Su Jin was surprised by the facts that Lu Laosan said, and after the defeat of Haoshuichuan, the imperial court asked the state capitals to follow Fan Zhongyan's suggestion to gather all the people from the countryside into the walled city, which was to prevent the villagers from being plundered by the western thieves who swept from time to time, and also to use the people's labor to strengthen the defense of the city according to local conditions.

At the beginning, a large number of people entered the city, and the reinforcement of the city also required the labor of the people, so the governors of the northwest were also strictly in accordance with the instructions of the imperial court, and all the people who served in the service were given a small amount of wages in addition to food, which somewhat alleviated the panic of the people who left the land and had no means of living.

A few months later, when the reinforcement and defense of the city were coming to an end, the people suddenly realized that they had nothing to do, and that the villagers, who had lived on the land, had neither the capital nor the ability, and had little way to make a living in the city except to sell coolies, and last year's food famine was almost fatal to the people, and the army was still short of food, and there was no surplus food for the people to eat.

The widespread hunger made the people even more anxious, and the officials also came out to explain that the drought in the south was not enough to eat, so that the people could endure it for the time being; It's just that they don't want to think about how they can endure things like eating, they want to endure it in their minds, and their bodies don't agree, and the government gives a bowl of gruel that can see the human figure every day, and when they drink it in their stomachs, it's like they haven't eaten anything, and the rice grains in the bowl can be counted.

Correspondingly, a black market for grain has gradually emerged in the city, and the price is naturally scary, and I don't know who opened it; The people are so hungry that they can only buy some rice with all their limited possessions, but how can a drop in the bucket fill the bottomless pit of hunger, and over time, there are those who sell their sons and daughters, those who give their wives and daughters to be humiliated, and those who steal, in short, as long as they can fill their stomachs, they can do anything.

In March of this year, some knowledgeable people in the city jointly wrote a document asking for relief from the government, but there was no news of the document like a mud cow entering the sea, not only that, but after a few days, several men who led the way were all arrested and put in prison by the officials, and they were dealt with for the crime of rioting the people, and almost lost their heads.

The people wanted to cry without tears, and they could only endure hard life every day, looking for food everywhere with empty stomachs and green eyes, and the war horses and livestock in the barracks were secretly taken out and slaughtered and eaten, and the officers and soldiers deployed for this purpose killed many civilians.

Now walking on the streets of Weizhou, as long as it is a living thing that can be eaten, if you are not careful, you will be stolen in the blink of an eye, and the next moment it will be plucked and steamed into the stomach, and what is even more hateful is that a group of people actually gathered into a gang to squeeze property and food from the already miserable people, which made the people even worse.

Su Jin couldn't believe his ears, isn't this the second Yangzhou that has escaped? Fan Zhongyan was kind, and the imperial court allocated excess grain to the northwest, but most of the people here were starving, only a bowl of clear soup and fruit belly every day, but they had to dig poisonous vines and wild vegetables in the wild to satisfy their hunger, and some of them became thieves and gangsters.

Su Jin understood, no wonder Wang Yan was in such a hurry, the whole thing here was a mess, and Wang Yan also had a part in the food matter, judging by Su Jin's experience in handling grain affairs, the grain in the black market was the relief food allocated by the imperial court, and these grains not only did not become a life-saving thing for the people, but became a life-urging poison that forced the people to sell their sons and daughters; There is no doubt that someone has made a fortune in it, and as for who it is, it should not be difficult to find out.

"Uncle Lu, after listening to your words, the official is heartbroken, the people have suffered so much, the court is actually unconscious, I am here to apologize to the old man and the fathers and villagers in the city, you can rest assured, I will deal with this matter, but before that, the old man and don't make a noise, I want to find out who is making a fortune in it, and the people are fishing."

Lu Laosan sighed and said, "Do you still need to check?" The leader is that Xu Wei, he is the general judge of the government, Wang Lu often patrols the states, and rarely stays in Weizhou City, and Xu Wei is in charge of the affairs of the city, but ...... It's not that the old man looks down on you, Master Su, Wang Lu pretends to be deaf and dumb, I'm afraid you won't be able to cure him at all. ”

Su Jindao: "Why can't you cure him, is he a relative of the emperor?" ”

Lu Laosan said: "That's not it, but the old man heard everyone talk about it, the generals deployed in Weizhou are out of the same nostrils as Xu Wei, think about it, tens of thousands of soldiers are in hand, can you turn your face with them casually?" It's also troublesome to mess yourself up. ”

Su Jin's pupils contracted, and he thought in his heart: "If this Xu Wei really colluded with the generals who were deployed, then this matter really needs to be considered, in a border city like Weizhou, the sky is high and the emperor is far away, whoever has more soldiers and horses in his hands is the emperor Laozi; If he rashly investigates and is slaughtered by these people, and when the time comes, he pushes the head of the Tangut people, and everyone says that it is the sin of the Tangut people, isn't he a big wrongdoer? ”

"Master Su, it can be seen that you are a person who wants to do something for the people, but it is enough for you to have this intention, and the people in the city have no hope, staying up for a day is a day, and dying of hunger and illness that day is considered to be good, the reason why I didn't want to tell you just now is not only because I am afraid that you will be with them, but also because, even if I tell you, you have the heart to save me and other people, it is in vain."

Su Jin hung his head and was silent, what he thought was that since the situation was so bad, he could use the power of the court to punish these guys by stating this matter to the imperial court, but suddenly he understood, even if the imperial court was afraid, it would be useless, all the officials, including the officers and soldiers deployed in Weizhou, said that there was no such thing, and tens of thousands of mouths could not still say that they had this mouth? What's more, if they dare to do it, they are not afraid of someone stabbing them up, and maybe the depth of the water is boundless and unknown.

"Don't worry, what you said is reasonable, this matter must be considered well, but evil does not prevail over the good, I will definitely give an explanation to the people, and I will leave for the time being, you don't talk to anyone about what happened just now."

Lu Laosan arched his hand and said: "Don't worry, your lordship, someone will definitely come to interrogate me later, but I believe in my lord, I will never say anything to them, I only advise my lord, don't be reluctant to do what you can't do, so as not to take your life." ”

Su Jin smiled and said: "Thank you for your concern, this official agreed with you, if this matter is properly resolved, you will definitely go to Longshan to get some game for me to taste, I haven't eaten game in the northwest yet." ”

Lu Laosan patted his chest and said, "Wrap it on the old man, shoot a big fat deer for you, and personally send it to the adult's mansion." ”

Su Jin clapped his hands and said, "A word is a certainty." ”

……

Coming out of Lu Laosan's house, Su Jin had no intention of inspecting the city again, and there was nothing to see about the devastated appearance, what he was thinking about was what to do about this matter.

When I returned to the mansion, I saw that the hall of the government was already full of people, and I only understood that this was the officials of Weizhou who came to see Su Jin, and came early in the morning, but Su Jin went out to inspect, and everyone stayed in the lobby to die, the weather was too hot, the officials took their hats one by one, untied their official uniforms, and fanned the wind with a small fan with their breasts exposed, and some people took off their official boots and picked their feet, and they were scattered to the extreme.

Seeing Su Jin's return, everyone hurriedly dressed up to salute, Su Jin looked at these subordinates with crooked clothes and hats, and his heart was angry, but he still smiled and bowed to everyone.

The general judgment Xu Wei was also among them, it seems that Su Jin asked him to quickly send someone to find out about the household registration and registration, he didn't pay attention to it at all, when Su Jin sat behind the case in the lobby, he secretly approached Su Jin's ear and whispered softly: "Lord Fuzun, don't blame everyone, everyone is not empty-handed, and the east and west officials are summarized and sent to Lord Fuzun's inner house, there are many people, and it is not appropriate to give gifts in person." ”

Su Jin was stunned and said, "What is it?" ”

Xu Wei smacked his lips and said, "Why does Lord Fuzun ask knowingly? You came all the way to our Weizhou, how can we not be embarrassed to be subordinates? It's not much, just a thousand taels of gold, but it's all minted in the Qinzhou Mansion with pure gold, and it's absolutely genuine. ”

Su Jin took a deep breath, this is the first step to win over himself, maybe Wang Yan kept his mouth shut about it, he was pulled into the water by this group, or he had a handle in the hands of this group, so he could only pretend to be stupid.

"The matter of making a household register, the lower official will immediately send someone to do it, and there will be no delay in the instructions of the adults." Xu Wei said softly.

Su Jin smiled slightly and said: "I'm not busy, just now in front of people on the street, in front of so many people, I have to say that, the matter of making a book, the matter of grain verification can be postponed, and it can be done slowly, and it is not busy for a while." ”

Xu Wei chuckled, stretched out his hand and picked up his big finger and said: "Adults are wise, no wonder young people are ambitious, others are still ignorant, adults have opened their minds and become four-grade masters, it turns out that adults are first-class smart people." ”

Su Jin smiled silently, and Xu Wei said: "Lord Fuzun, tonight everyone will set up a banquet in Hongbin Building, for the adults to pick up the wind and wash the dust, the adults have been here for three days, and we have only gathered for the first time, it is really a dereliction of duty of the lower officials, and please be sure to appreciate your face." ”

Su Jin nodded and said: "Naturally, I want to go, it's rare for everyone to be sincere, it's better to invite the generals of the garrison in the city at night, and get to know each other together, after all, people are guarding our Weizhou Mansion, without them, we are nothing, aren't we?" ”

Xu Wei said with a smile: "Xiaguan really admires the adult, the adult is thoughtful, he is a person who does great things, the generals who are deployed did not come to see the adult, the adult did not care at all, but made friends sincerely, they will definitely go at night, and the lower official dares to pack tickets." ”

Su Jin laughed, and Xu Wei also laughed with Hehe.