Everyone has seen it now.
This guy is here to eat big money.
At this time of year, two coins and one stone are not much different from robbing.
He actually had the nerve to ask them if the price was fair. This was just a show, and he even had to erect an archway!
"Everyone, I have always been fair in my dealings and will never buy or sell by force." Yan Ling spread his hands with a smile on his face and said:
"If you are not willing to open your granary to sell grain, I will not force you. Today's meal will be regarded as making friends with you."
As he spoke, he patted the shoulder of someone present and asked, seemingly unintentionally:
"Your Majesty, you are the... Doctor of the Household Department in the capital, right?"
The man nodded tremblingly.
Then, Yan Ling walked up to each person in an easy-going manner and said the name of the person behind them in turn. Everyone who heard him trembled, with endless fear in their eyes.
Threat, naked threat!
At this time, in everyone's eyes, there was a terrible crisis hidden under Yan Ling's smiling face. However, the most terrifying thing was that the backstage they usually relied on as the Great Wall and could even rely on to confront the prefect did not face Yan Ling at all. Worth mentioning.
It is true that everyone here has a background behind them.
But how could a real boss condescend to stand up for a gentry in the mansion? The fifth-grade household doctor has the highest official position among these people, and this is because his hometown is here.
They know very well what Yan represents.
The two princes are extraordinary beings, living together with the country! Even the first rank in the imperial court would be frightened when they saw it.
Even the people behind them had to smile when they saw the younger brother of Yue Guo Gong. They said whatever they wanted, let alone them?
But if they were asked to sell it at this price, to be honest, they were unwilling.
For a moment, the scene fell into silence. Yan Ling was not in a hurry and was enjoying the food and wine on his own.
Someone finally broke the silence. It was the son of the household doctor. He thought about it and felt that his father’s official position was more important, so he gritted his teeth and said:
"My lord, two cents of silver, I agree! You can take as much as you want from the food in our house! I will make arrangements right away."
After saying that, he left in a hurry.
With someone taking the lead, things will be much easier to handle later on.
Soon there was a second one, a third one... and it didn't take long before they all agreed.
The gentlemen left one by one, until finally, only two people were left in the private room. Yan Ling was drinking and eating freely, while the prefect beside him was sitting on pins and needles.
"Do a good job, and don't let the people have no food to eat anymore." After eating and drinking, Yan Ling smiled and patted the prefect on the shoulder. Although he had no official status, he said as if he was reprimanding his subordinates.
After hearing Yan Ling's words, the prefect felt as if he had been granted amnesty. He quickly stood up, bowed repeatedly, and sent Yan Ling out of the restaurant.
…
In addition to Wenzhou Prefecture, the gentry in Taizhou and other places also suffered the same fate. The people sent by Yan Ling bought a large amount of grain with two coins of silver.
"Zu, isn't this not good..."
The young man stood by the family's warehouse, watching bags after bags of grain being delivered into the treasury. In his young heart, he felt a trace of guilt for the gentry who had been deprived of food.
"There's nothing wrong with it." Yan Ling stroked his head and said with a smile:
"It's good that you have kindness, but not everyone deserves sympathy."
"These profiteers are hoarding food and selling it at sky-high prices without selling it. This is beyond the scope of normal business. They have left countless victims without food, starving to death, or resorting to exchanging food for food. "
"Do you still remember what we saw in North Zhili when we went south? If we let them do this again, maybe it will really happen to us."
"It means that the prefect is incompetent. If someone like Qingtian comes in, he might have to arrest a few of them to put things right."
"Besides, they may not have made a profit with the two coins, but they won't lose much either. It's already an advantage for them."
"I also warned the prefect before I left. The prefect is a thoughtful person. With my support, he will definitely not allow those gentry to hoard food and raise food prices. In this way, the people of Wenzhou will not have to We will suffer from food shortage again.”
He took Yan Chun to the other side, where rice porridge was being served.
The victims cherished the steaming rice porridge in their hands and started sucking it in small sips before taking two steps.
You can hear the victims singing praises for their family's good deeds.
Some people even burst into tears after receiving the food. They knelt down on the spot and kowtowed to the person who gave the porridge:
"Thank you, thank you so much... The good people of the Yan family all live a long life. May the spirit of King Jingping bless us forever..."
"Did you see that?" Yan Ling stroked his little head, "How many lives have been saved!"
Yan Chun looked at all this infatuatedly, and whispered in his mouth:
"Zu, I understand."
…
Although it cost a lot of money, the family finally survived that month.
A month later, the imperial envoy finally arrived with relief food.
The imperial court distributed food and then repatriated them according to their place of origin. The large number of refugees gathered in Ningbo Mansion was eliminated.
Yan Ling didn't have much reaction to this.
After absorbing the refugees in the past period, the Yan family's hidden houses have reached saturation. All their land has been cultivated, and there is no use for them to stay.
Of course, according to the old practice, some of the capable people, such as blacksmiths, carpenters, etc., were all recruited. What made Yan Ling more happy was that there were many Weavers among them.
After all, people are starving to death. No matter how well you weave your clothes, what’s the use?
This is an unexpected surprise. It’s not that Yan Ling has never thought about getting involved in this industry, but the Orihu people in Suzhou and Hangzhou have been engaged in this industry for a long time. They can’t compete at all. This time the relief has left many Orihu people in the industry. Ningbo, it is conceivable that the Yan family will definitely have another way to make money in the future.
Of course, these gains are nothing compared to the huge fame.
Yan Ling's persistence had an effect. The Yan family's good deeds were spread to various places by the people. People among the people had an impression -
In the southeast of the Ming Dynasty, there was a Yan family. They would rather lose money themselves than help the people. The tenants under their management lived a paradise-like life (relatively speaking).
Don't underestimate this.
If there is any catastrophic disaster in the future, their first reaction will definitely be to run to the southeast.
And with such a mass base, many of the things the family spreads will be more acceptable to the public.
You need to know that the people's support is fundamental.
(End of chapter)
