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

"Take another inventory of the county's treasury."

Master Guo breathed a sigh of relief, glad that Lord Jiang finally understood.

There is no need to get into trouble for the sake of tax money.

After a while, Master Guo brought out the account book and counted everything.

"Lord Jiang, the county government's treasury now has more than 130 taels of silver, as well as grain and cloth, which is enough to make up the 1 million taels of tax required by His Majesty. I wonder if you should pay 100,000 taels first, as I wish, or pay the full 1 million taels as Your Majesty wishes."

"Well... I won't pay a penny."

Jiang Zuo's thoughts remain unchanged.

"What? You absolutely can't do that!" Master Guo's face turned pale and he was scared to death.

Lord Jiang, if you want to die, please don't drag us down with you!

"Lord Jiang, the emperor's order cannot be disobeyed. Don't you understand the lesson of Zhang Zhi's previous experience?"

It was thought that Zhang Zhi's death would shock the Jiangzuo people, but unexpectedly the latter remained stubborn and guarded money like his life.

Which common people in the Great Yan Kingdom don’t know the methods of the current empress?

Isn’t Jiang Zuo afraid of death?

of course not.

"Lord Jiang, do you have a better idea?" Master Guo asked curiously.

"Yes." Jiang Zuo said calmly.

"what is that?"

"run."

Thirty-six strategies are the best.

Get away!

"Ah?" Master Guo was stunned on the spot.

"Count the silver and sell everything that can be sold in the treasury. Let's hold the auction tomorrow afternoon." Jiang Zuo ordered.

Since the emperor's order is difficult to disobey, can't I just run away?

He originally wanted to earn three million taels before running away, but now Jiang Zuo only has ten days left.

During these ten days, while the Thousand Cavalry Division has not arrived yet, I will quickly head south to the State of Chen, become a landlord and a rich man, and live the rest of my life in comfort.

"What do you mean, Master? Do you want to run away with me?" Jiang Zuo asked.

It would be impossible for Jiang Zuo to run away with more than one million taels of silver alone.

Moreover, when His Majesty blames us, everyone will be held responsible. If Jiang Zuo runs away, no one in the county government will survive.

But Master Guo has a family to support him, and he can’t just run away like Jiang Zuo did.

"Sir, my humble servant..." Master Guo looked embarrassed.

"Okay, okay, don't worry. When we arrive in Nanchen, I will definitely properly settle your family. You have followed me for so many years, don't you know what kind of person I am? Let's get ready now." Jiang Zuo said.

Master Guo was conflicted, but he also felt that what Jiang Zuo said made sense.

Over the years, Jiangzuo has been very generous to its subordinates, and the salaries of people in the government are much higher than those in other prefectures and counties.

"But sir, if we really want to escape and still hold the auction, will the news leak out?" Master Guo was worried.

Jiang Zuo was not worried: "Don't worry, the empress is not in Anding County, she won't know what we do, let's go quickly."

"Yes." Master Guo turned and left.

After being alone and quiet, Jiang Zuo suddenly felt a headache.

"This bitch, the empress, is so cruel. She asked for one million taels right away. She's even crueler than me. She deserves to be single for the rest of her life for being so cruel and ruthless. Hehe, you want to force me to pay? No way. If I can't beat you, can't I just run away..."

……

"Ah sneeze!"

Chen Qingyun was walking on the street of Anding County when he suddenly felt his nose itchy and sneezed several times.

Qiuyue beside him hurriedly stepped forward to put clothes on the empress and said, "Your Majesty...Miss, why don't we go back to the inn to rest first and don't catch a cold."

"It's okay." Chen Qingyun put on his clothes and looked around.

She deliberately arranged for the guards around her to stay away today, and only walked on the street with Qiuyue to carefully inspect the current stable situation.

On the first day she entered the city, she was attracted by the scene before her, and what she saw today surprised her even more.

Although the capital city is also prosperous, its commercial street scenes are far inferior to those in Anding County.

There are tall buildings and shops on both sides of the street.

Rice shop, noodle shop, wine shop, silk and satin spinning shop, antique shop, chess and card room...

All kinds of novelties.

The faces of the passers-by were all beaming with joy, as if they were living a contented and happy life.

Chen Qingyun had to admit that the county magistrate of Jiangzuo had indeed governed Anding County in an orderly manner.

After walking for half an hour, Chen Qingyun couldn't find any ragged beggars.

Is it possible that there are really no poor people in Anding County?

Arriving at a small teahouse, Chen Qingyun and Qiuyue sat down.

"My two guests, please take a seat. What would you like to drink?"

A waiter in his fifties or sixties came forward and greeted him.

"The best tea." Chen Qingyun said.

"Okay."

The waiter responded and left.

After a while, the good tea was served.

The waiter carefully washed the teacups with hot water, then gently shook the teapot and poured tea for the two of them.

"Would you two like to eat something?"

The waiter greeted us with a smile.

Chen Qingyun shook his head, "No need to eat."

Then she looked around and couldn't help asking, "Hey, buddy, let me ask you something."

The waiter just turned his head and looked back and asked, "Sir, is there anything else I can do for you?"

Chen Qingyun lowered his voice and asked, "Can you answer me seriously, who exactly is your county magistrate?"

"Miss, why are you asking this..." The waiter scratched his head and immediately understood: "Oh, I understand. You must be here to do business with the county magistrate. I understand. Don't worry. I guarantee with my head that the county magistrate is absolutely trustworthy."

"I just want to know how he treats the people on a daily basis." Chen Qingyun said.

The waiter said, "Miss, you can see that the people in Anding County eat well and dress well, so you know that the county magistrate has treated us badly on weekdays. At least in my eyes, Lord Jiang is a good county magistrate who loves his people like his own children!"

The waiter looks so charming and expressive that it's hard not to be convincing.

Is it really that good?

Chen Qingyun expressed doubt.

At least her meeting with Jiang Zuo yesterday did not leave her with a very good impression.

And those clothes... they're all indecent stuff.

Can you say you love the people like your own children if you live a life of extravagance and make money blatantly on a daily basis?

After hearing what the waiter said, Chen Qingyun felt even more conflicted.

Should you keep it for your own use or eradicate it as soon as possible?

She had no answer in her mind.

"You want to ask about the county magistrate. Are you two here to do business?" asked the waiter.

Chen Qingyun nodded slightly: "Yes."

"Then rest assured, our county chief is very honest. Everyone in the neighborhood knows him and his character. He will definitely not do anything to take the money and run away."

The waiter patted his chest and assured.

As for whether Jiang Zuo would run away or not, Chen Qingyun was not worried.

Even if he runs to the ends of the earth, the empress has the ability to find him.

"I have one more question."

Chen Qingyun suddenly remembered something.

"Sir, please feel free to ask me anything. I will tell you everything I know."

"Are there no poor people in your Anding County? I have been walking on the street for so long, but I haven't seen a single beggar." Chen Qingyun asked.

"No matter how poor a person is, he can find a job to make a living in Anding County... Oh, sorry, I'll have to go and do my work first." After saying this, the waiter left.

Chen Qingyun fell into deep thought.

Really?