Chapter 58 The Flowers Have Increased

  Seven thousand taels of net income, in this era, no matter which city, which country, even going to Europe, can live a life of luxury. However, Li Meng felt that his money was not enough to spend, and he now had only four thousand taels of savings, which could not even provide for the expenses of his subordinates for more than two months.

  Compared with modern Qingdao, October was already very cold at that time. The salt army led by Ma Gang was stationed in the salt field this month.

  Ma Gang joined Li Meng's team relatively late, but he was the fastest learner of Li Meng's various skills. The four captains also had their gatherings to compete with each other, and even Chen Liu Zi, a powerful and insightful man, was no match for Ma Gang.

  Li Meng couldn't help but feel a sense of admiration, after all, it was these young people who had received military training that made the fastest progress. As someone who had served as a personal bodyguard under Commander Zhang's command, Ma Gong had received regular military training in this era, and his comprehension and progress were naturally the fastest compared to these descendants of military households who had been farming for generations.

  Ma Ge's age is the youngest, but his demeanor and actions are very military-like, which is particularly appreciated by Li Meng. After finishing the morning exercise, Li Meng sat in the study, where the servants had already prepared hot towels for him. These servants were all family members of the Liaodong military households, and Li Meng gave them a small allowance, making them happy and content. Originally, some military households were worried about their daughters' chastity, after all, Li Meng was not young, and there were no attendants in his house. However, in the end, everyone was at ease because Li Meng was completely self-disciplined and devoted to managing and training troops.

  Covering his face with a hot towel, savoring the warm moisture seeping into his skin, Li Meng lifted his head and let out a long sigh. He knew he was making a good amount of money now, enough to buy some servants and maids to attend to him, not just for the sake of wealth but also for status. These young servants couldn't be bought with less than five taels of silver, and a horse would cost twenty taels!

  Every evening with a lovely wife and concubine, daytime delicious food, leisure time strolling through these unpolluted natural scenery, isn't this life boundless joy.

  Ke Li Meng knew he couldn't relax, every day's meal was sumptuous, but he couldn't savor the leisurely taste, just wolfing it down and then continuing with his work. Li Meng sighed inwardly, wondering if he was indeed a laborious person, unable to idle away even in modern times, and now in ancient times still the same.

  Just then, the sound of horses and people outside was heard, along with the voices of the guards greeting Salting. A man walked towards this side with big strides, Li Meng rubbed his handkerchief on his face several times, and shouted:

  "Is it Ma Ge?"

  "Boss, it's me Ma Ge, I'm here to mooch off your lunch."

  As they spoke, Ma Gong, with a sly smile, pushed open the door and walked in big strides. He first paid his respects, then sat down at the dinner table without hesitation. Li Meng looked at this robust young man and laughed, scolding him:

  "You don't go back home for meals at Xuejia Island, and ride a horse to come here every day. Is my food better than your family's or what?"

  As for horse riding skills, Li Meng insisted on riding for several hours every day. The result was that he could ride relatively freely and didn't have to worry about falling off all the time. Ma Gang, who had ridden horses before, found it easy to get used to, and riding between Meng Town and Xue Family Island was very pleasant.

  When Li Mengxiu scolded, Ma Geng stretched out his hand to grab a bun, broke it open and stuffed some roasted meat in, took a few big bites, swallowed, then said vaguely:

  "On Xue's Island, every day my father would nag there, really can't stand that annoyance, so I came to your place to ask for some food."

  Li Meng smiled and shook his head. Ma Yu Xing, the hundred households of Ma Bai Hu, had also dealt with him several times in the past year. It was really unknown that there was such a square hundred households in the declining Ling Shan Wei. Every time they met, he advised himself to serve the imperial court as a good man, and doing this private salt business was indeed a waste. Li Meng's temper was still okay, so he responded with a smile. Ma Gong was a young man who was flying high and jumping out of bounds, how could he bear it?

  Ma Gang devoured two steamed buns on the other side, and only then did he slow down his speed. As the captain of the salt team, not allowing private salt from outside to enter the territory was one thing, but training the salt workers and training together was the top priority. Li Meng rarely got angry, but if the salt workers performed poorly in the examination, he would definitely get furious. Ma Gang had also been training in the morning and was both tired and hungry. Just as he was about to continue eating, he saw that Li Meng's expression was somewhat gloomy, and Ma Gang couldn't help but ask:

  "Sir, is there anything unpleasant? If someone has offended you, just give the order..."

  Li Meng shook his head and looked out of the window, saying in a low voice:

  "Recently spent too much money, want to find some ways to save money!"

  As soon as he heard this, Ma Gong wiped his mouth and said loudly to Li Meng:

  "Sir, Ma Ge is speaking out of turn, but it's not necessary for the salt workers to spend so much money. Sir, who did you send to investigate this rule? One or two mace and five cents in silver per month, plus a picul of rice flour, tsk, tsk, this is really too good."

  "Are Laizhou and Dengzhou camps also distributing money like this?"

  "Damn, how is that possible? In Dengzhou I don't know, but in Laiyang camp those bastards, nine times a year they issue rations, each time only six-tenths are issued, and after layers of deductions, what's left can barely fill our bellies. And this is one of the best camps under the great Ming dynasty! Who can compare to us salt soldiers? If it weren't for the two-month rotation, the local people would all be marrying off their daughters to outsiders."

  Hearing this, Li Meng was taken aback and couldn't help but laugh, opening his mouth to ask:

  "How did they find out about this rule for me."

  "Our Great Ming's war soldiers all say this outside, but only the most trusted personal bodyguards of high-ranking officials can get their hands on this money. They are also the ones who charge into battle, I see some people below, giving them a bit less silver can save quite a bit."

  It can be heard that Ma Gong is considering for himself, Li Meng smiled and waved his hand, saying:

  "They are all people who work hard for us, so it doesn't matter if they get a bit more money. Since they are treated as family members and close relatives, we should follow the usual practice."

  Ma Gong scratched his head, but didn't continue speaking. In his heart, however, he thought that their training method was probably much more intense than the one used by Ding's personal soldiers. Seven hundred and fifty personal soldiers from the Ding family? That's a big deal! Even some of the generals in the Ming dynasty don't have such a large scale.

  Just as they were talking, someone outside inquired and pushed the door open. It was Ning Shifu. The patrol office had been moved to Xiangmeng Town by Li Meng, so Ning Shifu and several clerks naturally followed. Ning Shifu first smiled and greeted Li Meng and Ma Gong, then held up a letter and said to Li Meng:

  "The manager of the Wang family's salt shop just sent a message saying that they are hosting a dinner party tonight and would like to invite you, sir."