Before the sun was about to set, Zhang San returned to the inn and saw that Xu Changliang had returned, sitting there silently with a gloomy face.
"Xu Yushi is back, how are you doing there? Has Messenger Yu not come back yet?" Zhang San saw Xu Changliang sitting there alone and was unhappy, so he stepped forward to say hello.
"Uncle Zhang, I went to the granary today to take a look. After looking at it, my heart dropped. The warehouse is almost at the bottom. It can still last for seven days. I think it will be difficult for three days." Xu Changliang sighed.
"What about the grain merchants in the city? Do they store a lot of grain?" Zhang San was also worried and asked quickly.
"Those merchants showed me very little grain, but I thought they should show me only part of it so that I could take advantage of the opportunity to sell grain at a high price. Now the price of grain in the city changes three times a day, and now it has risen to twenty-three cents.
How can the poor people afford it?" Xu Changliang asked many passers-by in the city today and also went to many grain merchants to check. The situation was not optimistic.
"Don't worry, Xu Yushi. Let's discuss it together after the envoy Yu comes back. I'll ask Governor Qian to come over in the evening, and we can come up with a plan together." Zhang San saw that Xu Changliang's expression was very sad, so he didn't think anything of it.
When I told him about the scene I saw outside, I was afraid that the old man would not be able to breathe after hearing this.
For now, let’s wait until everyone is here before we talk!
Zhang San and Xu Changliang said hello and went back to the house first, preparing to write a few letters for the escort to send back.
Zhang San thought for a while, and first wrote a letter to Fang Xuanling, in which he wrote down the plan he planned to carry out, and asked Fang Xuanling to relay it to Li Shimin for him.
Because Zhang San is afraid that if he does not operate properly, he will make a mistake and suffer eternal hatred, which will affect his family. Besides, although this strategy is risky, there seems to be no better way to raise a large amount of money and food in a short time.
After reading the letter to Fang Xuanling several times and finding that there was no flaw, Zhang San carefully put the letter paper into the envelope and sealed it with wax.
Then he took up a pen and wrote a letter home. The main purpose in his mind was to report to a few people that he was safe, and briefly stated the disaster situation here. He asked Xiaoyu to meet with the village leader and various team leaders to discuss, and Zhang San planned to use the commune’s money to purchase a large amount of grain.
, and then transferred here.
At the same time, he mentioned the price of food here in the letter and asked the commune to mobilize caravans, escorts and other manpower and material resources to publicize the high price of food here, which was rare in ancient times.
After doing all this, Zhang San called Erwazi and Genzi and asked them to send the letter back quickly and then come back.
Erwazi and Genzi came to Zhang San's room, Zhang San explained the matter, and the two of them didn't say much. Because time was urgent, they planned to send the letter overnight while the city gate was not closed.
"Sir, Ambassador Yu and Governor Qian are here." Zhang Fu came in and said.
"Okay!" Zhang San came to the front hall of the inn and saw Yu Mingsheng sitting there with a tired face and said nothing.
"You are all here. It just so happens that we all tell what we saw, and then we work out a strategy together." Zhang San said straight to the point.
"Uncle Zhang County, you have been working hard all the way, and today you are rushing to various places to check the disaster situation. Do you want to have something to eat first?" Qian Tong said cautiously.
"Then you can arrange for it to be sent directly here. Without further ado, we should come up with countermeasures quickly. The disaster is more serious than I thought!" Zhang Sanda looked at Qian Tong meaningfully.
Qian Tong also had a bitter look on his face and did not respond. He first asked his subordinates to arrange meals. Then when he saw the three of them looking at him, Qian Tong sighed and said, "You have all seen the disaster, and there is nothing to say. This matter is up to me."
, I was negligent and did not report it to the court in time. I will submit a memorial afterwards and ask the emperor to take action."
Zhang San saw that Qian Tong was a bachelor, so he did not shirk his responsibility, and his feelings for him became better.
"With just one oversight, did you know how many people would die because of this!" Xu Changliang was originally dissatisfied with Qian Tong. After hearing Qian Tong's call, he became even more angry and blushed, slapping the case and shouting.
"I...I can't help it! The drought is no different from other disasters. It is gradual. By the time I receive the disaster report from Xiao County, it is already too late. Besides, even if I report it to the court, will it be useful? How much food does the court have that can be used for disaster relief?
?How many? The autumn harvest is just around the corner. Without this season of food, the people will have to survive the three seasons of autumn, winter, and spring before they can have new food harvests. I... sigh!"
In the past month or so, Qian Tong has been troubled by the drought and has had trouble eating and sleeping. After hearing Xu Changliang's words, the anger he had accumulated suddenly burst out. His words were also quite radical and somewhat disrespectful.
"Okay, don't argue. Now that the matter has come out, let's figure out how to solve it!" Zhang San doesn't want the two of them to continue arguing. This will only make everyone feel grudge. At this time, everyone needs to unite together.
Cooperate instead of meaningless quarrels.
"Messenger Yu, please tell me about the situation on your side!" Zhang San asked Yu Mingsheng, who had been silent at the side.
"Okay, I'm not optimistic here either. The water system here is considered a branch of the Huaihe River. We checked the Sishui River and Mushui River and found that the water flow in these two rivers is very small. Wang Liyuan, a businessman, said that the water volume in the lower reaches is even less and the flow has almost stopped.
So the situation is very bad." Yu Mingsheng said.
"When I went out of the city today, I saw many villages that were dilapidated and empty. Many wells in the villages were also dry. I also found many refugees fleeing from Xiao County. The situation... Sigh! You must have known it along the way.
"Zhang San didn't want to describe the misery of those refugees and said in a deep voice.
"Tell us what countermeasures you have, and let's brainstorm. You should know more about Qian's situation, so tell us what you think!"
"Me." Qian Tong opened his mouth and didn't know what to say. If he had a way, he would have done it long ago.
"I'm at my wits' end now. Without food money, I really don't know what to do."
After Qian Tong finished speaking, he seemed to have used up all his strength. Looking at his appearance, Zhang San guessed that it was time for Qian Tong to run out of skills.
"Messenger Yu, do you have any ideas?" Zhang San had great hopes for Yu Mingsheng, because Zhang San believed that he should be the person Li Shimin really entrusted with important tasks.
"There is no good way at the moment. As Governor Qian said, without money and food, everything will be difficult to carry out. In addition, I plan to continue checking tomorrow to find out if there is a suitable place to dig a well to prepare for autumn sowing." Yu
Mingsheng replied.
Zhang San was a little disappointed when he heard this answer. Everyone knew that money and food were needed, but how to obtain money and food for disaster relief now? So Zhang San turned his attention to Xu Changliang and wanted to hear his thoughts.
"Now we should first lower the price of food. The price of food is too high and few people can afford it. As for other things, I don't have any good ideas." Xu Changliang sighed.
"Food prices were too high, and we tried our best to crack down on them beforehand, but the victims robbed the food and raised the price themselves. It's very difficult to lower the price!" Qian Tong said.
"Then what should we do? We can't just watch the victims starve to death, right?" Xu Changliang said with wide eyes.
Seeing that the two of them were about to quarrel again, Zhang San also had a headache, so he quickly stopped him and said: "You guys should stop talking. I have an idea to tell you, but this idea is too radical."
When the three heard that Zhang San had a solution, they quickly looked at Zhang San.
"I am prepared to continue to raise food prices so that..."
Before Zhang San finished speaking, Xu Changliang slammed the table and shouted: "No, aren't you going to force those victims to death?"
Zhang San was also very angry when he heard this. He resisted the urge to slap him to death. Zhang San said patiently: "Xu Yushi, don't be so excited all the time. Sit down first and listen to what I have to say."
Yu Mingsheng also grabbed Xu Changliang and told him not to be impulsive and to sit down and listen to what Zhang San had to say. At this time, the food was also ready, each person had a bowl of porridge, a stack of side dishes and a millet steamed bun.