Chapter 343: No Salt in the Salt Depot
Old Xu said "why" many times in one breath.
The dark-faced village chief asked, "This big brother is so angry, is he also a salt farmer?"
“…Ahem, I’m not.”
Old Xu coughed twice, then changed his tone:
"I am also an ordinary citizen, coming down from the mountains in Lingnan."
"Oh——" Everyone suddenly realized.
Life in the mountains of Lingnan must be pretty tough, no wonder this guy has become a little abnormal.
The village chief sighed:
"We know that life is tough, but we don't have any other skills except drying salt. We dare not offend anyone. If you offend the Salt Supervisor and Mr. Zhang today, I'm afraid we will all suffer."
Wu Yingniang placed a heavy bag of silver on the table:
"I'm sure you've all heard what happened in Chang'an. The emperor is gone, the palace has been destroyed, and even the national treasury has been seized by the barbarians. The salt you handed in will not go into the national treasury, but will only end up in the pockets of those who are enriching themselves."
"Now our Black Mountain Army, along with other forces, are fighting against the Hu people. We bought this salt to feed our soldiers."
"Your salt officials in Jiezhou may oppress you, but our Black Mountain Army will not.
All you need to do is to produce salt and sell it to us. We will take care of the rest. In five days at most, a group of troops will arrive to protect you. No one will be able to threaten you.
As for how much the salt will cost, you name your price."
The villagers looked at each other in confusion.
They were very excited to hear this. No one didn't want to make money, no one didn't want to renovate their house, and no one didn't want to fill the rice jar at home.
Most importantly, someone is there to protect them.
Someone who had sold contraband salt in the past said boldly, "Well, then it's twenty cents a dou, no, twenty-five cents a dou."
Wu Yingniang looked around the room at the expressions of the people around her and saw that the villagers all agreed with the price, so she simply said:
"We are willing to buy your salt at the price of thirty-five wen a bushel. You can choose money or rice and flour of equal value."
"If there are those who don't want to sell, we won't force them."
After Wu Yingniang finished speaking, she did not force the villagers to sell salt immediately.
She and Lao Xu went out first to give the villagers some time to make a decision.
That night, the villagers cleaned out several empty thatched houses for Wu Yingniang and her group to live in.
Wu Yingniang and others also gave some money for food and accommodation.
The dinner was simple, and after a busy day, the villagers went home to rest as soon as it got dark.
Ning An and Zhizhi slept together at Douzi's house.
Wu Yingniang, Lao Xu and several other villagers were still awake.
They were waiting for Qiu Jinyu and Ni Tianji to come back.
It has been several hours since they left. Judging from the speed of these two people, it shouldn't take that long.
Just when Wu Yingniang and others were thinking about whether to go out to look for them, Qiu Jinyu and Ni Tianji came back.
The two of them walked into the house, their faces not looking very good.
"How is it?" asked Old Xu.
Wu Yingniang saw that the two men had no injuries and guessed:
"Is there something wrong with the salt depot in Jiezhou?"
When they came to Jiezhou, in addition to wanting to establish direct trading channels with salt farmers, they also wanted to process the salt in the salt warehouse.
Part of it was taken back to the army, and part of it was sold to local people at a fair price.
But Qiu Jinyu shook her head and said, "There is no salt in the salt warehouse."
Ni Tianji added: "Not even a single bag."
The two briefly recounted their experiences of searching for the salt official today.
They took the salt inspector back, but found that the salt pond envoy who was in charge of the affairs of the Jiezhou Salt Pond was missing.
When Qiu Jinyu and Ni Tianji entered the salt warehouse, they found that all the salt in the warehouse had disappeared.
The two then searched the area near the salt depot and the salt pond envoy's home, but found nothing.
"All gone?" Wu Yingniang wiped her spear.
According to the villagers, they had just transported a batch of salt to the warehouse not long ago. It was impossible that there was nothing in the warehouse. It could only be that someone had moved it away.
Everyone in the room fell into a brief silence.
Who took it?
It’s not that I can’t think of it, but that I can think of too many possible answers.
At this time, anyone may set their sights on supplies.
That night, everyone living in the village had their own thoughts.
It rained lightly at night.
The sound of light rain drops was hitting outside the house.
The long autumn night passed by in a night of thoughts.
The next day was a good day.
The autumn weather is clear and cloudless.
Not only is the weather good in Jiezhou, Hedong, but the weather in Chang'an is also good.
The old friend is no longer here, but the chrysanthemums in the palace are still blooming vigorously.
There is an autumn chrysanthemum garden in the palace, which is specially used for appreciating chrysanthemums.
Helian Bozhi was walking in the garden full of chrysanthemums, with Murong Wan walking gracefully beside him.
There were guards and maids following behind them, but they were a little far away, so it seemed more like they were alone together.
Murong Wan had never thought of being alone with a strange man who was not engaged.
But now I do it.
Helian Bori didn't like chrysanthemums very much. Although the flowers bloomed beautifully, it would be more beautiful if all the flowers were piled up in one yard. They would not look as good as if they were scattered among the grass and mountains.
"Why do people here put all the chrysanthemums in one garden?" Helian Bori asked Murong Wan.
"These are very rare chrysanthemums that can't be seen outside. The best flowers are placed in the palace for the royal family to enjoy."
When Murong Wan spoke, her voice was steady and a bit cold, completely different from the embarrassing state of crying in anger when they first met.
He Tingfang brought Murong Wan into the palace, and Murong Wan "happened" to meet Helian Bori, and the two talked together.
When Helian Bo Ri called Murong Wan, he thought Murong Wan was going to cry again.
But unexpectedly, Murong Wan did not cry, but calmly performed the Dayu etiquette to him.
Helian Bori didn't look at Juhua much, but kept looking at Murong Wan.
Murong Wan's eyes were only on the chrysanthemums:
"Why do you keep looking at me, young general?"
Helian Bo Ri: "You don't have to call me Little General, just call me Bo Ri. I'm watching why you're not crying."
Murong Wan: "I don't want to cry. I was a little frightened last time when you suddenly broke in. I don't usually cry."
Helian Bo Ri thought Murong Wan was also very pretty when she wasn't crying, and asked again:
"Do you like these chrysanthemums? If you like, you can take them all."
"If there's anything else you like, I can give it to you."
Murong Wan felt depressed after listening to this.
Although she knew that the Hu people were in charge now, she still didn't like seeing the Hu people acting as if they were the masters.
It's like a group of robbers occupying someone else's house, pretending to be generous and giving away what they stole to others.
On the other hand, Murong Wan felt that Helian Boli was really a stupid person.
What to bring?
Shouldn't he have said at this time, if you like it, come to the palace often?
Under the bright sun, every petal of the chrysanthemum looks like a piece of armor shining with golden light.
Murong Wan asked Helian Borri:
"You don't like flowers, so what do you like?"
Helian Bozhi smiled and said, "I like drinking, good horses, and archery."
Murong Wan: "Are you good at riding and archery?"
Helian Bozhi: "Not bad, not as good as my mother, but definitely not bad."
Murong Wan turned her head to look at a purple chrysanthemum next to her. When she tilted her head, her earlobes were white and tender, and her cheeks were flushed pink, which was more beautiful than all the chrysanthemums in the garden.
She whispered:
"I've also thought about riding a horse and learning martial arts, but unfortunately I didn't have the opportunity before, and I'm afraid I'll never be able to learn in the future."
Helian Bo Ri walked around to Murong Wan and said generously:
"What's so difficult about this? I can teach you."
The west wind blows across the chrysanthemums in the garden, and every flower nods gently.
Murong Wan looked up at Helian Borri with a hint of smile in her eyes:
"good."
…
Ganyang Palace.
Helian Shuchi sat on the dragon throne, playing with the bow and arrow in his hand while listening to He Tingfang's report.
He Tingfang made many suggestions on how to establish a new dynasty.
After hearing the last part, Helian Shuchi suddenly smiled and asked:
"Master He, I heard that you brought your granddaughter into the palace today?"
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