The immortal of the Tang Dynasty, but the game starts at Xuanwu Gate?

Pei Ju's eyes glazed over as he listened to Chen Huai'an's proposed solution.

Wang Bai and Li Chengqian, who were standing nearby, weren't much better off.

Is this how it's supposed to be done?

Pei Ju murmured, "You want to first drive up grain prices, attracting grain merchants from all over the country with absolute profits, then have the Ministry of Revenue and the Ministry of Works join forces to evacuate all the disaster victims while simultaneously announcing the opening of granaries and the distribution of grain, and then seal off the city?"

"Yeah, what do you think?" Chen Huai'an said matter-of-factly.

This is a real example from historical records; Lao Fan personally tested it and confirmed that it works.

Pei Ju snapped out of his daze, his face flushing red and then turning pale: "You...you're fucking heartless."

"These grain merchants must hate you to death."

Chen Huai'an said nonchalantly, "So what if they hate me? What good do you think they are? Ask yourself, Minister Pei, do you really think there's a single good person among grain merchants?"

"The drought is just beginning to show, and food prices have already skyrocketed like this. Who do you think is behind this?"

"Last year, a bushel of grain was worth a hundred coins. Look at how much it is now!"

"Who do you think caused this?"

Pei Ju was speechless. After hesitating for a moment, he said, "But...but the problem is, Chang'an is the capital! How can the city be sealed off? Would His Majesty agree to that?"

Li Chengqian nodded in agreement: "Yes, sir. If Chang'an is sealed off, the impact will be too great. Father will not agree to it."

Chen Huai'an said irritably, "A partial seal, is that not enough? We'll only restrict exports, not imports. As long as we don't let grain merchants take the grain away, isn't that enough?"

"Minister Pei, I'll ask you just one question: are you going to do it or not?"

"If you don't take the job, I'll have to tell His Majesty. You should go home and enjoy your retirement. I'll take over as Minister of Works and Minister of Revenue myself!"

Pei Ju: "..."

"...As long as His Majesty agrees, of course I have no problem with it. Anyway, I'm just an old man who's about to die, what wouldn't I dare to do?"

"Alright, I like old men like you who are about to die!" Chen Huai'an grinned. "Then I'll let you serve as Minister of Revenue for a while longer."

Pei Ju: ...Thank you.

"..."

After successfully deceiving Pei Ju, Chen Huai'an rushed to the Eastern Palace and found Li Shimin again, expressing his thoughts.

After hearing this, Li Shimin looked strange and said, "You little rascal...you're really too ruthless!"

"Let me tell you, no one, not even a ghost, would believe that someone who becomes a major grain merchant has no powerful backers."

"If you pull something like that, these people will hate you to death, and who knows how they'll write about you in the future."

"Does that matter?" Chen Huai'an retorted. "The natural disaster has just begun, and people are already selling their children to survive. Moreover, the scale of the drought is so large that it affects multiple regions."

"In the future, we don't know how many people will flee to Chang'an, and how many will fall on the way."

"Does it matter what they write about me, what they say about me?"

Li Shimin remained silent for a long time, his tapping of the table with his fingertips gradually stopping. Finally, he slowly shook his head: "No, you can't do this."

Chen Huai'an grew anxious: "Your Majesty, why can't we do it?"

"I am not speaking carelessly. This drought is too severe. Even if we can rely on the grain we have stockpiled in advance, the reserves of the three public granaries outside, and the income from ironware and refined salt to get through this year."

"What if there's another natural disaster next year?"

"What if there's heavy rain after a severe drought?"

"It's like a dam blocking the water. If the dam isn't opened, there won't be a drop of water downstream. But once the dam is breached, there will be a massive flood."

"Don't be hasty," Li Shimin said, pressing his hand down. "You're thinking too simply. Don't you know what kind of place Chang'an is?"

"The power dynamics here are complex, and powerful families have been operating here for many years. The iron-forging method and the better salt-making method you presented have already seriously infringed upon their interests."

"Now you're even trying to take food supplies. Do you really think they wouldn't dare touch you? Or the people around you?"

Chen Huai'an said nonchalantly, "What's there to be afraid of? I am all alone, without even a family. My only close relationships are with my colleagues and a few students."

"But which of these people is so easy to mess with?"

"Besides me, I'm at least a scholar; I've studied the Six Arts of a Gentleman, and I know a little about martial arts!"

"I refuse to believe they can kill me!"

Li Shimin's lips twitched.

Damn it, so what if you're all alone?

Are you afraid of nothing?

He rubbed his temples: "Forget it, you don't need to do it, I'll do it."

"Let those people curse me if they want; you really can't do these things anymore."

"I will not bring this up in court. I will order the Ministry of Revenue to raise grain prices, bring in grain merchants, and then order the city to be sealed off."

"Just do your own thing."

"The credit is yours, but I'll take the blame, okay?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Huai'an immediately agreed: "Yes, Your Majesty, I understand."

"However, Your Majesty must act quickly. There aren't many disaster victims yet. If we raise grain prices now, we can secretly manipulate the situation and recruit those who can't survive to leave first."

"Furthermore, we must first tell the officials in public that the Ministry of Revenue did not obtain much grain from me and can only help a portion of the people."

"At the same time, have people from the Ministry of Revenue contact major grain merchants, pretending to want to buy, but acting as if they're reluctant to part with the money..."

Li Shimin laughed after hearing this.

"I thought your heart was already black enough, but I never imagined it could be even blacker."

Chen Huai'an smiled modestly.

Previously, he had publicly stated that he had a way to obtain grain, but apart from the Minister of Revenue and a few other people, no one knew the exact amount.

Now we can tell these officials that the Ministry of Revenue did not obtain much grain from Chen Huai'an's channel and could only provide relief to a portion of the people.

This is a good opportunity to recruit those people who are on the verge of starvation.

In this way, they can confidently raise grain prices.

After all, as the disaster worsens, the number of victims will increase, and everyone will assume that the imperial court has money but no food.

Isn't this a golden opportunity?

"Alright, don't worry, I know what to do. Later, I will send someone to remind Pei Ju not to leak the news." Li Shimin made his decision.

Chen Huai'an nodded and prepared to leave.

Li Shimin then asked, "You just said that after the drought, there might be heavy rains. Is that true?"

"I'm not sure," Chen Huai'an shook his head. "It depends on how long the drought lasts. If it lasts long enough, there might really be heavy rain next year."

"Of course, it is more likely that there will be heavy snow in winter, which would then be a cold disaster."

Li Shimin was in a real headache.

The drought had just begun, and now this cold snap is happening?

Are you trying to kill us?

"Your Majesty need not worry. We can take this opportunity to stockpile more food. As long as we have money and food, natural disasters are not so terrible," Chen Huai'an comforted him.

He hasn't finished speaking yet.

There will indeed be cold disasters in winter, but there will be locust plagues next year, and floods the year after.

You can govern this country all you want, but once you do, everyone will shut up.

"..."