Qingyun Weiyang

Chapter 14: The Plague of Locusts

The next day, Nalan was on standby at the gate of Yunqi Palace early in the morning, as if that cold-shot temptation had never happened, but it was a blessing in disguise, allowing Yun Jin to wash away her suspicions, which was the best thing for her.

Although she really wanted Yunjin to care about her, but Yunjin was the queen mother, so how could she care about a little female official?What's more, she hasn't accompanied the court yet, and she doesn't even have an official uniform yet.

Na Lanqing felt that Yun Jin was really her weakness, able to affect her mood like this.No matter how chic she used to be, how coldly she ignored everything in the world, she couldn't give up her nostalgia for Yun Jin.

The imperial garden is full of flowers, and a group of maids are watering and pruning the flowers.In the early morning of late autumn, there was a hint of cool air, and the air carried a faint fragrance of flowers.

"Hey, have you heard that there is a plague of locusts in Shangzhou?"

"I heard that the farms in Baili were completely destroyed, and the farmland was devoid of harvest. The number of people affected by the disaster was the same as the drought in Yuzhou back then. It was very serious."

"Hundreds of people died in the disaster in Yuzhou back then. I don't know what to do this time..."

Locust plague in Shangzhou?She didn't even know about such a big thing. After she really came to the palace, even the news was delayed.She walked nonchalantly, and saw Shi Han patrolling, "Master Ren."

"Lord Lan." Shi Han saluted very naturally, now it is really convenient, because of his rescue, he can talk to Nalan Qing in an open and honest manner, and he no longer has to look for opportunities.

"Take a step to talk." Nalan Qing made a gesture of invitation, Shi Han bent slightly, and walked forward.

The two walked to a gazebo, Nalan Qing's face was solemn, "Is there a locust plague in Shangzhou?"

"Yes, the younger one just learned about it yesterday."

"Why didn't you tell me yesterday?"

"The younger one was busy checking the Lengjian matter yesterday, and forgot for a while..." In fact, Shihan felt that the locust plague in Shangzhou should not be considered a big deal, not to mention that it is indeed more important to check the affairs inside the palace than outside the palace.

"What's the situation now?" Nalan Qing knew that this matter was bound to become a difficult problem for Yun Jin, and she had to understand it clearly before Yun Jin, so that she could think of a solution first.

"The entire eight counties in Shangzhou were affected by the disaster, and the farms in the fields were completely abandoned. The local area has taken measures to control locusts, but they still failed to save food. There are nearly 5000 people this winter, and there will be no food for the winter."

"How can such a serious disaster be reported now?" Nalan Qing frowned. This is not an ordinary disaster. For Yunjin, it may be the first natural disaster since she came to power. God really gave her There is a problem.

"I don't know why the small one has only been passed on to the imperial court now. It may be that Shangzhou has a special geographical location, which is between the former Yu Kingdom and the Ji Kingdom."

"Do we have grain stores in Shangzhou or nearby counties?"

"It must be. This is our chance. Now that the government buys grain from major grain merchants at high prices, our Nalan family's grain depot is sufficient, and the shopkeeper Duan who is in charge of the grain business is wise enough to purchase grain from small grain merchants in advance. Grain, I'm going to make a good deal with the government." Shi Han said happily, without even noticing that Nalan Qing's face had turned livid, even ice-cold.

He grew up in Nalan's family, and his thoughts were influenced by businessmen. His first reaction was to think about business opportunities, not other things.

"We are imperial merchants, not profiteers. Who will allow you to make money for the country?" Nalanqing stared at Shihan. He really didn't know who came out of him. thought influence.

"Ah... small one, small guilty plea." Shihan thought about it, now that the disaster of the country is equivalent to the suffering of Queen Mother Yun, how could she not be nervous?

He slapped himself lightly, he was really dumb and brainless, it's no wonder that such words didn't anger the Lord.

"Let shopkeeper Duan wait for my order to act. Without my permission, no one is allowed to sell grain at a high price. Any grain price traded with the government must be approved by me. Only with my warrant can you go to the grain depot to adjust the grain. Send this order immediately. To the whole country, and give me a copy of the accounts of all grain depots and grain banks.”

Nalan Qing's patriarchal power was evident. She had never managed a certain part of the family business in such detail. The Nalan Qing family's industries spread all over the country, including food, cloth, inns, pottery, military supplies and even weapons.As large as Jidu, as small as the prefectural city, as small as a county town, they all have their own industries. Nalan Qing usually only manages the general ledger and personnel management, and rarely gets involved in a certain industry.

"The little one will do it right away." Shi Han turned around, time was running out, and he had to carry out the task quickly.

He always felt that the lord really gave up everything for Empress Dowager Yun.

Looking at Chengyang Palace, Nalan Qing seemed to be able to feel Yun Jin's mood, sometimes like a kind of self-evident telepathy.The occurrence of the locust plague will inevitably put Yun Jin in a dilemma. First, the Secretary of State will make a big fuss about it, and second, this matter is not easy for Yun Jin to solve.

Shangzhou was originally a small state city. After the three kingdoms of Yu, Luo, and Qing were annexed by Ji State, the area of ​​Shangzhou expanded, marrying Yu State and Ji State. Seven counties with a population of 5000 were all under the jurisdiction of the state government.Above the state capital is King Yu. When the land was divided, the Nine Kings, Baoding Wang Qinhuan, was also given the land.So above Shangzhou, there are these two kings, that is to say, it should be the two princes who reported the disaster situation in the state government.

Na Lanqing guessed that the two of them must have pushed each other, which delayed the timing of disaster relief.One was originally the emperor of the Yu Kingdom, and the other was the prince of the Ji Kingdom. Their reign was short and their hearts were not complete, not to mention that disaster relief is a trouble, and whoever takes over will have endless troubles.

The disaster also reached the point of being out of control, and finally spread to the palace.As a result, the problem was left until now, leaving Yun Jin in a dilemma.

Nalan waited quietly in Yunqi Palace, waiting for Yunjin to go to court. Now she has no better countermeasures in her mind. It is nothing more than controlling locusts, and then the court allocates food to appease the people.It's just a long winter, so many people, but a huge fortune and the amount of food and grass for the military can only survive the crisis!

Usually, the court time is only one or two hours, but today it is already noon and Yun Jin has not yet returned to court.Nalan Qing was faintly worried, did someone embarrass her?Thinking that someone would embarrass her, Na Lanqing would feel reluctant to give up. Although she knew that Yun Jin could handle it with ease, she did not want Yun Jin to be wronged in any way.

It just so happened that Shi Ji asked Grand Priest Ji to resign from office, and the locust plague came at an inopportune time. Otherwise, with the talents of Grand Scholars, he would be able to come up with some solutions, and now he may not have any thoughts about court affairs anymore.He must be able to understand this obvious strategy of forcing him to retire.

The sun was scorching and the flowers were in full bloom, but Nalanqing was not in the mood at all, just kept looking in the downward direction, waiting.A short hour or two seemed as long as a day.

Finally, at the third quarter of the hour, he saw Yun Jin's figure. Although she never showed her emotions, Nalan Qing could still catch every bit of change.Today, her complexion is gloomy, her eyes are full of melancholy, and there is a depression of suppressing anger.

She wanted to be by Yun Jin's side at all times, to accompany her to face all the difficulties, to solve her problems, and to shelter her from the wind and rain, but every step forward was so difficult for her, and all she could do every day was to wait, just like at this moment, She could only watch Yun Jin approaching her from far to near, hoping that she could raise her eyes to look at her, or softly call her name.

Nalan Qing stared at her all the time, her eyes were full of anticipation and distress, she even forgot that the empress dowager had to give a big gift when she returned to the palace.

A faint fragrance drifted past, and Yun Jin's figure flashed past. Before Nalan Qing could think about anything, he heard her distant voice, "Lan Qing, come in."

Nalan Qing put on a faint smile, calmly followed up, and entered the side hall together to discuss matters.

The Empress Dowager was furious, and everyone in Yunqi Palace dared not speak lightly, even Yuan Xi and Huairou didn't say a word, they just made the tea and retreated outside the door silently.

"Shangzhou was plagued by locusts, King Yu and King Baoding hung up high, which delayed the time, a full half a month. The state government saw that the court had been silent for a long time, and the rumor spread to the whole country before it reached the palace. Have you heard about this matter? explain?"

"Back to the Empress Dowager, I just happened to hear the palace people's discussion today, so I realized that it has become so serious."

"These two kings are so presumptuous!" Yun Jin suddenly slapped the table with his palm, and Na Lanqing bowed slightly. It seemed that she was really angry, and she didn't know if the slap hurt?

"The empress dowager, please calm down. Now, we should first solve the disaster and then ask the crime."

Yun Jin was furious, and finally calmed down after taking a deep breath, "The Ai family discussed this matter with the officials today, do you know what solutions they have proposed?"

"My guess is nothing more than distributing food and silver for disaster relief, or increasing income and reducing expenditure, halving food and clothing expenses in the palace, and halving official salaries." Nalan Qing thought that the imperial court's disaster relief would only be these means, but he didn't understand such simple measures. , How could it take so long to discuss.

"Blindly dialing out money for disaster relief is not a solution at all, let alone..." Yun Jin sighed deeply, with a worried expression on his face.

"What's more, after conquering the world and pacifying the Three Kingdoms, the treasury has already been empty, so it is difficult to deal with this locust plague." Nalan Qing naturally understood Yun Jin's worry.

Yun Jin nodded.

This time I was really stumped. If it was a conspiracy, she could still deal with it freely. Such a big disaster was related to the lives of thousands of people, so she dared not be careless.

"Do you have a good plan?" Yun Jin didn't hear a good countermeasure from the court, and she thought of Nalan Qing after the court, maybe her unique insights and wisdom can come up with a suitable solution .

Before Yunjin spoke, Nalanqing really didn't have a perfect solution, but seeing her sincere eyes, Nalanqing's heart softened. She has the supreme right to wealth, what's the use?For her, nothing in this world is more important than Yun Jin, as long as it can help her solve problems, what is spending some money to her?

"I don't have a perfect solution. I just feel that the Queen Mother seems to have missed an important person." Nalan Qing naturally brought the topic to Nalan's house.

"You mean the head of the Nalan family?" Yun Jin never thought of asking the Nalan family for help. After all, the wealth of the Nalan family is far higher than that of the national treasury. The national army, not to mention the small Shangzhou.

Na Lanqing nodded, it seems that Yunjin didn't think of it, but just didn't want to mention it.

Why is Yun Jin so worried when it comes to the Nalan family?Nalan Qing couldn't understand it. It stands to reason that the Nalan family is an imperial merchant, so there is nothing wrong with asking the imperial merchant to assist in disaster relief. The Nalan family is also capable of helping her deal with this natural disaster. Why is she so sad?

Yun Jin paced back and forth with her hands behind her back, silent.Nalan Qing didn't know what she was thinking, the fastest and most effective way was in front of her eyes, why not use it?

After a long time, she said slowly, "How to get the Nalan family to help? The Ai family needs to think about it."

"I don't know why the queen mother is so worried? I heard that when the four kingdoms went to war, it was Nalan Qing who persuaded the Qing emperor to submit to him and avoid the war. All the purchases were arranged for the Nalan family, in fact, they gave the Nalan family wealth in disguise, and the Nalan family should be grateful to the Queen Mother." Nalan Qing still didn't figure it out, Yun Jin's concern was because he was afraid of Nalan The Lan family won't cooperate?

"The Ai family just didn't think of a suitable way to ask the Nalan family for help." Although Yun Jin's tone was calm, there was a slight evasion in her eyes. Nalan Qing could feel that this was not the truth in her heart, but the real thoughts in her heart were different. what is it then?