There is a girl in the village

Lu Yuanchang and his party arrived in Linchuan City after noon.

Linchuan City is just a small county town, the city wall is not high, and the county town is not rich, because it is at the border, there are many border guards in the city.The power of the county government has been basically emptied, and it only takes care of people's livelihood and farming, and other major tasks are controlled by the army.

When Lu Yuanchang and his party arrived at the gate of the city, they lined up to enter the city.Entering the city is not about entering the city. First, you must strictly check your identity, and second, you must pay city taxes.Lu Yuanchang and other ferocious soldiers passed the inspection, and handed over the copper coins they had prepared to the guarding soldiers.

Poll tax, five cents per person, vehicle and vessel tax, twenty cents per vehicle.

Gu Xiaofu looked at the expensive city entry tax, her face was a little stiff, no wonder the villagers didn’t want to go to the city, and when they got sick, they just went to the mountain to pick some herbs to deal with it, even Zheng Da, who was sick all the year round, was just really sick But when I went to the city to invite a doctor, I thought that the Zheng family couldn't afford to ask a doctor to collect medicine. Who would have thought that there was such a thing as a city entry tax!

Lu Yuanchang squeezed Gu Xiaofu's little hand as a comfort, and took a group of people to Linchuan Inn, the inn they usually live in.

The innkeeper of Linchuan Inn is an old acquaintance of Lu Yuanchang. Every time Lu Yuanchang goes to the city, he stays at this hotel. Linchuan Inn is relatively close to the market, and it is quiet amidst the noise. The rooms are not bad.

"Hey, Officer Lu is here. I think it's time for Officer Lu to come to the city to sell food these days." Shopkeeper Yan saw Lu Yuanchang from a long distance, and hurried out of the locker room to the door to greet him.

"Shopkeeper Yan, long time no see, nice to meet you." Lu Yuanchang cupped his hands and said.

"Guardian Lu, please come in quickly. It's been a hard journey. Hey, this little lady... but Mr. Lu married a new wife?" Shopkeeper Yan didn't shy away from joking because he knew Lu Yuanchang well.

"Hey, it's my lady. I've been in your store for the past two days, so please take care of the shopkeeper Yan." Lu Yuanchang said awkwardly, she still doesn't understand the relationship between herself and Gu Xiaofu.

When Gu Xiaofu heard Lu Yuanchang declaring her identity in front of outsiders, not to mention how sweet it was, she blushed and made a wish with shopkeeper Yan, then retreated behind Lu Yuanchang.

"Then I would like to congratulate Mr. Lu, Xiao Er, open an upper room for Mr. Lu, and prepare four common bunks for these four old brothers. Clean up the backyard and let the old brothers pull the grain carts. Today may be If it’s raining, remember to cover the grain cart with tarpaulin.” Shopkeeper Yan is very good at doing business, he has already memorized Lu Yuanchang’s habits, and there is no need to wait for Lu Yuanchang to speak, so he can make arrangements easily.

Lu Yuanchang asked Gu Xiaofu to go back to the room first, while the four tenants pulled the grain cart to the back and stayed behind, asking shopkeeper Yan about the price of grain in the city.

"Guard Lu, it's the right time for you to sell grain this time. The price of grain is quite high these days."

"How?" Lu Yuanchang asked.

"I don't know where the news came from. There is no peace in the north. It is said that a war may start this winter. General Song asked the emperor for food. This autumn, the food from the south will be sent directly to the border. We have no foreign food here, and the local food households have no food. I don’t dare to sell grain at this time, I’m afraid that there will be a shortage of grain and it will be difficult for the family to make ends meet, so the price of grain has risen sharply in the past few days.” Shopkeeper Yan said, it’s a good thing he only opened an inn, not a restaurant, otherwise he would have a hard time these few days I'm afraid it will be hard.

"War is going to start in the north? Didn't Rongdi always hide in winter, and they won't come to loot until spring?" Lu Yuanchang felt a "thump" in her heart, and she had a bad feeling.

"Isn't that what you said? There are a lot of rumors outside now, and I don't know what's going on. When this war breaks out, we ordinary people will be the ones who suffer." Shopkeeper Yan said with a bitter face. The business of an inn requires stability and prosperity. If this war breaks out, it is estimated that shopkeeper Yan's business will not be able to continue.

Although Linchuan City is some distance away from the northern front, the flames of war sometimes burn here.

"Then how much has the food price risen?" Lu Yuanchang asked.

"When the rice shop opened this morning, the new grain was one stone and two and a half, and the old grain was two and a half."

"Thank you, Shopkeeper Yan." Lu Yuanchang thought to himself that the price of food had risen too high.

"Official Lu doesn't need a guest."

Lu Yuanchang went back to the room with a heavy heart, and sat on the kang in a daze.

Wars started in the north, usually in spring. At that time, Rongdi had endured a long and harsh winter, and there was a severe shortage of food. The number of cattle and sheep also decreased sharply due to the winter. , Generally, it is just a small group of idle cavalry, the scale is not large. These years, the border guards are used to it, and it is not difficult to deal with it. There is no need to mobilize food and grass on such a large scale.

General Song is the stone pillar of the town, so it is impossible to make such a joke. Since there are such rumors, it is very likely that the internal integration of Rongdi has been completed, and a large-scale invasion of Dazhou will be carried out this winter.

Thinking of this, Lu Yuanchang couldn't help frowning. Many people still remember the catastrophe more than ten years ago. Although Lu Yuanchang has never experienced it, he can get a general idea from A Niang. The Destiny Khan was united, came forward aggressively, retreated steadily, and lost more than a dozen cities in a month. If General Song hadn't turned the tide, they might fall into the hands of the Rongdi people. The people of Zhou will never have a good life again.

At that time, Rong Di and Da Zhou fought for both sides, and Destiny Khan died in battle, so Rong Di retreated. Because there were no leaders in the army, there were too many factions, the princes fought for the throne, and Da Zhou provoked dissension, and soon Rong Di Di then split into eight parts.Since then, although Rong and Di violated the border every year, they could no longer organize a large-scale army, so the Great Zhou was able to survive until now.

It's only been less than 20 years, can the eight parts be unified?If this is the case, there must be talented people in Rongdi, and they are in a dire situation in Dazhou!

At this time, Gu Xiaofu was wiping her face with the hot water brought by Xiaoer, and seeing Lu Yuanchang's serious face, she asked, "Da Lang, what's wrong?"

"Food prices have risen!" Lu Yuan said wearily.

"Isn't it a good thing to raise it? No! The new grain has just been harvested and there is no shortage of food in the market. How can the price of grain rise at this time?" Although Gu Xiaofu has never seen the world, she has a delicate mind and immediately thought of the problem here. .

"The north needs food, and this winter may start a war, and the food from the south will be sent to the north."

When Gu Xiaofu heard this, her face turned extremely pale, without any blood at all. Naturally, she was not as deep as Lu Yuanchang imagined. She just knew that if a war started in the north, Lu Yuanchang might go to the battlefield!

"Fu Niang, don't be afraid." Lu Yuanchang knew what Gu Xiaofu was thinking when he saw Gu Xiaofu's expression. Recently, Lu Yuanchang felt more and more that there was a subtle connection between her and Gu Xiaofu. With just one look, you can know what the other person is thinking.

"Da Lang!" Gu Xiaofu was hugged by Lu Yuanchang, but it didn't make her feel at ease. She didn't dare to say anything, but silently prayed in her heart that Lu Yuanchang would not leave her so soon.

"Don't be afraid, it's just a rumor, it can't be taken as true. The emperor didn't issue an edict, and the military stickers haven't been sent yet. Fu Niang, don't scare yourself." Lu Yuanchang comforted, although she didn't know the truth in her heart.

Hearing Lu Yuanchang's gentle voice, Gu Xiaofu felt better. After serving Lu Yuanchang, washed his face and changed his clothes, he went out with Lu Yuanchang.

Lu Yuanchang thought that instead of staying in the inn and figuring it out on his own, it would be better to go to the market to inquire, so he threw twenty copper coins to the four tenants and asked them to settle the dinner by themselves, and only took Gu Xiaofu out for a walk.

The market was about to close at the end of the application period (17:[-]), and it was already the second quarter of the application time. Due to time constraints, the two went straight to the market.At this time, there were not many people in the market, but Lu Yuanchang observed carefully and found that there was no panic on the faces of the passers-by. Even at the entrance of the rice shop, there were no crowds rushing to buy.

Because Gu Xiaofu was worried about Lu Yuanchang, she didn't feel too much about the prosperity of the county town compared to the countryside, so she just wandered around with Lu Yuanchang, but as the two of them inquired more and more news, they began to feel Gradually relax.

The two randomly picked a few larger rice shops and asked about the grain prices, and found that the grain prices were very uniform. The old grain was [-] taels of silver per shi, and the new grain was [-] liang of silver per shi. There was no price increase from the morning market to the evening market today. , the price is quite stable.

After inquiring about it, the two went to Xiancheng Restaurant, the largest restaurant in Linchuan City, for dinner.

"Hey, two guest officers, please come inside. May I ask if the two guest officers are sitting in the lobby on the first floor or the private seat on the second floor." The waiter at the door greeted them enthusiastically when they saw them enter.

"Just the lobby on the first floor." Lu Yuanchang wanted to inquire about the news, so he naturally went to a crowded place.

"Okay." The waiter saw that Lu Yuanchang was well-dressed and the receptionist worked hard, and asked affectionately, "What do you two want to eat?"

"Just serve a few signature dishes at will." Lu Yuanchang replied generously.

Hearing this, Gu Xiaofu couldn't help complaining that Lu Yuanchang wasted money, what do you mean by serving a few signature dishes at will!several? !

At this time, there were quite a few people sitting in the hall, and some of them were discussing the price of food and the war in the north. These people spoke loudly, and many people around heard them and joined in the discussion.For a while, there was a lot of noise in the hall. Some people said that there was going to be a war in the north. Some said that the emperor raised taxes on the south in order to build gardens for the concubines. Some said that the rice merchants in the south were robbed by bandits on the way to transport grain. It was General Song who had already trained recruits and wanted to attack Rongdi and defeat them one by one.

There are all kinds of opinions, but the more Lu Yuanchang listened, the more at ease he felt. The divergent opinions mean that someone is spreading rumors behind to raise the price of food!

At this time, the waiter brought up the dishes, and Lu Yuanchang threw three copper coins to him, and asked, "What's the matter with the food prices in the city? Do you know, brother?"

"Why don't you know? It's all nonsense to say that the north needs food to fight wars." When Waitang heard this, he didn't get angry. He didn't even need to ask. Spread rumors to raise the price of grain in order to make a fortune. These days, the local grain merchants have suffered a lot. They are lucky and can receive some cheap grain from the farmers. The most miserable ones are those of us who are farmers. Today's daily expenses are more than double what they used to be!"

When Lu Yuanchang heard the words, he realized that this statement was not unique this year. She had been selling food for many years, and she had encountered similar situations, but this year the situation was particularly serious, and the people who spread the rumors had malicious intentions. The title of General Song made most local farmers dare not sell their grain to grain merchants. This trick was indeed vicious.

Lu Yuanchang couldn't help but feel ridiculous about his previous troubles. Who would have thought to glance at Gu Xiaofu, and found that she was smiling faintly, with curved eyebrows and eyes, looking elegant and refined.

"Fu Niang, this news is accurate. Don't worry about me anymore. This restaurant is the best in the city. The signature dishes are pretty good. You should eat more." Lu Yuanchang was in a good mood because of Gu Xiaofu's smile. It also brightened up, picking up vegetables for her as if at home.

"Da Lang, I can't help it, I'll eat by myself." Seeing that Lu Yuanchang was going to pick up food for her, Gu Xiaofu hurriedly pressed her hand, and was relieved when she saw that the people around them didn't pay attention to them.

The mood of the two of them this day can be considered to have fluctuated greatly. Fortunately, at least the battle is now uncertain.Gu Xiaofu saw that Lu Yuanchang was eating calmly and elegantly, so she also paid attention to her words and deeds, took small bites of food, chewed slowly, and carefully wrote down the names and methods of the dishes, and planned to go home and eat with Lu Yuanchang .

When the two left the restaurant, there were dark clouds in the sky. Seeing that the heavy rain was about to come, they hurried back, who wanted to be stopped somewhere, Lu Yuanchang looked up - Iron Horse Casino.