Qin Official

When the servant came in to report the outcome of the case, Mai Hui was tasting the junu freshly made in his own workshop.

Zanyi is a kind of dessert, which is made from a mixture of malt sugar and wheat flour, rolled into thin strips, grouped into bundles, twisted into a ring, and fried in oil in a cauldron. It is crispy and sweet, just like honey bait, and is very popular among the nobles of Guanzhong. snacks.

After Mai Hui, the concubine of the Zuo who was over forty years old, took a bite of the rice cake, he wiped the fine crumbs from his mouth and said with satisfaction:

"When blending, sweet, sour, bitter, pungent, and salty must be used. Everyone needs salty taste, and people from Qidi, Donghai, and Hedong especially like heavy salt. The three tastes of sour, bitter, and pungent may be different for people in the world. I don’t like it. Jiangnan is a hot and humid place. I like rice, soup and fish, so I like it sour. Bashu has a lot of ginger, pepper, and dogwood, so I like pungent taste. There are only a few lovers of bitter taste.”

"But from babies to old men, no one doesn't like the sweet taste! Especially in Guanzhong!"

Sweetness always evokes a pleasant feeling in people, and Guanzhong people have a long-standing tradition of being fond of sweetness. A thousand years ago, when the Zhou people migrated to Zhouyuan, they praised like this: "The land in Zhouyuan is so fertile, and the land in Zhouyuan is so rich." This means that the land in Zhouyuan is so fertile, like the land in Zhouyuan. Bitter greens also look as sweet as sugar...

The reason is that wheat comes from the West, and Guanzhong is the earliest and largest place to grow wheat in the world, so they learned to use malt to make malt sugar early.

At present, Zuo Shu Chang Mai's family is the largest supplier of malt sugar in Guanzhong. He has 74 hectares of land distributed along the Zhengguo Canal, almost all of which is planted with wheat. Wheat, which requires more water than millet and millet, is lush and lush under ditch irrigation. Every summer, countless golden wheat can be harvested.

Steamed wheat rice is difficult to chew and difficult to digest in the stomach. The nobles reluctantly eat a little mainly out of the tradition of "tasting new wheat". Ordinary people generally eat it as an emergency food during lean times. In Guanzhong dialect, "wheat rice and vegetable food" and "wheat rice and bean soup" are used to describe the hardship of life.

However, Zuo Shu Changmai did not eat wheat. Instead, he had a unique vision and used a large amount of wheat grown at home to make malt sugar!

The production of malt sugar is relatively complicated. First, you need to germinate the soaked wheat grains, then mix the mashed malt and steamed glutinous rice, ferment, and filter. After many processes, you can make the sugar liquid, and then stir repeatedly. Boiled and crushed, caramel is formed.

Caramel with a hint of sweetness has become the only dessert that the world can eat besides precious honey...

"The rich eat honey, and the middle-class eat sweets." This has been a fixed tradition for thousands of years, so together with the Shi family, who specializes in collecting honey from Zhongnan Mountain, the Mai family monopolized the dessert market in Xianyang Nan City. Vendors, without their supplies, cannot survive for a day.

Honey and sugar are only a small trade, and the profits are not as profitable as the wine, meat, salt, iron, cloth, and lacquered pottery that the government specializes in, but they still bring in hundreds of thousands of dollars every year.

However, this balance was broken by the group of merchants from Nanjun...

From the moment brown sugar appeared on the market in Xianyang, Mai Hui felt something strange about it. The pieces of brown sugar were shaped like horseshoes and were extremely hard. They were different from the softness of caramel sugar. In the mouth, they were as sweet as honey. They were already nicknamed "stone honey" by city residents. " title.

What is even more frightening is that those Nanjun merchants took out two thousand kilograms of brown sugar for sale at a time, and the price was lower than that of malt sugar. Everyone liked high-quality and low-priced things, and the wealthy households in Xianyang flocked to them.

When Mai Hui was astonished, he also sent his merchants to inquire about the method of making this brown sugar, but the Nanjun merchants kept it secret. Even if Mai Hui asked someone to come forward and bribe him with tens of thousands of dollars, they kept this secret strictly.

Seeing that there were very few caramel buyers in the stores he controlled, Mai Hui lost his patience. He decided to teach these reckless Nanjun merchants a lesson. Together with Shi, he asked the merchants to report the brown sugar store.

Xianyang has a large population and a large number of cases. In order to facilitate management, the Xianyang Order set up a prison officer in Zhangtai, Beigong and Nanshi respectively, with several officials under his command, who were responsible for hearing trivial cases.

Although Nanshi Prison Officer Sima Xin has always been cautious and refused to accept bribes directly, he was a flexible person and often opened the door for nobles such as Mai. Everyone under his command received honey, sugar, and rice as gifts.

So when Mai Hui thought about it, he found loopholes in the rental shop and asked a doctor to testify that eating brown sugar was harmful to the body. Even if he couldn't put the Nanjun businessman in jail, he could at least stop doing business!

If you can't get it, then destroy it! Mai plans to drive competitors out of Nanshi and ruin brown sugar's reputation, maintaining his own monopoly.

"Let the other generation know who has the final say in the honey business!"

Sima Xin was straightforward. The trial of this case will begin today. Mai Hui also has an official position. Although he is just a casual errand, due to his status, it is difficult to appear in court. Those Nanjun merchants can be dealt with by his subordinates in the city.

However, the lawsuit that I thought was a sure win ended in a disastrous defeat for my side!

Just when Mai Hui was about to eat, the servant reported with a sad face: "Master, I don't know what's wrong with Sima Xin. He usually sees us smiling and kindly, but today he had a straight face and refused the benefit secretly offered to him. He also talked about the way of being an official and the strictness of laws and regulations in public, and then personally urged the order historian to list the evidence and refute the testimony one by one."

"In the end, the merchant from Nan County was acquitted and could continue to sell sugar in Nan City. However, the more than ten merchants who reported and testified were all found guilty of false accusations and were instead sentenced to prison!"

After hearing what the servant said, Mai Hui's eyes widened. The other party was unscathed, but his entire army was wiped out? How is this going!

He was so angry that he slapped the case and cursed: "What do you mean, Sima Xin? Are you bullying me, Zuo Shuzhang, who only has a title passed down from his father's ancestors and does not have any real power?"

Mai Hui was furious and immediately got up and planned to go find his in-laws, the Shi family. Although the two families did not have high-ranking officials, they had a lot of connections. With ruthlessness and operation, it was not impossible for Sima Xin to lose his official position.

But just when the Mai family and the Shi family planned to make things worse, they were stopped by an uninvited guest...

When the visitor told them in a reserved tone who was behind those Nanjun merchants selling brown sugar, Mai Hui and his in-law Shi couldn't help but take a breath!

"I failed to collect honey, but I stung a hornet's nest!"

…

The three-day feast to celebrate the founding of the empire has not yet ended. Everywhere in Xianyang City is still immersed in the banquet. The small courtyard where Hei Fu lives is also drinking and drinking. This is a banquet specially held by Hei Fu to honor his cousin Yan. Shocked.

Yan's face flushed, and he toasted to Hei Fu: "Although I was taken away by the government and my shop was closed down, I am not worried at all, because I know that Zuo Shuchang will definitely be able to keep me!"

Hei Fu smiled and did not answer, saying that his brother did not need to be polite, but he turned around and gave Ba Zhong a toast:

"The Art of War says that if you know yourself and your enemy, you will be victorious in any battle. Thanks to Brother Ba's news, otherwise I wouldn't have known that those merchants were backed by the Mai family and the Shi family, so this matter wouldn't have been resolved so quickly."

Ba Zhong was polite, but felt very regretful.

He originally thought that this was an opportunity for Heifu to owe him a favor, so he proposed to him: "Mai and Shi ignore the national law and disrupt the market. It is really hateful. But as a king, it is not convenient for me to intervene in this matter. Xianyang is not Nanjun either. Zhonglang Hu Ling is here for the first time and is not familiar with many places. Why not let me handle this matter on your behalf, and I will be able to clear Yan's name."

However, Heifu declined his kindness and wrote a letter casually, asking his subordinate Dong Yi to deliver it to Nanshi Prison Officer Sima Xin on his behalf. The matter was resolved in this way, resolved...

"I'm not the only one who wants to show favor to Hei Fu."

Ba Zhong was helpless. After all, Hei Fu was now a close minister of the emperor and had a bright future. Who wouldn't want to please him?

It's a pity that Heifu would rather ask Dong Yi and Sima Xin for help than owe Qia Zhong a favor.

Heifu had his own calculations in his mind: "The Yidao Rebellion three years ago was a public matter, but today, it is a private matter. I am now the Emperor Lang Wei. I stand tall, but it is easy to fall miserably. Although Qin Shihuang favored Widow Ba Qing, but when I interact with these rich people, I must also pay attention to my distance..."

Personal relationships are possible, but when it comes to interests, you have to be cautious.

Besides, why kill a chicken with a bull's knife when something can be done with just one letter?

Yan was so drunk that he soon became drunk. Heifu asked the servants to take him to the guest room to settle down. Only he and Ba Zhong were left at the table, chatting wordlessly.

Just when Ba Zhong was hesitating whether to express the proposal in his heart, Sang Mu came to report with a letter of greeting, saying that there were three people visiting from outside.

"Three people?"

Heifu thought they were Dong Yi, Sima Xin, and Li Liang, but when he looked at the greeting card, he discovered that the names of Mai Hui, Shi Gong, and an inconspicuous "Shirenyan" were written on it.

"OK."

He smiled and said: "These two finally found out who is the person behind Yan."

Sang Mu said that the three people spoke humbly and brought gifts, probably coming to admit their mistakes and confess their sins.

Although it is better to dissolve enemies than to make enemies, Heifu is no longer a pawn at the mercy of others. He has reached this point with his solid military exploits. As the emperor's lieutenant, he is also Li Si's secretly supported party member, and even manages the army. Nei Shiteng, who lives in Xianyang and Guanzhong, is his old boss.

He doesn't care about the two Zuo Shuchang and the fifth doctor who have no real power!

So he didn't plan to reconcile with the two families just like that, so he said: "Just say I'm drunk and can't see guests!"

Ba Zhong glanced at the third name on the greeting card, and his expression changed slightly. Out of the kindness of his friends, he dissuaded Heifu and said: "Zhonglang Huling, the Mai family and the Shi family are not insignificant, but the third name outside is It’s hard not to give him face!”

"Oh?" Heifu then re-examined the invitation, and the third person claimed to be "Yan from the city."

"Who is this?"

"Shirenyan is his humble name."

Bazhong smiled and said: "His full name is Wushi Yan, and he is the younger brother of Wushi Luo!"

"Wu Shiluo!?"

What a famous person! Heifu laughed dumbly and thought to himself: "What happened today? The son of the mine boss is still at the table, but here comes the brother of the livestock boss!"