latelenovela Chapter 77 Fire Inspection
Chapter 77 Fire Inspection
Chapter 77 Fire Inspection
Summer! It's only early spring! Summer is still a long way off! The four great scholars were furious. That fool Wang had gone too far! He kept coming up with all sorts of excuses to cause them trouble, and he could even come up with such high-sounding reasons. He was shameless!
“Bo Xin has changed so much! He’s become a father and mother in this place, yet he’s personally involved in everything and hasn’t brought shame to our newly built Bo family! I’m very pleased! Our silly little Wu is no longer the glutton he used to be who only knew how to eat!” Wang Wenhua patted Wang Wenzhou on the shoulder and said.
"Damn it! Are you insulting me or praising me? You're the one who's a glutton!" Wang Wenzhou asked, "Brother, what brings you to Hanshan?"
“It’s nothing much. You know, my official position is just a sinecure. I just wanted to come and see you. I heard that some of your classmates from the Imperial Academy also want to come and catch up with you,” Wang Wenhua said with a smile.
Wang Wenzhou scoffed, "Classmates my ass! There aren't any pretty female classmates here. Those bastards are all the ones who bullied the original owner of this body. I bet you just want them to bully me again. Those bastards are all sons of noble families. You think I'm afraid of them? In my territory, I have plenty of ways to deal with them. And forget about them, Wang Wenhua, if you dare to cause trouble in Hanshan again, watch out, I'll get you too."
The constables ushered the guests and girls out of their rooms, and in no time, the hall was filled with people again. The men stood on the left, and the women on the right.
"Sigh!" Ma Deyun's face flushed with anger, and he sighed softly. He was angry, but there was nothing he could do. A few days ago, Wang Wenzhou had incited the people to petition in Hezhou. Because of this, Ma Deyun had received a severe scolding from his father: "Isn't this just causing trouble for your uncle?! It wasn't easy for your uncle to reach the position of Tongpan!"
Ma Deyun was unaware that even if he didn't write to his uncle Yu Wuzhen, given Yu Wuzhen's personality, he would still oppose Wang Wenzhou's city entry tax; it was only a matter of time.
Yu Wuzhen was a real historical figure. After Liu Zeqing, the Earl of Dongping, stationed his troops in Huai'an, he forcibly demanded that Yu Wuzhen perform the duties of a subordinate. Yu Wuzhen refused and resigned his post. Later, when Qing troops crossed the Yangtze River, Yu Wuzhen drowned himself at the Dongqiao Bridge.
The constable, Old Wu, bowed and reported, "Your Honor, the inspection is complete! There are serious fire hazards in every room of the building."
Wang Wenzhou glanced at Ma Deyun and said with a smile, "Mr. Ma, did you hear that? I'll emphasize it again: safety is no small matter! Your place does not meet the fire safety regulations of the government. You shall suspend business for rectification. You may reopen after the rectification is completed."
"May I ask, sir, when were these fire safety regulations issued?" Ma Deyun asked irritably.
"Mr. Ma, don't you know? It just came out! The notice is posted right at the entrance of the county government office!" Wang Wenzhou said casually, making it up.
"Young Master, I left in a hurry! I forgot to put up the notice!" Wang Qiang covered up for his young master.
"Xiaoqiang, I have to reprimand you. How can you be so careless and irresponsible at work? Go and put up the notice right now!" Wang Wenzhou reprimanded him seriously.
"How should the notice be written?" Wang Qiang asked.
Wang Wenzhou thought for a moment and then said, "Write it this way: from now on, establishments like brothels that are open to the public must have dedicated fire exits so that customers can be evacuated in time in case of a fire. Also, fire extinguishers must be available in the rooms."
"Young Master, what is a fire extinguisher?" Wang Qiang asked.
"I almost forgot, the Ming Dynasty didn't have fire extinguishers." Wang Wenzhou said with a smile, "A fire extinguisher, as the name suggests, is a tool for putting out fires. Water tanks, buckets, and the like. You absolutely need those!"
"Pfft!" The four scholars were so angry they almost vomited blood. Wang the Fool, how could you even think of such a bizarre rule? If a fire really breaks out, and a raging fire starts, it's like a drop in the ocean—what good is a bucket of water?!
"Alright!" Wang Wenzhou looked at Ma Deyun and said with a smile, "Mr. Ma, you need to rectify the situation quickly. You cannot operate during the rectification period. After the rectification is completed, notify the government, and I will send someone to inspect it. You can only continue to operate after the inspection is completed and the inspection is passed. If you operate without authorization, you will be fined."
"Brother, you can stay and relax. I have official business to attend to, so I'll take my leave now!" Wang Wenzhou said goodbye to Wang Wenhua and left with his large group of people.
"Haha!" Wang Wenhua laughed. "Interesting! You should look at someone with new eyes after three days of separation. In just over a month, our silly little Wu has become quite the clever one!"
"Brother Ma, what should we do?" Lin Qing asked.
Ma Deyun said with a wry smile, "What else can we do? Let's see the guests off first, and then make the necessary changes as Wang Shazi suggested!"
Seeing Ma Deyun's worried face, Wang Wenhua smiled and comforted him, "Brother, don't worry. Our silly little Wu won't be arrogant for long. My memorial impeaching him should be arriving in the capital by now."
“I heard from my uncle that Prefect Li supports Wang Wenzhou’s city entry tax,” Ma Deyun said.
"Sigh!" Wang Wenhua sighed. It must be Wang Zhixin who pulled some strings for Sha Xiaowu.
"Don't worry, my dear brother, I have some connections and will do my best to help you. That silly little Wu dares to levy taxes without authorization and violate ancestral rules. He won't be a county magistrate for long!" Wang Wenhua comforted him.
"By the way, I just heard someone talking about a grand prize of ten thousand taels of silver. What kind of grand prize?" Wang Wenhua asked.
"It must be a big prize for the city entrance tax that Wang the Fool has orchestrated. The draw is in a few days. The prize money is estimated to be around 20,000 taels of silver," Ma Deyun explained.
"Wow! So many!" Wang Wenhua exclaimed in surprise.
“Yes, because we collect tax receipts, our estimate of the bonus amount should be pretty close to the truth. This month, the population of Hanshan County has reached over 200,000. Wang Shazi's entry tax is truly ingenious!” Ma Deyun said.
Wang Wenhua nodded. Yes, the people not only didn't oppose the city's tax collection, but they also strongly supported it. What exactly is Sha Xiaowu's purpose in attracting so many people to Hanshan?
Wang Wenhua pondered for a moment, then a sudden inspiration struck him, and he asked, "By the way, how many grain stores are there in Hanshan City?"
“Three! Our prefecture owns one grain store, and the owners of the other two grain stores are all very close to Wang the Fool,” Ma Deyun said.
“I’ve thought of a way to make money. Hanshan’s population is growing, so we can stockpile grain and raise prices. There are still six months until the autumn harvest, and it costs money to transport grain from other places. I’ve estimated that if we double the price of grain, we should be able to sell it,” Wang Wenhua said.
“Grain prices in Hanshan County have already risen by 20%. Brother Wang, your method is brilliant! It can really make a lot of money!” Ma Deyun said with a smile.
After discussing it, the group agreed that this was indeed a great way to make a lot of money. Even though the owners of the other two grain stores, Liu Gangli and Feng Yuantao, were close to Wang Wenzhou, they were still businessmen and wouldn't pass up a chance to make money. If grain prices in Hanshan rose, they certainly wouldn't sell their grain at a loss.
Wang Wenhua smiled slightly as he looked at the excited expressions of Ma Deyun and the others. With so many people in Hanshan County, if grain prices were to rise several times over, there would definitely be people who wouldn't have enough to eat. At that point, it would be a real headache for the magistrate of Hanshan, Sha Xiaowu, and it might even incite a popular uprising.