Chapter 577: The Final Trump Card
Gao Yiye had only come to find Chun Hong for a casual chat, to pass the time with some idle conversation. She never expected to overhear such news the moment she arrived, and she couldn't help but find it both amusing and exasperating.
As she was responsible for ideological education at Gao Family Village, most of Gao Yiye's studies focused on that area. Hearing about the Prince of Qin's Estate, it immediately resonated with everything she had ever learned, and she couldn't help but shake her head.
Just then, the female sentinel standing at the factory's northwest corner suddenly shouted loudly, "Officials from the imperial court have arrived in Chengcheng County!"
At her cry, a large group of female workers gathered at the factory gates, craning their necks to look toward the northeast.
Gao Yiye murmured in surprise, then, taking Chun Hong and her guards, walked to the factory entrance.
They saw a small contingent, only about a dozen people, escorting two horses, approaching Chengcheng County. Seated on the horses were two high-ranking officials: Imperial Censor Wu Shen and Xi'an Judicial Commissioner Shi Kefa.
The two officials' expressions were grim, their faces clouded with despondency, completely devoid of their former air of confident brilliance.
The Heavenly Lord, whose image was embroidered with golden thread on Gao Yiye's chest, chuckled. "They've come for help."
Gao Yiye exclaimed, "Oh, Heavenly Lord, you're here!"
Gao Yiye's cheeks flushed slightly. *The Heavenly Lord has always been with me.*
The golden-threaded Heavenly Lord chuckled, "They're going into town to speak with Liang Shixian. Go on and join the commotion; while you're at it, give them another lesson in ideological education."
Gao Yiye laughed softly. "They're very rigid; that lesson won't be easy to teach."
The golden-threaded Heavenly Lord replied, "If they understand, good; if not, so be it. The relics of the old society—those who can be reformed, reform them; those who cannot, overthrow them."
"Understood." Gao Yiye wasn't in a hurry. She slowly walked out of the factory, leading her guards to follow.
A short while later, Wu Shen, Shi Kefa, and their entourage arrived at the Chengcheng County yamen.
Liang Shixian quickly came out to greet them. The usual protracted formalities of meeting, greeting, being seated, and serving fragrant tea were, for brevity, omitted; they moved directly to the main topic.
Shi Kefa said despondently, "Magistrate Liang, the celestial fertilizer we purchased from you last time was all seized by people from the Prince of Qin's Estate."
Liang Shixian replied, "Sir Shi is the Judicial Commissioner, and Sir Wu is an Imperial Censor. Both of you have the ability to report directly to the emperor. If you were to write two memorials..."
"It's useless," Wu Shen sighed deeply. "Impeaching ordinary officials might still have some effect, but impeaching the Prince of Qin's Estate, the outcome... you can imagine for yourself..."
Liang Shixian paused, slightly stunned. *I need to think this through.*
The erudite Liang Shixian immediately activated a mental simulation, considering the potential effects of submitting a memorial, the emperor's likely response, and the Prince of Qin's Estate's subsequent actions. It all spun through his mind like a carousel. The potential trajectories of this matter branched out like a tree, endlessly extending into countless possibilities.
Suddenly, with a 'ding,' all possibilities converged on a single conclusion.
Liang Shixian sighed deeply. "The Emperor would feign a rebuke to the Prince of Qin's Estate, and the Estate would hand over the troublesome steward, who would be flogged or executed. But in the very end, that batch of celestial fertilizer would ultimately not be recovered."
Wu Shen affirmed, "Precisely. That's likely the outcome."
He let out a long sigh. "The idea of state-run celestial fertilizer production, I'm afraid, is beyond our reach."
Liang Shixian was greatly surprised. "If some were stolen, couldn't you just purchase more? Why do you say it's impossible?"
Wu Shen replied, "We no longer have any silver to purchase more."
Liang Shixian prompted, "Sir Wu, your hundred thousand taels of silver..."
Wu Shen scoffed, "A hundred thousand taels, my foot! Everyone says I, Wu Shen, have a hundred thousand taels, but in reality, to even lay my hands on ten taels of silver, I'd have to dip into my own meager salary."
Liang Shixian was speechless.
Shi Kefa interjected, "Magistrate Liang, our purpose in coming to Chengcheng County this time is to shamelessly request a consignment of celestial fertilizer from you on credit. Once we've sold it all and have the silver, we'll return to repay you."
Hearing this, Liang Shixian's eyes narrowed. *Taking goods on credit? That's a huge pitfall.*
Exactly!
This was the biggest pitfall in the business world, and throughout history, it had always been a trap for manufacturers.
Forget the murky, inexplicable ledgers of ancient times; even in modern times, if you went to one of those small processing factories in Fujian, devastated by "triangular debt," and said you wanted to take goods on credit, you'd see if the owner wouldn't greet you with the sole of a shoe.
Liang Shixian looked hesitant. "Regarding this, this official..."
Wu Shen pressed, "The celestial fertilizer is produced by Chengcheng County's official workshop, isn't it? Just record a debt in the Chengcheng County treasury, with this official's name on it... afterward, this official will report to the Emperor."
Liang Shixian spread his hands. "Unfortunately, these celestial fertilizers are not produced by an official workshop. They are managed by local gentry."
Wu Shen asked, "Who is this local gentry member? This official will go speak with him."
"That would be me!" a captivating female voice rang out.
The officials turned their heads to look and saw Gao Yiye.
Liang Shixian was overjoyed. "Ah! The Saintess has arrived!"
Shi Kefa's heart skipped a beat. *It's Gao Yiye, the Saintess of the Heavenly Lord Daoist Sect.*
Only Wu Shen did not recognize Gao Yiye, but he scrutinized her closely. The woman wore a flowing white gown of exquisite fabric, embroidered with gold and silver threads, and adorned with lavish ornaments. With two guards following behind her, her appearance instantly marked her as the madam of a prominent family.
Wu Shen cleared his throat lightly. "Madam, is the celestial fertilizer factory your family's enterprise?"
Gao Yiye smiled. "You could say that. My husband's surname is Li, and he has several enterprises here in Chengcheng County; the celestial fertilizer factory is just one of them."
Wu Shen's spirits lifted. "It seems Madam has already overheard the conversation between this official and Magistrate Liang, which saves this official some breath. This official will forgo pleasantries and speak plainly. By imperial decree, this official is inspecting Shaanxi and also carries the heavy responsibility of disaster relief. The Emperor has granted this official special permission to raise provisions and supplies among the populace to combat the natural disaster. This official can ensure your Li family becomes renowned at court."
It turned out Wu Shen had not only arrived in Shaanxi with a hundred thousand taels of silver, but also a special privilege: the right to confer privileges.
Zhu Youjian was so impoverished he had no money to relieve the disaster victims, so he granted Wu Shen a special privilege: "Whoever helps you the most, you can grant them some special privileges."
"Those who contribute a hundred taels of gold or more may be granted official caps and sashes, similar to the titles for honored scholars; those who donate a thousand taels of gold or more may be conferred official ranks, similar to honorary appointments..."
In other words, if someone was willing to donate but contributed little, you could award them a brocade banner and bestow upon them honorifics like "Filial Son" or "Great Scholar"—titles that would allow them to show off among the common folk. If they donated a lot, they could be given official ranks... in any case, flexibility was permitted.
Wu Shen had saved this grand move for a critical moment, only now revealing it.
This was Wu Shen's final trump card. "Madam, if your Li family is willing to consign a batch of celestial fertilizer to this official on credit, this official will state clearly here today that the Li family's path into officialdom will be entirely handled by this official."
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