Chapter 1367
You only need to brag twice.
Chapter 1367 A few words of praise are enough
"Lord Yan, please read out the total grain accounts, and then post the detailed inventory of supplies at the main street entrances of the five districts so that all the citizens of Wei can check it at any time!" The Prince of Ye didn't waste any words and gave everyone something concrete.
"Good heavens! Are they going to let us see the accounts? This is something we can see?!" The people of Wei were very excited and couldn't believe that the government was treating them with such sincerity.
"Yes!" Lord Yan responded, leading a group of civil officials, and personally read aloud: "The total amount of grain is over 200 million catties, of which the largest is beans, totaling 70 million catties; wheat with husks, totaling over 50 million catties; rice, totaling over 40 million catties; millet with husks, totaling over 40 million catties; and other grains, including dry cakes made from mixed grain flour, totaling nearly 10 million catties..."
"The above are staple grains and miscellaneous grains, as well as meat, live poultry and livestock; dried meat such as smoked meat, ham and salted meat, meat sauce; dried vegetables and dried sweet potatoes, etc... totaling more than 40 million catties."
Bang bang bang bang!
"Sir, sir, someone has fainted here! Quickly, please send a medic to help!"
The supplies were outrageously abundant; the amount of meat alone was more than the average Wei citizen could calculate for days. A group of Wei citizens were so shocked that they fainted.
Some Wei Min cried out in anguish: "More than 40 million catties of meat! It's meat! Our whole family of more than a dozen people has never eaten more than 400 catties of chicken and pork in our entire lives, yet there are more than 40 million catties of meat hidden in the capital city!"
"Whose house is this? Did they come from a legitimate source? Could it be stolen from the people?!"
"That's right, isn't it the wealth and resources plundered from the people by abusing power? Otherwise, how could any family have so much meat?!"
"Hey, Prince Ye, is this real meat? We're not from the Eastern Desert, we're from Wei, we only eat real meat!"
In short, the reactions varied, but everyone felt that their own problem was the most important.
Boom boom boom!
"Quiet down! Time is of the essence. Do not cause trouble, or you will waste your own time!"
After some shouting, the agitated Wei Min calmed down, and the military doctors also revived those who had fainted.
The Prince of Ye said, "Do you all still remember Mr. Rong, the righteous man of the world? This meat is the supplies from the private granaries of various families... The private granaries are ingeniously designed, with anti-corrosion and moisture-proof functions. Goods such as dried meat, meat sauce, and ham can be stored for ten years without spoiling, which is why they have been able to accumulate so much meat."
"The meat is genuine pork, beef, mutton, chicken, duck, goose, fish, rabbit, venison, and donkey meat!"
It's real meat, you can eat it, it's just that it's been around for a long time, some of the pork hams might be older than you.
"Waaah, Mr. Rong is truly a righteous man of the world, he has done great things for the people! That damned Kang family, they even mistreated Mr. Rong!"
"Where is Master Kang? Didn't he break the law? Drag him out and execute him publicly to appease Mr. Rong's spirit in heaven!"
"And Wen Tao, that guy isn't any better. His Wen family has been using their power to extort resources from the Northeast for years, their private warehouses must be overflowing. Let's go smash up the Wen family's place, break into their private warehouses, and move the resources out so that everyone in the capital city can share them!"
"Royal Guards! Royal Guards! Charge over there immediately and drag out this person who is spouting nonsense!" Uncle Qin stood on the high platform and pointed to a spot in front of the Wu Garden gate.
The Imperial Guards were incredibly versatile, weaving through the crowd like dragons, catching the person who shouted in the blink of an eye, and also apprehending those nearby.
With a whoosh, the crowd around them automatically parted, leaving them an open space.
The Imperial Guards did not harm the innocent; they simply took them to a corner and 'reasoned with them'.
Wen Tao was deeply moved: "Waaah, thank you so much, Brother Qin, for speaking up for me. My Wen family is wealthy and has a lot of supplies, but my Wen family is also loyal and courageous. Seeing the capital city in danger, we immediately donated supplies to fight the enemy. My Wen family is truly..."
"Alright, alright, that's enough with your bragging. Don't force everyone to take the Wen family seriously," Uncle Qin interrupted Wen Tao's boasting.
Wen Tao was still unconvinced and argued in a low voice, "The supplies in the private warehouse were accumulated by my Wen family year after year, but there's no..." "So what? You swear a curse on yourself to prove it." Uncle Qin's words left Wen Tao speechless: "All things are created by nature, but all things are created to provide for everyone. You can't rely on your ancestors' power to plunder generation after generation. Eat less, and you won't starve, you fatso."
Ahhh, that damned Qin Er, you peasant brute, you rough country bumpkin, just you wait! Once I get through this ordeal and reach the capital, with the support of the head of the family, I'll make sure you, Qin Er, wander home for another ten years!
and also……
"I'm not fat, I'm very healthy." Wen Tao is very particular about his health, simply because he is still living in fear of venereal disease.
"Nonsense," Uncle Qin rolled his eyes at him.
The Prince of Ye continued, “These supplies didn’t just appear out of nowhere; they were already in the capital city. However, half of them don’t belong to the government troops or the military; they are the private property of various righteous men. Seeing the court’s difficulty in fighting the enemy, these righteous men donated money to help. We should be grateful for their donations and not harbor any jealousy or hatred!”
That would ruin unity; what we need now is unity to fight the enemy.
As the Prince of Ye spoke, he bowed and greeted a group of prominent figures, including Wen Tao, Prefect Zheng, Prefect Fei, the Kang family (not Second Master Kang), Ning Jinghui, Qi Yucong, and Shen Yinming.
"Your Highness is too kind. This is simply our duty as people of Wei." The members of the noble families stepped aside and returned the greeting. Heh, they're all putting on a good show!
Wei Min, who was in the audience, was deeply moved. He stopped threatening to smash the doors of wealthy families and bowed to Mr. Wen Tao and the others, saying, "Thank you all for your generous donations, which have allowed us to have food to eat!"
As soon as the topic of food came up, someone immediately asked, "Prince Ye, are these supplies being distributed to us for free?!"
"Yeah, yeah, does that mean we won't have to spend money on food anymore, and we can just get it for free per person?!"
Boom boom boom!
"Silence! Silence!"
The King of Ye said, "Announcing the total amount of supplies in the city is to tell you that there are enough supplies in the city to feed a million people two meals a day for more than a year. You don't need to worry about supplies, but they will not be distributed for free."
"The government troops will hand over the supplies to various shops in the city and sell them to you at a fair price. Half of the proceeds will be allocated to the Wei army to fight the enemy, and the other half will be returned to the families who donated money. It can be considered that the court bought their supplies with money."
"If the money given by the court is insufficient to purchase the supplies they donated, the court will count them as merits and reward them after the war."
In short, Wen Tao and his group could earn some money and merit by donating funds; however, the people of Wei still needed to spend money to buy supplies so that the capital city would have the money to support the Wei army.
This is a necessary cycle.
"Only through this cycle of mutual generation can our capital city continue to function normally."
"Those whose families are struggling to make ends meet can sign up to work outside the city in exchange for money and supplies... In short, I and the government troops will do our best to keep the city running so that every household has work to do and food to eat!"
He then said, "Lord Yan, please continue reading the remaining stock of supplies."
"Yes." Lord Yan continued reading the accounts: "The amount of firewood stored in the capital city is over 70 million catties; the amount of charcoal stored is over 100 million catties!"
Charcoal is a necessity, so in addition to storing grain and salt, powerful families also store large quantities of charcoal, which can be stored for a very long time. The oldest charcoal in the capital city is nearly a hundred years old.
Although these charcoal pieces absorbed moisture from the ground, they can be reused after being dried.
So, wow, the powerful and wealthy families are not just rich, their private warehouses are not just treasures, they have everything they need for food, clothing and daily necessities.