Step 1 Call the officer

At the end of the Ming Dynasty, the eunuchs had a dictatorship, bandits were rampant, and famine continued for years, and the people were struggling to survive.

Early in the morning, a young man came from the Xihua Gate of the Imperial City of Beijing. The man was white and plump, in his twenties, wearing a long coat full of patches, and his eyes were bright and bright. The soldier guarding the Imperial City waved him away, but the man did not leave. He knelt down with a "plop" and shouted "Long live the emperor" in the imperial city, and then shouted three times in a row "I want to be an official."

They immediately went forward to ask him to shut up. However, this man kept saying that he had received guidance from an expert. As long as he shouted "I want to be an official" three times at the gate of the imperial city, someone would give him a high-ranking official.

The soldiers did not talk nonsense with him, and immediately tied him up and threw him into prison. At this moment, a little eunuch ran out of the imperial city, panting, saying that Eunuch Wei had an order to bring this person in.

Eunuch Wei is Wei Zhongxian. He is a nine-thousand-year-old eunuch who is a famous man in front of the emperor today. Bing Yong didn't dare to neglect him when he heard that, so he had to let him go.

In fact, Eunuch Wei was worried about something these two days. It turned out that it was time for the imperial court to appoint officials from various places. Officials from other places, everyone squeezed their heads and grabbed them, and they all made up for it soon. Only the post of governor of Funiu County in western Henan Province has not been filled for a long time. Although Funiu County is a small county, it is a wealthy place because it is located on the main transportation roads of Henan, Shaanxi and Hubei, and it is busy with business and travel. But in recent years, there have been years of famine, and bandits have been rampant. Officials sent by the imperial court either colluded with the bandits, or they were killed by the bandits because they were ineffective in governing the bandits. Who would want to be an official in such a place? The emperor had no choice but to let Eunuch Wei handle this matter, saying that as long as the bandits in the western Henan area were dealt with, the imperial court would be heavily rewarded. After thinking about it, Eunuch Wei thought about it, this matter was really not easy to handle. Passing by the west gate of the imperial city early that morning, he was worried when he heard someone outside shouting to become an official. Is this God's will?

Eunuch Wei carefully looked at the person who came, knowing that this person was called Sun Liu Fatty, and his brain was a little silly, but this was just right, who would be willing to go to that corner to be this sesame and mung bean official? That's very good, if he does not do a good job, when the imperial court investigates it, it will put the responsibility on this fool. Eunuch Wei made up his mind and made a quick decision: "Okay, it's him!"

This Sun Liubang, who took over appointment document of the imperial court, looked at the bright red official seal on it, that happy ah, thank Eunuch Wei, for going to take office. Eunuch Wei stopped him, and the three fingers of his right thumb, index finger, and ring finger kept rubbing at Sun Liubang. Sun Liubang was puzzled and his face was stunned. Eunuch Wei was anxious and shouted in a thin voice, "Why don't you bring the silver soon?"

Only then did Sun Liupang understand what Eunuch Wei meant. He rummaged through his whole body, almost taking off his clothes, and then found a copper coin in the corner of the bag. Sun Liupang raised the copper coin and handed it to Eunuch Wei with both hands, saying, "I only have so much left, give it all to you!"

Eunuch Wei was happy again, this guy is really a living treasure! He took the copper coin, waved his hand, and let Sun Liupang go.

Step 2: Gambling

As soon as Sun Liubang left the palace, holding the appointment document in his hand, he shook his head and hummed a joke, and his complacent expression made the veteran guard half dead. Looking at the genuine appointment document in Sun Liubang's hand, Veteran Yong's eyes almost fell off, and he thought to himself: I have seen the imperial city gate for most of my life, and I have never seen anyone who can become an official by shouting twice at the gate of the imperial city. This is too easy, right? Seeing a fool shouting a few times at the gate of the imperial city, he got an official job, the veteran Yong cleared his throat and wanted to shout twice, but after thinking about it, the sound in his throat turned into a mouthful of phlegm and spat on the ground.

Besides, Sun Liu Fatty, he had just walked out a few steps when he met a young and beautiful woman who shouted "official" and walked towards Sun Liu Fatty. Sun Liu Fatty looked up and saw that he knew this woman, whose name was Xiao Yun. Behind Xiao Yun, there was an old man in his 50s and 60s who had triangular eyes, mouse whiskers, a smirk on his face, and his mustache was shiny by him. This person's name was Lu Sheng, an old liar. When Sun Liu Fatty saw these two, he was overjoyed. This is really a proud life and double happiness. Just became an official, and a daughter-in-law will come to the door immediately!

What was going on? The thing was like this: Sun Liubang was originally a fool who escaped from the wilderness and came to the capital, but as soon as he entered the city, he was targeted by the old liar Lu Sheng who played "Immortal Jump". Lu Shengxin bought a little girl who begged for food and named her Xiao Yun. Taking advantage of Xiao Yun's beauty, Lu Sheng cheated a lot of money. Lu Sheng asked Xiao Yun to put a grass sign on the street, saying that she sold herself to treat her father's illness. Sure enough, Sun Liubang saw that Xiao Yun was like himself, also fleeing from the wilderness and begging for food, and was also a fellow villager, so he took out all the broken silver he had on him at once. He still thought that Sun Liubang had too little silver on him, so he lied to him casually and said, "Now the emperor needs talents. People like you have both political integrity and ability. As long as you go to the gate of the imperial city and shout three times in a row, 'I want to be an official,' the emperor will give you a big official. At that time, I will marry Xiao Yun to you." Sun Liubang was an orphan.

Today, the old liar Lu Sheng strolled the streets early in the morning. When he heard that there was a fool at the entrance of the Imperial City shouting for an official job, he couldn't help but feel a "thump" in his heart. Looking closer, he saw a few soldiers bravely pulling a fat man, and it was indeed Sun Liu Fatty! This is bad, if it is found out that he instigated him to go to the gate of the imperial city to shout, that's okay? This made Lu Sheng anxious. Who knew that after a while, Sun Liu Fatty swaggered out of the Imperial City safely with the appointment document. Lu Sheng's head turned and he was overjoyed, thinking: This person is easy to deceive, why don't I become an official with him, that is a promising career than a liar, so there is the previous scene.

According to the rules of the imperial court, all officials had to report to the official department before taking office, receive the official seal and register it in the register. When the three of them came to the official department, they knew that they had to pay 300 taels of "ordinary money." Where did Sun Liupang get so much silver? Lu Sheng gritted his teeth, took out a few silver bills from his pocket, pawned some things, and took out all the family assets of these years, which was enough. Lu Sheng was going to take a gamble!

After coming to Funiu County, looking at the tattered county yamen, and asking about it again, Sun Liubang and his party realized that they had been fooled by Eunuch Wei! Although there were many wealthy squire families in Funiu County, but because of the bandits, this group of people declared that they had paid a lot of money to fight bandits, so how could they still have money to pay taxes? Moreover, the more more bandits fought, the common people were unwilling to farm the land, and they were willing to be bandits, and the long-term workers who worked the land could not be hired. Then let's get rid of the bandits, but if there is no money, who is willing to risk their lives to work hard?

Lu Sheng thought that his white money was about to go to waste, and he even had the heart to hang himself! Sun Liu was fat, wandering around behind Xiaoyun these days, and even said that he was inspecting the public affairs, how could he look like a magistrate? The more Lu Sheng looked, the angrier he thought, I, an old liar, capsized in the gutter and fell into the hands of a fool!

After holding it for three days, Lu Sheng was about to die of anger. On this day, Xiao Yun said that after discussing with Sun Liupang, she came up with a good idea. I don't know how this method is, but it made Lu Sheng's eyes brighten and his heart feel much more at ease…

3. Auction

Soon after, a notice was posted at the entrance of the county yamen. In the name of the county mayor, Sun Liupang said on the notice that all positions in the yamen were sold to the outside world, and the tax collector was the most expensive, which was a fat difference; the head of the bandits was the cheapest, which was a hard job. However, the notice said that according to the number of bandits killed, the better the performance, the more compensation you will get. In addition, there are also criminal masters, etc., and others, even those who carry palanquins, cook, and guard the door, all listed the corresponding prices. The notice also said at the end that the opportunity is rare, and the one with the highest price will win.

That day, there was a sea of people watching the fun. This was really a new thing, and someone from the tax collector immediately signed up to buy it. Although Funiu County was a small county, there were many rich squires and wealthy households, and many people wanted to buy a part-time official position to decorate their appearance. The next day, presided over by Lu Sheng, Sun Liufang held an open auction in the lobby of the yamen. The position of "tax collector" was snatched up by several people, and it was not suitable for anyone, so it depended on who offered a high price. In the end, Song Yuanwai, a wealthy family member, bid for this position at a price of one hundred taels of silver, which made Lu Sheng smile happily. Immediately after, the county, the registrar, the criminal master, and the jailer, who had a lot of money, were sold out one after another, and even the cooking staff also rose with the tide, selling for five taels. Lu Sheng was overjoyed, and in this way, the cost of buying officials was expected to be recovered.

But although the position of "bandit suppression and head capture" was the cheapest, no one came to buy it for a long time. The price dropped again and again, and the reward for bandit suppression was increased from one bandit to one taels of silver, but still no one wanted it. When Lu Sheng was worried, early in the morning, a group of people came to the yamen. It turned out to be a group of veterans who had retired and collected six taels of silver to buy the position of head capture.

At this time, a man with thick eyebrows and big eyes stood up and said that he was Wei Dingwu, the eldest brother recommended by this group of veterans, and was willing to serve as the head catcher. Sun Liufang nodded and asked worriedly, "Have you seen the conditions on the notice clearly? I can only charge six taels of silver. If you come down a year and not a single bandit is killed, I will not give you a penny or a cent."

Wei Dingwu heard this and said, "We all know this very well, as long as you keep your word." As soon as he finished speaking, Lu Sheng, who was standing next to him, seemed to have woken up suddenly, and said fiercely, "If you kill Liangchong bandits, not only will you not be rewarded with silver, but you will also be severely punished!" Wei Dingwu said, "We are all honest farmers, and we have been victimized by bandits these years. The previous county governors only talked about it, and they rarely got serious with bandits. We can't stand it anymore."

If he really killed a lot of bandits in the future, what would he do if he didn't have the money to pay them? However, he thought about it and immediately had an idea: As soon as the capital of 300 taels is enough, I will immediately pack up and leave.

On this day, a large group of "small officials" who had bought positions with money sent Sun Liufang, a "big official", to the lobby. Sun Liufang cleared his throat and was about to give a few inaugural speeches, but the tax collector Song Yuanwai took the first step and spoke in Henan Mandarin: "Lord Sun, in his position and seeking his government, I, Song Jincai, bought this tax collector, so I have to get the tax work done well. This is the preliminary plan I have drawn up. Please take a look at it, Lord Sun, and I will listen to you if you win or not."

Sun Liupang took over tirade handed over by Song Yuanwai and was startled. This Song Yuanwai is really not a vegetarian! As a squire, Song Yuanwai knew all about the methods of tax evasion and tax avoidance by their gang. The reason why the tax could not be collected was not for other reasons, but because farmers and shops in the county had not accurately investigated, many farmers concealed the land area, and many merchants concealed their operating income. In the past, as long as they paid tribute to the county head, they could always cope with it. This time is different. Song Jincai is a businessperson, and he has to recover the cost of buying his own official! According to Song Jincai's plan, first of all, a vigorous census of farmers and shops should be carried out in the county to thoroughly understand the situation of the whole county; then, according to the situation of knowing the real situation, the number of taxable taxes should be announced, and the tax payment method and time will be announced on the list. Those who accept first will be rewarded, those who accept later will be punished, and those who do not accept will be imprisoned.

He pretended to look at it, coughed dryly, and said, "There's no need to look carefully, I'm sure." Lu Sheng smiled to himself.

Just as Sun Liubang was about to announce his retirement from the hall, the county mayor, the registrar, and the master of Xingming also had plans to report, but Sun Liubang sent them away one by one. At this time, Wei Dingwu opened his mouth again: "Lord Sun, our brothers want knives without knives, guns without guns, and armor without a complete pair. That's not good, we can't be allowed to wrestle with the bandits with bare shoulders, right?"

When Sun Liubang heard that, he was about to tell them to find a way for themselves, but Song Yuanwai stood up and said that he could pay for the weapons and armor in advance, but these soldiers had to be lent to him first for the census of farmers and shops. Sun Liubang was happy and immediately agreed...

Step 4: Trick

The vigorous census of farmers and shops in Funiu County was the first to start. After spending more than a month sleeping in the open and climbing mountains, the situation of the whole county was finally counted. I don't know how much suffering they had endured, seeing a white and fat Song Yuanwai turn into a black and thin "Song Ganchai", Sun Liupang secretly gave a thumbs up: For money, there are really everyone! The census went very smoothly. Wei Dingwu's gang of brothers were from the army after all, and with brand new armor and weapons, who would dare not cooperate?

Tax collection work was also carried out smoothly, and in order to improve efficiency, Song Yuanwai subcontracted out the tax collection affairs. Song Yuanwai said that the tax collected was 1% commission, and who wouldn't want to do something profitable? Even the county city, the registrar, the criminal masters, and the jailers all put down their work and joined in. Because the number of farmers and shops had already been announced in advance, the tax collection was not troublesome, and those who were disobedient, concealed and underreported, and evaded taxes and taxes were all handed over to Wei Dingwu. This time, Wei Dingwu's team also expanded a lot, from more than 50 people to more than 100 people, and all of them were equipped with armor and weapons. Because he recovered the underreported taxes, Wei Dingwu also received a generous commission.

Looking at the bags of silver being carried into the yamen's bank, Sun Liubang was dumbfounded all day, and the happiest one was Lu Sheng. From the time he took office until now, in less than half a year, the tax collected was more than 10,000 taels, plus the money he got from selling officials, Lu Sheng was not to mention how happy he was!

But don't forget, there is also the largest group of bandits in Funiu Mountain in Funiu County. Xie Mazi, the bandit leader, has long been staring at the silver warehouse and salivating. That day, he sent out detailed work and heard that Wei Dingwu's main force in the yamen had been dispatched to various places to assist in taxation. Xie Mazi decided to take action.

That night, Xie Mazi and his gang took advantage of the night to break through the city gate, set fires everywhere, and rushed into the county yamen while taking advantage of the chaos. The soldiers guarding the bank, how could they be the opponent of Xie Mazi's hundreds of people? The bank was robbed clean.

Lu Sheng wanted to die. He hugged the burning door of the bank and cried, but Sun Liupang quietly pulled Lu Sheng aside and said this. Lu Sheng turned to worry and asked in disbelief, "This - can it be done?" Sun Liupang nodded with a smile.

Early the next morning, there was great news: the bandits were led by Wei Dingwu and the soldiers were "even more pot"! It turned out that all this was a plan offered by Wei Dingwu to Sun Liubang. The silver in the bank was just bait, the purpose was to lure the bandits out. Funiu Mountain has a radius of 500 miles and the mountains are endless, so it is difficult to find a hiding place for the bandits, which is also an important reason why the successive Funiu County Magistrates failed to suppress the bandits. The bandits grabbed a large amount of silver, so they naturally put it in the lair. This time, Wei Dingwu sent a few nimble soldiers, disguised as hunters, and quietly followed behind the bandits to map the terrain clearly. Then Wei Dingwu dispatched troops overnight to surround the top of the mountain where the bandits were, and then wiped it out in one fell swoop.

The finishing work went more smoothly, and the master also proposed a way to turn bandits into people, suggesting that as long as evil is changed, it means that those who will no longer be bandits in the future can be issued by the government, and those who become bandits will not be investigated. Therefore, the bandits in Funiu County subsided, and the bandits put down their knives and guns and went to farming one after another. Traffic resumed, business flourished, and taxes increased greatly. In terms of rewards for their merits, poor brothers like Wei Dingwu also made a fortune.

From the bandits' lair, they also found a lot of treasures. Under the help of Sun Liufang, these treasures were used to help the poor people and build bridges and paving roads. Even so, due to the increase in taxes, in addition to the taxes paid to the imperial court, Lu Sheng and Sun Liufang also made a lot of money.

Unexpectedly, the news of Sun Liu Fatty's official sale was reported to the emperor. Hearing that the imperial court was going to send an imperial envoy to thoroughly investigate his official sale, Sun Liu Fatty rolled up his bunk and wanted to escape.

Unexpectedly, at the gate of the city, they met a large number of ordinary people who came to deliver umbrellas to the people, all saying that Sun Liu Fatty was a green sky. This scene happened to be witnessed by the imperial court, so they praised Sun Liu Fatty.

After a delicious meal, Lu Sheng stuffed up a lot of money before leaving, and then sent the imperial envoy away. As soon as the imperial envoy left, Sun Liubang immediately called Lu Sheng and Xiaoyun together, closed the door, and said, "We must escape overnight. I have seen through this court, and I will be finished in a few days. Sooner or later, we will either be killed by the chaotic people or killed by a bigger official!" Lu Sheng heard this and shook his head. He did not want to leave, he felt that it was better to be an official, and it was faster than him to cheat money. Sun Liubang wrote in calligraphy, saying that I knew the county to go to various places to observe the people's feelings, and the county yamen authorized Lu Sheng to act as an agent for all affairs.

After saying goodbye to Lu Sheng and walking out of the city gate, Sun Liupang took Xiao Yun's hand and let out a long breath, saying, "Thanks to your good idea, we not only did good things, removed the bandits for the people, but also got rid of Lu Sheng, the old ghost. From now on, I will listen to you."

Xiaoyun smiled sweetly and said, "You saved me because I was pitiful. Later, you knew that I lied to you. Why are you still willing to listen to me? Are you really stupid or fake stupid?"

Sun Liupang embraced Xiao Yun's thin waist, a sly smile flashed across his face, and then he returned to his silly look.

When the imperial envoy returned to the dynasty, he began to tell the emperor that the bandits in western Henan were peaceful, the traffic was smooth, and the people's livelihood was rich, all relying on Sun Liu Fatty for good governance. The emperor was overjoyed and gave a heavy prize, but Sun Liu Fatty didn't know where he went, and the money ended up in the pocket of Eunuch Wei. In fact, Eunuch Wei had been brooding about the sale of a magistrate for a copper coin, and finally found an excuse to kill Lu Sheng, the county's agent magistrate. Before Eunuch Wei had time to sell the official position of Funiu magistrate again, the world was in chaos…