Chapter 136: After all, I ended up living the way I hate the most.

Chapter 136: After all, I have lived the way I hate the most

(Let me digress a little bit first - can you all stop being so erudite - The Wreath Under the Mountain is the first part A movie that made me shed tears and fill my heart with anger.

I remember Commander Lei’s words very deeply. I remembered them inexplicably when I was writing about Li Dingguo just now.

I was going to brag about it, but it turned out to be overturned. Do you still remember what happened more than thirty years ago... It’s just a look. Can you please take pity on me and lower your IQ? Otherwise it will be difficult for me to write.)

Xu Wuxiang has been in despair since he came to the capital!

Before he came, he had unlimited concerns about the difficulties here. As a result, after seeing the capital, he found that it was ten times worse than his worst expectations.

Plague, refugees, hungry people, ruined households, hooligans, and the people of the capital who have lost their backbones.

After seeing the appearance of the capital, Xu Wu thought clearly that when the autumn breeze blows, the plague will definitely reappear.

Therefore, when it comes to the governance of the capital, we must not focus on economic recovery first, but must find ways to let these people survive first.

The capital city was originally plagued by Zhu Ming’s corrupt officials, eunuchs, and soldiers. Later, it was severely exploited by Li Hongji. Without money and food, whether they are rich or poor, they are all at the same starting line.

Places where wealth resides among the people are best managed, because the people can feed themselves.

Places where both officials and people are poor are in trouble.

For this reason, after Xu Wu thought of the capital, he immediately froze the batch of money that Xia Wanchun and Mu Tiantao had obtained!

No matter how much the Treasury Ambassador urged, or how much the Ministry of Revenue urged for payment, Xu Wuxiang did not relent. Even when Zhang Guozhu sent a transfer document, Xu Wuxiang bravely pushed back.

In a word, if you don’t need money, you need your life!

However, having money in the capital is useless!

The land of Shuntian Prefecture is so poor that even mice will starve to death. Where is there excess food to feed nearly one million people in the capital?

In the summer, the fields are lush with vegetation, and the people can still get some food. If large quantities of food cannot be transported in winter when the vegetation withers, a large number of people will starve to death here. human scene.

When Li Dingguo entered Beijing, the Prime Minister's Office had already anticipated this situation, so he brought a lot of food with him. However, when Li Dingguo left the capital and prepared to station in Shanhaiguan, he took a lot of food with him. .

A complete mess was left to Xu Wuxiang.

In the past few days, the officials dispatched from Lantian to the capital have been driven around like frightened donkeys by Xu Wu. All of them have only one purpose, and that is to find enough to feed the people of the capital. years of food.

Fortunately, Mu Tiantao gave Liu Zongmin a good idea. The saddle-shaped silver plates could be carried by these officials, which greatly saved time in purchasing food.

At the same time, a large amount of food has been sent from Lantian. In another month and a half, the urgent need will be solved.

It is very sad to say that the only people who are really busy for this city and these people are Lantian officials.

The people here only have deathly silence.

You give him food, and he will do it. You order him to do things, and he will do them. You order them to clean up the corners of the city and start exterminating rats, and they just wander around the city all day long. They are When catching mice, they don't care whether they can catch them or not.

Xu Wu wanted to open countless bathhouses in the capital, hoping that these people could go in and take a bath. They were still very obedient. After taking a bath, they put on their dirty clothes full of lice and fleas again. , and then wait for the next bath.

When it gets dark, the capital becomes a dead city!

Even the merchants from Lantian who wanted to seize the market gradually lost confidence in this city.

When people’s hearts are dead, nothing is left.

"How much food was brought back today?"

Xu Wuxiang leaned back on the chair tiredly, feeling an unprecedented sense of powerlessness permeating his body.

"Six hundred and eighty-seven loads of grain." His deputy Zhang Liang answered weakly.

“Not enough!”

“Xiaguan knows that within a radius of five hundred miles, we basically can’t find any excess food.”

“Tianjin How is it over there? "

"The situation there is slightly better. We encourage people to go fishing in the sea, and the production is pretty good. If you eat fish every day, at least you won't starve to death."

"Can we increase the intensity of fishing?"

"There are no extra boats!"

"What does Shi Lang do for food? I have already given him a document asking him to Transporting grain to the north, why hasn't he arrived yet?"

"We've already set off, but it's a stormy time, so I thought I couldn't put my hope in them."

"Spread the word, and the price of grain and fodder in the capital will rise by another 20%!"

Zhang Liang, who was originally weak, was surprised when he heard Xu Wuxiang say this: "The price of grain and fodder in the capital is already sky-high. "

Xu Wuxiang said with a cold face: "If the canal is not built, the food of Shuntian Mansion will never be enough."

"The governor thought that adding 20% ​​of the money would be enough. Let the canal be accessible?"

Xu Wuxiang picked up the riding whip from the table and said: "Let's go visit the Caokou!"

"The governor is murderous? "

Xu Wuxiang looked at Zhang Liang and said: "Do you think I will only be gentle?"

Zhang Liang said with a smile: "Of course not, even the clerk of the Secret Intelligence Department will see it? Pass."

When Xu Wu wanted to arrive at Caokou Club, it was already surrounded by soldiers.Strictly true.

An old man with gray hair stood upright in the yard. Even when he saw Xu Wuxiang coming in, he looked proud and ignored Xu Wuxiang.

"Start the water transport!"

Xu Wuxiang looked coldly at the boss of the capital water port named Tang Tongtian.

Tang Tongtian sneered and said: "The canal is cut off, how can we transport it by water?"

Xu Wu thought: "Then build the canal."

Tang Tongtian smiled and said: "This requires a lot of silver."

Xu Wu thought: "I have the silver."

Tang Tongtian smiled again and said: "The master of the house agrees to follow the rules Are there any rules for my mouth?"

Xu Wuxiang did not answer. Instead, he walked over to a middle-aged man in his thirties and took a closer look, and then said to Tang Tongtian indifferently: "The Ming Dynasty relied on the canal to divert grain from the south to the north to supply the capital and border defenses and maintain water transportation for nearly three hundred years.

During these three hundred years, an intricate set of underlying systems developed around the collection and transportation of water grain. The system of rules is called "Caogui".

Caogui is a private modification of the legal profit distribution method.

First of all, the relationship with farmers is modified, and more scrapping is achieved through "floating harvest". A few cuts from the farmers.

Then adjust internal relations and collude with the government to distribute the fertilizer as fairly and reasonably as possible.

Over the years, as the Ming Dynasty's officialdom has deteriorated, you have become the real control of this canal. People.

This river makes you rich, powerful, and arrogant.

You are not interested in the great changes in the world, because you think that you are like this. People live in symbiosis with the canal. No matter who comes to the imperial court, they cannot do without your help.

As long as you still control the canal's boats and the city's food lifeline, You can continue to live the good life you want.

Tang Tongtian, I tell you today, you are wrong."

Xu Wu wanted to speak and casually took out the guard from his waist. With a flash of cold light, the middle-aged man's head slipped from his neck and fell to the ground.

A spurt of blood spurted out from his neck. Xu Wuxiang did not dodge, letting the blood splash on his face, and then said to Tang Tongtian, who still looked indifferent: "Open the canal!"

When Tang Tongtian faced his son's death, he seemed to have no feeling at all. He still said coldly: "The prince can try to cut off the old man's head and see if he can open a canal."

“You guys already have your own underground court, which is well-organized, has your own interests, seems fair, has your own weapons, and thinks you are strong.

For many years, I have been thinking about how to forget my identity as a robber.

Now, you have successfully aroused my ferocity.

Clogging the canals and rivers. EastThe wealthy merchants in Nan collude to raise the price of grain in the capital, and then control the canal water transportation so that you can continue to be rich and prosperous. This is a way to die.

Tang Tongtian, do you really think we can’t kill people?

Tang Tongtian looked at his son's headless body and said calmly: "If you can kill all the 100,000 water workers, you won't have to be so embarrassed." "

Xu Wuxiang sighed and said: "The Lantian Imperial Court has just taken control of the world. It is indeed not good to kill a hundred thousand people in one go. However, from now on, you can go to the desert and continue to play with your own water transport. Go for it! "

The smile on Tang Tongtian's face gradually disappeared. He looked at Xu Wu and thought: "There will be chaos. "

Xu Wu thought: "A mere 100,000 people is not enough for General Li Dingguo to cook for one spoonful. How can it cause chaos? "

Tang Tongtian slowly knelt down, picked up his son's head, held it in his arms and thought to Xu Wu: "Let me discuss this with each canal.

Xu Wuxiang shook his head and said: "Your whole family must be sent to the Western Regions for canal transportation. I will only continue to negotiate with your second-in-command. If he does not agree to open canal transportation immediately, let him talk to you." Let's go to the deserts of the Western Regions to carry out water transportation.

And so on, until there is someone who is willing to do water transportation unconditionally according to the rules given by the government.

Tang Tongtian, I am not here to discuss with you today, but to give you the final order.

At the same time that I am looking for you, my Lantian Secret Service has sent people to all your water gates. Anyone who refuses to follow - kill! "

Tang Tongtian was taken aback and said quickly: "Sir, Caokou is wronged! "

Xu Wu thought about it but was no longer willing to talk to him. He came to the second master Ke Dashan, whose eyes were wandering, and said: "Open the canal! "

Ke Dashan looked at Tang Tongtian who was tied up and thrown into the prison car, and said in a trembling voice: "Open the canal!" "

Xu Wu thought: "Two months later, the first batch of grain must arrive in Beijing. The grain must not be lost, and the price of grain will rise by 20%. "

Tang Tongtian, who was huddled in the prison car, immediately howled after hearing this: "Sir, I am willing to bear the responsibility. "

Xu Wuxiang sneered: "You have to go to the deserts of the Western Regions to carry out water transportation. If you fail, your descendants will continue." "

Ke Dashan kowtowed repeatedly and said: "Reporting to your lord, as long as you have money, I will definitely be able to transport the grain you need." "

Xu Wuxiang touched Ke Dashan's head and said: "Okay, okay, okay, if you succeed, I will allow you to make a fortune. If not, your whole family will be sent to Java to grow sugar cane... …”