133 Borrowing Grain

◎These are all my businesses.◎

On the third day of being trapped in the city, the Western Rong army trudged in and set up camp outside the city to rest and regroup. During this period, they made feints and attacks from time to time, which made the Huaiyuan defenders panic and kept their nerves tense all day long, suffering terribly.

Even Song Jinyi, who knew nothing about military affairs, felt that the other party was insidious and was waiting for the Wusun army to arrive, so that they could capture Huaiyuan City in one fell swoop without any effort.

I wonder who the other side's leader is? This plan is very clever.

There were only 10,000 defenders in Huaiyuan City, while the Western Rong army had 150,000. Although it was a feint attack, the Huaiyuan defenders suffered heavy casualties. Every day, waves of wounded soldiers were carried and supported down the city wall.

As the fighting outside the wall intensified, the situation inside the city became more delicate.

Early that morning, after Li He finished her breakfast, she opened the window to get some fresh air. At one glance, she suddenly let out a short scream!

Song Jinyi was leaning on the bed at that time, thinking about how to deal with the situation. When she heard Li He's scream, she jumped out of bed and rushed to her.

"What's wrong?" Song Jinyi stopped in front of Li He and saw her slumped on the ground, trembling all over, mumbling, "Outside... outside..."

Song Jinyi looked out the window and saw several skinny, pale-faced people gathered in the alley below. They were dragging a bundle around each other. A closer look revealed that it wasn't a bundle at all—it was clearly a swaddled baby.

His face was ashen and lifeless. No one knew where his biological parents had gone. Several people were fighting over the baby, muttering, "Finally, some meat to eat!"

This one argued: "I want to eat the legs——"

The one yelled, "I want to eat my arm—"

Some people were pushed to the ground during the scramble, and blood instantly flowed from the corners of their mouths.

A biting coldness enveloped Song Jinyi. She shivered and closed the window carefully, fearing to disturb the evil spirits below. The moment before the window closed, she was in a trance for a moment - was this the human world or hell?

******

After seeing this, Song Jinyi and the others had no appetite for dinner.

At lunch time, Song Jinyi asked the servant downstairs to order two bowls of apricot peel tea, which is the specialty drink here.

When we first stopped here, the tea was provided free of charge to the guests.

Now, seeing the waiter stretching out his hand to ask for money for tea, I couldn't help but sigh.

After collecting the tea money, the waiter did not leave immediately. Song Jinyi knew that he had something else to do and asked, "What else?"

The waiter smiled awkwardly, "Madam, do you still want dinner tonight? There's no food in the city, so the rice in our store is the old rice our boss has in stock, but the price is..."

Before Song Jinyi could ask in detail, she heard a loud noise downstairs. Someone was cursing and swearing, as if he wanted to tear the roof off. Because they were speaking in dialect, Song Jinyi couldn't understand what they were saying.

I leaned out to take a look and saw two big men shouting, and everyone around them nodded or agreed, their voices were so impassioned.

Song Jinyi raised her eyebrows and asked the waiter, "What are they talking about downstairs?"

"Those are rough men. Luckily, my lady doesn't understand what they say; it's full of filthy, unbearable language. Huaiyuan City is under siege, and there's a food shortage. People are dying of starvation on the streets every day. The few wealthy families in the city have locked their doors tightly, refusing to give out a single grain of rice. They're cursing the landlords and gentry."

Song Jinyi asked, "With the situation in the city like this, and the landlords having plenty of surplus food, shouldn't the government just do anything about it?"

When the waiter heard her ask this, he couldn't help but burst out laughing, "You seem to be a smart person, how come you can't even figure out the trick?"

As he spoke, his voice lowered a little: "Madam, do you think the government doesn't know? Since ancient times, officials and businessmen have colluded. Working for the people can only earn you a little money. Working for those masters is profitable.

"Besides, those wealthy families have quite a few people they support! Even if the government wants to collect grain, the barbarians are still watching outside the city. How can the government dare to cause trouble with them? After all, they can't just start a fight among themselves before the outsiders invade, right?"

Song Jinyi watched the waiter disappear around the corner of the stairs. Even a waiter could feel the internal and external troubles in the city.

Do those grown men really think they can get through this disaster safely?

Li He sat in the inner room and heard their conversation clearly. She sighed, "If only we were in Shengjing, I could get money from the bank to buy grain and distribute it to everyone, but here..."

Song Jinyi took a sip of tea and looked at Li He. "I've had nothing to do these past two days. I can't even stretch my muscles staying in this room. How about going out with me this afternoon to visit Mr. Li?"

Li He was stunned, sat up, and walked over to Song Jinyi. "Sister Jinyi, we don't know anyone in the Li Mansion, why are we going there?"

"Buy food."

"Buy some grain!" Li He looked at her in surprise, his mouth wide open. "But the money we brought to buy the horses is almost gone. How can we buy two grains?"

"Who said you need money to buy food——"

Before visiting the Li residence, Song Jinyi made a special trip to the residence of Zhou Heng, a military officer in the prefecture. She didn't mince words and directly explained her purpose: she wanted to use the military officer's reputation to establish a connection with the Li residence and raise food for the people in the city.

Zhou Heng had some concerns. After all, Song Jinyi was a young lady from another place. How could she convince a local tyrant like Li Yuanwai? If she offended him, she could just walk away.

You will end up losing more than you gain.

I was reluctant to agree, but then I heard the other party mention, "The city has been without food for a long time. If it continues, there will be unrest. If there is a major chaos, can the soldiers handle it? Now, I am willing to negotiate with the merchant. It will not cost me a penny. What's the inconvenience?"

Zhou Heng thought about it for a moment and felt that it made sense, so he took her to Li's house.

Mr. Li, dressed in a brocade robe, greeted the guest in the main hall with a polite expression. After only three pleasantries, he twirled his beard and asked, "I wonder what brings you here today, General Zhou?"

Zhou Heng was a matchmaker, so he immediately moved aside, made room for Song Jinyi, and introduced her to Mr. Li.

Song Jinyi bowed and, facing Mr. Li's inquiring gaze, simply stated her purpose.

"Buy food?" Mr. Li smiled upon hearing this. "Madam Song, I'm afraid you don't know the current situation. The barbarians outside the city are surrounding it tightly, and food inside the city is becoming increasingly scarce. In a while, even a thousand gold coins won't be able to buy a single grain of rice. I'm afraid I can't do this business."

"Does Mr. Li lack confidence in the imperial court, or in the soldiers defending the city?" Song Jinyi asked in return, "Huaiyuan City hasn't fallen yet, our reinforcements are on the way, and the soldiers defending the city are holding on day and night. This crisis will eventually pass.

"But if you do nothing to help now, once the situation calms down and the court investigates, do you think you can still escape unscathed?"

At this point, her eyes sharpened. "What's more, if the Western Rong really broke into the city, the first people they would rob or kill would be wealthy merchants like you. By then, what good would it be for you to guard a full warehouse of grain?"

Mr. Li's face darkened and he sneered, "Mrs. Song is quite good at talking, but I was not brought up to be scared!"

"Of course, you're not afraid of being scared," Song Jinyi said, changing the subject. "I just want to do business with you. I'm willing to buy grain at a price 20% higher than the current price. This will not only allow you to make a profit, but also solve your current urgent need. Why not?"

Mr. Li's eyes moved and he asked, "How much do you want to buy, madam?"

"One hundred koku."

As soon as these words came out, Mr. Li's expression, which had just relaxed, changed again in an instant. He sat up straight abruptly: "One hundred dan? Madam Song must be joking! Food is in short supply right now. How can I have so much grain to sell? This business can't be done!" After saying that, he was about to ask someone to send the guest away.

Before coming, Song Jinyi had inquired about it. As the largest landlord and squire in Huaiyuan City, the Li family had enough grain stored to feed the people of the entire city for half a year. As long as he was persuaded first, it would not be difficult to persuade others.

Song Jinyi raised her eyes to look at Mr. Li and said in a steady voice, "Mr. Li, don't be impatient. Just listen to me. I wonder if you have heard of the 'Song's Brocade Workshop' in Jiangnan?"

Mr. Li was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Of course I've heard of it. It's one of the three major brocade workshops in Jiangnan."

"What about 'Cloud Tea House'?"

"I also know that this century-old tea house specializes in producing tribute tea for the royal family."

Song Jinyi asked again, "There's also the 'Juxing Tower' in Shengjing. You must have heard of it, right?"

"That's a time-honored restaurant in Beijing, renowned throughout the world. How could I not have heard of it?" Mr. Li's confusion grew with each answer, his brows furrowed tightly. "Miss Song, what's your intention in mentioning these names?"

Upon hearing this, Song Jinyi suddenly smiled brightly: "Mr. Li, is it possible that you don't want to do business with these families? If you are willing to lend me grain today, I will introduce you to them tomorrow."

"Ms. Song, you're joking..." Mr. Li stared at Song Jinyi. He looked the woman in front of him up and down, secretly calculating in his heart - the relationship between the woman in front of him and those businesses.

He narrowed his eyes, his gaze filled with vigilance. "It's certainly good to be able to establish relationships with these merchants, but I also know my own limits. I'm not like others who just talk big."

After he finished speaking, he turned around and glared at Zhou Heng beside him, his eyes secretly asking, what kind of drama are you guys acting in?

Zhou Heng also looked confused. He had no idea what Madam Song was up to.

Song Jinyi didn't get angry, but just smiled lightly and tapped the table with her fingertips: "If you don't have the skills, you can't stop the porcelain work. If you have the skills, you have to show them first."

"Here," Song Jinyi asked as she took out her pass, "Mr. Li is one of the most wealthy families in Huaiyuan City. He must have heard about who founded those businesses and who is in charge now."

Mr. Li took the pass, which stated his ancestral home, indicating he was from Yunzhou. He also saw his surname, Song! Mr. Li's face changed. Could it really be such a coincidence?

He looked down and when he saw the word "Jin Yi", he suddenly looked up at the other person.

How is that possible?

At that time, Huaiyuan City was the most important transportation hub in the west of Daxia, with a constant flow of merchants coming and going. It was well-informed and had a wide range of news. He had also heard that there was a woman in Yunzhou who was known as the richest businessman in Yunzhou.

She started out in the Song family brocade shop, and later opened her own teahouse, which spread all over the country. She became associated with the "Yunshang Tea House". Every single thing she did was astonishing. At the time, I thought it was all nonsense. How could a woman have such ability?

I had heard it as a curiosity, not taking it to heart, but now—

now……

He couldn't describe the feeling in his heart, and looked up at Song Jinyi.

The moment their eyes met, one was calm and composed, the other was dumbfounded. Song Jinyi confirmed the answer she wanted in the other's surprised look.

She met the other person's gaze and repeated what she had just said in a neither humble nor arrogant manner.

Mr. Li stared at her for a long moment. He knew the answer in his heart, but he still wanted to ask, "What is your relationship with these merchants?"

Song Jinyi smiled casually, "These are all my businesses."

【Author’s words】

Song Jinyi OS: I can finally install something big.