Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 34 Clues
"Didn't we come here in vain?" Liu Zun kept chattering on the way back.

"No, the harvest is huge." Liu Daogui had a vague idea.

If the 3,000 dan of grain was not taken away by Huan Hong, then it could only have been taken away by the Tianshi Dao. Only they had the ability to take the grain away without anyone noticing.

The key issue now is to find those 3,000 shi of grain.

Another major gain was finding a way to survive. Live by the mountain and eat by the sea. Food is the most important thing for people. The most important principle these days is to make sure your subordinates have enough food and clothing.

Only with this way of survival can we win people's hearts.

Liu Daogui had no control over whether the General Zhenglu’s mansion was in ruins or not, as long as his own mansion was not in ruins, that was enough.

"Do you know who did it?" Liu Zun's face lit up with joy.

Liu Daogui looked at Liu Zhong, "Ah Zhong, who are you talking about?"

Liu Zhong said without hesitation: "Only the Heavenly Master Dao has such great power."

"Hahaha, it will be easy once we know who it is!" With a "bang", Liu Zun slammed his hands together.

Liu Guangzhi said: "I'm afraid it's not that easy to deal with. The Heavenly Master's Dao is very powerful and it's not something we can handle just a few people."

"If we can't handle it, someone else will."

This cousin was both brave and resourceful, but he had no backing and no family background, so he could not make a name for himself in the Northern Army. When the imperial court suppressed the Northern Army, he was kicked out.

Liu Daogui thought of Liu Laozhi. Apart from his bravery, he had no other advantages. He had been trying to climb up the social ladder for so many years, but had never made a name for himself. The Pengcheng Liu family had so many heroes, but he had never helped anyone.

The only time he helped me was a big pit.

Liu Zhong was encouraged and spoke freely, "In my opinion, we should first find out where the grain is hidden."

Liu Daogui agreed, "Huan Hong is out hunting, and the trouble hasn't happened to us yet, so there's no need to worry."

The reason for being so proactive is to prepare for the day when the blame suddenly falls on your head.

As long as we know who is behind the attack, the food will be found sooner or later.

After returning to the government office and waiting for more than an hour, Gao Xun's men returned one after another. They searched all the places they should have searched, but found nothing.

"Is it not in the city?" Liu Daogui asked doubtfully.

Gao Xun said, "After the incident, Envoy Huan immediately ordered martial law throughout the city and sealed off the port. Since this matter involved factional strife within the imperial court, Envoy Huan dared not let his guard down."

"There's no such thing as an impenetrable wall. We'll find it eventually. Don't worry. My brothers have been searching all day and are tired. Go buy some meat and eat it before you can get back to work."

Liu Daogui took out the little money he had left and gave it to Liu Guangzhi and Liu Zhong.

Liu Daogui has a very good grasp of interpersonal relationships.

If you want to run like the horse, you have to feed the horse with grass. You can't let others work hard and still go hungry.

When I sold Jia, I had some extra money, which was enough to buy dozens of pounds of pork and fatty fish. Guangling is close to the sea and the river, so meat is expensive and fish is cheap. A pound of fish costs only about the price of five pounds of firewood.

There are still dozens of kilograms of dried meat on hand, which can provide everyone with a full meal.

"General Liu is as generous and righteous as Ji Nu!"

"Hahaha, it would be disrespectful for us to refuse."

"I'll go get some dry firewood!"

Everyone was in high spirits and busy, some were carrying firewood, some were lighting the fire.

Gao Xun secretly stuffed several hundred coins into Liu Daogui's hands.

Liu Daogui was stunned, "Brother Gao, what are you doing?"

"I've been in the army for many years, and this is all I have saved. It's useless to keep it in my hands. You're new here, and you'll need money a lot. You might as well use it first."

"How can I do this?" "A real man shouldn't push things around. We hit it off right away. We're neighbors and colleagues, so there's no need to be so formal. Once this is over, when you have more money, you can pay me back."

He has already said so, and it would be disrespectful to refuse.

"Thank you!" Liu Daogui couldn't help but look up to him.

It's rare to find someone so generous and charitable these days, and the relationship between the two of them immediately became close.

After a hearty meal, everyone's spirits and morale were much stronger. They chatted with Liu Zun, Liu Heibi and others, boasting about how many Hu people they had killed when they followed Xie Xuan in the Northern Expedition...

The only regret is that there is no wine.

But this thing is too expensive. One liter of wine costs almost eight hundred coins. It is something enjoyed by the nobles and wealthy families. Liu Daogui cannot afford it.

After this dinner, the soldiers worked even harder.

Not only did he travel around Guangling City, but he also visited several surrounding counties.

I got a lot of information.

What surprised Liu Daogui the most was that someone actually sold food, salt, armor, and bows and crossbows to the Xianbei, Di, and Dingling peoples in Yan, Ji, Si, and Yu provinces...

As expected, as long as the benefits are big enough, there will be people who take risks.

They say they are sworn enemies of the Hu people, but secretly they are only concerned with business.

Of course, those who can do this kind of business are not ordinary people. They are all well-known figures in Guangling City.

After searching for four or five days, there was still no result.

During this period, the imperial court sent three documents in succession, questioning the General Zhenglu's Mansion like a debt collector, asking why they had not found the 3,000 shi of grain.

According to the news secretly transmitted from Jiankang, Sima Daozi and Wang Guobao intended to use this incident to disband the General Zhenglu's Office in order to suppress the alliance between Huan family and Wang Gong, Yin Zhongkan, Wang Xun and others.

Before abolishing the General's Office, officials at all levels will be held accountable for dereliction of duty in accordance with military law.

"How could I not find it?" Liu Daogui repeatedly checked the map of Guangling County, feeling that he had missed something.

"Could it have been taken away?" Gao Xun became anxious. It was not easy for him to get here as the Sima of the Left Army, and he had a group of brothers following him.

If the General's Mansion was gone, the soldiers would be the ones most affected.

Their fields and families were all in Guangling. Without the general's mansion, the fields would be taken away, and the whole family would be left without food and clothing, so they had no choice but to return to Jingkou.

Liu Daogui was the most aware of the current situation in Jingkou. Even a humble family like him, with only a dozen acres of land, felt the immense pressure of survival, not to mention these old soldiers who had been away from home for many years...

Liu Daogui carefully considered every detail.

The grain collected from the military households would first be sent to the government treasury, where it would be counted by the military officials. After the number was registered, it would be reported to the court. Then it would be loaded onto ships at the ferry and sent to Jiankang.

There isn't much room for manipulation.

Only a handful of people have access to food, and outsiders certainly cannot get in.

Sima Yuanhe, Chief Clerk Xun Xinzhi, and Recorder Huan Daozhen would certainly not care about these trivial matters, so the people who came into contact with the food would be obvious.

A name suddenly emerged in Liu Daogui's mind.

But someone spoke out first: "Sun Yizhi! This person must be a member of the Tianshi Dao!"

Everyone present was stunned and looked at the person who spoke, who was the young Liu Zhong.

Sun Yizhi, not only does he have the character "zhi" in his name, but his surname is also Sun. The Langya Sun family has believed in Tianshi Dao for generations, and the contemporary master of Tianshi Dao is Sun Tai.

Liu Daogui slapped his thigh and said, "It's almost right!"

"Report to General Liu, that Envoy Huan has returned to the city. There will be a dinner tonight. Please invite General Liu and Sima Gao to the table." The old soldier with a crooked mouth stretched his neck outside the yard, revealing a mouthful of uneven yellow teeth, his small eyes rolling around.

(End of this chapter)