Emperor Hui looked at the officials kneeling on the ground and said, "I heard that you all wrote memorials overnight. Submit them. Don't waste your hard work."
With a wave of his hand, Beggar Sheng led his men to collect the folded paper money one by one.
Who would dare to take out a memorial now? That earth-shattering, soul-stirring memorial, written with all one's might that night, is destined to become historical garbage.
It doesn't matter if they don't take them out; Leng Luo has already memorized the names of all the kneeling ministers.
There is never any sudden calamity in this world; the concepts of cause and effect are always present.
Emperor Hui then said something that made the Duke of Cheng'en's heart pound: "The Western Xia disregarded the diplomatic relations between the two countries and openly invaded our Great Gan during a time of natural disaster. We must write to all the countries on the continent to condemn and punish such unjust acts."
If this military intelligence rumor is exposed, Emperor Hui will gamble everything and join forces with Western Xia to openly declare war on the Wei family, leading to a fight to the death. In that case, neither the entire Wei family nor the Crown Prince will have a good ending.
The Duke of Chengen immediately knelt down in fear and replied, “Your Majesty, as an old minister who receives the emperor’s salary, I should do my duty to the emperor. It is the Wei family army’s inescapable responsibility to defend the border against foreign enemies. I will immediately write a letter to An Yuan, ordering him to do everything in his power to keep the Western Xia outside the border of Daqian.”
Emperor Hui was not yet able to eliminate the Wei family's power in one fell swoop. Seeing that he was showing weakness, he said, "In that case, Duke Cheng'en has gone to great lengths."
A border military situation was thus resolved.
After the court session, the Duke of Cheng'en, feeling resentful, experienced a rise in blood pressure and dizziness.
"His Majesty caught us completely off guard; how cunning!"
The Duke of Chengen looked very grim. Wu Zhaohui had arranged for the purchase of 400,000 shi of grain, and the Duke of Chengen's mansion had also contributed 5 million guan.
He has already sent people to investigate, and it is true that His Majesty has hidden 100,000 shi of grain in the imperial estate on the outskirts of the capital.
"What should we do? He has 200,000 shi of grain!" Wu Zhaohui felt that the capital city absolutely could not sell any more grain.
“Transport it to the Grand Canal. Let’s try selling it near Wancheng first. Sell as much as we can. If we can’t sell it, report it all to the Grand Canal project.”
In any case, we can't let these 400,000 shi of grain sit unpaid; we have to find someone to pay for them.
The Crown Prince's steward said with a serious expression, "If funds from the Grand Canal project are misappropriated, the accounts must be kept accurate, and the people involved must be clearly identified."
Cheng En Gong nodded: "This account will definitely be investigated, and it will be investigated multiple times. You need to prepare a clear and accurate false account."
Wu Zhaohui discussed things with them until late at night, then quietly slipped away through a side door.
Four hundred thousand shi of grain were transported to the Central Plains overnight by horse-drawn carts, boats, and other means of transportation. Wu Zhaohui personally accompanied the carts.
First, try to sell it among the people. If the people can't absorb so much grain, then dump it on the Grand Canal project and let the imperial court take it.
Wu Zhaohui has no way out.
Five million strings of cash basically used up all the cash that the family could access.
Wu Zhaohui first returned to his ancestral home in Wancheng to discuss the current situation with his clan elders.
By the end of November, Wu Zhaohui's grain had been transported to Zhongzhou, Wancheng and other places.
When the goods were unloaded, the local rice shops had been closed for some time.
However, because the people had some food in their hands due to the chaos caused by Dongqin before the disaster, they did not go hungry.
But those city dwellers who rely on buying rice to make a living are struggling to make ends meet.
They were frantically searching for grain merchants.
When Wu Zhaohui put up a sign at the rice shop that rice would be available for sale in three days, it caused a sensation. People eager to buy the rice were all ready to scramble for it.
When all the rice was delivered to the various rice shops and they opened for business, the people were furious when they saw the price of 450 coins!
Four hundred and fifty coins? Are they trying to kill us?
However, there are still many rich people. If you can't afford it, then just stay out of the way!
Wu Zhaohui enlisted the help of the Chengen Duke's mansion to send troops to maintain order. The common people cursed, but could only watch as the wealthy bought grain.
Less than an hour after the grain went on sale, someone shouted, "Don't buy it! There's cheaper grain in the suburbs!"
A fast horse came from afar, shouting loudly, "A rice shop has opened in the suburbs, 150 coins!"
Ah, one hundred and fifty coins?
"Really?"
"Of course it's true, I've already bought a thousand catties."
"Since it's so cheap, is there not much grain left?"
"There's a lot, a huge warehouse!"
Wow, only a fool wouldn't take advantage of a good deal.
They all ran off in a swarm. The first few who had paid immediately dumped the grain back and shouted at Wu Zhaohui's shopkeeper, "Give me my money back, I'm not buying anymore!"
How familiar that suburban rice shop looks!
How familiar those 150 coins are!
Is it 100 coins tomorrow? Or 50 coins the day after?
Upon hearing the servant's report, Wu Zhaohui immediately rode his horse to the rice shop in the suburbs.
When he saw the familiar "Imperial City Guard" people outside the rice shop, his vision went black.
They've caught His Majesty's eye!
No wonder those people challenged him without any scruples.
Who dares to oppose the Crown Prince and the Duke of Cheng'en's mansion?
Only His Majesty, and he knew very well that despite the seemingly harmonious relationship between His Majesty and the Duke of Cheng'en's mansion, the two were constantly engaged in a power struggle.
Those young men sold the grain extremely quickly, carrying rice bags out like a flowing river.
They shouted slogans as they weighed the items, and slid along the iron chain to collect receipts and issue numbers—the operation was so smooth and seamless.
Wu Zhaohui knew it was all over.
He didn't have the courage to watch any longer, so he had someone pull him back to his ancestral home, where he sat there blankly, without saying a word.
In Wancheng, and in the locations of Wu Zhaohui's major grain depots, that group of people could be found, all challenging him.
They sold for ten consecutive days, and 200,000 shi of rice were sold out completely.
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