In the study room of the Heart Cultivation Palace, Zhu Youzhen watched Cao Bianjiao's recital again, frowning. Pen | fun | pavilion www. ｂｉｑｕｇｅ。 ｉｎｆｏ

Shaanxi was completely recovered.

The recovery of Shaanxi is naturally a good thing.

Yesterday, Zhu Youzhen led hundreds of officials to pacify Shaanxi and Japan's annexation to the ancestors and ancestors, which was extremely beautiful. The people of the capital rushed to tell each other the news, and they were excited one by one, as if the Ming Dynasty was in front of them.

With Cao Bianjiao's military exploits in Shaanxi, the civil officials looked at Zhu Youzhen with a more respectful look, and it was no longer the depressed feeling of daring to be angry and not daring to speak in the past.

The most important prestige in troubled times, even if it is an emperor, he cannot be convinced without prestige, and it is likely that the decree will not leave the Forbidden City. And prestige is not something that can be killed just by killing people, it also requires actual merit.

Zhu Youzhen's own hand-built Jingying Nengzhan -- although it was only with the help of Li Zhi that he could fight, but in any case, this was something that could greatly enhance Zhu Youzhen's personal prestige.

After recapturing Xi'an, Zhu Youzhen felt that what he said in front of the civil officials had more weight. In addition to being happy, he gave Cao Bianjiao the title of Earl of Dingxi.

However, the prestige has increased, and troublesome things have come.

Li Zicheng robbed all Shaanxi provinces and fled to Huguang with the looted gold, silver, treasures, and grain supplies. Shaanxi's grain, which was originally widely stored in the homes of the gentry, was now all robbed by thieves.

Farmers in Shaanxi have suffered natural disasters for several years, and this year they have been hit by war, and their families will not be able to support their food until next summer's harvest. Originally, these peasants relied on the thieves, but now that the thieves are gone, the peasants need relief from the imperial court.

The situation in the cities was even worse, and after the death of the gentry, the small citizens who depended on the gentry had no income and suddenly fell into famine. Almost all the cities in Shaanxi have become empty cities. The gentry were killed, the grain stores were emptied, and the small citizens of the city had nothing to eat.

Cao Bianjiao played the tragic situation of the people of Shaanxi starving to the Son of Heaven, hoping that the Son of Heaven could save the refugees in Shaanxi.

Zhu Youzhen is not an iron-blooded and ruthless person, he just wants to save all the people in Shaanxi, and he is really a little shy.

"Wang Dehua, how many people in Shaanxi need relief?"

Wang Dehua, the eunuch of Dongchang, arched his hand and said: "When you return to the saint, the first thing you have to save is the people in the city. According to Dongchang's figures, there are about 280,000 small people in the cities of Shaanxi's prefectures and counties. According to Zeb's report, there were 270,000 hungry people in the cities, and there was not much in or out. ”

"Now that the gentry in Shaanxi have been killed and all industries have withered, I am afraid that it will be impossible for the small people in Shaanxi to find a livelihood within half a year. If we want to save these hungry people, we need at least 400,000 stone of food. ”

Zhu Youzhen knocked on the table and asked, "What about the peasants in the countryside?" ”

Wang Dehua replied: "The need for relief in the countryside is even greater, and according to the Xibo Zhang, the grain stored by the farmers in Shaanxi can last for three months at most." The harvest of winter wheat will take at least half a year from now. In this way, we will provide three months of relief to the farmers in Shaanxi. For the 3.2 million peasants in Shaanxi, a three-month ration would cost 1 million stone. ”

Zhu Youzhen's face sank when he heard Wang Dehua's calculation.

Wang Chengen said in a speechless manner: "Emperor, according to the current price of rice in the capital of 227 yuan, the grain of 1.4 million stone will cost 3.7 million taels of silver. Even if the silver in the Tai Warehouse and the Inner Treasury is emptied, it is not enough. ”

Zhu Youzhen stood up anxiously, walked a few steps back and forth in the study, and asked, "How much silver is there in the Tai Warehouse and the Inner Warehouse now?" ”

Wang Chengen replied: "In recent years, the expenses of the new army in Beijing have been extremely high, and the taxes of Jianghuai Province have not been paid, and the silver in the treasury is not abundant. There are 2,100,000 taels in the Tai warehouse, and only 970,000 taels are left in the inner warehouse. ”

Zhu Youzhen took a breath helplessly and said, "It's not enough, it's not enough..."

Wang Chengen said: "Emperor, this is not counting the price increase of grain!" Those grain merchants are the most inhumane things, if the emperor buys more than a million stone of grain at once, then he has to transfer grain from outside Beijing. I'm afraid that the grain merchants in the capital will have to sit on the ground and raise the price all day long, and I don't know how far the grain price will rise! ”

Zhu Youzhen snorted coldly, and didn't seem to be worried about the price increase of the grain merchants.

However, even if Zhu Youzhen suppressed the grain merchants who raised prices and bought all the grain at a fair price, the silver was still not enough.

Walking to the window of the study, Zhu Youzhen opened the glass window that Li Zhi had installed for himself for free, and said in a deep voice: "If there is a great famine in Shaanxi just after it is taken, I am afraid that public opinion in all provinces will be in an uproar." The prestige I have accumulated by leveling the thieves will surely be lost in one day! ”

"Those civil officials don't dare to be presumptuous in the court now, but they still have the courage to ridicule me in the downtown of the wine shop... When the time comes, the people of Shaanxi will be cannibalistic, won't I be able to pick up face in front of the king of Tianjin? ”

When Wang Chengen and Wang Dehua heard the words of the Son of Heaven, they looked at each other for a while, not knowing what to say.

The Son of Heaven said that he was still worried that Li Zhiwei would not be able to lose. The Son of Heaven wanted to have face in front of Li Zhi, so that Li Zhi would not have contempt.

But now in the situation in Shaanxi, the imperial court is really powerless.

Wang Dehua gritted his teeth and said, "Holy Lord, at this moment, only the king of Tianjin can save Shaanxi Province. I can only ask the king of Tianjin to provide cheap grain. ”

Hearing Wang Dehua's words, Zhu Youzhen's body trembled, as if his dignity as a human monarch had been greatly impacted.

Wang Dehua looked at the face of the Son of Heaven and said: "Holy Lord, the king of Tianjin County sits on the big granary of the three provinces outside the Guan, coupled with the continuous water conservancy development in Tianjin and Shandong, the number of acres of land is hundreds of millions. It is said that this year's winter wheat harvest in Tianjin and Shandong is another bumper harvest, and the spring wheat in Liaodong Province was also quite abundant three months ago. ”

"Now the king of Tianjin has millions of stones of grain in his hands. The 1.4 million stones that the emperor needed were just a matter of a stroke of the pen for the king of Tianjin. We let the king of Tianjin sell us grain at cost price, and we will definitely be able to solve Shaanxi's worries. ”

Zhu Youzhen heard Wang Dehua's words, and his face turned white.

Unexpectedly, Li Zhi's strength has swelled to such an extent. If Wang Dehua is right, the relief grain and grass that the entire imperial court can't muster is just a trivial matter for Li Zhi.

Zhu Youzhen thought about it carefully, and only felt that there had been famine everywhere in the Ming Dynasty over the years, and the imperial court was powerless to provide disaster relief. But in Li Zhi's territory, there has never been a large-scale starvation of people.

The pattern of the Ming court's internal and external importance has reached the point of shock.

"Tianjin is almost incredible." Zhu Youzhen took a breath and said, "You have to change the law!" In order to implement the new policy in Beizhili, Shaanxi and Shanxi following the example of Tianjin, it is necessary to make these three provinces and the imperial court rich and catch up with Tianjin. ”

Wang Dehua arched his hand and said: "Holy Lord, it is advisable to change the law, but now at a critical juncture, the important thing is to buy cheap grain from Tianjin to supply the hungry people!" If the hungry people in Shaanxi have nothing to eat and starve all over the ground, the prestige that the emperor has accumulated with great difficulty will be swept away. ”

Zhu Youzhen frowned and looked at Wang Dehua and did not speak.

Wang Chengen saw that Zhu Youzhen's face was not good, so he hurriedly stepped forward and said: "The slave also thinks that now there is only one way to ask for help from the king of Tianjin County!" ”

Zhu Youzhen took a deep breath and walked back and forth in the study.

After walking for a quarter of an hour, Zhu Youzhen reluctantly sat back in his chair.

"Wang Chengen, then you will go to Tianjin and ask for 1.4 million stone cheap grain to come back."