Chapter 1166 Institutional Innovation!

Yujing, Tingyuxuan
In recent years, under the rule of the Fengwu Army, the economic situation in Hebei and Henan can be said to have been completely renewed, and the living standards of the people have been greatly improved. Some high-end teahouses, restaurants and other consumption places have also sprung up like bamboo shoots after a spring rain.
Among these consumer places, the name Tingyuxuan is far less famous than Cuiyunxuan, Taifengju and Chunfengyuan. It can even be said that few people know the name of Tingyuxuan. However, although its reputation is rarely known, it does not mean that the service environment of Tingyuxuan is bad.

At this time, in an antique private room in Tingyuxuan, Zhao Wanxian, the newly appointed Governor of Jiyu in the Great Zhou Dynasty, was sitting on a huanghuali armchair, closing his eyes and listening to the melodious piano music in the room. At this moment, the door was opened, and a graceful, beautiful and charming young woman walked into the room.

Looking at Zhao Wanxian who was immersed in the music, the woman showed a hint of surprise in her eyes, but she did not disturb Zhao Wanxian. She sat directly opposite Zhao Wanxian. After the song was over, Zhao Wanxian slowly opened his eyes and asked the young woman opposite with a smile:

"Madam Wang, no wonder Master Zhang Zhiwen told me that your Tingyu Pavilion is a place where hidden dragons and crouching tigers are hidden and a must-visit place in Yujing. Today I see that it is indeed extraordinary!"

When Jiang Yuyan heard Zhao Wanxian mention Zhang Zhiwen's name, a strange look flashed across her eyes, but she still spoke:
"Master Zhao, have you seen me?"

Zhao Wanxian smiled and said:
"I have lived in Liaoyang before and have never had the honor of meeting Madam Wang!"

“However, looking at the entire Yujing, I feel that there is no one else who can be as beautiful as this fairy except you, Madam Wang…”

If other people praised her beauty, Jiang Yuyan probably wouldn't care. After all, so many people had said that since she was a child. But when these words came from Zhao Wanxian, Ye Mingsheng's favorite, Jiang Yuyan was very happy. This at least proved that although she was not very young, she still had charm!

Although she felt somewhat proud in her heart, Jiang Yuyan still said calmly:
"Master Zhao, you are too kind! I am already middle-aged!"

After saying this, Jiang Yuyan did not discuss this topic with Zhao Wanxian any further, and then said to Zhao Wanxian:

"Master Zhao, you have just arrived in Yujing and you are not busy arranging spring farming matters. How do you have time to come to my Tingyu Pavilion?"

Zhao Wanxian smiled and said:

"It is precisely because I want to ensure the spring ploughing that I come to bother you, Madam Wang!"

After he finished speaking, Zhao Wanxian also restrained his smile and asked Jiang Yuyan solemnly:

"I wonder how the loan preparation of Rishengchang Bank is going?"

Jiang Yuyan heard the words and preached without thinking;
"The first batch of 500,000 taels of silver has been loaned to 100,000 farmers. The second batch of 1 million taels of silver will be loaned to 200,000 farmers in the next half month. Please rest assured that our Rishengchang Bank will do its job well, Mr. Zhao!"

After hearing these words, Zhao Wanxian couldn't help but applaud:

"That's great! No wonder everyone in the court says that you, Madam Wang, are a heroine. You manage such a large Rishengchang Bank in such an orderly manner..."

Facing Zhao Wanxian's praise, Jiang Yuyan did not take it seriously and said calmly:
"Master Zhao, if you have anything to say, please tell me directly. I have a lot of things to do in my bank account!"

"Good! Good! Since Madam Wang is so forthright, I will also speak frankly. The Marshal has already decided that Jiyu is the first stop of the southern tour. According to the plan, he will arrive in Yujing in the next fifteen to twenty days. I would like to present him with a great gift when he arrives in Yujing!"

At the end, Zhao Wanxian looked at Jiang Yuyan. Feeling Zhao Wanxian's gaze, Jiang Yuyan had a bad feeling in her heart and immediately began to speak:
"What does this have to do with me?"

Zhao Wanxian smiled and said:

"Of course this has something to do with you, Madam Wang! Everyone knows that you, Madam Wang, are the God of Wealth in Ji and Yu! If I want to make a difference, I must consult with you, Madam Wang!"

After saying this, Zhao Wanxian changed the subject and gave a meaningful sermon:
"If my guess is correct, Madam Wang, you must be in a dilemma now!"

Jiang Yuyan's expression froze when these words were spoken. After handing what she had written to Song Haibo that day, Jiang Yuyan felt even more uneasy and worried.

Jiang Yuyan waited in this torment for more than ten days, and then she was released back to Yujing. During this process, Ye Mingsheng never saw her from beginning to end...

Ye Mingsheng only asked Song Haibo to convey four words to her, and these four words were - take care of yourself!
Jiang Yuyan knew that Ye Mingsheng had given her another chance, but she also knew that Ye Mingsheng's tolerance was limited. If she did anything that would make Ye Mingsheng unhappy, only death would await her!

So during this time when she returned to Yujing, Jiang Yuyan was also thinking about how to do the work of Rishengchang next!
Jiang Yuyan believed that the biggest challenge facing her was how to develop Rishengchang's ticket business without disrupting the administration of officials!
Whenever she thought of this problem, Jiang Yuyan was very distressed. After all, the business of Rishengchang Bank was closely related to the government, so without the strong support of the government, it would be difficult for Rishengchang Bank to develop rapidly.

As the saying goes, a county magistrate is not as good as the current manager. Even if the governor issued an order, various problems would arise when it was implemented in the towns and villages. Jiang Yuyan did not want the red envelope tactic from the beginning. After all, the more red envelopes sent out, the less money Rishengchang Bank would get. And under Ye Mingsheng's requirements, the profit point of Rishengchang Bank was very low!

But the problem is that without the red envelope tactic, it would be difficult to mobilize the enthusiasm of those honest officials. Therefore, in order to promote the development of Rishengchang Bank, Jiang Yuyan had to adopt the red envelope tactic. This not only caused losses to Rishengchang Bank, but also damaged the administration of Hebei, Henan, Qi and Lu.

Therefore, Jiang Yuyan is a little confused about what to do now, thinking about how to find a balance between the two.

Seeing that Jiang Yuyan didn't speak, Zhao Wanxian also took the initiative to speak:
"Madam Wang, I have also heard about the incident at Rishengchang Bank. I have a plan to help you out of your current predicament!"

As soon as these words came out, Jiang Yuyan immediately became interested, and Jiang Yuyan said directly:
"Appreciate further details!"

Facing Jiang Yuyan's gaze, Zhao Wanxian continued:

"When I returned to Yijing to report to the commander-in-chief, I made a report to him on the current corruption problem in the officialdom of the Great Zhou Dynasty!" "I think the corruption problem stems from human desires. Unless you are a saint who has no desires, how many people can cut off their seven emotions and six desires?"

"There are tens of thousands of scholars in the world, and the number of people who take the imperial examinations every year is as numerous as the nobles crossing the river. Although everyone says that they become officials to assist the emperor and protect the people, but why do they study so hard and endure so many years? Only they themselves know clearly!"

"So I think this problem is easier to solve than to stop. We in the Fengwu Army have always done this. Although the supervision is much stricter than before, everyone's salary has increased a lot. Generally, it has increased by two or three times, and some people have even increased by five times!"

“Although this move did not completely eliminate the problem of corruption, it did alleviate it!”

"I came to Jiyu this time to further implement the Marshal's ideas. I intend to introduce a bonus system while strengthening supervision in Jiyu..."

"Bonus system? Sir Zhao, can you explain it in detail?" Jiang Yuyan asked with some doubt:
Zhao Wanxian said without hesitation:
"From what I know, Madam Wang gives out hundreds of red envelopes every year, which should add up to 100,000 taels of silver. To put it simply, you should convert these 100,000 taels of silver into 70,000 taels of silver in taxes and hand them over to the Governor!"

"The Chief Secretary is distributing these 70,000 taels of silver as bonuses. Those who cooperate well will receive more. Those who are lazy and inactive will not only not receive any bonuses, but will also be dismissed!"

"Madam Wang, if you give them this money as a red envelope, it will undermine the administration of the Great Zhou and violate the laws of the Great Zhou. However, if I, the Governor, give it as a bonus, it is reasonable!"

"In addition, I also plan to give out part of the property of corrupt officials that have been seized as bonuses to officials at all levels. I believe this will form a virtuous cycle!"

Jiang Yuyan couldn't help but frowned after hearing this. Although Zhao Wanxian spoke very well, Jiang Yuyan still realized the problem from his narration.

To put it simply, Zhao Wanxian's idea was to add a middleman, the Governor, between the merchants and the local officials, and at the same time put on a legal cloak, but the question was whether the Governor would intercept the money...

Jiang Yuyan had lived in Da Zhou for a long time, and she knew too well what kind of people these people were. Nominally, 70,000 taels of silver were handed over to the governor as a bonus, but after this move by the governor, would only 20,000 taels be able to be distributed in the end? And could 20,000 taels satisfy the appetite of those people?

Looking at Jiang Yuyan with a frown on her face, Zhao Wanxian said in a deep voice:

"Madam Wang, the Marshal and I both understand your concerns, so the Marshal did not promote this method throughout the Great Zhou, but first tried it out in Hebei and Henan to see how it works. As the governor, the only thing I can promise you is that we will strengthen supervision to ensure that the policy is implemented!"

Listening to Zhao Wanxian's words, Jiang Yuyan hesitated for a moment but finally nodded. Although she still had concerns about Zhao Wanxian's ideas, she didn't have any better way to solve the problem that was bothering her now!

And the most important thing is, as the old saying goes, the people should not fight against the officials. Although Jiang Yuyan is Ye Mingsheng's mistress and is in charge of the work of Rishengchang Bank under Ye Mingsheng's instruction, she is just an ordinary citizen in the final analysis!
Zhao Wanxian is not only the new governor of Hebei and Henan, but also the future pillar of the country who is favored by Ye Mingsheng. Therefore, it seems that the only way for Jiang Yuyan is to cooperate and support Zhao Wanxian.

Zhao Wanxian was overjoyed to see Jiang Yuyan nod. He knew that the path he took was destined to make him unpopular in the court. Therefore, if he wanted to climb up, he had to cling to the Marshal's thigh and gain his appreciation...
In order to gain the Marshal's appreciation, in addition to loyalty, one must also make achievements. Therefore, Zhao Wanxian has made up his mind to make good achievements in Jiyu as a stepping stone for his future entry into the cabinet of the Great Zhou!

To achieve this, it would be much easier to get Jiang Yuyan's support and help, although there was news within the court that Jiang Yuyan had fallen out of favor and the Marshal was tired of this woman!

However, Zhao Wanxian felt that since the Marshal did not execute Jiang Yuyan this time, it meant that the Marshal still had hope for this woman, Jiang Yuyan, so Zhao Wanxian also regarded Jiang Yuyan as his target!
"Madam Wang, don't worry. With Zhao Wanxian here, the development of your Rishengchang Bank in Hebei and Henan is guaranteed. I believe our cooperation will be a win-win situation!"

After hearing the promise made by Zhao Wanxian, Jiang Yuyan felt relieved and started to speak:
"I will need your care in the future, Lord Zhao!"

"Okay! Okay! But before that, Madam Wang, can you do me a small favor so that I can present a great gift to the Marshal during his inspection?"

Seeing that Zhao Wanxian mentioned this gift again, Jiang Yuyan asked with some doubt:
"How can I help, Lord Zhao?"

Zhao Wanxian preached earnestly:

"······················"

Listening to Zhao Wanxian's words, Jiang Yuyan's expression immediately became uncertain. After a long while, she smiled bitterly and said:

"Master Zhao, you want me to pledge my loyalty!"

Zhao Wanxian smiled and shook his head when he heard this.

"No! No! Madam Wang, you are helping me to rectify the administration of Ji and Yu!"

"If this matter is handled by the official, I will definitely tell the Marshal in person about your achievements, Madam Wang. I think the Marshal will be very pleased when he knows that you have come to your senses and turned from evil to good!"

Hearing the words "abandon the dark and join the light", Jiang Yuyan couldn't help but smile bitterly, then raised her head and said to Zhao Wanxian:
"Master Zhao, isn't it enough that you have received the help of Master Zhang Zhiwen?"

Zhao Wanxian said seriously after hearing this:
"Although Lord Zhang has helped me a lot, the most crucial thing still needs to be provided by you, Madam Wang. Madam Wang, remember, helping me is helping yourself. We all want Ji Yu to become better, and we have common interests in this regard!"

Jiang Yuyan was silent for a whole cup of tea. After a complicated ideological struggle, Jiang Yuyan finally nodded and said to Zhao Wanxian in a deep voice:
"Tomorrow at noon I will send someone to deliver what you want to your house, Lord Zhao..."

(End of this chapter)