After Xiao Rui arrived at Nandu, he was not in a hurry to leave.
Because in his eyes, Ning Wang was like a grasshopper after autumn and would not last for a few days. If he was just messing around for Ning Wang this time, then it would be a waste.
Since he was here, he wanted to see the implementation of the new policies and the darkness of the southern officialdom.
Although it had only been a day, according to the evidence secretly collected by the Embroidered Uniform Guards, the southern officialdom was almost dark.
If the aristocratic families in the capital still had to listen to the emperor, then here, the merchants were even more obedient than the emperor because they controlled the economy, officialdom, and everything in the entire southeast region.
Under Xiao Rui's search, the large merchants in the entire Southeast were divided into three categories.
The biggest was the salt merchants. The Great Zhou's salt was not distributed, but given away.
The imperial court had a rule that every year, they could obtain salt by transporting a certain amount of grain from the south to the northern border at their own expense. This undoubtedly made the salt merchants rich.
In fact, China did not lack salt. In modern China, sea salt was no longer used. What they ate was well salt, which came from the salt ponds and salt mines in the northwest. This was because such salt was less polluting and had a certain amount of minerals, which was better for the human body.
However, in ancient times, when there was no such advanced salt-producing equipment, sea salt was still the main source. This was because salt was in the hands of these people, causing the price of salt in the Great Zhou Dynasty to remain high. They were the richest and most powerful.
However, in Xiao Rui's eyes, they were actually the easiest to disintegrate.
Because salt was actually quite easy to make.
As long as Xiao Rui went back and discussed with the Emperor, he would get some salt himself and suppress the price of salt. Then, they would fall apart. This was not difficult.
The second largest force was the various landowners here, but these people did not need to be touched.
If a country wanted to develop, it had to free up enough manpower to develop commerce and industry. Land concentration was also the development policy of later generations.
If they wanted land, then let them keep it. In any case, once the agricultural tax was not collected, the price of grain would naturally drop to an outrageous level. At that time, it would not be Xiao Rui's business if they could still support the land and people.
And the third largest force was actually the most hated force in Xiao Rui's eyes. There was no other force. These forces were the sea merchants 'forces…
Because the Great Zhou was a combination of the Song and Ming Dynasties, they did not prohibit commercial circulation.
Therefore, in the southeast coastal area, there were many people who kept boats. They would go to Southeast Asia or even Central Asia to look for gold. It would be fine if they were just proper businessmen.
However, there were some people who would pretend to be Japanese pirates to rob people. They would even get to know some martial arts scums to do these things together.
This was because once the Imperial Court attacked, they would hide out at sea. In addition, the Great Zhou's coastline was extremely long and could not be guarded against. If one were to say that the greatest threat was them!
If it was said that the big salt merchants colluded with the enemy and betrayed the country, and the big landlords controlled the government and the people, then these sea merchants were the root of the people's livelihood.
As long as these three points were resolved, the problem in the south would be easily solved.
"Sigh, I don't want to think about it anymore. I just need to collect these things. I'll leave the specific worries to the emperor!”After thinking for a long time, Xiao Rui couldn't help but knock on his head and laugh at himself. When did he become so loyal to the country and the people? This wasn't like him!
It was enough to find out the specific situation. There was no need to do it personally...
After handing over these questions to the Brocade Guard to send back to the capital, Xiao Rui returned to the courier station. When he returned, he found that Ding Baiying and the others had already prepared a table of wine and food. At the same time, the five girls were sitting there waiting for him. He couldn't help but feel a little absent-minded, as if he had returned to his own courtyard in the capital.
"Sigh, it's true that the gentle land is the tomb of a hero. However, I'm not a hero. So be it.”Smiling, Xiao Rui looked at the five girls in front of him and then took the initiative to welcome them. Life was like this, what more could a man ask for?
They had a very enjoyable dinner. Then, they took a shower. It was the same as yesterday, but the four girls were much more skilled today.
After a while, they continued with the preparations. It was time for the evening practice. Four hours passed very quickly. When Xiao Rui finished his practice and was about to go to bed, the four girls suddenly knelt in front of Xiao Rui on the bed as if they had already planned it out.
"Why aren't you sleeping?”Holding Ding Baiying in his arms, Xiao Rui looked at them and Ding Baiying at the same time. However, Ding Baiying was also confused and had no idea.
" Master, Qiuxiang and the others have a request..." Hearing Xiao Rui's words, Qiuxiang hesitated for a moment before speaking to Xiao Rui.
"Oh? Tell me?" Xiao Rui smiled when he saw them. Ding Baiying sighed when she saw the corner of Xiao Rui's mouth. This bad guy was here again.
"The Grand Preceptor and his wife have raised us up, so Qiuxiang is willing to beg Master to help them take revenge by killing Prince Ning and the deadly scholar who slaughtered the Grand Preceptor and his wife's family.”Hearing what Xiao Rui said, Qiuxiang knocked her head on the bed.
"But why should I help you? I'm not a person who makes a loss. What do you have that's worth exchanging with me?”Looking at the four of them, Xiao Rui said with a funny face. Hearing Xiao Rui's words, Qiuxiang and the other four were dumbfounded. The plot was wrong...
"We, we will serve Master sincerely!”Chun Xiang, who was standing beside Qiu Xiang, suddenly said.
"Why would I want your sincerity? I only want your bodies. Can your sincerity unlock more positions? "I don't need to do that. I don't need too many poses…" Xiao Rui looked at the four girls and smiled.
Hearing Xiao Rui's words, the four girls couldn't help but sit on the bed. They didn't know what to say.
"Alright, stop teasing them. Didn't you want to kill Prince Ning? " Prince Ning is dead for sure. That Deadly Scholar is one of Prince Ning's generals. With your temper, you probably won't let him off…" Looking at the helpless expressions on the four girls 'faces, Ding Baiying fiercely knocked Xiao Rui's fist. This guy's mouth was really too cheap…
"You still have the cheek to talk about me? You haven't even sincerely submitted to me. Come, I still need to cultivate for a while!”Hearing Ding Baiying's words, Xiao Rui turned his head, pinched her, and said to her. Hearing what Xiao Rui said, Ding Baiying glared at him and mouthed,"" Dead look." However, she did not make a sound because she had already slid down at the same time.
Seeing this scene, Four Fragrance hesitated for a moment and came over. They had no choice!
Just like that, another night passed. On the morning of the third day after Xiao Rui arrived in the Southern Capital, Xiao Rui brought the army and the reward money all the way to Prince Ning's fief!
*************
He didn't send any tips yesterday, so his V income had dropped back to 300. Sigh, it's really not easy to make a living on the website now. It's hard to get a stable V income just by relying on updates. However, he had already written 100,000 words now. He'll send another wave in a few days. He's a little nervous...
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