Zhu Nao

In the last two days before the Ching Ming Festival, the [-] soldiers in Chengdu Mansion were finally recruited.All the states sent all the recruited troops to the military training camps near Chengdu, and filled the hastily built military camps to the brim.

After completing this task, all the officials in the entire Chengdu Mansion breathed a sigh of relief, thinking that the matter was accomplished and that they had escaped a catastrophe.However, soon, all kinds of problems that they had anticipated and did not expect all came one after another.

……

At night, Yuedong returned to his tent exhausted.He didn't show his face, didn't take off his clothes, and lay down on the smelly bunk.

Thinking about the first two days when he joined the army, he was not used to sleeping in the same bunk with so many people, nor was he used to the smell of fish and sweat around him.But people are very adaptable. Over the past few days, he has changed from sleepless all night to falling asleep.

In addition to getting used to it, there is also the reason of being too tired.Before he became a soldier, he knew that the life of a soldier must be very hard, but it was only after he really became a soldier that he realized that it could be so hard.

These words have to start from Yuan Jilu again.Yuan Jilu stared at the movement in Langzhou all day long. Over there, Langzhou had begun to build fortifications, mines and iron. Yuan Jilu was not to be left behind, and ordered the newly recruited soldiers to make various preparations before the war. Come to work.After all, the military power has just been opened, and everything has to start from scratch. Armaments and weapons for 2 people need to be built, and various equipment and equipment need to be raised.Chengdu Mansion has already recruited [-] troops, and it is impossible to recruit additional laborers like Langzhou. Naturally, these errands fall on the recruits.

So the recruits had to get up before dawn every day to dig mines and log trees, and they didn't come back until dark, just like coolies.The government urged them urgently and did not allow them to rest. It has only been a few days, and many people are already exhausted and sick.

Yuedong lay down and fell asleep. He was in a drowsy sleep when he suddenly felt someone pushing him: "Adong, go to sleep and make room for me."

Yue Dong opened his eyes dimly, and in the darkness, he recognized the other party by his voice: "Bu Xi?"

"Yes, it's me. This bunk is too crowded. There are more than [-] people sleeping in such a short bunk. You squeeze there, or I won't even be able to lie down."

Yue Dong obediently squeezed a little to the side, making room for Bu Xi to lie down on his side.The good brothers lay down side by side.

"Where did you go this day?" Yue Dong asked in a low voice, "Didn't anyone find out?"

"Fuck you. I told you to sneak out with me a long time ago. Nothing will happen. You are just too timid and afraid of things." Bu Xi said triumphantly, "I went to see the city of Chengdu today. The city wall, oh, it’s really tall.”

Yuedong had never seen the city wall of Chengdu before, so he couldn't help asking curiously, "How high is it?"

"It's very high, almost twice as tall as the city wall of Mianzhou." Bu Xi said, "I'm planning to go see it tomorrow, and try to find a caravan gangster and sneak into the city. How about it, do you want to go with me?" I go together?"

Yue Dong hesitated and said: "I... I'd better forget about it. If found out, I will be whipped, and I heard that food and salary will be deducted."

Bu Xi scoffed, "Come on. This barracks is in such a mess, even if you sneak back to Mianzhou to visit your parents, no one will notice you when you sneak back."

Bu Xi's illness is not an exaggeration, the current management of the army can be described as a mess.

No one in Chengdu Mansion had any experience in leading troops. Although Yuan Jilu hired a few people from Zhechong Mansion to help, firstly, the quality of the people he hired was not very good, and secondly, there was a real shortage of manpower.To manage [-] recruits, hundreds of managers are always needed, right?How can the Chengdu government transfer so many idle people? Does the government ignore the official business?Not enough manpower, not enough experience, can we not be chaotic?

Up to now, [-] soldiers do not even have a uniform uniform.Because Yuan Jilu recruited troops in such a hurry, only a few thousand sets of military uniforms were produced.So the government can only let all soldiers tie a red cloth on their arms, which is regarded as a proof of identity.

This is good, some soldiers want to sneak out and find a place where no one is around, as long as they untie the red cloth on their hands, the ghost knows that he is a deserter.Some outsiders want to sneak into the barracks, as long as they get a red cloth in their hands, they can walk in openly, and no one will stop them.So a bolder person like Bu Xi didn't pay attention to military discipline and regulations at all.

When mentioning his family, Yuedong suddenly felt a little sad.He was drafted into the army by force, and he didn't know what was going on with his family.If there is a chance, he really wants to escape back, and he will never come back again.But he doesn't dare to do so yet.

Some unidentified refugees in the army thought the work was too hard, so they slipped away, and no one could find them.But for those with formal household registration status like Yuedong, the monks can't escape the temple if they run away.Once found to be a deserter, even the family members will be implicated.

Seeing that he was so afraid of getting into trouble, Busi couldn't help shaking his head in disappointment.However, after hearing Yuedong's silence for a long time, he knew that he was sad and couldn't bear it.After a while, Bu Xi comforted: "Okay, okay, don't be sad. You have seen the situation in the barracks, don't worry, everyone is new here, and they are all honest. After a while, the barracks may be chaotic What will happen. There will definitely be a chance for you to go home."

Yue Dong murmured: "I hope so..."

……

It was late at night and the lights were off. It was a time when everything was quiet, but apart from people like Bu Xiyuedong who were muttering, there were also people from other parts of the barracks talking together.

Behind a tent, more than a dozen people formed a group, the person in the middle of the crowd was Wei Yue, and those around him were his most trusted brothers.These people signed up in several batches, and all of them sneaked into the army smoothly.

"When Zhuzhou Mu first assigned us this task, I thought it was a difficult task. But after a few days... Mother, can this matter be easier?!" Boss Zhao was excited. Spit flew all over the ground, "I didn't say that, what did the officials in Chengdu government think? Put these 2 people at their door, wouldn't they be afraid to sleep at night? If I were them, I would pee my pants every night. "

He was so proud of what he said, Wei Yue slapped him on the head and scolded him in a low voice: "Keep your voice down, don't invite people here."

Boss Zhao stuck out his tongue and quickly lowered his voice: "I used to think that the military camp was some kind of majestic and serious place, but what about here? Every day people run away and every day there are people fighting. There were dozens of people fighting in our camp yesterday for some reason. Get up, and finally beat seven or eight people to death. What is this called? Zhuzhou Mu still asked us to make trouble... This place still uses us to make trouble? I think we should find a place to sleep for a month. , by the time you open your eyes, the task custody has been completed by yourself!"

Boss Zhao is the most talkative, talking in a crackling manner, making everyone laugh out loud.

After staying for the past few days, Boss Zhao was not the only one who discovered the problem.Everyone can see that there is a big problem here, so big that it is impossible to even connect these 2 people with the "army".Speaking of it, I blame Yuan Jilu for being too impatient, wanting to eat a big fat man in one bite.Originally, if he recruited a thousand people first, it would be safe to expand the number of recruits slowly after training is complete and he has experience in leading troops.However, he was determined to cut off Zhu Nao as soon as possible, so he hastily recruited 2 people, and he was completely unprepared for it. He was really shooting himself in the foot.

But such a chaotic situation is not good for Wei Yue and the others.

Wei Yue asked, "How's it going, how many people have you recruited in the past few days?"

His brothers reported one by one, some had two or three, some had seven or eight, some had a dozen or so.The most capable one was Boss Zhao, who could say fifty or sixty in one mouth, which shocked everyone else.

Before entering the barracks, Wei Yue assigned them tasks, asking them to deliberately develop groups and make friends after joining the army.Don't rush to explain your purpose first, just make friends.After gaining the trust of others, everyone will unite into a group, and it will be easy to do anything in the future.

Everyone else goes out one by one, but Boss Zhao, relying on his eloquence and humor, works every day and blows a few cowhide before going to bed, and he messes up all the people who sleep with him in the tent and those who work with him turned around him.

After listening to everyone's reports, Wei Yue was very satisfied with the results, and told a few things for everyone to pay attention to.Seeing that it was too late, he asked everyone to go back to rest.

=====

A month later.

A dozen or so businessmen had gathered in the private room of a teahouse in Langzhou Mansion. They were whispering to each other, most of them seemed a little restless and anxious.This emotion has been bothering them for some time.

One person said: "I heard that the Chengdu government has been training troops every day recently, rushing to make weapons. If it continues like this, it won't be long before there will be a real fight."

Another person said: "Does anyone know how many soldiers Zhuzhou Mu has recruited? Last time I passed by the recruiting office, I saw that the people who signed up were all strong and strong men, but the officials in charge refused to hire them. , What are the conditions not good? I really don’t understand, there are only so few people in our Langzhou, why is he so picky and picky? There are [-] troops in the Chengdu Mansion!!”

"That's right! I've been looking for news from officials in the state capital recently, and I want to know about the recruitment situation in Langzhou. If Zhuzhou Mu refuses to recruit more soldiers because he is afraid that he won't be able to support them, how about asking us brothers to help raise some? How about distributing the profits earned by the business? But guess what? The state officials said that Zhuzhou Mu didn’t seem to worry too much about the military. He spent all his energy on the grain business and went to the market whenever he had free time. Dear Mother! What time is it now, is that important in business?"

"That's right! That's the truth!"

"Who said no?"

In the past, these merchants were the most stingy, and it was difficult to get money out of their pockets without a clear profit in front of them.But if Zhu Nao asked them to help pay for some military expenses now, it is estimated that most of them will generously donate.Not for anything else, but because they were too afraid that Langzhou would lose the battle.

These businessmen work with Jun Nao because they have taken a fancy to Jun Nao's ingenuity and wisdom, and they also believe that Jun Nao will have a great future in the future.But the changes in the general situation of the world were unexpected by everyone. Suddenly, the conflict between Chengdu Mansion and Langzhou was brought to the fore, and suddenly the political conflict was about to escalate into a military conflict.Now everyone became anxious like ants on the heat.

If Zhu Nao loses, not only will their business be affected, but they may even lose their lives!What kind of person is Yuan Jilu?That's not human!

One person tremblingly said: "I, I heard from friends in Chengdu that as long as, as long as Yuan Jilu takes down Langzhou, he will let the army slaughter the city..."

There was a sudden sound of air-conditioning in the room.Yuan Jilu is very likely to be able to do this kind of thing.

Just when everyone was trembling, the door was pushed open, and Zhu Nao finally came.

As soon as Zhu Nao entered the door, he saw that everyone was shivering, and asked doubtfully, "Is it cold today?"

A businessman stood up in a huff: "Zhuzhou Mu, you have to tell us a certain number today - how many soldiers did you recruit?"

Zhu Nao raised his eyebrows and said with a smile, "This is a military secret. Wouldn't it be nice for you to inquire about it?"

The businessman was obviously timid, but it was a matter of life and death, so he still bit the bullet and put on a pose: "I, we do things for you, you have to give us an accurate statement so that we can feel at ease. Don't you trust us?"

Zhu Nao glanced at the crowd and found that everyone was staring at him covetously.He smiled and said, "You really want to know?"

The crowd nodded wildly.

Zhu Nao spread his hands: "Okay. Counting the original Xiang soldiers, there should be more than a thousand."

With a "gudong", the businessman who was asking the question just now lost his legs and slid directly under the chair.

Over a thousand? ?Over a thousand against an army of [-]? ? ?What a joke! ! !

"Chengdu government is already stepping up military training, building armaments, hoarding military rations, and building fortifications!! They are coming soon!!"

Junao leaned back to avoid being sprayed by the splashing saliva.He was still smiling: "Not so fast. They are in such a hurry because they think I am doing the same thing."

The merchants stared wide-eyed one by one.What makes them think you're doing the same thing?Aren't you doing the same thing? !Aren't you serious about training soldiers and mining? !

"You really only recruited 1000 people? Really???"

Zhu Nao spread his hands, looking very helpless: "Do you think that one thousand is not enough? But right now Langzhou can only support 1000 people. If you recruit too many people, it will easily destroy the stability of Langzhou."

Everyone: "..."

If it was a Taiping period, rashly recruiting too many soldiers and horses would indeed easily lead to civil unrest.One is that too much labor will be transferred, and there will be a shortage of people in all walks of life; the other is that the tax rate will inevitably increase, which will make the people feel against it.But—is this still a peaceful year? !What time is this! !What stability can there be in Langzhou when the Chengdu government comes in? !

There was silence in the room, and after a while someone laughed dryly: "Hehe, hehe, hehehe. Zhuzhou Mu must be joking with us. How could there be only one thousand? Zhu Zhoumu is so humorous."

Everyone also laughed dryly.

Junao smiled.He dared to tell the truth because he knew that no one would believe it.Even if someone believed it and said it, the people who heard it again would still not believe it.

The merchants gathered here today were summoned by Zhu Nao.Zhu Nao cut to the chase: "I came to you because I want to talk about food..."

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted again.

A businessman with poor mental quality burst into tears: "Zhuzhou Mu, please tell us the truth. How many people did you recruit? Are you sure you can deal with the [-] troops in Chengdu?"

Junao laughed.

After a while, he took out a book and pushed it to the middle of the table, motioning the merchants to read it for themselves.

The quick-handed person snatched it up first, and everyone thought it was some kind of magic weapon against Chengdu Mansion, so they huddled together in a pile, scrambling to see what happened, and almost tore the book because of the scramble.However, when the notebook was typed, everyone was dumbfounded: What kind of magic weapon is this?It is clearly the ledger, which records the changes in food prices in various places.

Immediately someone raised his head and said, "Zhuzhou Mu, this..."

Zhu Nao closed his eyes and leaned on the back of the chair, with an attitude that he didn't plan to say anything until they read the ledger.

Everyone had to be patient and continue to browse.

Since all of you here are the owners of non-traitor grain stores, many of them already know that Zhu Nao has been monitoring the changes in food prices in various places through the grain stores.Some people followed suit.

Since the news of the recruiting of soldiers in Chengdu Mansion came out, the food prices in the states in central Sichuan began to rise.When recruiting actually started, food prices continued to rise.This is also normal.The government began to purchase military grain, resulting in less grain stored by the people, many farmers were conscripted, and the labor force in the fields decreased, all of which were the reasons for the rise in grain prices.But so what?

Some people still didn't understand after reading the account book, so they just waited for Jun Nao to talk about the recruitment in detail.Someone saw the end, saw some tricks, and couldn't help but fell into deep thought.

——Recently, food prices seem to be rising a bit fast.Although it has been rising in the past, it always rises suddenly at a certain node, or rises steadily and slowly.But in recent days, the rise in food prices has become faster, almost a new price a day.

It stands to reason that the recruitment of soldiers has ended, and there is no event that will push food prices to continue to rise.But sometimes the price of food reflects the mentality of ordinary people.The continuous rise in food prices shows that the people are in a state of anxiety - they are worried that a disaster has happened or is about to happen, so they are hoarding food, which will lead to a rapid rise in prices.

A seasoned businessman asked, "Why did Zhuzhou Mu come to us today?"

Only then did Zhu Nao speak unhurriedly: "I have a decision on the operation of the non-traitor grain bank, but this may affect the development of the grain bank. You are all the owners of the grain bank. Therefore, before making a decision, I should Just discuss it with you."

Everyone looked at him solemnly: "Zhuzhou Mu, please tell me."

Zhu Nao said lightly: "I plan to manipulate the price of grain. I'm afraid the non-traitor grain business will rape again."

Everyone was stunned.

In fact, for businessmen, this is nothing more than a normal thing.Businessmen are people who have no profit and can't afford it early.However, it is a bit strange that Jun Nao said these words.Previously, in order to expand the non-traitor grain business, Zhu Nao had strict restrictions on the pricing and profits of the grain business, insisting on small profits but quick turnover.And now...

Someone asked, "What does Zhu Zhoumu plan to do?"

Zhu Nao said: "Notify the managers of the grain banks in various places that from today onwards, the price of grain will double every day for five consecutive days. After five days, the price of grain will be allowed to rise and fall freely again."

As soon as this statement came out, everyone present gasped!They are all businessmen and understand what this can lead to.

There are smarter people who have even figured out the whole situation of Junaubu.

For a moment, everyone's expressions changed, and the way they looked at Zhu Nao also changed.

Rao they have known Junao for so long, but they have never seen through it.What kind of person is this Zhu Nao...

=====

Chengdu military camp.

Soldiers went out to build fortifications in the morning and did not return until dusk.But after they came back, the officer still didn't let them go back to have a meal and rest, but instead dragged them to the school field for training.

On the school field, instead of hearing the shouts during training, only the indignant complaints of the soldiers could be heard.

"We work every day, and we are almost tired and falling apart. We are not allowed to go back to rest. What kind of training is there? Do you treat us as human beings?"

"I'm starving to death, can't we have dinner first?"

"No, I really can't open my eyes..."

The officer standing on the high platform could not help turning pale when he saw the commotion below, and waved the long whip in his hand: "Shut up, all of you!"

The complaints did not stop until the officer actually whipped the two of them, then the voice gradually died down.

"All cheer me up and practice! You will send troops tomorrow!"

"Scared?!" The school field exploded again.

"Sent troops tomorrow???"

"Are you kidding me?"

"Where are you going to send troops..."

The officer was full of depression, and slammed his whip: "Quiet, give me all quiet!"

Everyone gradually quieted down, but this time it was not because they were afraid of being beaten, but because they wanted to know what was going on with the troops he said.

The officer's heart was also full of depression.Originally, Yuan Jilu said that he could give half a year to practice these soldiers, but he already felt that the time was not enough.Who would have thought that just a few days later, there would be a mission all of a sudden.

That's the way things are.Since the start of recruiting soldiers, the price of food in various places in central Sichuan has been rising. The common people are worried that there will be a war soon, so it is inevitable that they panicked and stockpiled food.But after all, the recruitment of soldiers has just been completed, and there is no shadow of the war. In addition, the government has also carried out control and appeasement, and the food price has risen a bit, which will have no effect.

But just a few days ago, for some unknown reason, food prices all over the place suddenly soared, doubling every day.Now the pent-up anxiety of the common people broke out completely!The result of anxiety is public outrage.

In just a few days, there have been many cases of mass disturbances by the common people in various places. In some places, the common people even raised villages and townships to rebel and killed county and township officials.What's more, I don't know who was instigated by someone to raise the banner to overthrow the tyranny and welcome the Ming officials of Langzhou to govern.

Is this worth it?When the news reached Chengdu Mansion, Yuan Jilu was furious.Due to the increasing number of people making troubles, the local governments have been unable to control them. At this time, they can only send troops to suppress them.

Even if these recruits had no training at all, the officers knew that this move was very problematic.But Yuan Jilu had already issued an order, and there was no room for him to return to Huan.

The officer took a deep breath and said loudly, "There are rebels making trouble in Mianzhou. Tomorrow I will order [-] soldiers, and follow me to Mianzhou to suppress the rebels!"

There was an instant clamor in the school field!