"How else can we raise money? Let's borrow food." Wu Wei sighed.
"Who can borrow it from?" Wang Xian asked in a deep voice.
"It's a big family," Wu Weidao said.
"Does the big family have food?" Wang Xian glanced at him.
"Of course." Wu Wei nodded.
"It's just a drop in the bucket." Wang Xian said calmly.
"No." Wu Wei shook his head and said, "The big families have plenty of food. The more disaster there is, the more food the big families have."
"Where did they get so much food?" Wang Xiandao said, "And there aren't many food fields."
"Since last month, grain ships have arrived in the county every day, sometimes more than a dozen a day." Wu Weidao said: "Although the counties are now not allowed to leave grain, their officials, some of whom are officials outside, can always
Try to find a way to get food. All this food is transported to the deep house compound, and you can't finish it in ten years." After a pause, he couldn't hide his disdain and said: "Just like this, their family still queues up to buy food at the grain store every day..."
"I won't let go of any advantage." Wang Xian sneered: "It's true that you are rich and unkind."
"It is right to be unkind for the sake of wealth, but it is wrong to say that you should take advantage of every advantage." Wu Weihen said: "They don't care about the extra food they get, what they care about is that the common people get less food!"
"Why?" Wang Xian's face darkened.
"If there is no famine, how can they buy land at a low price from the people?" Wu Wei said with gritted teeth: "They will wait for the people to run out of food and borrow money from them. By then, they will usually get twenty taels of silver per acre of tea garden.
You can exchange one stone of grain for it! What is the difference between this and robbery! But you still have the reputation of being a good person!"
"Shameless, most shameless!" Wang Xian had actually known this for a long time. He originally wanted to test Wu Wei to see where his butt was sitting. But after hearing this, he was still furious. The scholar-bureaucrats of the Ming Dynasty were really
How shameless! I couldn't help but said angrily: "Have all the books been read into the dog's belly? I keep saying 'the benevolent love others' all day long, is this how we love!"
"Sir, calm down." Wu Wei served Wang Xian a cup of tea and said, "No matter how much we hate, we can't expose this pass. We still have to beg to borrow food from them..."
"You can't borrow it. Once you borrow it, the people will know that there is no food in the warehouse." Wang Xian said flatly: "When the panic comes, it will harm the people."
"What if you don't need to borrow it? Are you going to rob it?" Wu Wei said with a grimace.
"It's better to grab something by force than by borrowing it." Wang Xian said coldly, "If it doesn't work, let those Ming Cultists bite them and label them as bandits, and see if they don't obediently pay for the food and eliminate the disaster!"
"Ruthless enough..." Wu Wei wiped the sweat from his forehead and said, "That way we don't have to hang out in Fuyang."
"You don't have to worry about it. Let Du Ziteng put in food as usual and don't reduce it," Wang Xian said and stood up.
"Where are you going, sir?"
"Go and have a look at the terraced fields..." Wang Xian said and went out.
.
Amidst the sound of the trumpet, sixteen arm-thick hemp ropes, like a big open umbrella, lifted the heavy stone pillar high, and then fell heavily to the ground, tamping the ground firmly and leveling it.
On Longmen Mountain outside Fuyang City, there are people everywhere building stone dams and pounding platforms. The lively scene makes the viewers excited and eager to roll up their sleeves and participate.
Reclamation of terraces is a time-consuming and labor-intensive project that requires several generations of family efforts to complete. It is not something you can just do if you want. Therefore, although Fuyang County has a long history of building terraces, there are still countless
The hills have never been cultivated. Under the guidance of old farmers who were accustomed to building terraces, the government selected suitable hills, and then ordered the farmers to dig ditches from bottom to top according to the direction of the mountains, and then fill them with stones and clay.
Tamp and beat to make the field ridges flat and firm, without water leakage or collapse, and retaining water and soil. After the field ridges are completed, the soil is leveled to make them into horizontal terraces. After one terrace is built, the second terrace is cultivated upward...
Fuyang County would not be able to carry out such a large project without relying on the victims who have nothing to do and no one else to rely on.
Wang Xian went to Longmen Mountain and went straight to a big flag standing on the top of the mountain. He saw that the flagpole was a thick bamboo, several feet high, with red tassels rolled on the flag and four big Chinese characters embroidered on it.
——Do justice for heaven! Oh no, it’s ‘relief through work’…
When they came to the pavilion under the banner, they saw several office clerks writing calculations there. When they saw Wang Xian coming in, they all stood up to greet him: "Your Excellency, are you looking for the eldest master?"
"Yes." Wang Xian sat down on the stool, took the big bowl of tea from the book office, blew off the tea leaves, took a sip and said, "Is the master going on inspection?"
"Now go and invite him to come back and have a rest," the household official said with a smile: "Our great master has a really hard life and doesn't want to sit in the pavilion for free."
"What do you know? This is called setting an example." Wang Xian laughed and scolded: "How about it, how many are you selling these days?"
"Now it's getting faster and faster, seven hills are being worked on at the same time," the official replied, "the total is more than 1,500 acres."
"It's faster than expected." Wang Xian said in surprise.
"You don't even have to look at how many people are working. The seven hills are full of people." The official said: "Now they are getting more and more skilled. They don't dare to be lazy when the big boss is watching."
"Is it too late to plant rice on the land that has been opened up?" Wang Xian asked.
"You are an amateur. Newly opened terraced fields must be planted on dry land for several years. Firstly, it is necessary to mature, and secondly, it is stable and solid for people to trample on it, and then water can be diverted to grow rice." The official said with a smile.
With Wang Sihu rising like a spark, the scribes naturally had mixed feelings. Those who were broad-minded felt that he was really powerful. Those who were slightly narrow-minded were unhappy in every way, but they did not dare to offend him, so they could only look for opportunities like this.
Addicted to your mouth.
"Then let's plant some wheat. There's more than just rice in this world." Wang Xian didn't share the same knowledge as him. He said that he had been hanging out with a bunch of subordinate officials for a long time, and he was also a black man. Thanks to Lin Qing'er, he was able to neutralize it.
It's so vulgar that I can't stand it.
The two of them talked for a while, and then suddenly there was the sound of heavy footsteps behind them. I quickly looked back and saw that it was a group of police officers and sergeants returning from Weizhi County surrounded by them.
Wei Zhixian has become tanned and has sharp edges on his face. He no longer looks like the white-faced scholar he once was. But although he wears cloth robes and sandals, he is very particular about not exposing his arms in summer and not wearing heavy clothes in winter. For more than twenty days, he has been
On the mountain, he directed the people to open fields, but his clothes and hats were still clean and free of mud, and he was still clearly distinguishable from the common people.
After entering the pavilion, all the scribes saluted and Wei Zhixian nodded. The chief attendant quickly offered a towel soaked in mountain spring water. Wei Zhixian took it and wiped his face and neck, then wiped his hands, and then said to Wang Xian: "Zhongde,
Why are you here?" Now he no longer avoids the relationship between the two of them as master and apprentice, but is eager to make it known to everyone.
"There are some things that I need to report to the great master." Wei Zhixian can treat the corporal with courtesy, but Wang Xian dare not trust himself.
County Magistrate Wei knew that there must be something important, otherwise Wang Xian would not have to come in person. He waved his hands, and all the scribes and officials casually retreated, leaving the pavilion free for the two of them to talk.
Wei Zhixian stood in the pavilion, looking down at the people working all over the mountains and fields, as well as the terraced fields that had been formed, and said leisurely: "Serving as an official will bring benefits to the whole country. This is what I said to the emperor when I first met. But until
Only today did I really understand the meaning of these words. Zhongde, as a teacher, I no longer envy those Hanlin..."
"Teacher..." Wang Xianxin said that you are too uncertain. When you encounter the dark side, you want to die early and be reborn. Now that you have positive energy, you are willing to be a coward...
"What do you want from me?" After sighing, Wei Zhixian asked.
"The rice in Guancang can still be used for ten days," Wang Xianzhen reported: "Mr. Sima and the others haven't come back yet..."
"When should they come back?" Wei Zhixian ignored these matters. He trusted Wang Xian even more than himself.
"yesterday."
"Oh..." Wei Zhixian thought for a moment and said, "Maybe we encountered a storm."
Wang Xian, what the hell, is there going to be wind and waves when boating on the river this season? That’s really a heck of a lot.
"What?" Wei Zhixian also felt that his guess was a bit idiotic.
"No matter what, we must be prepared." Wang Xian said softly. "We must replenish the Yongfeng warehouse with food."
"Disaster relief food from the province?"
"A drop in the bucket."
"What about buying grain from other counties?"
"Now every county can't buy rice with money. Even a grain of rice is not allowed to leave the country."
"What should we do?" Wei Zhixian asked, thinking that if he had any difficulties, he would go to Wang Er. This feeling was really good...
"Actually, there is plenty of food in this county, but it is all in the hands of large households." Wang Xian said slowly. "It is enough to feed 150,000 people for a month."
"They have so much food?" Wei Zhixian asked in surprise.
Wang Xian then repeated Wu Wei's words, and Wei Zhixian said angrily: "It's so shameless, it's hard to make money for the country!" He clenched his fists excitedly and said: "I'll just invoice them and confiscate their home!
"
"Teacher, calm down." Wang Xian quickly grabbed him and urged him: "It's not against the law for someone to be shameless. Why should we raid their home?"
"The people and the government are short of food, but they are hoarding more food than they can eat in a hundred years. This is the reason!" Wei Zhixian roared: "I will kill them even if I don't give up Wu Sha!"
"Calm down, take a deep breath, and then spit it out slowly, yes, spit it out slowly..." Wang Xian finally calmed down the furious Wei Zhixian, and sighed: "Although the teacher is the county magistrate, he can't do anything to them.
In this way, if you offend them, let alone anything else, there will be chaos in Fuyang County..."
"..." Wei Zhixian said in a low voice: "Then what do you think we should do? Borrow food from them in the name of the government?"
"That will cause panic." Wang Xiandao.
"Stop being so secretive." Wei Zhixian said with a dark face, "My teacher is very angry right now!"
"Let them compete to sell food to us." Wang Xian said softly.
"How is that possible?" Wei Zhixian said.
"Maybe...their hoarding is just to buy the people's fields during the famine," Wang Xian pointed to the terraced fields all over the mountains and plains: "These are also fields..."
"Don't even think about it!" Wei Zhixian said as if he had been bitten by a cat on the buttocks.