At the beginning, I became a county magistrate with greed of 500 million. The empress asked me to be

After Xia Yun entered the lobby of the palace and sat down, Wang Dechang immediately ordered his servants to pour tea for Xia Yun.

"Sir Xia, this is the latest roasted black tea from Mount Wuyi this year. It was originally intended to be sent to the palace, but Your Majesty has given it to me. How does it taste?"

As soon as Wang Dechang opened his mouth, he talked about the two cups of tea on the table, and there was a sense of satisfaction in his words.

Obviously, not everyone is qualified to be rewarded with black tea by the emperor himself.

"Well, this tea is good. The old master is so lucky."

Xia Yun took a sip of the black tea and nodded immediately.

In fact, he knew nothing about black tea or green tea. When he was in Zhejiang, he rarely drank tea.

He spoke at this time only to please Wang Dechang. He wanted to see what tricks this old guy would play next.

"Master Xia is a first-rank minister at a young age, and he has even assumed the position of Governor of Zhejiang and Southern Zhili, a position that has never existed in the Liang Dynasty. Master Xia is truly blessed."

Wang Dechang chuckled when he was praised, and also complimented Xia Yun in his words.

"I wonder why the old master invited me here today?"

At this time, Xia Yun no longer hesitated and immediately asked Wang Dechang why he invited him to the palace.

"Why are you so anxious, Master Xia?"

Upon hearing this, Wang Dechang immediately waved his hand, signaling Xia Yun to stay calm.

Then he clapped again.

When the applause spread throughout the hall, five or six maids, carrying five or six trays, walked out of the side hall and quickly came to Xia Yun.

"What does this mean, old master?"

Xia Yun looked at the trays in the maids' hands and had already guessed Wang Dechang's intention in her heart, but she still asked even though she knew the answer.

"Haha, Lord Xia has just arrived in Ningdu, and probably hasn't had time to buy a mansion yet. These things are just a small token of my appreciation. Lord Xia, please accept them."

As Wang Dechang spoke, the maids quickly lifted the red cloth covering the tray, revealing the items on the tray.

When Xia Yun took a look, he saw that the items on the trays were all golden bars!

"Master Xia, I wonder if you are satisfied with this little gift from me?"

Wang Dechang smiled.

"I'm afraid this move by the old master is inappropriate."

Xia Yun raised his eyebrows. The gold bars in front of him at this moment were worth at least 70,000 or 80,000 taels of silver.

This is no small sum of money!

"Haha, Lord Xia, don't worry. The gold we are protecting comes from a legitimate source and is definitely not the result of embezzlement."

Wang Dechang's laughter became louder and louder. He saw the greed in Xia Yun's eyes.

In his opinion, as long as Xia Yun accepted the gold, all problems would no longer be a problem.

However, he did not expect that although Xia Yun was greedy, he was not a person without bottom line.

"As the saying goes, one should not receive gifts without merit. I wonder why the old Grand Master suddenly gave me so much gold?"

Xia Yun smiled and waved his hand. He did not choose to accept all the gold in front of him. Instead, he went straight to the point and asked the other party's purpose.

"I heard that Lord Xia wanted to collect a batch of disaster relief grain from the wealthy merchants in Ningdu City. These things can be regarded as the disaster relief silver that I hand over."

Wang Dechang, who was used to big scenes, did not feel any dissatisfaction with Xia Yun's hesitation.

"It is a blessing for the court and the people of Nanzhili that the old Grand Tutor has such a heart!"

Although Xia Yun knew that the old fox in front of him was playing tricks, he still maintained his patience and flattered him on the surface.

"Haha, Master Xia, you are too kind. But if Master Xia really wants to find a way out for the people of Nanzhili, I have something to say. Master Xia might as well listen to it."

Wang Dechang laughed.

"It's okay for you to speak frankly, old master."

Xia Yun nodded. It was obvious that this old fox was finally going to reveal his true purpose.

"I heard that Lord Xia wants to implement the policy of equalizing the land tax in Nanzhili. Is this true?"

Wang Dechang continued to speak, with a gleam of brilliance in his eyes, and at the same time, his eyes met Xia Yun's.

"Yes, I do intend to implement the land-based tax system in Nanzhili. This will reduce the pressure on the people to survive and also enrich the treasury of Nanzhili."

Since the other party asked the question, Xia Yun naturally admitted what the other party said immediately.

Hearing this, a look of regret suddenly appeared on Wang Dechang's face.

"Forgive me for being blunt, Lord Xia, but the policy of equalizing the land tax may be implemented in Zhejiang, but this is Southern Zhili, where the people are not well-informed. If it is implemented rashly, it will inevitably bring unimaginable disastrous consequences to the entire Southern Zhili."

Wang Dechang finally stated his purpose.

At this moment, Xia Yun's heart suddenly became clear.

As expected, the old guy's purpose was to stop him from implementing the policy of equalizing the land tax in the territory of Southern Zhili.

In order to achieve this goal, the old guy also gave him gold worth 70,000 to 80,000 silver taels, which was really painstaking.

If it were an ordinary official, it would probably be difficult for him to stick to his original intention when faced with such a huge amount of real money.

However, what Wang Dechang did not expect was that Xia Yun was not an ordinary official!

You want to bribe him with just 70,000 or 80,000 taels of silver?

What a dream!

At present, Xia Yun has as much as eight or nine million taels of silver stored in Hangzhou city alone!

If it was just for 70,000 or 80,000 taels of silver, why would he come to Nanzhili?

"The old Grand Tutor has been retired for many years. I wonder why he suddenly intervened in the policy issues in Nanzhili today?"

Xia Yun did not respond to Wang Dechang directly, but asked indirectly from another angle.

"Oh? Lord Xia Yun, are you asking me to meddle in your business?"

Wang Dechang's expression finally changed, and a hint of dissatisfaction gradually emerged in his look.

"Old Master, you are overthinking, but I am really curious. You are already in your eighties, why do you want to get involved in this mess?"

As Xia Yun spoke, he no longer flattered Wang Dechang as before, and his attitude gradually became sharper.

"Master Xia, I am from Nanzhili. This is my hometown. Master Xia wants to implement new policies here. How can I just ignore it?"

Wang Dechang's expression became increasingly dissatisfied. He had gradually realized that Xia Yun was not as easy to control as he had imagined.

"Old Grand Tutor, I am here on the orders of His Majesty to relieve the famine in Nanzhili. As long as the famine is not resolved, I will be restless."

"Speaking of which, Xia has a plan that would not implement the land tax distribution in Nanzhili, and would also save the millions of ordinary people in Nanzhili."

Suddenly, Xia Yun changed the subject, as if he had thought of some great idea.

Wang Dechang, who was already quite dissatisfied, thought that Xia Yun had changed his mind after hearing this, and immediately became interested.

"Master Xia, why don't you tell us about it?"

Wang Dechang urged.

"It's very simple."

Xia Yun's mouth corner immediately curved up.