Chapter Forty-Eight: Crossing the River (II)

"Once the shipping on the canal is cut off, the price of grain in the capital will inevitably double within a month! According to the information sent back by the Military Intelligence Department from various places, the harvest in Zhuozhou, Hejian, Yizhou and other places last autumn could only be regarded as mediocre. The supply of the local people is barely possible, and there is no ability to deliver food to the capital! ”

Not only Zhang Song alone, but many core generals present, such as Xu Da, Liu Ziyun, Wu Liangmou, etc., were also stunned for a moment. Especially Liu Ziyun, looking at Zhu Chongjiu's gaze, it is like a twenty-eight-year-old girl looking at a hero, in addition to worship, the rest is worship.

No wonder the lord has been talking about the lack of preparation in the recent period, and no wonder the lord has been saying that it is too bad for Timur and his son to kill each other. It turned out that his "strange soldiers" had already crossed the Yellow River and penetrated deep into the heart of Mengyuan. It has only been a long time, and the food supply on Meng Yuan's side has been completely stuck in the hands of the Huai'an army. If he is given another three to five years, why should the Huai'an army bring 100,000 armor at that time, as long as the clamps on the south bank of the Yellow River are harvested, the grain of rice is not allowed to be transported north, and the Mengyuan government and the opposition are afraid that they will not even be able to gather the military rations for the expedition, how can they make any decent resistance?

The only one who has always remained calm is the elder Shi Su Mingzhe. As a person who has watched Zhu Chongjiu step by step from a pig killer to today, he has witnessed too many miracles, so he doesn't care about one more or one less. Even if Zhu Chongjiu gets up tomorrow morning and tells him that he can fly into the sky with everyone, he will only happily pack his luggage, instead of thinking that there is anything shocking about the daytime rise!

"Food prices have doubled in a month, I'm afraid they will more than double!" Knocking on the ground with a cane covered with gold, Lao Changshi added in a low voice, "Every year from the beginning of spring to the wheat filling, it is a time when there is no green and yellow. Unless artificially controlled, food prices will rise by 50% or even double. In the past, grain merchants bought at a low price in autumn and sold at a high price in spring, earning this kind of black-hearted money. And once our army cuts off the canal, the first thing that comes to mind of those grain shops in the capital that are controlled by the princes and nobles will definitely not be to tide over the difficulties with the Mengyuan court. Instead, he took the opportunity to make a big profit, regardless of whether his sky would fall! ”

"Those big guys, what a bunch of lice in the crotch!" Robben used a famous quote from Ruan Ji to make the most vivid annotation of Su Mingzhe's words. Every day, he only cares about burying his head in blood sucking, and he doesn't care about the changes outside. If the fire reaches the crotch of the pants, the lice will surely die with no place to bury.

"For me Huaiyang, at the moment, there are more lice in the capital, the better!" Zhang Song shook his head and smiled to make amusement. For Mengyuan's understanding of officialdom, I'm afraid that even Lu Luzeng may not be deeper than him. Therefore, he didn't doubt Su Mingzhe's inference at all, and even in his heart, he thought that Su Mingzhe had looked down on those princes and nobles countless times.

"After all, this move will hurt the peace of the heavens, and it will spread afterwards, or it will damage the reputation of the lord!" Robben glanced at him and continued to shake his head slightly.

Unlike the rest of the people here, after he was "released" from the staff position, he took up the post of local official. The most common thing he did was to resettle the displaced people and save the people. After doing it for a long time, the heart will inevitably become soft. When I think of the skyrocketing food prices, the scene that immediately comes to mind is how ordinary people have become starving corpses.

"If the protracted battle continues, the losses of our Huai'an army will inevitably be not small. There will be more innocent and tragic deaths! Zhang Song also shook his head and refuted in a low voice. Since ancient times, fighting a war has inevitably led to death. And the quicker the battle, the fewer innocent people will definitely die! ”

"Meng Yuan's side, there are enough livestock. The short-term shortage of food will be very limited for both the government and the army. However, ordinary people will inevitably ask for wild vegetables and elm money in the spring. If the food supply is cut off, they will starve to death in droves within a month! Robben thought for a moment and continued to whisper.

He knew very well in his heart that since his lord had already made a premeditated plan, it was imperative to cut off the canal in wartime. Therefore, he was unwilling to directly dissuade Zhu Chongjiu, which was a useless move. Instead, he reminded everyone of the consequences of cutting off the canal, hoping that Zhu Chongjiu would be more thoughtful when making his final decision, so as to avoid too many innocent deaths.

These efforts were not in vain. When Zhu Chongjiu heard this, he immediately knocked lightly on the table and said in a low voice: "Guanzhong is extremely right. In terms of the ability to withstand famine alone, the officials and army of Mengyuan were much stronger than ordinary people. So while cutting off the canal, we had to make some other arrangements. Lest even if our Huai'an Army wins, it will take over a piece of white land! ”

"As long as it is not a natural disaster, the more people are in the village, the more people are looking for ways to eat. And the farmer himself knows that rice is expensive in the spring, and usually saves some rations in advance. Su Mingzhe took his words with a smile and explained in a low voice, "During this time, the saddest thing is actually the people in the city. Ordinary people rarely accumulate, in case the price of rice soars, grain shops compete to hoard it. Many people, even if they have money, can't buy food to eat! ”

"That's true!" Huang Laowei had a rare opportunity to perform, and he couldn't wait to take over the conversation. "In the past, people like us who struck iron, who worked as carpenters, bricklayers, and those who sold hard work, were most afraid of spring! When the price of food rises, I work all day, and sometimes I can't earn a full meal! ”

"Is there a way to not only hit the living forces on Meng Yuan's side, but also avoid a large number of starving people?!" Zhu Chongjiu turned his head to Liu Ji and asked with some expectation.

"This?" Liu Bowen grinned in embarrassment, and then responded in a low voice, "The best way is to solve it quickly." One city per gram, immediately open a warehouse to release grain, and at the same time let the fleet keep up and supply grain to the local area at a reasonable price! Secondly"

After hesitating for a moment, he added in a low voice, "After the army crosses the river, the lord can let the military intelligence and internal affairs departments spread the news, saying that we are only targeting the Mengyuan court this time, and we don't want to hurt the innocent." Anyone who fled to the newly recovered territory of our army on his own could receive a ration for his life. ”

"Is this possible?" Zhu Chongjiu's eyebrows jumped, and he asked in surprise. "Won't Meng Yuan send troops to stop it?"

"Once there is a food shortage, if the Mengyuan government does not have the ability to limit the price increase of grain shops, the people in the city will become a burden to them. So the more people who flee, the smaller the gap for local officials to deal with the disaster! And the city is not like the countryside, except for a house, there is no field to drag down. If you want to go, you can go out and escape at any time after packing up, and you won't be too nostalgic! ”

"Then let the Military Intelligence Department cooperate and make a complete plan first!" Zhu Chongjiu frowned and thought about it, then turned his gaze to Chen Ji. "Within three days, I want to see concrete measures. And "

Gently patting the table with his hand, he quickly added, "There is no need to wait for the army to cross the river, from now on, Huaiyang will gradually reduce the grain delivery to the north first." Let the price of food rise slowly first, and give the people a wake-up call. lest they be caught off guard! ”

"I'm afraid that the Mengyuan Imperial Court will also be alert immediately!" Liu Bowen didn't agree with Zhu Chongjiu's method, and shook his head and reminded in a low voice.

"The amount they need is too big, and even if they are vigilant, it's too late to start buying now. Unless they are determined to grab it! Zhu Chongjiu knocked on the table a few more times and said with a sneer.

"That's it!" Seeing that Liu Ji and Robben still had the intention of admonishing, he quickly made a final decision before the two spoke. "On the Household Bureau, it is responsible for organizing civilian ships and following the army to release grain. Or as when I was in Yangzhou and Huai'an, try to use work for relief. For the elderly, children, women and children who are really unable to work, food will be rationed free of charge. ”

The biggest difficulty in this Northern Expedition is not necessarily at the military level, but in winning the hearts and minds of the people as soon as possible. Giving the people who are in the midst of famine hope to live again is undoubtedly the best way to win the hearts and minds of the people. Although, it was also his Zhu Chongjiu's big hand that pushed the people to the brink of life and death at the beginning.

He found that he didn't know when his heart became much more ruthless than before, and even a little unscrupulous. But even if he was given enough time to discuss with Robben and wait for him for three days and three nights, he believed that he would still make the same decision. Destroy the enemy by all possible means, without thinking about whether it will hurt many innocents for this. After all, the Huaiyang Governor's Mansion and the Huai'an Army are the pillars of all his ideals, and without these two pillars, no matter how much compassion he has in his heart, the end will be in vain.

"While reducing the food supply, the household bureau is responsible for joining hands with the Huaiyang firm to increase the northern transportation of glass, ice cui, jewelry, jewelry, garments, various fabrics and gold products, and the price is gradually reduced by two to three percent under the approval of the firm. Remember, you have to take it one step at a time, you can't get it in an instant. Prices for wool and groceries to the north have also risen slightly. Let those Mengyuan officials, officials and businessmen, and tax collectors find that the money in their hands is more valuable and it is easier to make money when they find that the price of grain has begun to rise. In this way, they will not jump up and react violently all at once. Instead, they will take the initiative to cooperate with us and turn the north upside down! Looking at Robben, who was frowning, and Liu Ji, who was unwilling, Zhu Chongjiu cleared his throat and continued to add. The voice is not hurried, as if a relevant plan has been made a long time ago.

"In addition, cattle, sheep, livestock, chickens and ducks, we can advance the principal and entrust the boat to help them hoard a large amount. They often help us, and when we have the opportunity to make a fortune, we have to take care of our own people first. After a slight pause, Zhu Chongjiu continued to strategize.

Although he also understands the scales, when it comes to fighting economic warfare, none of the people here are better at it than him. As he spoke, he was pleased to find that he had returned to the days when he had just laid down Huai'an. Anything can be decided in a word, and anything can be done freely. However, everyone only obeys, and even if they work hard, it is difficult to understand the mystery contained in it.

"Yes!" Sure enough, Liu Ji and Luo Ben saw Zhu Chongjiu's resolute attitude and gave up their orders one after another.

"Beware of someone deliberately stirring up the situation! As soon as the price of grain is high, sea freight becomes a bargain. Zhang Shicheng, Fang Guozhen and the Shen family, I'm afraid they are all masters who recognize money but not people! Zhang Song, the director of the Internal Affairs Department, hesitated a little and took the initiative to stand up and remind. He's been very positive lately, whether it's his jurisdiction or not, and whenever he sees an opportunity, he's trying to get there. I am afraid that Zhu Chongjiu and everyone will not see that he, a former subordinate, has completely surrendered to the Grand Governor's Mansion.

"Let Zhu Qiang take the fleet to negotiate with them! At this time, there is no personal relationship to talk about. Anyone who destroys the great cause of our army's Northern Expedition is a life and death revenge!! Zhu Chongjiu's eyebrows were slightly clustered, and his eyes were shining! It's like a beast that has been dormant for a long time and is finally beginning to show its teeth.