Here,
The sea was vast and the mountains stretched far, with gulls flying back.
Large areas of tidal flats and sandy land, with islands scattered in the distance, most of which also had beaches, were indeed sufficient for establishing a super-large salt field.
Zhu Mo felt a sense of openness and could not help but murmur to himself:
"I never thought I'd be a salt dealer in the Great Ming..."
Xiaoxiaosheng and Zhu Qi, who had been listening to him draw up his blueprint, now seemed to see a busy future and exclaimed: "Young Master Zhu truly has foresight. This is clearly a natural salt field..."
They decided to act immediately.
Zhu Mo found the local county magistrate and summoned the village elders. Before noon, he had purchased one hundred thousand mu of tidal land. That same day, he hired a foreman and a carpenter, instructing them to find workers and prepare to build drying racks. Zhu Mo, relying on the system, personally sketched the drying racks, complete with dimensions.
The next day,
After surveying the tidal flats, he selected the locations for the sheds, brine ponds, large storehouses, and drying fields. He rushed to Wenzhou Prefecture that day, negotiated with a lumber merchant, and paid a deposit. Cedars would be supplied continuously from the following month.
With everything in place, it was five days later.
Zhu Mo examined the sample drying racks made by the carpenter and was impressed by the excellent craftsmanship. He readily agreed to double everyone's salary, promising future dividends to these founders if they performed well.
As the craftsmen listened in stunned silence, Zhu Mo, accompanied by Xiaoxiaosheng and Zhu Qi, departed Xiangshan.
...
The next day, they arrived in Hangzhou.
Zhu Mo gathered his men and began planning how to beautifully seize that ship of silver.
In the rear hall of the Governor's yamen, under the dim light,
Zhu Qi said, "Young Master, we could pose as outlaws. Once the ship enters the Yangtze River estuary, we can conduct our business on the river!"
Zhu Mo couldn't help but smile at this.
This fellow was now the very picture of a bandit!
He spoke with an excited expression, as if he had been in the wrong profession his entire life, meant to be a bandit but now a constable...
He naturally disagreed with this unreliable suggestion. He said sternly, "Nonsense! We are officials, how can we do such a thing?! Look at you! How excited you are! You truly are in the wrong profession! Go be a promising bandit in your next life!"
Zhu Qi's face turned red, and he chuckled awkwardly, "That scoundrel Yan Maoqing, my brothers and I have long wanted to treat him to a 'board knife noodle'... Please forgive me, Young Master!"
The Wu Ming and Wu Liang brothers were more composed. After pondering for a moment, Wu Ming said, "What if we impersonate Japanese pirates? It was the Japanese pirates who did it anyway, who would be able to find out? When the ship sails to a remote part of the canal, we'll rush out and chop up Yan Maoqing!"
Zhu Qi exclaimed upon hearing this, "Good! A good plan!"
Wu Liang also nodded, "The plan should be feasible, and there are no side effects. Can the court really arrest Japanese pirates and interrogate them? Besides, there have always been unruly people in Jiangnan who joined the Japanese pirates, who can tell the difference?"
As soon as this was said,
Several people nodded in unison and turned to Zhu Mo.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Mo spat and cursed, "You spineless cowards! Why impersonate them of all people? Japanese pirates? What kind of people are Japanese pirates? Disgracing our ancestors! Moreover, if you do this, aren't you letting Qi Jiguang take the blame? What if Yan Shifan frames General Qi then? Even if the accusation doesn't stick, he can still be accused of failing to suppress bandits..."
Everyone's heads drooped.
Zhu Mo stood up and thought for a while—
In reality, no matter who they impersonated, Yan Shifan would immediately know it was Zhu Mo who did it!
This was something that could not be concealed!
In this Great Ming, in the last twenty years of the Jiajing era, aside from Zhu Mo, there was truly no one else who dared to openly offend the Yan family! Where did those pure scholars and Hanlin dare to utter a word of dissent against the Yan family?
It was fine before, but ever since this Jiangnan assignment, the whole world already knew that Zhu Mo was targeting the Yan family...
As a result, when Yan Maoqing's silver ship was robbed, everyone knew it had to be Zhu Mo behind it... There was no way to hide it...
As for the Emperor, that was another matter. The Yan family conducted salt inspections every three years, and every time, more than half of the proceeds were embezzled! The Emperor and the court's pure scholars were all well aware of this... If Yan Maoqing's silver ship was robbed, the Emperor would surely smile and say nothing once he received the silver...
Jiajing, Zhu Mo had read so many online novels and watched so many TV shows, didn't he understand? Who didn't know that the true Minister of Revenue in the Great Ming was Jiajing himself!
The palace kept hundreds of abacus masters, and the national treasury's silver was meticulously calculated time and time again, which later became a joke~
Therefore,
Zhu Mo dared to entertain this thought precisely because of this—
As long as this fellow received the money, nothing else mattered!
For this reason,
The key issue was deterrence!
As long as the Yan family could be deterred, and everyone in the world could see that someone not only dared to oppose the Yan family but also displayed full strength and courage! A character that even the Yan family would fear greatly!
In this way, the people of the world and the court officials would only watch and wait, secretly pleased that the Yan family was being curbed!
As long as this could be achieved, the matter could be handled in any way.
With a change of thought,
He suddenly remembered Shen Cong using him as a scapegoat and immediately came up with a brilliant idea—
Li Gui catching Li Kui!
Impersonating someone from the Yan family to catch a real member of the Yan family!
Then, in the name of the Yan family, return the silver to the court!
And if Yan Shifan dared to make trouble in court and seek revenge, Zhu Mo would take the opportunity to arrest a few of Yan Dang's cronies in Jiangnan.
With the plan settled,
Zhu Mo smiled calmly and said,
"This Daoist master will now show you an unprecedented grand drama..."
...
From Xiaoxiaosheng, Ding Chun, Zhu Mo already knew—
Yan Shifan had a household guard force of over a thousand men, led by Yan Fu, Yan Lu, Yan Shou, and Yan Xi. The two people he encountered in the capital earlier were Yan Fu and Yan Lu. These individuals were known for their bullying and exploitation of businesses near the capital, committing all sorts of atrocities.
Sometimes, these Yan family guards would also roam the provinces, and even the Yan family's retainers and officials feared them.
And this was Zhu Mo's first step in his plan—
Impersonating Yan family guards!
Among the four great Vajras, Yan Shou was constantly outside supervising the Yan family's industries, making him the most suitable candidate.
The second step was also crucial—
Do not let the Imperial Guards expose the operation!
Otherwise, the Yan family would claim that the court or the Directorate of Ceremonial was behind the scheme, and dealing with the aftermath would be very troublesome.
Therefore, the job must be done by genuine mountain bandits!
The third step, the crime and evidence.
The Imperial Guards under Wu Ming and Wu Liang had already contacted the people sent by the Eastern Depot for surveillance. It had long been confirmed that Yan Maoqing was privately dividing the spoils, and the evidence was that this ship of silver had never been entered into the accounts! Once the two were compared, the evidence would be obvious!
The fourth step was also indispensable, which was—
Witnesses!
This matter must be witnessed by many unrelated people.
Who would be most suitable?
Naturally, there should be Jiangnan officials, as well as the general public.
In this way, the Yan family would have no way to deny it.
Finally, in court, Yan Shifan would have nothing to say and would have to accept the loss in silence. At that time, the people of the world would have vented their anger!
Looking at the system, there were also clear benefits: Kuai Shu Ge
[Progress: Confiscate corrupt assets in a dramatic manner, strike at the authority of corrupt officials;]
[Feasibility: 85%;]
[Consequence Assessment: Deterrence 99%; Insult 99%;]