Chapter 437: Lu Family Head
Chapter 437: Lu Family Head
Lu Heming walked into the back hall and bowed to his father. Lu Shenyan waved his hand and said, "Sit down!"
Lu Heming sat down, feeling really confused. Why was his father in such a hurry to find him back?
After a while, he couldn't help but ask, "Father, what happened at home?"
Lu Shenyan glanced at his eldest son and asked, "How old are you this year?"
"The child is thirty-four."
Lu Shenyan nodded, and his tone began to reveal dissatisfaction. "You have been in the officialdom for ten years, from the Kunshan County Lieutenant to the Kunshan County Magistrate. I don't know how you have survived these ten years. You don't even have the slightest sense of officialdom. Such a big thing happened in Wu County, but you didn't even know about it? And you asked me what happened at home?"
Lu Heming was startled and said quickly, "Father, calm down. Wu County Law Officer Luo Yi is my confidant who was planted in Wu County. If there is any major event in Wu County, he will tell me in time, but it may be a day late. Tomorrow I will know what happened."
Lu Shenyan's tone softened a little, and he continued, "An army arrived early this morning and seized the 80,000 rolls of tax cloth that disappeared last year from Liu Kun's private warehouse. The Liu family was raided, and more than ten members of Liu Kun's family were arrested and taken to Jiangdu. The magistrate of Wu County, Wang Younian, was also suspended and taken to Jiangdu. He was Wei Yue's confidant and could not escape the blame. I got the news this afternoon that Gu Changqing will be the governor of Xin'an County, Xiao Lin will be the governor of Wu County, and Li Qiliang will be promoted to the position of chief secretary. Do you think this is a big deal?"
Lu Heming was shocked. So many important things happened today. He asked anxiously, "Who will be the Sima of Wu County and the Magistrate of Wu County?"
Lu Shenyan nodded, "That's why I brought you back."
Lu Heming's eyes lit up and he asked, "Father, do you think I have a chance of getting the position of Wu County Magistrate?"
Lu Shenyan smiled and said, "I've chosen the position of Sima of Wujun, so the position of county magistrate will be left to the Zhu family!"
Lu Heming didn't understand why his father was so confident, but he knew that his father's name was Shen Yan, which meant he would not speak casually and every word he said had a basis. He patiently waited for his father to explain to him.
Lu Shenyan said slowly, "This time the General Administration Office is recruiting clerks, and I asked Lu Miao to go. Do you still remember who Lu Miao is?"
"It seems to be the third child of Uncle Gen Si's family!"
Lu Shenyan nodded, "Agen died before he was 30, leaving behind three children. The eldest and second were born to the principal wife. The family had more than 200 acres of farmland, and they lived well. The third was born to the concubine. As soon as Agen died, the mother and son were driven out by the principal wife. I felt sorry for them, so I found a clan house for them to live in, and the concubine raised her son by doing laundry for others."
At this point, Lu Shenyan sighed and said, "Of course, as a member of the Lu family, Lu Miao has 300 family fees per month, and he also went to the Lu family private school to study. Later, he was admitted to the county school. He is only 18 years old this year. He is a very smart child. I signed up for him and went to the General Administration Office to take the civil servant examination. As a result, he passed the examination and became a third-level civil servant in the General Administration Office. There were a total of 300 examinations, and 250 people were admitted. It is normal for Lu Miao to pass the examination. The key is that he was actually selected into the Secretariat. It was the King of Jin who specifically recruited him. Do you understand the subtleties here?"
Lu Heming pondered for a moment and said, "There are two subtle points here. First, 300 people signed up, and 254 were admitted. The King of Jin is giving face to the Jiangnan family. Second, Lu Miao was named to the secretariat, not because of anything he did, but because he is a member of the Lu family. The King of Jin is sending a signal to the Lu family."
Lu Shenyan stroked his beard and laughed, "That's right, Prince Jin is hinting at us!"
"Then what should we do?"
Lu Shenyan said slowly: "Go find Li Qiliang and ask him to send a message to Prince Jin, saying that I have left for Jiangdu to visit His Royal Highness Prince Jin!"
Lu Heming nodded, "I understand, kid!" When Xiao Lin came to Jiangdu, he was suddenly appointed as the governor of Wujun. This appointment surprised him deeply, but also made him extremely happy.
Almost most men cannot refuse the opportunity to be an official. Xiao Lin, who was born in the royal family of the Liang Dynasty, is no exception. He had been the Sima of Danyang County for five years and was about to be promoted to the Governor of Piling County. However, the Twin Kings Case broke out, Prince of Jin Yang Guang was demoted, and the entire Xiao family was liquidated. Almost all of them were stripped of all their official positions and titles and demoted to commoners. Xiao Lin's dream of becoming a governor was shattered.
Ten years passed in a flash, and Xiao Lin was nearly fifty years old. He had originally planned to spend his later years well, but he did not expect that with Xiao Xia taking up the post of governor of Jiangnan Road, he would be able to re-enter the officialdom and serve as the governor of Wujun.
Xiao Lin felt like he was dreaming, but he did not feel overwhelmed by the sudden happiness because he was mentally prepared. Xiao Xia had clearly told him in Jinling County that he would be allowed to serve as an official again.
Xiao Lin just didn't expect that he would become the governor of Wujun. This official position surprised him deeply. He originally thought that he would work in the General Administration Office, but now he has become a local official of the third rank.
In the official room, Xiao Xia asked Xiao Lin to sit down and said with a smile: "I didn't expect that my father would be so happy to approve all my applications. Congratulations to Uncle Cui Wu for becoming the governor of Wu County."
Xiao Lin was embarrassed to act like an elder in front of Xiao Xia, so he smiled and said, "This should be the emperor's support for Your Highness. What do you think about governing Jiangnan Road?"
Xiao Xia smiled and said, "The reason why my father approved my application is not because he supports me, but because I am implementing his way of governing the country. My father has three wishes for Jiangnan Road. The first is that he hopes that Jiangnan Road can become the first tax collection place in the Sui Dynasty, at least on par with Hebei Road. It is not just about plundering Jiangnan, but on the basis of making Jiangnan Road prosperous.
Secondly, it is the integration of the north and the south. Uncle Qi is very clear about this, so I won’t say much. Thirdly, it is to recover the salt tax and use Jiangnan Road as a pilot. After Jiangnan Road succeeds, it will be gradually promoted to the whole country. I discussed this issue with Uncle Qi last time, and I have some ideas of my own. I plan to start with Wu County and let Wu County do the experiment. "
Xiao Lin hesitated for a moment and asked, "What exactly does Your Highness plan to do?"
"I will tell Uncle Seventh how to do it later, but the first thing Uncle Seventh will do when he takes office is to dredge the canal. Lord Gao will discuss this matter with Uncle Seventh in detail later."
Xiao Xia smiled and said, "I just talked to Uncle Qi in general, but I want to discuss something with him in detail next."
"Your Highness, please speak!"
Xiao Xia said slowly, "I have a business in Chang'an and Luoyang, called Xihai Business. I plan to open another business in Jiangnan, called Nanfang Business, which is actually Xihai Business. I plan to invest 500,000 strings of cash in total. Xihai Business will provide 300,000 strings of cash, Jinling Xiao Family will provide 100,000 strings of cash, and Jiangdu Xiao Family will also provide 100,000 strings of cash. We specialize in rice, cloth, silk, tea, oil, cotton, sheepskin, livestock and other bulk goods business. I want the Xiao Family to be responsible for sales and purchases in Jiangnan. I talked to Xiao Gui before, and he recommended Xiao Huan to me, asking Xiao Huan to be in charge of Nanfang Business. Uncle Qi, do you think it's feasible?"
Xiao Lin pondered for a moment and asked, "Is this a private business?"
Xiao Xia nodded, "Profit is only one aspect, but my more important goal is to compete with the Guanlong nobles and weaken their interests in Jiangnan. I know that the Guanlong nobles keep the purchase price in Jiangnan very low, and all the merchants who compete with them have been killed by them by various means. Without competitors, they will wantonly lower prices and exploit the people in Jiangnan. The establishment of my Southern Trading Company is to break this exploitation, raise the purchase price, and then sell it to all parts of the world through the West Sea Trading Company and the Great Zhou Trading Company."
Xiao Lin nodded happily, "I will fully support Your Highness!"
(End of this chapter)