Song Mingyue

Chapter 198

In addition to being promoted to rank, Zhao Hao was surprised to find that this trip to Liaodong also increased his prestige points by 50, but although his merit points had increased, they were only more than 2.

So far, Zhao Hao has understood in his heart that reputation points and merit points can be obtained separately. Of course, reputation points can be obtained by obtaining merit points, but reputation points can also be obtained by increasing reputation through other means. Back then, he taught Gao Yanei and killed Gao Qiu and his son in the street. , the Jurchen messenger, etc. have more or less gained a certain amount of reputation, but he didn't notice it.

The reputation point is the condition for system upgrade, and the merit point is the exchange currency of Qizhen Pavilion. Originally, 180 million reputation points were needed to upgrade to Qinglong Pavilion, but now it is only about 130 million, which is a major gain.

After returning to Beijing, Zhao Hao's family members were prosperous, and his reputation reached an unprecedented height. Cai Jing knew that he was wrong, and kept a low profile for a while, avoiding Zhao Hao everywhere. The conflict of interests was not that big. On the contrary, Zhao Hao's success in the alliance was also in line with their interests, so he restrained his hostility a little, and instead showed his goodwill frequently.

The Qing school, which originally lived in the cracks between the two treacherous parties, finally became proud and took the opportunity to rise because of Zhao Hao's momentum.Fan Zhixu, a member of the Qingliu School, was appointed Minister of the Ministry of War, and Li Gang was recalled to Bianliang to serve as Taichang Shaoqing.

In this way, Zhao Hao and Jin Chongyue also implicitly became the leaders of the Qing School, the Qing School, the Cai Jing Party, and the party headed by Liang Shicheng, Wang Fu, and Tong Guan. The cat is big, and Cai Jing's party still has the upper hand.

Zhao Ji, who has always liked to play the balance of the emperor, is most willing to see such a situation, and even deliberately facilitated it.

The preparations for sending out troops to attack Liao are in full swing. The Western Army and the Central Forbidden Army are all gearing up, and the Xiang armies from all over the country are also mobilizing elite troops to head north.For Zhao Ji, joining Jin to destroy Liao and recover Youyun sixteen prefectures is his ambition.

However, at this moment, urgent reports from several eight hundred miles came to Beijing, and the sound of horseshoes disturbed the tranquility of Bianliang.

There was a severe drought in the west of Beijing, and countless people died of starvation.

During the civil uprising in Hebei, the rebels Zhang Di, Gaotuoshan and Gaotuotian gathered [-] people and trapped prefectures and counties.

Shandong Songjiang rebelled, using Liangshanbo as a base, rampant across Heshuo, Jingdong, and Jingxi, and even reached Huainan Road, the officers and soldiers were invincible.

……

However, no matter how serious the disaster is, it will not affect the prosperity of Bianliang like a dream at all, nor will it affect the drunkenness and dreams of dignitaries and wealthy children. It's just for talking.

Above the Bian River, there are still groups of prostitute villages with boats and boats. After nightfall, it is still dark, and the lights on both sides of the river are bright.

In the main hall above a huge painting boat, the area is extremely wide, with fifteen or six tables fully lined up. A group of Confucian scholars and students, about two to thirty people, are gathering here, occupying five or six tables, talking loudly and eloquently. , implicitly pointing to the country and stimulating the appearance of the words.

In the corner of the hall, a young man and a young man were sitting. There were several delicacies on the table in front of the two of them, and there was a jar of high-quality daughter red wine. The strong and mellow aroma of the wine was at least 20 years old. The two were drinking and teasing in a low voice, and there was a deep affection between their brows.

The shadows in the corner covered the faces of the two of them, so no one cared about them. In the eyes of everyone, they might just be a pair of little mandarin ducks sneaking around without telling their parents, or even... a pair of wild mandarin ducks. Before Zhu Xi made his debut, he was nothing.

Those scholars were all dressed in snow-white Confucian shirts, holding folding fans in their hands. It seemed that it was not a formal occasion to get along with each other. Everyone talked happily with each other, and they were talking about the current situation.

"Wait until the beacon fires in the north are together, I want to join the army, go north with my master, charge into battle, and regain Yanyun..."

"Brother Fang is really righteous, and I will go with Brother Fang. I don't know if there will be Marquis Shou'an in charge of this Northern Expedition... If you can obey the orders of Marquis Shou'an and make contributions, you will die without regret!"

"Shou'an Hou... I'm afraid it won't be possible. Although Shou'an Hou has made great achievements, he is still young and lacks experience. More importantly... Shou'an Hou is the son of the imperial family. My Great Song Dynasty has been around for 60 years since Taizong. , there is no precedent for a clan joining the army to fight.”

"It's a pity, I don't want to mention it... It's just that the battle between Jin and Liao is in full swing, and I don't know when the Song Dynasty will send troops. Although the strategy of uniting Jin and Liao has been decided, the opinions of the officials in the court and China are different. I'm afraid... "

"Hehe...Brother Ziyu is worried about that husband's appearance, but the officials are eager to take back Youyun, and have been preparing for this matter for several years, how can they give up? I think the time for the autumn harvest is the day of the mobilization... "

"The sage is really wonderful. After the autumn harvest, there will be new food, even if the army is deployed, the supply of stored food will not be insufficient..."

"I don't think so. Now there is a severe drought in the west of Beijing and there are locust plagues. The mourning is everywhere. There are civil uprisings in both Hebei and Shandong. Especially the rebel Song Jiang in Shandong has swept Heshuo, Jingdong, and Jingxi. Now the soldiers are pointing directly at Huainan. The banditry is becoming more and more serious... The disaster relief and the suppression of the bandits will inevitably cost countless money and food. Whether this Northern Expedition can be carried out is not necessarily a certainty..."

"The disaster in the west of Beijing, didn't it mean that the Kaifeng government had already opened a warehouse to provide relief, so why is the famine so severe? And those troublesome people, now in a peaceful and prosperous world, seeing that my master of the Song Dynasty is about to set off for the Northern Expedition to recover the land of Youyun, why are they here? To rebel at the head is really a crime worthy of death!"

"Hahaha...Brother Yang, what you said is wrong! The relief food for the Kaifeng Mansion was originally a drop in the bucket, not to mention...It would be good if two out of ten fell into the hands of the victims. What can it be worth? As for the people The change was not caused by Xicheng Kuotian... Man-made disasters are far worse than natural disasters!"

"Hoo... silence, Brother Shaoyang, be careful not to speak out, don't talk about this!"

"Hahaha!" The scholar named Shaoyang took a sip of wine, slapped the table, and cursed angrily: "The civil and military in the Manchu Dynasty only know about fighting for power and profit, intrigue, and don't care about the life and death of the people... What are you waiting for?" How about Marquis An, I dare to ask where Marquis Shou An is, how dare he kill the country's traitors and save the people from the fire and water? If he dares, I will take his head off and give it to him!"

"Brother Shaoyang, you are drunk, you are drunk, go back and have a rest!"

Seeing that the scholar was so agitated and hysterical, the group of students panicked one after another. Several scholars persuaded, helped, and dragged the scholar named Shaoyang out of the cabin, and the rest gradually kept a low profile. , No more loud noises, just talking and drinking in low voices.

The boy in the corner also stood up slowly, with a tall body, he said to the woman: "My lady, it's getting late, go back."

The woman stood up, and under the light, she had an exquisite face, especially the skin that was exposed to frost and snow, it was almost broken, and a pair of affectionate eyes stared at the young man in front of her with a smile that was not a smile, lovingly. He smiled and said, "You, I can't sit still anymore, don't force yourself to stand out..."

The young man smiled, took the woman's hand, turned around, but it was a handsome and heroic face, and he said lightly: "Everyone has called my name directly, how can I sit still?"

The two talked and laughed carefully, walked past the group of students lightly, walked out of the cabin, and hurriedly got off the boat with the generals and slaves waiting outside, and when they reached the shore, they were greeted by horses.

"You take Madam back to the mansion, and I will go to Jin Shangshu's mansion."

……

In fact, the time has gradually turned from the dog days, but the weather still hasn't got rid of the heat of summer. In the study room of the Jin Mansion, Jin Chongyue poured two cups of tea and handed Zhao Hao one.

"The disaster in the west of Beijing is the heaviest on the Northwest Road of Beijing. The locust plague and the drought go hand in hand, and the Southwest Road is the second. Seventy percent of the disaster relief food in Kaifeng Prefecture is given to Northwest Road, and three percent is given to Southwest Road. Southwest Road Originally, the distribution of grain was scarce, and the bandits from Liangshanshuibo broke into the city and looted several times, and the grain merchants hoarded it, so many people starved to death, as for the Northwest Road of Beijing..."

"What about Beijing Northwest Road?"

Jin Chongyue took a big sip of tea, his tone raised, and he said slowly: "Du Gongcai, the transfer envoy of Northwest Beijing Road, was originally a subordinate under Yang Jian's command. , Three out of ten out of ten relief food on Jingbei Road fell into his pockets, and with the addition of layers of exploitation, up to [-]% of the food that could fall into the mouths of the victims, how could people not starve to death?"

Zhao Hao frowned, looked at Jin Chongyue, and waited for his next words.

"Shou'an Hou Shicai asked about the Xicheng Tuotian Institute, and it was also Du Gongcai who initiated the figurines. In the past, Du Gongcai offered advice to Yang Jian to set up the Xicheng Tuotian Institute, and enacted laws and regulations to obtain the land leases of the common people and increase the rent. Just speculate on the output of the land out of thin air, and increase the rent based on the speculation. Starting from Ruzhou, slowly expand to Jingdong, Jingxi, Huaixi, and Huaibei, searching for abandoned dikes, abandoned weirs, barren mountains, receding beaches, and silted rivers In all places, the common people were ordered to rent tenants. Once the rent was determined, even if the land was washed away by the river and could not be cultivated, the rent would not be reduced or exempted. However, Du Gongcai made meritorious deeds because of this. Transshipment envoy.

"These two years were years of catastrophe. The people suffered unspeakably, but the rent and taxes could not be reduced. Therefore, the people in Hebei and other places changed frequently, and Zhangdi, Gaotuoshan and Gaotuotian also rose because of this. And Liangshan Luoben It was Juye Ze in ancient times, which stretched for hundreds of miles. People in Ji and Yun prefectures lived here by fishing. Yang Jian also set rent and tax according to boats. In addition to the regular tax, the rent was increased by more than [-] yuan. According to the regulations, the tax can be exempted in the event of floods and droughts, but it cannot be exempted here, so there is also the Song Jiang chaos.”

pat~
The teacup in Zhao Hao's hand burst open suddenly, and the tea flowed all over the table, which startled Jin Chongyue.

Zhao Hao said coldly: "I want to get rid of the thieves, please help me!"

Jin Chongyue frowned slightly: "Although the Tuotian Institute in Xicheng, Yang Jian and others have filled their pockets, the treasury has been filled. The officials are very happy... The matter of embezzlement of food for disaster relief has involved too many people. I am afraid that it will be difficult to prove it." Difficult, let alone Mo Yan said that Cai Jing's party will be involved in an all-out attack, please think twice..."

Zhao Hao shook the tea in his hands, and stood up slowly: "Gou Li-guo-jia lives and dies, why-because of huo-fu-bi!"

The beard on Jin Chongyue's face trembled, he slapped the table, and said in a loud voice: "What a dog li-guo-jia-life-death, why is it because-huo-fu-bi tends to him! I got the son's words, The old man also fought with the traitors!"

PS: Due to the break for too long, the rhythm in my mind is a bit slow. In the past two days, I have carefully sorted out the outline, and hope that it will be faster later...

(End of this chapter)