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Chapter 90, Picture One, is exhilarating.
The granary was located not far from the livestock workshop.

However, unlike the heavily guarded workshops, this granary was guarded by only an ordinary old soldier. When everyone arrived, he was still dozing off, and it wasn't until Magistrate Shi impatiently whipped him a few times that he barely woke up.

Magistrate Shi's explanation was quite reasonable.

"A few days ago we were indeed worried that someone would steal it, but now the whole of Cangzhou knows that Tai Sui meat is filling and can cure all diseases, so everyone is eating Tai Sui meat. Who would be idle enough to come here and steal grain? These things are now only supplied to the yamen runners and soldiers who know the situation, just to prevent them from causing any trouble."

After he finished speaking, the door to the granary was opened, and Magistrate Shi led Zhou You inside.

It wasn't like a livestock workshop, a living hell, nor did it have any extremely disgusting smells. In fact, the whole warehouse was filled with the fresh fragrance of grains.
—The impact on Zhou You was far greater than before.

He looked around and saw that the vast warehouse was filled with grain sacks. The gray sacks filled every corner, piled up from the entrance to the corner, and then piled up to the roof. There were so many of them, and they covered such a large area, that there was hardly any room to stand.

This time, Zhou You didn't wait for Magistrate Shi to introduce him. He walked directly to a burlap sack, took out a bloodstained dagger, and made a light cut on it.

Ripe rice grains poured down from it.

Zhou You grabbed a handful and sniffed it.

The aroma of rice wafts through the air.

There was none of the mold and stench I had been experiencing before, nor were there any interspersed sand and pebbles. From any angle, it looked like a perfectly normal rice stalk.

Rice grains are common in real life, but in this script they are extremely precious!
This kind of grain is readily available here!

—If such a thing existed back then, why would I have had to kill pig demons, fight wolf demons, and struggle all the way to this point?

—If such a thing existed back then, how could I have witnessed the starving corpses scattered everywhere, and the endless expanse of white bones?
Zhou You slowly raised his head, but only saw an extremely smug face.

The magistrate, as if boasting about something, spoke up.

"Surprised, aren't you, brother? Let me tell you, this is actually only a small part. There are three larger granaries around the county seat."

"Where did you get so much grain?"

Unaware of Zhou You's suddenly cold words, Magistrate Shi laughed loudly.

"It's nothing more than harvesting cheaply in good years and seizing by force, and selling at a higher price in bad years. Part of the grain stored here is my own, and the rest is the government's public grain and disaster relief grain—but there's really no difference between them."

"How so?"

Magistrate Shi's expression grew increasingly smug.

"What else can I say? Of course, it's gone. They say it's public grain and disaster relief grain, but I won't give a single bit of it to those refugees—they have plenty of Tai Sui meat to eat anyway—but I'll tell the court that I've already distributed it for relief, and then I'll find an opportunity to sell it to the other disaster-stricken areas. That way, the money comes in."

Zhou You remained silent for a while before continuing to ask.

"What about the people in the state? You and I both know that the flesh of the Tai Sui is not something that can be eaten regularly."

But Magistrate Shi simply waved his hand dismissively.

"People from within the state? It doesn't matter if they all die!" the obese man covered in grease laughed. "They're just numbers. Even the Emperor doesn't care, so why should I? It's better if they all die. When they're gone, the land under their names will just go to me. Anyway, once the drought is over, those refugees will still come back—the world lacks everything, except for peasant farmers!"

"And what about the governor? Do you think you can keep it from them?"

Magistrate Shi burst into laughter.

"Look at what you're saying, why would I need to hide it! Don't you know the saying? Money can move mountains, my brother—as long as there's enough silver, even the governor can turn a blind eye! Besides, do you think I'm the only one making a fortune during the drought in Cangzhou? In fact, the governor has done even more than I have!"

The laughter grew louder and louder, and even the warehouse could be faintly heard rustling.

"From the emperor down to the lowest official, nobody really takes these peasants seriously. Let me tell you the truth: I've already made arrangements with the governor recently. Once this disaster is over, he'll immediately commend me for 'meritorious service in disaster relief and compassion for the people,' and then promote me two ranks—so what if many people starve to death? I can still be credited with spending a lot of money—when we meet again, I won't just be a mere county magistrate!"

Zhou You stared intently at that smug face, and suddenly remembered what Wu Wenqing had said to him earlier.

"This is not some kind of demonic disaster at all, but a complete man-made catastrophe."

After saying that, he said that if he had the ability, he should take a look for himself.

as predicted.

If one hadn't seen it with their own eyes, how could one have witnessed such an ugly sight?
Thinking back to what he had heard from Lady Bone, Zhou You could basically guess the tone of the story.

Even the old Taoist priest couldn't help but admire him, saying, "This fat man is truly a remarkable figure. First, he colluded with Tai Sui to eliminate the only person who could threaten him, Xuan Yuan Daoist. Then, he used demons and ghosts as his backers to suppress the soldiers and yamen runners in the county. Next, he used both kindness and force, offering up something like Tai Sui's flesh to prevent a popular rebellion. It's a real waste of his talent to be a mere county magistrate. If he were to become prime minister, he would definitely be a legendary villain who will be remembered for generations!"

Zhou You nodded in agreement, then looked up and smiled again.

"I've learned my lesson. Please prepare some food first, and we'll transport it together with the birthday gifts after Madam arrives. As for the next few days, I'll be bothering you a bit more at your residence."

Magistrate Shi naturally couldn't object and readily agreed with a hearty laugh.

That night, after leaving the county government office.

Zhou You knocked on Wu Wenqing's door again.

In the complete darkness, the courtyard was utterly silent, as if the inhabitants had long since moved away.

Zhou You wasn't in a hurry; he simply stood there with his hands behind his back, waiting quietly.

After a long while, accompanied by a barely perceptible commotion, a cautious voice finally rang out from behind the door.

"Taoist priest?"

Well, another misunderstanding.

When traveling around, he was too lazy to explain and simply nodded in response.

"it's me."

With the sound of the latch sliding, Wu Wenqing's wary face was finally revealed.

Only after he could clearly see Zhou You's face did he suddenly breathe a sigh of relief and put down the stick he had been hiding in his arms.

"Master, you're back so late. Have you already checked out that residence?"

"Of course, I've basically read everything you've said, and everything you haven't said."

"So what was the result?"

Zhou You shook his head and smiled bitterly.

"If what you say is true, then what happened in this county was indeed a man-made disaster."

Wu Wenqing also sighed.

"Since you know this, Daoist Master, I know you have great abilities, but what can you do to this government office on your own? Under the clear blue sky, this place has become a demon kingdom. Daoist Master, if you would listen to my advice, you should run away quickly."

Zhou You remained silent.

Indeed, there are no side quests in this county town, and the Tai Sui Star Lord won't be back before the birthday celebration ends. His best option is to stick to the original plan, use Lady Gu's name to trick the magistrate into giving him a travel permit before he sees through the scheme, and then head straight for Youtai Mountain.

As for the lives and deaths of ordinary people and countless refugees, what does it have to do with him?

It's just a script; when we return to reality, everything is back to normal.

But.
Zhou You grinned.

If he's so hesitant and indecisive, why would he bother with all this lifespan stuff?

—Isn't the purpose of life to live and enjoy life to the fullest?

—That county magistrate has been making me unhappy until now, do you think I'll let him go happily?

So Zhou You patted Wu Wenqing on the shoulder and laughed.

"Running away isn't urgent. I have another plan, but I don't know about it yet."

Would you like to play a round with me?

　Thank you to tactical dimensional reduction 01 for the 100-point reward.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)