Just when Xiao Ye was busy working as a mason, the Shaanxi Xingdu Division, which was four hundred miles east of Gansu Town, was full of people in General Pingjiang's mansion.

Today, the warm sun is shining, it is the full moon banquet of the third son of General Pingjiang of Gansu Zhenping, the chief military officer Lei Zhengtang, the county government in the city, the political envoy department, and the inspection envoy department, all came to congratulate a group of officials, and even the commander of the envoy in Gansu town also sent a messenger with a congratulatory gift.

The political envoy is divided into the Inspectorate and the Commander Envoy, which is equivalent to the current provincial military district and has the military force of the entire province under its jurisdiction.

The general army has military power, not the right to transfer; The Command Division has the right to transfer, not the military power. In daily life, the general army counts, and the war is together, according to the order of the imperial court, the command department mobilizes the general army to go to where the battlefield. The purpose of this system was to restrain the army and consolidate imperial power.

From the beginning of the Ming Dynasty to the middle of the Ming Dynasty, both civil and military forces were emphasized, and the chief military officer was quite powerful, especially in the first two years, when the Gansu Zhenwei resisted the invasion of the Tartars, the Tartar head captured on the battlefield not only made the deputy general Lei repeatedly awarded by the imperial court, but also commanded the envoy to report the notice, that is, the political envoy and the envoy were also looked at by the emperor.

The court rejoices, and the local government naturally rewards a lot, those who should be promoted are promoted, those who should be rich are rich, and the homeless people run in the drought.

Jiang Bin, a guerrilla general who was very incompatible with Lei Zhengtang, was also promoted to the next level and transferred to the Metropolitan Command Division of Gansu Town as a servant; Anyone with a discerning eye can see that this method of killing is really insidious.

The location of Suzhou Wei, which has to fight against the Tartars almost every year, plus there are horse thieves rampant, swordsmen are flowing, one is not careful, even the official may die under the sword and arrow, the predecessor Jiang Jie just heard that he was injured under the fire of the horse thief.

General Lei, who was full of red face, wearing a brand-new silk robe on his burly body, looked a little nondescript, stood on the stone slab flower path in the front yard, and welcomed the officials and businessmen who were qualified to enter the hall to congratulate, and the local faceless students and elders into the main hall.

At the gate of Lei Mansion, there is a golden plaque directly above, with the book "Gansu General Military Mansion," there is a sergeant captain, leading the guards who carry gifts to the side door, and the guests who are dressed neatly take the gift list and walk up the steps of the gate proudly.

Handing over the gift list to the butler who greeted the guests at the door, these guests entered the main gate with a smile and loudly congratulated General Lei, "Congratulations to the general for adding a noble son and a prosperous person,"

Lei Zhengtang's change from deputy chief soldier to full-time chief officer is indeed gratifying, and it is the right time to find an excuse to give gifts today.

"Thank you, thank you, come, come inside and drink tea," looking at the butler's satisfied look out of the corner of his eye, Lei Zhengtang was quite happy, and with a loud voice, he let the guests into the hall of the hall.

"The right political envoy Huang Xian examines Lord Huang, two hundred taels of silver, ten horses of brocade,"

"According to the deputy envoy Wang Lushan, two hundred taels of silver, and one red coral," as the butler sang, the big man who came at the end made Lei Zhengtang smile even more, and strode towards the main gate to welcome the distinguished guests.

The presence of Huang Xiankao, the right-hand political envoy, with his subordinate staff officers and senators, and Wang Lushan, the deputy envoy of the procuratorate, with the officials of the bureaucracy, showed the heads and brains of the highest administrative and judicial organs in Gansu and gave him a great deal of face for Lei Zhengtang.

If Huang Guanglu, who was far away in Gansu Town, came again, it would be complete, but unfortunately, there was a snowstorm after a heavy drought for many months, and I am afraid that he would not be able to come.

The arrival of Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan made the magistrates led by Zheng Haiyang, the magistrate of the county, as well as the merchants, hurriedly go out of the hall and bow down to greet them on the flower path.

"Haha, today is a good day for General Lei's noble son, you don't have to be restrained, this is not an official office, feel free to order," Huang Xiankao, who entered hand in hand with Lei Zhengtang, looked at the subordinates, businessmen and landlords who greeted each other with smiles on both sides with satisfaction, and walked into the hall with a smile.

Wang Lushan, who followed two steps later, nodded with a smile on the corner of his mouth, and walked slowly behind.

In the main hall, five large square tables have been set up, and the cold dishes on them have been served, waiting for the guests to serve hot dishes; There is also a wine table in the side room, and guests who can't go to the main hall can go there to eat and drink.

After the guests and hosts sat down, the eldest lady of Lei Zhengtang held the child, and after coming out to greet the bureaucrats, she accepted a bunch of longevity locks, and retreated with Xiyu strings, and the banquet started lively under the toast of several leading officials.

After eating and drinking, no one else said goodbye and left, Lei Zhengtang let the guests into the backyard study, and everyone sat down to drink tea and chat. The floor heating in the study was hot, and everyone who took off their skin didn't feel a little chill.

Huang Xiankao, who was sitting at the top, looked at Lei Zhengtang who was sitting on a big chair next to the table, rubbing the Jingdezhen porcelain cup, "General Lei, you are now a great military achievement, and your future is immeasurable,"

"Yes, in the past two years, General Lei has been strategizing and exterminating hundreds of Tartars, and the entire northwest is second to none," Wang Lushan, who was sitting at the bottom, had a glint in his eyes, and complimented him enviously.

"Yes, yes," a group of bureaucrats, as well as Zheng Haiyang, who was sitting in the last seat, congratulated in unison, but Lei Zhengtang shook his hand again and again, and he didn't dare to accept it.

"I'm a rough soldier, how can I compare with your scholarly family, plus your family's business is prosperous, I can't envy it," Lei Zhengtang, who was playing with two jade beads in his hand, looked rude, but he could mix with General Pingjiang, where is the appearance of a mediocre person.

It seems that Wang Lushan is still worried about Jiang Bin's transfer to Gansu Town, hmph, Lei Zhengtang scolded very disdainfully.

The entanglement of interests between the military and political officials is to see who is strong and which is the backer, Lei Zhengtang will not be afraid of Wang Lushan's right to investigate, but he is also unwilling to offend easily.

After all, once every three years, he led the officials of Fuzhou Prefecture and County to make a pilgrimage to Beijing, and he was a political envoy who listened to the canon, and his power was not small, and he easily offended the legacy.

Sure enough, Lei Zhengtang's quiet words changed the topic, the three merchants of Huang, Wang, and Tian almost monopolized the supply of goods for the Persians in Gansu Town, but the merchants of all sizes within a hundred miles of the local area were jealous to death.

"Yes, the yellow plaster is the most magical thing, after solidification, it is comparable to a solid stone, the size and shape of the modulation are arbitrary, it is a sharp weapon for building a city, but the quantity is too small, and the price is really expensive, if it can be produced in large quantities, it will be a fortunate thing for me," Zheng Haiyang, who did not see the situation in the study, naturally wanted to talk about the yellow plaster, and he couldn't keep looking at it when he looked at it, so he always looked for an opportunity to mix it.

His words made Lei Zhengtang feel happy, but the two Shangguan Ke looked at him wrongly, the yellow plaster is an important interest of the three major merchants, you are a small magistrate, why do you still want to take a bite, or have you been instructed to jump out and tempt?

"Yes, not to mention the yellow plaster, it's just a silk coat and a dressing mirror, it's rare to look at," Lei Zhengtang said, slowly taking out an object from his arms, with a slender chain on it.

Pretending to look at the pocket watch, put it in his ear and listen, Lei Zhengtang carefully put it away, looked at those curious eyes left and right, and immediately became proud, "It's still early, come, let's taste this Maojian tea, Lao Lei can't drink it,"

Looking at the proud Lei Zhengtang, Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan smiled contemptuously, this product is really like to show off, although the pocket watch is expensive, but it is just a crown, you can understand the words on it.

"General Lei, you noble son has a wedding banquet, but it's a bit of a big expense, won't you just invite me to eat and drink," after taking a sip of lightly fragrant tea, Wang Lushan said with a smile, he really couldn't stand the display of this crude goods.

When it came to business, Lei Zhengtang's face turned pale, his eyes looked left and right, picked up the teacup and took a sip; "You guys, go down first, wait outside," Huang Xiankao, who was helpless, waved his subordinate out.

Wang Lushan also motioned for the official to go out, and he wanted to see what this General Pingjiang had to say. Zheng Haiyang, who was sitting in the last seat, quietly glanced at Lei Zhengtang and sat silently.

The county chief and the lord Bo didn't come in, he was a bare-bones county official, and he couldn't leave without General Lei to speak.

There were four people left in the study, and Lei Zhengtang opened his mouth at this time, "Two envoys, this official has a book here, before handing it over, please take a look at it, everyone in the province will be suspicious of each other in the future,"

"Oh, this rough man has also started to write the recital, but it's a rare thing," Huang Xiankao took the recital, opened a few eyes and swept it, glanced at Lei Zhengtang quietly, and handed it to Wang Lushan, who came over.

The old matter mentioned in this recital was brought up again, and he asked the imperial court to allow Gansu Town to reopen the mutual market, set up the chief officer of the mutual market, supervise and supervise the transactions and taxes on the grassland, and of course, the chief officer proposed in it naturally had to draw elite captains from the general military palace as escorts.

If the imperial court does not allow the reopening of the mutual market, then the supervision of the trade between the grassland and the interior must be strengthened, and the general military government will cooperate with the command of the envoys, and work with the local government to vigorously crack down on illegal traders, exterminate the horse thieves and bandits who harm the border Jing, and collect commercial taxes for the imperial court to ensure local tranquility.

The new bottle of old wine is not worth mentioning, but Lei Zhengtang, a military man, how he was mixed into business, which surprised Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan.

However, then the two of them saw something strange from the words captain and guard in the fold, which did not say how many guards there were, the ten people were also guards, and the hundreds of thousands of people were also guards.

This, Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan, who had been trying to figure it out, inhaled in shock, behind Lei Zhengtang, there are masters. This kind of two-sided glossy style has never been seen in Lei Zhengtang before.

"The horse thieves and thieves in the northwest are arrogant, and they actually killed the son of Jiang Yanguan, and a dignified officer with outstanding military achievements was assassinated and disabled at home, and it is difficult for the people to be recuperated without punishment," Lei Zhengtang on the side sighed solemnly, but it made the expressions of the two envoys change.

"Okay, General Lei, let's stop going around in circles," Wang Lushan snapped the fold and gently placed it on the stilted coffee table, "There are no outsiders here, let's open it up,"

"Hehe, that's right, my old Lei is impatient to chew the words, or just say it happily," put down the pearl stone, Lei Zhengtang slapped it, laughed and praised.

"There are many military academies under my old Lei, and it is not easy to support a family, and the business of the three major merchants in the Gansu Town Chamber of Commerce, oh, is the transaction with the rich building, and you have to take 20%," Lei Zhengtang, who opened his mouth widely, said with a blushing face.

"As for the capital, there is still a point, if it is not enough, you can owe it on credit," Lei Zhengtang, who was planning to have the idea of a white wolf with empty gloves, is also a good person when it comes to business, where is the roughness of a military man.

The family's business began to tilt towards Fuguilou and made a lot of profits, Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan knew very well, which was also the reason why they suppressed other forces and did not harass Xiao Ye; But now, at last, there is a red eye to step in.

Over the past year, under the situation of the shortage of supply in Fuguilou, each of the three merchants can reap the net profit of tens of thousands of taels of money, and Lei Zhengtang, who is unwilling to pay for it, wants to take away 20%, which is nearly 6 or 7,000 taels of silver.

For the guards of Shiguantun who are similar to the dart bureau of the Ximen Baihu, they really don't see it, of course, it is necessary to suppress it, the military households in the province are sluggish, and the Persian merchants are unrestrained, and they don't know that the sky is high and the earth is thick.

Although the cost of escorting goods from the grassland is definitely expensive, which is exchanged for people's lives, but if they can not meet with the Tartar swords and arrows, and do not lose their capital, it is a stable income, and they have also heard about the gradually increasing spiritual positions in the Shiguantun Land Temple.

Fuguilou paid taxes on time, Baodes was willing to spend money to get acquainted with all kinds of relationships, and even the two hundred households in Shiguantun and Yonghetun heard that they also had to pay the grain tax of Shangjiaotun every year, and they acted obediently according to the rules, not only the government was very satisfied, but even the three major merchants could relax and do business.

"General Lei, your General Military Mansion has a supply of grain and salaries from the warehouse, and I'm afraid it's not appropriate to meddle in the subsistence business of small businessmen and small households," Huang Xian Kaopi smiled and slowly tapped his index finger on the table.

"Yes, although General Lei is worried about the country and forcibly refuses the Tartars outside the border wall, it is unwise to have the court to praise him and compete with the people for profit," Wang Lushan agreed with Huang Xiankao's remarks.

"Then let's not talk nonsense, the general still reports the report according to the truth, and let the court consider it, the rich building of the Persian merchant, it is impossible to say that there are still Tartar spies, I heard that the Jinyi Wei is traveling to thousands of households, and he is going to send someone down to investigate," Lei Zhengtang rolled his eyes and snorted coldly.

You rely on the merchants in your family to eat meat, and you can't see our military households drinking some broth, it's simply unreasonable.

Among the 20% of the goods, he is not alone in eating alone, there are other people who want to share.

"Hehe, General Lei's words are wrong, didn't he say it, aren't we discussing it now, if the Jinyi Guard goes down and stirs up, I'm afraid that the Persians will be afraid, and the business road will be moved outside the boundary of the capital, it will be difficult to do," Huang Xiankao smiled and waved his hand, and said after a moment's silence.

"In this way, our three Huang Wangtians, plus some other merchants, raised 10,000 taels of silver tickets, which can be regarded as congratulating General Lei in advance on his victory this year, trapping the Mongols in the grassland, preventing them from going south to the troubled villages, and doing some good deeds to protect the people of Jingjing,"

"The twenty percent of the goods of the Persians in Fuguilou are the business of you and them, the general, and it is inconvenient for me to participate, out of sight and out of mind,"

His proposal seems to have been backed down, but his family's interests have not been damaged, and he is just paying some tolls; Although Wang Lushan was not very happy, he didn't have much money to share, so he didn't say anything.

As for Zheng Haiyang, who is only qualified to be an audience, the three of them didn't care about the dissatisfaction in his eyes.

Nowadays, there is not much money and goods in Fuguilou's business, but as long as the business is smooth, there should be more goods delivered in the coming year, and how much will be harvested, Huang Xiankao is a little farther away than Wang Lushan, and it can be regarded as pulling Lei Zhengtang and the Jinyi Wei Qianhu You Guda behind him.

"Well, that's pretty much the same," Lei Zhengtang was secretly annoyed, but seeing that Huang and Wang refused to back down, he could only pretend to be sorry and nodded, "That general is reluctant to make it difficult, and the matter of folding is just for the time being,"

Since he refuses to eat meat, General Ben has the means, so let's not eat it.

"However, the firearms made by the Persians, I heard that they are quite sharp, compared to the three-eyed fire, and the rate of fire is fast, so Jiang Yishi spent a lot of money to buy a lot, and next time I will see it," Speaking of this, the three of them talked about the Persian goods, and when they were amazed by the water umbrella that could condense pure water out of thin air, they felt that it was worth the money.

"That Ximen Xiao Ye, who is currently in Yonghetun Baihu, really relied on a water umbrella to guard the barren mountain, repelled the siege of the Tartars, and with the strength of firearms, he could let the Tartars leave empty-handed one after another, which is amazing," Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan's praise of Xiao Ye made Lei Zhengtang not very comfortable, so to speak, they may know the details of the battle exploits reported before.

Is this a warning to General Ben Lei Zhengtang felt that it was too much trouble to deal with these literati, but fortunately, after drinking a stomach of tea, he finally got 10,000 taels of silver.

As for going to Fuguilou to pick up the 20% of the Persian goods, he didn't plan to pay the bill at all, and the newly popped merchant didn't have much background/scene, and he already gave face to take his goods.

"General Lei, I heard that the official family in the imperial court intends to set up a border army barracks, then you have the hope of being promoted to another level, and the five hundred military captains under your command can also follow you," Huang Xiankao congratulated with a smile after finishing the matter.

This time Lei Zhengtang's son was full moon, if he hadn't heard the inside news, he wouldn't have bothered to come to congratulate him in person, and it is estimated that Wang Lushan would be the same.

"Haha, the official family knows the soldiers bravely, and knows the suffering of our border soldiers, and now the establishment of the main barracks is still groundless, and only with the order of the court can it be taken seriously," Lei Zhengtang was humble in his mouth, but he couldn't hide it with a smug look.

He is a dignified chief military officer, and he can only command in his hands in wartime, only 500 lieutenants and sergeants under him, and now with such good news, with a full moon banquet, he can earn thousands of taels of gifts, and the days to come will be even more enjoyable.

Huang Xiankao and Wang Lushan said goodbye and left, Zheng Haiyang also left respectfully, Lei Zhengtang personally sent them to the gate, and after sending them off, he turned around and came to a conservatory outside the second courtyard.

In the room, a middle-aged man in a black robe was frolicking with a pretty maid in his arms, the wide soft bed rolled into a ball, and the sound of panting and moaning could even be heard clearly by Lei Zhengtang, who was standing outside.

"This old thing, doing that thing during the day, is not afraid of flashing his waist and not being able to get out of bed," waved his hand to keep the guards behind him away, Lei Zhengtang coughed, walked to the door with an increased step, raised his hand and knocked on the wooden door, "Deacon Xiang is not, I am Lao Lei,"

Soon, the sound of Suo Suo's dressing came from the room, and a hoarse voice came out, "General Lei, wait a minute, Deacon Ben has a little trivial, it will be fine right away,"

"Squeak," the door was open, and the maid with her hair in a disheveled bun was flushed, and she gave the general a salute in a panic, and hurried out with her head bowed; Lei Zhengtang stood at the door with a smile, waited for the cold wind to blow for a while, and then walked in slowly.

"I said to Deacon Xiang, you are busy day and night, don't bother too much, taking care of your body is a big deal, and a round trip from Wuchang is enough for you to toss," Sitting casually on the wooden bench next to the round table, Lei Zhengtang picked up the teapot, poured himself a cup of warm tea, and said slowly.

The curtain in the room was lifted, and the deacon, who was neatly dressed, walked out solemnly, walked to the table with a red face and a heartbeat, and sat down, "Oh, I was cool for a while, and before I had time to taste it, you came back, and those guests left?" ”

"Let's go, if you don't leave, you'll have to have dinner, and my general military mansion is not a wine store," Lei Zhengtang's face became gloomy, changing his arrogant face just now, "You went to Wuchang, I don't know the situation here,"

"Jiang Jie was disabled and retired, Lu Yidao was killed, and the silver of the goods was also taken out, and the ten captains I sent out to Shiguantun to find the murderer, together with the recruited swordsmen, also died in the wild, Xiang Deacon, now we are not looking for the person who started with great fanfare, and the local government is also keeping an eye on it," Lei Zhengtang, as the master of Huangsha Hall, has another identity that is shoulder to shoulder with Deacon Xiang, and neither of them can control anyone, so naturally there is no need to be polite when speaking.

"I already know, Jiang Jie doesn't mention it, isn't it just the death of a horse thief leader, and the death of a few more military academies, how big of a deal," Deacon Xiang pouted nonchalantly, poured himself a cup of tea, and drank it for a while.

"If a Lu horse thief dies, there will be a horse thief, a king horse thief, there are so many horse thieves, choose one, as long as there is a lot of money every year,"

"As for your captain, maybe he provoked the caravan that shouldn't be messed with, you know, most of the guards of those big merchants are good hands selected from the barracks, and the guys in their hands are no worse than your captain," Deacon Xiang almost guessed the idea in a few words, and his eyes were cold.

As the outer deacon stationed here by King Ning, although Xiang Donglai is lustful and greedy for money, he is by no means a hot-brained man, and Lei Zhengtang pondered that his name was probably fake.

"What matters now is that if you bring You Guda to us and become our person, then in the future, your share of the annual money will be reduced or reduced by the master as appropriate, and the meritorious will naturally be rewarded," Xiang Donglai softened his tone after warning Lei Zhengtang.

"The official family is young, the tiger and leopard room is frolicking, our master has a great chance of reaching the top in the future, and there are also bureaucrats in the court who support the dingding, but it costs too much money,"

"Gao Zhuchao accumulates grain, family and country affairs, now the master is communicating with coastal merchants, and there are business roads in the northeast to be dredged, we can't retreat," the mouth full of silver money came to the east, and he was able to tell Lei Zhengtang some inside information, and it was also for the sake of hospitality.

"Yes, Xia Guan will contact You Qianhu more, that guy eats meat and doesn't spit out bones, it's not easy to deal with," Lei Zhengtang nodded solemnly, "Just now I said to the Huang and Wang families, first contact Fuguilou, and have the opportunity to win the Persian goods, it is best to take the supply, then you don't have to worry about the annual money in the future,"

His annual money of 1,000 taels a year, he didn't need to instigate food and food and treasury materials, and he had two banquets; It's not much, but he can't stand digging out every year, and it hurts when he looks at it.

Lei Zhengtang also knew that money was a small matter, and the key was that people valued his position as a chief military officer, and if he was pulled into the circle, he would be an account of a few pennies in the future, and he would not be able to get rid of the control from the east.

Without a strong backer, if he doesn't invest in that circle, he may not even be able to support his family.

Of course, the extravagant hope for the knighthood is the biggest reason why he entered the urn, and he can't complain about others.

"Fuguilou involves the three major families, and there are many other merchants involved, and the integration of officials and businessmen is the most difficult to catch, so we must be cautious, and it is best to start small," Xiang Donglai thought about it and gave Lei Zhengtang an idea.

He received a silver ticket from Jiang Jie from Taiyuan, and naturally he wanted to put on small shoes for the Ximen Baihu; This kind of small shoe is used by Lu Junhan like Lei Zhengtang, but it is the wrath of thunder, and it is easy to kill a hundred households.

"Well, I know, the gravel castle is not well settled, so that this official has damaged the military academy, but I can't let it go, even if that Ximen Baihu has nothing to do with Lu Yidao's death, he can't tolerate him," Lei Zhengtang, who came to power in the spirit of preferring to kill by mistake rather than let go of the means, showed a faint sneer on the corner of his mouth.

For the Gravel Fort and the West Gate of the hundred households, there is no impression of the east, for the sake of the silver ticket after the wind blows, since I will not care about the life and death of a hundred households, after drinking tea, the spirit is coming, "I said Lao Lei, let's go to Tianxiang Pavilion to listen to the music, and enjoy the geisha singing and dancing body,"

"This, I still have trivial things to do, so I won't go," after hesitating for a moment, Lei Zhengtang said with a smile, "That maid you look pleasing to the eye, so I'll keep it for you, and someone will warm the quilt when I come back at night,"

"Haha, then it's disrespectful, or old Lei, you know my heart," the room with a suitable temperature sounded a smug laugh to the deacon.