Abandoning the city and fleeing became an unspoken secret among the top leaders in Kyoto.
Those who knew the news quietly sold their properties and land and exchanged them for hard currencies such as gold and silver.
In order to avoid panic, the Imperial City Bureau took action and widely publicized the fact that Su Xuanming would soon serve as the prefect of Kyoto.
This is equivalent to sending a signal that Da Zhou and Yunzhou have joined forces!
Because of this, Fang La's army suspended its offensive and sent envoys to Yunzhou.
They don't want to be attacked from both sides.
The whole atmosphere of Kyoto seemed to come alive.
The stewards of high-ranking officials and nobles would go around purchasing goods, especially jewelry, by the basket.
The originally dead business activities have become lively again.
Many small businesses decided to take advantage of the high prices at this time and make some money using their inventory.
When Duke Yun leads his troops here, the rebel army retreats, the trade routes become unblocked, and the price will surely fall.
If we wait until then to sell the goods, I'm afraid we will lose a lot of money.
In just two days, Kyoto's housing prices, which had plummeted, stabilized and even showed signs of rising.
Although the money shops were closed, some merchants began to accept silver bills and Jiaozi again.
Everything seems to be getting better.
Even though they were still hungry, rice was still in short supply, and the city gates were still closed, there was hope ahead. As long as they could hold on, they could return to their previous ordinary lives.
The top executives have a way out, and although they may feel a little guilty, they still happily collect their wealth.
The civilians were happy to learn that the situation had stabilized and the rebel army was about to be wiped out!
Everyone was happy, except Jiusi.
He has no money left.
He tore up the only 100-liang Jiaozi note he had and threw it into the Bian River.
On the second day after the throwing, the news that Su Xuanming would soon serve as the governor of Kyoto was everywhere. The market began to accept Jiaozi again, and one hundred taels of Jiaozi could buy seven dou of rice!
The son in my arms was dying of hunger.
Jiusi begged and coaxed Fang Zheng into selling his yard to him for two hundred copper coins!
But in just a few days, the value of the courtyard rose to 300 guan! Not Jiaozi, not silver notes, but copper coins!
Jiusi's mentality collapsed. If he had not been so anxious at the beginning and just waited patiently for a few days, everything would be different!
Fang Zheng saw that his eyes were bloodshot and he looked like he wanted to eat someone. He was shocked and took out a bag of old grain and said to him, "Grain is expensive but not in demand. This bag is for you. We don't owe each other anything!"
Jiusi was driven out, his face looking terribly gloomy.
Who should be blamed?
It’s not their fault that my parents are dead.
Ye Niang and her daughter died, so it’s even more impossible to blame them.
Jiusi's eyes were blank, but he became determined the next moment.
Blame the green plum!
She was doing so well in Yunzhou, why didn't she ask me to go to Yunzhou? !
Why not blame Su Xuanming?
Jiusi shuddered and hugged his son tightly. Su Dalang is now the prefect of Kyoto.
…
Su Xuanming was still on the city wall. When the captain next to him learned that he was about to serve as the governor of Kyoto, he became particularly attentive.
"Master Su, please take good care of us brothers in the future! We have been through thick and thin together. We don't ask for promotion or wealth, we just ask that you transfer us to a good place, and don't let us guard the city wall anymore."
Su Xuanming sat down next to the captain, took the half of his treasured white flour steamed bun, put it in his mouth and took a bite. It was hard and full of crumbs.
"How many people are there in your family?"
The lieutenant swallowed and licked his dry lips. "There are seven people in our family, a mother, three brothers, a wife, and two sons. My son Hutou is very smart. He is only three years old, but he already knows five Chinese characters! I plan to send him to school in the future to make him a scholar. Don't let him be like me, his father, who only earns money by selling his life."
"You're the only one who supports me?"
"If I don't raise them, who will? One of my brothers is missing a leg, one has a broken arm, and one has lost his brain. They are all born of the same mother and have the same blood. How can I just watch them starve to death?"
"How did you get hurt?"
The captain was not willing to talk about these sad things, but because the person asking the question was Su Xuanming, he had to speak: "The Battle of Hezhong, the Battle of Henan County, and the Battle of Guangde Prefecture."
Su Xuanming choked up. It was all about the war with Yunzhou.
The captain lowered his head and consoled himself: "I'm very lucky. I heard from my second brother that only three people from that group survived, and he was one of them."
"Don't you hate Duke Yun?"
"What is there to hate? We earn our salaries as soldiers. We sell our lives for money. Who says our lives are cheap?"
Su Xuanming patted his shoulder and stood up: "If your whole family is in a deadly situation and you have a chance to escape, what will you choose?"
The captain was silent for a long time. This was an extremely difficult choice.
He thought for a long time, until Su Xuanming was about to leave his post and walk down the city wall, and then he spoke: "Let's die with my family. Life is too difficult. Without them, what's the point of living?"
"You can marry again, have children, and reproduce."
The captain looked very strange: "Sir Su, it is difficult for ordinary people to get married."
Only rich people can have three wives and four concubines, while poor people can only remain single.
Su Xuanming waved his hand and went home.
Master Tong tricked him, but he didn't trick him completely. At least, Master Tong told Su Xuanming everything about the emperor's decision to abandon the city and flee.
"What an old fox! He clearly cheated me, but still made me owe him a favor." Su Xuanming sighed.
Originally he just wanted to do things secretly, but now he has to defend Kyoto under the eyes of the people of the world.
The day the emperor decided to leave the city was the day Su Xuanming officially took office as the prefect of Kyoto.
That day came soon.
The government officially appointed Su Xuanming as the governor of Kyoto and ordered him to guard Kyoto.
Su Xuanming took the initiative to ask for soldiers, at least to leave the imperial guards originally guarding the city to him.
The young emperor naturally disagreed.
By this point, both sides knew what was going to happen next.
Su Xuanming said that if he didn't give him soldiers, he would give up. Whoever is willing to do it can do it. At worst, he doesn't want Kyoto anymore!
The young official was furious: "Aren't you afraid of becoming a sinner in the world?"
"You've put enough blame on Yunzhou, this one isn't enough." Su Xuanming imitated his mother and felt great.
Li Aotian advised: "Give him some defenders, it can buy us some time."
After careful consideration, the young emperor was only willing to leave 10,000 imperial guards for Su Xuanming.
Su Xuanming took the initiative to ask for the imperial guards who were responsible for guarding the north gate.
On the night of the appointment, the South Gate was opened wide and Li Aotian led the charge.
The sudden night attack caught the rebel army off guard.
A long team, like a long snake, emerged from Kyoto, with blood and corpses paving the way for it. Several three-story ships were waiting for it on the river.
Li Aotian was like a god of war, protecting the long snake tightly.
It was not until the long snake had moved two-thirds of the way that the people living under the city wall began to react.
The Emperor ran away?! (End of this chapter)
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com