Regarding Lu Jin's self-asserted behavior, Hua Qianfeng was naturally a little dissatisfied in his heart. Although he handed over the case to the other party for disposal, after all, the stakes are very high, so he has to talk to his prefect boss before making a decision.

But Lu Zhen is good, after taking over the case yesterday, he called all the relevant people and others today, if he hadn't called him over for questioning out of prudence, I'm afraid that the case would be closed, and his prefect would still be kept in the dark. If it was really because Lu Zhen offended the Zhao Xie family when he decided the case, wouldn't the government still be implicated?

But even so, Hua Qianfeng was not good at having a seizure in person, and Zhao Xian and Zhao Xian both arrived, so they could only tell Lu Zhen to be cautious, and sent Lu Zhen away. It's just that on his old face, there is a moment of entanglement and uneasiness at this time, and I don't know if Lu Zhen will do anything that makes him unacceptable.

After returning to his public hall, Lu Zhen asked Xie Yao to go out and call the two stewards to his side, and then asked Su Wenqian to prepare tea to entertain the two who came to fight the lawsuit. He also knew that the stewards of these two families were not easy to offend casually, so he did not put on a posture of court trial today, but could only be regarded as asking about the case and gossiping.

After a while, two shrewd and capable men were brought into the public room, and although Lu Zhen did not greet the door, he also stood up from his seat and said to them: "It's hard work to take the liberty of letting the two stewards come to the mansion by invitation." ”

"Lu Tong's sentence is polite, it is not only an adult's call, but also related to our case, how dare the villain not come?" Zhao Xian, who was on the left-hand side, smiled and politely returned the salute.

And Xie Yi, who was on the right hand, also followed with a salute: "I don't know what the adults want to ask when they call us here today?" Or is the case already decided? ”

"The two of you are here as guests, please sit down and drink tea before we talk about business." Lu Jin didn't mean to get into the topic, just invited the two of them to sit down, and then gave the handyman on the side a look and asked them to serve tea.

Although it is not inhibitible to drink tea in the government office as two stewards, this time it is related to the case of land grabs, and it is still a little awkward to ask them to drink tea here as usual. Fortunately, they are all people with a city government, even if they have doubts in their hearts, they don't seem to be the slightest bit strange on the surface, and they respond in an orderly manner in the face of Lu Jin's greetings.

After a few words of gossip, Lu Zhen asked again: "The two of them are both stewards who are deeply trusted by the lord's family in their respective houses, and this official really has something to inquire about." I don't know how much grain tax you two will pay to the government government in a year? ”

As soon as this question came out, the two stewards were obviously stunned, could it be that this general judge planned to judge him for the sake of his own political performance, and he would award the land to him if he paid more taxes to the government office? But after thinking about it carefully, I felt that this was impossible, and no one in the four major families in Hangzhou City dared to offend.

Seeing that they were a little hesitant, Lu Zhen was not in a hurry to ask, so he took a sip of the teacup himself, and praised it with a serious sigh: "This Longjing is indeed the best tea, and it is much more fragrant than the other teas I drank in the capital before." ”

"If you don't dislike it, my Zhao family will be able to send you ten catties of Longjing tea before the rain this year later." Zhao Xian took the opportunity to say, and then reported a few numbers that were not too exact, which were the answers to Lu Jin's question just now.

Seeing that he reported the number, Xie Yi no longer hesitated, and then reported a few numbers, which were also general, the grain was in stone, and the tax and silver were in one hundred taels, which looked almost the same as the Zhao family.

Lu Zhen smiled: "Then thank you Zhao for your kindness." Then, he was speechless: "I didn't expect that the money and grain taxes paid by the Xie and Zhao families were so high. I'm not afraid of the two jokes, this official used to be the county magistrate in Guangling County, Shanxi, where the county's annual income is not worth the taxes paid by any of you. ”

Hearing him say this, the two of them laughed unconsciously: "Hangzhou is my Ming Dynasty's most important place for money and grain, and naturally it is not comparable to such a small county." ”

"Yes, Hangzhou has been prosperous since ancient times, and now it is not only prosperous in agriculture, but also in commerce, and it is reasonable to have several times more taxes than those in the north, and dozens of times." Lu Zhen nodded: "And the Xie and Zhao families, as the wealthy families of Hangzhou, are naturally extraordinary, which is really disrespectful." ”

Hearing him praise like this, the two of them didn't feel smiling, and they felt proud. But just when they were happy, Lu Zhen suddenly changed the conversation: "But in this way, the official is a little puzzled, with the wealth of the two families, how can they fight endlessly for that five acres of poor land?" He even didn't hesitate to make trouble in my government. Yesterday, the official went to the big Li Zhuang to see, and the five acres of land backed by the mountains were really barren ......" Although the latter words were not completely said, looking at the appearance of his frequent shaking of his head, he knew that it was very unbearable.

Zhao Xian's face changed slightly when they heard this: "What Lord Lu means by this, is it that we don't fight for this piece of thin land anymore?" ”

"After all, the Zhao Xie family is a famous family in my Hangzhou City, and your two families are fighting for this point, which is not even a small profit, and it is not good to hear it out, right?" Lu Zhen continued to persuade bitterly: "In my opinion, either just forget it and return the land to Li Laoshi, or you two families and half of each other, and save yourself from entanglement here." ”

"Hmph, this place was first taken by my Zhao family, and I also set up a note, is my lord trying to protect his Xie family?" Zhao Xian couldn't bear it anymore, and sank his face.

Xie Yi also spoke: "Lord Lu, this matter is not negotiable!" Since my Xie family has paid all the deposits, it is impossible to stop! As for one person and half, it's even more unthinkable! This matter is related to the face of my Xie family, how can I let people do it at will! ”

Although Zhao Xian didn't say the same thing, looking at his appearance, he also had the same thoughts, and it was impossible to let go of even an inch of land.

Lu Jin shook his head unconsciously and sighed: "What's the trouble about this? Haven't you always been good friends? Why are you fighting so much for this point, and you are not afraid that outsiders will see the jokes! After a pause, he asked again: "But you haven't given the official an explanation, why did your two families fall in love with these five acres of barren land?" Also, what are you going to do with these five acres of land? ”

"You don't need to worry about this, Lord Lu, if you really can't make a clear distinction today, I won't waste time here." Xie Yi snorted and said with some dissatisfaction, looking as if he was about to get up and say goodbye. And Zhao Xian also showed his mind, and he didn't want to stay here anymore.

Lu Jin's face sank at this time: "Are the two stewards really unable to do anything when I am the government of the palace?" Now what I want to ask is the crux of the matter, what are you going to do with these five acres of land? As he spoke, his gaze swept towards the two people in front of him like a blade unsheathed.

When Lu Jin's attitude eased just now, the two of them couldn't feel it, but at this time, they felt a burst of pressure suddenly coming towards them, making the movements of the two of them immediately stiffen! The dissatisfaction and disdain on his face also turned into a trace of panic.

It was only at this time that the two of them remembered what Lu Zhen had just said, he had been an official in the north where he was in contact with the Mongolian people, and he must have seen the real battlefield, and this kind of killing spirit naturally made people's hearts palpitate.

After hesitating for a moment, Zhao Xian spoke: "My Zhao family plans to build a Taoist temple there, which is what my master was instructed by Taishang Laojun to dream......"

"My family is planning to build a temple over there, and it is also the idea that my family got the enlightenment of the Buddha's dream. So it doesn't matter if the land is poor or fertile. Xie Yi also followed.

Lu Zhen almost burst out laughing. Okay, these two are really so distracted even when they think of excuses, and after a while, the dispute between the two families is about to lean towards the battle for Buddhism and Taoism, and it is a shame that they dare to think and dare to say.

"Your two families are really pious and generous, but the officials are going to say their admiration." Lu Zhen said and sneered again: "It's just that you are building some Taoist temple or temple in Da Li Zhuang, far away from the city, don't you think it's too nonsense?" In the eyes of the official, this is just an excuse that the two of you have come up with for the future behavior, right? ”

"You...... Lord Lu, what do you mean by this? ”

"Lord Lu, please be cautious, although my Xie family is not talented, but in the Yamen of the Political Division, I can still say a few words in the court, and my lord is not something that can be slandered by any person!"

Seeing that the two of them were a little annoyed, Lu Zhen didn't panic at all, but curled the corners of his mouth mockingly: "It's really the two of you who are making too much trouble to prevaricate the official, so the official has to react like this!" It seems that none of you will tell the truth? ”

"You...... What do you mean? The hearts of the two jumped suddenly, and their faces tightened, could it be that this young judge really saw the problem?

Lu Zhen was not in a hurry to say the answer, but said with a smile: "That's it, since there is no way to reconcile now, there is only one way to choose, and this land will be competed by your two families." In this place, whoever pays the highest price will give the five acres of land to whoever has it. ”

"How is this possible? My family has made a note with Li Laoshi! The two objected almost in unison.

Lu Zhen said: "But now that the two of you have made trouble in front of the official, and you refuse to reconcile, then you can only use this one of the fairest methods." Moreover, just now, the official also asked Li Laoshi, and he promised to leave everything to the official to dispose of. As he spoke, he clapped his hands.

As soon as the applause fell, Li Laoshi, who was a little shrunken, was brought to the door by Qinggele, Lu Zhen looked at him and asked: "Li Laoshi, are you willing to let this official make the decision for you?" ”

Li Laoshi was entangled for a moment, and then nodded: "The grass people are naturally willing to obey the orders of adults." ”

"Okay, then I'll be in charge of these five acres of land now, and see which of you two families has the highest bid." Lu Zhen immediately clapped his head.