The Happy Life of Small Officials in Northern Song Dynasty

Update time: 22--< days, the world will not be peaceful; there is a saying in later generations that "no grain is unstable", it is true, if tomorrow spring the official warehouse runs out of grain, the hoarding merchants will sell the grain at several times the price, The rich or wealthy families can survive, but the days of those living at the bottom of the society are about to be miserable.

In May, when Su Ji was collecting grain, the price of grain had risen by nearly 26%. Originally, it was less than 650 renminbi per stone, but Su Ji sold it quickly. In the end, [-] large ships came back with [-] shi of grain, and the average price was [-] renminbi. In just over ten days, it has risen by as much as [-]%.

The Luzhou Chamber of Commerce in Wunan, which is closely behind Su Ji, is only half a month away. Their purchase price has risen to two to three hundred yuan per stone, which is more than a turnaround from the original price. <Heaven has such a chance to make a lot of money, so it is not surprising that they hoarded strongly within the financial capacity and raised the purchase price. <The price of grain per day is at least two shi and one shi. A family of seven must eat at least three shi of grain a month. The spring famine lasts at least four to five months. It takes nearly thirty guan.

For the people of the Song Dynasty whose annual income was mostly below [-] guan, they would have to save food and drink for more than a year to avoid starvation for four or five months of food money.

This is just a theoretical calculation. It is a gift from God that the poor people can live their lives tightly. If they can save five pennies a year, it must be a clever woman in the family, careful planning, and usually Pay attention to frugality, and if you are not careful, you will be sad at the end of the year, and everything will be sad. <Heaven will be a chaotic situation, people can do anything to fill their stomachs, vagrancy and begging is still light, selling children, looting, rioting, and even living cannibalism.

Su Jin couldn't continue to think about it. The picture in his mind made him shudder. Su Jin felt ashamed of being a part of the money dealers who drove up grain prices and hoarded them. He didn't consider these things at all when making this decision; Business is about business, and profit-seeking is the bounden duty of a businessman. If he blindly pursues profit, the first clause of "Yi Xin Li" that he personally modified in Su Ji's store motto is a living joke.

My own affairs are easy to handle. The mere [-] shi of grain in this area is nothing to sell even if it is sold at a low price. It is just a drop in the bucket. Come out; this is the fundamental solution.

Su Jin scratched his ears and cheeks anxiously, and spent a day without thinking about food and drink. When he was about to leave school, he gave himself a big mouth in the classroom, which shocked all the students to look at each other in astonishment, wondering what kind of evil he had fallen into.

"The emperor is not in a hurry, the eunuch is in a hurry to die." Su Jin secretly scolded himself, should he think about these important national affairs?He had already told Yan Biyun about the huge amount of food hoarded by merchants, and Yan Biyun would definitely tell Yan Shu who was worried about it.

How to get these grains out is a matter for Yan Shu and the court. I am poor and careless here, and I am a bastard who is laughed at if I worry about myself to death. Here comes the problem of the people.

When Su Jin returned home after school, he unexpectedly found that Yan Biyun had already arrived, chatting with Huanniang Xiaosuier and the others in the room.

Su Jin plunged headlong into Rou Niang's room, and the women inside rushed away like a frying pan, and hid behind the bed and behind the cabinet.

Su Jin asked in surprise, "What are you doing? Am I a tiger?"

"My lord, did you come in without knocking? This is Huanniang's room." Xiao Sui'er said dissatisfied.

Su Jin rolled his eyes and thought: When did I enter Huanniang's room and knock on the door?I touched it several times during the night, but there was no such thing as knocking on the door.

Yan Biyun's voice came from behind the bed curtain: "Get out, get out."

Su Jin was even more curious, blinking his eyes and said: "What are you doing, sneaky."

"We're trying on new clothes with Sister Yan, you better go out quickly." Xiao Sui'er waved her snow-white arms towards Su Jin from behind the cabinet.

Only then did Su Jin understand that a few girls were trying on the little clothes inside, and it seemed that Xiao Sui'er was using the new clothes brought by Rou Niang as a favor; , had to mutter out of the room, and walked into the courtyard to watch Chao Zhaohu and the others lifting stone locks and punching sandbags.

The kung fu of the four big foodies was not built on their own. A stone lock of [-] catties was dancing in the hands, and the muscles on the exposed arms of the black vest were tangled, and there were strips of bumps, which made Su Jin envious.

These foodies eat three or four sea bowls for each meal, and the vegetables in the bowls are piled up like hills. If they don't grow muscles, they will not suffer.

Looking at them and looking at her own thin arms, Su Jin let out a long sigh, cursing in her heart; after exercising every day for several months, she was still as skinny as a grass chicken. Compared with the few foodies in front of me, they are simply too far behind.

Several women in the inner hall finished packing and sent Xiao Sui'er out to invite Su Jin in. Su Jin hurriedly entered the palace and entered Huanniang's room. The tea on the table was ready, and Yan Biyun sat by the table with a red face and stared at her. he.

Su Jin smiled and said, "Have you changed your clothes? Is this the only one? It doesn't seem like new clothes. Didn't you wear this purple skirt this morning?"

Yan Biyun rolled his eyes at him and said, "You man, why do you care about what clothes women wear every day?"

Su Jin was stunned for a moment and said: "Then what do I care about? Is it a major national issue? I want to take care of it, but who listens to me?"

Yan Biyun was at a loss for words, turned his head and ignored him; Xiao Sui'er said: "The little maid gave me the bright yellow satin gown that Sister Rouniang gave me, and the baggy one I wore was too big, Sister Yan fits just right."

Yan Biyun couldn't stop it in time, his face was red with embarrassment.

Su Jin snorted, and involuntarily glanced at the neckline of Yan Biyun's coat, thinking: So I was trying on a small coat, no wonder Xiao Sui'er was wearing a loose bag, only two of your little steamed buns, it's only if it's not loose Strange; Yan Biyun's clothes might be too small.

Su Jin's eyes stared wildly, Yan Biyun couldn't take it anymore, coughed lightly and said solemnly: "My family has something serious to tell you, if you don't want to listen, my family will leave."

Su Jin hurriedly pulled her back and said, "Listen, why don't you listen! I'm sitting here in an unruly manner waiting for you to say something, but I didn't talk nonsense."

Yan Biyun has nothing to do with him, this guy is not much different from a street gangster when he is tired, why he is so determined to get along with him, Yan Biyun seriously doubts whether his vision is accurate.

"My family has already written to my uncle what you said." Yan Biyun said.

"I know that this matter is related to Lord Yan's errand, so I should have told him."

"Then do you have any good way to solve this matter smoothly?"

"I haven't thought about it." Su Jin lied cheekily, but he couldn't say that he couldn't come up with a good solution after thinking about it all day.

"Think about it, maybe you can help uncle."

"This matter is handled by the imperial court. Mr. Yan is a top figure in intelligence and wisdom. He has seen the world ten thousand times bigger than me. Why should I worry about it? Am I full?" Su Jin twisted the table. A quick sponge cake popped into his mouth.

Yan Biyun thought about it, and what Su Jin said was also true. He was eager to help his uncle solve this problem, and wanted to ask Lang Jun to help him find a solution. Maybe his uncle didn't need help at all.

For some reason, Yan Biyun always felt that Su Jin must have a good idea. Today, she also thought about it for a long time, and felt that it was really difficult to get the merchants to spit out the food willingly. She herself had no tricks, so she was not sure whether Yan Shu would There will be a good way.

"You said you have a secret to tell me, what secret?" Su Jin asked while chewing on the crunchy pastry and taking a sip of green tea.

Yan Biyun smiled and said, "Aren't you so smart? Guess what?"

Su Jin scratched his head and said, "When did I say that I was so smart? Although I am indeed smart, I usually don't say such things publicly."

Yan Biyun covered her mouth and almost spit out the tea in her mouth, Huanniang giggled, and Xiao Sui'er giggled while pointing at Su Jin's nose.

Su Jin touched his nose nonchalantly and said: "But, you asked me to guess abruptly, and I have no direction. If I guess who you dreamed about last night, don't blame me."

"Who do you dream of? Bah! You are as thick-skinned as a city wall." Yan Biyun didn't react at first, but after he did, he spat and blushed. Talking nonsense, it's a good thing Xiao Xian'er is not here, if she is, she might be pouting so hard that she is about to hang a flagon.

"Give me an excuse, what aspect is it about?"

"Hmm... about Luzhou... about your plan." Yan Biyun said. <Tian launched a counterattack against the Chamber of Commerce, what secrets will Yan Biyun hide about this matter.

"Sister Yan found out the activities of the Chamber of Commerce? Did you find the evidence that put them to death?" Su Jin guessed casually.

"It's scary what puts people to death. How can the servants have the ability to catch their evidence.",

"Then sister Yan will cooperate with me to mobilize and help me?" Su Jin guessed again.

"It's a little close, guess again, how can I help you."

Su Jin recalled all his plans, found the key point, and suddenly shook his body and said, "Could it be that Sister Yan will provide me with a lot of funds to help me?"

Yan Biyun smiled and said, "It's almost there. Your guess is already very close. I can't tell that you are really a smart person."

Su Jin proudly said: "That's natural." <Heaven will make the chamber of commerce lose everything. At that time, the most important thing will not be money, but..."

Su Jin opened his eyes wide and interrupted Yan Biyun: "Food? When did you store the food? How much?"

Yan Biyun slowly stretched out her small hand and waved it in front of Su Jin's eyes. Su Jin said, "Five thousand stones?"

Yan Biyun shook his head.

"Fifty thousand stone?"

"..."

"Five... ten... ten thousand?" Su Jin's voice began to tremble.

Yan Biyun smiled and nodded.

Su Jin's eyes were opened like lights, and his tongue could not be retracted for a long time, before he murmured: "You are not joking."