Chapter 2202
At present, the official attitude of the Ming Dynasty towards Haihan is mostly related to the region where it is located. Needless to say, the coastal state capitals of Fuzhou and Guangzhou have been infiltrated by Haihan for a long time. Most local officials have close interests with Haihan. There are also many people who interact with each other, and even allow their descendants to secretly become Haihan citizens.
The Jiangsu and Zhejiang regions are bounded by the Yangtze River. The state capitals in the south have witnessed Haihan's powerful force in the past few years, so now they are mostly making a fortune in silence and are unwilling to engage in open confrontation with Haihan. The state capitals north of the Yangtze River are slightly farther away from Zhoushan and have less direct contact with Haihan, so they are still more defensive. However, as long as Haihan does not raise troops to attack, they will not be stupid enough to actively seek trouble.
Most people think that the Haihan people are just a group of powerful armed maritime merchants, but the imperial court is already very aware of Haihan's military strength. Now it is even more necessary for the Haihan army to hold back part of the main force of the Qing army in the Liaodong Peninsula, so there has been a secret order for a long time. The Haihan people should reduce restrictions and interference on their movements in coastal areas, and try to avoid armed conflicts with Haihan people so as not to affect the situation in northern Xinjiang. Even in the area controlled by Haihan in Dengzhou, Shandong, the imperial court turned a blind eye and acquiesced, treating the power as "loaned" to Haihan for temporary use.
The current situation is nothing but merit. None of the local officials are willing to cause trouble for Haihan. Although Gao Yongshou has some friendship with Lu Kangtai, he is far from willing to put himself in trouble for this friendship. Dangerous place.
However, he usually took advantage of Lu Kangtai, so he made it very clear that neither Yangzhou Mansion nor the higher-level Yingtian Mansion would take the initiative to cause trouble for the Haihan people.
Lu Kangtai was a little disappointed when he heard such a reply, but he still wanted to try to persuade the other party to change his mind: "Master Gao, a wise man does not speak secretly. If you can come forward to expel these Haihan people from Yangzhou, I am willing to donate Ten thousand taels of silver, as a reward for your hard work!”
Gao Yongshou smiled bitterly and said: "I really want the money, but I really can't handle this matter. If I do what you want, then I won't be able to solve this problem with ten thousand taels of silver." Done.”
Gao Yongshou can serve as the chief city defense general in Yangzhou. He is not just a money-making man. He has good vision and insight. Although Yangzhou is quite far away from Zhoushan, Gao Yongshou has some contacts with the generals of the garrison in the southern state. He has heard several commanders talk about the military strength of the Haihan people before.
In particular, he was particularly concerned about the story that the Haihan army came to Hangzhou and caused the Zhejiang government to suffer a heavy loss. After that incident, there were more than a dozen civil and military officials, large and small, who were thrown out to take the blame. It was not easy to reconcile both the imperial court and Haihan. The amount of money that the officials involved in this process gave away to protect themselves was simply astronomical. A commander Gao Yongshou knew gave him a full 30,000 taels of silver plus several job vacancies before he was replaced. His own official position was preserved.
Since Gao Yongshou knew that Haihan could not afford to cause trouble, he would not be easily persuaded by the conditions given by Lu Kangtai. No matter how rich Lu Kangtai was, he would still encounter problems that could not be solved with money.
Lu Kangtai felt that he was getting a little stuck in what he was saying, so he stopped decisively and asked the restaurant waiter to start the meal and relax the atmosphere. The main purpose of him inviting Gao Yongshou to dinner today was to test his attitude. It would be best if he could borrow this power. If that didn't work, he could also inquire about the other party's tone and use it as a reference for what countermeasures to take next.
After drinking for three rounds, Gao Yongshou took the initiative to bring up the previous topic: "Boss Lu, you and I have been friends for a few years. I know that you are a proud and arrogant person who wants to do something in Yangzhou that no one before you has ever done." The government has always paid little attention to the disputes between you and the Anhui salt merchants, but if the Haihan people are involved, it will be more troublesome. What a big trouble you caused at the end of last year. , you don’t need me to say it again, right?”
The incident Gao Yongshou mentioned was the incident last year when Haihan sent armed personnel to sneak into Yangzhou and fought a bloody night on the canal with the troops of Shanxi salt merchants. Although the Shanshan salt merchants tried their best to conceal the incident afterwards, so many people died that night that it was impossible to hide it from everyone, and it would not be difficult for the government to identify the perpetrators.
Because the matter involved Haihan, the Yangzhou government was of course unable to hold the Haihan people responsible. They could only ask the Shanxi and Shaanxi salt merchants to do their best to provide post-mortem compensation and prevent the deceased's family from causing trouble in the government office. To put it bluntly, the government must cover up the matter in order to cover up the peace. As the Shanxi salt merchants were the parties involved, they could only spend money to calm the situation.
Moreover, the money was not enough. The Yangzhou government was worried that the Shanshan salt merchants would escalate the situation in order to retaliate, so they strictly ordered them not to cause trouble in Yangzhou anymore and to stop all acts of violence by their men in Yangzhou. This is also the main reason why the Shanshan-Shaanxi salt merchants completely kept silent after the incident and blocked the news from the outside world.
Lu Kangtai put down his chopsticks and replied: "Thanks to Mr. Gao's care at that time, he prevented us from a lot of trouble. However, the feud between us and the Haihan people will never be revealed. If there is a chance in the future, we will eventually have to deal with They settled the score!”
Gao Yongshou said slowly: "If the time for revenge mentioned by Boss Lu refers to the present, then I'm afraid it is not a good time. Let me put it bluntly, the prefect does not want Haihan people to have trouble in Yangzhou, let alone cause trouble. Bigger trouble.”
Lu Kangtai said: "A bigger trouble? The prefect is afraid that Haihan will send troops to attack Yangzhou, right?"
"Who is not afraid?" Gao Yongshou frankly admitted Lu Kangtai's guess: "The Haihan people conduct exercises in Hangzhou Bay every year, and the scale is getting bigger year by year, and they also invite officials from surrounding prefectures to observe. Although the prefect himself I haven't been there, but he sent his subordinates to go and see it. It is said that Haihan's fleet stationed in Zhoushan is much more powerful than the navy on the Yangtze River. If they really provoke the Haihan people to come to Yangzhou, who can stop them? Or me? ”
Lu Kangtai remained silent. In terms of knowledge of Haihan's strength, he probably far surpassed Gao Yongshou. After all, the opponent came from hearsay, while he had fought against Haihan's armed personnel with real swords and guns. Of course, he knew the horror of Haihan better than Gao Yongshou, but he would definitely not be willing to give up and let the Haihan people come to his door.
But it is obvious that the senior officials of Yangzhou government, who have taken many benefits for themselves, do not want another murder case related to Haihan to occur locally. At this time, Gao Yongshou's warning can also be understood as an official warning. If Lu Kangtai is stubborn and insists on taking action, he will obviously not be able to get the support of the government afterwards.
Lu Kangtai was also very disappointed that the government's attitude was so weak. He had never thought about winning the support of the government, but as long as he could keep the government indifferent to the actions he was about to take, he could go as far as he wanted. But now it seems that this matter is much more troublesome than I expected, and I need to make another plan.
During the dinner, Lu Kangtai repeatedly tested Gao Yongshou many times, but the other party did not give up his answer at all. It was obvious that he had been fully prepared for this meeting. Lu Kangtai knew there was no hope, so he stopped mentioning the matter later and just kept urging him to drink. Before leaving after finishing the meal, Lu Kangtai took out a banknote and handed it to Gao Yongshou. The other party was willing to come out to eat this meal and gave him some warnings. Lu Kangtai must express this in order to maintain this friendship for a long time. Otherwise, if I ask Gao Yongshou for help in the future, he may not be as easy to talk to as now.
Perhaps it was this expression that touched Gao Yongshou. After they walked out of Qingfeng Building, Gao Yongshou stopped him and said a few more words: "Boss Lu, you are not the only one making an issue about the Haihan people now. The Dai family made a fuss about it a few days ago." Some people quietly went to the city to visit the prefect. As far as I know, they went to work as lobbyists for the Haihan people. Don’t be surprised if Yangzhou lets the Haihan people come in to do business in the future.”
Lu Kangtai said coldly: "Is it possible that the prefect is dissatisfied with the fact that the benefits we usually send are too few?"
Gao Yongshou shook his head and said: "You are mistaken. If you don't give too little, who would think that you can get too many benefits? If you fight with the Haihan people, you will only cause trouble for the government. They cooperate with the Haihan people. , can bring practical benefits to the government. Which situation do you think the government is more willing to see? ”
Gao Yongshou may have spoken the truth while drunk, or he may have hated iron but not steel. In short, these words shocked Lu Kangtai.
He had always thought that his side was very good at managing official connections. Even if the local officials were unwilling to support him in this matter, they would not stand on the opposite side. It would certainly be very difficult for Huizhou salt merchants to win over these officials. But the actual situation seemed to be much worse than he expected. The Huizhou salt merchants' disadvantage in this regard did not seem to be as great as he thought, and the government's attitude did not seem to be as firm as he thought.
Although Lu Kangtai is a very stubborn person, he also understands that what Gao Yongshou said is actually true. These officials are all very practical people, and they will prefer whichever side offers the most benefits. In the past, of course, Shanshan and Shaanxi salt merchants were more willing to spend money to develop these official connections, but after Haihan intervened, it seems that the situation has quietly changed.
Haihan's financial resources and ability to cause trouble are both second-to-none. The local government certainly hoped that the former would be the one Haihan brought to the local area. The Huizhou salt merchants also took this as an opportunity to leverage their original inclinations. These connections between Shanxi and Shaanxi salt merchants have actually pushed Lu Kangtai and others into a dead end.
Lu Kangtai did not go home, but went straight to He Huan's home. At the same time, he notified Wang Yu to come over. All the decisions of Shanshan Salt Merchants have been basically decided by their three families. This time the situation is very urgent, and Lu Kangtai must also discuss the next response strategy with the heads of the other two families.
"The opponent has started activities for the Haihan people at the prefect's side? This is not good!" He Huan was also greatly surprised when he heard the news brought by Lu Kangtai, and immediately realized the danger.
"Maybe it's not just the prefect. I suspect that General Gao has also taken advantage of his opponent, but he just can't tell me clearly." Lu Kangtai analyzed with a gloomy face: "Otherwise, how could he know that Dai Lao'er sent someone to The prefect is lobbying. Fortunately, he probably hasn’t completely betrayed us, otherwise there is no need to persuade me to stop. If we just wait for us to take action, we will find another reason to cause trouble, and we will probably have to go around without a trace.”
Wang Yu said: "The government doesn't want us to provoke the Haihan people. This may be the result of the Dai family sending people to lobby. But if we do nothing, we can only watch the seven major surnames collude with the Haihan people. It’s getting harder and harder to liquidate them! ”
"This is exactly the reason." Lu Kangtai took over and said: "Not only will it become more difficult to liquidate our opponents, but our own space will also continue to be compressed. It is impossible for us and the seven surnames to coexist peacefully , with Haihan’s support, they will definitely intensify their efforts to deal with us. If they do nothing because of the government’s attitude, they are just sitting back and waiting for death!”
"Kangtai, what do you think?" He Huan asked.
Lu Kangtai said: "I think we should follow our previous plan, hit the snake seven inches, first attack Daijiazhuang and take down Daijia. The seven surnames will be in chaos! Then it will be easier to clean up one by one. .”
"But the government's attitude has already wavered, and we have to consider whether doing this will attract blame from the government." Wang Yu reminded.
Lu Kangtai said: "Although the government's attitude has wavered, it is just a wavering. They will not give up cooperation with us so easily. Just imagine if the Huizhou salt merchants are liquidated by us, then they will no longer be able to pay tribute to the government. At that time, we will be the largest financial sponsor in the local area, and we will be qualified to negotiate new conditions with the government!”
"But now that the Dai family has invited the Haihan people to come back to help, Daijiazhuang will probably not be so easy to move! Kangtai, have you carefully calculated how confident you are of attacking Daijiazhuang now?" He Huan said about Lu Kangtai I still have concerns about my plan.
Lu Kangtai said: "Now it's not a question of how many people we have, but if we continue to stand still, the situation will only become more and more unfavorable to us! My people found out that the Seven Big Surnames secretly sent a group of people to Zhoushan They were trained in the Haihan Army. When these people come back from training, the Seven Major Surnames will definitely use them as the backbone to form the strongest militia in Yangzhou Prefecture. By then, with the strength we have, we can still fight. Pass them? ”
Lu Kangtai paused and then said: "You two, the Hirado clan is gone. I heard that the Haihan people burned down Hirado City and Hirado Port. We probably won't be able to buy anything from Hirado in the future." We can't expand our musketeers, so if we don't take advantage of the available troops at this time, we will probably be beaten passively when our opponent's musketeers are formed!"< br>
(End of chapter)