After a cup of tea, Cui Mingjiu walked out of the attic, his face filled with joy from the bottom of his heart.

"Shizun really didn't miss the appointment, and took a big risk to come to the capital to go to the meeting with me."

On the day of the fall of Yunyao Sect, Ren Zhen once said to him that he would see him in Chang'an in June, and what he saw just now was a genuine True Martial Sword Saint.

According to Ren Zhen's instructions, Mo Yuqing notified Gu Haitang in advance to temporarily restore men's clothing, came forward to stabilize Cui Mingjiu, and allowed him to take refuge under Mr. Xiao's door and wait for the dispatch.

"No wonder my identity has not been revealed, it turns out that Shizun and Mr. Xiao are close friends, and they dare to entrust their lives to him. But why don't you let me tell Xiahouba? Could it be that they were worried that the kid would defect? ”

Recalling Xiahouba's attitude before, he probably guessed the reason for the secrecy, so he decided to keep his mouth shut and bury the news of Shizun's arrival in his heart.

Of course, he couldn't imagine that the Sword Master he had seen before was the same person as Mr. Xiao.

He returned to the waiting room again.

Xiahou Ba succeeded in apprenticeship, and he had already left satisfied, so how could he wait for him.

Ren Zhen was still sitting there, waiting for him to come back to apprentice.

Cui Mingjiu knelt down and kowtowed, looking pious, "Cui Mingjiu is willing to worship Mr. as a teacher." ”

Ren Zhen smiled: "Now you understand, right?" Ren Zhen and Mo Yuqing are willing to follow me, not because they betrayed your master and were disloyal and unfilial, but because they acted on the orders of their master. If you're like Xiahouba, who can't wait to join me, you won't be qualified to know the truth. ”

Cui Mingjiu got up and said loudly: "I misunderstood my senior brother and sister. If the teacher has something to do in the future, please do not hesitate to tell him, the disciple is willing to do the work of dogs and horses! ”

Ren Zhen nodded, not doubting his sincerity.

One red and one white, one loyal and one traitor, the true colors of Cui Mingjiu and Xiahouba have been revealed just now.

"I haven't encountered anything tricky in front of me, so I don't need to bother you, but I know that you are in a difficult situation right now, and you actually need the help of your teacher even more."

Xiahouba was eager to surrender, seemingly forced by the situation, but in fact he was servile and capricious. In contrast, it is Cui Mingjiu, who is in prison, who still sticks to his integrity.

When Cui Mingjiu heard this, his expression darkened, "The fourth uncle was killed, and this mess fell into my hands, and it was a dead knot that could not be untied." I was also at a loss for what to do and how to clean up the situation. ”

Ren Zhen thought thoughtfully, "I know something about the grain hegemony, your senior brother has been the Ye family's money and grain steward, and he knows their details very well." If you want to keep fighting, I can help you this time. ”

Fighting down the Ye family is one of his important goals, and it is not as simple as helping Cui Mingjiu.

Through the auction, he already had a large amount of cash in his hands. Through the undercover Ye family, he knew his confidant and figured out the market. By killing Cui Geng, he can easily take over the weight of the Cui family.

Everything is ready, as long as he intervenes in the game, the Ye family will definitely lose.

However, to his surprise, Cui Mingjiu did not show much joy.

"Don't hide it from the teacher, in fact, with my personal wishes, I am very reluctant to be this food tyrant. But now it's hard to ride a tiger, and a lot of food is hoarded in my hands, and I can't give up if I want to......"

It's easy to give up the hegemony, just sell and hoard food. However, this means that the price of grain will be manipulated by the Ye family, and the Cui family will buy high and sell low, and they will inevitably lose all their money, and their business in the capital will collapse.

There is no turning back from the bow, the matter has come to this point, and you have to fight if you don't fight.

Ren Zhen didn't care about this, but said curiously: "Monopolizing the grain market and controlling grain prices is a big deal that every wealthy businessman dreams of, why don't you want to be a hegemon?" Don't you have confidence in your own abilities? ”

Cui Mingjiu shook his head and said in a deep voice: "Food is related to the national economy and people's livelihood, and countless people are hungry. Even if the imperial court does not intervene, I can't scavenge money from the poor people with a clear conscience, and watch too many people starve to death without food! ”

Food is the lifeblood of human beings, and no one can do without it. Hegemony will cause food prices to soar, making those grassroots Chang'an citizens unable to buy grain, which is tantamount to snatching food from their bowls, and it is a deed that lacks morality.

In previous years, it was almost impossible to monopolize the huge Chang'an grain market. But this year's situation is too special, creating opportunities for the Ye Cui family.

First of all, at the beginning of the year, the grain in northern Hunan was burned, and the supply of grain for the spring famine in Chang'an was cut off, and the price of grain soared instantly, triggering a violent food shortage crisis. Although the imperial court has cut a lot of expenses, how can it be that the war ahead, military rations are indispensable, and a bottomless black hole needs to be filled urgently.

What's more severe is that a major drought came unexpectedly, swept through the Northern Tang Dynasty, and the farmland was exhausted countless times, although the autumn harvest has not yet arrived, but this year's harvest has been a louse on the bald head, a clear thing. The drought has exacerbated the current crisis, causing panic and a sharp spike in food prices as large households rush to stock up in advance.

At this juncture, making a fortune is what the powerful and gentry are best at. Ye Cui's family has been engaged in the grain sales business, how could they miss the opportunity, and at the same time devote all their resources to open the curtain of the business war for hegemony.

When Cui Mingjiu entered Beijing, the two families were fighting fiercely, and the Cui family initially showed signs of a shortage of funds. He was keenly aware of this, and through checking the inventory, he discovered the serious deficit caused by Cui Geng, so he was placed under house arrest.

Now, even if he is in charge of the overall situation, it is difficult to return.

Ren Zhen had studied political economy in his previous life and knew the law of market supply and demand, so he said: "If you don't do it, the Ye family will continue to do it, and it is inevitable that food prices will swell." Will you give up? ”

Cui Mingjiu sighed: "I understand that with the teacher's financial resources, it is enough to help me continue to collect food." But what I struggled with the most was that I really didn't want to go down this path. ”

Ren Zhen blinked and said, "Actually, there is still a way. ”

When Cui Mingjiu heard this, he suddenly raised his head and stared at Ren Zhen with an expression of disbelief, "What you said is true?" ”

Ren Zhen nodded, not interested in selling Guanzi, and said directly: "Bring down the Ye family." ”

Cui Mingjiu was a little disappointed, "So, do you still want to collect grain and fight with the Ye family?" ”

Ren Zhen avoided answering, and suddenly changed the topic, "Have you ever thought about why the imperial court never intervened and allowed the two of you to compete for hegemony, making the grain market crisis worse?" ”

Cui Mingjiu was stunned, unexpectedly asked by him.

The imperial court intervened in the grain market to stabilize grain prices, which was the most powerful means of control, and no merchant was able to resist it. However, so far, the empress has been watching from the sidelines, allowing food prices to swell and the people to famine, and it seems that she has no intention of coming to the rescue.

"Why?"

Ren Zhen replied: "It's very simple, sit on the mountain and watch the tiger fight, the court wants you to divide the winner first." The Ye family is His Majesty's heart, and the foundation of the Cui family is not in Chang'an. The two trees have big roots and deep roots, how easy is it to pull out the roots at the same time? Out of selfishness, His Majesty is even more reluctant to do so. ”

Cui Mingjiu listened silently.

He didn't expect that Mr. Xiao would dare to comment on His Majesty like this, let alone think about how His Majesty would view this matter.

"So, she wants you to fight first and monopolize the Chang'an grain market. Then she will strike again, take the winner, confiscate your spoils, and sit back and enjoy the results. At that time, the two giants will be destroyed, no one will be able to control the grain market anymore, and the current crisis will be much alleviated. ”

Cui Mingjiu understood, but he didn't quite agree, "Are you saying that neither of us can be the ultimate winners?" ”

He couldn't figure it out, couldn't the Ye Cui family realize this? Does the imperial court really dare to openly copy a wealthy family on trumped-up charges?

Ren Zhen was noncommittal, "I just want you to understand that the praying mantis catches cicadas, the yellow finch is behind, and there are more than just two of you on the chessboard." If you don't want to be a hegemon, it's easy, just borrow a knife to kill people, and let the people behind the scenes think that the time has come to get rid of the Ye family! ”