It would be some time before the heads of the three counties and counties arrived in Huaiyang. During this period, Tang Yin was not idle either. Only Pingyuan, Sanshui and Chifeng were directly under the command of the four legion commanders, deputy commanders and Qian Fu.
The long list will take Tang Yin a while to review and approve.
Basically, each legion submitted a thick list, which included detailed information on candidates, military merits, etc. Tang Yin only selected the commanders of each legion. As for the candidates for deputy commanders and commanders, all were submitted.
Let Qiu Zhen handle it.
During the time he lived in Huaiyang, there were naturally many local officials who came to visit. People came to visit every day. There was a lot of traffic in front of the hotel. Tang Yin was casual by nature and did not like this kind of official politeness.
For those who came to visit, he always recommended Zong Yuan to receive them on his behalf. After all, Zong Yuan originally worked in Huaiyang and was very familiar with the local officials, so he could handle them more easily.
These officials knew very well that although Yu Tao was still the head of the county, Tang Yin was the one who really held the power. For the sake of their future, they naturally wanted to please him a hundred times, and they all brought a lot of gold, silver and jewelry from home when they came.
Since Tang Yin was secluded, he could only see Zong Yuan, and the officials could only get information from the latter's mouth. Of course, it was also necessary to take care of Zong Yuan. Zong Yuan would not refuse anyone who came, and some people wanted to pass through
He gave Tang Yin money, and he accepted it all. Some people wanted to bribe him to make nice words to Tang Yin on their behalf, but he wholeheartedly agreed and accepted all the money.
However, Zongyuan only received money from people, but did not do things for them. He handed over every bit of the gold and silver that the officials gave to Tang Yin. He did not use any of the money that the officials gave him for diplomacy, but put it all in his pocket.
His own pocket. His actions cannot be hidden from the eyes of the secret assassins. This kind of private collection
Money matters are what Tang Yin hates the most. Logically speaking, the undercover personnel should detain him first and hand him over to Tang Yin after thorough examination. However, Zongyuan gave Tang Yin a clever plan to attack Tongmen. Now he is a famous person in front of Tang Yin.
He was deeply appreciated by the latter, and the secret assassins did not dare to touch him easily.
Cheng Jin, as the leader of the Dark Arrow, also approached Tang Yin about this matter, reported everything he knew about Zong Yuan's actions to Tang Yin, and asked what he meant. At this time, the Dark Arrow organization was gradually transforming from an intelligence detection department to a spy department.
, similar to the two factories and one guard during the Ming Dynasty.
After listening to Cheng Jin's report, Tang Yin felt puzzled. If Zong Yuan took bribes privately, then he must do things for others. However, he had never said anything nice to an official in Huaiyang in front of him. On the contrary,
He also often asked himself which official was not capable enough to be reused, which official had too bad character and was not worthy of trust, etc.
He asked Cheng Jin with some uncertainty: "There is nothing wrong with these you checked?"
Cheng Jin's face straightened and he said hurriedly: "Sir, how dare I falsely accuse Lord Zong?"
Tang Yin nodded. Cheng Jin was ruthless, but he was very upright. If there was no complete evidence, he would not accuse Zong Yuan in front of him. He lowered his head, rolled his eyes, and pondered for a long time. Instead of being angry, he was
He smiled and said: "Even if Lord Zong accepts everyone's benefits, he has not done anything irresponsible, so just let him go!"
"Oh...yes! Sir! I understand." Cheng Jin bowed his hands and saluted, turned and left.
When Tang Yin learned about Zong Yuan's private bribery, instead of being angry, Tang Yin actually trusted Zong Yuan even more.
People all have preferences. As long as you know his preferences, it will be easier to control him. I am afraid that he has no preferences and cannot find his weaknesses. Zongyuan likes money and is also greedy for money. This is a good thing. From this, he can It can be seen that his ambition is not big, but he is afraid of someone like Zhong Tian, who is not showy and has no desires and demands around you, but doesn't know when to seize the opportunity and suddenly stab you in the back.
This is the brilliance of Zongyuan.
He has long seen that Tang Yin is very suspicious and it is too difficult to gain his trust. Now is Tang Yin's initial stage. He can be kind to everyone around him, but once he becomes famous in the future, with Tang Yin's evil spirit and cruelty, he People around him may not be treated well. Zong Yuan deliberately showed his greed for money at this time, just to dispel Tang Yin's doubts and to show that he had no ambitions and would not threaten Tang Yin.
There were so many counselors and staff under Tang Yin, including Qiu Zhen, Zhang Zhe and other extremely intelligent and far-sighted geniuses. However, in terms of long-term vision, none of them joined Zong Yuan. When the birds are gone, the good bows are hidden, and the cunning ones are hidden. When the rabbit dies, the running dog will cook, this is the eternal truth.
Ten days later, Shangguan Yuanji and others who were farthest from Huaiyang also rushed to Huaiyang.
At this time, senior officials from Tianyuan County, Guannan County, and Jinguang County all gathered in Huaiyang.
At the official residence of the county capital, Yu Tao prepared a banquet to entertain Tang Yin and other county heads and county guards.
There are three counties in Tianyuan County, three counties in Guannan County, and four counties in Jinguang County. The county head alone has as many as ten people. Ruoda's main hall is filled with officials of all sizes on both sides, and the attendants of the county capital come in and out. From time to time, plates of wine, food, and fruits will be delivered to each table.
According to Tang Yin's wishes, a roasted whole lamb was set up in the center of the main hall. The lamb was half-cooked, and the aroma of the meat filled the room. It was rare for officials from the three counties to gather together, and many of them did not know each other. At this time, They exchanged greetings and toasted each other. The hall was extremely lively, full of cheers and constant laughter.
Of course, people knew who the protagonist of this banquet was. More people went to toast to Tang Yin, forming a large circle around him. Tang Yin had already drank more than ten glasses of wine before taking a few bites of the meal.
No matter how good Tang Yin's drinking capacity was, he couldn't withstand so many people taking turns to toast. Seeing that everyone was endlessly toasting, he stood up, waved his hands and said, "Everyone, please go back to your seats, I have something to say! "
After hearing this, everyone did not dare to be negligent and hurried back to their seats to wait quietly for Tang Yin to speak.
Tang Yin stood there, first looking around at everyone present, and then smiled leisurely. He picked up the dagger on the table, walked around the table, walked to the center of the hall, cut a strip of meat from the roasted whole lamb, and stuffed it into his mouth. After chewing two mouthfuls, he smiled and said: "It tastes good!" As he spoke, he turned his eyes to Yu Tao and said, "Sir, Mr. Yu deserves a lot of credit for successfully repelling Ning's army this time!"
"Ah! You're welcome, sir, you're welcome, sir!" Yu Tao was flattered and bowed repeatedly, with a look of pride on his face.
Tang Yin said: "If Mr. Yu hadn't defected to the city, our army's rear would not have stabilized so quickly. We would also have worries about fighting against Ning and would not be able to use our full strength." After a pause, he smiled and asked: "Sir Yu, I don't know. What reward do you want?"
Yu Tao said hurriedly: "Assisting your Excellency to resist the Ning army is what I should do and my obligation. I dare not ask for rewards!"
What he said was better than what he sang! Tang Yin sneered in his heart, shook his head, and said: "Any merit must be rewarded, and any fault must be punished. This is Dafeng's law, so you don't have to be humble, sir." As he said that, he looked at other people.
Everyone's expressions did not change, but their eyes were drifting towards Yu Tao, with a hint of envy in them.
"Zhong Tian was treasonous and unethical. He killed the king and seized the throne. Everyone got it and killed him. Now we three counties should unite and fight against Zhong Tian. What do you think, sir?"
"What Mr. Tang said is absolutely true!"
"Yes!" Tang Yin nodded and smiled at Tao: "I think it is like this. Lord Yu only serves as the head of one county, which is really overkill. You can be the chief inspector of the three counties. You can inspect the big things in the three counties."
Love, how about not knowing what the adults want?"
"This..." Yu Tao's expression suddenly changed when he heard this. The inspector is just a fictitious position and has no real power. Moreover, he is not popular with others and is looked down upon by everyone wherever he goes. This is a laborious and thankless job.
, how can this not have the stability and comfort of being the head of a county?
Yu Tao took a breath, stood up quickly and said: "Tang... Mr. Tang, I... I'd better be my county chief. The post of chief inspector of the three counties is really... I can't bear!"
Tang Yin smiled and asked, "Master Yu, are you not satisfied with my arrangement?"
"No, no, no, I definitely don't mean that. I just feel that my abilities are limited and I can't...can't take on this important task, and it will ruin a big thing..."
Before he could finish speaking, Tang Yin waved his hands repeatedly and said with a smile: "Your Majesty, there is no need to be humble anymore. I have made up my mind that the post of Chief Inspector belongs to you!"
"Can……"
"There are no jokes in the army, and there will be no jokes in the officialdom. Now that I have spoken, there is no need to say more, Mr. Yu." Tang Yin said with a smile, his face was smiling, but his eyes were shining.
The sharp gaze fell on Yu Tao's face, which made the latter shiver involuntarily, and he did not dare to say the words that came to his lips.
He could hold back, but the four county chiefs under him could not. These four were all close confidants of Yu Tao, and they relied on Yu Tao to become the county chiefs. Once Yu Tao left, their positions would be lost.
No longer guaranteed.
One of the county chiefs, who was in his early forties and had a sharp mouth and cheeks, said, "Isn't it really inappropriate for Mr. Tang to make such an arrangement?!"
"Oh?" Tang Yin turned to look at him and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Although Mr. Tang has promoted Mr. Yu's official rank, the post of Chief Inspector is just a false one. Doesn't this mean that he has been promoted and actually demoted? Mr. Tang keeps saying that he will give a heavy reward to Mr. Yu who has made great contributions, but he uses this
This is a way of ostracizing people, isn't Mr. Tang afraid of being laughed at?"
His words were very serious and went to the point without leaving any dignity for Tang Yin.
Yu Tao said nothing, but he was very happy in his heart. His confidants were his confidants, and at the critical moment, he had to rely on them to speak for him.
Following the outspoken words of the county chief, the atmosphere in the hall immediately became rigid. People took in their breaths one after another, not daring to take a breath, and cast their eyes one after another at Tang Yin.