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Chapter 465: Mr. Zhang treats guests, you pay the bill

When bedding and clothing were distributed, the East City area of ​​Kaifeng was extremely lively.

Even if there is not much clothing and some people have not received it yet, it still means hope for these people who have narrowly escaped death.

They felt a sense of trust, as if they suddenly had support and no longer only feared the future.

So the young men studied, the women weaved and sewed, and the men either served as guards or were responsible for transporting food, and doctors, workers, musicians, etc. were selected from among them.

There are many B&Bs here.

Immediately afterwards, the roads and garbage were cleared, and even huts were built.

There is even gravel between the thatched houses, so even if it rains, you are not afraid of mud.

Medical clinics, tanneries, blacksmiths and even post offices for writing letters were built one after another.

The food is getting better and better, and they no longer eat porridge. The first thing that has improved is their labor. They now have three meals a day, except for porridge in the morning, and dry rice at other times.

It's white rice.

A guard from a hundred households dispatched fifty people to the only way to the grain road to guard against thieves.

The remaining fifty people continued to practice where they were.

I heard that the same is true for other city gates in Kaifeng.

Yes, after working, everyone sat on the ground in the open space. Here, someone boiled water and even mixed a little tea leaves into the boiling water.

The tea leaves were crude and not worth much money, but the boiling water had a slight tea flavor, but it was still very popular.

Everyone was sitting on the rocks or simply on the ground, and there was a boy of half age who was reading aloud the latest newspaper sent by the grain team.

These half-year-old boys are older and most of them are the best at learning.

Therefore, people not only looked at this half-grown child with admiration and envy, but also listened to the movements of the imperial court while working hard.

What did the emperor do today, what edicts were issued, and who he reprimanded.

Or maybe His Highness the Prince of Wuhu County gave some order, such as an order to protect the soldiers and civilians from the disaster.

Or somewhere, it was found that relief work was not done in a certain place, and the Jinyi Guards arrested him.

There is another interesting piece of news today: His Royal Highness the Crown Prince went to Guanzhong with the Model Camp to help relieve the people.

This kind of news was very far away from people in the past. People who could read were very few and far between, and newspapers were expensive. What happened in the newspapers seemed to have nothing to do with them.

Their only contact with the imperial court was probably the local land security guards and armor chiefs who came to collect food in the name of the imperial court.

But now, they slowly understood what the imperial court was like. The emperor didn't just spend all day eating pancakes and sleeping with women in the palace.

As for someone who embezzled the food that was supposed to be given to them, people can't help but gnash their teeth over it.

This kind of hatred is really deep in the bone marrow. Catastrophic disasters have caused the families here to be separated countless times. The feeling of starvation is so unforgettable that every time the food is released, everyone wolfs it down.

.

The memory of hunger is the most terrifying, because even if one day you are no longer hungry, when you look back on those miserable years, you can't help but feel a ray of light on your back, and your stomach and intestines, even if they are full, feel faintly.

Creeping brings a feeling of hunger throughout life.

The child who was reading the newspaper was stumbling, and his voice was a little childish, but this voice had an indescribable magic power, which made people slowly digest their anger and calm down.

Sometimes, civil servants would come and give a speech after reading the newspaper. What they talked about was nothing more than what the Taiping Prefecture would do in such a situation, what decree the emperor would issue, and what edict the Prince of Wuhu County would issue.

Of course, it is boring to talk about this. The scribes who are responsible for preaching will also intersperse some short stories in it.

What seas, what vast oceans, the natives from all over the world, and the steam locomotives in Qixia and so on.

Everyone gathered together, some were shocked, some whispered, while drinking bad tea, they tried hard to imagine the world described by the scribe.

People who are sophisticated in the world find these things unbelievable. How could such a place exist in the world?

But Liu Jianye sat on the floor and listened quietly, his eyes shining.

Like most young people and teenagers, he firmly believes in this.

A catastrophic disaster caused him to lose his mother, and he has not yet recovered from the grief. Now, these people from Taiping Mansion, hearing that they came under the king's orders, have given him the greatest support in his life.

It gave him a little extravagant hope for the future.

The two doctors who led him were also from Taiping Mansion. Occasionally, during their chats, they could always hear some trivial new things, so unknowingly, there seemed to be a seed buried in his heart, quietly

The ground takes root and sprouts.

It's just the prosperity here.

But it has already made people panic.

Food prices have actually been maintained.

But so far, there are only a few people buying food.

With such high food prices, food can be eaten for free everywhere in Kaifeng. Every one of these people had their stomachs full of food, and in the evening, they sang together with great energy.

Only fools spend money to buy grain, let alone want to sell it at a huge price!

At this point, Zhou Juren and others, who had been upset and angry for many days, finally couldn't sit still.

This time, with almost dark faces, they arrived at the government office together.

The prefect Liu Jin also felt a headache when he saw the faces as heavy as ink.

As a prefect, what else can he do now? He can't take care of things in the city. As for the outside of the city? There are Jin Yiwei and the escort team of the Model Battalion when they go out. No officer dares to make a mistake.

Even among the police officers, many people ran away.

As a errand here, I can barely survive in Hukou, but I can't stand the white rice outside.

Even if the errand boy didn't go to eat food, everyone in the family would be gone.

After all, they are low-level officials and do not even have a formal establishment.

There are also people who come back from eating grain and talk to people about how they have been recorded in the official books and can still be officials. They say they have noses and eyes. They even say that there is a petty official who is now a prefect.

He also goes around saying that it is not necessary to take the imperial examination to become an official. What kind of children can read and read? Someone will find a husband for you.

This news reached the ears of the prefect, and Prefect Liu became furious.

The ancients, especially scholars, were very strict in governing officials.

They believe that petty officials are inherently despicable and are the best at opportunism. Officials must be treated harshly.

As for certain restless words and deeds, it was even more taboo, and he immediately ordered someone to beat him up.

But this had no effect. The man was carried away, and word spread in the government office that he had gone to a medical clinic outside the city for treatment.

In this way, the servants in the government office felt even more uninteresting.

Sometimes, if they want to arrest someone, the Jin Yiwei will not negotiate with the prefect's Yamen at all. They only need to find a sergeant, and the sergeant will immediately recruit friends and take the initiative to help him.

On the other hand, the prefect's order, even if it was intimidation, seemed meaningless to everyone. If they could, they could mingle, but if they couldn't, they might disappear without a trace the next day.

After listening to Zhou Juren's complaints, Liu Jin thought about what happened in the government office these days, and his anger seemed to have accumulated to a climax. He immediately stood up and said angrily: "The people's hearts are so floating, how can these people still be so angry?"

How can you keep yourself safe?"

He cursed angrily.

Seeing him like this, Zhou Juren felt that something was wrong.

Therefore, Zhou Juren put on a sad look and said: "Master Fu, the students should speak frankly. If this continues, the students and others will be put to death. Now, our granaries are full.

, with so much grain, the daily loss of storage is a big expense, but now...but not a single grain of rice can be sold, isn't this going to drive us to death?"

Zhou Juren paused and then continued: "Even when Emperor Taizu Gao was here, although the punishments were severe, at least... he thought that we were the cornerstone of the imperial court. What is it like now? It's really sad to say that.

, today, when it comes to this, the grain merchants and students will really die without a place to bury them."

Liu Jin frowned and said hesitantly: "In this matter...what can I do? Alas..."

Zhou Juren and others were obviously anxious, and no one was polite anymore. Wang Jin took the lead and said: "A lot of the grain in our granary seems to be the relief grain from the imperial court, but why does this relief grain appear in our granary?"

?This... once the truth is revealed, many things will be difficult to say."

The meaning of these words is self-evident, even if I am going to die, I will hold you on my back!

Liu Jin's expression suddenly changed, he stared coldly and said, "Do you want to threaten me?"

Wang Jin retorted: "When the time comes, I will have no choice but to die with the Lord!"

Zhou Juren smiled and gave everyone a step down, saying: "Okay, okay, the matter has come to an end, why is it necessary? We are all scholars. If you have anything to say, please speak it carefully and discuss it slowly."

Liu Jin's expression softened slightly, but he sighed: "Hey... things have come to this, we have to find a way..."

"What can I do?"

"This..." Liu Jin looked hesitant, as if he was thinking about something.

The mansion fell into a deathly silence again.

After a while, Liu Jin finally said: "For now, we can only continue to buy grain."

Wang Jin said angrily: "Where do we still have money now?"

Liu Jin took a deep breath and said: "A few days ago, some merchants came to visit and said they were doing loan business..."

"Loan?" Wang Jin had a bad temper and said with disdain: "Historically, only others have borrowed money from us, so why should we borrow money from others? Don't you find these words ridiculous?"

Zhou Juren also frowned, obviously not happy either.

Everyone was even whispering.

Liu Jin obviously grasped the last life-saving straw. He had to bite the bullet and said: "The problem now is... if there is no money, there will be no grain, and the price of grain cannot be maintained. But once there is money,

If you use money to buy out the grain in Jin Yiwei's hands, then... all the grain will be in your hand.

You can sell as much as you want, and sell it at whatever price you want. If the people have no silver, you can also teach them to sell the land at a low price. If you don't have any more money, you can sign a deed of sale, or lend it to someone else at a higher interest rate.

The common people and the princes...now we can neither advance nor retreat. There is only one way."

Zhou Juren looked miserable.

Even the prefect only gave them this kind of advice, which obviously showed that even prefect Liu had no solution at all.

Zhou Juren was still calm and said: "But Jin Yiwei's food supply is endless..."

"Ha..." Magistrate Liu sneered, "You have been fooled."

Zhou Juren was stunned at first, and then said in shock: "Have you been fooled?"

Magistrate Liu nodded and said: "The news from Qixia was delivered to me by express delivery two days ago. Guess what? In order to raise food, the Prince of Wuhu County ignored the fact that the people of Zhili were starving.

Many people got up for it. After hearing about it, they even burned a workshop and injured many people. The commotion there was so fierce that the people's resentment was boiling. He, Zhang Anshi, could not protect himself at this time."

"You can't protect yourself, how can you still have so much food?" Zhou Juren's eyes were wandering.

Magistrate Liu said: "Isn't this simple? This is a bet that we can't eat such food and dig up our roots. But he is also marching in danger. You must know that the disaster-stricken areas are in four provinces.

How long can he provide relief to millions of people, so many people? Now we are fighting for this one breath. Once this breath cannot be sustained, everything will be lost, and vice versa."

Zhou Juren raised his eyebrows and said, "Is the news serious?"

He looked hard at Magistrate Liu.

Magistrate Liu did not hide it from him, and actually took the official documents circulated in the government and showed them to them.

After Zhou Juren and others saw it, they looked at each other.

Liu Jindao: "Now you understand... In my opinion... Zhang Anshi dares to bet. All the wealth and lives of all the princes will be lost, so why not dare to gamble? Nothing is difficult in the world..."

Zhou Juren closed his eyes and weighed, as if he was also calculating something.

Finally, he opened his eyes and said solemnly: "Once the bet is made, Zhang Anshi is a relative and the county king after all..."

He didn't say anything else, but Magistrate Liu understood.

Liu Jin took a deep look at Zhou Juren and said, "But don't forget that Hu Guang, the great scholar of Wenyuan Pavilion, has always sympathized with the princes. This time he was patrolling the four provinces. Zhang Anshi is now acting as the Yue chef, so he is obviously the same."

We are targeting Mr. Hu, and this time...it is not difficult to guess that Mr. Hu may not be able to tolerate it anymore."

"Hu Gong..."

Zhou Juren opened his eyes slightly, as if he was confirming something.

Liu Jindao: "Hu Gong is a gentleman in the court, his disciples are old officials, and he is everywhere in the court and the public..."

"Understood." Zhou Juren said: "This matter is of great importance. We still need to go back to discuss it. Hu Gong's side..."

Magistrate Liu understood immediately and immediately said: "Don't worry, I will repair the book immediately..."

"Thank you."

…………

Tongguan.

When we arrived here, a group of troops from the Inspection Department escorted the carriages and sedans from Shaanxi and went straight to Luoyang.

In the carriage, Hu Guang was sitting upright in the sedan. He was motionless, his face always gentle, but with an indescribable emotion.

After walking another ten miles, we arrived at the post station, where we entered the official room. Before we could even sit down, the attendants came with quick notes from all over the place.

"Hu Gong, reports from various places..."

Hu Guang didn't even raise his eyes and just said: "I know."

Shiren took a deep breath, thought for a while, and said, "Mr. Hu, there are many rumors outside."

Hu Guangdao: "Say."

She Ren said: "This time... someone seems to be targeting Mr. Hu. Mr. Hu has always been in the court and kept aloof from others, but he didn't expect... to be attacked by such a vicious attack. Mr. Hu should make plans early and take precautions...

"

Hu Guangdan said: "Where did you hear that?"

"this……"

Hu Guangdao: "You have been with me for many years, right?"

"yes."

Hu Guangdao: "Hey..."

Hu Guang waved his hand: "Go down, you go down."

Shiren hesitated to speak: "Actually, there are many people in the court... who are complaining about Mr. Hu..."

Hu Guangdan said calmly: "Don't worry, I don't need you to teach me how to protect yourself wisely and how to cut through troubles quickly."

Shiren nodded.

Hu Guang pointed to the official document in front of him and said: "These are all sent by various prefectures and counties."

"Yes, they all hope that Mr. Hu will make up his mind."

Hu Guang nodded: "It's not easy for everyone, I will reply to the letter."

Then, he didn't make any more noise, and Shiren quietly retreated.

…………

In the prince's palace, the carriages and horses are like dragons.

Many reports came from all directions.

Zhang Anshi was overwhelmed with orders.

Three orders were issued today.

Regarding the new relief regulations for the disaster-stricken people, it greatly described the dangers of the victims eating only food. Therefore, hundreds of thousands of dried stone fish were immediately escorted and sent to various prefectures and counties.

We also introduced emergency measures to recruit mobile theater troupes to go to various prefectures and counties to provide relief.

There is also a shortage of paper and pen and ink in various construction command and control departments.

These orders one after another made people stunned.

After all, no one can imagine that this thing can be played like this.

This is not helping the people, this is clearly serving the uncle!

Zhang Anshi still kept smiling despite this.

"What are you afraid of? Let's just place orders with various workshops, recruit theater troupes, collect paper, books, pen and ink, and more cotton clothes and cloth. Don't worry, someone will pay the bill for us!"

"Yes, some iron tools are also needed. To build bridges and pave roads is inseparable from tools. I heard that there are many armed guards below the commanders and envoys. Now is an emergency. I heard that there are a lot of bandits. I want to

The solution is to find some scraps of swords, guns, swords and halberds and send them out as well."

"Here."



"His Majesty……"

Dongchang was not idle either and sent reports one after another to Zhu Di.

Zhu Di has been very upset these days.

At this time, he just nodded and said: "Say."

Yi Shiha said: "Another batch of grain and many supplies have been allocated from Taiping Mansion, but... the situation in Taiping Mansion does not seem to be very good. I heard... that many soldiers and civilians are not aware of this.

There are complaints..."

Zhu Di listened, shook his head and said: "Hey... these people have no food and clothing, I have to worry about it. This Anshi is giving out money and food all at once, and giving out money and food in such an extravagant manner, I am even more worried about it. When will this be the case?

Head..."

Yi Shiha was speechless for a moment and didn't know how to respond.

Fortunately, he remembered something, so he said: "But there was a lot of discussion in the court..."

Hearing the word "discuss", Zhu Di's face gradually turned cold: "Let me hear it."


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