Be a master through ancient times

The unsolved mysteries are puzzling.But County Magistrate Wu was not included here, because after he found out that the box was not silver, he lost interest and went back home.

He wanted to ask that Du again, where did all the money he got by means of all these years go?

"Lord Chu, I heard that you have always been quick-witted. What do you think?" Master Fan asked. At the beginning, it was Chu Ci who said that the people on the flower boat were related to the water bandits. Fortunately, the water bandits have not been caught. The problem is one. One after another, it is really annoying.

"My lord, I think this matter should be dealt with from two aspects. First, we must first send someone to unlock the tunnel in Yang Shuisheng's yard to see where this tunnel will eventually lead. Second , Sort out the contracts in the box, register all the people involved in it, and check them one by one to see what the people behind the scenes intend to seize these items." Chu Ci didn't make a fool of himself, and directly proposed his own suggestion.

Master Fan was a little strange: "I agree with the first point you said, but what is the effect of the second point? The intention of the people behind the scenes to seize these items is very obvious, isn't it just for money?"

Chu Ci shook his head: "Think about it, my lord. If they just want money, why don't they just sell these things directly? As long as the things inside are sold, they will be more than what they owe. Officials believe that their real purpose is not to ask for money, but to use this method to control them, so as to achieve ulterior motives.”

Master Fan was surprised: "You mean..."

"Yes, I suspect that those people want to use others to inquire about the news. Since the day I heard the Japanese murdered people, I have unconsciously connected the Japanese with the water bandits who are rampant along the coast of southern Fujian." Chu Ci looked serious. Slowly stated the result of his deduction.

"Then I inquired about the process of the navy sending people to arrest the water bandits. For such a long time, the navy has dispatched dozens of capture operations. Every time they received information, they dispatched troops very quickly. The exceptions were all escaped by the water bandits, as if they had the ability to foretell."

When Chu Ci talked about the four words "unpredictable prophet", there is a bit of meaning in it.

After hearing this, Lord Fan's expression gradually became serious: "You mean, someone in the navy is making an informer?" His face was full of displeasure, and he didn't know whether it was because of Chu Ci's suspicion or something else.

Chu Ci shook his head: "No, that's not what I mean by being an official. Those who can enter the military camp are all good men. They will sacrifice their lives to serve the country, so naturally they will not betray the news for a little profit."

Master Fan's face paled slightly: "Go on."

"Yes." Chu Ci continued, "Have you ever thought about it, my lord, most of the time when sailors go to sea, they start from the pier, where there are so many people, there might be someone with a heart lurking in it, and if there is any movement, they will be there." Report it immediately."

Master Fan immediately questioned: "If the people on the pier leaked the news, then I also secretly organized the brothers of the navy to go to sea from other places, but they still escaped by the water bandits. Why is that?"

"This may be revealed inadvertently. People generally don't guard against people close to them. These people hide around everyone, and sometimes they can be guessed just by a casual sentence. For example, if Your Excellency decided to go to sea to catch the water bandits that night, Madam asked where they were going, what would you say?"

Lord Fan snorted: "I will tell you that I have something important to do, so don't ask any more questions!"

"If you say that, Madam will be depressed. Her maid will ask the reason when she sees this, and Madam will definitely say that the lord has not returned all night, that she has something important to do, and that she has gone to some gentle village." Chu After the resignation, seeing Mr. Fan's expression was a little unnatural, he couldn't help laughing secretly, it seemed that he had hit the mark.

"Most of the maids can communicate with each other. Presumably, it won't take a while for the whole house to know that the lord will not go home at night and go to work. Those water bandits are guilty of thieves. Once they know the news, they will become Be more cautious, and if there is any trouble, you will get away and leave, so as not to put yourself in danger."

"The government has strict discipline, and never takes in those chatty girls!" After hearing what he said, Lord Fan felt that the responsibility for not being able to catch the water bandits was entirely on his house, so he couldn't help but make an excuse.

Chu Ci smiled and said: "The officer is just giving an example. However, every time the navy sends out missions, there are more than a hundred people. As long as there is a caring person around one person, the arrest will not be successful."

"According to what you said, it is impossible to catch the water bandit!" Mr. Fan was a little disheartened by what he said.

"That's why, my lord needs to order people to count all the people on this contract, and find out all the people who may become interested people, so that this kind of situation can be avoided. You know, I have strict laws. If they were not persecuted, how could ordinary people dare to do such a thing of betraying news?"

Master Fan thought for a moment, and decided to follow what Chu Ci said.He is now at the end of the rope. If he gives up halfway, not only will he not be able to catch the water bandit, but he may also be settled by Qiu Hou.

After the navy people got the news, they immediately divided into two groups. One group took the locksmith to open the tunnel door, and the other side registered the names and places of origin on the contract one by one.

The post house was brightly lit all night, but everyone who could read a few words stayed here to register. At dawn, everyone had big dark circles on their faces.When they handed in the roster, another group of people also came back.

Although they looked tired, they couldn't hide their excitement.

"My lord, the secret passage has been opened! We walked along the secret passage for about four or five miles before reaching the end. There is a big iron gate at the end of the secret passage. Fortunately, we forced the locksmith to go all the way. Follow, or you won't be able to get out!" The person who spoke was brisk and very proud, it seemed that he was the one who forced the locksmith to leave with him.

"After unlocking the iron lock, we found that it was on the edge of an abandoned pier, where there were several thatched huts, and there were traces of people living in it. In addition, we also found that this pier was also used. , I think they shipped things from here. Then we searched around for a while and found this thing somewhere."

As he said that, the man took out an oil-paper bag from his pocket and slowly opened it, only to see a few white dots popping out from time to time in the middle of a pile of dark soil, which looked very eye-catching.

"This is?!" Master Fan couldn't hide his surprise when he blurted out, "They dare to smuggle private salt!"

There are three salt mining fields in Southern Fujian Province, and the salt produced each year is enough to supply most of the Wei Dynasty.Because people's lives are inseparable from firewood, rice, oil and salt, the imperial court has a very strong control over private salt. Generally, if caught, they will be ransacked and exiled.

These three salt mining fields have regulations every year, and those that exceed the regulations can be controlled by the local county government and sold to small traders in the surrounding areas.The ones that are stipulated are sold to those big salt merchants at a negotiated price.For this reason, the finances of Nanfu Province have improved a lot. Apart from those handed over to the national treasury, there is still a lot of surplus.

However, in the past few years, there have been news that the amount of salt produced by the salt mines has been tight, and it has been regularly reduced every year. In the past two years, even those that need to be handed over to the national treasury have to be subsidized by the provincial government.

The governor repeats it several times every year, but it turns out that they still have private salt to sell!