Chapter 139 Hidden Troubles
Zhao Yushu's major in his previous life was not history, which determined that he still looked at many things from the perspective of an ordinary social animal or student. For example, he totally couldn't understand why the old helmsman needed to be a hostage when the negotiation situation was so good.
"Because a well-fed person can fight better than a starving person who can't move. If Master doesn't go as a hostage, the governor will never allow us to release food. One piece of bread every three or four days is the governor's limit."
So from the perspective of the imperial court, in order to prevent the disaster victims from becoming rioters, or to guard against the Red Lotus Sect, they simply starved the believers half to death, and if they wanted to eat, they had to exchange their leaders for food. Ha, this is not what an empire should do.
However, Dean Wang and the old captain were worried that someone would deliberately force the refugees to rebel. This person could actually be said to be the Yue Guogong faction, but what was their purpose in forcing the refugees to rebel?
Powerful schemes, powerful schemes, why in a world where one can cultivate immortality, don't people just take advantage of the strong productivity to directly promote technological development, but instead waste their time on such trivial matters?
Zhao Yushu couldn't help but stretch out his fingers. After all, his strength was too low. If he could reach the inner realm, he could just deal with anyone who was looking for trouble. Wouldn't the world be peaceful then?
Just thinking of this, Zhao Yushu laughed at himself. What was the difference between him and the fellow villager in the American TV series Black Robe in his previous life? If he really became the best in the world, he might also play a Crescent Moon Sky Strike in the middle of the night while muttering "I do whatever I want".
"The old man is an extraordinary person." Zhao Yushu sighed.
"I happened to meet Master Zhao today. Sanniang just happened to have something that I couldn't figure out, so I wanted to ask Master Zhao for advice."
"Please speak, Sanniang."
"When Master left, he told me not to just look inside the city, but also outside it. What does that mean?"
"Is the old man a riddle teller? If you have time to say so much, why not just tell you who to be on guard against directly?" Zhao Yushu couldn't help but complain. Everyone's words were confusing. If he wasn't smart, wouldn't he be just following this silly girl's wild imagination?
Fang Sanniang blinked, completely unaware of what Zhao Yushu was talking about.
"The old captain said that he suspected that there were people outside the city, or even inside your Red Lotus Sect, who were not of the same mind, and asked you to pay attention."
Fang Sanniang immediately shook her head when she heard this: "Impossible. We have been through thick and thin together for so long. If you want to be rich and powerful, you don't have to wait until today. There is no way anyone would sell out their friends for glory."
Zhao Yushu looked at her reaction and knew that the old captain was just suspicious and had not yet locked in the candidate, so he could only mention it in a tactful way. If he said it directly, Fang Sanniang might immediately reveal her thoughts and be noticed by that person, so she would hide it even deeper.
"Sanniang, if you believe in your master, you should not waste time here with a bunch of idlers like us. I can guarantee that no one will cause trouble before the granary is built. You should go back to the camp and stop talking. Walk more, look more, and listen more. Maybe you can hear some sounds you haven't heard before. With your cultivation level, it shouldn't be difficult to avoid being discovered."
Fang Sanniang stared at Zhao Yushu blankly: "Why do you and Master both think there is a traitor?"
Zhao Yushu looked at her with some pity and said, "To be honest, your master was not very successful in educating you. In the current environment, it is not a good thing to protect you so well. Miss Fang, if you believe me, go back first."
"I don't believe it. I will listen to you and go back to check, but I don't believe it." Fang Sanniang turned and walked down the mound. Zhao Yushu looked at her back in silence.
The craftsmen spent most of the day selecting a site, and then returned to the city to report to the prefect. The so-called supervisors simply spent the day eating, drinking and having fun, and then agreed to return to the city in the evening to continue eating, drinking and having fun, as if the day was an outing.
After all, we are not really building a complete granary, but just using it to temporarily store grain. It will be enough for them to eat and go home. The rations before the autumn harvest will be sent directly to various places after the victims have dispersed. We can't let everyone carry hundreds of kilograms of grain.
The news of the release of grain is currently limited to a small circle of middle and high-level officials. At least there has been no reaction in the refugee camps. People are more curious about what these nobles are doing here in droves.
Zhao Yushu and Wang Bushi went back together. Two large packages were hung on each saddle, filled with fruits and cakes that Ayao had picked up from the snack table of the second generation.
"Brother Wang, please take A Yao back first. I have a friend waiting for me." When they arrived at the city gate, Zhao Yushu saw Gao Xu looking around.
There was an ordinary tavern near the South City Gate. There were not many people there at the moment. Zhao Yushu and Gao Xu found a seat by the window on the second floor and clinked glasses with each other.
"I went to the academy to look for Brother Zhao today. I heard that you were here to supervise the construction. I calculated that you should be back soon, so I went straight to the city gate to look for you."
"Why don't you just come find me outside the city?"
Gao Xu chuckled: "As a businessman, the key is to make money through harmony. It's okay to secretly support the Red Lotus Sect on weekdays, but if you get too close to the Red Lotus Sect in public and get noticed by someone with ulterior motives, it will be difficult to do business in the future."
Zhao Yushu suddenly understood and laughed: "Okay, okay, it perfectly fits the character of a businessman in my mind. Speaking of which, Brother Gao said at Longmen that he wanted to get Master Mirage's notes. Did you get it?"
Gao Xu nodded and said, "I used some tricks to force his widow to spit out the letter. Although it is not very glorious, I have a clear conscience and have given it to Master Bujie."
Speaking of not quitting, they both sighed and drank their glasses in one gulp.
"How many days do you plan to stay in Nanyang, Brother Gao?"
"I came to Brother Zhao to discuss this matter. I will leave tomorrow."
"So fast?"
Gao Xu chuckled, "It's true that the Red Lotus Sect has done me a favor, and I have helped them a lot. And I want to advise Brother Zhao not to be fooled by the seemingly improving situation. The water is too deep. If you have a chance, you'd better get out of it as soon as possible."
I wanted to get out of this, but I was already deeply involved. Zhao Yushu nodded to show that he understood, and then avoided the topic: "Where are you going next, Brother Gao?"
Gao Xu looked around and asked, "Brother Zhao, have you ever been to the Western Regions?"
I had been to the company’s team-building event in my previous life, but I haven’t had the chance to do so in this life, so Lao Zhao shook his head.
"A friend of mine came back from there and got a piece of news. You and I share life and death together, so I won't hide it from Brother Zhao. Our Tang Dynasty can no longer suppress the Western Regions." Gao Xu leaned over and whispered.
Zhao Yushu suddenly remembered that in the history of his previous life, it seemed that after the An-Shi Rebellion, the army guarding the Western Regions returned to defend, and after the Battle of Talas, the Tang Dynasty's control over the Western Regions weakened sharply. The history books he read in this life did not mention large-scale rebellions like the An-Shi Rebellion, but the Tang Dynasty still slowly weakened, and the Western Regions finally got out of control.
"I have always believed that a peaceful situation is more suitable for businessmen to do business."
Gao Xu nodded: "If it is a normal transaction, this should be the case."
"Brother Gao is in the Buddha statue business, isn't this normal?"
"The Buddha statue is just one of them. Brother Zhao, you don't know that once the war breaks out, the military leaders will loot a lot of things. They can't just hold on to the things and eat them, so they have to exchange them for money. And the people who exchange money are naturally us merchants."