"Clan Chief Zheng, please have some tea."
No matter how ugly Zheng Cheng's face was, Gongsun Ming didn't care at all. When he raised his hand to accept the tea, he was actually very gentle and elegant.
"The general learned clearly that Zheng's family education was not strict, so that his brother-in-law did something stupid. Zheng was ashamed and came here to apologize to the general."
Zheng Chengcheng really didn't want to talk to Gongsun Ming about those useless pleasantries, so this conversation immediately got to the point.
"A stupid thing? What Chief Zheng said seems to be evasive. Hey, colluding with Wu Heng and intending to rebel is not a stupid thing. It is a serious crime of destroying the nine tribes. Chief Zheng is a man who has read history books, so he should not use it. Would you like me to give you something?"
Zheng Cheng said he wanted to plead guilty, but his words were obviously full of resentment. Naturally, Gongsun Ming would not be polite to him, and pointedly pointed out that it was inevitable that the Zheng family would be implicated by Zheng Xiao.
"There is some madness in betraying one's brother, but there is absolutely no intention to seek help from the imperial court, and what he did was not ordered by our Zheng family. This is something Zheng can swear to God, and I would like to ask the general to learn from it."
The reason why Zheng Cheng came to see Gongsun Ming was because he was afraid of being implicated. When he heard what Gongsun Ming said, Zheng Cheng felt a little overwhelmed and hurriedly swore.
"Oh, Patriarch Zheng will probably not be unclear about what the law of the Han Dynasty stipulates regarding the crime of treason. I don't need to say more. If Patriarch Zheng has nothing else to do, please go back. "
Gongsun Ming has never believed in such a thing as swearing. Besides, the reason why he spread the rumors of Zheng Xiao's public trial was to see the "sincerity" of the Zheng family. Now Zheng Cheng's sophistry attitude has changed. When he came out, Gongsun Mingke had no intention of talking nonsense with him anymore. He raised the tea bowl in his hand and actually issued an order to expel the guests.
"Hold on, Zheng knows that he is wrong. Please, General, please take pity on me, the Zheng family, young and old, and show us a way to survive?"
When Gongsun Ming said this, Gongsun Leng, who was standing by his side, immediately walked over and was about to forcefully see off the guests. As soon as he saw this, Zheng Cheng really lost his composure and how could he dare to show any anger anymore? , quickly bowed and begged for mercy pitifully.
"Yushan, what was your budget for next month as you mentioned earlier?"
Gongsun Ming ignored Zheng Cheng's plea, turned to look at the embarrassed Wang He, and asked a meaningful question.
"If I get back to the general, it should be around 70,000 guan, but..."
Seeing that Gongsun Ming was determined to carry out the blackmail to the end, Wang He complained secretly in his heart, but he did not dare to disobey Gongsun Ming's wishes. After pondering for a moment, he could only do it according to Gongsun Ming's wishes.
"The general cherishes the people and would rather suffer the consequences for himself than reduce taxes to benefit the people. Zheng is really grateful. To show our respect, I, the Zheng family, are willing to donate 70,000 yuan of wealth to help the general's great cause."
Seventy thousand guan is not a small amount. Although the Zheng family is considered wealthy, if they want to come up with such a large amount of wealth, their vitality will be greatly damaged. However, the Zheng family has been forced into a corner now. Even if No matter how reluctant he is, he still has to pay for the money that should be paid for his life. Regarding this, although Zheng Cheng expressed his sincere greetings to the eighteenth generation of Gongsun Ming's ancestors in his heart, he expressed his attitude very decisively. .
"Patriarch Zheng is so impatient and righteous. I thank Patriarch Zheng for his generosity on behalf of the people of the state. However, due to state laws, I cannot accept Patriarch Zheng's kindness for nothing."
Even Zheng Cheng had gritted his teeth and accepted the punishment, but at this time Gongsun Ming actually played the trick of erecting a memorial arch for whatever reason. He was so angry that the veins on Zheng Cheng's forehead felt like it. Jumping wildly.
"General Mingjian, my Zheng family has lived in Youzhou for a long time. It is our duty to be able to do some practical things for the people in the state. It's just that it was not convenient in the past. Now I can share the general's worries and benefit the people. It is our duty as the Zheng family."
Zheng Chengcheng was really pissed off by Gongsun Ming's shamelessness. However, how could he allow him not to bow his head when he was under the roof? With all his help, he could only beg Gongsun Ming to accept him. Family filial piety.
"Well, I'm afraid it's not a good idea for Chief Zheng to have such an intention. I heard that the Zheng family is not only popular in farming and studying, but also has many members doing business all over the world. They have traveled all over the country, and even the Zheng family caravans can be seen on the grasslands. But Is this happening?"
Even though Zheng Cheng had humbled himself to such an extent, Gongsun Ming still did not accept his kindness. He just praised him with a tepid compliment and then changed the subject.
"In order to maintain the expenses of the clan, Zheng had no choice but to do this. If the general was not happy, Zheng would order all the caravans to be disbanded after he returned. The children of the clan will shut themselves up and think about their mistakes from now on, and will never get involved in this merchant trade again."
Zheng Chengcheng really didn't understand Gongsun Ming's intention, and he didn't dare to ask questions, so he could only express his attitude of not getting involved in state affairs from now on.
"Chief Zheng has misunderstood. I have no intention of looking down on merchants. Guanzi, a great sage, especially dare not neglect business, let alone a boy. Since ancient times, there has been no stability without farming, and there is no wealth without business. This is a right saying. , I have always believed in it."
Gongsun Ming was not in a hurry to explain his intentions, but he hinted at it in his words.
"this……'
Zheng Cheng can command the huge Zheng family, so he is certainly not an easy person. As soon as he heard Gongsun Ming's words, he immediately knew that Gongsun Ming was talking about Zheng Xiao. It was clearly Xiang Zhuang's sword dance with Pei Gong in mind, and his daring to fall in love was not just to defraud money, but He was aiming at his own business, and his heart suddenly sank. There was no other source of income. Among the Zheng family's financial resources, the rent of the land only accounted for less than 30%25. The majority came from the business's income. Don't look at his previous income. He kept saying that he was going to close the company, but in fact he was just planning to move the company's headquarters away from Youzhou. Now when he heard that Gongsun Ming actually planned to move even the pot, Zheng Cheng was really dumbfounded.
"Clan Chief Zheng's guess is good. Someone does use the Zheng family's business name. Let's put it this way, a certain person wants to give the Zheng family a fortune. It depends on whether Patriarch Zheng has such courage."
Gongsun Mingduo was a shrewd person. Just by looking at Zheng Cheng's face, he knew what was going on in his mind, but he didn't care much and kept a relaxed tone.
"This...Zheng is stupid and unclear. Please ask the general for advice."
Hearing what Gongsun Ming said, Zheng Cheng was immediately confused. The two parties thought for a moment in confusion, but they still couldn't guess what Gongsun Ming's true intention was. They didn't dare to make random promises. In desperation, they could only Maybe he was pretending to be confused, but deep down in his heart, he was ready to be beaten hard by Gongsun Ming...
