Tea is a commodity monopolized by the government.

Therefore, tea farmers must report their tea fields to the government, and then the annual output must also be reported truthfully, and when the tea merchants come to trade, the government will collect taxes from them.

On the bright side, it should be very safe. But as long as there is a heart, there will always be someone who can take advantage of the loophole.

The first loophole is in the fried tea.

Tea must be fried before it can be drunk, but whether it is fried well or not is not only related to the quality of tea, but also related to a more important thing - yield.

Obviously fried three taels of tea, insisted that only one or two were fried, anyway, this is a technical job, and it is not easy to check, so the remaining two taels can not be ignored? Not to mention that if it is moldy for a long time in drying, it is damaged during transportation, and a pound of tea can be deducted a few taels.

If you are more daring, you can fight the idea of tea fields.

The mature tea fields of Xianyuan Mountain are the only ones, which have long been carved up, but what about the surrounding areas? Anyway, they are all around Xianyuan Mountain, and they also occupy the aura here, why can't they plant tea trees and use them as tea leaves in Xianyuan Mountain?

Then these surrounding tea fields are very likely not to be on the boundaries of Xianyuan Mountain, and they will not be able to enter the official mansion of Xianyuan Mountain, and they will become private fields that do not need to be taxed.

Of course, so much tea leaves are left, and they can't be turned into silver and rolled back, so someone needs to collect this part of the private tea and send it secretly to all parts of the country. Sold with official tea, it will be seamless.

Anyway, this tea is not like silver, and it is still marked, how did it flow out, who can find out?

"How bold they are!"

Mu Shaoqin really didn't expect that these officials would be so bold in embezzlement. This is really a one-stop production, supply and marketing, and a large amount of silver that should have gone into the treasury has flowed into private pockets.

When Ouyang Kang first heard about it, he was also shocked.

According to Bao Yiqing's confession, big tea merchants like them, who have heads and faces in various villages, actually have bullshit business in other provinces? It's all about covering up some side business, selling illicit tea. As long as you give enough money to the government, it will be smooth all the way, and you don't have to worry about it at all.

And according to him, they don't earn the most money on this line. The ones who make the most money are a few officially designated big tea merchants. They have tea primers. It is more convenient to resell tea from north to south and make huge profits.

The tea fields around Xianyuan Mountain are basically the territory of high-ranking officials and dignitaries. The excuse of all the slaves in the family pretending to be homeless people to reclaim the ownerless wasteland hangs there, so their share of the spoils is more hidden.

In the whole of Lingzhou. In addition to the benefits of officials who are directly in charge of tea. Some ordinary officials can also drink soup. Especially in spring and autumn every year. Local officials will give out more or less an extra amount of silver, that is, tea silver.

It was in this place in the state of Lingzhou, for so many years. Even though everyone knows that the tea tax is in deficit, no one will report it.

It wasn't until a stunned young man named Fang Ninghai ran back to guard filial piety that he caused trouble.

This Fang Ninghai said earlier that his family was poor, and he was a scholar who was offered by his father to tighten his belt. Therefore, this kid was a little stunned to read, even if he was in the tea country, he didn't know the darkness of the tea ceremony at all.

Later, because of his outstanding talent, he went to Beijing to study with relatives when he was a teenager, and he didn't know the root of the Lingzhou tea tax.

It wasn't until that year that he desperately beat the queen mother for his father's cemetery, and spoke up for the sake of blessing, which entered the emperor's eyes and gave him a reward to let him return to his hometown to guard his filial piety.

But before leaving, the emperor couldn't just give money, but also had to encourage young people. So he said, when you go back to your hometown, if you see any injustice, remember to report it to me.

Gao Xian just said it casually, but he didn't expect this nerd to take it seriously.

Half a year after returning to his hometown to keep filial piety, when the spring tea was on the market, the local officials wanted to make friends with a Beijing official, so they also sent a tea silver to him who kept filial piety at home.

This can bring up the nerd's temper.

Okay, why are you giving me money? Why does it cost money to sell tea? Is this something that all Lingzhou officials can share? Does the emperor know? Will it affect the tea tax of the imperial court?

The local officials couldn't bear it, so they had to say that the master had made a mistake and that the silver was not for him.

That Fang Ninghai's new question came again, and he wanted to follow up, but someone ran to the grave where his father had just stood to break ground.

That's disrespectful!

Fang Ninghai had no choice but to go back to guard his father's tomb, but he was indignant and dressed in white, and scolded him at his father's grave, saying that corrupt officials and corrupt officials would retaliate against him, and when he returned to the capital, he would definitely complain to the emperor and so on.

However, later, after the local government invited several relatives of the Fang family to the yamen to "assist in the investigation" of some old cases, Fang Ninghai honestly kept his mouth shut, and did nothing except keep filial piety, or even shut up.

As for how he passed the news to the emperor, this question remains to be examined when we meet. However, the fig leaf of the Lingzhou tea tax has been torn off.

What to do?

Now it has become a difficult problem in front of Ouyang Kang.

Before returning to his hometown, Ouyang Kang thought that he would encounter a situation where there were many embezzlers, but he never imagined that it would be such a stubborn disease that had accumulated for many years, and almost wiped out the entire Lingzhou.

The emperor also said that he would find out the deficit and let Ouyang Kang get back his own five thousand taels of silver, Ouyang Kang now feels that he would rather find the emperor five thousand taels, can he throw this hot potato back?

Mu Shaoqin is also a little out of line, it is easy to kill the first offender and set an example for the accomplice, but the question is that the first offender is so easy to kill? With the Tong Chaoyi and a Shang Fang sword given by the emperor, if they really want to open the killing ring, it is a question whether they can keep them out of the way, and which chicken do you want to kill?

Pick a son to go back to the capital? That's too incompetent. Ouyang Kang won't have to come out to mix in the future, and he will completely be a soft rice eater.

Of course, soft rice is probably not delicious. After all, he is the son-in-law of Pingwangfu, he has planted a heel here, can Pingwangfu look good on his face?

However, Ouyang Kang came up with a plan to deal with it, but he whispered the plan to his father-in-law, and Mu Shaoqin was a little surprised.

"It's not impossible. Just ......"

Ouyang Kang spread his hands and was very single, "I have already thought about it, Dad, you have taken care of your body in the past two days, and when Dr. Xiao Zou comes, I will take my mother and daughter-in-law and leave quickly." I'm the only one left, no matter how much trouble I make, it's better than the whole family breaking here. ”

Mu Shaoqin glanced at him angrily, "The courage of the horseman!" ”

Ouyang Kang pouted secretly, and said in his heart, Aren't I also in a hurry? Otherwise, who would want to do such a head-raising thing? Why don't you come up with a foolproof solution?

Mu Shaoqin really couldn't think of it for a while. "Don't be in a hurry. Aren't there two more days? Let me think again. ”

Then think about it slowly, Ouyang Kang went to buy hawthorn pills.

His daughter-in-law eats so much meat at night, he is afraid that she will have indigestion! The tea tax is important, and the daughter-in-law is also important. When I can be nice to her. Be nice to her.

Alas. Ouyang Dashao thought of this. It's inexplicably sad. In these years, it's not easy to be a clean official.

After a busy day, Ouyang Kang had to serve his father-in-law to take medicine at night. I tossed twice in the night, and I slept a little in the morning, and when I woke up, it was already three poles in the morning.

When I got up, I felt a slight coolness on my body, and when I pushed the window to look, I realized that it was raining again in the early morning, and the world was gloomy, and there was a strong autumn mood all around.

Because I felt that my body was a little thinner, I just took advantage of this excuse to go to my daughter-in-law to get thick clothes, and wanted to ask my father-in-law if I wanted to coax my mother-in-law over, but I heard that people had already gone to find their daughter-in-law.

Ouyang Kang secretly heyed and was happy, and he didn't bother, so he went downstairs to find his daughter-in-law to forage for food.

Yesterday, I listened to the mother and daughter talking about food, and since my father has passed, his little daughter-in-law is so knowledgeable, she must have avoided getting delicious food.

Ouyang Kang thought well, but he missed an accident.

Nianfu was busy working in the temporarily rented kitchen, but there was another man here who was talking and laughing with his daughter-in-law.

“…… This beef is also a loss to meet you, if it were me, at most it would make people stew in clear water and eat it like this. ”

"Actually, it's not impossible to stew in water, as long as you put some radish at the end, it's also delicious. It's just that this beef is too old, and I have to put some hawthorn to stew it badly, and I'm afraid that the stew will look a little sour, so I first marinated it to taste, and then give it the sauce and cut it thinly before eating, so it's easy to eat. ”

……

Ouyang Kang was shocked when he heard this, and stepped forward in three or two steps, "What are you doing Nianfu?" Don't you know that beef can't be eaten? ”

This knows the face but doesn't know the heart, how did the surnamed Long come to coax his simple and kind, a little greedy little daughter-in-law?

Nianfu startled him, almost knocked over the pot, and suddenly became annoyed, "What's the matter with you?" Shouted without asking clearly. Uncle Long bought beef that had been reported to the government and died of old age, and he kindly took it for us to taste, why didn't you ask about it and wronged people? ”

Belch...... Ouyang Kang was so speechless that he snatched it, and then looked at Ji Longfeng, who was holding his hands next to him, who was smiling but not smiling, and felt ashamed, and made a salute with a red face, "Uncle Long, I'm sorry, I made the mistake." ”

Ji Longfeng smiled generously, "It's okay, I see your daughter-in-law cooking, and she can also steal some teachers." But looking at her cooking skills, she doesn't look like an ordinary person, I don't know who the respected teacher is? ”

Ouyang Kang glanced at his slightly embarrassed daughter-in-law, and was busy playing the round, "Because my daughter-in-law likes to tinker with food since she was a child, it is because she met a master who did not want to be named, and it is all fate." ”

No matter how their family dresses up, that rich atmosphere can't be erased. Rather than lying and deceiving people, it is better to be vague. Long Shan looks like a smart person, he shouldn't ask questions, right?

Ji Longfeng didn't ask Nianfu anymore, but joked about Ouyang Kanglai, "I don't know how many lifetimes you have cultivated such a good daughter-in-law, but you have to cherish it." Okay, you two are talking, I'll go back to the room first. If Brother Ouyang thinks it is convenient for you, remember to accompany me to see the tea. ”

He said and left with a smile, and Ouyang Kang rubbed next to his daughter-in-law, "What's delicious in the morning......

"Eat your head!" Nianfu glanced at him unhappily, "It's all your fault, what hawthorn pills were given to us last night, so that my mother and I were so hungry that we couldn't sleep in the morning, and we had to get up early to get food." Oh, this is the rest, love to eat or not. ”

Ouyang Kang looked at the remaining bowl of noodles in the pot, and hurriedly served it, "I'll eat, of course I'll eat." ”

Even if it is a mess, he has to be willing.

Just one bite, Ouyang Kang's face was a little weird, "You ate this in the morning?" ”

Nianfu looked of course, "What, it's not delicious?" ”

This morning has a sour and hot taste, will it be too heavy?

Ouyang Kang really felt that if it wasn't for his daughter-in-law who was fixing herself, her recent tastes were too strange. (To be continued......)