readytorunbook Chapter 221 Taking the bait
Chapter 221 Taking the bait
Inside the Haizhu County Government Office.
County Magistrate Huang sat on an oversized armchair and fiddled with the tea set.
The pattern on the tea set was gold-painted flowers and birds, and it was inlaid with jade. It looked very valuable at first glance, but in the hands of County Magistrate Huang, who had a fat face and bags under his eyes, it became tacky.
County Magistrate Huang looked at the shopkeeper Ma of the He Family Stone Shop who was sitting below his left hand and said, "Shopkeeper Ma, the hermit behind you said that we should accumulate blessings and do good deeds to give back to the heavens. How do we do that?"
"Should we go to the temple to offer incense and donate money? Or should we perform rituals to pray to the gods?"
County Magistrate Huang weighed his purse and asked tentatively, "Will five silver coins be enough for the incense offering?"
After hearing what County Magistrate Huang said, Shopkeeper Ma sighed secretly in his heart.
Now that so many people near Haizhu County have evacuated to the city and have no place to live, they can only live in dilapidated temples or sleep in the wild. The first thing County Magistrate Huang thought of was to donate money for incense.
Seeing that Shopkeeper Ma did not respond immediately, County Magistrate Huang added, "Fifty thousand is not enough? How about a hundred thousand taels of silver?"
Of course, money for flood control should be allocated from the treasury first, but if more money is spent on flood control, then he will have less money to embezzle!
Hearing this, Shopkeeper Ma was even more sad. Before he reached an agreement with County Magistrate Huang on flood control, he said that doing some small good deeds would solve the flood problem in Haizhu County. However, County Magistrate Huang's first thought was not to help the people with porridge, but to donate incense to the temple...
Shopkeeper Ma now admires Shopkeeper Jiang's foresight even more.
In the mind of County Magistrate Huang, he would rather spend money to show his goodwill to the imaginary gods than to benefit the people.
Manager Jiang also said that County Magistrate Huang felt that returning some of the money he had extorted from the people would be more painful than killing him.
Therefore, we cannot just ask County Magistrate Huang to rescue the people and reduce tax exploitation.
Thinking of this, he raised a flattering smile on his face: "Your Excellency is very smart. You have found the solution right away!"
We really need to donate 100,000 silver coins to solve this problem!
County Magistrate Huang's eyebrows, which were as thick as caterpillars, twisted and loosened, but it didn't matter. He could tell the difference between suffering for a few months and suffering for a lifetime.
If you go to brothels less often, gamble less and spend less money, won't the money be squeezed out?
What's more, it would definitely cost more than that much money to organize workers to carry sandbags and stones to the river to build a high defense line, and there are many other things he needs to do, so how can he be lazy!
In comparison, the He family's idea is more cost-effective.
County Magistrate Huang asked, "How should we donate this money?"
Shopkeeper Ma held his face in a tense expression and said seriously, "The hermit behind me said that the one in charge of rainwater now is a new god, the daughter of the Dragon King. The He family's ancestors had a close relationship with this daughter of the Dragon King, and now they worship this dragon girl as the patron saint of the He family, which is very effective. You need to pray to this god for help."
"So they want to ask for help from a deity!" County Magistrate Huang picked his teeth and thought for a while: "This Dragon Girl? Why haven't I heard of this person before?"
"Shh!"
Shopkeeper Ma quickly made a shushing gesture: "Mr. County Magistrate, please be careful with your words! Be respectful to the Dragon Girl!"
"This god is now the patron saint of our He family and will protect the safety and prosperity of our entire He family."
County Magistrate Huang was still a little confused: "You are not from the He family. Aren't you hired by the He family? Why are you so cautious?"
"Let me tell you, this goddess is very effective!"
Shopkeeper Ma had a very serious face. He said mysteriously, "The Patriarch of the He family said that anyone who works hard for the He family can be considered a member of the He family and can be protected by the Dragon Girl."
County Magistrate Huang was suspicious: "How can this dragon girl be so good and have such strong magical powers?"
"I didn't believe in the dragon girl at first, but since the He family started worshipping the dragon girl, their business has taken a step forward."
Shopkeeper Ma sighed, as if he had full faith in the dragon girl: "The He family's business is getting better and better, and they have even become a popular new merchant in the capital. That's all because of the blessing of the dragon girl guardian."
"I heard that Master He Lin, who went to the capital, brought the amulet given by the goddess with him. As soon as he arrived, the flower shop opened by the He family in the capital became a booming business!"
"So I followed them and believed in the Dragon Lady."
Shopkeeper Ma pointed to the bluestone inkstone on the table for County Magistrate Huang. "Sir, do you still remember this inkstone? The raw material was found in the quarry on the mountain where I was looking for it?"
County Magistrate Huang nodded and said that Shopkeeper Ma had produced many good things from the quarry on Xun Mountain.
"It has been raining heavily in Haizhou recently. Several quarries have been affected by mudslides and landslides. I was so anxious that I couldn't sleep all night!"
"At night I kneel in my room and pray to the Dragon Lady to keep my quarry safe."
The more County Magistrate Huang listened, the more fascinated he became: "What was the result? Did it work?"
Shopkeeper Ma's eyes were filled with piety and faith. To be a salesperson, one must be able to tell stories. "As a result, after I prayed, I fell asleep peacefully and even dreamed that the goddess was talking to me."
"The next morning, I heard good news. It was raining everywhere else on the mountain, but it stopped raining over my quarry!"
After hearing this, County Magistrate Huang opened his mouth into an O shape: "Damn it, it's so clever!"
Shopkeeper Ma nodded and said, "If you don't believe me, you can go to my quarry and ask around!"
He had also heard that He Lin from the He family was now a hot new upstart in the capital. Precisely because of this, he felt that the growing power of the Lingnan He family would be able to cover for He Xiuzhu's actions in Haizhou.
He had never expected that there was a dragon girl protecting him. He had said that, the dignitaries and imperial merchants in the capital were so powerful, with officials and businessmen colluding with each other, it was really amazing that a young man like He Lin could still gain a foothold in the capital.
Thinking of this, County Magistrate Huang couldn't wait to ask: "How to invite the gods? How much money does it cost? Who to invite?"
"Five thousand taels." Shopkeeper Ma stretched out five fingers and shook them. "The rest will be handled by our He family."
Five thousand taels!
County Magistrate Huang stared with his big eyes, feeling as if pie had fallen from the sky.
Especially when compared with the 100,000 taels he had just estimated, 5,000 taels was simply a drop in the bucket and a piece of cake. The money he embezzled in a month was more than this amount.
"Are you sure it only costs five thousand taels?!"
Shopkeeper Ma said confidently, "It really only costs five thousand taels."
"Praying to gods is of course different from praying to people. The amount is for good luck. Offering to gods depends on sincerity."
County Magistrate Huang slammed the table excitedly: "Okay, okay, I'll summon the gods right away!"
"I'll give you six thousand taels, and the extra money will be your reward. Don't neglect this dragon girl."
Shopkeeper Ma agreed: "Of course."
After receiving the silver note, Shopkeeper Ma opened the package he brought.
"By the way, sir, I found another piece of stone of excellent quality."
"Let me show it to you."