"Since that is the case, then thank you, my lord. Please rest assured, I am not someone who forgets favors. I will send a generous gift another day!"
Zhao Kai, being unusually astute, naturally understood the underlying meaning in his words.
Upon hearing Zhao Kai speak, Wang Fu also offered a smile. The two, understanding each other without explicit words, bowed to each other before mounting the carriage together...
"What did you say? Li Bangyan became Taizai? Prince Yun got into Wang Fu's carriage!"
At the Eastern Hebei Circuit Transport Commissioner's Yamen, Li Jixian felt as if the sky had fallen upon hearing this news.
"That's not the worst part. The most unbearable thing is that the Emperor actually handed the investigation of Wang Fu over to Zhang Bangchang!"
Pang Yue could only offer a wry smile. At this point, he had no idea what to do.
They had originally thought they could rely on betraying Wang Fu to latch onto Bai Shizhong, but they never expected that Bai Shizhong and Wang Fu would end up colluding.
This meant they were utterly finished.
There were only a handful of influential factions that mattered in court.
At this juncture, they had managed to offend everyone.
It seemed impossible for them to survive this.
"Send someone to find Li Bangyan immediately, send someone to find the Crown Prince! We, we..."
"My lord! My lord! The Daming Garrison Office just sent a messenger, instructing us to seal all account books from previous years and send them all to the Daming Garrison Office, stating that Tang Ke, the Transport Commissioner of Hebei Circuit, will soon be taking office!"
"Transport Commissioner of Hebei Circuit..."
Upon hearing this, Li Jixian's vision went black, and he fainted.
This was precisely what they feared most at this moment.
Once the Eastern Hebei Circuit Transport Commissioner's Office was established, they would inevitably have to hand over all their accounts.
While the items in the treasury and their account books all matched, the problem was that most of those items were borrowed.
If they handed these over, would these individuals be solely responsible for repaying such a massive amount of bad debt?
"Hahahaha! I'm impressed, I'm truly impressed! Brother Han, sometimes I really want to know what's inside your head! How could you be so sure that Li Bangyan would definitely become Taizai?"
In the county yamen of Nei Huang County, Zhong Yanchong looked at Han Mo with excitement.
"Alright, you don't need to be so pleased. This matter has not reached our expectations at all! Do you really think Li Bangyan is some kind of saint? You should focus on how to deal with this Transport Commissioner!"
Han Mo took a sip of tea and said to himself.
"You mean Tang Ke?"
"That's right. Don't forget, this guy is a notorious old stubborn in Bianliang. Do you think he will agree with the Lord's plan?"
"Establishing a Circuit Transport Commissioner's Office, thoroughly investigating the accounts of the Transport Commissioner's Office, and separately storing the assets borrowed by these corrupt officials. Do you know how many people will die because of this? Do you think such an old stubborn fellow would do such a thing?"
If this task were given to Zhong Yanchong or Xu Churen, they would not hesitate at all. Regardless of how the money entered, no one could deny that it was moved from the national treasury!
As long as it was stored elsewhere, the actions of the corrupt officials would have little to do with the Transport Commissioner's Office.
As for whether they could repay the money, it would be of no concern to the Transport Commissioner's Office whether those people skinned them alive or wiped out their families.
Although this was the best solution at the moment, it would offend the entire gentry and powerful families of Hebei.
While these people were not good either, they controlled public opinion.
Han Mo didn't even need to guess about an old scholar like Tang Ke; he could imagine that the first thing this guy would do upon taking office would be to audit the accounts and return everything borrowed by those corrupt officials.
After returning them, he would then proceed to confiscate the property of those corrupt officials and eliminate their families...
"But he is still a Transport Commissioner appointed by the court. If the Lord conflicts with him as the first act upon his taking office, then the subsequent matters..."
Although the Transport Commissioner of Hebei Circuit was subordinate to the Commissioner of Pacification, his independence was extremely high.
If he stubbornly refused to agree to internal matters within the Transport Commissioner's Office, even Xu Churen would be helpless.
"Then it has nothing to do with me. This is your problem. By the way, when are you planning to go back? You've been eating and drinking here for so long, my salary is almost depleted by you!"
Han Mo said, rolling his eyes at Zhong Yanchong.
"Don't try to fool me. I don't believe you'll really stand by and do nothing!"
"Hey, hey, hey, clarify what you're saying. It's just a matter of losing some money, how does that relate to standing by and doing nothing? Besides, I'm just a small county magistrate, and I need to attend to my own affairs right now!"
Han Mo said, stretching leisurely before walking outside.
Although Zhong Yanchong was somewhat surprised, for some reason, he did not press further.
"Husband, are you really not going to get involved?"
After walking quite a distance, Zhe Yourong quietly asked.
"I've done what I needed to do. We must leave some things for others to handle. In your position, you should manage your own affairs. The matters in Bianliang are an exception, but if I continue to interfere with the matters in Hebei, it would be overstepping my bounds!"
Han Mo smiled and said casually.
"It's fine if you don't get involved. Coincidentally, I have some matters I want to ask for your advice on!"
Although Zhe Yourong didn't quite understand what Han Mo was saying, since Han Mo had spoken, she didn't press the issue further.
"What matters?"
Han Mo said, putting his arm around Zhe Yourong's slender waist.
"The businesses in our Bianliang are doing incredibly well. I'm planning to send someone to Hangzhou Prefecture in the next few days to consolidate things there. What do you think?"
The businesses taken over from Feng Yuanbao were not only in Hebei, Jingji, and Hedong, but also in various southern circuits.
However, due to capital and manpower constraints, they could only focus on the northern circuits first. Now that business in the north was basically on track, Zhe Yourong naturally didn't want the businesses in the south to remain idle.
"Let's focus on the businesses we have first. It's best not to touch Zhejiang! Not only should we not touch it, but we should also notify the few businesses that are on good terms with us. If they have businesses there, it's best to withdraw them as soon as possible!"
Considering the time, the peak of Fang La's rebellion was about to arrive. To do business there at this time would be like throwing copper coins into the water.