My Brother-in-law is the Prince - Chapter 378

Chapter 378 The Funny Truth

Zhang Anshi ordered all the staff.

Nor did they tell them what they were about to do.

But Zhu Yong was called.

Looking at Zhu Yong with a smile.

Zhu Yong was trembling: “Brother, what happened?”

“your dad…”

“What happened to my father? What happened to him?” Zhu Yong was furious.

Zhang Anshi said: “It’s nothing, your father is going to Jiangxi soon, right?”

Zhu Yong frowned and nodded.

Zhang Anshi sighed: “I tell you a good news and a bad news.”

Zhu Yong said without even thinking about it: “You will tell the bad news first.”

Zhang Anshi said: “Going here, I’m afraid it will be dangerous.”

Zhu Yong was happy: “In this world, apart from the emperor, who would dare to treat my father like that? I’m not bragging, and His Royal Highness the Crown Prince can’t do anything to him.”

Zhang Anshi was angry, and said angrily: “You man, why are you so polite to mention my brother-in-law?”

Zhu Yong said with a sneer: “It’s just an analogy, don’t be angry, brother. Don’t worry about my father, don’t worry, my father is an old fox, no one is more cunning than him. What is the good news?”

Facing Zhu Yong’s words, Zhang Anshi was speechless for a while, and then said: “The good news is… If your father can escape this time, he will make a fortune.”

“Get rich?” Zhu Yong was taken aback.

Zhang Anshidao: “Okay, stop being so wordy, let’s start now, and our next itinerary will be kept secret.”

Zhu Yong immediately felt that the matter was not simple, he and Zhang Fu looked at each other, and then said: “What happened?”

In this regard, Qiu Song performed very well. He just stood lazily aside, looking as if he didn’t care about it, and he didn’t know what was going on in his mind.

Zhang Anshi calmly said: “Don’t ask questions that shouldn’t be asked. All in all, this time it must be a tough battle, so bring more gunpowder.”

As soon as the word “gunpowder” came out, Qiu Song became interested, and his whole body became visibly energetic, and he said, “Brother, is that so?”

As he spoke, he untied his belt, then pulled his lapel, and immediately opened his coat with both hands, and tied a circle of gunpowder inside his clothes.

Zhang Anshi’s eyes widened, and he shouted: “Don’t come here…”

…

Two hours later, Zhang Anshi led a group of people, dressed as merchants, and arrived at the ferry.

And here, dozens of ships were waiting here, and Zhang Anshi saw Zhu Di right after.

Zhu Di was led by dozens of Jinyi school captains under the leadership of Chen Daowen.

He stood at the bow of the boat with his hands behind his back, and when Zhang Anshi boarded the boat, he turned his head, looked at the rushing water under his feet and said, “Why don’t you see Zhu Yong and the others?”

Zhang An Shidao: “Another ship has been arranged.”

Zhu Di said: “I still want to see those three boys, let’s beat them a bit, why is it different from the boat?”

“This…”

Zhu Di looked at Zhang Anshi’s strange expression, and said, “Why?”

Zhang An Shidao: “I dare not hide it. It is my fourth brother, that is, Qiu Song. He… insists on holding a pile of gunpowder. I feel that it is a little dangerous. It is better to let His Majesty stay away from him.”

Zhu Di: “…”

After thinking about it, he seemed to think that a person like Qiu Song was indeed a bit perverted, so Zhu Di said, “What about Zhu Yong and Zhang Fu?”

“I arranged for him to be on another boat. If the second and third younger brothers are on the same boat, the fourth younger brother is sensitive and may feel that something is wrong. I am afraid that he will think wildly. If he can’t think about it, it will be bad. Let the second and third younger brothers accompany him. He won’t doubt him.”

Zhu Di: “…”

Paused, Zhu Di said: “Qiu Fu is clearly a very stable person.”

He sighed, but didn’t say anything more. Zhu Di had nothing to say to a spirited guy like Qiu Song.

Zhu Di said: “Since they are your brothers, you should teach them the principles of life. Don’t be so old and confused. After they are honored ministers, they will be as good as Xiao He when they succeed, and Xiao He will be as good as they are when they fail. They must not be contaminated. Some weird tempers, presumably this is because the people around them are too arrogant to them. You are an elder brother, you should teach them strictly.”

Zhang Anshi only claims to be true.

Zhu Di immediately looked at Zhang Anshi with a smile and said, “Is it already arranged for the capital?”

Zhang Anshi did not expect Zhu Di to ask such a question suddenly.

But soon, he realized that there was something in Zhu Di’s words.

So he smiled tacitly at Zhu Di and said, “It has been arranged.”

Zhu Di said with a bit of emotion: “On the surface, it was Jiangxi who had the accident, but the real serious trouble is under my nose! You guy, you can understand my deep meaning.”

Zhang Anshi smiled and said: “Your Majesty is still wise and unpredictable. I have worked very hard to figure out what His Majesty is thinking, and I can barely comprehend 30% or 40% of it.”

Zhu Di waved his hand: “Stop talking nonsense.”

Zhang Anshi tactfully ran to the stern of the boat, and was too lazy to serve him. The old man’s temper was getting more and more eccentric now, and he couldn’t afford to serve him.

Two days later, the ship arrived at Jiujiang.

The caravan boarded the pier.

At the pier, there was a team of inspectors, and there was a lot of noise at this time.

Zhang Anshi led the people ashore first.

Then someone shouted: “Everyone who is young and strong needs to build a railway, and there must be no mistakes…”

Several people swaggered up to Zhang Anshi, and the leader held a knife, glaring and murderous.

Zhang Anshi threw him a piece of silver directly: “Go away.”

The man weighed his weight, grinned suddenly with a sullen face, and then said: “It turned out to be a businessman. The businessman is a foreigner, and his household registration is not in the house. It’s all right. Please, please…”

At the moment, Zhang An and others went ashore one after another.

Zhu Di’s face was ashen, and he murmured: “My money!”

Those inspectors saw off Zhang Anshi and others, and the leader held Zhang Anshi’s silver in his hand, and trotted to catch up with him: “Boss, those people… Seeing that they are worth a lot, they just took such a heavy coin.” Li, I think… capture them back, maybe…”

This sentence is not finished, but the meaning is already obvious.

“Bastard!” The leader shouted and said angrily, “What do you think we are? We are officials, not robbers. Do you think you are a water bandit from Poyang Lake?”

The person who spoke was embarrassed by scolding.

The leader’s eyes flashed brightly, and he continued: “The one who can give a reward so easily must be a big merchant. In these years, which big merchant has no one behind him? It’s just that they don’t want to trouble the people above them. A small amount of money for the brothers to drink tea is a small amount of money to eliminate disasters. Do you really think that people like us can handle him? It’s really in a hurry, to the point where the fish are dead and the net is broken, you and I are dead or alive do not know yet.”

“Ah…I see.”

The leader glared at him and said: “The most important thing about being an errand is to keep your eyes open. If you don’t even have the slightest wink, you won’t know if you’re really dead.”

After the man finished speaking, he pointed at another person and shouted: “Stop that person, that person looks like a water bandit in Poyang Lake!”

Jiujiang is a thoroughfare. It is not only adjacent to the Yangtze River, but also connected to Poyang Lake. It is also one step away from Nanchang Mansion. This place has been famous for its prosperous business since ancient times.

But after entering Jiujiang City, what Zhu Di felt was Xiao Suo.

It was desolate, and there were very few pedestrians on the street.

Waiting for people to ask, but they say that there have been thieves here, or that there are thieves everywhere. It is said that just one day ago, there was already a thief who directly broke through the county seat.

However…the only change in Jiujiang City is that a station has been built.

It was really built.

Zhu Di’s face was very ugly along the way.

However, this is generally the case in localities. Bandits are the norm in this era. In history, during the Yongle period, there were dozens of large-scale riots with more than 10,000 people.

If the momentum is huge, it can even gather tens of thousands of people.

And this… has been regarded as a relatively peaceful period in ancient times.

If it was in the middle and late stages of the dynasty, dozens of rebellions and civil upheavals every year were almost commonplace. After a year, if dozens of counties were not slaughtered, it would be considered a peaceful year.

Things like this, in the eyes of Zhang Anshi in his previous life, are simply unimaginable.

After all, his understanding of the prosperous age at that time was by no means like this.

But the current Zhang Anshi has already been paralyzed.

What is the prosperous age? Prosperous times are opposite to chaotic ones!

In troubled times, ten rooms and nine empty spaces, thousands of miles of barren land, 70% to 80% of the population will die at every turn, and people change their children to eat.

During the Yongle period, the common people may only suffer from banditry once or twice in their lifetime, and suffer from several natural disasters. Isn’t this a prosperous age?

So, no one was surprised at all when they learned that there were thieves in and out, they just thought it was too normal.

But the station was actually built, but it still made Zhu Di and Zhang Anshi excited.

At that moment, under the guidance of one person, everyone arrived at a station without stopping.

Standing here, looking at the lonely station in the distance. From a distance, this station really looks like this.

So Zhu Di and Zhang Anshi walked closer with anticipation.

After a closer look, I was shocked again.

There is nothing here except the station.

There is no railway, only a roadbed extending less than a hundred feet, and then… there is no more.

Zhu Di: “…”

Zhang Anshi asked suspiciously: “Is this railway not yet laid? Did it start from Nanchang Mansion?”

Zhu Di’s face became more and more gloomy, but he only said: “Wait here.”

“Your Majesty…”

Zhu Di said with a livid face: “Don’t talk, wait a minute!”

Sure enough, after waiting for less than half an hour, a team of guards came.

These officers obviously also heard something, and learned that a group of people came to this station suddenly, which was very suspicious.

So they came in a hurry, and the first person waved an iron ruler and shouted sharply: “What are you waiting for…”

Zhu Di stepped forward and swung his arms.

The leader of the guards didn’t react yet, he only felt a blur in front of his eyes, and the iron ruler in his hand subconsciously wanted to block it.

But… fast, too fast.

Then I saw Zhu Di’s slap like a fan, falling directly on his face.

The man’s eyes went dark, his face seemed to have been hit hard, his body staggered, and with a sound of aah, he fell to the ground and passed out.

The guards at the back turned pale with fright, and shouted: “It’s a thief, it’s a thief… It’s a real thief, run, run.”

Zhu Di said with a sullen face, “Who dares to escape!”

The guards suddenly seemed to have nails on their feet, and they all fell to the ground one by one, kowtowing like garlic: “Excuse me…”

Zhu Di said: “I want to see the official, please lead me there.”

One of the thin and weak servants, who should be a civil official, hurriedly said at this time: “Master Thief, my county master is a rare good official. He never harms the people and has a clean hand. Master Thief… let him be spared.”

Zhu Di was furious: “Come on…”

“Go, go.” The clerk was straightforward: “The villain will take the thieves… no, I will take the grandpas.”

Zhu Di looked quite calm, but only he knew that he was dizzy at this moment.

The weirdness he witnessed in front of him made him feel unbelievable.

Zhang Anshi was also confused, and quietly came to Zhu Di, wanting to say something, but felt that he had nothing to say, so he held the clerk’s back and said, “Which yamen are you from?”

The official said tremblingly, “Nai Dehua County Government.”

Dehua County is the prefecture of Jiujiang Prefecture. In later generations, because Fujian also had a Dehua County, the Dehua County of Jiujiang was changed to Jiujiang County.

Zhang Anshi asked again: “Who is your county magistrate?”

“The surname is Chen, and the name is forbidden to enter the industry.”

Here is not far from the county government office, when a group of people appeared mightily.

Zhang Anshi winked at the county magistrate: “We’re going to meet in Houya.”

The clerk didn’t dare to say much, so he obediently said to the guard in front of the door: “This is to pay homage to the master.”

At the moment, led Zhu Di and others, went straight to the back office.

This is almost unimpeded along the way.

Obviously, this clerk should have quite a bit of prestige in the county government.

Waited until the house of Houya.

But I saw a person sitting in the hall, holding a book and reading.

The clerk shouted loudly: “My lord, someone…”

The person in the hall is the county magistrate Chen Jinye.

When Chen Jinye saw someone rushing in, he was surprised at first, then put down a book, and shouted: “Who are you waiting for, how dare you make a mistake!”

Zhang Anshi didn’t hesitate, he stepped forward first, and arrived in front of Chen Jinye.

The rest of the people quickly spread out and guarded around.

Zhang Anshi took out a waist card from his sleeve and flashed it in front of Chen Jingye.

When Chen Jingye saw it, his face turned pale with shock, he hurriedly cupped his hands and said, “Your official, Chen Jingye, have met…”

He didn’t know what to call him for a while.

Zhu Di was already furious, and shouted: “You are Chen Jingye?”

“Yes… yes…” Chen Jingye had sensed Zhu Di’s extraordinaryness, and hurriedly said, “I don’t know what business you all come here from the capital?”

Zhu Di said in a deep voice: “Jiujiang Prefecture is building a railway. Why hasn’t a single inch of the railway been repaired so far? Where did so much money go?”

“This this…”

As soon as Chen Jingye heard it, he immediately showed a distraught appearance.

He shivered, and Ai Ai said in the later stage: “This… Xiaguan… Xiaguan…”

Zhu Di laughed angrily: “Front and back, five million taels of silver, where did it all go?”

Chen Jingye immediately understood something when he heard five million taels.

“Could it be, it’s Cheng Guogong…”

He looked at Zhu Di, and remembered the rumor that Cheng Guogong was about to arrive in Nanchang Mansion.

I probably thought in my heart that Cheng Guogong should take the waterway, and arrived at Jiujiang Mansion by waterway, and then went to Nanchang Mansion by land.

Thinking like this, he immediately said: “This… this… Xiaguan District Qipin County Magistrate, really… really…”

Zhu Di sneered and said: “What a county magistrate of Qipin! This station is in Er County, five million taels of silver, how many hands have you passed through? How much have you taken away?”

Zhu Di’s teeth are almost crushed.

In his original expectation, he felt…even if it was five million taels, he would still be able to accept it if Tan Mo left two or three million taels.

But now it seems that things are obviously worse than imagined.

When Chen Jinye heard this, his face turned pale with fright, and he immediately shouted for grievances: “I am wronged, I am wronged! This official has a clean sleeve, and I have never been greedy for ink, this official…”

He was anxious to defend himself.

Zhang Anshi winked.

So, people began to search in this house.

Immediately, Chen Daowen came in a hurry, and said in a low voice: “I have checked, here… there are only a few scraps of silver, and a lot of books, other than that, there is nothing else. Oh, there are some leftovers Leftovers, what this person ate at noon seemed to be pickles and an egg drop soup, and there was nothing else.”

Zhang Anshi: “…”

After hearing this, Zhu Di just smiled contemptuously. How could he believe these things, so he smiled even more intensely.

Chen Jinye wept and said: “This has always been the case since I took office. If the superior doesn’t believe me, I can investigate thoroughly. Everyone in the county knows that the subordinate is a scholar, and I definitely have no greed for ink.”

Zhu Di said sharply: “I don’t believe it…”

He said word by word, with a look of disbelief at all.

“It seems that if he is not tortured, he will not confess. Come…”

Chen Jinye was scared out of his wits.

On the other hand, the clerk who led everyone to the side knelt down and cried, “The county master is really a good official with two sleeves! Don’t say that life is simple on weekdays. Even if you have some salary, you should give it away. , Zhou Ji’s servants said that it’s not easy for everyone to do their jobs, and they also know that villains have no salary and it’s hard to support their families, so they warned us not to blackmail the people because of this… villains dare to use human heads as guarantees.”

As soon as these words came out, Zhu Di felt that everything in front of him was like a joke, and what was funny was not only the official in front of him, but also himself.

Zhang Anshi said coldly: “How much money did the county allocate for the construction of the railway?”

Without waiting for Chen Jinye to reply, the official said, “The total is three hundred and seventy thousand taels.”

Zhu Di said angrily, “Where’s the money?”

“The railway has been built.” Wen Li said.

Zhu Di’s mind was buzzing, and he subconsciously said: “Where’s the railway?”

“The railroad hasn’t been repaired yet.”

“What about the money?”

“The flowers are over.” Wen Li said.

Zhu Di: “…”

Zhang Anshi stood aside, kicked the clerk and said: “How dare you be dishonest, I just ask you, the railway has not been repaired, why is the money gone?”

The clerk hesitated for a moment, and then said: “Shangguan doesn’t know something. This railway…is a road…is a road, it must be built on the ground, and this land…is the common people’s. You have to buy land before you can build it.”

“Hundreds of thousands of taels, are they all used to buy land?” Zhang Anshi looked at him coldly and said, “How much land did you buy?”

“Not much, if we allocate another seven or eight hundred thousand taels, this land should be enough.”

Zhang Anshi scolded angrily: “If you join your mother, I will allocate another seven or eight hundred thousand taels, and I will be able to buy half of your county’s land!”

(end of this chapter)