Chapter 12: Moving Trees to Establish Trust
On the way back.
In the Chen family's carriage, Chen Kui had a gloomy face.
"Master, this county lord is not a pushover. We..."
A man who looked like a legal advisor squatted beside him and asked insidiously.
Chen Kui pondered for a moment, shook his head slowly, and snorted coldly: " What can a master who donated money to buy an official position do? We have been running Yinzhou for so long, how can they shake our position? Wait and see! With Yinzhou being an unruly place, I'm afraid they won't be able to stay here for a few days and will go back to Liangzhou!"
"Master is wise!"
The other three families had the same idea on their way back.
Although Yinzhou has been without a master for a long time, occasionally there are still wealthy men who don't believe in evil and buy official positions here to satisfy their desires. But most of them just satisfy their desires, and then they can't stand the dry climate here, and soon return home to live a poor life.
How long can the Liu family father and son last?
Obviously, these four prominent families did not take the new county lord seriously.
…
"Son, how are we going to live here?"
Liu Dahao has always lived a life of luxury, and when he saw this environment, his face fell.
The three of them went in and took a look around. As soon as they walked through the door, there was a loud bang and the entire door frame broke, almost knocking them to the ground.
Liu Zheng also had a headache and said, "We need to find someone to repair it."
He thought to himself, fortunately he had money in his hand. It seemed that it was more sensible to extort 10,000 taels of silver from Chen Ping when he left Liangzhou. Otherwise, they might really be like the aristocratic family hoped, without even a place to live, and would have to run back to Liangzhou in disgrace.
However, who could have imagined that the three men came to the street with silver in their hands, but couldn't even find a craftsman!
After seeing the three people, the people on the street looked at them as if they had seen their enemies. Their eyes were cold and they all expressed that they were not interested in making their money.
Qin Changfeng was a little angry, so he went up to argue and almost got into a fight with the guy.
"How is this going?"
Liu Zheng was a little confused.
In this day and age, is there still a situation where you have money but cannot spend it?
Liu Dahao was also surprised and asked, "Zheng'er, could it be that the four great families are doing something bad and not letting others work for us? These people are really evil to the extreme!"
Liu Zheng shook his head, he felt that things were not that simple.
Taking Liu Dahao and Qin Changfeng, they came to the most lively place in the city. Yinzhou only had one market, which was usually open until noon. But looking at the goods, they were very pitiful. They were all coarse grains, crude ceramic bottles and jars, and animal furs. There was really nothing worth showing off.
However, this place is already the place with the largest flow of people in Yinzhou.
Liu Zheng found a spot in the middle and shouted, "Is there any craftsman who can come to repair the county mansion? I'll double the reward!"
A group of people were attracted and laughed when they heard this: "County Marquis' Mansion? There is a County Marquis' Mansion in Yinzhou?"
"What? Another county marquis?"
"Okay, which master is here to have fun again?"
"Do you still think our Yinzhou isn't poor enough? Is it enough for you to mess around with?"
When the people heard this, they became furious. There were even a few shirtless men who were about to attack with hoes. Fortunately, Qin Changfeng was protecting them, but many people still spit at them.
So that's what is happening.
Liu Zheng sighed inwardly.
It seems that the prestige of the Yinzhou County Marquisate has dropped to the freezing point in the hearts of the people. There is no dignity at all, and even no integrity!
Liu Zheng said loudly: "Don't worry, everyone. Our purpose of coming here this time is to make Yinzhou rich and strong, so that everyone can have enough food to eat!"
Everyone burst into laughter again.
"Eat enough?"
"joke!"
"It's good enough that you don't skin us anymore, and you still want to have a full meal?"
"Now, how much tax do you government want us to pay?"
These people are not afraid of the government officials at all.
As the saying goes, when one has enough food and clothing, one knows honor and disgrace; when one has enough food and clothing, one knows etiquette. The people of Yinzhou have been hungry for years, so how can they care about the distinction between officials and civilians? And because there has been no government control for years, they are still wary of those prominent families who own land, but they don't take this newly arrived county marquis seriously.
"this……"
Liu Dahao didn't expect that his first time as an official would be so unsuccessful.
Liu Zheng shook his head, but laughed and said loudly: "Everyone, I understand your feelings. The fact that Yinzhou County has not been governed for many years is really the fault of the court."
"My father and I have come here today, and we will never leave until we turn this place into a prosperous city!"
Liu Zheng spoke powerfully.
But the people naturally didn't believe it.
Everyone comes here and talks big, isn't it just for the taxes?
Liu Zheng looked at the suspicious and contemptuous eyes of the crowd, and immediately remembered the story of Shang Yang during the Warring States Period. The Qin State was in the same situation back then, with poverty and people unable to eat enough. The people had no trust in the government, and the government's credibility was extremely poor.
Shang Yang's method at that time was to move the trees to establish trust.
now.
The situation is actually almost the same.
Liu Zheng took out a few banknotes from his pocket and smiled faintly: "Everyone, as long as my father and I are here, the orders of the Yinzhou County Marquisate will be carried out and the words will be fulfilled!"
"Here is five hundred taels of silver!"
"Whoever carries these two logs to the county magistrate's mansion today will have the five hundred taels of silver!"
Liu Zheng pointed at the logs he had just bought to build the roof beams and gate with one hand, and held a silver note worth five hundred taels in the other.
As soon as these words were spoken, the whole audience was in an uproar.
Two logs, five hundred taels?
People were talking about it, but most of them were skeptical. How could such a good thing happen in the world? Five hundred taels of silver could feed an ordinary family for twenty-five years!
People in Yinzhou may not be able to earn these five hundred taels in their entire lives!
"Are you serious, sir?"
When everyone was in disbelief, a shirtless man stood up and asked in a muffled voice.
Others sneered.
"You believe this too?"
"Tiezhu, don't let these Liangzhou people fool you!"
"Five hundred taels, how heavy is that?"
Liu Zheng smiled at the iron pillar and nodded: "If the warrior can carry it across, five hundred taels are here, you can take it as you like!"
"good!"
Tiezhu responded with a simple smile, "I, Tiezhu, have nothing but a lot of strength!"
As he spoke, under the mocking eyes of the people, he bent down and picked up a log with one hand, which made Liu Zheng and Qin Changfeng slightly stunned. This guy's strength is really extraordinary. You know, the log is used to make beams, and it is three meters long!
This guy had a hand tucked under his arm, but he didn't feel any effort at all and walked very fast.
Liu Zheng was overjoyed, and the three of them followed at the same time.
When the people saw this, they put down their work and ran into the street. One reason was to watch the fun, and the other was to see if the county magistrate would really give the five hundred taels of silver to Tiezhu!
"What's going on so lively?"
"Don't you know? The county magistrate's office is giving out money! Five hundred taels!"
"real or fake?"
Soon, almost everyone on Yinzhou Street heard the news. This was a big event for the lifeless Yinzhou, and more and more people gathered to watch.
The iron pillar was sweating profusely, but he did not rest for a moment along the way.
"good!"
"Strong as an ox!"
"Well done Tiezhu!"
The people cheered him on, and the children were milling around him, shouting and yelling.
The market was about three miles away from the county mansion. The iron pillar did not stop for a moment, and with a final bang, two three-meter-long logs were placed in front of the county mansion.
The people applauded loudly.
Such a strong man deserves so much praise.
"how?"
Tiezhu smiled innocently and looked at Liu Zheng.
Liu Zheng said with a smile: "The warrior is born with supernatural power, which makes people admire him! These five hundred taels are yours!"
As he said this, he handed the five hundred taels of silver to Tiezhu.
Tiezhu was stunned.
The people who were watching the excitement were also stunned at the same time.
Really gave it?
"Really?"
Tiezhu looked at the banknotes and was overjoyed: "The county marquis really gave money! The county marquis is a man of his words! The county marquis' son really gave money, five hundred taels! Mother, I have earned money for you!"
Thousands of people followed suit and were in an uproar.
The actions of the county lord's son directly changed their views on the county lord's mansion. Liu Zheng smiled slightly. The public opinion these days depends on these street people. If this incident spreads, it will be of great help to the county lord's mansion in the future.
"Sir, is your mansion in need of a craftsman?"
"Sir, we can help!"
"Lao Zhang is a good carpenter!"
Soon, many people came over to ask tentatively.
Who doesn’t want to make money?
At this time, the county mansion was very lively, with carpenters, gardeners, and handymen. Liu Zheng was also very happy to see that these people had little education, but because of this, they liked to show their emotions on their faces. If the county mansion was good, they would be good, and if it was not good, they would speak ill of it.
Such people are actually easier to get along with.
So, no matter how many people there were, Liu Zheng accepted them all.
Anyway, he is rich now, so he doesn't need these things.
"Sir, can I still come?"
Just after the work was assigned, Wei Tiezhu came back with a simple smile, looking embarrassed: "My mother said that the money should be kept for me to marry a wife, so I have to come here to earn money!"
Everyone laughed and made good-natured jokes.
Liu Zheng shouted, "Not only that, Tiezhu will be my foreman for the time being, and you will be in charge of dispatching these craftsmen, how about that?"
"ah?"
Wei Tiezhu touched his head, looking embarrassed.
Fortunately, these craftsmen were very simple and honest, and they would not flatter or fawn on others. They all expressed their willingness to cooperate with Tiezhu. Wei Tiezhu excitedly agreed.
This went on until night fell.
What Liu Zheng didn't expect was that just by moving the trees to establish trust today, these people became interested in the county government. At night, many families sent rice, flour and lard, and a big pot was lit in the courtyard. Some people even killed chickens and sheep. For the first time, Liu Zheng felt the enthusiasm of these people.
You are three points nice to them.
They are so eager to return ten percent of your money.
Who can not love such people?
With such popular support, why would those prominent families worry about their extinction?
On the first day in Yinzhou, Liu Zheng lived in the yard with the craftsmen and looked at the stars in the sky.
This fiefdom will definitely become the starting point for his fight for world domination!
