Uncle Shen led the Jin family's caravan, and Hedari led the Huihe guards. They set out from Liangzhou City together. Fifteen days have passed.
Things in the city got worse day by day.
Although the government issued price limit orders and purchase limit orders, it was too late and not a single grain of grain could be purchased in the market.
The grasslands, woods, wild vegetables, fruits, etc. within and outside the city were all dug up by the hungry people.
It is not uncommon for people to faint on the ground due to unbearable hunger while walking on the street.
There were people in the city who really couldn't survive, so they had to drag their families and move to Ganzhou and Lanzhou at the risk of death in the war.
Li Changshi, who was originally calm and unhurried, was so shocked by the tragic situation of the food shortage that he could no longer sit still.
On the one hand, Li Changshi requested food aid from surrounding prefectures in the name of the governor's office; on the other hand, he personally visited large merchants in the city and begged for food supplies.
However, even if the surrounding state governments agree to provide food aid, the arrival of food trucks will not be until one month at the earliest, and the quantity is not large enough to meet the food needs of 200,000 people in Liangzhou City.
As for the big merchants in Liangzhou City, they all greeted Li Changshi with smiles, but when he mentioned the word "distributing grain", they spread their hands and said they were helpless.
The price of grain is rising every day. For those businessmen, the money they earn from selling grain one day later is higher than the income from a year of hard work. In this case, who is willing to release grain now?
A few days later, Zhou Jun went to work at the Exchange Bureau as usual.
Many of the officials in the department have good looks, but those officials with the nine surnames of Zhaowu all have rosy faces and do not look hungry at all.
Zhou Jun sighed softly when he saw this.
After a while, a subordinate suddenly rushed into the office and shouted to Zhou Jun: "Zhou Jiancheng, it's not good! Something happened!"
Zhou Jun was stunned when he heard this, and then asked: "What happened?"
The subordinate official shouted: "There are hungry people gathering together to go to the relief warehouse!"
Zhou Jun quickly got up, called the officials in the market office, took the military guards with him, and rushed to the direction of the relief warehouse in the city.
When he arrived at the gate of the warehouse, Zhou Jun looked into the distance and saw a sea of people all around. Thousands of people gathered at the gate and asked the government to release grain.
At the gate of the relief warehouse, soldiers were waiting in formation, with swords and guns standing in a row, and crossbows and arrows ready to be fired. It was obvious that a conflict was about to break out between the two sides.
Zhou Jun first stood there and thought carefully.
Then, he pushed aside the crowd in front of him and slowly walked towards the warehouse.
When he walked to the gate, Zhou Jun saw the anger among the hungry people and shouted: "Everyone in Liangzhou City, please be quiet and listen to what I'm saying!"
When people saw an official wearing a green robe coming, they gradually became quiet.
Zhou Jun shouted again: "This is the Supervisor of Wuwei County Mutual Market Department, Zhou Jun, Zhou Hengcai! Is there any consul among you who can speak out?"
The people looked at each other in confusion, and finally recommended several street dwellers and Li Zheng to come out to talk to Zhou Jun.
Several people came to Zhou Jun and complained: "Zhou Jiancheng, there is no food at home, we really can't survive!"
Zhou Jun nodded to express his understanding, and then said to these people: "The relief warehouse is an official warehouse. It can only be opened with the approval of the imperial court in times of natural disasters or wars. Anyone who intrudes without permission will be punished by death regardless of the reason. You
Do you know?"
The streetwalkers and residents nodded one after another, but complained endlessly, saying that they were about to starve to death, so they took this step.
Zhou Jun talked with them for a while, and after figuring out the situation, he found a high ground, stood on it, and shouted to the people: "A certain family has been poor and knows the pain of hunger. However, please rest assured, the food shortage will not last long.
… As the Supervisor of Mutual Markets, Jun has purchased a large amount of grain from border neighboring countries, enough to feed Liangzhou City for several months.”
As soon as this statement came out, the crowd had mixed reactions.
Some people believed Zhou Jun's words and thought that since the market supervisor said so, there must be food; but some people questioned Zhou Jun's words and thought that he was just delaying time on purpose to send people away.
Seeing this, Zhou Jun said again: "Three days, three more days! If the food from the mutual trade does not enter the city within three days, Jun will be dismissed from office and die. He will also open this relief warehouse to alleviate the famine of the people."
!”
After hearing Zhou Jun's words, the people who were originally doubtful gradually calmed down.
Firstly, Zhou Jun made a three-day agreement; secondly, the other party also made it clear that if food did not enter the city within three days, even if he was dismissed from office and died, he would open a warehouse to help the people.
Speaking of this, although everyone still had doubts in their hearts, they slowly dissipated and only waited for Zhou Jun to fulfill his promise three days later.
After urging the gathered people to retreat, Zhou Jun let out a long breath and saw Li Changshi hiding not far away with a gloomy face, so he walked over.
Arriving in front of Li Changshi, Zhou Jun first sang a song, then approached the former and asked in a low voice: "If I guessed correctly, the relief warehouse is empty?"
When Li Changshi heard this, he was shocked and blurted out: "How do you know...?"
Seeing Li Changshi shut up in a hurry, Zhou Jun asked coldly: "Where did the relief food go?"
Li Changshi looked at Zhou Jun for a long time, and finally sighed and said: "It has been taken away a long time ago."
Zhou Jun: "Who took it?"
Li Changshi: "There are many soldiers in Hexi, but the food and pay are insufficient. The two previous military envoys have been greedy for several years in order to fill the vacancy in military pay."
Zhou Jun: "So, when I mentioned opening a warehouse to stock grain that day, you refused to agree no matter what?"
Li Changshi: "There is no food in the warehouse, how can I put it in? Although I am the governor of Liang, I can't help myself."
Zhou Jun heard this and snorted coldly: "If I hadn't made the three-day promise in front of the people, I'm afraid you still wouldn't tell the truth, right?"
Li Changshi said bitterly: "Zhou Jiancheng is confused! Why do you want to talk about the three-day agreement? In this way, how will you deal with the people in the city after three days?"
Zhou Jun: "You are the one who is confused! Li Changshi, think about it, if a riot really broke out just now and the soldiers killed the people, as the acting official of Liangzhou City, no matter how you whitewash it afterwards, you will not be able to escape the violence.
If you have a bad reputation, both the imperial court and the governor will accuse you!"
Li Changshi thought about it, and the more he thought about it, the more he became afraid.
Zhou Jun: "Okay, now we still have three days, please take me to see someone."
Li Changshi: "Who?"
Zhou Jun: "The head of the An family, An Bo notes."
Under the guidance of Li Changshi, Zhou Jun entered the An family.
When An Bozhu heard the report from the concierge, he just said hello to Li Changshi who came to visit, and then focused all his attention on Zhou Jun.
"Sishun once told me that Zhou Erlang has always been a talented man and was highly appreciated by the royal guards. When I saw him today, I didn't expect him to be so young."
Hearing An Bozhu's words, Zhou Jun cupped his hands and said, "Mr. An, Jun came to visit this time because he has something to ask."
An Bozhu said to Zhou Jun: "If you are here to persuade the An family to release grain, then please come back."
Zhou Jun said: "If Jun is not wrong, the Sogdians are speculating on grain prices in order to cause chaos in the city and lead the people to attack the government. It would be best if both sides fight and cause many casualties, and then they can use this as an excuse."
, go and criticize the King’s Protector?”
Anbo looked at Zhou Jun and said, "I don't understand what Zhou Jiancheng is talking about."
Zhou Jun carefully observed An Bozhu's expression and movements, and he was already certain in his mind that the Sogdians were the masterminds behind the hike in grain prices.
Zhou Jun said again: "Mr. An, Jun came to Anjia this time not to raise an army to ask questions, but to ask questions."
Anbo's note: "What's the question?"
Zhou Jun: "Does Anjia want to gain temporary benefits or benefit for a lifetime?"
Anbo paused for a moment and asked, "What do you mean by this?"
Zhou Jun: "Jun has long heard that An Sishun, the son of the An family, is an envoy of the Great Dou Army and is highly respected by the royal guards. His future is bright. Mr. An has also repeatedly boasted in front of others that he has a son An Sishun at home, so he can protect the security of the family.
The family will be prosperous for three generations, and there will no longer be worries about merchants and lowly businesses."
When An Bozhu heard Zhou Jun say the name "An Sishun", his expression suddenly lost its calmness.
Zhou Jun added: "The Sogdians took advantage of the civil strife in Liangzhou to force Wang Duhu to give up the commercial and tax reform. This move was an enemy of the Northern Fan led by Wang Duhu, and the An family was naturally involved... But An Lao could
Have you ever thought that the An family is different from the other nine surnames of Zhaowu? Your son An Sishun, as a general of the Northern Domain, is the highest-ranking official in the Sogdian domain. He originally had a bright future, but after this chaos
, how will we face the King’s Protector and our colleagues in the army in the future?”
An Bozhu's expression gradually became serious, and his fingers trembled slightly.
Zhou Jun: "For a family that was once an enemy of Wang Duhu, no matter how talented or famous the son of his family is, it is impossible for him to be accommodated by the Northern Fan. Such a person, no matter where he is in the military town of the Northern Fan,
Any position in the position will definitely be squeezed out in the future, and it can be said that it will never be successful. For the so-called profit of the merchant, Anjia's bright future has been ruined. Do you think this business is a good deal? "
An Bozhu clenched his hands and struggled in his heart.
Zhou Jun added: "If the Anjia can step forward in time to turn the tide during the food shortage in Liangzhou, and rescue the market. In the short term, the Anjia may lose some profits, but in the long term, it will pave the way for their son."
There is no way out. In the future, An Sishun will be promoted due to his merits, and it will not be difficult to become a deputy envoy of Hexi Jiedu, or even a full envoy."
Seeing that An Bo still didn't say a word, Zhou Jun said softly: "Mr. An is a businessman. I wonder if you have heard of this sentence? Make choices based on current affairs, and advance or retreat in the long run?"
When An Bozhu heard this, he finally broke his guard, closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and asked in a deep voice: "Zhou Jiancheng, what should I do?"
Zhou Jun came closer and whispered a few words into An Bozhu's ear, who nodded while listening.
