Chapter 331: Retaining People
Zuo Anmin left the south and was going back to Chang'an to report.
The proceeds from the Zhu family's confiscation were also secretly transported away, including the proceeds from the sale of Zhu family's property at a low price.
In addition, the gold mines on Xiaozhuya Island were mined by people arranged by the imperial court.
As for the Zhu family, they will be killed on the spot.
However, after Zuo Anmin consulted the emperor, the 300,000 dan of grain confiscated from the Zhu family was left in the south to solve the problems in the south.
The Zhu family's thousands of acres of land and hundreds of shops were all sold and bought by Xie Zhan at half the price.
The silver and money used by Xie Zhan was the cash inherited from the Chen family.
Xie Zhan almost used all the cash in the Chen family to purchase these properties of the Zhu family.
Now all the Zhu family's assets are in his hands. Adding the Chen family's original assets, the Xie family has now become the largest force in the South.
At this time, Xie Zhan was doing the final review of his plan.
Previously, he asked Zuo Anmin to order the county governor to block the large and small city gates in the south in order to prevent people from Liaodong County from escaping.
Now he agreed to let Qin Sheng, Xue Xu and others go, but the major city gates in the south cannot be opened at will.
Now, outside the gates of all the major cities in the South are disaster victims and refugees. Once the gates are opened, they will all pour into the city.
He was ready to start solving the problems of the disaster victims in the south, which were actually issues of food, clothing, housing and transportation. The first priority was of course food and accommodation.
He decided to use the policy of work-for-relief.
This strategy originated in the Spring and Autumn Period. At that time, Duke Jing of Qi refused to release grain for disaster relief after a disaster. So the Prime Minister Yan Ying took advantage of the opportunity that Duke Jing of Qi wanted to build a road bed, hired disaster victims, and deliberately expanded the scale of construction to prolong the construction period and achieve the purpose of disaster relief.
The situation at that time was very similar to the current situation. Xie Zhan felt that it was useful, so he decided to follow the example of the ancients and use it to solve the problem of the victims.
Later, when Lü Songli learned that Xie Zhan had used this method, he praised his quick thinking. The idea of using work-for-relief was first recorded in the Spring and Autumn Period and later gained popularity during the Song Dynasty, with both government organizations and private participation from officials and gentry. Xie Zhan's ability to learn and apply this approach at this time was remarkable.
Xie Zhan counted the grain he had on hand. In addition to the 300,000 shi of grain left by the emperor, he planned to take out the Chen family's 200,000 shi of grain reserves, and then ask for some alms from wealthy families.
Moreover, food from the Jianghuai area will be arriving soon. As long as he can ensure that the victims can get through this period of time safely, he will basically be able to fulfill the military order he made to the emperor.
Xie Zhan took action as soon as he thought of it. He went to the Nandi County Magistrate's Mansion and told the county magistrate about his idea of using work as a relief.
The county magistrate has received an order from the imperial envoy Zuo Anmin, saying that Xie Zhan had received special permission from the emperor to handle the issues in the south, and asked him to cooperate fully.
The county magistrate got the idea and immediately prepared to post a red notice outside the city gate to summon the common people to work.
When Xie Zhan returned to Xie Mansion from the County Magistrate's Mansion, his subordinates reported to him what the Liaodong Chamber of Commerce Bookstore had done.
After Xie Zhan let Qin Sheng, Xue Xu and others go, although he ordered the officers and soldiers surrounding Ji Mansion and Liaodong Chamber of Commerce Bookstore to withdraw, he felt that he must not let down his guard against them, so he kept people monitoring them.
After learning about the actions of the Liaodong Chamber of Commerce Bookstore, Xie Zhan knew at a glance what they were planning.
He reacted quickly and went to the Lu Mansion in person immediately.
Mr. Lu is in poor health and has been bedridden recently.
Xie Zhan personally came to Mr. Lu’s yard to visit him.
When a distinguished guest comes to visit, Lu Fei, as the current head of the Lu family, naturally has to accompany him.
The three of them discussed the actions of the Liaodong Chamber of Commerce Bookstore for a long time in the side hall of Mr. Lu's yard.
After Xie Zhan left, Mr. Lu was both happy and worried. He was happy because this young man Xie Zhan was so amazing, and he was worthy of being the heir trained by a big family in Chang'an City. He was also worried about Xie Zhan's amazing ability.
Mr. Lu looked at his eldest granddaughter standing beside him, and finally could only sigh deeply.
In response to the innuendos made by Liaodong Chamber of Commerce Bookstore before leaving, Lu quickly responded.
The Lu family booked the largest restaurant in the south and sent invitations to all the readers who had ever spent time at Lu's bookstore, inviting them to a gathering.
Almost everyone who received the invitation and had time attended, and everyone was curious about what Lu wanted to say.
The old patriarch of the Lu family, Mr. Lu Yuanheng, appeared at the restaurant with the new patriarch, Lu Fei, and said to everyone with great sincerity, "Lu's Bookstore can be what it is today thanks to everyone's continued support."
The scholars in the audience were discussing the matter.
"That sounds good."
"You, the Lu family, also know about this?"
Mr. Lu continued, "I invited everyone here this time because I wanted to have a discussion with everyone. I know that for some reason, everyone has been very dissatisfied with Lu's Bookstore recently, and some have even considered leaving the Southland. We have seen and heard everyone's demands."
The scholars fell silent, mainly because Mr. Lu looked very old and frail, and his words were very sincere as he stood there, which made them feel embarrassed to say anything harsh.
"The Lu family has done some things poorly in the past, and we are working hard to improve them. Lu Fei--" Old Master Lu waved at her.
Lu Fei stepped forward and stood beside him.
Old Master Lu continued, "This is the new head of our Lu family. Books, paper, and the four treasures of the study are a bit expensive, so we will work hard to reduce costs so that everyone can buy good quality and affordable products. Please give us a chance and supervise us."
After saying this, Mr. Lu bowed to them. However, due to his poor health, his legs were shaking violently.
The scholars couldn't bear to see this.
"Mr. Lu, you should sit down."
"Miss Lu, please help your grandfather sit down."
Lu Fei went forward to support him, but was rejected by Mr. Lu. Although Mr. Lu refused to sit down, he slowly straightened his back.
"I agree very much with what Mr. Zhang Zai said: scholars should establish their minds for heaven and earth, their lives for the people, carry on the lost knowledge of the ancient sages, and bring peace to the world for all eternity."
"The South is our roots, and the people here are our fellow countrymen. The South has just experienced a natural disaster and is in turmoil. This is also the most difficult and arduous time. We cannot abandon it. Otherwise, our Lu family will be blamed for our death."
After saying these words, Mr. Lu finally left with the support of Lu Fei.
Seeing him like this, the scholars felt sad.
Mr. Lu fell ill after he returned.
This strategy of the Lu family is still very shocking to scholars. It is sincere and full of sincerity.
The Lu family, ranked second among the six great families, has bowed its head.
Look, the Lu family has even changed its head. Isn’t their sincerity enough?
But they didn't know that the Lu family was making use of waste.
But the effect was very good, and many scholars gave up the idea of leaving the South. They wanted to do something for their hometown, and besides, they didn't want to travel far away while their parents were still alive.
At this time, the government posted a notice stating that the victims could work in exchange for food, and recruited scholars to assist the government in doing some registration and public security work.
Many students went to sign up.
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