Li Xi threw out three questions in a row, and one was sharper than the other, which immediately made Yang Shenyu feel a little overwhelmed. Because of Li Xi's three questions, they almost directly smashed into the biggest loophole in his Cao Yun plan.

When Li Linfu just mentioned the food problem in Chang'an, this was also the first method that Li Xi subconsciously thought of, but although this method has the advantages of quick results and small investment, his fatal shortcomings cannot be concealed at all.

Since it is an official supervising the people's movement, then in fact, to put it bluntly, it is the political axe that comes forward to regulate the market, and uses the leverage of the market price difference to prompt the private businessmen to spontaneously transport grain to Chang'an in order to earn the price difference.

Until the Ming and Qing dynasties a few hundred years later, there was still a method for merchants to transport grain to the border in exchange for salt, and it was applied for a long time, and this was actually a kind of developed official and supervisory people's movement.

But then the problem arose, the private merchants were willing to transport grain, no doubt for profit, so if they wanted to work hard to transport grain to Chang'an, they must be allowed to make higher profits in addition to the cost they had to pay. Then, there are only two ways, first, the political axe to buy at a high price, and second, continue to keep Chang'an's grain prices at a relatively high price, even ...... It's even higher than it is now!

These two methods, no matter which one is adopted, will inevitably lead to one result - the merchants will make money, and the price of grain in Chang'an will continue to remain high.

If the price offered by the political axe makes the merchants feel unprofitable, or the price of grain in Chang'an makes them feel unprofitable, then unless the political axe continues to put a lot of money into it, the democracy movement will be cut off immediately.

However, let the Tang political axe continue to stick money into it, no problem for a year or two, after a long time, it will develop into a big burden on the imperial court's finances, just like a big tumor in the blood vessels of the human body, if the Tang Dynasty has been so rich and peaceful, it may not be conspicuous, but if there are some unexpected changes, the financial situation of the Tang political axe is tight, then, this tumor will explode immediately, and the food supply of Tang Yanjing will be blocked in one fell swoop.

And judging from the situation of all dynasties, accidents are inevitable.

Of course, if these situations are alone, they are not too serious, after all, as long as they are properly regulated, the political axe can be flexibly adjusted by borrowing the leverage of the market, so that at least for a few decades, Chang'an City does not need to worry about food.

But the most critical question is, as long as the official governor is needed, as long as the money is given, can the people be transported?

It is well known that the nose of a businessman is the most sensitive, and as soon as he finds a profit, as soon as he feels profitable, then he will immediately rush to it. However, Chang'an has been short of grain for decades, and grain prices have remained high for decades, and it is naturally impossible for businessmen across the country not to know about it, but to this day, Chang'an is still short of grain, and Chang'an's grain prices are still high.

Why?

There is only one answer, the price of transporting grain to Chang'an is too high!

As early as after discussing with Pei Yaoqing at the beginning, Li Xi already understood that the reason for the high grain prices in Chang'an was not a problem of method or price, but a problem of roads.

Aside from such a long period of water transportation from Yangzhou to Luoyang, just in Sanmenxia, the freight is almost equal to the price of grain for land transportation, and if it is a waterway, the danger of Sanmen is famous all over the world, which is not conducive to large-scale transportation at all...... This is absolutely unacceptable to the Jianghuai Transit Envoy Si Yamen.

Whether it is the democracy movement or the official movement, if this bottleneck is not solved, no one will have to die, and no one will be able to finally solve the problem.

On the surface, Yang Shenyu's plan is very eye-catching, but if you think about it carefully, you will find that his method is only a palliative but not a cure, and it cannot solve the fundamental problem at all.

Therefore, as soon as Li Xi's question came out, Yang Shenyu suddenly felt overwhelmed.

After a long time, Yang Shenyu is already in his fifties and nearly sixty years old, firstly, his mood is calm, and secondly, his life experience is also extremely rich, so he quickly adjusted and stabilized his mind.

At this time, he raised his head and glanced at Li Xi, asked instead of answering, and said, "Could it be that the Lord wants official luck?" ”

"Why not?" Li Xi asked rhetorically.

"Uh......" After a pause, Yang Shenyu stood up and arched his hand: "My lord, please forgive the official for saying bluntly, if our Jianghuai Transshipment Envoy personally transports it, not only will the freight not be reduced, but it will greatly increase the expenses of the imperial court, and moreover, from collecting grain, to organizing the fleet, and then going all the way north, all the way to the danger of Sanmen...... This, this...... I'm afraid it's not easy! ”

When mentioning the danger of Sanmen, his tone was obviously a little paused, and he looked like he wanted to say something, obviously, he also knew that there would be a lot of accidents in Sanmenxia every year, and even he knew that as long as there was an accident, people would definitely die.

Therefore, in his opinion, even if it is an official luck, it can't save a few dollars, so the political axe only needs to spend money to buy some high-priced grain, and the big deal is to stick a little more into it, so that he can't see it out of sight and not be upset, it's better than going to transport grain by himself and facing this kind of shipwreck many times a year.

You must know that in the current situation of small scale of grain transportation, so many people will die every year, and once it is expanded to at least one million stone of grain per year, there will undoubtedly be more people who die...... These people died at the hands of private businessmen, at most, they put the pension, compensation, and the like into the price of grain, and the people did not report it, and the officials did not hold it accountable, and the court could completely cover its ears and steal the bell and think that it was clean grain, and there was no need to bear any pressure and responsibility for this kind of thing.

But if the government transports grain by itself, if this kind of thing happens, for the sake of Cao Yun, I dare not report it truthfully, so I can only press it down, but after a long time, who dares to guarantee that it can be suppressed all the time? And the matter of dozens of deaths at every turn, once it is found out, it will be a shocking case, and it is impossible to say that the officials of the entire Jianghuai Transshipment Department will be held accountable.

Moreover, if the regulation is done properly, maybe the officials and the people will save more money than their own transportation, you know, as the son of Yang Chongli, he is quite experienced in market regulation, and once Li Xi chooses this path, he will undoubtedly become the most indispensable one in the Jianghuai Transit Envoy Yamen.

Therefore, he is almost naturally inclined to the official and pro-democracy movement.

Li Xi pondered for a moment after hearing this, and then, he looked up at the roof, his voice suddenly became much lower, as if he was asking Yang Shenyu, and seemed to be asking himself: "If you die in the hands of merchants, isn't it considered a dead person?" ”

Yang Shenyu was stunned at first, and then suddenly surprised, as if he had grasped Li Xi's thoughts at once, but after frowning and thinking about it, he was puzzled, and then, he couldn't help frowning and looking at Li Xi suspiciously, "My lord, do you want to ......?"

"Build roads!" Li Xi took the case.

Yang Shenyu was dumbfounded.

After a while, he didn't care about etiquette, and subconsciously took two steps forward and said, "My lord, this, this road construction ......."

Li Xi waved his hand and interrupted him, "I know, it's easy to walk, but it's hard to open the way, but, Shen Yugong, you and I are an official of the imperial court, and we are in charge of this matter, no matter what, we can't sit back and watch one life after another die in the waves!" ”

After a pause, he said: "Your Majesty needs food, the court needs food, and Chang'an needs food, so we must do our best to provide food, but this food must be really clean, not soaked in blood!" ”

Yang Shenyu was surprised for a moment when he heard this, and then he groaned for a moment.

He suddenly took two steps back, slowly sat down on the Hu chair, and after a long time, he spoke: "My lord said just now, saying that in the streets and alleys of Chang'an today, there is a lot of criticism about the establishment of our Jianghuai transfer envoy Yamen, as well as the matter of your lord serving as the deputy envoy of Jianghuai transfer and supervising the grain and road affairs of Gyeonggi...... At this time, the princes of the court and the central government were already talking about it, and if the adults asked to open the road again, whether it was to build a land or water road...... I'm afraid it's not easy! ”

Li Xi nodded, and when he heard these words, he finally let out a long breath.

Yang Shenyu can say such a thing, which means that he at least sincerely wants to promote Caoyun, as long as he, and the Yang Chongli Yang family behind him can maintain such an attitude, it is enough.

Smiling, Li Xi said: "It's not easy, it's extremely difficult." From Yangzhou to Heyin, and then to Luoyang, you only need to clean the river regularly, it is good to say, from Luoyang to Qin, and from Huazhou to Chang'an, whether it is a waterway or a land, it is not easy to walk, if you repair, you have to repair, which is involved, but it is too wide, just money...... It's a headache just thinking about it! However, if you want to be lucky, this road must be repaired! ”

After a long time, Yang Shenyu nodded lightly, "Xiaguan understands what the lord means." ”

After walking out of Li Xi's room, Yang Shenyu stood at the door for a long time, and then slowly walked away, but sighed faintly: "How easy it is to talk, how easy it is to talk about it......"

Chang'an, Fumanlou Restaurant, second floor.

Two young men dressed in regular clothes sat in the corner and sipped tea lightly, whispering a few words from time to time, with a warm smile on their faces, obviously encountering something that made them happy.

The restaurant is noisy, although it is the second floor, can afford the price of the dishes here to eat and drink, there are probably no ordinary poor people, but the restaurant place, what you want is a lively atmosphere, at this time it is in the morning, more than a dozen tables on the second floor are full of seventy or eighty percent of the guests, everyone is drunk and hot, it is inevitable to talk about some topics of interest, and after drinking, the sound is inevitably a little louder, so it is more and more noisy here.

Compared to their surroundings, the two people sitting in the corner were obviously a little out of place.

However, whether it was looking at the graceful demeanor of the two of them, or the few strong men in brocade clothes who were standing around their table with big shoulders and round waists, there was no doubt that they were telling others that their identities were very noble, so everyone was just talking about their own topics, and no one dared to look curiously here.

At this time, the young man sitting on the outside side listened to the discussions of other people in the restaurant for a while, looked at the person sitting opposite him with a smile, and said respectfully: "Son, things have already been seventy-seven-eighty-eight, and with the current situation in Chang'an City, presumably that Li Xi has to be cautious no matter how bold he is." ”

If there is someone you know, you must be surprised to see this person talking to people so respectfully.

This person's name is Xue Rust, is the daughter of His Majesty Emperor Xianruizong, the princess of the country and the son of Xue Ju, the sixteenth year of Kaiyuan, he was ordered to return to the daughter of Emperor Xuanzong, that is, his aunt and cousin Princess Tangchang, and he also became the captain of the horse, the year before last, in the eighteenth year of Kaiyuan, he was worshiped as Guangluqing, which can be called one of the great figures among the young generation of nobles in today's court, and it is not too much to call the leader.

Of course, this kind of family background is still secondary, after all, in today's court, there are not one or two people with this identity, the reason why he has a special status, faintly became the leader of this generation of noble children, the most important thing is that as early as the thirteenth year of Kaiyuan, his sister has been married to the crown prince Li Hong, and is still his concubine.

This alone is already enough to establish his position.

A few years later, the first-class Emperor Xuanzong died, and the crown prince Li Hong ascended the throne, as the queen's brother-in-law, his status can be imagined, not to mention that he himself is also from a famous family, extraordinary knowledge, and suave and graceful, so among the younger generation of nobles, he is an absolute leader in terms of actual status and accumulated prestige and connections.

And those who can make him respectfully called "Gongziye" in today's court, I am afraid that it will not exceed a slap count!

If you look at the person opposite him who is wearing a regular suit, but still can't hide the luxury, this answer is almost imminent.

He is the second son of Emperor Xuanzong of the Tang Dynasty, the first son of Concubine Zhao Li, the current prince, and the crown prince Li Hong.

He is not tall, but his skeleton is wide, his momentum is extremely powerful and rich, and his eyes are bright, so he looks very bright, although he is dressed in regular clothes, he is still extremely eagle.

At this time, after listening to Xue Rust's words, he smiled faintly and said, "It's better to have a plan for Ah Jin!" ”

Xue rust, the word gold collection, is similar to the meaning of the name, implying that the word rust is just hiding the golden knife. And his milk name is called Ah Jin, but this milk name is not a very close relationship between the elders and officials, and he will never dare to call him, you know, his mother is a princess, his wife is a princess, and his sister is still the crown princess, and his identity is extremely noble, so for most people, even if they are very close, they are at most the words that call him.

However, although the crown prince Li Hong is only his brother-in-law, but according to the royal relationship, he is his eldest brother, not to mention that the prince Li Hong is thirty-three years old this year, which is several years older than Xue Rust, who was born in the second year of Zhongzong Jinglong, who is only twenty-six this year, and moreover, Li Hong is the crown prince, and his identity is second only to Emperor Xuanzong, so he calls Xue Rust's milk name A Jin, Xue Rust will not only not be angry, but will think that this is a manifestation of closeness.

You must know that as the son of Emperor Xuanzong, Li Hong, who has been in the position of the crown prince for twenty years, is not a simple person, and when it comes to winning people's hearts, his methods are not comparable to ordinary people.

is just a simple title, and the relationship between the two people has been extremely close.

And when Xue Ru heard that the crown prince Li Hong praised him, he didn't have the slightest smug look on his face, but he also smiled and said respectfully: "With this layer of pressure, presumably Li Xi will be a lot more restrained when he starts to do things." It's just that His Majesty's trust in him is obvious, so for the sake of Gongzi, as long as he can trap him, it is enough, and he must not act rashly. ”

"And ......" hesitated for a moment, but he still couldn't help but say tentatively: "Son, rust thinks, can you send someone to say hello to Luoyang, there are some things, it's better to temporarily restrain some." ”

Li Hong, who was still smiling just now, couldn't help but look down at this time, in fact, when he heard Xue Rust say "Don't act rashly again", he had already put away his smile, and when he heard this sentence behind him, his face became more and more calm. At that moment, he opened his mouth and asked lightly: "What does Ah Jin mean by this?" ”

Xue Ru glimpsed his face, and said very cautiously: "Let's use the discussion on the streets and alleys to put some pressure on him Li Xi, let him do things tirelessly, it's already the limit, I don't know why, Your Majesty is simply unbelievable trust and connivance to him, the last assassination has already made Your Majesty angry, so, for the sake of Gongzi, you must not take risks again." ”

After a pause, he said again: "As for Luoyang...... His Royal Highness also knows that Li Xi has always acted perversely and boldly, and he took up the post of deputy envoy of Jianghuai and supervised the affairs of Jinggi grain, which is equivalent to the matter of Luoyang, which has reached his nose, at this time, in order to avoid conflict with him again, it is better to collect it temporarily. Anyway, we have time, as long as he Li Xi can't complete his goal within three years, then His Majesty will naturally be cold to him, and ...... when the time comes."

At this point in his words, Li Hong waved his hand impatiently, and said unhappily: "Ah Jin, why do you always grow the ambition of others and destroy your own prestige?" It's just to transport some grain to earn a little money, what can he Li Xi do to me? Perhaps, he should be grateful, maybe I help him transport a lot of food to Chang'an every year! ”

Xue Ru stopped talking when he heard this, and Li Hong had already waved his hand again, "There is no need to say anything about this matter, you have to worry about it!" ”

Xue Ru agreed when he heard this, and then lowered his head and sighed.

He has told His Royal Highness the Crown Prince countless times that his current identity is the crown prince and the prince, so for him, the best thing to do is not to do anything, just wait patiently, it is enough. Because as long as he survives until His Majesty dies today, he will be the supreme in the world, and what can't be done at that time? Why fight for something insignificant now?

But it was clear that His Highness would not listen.

But think about it again, it's okay, isn't it just Li Xi, I think that even if he is a genius, he is only eighteen years old, and he is not born to know, even if he is bolder and arrogant, but there is no particularly big threat, just practice for His Royal Highness the Prince!

Anyway, with his own plan, Li Xi is already trapped in the net, and it is suitable to use it to practice the knife for His Royal Highness the Prince, and let out his anger!

(To be continued)