The meeting at the Right Minister's Residence didn't last too long. Many things had been discussed before and were only brought up again today. The only new topic was that the Minister's Residence would hold a banquet in three days to celebrate the victory in the north.
After chatting with Qin Siyuan, Yao Zunian, Jueming, and the others for a while, Ning Yi didn't look too happy when he came out of the courtyard. After being happy for Guo Yaoshi's great victory, a new problem had been pressed down. The situation between the north and the south was getting tighter and tighter.
After the start of the northern expedition, Qin Siyuan was mostly responsible for domestic affairs. But the Office of Secret Investigations had played a huge role in the development of the north. The matter of Zhang Jue, the Zhizhou of Pingzhou was one of them. He was originally a general of Liao. After the Jurchen invaded, he surrendered because of Liao's crushing defeat. But there was a member of the Office of Secret Investigations among Zhang Jue's aides. After discovering that Zhang Jue had the intention of surrendering to the Wu dynasty, he had been pushing for this matter. Pingzhou was the most important of the sixteen provinces and Zhang Jue had tens of thousands of troops under his command. If he succeeded, it would be a great contribution.
But before this, the war in the north was rotten and the Jins had always been strong. Although Emperor Zhou Zhe was angry at the Jins for not returning the sixteen provinces and had already said to be tougher, Qin Siyuan didn't dare to rashly pick a fight. With Guo Yaoshi's victory, he more or less had some confidence.
From what the people had seen before, the Wu dynasty seemed to be a bit naive and full of mistakes in dealing with the Jin-Liao situation. But in Ning Yi's current position, he could understand that it was unfair to accuse the Wu dynasty of being unprepared for some possible disastrous consequences. In the past few years, while pushing for the northern expedition, they had also been actively expanding the defense of the rear, including a large-scale increase in the border defense. Knowing that they couldn't fight, they tried to absorb the surrendered people from Liao's side, giving them preferential treatment, forming armies, guaranteeing logistics, and so on.
Whether it was Tong Guan, Cai Jing, Li Gang, the Emperor, or Tan Zhen, who was likely to replace Tong Guan, most of the high-ranking officials in the court were not fools. Even if the possibility of the Jin invading the south was extremely low, they themselves understood the need to strengthen the rear defense. This was especially true for people like Tong Guan. The situation of the Northern Expedition had caused them to actively promote and cooperate with the Northern Expedition.
The Jin did not have many troops to begin with. After occupying the land of Liao, even if they were really out of their minds and chose to go south, they would not be able to do so. Starting from Guo Yaoshi and his men in the north of Yanmen Pass, all the way to the south of Yanmen Pass, from Taiyuan to the bank of the Yellow River, thousands of miles in depth and hundreds of thousands of troops — even if there were many shoddy constructions — were enough to wear down the Jin army.
In the Right Minister's residence, there were many people who were aware of this. Originally, Cheng Zhouhai, Wang Shanyue and the others were loyal promoters of the 'threat of the Jin Kingdom', but now, even Ning Yi could not talk about it all day long. At least everyone was doing something. Even if some things were a bit f * cked up, just for the sake of face or political achievements, the Right Minister's residence could at most try their best to correct it — This had nothing to do with right or wrong, it was just that they were involved in the situation, so they could only do so.
But in any case, in his heart, Ning Yi was still somewhat worried.
The trajectory of the Wu Dynasty and the Song Dynasty had some similarities, but before this, he did not pay much attention to the real history. All this was related to his extremely pragmatic character in his previous life.
In his view, the so-called history and stories had something in common, but because history really happened, it was more convincing to others. But in the final analysis, whether it was history or stories, what was really useful was the lessons it contained, a process of relying on the predecessors and reflecting on oneself. But in the impetuous society of later generations, there were many people who did not have the ability to distinguish and think. Sometimes they were convinced by the so-called truth of history, but they never used any real history to reflect on themselves. Most people only used the truth to compare others to gain a little sense of superiority, but they never found that their behavior was exactly the same as the many stupid examples in history.
When people ridiculed the stupidity of their predecessors and denounced the cruelty of their enemies, but never reflected on themselves, never saw their own stupidity and insensitivity, and even broke the rules and hollowed out the country, the real history became worthless. If the truth of history also gave people a sense of superiority of "I know a lot", allowing them to ridicule others, then for society, the meaning of this truth was negative.
Because of this understanding, Ning Yi had extreme contempt for the truth of history. He had always believed that the pursuit of the truth of history was not as good as the pursuit of the educational meaning of fables. At least fables could clearly tell the reader that this was right and that was wrong. But it was also because of this habit that it was difficult for him to confirm the development of the whole situation. The Song Dynasty had the shame of Jingkang, but it was really hard to say whether the Wu Dynasty would have the same.
Of course, in the current situation, recruiting Zhang Jue to surrender was, of course, a good move to increase his own strength, and there was no need to think too much about it. As for the problem of the grain price in the disaster area that everyone in the Prime Minister's Manor was extremely difficult to deal with, of course, Ning Yi did not mean to look down on it, but under the circumstances that more than a month ago, Ning Yi did not intend to pay too much attention to the specific details of this matter.
Because … a lot of people would starve to death here …
*****
In the summer of the eleventh year of Jinghan's reign, natural disasters such as floods and droughts befell the Wu Dynasty, including the capital governor's office, Hedong, Hebei, and Jinghu, and more than 20 counties were affected to varying degrees. Because the imperial court was effective in disaster relief, the number of people who died directly from the disaster was far fewer than in previous years. It was also because there were too many survivors that the hidden danger of soaring grain prices in the disaster area and the counties adjacent to the disaster area began to brew.
This kind of phenomenon was concentrated in several areas in the north and south. In the north, the capital governor's office and Hedong Road, which were later Shaanxi, Shanxi, and other areas, were the most serious. In the south, this kind of problem appeared in the Jinghu area. This was originally a land that produced grain, but because of the overlapping problems of floods and droughts, it caused even greater panic. But for the time being, the situation of people dying of starvation was not as serious as in the north.
At this time, the Right Minister's Manor was still doing its best to mobilize grain to maintain the distribution of basic rations for disaster relief. But the increase in grain prices in the market would only cause more and more people to join the ranks of the disaster victims. At present, in order to guarantee the northern expedition, the amount of grain that the Wu Dynasty could take out was limited. Coupled with the layers of embezzlement and diversion, it was basically unrealistic to want to maintain the grain supply until next year.
In theory, when faced with such a situation, what the imperial court could do was to strictly regulate grain prices, kill a group of officials, and then kill a group of merchants. But this time, the affected area was too wide, and there were too many people involved.
The Zuo family, led by the great Confucian Zuo Duanyou, was involved. The Cai family, led by Cai Jing, was also involved. The Han family in the Jingnan area was related by marriage to the royal family and a relative of the Empress Dowager. The Qi family in the Henan Province was a family of scholars for generations. The family head, Qi Yan, was a great Confucian of the current dynasty. He had relations with many officials in the capital, and he was on good terms with Li Gang and Geng Nanzhong. He was also on good terms with Shi Dao of the Western Army.
These were just some of the forces that could be found through a casual investigation. In fact, the complicated relationships and the motivation of benefits made it so that many things could not be resolved with just determination. Even if Li Gang, Qi Yan, or even Cai Jing agreed to suppress the grain prices, the moment the low-priced grain reached the market, it would be like water entering the sand, instantly drying up. This was because those who participated in the stockpiling of grain were often not only these large families, but also every ordinary person who was shrouded in panic.
Basically, at a time when productivity was not as developed, every natural disaster was a chance for the nobles to get rich and take over the land. On his side, there was indeed a countermeasure, and the Right Minister's residence had naturally made up their minds. But the lowest level of people would still die. Those who had a little bit of family property would inevitably have to sell their land, children, and daughters. The only difference was that when measures were taken appropriately, there would be fewer such people.
As Ning Yi, he could accept all kinds of darkness in the world, and he could also accept all kinds of deaths. However, as a person from the later generations, it was difficult for him to personally witness the process of two women and a child starving to death. Therefore, regardless of whether he was hypocritical or if he didn't see it, he would rather sit in the capital and deal with it as if it was just a number.
*****
The carriage came out of the Minister's residence's side door. There were not many people on the road called Wenyuan Street. It was still afternoon, and the leaves on the street melted into the golden light. The two children ran by the side of the street.
After withdrawing his gaze from the window, Ning Yi picked up a charcoal pen and began to edit and write on a book in his hand. The carriage moved forward, and the wheels would occasionally run over fallen leaves, making rustling sounds. Occasionally, there would be pedestrians passing by. After a while, he heard a voice coming over. "... What do you know? What courtesan? Let me tell you, the Little Candle Workshop is the most boring place, and the Fanlou House is also boring. I... Ah? Hmph! What are you doing, blocking this young master's path! Do you know... What are you doing, this young master walks this way, and you walk this way. Are you looking for trouble? What's so great about Takeshi — "
Following these arrogant words, the carriage came to a stop. There were a total of three carriages on Ning Yi's side, and he was sitting in the middle one. As soon as he heard the voice, he knew who it was. After the carriage stopped, he sat there and finished writing the last few words before he got up and lifted the curtain. As expected, the person in front of him with his hands on his hips was none other than the Flower Taisui, Gao Muen. The people following him were still a bunch of profligate young masters from the capital. However, many of these people had official positions in their families. As a merchant, Ning Yi couldn't afford to offend them. He put on a smile and cupped his hands to welcome them.
"It's really like a flood rushing against the Dragon King's temple. Gentlemen, what a coincidence. We meet again. It's the people on my side who aren't sensible. Hurry up and pull the carriage over! " Ning Yi berated the person driving the carriage. He then smiled and asked, "Esteemed guests, where are you going to have fun?"
Ning Yi had a warm smile on his face, but he didn't look like someone who was easy to bully. Seeing that it was him who appeared, Gao Muen's gaze changed. But after that, he puffed out his chest even more. "What does it have to do with you? Don't meddle in things that you shouldn't! Why are you walking so close to me? If you have the guts, come over and hit me! Don't think that I'm afraid of you just because you killed Lu Qian! "
Putting aside the fact that I know nothing about Marquis Lu Yu's matter, even if such a thing really happened, given Marquis Lu Yu's martial arts skills, how could I be a match for him? Look, it's been almost a year … It's just a small misunderstanding back then. If the Yamen is still angry, I'll go to a few dozen tables in Takeshi tonight and personally apologize to the Yamen. How about that? "
After Ning Yi said this, the people behind Gao Muen started to jeer. However, Gao Muen paused for a moment, seemingly thinking of something. "Hmph! Fake kindness! Forget it! Let me tell you, I, Gao Muen, am irreconcilable with you. In the future, you better control your subordinates! Hmph … Block the way! "
After saying this, Gao Muen led the people around him and walked past Ning Yi. One or two of them even said to Ning Yi, "Just you wait!" "Be careful!" Ning Yi smiled and cupped his hands.
In fact, this feud between the two sides had already lasted for a year. In the first half of this year, when Ning Yi expanded his business in Takeshi, the situation became even more intense. First, Gao Muen hired thugs to cause trouble. When the Office of Secret Investigations interfered, he joined forces with some people to open a restaurant, wanting to snatch business from Takeshi. After that, he also wanted to teach Takeshi a lesson through the bureaucracy. However, this kind of thing was eventually blocked.
The Kaifeng Prefecture couldn't afford to offend the Right Minister's Residence, and they also didn't dare to offend Gao Muen. If too many things were stirred up, all kinds of complaints would inevitably reach Gao Qiu. Everyone in the bureaucracy, the business world, and the literati were on Gao Qiu's side, hoping that he wouldn't control his son too much. Although Gao Qiu was a jester, things like making enemies also had to pay attention to the input and output. The other party had connections, but he was just a businessman after all. If his son's nonsense couldn't deal with the other party, it meant that there was no need to pester him too much. Therefore, he scolded Gao Muen a few more times. In this way, every time Gao Muen made a move, it was as if he had hit a ball of cotton. He invested in business and lost a lot of money. In the end, he could only give up in discouragement.
Of course, giving up in action didn't mean that he would definitely be able to swallow the anger in his heart. After that, the few times they met, they would inevitably quarrel. It was just that Ning Yi's business was getting bigger and bigger, including the few things that Gao Qiu revealed in order to make him give up. All of these made Gao Muen feel a little short of breath. At this moment, after he separated from Ning Yi, one of the profligates beside him said, "Since Brother Gao can't stand the sight of that kid, let's just give him a beating. Even if he has connections, we'll just give him a beating! He can only complain after the matter is over, right? I don't believe that the bunch of people around him will dare to fight back — "
This profligate's family was also part of the bureaucracy. What he said was actually very reasonable. Their families were all people in the bureaucracy. No matter how many connections the other party had, he was still a businessman. If his group of people swarmed up and beat the other party up, they would at most have to apologize to the other party after the matter was over. Unfortunately, as soon as he finished speaking, Gao Muen had already raised his hand and slapped the back of his head.
"Beat your sister! Beat your sister! Beat your sister! Even if I can beat him, I don't know how to beat him! There's no need for you to say that! Do you know that Zhou Dong didn't kill him? Do you know that Sikong Nan and Lin Zongwu were bullied by him? You bastard! Do you know who Zhou Dong is? Do you know who Sikong Nan and Lin Zongwu are? They are even more powerful than Lin Chong — f * ck your mother! That guy looks gentle and refined, but he's actually a lunatic. If he suddenly flips out, do you think that I and I … the few bastards around me who know nothing about martial arts can stop him?! " At this point, he raised his leg and kicked at the man. However, this kick was slightly off the mark. The man staggered forward, while Gao Muen took a big step forward and almost fell down.
"Do you know why I stood in front of you just now? It was to help you block that mad dog! Humph! "With a cold snort, Gao Muen patted his clothes." You'd better learn from me in the future! "
Even though he said this, he still felt a little indignant. Lu Qian was already dead, and there was no one else who could play with him so happily. The few fellows around him had a lot of things to do and couldn't be trusted. As he thought of this, he suddenly felt that the capital was a little less fun, and the autumn scenery also became increasingly bleak …
It was impossible for Ning Yi to think of these things in Gao Muen's heart. After Gao Muen left, he shook his head and smiled. As his destination wasn't far away, he didn't get on the carriage anymore. He took out the booklet that he had just edited from the carriage and handed it to Zhu Biao. "I've made some changes to this Pugilistic World's Celebrity Record. Take it to the Wang Clan and see how the preparations for the printing are going. There's no need to rush back at night."
Zhu Biao couldn't help but chuckle when he said this. After the incident at Dulonggang, Hu Sanniang and Wang Shanyue became friends. After returning to the capital for a period of time, Wang Shanyue had a conflict with some of the nouveau riches in the capital who didn't have a good relationship with him to begin with. Both sides started fighting, and during this conflict, Hu Sanniang made a move and defeated a bunch of the enemy's family warriors. Wang Shanyue had been fighting outside for a few years, and his ruthlessness had increased greatly. He also had some achievements. During the fight, he had pinned an expert among the enemy's family warriors, nicknamed the 'Eight-Armed Saber King', to the ground. He tore off half of his opponent's arm and bit off a few kilograms of flesh.
After this battle, that expert was crippled, and the Eight-Armed Saber King became a one-armed saber king. However, Wang Shanyue had also caused a lot of trouble. Qin Siyuan felt that it wasn't good for Wang Shanyue's character to continue developing. If he were to stay in the capital, he would be attacked by others. Therefore, he made Wang Shanyue fill in the position of a county magistrate in Zhejiang Province. Wang Shanyue's character was more of a scholarly one. It was just that he had been too stimulated when he was young, and his actions were a little extreme. The area around Yuyao was the land of scholars. After he came here, he didn't need to use his ability to eat people. This could also be considered a kind of training for him.
Before Wang Shanyue left the capital, he was officially engaged to Hu Sanniang. Matriarch Qian of the Wang Family originally hoped that the two of them would get married in this way. She wanted Hu Sanniang, who was highly skilled in martial arts, to accompany her grandson to take up the post. Wang Shanyue wanted Hu Sanniang to return to Dulong Gang first to avoid gossip. However, Hu Sanniang voluntarily stayed in the Wang Family. In fact, this was also a wish that Wang Shanyue couldn't express. The Wang Family was a family of women. Even if there were a few women who were competitive, their martial arts couldn't compare to others. With a heroine like Hu Sanniang watching over them, Wang Shanyue could go out with a peace of mind.
As for Zhu Biao, he didn't like valiant women like Hu Sanniang. After a few visits to the Wang Family, he had developed some feelings for Wang Shanyue's ninth sister. The Wang Family was happy to see this happen. Ning Yi also wanted to facilitate it. From then on, he cooperated with the Wang Family in papermaking, printing, and promoting the research of movable-type printing. The communication between the two sides was always through Zhu Biao.
At this time, Zhu Biao received the order and left on horseback. Ning Yi had also arrived at the courtyard where Yunzhu and Jin 'er lived. At this time, Li Pin felt that he had the air of a tyrant. He also had his own reasons for coming. There were a lot of servants arranged in this courtyard. It felt like a golden house with a mistress. However, most of the effort was spent on safety. Even beside Yunzhu and Jin 'er, there were two ugly but skilled heroines.
As he walked in, people greeted him. When he passed by two small buildings in front of him and entered the backyard, no one followed him anymore. Behind this courtyard was a small garden composed of rockery, a pavilion, and a pond. A woman in white was sitting on the edge of the pond, softly humming the melody of an unknown song. She held a book and a brush in her hands, happily writing something on the book.
At this time, the sky was warm and yellow. A large sycamore tree extended its crown above the pond. Sitting by the pond was a woman in a white dress. Her long black hair hung down to her waist. She took off her shoes and put them aside. Her white and slender feet gently played with the water. Together with the music she was singing, it was as if her whole body had melted into the warmth of autumn. After a moment, she put the brush in her hand aside and put the book on her lap. She lowered her head and turned a page. When Ning Yi walked over and sat down, she subconsciously shrunk her slender feet. Then she smiled and leaned her body against Ning Yi.
After a moment, she lay on Ning Yi's lap and raised the book to read. Ning Yi enjoyed the peace of this autumn. He looked around to make sure there was no one around and put one hand into the woman's chest. The woman did not resist. She just gently covered it and continued to read.
"Actually, I feel that this place is still too small … How nice would it be if there was a lake in front …"
Ning Yi said as he looked at the courtyard wall at the end of the garden.
"I'm already by the lake … It's Liheng's heart that's not calm."
"Is that so …" Ning Yi pursed his lips. "Oh yes, where's that clown, Yuan Jin 'er?"
"She went out."
"Oh?"
"Ah … Uh …" As if suddenly realizing something, Yunzhu's face suddenly revealed a blushing smile. After a moment, she squinted her eyes and covered her face with the book. She said softly, "No …"
"Then did she or didn't she?" By the pond, in the autumn scenery, Ning Yi laughed. After a moment, he stood up with Yunzhu in his arms and walked over to this side of the hut. Under the white skirt, Yunzhu gently curled up her feet and at the same time, quietly leaned her face against him.
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