The Song Dynasty on the Sand Table

Chapter 308 Completion of the Population Census
Half an incense stick later, the rogue Goro came down from the grain distribution platform with a bag of millet, as if he were still in a dream.

He had just gone home to get the bag because he "didn't quite believe" he would receive rice. He hadn't even brought any container with him when he went on stage, so when they were handing out rice, he had nothing to put in it. He quickly went home to get a bag, which he then used to fill a bag with millet.

After carrying the rice sack off the stage, the rascal Wulang immediately perked up, grinning broadly as he walked through the streets, looking around with a swagger.

A head popped out from the side: "You rascal, you actually got the rations?"

He laughed loudly: "Look at you cowards! I'm not afraid! The bold get rich, the timid starve."

Once he started leading the way, there was no stopping him. Large numbers of people grabbed their household registration certificates and rushed towards the grain distribution station.

The grain distribution station, which was just a moment ago deserted, is now packed with people.

Countless people scrambled to get onto the stage, creating an even bigger commotion than the elderly people scrambling for eggs outside supermarkets in later generations. Getting twenty pounds of grain for free was far more profitable than getting a few eggs for free, so of course they had to push and shove even harder.

The clerk in charge of registration was practically smoking from writing so much...

Before long, the registrar collapsed from exhaustion, and someone else took over writing.

The laborers who weighed the grain for the people quickly became exhausted, and a new batch of people took their place to continue weighing it.

The grain on the distribution platform was visibly decreasing rapidly.

The people who hadn't received their grain rations began to feel uneasy, and many in the crowd were saying, "Are the soldiers getting enough grain?"

"Many people haven't received theirs yet, but there aren't many left on the stage."

"Those who arrive late will definitely miss out."

At this moment, the second grain transport team organized by Li Bao had just entered the woods.

As Li Bao walked, he kept wondering: Where did the grain come from? There must be no grain left to carry.

But as soon as he stepped into the clearing in the woods, he saw that the clearing was filled with grain again, bag after bag, basket after basket, as if he had never come to move it.

"Huh?" Li Bao rubbed his eyes. "What happened? I... I just took some men and moved all the grain out of here. How come it's piled up again after we went to the city?"

The soldiers guarding the woods chuckled, and one of them whispered, "We have divine assistance."

Li Bao's expression showed utter disbelief...

The soldier simply pointed to the sky: "Celestial officials in the heavens! Hehehe!"

Li Bao: "What celestial palace? You're just lying. If there really are celestial officials, call them over so I can see them."

Soldier: "Far away, yet right before our eyes."

Li Bao looked around, but couldn't see any celestial officials. He only saw Young Master Yue smiling at him.

"Tch, that's all nonsense."

Yue Wenxuan laughed and said, "Don't worry about such trivial matters. Hurry up and move the grain. If the grain distribution station runs out before we move the new grain, things might get out of hand."

He knew that the common people were not worried about poverty, but about inequality.

If someone else gets it and you don't, they'll definitely make a huge fuss about it. Li Bao started muttering again, "This is no small matter! The source of the military rations is clearly a big deal! Young Master Yue is making it sound so trivial."

However, although he was full of witty remarks, he never stopped working. He muttered to himself while doing his job, and he did it perfectly. Soon, he had emptied the grain in the woods and was heading to the city.

Yue Wenxuan winked at him: "This grain is still not enough. We'll send more to the city as soon as it's delivered."

Li Bao: "!!!"

Forget it, whatever. If Young Master Yue says one, then it's one; if he says two, then it's two.

After Li Bao and his men finished moving the grain with a lot of effort, they returned to the woods and found that the woods, which had just been emptied, were now full of grain again.

What the hell is this forest?

It's even more awesome than a treasure bowl.

Never mind, let's keep moving!
Li Bao made several trips, heaving and finally managed to distribute the goods to all the people in the city.

After the people who had received their grain rations dispersed, the registrar in charge of registration moved a thick stack of books in front of Yue Wenxuan: "True Lord, this is the resident population register of Siyang City. There are currently 13,232 households in the city, but the exact number of people in each household is currently unknown."

Grain distribution is done on a household basis, so registration can only be done down to the household level, and it is not possible to register down to the individual household level for the time being, because the workload required to register down to the individual household level is too great.

Yue Wenxuan nodded, meaning that less than 300,000 jin of grain were used to complete the basic population census and registration of Siyang City.

Ordinary people may have made a lot of money this time, but Yue Wenxuan didn't lose out at all!

If we use other methods to conduct a population census, it would be much more troublesome and would likely consume even more manpower and resources.

The Northern Song army could now continue its southward advance with greater confidence...
-
Not far south of Siyang City lies a huge lake, the famous Hongze Lake.

At this moment, a bandit army was entrenched on the shore of Hongze Lake. It was none other than Li Cheng, the largest bandit group in the Huainan region.

He didn't make Hongze Lake his base; he was just passing through temporarily.

The bandits in the lake were in cahoots with Li Cheng.

At this moment, Zhao Qi, the leader of the river bandits, was sitting with Li Cheng, eating large chunks of meat and drinking large gulps of wine.

Zhao Qi said, "Brother Li Cheng, now that you have fought your way here, you must not go any further north."

Li Chengqi asked, "Why can't we go north? What's wrong with going north?"

Zhao Qi said, "A few days ago, an army claiming to be from the Northern Song Dynasty attacked from the north and captured Siyang City. I have a brother in Siyang City named Chen Meng who was easily defeated. His head was kicked around like a ball. The brothers who escaped said that the Northern Song army is extremely powerful and cannot be trifled with. They simply cannot be trifled with."

Li Cheng had heard of the Northern Song Dynasty, a kingdom established by a prince named Zhao Shi, who declared himself emperor in Dengzhou and Laizhou, and kept clamoring for Zhao Gou to retire and abdicate...

He thought it was just the ravings of a madman and didn't take it seriously. But he never expected that the Northern Song army was so powerful. They had fought their way from Dengzhou and Laizhou to Hongze Lake. If they attacked a few more prefectures to the south, wouldn't they be able to reach the Yangtze River?
Zhao Qi continued, "The Northern Song army was strong and well-equipped, and they didn't lack food. My brothers said that after the Northern Song occupied Siyang, they actually distributed grain to all the people in the city, 20 catties per household. My goodness, there are more than 10,000 households in Siyang. They distributed 300,000 catties of grain. That's outrageous."

Li Cheng's eyes lit up: "There's so much grain... why not take it..."

Zhao Qi gasped, thinking: Li Cheng, are you crazy? You actually want to steal grain?
However, although Li Cheng was crazy, he was not reckless. He chuckled and said, "Zhang Jun, a general of the Southern Song Dynasty, has been chasing me from behind. Why don't I lead Zhang Jun to fight against the Northern Song Dynasty and let them fight to the death? I can sit back and reap the benefits. Maybe I'll even have a chance to seize some grain."

(End of this chapter)