When Han Jiang was fighting desperately with the Marquis of Yangzhou and the salt merchants, Cao Bin had already come to Yancheng, Chuzhou.

The imperial court set up more than a dozen large-scale salt farms along the north and south coasts of the Huai River, and each state set up a salt supervision department, and the Yancheng salt supervisor was one of the most important.

This time, Cao Bin came by sea and did not inform the local officials, so it was not until he led his team into the city that the local salt officials, Zhizhou and Han Jiang sent the officials of the "Duyan Case" came to greet him in a hurry:

"Master Hou patrolled to Yancheng, it's really an honor for us, the lower officials and others have set up a banquet for you, please be sure to enjoy the light."

Seeing that these people were sweating profusely and looking happy, Cao Bin didn't care how sincere they were, jumped off the mount directly, thought about it and smiled:

"Ben Hou has never paid attention to vulgar etiquette, so you don't have to bother, but tomorrow is the Mid-Autumn Festival, Ben Hou plans to hold a big banquet in Yancheng and spend a good night with the people."

"You go and gather the local village elders, squires, and officials at all levels, and let them all come to Benhou for a banquet...... Okay, let's arrange a spacious station for Ben Hou first. ”

When several local officials heard this, they couldn't help but look at each other, they didn't know what Cao Bin was going to do, and they couldn't help but feel uneasy, but they didn't dare to refute it, and hurriedly said:

"Hou Ye, please come with the lower officials, the Wu family has newly built a manor of dozens of acres, which is suitable for the use of the Hou Ye, and the lower officials will ask them to borrow ......"

After arriving at Wu's Manor, after the entourage was properly arranged, Cao Bin directly sent the local officials away, leaving only the officials of the "Duyan Case".

Cao Bin took a sip of tea and asked:

"Tell me, what difficulties did you encounter in rebuilding the salt works?"

The official of the "Duyan Case" was assigned to Yancheng by Han Jiang, who was originally a subordinate of the Third Division, and he was also his own person, so he would not completely collude with the local officials in a short period of time.

When the official heard this, a bitter look suddenly appeared on his face:

"It's too difficult, Master Hou!"

"Since the officials came to Yancheng, not only the people resisted fiercely, but even the local officials secretly rejected them, and there were also gangsters and thieves who sabotaged and made trouble."

"Even Lord Han came to Yancheng in person to exterminate hundreds of chaotic people and mountain bandits, but there was no progress."

"The lower officials suspect that the officials of Yancheng have colluded with the cronies in order to prevent the imperial court from rectifying the salt affairs in Yancheng."

Cao Bin pondered for a moment and said:

"So you didn't do anything?"

When the official heard this, he hurriedly said with a sad face:

"Lord Hou forgives the sin, if it weren't for the fact that the lower officials didn't do their best, the bandits in the rivers and lakes came and went without a trace, and the lower officials were in Yancheng, and it was difficult to save even their lives......"

He really felt wronged, in the face of the local forces like Yancheng Iron Bucket, even the serious Qincha, Han Jiang, the head of the Salt and Iron Division, could not do anything, he was an official of the "Duyan Case", and he didn't even have many subordinates, so what could he do?

Cao Bin glanced at him, waved his hand and interrupted:

"Okay, don't complain in front of Benhou, and I don't care about your mess."

"This Mid-Autumn Festival night banquet will be handed over to you to handle, even if it is done well, even if it is a meritorious service, if it is not done, you will be punished for two crimes."

The official said "ah":

"Master Hou, what about the money for this banquet?"

Cao Bin glanced at him and said:

"You figure it out yourself, damn, do you still need to ask? Ben Hou's sycophant, some people are rushing to shoot! ”

The official was speechless for a moment, of course it would be no problem if it was a reception banquet, but if you want to feast on the local squires and village elders, how many people do you have to do this?

And it's no better than sending money directly to a woman, it's hard for you to remember the kindness of others.

What's more, everyone can guess that the purpose of this Mid-Autumn Festival banquet must be to solve the problem of the salt farm, even if those people don't make trouble, thank God, you still want them to pay, I'm afraid that no one is willing to do this kind of thing.

However, he didn't dare to shirk it, so he could only persuade tactfully:

"Master Hou, the problem in Yancheng is very serious, I am afraid it will not be effective just by relying on the general situation, Lord Han has already tried."

"Lord Han said that the salt works should be slowly planned, and only by dividing and disintegrating the officials and gentry in Huaidong can they be effective......"

Cao Bin glanced at him, waved his hand and said:

"That was Han Jiang's idea, but Ben Hou didn't have so much time to spend with them for the New Year."

"You don't have to care so much, just do what Ben Hou tells you."

The official had no choice but to bow deeply and bow down.

He also knows a little bit about Cao Bin's way of acting, and he only hopes that this Marquis Cao will not persecute the salt people and officials too much.

Otherwise, if there is a big mess, it will be over, and even if it is calmed down by force afterwards, it will be recorded as a crime by the imperial court.

Not long after the official left, Yang Bajie walked in with an unhappy face and said:

"Cao Lang, the head of the Wu family just sent a class of miscellaneous plays, saying that it is the team of the Oiran lady in the city, do you want to accept it?"

Cao Bin pulled her into his arms and teased:

"Eighth sister, this pantothenic acid?"

The eighth sister rolled her eyes, pouted, and said:

"It's just an Oiran, I don't care, even if you take her? I'm afraid that you will indulge in alcohol and delay political affairs. ”

"I think that Han Jiang is also useless, if he can't withstand the pressure of the imperial court, I'm afraid it will hinder Cao Lang's plan."

Up to now, although the wives and concubines in Cao Bin's family are quite harmonious, and there is no performance of infighting for favor, Cao Bin still attaches more importance to the atmosphere at home, and if it is not necessary, he will not easily bring people to the house, so he does not care about the words of the eighth sister.

just commented on Han Jiang:

"Han Jiang still has some talents, how can he say that he is also from the family of eunuchs, he is a decent person, brave in danger, and has the style of an elder."

"I can't quickly rectify the salt business, it's just that he has a lot of worries and doesn't have the courage to be ruthless."

As he spoke, he smiled and said:

"This time his husband has pushed him into a desperate situation, he doesn't want to work hard, he can't do it, don't worry."

"Besides, I already have most of the information inside and outside Huaidong, even if Han Jiang can't handle the Marquis of Yangzhou, it won't affect his husband."

No matter what happens, it's not easy to get off to the beginning, as long as you go in the right direction, it will only get smoother and smoother from then on, and so is being an official.

When he first entered the officialdom, Cao Bin didn't have anything, so naturally his eyes were black, but now he not only has the "swallow" who has the intelligence of the world, but also the green forest forces that crisscross the rivers and lakes, and it will be much easier to coerce the power of one party.

What Han Jiang can do with great effort, he can easily do, just like those troublemakers in the rivers and lakes, to him is not even a disease of scabies.

His mind was not even completely focused on Huaidong, but staring at the changes in the capital......

On August 15, the night of the Mid-Autumn Festival, hundreds of people and officials gathered at Wu's Manor.

Different from the officials, those village elders and squires were very excited, although they also had some thoughts, but more for the Qin mission to invite them to the banquet felt incredible, just like an official of Cao Bin's level, it may be difficult for them to meet each other, let alone be invited to the banquet.

Although there are some officials close to the people at this time, there are definitely not many of them......