I embezzled 100,000 taels at the beginning, and the empress begged me to be more greedy

Jiang Zuo was not surprised by Liu Sheng's arrival.

He didn't even bother to go out to greet them, but just sat quietly in the chair and enjoyed the good tea.

You know, when Jiang Zuo first entered the city, the Jiangnan Liu family kept making small moves to drive up prices.

Jiang Zuo will not give him a good look.

"Ma Fusi, you go and get busy first." Jiang Zuo said.

"Yes, sir." Ma Hengwei turned and left.

After a few anxious footsteps, Liu Sheng walked into the inner hall gently, knelt down and said, "I am Liu Sheng, and I greet the Chief Governor Jiang."

"What brings you here, Boss Liu?"

Jiang Zuo looked pleased.

Liu Sheng did not hide anything and said directly: "I have a favor to ask of you."

"Just say what you want to say." Jiang Zuo closed his eyes.

Liu Sheng walked forward, took something out of his arms and placed it directly in front of Jiang Zuo.

Upon closer inspection, it turned out to be a stack of silver bills. After a rough calculation, he found that he had 100,000 taels of silver.

It seems that Liu Sheng is going to make a big move and try to buy over Jiangzuo.

Jiang Zuo naturally would not accept these bribes. Although he loved money, he earned it in a proper way.

He felt that the money squeezed from ordinary people was dirty.

"Boss Liu, what do you mean by this? Are you trying to bribe me?" Jiang Zuo asked.

"Master Jiang, you have misunderstood. This is my donation to the disaster victims. I am kind-hearted and cannot bear to see the people of Yecheng suffering so much, so I ask you to make sure to deliver this money to the disaster victims."

Liu Sheng had a peaceful smile on his face. If you didn't know him well, you would really think he was a wealthy man who was kind and generous.

But Jiang Zuo understood one thing: if someone shows you kindness for no reason, he is either a traitor or a thief.

How could this unscrupulous businessman who hoarded supplies and made money from the people's hard-earned money suddenly say he would donate money?

"Then I, on behalf of the disaster victims, would like to thank Boss Liu for his great kindness. Master Guo, please keep the accounts."

Since it is for the disaster victims, Jiang Zuo doesn't care.

At this time, Master Guo came to Liu Sheng with a contract and said, "Boss Liu, this is the donation agreement. Please read it and sign your name here."

Liu Sheng could not help but frown and said, "I do not seek fame or fortune, so I do not need to leave a name behind."

"No, Boss Liu, this must be signed, otherwise we can't accept the money."

Master Guo explained.

A trace of ugliness flashed across Liu Sheng's face. He hesitated for a moment before picking up the pen and signing his name.

How could Jiang Zuo, such a cautious person, give himself up to criticism?

If Liu Sheng later took the opportunity to use these tens of thousands of taels to falsely accuse Jiang Zuo of corruption, Jiang Zuo could use this agreement to refute it.

"Boss Liu, why are you so polite? Just tell me what you want, and I'll do my best to satisfy you."

Jiang Zuo laughed.

Liu Sheng put on a harmless smile and said, "I do have a favor to ask, sir. As you know, recently someone in the city spread rumors that the food in the market is poisonous, causing the people to panic and not even dare to eat. How can this be allowed? I hope you can come forward and explain. After all, rumors stop at the wise..."

"As for this matter, I have already ordered people to do it, but the results are minimal."

Jiang Zuo said perfunctorily.

He did order people to do it, but instead of refuting the rumors, he continued to spread them.

"Thank you, sir."

Liu Sheng said this, but he was quite unhappy in his heart.

"I guess Boss Liu has stored a lot of food in his warehouse."

Jiang Zuo brought it up deliberately.

Liu Sheng suppressed his anger and said calmly, "Yes, sir. In order to ensure that the people of Jizhou have food to eat, our Liu family has gone to great lengths to collect food from all over the place, but now we are unable to sell it."

Jiang Zuo turned around and asked, "Master, how much is a stone of rice outside now?"

Master Guo replied, "My Lord, it has dropped to one or two or three hundred coins."

When Liu Sheng heard the price, his heart bleed.

"How about this? The government is in urgent need of food for disaster relief, so we can take a small loss and buy some food from you at 1 tael 400 coins per stone. How about that? Mr. Liu has done a good deed, and I will report this to the emperor and reward him."

"Thank you, sir. I will go and prepare it."

Liu Sheng suffered a loss and had to thank Jiang Zuo.

How could he not be angry at this moment.

Unless all the grain is really thrown away and stored in the rotten warehouse, the best option now is to transfer the stockpiled grain to the government.

What Liu Sheng is thinking now is to return all the inferior grain in the warehouse to the government. As for the high-quality grain that the Liu family has been hoarding, how could he sell it at a low price.

If we continue to hoard food, food prices will always rise.

After all, this was not the only flood in Jizhou.

After Jiang Zuo leaves, the next flood will be the time for the Liu family to make a fortune.

"Master, please see the guest off." Jiang Zuo said, "I will go to my room and take a nap while I discuss the purchase of grain with Boss Liu."

Looking at Jiang Zuo's back, Liu Sheng sneered inwardly, with cunning and cruelty flashing in his eyes.

……

An hour later.

"My Lord, are you awake?"

Outside the room, Master Guo's shouts were heard.

Jiang Zuo was half asleep and half awake. He tossed and turned for a while, but was disturbed by Master Guo's voice and could no longer fall asleep. He shouted loudly, "What's the matter?"

Master Guo said, "Sir, there is a letter for you."

"Who sent it?"

"I heard it was Chen from Guanzhong..."

Before the lawyer could finish his words, Jiang Zuo rushed forward, suddenly opened the door, and snatched the letter from Lawyer Guo's hand.

After opening it, I found that it was indeed a handwritten letter from Miss "Chen Siyue".

"To Jiang Zuo: I heard that you were assigned to Jizhou Prefecture to provide disaster relief. I wonder if you are used to it, if you encounter any difficulties, and when you can return to Anding County. Siyue is planning to visit Anding again in November. I wonder if you will be there, Jiang Zuo. Please reply..."

"She really started calling me Jiang Zuo?"

Jiang Zuo was delighted.

The distance between him and Chen Siyue seemed to be getting closer and closer. They had been corresponding for some time, and from the initial politeness and unfamiliarity, now there was a sense of relaxation between friends.

Jiang Zuo was exhausted from today's busy official duties. But after reading Miss Chen Siyue's letter carefully, he felt relaxed and happy.

"Sir, is this Miss Chen the cloth merchant from Guanzhong who came to Anding County to do business last time?" Master Guo did not leave, but asked from the side.

Jiang Zuo suddenly raised his head and said, "Yes."

"Your Excellency has a good eye. This woman is indeed stunningly beautiful. She is a perfect match for you, Master."

"Oh?"

Jiang Zuo was fascinated by what he saw.

"My Lord, you seem to be in a state of amorous feelings."

Master Guo joked on the side.

"is it?"

Jiang Zuo didn't think so.

Master Guo added: "It's no wonder. My Lord, you have already reached the age of marriage, but you haven't married yet. You really need to consider it as soon as possible..."

After hearing what his master said, Jiang Zuo fell into deep thought.

I have been busy with government affairs and making money for many years and have no time to talk about love.

After sending the lawyer away, Jiang Zuo picked up the pen.

"To Miss Chen Siyue: Jiang Zuo is currently in Yecheng, Jizhou Prefecture. He has been busy with government affairs recently and has been unable to communicate with you. I believe that I will be able to handle it after this month... There is one more thing I want to ask, I hope the lady doesn't mind, I wonder if Miss Siyue is married, and if there is someone she loves..."