Luoyang City is different from Chang'an City. The transportation here is developed and there is basically no hoarding. However, in order to ensure the raw materials for wine making, Li Mu still planned to reserve some food in advance. The day after the winery reopened, he posted a notice
, harvesting three thousand kilograms of grain every day. He had calculated this amount. If he collected less, he would not be able to achieve the purpose of storage. If he collected too much, the grain transportation would not be in place, and the price of grain would soar, which would affect the people's livelihood.
Life.
Based on the amount of grain transshipped in Luoyang City, three thousand kilograms should be an easy amount to achieve. However, one day after the sign was put up, unexpectedly, this easily accomplished amount was not realized. Only one thousand and two kilograms were collected.
One hundred kilograms of grain, this amount is just enough for daily brewing needs and there is still a little leftover, but when it comes to storage, it is definitely not enough.
Li Mu originally thought that this was because the publicity was not good enough. After a few days, all the grain dealers would know about it, and the situation would improve. However, for several days in a row, the number of grain harvests still failed to increase, hovering at more than a thousand every day, and occasionally there were
If you can receive 1,500 kilograms, it will be considered too much.
If Li Mu couldn't see such an obvious situation, he would be a fool. It was easy to check. Dugujiu checked for two days and found out the information clearly.
A month ago, someone was buying up grain stores in various places. Now, all the grain stocks in the eight hundred miles near Luoyang City, excluding their own rations, are basically in the hands of this family. The grain supplied by Luoyang City every day is
From this family, the grain dealers in the city sell whatever they pay. Li Mu can only receive more than a thousand kilograms of grain every day. It’s really not that the grain merchants work together and don’t sell to him. It’s true that they don’t have any in their hands.
goods.
How much does it cost for a family to purchase all the grain stocks within a radius of 800 miles?
Li Mu made a simple calculation in his head and was shocked by the results. This required at least hundreds of thousands of cash to do it. You know, this is not running water, this is cash, which is put on food, and it is all about goods.
.He can't come up with such a large sum of money, neither can the Ministry of Internal Affairs, nor can the treasury come up with it. None of the five surnames and seven sects have such strength. Only Jisitang, which has connected with almost all the powerful families
Only an organization can gather such huge financial resources in a short period of time!
The financial resources are terrifying, but that is not what scares Li Mu. What really scares him is the strength shown by Ji Si Tang as reflected in this incident.
In just one month, eight hundred miles of nearby grain was purchased. Such a large-scale purchase did not cause a rise in prices. The price of rice in Luoyang City remained stable as usual——
It is unimaginable to what extent Jisitang controls the vicinity of Luoyang!
"Brother, I have already found out where several of their warehouses are. Why don't I take people over and seize them?" Dugujiu said in a low voice when he saw Li Mu was in trouble.
Li Mu waved his hand and said, "You can't do this kind of thing."
"Why?"
"Everything has its own rules. If someone is driving up prices, we have a reason to check. Now they are buying at a fair price and selling out at a fair price. They are making a profit at a loss. It has neither affected the price nor forced buying or selling. Moreover, the purchases are all stored grain.
, it’s not this year’s new food, the old and new policies can’t control others, so why are you copying them?”
Li Mu sighed and said: "You can travel all over the world with reason, but you can't move without reason. This time, we have met a real master."
Dugujiu wondered: "Brother, I don't understand. What is their purpose for doing this? Are you losing money for fun when your head is filled with water?"
"Could a person who can mobilize such huge resources be someone with a wet mind? Ridiculous!" Li Mu pursed his lips and thought for a moment, then said: "Now that the enemy is in darkness and we are in the clear, what do they think? There is still too little information, so it is difficult to
Guess. But we must not take it lightly -" After a pause, Li Mu added: "I guess the other party wants to force me to bow my head -"
"What do you mean? They supply food as needed every day. The price of food in the city is stable and there is no shortage of food. We also have enough for brewing. Why should we bow to them?"
Li Mu frowned and said: "This is what I can't figure out. The weather is going well this year, so it will be a bumper year. The autumn harvest is about to happen, new grain will be on the market soon, and the price of old grain will fall. They are buying in bulk now without raising the price.
Selling, no matter how you look at it, you are losing money, and you can’t threaten me with anything. What kind of method is this? I can’t see through it——"
"Maybe he is really a fool," Dugujiu advised: "Brother, since there is no threat to us, don't think about it. You still have something on hand, right?"
Li Mu still shook his head, as if he was possessed, and said: "If you don't have long-term worries, you must have immediate worries. What are they going to do?" While he was thinking about it, someone came to report from outside the door, saying that it was the father-in-law who came to deliver the message.
, Li Mu did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly took Dugujiu out to greet him.
Li Mu came to the door, saw the person coming, and greeted him with a smile: "Eunuch Gao, you are an indispensable person who stays with His Majesty all day long. Why are you so free to come to Luoyang?" As he spoke, he said to Dugu Jiu:
"Find some local cooks, I want to entertain Eunuch Gao well."
"Oh, don't be so troublesome. I won't be able to stay for a long time. I have to go back overnight," he said, and Eunuch Gao happily followed Li Mu into the house.
When Li Shimin opened his mansion in Luoyang, Eunuch Gao had already been with him. Eunuch Gao was very familiar with this mansion. After five years of separation, he returned here again and felt familiar everywhere he looked. Li Mu's house,
It used to be Li Shimin's duty station when he was General Tiance. For many days and nights, he would stay here by burning the midnight oil and discuss with the generals how to deal with people like Dou Jiande and Liu Heitai. Eunuch Gao was waiting at the door and would send him off all night long.
After three cups of tea, he was very familiar with the furnishings in this room.
Touching the handle of the seat, Eunuch Gao sighed with emotion: "His Majesty likes this courtyard very much. He has said many times that if he comes back to Luoyang in the future, he will not live in the palace, but in this Tiance Mansion. Our family really has nothing to do with it.
To think that Your Majesty was willing to give this place to you, even to King Wei."
"Oh, I'm so scared." Li Mu raised his hands to the west and said: "How can Mu be so virtuous as to deserve your majesty's love and care? I really am——"
Seeing that Li Mu was about to act again, Eunuch Gao quickly stopped him, took out a superstitious letter from his arms and handed it over.
Li Mu checked the paint and found that the seal was intact. He felt strange in his heart. He glanced at Eunuch Gao and said, "Why is it so mysterious that even you, father-in-law, can't know about it?"
Eunuch Gao laughed and said: "Don't ask insinuating questions. We don't know anything. Whatever His Majesty asks us to do, we will do it. We are a eunuch, so it is useless to ask too many questions. We are old and don't have that much knowledge."
What a curiosity.”
Li Mu laughed loudly: "How about my father-in-law lives a long life?" While joking, Li Mu turned sideways and opened the letter.
The letter was very short, but it said two things. The first thing was that Changsun Wuji had "recovered from his illness". It was mentioned in one sentence, but it was enough for Li Mu to understand the meaning of this sentence. The other thing made him
He frowned.
The bad guys found out that the current owner of the Success Hall is none other than the Miss Lu family who was the pride of Luoyang City back then with Li Jiancheng. It was rumored that she died in childbirth, but it was actually a fake death. She has been hiding in the dark for many years.
He leads the Jisi Hall. And it is very likely that this person is in Luoyang City now.
Li Shimin said in his letter that when he and Li Jiancheng were in Luoyang, he had met Miss Lu several times. Miss Lu and Li Jiancheng were actually married, so he should be called sister-in-law. Rumor has it that she gave birth to a child for Li Jiancheng.
, after she faked her death, the whereabouts of the child were unknown. It was not known whether it was a boy or a girl. If it was a boy, this boy would be Li Jiancheng's only bloodline.
Since he has decided not to investigate Jiancheng's surviving son, he will naturally not harm the mother and son again. Li Shimin wants Li Mu to find the mother and son, and try to persuade them to resolve their hatred. If he can get Miss Lu's understanding, he is willing to use his brother's
Treat her with the courtesy of her sister-in-law, and her children. If the boy is a boy, he will be named a prince, and the rich land in the south of the Yangtze River will be named a kingdom, and he will be hereditary. If he is a girl, he will be named a princess, and the dowry will be the same as that of the eldest princess when he gets married.
for.
So far, the letter has not said what will happen if the persuasion fails. But anyone who is not a fool can imagine that if the persuasion fails, then it will be the four words "Benevolence is the utmost". When the time comes, the sentence will be fulfilled, "You will drink from the golden cup together, but we will not fight each other with swords."
Forgive me.
After thinking about it, Li Mu felt that something was wrong. If he was really asked to find Miss Lu, would Li Shimin really do what he said in the letter? According to his previous approach, he should just kill the person. Forget it.
He has really given up his pursuit of Jiancheng's surviving son, and he cannot tolerate what Jisitang has done over the years. Li Shimin has never been a gentleman or a good person, and he has never been a kind-hearted and soft-faced person who will cause future troubles. This is absolutely unacceptable to him
Impossible.
Could it be that this is a plan to kill someone with a borrowed knife?
wrong!
Li Mu suddenly thought of something and broke into a cold sweat behind his back. He understood, understood Li Shimin's true intention!
When Changsun Wuji framed him before, he said that he was Li Jiancheng's son. There were also some speculations about his mother. Several of the doubts pointed to Miss Lu from Luoyang. Although there was no concrete evidence to prove that Li Mu
He is Miss Lu's son, but from Li Shimin's point of view, he would rather believe it than not. Li Shimin left this matter to Li Mu, and there is another layer of meaning.
If Li Mu is not Li Jiancheng's son, and Jiancheng's surviving son is someone else, Li Mu has found him. Then, if the mother and son die, Li Mu will have a deadly feud with Jisitang, and he will only be the enemy of Jisitang in his life.
On Li Shimin's side, Li Shimin doesn't have to worry about him rebelling. Without the support of Jisitang, even if Li Mu can make money, he won't be able to rebel!
If Li Mu is the surviving son of Jiancheng, then he will have to face a choice. If Li Shimin can reveal this matter to him now, he must have made preparations. If Li Mu intends to rebel, he will not be able to rebel with just Luoyang City.
Luoyang is the center of the world, extending in all directions. This is a good thing, but it is also a bad thing. If Luoyang rebels, it will face King Qin's troops from all directions. An isolated city cannot hold on for long.
If Li Mu does not intend to rebel, he must make a clear attitude. If he hands over Miss Lu, he will be equivalent to handing a clue into the hands of Li Shimin. Once Miss Lu dies, Li Mu will kill his biological mother.
The murderer has an unfilial name attached to him, and he will be despised by everyone in the world. No one will follow an unfilial person, a person who sells his mother for glory.
Li Mu suddenly felt a chill running down his spine. At this moment, he felt like a rook on a chessboard. He thought he could kill everyone and was invincible, but he didn't know that there was always a "cannon" aimed at him. All Li Shimin's connivance before
Everything he did was like a joke. In the end, he still couldn't decide his own fate.
Li Mu originally thought that he was not the original Li Mu, and that everything about the original Li Mu had nothing to do with him. Neither Li Jiancheng nor Miss Lu had anything to do with him. He would never think about revenge in this life, nor would he
I would like to meet Miss Lu.
But this matter, after all, still didn't go as he thought. Li Shimin pushed him to a dead end. The current situation is that if he doesn't want to admit it, he has to "exterminate relatives for justice". It's either black or white, there is no middle option.
Eunuch Gao followed Li Shimin day and night. How could he not know what was written in the letter? Seeing that Li Mu was silent for a long time, he said: "Your Majesty, our family is short of words. I can't help but say a few words. Do you want to hear it?"
If you like to listen, just think that I am an old fool."
Li Mu folded up the letter and said, "What do you want from my father-in-law? With our relationship, you can say whatever you want."
"The civil and military personnel of the dynasty, plus the eunuchs, female officials, etc. in the palace, may all have their own ideas and origins, but in the final analysis, everyone is your Majesty's ministers. What about ministers?
, you should understand the Holy Will with your heart. Let’s talk about the matter of Jiancheng Yizi. No matter what Your Majesty says, whether you let it go or not, it is still a heartache. Anyone involved in this matter will not get a good harvest. This is you
Well, Your Majesty is really reluctant to part with it. If it had been anyone else, he would have lost his head a long time ago."
Li Mu nodded and said nothing.
Eunuch Gao continued: "We can't blame His Majesty for being cruel. It has been the same throughout the ages. Our family naturally believes that the Marquis will not be Jiancheng's surviving son, and there is nothing that can be done about it. Your Majesty, our family also feels that Your Majesty has no control over it.
You regard him as Jiancheng's surviving son. But is there such a rumor after all? The Marquis has a bright future, and it is always bad to be stained. Since Your Majesty has given the Marquis a chance, he should seize it. As long as he finds Miss Lu
, found out whether her child is a boy or a girl, persuaded her to submit to the imperial court, and disbanded the inheritance hall of the troubled son, you have achieved one, no, two great achievements!"
"If these two great achievements are successful, our family may have to change their name and call you father-in-law, don't you think so?"
Li Muqian laughed and said: "Master, I don't dare to think about it. The thing that your Majesty asked me to do is really difficult. I can only say that I will try my best. Whether it can be done or not depends on God's will."
.”
Eunuch Gao smiled and said: "It's easy to say, Your Majesty is not in a hurry."