Chapter 1543 Look how hard your bones are
During Yang Yun's tenure in the Ministry of Commerce, he had dealt with as many as eighty officials at all levels in the Ming Dynasty. It can be said that he has met all kinds of people, and naturally he has also encountered more stubborn officials like Wang Huan. For local officials who seemed to be loyal to the Ming Dynasty and unwilling to accept Haihan's benefits, Haihan had always had a headache. Ordinary coercion and inducement methods were not effective, and it was difficult to make them submit.
To this end, relevant departments such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Security, and the Ministry of National Defense have met many times to discuss solutions. The final result is that they still have to fight hard against each other and overwhelm the opponent in terms of momentum. As for the serious consequences that may result from this, the relevant departments believe that at most it will be local targeting of Haihan, but it should not develop to the point of using force. After all, if there is an armed conflict with Haihan and it leads to a war between the two countries No local official can bear this responsibility.
Of course, if this trick still doesn't work, then the field team of the Security Department can only be dispatched. The year before last, Gong Shiqi led a team to perform a mission in Hangzhou City and made three officials disappear in one fell swoop. This was an extreme method to deal with this situation. Although this method is effective, it will inevitably involve many hidden dangers and risks. Haihan will not use this method unless it is a last resort. The current situation in Xiangshan County is far from reaching this level. Yang Yuan's tough stance is just to stimulate the other party and test Wang Huan's bottom line, so that he can make decisions based on the other party's situation. Choose the appropriate method to deal with this seemingly tough-minded magistrate of Xiangshan County.
After Wang Huan heard Yang Yun's words, he was as speechless as if he had been struck by lightning, and even the expression on his face froze. He has been an official in Xiangshan County for five years and has experienced the changes brought about by the Haihan people before and after they came to Zhejiang. He is indeed very clear that the current situation is not the result of Haihan's unilateral action. The Ming court's compromise and slow response. Top-down corruption and incompetence allowed Haihan to create such a huge situation along the coast of Zhejiang.
But even the local guards had colluded with the Haihan people for a long time. Wang Huan was just a seventh-level county magistrate, so how could he win over the Haihan people who had strong ships and huge cannons. He couldn't just gather the gang of county government officials to hunt down the Haihan people, right? What's more, the people he can command may not be willing to die generously with him.
Fortunately, although the Haihan people acted arrogantly, they did not harm the local area. Instead, they integrated and eliminated pirates and armed merchants along the coast, which made the social security situation in Ningbo Prefecture much better. The people have also benefited from this. Many fishermen and sailors have heard that the remuneration offered by Haihan's hired crew members is extremely generous, and they have gone to work for Haihan people.
Although the county government issued multiple notices to keep people away from the areas controlled by the Haihan people and their ships, under the temptation of huge profits, the government's warnings had no effect at all and could not stop people from working for the Haihan people. Wang Huan was determined to kill the thieves, but he had no way to save his life. He could only watch the population in the areas under his control continue to flow to the areas controlled by the Haihan people. Of the more than 3,000 permanent residents added to Shipu Port last year, more than half were from Xiangshan County. Many people even participated in Haihan's immigration recruitment and were arranged to settle overseas, completely abandoning the Ming Dynasty nationals. identity.
Although Wang Huan hated the Haihan invaders for destroying the peace of the Ming Dynasty, he also understood that the incompetence of the imperial court and the corruption of the superior yamen were the real reasons why the Ming Dynasty could not drive away the Haihan people. Although Yang Yun's words were very harsh, every word struck a chord, making it difficult for him to refute. Yang Yun said that he was not protecting the Ming Dynasty's face, but his own face. It was really true. Even the imperial court had lost face. Isn't it just for his own face that he was still playing the role of a loyal minister here?
But Wang Huan didn't think there was anything wrong with what he did. After coming back to his senses, he finally snorted coldly and said: "The Master said, a gentleman has something to do and something not to do. What I do is loyal to the Ming Dynasty. This has Why not? ”
Yang Yun responded: "Since Mr. Wang keeps saying that he is loyal to the Ming Dynasty, then your country's court will announce to the world that it will establish communications and trade with our country. By then, Xiangshan County will also be a place where our Haihan merchants can enter and exit freely. Wang Will you still be stubborn and disobey the court’s orders?”
Wang Huan responded: "The imperial court has not expressed its position at this time, how can I be the first to get ahead? This is really a big mistake!"
Wang Huan still refused to let go, but his tone was no longer as tough as before. After all, what Yang Yun said was all aimed at his weakness. At the moment, he could only parry, but he no longer had the power to fight back.
Yang Yun has rich experience in dealing with Ming officials. As soon as Wang Huan's momentum weakened, he naturally noticed it immediately and took advantage of the victory to pursue it: "Master Wang, the general trend of the world is the cooperation between the two countries. You can do it with one person's strength." It is unwise to go against the trend. Why not cooperate with our country to benefit the people of Li? ”
Wang Huan couldn't help but rolled his eyes and said: "You plan to replace the official salt farm with a private salt farm. How is this going to benefit the people? You are obviously planning to use this to make money!"
Yang Yundao: "You can't say that. Mr. Wang, think about it, how many salt households worked in the official salt fields in the past, and how well do these salt households live now? If a salt farm operated by our country can be opened in Xiangshan, what will happen to these salt households?" With just a simple training, you can return to your old job and have an income to support your life. Is this a benefit to the people? Besides, not all the income from the salt farm goes to our country. I mentioned before that I can give Mr. Wang a monthly income. A thousand taels of silver in benefits, but for this business to be done, Xiangshan County yamen are not the only places where incense is needed? You said earlier that those yamen that manage the salt industry need to be dealt with one by one. Come to think of it. We have opened up all the other joints, but Mr. Wang is stuck here. What do you think will happen then?”
Blocking someone's way of making money is like killing one's parents. Of course Wang Huan understood this. If the situation mentioned by Yang Yun really happened, then he would not dare to get stuck on the salt farm. After all, it is one thing to go against foreigners, but it is another thing to go against other officials in the officialdom. Moreover, he is really not sure that the yamen in charge of the salt industry can be as ruthless as himself to refuse the offer given by Haihan. benefit.
When Yang Yun saw Wang Huan lowering his head and said nothing, he knew that this man's guard was down, so he continued to persuade him: "Yang most admires people who are strong-minded and tough, and Mr. Wang is definitely one of them. But there is really no need to show off in this matter. Too tough. If this project can be implemented, it will at least bring employment opportunities to thousands of laborers in Xiangshan County. Once this industry is established, it will also drive the development of various local industries in the future. I believe Mr. Wang also understands this. As for the salt tax paid to the Ming Dynasty treasury, in theory it will still be a lot, and the total amount will be even more than before. There is no loss to the Ming Dynasty, why should Mr. Wang care? "
Yang Yun's plan was to use the shell of the official salt farm to operate the salt farm operated by Haihan. The fees that needed to be paid to the Ming Dynasty treasury naturally had to follow the rules. It's just that Haihan's salt production technology is more advanced, with lower production costs and higher output. When doing accounting, the production cost and output can be based on the standards of the Daming Salt Works in the past. The difference between the book and the actual situation , is the profit Haihan can get from it. According to the past experience of annexing the Ming Dynasty's official salt fields in the south, Haihan's profits from such an operation are still very considerable, so Yang Yuncai dared to promise Wang Huan a high benefit fee without even saying a word.
Of course Wang Huan is not a saint, nor does he care about money, but the spirit he pursues is that a gentleman loves money and gets it in the right way. Haihan's way of making money is obviously poaching the Ming Dynasty, and is inconsistent with the "way" he upholds. , so he had no intention of agreeing to Yang Yun's request from the beginning. But Wang Huan didn't know much about the way of doing business, so he couldn't find any arguments to refute Yang Yun's analysis, but he just felt that it was wrong to do so. The more Wang Huan remained silent, the more energetic Yang Yun became: "Mr. Wang, even if you have to bear it to the end, you can only resist my proposal verbally. After we start building the salt farm here, will you summon the government officials from Xiangshan County?" Why bother if you come here to cause trouble? You can only watch in the end, and you won’t get any benefits.”
Wang Huan finally said: "I am a local official and my responsibilities are my duty. How dare I relax?"
Yang Yundao: "The land where the salt field is opened belongs to your country, the seawater belongs to your country, the labor force belongs to your country, and the market for sales also belongs to your country. Doesn't this all belong to the Ming Dynasty? You are guarding this place for the Ming Dynasty. industry, and cooperate with us at the same time, there is no conflict between them.”
Of course, Wang Huan also understood that what Yang Yun said was wrong. The Haihan people actually wanted to use the Ming Dynasty's land and population to make profits. But when he found that arguing with this person would only lead him further and further to the point where he was unable to refute, he knew that it would be difficult for him to gain an advantage in the verbal battle. Of course, if you can't beat the opponent in a verbal battle, then it's okay not to try other methods. If you try, you will only be humiliating yourself.
Gu Qufei was stunned when he heard this, and he admired Yang Yun even more. He had heard Yang Yun's arrogant tone before, which made the county magistrate furious, and his heart almost jumped out of his throat. Fortunately, Yang Yun's sharp mouth was really good, and he actually suppressed Wang Huan until he lost his temper. Regardless of whether the salt farm was a success or not, Gu Qufei was determined to make money by cooperating with Haihan. After all, with such a shrewd person in charge of the business, it would be profitable to do anything.
Regarding Wang Huan's hesitation, Gu Qufei wished he could nod his head on his behalf. This was just a matter of letting go, and the benefits would be delivered directly to his hands. There was nothing else to consider. How much is the county magistrate's salary? Even if he has a little bit of gray income, he won't be able to save enough money in a year to give the Haihan people a month!
I don’t understand. Gu Qufei feels that he doesn’t understand what these two parties are doing. One is generous and has to give money to the local magistrate before the matter is resolved. The other is frighteningly roundabout and doesn’t even dare to nod at the benefits that are delivered to his door. Take it. Gu Qufei had never heard of such a situation being negotiated in business. However, he did not dare to interrupt on this occasion, for fear of disturbing Yang Yun's rhythm.
When Yang Yun saw that Wang Huan was starting to pretend to be mute, he immediately adjusted his strategy and used a new trick: "Master Wang, this doesn't mean that you can drag this matter on just by being silent. If you really plan to be a stumbling block in the way, Even if I, Haihan, don’t come to move you, someone else will come to move you, and your family may be involved. Why bother?”
Wang Huan couldn't help but twitch the corner of his mouth. He didn't want this kind of thing to affect his official career. Even if there seemed to be no hope of advancement at the moment, he could at least be a county magistrate. But if the Haihan people are really regarded as an obstacle to making money, these people can do anything. And it brought out his family, which made it difficult for him to remain reserved.
"It's no harm to my family, no crime to my parents. Isn't it appropriate to involve my family in this kind of thing?" Wang Huan finally began to show signs of weakness.
"I don't think it's appropriate either, so it's best if we work together to avoid this situation." Yang Yun quickly seized this opportunity to persuade: "Master Wang, I heard that you have an only son in your family who has passed the imperial examination three times. I still haven’t won the honor, and I’m currently idle at home. If the salt farm opens later, I’ll ask you to be a steward of the salt farm. I guarantee you a high salary and no unfair treatment.”
The situation at Wang Huan's home was provided by Gu Qufei just before he came to the county government. Yang Yun was also speculating and selling, seizing every opportunity to persuade Wang Huan to submit.
Wang Huan was dumbfounded when he heard this. Unexpectedly, the other party was quite well prepared and had even inquired about his family situation. Although this sounds good, both father and son can receive benefits from Haihan, but if the son is really allowed to work for the Haihan people, wouldn't it be equivalent to becoming Haihan's hostage? If the Haihan people want to do something in Xiangshan from now on, I will not dare to take care of it.
"Quinzi can only read and doesn't know how to make salt and do business, so let's forget it." Wang Huan quickly refused the job for his son.
Yang Yun refused to let it go, and continued to persuade: "It doesn't matter if you don't understand. We can provide free training. If you learn one more skill, you will have more options in the future, right? If it doesn't work, your young master can come over and become a clerk." Ah!”
Wang Huandao: "What do you need from this salt farm?"
"Yes, of course we need documents. Every institution in Haihan must have people who know how to read and write, so that we can promptly disseminate various news and government orders from the country to those who are illiterate." Yang Yun hurriedly told He explained: "Clerical service is an indispensable position. If you do well, you can rise in the future."
(End of chapter)