"Although we have been preparing for this drought since a very early age, however, the scale of this drought is far beyond our prior estimates, coupled with the ravages of locust plagues later, which makes the already scarce materials in the north even more scarce, although we have sufficient funds at this time, but it is still far from enough to buy enough food to help all the hungry people!" For the first time, Shi Qingyi learned from Xiao You's mouth how much damage this disaster has caused on the northern land, not only the agricultural harvest in Guanzhong is basically gone, but the entire northern land is sharply reduced due to the reduction of precipitation and the gnawing of locusts on the seedlings later! At this time, the price of grain in the north is enough to be comparable to the price of silver, if it were not for Li Shimin's efforts to flatten the price, this price would have risen wildly, and the general failure of grain harvests in various parts of the north has also made it extremely difficult for these areas to provide relief to the refugees in Guanzhong in the hard-hit areas of the drought locust! At this time, the only thing Li Shimin could count on was that Shuzhong, Ba, Sichuan, and Jiangnan in the south could transport as much grain as possible to alleviate the drought in the north, however, far water could not quench the thirst of the near, and the distance made it extremely difficult to transport grain from these areas, and the cost of transporting it all the way from the south to the north was even more astonishing. So much so that even if Li Shimin has spared no cost and even used the army to directly escort food, the grain that can reach the north is still not enough to alleviate the serious disaster in Guanzhong, and the land of Guanzhong is still starving all over the wilderness, and the living refugees are fleeing everywhere, wanting to find a way to live for themselves far from their homeland!

"After this catastrophe, the agriculture in the Guanzhong area is completely abandoned! And if there is no external force to help. Even if everything goes smoothly in the future, it will be impossible for the land of Guanzhong to recover as it was in two or three years! Shi Qingyi sighed softly, said, and then looked at Xiao You: "So now, what else can we do?" ”

"Xiao You doesn't know either!" Xiao You replied like this: "It's so far." We have done everything we can to do, but we have nothing to do about it, because of the general failure of the grain harvest in the north this year, there is not much grain that can be circulated in the market, and if we buy a large amount of food at this time, regardless of money, not only can we not afford it in terms of money. Even the drastic reduction of food in the world will lead to a further deterioration of the already high food prices! And ......" Xiao You glanced at Shi Qingyi again, paused for a while, and then continued: "Because the grain production in the north is seriously reduced, when the imperial court finishes collecting grain, there must be not much grain left in the homes of the common people, so at this time, if the price of grain in the market increases significantly again because of our grain collection." Then, it will inevitably have a very bad impact on the people. At that time, the people were panicked, and we did bad things with good intentions! ”

Obviously, Xiao You's words were kindly advising Shi Qingyi not to act rashly, so as not to destroy the inherent laws of the market at this time and cause bad results. However, when Shi Qingyi heard this, he only smiled slightly, and then shook his head. Xiao You can have such insight, and he is indeed an excellent businessman with good knowledge, but it's a pity. There is still a considerable distance from those top figures among the merchants, such as the pre-Qin Lü Buwei, the Spring and Autumn Tao Zhu Gong and even Zigong and other outstanding figures, but there is still a considerable distance, after all, such as Lü Buwei and others, in fact, they are not only an outstanding businessman, "thief" Lü Buwei, regardless of whether the record of his actual biological father as Qin Shihuang in the later history is correct, however, as a businessman, Lü Buwei not only served as the prime minister of the powerful Qin State, but also compiled the "Lü Spring and Autumn Period" Such an incomparably outstanding classic policy of governing the country shows that it has a lot of hills and valleys in its chest, which is enough to stabilize the country.

As for Tao Zhu Gong, before Tao Zhu Gong Fan Li became a businessman, he was a Warring States strategist who had assisted King Gou Jian of Yue to destroy Wu Wangfucha, "Three thousand Yue Jia can swallow Wu!" "To be able to assist Gou Jian to destroy the Wu State that dominated the Central Plains at that time with such a disparity in power, Fan Li's talent should not be underestimated.

As for Zigong, as a proud protégé of Confucius, the most holy teacher of Confucianism, his talent is even more self-evident.

The reason for this is not that the talents of the people of later generations will be inferior to those of their predecessors, but because in later generations, Confucianism will be regarded as a cheap businessman, and those who are engaged in the business industry are regarded as untouchables. And the smart people who were born in the merchant family are often limited by their own pattern because of their humble background, so that they cannot see the broader world outside of business!

If you can't break the situation, you can't see the broader world outside, and if you can't see the vast world outside, you will naturally not have the mind to cross the boundary out of thin air, so it is a vicious circle that goes back and forth, which leads to the fact that in the merchant industry in later generations, there will never be such otherworldly and outstanding people as Lu Buwei and Tao Zhugong.

However, Xiao You's problem is different from the strange circle that businessmen have been unable to break free from for thousands of years, it turns out that after several years of hard work, Xiao You has fully proved her talent in business, however, due to the short time of contact with business, Xiao You's accumulation on the way to business at this time is still very shallow, and Xiao You was originally born in a poor family, and he did not receive any teaching when he was young. Although she was later able to be cultivated by the Huajian School in Xiangyang because of Shi Qingyi's help, it limited her knowledge after all, so that although Xiao You was brilliant at this time, because of his shallow knowledge, he was still just an excellent businessman, and he could not cross the border and see another broader world.

Perhaps with the passage of time, Xiao You will be able to gradually make up for her lack of knowledge, so that it is possible to break through the boundaries. Become a great businessman who can be compared to Lü Buwei and others, however, it will inevitably not be the present at this time, but only in the future after a lot of time......

So, I heard Shi Qingyi say to Xiao You: "The south is rich, if we can transport a large amount of grain from the south to the north." That will greatly alleviate the disaster situation in the north, but at this time, the transportation capacity from the south to the north is limited, so even if Li Shimin uses the army to forcibly transport grain, the disaster relief food he transports can still only be regarded as a drop in the bucket, so Xiaoyou might as well talk about it, at this moment, what else is within our reach. What can be used to improve the way food is transported from south to north at this time? Shi Qingyi asked Xiao You.

And Xiao You, after hesitating for a moment, bravely met Shi Qingyi's gaze: "Actually, now, there is indeed a way to improve the transportation of grain from the south, that is, the canal built by the former Dynasty Dujun!" Xiao You said.

"The Grand Canal?" Shi Qingyi's voice was a little hesitant, because of Xiao You's reminder, she thought of the unparalleled canal built by Emperor Yang of Sui in the previous dynasty. However, it is precisely for this reason that what Xiao You said. Shi Qingyi was even more puzzled, after all, she was once young, but she also took a boat along the canal all the way south to Lijiangdu, so for the scale of the canal at that time. can only be amazed, but of course, Shi Qingyi will not doubt Xiao You's words, so that is to say, it is only after the past few years of turmoil at the end of the Sui Dynasty. The huge project that once connected the five major rivers and connected the north and the south has been broken to such a point at this time?

However, for the doubts in Shi Qingyi's heart, Xiao You affirmed this: "It is true, although the original canal, although it was completely completed within a few years under the tyranny of the faint monarch, however, due to the quick success and the defects of the original design, this canal had many river blockages before the fall of the previous dynasty, and later the previous dynasty perished, due to the impact of various wars, the river lacked professional personnel to maintain, so a few years later, after the current dynasty completely controlled the situation, This newly built artificial canal has been completely blocked by many sections of the river, and nearby villagers have even planted crops directly on the original surface of the blocked canal!

Xiao You's tone was quite indignant and indignant, too, who is Ren, knowing such a dazzling project that almost single-handedly triggered the destruction of the previous dynasty, but now it has become such a broken look, of course, such anger will emerge in his heart, and the object of this anger is faintly, pointing to the current court headed by Li Shimin! However, Li Shimin was the heir of the inheritance of the previous dynasty at this time, but he was clearly so neglectful that he squandered this inheritance in vain, and the indignation of some people such as Xiaoyou was not completely targetless!

After all, although the Tang Dynasty has been established for ten years, from the establishment of the Tang Dynasty to the abdication of Tang Gaozu Li Yuan, during this period of time, the Li Tang Dynasty has not been able to completely pacify the north, and the north is the same, not to mention those large and small separatist forces south of the Huai River. Since Li Shimin has never been able to deal with these separatist forces in the south of the Yangtze River, until now, the relationship between the Jiangnan area and the Li Tang court in the north does not want to be a county under the rule of a unified empire, but is more similar to the relationship between the vassal states of the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period in the pre-Qin period and their suzerain, Zhou Tianzi!

Due to the unjustifiable name on the throne, after Li Shimin's accession to the throne, his energy was greatly involved in the attacks on him by the old ministers in the court, coupled with the serious threat of the Northern Turkic Empire, so that even if Li Shimin even took action to solve the major factions in the south, so that the empire could not devote enough energy to plan, let alone repair an artificial canal that was not very important in the eyes of everyone at that time!

After all, in China's traditional economy, the small-scale peasant economy has always occupied a huge proportion, and the small-scale peasant economy has always been self-sufficient, so there are generally very few demands for foreign materials, so when the environment has not undergone extreme changes and everything is smooth, the artificial canal that runs through the north and south and can control the lifeline of the national economy will naturally not attract enough attention from the ministers of the DPRK and China and Li Shimin, so. Faced with the canal and waterway that was close to being paralyzed at this time, they unanimously chose to turn a blind eye to it! Until, this severe drought and locust plague came.

Under the severe situation that Guanzhong was the most severely affected and the grain production in the north was generally reduced, the importance of the canal, which had always been neglected, suddenly became apparent. However, it was only at this time that Li Shimin, who was in a state of anxiety, was stunned to find that the Grand Canal, the symbol of the tyranny of the previous dynasty, the most proud face-saving project of Emperor Yang Guang of the Sui Dynasty during his lifetime, was completely damaged beyond everyone's imagination, and the seriously blocked river was not only completely impassable for large ships such as grain ships. Even the remaining passable areas of the river are too narrow and shallow due to the accumulation of silt, and only the farmer's boats can pass, and even the farmer's boat cannot carry too much weight to prevent the danger of their boats falling into the mud......

"In order to reopen the canal as soon as possible and resume transportation, Your Majesty has already requisitioned all the people on both sides of the river to serve in the service last year. We are dredging the canals, and we are also devoting all the money we can to the canals in addition to commercial transactions. It is hoped that the progress of the imperial court can be accelerated and the work of dredging the river can be realized as soon as possible! Xiao You said to Shi Qingyi. However, what she didn't expect was that after listening to what Xiao You said, Shi Qingyi was immediately. rejected her decision!

"The length of the Grand Canal, north to Zhuo County, south to Yuhang, in the middle to the west to communicate Luoshui and the east capital Luoyang, is a great project of incomparably large scale. Such an artificial canal, is the tyrant of the previous dynasty Emperor Yang of Sui spent five years, with his father Emperor Wen of Sui Yang Jian left a solid national strength, and did not hesitate to spare the people and material resources to finally build, now most of the blockage, want to re-penetrate, the cost of civil and material resources is not inferior to the re-excavation of a canal, and now, the newly established Tang Empire does not have the Sui Yang Emperor reign when the extremely prosperous national strength, the natural disasters in the north, and led to the empire under the rule of the people at this time of extreme exhaustion, At this time, even if Li Shimin no longer cares about the people's power on both sides of the canal, and wants to rush to achieve success, and completely connect the canal within one or two years, how can this be possible, don't when the canal is not completely completed, the people's power on both sides of the canal has been exhausted, and the people are dissatisfied! Shi Qingyi looked at Xiao You: "In this matter, Li Shimin is anxious and confused, but Xiao You, you, can't see the importance at all!" ”

Shi Qingyi's words immediately made Xiao You's face pale: "Then what should I do, just let the money be left for nothing?" Can you wait for the famine in the north to pass? While it's true that the progress of dredging the canal has had little effect, it is not your way to do anything! ”

"Yes! What to do? Shi Qingyi lowered his head and muttered to himself, and then raised his head, but his eyes did not look at Xiao You, but followed the window and looked at the world outside the window.

"The catastrophe in the north is enough to shake the foundation of the empire, in the face of such a serious famine, relying on the imperial court and some civil forces like us to help the victims is tantamount to a drop in the bucket, completely useless, what we need is the power to unify the whole country! Only by uniting the forces of the entire country can the empire's huge resources and people be fully mobilized to save the empire, which is now mired in disaster. Let it recover and develop as soon as possible from the desolation after the disaster! ”

As smart as Xiao You, she heard other deep meanings from Shi Qingyi's words, so immediately, she couldn't help but speak: "Integrate all the strength of the entire country, do you mean that you want the imperial court to use power at this time to forcibly subdue all parties and force them to submit?" However, the imperial court at this time was not stable, and if you choose to provoke the forces of all parties at this time, maybe the forces of all parties will immediately take advantage of the situation and try to divide the world, although Your Majesty has made great achievements in the past, but at this time it is a period when the north is suffering from disasters and the country is extremely weak, although there is a strong army in hand, I am afraid that it will be difficult to suppress the enraged forces of all parties, and what the court needs most is just to get more resources to relieve the disaster in the north, and you want Your Majesty at this time, Forcefully subduing the powerful forces of all parties in the country, isn't this practice completely reversing cause and effect, and putting the cart before the horse? ”

Speaking of which, if the person facing Shi Qingyi at this time was Xiao He'er or Ji Qian, then they would never dare to question what Shi Qingyi said, because the two people who had been taught by Shi Qingyi himself knew deeply that Shi Qingyi himself would never make a big deal and say thoughtless words, however, Xiao You had never followed Shi Qingyi for a long time before, so naturally, she didn't know much about Shi Qingyi, her understanding of Shi Qingyi, On the one hand, it comes from the secret conversations of those people in the flower sect who taught her during her time in Xiangyang, and on the other hand, it comes from all kinds of almost magical legends in the mouths of her sisters Xiao He'er and Ji Qian! For Xiao You, Shi Qingyi is of course extremely mysterious and mythical, but it is precisely because of this that it is also accompanied by a feeling of unreality and unreality......

It must be known that the inheritance concept of the Flower School is to see all the beauty of this world and appreciate it with an equal attitude, so for Xiao You, who has been taught by the concept of the Flower School, no matter how extraordinary Shi Qingyi is, she can't be treated with an attitude of looking up, even if the other party has been kind to her and her two sisters, but Xiao You didn't realize it. It is precisely because of the concept of the Flower School that she accepted in her heart at this time and the illusory illusion that Shi Qingyi has always given her, so that this time, when Shi Qingyi unexpectedly appeared in front of Xiao You, Xiao You did not realize that when she answered Shi Qingyi's questions in some uneasiness, a faint smell of gunpowder was unconsciously filled into her own words to Shi Qingyi...... (To be continued......)

PS: ps: It is said that there is a guy named @balconyhawk in the second bar...... Hahahahaha