71_71495 sent away Zhang Fengqi, the prefect of Pingliang, and Xu Liang was in a very happy mood. Early the next morning, Xu Liang came to the prefect's yamen and once again inspected the backyard that had been destroyed by the fire.

One of the officials in the yamen of Pingliang Mansion arrived at the scene and gathered around Xu Liang.

Due to a lack of funding, the restoration of the backyard has largely stalled. The arched round gate into the backyard was fenced by Lu Tongzhi's people, and people were usually forbidden to enter.

When Xu Liang asked to check the scene, Lu Tongzhi hurriedly ordered someone to remove the fence. In fact, there is nothing left in the entire backyard, the wooden structures affected by the fire have been cleaned up, and only a few ruins remain in the entire backyard, and the smoky walls silently tell the story of the accident.

Xu Liang's gaze swept over the broken walls everywhere, and secretly said that this is my office in the future, and it has to be neat and elegant. So he pointed to the backyard towards Pingliang and the governor Lu Yifa and the official Huang Daozhou and said: "Lord Lu, Lord Huang, the case of the fire in the government has been decided, and the prefect Zhang has also left Pingliang and returned to the capital. Lord Lu, you can find some craftsmen to come over and restore the backyard. ”

Lu Tongzhi hesitated, and said in a low voice: "My lord, at present, the prefect's yamen is short of money and food, and after Governor Zhang leaves office, the new prefect has not yet arrived, will it be too early to restore it now?" ”

When Xu Liang heard this, he didn't feel good in his heart, glanced at Lu Tongzhi lightly, and said: "Lord Lu, although the prefect is vacant, but the official Pingliang Tongzhi is still there, if everything has to wait for the prefect to decide, then can we do anything in Pingliang Mansion?" We are officials of the court, we must take a long-term view, broaden our horizons, and we can't only have bosses in our eyes! ”

Lu Tongzhi received Xu Liang's faint gaze. A cold sweat suddenly broke out in his heart, and he secretly said that he was really confused, and Zhang Fengqi, the legitimate prefect, left office. Xu Liang, a Pingliang Tongzhi, is naturally the best candidate for the next prefect, and at this time, he will say what to wait for the prefect to arrive. Won't you go up and scold?

Lu Tongzhi reacted quickly, and immediately put on a look of benefiting a lot, stroked his palm and said, "What Lord Xu said is very true. This one...... The backyard of the government is so desolate and dilapidated, it really doesn't look like it. Lord Xu can rest assured that the lower officials will do their best to restore the backyard. ”

Xu Liang nodded and said, "Well, then it's hard Lord Lu." By the way, there are some ideas for the restoration of this backyard. I want to discuss with Lord Lu, and I will ask people to send a few points I came up with last night to Lord Lu, and Lord Lu will refer to them in detail. ”

Lu Tongzhi was like a mirror in his heart, and said in surprise: "Xia Guan is worried about how to restore the backyard, I didn't expect that Lord Xu had a good idea. It's really, really, great. ”

Xu Liang snorted lightly, and secretly said that this Lu Tongzhi is still on the top, and he knows how to do things according to his own will.

Xu Liang turned to look at Huang Daozhou and said, "Lord Huang, it's about to enter February." It is a big deal for the people to turn over the fields and cultivate, and Lord Huang should keep an eye on them carefully and sow all the fertile land under his rule as much as possible. Although the climate is arid, you can always harvest a little grain after planting. The life of the people will be better. ”

Huang Daozhou arched his hand and said: "Don't worry, my lord, the lower officials will pay attention." He furrowed his brows and said, "It's just that, my lord, it's still a matter of silver, due to the influence of thieves and rebels, there is a lack of private farm tools and farming cattle, and the prefect yamen can't afford to buy them." ”

Lu Tongzhi also hurriedly said: "Yes." My lord, not only Lord Huang needs silver. The lower officials wanted to restore the backyard of the mansion, and they were also anxiously waiting for the silver. ”

Xu Liang groaned for a while. "Who is in charge of the Taxation Bureau now?" ”

Huang Tuiguan said: "It's the head of the house." ”

Xu Liang knew that after Mao Yujie, the former head of the Taxation Bureau, went to Chongxin County to become the county magistrate, the Taxation Bureau has always been Zhang Fengqi's cronies and the head of the house. Now that Zhang Fengqi has left office, Xu Liang will re-hold the Taxation Bureau into his own hands.

Xu Liang said in a deep voice: "Let the householder stop doing anything." Re-appointees of the Inland Revenue Department. He turned to look at Huang Daozhou and said, "This official has decided to levy wartime taxes in all states and counties under the rule of Pingliang Mansion. I look at the head of the Taxation Bureau, and don't choose anyone else, Lord Huang, you will be in charge. ”

Huang Daozhou thought for a while, nodded slowly, and said, "The lower official obeys the order." He also said: "My lord, there is nothing wrong with the lower officials taking on this errand, the lower officials are just worried that the states and counties that have never levied wartime taxes before will be in conflict with the implementation, and the yang will be contrary to the yin, and the matter will not be easy to handle." ”

"Hmph." Xu Liang sneered, his fierce color flashed on his face, and said: "Then the official will match you with another person, the cow catcher in Xi'an Mansion is capable, tactful, and a rare talent." The official is going to transfer him to be the chief catcher of Pingliang Mansion, and if there is any trouble that is difficult to solve, the tax bureau will hand it over to Niu catcher. ”

Huang Daozhou was stunned, thinking of the case of Niu Catcher setting the prefect's yamen on fire, and even more talking nonsense with his eyes open, and making it an accident, Huang Daozhou had a bad evaluation of Niu Catcher's ability to investigate the case, but he understood this person's ability to reverse right and wrong, thinking that having such a person on the side to help him was not a bad thing. He nodded in agreement.

Unexpectedly, Lu Tongzhi reminded loudly: "Uh, my lord, the original Zhang Zhutou in our prefect's yamen is still there, and Niu Zhutou has been transferred, what should I do with Zhang Zhutou?" ”

From the report of the Tsing Yi Wei Detective Department, Xu Liang knew that this Zhang Zhutou played a very heavy role in the case of the fire of the prefect's yamen directed and acted by Zhang Fengqi.

Xu Liang didn't have a good impression of this person. waved his hand and said: "Zhang Zhutou is old, and the position of head catcher is all about licking blood from the knife edge, and he may be injured at any time." I heard that a cell boss in Zhenyuan County passed away, so Zhang Zhutou went to Zhenyuan to be a cell boss. ”

None of the officials objected, and although everyone knew that Zhang Zhutou was only forty-five or sixteen years old this year, and it was impossible to say that he was old, everyone seemed to have collectively lost their memories of this incident.

In this way, Xu Liang's words kicked out the two people who were Zhang Fengqi's closest cronies when he was in office out of the core department of the prefect's yamen.

Later, Xu Liang overturned several policies of Zhang Fengqi when he was in office, and for a while, officials at all levels in Pingliang Mansion understood that Pingliang knew the residual influence of Xu Liang and Lord Xu in purging the former prefect Zhang Fengqi, and the officials were collectively silent.

A few days later, with the arrival of the new head catcher of Pingliang Prefecture, Huang Daozhou, the official of Pingliang, personally took command, and more than a dozen taxation bureau teams were stationed in various prefectures and counties under the rule of Pingliang Prefecture, and the wartime tax that was once only collected in Pingliang, Guyuan, Zhenyuan, and Jingzhou began to be collected in the whole government of Pingliang Prefecture.

The newly appointed Pingliang Prefecture Chief Catcher Niu Auxiliary Machine also took the reorganized Ma Kuai, with a total of 120 people, to inspect the prefectures and counties under the rule of Pingliang Prefecture to supervise and arrest lawbreakers.

At first, no one linked these two seemingly unrelated things in Pingliang Mansion, and one day, after a cloth merchant in Jingning Prefecture refused to pay the war tax, within two days the merchant was arrested by Mr. Niu and found out that the merchant sold inferior cloth, ate and paid the bills, went to the kiln and did not give money, beat the beggars who came to the door, and other ugly things that damaged the demeanor of the gentry in Pingliang Mansion, and then the people accused the merchant of encroaching on a few acres of land of the common man's family, and some people accused the steward of the merchant's family of seducing the widow in the village in broad daylight...... All of a sudden, there was a scandal about the businessman who had always had a good reputation. Mr. Niu took a group of fierce and vicious catchers, and knocked on the door of the merchant's house almost every day on time.

Three days later, the merchant came to his senses, and immediately obediently went to the tax collection group in Jingning Prefecture to pay double the war tax, and the next day his house was much quieter.

It was also in the wartime when the tax was levied in various places, and the war report came from Hanzhong Mansion, and the 30,000 Liang troops led by the Pingliang guerrilla general Dai Feng successively defeated the Liang Wang, Gao Yingxiang, Zhu Zijian and several other rebel armies, and Shun Lì relieved the siege of Hutou Pass and rescued the trapped Ming army soldiers, a few days ago, General Dai led more than 10,000 Liang troops to garrison Hutou Pass, and Xing Zhongshan led 3,000 Liang troops to escort the Ming army back to Pingliang.

When the news was reported to the governor of the three sides, Wu Zhiwang, who was so excited that he burst into tears, and immediately decided to rush to meet the safe return of the Ming army soldiers in person.

Xu Liang was invited to go with Wu Zhiwang, the governor of the three sides. (To be continued).