There is heaven, there are Suzhou and Hangzhou.
This sentence, which everyone is familiar with, highly summarizes the prosperity and splendor of Suzhou and Hangzhou, attracting people all over the world to yearn for it.
Hangzhou was the temporary capital of the Song Dynasty, and Suzhou was Pingjiang Prefecture.
Pingjiang Fucheng has always been an important city in the Jiangnan region and was known as the "Southeast City". However, in the third year of Jianyan's reign, like Wujiang County, it was burned, looted and destroyed by the Jin soldiers.
In the early days of the southern crossing, Zhao Jiumei once intended to use Pingjiang Prefecture as the capital, so it was rebuilt in accordance with the requirements of the capital at that time.
"The overlapping rivers and mountains are majestic, and the flat wells are wide."
The rebuilt Pingjiang City has long city walls and towering towers, with a circumference of about 35 miles, nine miles long from north to south, and seven miles wide from east to west. It is generally a rectangle, with a five-mile circumference at the center of the city.
The city's main waterways, three horizontally and four vertically, and hundreds of tributaries are intertwined vertically and horizontally, cleverly integrated with lane streets, forming a double chessboard pattern of "water and land adjacent, rivers and streets parallel", weaving a unique water city charm.
Sixty-five private houses are spread out among them, and the houses with white walls and black tiles are lined up in rows. Most of them are built near the water. The front streets and back rivers, small bridges, flowing water, and people's homes create a vivid and poetic picture.
Refined temples with double eaves resting on mountains, majestic official offices, magnificent private gardens, bustling shops and workshops, and buildings of various styles are scattered throughout the city. Everywhere, they complement each other and complement each other, making it truly like a paradise on earth.
However, at this time, "heaven" is filled with anxiety and panic, and countless people are worrying about filling their stomachs.
The northwest corner of Zicheng is the commercial district in the city, which contains various shops, including fish shops, recommendation shops, rice markets, fruit markets, etc., as well as various shops, hotels, teahouses, and restaurants.
Early in the morning, the streets here were crowded with people. They stared eagerly at the shops selling food, anxiously waiting for them to open for business. Especially in front of the grain and rice shops, there was a sea of people.
Although Pingjiang Prefecture has been known as the "Land of Fish and Rice" since ancient times, the 7 to 8 million people in the city are basically non-agricultural people, and they usually need to buy rice for food.
As a high-yielding rice area, the local food supply is naturally sufficient during normal seasons. People in the city buy what they eat and do not have the habit of hoarding large amounts of food. In addition, summer food should be on the market, so food prices will definitely fall. There is no reason to stock up on food.
Unexpectedly, a flood caused the summer grain to go out of business, and it was in decline. The next three or four months would have to be supported by old grain from previous years, and the people had to try their best to reserve grain.
However, at this time, grain dealers are more reluctant to sell and limit sales, gradually pushing up grain prices, forcing people to rush to buy every day.
During the long wait, the crowd could not help but sigh and complain. Z.br>
"Hey, they all say, "If Suhu is ripe, the world will have enough." Who would have thought that people in Gusu City would also have difficulty buying food..."
"God is blind, the Dragon King is losing his temper, what can be done about it?"
"In the past, rice here was only ten cents per liter. Yesterday it increased to twenty-five cents. I don't know if it will rise again today."
"Even if the prices are as high as the sky, you still have to buy everything. You can't skip eating, right? You'd better find a way to buy more as soon as possible..."
"By the way, there was a flood last year, and it was much worse than this year. However, the price of rice only rose to 20 cents, which was still as high as it was in October. Why did it rise so sharply at the beginning of this year?"
"Last year, the flood occurred just after the summer harvest. Most of the harvest was saved. Moreover, in previous years of disaster, the owner of our weaving shop was worried that we would be hungry because we had no one to work, so he gave us rice grains at a discounted price to pay wages. You don’t have to worry too much about food, but that’s not a good thing this year, and I don’t know what’s going on.”
"Hey! Our boss is saying that business is getting harder and harder. The price of rice is so high this year that he can't afford it..."
"Isn't your boss the old Zhang family? His family owns property and a farm, and even the rice shop in front of him belongs to him. Why can't he afford it?"
"Who knows, anyway, this year is quite strange. By the way, I heard someone said yesterday that the price of rice in Wujiang County is only twelve cents.
, but it’s pretty much the same as usual, I don’t know if it’s true or not. "
"This is indeed true. It is said that King Yan collected all the rice from the Wujiang gentry and sold it to the government for public sale. Unfortunately, we have to work every day and cannot go to Wujiang to buy rice."
"Hey, His Highness King Yan is really kind, but why doesn't he come to Fucheng to do this? It's really a bit unfair..."
"Hehe... I heard that King Yan has taken a fancy to a young lady named Jiang from Wujiang County. He wants to be the son-in-law of Wujiang, but he is not allowed to sell her to the local people."
"That's what I said! There are so many good-looking ladies in our city in Gusu. As long as Prince Yan comes here, why don't we let him choose?...Ah, the doors are finally open. I need to buy more today."
Zhang Ji Liang Store removed a door panel, and a waiter popped his head out. He looked at the crowd outside the door warily and nervously and shouted.
"Everyone, step back! ... But don't squeeze! ... The boss has made a new rule. You can only come in one by one today. If anyone messes around, don't blame us for not selling to you!"
Now, the people who were waiting to buy rice stopped and started making noise.
"If you buy one by one, how long will it take your turn?"
"That's right, we're still waiting to finish buying rice and go to work early!"
"How can anyone do this kind of business? In the past, didn't the door always open to let people in?"
"What's going on!? Are all the people who run food stores adults? Do we have to beg for money to buy things?"
The crowd was passionate and expressed their dissatisfaction. Then the waiter was not hypocritical at all and yelled, "If you like it, buy it or not. If you don't buy it, I will be kicked out! If you don't want to abide by this rule today, this rice will really not be sold!" "
Helpless, the situation was stronger than the others. In order to have rice for cooking at home, the big guys had no choice but to endure it and squeezed back with difficulty to give three or four feet of space to the entrance of the grain store.
Seeing this, the waiter looked satisfied, then removed another door panel, revealing a door crack that was only large enough for one person to pass through, and then hung up a cover.
"The price of rice today is 40 cents per liter, and each person is limited to buying three liters."
The crowd exploded again, "You little bitch, you were only twenty-five yesterday and you are forty today?... There is no way to increase the price!... I can only buy three liters. There are seven people in our family. This is all Not enough food for one day!"
The clerk blocked the crack in the door and yelled impatiently, "It's the same thing, buy it or not!"
"Damn it, I still don't believe it. It's not just your house that sells grain. I'll go buy it from another house..." Someone turned around and squeezed out of the crowd, rushing to another rice shop.
"Hey, let's just bear with the price. Can we sell more? It's really not enough to eat." Someone begged.
"It's too expensive, and the sales are limited. In this case, it's better to go to the official store to try your luck..."
There are also people who really don't have much money, but official shops have been selling rice for only fifteen cents, but the purchase has been restricted for a long time. One person can only buy one liter at a time, and there are so many people that it is difficult to squeeze in.
The rice shop clerk waved his hand nonchalantly, "Go ahead, go ahead. If you don't want to buy it, get out. If you want to buy it, just follow the rules!"
Rich people all wear the same pair of trousers. The owners of all the grain stores in the city have jointly negotiated to raise prices and limit sales at the same time. The official stores are supposed to be responsible for stabilizing grain prices, but now they are just doing it for a show. No one in the world can sell a hundred shi of grain.
After arguing for a while, there was still no result, nothing could be changed, and the remaining people could only obey.
Immediately, the rice shop clerk stood in front of the door and said proudly, "Next, no fighting or grabbing is allowed. Whoever I click on can enter!"
This job was obtained by the clerk because he was the shopkeeper's brother-in-law. With this power, people who wanted to buy rice had to give the clerk some "tips." It was easy to get a few bucks in a day.
What happened in front of other rice shops was similar to what happened here. The people could only swallow their anger and go in one by one with rice bags to buy rice at high prices. After coming out, they were in a hurry, either rushing to work or going to other grain stores. Luck, the streets are full of people who are busy running for survival.
In the north of the city, there is a Pagoda of Bao'en Temple, with nine levels and eight sides, and a height of 25 feet. It is called "the crown of pagodas in a county". Standing on the top floor, you can
Get a panoramic view of everything happening in the market.
Four or five people in gorgeous attire were leaning on the railing, looking at all the living beings as tiny as ants with indifferent expressions.
"Cangji, you see what I said is right. Everything is safe and sound. These ordinary people will never dare to cause trouble. It's good to be able to buy food now. There is no room for them to be picky..."
The speaker was in his fifties, with gray hair but a rosy face. He had a rich face and a very kind smile. His name was Lu Wencai. He was Lu Wende's younger brother and managed the Lu family's property.
Because of Lu Wende's outstanding military exploits, Zhao Guan's family rewarded fertile land several times, with the largest one being as high as 500 hectares. Including several other hectares and private annexations, there were more than 2,000 hectares of farmland in Pingjiang Mansion alone.
Xietang, the director of Changping Bureau in Western Zhejiang Province, sighed with his hands behind his back, "Speaking of which, Xie started serving as the general magistrate of Pingjiang Prefecture twelve years ago. He still has great feelings for this city and the people here. This time I came from Lin'an to do more for the people of Pingjiang, but it's hard for a clever woman to make a living without rice, and it's hard for the court to do the same, so it can only suffer for the people..."
Lu Wencai showed admiration, "Cang Si is really compassionate and kind-hearted. It's a blessing for us, the elders in western Zhejiang, to have you serve. If you want to blame it, it's Liu Xiuren who was corrupt and misappropriated the Changping warehouse. If it weren't for the warehouse The Secretary is trying to make up for it, how can the people of Pingjiang eat such cheap rice."
"The dead are the most important. Although Liu Xiuren did not do it justice, since he is already dead, we can't pursue it too much, right?" , there is a problem in Changpingcang, and he is also responsible for the poor supervision. It is also necessary to make up for it. Thanks to all the wise people for their generous help, otherwise Xie would have to sit on his hands."
Except for Lu Wencai, several others were also top wealthy households in Pingjiang Prefecture, with at least thousands of hectares of fertile land. After hearing the words of thanksgiving, they all expressed courtesy and compliments.
"Cangsi, you're welcome. I heard that after the flood, the saint was worried about us and other people in the disaster area in the palace. He not only worshiped Buddha and prayed for blessings day and night, but also spent his own money to help the victims. I can't help but do my best to support the good deeds. Thank you for your honor."
"It's a pity that King Yan is young and doesn't understand our loyalty and filial piety. He is bewitched by the female cadres and insists on practicing the "evil laws of the world." Doesn't this hurt the good intentions and make trouble for the people? "
"We have cultivated and studied to inherit the family, and have contributed to the country's hard work. In our private lives, we have worked diligently to save some family property. However, King Yan wants to reduce and seize it for no reason. It really chills the hearts of the country's soldiers and makes our loyal friends cold..."
Xie Tang listened quietly to these complaints and showed a sympathetic expression, "Xie is well aware of the sufferings of all the sages. However, King Yan is the crown prince and the officials are too fond of him. Even a saint would not dare to say anything. I want to It's not easy to stop him from doing stupid things, so we can only try to make him retreat."
The saint is Queen Xie Daoqing, and Xie Tang is her nephew. Unlike Xie Huo, Xie Tang has a flexible mind and has some talents. He was appointed as the general magistrate of Pingjiang Prefecture in his early twenties. At this time, he was only a young man. Thirty-four years old, it can be said that he is young and promising.
The Xie family has been married for several generations and has a queen. It is considered a famous family. When Xie Tang was an official in Pingjiang, he also bought a lot of land for his family. King Yan wanted to enter the economic world, which naturally touched him. Interests.
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