"Bang!"

It was only after the backs of Wu Chaoyue and Zhao Liewen completely disappeared that the teacup in front of Guan Wen was shattered on the ground in the lobby of the Governor's Palace, and then Guan Wen squeezed out this sentence from between his teeth, "Arrogant boy, kill yourself!" ”

all know that Wu Chaoyue is indeed seeking his own death, but this dead end has not yet come to an end, so Luo Bingzhang and Zeng Guofan did not say anything, just patiently waited for the next step of the official text. www.biquge.infoSure enough, after thinking for a while, the official document turned to Luo Bingzhang and asked: "Xumen, if Wu Chaoyue must go to the imperial court and ask for the grain accumulated in the past three years to be exchanged for cash and escorted to Beijing and delivered to the national treasury, what are you going to do?" ”

"Returning to the Taida, the lower officials can only beg the imperial court to consider the actual situation in Hunan, and implore the imperial court to give the lower officials a period of preparation and gradually deliver the arrears of grain and silver to the imperial court in batches."

Luo Bingzhang replied helplessly, and the official was also very dissatisfied with Luo Bingzhang's answer, and asked: "What if the court doesn't agree?" Now you don't know the situation in the court, the household department is about to uncover this pot, Wu Chaoyue is the first bird, can the court force you to handle it according to the rules? ”

"As long as you make a fold to intercede for the lower officials, the court may not agree."

Luo Bingzhang arched his hand and said: "Wu Futai's move is indeed for the country and the people, but the situation in each province is very different, the same is a large grain-producing province, Anhui, Jiangxi and Jiangsu, how can it be possible to make up for the arrears of grain in the past three years?" As long as you ask the emperor and the court to think carefully about this move, the emperor and the court will definitely understand that Wu Futai can be rewarded and encouraged, but not persecuted. ”

The official text was silent, knowing that Luo Bingzhang's words were reasonable, and he also knew that Wu Chaoyue would definitely offend the governors of other provinces if he became such a bird, but the official text knew that if he listened to Luo Bingzhang's bad idea, he would not have to offend Luo Bingzhang and the governors of other provinces - but the current Hubu mite Shangshu Bai Ye and Han Shangshu Zhu Fengbiao can definitely eat themselves raw, and they don't even have to dip soy sauce! And more importantly, Emperor Xianfeng and those uncles of the Military Aircraft Department will definitely not be happy in their stomachs!

Of course, Zeng Guofan, an old official, also knew that it was powerful, and seeing that the official was gloomy and silent, Zeng Guofan already knew that he didn't have the courage to stop Wu Chaoyue from doing this, so he couldn't help but smile slightly, and when he opened his mouth to say something, Zeng Guofan subconsciously closed his mouth - after all, Zeng Guofan still has a good face, and he just received Wu Chaoyue's favor a few months ago, so he really can't pull his face and will take revenge immediately.

Zeng Guofan's small movements did not escape the eyes of the old fox Luo Bingzhang, and Luo Bingzhang immediately asked: "Bohan, why do you want to stop talking, do you have anything to say?" ”

The official also looked at Zeng Guofan suspiciously, Zeng Guofan continued to hesitate, Luo Bingzhang smiled again: "Bohan, if you have any good ideas, just say it, don't blame the official for not reminding you, if the imperial court really wants the official to exchange the grain owed in Hunan into cash and send it to the capital for delivery, your shipyard in Xiangtan will have to stop work again, and your military salary, money and food, the official will also say that he can't get anything." ”

"Bohan, if you have something to say, just say it." The official also urged: "Don't forget, this matter is also related to you, if you still want Huguang's money, food, and military salary, don't hide any good ideas." ”

was forced to be unable to do it, and it was indeed related to the grain and grass salaries of the Hunan army, Zeng Guofan had no choice but to reply: "The official system, didn't the lower officials think of any good ideas, the lower officials just felt that Weiting wanted to exchange the arrears of grain into cash and send them to the capital for delivery, if he wanted, then let him do it." ”

"The grain arrears for three years are not a small amount, even if there is a little surplus in the Hubei Domain, it will never be possible to get it out at once, it must only be paid in batches, and this matter is also related to the issue of grain prices, and it will definitely not be able to come up with detailed regulations for a while and a half."

"That being the case, why don't you let the comfort pavilion go to bargain with the household department by yourself, and also let the household department go to bargain with the governors of other provinces, and wait for the comfort pavilion and the household department to negotiate the result, and then let Hunan handle it according to the regulations, and then Hunan should probably ease this breath."

The smile reappeared on the corner of Guan Wen and Luo Bingzhang's mouth, and they praised Zeng Guofan as indeed a good teacher who cared for his protégé - first agree with this matter, go up the house and pull the ladder to force Wu Chaoyue to bargain with the household department, and before the specific regulations are discussed, the governors of other provinces should also peel off Wu Chaoyue's skin.

Seeing that the official document had been satisfied with the agreement, Zeng Guofan smiled again and said: "Guanzhitai, since the Weiting promised to bear sixty percent of the military expenses, then the lower official has begged you for him here, and I hope you will read it because he is also loyal to the imperial court, and agree to his request." In addition, the lower officials also begged Luo Futai for a favor on your behalf, hoping that you would read the actual situation in Hunan now, give him some time, and don't let Luo Futai immediately take out the forty percent of the money and grain for the time being. ”

After that, Zeng Guofan also added with a smile, and said: "Fortunately, there are no major bandits in Hunan, a few small bandits, just the existing green battalion and regimental training, it is enough to quickly wipe out, and there is no need to rush to expand the army." ”

Guanwen smiled very happily, forcing Wu Chaoyue to pay a lot of money and food, it was originally Guanwen to avenge Wu Chaoyue's revenge, and now Zeng Guofan has proposed a better and more effective rectification method, of course Guanwen will not refuse to resign. Luo Bingzhang also smiled very happily, the purpose of the joint official document against Wu Chaoyue was to reduce the burden of money and food for the expansion of the army, and now that the goal has been achieved, Luo Bingzhang is of course satisfied.

Both the official text and Luo Bingzhang were not as happy as Zeng Guofan's smile, because Zeng Guofan had also achieved his goal, and he could already obtain a stable source of military salaries and money and food through the official documents, and there was a light at the end of the Hunan army's comeback. At the same time, Zeng Guofan also comforted himself in his heart and said: "Weiting, to be precise, this time the teacher is not to take revenge on you, but to prevent you from looking for death." If you're smart, hurry up and send more silver beauties to the official table, and beg him to let you go in large quantities. Otherwise, you really dare to take the initiative to hand over the grain that has been owed for three years, and the governors of the southwestern provinces can eat your whole family raw! ”

"Come here, set up a banquet, it is rare to get together with Luo Futai and Zeng Butang, and the old man wants to reminisce with them today. By the way, he also sent someone to say hello to Wu Futai, and if he wanted to, he would also come to drink with him, and if he didn't have time, tell him to remember that he was coming to the governor's yamen tomorrow morning to continue to discuss the expansion of the army. ”

…………

Of course, Wu Chaoyue didn't come to the banquet of the official text, not because Wu Chaoyue was angry, not because Wu Chaoyue didn't give face to his boss, but because Wu Chaoyue had something very important to do, and after leading Zhao Liewen back to the governor's yamen, it didn't take long for Wu Chaoyue's direct military camp to invite a guest one after another, and said that another guest was already on the way to cross the river. Wu Chaoyue didn't waste any time, and while ordering the news to be blocked, he personally met with the first guest.

The first guest Wu Chaoyue summoned was a Hunan tea merchant named Xu Huiyuan, who claimed to be from Anhua, Hunan, and ran a tea house of considerable scale in Hankou. When they met, although Wu Chaoyue told Xu Huiyuan with a smile on his face that he had invited him to the governor's yamen to assist in the investigation of a tea smuggling case, not to arrest and arrest Xu Huiyuan, Xu Huiyuan was still frightened and trembled.

Xu Huiyuan couldn't help but be frightened, Wu Chaoyue's personal soldiers on both sides were armed with guns and knives, murderous, and there were cruel torture tools such as sticks, leather whips, tiger chairs and other cruel torture tools in the hall - the torture tools were still stained with blood, which was daunting. And after Wu Chaoyue finished saying the beautiful words, he didn't say a word, just looked at Xu Huiyuan quietly with a flat expression, and his eyes were full of cruel smiles like cats and mice.

Unable to endure this terrifying atmosphere, Xu Huiyuan could only muster up his courage and asked tremblingly: "Dare to ask Lord Futai, summon the small people here, I don't know what you have to do?" ”

Wu Chaoyue was silent, and it wasn't until Xu Huiyuan asked again that Wu Chaoyue asked slowly, "Who sent you to Hankou?" Why do you want to collect evidence of the fact that the Governor of Huguang and the civil government of Huguang took commissions in the tea trade? ”

Xu Huiyuan's face turned white, and he quickly shook his head and said, "No ......, no, Lord Wu, what you said the grass people don't understand, the villain hasn't been instructed, and he hasn't collected any criminal evidence?" The small people came to Hankou to do business in order to earn money to support their families! ”

"Xu Huiyuan, you have two choices now." Wu Chaoyue raised two fingers and said lightly: "First, to be honest with this official, this official will ensure that you will not die, and even let you change your name and surname and become a new person." ”

"Second." Wu Chaoyue dragged out the last note, and said with a smile: "This official handed you over to the official platform, how will his old man entertain you, this official will not ask anymore." The choice is yours. ”

Cold sweat appeared on Xu Huiyuan's forehead like a stream, rolling down Xu Huiyuan's cheeks, and his body trembled wildly involuntarily. Wu Chaoyue waited for a long time without seeing any movement, and then said: "Well, since you are seeking your own death, then the official will fulfill you." Someone came, tied up this Xu Huiyuan, put it in a sack, and secretly sent it to the official platform. Remember, don't alarm anyone on the road. ”

The soldiers on the left and right sang the promise, while coming up to tie people up, and at the same time really taking a sack to hold Xu Huiyuan, Xu Huiyuan, who was in a state of mourning with liquid between his legs, couldn't help shouting, "Adults spare their lives, adults spare their lives, the small ones say anything!" ”

"Put him down and let him speak." At the same time as waving his hand to order, a smile finally appeared on the corner of Wu Chaoyue's mouth - if Xu Huiyuan really gritted his teeth and didn't say anything, Wu Chaoyue really couldn't force him to confess.

After Xu Huiyuan's confession was obtained, Wu Chaoyue quickly made a new arrangement, and the second guest was also invited to Wu Chaoyue. However, it's a pity that the second tea merchant named Yuan Jie is a diehard, Wu Chaoyue's heart-attacking tactics did not work, no matter how Wu Chaoyue's intimidation and threat, Yuan Jie said that if he doesn't recruit, he won't recruit, and Wu Chaoyue finally had no choice, so he could only sneer at Yuan Jie and said: "Okay, it's okay if you don't recruit to death, and the official is too lazy to talk to you, please stay here for a few days first, and then the official will slowly clean you up." By the way, by the way, I will tell you a good news, Zeng Guofan Zeng Butang also arrived in the provincial capital today, if you can really hold on until he comes to save you, maybe you still have a chance to live. ”

Yuan Jie's eyes flickered, but he still yelled strongly, "What crime did I commit?" Lord Wu, you have to be reasonable even if you are the governor, what crime have I committed? Why are you arresting me? ”

Wu Chaoyue didn't bother to pay attention to him, just waved his hand to let him be taken down and temporarily imprisoned, and then beckoned Wu Dadao to the front and ordered: "Poison him in his dinner, and when he wants to eat, rush in to save him, let the dog eat the poisoned rice, and let him see the dog being poisoned to death." Then he asked the cook to come forward to commit perjury, saying that a Hunan man paid money to buy him for poisoning. ”

didn't have been brainwashed by the education of movies and TV series, saw the soldiers of the Wu army suddenly rushing in and knocking over dinner, and saw with his own eyes the tragic situation of the black dog bleeding to death after eating his dinner, before the cook came forward to make perjury, Yuan Jie, who was extremely tough before, had completely collapsed, crying and shouting to see Wu Chaoyue to confess. At the same time, hearing Yuan Jie's heart-rending cry and begging for mercy outside the room, Wu Chaoyue and Zhao Liewen, the best unscrupulous pair, of course, laughed as happily as they could............

…………

For some reason, he needed to buy some time, and early the next morning, Wu Chaoyue sent someone to the yamen of the governor's palace to take leave, saying that he was unwell and asked for a day off, and then went to see the official on the third day. The official document knew that Wu Chaoyue was pretending to be sick and wanted to make trouble, but fortunately, Luo Bingzhang and Zeng Guofan did a very good job in this regard, and urged the official text to give Wu Chaoyue a day, and the official document did it stupidly, but he told Wu Chaoyue's messenger that Wu Chaoyue would be present no matter what a day later. Afterwards, Zeng Guofan also came to visit the students under the pretense of pretending, but was rejected by the disobedient protégé.

On the morning of the third day, Wu Chaoyue finally didn't play any tricks, and came to the yamen of the governor's palace on time with a smile to attend the meeting, and as soon as they met, he repeatedly confessed to Guanwen, Luo Bingzhang and Zeng Guofan, saying that it was for such a trivial matter that he caught a cold, which caused the three court officials of the dignified Governor of Huguang, the governor of Hunan and the squire of the military department to waste a whole day's precious time.

Hypocrisy and politeness wasted a lot of time, the three second-grade officials and the official text, the first-grade officer, finally sat down, after the meeting began, it was naturally the official text, the first-grade officer, who spoke first, and said with a smile at Wu Chaoyue: "Weiting, to tell you a good news, after careful discussion between the old man and your teacher and Luo Futai, decided to respect your opinions, and also fulfill your loyalty to serve the imperial court. ”

After that, the official document immediately added a sentence and said: "Of course, the old man also has a condition, you have to first write down the matter that you are going to pay the arrears of grain with silver, and send it to the capital to hand over to the military aircraft department first, so that the old man can agree to your request." Otherwise, if you have less money and food, but the court has not received the money and food you owe, how can the old man explain to the emperor and the court? ”

"Lord Taiwan's forgiveness." Wu Chaoyue hurriedly surrendered his hand and said with a smile: "Actually, the lower official just said an angry word at the time, and he immediately regretted it afterwards, and exchanged the arrears of grain into silver and handed it over to the imperial court. ”

"You're playing old man?!"

Guan Wen was furious and slammed his fist on the table in front of him, Luo Bingzhang and Zeng Guofan also looked at each other, and they couldn't understand how Wu Chaoyue could suddenly change his mind again? And Wu Chaoyue was still smiling, and he bowed his hand to the official Wen again and again, "The master of the Taiwan has said it, the lower official is your subordinate, and it is your junior, even if you have a hundred guts, I don't dare to play with you." Xia Guan was really angry at that time, and he didn't think that doing this would put Luo Futai and the governors of other provinces where he would be, Xia Guan regrets it now, and I also ask you to be a big man, and you must forgive Xia Guan once. ”

"No! How can you not keep what you have promised? Guan Wen was furious and shouted: "Since you have already said such a thing, you must do it, otherwise, the old man will join you!" ”

"The official system, if you have to go down to the official to do it, then there is nothing you can do about it, so please go to the fold." Wu Chaoyue spread his hands helplessly and said: "As long as you can ask the imperial court to allow the lower officials to pay the arrears of grain with cash, the lower officials will definitely act according to the order." ”

"You're ......!" The official text is blocked - the official text dares to go to this excerpt, and a few governors around him can chew him alive!

"Bureaucratic platform, calm anger, calm anger."

Luo Bingzhang stood up to play a round game, and bowed his hand to the official text, urging the official to calm down, and at the same time, he also gave the official document a look. Then Luo Bingzhang turned to Wu Chaoyue again, and said with a smile: "Weiting, since you have given up your previous plan for the sake of your colleagues' position, then we can only renegotiate the distribution of money, food, and military salaries for the expansion of the Huguang army this time." ”

"What Luo Futai said is extremely true, and it should be renegotiated."

Wu Chaoyue nodded again and again, and then without waiting for Luo Bingzhang to smile, Wu Chaoyue smiled first and said: "Luo Futai, the lower officials feel that the distribution plan proposed before the official system is too unfair, Hubei only has ten prefectures and one state, and the long hair in the territory was basically cleared until the middle of the fourth year of Xianfeng, and then there were many battles with the long hair one after another, although it was lucky to win a complete victory, but it was also the people's livelihood withered, and the people were all over the field, why should they bear sixty percent of the military salary?" ”

Guan Wen and Luo Bingzhang were completely dumbfounded, Zeng Guofan also looked at the disobedient protégé as if he didn't know, Wu Chaoyue continued to remark, and said: "Hunan is different, Xianfeng three years ago, the territory of Changmao has been basically cleared, the sixteen prefectures in the province no longer have the war poison, the people's livelihood is stable, the people are rich, this time Huguang expanded the army, why does Hunan only bear forty percent of the money, food and military salary?" ”

"Therefore, Xia Guan believes that this time the issue of sharing the money, food, and military salary of the Huguang expansion army needs to be redistributed! Hubei should only bear forty percent, and Hunan should bear sixty percent! ”

Guan Wen, Luo Bingzhang and Zeng Guofan were all dumbfounded, pinching their thighs to prove that they were not dreaming, and Guan Wen gritted his teeth and asked Wu Chaoyue: "What if this official doesn't agree?" ”

"That's your power under the official system, but the lower officials also have the right to argue!" Wu Chaoyue replied calmly.

stared at Wu Chaoyue fiercely for a long time, and then Guan Wen said: "Okay, then let's sit down and discuss it slowly and carefully." ”

"Wait a minute." Wu Chaoyue raised his hand slightly to stop it, then turned to Luo Bingzhang, and said to Luo Bingzhang: "Luo Futai, you are a senior, I am a junior, and today the junior wants to confess a crime to you." ”

"What is Wu Futai's crime?" Luo Bingzhang asked with a smile and kindness.

"Because of the needs of the case, the lower officials didn't greet you, so they sent someone to Changsha in advance to take people across the province by starry night, and I hope you will forgive you for your offense." Wu Chaoyue arched his hand and said.

"What case? Wu Futai, who do you arrest across provinces? Luo Bingzhang asked suspiciously.

"Arrest one of your staff members Luo Futai, called Fang Ruxu." Wu Chaoyue replied truthfully. (To be continued.) )