Wang Changshun held Hou Xuanyan's hand and smiled. Together with other gentry, celebrities and civil and military officials in Changzhou, he surrounded Hou Xuanyan to a simple and elegant courtyard.

The scenery here is unique, with a typical Jiangnan small garden style. What is even more rare is that there are several natural clear springs, and the spring water gathers from all over the place to form a clear shallow lake in the center.

A pavilion in the lake, with curtains woven from golden silk and brocade hanging from all sides, half hanging on the high eaves of the pavilion in the middle of the lake. Under the cold spring water, servants had long buried ice in the cellar, and a hint of coolness came from under the pavilion. It was indeed a good place to escape the summer heat.

Qin He stood outside the pavilion with hundreds of soldiers and holding the hilts in his hands. Wang Chang rolled his eyes and said, "The generals and the soldiers outside are working so hard. Please arrange a banquet for me to entertain you all."

The old butler bent down and smiled, and was about to go out for a walk. Hou Xuanyan waved his hand and said with a smile: "If you fight too much, you will be less courageous. These people have never left me." Qin He's face did not fluctuate at all, and he walked into the pavilion with great strides, standing straight behind Hou Xuanyan.

Seeing this, Wang Changshun bowed and nodded, and ordered: "Serve the food."

Hou Xuanyan has seen big scenes in Suzhou for a long time, especially his father-in-law Gu's family, who lives a wealthy life almost luxuriously. However, the dishes in Changzhou still opened his eyes. Many of the eight treasures and delicious delicacies in the water have never seen before. What's even more rare is that every dish is exquisitely crafted, which makes people unable to bear to put down the chopsticks. Fortunately, he doesn't need to do it, and he has a pretty maid standing beside him, cut it and placed it in front of him.

Seeing that he was in high spirits, Wang Changshun said with interest: "Governor General, our Changzhou is now on the front line. The adjacent Zhenjiang Prefecture is another famous military town. The Qing soldiers will be able to come to Changzhou in less than a day after they come. I wonder what arrangements are made by the Governor General?"

Hou Xuanyan put down his chopsticks, licked his lips, and said, "Yan Yingyuan will be here soon. You are so close to Jiangyin, and I must have heard of his name. I am tying up 50,000 troops with him, plus the number of Qing soldiers captured and recruited in this battle will be no less than 100,000. At that time, Changzhou, Jiangyin and Wuxi will be the force of striking each other. Even if the Qing soldiers come from the east, they will not be afraid."

Speaking of this, he paused, then changed his tone and smiled, "The troops and horses have not moved, and the food and grass have come first. Now is a time of crisis in the country, which is extraordinary. I have always known that all of you are the gentry of Changzhou and all have the intention to serve the country."

When everyone heard this, they talked and said in a row:

"Don't worry, Governor General, our Changzhou is willing to send military rations."

"I didn't say anything, my Wang family is willing to pay 50,000 shi of grain."

"It's hard for the soldiers to guard the land, so how can we sit still and ignore it?"

....

Hou Xuanyan listened to their noisy and was willing to pay for food. When the Qing soldiers entered Changzhou, they also used this method to protect their own way to make money. However, what Hou Xuanyan was staring at was their mines and salt. Unlike the north, there were few natural disasters here, fertile soil everywhere, and food was inexhaustible. As long as they mastered the mines, there was money, and they couldn't buy much grain? These people wanted to pay for themselves so that they could continue to control their daily lives of making money.

There was also a roasted and tender lamb on the table, with only a few slices of meat cut off.

Hou Xuanyan pulled out the Park Knife from Qin He's waist behind him. For a moment, the noisy Huxin Pavilion suddenly calmed down, leaving only a few maids screaming.

Hou Xuanyan cut off the roasted lamb and grabbed a piece of big meat and chewed it happily.

"If you eat meat, you have to eat it big chews. The most delicious thing is to eat it all over your cheeks." He looked around for a week and asked, "If you let this delicate beauty feed it bit by bit, although it looks comfortable and enjoyable, when will you eat it full? I am not afraid of laughing at you. I have a big appetite since I was a child and never eat small pieces of meat."

The gentry and celebrities were stunned, with complex expressions, and didn't know what they were planning to do. Hou Xuanyan continued, "I want to hide it from you, I, Hou, also want to eat a big piece of fat meat in Changzhou. The wise man will not say secret words, and the country will be smelted as a mine in the face of the country, and the salt field will be temporarily taken back. Now if you have a mine at home, don't worry. I will ask the officials in the yamen to calculate a number and convert it into silver to pay you."

As soon as these words came out, they burst into pieces. A long-faced and bearded stand up and asked, "Why haven't you heard of this in Hangzhou and Suzhou?"

"Because this was decided by this Governor just now, do you have any objections?"

Wang Changshun smiled at this time and said, "The Governor General doesn't know that Changzhou has many troubled people. We have made a few old bones, relying on the villagers in the countryside, and we can still persuade them. If it were someone else... When Wanli Ye collected mining tax, the tax supervisors in other places all added million taels of silver to the emperor's treasury. Our Changzhou father-in-law was beaten to death by the unlucky people, and even the court did not pursue it."

"Oh? There is also this matter, so I can't let these people be so unruly and fight against the court. I have 100,000 people in Changzhou. If these troublemakers were really so kind, they wouldn't have shaved their hair and left their pigtails and walked all over the streets. I heard that when Liu Liangzuo attacked Jiangyin, some people in Changzhou gave food and money, for fear of falling behind. These things can be left unrestrained, but if anyone dares to rise up again, they just want to try my blade with their necks."

The people at the table were played by Hou Xuan, and only he still had an appetite.

After making harsh words, Hou Xuanyan sat down and chased after him all night, and was so hungry that he had already eaten. After he had a feast, he stood up and said, "Thank you all for your kind hospitality. I still have military affairs, so I will stay soon. Qin He, let's go."

Hou Xuanyan was protected by the guards and walked out of the courtyard. The rest of the people became alive and surrounded Wang Changshun and waited for him to make a decision.

"This kid doesn't get in, doesn't eat soft and hard, and is determined to cut off our financial path."

"He was a mere governor who luckily took Suhang and really treated himself as the emperor. If he didn't take the opportunity to make money, would this guy really think he could block the cavalry of the Qing soldiers?"

Wang Changshun coughed lightly, waved his hand, and the maid in the pavilion bowed and retreated.

"This kid is not easy to control, and even I can't see through him. Even if he is not pretending, if he really wants to set up a formation here to fight the Qing soldiers, we cannot allow him to succeed. If Changzhou becomes the front line, wouldn't it be the second Yangzhou? The river water at the mouth of the old river is still red today. We must not follow in Yangzhou. We, Changzhou, cannot fight!"

"Mr. Wang, there are no outsiders here. What do you think we will listen to you."
Chapter completed!