Three hundred privates brought by Liu Qi and Liu Pan from their hometown were arranged in the mountains far away from the county seat. The brothers disguised themselves, each led a horse, and quietly entered Yicheng.

The seat of Nanjun County was originally in Jiangling County, but since Wang Rui, the newly appointed governor of Jingzhou, was killed by Sun Jian, the governor Guo Yong feared that Sun Jian would retreat due to his military might and leave his post. The government affairs of Nanjun County were under the instruction of the local clans and were left behind by the retainers left by the previous governor.

The officials were temporarily moved to Xiangyang and were under their control.

Nominally, Jiangling is still the seat of Nanjun, but the actual political authority in the county has been transferred to Xiangyang County.

Yicheng is very close to Xiangyang. It is located in the middle reaches of the Han River. It borders Zhangling to the east, Dangyang to the south, and Xiangyang to the north. It is surrounded by mountains on the east and west, and has a valley and plain in the middle. It is high in the north and low in the south, and is open to the south. Xiangyang is in the south.

The portal is located.

Liu Qi and Liu Pan found the largest wine shop in the downtown area of ​​Yicheng, ordered some food and wine, and planned to explore the situation.

In ancient times, wine houses were the most rumored places in a city.

It was noon at this time, and it was time for dinner, but except for the two brothers Liu Qi and Liu Pan, there were no other guests in the wine house.

In recent years, wars have surged and productivity has been significantly reduced. Except for a few large households who can maintain three meals a day, the best life for ordinary people is to ensure two meals a day.

Eat a big meal in the morning and eat a lot because you have to do a day's work. Eat a small meal in the evening and go to bed after eating, so you eat less.

The owner of the tavern was very happy to see two strangers coming for lunch today. He personally poured wine into their wine glasses and took the initiative to sit with them, which saved Liu Qi the trouble of taking the initiative to talk to him.

"Looking at Er Jun's accent, he seems to be from Yanzhou, right? Are you coming to Nan County to do business?" the owner of the wine shop said enthusiastically.

Liu Qi picked up his wine glass, took a sip of the wine, and said, "The elder has good eyesight. We are from Shanyang Juye and came to Jingchu to do lacquerware business."

The owner of the wine shop was in a good mood and said: "Lacquer plate and lacquer wine glass? There are many people doing this business in Nan County. The two of them came all the way from Yanzhou, so I'm afraid they may not be able to make money."

"Why?" Liu Qi pretended to be surprised and said, "To be honest, elders, a certain lacquerware is very different from ordinary lacquerware. Not only is it of excellent quality, but it is also exquisitely carved, and it is a top quality product."

The owner of the wine shop touched the short beard on his chin and said, "I don't know what Mr.'s lacquerware looks like, but no matter how good the lacquerware is, it sells well in other counties, but I'm afraid it won't sell well in Nanjun."

Seeing the owner of the wine shop looking so confident, Liu Pan was quite puzzled.

"We are doing serious business, how can we not make money in Nanjun?"

The owner of the tavern smiled and said: "No one has had lunch in this tavern for months. I am very grateful that you two came today. I might as well give you a thorough explanation. Foreigners want to do business in Jingchu."

, even if you go through Cangcao and Jincao, it is useless, you must have the consent of the local clan, otherwise this business will not last long."

Liu Qi saw that the conversation was gradually getting to the main topic, so he struck a chord while the iron was hot: "Sir, we are foreigners. We have sold all our resources for this lacquerware business, and there is no room for failure. I hope that the elder will teach people how to fish and tell me in detail.

The two of us will definitely be richly rewarded in the future."

Liu Pan was not good at deceitful words, and he was enjoying watching Liu Qi's acting from the sidelines, completely forgetting that he was also a person in the drama.

Until Liu Qi pinched his thigh under the long desk, and it hurt so much that he shed tears...

"Hi~~! Elder, please save my brother!" Liu Pan grinned.

The warm-hearted owner of the tavern saw Liu Qi's sincere words, while Liu Pan on the side burst into tears. He couldn't help but sigh: "You two don't have to be like this. In fact, these things are not a secret in Nanjun. I said

That's it for you two."

"Appreciate further details."

The owner of the wine shop said slowly and authentically while gathering vocabulary: "In the land of Jingzhou, the clans have deep roots and they support many private people. Even the former governor Wang Shijun was very humble when interacting with them."

As a supervisor, the governor not only supervises local officials such as governors and state ministers, but is also responsible for supervising local powerful families and right-wing forces. Therefore, they have many interactions with each other, which is within the normal scope of their duties.

Liu Qi asked for advice: "The Nanjun clan is very powerful, and our brothers also know it, but what does this have to do with business?"

The owner of the wine shop said: "The relationship is naturally very tight. The big business in Jingzhou is controlled by various clans. If you mix it up without permission, hey, little brother, no matter how good your lacquerware is, you will lose everything."

Liu Qi nodded suddenly and began to make plans in his mind.

The Jingzhou clan has grown to the point where it can control the local economy, which means that the clan has divided into interest factions, some strong and some weak.

Just like a certain Federal Reserve Bank in the West, it is rumored that it is actually controlled by certain families. The same reason.

In this way, Jingzhou appears to be plagued by dozens of clan thieves, but in fact it is only the leading few that play a decisive role.

"I dare to ask, which clan controls the big businesses such as salt, iron, lacquerware, etc. in Jingzhou? My two brothers know it well and don't take the wrong path."

Yantie was originally an official business, but since the "Xiyuan sale of officials and titles", officials with more than 400 shi were basically appointed in Xiyuan with investment.

In order to sell more officials, the imperial court replaced local officials very quickly.

In order to reap the benefits before being transferred quickly, those who bought official positions would share the government-owned salt and iron in counties and counties with wealthy families in a disguised manner to win back the funds.

Liu Qi knew about this when he was a county captain in Juye.

Moreover, he also knew that those who could cooperate with the government in the salt and iron business were basically the top local tycoons.

The owner of the wine house said: "The sale of salt and iron is originally a government business, but in Jingzhou, it is run by the Cai family of Caizhou and the county government. The official wine, grain and fodder business is jointly managed by the Kuai family of Zhonglu and the county government.

Merchants of cloth and lacquer ware pay tribute to Huarong Changbeiyu every year. The official ships, carriages and horses of Nanjun are managed by Changsha County Sheriff Su Dai. There is also the Zhang family of Nanyang.

All military weapons are forged from it."

Liu Qi was stunned when he heard this.

Seeing the big from the small, understanding from the smallest... It seems that the leaders of the clans in Jingzhou should be these five families.

Cai Mao, the chief of the Cai clan, Kuai Liang, the chief of the Kuai clan, Bei Yu, the chief of the Bei clan, Su Dai, the chief of the Su clan, and Zhang Fang, the chief of the Zhang clan!

Liu Qi recited these five names one by one in his mind, with a smile on his lips.

"Thank you for your confession, my brother knows."

…

After paying double the price of the wine to the owner of the tavern, Liu Qi and Liu Pan got up and left, arriving on the streets of Yixian County.

Looking at the streets with few traffickers and footmen, Liu Pan's face showed confusion.

"Bo Yu, looking at your confident face, could it be that you learned something from the owner of the tavern?"

Liu Qi knew that his cousin was usually just good at martial arts and shooting, and had low political sensitivity, so he explained to him.

Liu Pan had some enlightenment after hearing this.

Liu Pan was just listening to someone talk, and Liu Qi was able to infer who the leader of the Jingchu clan was.

"According to my cousin, the five major families that raise salt, iron, lacquerware, and ordnance together with the government are the head of the clan?"

Liu Qi raised his head and looked at the ever-changing white clouds, and said thoughtfully: "Yes, salt, iron, carriages, horses, lacquerware, and ordnance are all monopolized by these five clans, and the other clans acquiesce and do not fight! It means that the Nanjun clan is based on these five clans

Chief, if this is the case, the situation here will be clear."

"How?"

"These five major clans can basically represent the attitudes of all Nanjun clans. If the five of them support Lord Yan's ascension to the throne, then they are friends. If the five of them refuse, then they are clan traitors and enemies... and they should be eliminated!

"

When Liu Pan heard this, he turned around and left: "I'm going to lead the horse!"

Liu Qi was startled by Liu Pan's actions. He hurriedly caught up with Liu Pan and stopped him: "What are you going to do, brother?"

"Without further delay, you and I will immediately find out where the mansions of the five major families are."

Liu Qi was amused by Liu Pan's serious look and asked, "What next?"

"Then? Then I will send you a famous assassin and ask for help!" (The famous assassin was a tribute to the Han Dynasty)

"What do you want to ask about?"

"For more information...for more information..."

Liu Pan was speechless.

Yes, how should we inquire about this kind of thing?

I would like to ask my uncle Liu Biao to settle in Nanjun and take up the post of governor. Do you and other five tribes accept it or not? Do you support it?

The answer must be yes!

But what about the reality? No one knows.

Liu Pan's face turned purple from holding back... Finally, he looked at Liu Qi for advice.

Liu Qi reached out and patted Liu Pan on the shoulder and said: "I know that my brother is concerned about Yan Jun taking office, but what the five tribes are thinking cannot be found out by visiting him."

"What should we do?" Liu Pan said depressedly.

"Go to Yicheng County Office."

A smile appeared on Liu Qi's face, and a plan was hatched in his mind: "Someone will help you and me test out the attitudes of the five tribes."

…

The Yicheng County Office is not too far away from the wine shop where they are located. It is located in the middle of Yixian County. It occupies a small area, just over an acre. It is really not impressive to build a county capital on such a scale.

Liu Qi showed the official in the county office his appointment slip and talisman as governor - the so-called talisman is the talisman used by officials to clear customs across states, which is the same as the road quotation document and the customs clearance ultimatum.

After confirming Liu Qi's identity, the county official immediately reported it to the Yixian County Magistrate.

When he learned that the newly-appointed assistant governor of the state, Li Zheng, was coming, Yicheng County Magistrate Li Zheng did not dare to neglect and came out to greet him personally.

"Li Zheng, the magistrate of Yixian County, has met Yu Shi, but he didn't know that Yu Shi was here in person. Please forgive Liu Yu Shi for my neglect."

This Mr. Li County is seven feet tall, has a handsome appearance, and seems quite upright, but who really knows what kind of person he is?
To be continued...