stubborn thief

Chapter 323
Although the population of Xining Mansion with only 12 people suddenly soared to nearly [-], Mr. Liu didn't think it was a big deal at all, it was very easy.

Mr. Liu felt that as long as his second son came back from the south alive, the desperate situation would be over.

The rest is dangerous at best, and the danger has nothing to do with the population of Xining, it just means that the nephew Chengyun is still in the south and has not returned.

A lot of people is a good thing, no food is nothing, the commander-in-chief has such soldiers and horses, are you afraid that there will be no food to eat?

Even in northern Shaanxi, there are people who are not hungry, let alone in Xining, where there is a lot of food.

Therefore, Mr. Liu didn't take these matters to heart at all, and these trivial matters must not interfere with Lion's current main task of choosing a concubine.

Liu Xiangyu did some official business in Xining City, and arranged for the refugees to reclaim the land in the west of Xining step by step before it was frozen. By the way, he sent some rations and farm tools to Chen Shiwen in Bajiao City.

Then he handed over the government affairs to a few students, called two relatives to bring some rations, and rode eastward.

The place where Mr. Liu is going is Chuankou near the ancient Shanqianhusuo horse farm, two hundred miles east of Xining. There is a small town in Erli, which used to be called ancient Shanbao. The army is one thousand and forty, and the leading general is the garrison.

However, Liu Xiangyu went there not to find the camp soldiers there, but to visit a person nearby, Li Tianyu, chieftain of Dongli in Xining.

In the Dongbo Mansion of Li Tusi's ancestral home, accompanied by the sound of horseshoes, Li Tianyu was in high spirits on the horse farm with a radius of a hundred steps.

This place is called Dongbo Mansion because Tusi Li had a Huiningbo in his ancestors. Although the title was cut later, people in the Hehuang area still called Li by that.

He rode his horse and galloped along the bridle path, his bow was full, and his feathered arrows were nailed one after another to the wood-core grass target in the middle of the racecourse, and the human-shaped straw target was tied and swayed slowly.

Whenever a feathered arrow rubs against the grass man and hits the soft ground on the opposite horse path, when Li Tianyu gallops past, he will quickly lean over on the horse's back and use the bow tip and string to pick up the arrow, and then shoot it to the target superior.

Until someone outside the racecourse shouted through the wooden door: "Dada, a senior official with a seal has entered Chuankou."

Li Tianyu reined in his horse slowly, and was interrupted by the servant, showing disinterest: "A senior official with a seal?"

The dozen or so castles in the vicinity are all owned by Chieftain Li's family. Every family is related to each other, so they know each other well. They don't let outsiders in on weekdays.

Another report came from outside the racecourse: "From the west."

Li Tianyu was relieved when he heard the words, all doubts on his face were cleared, the ones from the west were right, the gang of rebels in Xining were the most unruly.

He chuckled lightly, without any intention of dismounting, and said, "Then please enter the family temple and wait... How old is this man?"

As far as he knew, people from the west had no rules. The official robe patch might be worn on a person or on a horse, and they didn't like to wear official seals, and wearing official seals was useless.

All the soldiers were rebellious, even the veterans of Xiningwei, Zhenhaiying, and Fuqiang Fort were infected with this disease by Liu Chengzu, recognizing people but not seals.

Li Tianyu suffered a lot from this. Now, as the commander of the Xining Guard, he no longer has the right to mobilize the Banner Army of the Xining Guard. People only recognize Liu Chengzu's face.

Therefore, walking in the Hehuang Valley, it is very strange to hang Liu Thief's official seal, it is an ornament.

In the west of Xining, there is no difference between recognizing people and not recognizing seals, and whether to hang seals or not.

In the east of Xining, people do not recognize this seal, and it makes no difference whether it is hung or not.

"Male, nearly forty years old, looks very elegant..." The servant outside the door struggled to describe, but couldn't think of any words, and finally said firmly: "Always take a pipe!"

Hearing the characteristic of the pipe, Li Tianyu thumped in his heart, knowing that it was Liu Xiangyu, he got off his horse and walked over quickly: "Please wait in the study, go and watch the clock, I'll be there in a quarter."

Even though he knew it was Liu Xiangyu, Li Tianyu still had to make people wait. For no other reason, he knew what Liu Xiangyu was here for: to ask for food.

It is no secret that a large number of Mongolian captives and surrendered people have poured into Xining, and the food shortage cannot be solved by any means under the soaring population.

But just two months ago, the imperial court Chen Bing Lanzhou, Li Tianyu had just paid the imperial court a chieftain tax of [-] shi for autumn grain, now Liu Xiangyu came to him to ask for grain, Li Tianyu had it, but he didn't want to give it, and he couldn't help it. So Liu Xiangyu must be asked to wait.

By waiting a little, lowering his expectations a little.

After all, if you can give a little less, you can count a little less.

Mr. Liu is not in a hurry at all, he is bound to win this trip, when he entered Dong Bo's mansion, when he heard that he was going to wait in the study, he responded with a smile: "The old man has been here for two days, it's not too late."

Then he followed the servants into the study and sat upright, and leisurely stood by the window to look at the pavilions and pavilions of Dong Bo's mansion. This chieftain's mansion looked more aesthetic than the marshal's mansion he built for his son.

And in the inner room of the back hall, which is more than a hundred steps away from the study room, Li Tianyu stood in front of a bronze mirror with his arms outstretched, and the maids walked back and forth, wearing clothes one by one.

This bronze mirror is Li Tianyu's treasure. It is a light-transmitting mirror of the Han Dynasty. It is different from the sand-casting method used in modern mirror casting. It is cast by the ancient and expensive fan casting method. The quality is excellent. The mirror is finely polished with white felt, and because the mirror surface is ground extremely thin, the thickness of the copper casting is uneven, and the light hitting the mirror surface can reflect the pattern behind it on the wall.

It's just that at this time the owner of the bronze mirror didn't care to appreciate the strange scene of the mirror's translucent light. He just talked to himself in front of the bronze mirror, and his mind was full of how to shirk and complain.

After a while, the servant brought a brass egg clock to the door and said, "Dada, it's time."

Li Tianyu's grandfather was the first Wu Jinshi in Qinghai. In the Wanli Dynasty, he first served as Fusiqian in Jinyiwei South Township, and then took charge of Dongsifang. This brass egg clock belongs to the early Western clock. It is an imitation of the emperor's offering at that time. With a needle, the timing is not very accurate, but it is of great value as a reward.

Hearing the servant's words, Li Tianyu took a deep breath and said in his heart: Those who should come can't hide.

This smoothed the folds of the robe, stepped out of the room, and walked towards the wind and rain corridor.

His gait was unhurried until he was near the study, and then he took a few steps quickly. Before the servants guarding the outside opened the door, he pushed the door open and walked in. The younger generation of Zhesha, why don't you send someone to inform, and the younger generation will go to Xining City to listen to the teachings!"

Tai Ye is an honorific title, which is generally used to address other people's fathers, and it is also used as an honorary title for parents in a place.

Liu Xiangyu knew that the chieftain's enthusiasm was all feigned, and he probably wanted to sweep him out, so he didn't get up, lightly knocked on his pipe, took a sip, and said with a sneer: "General Li is serious, old man According to Gouzi, the general hasn’t been to Xiningwei since the war started in the south.”

Li Tianyu got up with a smile and said to himself that Xining Wei recognizes people but not seals, why should I go there?If it weren't for your good son to take away all the authority of Xiningwei, I would sit down on the chair of the commander of Xiningwei and not move my butt.

Li Tianyu didn't answer this well-known matter, got up and poured a cup of tea on the table for Mr. Liu, and then asked: "Master Liu came today, could it be that something happened in Xining?"

"General Li doesn't need to be polite to this old man. Liu is not a bad guest. Please sit down and retreat, and have a detailed chat."

Li Tianyu was kind, he pushed back the servants and maids in the study, and sat down with enthusiasm: "Master, please tell me."

Liu Xiangyu put out his pipe, and said solemnly, "Since the sea captives made troubles, a large number of people have flooded into Xining. Now that there is a shortage of food, General Li must also know that this is why Liu came here."

"Hey, is that why Grandfather?"

"This issue……"

Li Tianyu pondered for a moment, as if he had made up his mind, he got up and clasped his fists and said: "My Li family has been loyal to the imperial court for generations, and I shouldn't care about the affairs in the west, but today the grandpa came here in person, and the younger generations must not lose their courtesy, but I just paid taxes and rations to the imperial court. , In this way, five hundred stones of clean noodles will be transported to Xining within a month."

Liu Xiangyu didn't speak, but just looked at Li Tianyu with fixed eyes, there was no fluctuation on his face, he didn't know what was going on in his heart.

Li Tianyu put down his holding hands slowly, and sighed: "There are more than ten chieftains in Xining, and the marshal's mansion is short of food, so you can't just grab me for it, can you?"

"There are [-] households in Hehuang, half of which have the surname Li, and the price of food in Xining is determined by General Li." Liu Xiangyu rolled his eyes, looked at Li Tianyu and said, "If Liu doesn't look for General Li, who else can he go to? ?”

Li Tianyu laughed heartily twice, sat down again and said, "There are many people with the surname Li in Hehuang, and many of them are indeed of my same clan, but they have all been out of five clothes since then, not to mention that even if it is a family, I can't go door-to-door to find them." They want food."

After finishing speaking, Li Tianyu changed the subject and said, "I have an idea. Grandpa will listen to it and see if it works... I wonder how much food and grass the Grandpa lacks?"

Liu Xiangyu didn't change his face and his heart didn't beat. He raised his hand and stretched out two fingers on the table, and said, "One hundred thousand stones."

One hundred thousand stone?
Li Tianyu was so choked that he couldn't speak the words behind him, he breathed a sigh of relief before staring and said: "The junior is sincerely trying to find a way for the grandfather, please don't play tricks on me, how many people need a hundred thousand stones of food and grass!"

Li Tianyu had known for a long time that there was a food shortage in Xining. Liu Xiangyu, Liu Chengzu, Liu Chengzong, and Liu Chengyun, one of the four Liu family members would come to him sooner or later.

So he specifically calculated the food crisis in the Marshal's Mansion this time. In fact, after his calculations, this time it was not a crisis, and the food in the Marshal's Mansion should be enough.

Because Liu Chengzong was also involved in building the warehouse in Xining City, the amount of food stored was probably clear, and the Liu family was very skilled at occupying Xining, which would normally be enough for them to survive next year.

Li Tianyu analyzed convincingly: "The 18 people who poured into Xining are counted as [-] for the big mouth and [-] for the small mouth. The big mouth eats three buckets of rice every month, and the small mouth eats one bucket and five liters of rice. To survive the next autumn harvest, rice grain is needed." [-] shi."

Liu Xiangyu looked at Li Tianyu with eyes full of approval. Chieftain Li is also very talented. The big mouthful he said refers to adults and children, and the appetite is a very high standard disaster relief ration.

This kind of disaster relief food can already support the victims to do some work, and the living standard of nearly four shi grains a year is actually higher than that of many original people in Haixi and Haibei.

It's just that because it is calculated as disaster relief food, the processed rations are mentioned here. If it is counted as raw food, it is about 23 shi.

Li Tianyu spread his hands and said, "Xining has a lot of food reserves, even if you count the rations of [-] soldiers, it's almost enough, how can there be a difference of [-] shi?"

"General Lee did a good job."

Liu Xiangyu nodded very frankly, and then said: "However, there are not [-] troops in the Xining Mansion, and there are craftsmen to eat and use, so the old man is not talking like a lion, but he is honest with each other. The food shortage is indeed [-] shi."

"That, that..."

Li Tianyu really didn't expect this kind of situation, he was a little flustered for a moment, shook his head and said: "Then I'm afraid this junior won't be able to help my grandfather, I originally wanted to call the chieftains of various families to discuss raising food to tide over the difficulties, maybe I can raise [-] yuan for Xining Stone rice grain."

This is too bad.

Moreover, the number of soldiers in the Marshal's Mansion made Li Tianyu even more flustered.

These chieftains are local emperors in their respective territories, but in the entire Hehuang Valley, they are now living in the cracks, and they don't want to see the Marshal's Mansion grow bigger.

"That's why this old man came to visit General Li." Liu Xiangyu said, "The Li family monopolizes the grain market in Hehuang, so they must be able to buy rations, and Xining can buy them."

Hearing the word buy, the expression on Li Tianyu's face changed, and he immediately returned to normal: "Your Majesty should know that the imperial court has closed the mouth of Lanzhou River, and closed customs in various places, and the population is flocking and the people are panicking. Recently, the grain market in Xining has one price in the morning and one in the afternoon. price."

"Even so, there is very little grain on the market. There is only so much grain in the Hehuang Valley. No matter how much you want to buy, you can't buy it. If the price of grain rises by [-]%, it is enough to make the people panic. Now because of the lack of grain in the commander's mansion, there is a lot of violence. Procurement, the price of food has doubled, and the food that was transported was sold out by the Shuaifu..."

Li Tianyu shook his head and said, "Grandpa, have you thought about it, Hehuang is narrow and densely populated, only three out of ten people are farmers, and the price of food is soaring, so many long-term and short-term craftsmen, big and small, can't make a living?"

"What General Li said is exactly, and that's why I came to you, for the people to live a better life."

Liu Xiangyu was well aware of all this, not only was he not touched in any way, but he also felt a little ignorant.

He didn't come here to ask for food, food was just a trivial matter to him, what he wanted was Li Tianyu's people, he wanted the chieftain to be used by him, and cleared the obstacles for the lions to enter the river mouth.

He leaned back and straightened his body, and said as if ordering: "First, let one hundred thousand shi of grain and grass be transported to Xining; , 15 taels of grain and silver will be offered at any time.”

Li Tianyu was shocked but also angry from the heart. It is very difficult to get [-] shi from outside, but as long as the money can be paid, it is not impossible; It's impossible.

He turned his head and his eyes became fierce, he gritted his teeth and said: "The junior respects the grandfather, do you really think Li is afraid of you?"

"The imperial court stationed heavy troops in Lanzhou. General Li is naturally not afraid. There is a dangerous river in front of Lanzhou, and there is a strong city with heavy troops inside. Although the world is in chaos today, the imperial court has been in a state of exhaustion for a long time, and it is definitely not my lion who falls into the city. At this time, it is possible for the general to behead Liu here or send him to the imperial court."

After that, Liu Xiangyu's expression changed: "However, the Hehuang Valley bears the brunt of the blow. Destroying castles and villages is easy, and eternal wealth and wealth will be destroyed once. How dare the general dare to starve them?"

"It's better to do what I said, try to find a way to buy rice and grain and ship it to Xining. When it's done, I can allow a son and nephew of the general's family to be entrusted to the west, and add the honor of the general's ancestor to the earl. From now on, we will help each other and the tide will rise. Isn't it possible?" Lingyun ambition?"

After finishing speaking, Liu Xiangyu got up and cupped his hands, turned and walked out: "Liu has said all this, I hope the general will think about it more, the scenery in the general's mansion is very beautiful, I will stay for a few days, and come when I understand..."

Liu Xiangyu said something else, although Li Tianyu was a little angry, but he really had to think carefully, but when he heard that Liu Xiangyu was going to stay for a few days, he was so scared that he got up and rushed forward: "Master, this is not a joke, if the marshal thinks I robbed him... ...I, for a long time, just for a long time, this junior will give the grandfather an explanation!"

　Good morning!

　　
　
(End of this chapter)