He originally intended to surrender to Wei, so why did he end up restoring Han?

"No, no, no, Your Excellency's grain reserves are already limited. How can you spend money for my own selfish gain? I want to borrow some money from you to buy grain from Qingzhou."

Wang Xiang knew he couldn't reveal his intentions at the outset. For example, if he wanted to use grain to bring down Zang Ba, he absolutely couldn't start by thinking about the other side's grain; he had to be tactful and take a roundabout approach.

For Wang Xiang, taking the long way around is his shortcut.

After making up his mind that night, Wang Xiang began to investigate where to start. At first, he was like a headless fly, wondering which aspect, from personnel composition to tax data, could really affect Zang Ba.

Later, when I was looking at the list on a whim, I suddenly realized, why bother looking at each item one by one? I just need to focus on the hottest spots in Kaiyang, isn't that enough?

Wang Xiang only needed one glance to realize what was wrong with Langya County.

"Ah? Xiuzheng, do you have connections to buy grain?" Zang Ai suddenly became excited upon hearing this. Wang Xiang, who was good at reading people, confirmed his suspicions and replied, "Yes, brother, I do."

Langya County is running out of food.

Although it is unknown when it started, the grain reserves in Langya County are declining rapidly, a fact that the Wang family's market partners have informed Wang Xiang of.

With a large outflow of grain, market prices are bound to rise. However, grain prices in cities such as Kaiyang, Linyi, Juxian, and Dongguan remain very stable.

This means that there are people in the market who have been maintaining grain prices, and the only one in the entire Langya County who has both the ability and the obligation to do so is Zang Ba.

In order to maintain stable grain prices, Zang Ba had been using grain from the government granary to subsidize ordinary people in the city, which kept grain prices in Langya stable.

It must be said that the bandit Taishan, whose name is anything but kind, is actually quite good to the people; it's just that this situation is no longer something he can control.

The affordable white salt transported from Xuzhou was an instant hit upon its release. A person can live without writing or reading, but absolutely cannot live without salt. Furthermore, Zang Ba governed Langya quite well. Although there were refugees from Qingzhou, the society was stable and had not suffered much from war. The people preferred to keep only essential grain reserves (generally three years' worth) and sell the rest of their old grain to buy white salt.

Xuzhou is currently experiencing a food shortage, and people are willing to buy any kind of grain, as long as it doesn't kill them instantly. This is a rare opportunity in the grain market, so of course they have to seize it!

By the time Zang Ba realized what was happening, a considerable amount of grain had already flowed out of Langya. Zang Ba, being astute, immediately began restricting large-scale grain transactions, allowing only small-scale deals. While this halted the outflow, the sold grain could not be recovered.

This wouldn't have been so bad originally; Zang Ba simply controlled the grain supply and planned to buy more once the surrounding environment stabilized. However, the people of Xuzhou added fuel to the fire by starting to buy grain at twice the market price, essentially using their own resources to undermine Zang Ba's efforts.

Salt is plentiful in Xuzhou. Although its quality can't compare to the well salt of Yizhou, it has the advantage of large quantity and affordable price. Aside from labor costs, exchanging it for grain is practically getting something for nothing.

According to intelligence from partners and data collected by themselves, the black market in Langya has been booming since Xuzhou began raising grain prices.

This is really not a good thing. In the past, Zangba could collect taxes on normal transactions, but now not only are there no taxes, but a lot of grain has been sold off.

Most importantly, this money directly provoked the powerful clans of Langya. These people, who were already estranged from Zang Ba, now disregarded him even more. They had only cooperated with Zang Ba as a henchman before, and now that they were rich, why should they associate with these former bandits?

When I was broke, you rode on my head; now that I'm rich, you still ride on my head. Does that mean all the money I earned was for nothing?

The grain reserves of these powerful families were terrifying. For example, Lu Su, as a member of a powerful family, would send out grain in heaps. One can imagine the strength of the powerful families of that era.

With money in hand, some conservative types thought about digging a hole to hide it. The slightly more radical ones used the money to arm their own private armies. After suffering so many beatings, even the powerful and wealthy families knew that money was nothing in chaotic times; having guns was the only real power.

In this era, there are plenty of people who will risk their lives for a meal. As long as they are fed, they can naturally raise an army.

The only problem is that time is too short. Xuzhou has only given the heroes of Mount Tai a little over a month to level up, and the aristocratic families of Langya have only just begun to show signs of disobeying.

"Could you try to make contact? To be honest, Langya County is also experiencing a food shortage right now, and we'd like to buy some grain, but now that Qingzhou has been occupied by Young Master Yuan, almost all of our previous connections have been severed."

Zang Ai looked at Wang Xiang expectantly and continued, "So, Xiu Zheng, can you help me?"

"Of course, it's my duty to help my uncle." Wang Xiang was like a righteous man from the Spring and Autumn Period.

"This matter is of great importance and must be reported to your father so that he can speak with you."

Wang Xiang had no objection to Zang Ai's request, as Zang Ai was indeed not qualified to discuss such an important matter.

On the other side, Zang Ba, sitting in his seat, also felt extremely overwhelmed. When he worked under Tao Qian, he never had to worry about these things; he just waited for Tao Qian to send him money. Now, sitting in this position was truly unbearable. Everyone wanted his support, and everyone wanted even greater benefits.

Even the brothers who once risked their lives together on Mount Tai have now been blinded by the allure of the world, spending their days thinking about how to make money.

Liu Bei needed the support of powerful clans and wealthy families, but didn't Zang Ba also need it? Therefore, Zang Ba had no good way to stop the various actions of these powerful clans and wealthy families.

Just as he was deep in thought, a servant suddenly came to report that his son had arrived with his men.

Huh? He's not off duty yet, is he? What's this kid doing here? Is he going to ask me for money again to go out with his friends?

With these questions in mind, Zang Ba let the group in.

"Father, I have a way to get food!" Zang Ai said bluntly.

Zang Ba's eyes lit up, and he hurriedly said, "Really? Tell me quickly!"

"This is Wang Xiang, also known as Wang Xiuzheng, who famously 'lay on ice to catch carp'. He had connections with grain merchants in Qingzhou."

Following Zang Ai's words, Wang Xiang nodded and said, "Yes, my father has some old friends who are currently under Yuan Qingzhou's command. As long as we can come up with enough money, they should be willing to sell us grain out of consideration for our past relationship."

"We don't have any money either..." Zang Ai blurted out another secret. Zang Ba wanted to give his son a few slaps; he'd been studying all day and had gone stupid, why was he blurting everything out?

That's right, Langya is currently lacking not only food but also money. This is quite normal, as Zang Ba has been working tirelessly to support his troops. Zang Ba also cannot accept supplies from Liu Bei; once he takes them, he must obey Liu Bei's orders, which is why Zang Ba refuses to accept them.

Now, being single-minded has become a double-edged sword.

Wang Xiang pretended to be deep in thought, and after a long while he tentatively spoke up: "I have a plan, but it's a bit dangerous."

"Don't worry too much about the suspension. Speak up boldly. We need to hear your suggestions first, even if they're not good."

"My idea is to first borrow a batch of old grain from various aristocratic families, sell it all at the current high price, then take all the money to Qingzhou to buy cheaper grain. After that, we can repay the borrowed grain from the aristocratic families, and the surplus grain can be directly put into storage, right?"

At this point, Wang Xiang added, "However, this method is very dangerous. If we don't bring back enough grain, Uncle will have to buy more grain at the current high prices to repay these powerful families. So I hope Uncle will think it over carefully!"

Upon hearing this, Zang Ba fell into deep thought.

--------

After half a month, Zheng Xuan and his disciples finally arrived at Xiapi, the capital of Xuzhou.

On the official road, a group of simply dressed, yet robust and burly scholars were escorting several oxcarts as they slowly moved forward. Although these scholars did not try to be ostentatious, their distinctive demeanor still drew the attention of passersby.

Behind the procession were many people who admired Zheng Xuan and dreamed of becoming his disciples, so they spontaneously followed the procession.

In the very center of the procession was Zheng Xuan's carriage. He sat upright inside, intently examining the new item in his hands.

Officials at all levels along the way were filled with trepidation and took the initiative to visit Zheng Xuan, hoping that this great Confucian scholar could give them guidance.

Inside the carriage, Zheng Xuan stroked the newly purchased printed books, momentarily undecided. Zheng Xuan wasn't stupid; he could naturally see how much these new technologies would contribute to the spread of Confucianism.

The relatively affordable prices and solid content allowed even those from poor families to access knowledge. Liu Bei probably thought this way, believing it would provide a path for those from humble backgrounds to succeed.

Little did they know that this was entirely wishful thinking.

The powerful families of the Eastern Han Dynasty did not monopolize the classics, but rather the right to interpret them. No matter how well others studied the classics, if the families who monopolized the classics declared your interpretation wrong, then it was wrong, and everyone else had to interpret it according to their own system. To think that simply providing books to children from poor families would create a new intellectual class is wishful thinking.

Xuande is too impatient. What is he so anxious about?

Zheng Xuan felt it was necessary to guide Liu Bei; he couldn't just stand by and watch this honest man take the wrong path.

Thirty li outside Xiapi, Liu Bei had already arrived with his civil and military officials to welcome Zheng Xuan. Not only that, other Confucian scholars in the city, upon hearing that the Duke of Kangcheng was coming, also petitioned Liu Bei, hoping to be the first to witness the demeanor of this great Confucian scholar, and Liu Bei agreed to all of them.

"Xuande, do you know what those heretical teachings that came from Xuzhou are all about?" Zheng Xuan asked Liu Bei as soon as he saw him.

Liu Bei bowed forward and said loudly, "I did it; it has nothing to do with anyone else."

Lu Wan looked at him in surprise, wondering what this guy was up to now. "I, Lu Wan, don't care about a bad reputation. If I become a traitor, it will be a hundred times worse than this. I'm not even afraid of being labeled a traitor. Why do you, Liu Bei, always make me take the blame for these things?"

"No, Lord Kangcheng, this was actually my plan. I wanted to invite you to Xuzhou. But I was worried that my words carried little weight, so I had no choice but to resort to this tactic. I hope you will forgive me, Lord Kangcheng." Lu Wan hurriedly stepped forward to take the blame upon herself, fearing that Zheng Xuan would immediately pin the problem on Liu Bei.

Zheng Xuan watched as the two people in front of him kept taking the blame upon themselves. Just as he was about to say something, Zhang Fei suddenly spoke up as well.

"Sir, actually, I did all of this. I have long admired Mr. Zheng's character, and my elder brother often praises him in front of me. I deliberately said something inappropriate to bring you here in order to make my brother happy."

Zhang Fei didn't care what others thought of him. Although it was good to befriend a renowned scholar like Zheng Xuan, no matter how capable a scholar was, he couldn't compare to his elder brother. Now was a crucial time for Xuzhou to recruit talent, and neither his elder brother nor Wen Yuan could afford such moral stains. He'd better let old Zhang Fei handle it!

Standing beside Chen Qun, watching the group arguing over the charges, a surge of pride welled up within him: "As a subject, one eats the king's food and must serve him loyally. In the past, my lord stood up against all opposition for me; surely I can share his burdens today?"

"Lord Kangcheng, to be honest, this was actually my plan. As a subject of Lord Xuande, it is only natural that I should share your burdens. At present, the Xuzhou State School is in disarray, and Lord Xuande sees countless students unable to receive instruction from their teachers. Therefore, I devised this plan to bring Lord Kangcheng to Xuzhou."

Just as Lu Wan was shocked by the two's actions, Sun Qian suddenly stepped forward: "Teacher, this was actually a student's plan, please don't blame others."

Sun Qian felt that he was actually a very ordinary person, with no outstanding talent, and that he only got to work under Liu Bei because of good luck. Now, if he admitted to this crime, then he, Sun Qian, could be considered to have made a small contribution to the great cause of his lord.

Immediately afterwards, shouts of "I did it!" and "I did it!" echoed throughout the group. These people weren't necessarily trying to take the blame; some wanted to show off in front of Liu Bei and the other important figures; some were worried about not fitting in and chimed in; and others, like Jian Yong, were simply there for fun and to stir up trouble.

Lu Wan was seething with anger and wanted to kick these bastards flying.

Who are these people? What does this have to do with you? Why are you all scrambling to take the blame?

Just as she was about to curse, Lu Wan suddenly noticed Zheng Xuan's expression. It was an extremely complex state, a mixture of relief and reminiscence.

Zheng Xuan was shocked. Just now, right before his eyes, appeared what Zheng Xuan had been pursuing all his life: benevolence that transcended the hierarchical relationships between ruler and subject, father and son.

The saying "the ruler is a ruler, the minister is a minister, the father is a father, and the son is a son" means that the monarch must fulfill his duties as a monarch, the minister should abide by his duties as a minister, the father should bear his responsibilities as a father, and the son should follow the rules of being a son.

The situation in Liu Bei's case is a level above this one, where everyone sacrifices themselves for others.

Zheng Xuan asked himself honestly, he had never seen such a sight in the first half of his life, and he probably would never see it again.