with great satisfaction and praised, "This method is excellent!"

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