After eating and drinking, Zhu Biao ordered Quan Xu to sleep for a few hours before letting him set off. After all, his iron body couldn't bear the hard work of running around for days without rest. Zhu Biao naturally felt sorry for his beloved general.
In the next few days, Chen Rongyan left early and returned late, but every day several large carts of silver were transported into the guardhouse. Naturally, many people wanted to see Zhu Biao during this period, hoping to discuss it carefully.
Zhu Biao ignored them. He had no interest in seeing a group of people who were bound to die. Even his brother Zhang Mingyuan in Qingyang Mansion asked to see him. It was useless to talk more.
Such an attitude naturally made many people panic. Under various speculations, some people began to doubt Chen Yunze's identity. Some people speculated that Chen Yunze might be Quan Xu Changmao, and some even speculated that Chen Yunze was His Royal Highness the Crown Prince himself.
This guess was scolded by everyone as soon as it came out, but as time went by, many people became more convinced, but they couldn't believe it and strongly resisted this inference.
Because if Chen Yunze is really Prince Zhu Biao, then they are really dead, and if it is someone else, there is still room for relaxation.
Based on this, Chen Rongyan's extortion became more and more successful. As long as Chen Rongyan dared to speak, they dared to give. They just wanted to send away the deadly plague. There were more than ten local officials who were so worried that they couldn't get out of bed.
Among them, Fang Liangpin, the prefect of Pingliang, was the most serious. If the fever persisted, his life would be in danger. This shows how anxious and frightened they were. Death was not terrible, but the waiting before death was terrible.
Even the most powerful people can find that they have been wrapped in a big net, and their contact with the outside world has also been blocked. When Wang Shijian, the dignified imperial envoy, died, no one from the provincial government came to inquire, as if the land of Shaanxi and Gansu has become a deadly place. .
On the other hand, the people affected by the disaster are doing a lot better. The daily porridge they can get is much more than in previous months. It is not enough to eat enough, but it is more than enough to survive.
After a few days of calm, Zhu Biao looked at a group of people sitting below in the Pingliang Prefecture Guardhouse and said: "Disaster relief and safety of the people are your first priority. Don't worry about other things. The food for disaster relief is still sufficient." , but it’s never enough to be extravagant, so you must budget carefully, do you all know that?”
Zhang Fan stood up and replied: "Your Highness has already completed the measures to calm the people and provide disaster relief. If I don't do well in following the rules, why should I see you again with dignity?"
Li Jin also cupped his hands and said, "I will definitely do my job well and will not let His Highness down."
The rest also stood up to express their opinions. Some of them were Jinshi candidates from the previous department, and some were temporarily transferred officials from the Xi'an Prefecture. They were all officials who had experienced local people's livelihood, and there were currently more than a hundred people.
If it were placed throughout Shaanxi and Gansu, it would be a drop in the bucket. Fortunately, under the disaster, most of the victims were concentrated inside and outside the prefectural cities. The smaller villages and towns were already deserted, so it was enough to appease the main prefectures.
When the disaster situation stabilizes, officials dispatched by the imperial court from various places will arrive, and then they will start working on restoring people's livelihood and urging the victims to return home.
Zhu Biao left them to discuss with each other, while he walked out of the house and entered the newly opened large warehouse. It was full of gold and silver treasures, and they could only be counted by boxes. Chen Rongyan was taking notes when he saw Zhu Biao coming. Chen Rongyan hurriedly came up to greet him.
After giving His Highness the Crown Prince a general look around, Chen Rongyan said: "There shouldn't be anything you can dig out there now. You have to dig out your own money just to survive."
Zhu Biao shook his head with a smile and said: "No, even if they cry for poverty, they may have shed some blood, but they are definitely reluctant to dig out their own flesh. After all, the matter is so big, naturally it is carried by tall people, and they will not be left alone. On your own head.
Chen Rongyan smiled bitterly. They were really unlucky to meet His Highness the Crown Prince, who knew their thoughts very well.
Zhu Biao then picked up a heavy piece of silver and tossed it around and asked, "Are you all still honest?"
"Officials are all very honest, but I haven't seen Dingyuan General Wang Liu again in the past two days. Could it be..."
Zhu Biao smiled clearly and said: "Of course you can't see him. He has already gone to Qingyang Mansion to meet General Zhaoyi He Cheng."
Chen Rongyan was a little nervous for a moment, but relaxed in an instant. Since His Highness the Crown Prince already knew about it, it meant that he was prepared and there was nothing to worry about.
Zhu Biao put the silver back into the original box, walked outside and couldn't help but sigh, why did all dynasties suppress military generals? In fact, they can really threaten the rule of the court. What ability can civilian officials have? They are nothing more than corruption and perversion of the law.
When the imperial court wants to kill them, whether it is a high-ranking official in charge of a border area or the prime minister of the six tribes of Xiaheng, they will be killed as long as he has no army under his command. No matter how high he climbs, he will not be able to surpass the imperial power.
Only warriors break the rules. Just like now, under the threat of a mere Chen Yunze, countless state officials are like slaughtered cattle and sheep. They can only passively be cut and bled, praying hard for him to show his noble hand.
And Wang Liu and others have decided to fight to the death. Anyway, if a person dies or a bird flies up to the sky, he will not die for tens of millions of years. No matter whether he is the emperor or the prince, it is not that easy to kill me!
Why? It's not because the civil servants don't want to fight to the death, it's because they have no soldiers and generals. The few servants they can mobilize are useless. They have a way of beating ordinary people, but they are afraid of facing the imperial army. Even peeing can be scary
In such a situation, it is natural that there is no thought of being powerless to resist at all, and one can only think of turning big things into trivial matters. At worst, sacrificing money to avoid disasters. If that doesn't work, you can only accept your fate.
Wang Liu, He Cheng and others all have elite confidants under their command, and they can raise a group of people to rebel. Naturally, they are not willing to let them die obediently. This is the fundamental difference in mentality.
If Fang Liang could recruit 100,000 soldiers to obey his orders, he would have already broken through the guard and captured Chen Yunze before discussing how to reconcile. Anyway, it was generally okay, and the court could only accept it.
It's a pity that they don't have that ability. Wang Liuhe Cheng is a general who has been marginalized. Otherwise, based on their merits, they would not be reduced to serving in poor places like Shaanxi and Gansu.
When he got the news, Zhu Biao had already ordered Cao Liangchen and Han Zheng to lead troops to Qingyang Guards Station to capture the two of them. The two founding marquises were enough to frighten the soldiers. As long as they announced that the guardsmen would not be held responsible, what would Wang Liu do? There are only a few soldiers under the command.
He had not moved before because Zhu Biao didn't quite trust Cao Liangchen. After all, he had only met this person a few times and was not sure whether he was involved in this case. He wanted to see his reaction.
Anyway, Han Zheng has already sent news, and with the help of his name, he has contacted most of the generals stationed in Xi'an. If anything goes wrong, they can take away Cao Liangchen's command at any time and take him down.
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