Behind "officials" there must be "businessmen", some are their family's property, and some are people who accept the exchange of power and money. I use my power to help you establish relationships or keep you safe, and you give me money.

Today's dignitaries and officials in the Tang Dynasty are mostly in these two states. There are not all honest officials, but they are very few. There are also clear figures in the court, but the clear figures are directed at others. Many of the clear figures who are righteous and awe-inspiring in the court should be punished when they return home.

There is no shortage of bribes.

The Zhang family is one of those who have a family business.

Zhang Jiuling's three brothers are all prominent high-ranking officials in the court, and the least popular third brother, Zhang Jiugao, is also the governor of Guangzhou. The Zhang family's family business has existed for many years. After Zhang Jiuling's death, the only son Zhang Zheng inherited and managed the Dafang's business.

Zhang Zheng is obviously not a businessman. Officials cannot directly participate in business. If he speaks out, he will not only be impeached by the imperial censor, but his reputation will also be ruined in the officialdom, making it difficult to get promoted in the future.

So Zhang Zheng, like most officials doing business, entrusted his property to his distant relatives.

Judging from the facts that Hao Donglai learned, it seems that this distant relative of the Zhang family did not live up to his expectations. He ruined the Zhang family's business.

This matter originally had nothing to do with Gu Qing, but Zhang Huaiyu was Zhang Zheng's daughter after all. Gu Qing had a hunch that this matter might eventually have something to do with him.

"What kind of shameful thing did that distant relative do?" Gu Qing said, stroking his belly. After eliminating the trouble of constipation, his mood was as smooth as his intestines.

Hao Donglai whispered: "There are too many shady methods in business affairs. What's funny is that the distant relative of the Zhang family even used shady methods to the extreme. The business of three silk and satin shops was not good, and he actually joined forces.

They colluded with several stores to lower prices and secretly rob other Hu merchants’ regular customers. Unexpectedly, they didn’t have the foresight to snatch the Du family’s head..."

Gu Qing asked in confusion: "Which Du family?"

"The Du family of Puyang, the third son of Du Hongjian, Sizhi of Dali, Du Feng."

Gu Qing smiled. When talking about someone in the Tang Dynasty today, if the name is preceded by a place name and then a certain surname, it is most likely a family. After Wu Zetian, the power of the aristocratic families in the Tang Dynasty was weakened a lot, but only weakened.

, has not been eliminated. Today's aristocratic family still has considerable influence in the Tang Dynasty, and it still has a very important say in the court.

"So, a distant relative of the Zhang family has offended the aristocratic family?"

"Yes, this is just the beginning. In fact, Du Hongjian is a good official and is highly regarded by the Eastern Palace, but his third son Du Feng is not a good person.

, managing the Du family's property was quite profitable. A distant relative of the Zhang family actually robbed an important Hu merchant regular customer of the Du family's silk and satin shop. With Du Feng's character, how could he let it go?"

"However, Zhang Zheng is a descendant of a virtuous prime minister, and his wife is from the Xie family in Chen County. Du Feng was concerned about the reputation of his father Du Hongjian in the officialdom, so he used a cunning trick. He hired several notorious ruffians

The character went to Yique County and managed to get acquainted with Zhang Huaisheng, the son of Zhang Zheng, and then lured Zhang Huaisheng into a brothel. He also had an affair with a girl from the brothel, and he was fascinated by Zhang Huaisheng. He used this method of hooking up.

I defrauded Zhang Huai and saved a lot of money..."

"Not only that, they also tricked Zhang Huaisheng into gambling. After setting up the game in advance, Zhang Huaisheng lost a lot of money and even owed a lot of money to those gangsters. As a last resort, Zhang Huaisheng secretly took Zhang Huaisheng into gambling.

Three silk and satin shops under his family's name were mortgaged. These three silk and satin shops were the main source of income for Zhang Zheng's family. It was not until Du Feng took over the three shops in Chang'an that Zhang Zheng discovered the trouble that the prodigal son had caused, so he and his wife hurried away.

Come to Chang'an to settle the matter..."

Gu Qing suddenly realized, then he laughed.

It's prostitution and gambling, and a family worth hundreds of millions of dollars can't withstand the tossing. What's more, Zhang Zheng is just a county magistrate, and his family is not rich. If we don't go back to the three shops this time, Zhang Zheng and his family will really have to rely on them from now on.

I can live with the meager salary from the imperial court.

Zhang Zheng and his wife have always preferred sons over daughters. They finally gave birth to a son, who was still the son of the main wife. However, they gave birth to such a thing. How could this be a son? He was clearly a creditor who traveled from his previous life to this life to collect debts. Gu Qing really felt sorry for him.

Zhang Huaiyu felt worthless.

Hao Donglai saw that Gu Qing's expression was calm, so he said softly: "Master Hou, this is probably what happened to the Zhang family. Everyone who should inquire has heard about it. Will Master Hou help the Zhang family calm down this matter next?"

Gu Qing was stunned and said with a smile: "I help the Zhang family? Why should I help the Zhang family? My second uncle Honglu didn't even take action. Obviously Zhang Zheng's family is not popular among the Zhang family. I

What would an outsider do for no reason?"

Hao Donglai said in astonishment: "But... he is the father of Miss Huaiyu after all. If Lord Marquis wants to propose marriage to County Magistrate Zhang and takes the initiative to help him solve the matter, maybe the proposal of marriage will be a matter of course..."

Gu Qing shook his head: "Huaiyu is Huaiyu, and the Zhang family is the Zhang family. They are two different things. If Huaiyu takes the initiative to talk to me, I will help without hesitation. If Huaiyu doesn't say anything, it's useless for anyone to say it. Why should I be a bitch?"

Taking the initiative to provoke the Du family? Do you think I like to provoke wealthy families so much?"

Hao Donglai couldn't stop laughing when he thought about it.

Gu Qing sighed: "You two, I may be transferred out of Chang'an in a few days, and the property of Chang'an will be taken care of by you. If you have any problems, you can ask Zhang Siqing, Li Guangbi and Li Twelve Niang for help. There are three of them."

As long as people are here, there won't be any big trouble..."

The two shopkeepers looked at him in shock, digesting the news with confused expressions, and remained silent for a long time.

"Master Hou...will be transferred out of Chang'an? When?" Shi Daxing said in shock.

"It will take a few days. It will probably take a few days for the official decree to be issued. I will set off after the decree is issued, and I will probably go to the four towns of Anxi."

Hao Donglai asked in confusion: "Why did your Majesty suddenly transfer the Marquis from Chang'an? Is it because... he was demoted?"

Gu Qing smiled and said: "It's considered a relegation. In fact, it might be more appropriate to call it 'experience'. Your Majesty wants to reuse me. I have already been granted a title at my age, but I don't have enough qualifications. It is inevitable that there will be criticism from the government and the public. I go to Anxi to gain some experience."

If I'm lucky, I might even be able to make a great contribution, and then I, the young Marquis, will feel confident."

"Master Hou, can Master Hou not go?" Hao Donglai said with a sad face, "We can't bear to leave you, Master Hou. If you leave Chang'an, we will have no idea. Over the past year or so, I have finally understood that there is a Crouching Tiger in Chang'an City."

In the land where dragons are hidden, it is difficult to move forward without a backer. The Marquis is our backer, and we cannot walk without a backer..."

Gu Qing sighed melancholy: "My backer can't even spit out shit. I'm not worthy of being your backer. I'm no longer perfect in your hearts..."

…………

The days of waiting for the imperial edict are quite painful, just like the feeling of having been sentenced to death but the executioner's knife lingers on the neck, which is very heart-wrenching.

Now that he has decided to go to the four towns of Anxi, Gu Qing feels that he should do his homework in advance to avoid being confused after getting to Anxi and others making him look like a fool.

After much deliberation, Gu Qing decided to ask Zhang Jiuzhang for advice.

Zhang Jiuzhang is the minister of Honglu Temple, in charge of foreigners. Zhang Jiuzhang must have a deep knowledge of the grievances and resentments between the Tang Dynasty and the countries in the Western Regions over the years, as well as the current situation of the Anxi Protectorate.

The most important thing is that he misses Zhang Huaiyu.

With a balance between work and love, and such a high emotional intelligence, Gu Qing felt that there was no way he could be a straight man.

There is no need to announce when you come to visit, Gu Qing is already a member of the Zhang family.

Bypassing the front hall from the front yard, Gu Qing went straight to the back yard.

On the swing in the backyard, Zhang Huaiyu was sitting on it quietly reading a book. The profile of her face under the sunlight was half bright and half dark, so clear that even the light hair on her face could be seen clearly.

Seeing Gu Qing coming, Zhang Huaiyu put down his book and asked curiously: "Why are you here today?"

Gu Qing said resentfully: "You didn't take the initiative to come to me when you came to Chang'an, so I had no choice but to shamelessly come to you..."

Zhang Huaiyu said with a smile in his eyes: "Are you here to see me?"

Gu Qing said with a straight face: "What is the point of talking about love? Of course it is 'talking' and 'talking'. How can we talk about love when we can't even see each other in person?"

Zhang Huaiyu blushed and said angrily: "You always have these strange words coming out of your mouth, and you are full of inappropriate words."

Gu Qing said seriously: "Then, let's officially start dating."

Zhang Huaiyu chuckled, waved his hand and said: "Don't tease me, your serious look makes me feel like you are killing generals and capturing flags in front of the army formation. It has nothing to do with love."

Gu Qing suddenly remembered something and said, "Last time in Shiqiao Village, you seemed not to be very satisfied with the love token I gave you?"

Zhang Huaiyu's face suddenly turned cold and he hummed: "You have the nerve to say that I have never heard of anyone giving a token of love as a silver cake. How can this be a 'deposit'? It's clearly a 'deposit'..."

Gu Qing sighed: "Isn't it very economical to give silver cakes? It is both valuable and valuable. It can be used to replace food and clothing in times of hardship. In times of peace, it can be seen and remembered. In times of danger, it can even be used as a weapon to throw out.

Smashing the heads of bad guys is a must-have for killing people while traveling at home..."

Zhang Huaiyu burst out laughing. The way she laughed looked a bit like Zhang Huaijin, but Gu Qing rarely saw her laughing so heartily.

After laughing for a long time, Zhang Huaiyu finally calmed down and said: "You suddenly ask what the love token means? Are you short of money?"

"Oh, it's like this. Since you have poor taste and are not satisfied with the love token I sent you, I decided to change it and send it again... This time I promise it will be tasteful and meaningful, and it will be better than the last piece of silver.

The cake is twenty times more valuable, Zhang Huaiyu, congratulations, you are going to get rich."

Zhang Huaiyu wanted to laugh again, but then he suddenly reacted, and his pretty face suddenly turned cold: "Don't tell me that you plan to send twenty silver cakes as a token of love, I will smash your dog's head with the silver cakes."

Gu Qing paused and blinked quickly.

This woman is indeed much smarter than Zhang Huaijin and is not easy to fool.

Gu Qing counted and found that a box of silver cakes cost exactly twenty yuan.

Seeing Gu Qing's hesitation, Zhang Huaiyu opened his eyes wide in surprise, and then got angry: "Gu, are you crazy? Are you really planning to give twenty silver cakes as a token of love?"
Chapter completed!