Chapter 3393 Extra Zhou Yin 8
"If my family hadn't been out of food for several days and my sister-in-law hadn't fainted from hunger this morning, I wouldn't have come to the steward to sell myself." Zhou Yin sighed, "Even though it only takes ten days, for us, even a quarter of an hour can be fatal."
"I know those grain merchants have grain, and the county magistrate knows it too, otherwise he wouldn't have detained them. Compared to them, our company's grain is nothing. I won't harm the company's interests for this," Zhou Yin said frankly. "Besides, I'm already a member of the company. You know me. I want to make a name for myself, so I will definitely consider the company's interests. The company's interests are the interests of the small ones. The better the company, the better the small ones will be."
"Alright!" The chief steward patted his shoulder with satisfaction. "Thirty-two people is fine. Bring them over to me tomorrow. It's getting increasingly chaotic outside. We need to leave quickly."
Otherwise, if the refugees really become a rebellious army, they will all be killed here.
"Then could I ask for a favor on their behalf, and advance them a day's rations?" Seeing the steward's indifferent gaze, his smile remained unchanged, but rather brightened. He bent down and said, "That way, they can come to see the steward tomorrow in good spirits."
The chief steward lowered his eyes and thought for a moment, then nodded slightly and called someone over. "Take Zhou Yin to get a bag of wheat, and also give him thirty-two cakes to take away."
The chief steward handed Zhou Yin a contract of sale and said, "Zhou Yin, you must really consider the interests of the company as you said."
Zhou Yin patted his chest and said, "Butler, I've been running errands for you for two or three years now. Don't you know me well enough? A gentleman's word is as good as gold!"
He grabbed the pen and skillfully signed his name on the contract. His handwriting was not beautiful, but the two words "Zhou Yin" were very beautiful. These were the two words he had practiced best.
He pressed his handprint and presented the indenture with both hands. The steward took it and nodded with satisfaction.
After Zhou Yin left, the second steward was very puzzled, "Brother, why are you so nice to him?"
"He deserves it," the chief steward said. "This kid is very smart, and he's very successful in several nearby counties, especially Luojiang County."
"But Luojiang County is just a lower county, and we've only been passing through in previous years. How much use will it bring to our business if he can make a living here?"
"A bag of wheat in exchange for a clear stretch of road—isn't that worth it?" the chief steward said. "Besides, if this kid can make a living in Luojiang County, he'll definitely be able to make a living elsewhere in the future. I'm attracted to him as a person."
The Second Steward was about to speak when the Chief Steward raised his hand to stop him. He said, "First, go and get some information. Did the County Magistrate really buy grain from somewhere else?"
The second steward agreed and went to look for their contacts in Luojiang County. Finally, he heard from a yamen runner, "The official accompanying the chief clerk said that the county magistrate had indeed purchased grain from other places and it was on the way. It is estimated that it will be delivered soon. The relief grain sent by the court was robbed along the way and is unlikely to arrive so quickly."
"Do those grain merchants still have grain?"
"I heard there are some, but they're unwilling to sell them. They're limiting the quantity they release every day. I heard they're all being detained by the county magistrate, and the city gates are being guarded tightly, refusing to let them out."
The chief steward couldn't help but curse inwardly, "It's already this late and you're still thinking about raising food prices. This is forcing these starving refugees in the county into a desperate situation. No one will survive."
It also delayed them.
"Manager, what should we do? This batch of grain belongs to the Wu family in Shangzhou. We are trapped here. It is already too late. We can't send it on..." This is a big blow to the reputation of the business.
The chief steward turned around and said, "The Wu family values money. Although we can't provide food, we can give them a satisfactory price. This is understandable. The most important thing is that we have to make it to Shangzhou alive."
"Then..." The Second Steward was about to speak when a servant ran in from outside and whispered, "Chief Steward, the city gate won't let us out. They say anyone leaving the city with more than one cart of goods won't be allowed out."
The chief steward sighed and said, "What I was worried about has finally happened. The emperor just issued an edict, urging all regions to work together to overcome the difficulties. Many prefectures and counties have begun closing their city gates. Firstly, to prevent further influx of refugees, and secondly, to prevent the wealthy from fleeing and leaving the poor behind."
"Why is the emperor like this?"
"The world is far from peaceful. Wars are raging everywhere. Every year, the people are either forced to pay taxes or be conscripted into the military. Apart from the wealthy, who else can afford to survive such a natural disaster?"
The chief steward said, "The imperial court doesn't have much surplus grain, so they're forcing the wealthy and powerful to contribute to the disaster relief efforts."
"Then what should we do? Will we be trapped and die in Luojiang County?" The second steward said anxiously, "Brother, we are outsiders. If Luojiang County riots, we will be the first to be targeted."
"So Zhou Yin is very important." The chief steward pinched his fingers. "Now you know why I agreed to Zhou Yin, right? With him, we have a foothold in Luojiang County. We are not outsiders. We might even be able to leave Luojiang County smoothly."
Zhou Yin returned to Qili Village with a bag of grain and a bag of cakes.
He handed the grain to Zhou Jin and said, "This is ours. Grind it and eat it sparingly. The government office should release the grain in twenty days."
Zhou Jin stared blankly at the food at his feet. "You, you went to rob?"
Zhou Yin picked up the remaining bag and said, "No, I just found a job."
He said to Zhou Dalang, who was standing there in a daze, "Come with me. I've found a job for you. Gather all the young men still in the village at the village chief's house."
Zhou Erlang, who was standing by, immediately pulled Zhou Sanlang to join in the fun.
The remaining people in the village quickly gathered at the village chief's house. Not just young people, but also the elderly, the weak, women and children, everyone came.
There are not many people left in the village. Many died earlier, and many fled later. Now there are less than half of them left.
Everyone was silent, mainly because they didn't have the energy to speak.
Apart from the half piece of cake given to the fat man, Zhou Yin had not eaten anything for a whole day. He had gone back and forth to the county town today. Even though the caravan members helped him carry things when he came back, he did not have much strength now.
So he cut to the chase and said to his nephew, the newly appointed village chief: "Dahua, I've found a job in the county for the young men in the village."
Dahua and the villagers were stunned when they heard this, and then looked at Zhou Yin with shining eyes.
Zhou Yin said, "Unloading, loading, and guarding are all hard work. There's no pay, only food, two meals a day."
Dahua asked in surprise, "Really?"
(End of this chapter)
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