"Oh." Zhu Quanxing looked at his watch. It was almost noon. These Xiangxians had been waiting for three or four hours. Although he didn't want to see this group of people from the bottom of his heart, he still had to make use of them. After all, the Xiangxians
He knows the local situation best and has the most social resources. Especially the Rice Merchants Association in Wuzhou - he has high hopes for it.
"Invite them in."
The leader of the "Xiang Xian Delegation" is none other than Luo Yangming. According to discipline, he cannot take the initiative to expose himself and can only wait for the "superior" to issue "connection" instructions.
At this moment, he is considered to be "bearing a heavy responsibility". The "book protector" in his arms not only contains the gift list, but also the "Agency Authorization Certificate" issued to him by Dachang Grain Company - in fact, this thing is a business partner
It's just a certificate. But the "village sages" think that this is an "official license" for Australians, which can help them gain some connections.
The rural sages in Wuzhou knew very little about the Senate, but they knew more or less the rumors about the Senate. The performance of Fubo Army after entering the city also confirmed the past rumors, so they were no longer in a good mood at the moment.
There was so much fear and anxiety this morning. Although the biggest wealthy households in the city did not dare to come in person, all the big households, including the Jin gentry who had fled to the countryside, sent people, and at least one of their close relatives came.
Luo Yangming knew: What the village sages are most eager to know during this visit is whether the Senate intends to stay in Wuzhou. This is one; second, if they want to stay, how much price they will have to pay.
The first point seems to be undoubted. The Australians came with a large force and could not leave just after the battle. People with a little geographical concept can naturally understand the importance of Wuzhou; so they are more concerned about the second point.
It has been an iron rule since ancient times that large households have to spend a fortune or two when foreign troops enter the country. A few years ago, Governor Wang was defeated in the expedition against the Kun bandits. For a time, the whole of Guangdong was in panic, and many Guangxi troops were mobilized to help. Wuzhou was once
There was a lot of excitement; as for the recent guest army invited by Governor Xiong, they were simply preparing to bring Wuzhou to a pot.
The Australians are coming. No matter how good the military discipline is, the wealthy have to be discerning. The wealthy people don't know how big the appetite of the Australians is, and how "public" and "private" are divided. Although they have calculated a gift list
and labor list, but it was not clear whether it could satisfy the Australians. So they were a little uneasy. They were afraid that the Australian general would fall out and hang him directly - they had heard a lot of such legends.
Zhu Quanxing met with Luo Yangming and his party, and said some words of comfort as usual to ensure the safety of their personal and property; he also instructed the deputy director of the naturalized civilians of the Wuzhou Military Control Commission who came to take over to contact them, and announced the establishment of a "Aftercare Bureau" to let the villagers
Wise men should "give money if they have money, and give strength if they have the ability" - this is what everyone should do, and everyone should do the same.
"I won't say any more." Zhu Quanxing was most concerned about the food issue. "Wuzhou City has been hit by war. There is a lot of damage in the city. Many people have been displaced. We must repair their homes as soon as possible; we must also provide relief.
I have to ask you to do more for the refugees from the war disaster. In addition, our army also needs military rations. The summer and autumn taxes have not yet arrived, and most of the people are small and poor households without adequate food for their homes. This reasonable burden must be
Please bear with me, all the wise men."
Asking for money and food was what he meant, and it was not beyond the expectations of the village sages, so as soon as he said the words, some people came out to complain.
"In terms of money, it's not difficult for you guys to scrape together some money, but this food... is really difficult..."
The speaker's name is Da Xinxuan. There is also a rice shop in Wuzhou City. However, the owner behind this rice shop is the Wu family, a famous gentry in the city. Da Xinxuan came here with a little confidence. Why? Because the young master of the Wu family
, had contacts with Australians in his early years, and it is said that he also had friendship with Dongzhu Guo in Guangzhou, and they had done several "big deals" together.
It is said that Australians are very nostalgic, and those who have worked for them will not suffer. So he was the first to come out and cry about poverty.
Da Xinxuan cried and told that there used to be a lot of grain in the city, but he did not dare to say more. Every household still had a stock of thirty to forty thousand shi worth of rice. However, since Governor Xiong arrived in Wuzhou, people were eating horse chews and rushing to get the grain.
After being transported to Guangxi, more than half of the stored grain has been reduced. In the past few days, there have been wars, and they have been burned and robbed. Each rice shop has suffered heavy losses. For his family, it was only four to five hundred dan.
"...The small ones are relatively good. Some of the grain and rice in the warehouses of some small households were robbed."
Luo Yangming knew that although his words were suspected of "crying for poverty", they were not all lies. It was a fact that the grain bank suffered heavy losses - take his family as an example, the officers and soldiers did not even leave him a grain of rice.
So he coughed and echoed: "Chief, the damage to the local grain store has been extremely heavy. We will do our best to repay the reasonable burden, but please be considerate of the time and amount."
Zhu Quanxing nodded: "You and the deputy director should discuss this matter slowly. For now, you will spend one hundred kilo meters to set up a porridge shed for the refugees."
"Yes, yes, this porridge shed was originally there, and the little ones recovered immediately."
There is indeed not much grain left in the city. Not only the warehouses of Mihang have suffered great losses, but also public grain storage warehouses such as prefectural and county-level warehouses, private Changping warehouses, and so on. According to preliminary statistics from joint service personnel,
The amount of grain seized was less than 4,000 shi, and some of it was damaged by fire, smoke, and flooding.
"It seems that Lao Xiong has indeed left us a mess." Zhu Mingxia couldn't help but sigh after receiving the first report after taking over Wuzhou.
At present, we not only need to raise food, but also provide relief to refugees. There are hundreds of households and thousands of refugees who lost their homes in the riots in the city. During the process of expelling the people, many businesses and homes were looted by the rioters. These people
They are also in urgent need of relief. At a glance, there are already more than 20,000 people in need of relief alone.
Xu Xu has already gone to the city for "investigation". Firstly, he is to supervise the prisoner interrogation work to see if there is any valuable information; secondly, he has to find a way to contact the "lone wolf" - in addition to the urgent need to obtain specific information about Wuzhou,
He was also very interested in this intelligence agent who delivered important information in the city and even instigated the rebellion of quite a few powerful factions in the city.
Chang Qingyun and more than fifty other people were detained in Wengcheng. The rope was not untied, and no one looked at him because he looked like a gentleman. The city gate was wide open, and it was very lively with people coming and going.
The soldiers, whether they are running around or standing guard, are all neatly dressed and have straight postures. Clothing and equipment
"After two years of separation, this Kun man is so strong!" Chang Qingyun couldn't help but sigh.
His group of prisoners were untied one by one, and everyone was taken to a small room at the foot of the city wall for questioning. Most of them were detained alone after they came out, while some happily entered the city after they came out.
Sitting at the foot of the city wall, Chang Qingyun was extremely unhappy. Although everyone knew that if they fell into the hands of the Kun people, they would not have to worry about their lives. However, various Kun people kept pointing fingers at them while they were tied up together.
The few Guangxi soldiers who were standing there often cast him ill-intentioned glances, which also made him feel uneasy.
Chang Qing went into the hut but didn't come out for a long time. When Chang Qingyun was confused, a passerby suddenly shouted, "That's Chang Qingyun! That's the guy who wants to set fire to the city!"
It turned out that a book office of the government recognized him. This book office had a lot of business in Wuzhou. Hearing that Master Xiong was going to burn the city, he was very anxious and angry for a while. After the Fubo army took military control, the book office immediately defected to Wuzhou.
Song was leading the Australians to count the official warehouses in Wuzhou. With his voice, dozens of people immediately gathered, "Kill him!" "Burn him to death!" "Xiong Wencan's lackey!" For a moment, spit and mud were everywhere.
Pieces of charred wood flew toward Changqing Yun.
"Spread out, spread out!" The Fubo army on the side immediately came over to disperse the crowd; the two soldiers strode towards Chang Qingyun, each of them put up an arm and went to the hut.
Chang Qingyun was hit on the forehead by a broken brick. He was feeling dizzy when he was pinned down on the bamboo chair by Kun Bing.
He forced himself to calm down and looked up. There were three men sitting behind the desk in front of him. Two of them were young men. At first glance, they were just fake men in uniforms, not Australians. The other one was sitting a little further away.
Leaning back, the face is hidden in the darkness, making it difficult to see clearly.
"Name?" The person who asked was a young man.
"I am Chang Qingyun."
"Are you Xiong Wencan's staff?"
"Yes, Chang works in Xiong Dumu."
"Did you come up with the idea to set fire to Wuzhou City?"
"No, this is actually a frame-up by a traitor. I hope you will investigate clearly." Chang Qingyun knew that this shit basin must not be recognized no matter what, otherwise the Australians would definitely punish him severely and hang him directly in order to win over people's hearts. "This is
The gift given by Enping County Magistrate Chang Pu has nothing to do with me."
"We will definitely find out whether it was your idea. We suggest you take the initiative to confess and seek leniency."
"It is indeed not what I did. The sky can see it!" Chang Qingyun knew that the Australians had no intention of causing trouble and would never use your head for free, so he felt at ease.
"Do you know where Xiong Wencan went?"
"I don't know." Chang Qingyun thought that it was too blunt to say this, so he added, "The day before the army entered the city, he disappeared. If you want to talk about escaping, it can only be anywhere in Teng County or Rong County."
"Tell me what you know about the situation of the Ming army defending the city."
Chang Qingyun secretly wondered, the officers and soldiers guarding the city had already collapsed, what else could they say? But since he asked, he had better answer honestly, so as not to offend the thief.
Fortunately, he was in the middle of the curtain and knew very well about the various people who defended the city. At that time, the generals of the host and guest defenders were clearly informed about their affiliation, origin, number, and generals.
"Where did the Ming army guarding Bangshan come from? Who is the general?!"
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Next update: Volume 7 - Guangzhou Governance Chapter 329