Chapter 261 Game Between the Emperor and His Ministers

One autumn after another.

In the new year, the new emperor changed Yuan Zhaode to the first year of Zhaode.

This year has been very different from previous years.

Since the beginning of the twelfth lunar month last year, the northern provinces have been experiencing heavy snowfall for days. All provinces have been affected to varying degrees. The disaster has been severe and food prices have risen sharply. There is no sign of relief until the Spring Festival, casting a deep shadow on this new year.

Many old people failed to survive this long winter...

…

A slight movement woke Yang Ge up from his nap in the chair.

He stood up and walked quickly to the bed, and saw the old shopkeeper's cloudy eyes open, his mouth open and breathing rapidly as if he was suffocating...

He quickly stepped forward and uncovered the thick brocade quilt on his body, helped the old man sit up, and held the misty blue light in one hand slowly along his skinny vest... There was a charcoal stove in the room, and the bed was covered with thick and It was a soft bearskin mattress, but the old man's body didn't have much warmth, and his dry palms were as cold as overnight meals.

The old man fell ill in the twelfth lunar month of last year. He was in and out of bed and was getting thinner and thinner. Yang Ge sought medical advice from all over the place but couldn't find any improvement. He could only watch over the old man day and night, using Tai Chi Qi to regulate the old man's condition. body function, stabilizing the vitality of the elderly, and looking forward to the early arrival of spring.

After a while, the old shopkeeper finally regained his composure and exhaled a long, turbid breath.

Yang Ge helped the old man lean against the bedside and tucked him in with a quilt: "Do you always want to eat something?"

The old shopkeeper shook his head with difficulty: "I can't eat it..."

"You haven't eaten for almost a day, but you still have to take two bites if you can't eat!"

Yang Ge reached out and touched the egg custard that was upside down on the bedside. He felt a little cold, so he held the bowl with one hand and released a burst of infuriating energy. Feeling that the cold pottery bowl quickly heated up in the palm of his hand, he drew back his infuriating energy and opened the pottery bowl. , a burst of heat rose up.

He picked up the egg custard and fed it to the old shopkeeper's lips with a spoon: "People are like iron rice and steel. If you don't eat one meal, you will starve... ah."

The old shopkeeper smiled with difficulty, opened his mouth and took a spoonful of warm egg custard. He swallowed it with difficulty, because the veins on his head stretched out from too much force.

Seeing this, Yang Ge quickly put down the egg custard, picked up the water glass, and brought the bamboo straw inserted in the water glass to his lips: "Drink water, please."

The old shopkeeper quickly opened his mouth and took a sip of water, stretched his neck full of veins and swallowed.

Yang Ge quickly put down the water glass again, and released Qingyun Qi with one hand and carefully followed the old man's chest... His Tai Chi Qi has the ability to produce hair in all things, but only if it can withstand the growth of Tai Chi Qi.

The old shopkeeper's body and bones are too weak. If he forcibly stimulates his remaining vitality, it will be equivalent to burning his vitality and initiating the return of light in advance.

"ah……"

The old man came to his senses and exhaled a long breath, his whole body visibly sluggish.

He smiled reluctantly and said in a weak voice: "God is going to take people away. I'm afraid we won't be able to survive this time..."

"Don't talk nonsense!"

Yang Ge bravely picked up the egg custard, but in the end he couldn't bear to put it back and said with a forced smile: "It's already spring, as long as you are willing to eat more, I guarantee that when the weather gets warmer, you will be able to feel better! "

He has experience that as long as the old man can still eat, he will always have some relief, but once he can't eat and only relies on soup and medicine to survive, the road is almost over...

The old man leaned his head weakly against the head of the bed, stared at the beams with unfocused eyes, and murmured in a low voice: "Don't bother, no one can compete with God. This is enough for our life, just...just, look. Before you get married and start a business..."

Listening to his murmur, Yang Ge's heart felt as if he had been hit by a punch from the heart. He pursed his lips vigorously, took a deep breath, and pretended to smile lightly: "Then you should do more... Hold on, Miaomiao and I have already made plans to get married as soon as his father’s mourning period is over... I’m still asking you to come and be my father-in-law.”

"real?"

The old man lowered his head with difficulty and looked directly at Yang Ge. His eyes gradually became brighter, but his pupils were still out of focus.

"real!"

Yang Ge responded: "When have I ever lied to you?"

The old man bared his teeth and smiled: "That's good, that's good. Let's hold on, hold on, but you can't..."

The more he spoke, the softer his voice became, and before he finished speaking, he fell asleep again.

Yang Ge lowered his eyelids, silently stood up and helped the old man lie down, tucking him into the quilt. With one hand, he released strands of true energy through the quilt and flowed into his body, straightening out his messy energy and blood.

At the right time, the door opened, and Liu Mang, who was full of coldness, closed the door, walked to the bed lightly and glanced at the old man: "How is the situation?"

Yang Ge regained his strength, stretched out his hand and slowly put away the pierced dishes: "I just woke up for a while, ate some egg custard, drank some water, and fell asleep again."

Liu Mang glanced at the medicine bowl on the bedside: "Where is the medicine?"

Yang Ge whispered: "I still vomit after drinking..."

Liu Mang stood silently in front of the bed for a moment and said softly: "I'll keep watch for a while. You go back to sleep quickly. You haven't rested for two days."

"I'm fine."

Yang Ge shook his head: "My true qi can regulate qi, blood and vitality. Can you do it?"

Liu Mang was still waiting for further persuasion when he heard Yang Ge ask: "How is the situation over there?"

Liu Mang looked around, grabbed a stool and sat in front of the bed. He whispered sadly: "We're out of food. I'm afraid the little food in the shop won't last long..."

Liujialianghao's stall has been open for a long time. According to Yang Ge's previous plan, the head office will be located in the capital, dealing with big grain merchants all over the country, but mainly doing business in Luting.

With Yang Ge's relationship, and the fact that Liu Mang followed the path of making small profits but quick turnover, in just one year Liu Jialiang Hao had controlled more than half of Luting's grain market share, making money every day!

Affected by the snowstorm this time, the price of food in all food channels is rising. In order to stabilize the price of food in Luting, Liu Mang frequently traveled to and from the capital and Luting. He was so busy that even the old shopkeeper was seriously ill in bed. There is no way to stay in front of the old shopkeeper's bed all day long to fulfill his filial piety.

"No food?"

Hearing these two words, Yang Ge reflexively frowned and his eyes darkened: "Is there someone hoarding again?"

When Liu Mang heard the word 'again', he immediately came to his senses, hesitantly shook his head and said: "I don't know, I haven't received the wind yet. What I know is that there are some places where the grain cannot be transported, and there are some The local grain goes north... Maybe our shipment volume is too small, and people look down on our small business. "

Yang Ge: "Are you sure?"

Liu Mang: "Not sure!"

Yang Ge: "How is the situation in the capital?"

Liu Mang: "The major grain companies in Beijing can still ship normally, but at this price...it's also the same price every day."

Yang Ge: "How long can the food in your hand last?"

Liu Mang: "According to the past shipment volume, we can still survive for more than half a month, but you have seen what the food shortage is like. Raise the price. You will lose your conscience and destroy the sign. Don't raise the price. Everyone will come in droves." Grabbing food...I'm worried because no shop dares to open today."

Yang Ge frowned and gently tapped the armrest of the seat with one hand, and quickly said: "Don't close the door, don't increase the price, and limit purchases. Based on the Luting household registration, on average, a person can buy half a catty of grain every day. In addition, Set up two porridge sheds and cook a few more pots of porridge every day... Go to the county government to find Hu Qiang and ask them to send someone to cooperate with you. Anyone who exploits any loopholes will be punished severely! "

Liu Mang was startled: "There's no need for such a big battle, right? It's already spring, maybe the food road will be open in a few days!"

Yang Ge glanced at him and said in a deep voice: "The more times like this, the more you have to prepare for the worst... What if the food channel cannot be opened in a short time? What if you can't grab food? What if we really run out of food?”

Liu Mang thought for a while, stood up and said, "I understand, I will do as you say."

Yang Ge: "Please drop by the right office and ask Fang Ke to come over."

Liu Mang: "OK!"

…

"Where's the food?"

Zhao De Emperor Zhao Hong angrily grabbed the tea bowl and threw it at His Highness Jin Luan, smashing it into pieces: "I ask you, where is the grain in Hanjiacang?"

It was not a big court meeting at this moment. His Highness Jin Luan only had more than a dozen cabinet ministers and six red-robed ministers present. Tea juice mixed with broken porcelain fragments were splashing at their feet. Everyone's face was full of panic, but under their lowered eyelids, pairs of The deep eyes were unruffled.

Zhao Hong glanced around and saw that no one came out to reply. He patted the imperial case impatiently and shouted angrily: "Are you all mute? Speak!"

After a while, a dignified civil servant with a three-inch beard on his chin and a second-grade golden pheasant pattern embroidered on the patch of his official robe came out. He clasped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, the grain storage in Hanjia warehouse is less than 800,000 yuan." Stone, in order to keep the capital stable, don’t move it lightly!”

Located in Luoyang City, Hanjiacang was the largest granary in the Wei Dynasty, with a maximum reserve of more than five million stones. At its peak, Hanjiacang's grain storage accounted for half of the world's grain storage!

Zhao Hong looked down at the civil servant and shouted, "What I'm asking is, where did the grain in Hanjiacang go?"

His Majesty's minister replied in a loud voice: "Your Majesty, since Wangge Lao implemented the 'One Whip Method', the cash receipts every year are more than two taels per year, and the physical goods are more than less every year. Including the grain stored in the Jiacang, the income cannot be exceeded. In addition, in the past ten years, the consumption of grain and grass at the border has increased year by year, and the previous disaster relief has not been enough to make up for the consumption. The late emperor established a new capital camp, and the capital has an extra 100,000 generals and soldiers to eat, and the grain supply of a warehouse has been deteriorating... I have been I have written several times to denounce the shortcomings of the 'One Whip Method' and the hidden dangers of increased food consumption at the border, which is why I am worried about today's troubles!"

He was hoarse and heartbroken, but every word he said was to blame: 'It has nothing to do with me, it's your father who insisted on doing this. I reminded you, it's all Wang Jiangling's fault! ’

"As expected of the Minister of the Ministry of Finance!"

Zhao Hong laughed angrily: "Sure enough, you are very good at calculating... But my father and son gave you the control of my Da Wei's house, and you just go out and don't come in? Then what do I need you for?"

Speaking of the latter, he suddenly rose up, and his angry roar echoed repeatedly in the empty hall like a lion's roar.

In response, the civil servant of His Highness knelt down on the ground and kowtowed: "I know that I am guilty, please punish me!"

The other important ministers all lowered their heads and swayed as if in panic.

Zhao Hong patted the imperial court: "Punishment? If I chop you down, can I get food out of you?"

"I am aware of my guilt..."

"I give you three days to come up with a plan to alleviate the food shortage. Otherwise, you will pray that your neck is harder than a guillotine!"

"His Majesty……"

"Get out of here, you bunch of losers, get out of here!"

"I beg you to retire, long live my emperor!"

All the important ministers clasped their hands and saluted, then turned around and filed out of the hall.

Zhao Hong watched them leave, the anger in his eyebrows disappearing little by little as they went away.

With a gloomy expression, he gently tapped the imperial case with his hand, and said bitterly: "What a smooth sailing!"

His thoughts were the same as those of Ming Jing'er: these tigers, leopards and jackals had been pretending to be little wives for half a year, and finally they couldn't help but take action!

Once he takes action, it’s a killer move!

Not long after, someone from Xiaohuangmen bowed in and said, "Your Majesty, the Commander of the Xiuyi Guards and Master Shen of Kaifeng are outside the hall asking for an audience."

Zhao Hong waved his hand: "Send him in!"

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Xiaohuangmen bowed and left, and soon he led Shen Fa, who was dressed in a python robe, into the palace: "Shen Fa, a humble minister, is here to see your majesty, my emperor..."

"Without further ado!"

Zhao Hong interrupted him impatiently: "Is there any problem with Hanjiacang's accounts?"

Shen Fa: "Your Majesty, there is no problem with the accounts of Hanjiacang's entry and exit..."

Zhao Hong frowned: "I knew it wasn't that simple..."

Shen Fa: "But there is something very wrong with the entry and exit records of the grain and grass that I brought back from each camp of the Forbidden Army!"

Zhao Hong looked down at Shen Fa in response, and said softly with an unkind expression: "Who taught you to talk like this?"

Shen Fa did not dare to breathe again and said directly: "Your Majesty, last year the pro-army army allocated a total of 1.89 million in grain and grass in the 26th Wei Year. The accounts of the Ministry of Revenue and the accounts of Hanjia Cang are all in this amount. And the amount recorded in the 26-guard grain and grass warehouse that I got is...more than 1.08 million shi."

When Zhao Hong heard this number, his eyes widened suddenly, and his lips trembled and he shouted: "One million and eight hundred thousand, only eight hundred thousand?"

He knew that these tigers, leopards, jackals and wolves were greedy, but he didn’t know that they were so greedy!

After Shen Fa was silent for a moment, he explained with some difficulty: "The Forbidden Army's food expenditure standard has always been the highest among soldiers and horses in the country. It is fully allocated according to the standard of two kilograms and forty taels per person per day during wartime. However, the 26th Guards of the pro-army army had not left Beijing to fight for many years, and half of the daily training expenses were actually enough. Coupled with the layers of exploitation in the army, the two kilograms and four taels of food allocated in the accounts of the Ministry of Household Affairs would eventually be enough to cover seven The two fell into the mouth of the soldiers, and the generals loved their soldiers as much as their sons... This is why the late emperor established a separate capital camp. "

He was born as a general, and he had never even said these words to Emperor Xiping... Of course, Emperor Xiping had his own account in mind, and there was no need for him to say it.

Zhao Hong trembled, his face flushed.

"But the problem now is not that the household department is greedy. They have always been so greedy. But in the past, they were just greedy for money. The part that was empty was resold and turned into silver."

"What I found out is that no food has flowed out of the hands of the Ministry of Household Affairs in the past two years..."

"The accounts in Hanjiacang are correct, and there is no food flowing out from the household department, so where did the part of the credit they ate go? It can't be hidden in Hanjiacang, waiting for your Majesty to go and inspect it, right? "

"This is just an empty quota of food for the Forbidden Army. According to the usual practice, any food allocated by the Ministry of Revenue will be retained by the Ministry of Revenue, including food allocated to the border troops, food for disaster relief, etc... Although it is due to the road Ting, they may not dare to scratch the grain so hard, but they must have intercepted some of it."

"Over time, this empty forehead will become bigger."

"According to my judgment, there must be a huge difference between the accounts of Hanjia Cang's imports and exports and the physical imports and exports. A large part of the grain may have been transferred to other places by them before it entered Beijing."

"If I am not mistaken, this part of the food will be in their hands!"

In the past, he would not have been able to investigate this kind of case, and he would not have dared to investigate it like this.

Such an investigation would only send his own head under the guillotine, and not even a single hair from those tigers, leopards, and wolves would fall off.

But now...

They all overturned the table, and he, Shen Fa, still told them nonsense rules?

If you want to die, let's all die together!

When Zhao Hong listened to his statement, he was furious at first. He wished he could catch those dog officials now, confiscate their homes, exterminate their clans, and skin them as grass to vent their hatred!

But when he heard what happened behind him, he suddenly became less angry again. He slowly narrowed his eyes and said leisurely with a half-smile, "I understand, those grains are their capital for playing chess with me, right? Shouldn't I return the favor?" Praise that they think highly of me and start planning a year or two in advance to wait for me? "

In his mind, he even imagined the lively scene of the group of tigers, leopards and jackals who were frightened in front of him just now, hugging flowers and beautiful women behind their backs, eating delicacies from the mountains and seas, chatting and laughing, betting on when Zhao Hong would bow his head.

Shen Fa didn't dare to answer, but he felt that his cold look with narrowed eyes and a half-smile seemed a bit familiar...