Chen Deng was a little hesitant.

It is undeniable that this legendary treasure of the sea is very attractive.

For Chen Deng, a native of the sea, the treasure of the province is like a beautiful legend that accompanied his childhood. Now that he has the opportunity to face this hidden treasure in person, he is naturally quite excited. However, that doesn't mean he's willing to give up the 30,000 pirates.

There are eleven counties in Guangling, but the population base is not large.

In total, it is not even forty thousand. 30,000 pirates is equal to one-tenth of the total population of Guangling, which is almost close to the population base of a Haixi county. In this day and age, such a large population is a great temptation for many people. On the one hand, there is the provincial treasure of the sea that he dreamed of as a child, and on the other hand, there are 30,000 people, Chen Deng wants it, but he is not willing to give it up. But he knew that this was the time when he had to make a choice...... After hesitating for a moment, Chen Deng turned his head and looked at 'Changwen', as if he wanted to ask for his opinion.

This is what Cao Peng calls a 'deal'.

In fact, Cao Peng didn't have to give him the treasure and population, because from beginning to end, Chen Deng was not involved.

That's right, Chen Deng is the Taishou of Guangling County, but he is not a forcible taker. The children of the big family naturally have the demeanor of the big family. Cao Peng is willing to hand over one thing, and he already looks up to him. If you take it by force, you may not succeed.

Changwen was standing curiously aside, holding a torch in his hand and looking forward.

At the end of the forest, there seems to be a dead end. There was a squirting squirting fox, prostrate on the ground, and behind it was a stone wall.

If you look at the position where he is standing, you can't see any clues.

Feeling Chen Deng's gaze, he turned around and smiled...... "Whether it is settled in Haixi or Guangling, it is not all under the rule of Guangling County?" ”

"Uh......"

"Brother Youxue, where is this treasure?"

Changwen looked at Cao Peng directly, with excitement in his eyes.

Perhaps, in his eyes, the matter of 30,000 pirates is far less interesting than the hidden treasure.

Cao Peng smiled and looked at Chen Deng.

"Okay, 30,000 pirates will settle in Haixi."

"Thank you Chen Taishou!"

When Cao Peng heard this, he was overjoyed.

He turned around and shouted, "Xue Zhou, can you hear clearly?" ”

Wang Cheng raised his head and suddenly smiled.

"Hear me."

"So, can you open the treasure?"

Wang Cheng nodded, and was about to step forward.

Pan Zhang hurriedly stepped forward to stop him, but saw Cao Peng shaking his head at him and signaling him not to move.

"Gongzi Cao, I will solve a trouble for you, and I hope you can treat my 30,000 brothers well...... They are all hard-working people. ”

When Wang Cheng and Cao Peng staggered by, they lowered their voices and spoke.

Cao Peng was stunned, and just wanted to ask what Wang Cheng meant, but saw that Wang Cheng had already walked over.

"Fish lose money."

"Huh?"

"It's Fish Kiss Copper Town."

Cao Peng hurriedly handed Fish Kiss Tongzhen to Feng Chao and asked him to go up and help.

If you want to say that you know the treasures of the sea treasure province, I am afraid that there is no one more than Wang Cheng. After all, he stayed in Haixi for nearly ten years for this hidden treasure.

Presumably he had already figured out the situation of this hidden treasure.

It's a pity that from beginning to end, he didn't get the Fish Kiss Copper Town, which is the key to unlock the treasure.

Under Wang Cheng's guidance, Feng Chao gently twisted the base of the fish kiss copper town, making a hole in the fish's mouth. He slowly probed the fish kiss copper town into the mouth of the fox, and according to Wang Cheng's words, he aimed the opening of the fish kiss copper town at a reed in the mouth of the fox, and pushed it in hard, submerging the reed into the mouth of the fish in the copper town. When the reed is pressed against the bottom mechanism of Fishkiss Copper, it twists to the right.

The Fish's Kiss Copper Town is like the handle end of a key, but the internal structure is made according to the shape of the reed, and it must fit in one place, without the slightest deviation.

"According to records, when this mechanism was built, the reed in the mouth of the fox was originally created in conjunction with the fish negative money.

Therefore, the subtleties in this cannot be imitated at all, and only the fish can have an effect. I've tried a lot to recast the fish, but I haven't been able to do it. This stone wall is four feet back, and it has a mechanism, so it is difficult to force it open. It took me nearly ten years to open this stone wall, and I could only look at each other through the wall, the legendary hidden treasure.

That's right...... Mai Ren, do you know how I know this?

Hehe, I really want to thank you for that dead daddy. When he refused to stay in Luoyang, was it really a high wind and bright festival? Let me tell you, the reason why your father came back is not for any integrity, and second, he is not stingy with money. The real reason is that he found the secret record of the treasure of the sea in Luoyang. He hurriedly came back from Luoyang, the purpose of which was to open this treasure of the sea treasure province. ”

"Huh?"

"My son, it's a pity that he cheapened Lao Tzu for nothing."

Wang Cheng said that he was proud, and suddenly laughed.

Mai Ren was so angry that he was about to go crazy, and suddenly tried to break free from the hands of the warriors, but he was grabbed by the warriors and couldn't move.

"Virtuous and virtuous?"

Wang Cheng sneered and suddenly took a sip.

"Your father's virtue is not much better than that of these bandits such as me."

Mai Ren was so angry that he was panting, but he couldn't help Wang Cheng.

"You push the fish money inside, and that's it!"

Feng Chao nodded, pushed the fish again, and immediately pulled his hand out.

Hearing only a series of crunching sounds, the huge fox began to slowly sink into the ground. As the stone walls on both sides trembled slightly, and a puff of dust fell off, revealing a Tai Chi winch hidden above the stone wall. The winch turned, and the stone wall trembled incessantly, and in the roar, it slowly trembled and rose upward.

Changwen couldn't help but exclaim: "What a ghostly workman!" ”

Even Cao Peng couldn't help but sigh secretly.

The tricks of the ancients are really brilliant to the extreme.

This kind of creation is almost unbelievable, even in the high-tech of later generations, but it is nothing more than that.

The heavy stone wall rose, and a stale aura rushed in front of them, and Cao Peng and the others hurriedly took a dozen steps back and covered their noses with their hands.

A huge stone chamber appeared in everyone's sight.

In the middle of the stone chamber, there is a pool.

The area of the pool is large, and in the center stands a mountain. Other than that, there is nothing left, two pools on either side.

"What is this?"

Chen Deng walked into the stone room and couldn't help but be stunned.

Looking at the mountain in front of me, which is nearly four zhang high and about five zhang in diameter, I was a little dazed.

This is the treasure of the sea?

There are no treasures of all sorts, and there are no vessels of fine brilliance. Just a mountain, and three pools? This is the treasure of the sea treasure.

"I think back then, Li Guangli was favored by his sister and was regarded as a confidant by Emperor Wu."

Wang Cheng explained expressionlessly: "Every time a reward is awarded, it is calculated in millions and tens of millions of dollars.

And Li Guangli is a master of accumulating money. At the time of the founding of the Haixi Dynasty, almost all the wealth of the Haixi was gathered in one. He relied on the advantage of occupying the two Huai in the west of the sea and being close to the sea, and did business on a large scale...... and put all his wealth in the treasury...... It is recorded that Li Guangli was rich enough to rival the country, and his family assets were even more billion or 10 billion. But these riches were not discovered when they raided the house. ”

"You mean ......"

When Chen Deng heard this, he couldn't help but be stunned, and turned his head to look at Wang Cheng in shock.

Cao Peng seemed to suddenly remember something, "I remember that in a book called "Anecdotes of Haixi", it was recorded that Li Guangli once invited guests and friends to fight for wealth with others. At the banquet, he once said proudly: I have five baht mountain, and I can gather wealth from all over the world...... Could it be that this is the mountain? ”

The people standing here are not stupid, where do they still not understand what Cao Peng means?

The gray hill in front of you is not a copper mountain made of five baht coins?

How much does it cost to pile up such a big mountain...... Chen Deng couldn't help but gasp.

Everyone couldn't help but step forward and look around the 'mountain'.

Wang Cheng suddenly came to Mai Ren's side and said with a smile: "My son, I have been your old man for many years, and I decided to make you look strange." ”

"You ......"

"Follow me."

Taking advantage of the fact that everyone was not paying attention, Wang Cheng took Mai Ren and walked to a pool next to him.

The area of this pool is much smaller than that of the copper mountain, and the water is so black that it is impossible to see what is inside.

"What is this?"

"What Li Guangli had back then was not only five baht coins, but also many rare treasures.

He hid these riches in two pools...... After so many years, I don't know if the rare treasure is still there? ”

"Really?"

Mai Ren couldn't help but feel a little moved when he heard this.

He has the best wealth in his life, and when he saw that copper mountain just now, he couldn't help but feel a little moved.

It's just that he also knows that this copper mountain, I'm afraid there is no part for him! Since Chen Deng is here, it is impossible for him to take his turn.

However, his greed for goods still made him bend down, wanting to see the goods hidden in the pool.

Who knows, at the moment when he just leaned out, Wang Cheng showed a hideous smile on his face. He lunged up and wrapped his arms around Mai Ren's fat waist.

"What are you doing?"

"My son, come with me on a treasure hunt."

Wang Cheng laughed, hugged Mai Ren, and fell into the pool.

In an instant, the black pool of water suddenly boiled. Mai Ren screamed, and the clothes on his body were corroded in an instant.

The black water in the pool is obviously highly corrosive.

Wang Cheng hugged Mai Ren to the death and let Mai Ren flutter in the water.

Black water splashed on the ground next to the pool, sending out a puff of white smoke.

This is, strong acid?

Cao Peng hurriedly shouted, "Don't come close, everyone." ”

Pan Zhang and a few soldiers still wanted to go over to save people, but when they heard Cao Peng's shouting, they hurriedly stopped.

I saw that after being corroded by black water, shallow potholes appeared on the ground. Pan Zhang couldn't help but swallow his saliva, his face turned pale.

After tossing and turning in the pool a few times, Mai Ren gradually fell silent.

Chen Deng and the others looked at the two corpses in shock, gradually turning into two white bones in the pool, floating on them, and couldn't help but be shocked.

Feng Chao's face was calm, while Cao Peng's eyes narrowed.

"He ......"

"Presumably, Xue Zhou knew that he could not escape death, and at the same time he couldn't bear to give up his beloved son, so he ......"

Changwen suddenly spoke, but no one joked.

"Chen Taishou, when you take out these treasures, you must be careful of the water in this pool. I guess there must be something in this pool, and Li Guangli is just using this poisonous water to protect the treasures inside. It seems that for a while, I am afraid that I will not be able to get out of these goods. ”

Deng Ji couldn't help but speak, and the others couldn't help but feel concerned and nodded.

This sudden change made Chen Deng suddenly lose his joy of discovering the treasure.

"Let's get out."

He silently turned and walked out of the stone room.

The 300-year-old legend has finally been solved today.

However, for the sake of this legend, how many people's surnames have been lost?

Cao Peng walked up to Feng Chao and patted him on the shoulder, "Let's go...... Maybe for you and me, it's the best outcome. ”

As Mai Ren, it is not easy to punish him for capital crimes.

In any case, he is a celebrity in Haixi. Even if it is selling illicit salt, or even colluding with pirates to kill Feng Zhan, what can it do?

All of this was just Cao Peng's speculation, and he had no conclusive evidence in his hands.

Even if there is evidence, it does not necessarily lead to the death of Mai Ren; What's more, he has no evidence in his hands?

In an instant, Cao Peng seemed to understand the meaning of Wang Cheng's previous sentence: I will solve the trouble for you, and you will help me take care of the 30,000 people.

Mai Ren is probably Deng Ji's biggest trouble in Haixi.

Now Mai Ren is dead!

Feng Chao's revenge has been avenged, and Deng Ji's implementation of Tuntian will no longer have any obstacles.

Because of Mai Ren's death, those Haixi gentry have nothing to worry about. Deng Ji had the cooperation of the nine leaders, which was enough to implement Tuntian in Haixi.

With the continuous growth of interests, those gentlemen will definitely only want Deng Ji to bow their heads in the end.

And all this seems to have nothing to do with Cao Peng.

He began to think about Chen Deng's decision to levy him to Guangling County......―――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――――― after walking out of the tower, Deng Ji ordered Feng Chao to take people and guard the tower.

Chen Deng and others followed Deng Ji and returned to the county government to rest.

Deng Ji explained the situation in Haixi to Chen Deng one by one. And very frankly explained his purpose of carrying out tuntian in Haixi.

Changing tuntian for salt?

Legalization of illicit salt?

This sounds a bit deviant, but Chen Deng must also admit that this is the best plan for Haixi at present.

In fact, the sale of illicit salt has always existed.

Even when the discipline of the imperial court was still alive and the prestige was still there, there were people who engaged in this kind of thing.

In the past, the government could rely on its monopoly on private salt to obtain lucrative taxes. So to a certain extent, it is also a blind eye to private salt. But now, the world is in turmoil, and the court exists in name only. The salt tax was almost abandoned, and no one paid any attention to it.

At the same time, the large-scale illegal salt trafficking has also caused chaos in public order.

In order to ensure their wealth, the salt barons gathered the displaced people and caused trouble.

For example, Mai Ren, for his personal interests, colluded with bandits and brutalized officials. The situation is a little better, at least the wheat kernel did not cause much harm to the neighbors. But this does not mean that all salt barons will abide by some bottom lines like wheat kernels.

Legalizing illicit salt would be tantamount to regaining control of the salt industry in the hands of the government.

At the same time, it can also promote tuntian, so that the people can live in peace; And increasing taxes on the treasury seems to be a three-pronged thing.

Deng Ji is thinking about Haixi!

And what Chen Deng is thinking about is the entire Guangling.

Speaking of which, Haixi's position in Guangling County has actually been very embarrassing.

Guangling is a county seat, located in the Huaibei region, only Haixi County, the other ten counties are all located in the Huainan region.

This is the main reason why Hercynian has not been properly managed.

Chen Deng began to consider whether it was possible to legalize this illicit salt and implement it throughout Guangling County.

After all, he is the Taishou of Guangling County, and he has far more things to consider than Deng Ji. What's more, he is a native of Guangling.

"The pirates were pacified, and a population of 30,000 settled in Haixi.

Next, how do you plan to clean up the salt industry and promote your decree? ”

"Xiaguan next, there are a few things to do.

First of all, it is imperative for the lower officials to measure the land and take stock of the population. The lower officials are going to end this matter before the year, and when the spring of the next year begins, the first batch of tuntian will be carried out. According to the current situation in Haixi, the first batch of tuntian fields can reach 3,000 hectares, which is enough to house 30,000 Haitian people...... If the first batch of tuntian can be successfully implemented, in the autumn of the next year, Haixi will no longer rely on purchasing grain and rice from other counties to solve the urgent need for grain and rice in Guangling County. ”

Xuzhou was originally a land rich in grain and rice.

Today, however, there is a shortage of rice.

If Haixi County can solve the grain and rice problem, then for the ten counties of Huainan, it will undoubtedly relieve a lot of pressure.

Chen Deng pondered for a moment, "What about the second thing?" ”

"Crack down on illicit salt."

"Oh?"

"At present, there are more than 400 soldiers and horses in Haixi, but there are no more than 200 in Changxi."

Obviously, the law enforcement team cannot be regarded as a permanent soldier, and the patrol cannot serve for a long time.

Deng Ji said: "Therefore, the lower officials are preparing to set up an anti-smuggling team, about 200 people, to block the salt road from the East China Sea to the western part of the sea to crack down on smuggling salt. ”

"What else?"

"Then there's the opening of a salt farm."

"How are you going to arrange this salt farm?"

"Regarding the matter of the salt farm, Xia Guan also considered a lot of questions.

This business matter is not what the lower officials are good at, so the lower officials decided to hand it over to the two people of the county, Huang Cheng and Pan Yong. However, the ownership of the salt farm is in the hands of the government, and Huang Chuan and Pan Yong only have the right to operate it. Fees are paid annually and their performance is evaluated by the government. ”

"Slowly, slowly, what kind of ownership you are talking about, what else is the right to operate, what is going on?"

"Well...... Hehe, it's still the method proposed by Youxue. ”

"Then you can tell me in detail."

―――――――――――――――――――――― Deng Ji was in the flower hall and explained in detail to Chen Deng about the salt farm.

In the backyard, Cao Peng and 'Changwen' sat on the porch. Changwen was holding a copper shabu-shabu in his hand, looking left and right, very curious.

"This is the 'shabu-shabu' you are talking about?"

"Exactly."

"It doesn't seem like anything special."

"Hehe, this thing is not for viewing, it's for use...... It's better to find someone to go to the North Market for a while, see if there is any lamb, and buy some back. Let's feast here today, and let my brother taste what delicious food is. ”

"Haha, I don't dare to invite you."

Cao Peng also smiled.

"Brother, I've known each other for so long, and my younger brother still doesn't know my brother's name."

"You don't know who I am?"

"This ...... Do I have to know? ”

Changwen was stunned for a moment, and couldn't help laughing.

"I was indeed negligent!" He smiled and said: "My surname is Chen, but it is not the Chen of Guangling, but the Chen of Yingchuan, my name is Chen Qun." ”

――――――――――――――――

(To be continued)