Chapter 41 World Situation
Chapter 41 World Situation
When he heard what Mr. Xu said, his face twitched.
Half of the land of the Xu family in Songzhou must be tens of thousands of acres.
Even though Master Qian had seen and tasted it, he couldn't help but feel his heart beating faster when he heard the bargaining chips of Mr. Xu. With tens of thousands of acres of land, he had to consider giving him a position as a Jinshi.
Xu Qing was surprised at first, then he slowly said: "Mr. Xu, are you really willing to give it up?"
"What can I be reluctant to give up in order to help my family survive this disaster?" Mr. Xu smiled bitterly.
Xu Qing looked at Mr. Xu strangely and said calmly, "Since the old gentleman is willing to give up these lands, isn't it the same if he uses them to cooperate with the land survey?"
He then shook his head and read out a passage from an official document: "If any of the gentry and powerful families take the initiative to cooperate in the land survey, their past affairs will not be pursued."
Mr. Xu never expected that Xu Qing was not moved by the half of the land of Songzhou Xu family at all, but...
"That's not right. This boy is the orphan of the Xu family in Jiangning. With these lands and the honor of being a juren, it's just a matter of time before he can revive his family business. How can he not be tempted?" Mr. Xu was horrified. He had never seen such a sophisticated and experienced young man.
Logically speaking, a young man who won the top three places in the imperial examination must have been devoted to reading books of sages. How could he understand the ways of the world?
Xu Qing continued to speak to the frightened Xu Xiangshen: "I have a good memory. I remember the contents of the court bulletin as soon as I saw it. Could it be that Mr. Xu doesn't read the court bulletin?"
Although the official gazette was nominally intended for local officials to read and understand the political situation of the court.
In fact, anyone with a little background in the local area can know the contents of the court bulletin.
It is for this reason that the policy on land survey appears in the official gazette.
This was also done by the Prime Minister in order to weaken the resistance of powerful gentry throughout the world to land survey.
To put it bluntly, the purpose of surveying the land throughout the country was to increase the tax base and continue the rule of the dynasty.
Every dynasty does this kind of thing.
Dynasties that fail to do a good job are all short-lived.
If done well, the dynasty can continue.
Mr. Xu's face changed, and then he bowed: "My dear nephew, your words really awakened me from my dream. Please accept my greetings."
Xu Qing did not avoid the bow.
Only after he accepted the greeting did he feel that the situation on both sides was resolved.
Why?
Mr. Xu must have some ulterior motive for asking Xu Qing for help, and judging from the dark energy of his fate, this matter is bound to be quite troublesome.
Xu Qing directly used the official document from the court bulletin to hint to Mr. Xu that he had seen through the other party's tricks.
If Mr. Xu didn't want to fall out with the county magistrate, he had to take advantage of the situation to back off. Otherwise, if the matter was investigated in detail, he would lose face as well as County Magistrate Wu.
It is normal that things cannot be done well.
If the relationship falls out and even the middleman cannot save face, then people will be offended and the favors of the ancestors will inevitably be exhausted.
The two sides made a pretense of negotiation, and Mr. Xu left a gift of fifty taels of silver, and did not take the deed with him. Xu Qing did not refuse, as it was the other party's apology.
It is one thing to care about it in your heart, and it is another to care about it openly.
His acceptance meant that both sides had lost face.
After Xu Qing left, Zhou came over and saw the gift left by Mr. Xu. She said happily, "Qing'er, Mr. Xu, your distant relative, is really generous."
Zhou was previously behind the screen in the front hall, directing people to serve tea and water while listening to their conversation.
I really thought it was Xu Qing who gave me advice and I was grateful to him.
Xu Qing invited Zhou to the courtyard, where there was no space around, and said softly, "Aunt, this matter is a bit complicated. I will explain it to you in detail. When you answer me, please speak softly to avoid being overheard and getting out." Zhou now regarded Xu Qing as the head of the family, so she nodded naturally.
Xu Qing then explained his judgment in detail, combining it with Mr. Xu's reaction.
He felt that Zhou and Li Dianshi were the closest people to him in this life, and many things had to be made clear to him. Otherwise, if they kept things hidden, they would be easily deceived by others, and in the end the trouble would fall on him.
Sometimes, don’t think that social conventions are something profound.
Ordinary people know how to measure things just like everyone else, they just receive information through different channels and they don’t think about it on a daily basis.
If someone could explain the twists and turns of it, even the most unworldly person would be able to understand it.
This kind of thing, which concerns one's own interests, is generally something that people will listen to.
Even if you can't listen to it, it can serve as a warning.
Xu Qing discussed the matter based on facts without any preaching, which reduced Zhou's resistance as an elder.
In fact, don’t just say that young people are rebellious, sometimes the elders are even more rebellious.
No matter how good your reasoning is, people won't listen, because elders often want your obedience, not your reasoning.
This is from the perspective of human nature.
The younger generation imparts principles to the older generation in a didactic manner.
Firstly, they do not distinguish between superiors and subordinates, and secondly, they deny the elders themselves. For example, they will think, I have lived for so many years and seen so much, but I am not as good as you, a young boy?
As a human being, few can accept being denied or looked down upon by others.
Dignity is sometimes worthless, and sometimes more valuable than life.
Xu Qing is certainly not a saint and he is not able to overcome his bad qualities, but he has a greater goal and is willing to compromise for it.
As a person, you should first set your goals. Once you have an ambitious goal and it is possible to achieve it, it is just like playing a game. You will want to complete it very much.
After Zhou understood, she said, "So this Mr. Xu has evil intentions towards you? Fortunately, Qing'er is smart, otherwise our family would be in big trouble."
Xu Qing knew that the Li family was now quite wealthy, but in the eyes of the real big shots, it was just a feather that could be destroyed with a snap of a finger.
He said, "It probably wasn't to me, but they were definitely going to use me to make something of it. This matter isn't completely over yet."
Xu Qing understood that this matter was ultimately aimed at Feng Xifeng and Zhou Tixue, and he was just a pawn of the other party.
The black air in the destiny had dissipated a lot, but some of it still remained, indicating that the matter had not completely passed.
"My strength is still not strong enough. Otherwise, I should just capture this old guy and ask him about the mastermind behind this. Then we can wipe him out at once. How satisfying it would be." Xu Qing was angry in his heart, but he knew that even if he was angry now, it would be useless and would not help.
Xu Qing had no intention of letting the matter go. He thought that he could not afford to offend the people behind the Xu family in Songzhou, but he could offend Mr. Xu.
Don't say that Mr. Xu left gifts as an apology, because if Xu Qing was blinded by greed, I'm afraid his entire family would have to pay the price.
Mr. Xu looked friendly, but in fact he didn't care about the lives of the three members of his family at all.
Moreover, this matter will also implicate the female master and Feng Xifeng and others.
He pondered over it in his mind and decided to go find County Magistrate Wu.
In fact, County Magistrate Wu almost became a victim, and he had to stand up for his old mentor.
Immediately afterwards, Xu Qing set off for the county government office.
(End of this chapter)