The Nameless of the Common Clans

"Uncle Wang, Uncle Zheng, please don't leave today. Please stay and help me maintain the necessary needs in the mansion. There happens to be a banquet to be held today. If necessary, we need some deterrence." Early the next morning, the banquet in the mansion had already begun to be arranged. , Dian Wei ran to Linfen to deliver a message and had not returned yet. There were not enough guards around Chen Mo. Wang Biao and Zheng Tu happened to be there, so Chen Mo left them behind.

Nothing will necessarily happen, but after all, he is the governor of a county, so he can't be too poor in appearance.

"The last general takes orders!" Chen Mo called him uncle politely, but Wang Biao and Zheng Tu couldn't go overboard because of this. Both of them were traveling people and knew the rules. When Chen Mo called him so close, they couldn't respond in a close manner.

Chen Mo smiled and motioned for the two of them to familiarize themselves with the banquet process. Chen Mo came to see Yun Si. Yun Si and Juan'er were now in charge of the servants and maids in the mansion. Yun Si naturally had rich experience in how to organize a banquet.

Chen Mo invited him to a banquet. No matter what his attitude was, everything he said must not be in Chen Mo's honor. Chen Mo was not a puppet governor. Now the military and political power in the Hedong area was in Chen Mo's hands. To put it bluntly, if If Chen Mo acted recklessly, the Wei family would be able to deal with it, let alone a small family like them.

Before noon, there was already a lot of traffic outside the Chen Mansion. A wealthy gentleman named Anyi met and exchanged greetings with each other from time to time. Cai Yong was also invited, but he did not go out with these people, but discussed with Chen Mo in the backyard. Some knowledge.

"Brother Tian, ​​you said that this time the envoy invited us here just to celebrate, right?" There were already many people sitting at the banquet, and the maid of the mansion brought some pastries, wine and fruits for the guests to enjoy.

"Probably not." Mr. Tian picked up a rose peach and said, "It is said that this envoy was poor since he was a child. When he was in Luoyang, he often participated in banquets, but rarely took the initiative to be a host. Speaking of which, it is also a blessing for us. , Even the young masters of the Yuan family have never eaten at the envoy's banquet, but now they are eaten by us. If you say it is just to celebrate your achievements, I don't believe it. "

"I heard the envoy talking about business affairs the day before yesterday. Is this related to this?"

"Maybe." Mr. Tian nodded, and he could probably guess some of Chen Mo's thoughts. Although Hedong is temporarily safe, Chen Mo used various methods to swallow up a lot of the land of the Hedong squire in order to resettle the refugees who migrated from Luoyang. Although it is reasonable and well-founded, if corresponding compensation cannot be provided, civil strife in Hedong may continue in the future. But how to compensate? It's nothing more than fame and fortune. If Chen Mo gives out officials and titles to compensate, everyone will be willing to do so. However, Chen Mo's new order has just begun, and there are regulations for selecting officials in Hedong. At this time, he suddenly gives out a large number of officials and titles to compensate. Wouldn't it be a slap in the face? ? Therefore, Mr. Tian also feels that business is more possible.

"Although this business is humble, it is not as simple as officialdom. This young envoy doesn't know the pros and cons. Do you really think you can understand all the secrets after reading a book for a few days?"

"Be careful!" Mr. Tian's expression changed. He looked around and saw that no one of the servants was paying attention. He sighed and said, "No matter what, it won't do any harm to us. We just have to see what he does. "

Although this business is low-level, there are many ways to do it. Not to mention laymen, even many people who have been doing business for many years cannot guarantee that they will make a profit without losing money. If Chen Mo really wants to intervene, there are many ways to make him vomit blood, but You can't say this.

Near noon, Wei Jian also came with a few servants, and everyone quickly stood up to greet him. No matter how powerful Chen Mo is now, the status of the Wei family in everyone's hearts is higher than that of Chen Mo. After all, it is a century-old family, regardless of its foundation or family status. This is not comparable to the parachute governor like Chen Mo.

"Mr. Wei, please come this way!" The steward personally led Wei Jian to the second seat.

"Asshole, how can someone like Mr. Wei take second place?" Several wealthy gentry stood up with some dissatisfaction, as if they would sit in rows according to their status when they sit down in Luoyang, no matter whether it is a formal banquet or a small banquet, this time too A kind of etiquette that is not arranged well will not only be laughed at, but also offend others.

"Everyone, please don't mess around. In front of Mr. Cai, this person dare not sit down on the throne." Wei Wei sat down generously and smiled at everyone. Even if Chen Mo wanted to humiliate him, he would not be able to humiliate him in this matter. That is not an insult to Wei Jian, but an insult to Chen Mo himself. With Chen Mo's intelligence and mind, it is impossible for him to do such childish things. As for the land east of the river, who is qualified to sit at the top of his Wei Jian? It is Cai Mo. Yong and Zang Hong, one is a great scholar in the world, and the other is Chen Mo's mentor, but now Zang Hong is still in charge of civil affairs in Linfen, so the person attending the banquet today is naturally Cai Yong.

"It turns out it's Mr. Cai..." Several wealthy gentry who stood up and scolded sat down. Cai Yong was not from Hedong, but with Cai Yong's reputation, it would be a problem if he was not the chief guest at such a banquet. In fact, these People may not know it, they just want to show their kindness to Wei Jian.

Everyone had arrived, and soon, Chen Mo helped Cai Yong out, and first personally sent Cai Yong to the top position. Then he cupped his hands with Wei Jian and said, "Mr. Boru, I haven't seen him for a long time. He is getting stronger and stronger."

"Your grace is still the same. It's a great honor for me to see Duke Bojie today. There was a slight misunderstanding before. I once again apologize to Duke Bojie on behalf of the Wei family and hope that Duke Bojie will forgive me." Wei Ji returned the favor with a smile, and then said to him again. Cai Yong solemnly said with a salute.

"Let's not talk about the past." Cai Yong nodded and returned the gift. He was still a little confused. His daughter ran to the Wei family and became a widow without doing anything. After that, the Wei family Cai Yong's nagging attitude really made Cai Yong angry at the time, but now Cai Yan is about to get married to Chen Mo, and the wedding date has been set for next month. Firstly, the Wei family has apologized, and secondly, after all, they are a wealthy family in Hedong, and Chen Mo will develop in the future. It's not good to have too much of a quarrel with the Wei family. Although Chen Mo's banquet was not entirely for this matter, inviting himself here probably meant to resolve it.

Chen Mo came to the main seat, held up the wine glass with a smile and said: "Today's banquet for the Anyi gentry is to celebrate this victory over the thieves. Secondly, since Mo became the governor of Hedong, he has not yet officially communicated with the Hedong gentry. Gathering of virtuous people, I have long heard that there are outstanding people and places in Hedong. It is an honor for Mo Mo to take up the post here. I am young and I ask for your forgiveness if I am reckless in the future. The three of us will discuss the future of Hedong with you. Drink this cup to the full.”

After saying that, he drank the wine in one gulp.

Everyone was polite and drank the wine in one gulp. Although the first two sentences were mostly polite, Chen Mo still gave people a good feeling. He was gentle and courteous yet generous, at least he would not be too annoying.

The atmosphere of the banquet suddenly became much more lively. Chen Mo raised his hand slightly and said: "Have fun, let's start the banquet!"

The musicians began to play music, and two rows of maids came forward with delicacies and delicacies, replacing the pastries and fruits on the table for everyone. After all, Chen Mo had participated in various banquets in Luoyang. Although most of them went to eat, but He also has some experience in how to stir up the atmosphere at this banquet. He chats with everyone here from time to time. He has done some understanding before. If he doesn’t know anyone here, he already knows their names and general family backgrounds. Speaking of which, The words always make the other party feel that they are valued. Even people like Cai Yong and Wei Qian who are used to seeing the world can't find fault with Chen Mo's response.

"Master Bozhe, I would like to pay you one more compliment. It's really enviable for others to have such a good son-in-law as you." Wei looked at Chen Mo and said to Cai Yong with a smile.

Cai Yong nodded, raised his glass to drink with Wei Jian, and sighed: "Back when I and Zhong Qing were friends at the end of their lives, our families were considered family friends, and it was just a matter of Yan'er..."

"Don't worry, Mr. Bozhe. This matter is the fault of the Wei family. The reason why Mr. Bozhe is willing to sit at the table with Ji Ji is because he is generous. He was not the head of the Wei family at that time and could not decide what happened in the past." Wei Jian bowed and smiled.

Cai Yong nodded, stopped mentioning this matter, and turned to talk about past events.

After three rounds of wine and five dishes, Chen Mo put down his wine glass and began to discuss business matters with everyone with a smile. Although everyone had made many guesses before, when they saw Chen Mo coming up with all the details about business affairs, everyone also tried to say a few words to hide it. The sharp words were resolved by Chen Mo easily. He immediately accepted Chen Mo's contempt for business affairs and was quite moved by the concept proposed by Chen Mo.

Salt transportation is open to the wealthy gentry in Hedong. The government is not responsible for the operation, but in addition to the money to buy salt, taxes are required. It sounds like it is deducting money everywhere, but in fact it is only opening up part of the salt transportation trade, which is a good thing for the wealthy gentry. , and Chen Mo collected taxes based on the money they paid to buy the salt instead of the selling price. The gap was huge, and it was not that Chen Mo didn't understand it, but he deliberately made it easier for them.

As for the need to sell at a fair price under Chen Mo's rule, no one cared. The real profits from the sale of salt were outside. Chen Mo wanted to keep the local salt trade in Hedong in his hands to prevent anyone from raising the price of salt.

Wei Jian also became interested in this matter. He looked at Chen Mo and said, "Your Majesty, are you saying that you won't interfere in this business?"

"Yes." Chen Mo nodded and said: "The government office is only responsible for supervising and maintaining commercial affairs, but will not get involved. Of course, if there are casualties, some more will be needed. This part will all be used to care for the casualties. In addition, there may be transactions with princes, which is not included in business.”

Opening up the salt trade and lowering commercial taxes, Wei Qi thought about it silently in his mind, smiled and clasped his fists at Chen Mo, "I'll make you wise!"

It can not only calm the anger of these gentry for losing their land, but also increase the revenue of the government office. Of course, this is because of the existence of the Salt Supervisor, which is only applicable to Hedong. The benefits of salt are enough to offset everyone's losses, but if Chen Mo will do so in the future, This method will not work well when expanding to other places. Unless he can dominate the world and liberalize the world's salt and iron trade, Chen Mo's current governance method can only be applied to one state at most.

Chen Mo nodded and smiled, and the banquet continued, but the atmosphere was much more lively than before...