For the emperor, he only needed a reasonable explanation. As for the truth of the matter, he did not pay too much attention to it.
The case is now over and can be handed over to the higher authorities.
It's just that Li Mu doesn't intend to end it.
Li Mu said: "The case of the missing official silver seems to have come to a conclusion. It was the Sea Dragon King. Now that the case is here, it seems that the case can be closed, but there are still some doubts!"
Li Gong said: "Is there any doubt?"
Li Mu said: "Firstly, the transportation of official silver is a very confidential matter. Why did the Sea Dragon King know about it? Secondly, more than four million taels of silver were piled up like a small mountain and disappeared like this. Most people can't do it; thirdly,
, after the case broke out, I investigated port data and some seaports, but no relevant data was found!"
"Fifth and most important. Master Mei Zhuang just said that this was done by the Sea Dragon King. But was it really done by the Sea Dragon King? After all, we still wore masks and relied on secret codes during the meeting, so we did not see the real person.
, it may be someone who used it under false pretenses, and in the end the Sea Dragon King took the blame!"
After careful and repeated questioning, Li Mu was still dubious about the confession he just made.
Li Gong said: "What's the next step?"
"According to the confession, Yongle Gambling House was responsible for the transportation of information, and was also responsible for smelting the silver, casting it into new silver, and then transporting the silver to a warehouse at the port. Then someone directly took action, transported the silver to the ship, and transferred it to
Other directions.”
Li Mu said: "Not long ago, we sent people to find that warehouse. The owner of the warehouse was only responsible for renting it out, and did not care about anything else... and no favorable plot was found. Enemy veteran, we investigated there, and the clues there were broken!
"
The enemy is a cautious person, and his layout is exquisite and tight. Even if he breaks through a node, the line will be disconnected quickly and it will be difficult to go further. It can be said that everything is difficult.
"Let's go to the dock, maybe we'll go to sea..." Li Mu said.
"Going to sea, you doubt the navy..." Li Gong said.
"Yes! It exploded that day, and the explosives were at least ten tons... The imperial court strictly controlled gunpowder, especially the origin of saltpeter and sulfur. There was a certain amount of gunpowder produced by the private sector. The only gunpowder that could be used on such a large scale was water.
Master!" Li Mu said.
"If you take a walk around the navy, you will make new discoveries!"
This world also has gunpowder, but it is only a low-end version of black gunpowder. As for high explosives such as TNT, it has not been manufactured yet. Moreover, because of impure sulfur and saltpeter, the power of black gunpowder is limited. It is said that the imperial court produced
Armed with artillery, Vulcan guns and other weapons, they must fight against warriors.
As a result, the effect was really not very good.
Firearms are still useful to low-level warriors, but not of much use to high-level warriors.
When we arrived at the pier, we saw ships coming in and out one after another. It was very busy, there were seas of people, and the excitement was constant. In an era without cars, railways, or airplanes, waterways were a more comfortable mode of transportation.
The transportation arteries between the north and the south are connected to shipping, making Jinling City extremely busy.
There are a large number of warehouses near the dock, as well as goods, and customs inspections... By the way, there was no customs here originally, but Li Mu set it up. The tax rate for imported grain, cloth and other daily necessities is lower.
It is also tax-free and imposes heavy taxes on luxury goods, gold, silver, coral, etc.
There are also discounts for larger ships. The bigger the ship, the greater the discount.
"Greetings, sir!" An official came forward and said.
"Take out the latest account book, preferably one month's account book!" Li Mu said.
"Sir, come here!"
As he said that, he arrived in a room where there were account books, which recorded the types of goods, quantity of goods, draft, silver coins delivered, and many other information.
There is no record of large amounts of money coming in or out in the ledger.
The ships that come and go seldom do direct silver transactions, but mostly large-scale goods that are bartered.
After looking through the account books roughly, he couldn't see anything. Li Gong asked, "What can you see?"
"Different goods have different taxes. Some goods may contain these items, resulting in different drafts... As long as it is not excessive, just turn a blind eye. But for some excessive ones, directly
The goods were placed in the water-proof layer and could not be inspected..."
Li Mu explained: "It is impossible to inspect and clean the goods loaded on the dock one by one. It is best to quietly send the money to the ship in the name of loading grain. The only difference is whether the ship is silver or grain, and the draft is different.
!”
As he spoke, he focused on checking the grain accounts and the water depth.
After constant comparison, I found that there was a large ship, and it seemed that the draft was a bit deep...
"There's something wrong with this ship!"
Li Mu suddenly smiled and said this with an account.
"Nanhai Trading Company..." Li Mu said: "Nanhai Trading Company, under which name is it affiliated?"
Li Gong was silent and said: "It is not affiliated, but a company founded by Nanhaihou... The company is headquartered in Suzhou. Nanhaihou is one of the most powerful princes, and his reputation is not inferior to that of my father. Nanhaihou has a huge ocean
The caravans are engaged in overseas trade and are huge in number. It is estimated that the annual income is three million taels of silver... plus the income from the fief and the income from other shops, the income is immeasurable!"
Keeping a low profile is the way to go.
The richer a person is, the more low-key they are and the less aware they are of how rich they are.
This Marquis of Nanhai was very wealthy, but no one knew exactly how advanced he was.
Li Mu said: "It is recorded in the accounts that this fleet loaded with food and went directly north... It may also have changed its brand in the middle and went directly to a different place. On the sea, there is a huge sea of people... How to find it is simply a mystery!"
Li Gong said: "Then we are keeping an eye on Nanhai Company?"
"Actually, there is no need... Most of the Nanhai companies are serious businessmen, and there are only a few entanglements... Even if we turn over everything, we may not find anything?" Li Mu said, it is difficult to deal with the princes of the imperial court.
"Tell me, if you had five million taels of silver, what would you do?" Li Mu asked.
"I don't need that much money...I won't be able to spend much throughout the year, I will only save it!" Li Gong said.
"save!"
Li Mu said: "Then where will you be?"
Safety first.
Money laundering, converting improper property into reasonable property, is the first step;
The second step is to hide the money.
Li Gong said: "If I had five million taels of silver, I would directly cast it into a big silver ball, or pour it directly into a floor to prevent it from being stolen!"
Banks are easily stolen.
If you meet someone like Chu Liuxiang, it is even more likely to be stolen. The best way is to pour it into a big iron ball, weighing several thousand or tens of thousands of kilograms, but Chu Liuxiang cannot steal it; or simply burn it into a floor and plaster it on it.
Disguised and hidden silently, Chu Liuxiang couldn't steal it.