It's hard for a clever woman to make a meal without rice, so Fan Zhongyan and Ye An's army split into two groups.
Fan Zhongyan was responsible for reassuring the people and raising grain from the wealthy households and grain merchants in Suzhou City to stabilize the overall situation. He sent people to write notices for reassuring the people and posted them everywhere in the city. He also sent government officials to beat gongs and preach, and the effect was still there.
The originally numb victims had begun to gather at the state government office. They didn't know what kind of official the pacifier was, but now they knew that the pacifier was more effective than the prefect in Suzhou City.
Ye An, on the other hand, was responsible for tracing the whereabouts of the grain in the official warehouse, and took the pear blossoms and dried meat from his carriage. Ye An personally ordered Tie Niu to invite Liu Zhao to come to Guanyi for a talk.
As the commander of the Suzhou Baojing Army, Liu Zhao at least had some understanding of the situation in Suzhou City.
Liu Zhao entered Guiyi anxiously, thinking that Ye An was lecturing him, but looking at the dried meat, fine wine, and steamed buns in front of him, he began to swallow his saliva in dismay.
Even as the general of the Baojing Army, the food he had there could only be said to be enough to satisfy his hunger. The money and food of the Xiang Army were often deducted layer by layer, and he could not bear to exploit the soldiers below, so naturally he was a little shabby.
Ever since the drought and locust plague broke out in Suzhou, he had not eaten more than a few meals of meat. Seeing the bright red meat on the table glistening with oil, he couldn't bear it anymore.
"Don't be formal. Today I am hosting a banquet for our brothers in the army. If you are so formal, it will make me uncomfortable!"
Seeing Liu Zhao's restraint, Ye An informally stepped forward and took his arm towards the dining table. This move almost made Liu Zhao burst into tears. When did the commander of his army receive such high regard?
How often does a Shangguan pass by without being arrogant? It would be better if he were a military general, but if he were a civil servant, he would treat himself as a servant!
He clasped his fists at the table and saluted in panic. Liu Zhao then sat down halfway on the stool and said, "I will be frightened when Marquis Ye is so kind. If there is a place where Liu Zhao can be used, I will not dare to refuse!"
Although these words were not as nice as what he said in front of Fan Zhongyan, they were full of sincerity. With Liu Zhao's monthly salary, how much money can he make from the Baojing Army? Words like "serve one's life to the death" are nothing but
They were just polite words to Fan Zhongyan, the pacifier.
Liu Zhao knew very well that Ye An came to see him alone and must have something to ask. However, Ye An did not ask questions but raised his glass and said: "It's good that you have the confidence in your heart. I will not make things difficult for you, nor will I let you do anything sinful."
Regarding human matters, I have also been in the army, so I naturally know how difficult it is for you. It is very difficult to maintain an army of more than a thousand people like this! For this reason, I also want to toast you.
!Come, come, come, have a drink!"
Although he knew that Ye An was pouring ecstasy soup on himself, Liu Zhao still had such a strong temper, and his mood in front of Ye An quickly became undefended with the help of alcohol.
After three glasses of wine, Ye An learned from him how different the Xiang Army of the Song Dynasty was from the Forbidden Army.
In the past, whether in Huanzhou or Ganliang, the border troops he led were all composed of forbidden troops, and they had friction and conflicts with foreigners all year round. Naturally, they were not comparable to the domestic Xiang troops. Even compared to the forbidden troops in Tokyo, they were lacking.
The smell of blood.
The combat power of the Xiang Army was even less impressive. Ye An didn't ask many questions at the wine table, but he could see Liu Zhao's embarrassment and he really didn't dare to say anything about the combat power of his Bao Jing Army.
What Liu Zhao hopes most is to change from the commander of the Xiang Army to the commander of the Forbidden Army. The commander can be expanded to three commanders or even more troops, but the combat power between the Xiang Army and the Forbidden Army is vastly different.
, for this reason he was willing to be the commander of the Forbidden Army with only 500 people.
"The Baojing Army is a Xiang Army, and all the good ones among them have been selected by the general. Although these two hundred people are not the best warriors, they have strict orders, and there are no scoundrels in the army.
If you can train them with all your heart, all of them will be able to meet the conditions for entering the ban!"
Ye An smiled. He knew very well what Liu Zhao meant. He was recommending himself!
"Since I have a non-military position, if I were to promote the Imperial City Division, I would naturally be able to make an argument, but right now I'm afraid..."
Liu Zhao's eyes were quite disappointed. He had spent enough time in the Baojing Army. Not all Xiang soldiers had money to make. More importantly, judging from his official position, he could only be promoted based on military merit.
Change the price, but where does the military merit come from in Xiangjun?!
"But it's not impossible. It may not be possible to transfer you to Tokyo City, but it's not impossible to serve in the Xi Lie Army in Liangzhou Prefecture. The military merits there are quite a lot!"
Ye An's words were very confusing to Liu Zhao, and he also understood what Ye An meant. If he wanted to be transferred to Liangzhou Prefecture, he must have meritorious service.
As for how much credit he deserves, it is self-evident at the moment.
Standing up to protect himself, Liu Zhao knelt down on one knee and said firmly: "If Marquis Ye orders you, Liu Zhao will go forward and behind the horse!"
This is a mutually beneficial cooperation. Ye An smiled and helped Liu Zhao up and said: "That's very good. Now I want to find out where the food in the official warehouse in Suzhou City has gone. Do you know something?"
"
Liu Zhao was slightly stunned. He didn't expect that what Ye An wanted to know was so simple, and then said: "Of course I went to the largest Lidong Grain Store in Suzhou City!"
"Lidong Grain Store?" Ye An muttered to himself. This grain store can swallow up the grain of the official warehouse in a short time, and even Zhang Qian cooperates with it. It seems that the background is quite deep.
"Who is behind Lidong Grain Store?"
Liu Zhao shook his head slightly and said: "I don't know, general, but I heard that it belongs to a government official in Tokyo. As for the specific official, we don't know."
This is true, Ye An nodded and said: "Okay, then I will check it from this Lidong Grain Shop. Are other grain shops in Suzhou City related to it?"
"There are many grain stores in Suzhou City, and Lidong Grain Store follows suit. In the past, some of the rations for the Baojing Army also came from Lidong Grain Store."
That's right, Ye An has always suspected that the food in Suzhou City is gathering in one place, including the food in the official warehouse. Seeing this situation, I am afraid that this is not the case in Suzhou. The food in the nearby state capitals will also be concentrated.
Only in this way can food prices be further raised and people's wealth squeezed.
Every time of great disaster, there must be an opportunity to harvest the wealth of the people. The so-called landlord class is just a tool in the hands of the scholar-bureaucrats. How many scholar-bureaucrats in the Song Dynasty were hiding behind the merchants and controlling everything?
Ye An couldn't help but look in the direction of the government office. Fan Zhongyan and himself were focused on removing miscellaneous taxes, but what happened? That was just the court's way of harvesting the people, and the families of officials and officials who made money had already made a lot of money during the disaster.
Just when Ye An was sighing, Zhao Hu came back with his people. They had dispersed in disguise in the city to collect information before Ye An went to Guanyi. Three of the soldiers were from Jianghuai and were fluent in the Suzhou dialect.
He quickly gained the people's trust by pouring wine and found out about Lidong Grain Store.
Some things can be hidden from officials but not from the people. Of course, the people in Suzhou City know where the food in the official warehouse goes.
But there is even worse news. The White Lotus Society has also appeared in Suzhou City. It is said that there is also a powerful teacher giving lectures at the Empress Temple in the east of the city, and people are watching in huge crowds.
The great man even claimed that the heavy rain was caused by his prayer, and the people believed it to be true, and many of them followed him like ducks.
Ye An couldn't help but feel dizzy. He didn't expect that the original plan to appease the Jianghuai disaster would become so complicated. He couldn't help but murmur to himself: "It's really internal and external troubles. I'm afraid small Suzhou will be turned upside down!"