Si Qi paused in raising his hand.
Then he put it down without much hesitation.
"Huh, it was really thrilling just now." The county magistrate standing next to Si Yi let out a sigh of relief.
"May God bless us." The county magistrate standing next to him said with a smile.
"God?" Another county magistrate said sarcastically, "If it weren't for the so-called God, would we be standing here now?"
The people who survived the disaster had different reactions.
Only Si Yi looked blankly at the high pile of mud and rocks behind him, feeling that something was wrong.
Si Qi also felt that something was wrong.
He could obviously use his magic power to control the collapsed mud and rocks from a distance, so why did he run out to save people himself and let so many people see him.
Even though the technique of controlling memory was not a difficult task for him, he was still reckless.
After thinking about it, Si Qi felt that the aura of dominance of Si Yi, the son of this world, was too terrifying, even more terrifying than that of Si Yu, and even affected his sanity.
Therefore, when he saw Si Yi afterwards, Si Qi controlled his expression and tried to speak to him in a normal tone, alerting himself to any actions that might cross the line.
However, he did not expect that his apprentice had narrowly escaped death and came back alive, but as a teacher, he did not step forward to comfort him, which was unreasonable in itself.
Si Yi thought about his mood before he died, and then looked at his teacher who seemed to be nothing had happened, and his eyes darkened.
The county magistrate and others had no idea how upset Si Yi was at the moment. They just felt that double happiness had come and were particularly happy.
The first happiness was that they had escaped a disaster and were not so lucky to be under the mudslide.
The second happiness was that Si Qi's appearance brought great help to everyone, whether in terms of manpower, material resources or spiritual encouragement. What's
more interesting is that the food Si Qi brought this time came from Liang Province; the medicinal materials and doctors he brought came from Shan Province; the young and strong heroes he brought came from all directions and regions, and they were all well-known elites from all walks of life there.
These people and things all came from the poor areas of the Qiu Dynasty, and were discarded after being squeezed by those powerful people.
In the past two years, disasters have frequently occurred in their hometowns. This time, Jiang Province has disappeared directly from the map because of the flood problem.
Thanks to the help of these two masters and apprentices, everyone can live well until today, and even have enough energy to follow Si Qi to help other areas.
After meeting at this moment, the county magistrate was particularly cordial to these companions from all over the world. Not only because of their help, but also because everyone has the same experience and the same position.
If Si Qi makes a request in the future and hopes that they can go to other areas to help, they will definitely go. Because they know better than anyone how it feels to meet a helping hand when they are in despair.
The atmosphere of the team became lively because of the addition of doctors, heroes and delicious food.
Mr. Si Qi is indeed more adept at doing things than the students.
Although it is the same response process, Si Qi handles it more perfectly and properly.
For example, after everyone arrived at the nearest county town, because there were so many people migrating, the county magistrate was worried that the county magistrate here would mistake them for refugees, so he took the initiative to step forward and tried to ask the county magistrate to be lenient and at least give them a place to rest.
However, the soldiers guarding the city gate did not resist their appearance at all. Instead, they were surprised that the people who came here to escape were in such good spirits and there were so many of them, all with their families. How could this be a refugee?
The county magistrate was surprised and asked around, only to find out that the county magistrate had received the letter sent by Si Qi and the relief supplies brought by Si Qi, and had made preparations for the reception from the beginning.
The county magistrate had to admire the ability of Si Qi and his apprentice.
The refugees entered the county town, and the people in the county were very scared when they first heard the news. They had the impression that the refugees were so hungry that they dared not even eat people.
But after actually sneaking over to take a look, hey, do these people look like they have left their hometown? Sitting on dry straw mats, holding their children and smiling with their families, there was no sense of resentment at all.
A group of tall and strong young men ran back and forth in the crowd, delivering food and daily necessities to the refugees. Nearly a hundred doctors carrying medicine boxes walked in the crowd, consulting here and visiting there. How could they still be refugees?
嶼$汐-独#家 Then these people in the county who couldn't even look down on the sick, weren't they even worse than the refugees?
It was also at this time that the reply from the court was finally delivered.
The result was not that surprising. After reading it, the
county magistrate endured it again and again, his face turned blue, but he couldn't help it anymore and started to curse on the spot, his heart, liver, spleen, lungs and kidneys were shaking with anger. The county magistrate and others were either ashamed or sneered and cursed, and couldn't help but complain to the subordinates around them. The news spread everywhere quickly.
After hearing about this, the common people were not too shocked.
Compared with those officials who had been reading sage books all their lives and degenerated into going to remote provinces after realizing the gap between reality and ideals, these people who were born and raised in these places and had deeply felt the existence of the imperial court knew better how they would fall when faced with a disaster.
They did not have much hope in the emperor from the beginning, and they would be thankful if this noble majesty would not make things worse when a natural disaster occurred and send people to force them to become living sacrifices.
Therefore, when they heard people who came back from the capital say that the imperial court let them fend for themselves and would not provide them with any assistance, and threatened that they were absolutely not allowed to get close to the capital area, everyone just accepted it calmly with a "as expected".
Facts have proved that they can live well on their own even without the help of the court.
Why do they have to ask for help from those guys who have nothing but good luck?
The people who work hard don't care who is the emperor. They only care about who can protect them, make them worry-free about food and clothing, and let them live a good life.
They are very grateful to the county magistrate and others who brought so many of them to life.
After this incident, Jiang Province completely disappeared from the map. The people of Jiang Province had nowhere to go, and were led by the Siyi to integrate into the nearby counties in batches, or simply followed them to Liang Province.
Leaving one's hometown makes people uneasy, but before these refugees can worry about their future life, they find that this place is completely different from Jiang Province. There is a shortage of jobs everywhere, and you can find jobs with just a little searching. Food is plentiful and prices are not high.
Compared to Jiang Province, this place is like a paradise.
The old people who used to be in great pain every day because they lost the fields left by their ancestors no longer sigh all day. The women in the family go to work in textile mills, and the men go to work in places called factories. Even the old people can find some easy jobs to take home and do to earn some living expenses.
They never thought that life would be so easy. As long as they are willing to work hard, they can get money and afford to eat.
"Life is still better in Liang Province." An old man sat at home, drinking thick porridge, and sighed with satisfaction.
"I heard that a year ago, Liang Province was worse than our Jiang Province. Due to years of drought, there was no food growing in the fields." said the man sitting next to him.
The old man was very confused after hearing this: "Don't
people say that the land in Liang Province is good and you can get a harvest no matter what you plant?" "That was in the past." The man curled his lips: "In the past, our Jiang Province was also said to be a fishing town. You could just use a net to catch fish in the river, and the seafood would be shipped back in boatloads. But that was many generations ago."
The old man thought of the glory of the past and recalled: "At that time, everyone said that the sorcerer was a fairy from heaven who brought us good luck..."
"Oh, there is no such thing as free stuffing in the world." Whenever the man thought of the scene of his home being flooded by the river, he always felt a pain in his heart: "The manager of our factory said that today's cause leads to today's result. The borrowed money is easy to spend, but there will always be a day to pay it back. The people in the capital took away all our things, but we are the ones who have to pay back the debt! It's okay that they didn't help us in our time of crisis, but they repeatedly ordered us to stop us and not let us escape to the capital. Just thinking about it makes me angry."
"We can't go to the capital either." The old man shook his head: "It's not a good place to get along with. If we go there like this, we will be sacrificed."
When mentioning this, everyone was silent.
Whenever there was a disaster, it was a common practice for Qiu Chao to select some people to go out as sacrifices.
In the past few years, we always heard that people from some places suddenly died. In fact, the court encountered troubles and didn't know how to solve them, so they simply offered people from some places as sacrifices to the gods.
"But isn't it the same in Liang Province?" The old man's wife said, "I see that there are few thin people living here. Could it be that they were sacrificed alive..."
"Don't talk nonsense, mother." The worker interrupted hurriedly: "The county magistrate has repeatedly said that we are not allowed to do these things here. If we meet a sorcerer who asks for something one day, we can't listen."
"You kid." The mother glared at her son unhappily: "How could I believe this? I'm just worried..." She
was worried that the adults here had deceived these outsiders and used them as sacrifices.
"No, mother," the worker laughed, "The managers in our factory hate the people in the capital so much that they themselves were almost ordered to be sacrificed by the court. They hate these things more than we do."
"What's going on in Liang Province?" the old man wondered, "Isn't it said that no food can be grown in the fields? But I see that there is no shortage of food here, and the price is not expensive."
"It's mainly because of Mr. Si!" When the worker mentioned this, his voice couldn't help but get a little louder, "Dad, you don't know! Before, our house was flooded, and the county magistrate took us to escape. In fact, he got the advice of an expert. Mr. Si brought us food and medicine along the way, and arranged a place for us. He is really a living Bodhisattva!"
"I've heard of this gentleman." The worker's wife, who had been silent all the time, spoke up: "The female workers in the textile factory always said that it was Mr. Si who saved them and brought them magical seeds... The wheat ears grown from those seeds were heavy, and the grain produced was at least seven or eight times more than in previous years!"
"So much!" The whole family was shocked.
"Not only that, our factory was also built by Mr. Si at the request of the county governor." When the female worker was working on weekdays, she would always chat with her partners around her while she was busy. After a while, she learned a lot: "Mother, didn't you say that the cloth here is cheap? In fact, those cloths are very simple to make. I can weave two pieces a day."
The old mother did weaving work, but she couldn't understand it when she heard it: "How did you do it?"
"The spinning machine is different from the one we used before. It is very easy to use. It is not difficult to weave cloth." The female worker still had some incredible look on her face when she talked about this.
She still remembered the scene when she first walked into the factory. She was trembling with fear and was dumbfounded by the operation of the female workers around her. It was not until she got started that she realized that there was such a magical thing in the world.
Later, when she saw that the cloth price was so cheap and listened to the explanation from the female workers in the factory, she realized that the cloth price was cheap because the hemp production here was high and it was easy to make. So overall, even though the cloth was smoother, stronger and more durable than before, the price was much more affordable than before.
It was just like fish would always be cheaper near rivers than in other places.
This was a good thing and the female workers naturally welcomed
it. However, the female workers found that not only the cloth, but also the food and utensils were all cheaper than those in Jiang Province. Does this mean that in Liang Province, not only food and cloth, but also other things, are actually like weaving cloth, easy and fast, and there is no need to worry about supply shortages?
The female worker didn't understand any profound principles, nor did she have a far-sighted vision, but based on this alone, she intuitively felt that Liang Province must be more than it seemed on the surface, and that her life would definitely not be too bad if she lived here in the future.
Then she heard the old man in the family say, "Ah... we are so indebted to this gentleman. Our family's lives were all saved by the county magistrate and Mr. Si."
"Yes," said the woman's husband, "all those people who suffered disasters outside in the past lost someone at home or lost their own lives... We can actually sit here together now, it's really God's will."
"Where is Mr. Si, mother wants to go and thank him..."
"Mr. Si lives in the courtyard arranged by the county magistrate, so it's not good to disturb him. But he occasionally goes to various factories to check on the situation, maybe his son will meet him someday."
"Then you must thank him very much, this is a life-saving grace."
"Don't worry, I will definitely."
...
When autumn was approaching, Si Qi went to the factory to check out the newly produced mirrors, and was suddenly stopped by a worker in a low voice.
Seeing the other person's expression, Si Qi seemed to have realized something, and then heard the other person's thanks, Si Qi accepted it with a smile.
"I have been listening to him talking about it for more than half a year." The manager standing by saw this and teased the man with a smile: "I hear you asking about Mr. Si all day long. Are you satisfied now that you have met him?"
The worker looked very embarrassed: "I hope I didn't disturb Mr. Si..."
"No," Si Qi said with a smile: "How about you live here?"
The other person's face flushed, and he said with a choke: "Very good, very good, thank you Mr. Si."
"This is all your own effort. It has nothing to do with me."
"How could that be? Mr. Si is too modest." The steward laughed and joked, but his tone was particularly sincere: "You saved our lives and brought us so many things..."
This could go on and on, and Si Qi could only smile and wave his hand.
Accompanied by the steward, he looked at the mirrors made by the factory. The steward looked particularly proud, "Such a clear mirror, even if you take it to the palace, you will never find a better one!"
Si Qi picked up a palm-sized mirror and looked at it. The young man in the mirror had a beautiful appearance and a noble temperament. His black hair was thick and smooth, and even the finest hair could be clearly seen.
This is actually a very ordinary mirror with the main body made of glass. However, in this era when people still rely on bronze mirrors and water to check their appearance, it is already an incredible treasure comparable to a divine weapon.
Many people were shocked when they saw the mirror for the first time.
Everyone gathered together and chattered, and the scene seemed very lively.
"Oh my God, why is my nose so ugly!"
"I didn't know I was so fat!"
"You really look exactly like the person in the mirror, so I should be the same as myself in the mirror! I look like this!"
"I am much more beautiful than I thought."
The mirror surrounded by everyone reflected the bright light in the sun. The perfect appearance made of precious glass seemed like a treasure that only the kings and nobles could enjoy.
The steward originally planned to order everyone to stay away and not touch this precious treasure.
But before he gave the order, everyone had already finished being surprised and dodged and dared not get close. As if they were afraid that this thing would scare away their souls, they carefully poked their heads out, and when they saw their heads appear in the mirror, they quickly retracted them.
Steward: "…………"
Thinking of everyone's shivering faces at that time, the steward couldn't help laughing.
At the same time, he was very proud that he could actually make such a magical object according to the secret recipe given by Mr. Si.
With such skills, he will be praised wherever he goes in the future.
He asked Si Qi, "Sir, where should I put this treasure for you?"
Si Qi shook his head and said casually, "No need to put it away, just sell it."
The manager was stunned, his heart pounding, "Sell? Can our things be sold to the capital..." This is an unprecedented feat! It is enough for them to be proud of their lives!
"There is no rush for that," Si Qi put down the mirror in his hand, "Let's use it first. The price doesn't need to be too high, just keep some profit to operate the factory."
The manager was stunned after hearing this.
"But..."
The manager hesitated, obviously thinking this was too incredible.
If you sell it to the nobles, even if you only sell one, you can probably make as much profit as if you sold 10,000 to the common people.
If the common people have something, the nobles probably won't be willing to spend a lot of money to buy it.
They just have money, they're not stupid.
Si Qi said with a smile: "It was originally made to let you live a good life, what's so good about it."
Hearing this, the steward looked at Si Qi as if he was looking at a saint: "Mr. Si, we can't repay your kindness to us in several lifetimes..."
"No need to repay, everything you have is obtained through your own efforts, don't these things also cost money to buy?"
"How can it be the same..." The steward felt warm in his heart, and did not need Si Qi to remind him, and took the initiative to say: "Don't worry, I will never tell anyone the secret recipe for making this mirror, and I won't cause you any trouble."
Si Qi said with a smile: "Then thank you
for your help." The steward was particularly satisfied in his heart: "It is my honor to serve you."
He said this sincerely.
Just at this time, the county magistrate passed by here. Hearing that Si Qi was in a nearby factory, he brought his subordinates over.
Seeing someone in official attire, who was of the same rank as himself, the county magistrate immediately greeted him, wondering who was here without greeting him.
Then he saw the person opposite him also bowing to him, and he quickly said: "I'm sorry to come to greet you. I wonder where this sir has come from..."
Si Qi and many factory workers who saw this scene on the side: "..." The
county magistrate didn't hear a reply for a long time, and stood up puzzled. Seeing the person opposite him also stood up, he walked over: "This sir..."
As soon as he walked in, he found that the man was tall and thin, and his face was familiar. The county magistrate became suspicious and couldn't help asking again: "What's wrong with you..."
Si Qi really couldn't help but chuckled: "Sir, there is no one on the opposite side."
When the county magistrate heard Si Qi's voice, he hurriedly greeted: "Mr. Si."
Si Qi walked over: "Sir, this is a mirror."
"Mirror?" The county magistrate certainly knew what a mirror was. He had one in his bedroom, but shouldn't that thing be copper-yellow?
Looking back, he unexpectedly saw that man also turned his head to the side, with a look of confusion and doubt on his face. The county magistrate's heart suddenly jumped, and he couldn't speak for a long time.
After a while, he suddenly said: "I am so ugly?"
The crowd: "Puchi."
The county magistrate didn't hear the laughter of the people around him, and was surprised for a long time. Then he told Si Qi the reason why he came: "This time the grain collection team sent by the court is coming again."
"What are your plans, sir?" Si Qi asked slowly.
"Sir, you should understand what we mean." The county magistrate's face was gentle, but his tone was very firm.
Last year, although the people of Liang Province had food, they had no money. The imperial court felt that they could not survive, and wanted to squeeze the last bit of blood and sweat out of them, so they raised the price of salt to a very high level.
People must eat salt, but salt, iron tea and other things are all controlled by the imperial court, and private production and sales are prohibited. The people could not afford salt, and they didn't know where to get salt. For a while, they complained to the imperial court, which made the county magistrate and others very anxious.
With nowhere else to turn, the county magistrate and his men came to Si Qi, wanting to ask if there was any other way besides selling grain to buy salt. Si Qi's calm words startled the county magistrate and his men.
Si Qi said that he had a way to make salt, and that the salt he made was much better than the inferior salt sold by the court in terms of purity and taste.
This was equivalent to asking the county magistrate and his men in public whether they should submit to the court and continue to compromise, or rebel with Si Qi for the sake of the people.
At that time, the county magistrate and his men were only silent for a moment, and then they asked Si Qi about the details of making salt, which was completely in the same boat with Si Qi.
Now he asked Si Qi for his opinion. It seems that he was not wondering how to deal with the tax increase that the imperial court would surely impose this year, but he was asking Si Qi, "Should we rebel this year, or when should we rebel again?"
His eager rebellious attitude was even more positive than Si Yi's.
Si Qi said, "We have just recovered from the disaster, so let's wait a little longer."
The county magistrate understood Si Qi's meaning and nodded, saying, "Sir, you love the people like your own children, so we should take it step by step."
Is this how you say you love the people like your own children? Si Qi said with a smile: "What you said means that I am not interested in making achievements."
The county guard saw that Si Qi was not fooled, and felt regretful, "Sir, he is very knowledgeable, but he is too indifferent to fame and wealth."
Si Qi shook his head, "I I just want everyone to have a good life. If you have any ideas, please discuss it with the disciples below. "
The Master of Ceremonies is actually very good at this aspect, and the county magistrate and others have noticed it, and they have never dared to look down on him.
It's just that the attitude of the master of ceremonies is very obvious. He respects his master more, and everyone also thinks that Si Qi is more worthy of everyone's trust.
It's a pity that Si Qi himself is not interested in this aspect at all.
Therefore, the county guard and others had no choice but to choose the next best thing: the master of ceremonies.
In the past two years, the county guard gradually heard a little bit from Si Qi's mouth and knew the true identity of the master of ceremonies.
Choosing the master of ceremonies as the leader is indeed justified.
The county magistrate had no choice but to give up. He turned his head to look at the mirror standing beside him. The more he looked at it, the more magical it seemed to him: "I really admire your wisdom, sir."
The steward at the side said with a smile: "Sir, you said that in the future you want to make this mirror like a ceramic jar, so that every household can afford it!"
The county magistrate was surprised when he heard it, "Is it so cheap?" "It's
cheap. For an ordinary family of three working, if they save a little in a month, they can afford a full-length mirror. If it's this hand mirror, they can buy it with just two days' wages." The steward quickly estimated the price in his mind.
The county magistrate looked around the full-length mirror with interest, and suddenly an idea came to him. He said excitedly: "Why don't we present this full-length mirror to the emperor and let him exempt us from the increased grain tax this year?"
Everyone present: "…………"
Did you hear clearly that the steward just said that this mirror can be afforded by every household?
The county magistrate said righteously: "Has His Majesty the Emperor seen such a treasure? It's just a little grain. Compared with grain, His Majesty must like this more!"
Seeing this, the steward made a shrewd suggestion: "Then after we present the treasure, we can take it to the market to sell it."
Everyone was helpless to complain: What kind of treasure can be bought in the market?
However...
everyone nodded happily in agreement: "This
is a good idea!" "It's a treasure!"
"Your Majesty has definitely never seen it!"
They are happy to do such wicked things.
The author has something to say:
Humph, I promised to update at noon, wait for me to update another chapter!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
