Within a few days of eating the high-priced grain, the people couldn't sit still, and they all came to inquire one by one when the Lin family's grain would arrive.
However, at this time, bad news came, it turned out that there was a problem with the Lin family's food.
"The grain that the Lin family bought in the south met bandits on the road, and it is said that they were robbed and could not arrive at all," someone said.
"Really, how did I hear the news that the ship carrying the grain capsized, and the grain fell into the water and could not be eaten," someone else said, I don't know which version is true.
"Everything, what, I don't hear the same as what you hear, what I hear is that the grain is not bought at all, because the food in the south is too expensive to buy at all," someone else said.
For a while, everyone had different opinions, and everyone did not complain about the Lin family, but they also knew that for a period of time, the Lin family's food would not arrive.
The big deal is that the rich and noble families are more expensive, and those ordinary people don't have much silver, so how can they be willing to eat such expensive food Therefore, for a while, the people complained and were quite unstable.
At this time, in the prefect's yamen, Governor Zhou looked at several local grain merchants and frowned.
He was calm, drank a cup of tea, and then looked at the merchants who were standing, looking indifferent, but these grain merchants had no bottom in their hearts "I heard that the price of grain in our Jinping City has risen a lot recently, you think you have made a lot of money" Zhou Zhifu asked, sneering in his heart, there is no shortage of these people who are worth a lot of money, but they never thought that they would make this money.
When the businessmen heard this, they didn't dare to squeak one by one, and everyone looked at the old man of the Meng family, no matter how he looked at it, the old man of the Meng family was a leader.
"Why, let me ask, you don't squeak anymore, aren't you all eloquent on weekdays" Zhou Zhifu has the backing, and this confidence is naturally enough.
"Lord Zhou said with a smile, our grain was also bought with real money in the south, the purchase price is too high, if it is sold cheaply, wouldn't it be a loss after all, it is a business, we can't lose money and make money," said the old man of the Meng family.
"I see, I didn't even know that your grain is so expensive, but I also have the emperor's order, so I have to take care of you, so don't blame me."
Governor Zhou said, put down the teacup, and looked at everyone.
Everyone was a little flustered in an instant, how did you say this, why did you say that there was an imperial order, these two words can't be used indiscriminately "What do you mean, my lord," the old man of the Meng family asked, with a look of surprise on his face.
"Hehe, haven't you read the official notice of the yamen, the emperor ordered that in the year of the catastrophe, taxes will be reduced or reduced, but the price of this grain must be stable, and it must not rise too much, if there is a violator, severely punish and not lend, don't you see this" Zhou Zhifu asked, with a smile on his face.
"What kind of adult, where is this, why don't we know, there is such a thing," said Master Meng, his face became extremely ugly.
"You don't know that I had people post notices a long time ago, didn't you even see it" Zhou Zhifu smiled slightly, and looked at them with a somewhat mocking expression.
Everyone: "Can you count the things that put up the notices, and no one will stare at the notices every day?"
"Lord Zhou is such an important matter, don't you really need to personally send someone to tell me to wait" The old man of the Meng family asked angrily.
This is the emperor's order, the emperor's order is difficult to disobey, they would have been more cautious if they knew so.
"If I tell you, then you will increase the price of food casually, why no one will tell this official," Zhou Zhifu said.
That's right, he did it on purpose Governor Zhou saw the changes in the faces of the grain merchants, and smiled coldly, what the eldest lady said was not wrong, people's hearts are unpredictable, and only when the water is mixed can we see the essence of people.
Directly announce the emperor's order, I'm afraid that they will not sell the grain they store, it is better to wait until they make a mistake, and then catch it anyway, the emperor's order is true, as for the rest, he has the final say anyway.
Everyone looked at Zhou Zhifu's expression, and they didn't know why, there was always a feeling that they had been calculated, and they even doubted that the so-called proclamation, did Zhou Zhifu really release it "My lord, this is indeed wronged, we really don't know and that's it, the emperor didn't say how much it can't go up."
Cold sweat flowed down the head of the Meng family, thinking that he had calculated everything, but he didn't know that he was set up in it.
The Lin family's food is gone, and it should have been time for them to make a lot of money, but now that there is an imperial order, it will really be fatal.
Fortunately, they hid the grain.
"The emperor's order does not clearly say how much the price increase will be punished, and how much the price will be killed.
Emperor Shengming, let me wait for local officials to consider it as appropriate."
After the Zhou prefect finished speaking, the faces of the old men of the Meng family were like ashes, and they considered it at their discretion, and considered it at their discretion Isn't this equivalent to condemning them This Zhou prefect is hiding so deeply "My lord, go around us, we don't dare," said one of the grain merchants, kneeling down, with a look of remorse.
Everyone looked at this grain merchant like this, and they also understood that now they could only kneel and beg for mercy, they wanted to make a profit, but they didn't want to, and they fell directly into the hands of others.
The old man of the Meng family saw this scene and gritted his teeth directly, he never thought that it would be like this and such a result "Lords, the emperor's order is difficult to disobey, otherwise, if you are really remorseful, I can't be unsympathetic, if you are willing to take out the silver to do something good for the people of the Northland, this is considered as appropriate, and it is not impossible to raise the bottom line."
Governor Zhou said this, where would everyone not understand that this is asking for money Everyone, look at me, I look at you, I finally understand, what is shameless, now this official is even more calculating than them, and this is not giving people a way to live Still, no matter what, they still have to save their lives, and it is important to save their lives.
Therefore, this silver, whether you want to give it or not, you have to give it to them, in fact, it is a businessman who has rules, and he never thought that one day, he will be forced by the officials to use the silver to buy his life Even so, they could not turn around and go back to get the silver, but were politely invited by the prefect to the prison, where they waited for a while, until they could come up with a satisfactory amount of silver.
Such a scene is not only in Jinping City, but also in the three cities of the Northland, this time, all the grain merchants who colluded with Master Meng did not run away, which is really embarrassing.
They thought that the plan was foolproof, but where did they think that Lin Xi had already put the big grain merchants in the north under surveillance.
What they did, how could Lin Xi not know.
Routine, a trap all the way 144 t1706231537: