When I arrived at Chongwen Gate, I saw large and small vendors, busy traffic, and the city gate was still so lively inside and outside.

Han Xiufeng grabbed a tax collector who was busy extorting pedestrians and asked, then squeezed out of the crowd waiting in line to pay taxes, and came to a tea stall diagonally opposite the Beijing branch of "Rishengchang", smiled at Fugui who was drinking tea with Erlang's legs crossed, and asked, "Rich man, what are you busy with?" ”

"Fourth master, why are you here!" Fugui was happy, and immediately put down the tea bowl and stood up.

Han Xiufeng looked back at the tax collectors at the city gate who were busy extorting pedestrians, and leaned into his ear and said, "I have nothing to do but go to the Three Treasures Palace, I am here to ask for your help." ”

"Isn't the guild hall renovated, and the guys who should be added have all been added, how else can I help?"

"It's not a guild hall, but it's actually true."

"What the hell is going on?"

The Chongwenmen tax not only collects the people's taxes, but also collects the lord's taxes, and the bigger the officials, the more they collect!

It is said that the governor returned to Beijing to report on his work, and did not want to enter the city without giving ten thousand taels of silver, and the priest would spend seven or eight thousand taels to enter Beijing, and the prefect would have to get at least four or five thousand taels if he wanted to enter the city. Han Xiufeng knew how ruthless they were in blackmailing the official master, and said with a bitter face: "Rich man, I have a fellow villager who wants to go back to Beijing to meet him, and it is estimated that he will be there in a few days." Can you please say hello to me, and let the brothers at the city gate show mercy, and don't embarrass my fellow countryman. ”

Fugui didn't expect Han Xiufeng to ask him to help with this, and said helplessly: "Fourth master, this is not in accordance with the rules, if I don't embarrass your fellow countryman, people will have to embarrass me!" ”

"My fellow townsman knows the rules, and my fellow townsman is not a stingy person, he should still be dotted, just ask you to help me talk to the brothers at the city gate, just ask them to be the same, don't open your mouth." Han Xiufeng looked back, and continued: "My fellow countryman is not an official in those rich places in Jiangsu and Zhejiang, but in Shaanxi. Others don't know that you know, how poor Shaanxi is, there is no oil and water! ”

"Although Shaanxi is not as rich as Jiangsu and Zhejiang, it is not how poor it is, even if you are an official in a poor place, you will still have a shortage of fat."

"My fellow townsman is an honest official, and he really didn't save much money."

This is not a trivial matter, Fugui didn't dare to agree, and pulled Han Xiufeng aside: "Fourth master, don't patronize to help your fellow villager cry poor, first tell me how many grades your fellow countryman's official residence is, and what is the official residence." ”

"Shaanxi Hanzhong prefect plus the rank of Taoist."

Fugui was happy, patted him on the arm and said, "Fourth master, you are making fun of me!" Three years of Qing prefect's mansion, 100,000 snowflakes of silver, the prefect is fat, some are silver, he can't enter the city without 6,000 taels, it's useless to go anyone's way in this matter! ”

"What if those brothers at the gate of the city don't know that he is the prefect?" Han Xiufeng asked with a smile.

"If you don't know, that's another story, but why don't we know." Fugui looked back at the direction of the city gate and said proudly: "Our Chongwenmen tax gate not only controls the thirteen gates inside and outside the Jingshi, but also has more than a dozen scattered tax gates, Lugou Bridge, Dongba and Haidian all have tax gates, and even the water and land wharves have our sea guard. Unless you know which way your fellow countryman will go to Beijing and intercept him in advance, it will be useless to intercept him. ”

"Why is it useless?"

"It's impossible for him to go back to Beijing without silver, what will he do without silver? As long as he had money with him, we couldn't have failed to find out. Looking at Han Xiufeng's thoughtful appearance, Fugui continued: "Fourth master, if your fellow villager wants to continue to be the prefect, he has to spend some money, and if he wants to be promoted, he has to spend some money!" Moreover, when a foreign official like him enters Beijing, he always has to prepare some local products for the Minister of Military Aircraft, the officials of the Six Ministries, the Master of the House and the good classmates in the same year, and after seeing that His Majesty will return to Shaanxi and then become the prefect or be promoted to other places to take office, before leaving, he must send off the Minister of Military Aircraft, the officials of the Six Ministries, the Master of the House and the good classmates in the same year. I bet with you, if your fellow villager didn't bring 350,000 silver and 350 boxes of Shaanxi souvenirs, I would write the word rich upside down! ”

The implication of wealth and nobility could not be clearer, either the prefect of Duan will not return to Beijing, and when he returns to Beijing, he will not only bring tens of thousands of taels of silver, but also bring a lot of gifts, which will be very ostentatious, if the tax officials and tax officials of Chongwenmen really let him enter the city, then the Chongwenmen tax pass will not be called "ghost gate".

Han Xiufeng really wanted to help Governor Duan save some money, and said with a bitter face: "Rich master, others can't help you, you must have a way, help, just let me Han Si beg you." ”

"Fourth master, this is not easy to do."

"Help me figure it out, please."

Thinking that Han Xiufeng had helped a lot when he was most short of silver, and then thinking that Han Xiufeng had never seemed to be so low-voiced, Fugui's heart softened: "Okay, I'll help you think of a way, but two thousand taels must be indispensable." ”

………

Han Xiufeng is not thinking about himself now, but his son who is far away from home. Not only do I hope that Goudan can grow up safely, but I also want Goudan to go to the best private school or even the academy when he grows up.

The best private school in Ba County is the Lishi School opened by the Sun family in Ciqikou, which has produced three lifters and two Hanlin, and there are more talents. The three people in the "one door and three people, five miles and two Hanlins" that the people of Ba County talk about are all children of the Sun family, and two of them are Duan Dazhang and Huang Zhongyin!

It is precisely because the Lishi School has taught so many talents that the gentry in Ba County and even the entire Chongqing Prefecture want to send their children to study, but the Lishi School is the private school of the Sun family after all, which is not big, and there are so many children of the Sun family, and only a few other people's children are accepted every year. Therefore, Han Xiufeng wanted to take this opportunity to tie up Duan Dazhang, as long as he could tie up, he would be able to ask Duan Dazhang for a letter of recommendation in six or seven years, even if the Sun family didn't give anyone face, it was impossible not to give Duan Dazhang face. There is a letter of recommendation from Duan Dazhang, and when the time comes, you can send the dog to study at the Lishi School.

All in all, the opportunity to tie up Duan Dazhang is rare, and he must think of ways to help Duan Dazhang save some money to enter the city.

Fortunately, Fugui is righteous enough and willing to help with this, and he has come up with a solution, but it is a stupid way.

In Han Xiufeng's opinion, no matter what the method is, as long as it works, he hired a car early the next morning, called Yu Youfu and the shopkeeper to go out of the city together, and planned to go to Zhangjiawan, Tongzhou, where most foreign officials will pass through when they enter Beijing, to see if they can intercept Duan Dazhang and his party.

The prefect will be extorted when he enters Kyoto, Yu Youfu felt incredible, and leaned on the wall of the carriage and asked, "Young master, what will happen if Master Duan doesn't give the silver?" ”

The road was uneven, the car was bumpy, Han Xiufeng moved his buttocks, looked at the endless stream of pedestrians outside the car window, and said lightly: "If you don't give the silver, those tax collectors will change the law to entangle Master Duan and prevent Master Duan from entering the city." Lord Duan is back to Beijing to meet him, and the emperor is waiting to see him, how can you say that Master Duan has the effort to spend with them. Even if you consume it with them, it is difficult to consume energy for one day and ten days and half a month. ”