diskusbooks Chapter 954 Parting on bad terms
Chapter 954 Parting on bad terms
Given Zhang Ping'an's current status, it would be a trivial matter for him to simply have Chi Bao go and speak to the government to prohibit the sale of Furong Ointment in various clinics and brothels.
However, the officialdom is a place where interpersonal relationships are particularly important. This matter should be handled by the Ministry of Revenue. If Zhang Ping'an makes a request without authorization, it would be an unwarranted interference in the jurisdiction of another department.
For sensitive people, this inevitably leads to overthinking and unknowingly creates hidden dangers, which is really unnecessary.
Therefore, at noon the next day, Zhang Ping'an took the initiative to invite Minister Fan of the Ministry of Revenue to lunch, which indirectly showed the importance he attached to this matter.
I thought this matter would be easy, but Minister Fan's attitude was rather intriguing; he laughed it off and changed the subject.
The meaning of "perfunctory" is quite obvious.
It wasn't until Zhang Ping'an pressed him relentlessly that Minister Fan finally addressed the issue directly, saying, "Lord Zhang, I think this is all a misunderstanding. This Hibiscus Ointment is completely different from the Five-Stone Powder of the previous dynasty. And to be honest, I knew about this product as soon as it came out. It's been selling quite well in pharmacies lately. It can help patients relieve physical pain and improve their spirits. Plus, it's cheap. Isn't that a wonderful thing!"
This reason was far-fetched. Seeing the other party's nonchalant attitude, Zhang Ping'an no longer cared about saving face between colleagues and coldly retorted:
"Lord Fan knows? So that means Lord Fan has personally tried it? And that's why he knows this thing is completely different from Five-Stone Powder!"
Upon hearing the question, Lord Fan put away his smile and calmly sipped his tea. "Is there any need to test it? Almost ten days have passed, and I haven't heard anyone report that there's anything wrong with this hibiscus ointment."
After saying that, he glanced at Zhang Ping'an again and reminded him in a sarcastic tone, "The Ministry of Revenue has always been in charge of household registration, finance, taxation, commerce and other matters. I have never heard of anyone from the Privy Council interfering in the affairs of the Ministry of Revenue! Last time, when Lord Zhang mentioned the agricultural disasters after the spring, I didn't take it to heart because we are all colleagues and we are all thinking about the country and the people. But some things can only be done once. The people of the Ministry of Revenue are not good-for-nothings!"
This is practically an open accusation that Zhang Ping'an overstepped his authority.
Zhang Ping'an understood. Minister Fan was probably aware of the matter of the Hibiscus Cream, but he was just turning a blind eye!
As one of the six ministers, the fact that he could do such a thing meant that the interests involved were definitely not small, which made Zhang Ping'an even more interested in this matter.
The two parted on bad terms!
In fact, Zhang Ping'an knew what the other party was thinking. As the court became more and more stable, the status of civil officials would inevitably gradually surpass that of military officials. Although Minister Fan's official rank was similar to his, his family were all civil officials with a large and prosperous family. It was inevitable that he would feel superior and take advantage of Zhang Ping'an's weakness and inability to do anything to him.
If it were anything else, it would be fine, but Zhang Ping'an will definitely investigate this matter thoroughly.
At this moment, he thought of Zheng Ping. When it comes to spying on all sides and collecting information, no one is better than the Eastern and Western Depots!
Zheng Ping was somewhat surprised when Zhang Ping'an came to his door in person.
After listening to Zhang Ping'an explain his purpose, he thought for a moment and then called over one of his subordinates.
He added, "I'm not really clear about this. I haven't heard my subordinates report it to their superiors, which means the impact of this matter isn't too widespread yet."
Zhang Ping'an nodded, "These people are cunning. They sell their products in small and medium-sized clinics, pharmacies, and brothels, so that ordinary people can hardly detect them and just think they are good medicines. If they had put them in larger, established clinics, experienced doctors would have noticed them long ago and wouldn't have let them spread."
Zheng Ping, unaware of the full details, declined to comment; however, he was somewhat curious:
"From your description, Wushi Powder and Furong Ointment have no resemblance in appearance. How can you be so sure they are the same thing? Perhaps, as Minister Fan said, they are just special ointments imported from overseas? Besides, no victims have reported the case yet. You've offended the Minister of Revenue over such a trivial matter. It doesn't seem worth it!"
Zhang Ping'an shook his head and said firmly, "I'm sure! This is an addictive poison. At first, it may make people feel physically comfortable and mentally excited, but over time, the body will become dependent on these ointments and will not be able to live without them. At that time, just a small piece of Hibiscus Ointment can control a person's mind and behavior. Don't you think that's serious?"
At this point, Zhang Ping'an felt truly heartbroken. Thinking back to the historical films he had seen, he realized that a great nation had almost been destroyed by a mere piece of opium paste, which he found terrifying.
Zheng Ping pondered the meaning behind Zhang Ping'an's words for a while, but still didn't say anything. Out of caution, he said:
"No matter what you decide to do in the end, since you came to me personally, I will have my men tell you everything they've gathered later. But what decisions you make afterward is none of my business. You should know that overstepping your authority is the most taboo thing in officialdom! No matter how serious the consequences you're talking about now, it will take time to verify!"
Upon hearing this, Zhang Ping'an cupped his hands in thanks and said, "Thank you very much. It's enough that you can help me with this!"
As for overstepping authority, if it weren't for Minister Fan's deliberate obstruction, this matter wouldn't have been a big deal at all, and it would have been easy to put the Hibiscus Cream on the list of prohibited items!
"We could simply ask a few respected senior doctors in the city to explain, and then have the government issue an official document. But now that Minister Fan has intervened, I have to be more cautious and find out the whole story before taking the next step."
“Yes, you’re right,” Zheng Ping nodded.
No sooner had he finished speaking than one of Zheng Ping's deputies arrived.
After briefly explaining the situation, Zheng Ping said, "You're usually in charge of this kind of intelligence. You know best what's going on with this Hibiscus Ointment and its background. Tell Lord Zhang in detail!"
"Yes!"
After bowing to his subordinate, he began to tell Zhang Ping'an about the origin of the Hibiscus Ointment: "This Hibiscus Ointment was imported from overseas by a newly opened business in the capital. It is said to be from Luzon and Ryukyu, where it is very popular to use this to refresh the mind. It is said to be an ointment made from a variety of precious herbs."
At first, we didn't pay much attention. It was only recently, as sales became increasingly brisk and spread among scholars, that my subordinates noticed and reported it to me. However, since it didn't cause much of a stir and seemed beneficial to the people, I didn't pursue it further or report it upwards.