"Let the two of them come in!"
Han Mo's heart filled with secret joy. Wasn't this a way to get money?
"Should I excuse myself?" Wu Jie asked somewhat awkwardly.
"Brother, please wait in the side hall for a moment. I will resolve this matter of money and grain for you first!"
Han Mo had been conducting discreet investigations within Neihuang County for the past two days and had a rough understanding of the situation.
The common people within the entire Neihuang territory were almost all penniless.
Many households were now resorting to eating wild vegetable dumplings to survive.
To solve the problem of money and grain, it seemed he would have to extract flesh from these corrupt officials.
"Then I will await your good news!"
Wu Jie, who had been feeling a bit awkward, was immediately invigorated upon hearing this.
To enforce clear rewards and punishments, and to ensure orders were followed without fail, soldiers at the very least needed to be well-fed!
After all, even the emperor wouldn't starve his soldiers.
"Your subordinate greets you, sir! These are the accounts from the treasury, all of which have been clarified. I request your inspection!"
For a full three days, Han Mo had refused to see anyone, either busy or out on his investigations. Each time he left, he specifically had Lü Ying accompany him.
This made Zhou Ding, the county deputy, very uneasy, as they had been in league for quite some time.
Lü Ying knew too much. Who knew what this young man had revealed by now?
"So soon?" Han Mo chuckled lightly but did not take the ledgers they handed over.
Their dealings with the "five-for-one" coin scheme had caused such a stir that it had spread to the neighboring counties of Tangyin and Junxian.
How could he, a county magistrate acting like a grounded chicken, be unaware of anything?
"Previously, your subordinates were misguided. Now, we naturally dare not continue to deceive you, sir!" Zhou Ding said, glancing at Han Mo again.
"The matter of the 'five-for-one' coin scheme was handled well! Who came up with this idea?" Han Mo asked with a cold laugh.
"This, this..." Han Mo's casually spoken words instantly sent both of them into a cold sweat.
This was no trivial matter; the difference in profit was significant.
"What is this? Do you think I am a three-year-old child?" Han Mo asked with another cold laugh.
"Sir, the 'five-for-one' coins issued by the imperial court, aren't they for our use? What do you mean by that?" Zhou Ding gritted his teeth and finally replied stubbornly.
This was truly a case of valuing money over life!
"You know very well what I mean."
"Your subordinate truly does not understand your meaning, sir. Please clarify. Does the imperial court not accept its own issued 'five-for-one' coins?"
It was difficult to part with wealth, and not by a small margin. If they were forced to make up the entire shortage of copper coins, they would all suffer a severe financial blow.
The atmosphere suddenly became tense. Zhang Huai, following behind Zhou Ding, cautiously watched Han Mo's expression, fearing that Han Mo might cause further trouble.
"Since you put it that way, I have two official documents here. Since you two are here today, please each go and attend to your respective matters!" Han Mo said as he handed out the documents.
Zhou Ding's mouth twitched, but he still reached out and took the document, glancing at its contents.
With just that one glance, the two of them were completely stunned.
Escort thirty thousand guan in public funds to Daming Prefecture to aid military supplies.
This fellow was truly ruthless!
Perhaps Zhou Ding could still argue a bit with Han Mo, as Han Mo did not have the authority to kill him directly.
However, once they reached Daming Prefecture, the situation would be entirely different.
Let alone the newly appointed Daming Garrison Commander, even an ordinary magistrate or registrar would not be fooled by their petty tricks.
If any word reached the new Daming Garrison Commander, who also concurrently served as the Pacification Commissioner for all roads in Hebei, Lord Xu, then it would be a miracle if they returned alive.
Even if they resigned themselves to misfortune and produced the thirty thousand guan in copper coins themselves, it would not be an easy feat.
Although this was merely a simple escort mission, they were currently in Hebei.
The entire Hebei region was riddled with bandits. At this time, relying on the two of them, along with a few dozen archers, to escort such a large sum of copper coins to Daming.
The journey was over eight hundred li. It was easy to imagine the fate awaiting them if this news leaked out.
No matter how meticulous their plans were, they couldn't withstand the instigation from the county magistrate behind them!
"Sir, why must you do this?" Zhou Ding said with a grim expression, gnashing his teeth.
"County Deputy Zhou, is this how you address your superior? Have all the years you spent studying the sagely texts been fed to dogs?" Han Mo sneered disdainfully.
Although Zhou Ding's teeth were grinding, he had no choice but to bow his head now. Being in the officialdom, he was truly compelled to do so.
"Sir indeed has good methods, but please do not forget, the mountain doesn't turn, but the water flows. Although I am incompetent, a mere disgraceful county deputy, do not forget, this is Hebei!" Seeing that Han Mo was giving him no face at all, Zhou Ding decided to resort to a harder approach when the softer one failed.
"Are you perhaps trying to tell me this is your territory? I don't care how you conducted yourselves before, but listen to me clearly: this is the land of the Great Song! If you don't want to wear that official robe anymore, you can take it off now. If you still wish to wear it, then accept this official document obediently!"
The entire room suddenly fell silent. Besides the sound of their breathing, no other noise could be heard.
Zhang Huai's mind raced. He never expected Han Mo's retaliation to be so swift and resolute.
This fellow did not play by the rules! Normally, according to the common practices of officialdom, given their submissive posture, Han Mo would have no reason to make things difficult for them further.
But who could blame them for their misfortune in encountering Han Mo today?
Han Mo was putting too much pressure on them. For a moment, even Zhang Huai didn't know how to resolve the situation.