Chapter 207: Taxation (II)
I was going to Stone Town to go stargazing at night, Xie Zheng also got up early to prepare, and after getting up to take a bath, he sat in front of the dressing table to dress up, and after a while, he suddenly heard the maid knocking on the door outside, and said: "Xie Niangzi, the county marquis is back." ”
Xie Zheng was applying lipstick, naturally had no time to respond, Yuzhi knelt behind her, holding a wooden comb in her hand and combing her hair, and when she heard the words, she responded: "Got it." ”
When the words fell, Xie Zheng's lipstick had also been applied, she reached out and held the bronze mirror, looked at the makeup carefully, and when Yuzhi combed her hair for her and put the wooden comb back on the dresser, she immediately turned to face Yuzhi and asked, "Yuzhi, am I good-looking?" ”
"Good-looking, the lady is good-looking," Yuzhi said with extremely obvious impatience, but he didn't mean to snub Xie Zheng, but it seemed like a sentence that he had answered many times.
Xie Zheng saw that she didn't even look at herself, and the smile on her face was no longer there, and said, "You didn't even look at me." ”
When Yuzhi heard this, she raised her eyes and fell on her face, but she couldn't help laughing, and said: "Lady, you have asked this seventeen or eighteen times, didn't the slave say it, the lady is good-looking." ”
"That's good," Xie Zheng smiled with satisfaction, and then put the bronze mirror back in its place, and Yuzhi then said: "Actually, the lady doesn't need to dress up like this today, you and the county marquis are so familiar." ”
The woman is the one who pleases herself, this is naturally true, but it is not all true, Xie Zheng smiled and said, "How can I dress up to show him?" Today is the Begging Festival, there must be a lot of people who go to Stone Town to watch the stars at night, and there are also those noble women of the noble clan. ”
Yuzhi said with a smile: "The lady is not only the lord of Hengyang, but also the head of the nobles, your clothes, makeup, and even your demeanor and gait, those noble ladies of the scholar clan, which one does not follow suit?" Could it be that you forgot, the last time you ordered dansami in the corner of your eyes, you went to Xuanwu Street and walked around, and when you went out the next day, you saw that those ladies on the street were dotted with dansin in the corners of their eyes, and there were many people, and the dansami almost went to the temples, which made people laugh to death. ”
"Naturally, some people will follow suit, so will the unsightly ones follow suit, is it possible that they still follow my sick look?" Xie Zheng said, and looked at the bronze mirror again, and Yuzhi sneered: "That's not for sure, in case someone follows suit." ”
When he said this, Xie Zheng also laughed, but Xie Zheng didn't say anything, just asked Yuzhi to stand up, and the two walked outside together.
The porter chased Tao Hongjing, who had just walked a short distance, back to the front yard ear room, before one foot stepped in, Jiao Wenbin had already swallowed his breath, Tao Hongjing stood outside the door, and was a little overwhelmed for a while, so he only called out in a daze: "...... of Yongxiu County"
"Wen Bin! Wen Binna...... Wen Bin ......" The fisherman took Jiao Wenbin's hand and cried, Huan Ling was a little helpless, so he patted the old man's thin and thin shoulder, and said: "Mourn." ”
After speaking, he walked out, and pulled Tao Hongjing to the door of the side hall next door, and the two of them stood under the corridor, silent for a long time, before Huan Ling spoke, and said: "It's really hard to ask the imperial doctor to run more." ”
"The county marquis is serious," Tao Hongjing said, and sighed again, he has been practicing medicine for several years, and the most unseen thing is life and death.
Huan Ling looked at him, and suddenly laughed embarrassedly, and said, "That...... I won't delay you back to the Imperial Doctor's Office. ”
Tao Hongjing also laughed, and responded, so he said goodbye to Huanling, and Huanling saw him go away, and suddenly heard a woman's laughter at the end of the corridor on the right: "Lady, the county marquis is there." ”
Following the prestige, I saw Xie Zheng and Yuzhi approaching here, and Xie Zheng swept the front yard, thinking that he didn't see what she wanted, he smiled coquettishly, and immediately asked: "Tell you to pick lotus seeds, you are good, you have been missing for a long time, where are my lotus seeds, how many have you picked?" ”
When the words fell, the person had already walked to Huan Ling, and she stretched out her hand at this time.
"Lotus seeds?" Huan Ling thought about it, and suddenly seemed to remember something, and exclaimed: "Eh! I'm going to fall on Zhoushan! ”
"You can leave everything in your hand?" Xie Zheng didn't withdraw his hand, but poked his head and scolded: "What a memory! ”
After Xie Zheng finished speaking, his hand was put down, but when he saw a blood stain the size of a fingernail on the cuff of Huan Ling's left arm, his face suddenly changed, he pulled up his sleeve and looked at it carefully, and hurriedly asked, "Why is there blood, are you injured?" ”
"I just fought with others in Zhoushan, and I think their blood was on me," Huan Ling said, and then brought up the matter, and said: "It just so happens that you are here, I have something to tell you." ”
Xie Zheng looked at him with a straight face, knowing that it must be something important, and asked in surprise: "What is it?" ”
Huan Ling turned his head and glanced in the direction of the ear room, and pulled Xie Zheng to the guest hall next door uneasily, and then said: "I just met a group of people in Zhoushan, claiming to have come out to collect taxes on the orders of Lu Huilin, but they don't look like people from the household department, and when I asked, I realized that it was actually the Lu family's department!" ”
Hearing Huan Ling say this, Xie Zheng was already stunned, and said in surprise: "Lu Huilin... He actually sent his own soldiers to collect taxes for him? Then what do you have to do with so many tax collectors in the household department, and he is not afraid to let the people of the Sili Mansion and the Yushitai know! ”
"It's nothing, he sent his own soldiers to collect taxes for him, just to collect an extra tax, do you know how he is greedy for taxes? According to the degree of land system, three buckets per mu of land are taxed, and he actually has to collect six buckets! For this reason, he also connived at his subordinates to kill people! ”
"Six buckets?" Xie Zheng pondered for a while and said: "Others are greedy for taxes, and they only dare to start with the taxes that have been levied and fill their pockets, but they don't dare to ask the people for more, but this Lu Huilin, who has only been a scholar for a few days, actually dares to be so blatant and greedy for taxes, he is really not afraid of death!" ”
Huan Ling also thought for a while, and said: "He has the backer of King Linchuan behind him, so he naturally dares to blatantly embezzle taxes. ”
"The king of Linchuan has always loved money, and the person who profited behind the incident was not him? Now Lu Huilin is greedy for taxes, I'm afraid that's what he meant," Xie Zheng said, and suddenly asked again: "Is there anyone else who knows about this matter?" ”
"Princess Huainan, but ...... She didn't seem to have the slightest intention of making a big deal about this matter, so she only ordered the gang to go back and tell Lu Huilin, telling him to go to His Majesty to confess his guilt within three days, presumably turning a blind eye. ”
Xie Zheng sneered and said, "Who doesn't know that the Lu clan of Wujun is the King of Linchuan behind it?" Even if she wanted to, she wouldn't dare to be an enemy of her brother. ”
After all, she was also the cousin of many brothers and sisters of the Xiao family, and she still knows more or less what kind of character those cousins and cousins are.
Xie Zheng lowered his eyes and saw the blood stains on the cuffs of Huan Ling, so he asked: "The blood stains on the cuffs of the county marquis were made when he was fighting with those people?" ”
Huan Ling picked up the sleeve with his other hand, and when he saw the blood stains on it, he was a little heartfelt for a while, he nodded in response, and Xie Zheng immediately asked, "Do they know the identity of the county marquis?" ”
"I didn't say it, they didn't recognize me, Princess Huainan's side, I also told it, Lu Huilin must not have noticed that you and I already knew about it," Huan Ling was thoughtful, and told Xiao Huijin to keep it a secret for him in advance, and now Xie Zheng wanted to ask him, Xiao Huijin had a advice, and he had already said it.
Xie Zheng breathed a long sigh of relief and said with a smile: "It seems that I have to be busy again this time." ”
After she said that, she immediately turned around and instructed Yuzhi: "Yuzhi, tell You Jian to go to the outside of Princess Huainan's mansion to guard, as long as you see the King of Linchuan passing, you will come back immediately to report to me." ”
"Yes," Yuzhi responded, then turned around to find You Jian, Xie Zheng said with Huan Ling: "Now that Lu Huilin has such a handle in the hands of Princess Huainan, fidgeting is inevitable, even if Princess Huainan turns a blind eye, he will definitely find ways to beg King Linchuan to intercede for him, and King Linchuan has always been mercenary, Lu Huilin's corruption of taxes, if it has nothing to do with him, he will definitely sit idly by, if it has anything to do with him, then he will definitely go to Princess Huainan!" ”
Huan Ling agreed, and said: "That's right, if Lu Huilin's tax corruption really has nothing to do with the King of Linchuan, then even if he has the courage to ask the King of Linchuan to intercede for him, it will definitely be in vain, with the temperament of the King of Linchuan who loves money, if he knows that Lu Huilin is greedy for taxes behind his back, and does not give him the bulk of the benefits, he must not jump up and scold Lu Huilin to death!" How could he agree to intercede with Xiao Huijin for him? Therefore, as long as he goes to find Princess Huainan, then the mastermind behind this matter must be him! ”
While speaking, Huan Ling faced Xie Zheng, and Xie Zheng faced the front yard, after Huan Ling finished speaking, Xie Zheng also happened to see Zeng Qionglin coming back from outside with a woman and a son.
"County Marquis!" The guest hall was facing the gate of the Hou Mansion, Zeng Qionglin took the woman and the child into the mansion together, and saw Huan Ling and Xie Zheng standing in the guest hall at a glance, so he called out, and the three of them were walking towards the guest hall.
Huan Ling also walked to the outside of the guest hall to greet him, and when the three of them walked up to the cloister, when they stood in front of Huan Ling, Huan Ling's face was solemn, and he said: "I can't help it, I'm really sorry...... People are in the west ear room, go and see it......" He said, stretched out his hand and pointed in the direction of the east, when the woman heard this, tears fell like rain, and she hurriedly pulled her son to find the west ear room in the direction pointed by Huan Ling, and then heard a heart-wrenching cry from the west ear room.
"Those two are ......" Xie Zheng saw Zeng Qionglin leading a woman and a son back, and the surprise and doubt in his eyes were more than a half.
"It's a person who came back from Zhoushan, the gang of troops in Lu Huilin's mansion injured people in order to collect taxes, and I brought people back at the right time, I wanted to ask Tao Hongjing to take a look, but now people are breathless."
Xie Zheng was a little distracted for a while, and it took a long time to come to his senses, and he only said: "I'll take a look," and then walked out, and when he walked to the door of the West Ear Room, he saw a man lying on the couch motionless, and the gray-haired, skinny old man sat slumped aside, holding the man's hand, and kept whispering: "Wen Bin...... My son......"
And the woman knelt on the side with the child, and the woman wept bitterly, and the child wailed and cried out one after another, "Daddy...... Daddy, wake up...... Wake up, Daddy...... Daddy......"
At that time, Huan Ling also came over and stood behind Xie Zheng.
The old fisherman looked back, saw Xie Zheng and Huan Ling, immediately climbed over, and then knelt down in front of the two, and said: "I beg the two nobles, you must avenge the villain's son...... The villain's family is willing to be a cow and a horse to repay the two nobles......"
Seeing the situation, Xie Zheng couldn't help but feel sad, and hurriedly bent down, wanting to help the fisherman up, and said: "Get up quickly, the matter of your family, the county marquis has already told me, you can rest assured, since we know about this matter, we will not sit idly by, you get up quickly." ”
The old man couldn't stand on his knees, Xie Zheng couldn't parry, how did he know that the woman heard this, she also crawled from the ground, knelt in front of Xie Zheng, and cried: "Nobleman, the woman knows that you are all good people, and you will definitely avenge your husband's grievances, but the husband has gone, leaving the old father and the child at home, I am afraid that I will not be hungry in the future, and I will starve to death on the street, the woman begged the nobleman, took in the old father and the child, and did chores in the house, just asking for food and clothing, the woman kowtowed to the nobleman, begged the nobleman to take in the old father and the child...... I beg the nobles to take in the old father and the child......"
Before the words fell, Huan Ling had already agreed and said, "This is a trivial matter, you get up quickly." ”
Xie Zheng was suspicious when he heard this, and was about to ask why this woman only asked the Hou Mansion to take in her father and child, and where she was going......
When the fisherman saw her like this, he burst into tears again and called, "Chun Niang...... Why are you so stupid! Chun Niang ......"
Xie Zheng was moved in his heart, turned to face Huan Ling, and sighed: "Lu Huilin is really harmful!" ”
Huan Ling also took a deep breath, and said to the fisherman: "Uncle, you should mourn and change...... The matter of paying taxes, the lord of Hengyang County will definitely inform His Majesty, and the aftermath of the two deceased will also send someone to take care of it properly, as well as you and your grandson, if you are willing to stay in the Hou Mansion, you will immediately ask someone to clean up the room for you. ”
The old man of the fisherman was already crying darkly, and at this time, Huan Ling said anything, he couldn't hear a word, Huan Ling sighed, and pulled Xie Zheng away.
The two walked east along the corridor, and when they walked outside the guest hall, they saw two maids in the front yard, and Huan Ling said: "You two, go to the back cover room to clean up the two rooms, bring the pair of grandchildren over, and arrange for them to live first." ”
After he said that, he turned around and said to Zeng Qionglin, who was following him: "Qionglin, go and call a few people to come over and take care of the funeral for them, and do it a little more decently." ”
"Yes," the two maids walked to the backyard together, and Zeng Qionglin also went out of the house.
Xie Zheng followed Huan Ling into the guest hall and sat down, and Huan Ling asked, "What are your plans?" ”
"Since I want to sue Du Zhishangshu, this case should be tried by the Imperial Commander's Office, and as for how to hand over the case to the Imperial Commander's Office, it is natural that Yushitai will come forward."
Huan Ling asked: "You mean, you want me to ask my uncle to check on Lu Huilin?" But in this matter, you and I are in the dark, and it is not easy to come forward, if I go to my uncle, the king of Linchuan, don't you know that we are secretly meddling in this matter? ”
There was no maid to serve in the guest hall, Xie Zheng poured a cup of tea for himself unhurriedly, took it and drank two sips, and then responded to Huan Ling, looked at him with a smile, but said in a strange voice: "I heard that the younger brother of the county marquis was just promoted to serve the imperial history a few days ago, and this new official took office with three fires, but if there is no spark, how can this fire burn?" So I want to make a big case for him, so that his three fires can burn smoothly. ”
Yes, Huan Ling's younger brother Huan Rang, who has been supervising the imperial history for seven months in the Imperial History Terrace, relying on the continuous flattery and flattery of King Wuling, as well as the little achievements he has obtained from handling two small cases in the Imperial History Terrace, finally after seven months, he was promoted to serve the Imperial History, which can be described as "hard-won"!
"You want to use Zhong Xuan to deal with Lu Huilin?" Huan Ling frowned inadvertently, for this brother who had stabbed him and broke with him, even though he hated it, but deep down, he always cared about a little bit of flesh and blood, he had never cared about Huan Rang's life and death for seven months, and he had not met for seven months......
Zhong Xuan, after all, is his younger brother, at least once was!
"What are you afraid of, he is the servant of the Imperial History Tower, this matter should have been in his charge, and I just pushed the boat down the river and handed over the case to him, if he did it, it would still be a great achievement, what's wrong with this?" Xie Zheng glanced at him, and then said, "What's more, he is a person from King Wuling, are you still afraid that someone will dare to bully him?" ”
Huan Ling looked at Xie Zheng and didn't say anything more, he always had no way to take Xie Zheng, but Xie Zheng said it reasonably, even if he had the courage to refute, he might not be able to say anything about her sharp mouth, he took a deep breath, and then asked: "Then what are you going to do?" ”
Xie Zheng smiled: "What I want to do is just to write a pleadings in the name of that old man, accusing Lu Huilin of various crimes, and then send someone to send the pleadings to your brother's house, it's as simple as that, the next thing, your brother will discuss with King Wuling, and then the Yushitai and the Tingwei Office will deal with the case together, just right, Zheng Hui of the Tingwei Bureau, he is also the person of the King of Wuling, and it is very suitable for the people of the King of Wuling to deal with the people of the King of Linchuan, and you and I, just hide in the shadows and take advantage of the fisherman." ”
"I received a petition for no reason, how do you know that King Wuling will not be suspicious?"
Xie Zheng said firmly: "If he can deal with the Lu family, even if he is suspicious, he will definitely not miss the opportunity!" However, if Lu Huilin's tax corruption is really involved in the King of Linchuan, then I also need to think of a way to separate Xie Guifei first, so that I can deal with them. ”
vertex