Chapter 2137 Rodents


    The sun hangs in the sky like a dazzling jewel, emitting a brilliance that seems to be intoxicating, but has no practical effect. The autumn sun is becoming more and more incompetent day by day, as if no matter how much you preach that diamonds are forever, they still cannot conceal their original nature as a piece of carbon.


    During the autumn and winter of the Little Ice Age, it always gets cold very quickly. So when Kuai Liang and others from Jingbei entered Jiangling, they somewhat exempted some germs that were rampant in the hot environment, and even gave Kuai Liang and others an illusion that Jiangling was no longer at risk, but what...


    When Kuai Liang saw Jiangling City, he could hardly believe his eyes.


    Today’s Jiangling City is like the sackcloth robes worn by refugees, not only dirty, but also torn...


    The burnt and destroyed city gate tower stood crookedly on the city wall. The wooden stakes that were originally burnt black, under the rain and wind, revealed a little grayish brown, and the nameplate of the city gate was stained with blood. , the spots seemed to be crying, Kuai Liang couldn''t help sighing for a long time, speechless for a long time.


    Entering the city is even more miserable.


    The original bluestone road is now broken and broken, and what is missing is missing. On both sides of the truth, beside the ditch, there should have been running water gurgling through, and the sound of laughter, but now not only the carved stone slabs have been broken to pieces, but even the ditch is blocked by corpses, decayed. The stench filled the surroundings.


    The surviving storefronts and courtyards basically have their doors wide open, and some corpses can still be seen vaguely. The fly maggots are not afraid of people coming, and they are buzzing around, even if they don''t enter the courtyard door, they can still smell it. The smell of corpses, urine, excrement, etc. is mixed together, as if it has a substance that is generally contaminated on the body, and it can''t be washed off.


    Kuai Liang led his people towards Pinghefang in the east of the city. When he arrived at the square, the first time he saw it, he couldn''t help crying...


    Kui''s family was originally in Pinghefang, but now, there are only ruins left here.


    Kuai Liang jumped out of the car in a hurry, but accidentally stepped on a stone on the ground, twisted his ankle, and staggered with a wail. If it weren''t for the guards around him, he might be bitten by a dog if he got out of the car Food.


    The original lintel of Kuai’s gate has disappeared for a long time, one of the vermilion gates is also missing, and the other one is lying torn apart on the ground...


    Kuai Liang remembered that the gate used to be a screen wall, on which not only carved patterns, but also inlaid with some precious stones, but now, not only are there no traces of precious stones, even half of the screen wall has collapsed, exposing the courtyard behind. Come.


    The broken tiles and stones, the toppled eaves and pillars, it seems that at this moment, Kuai Liang only felt that there was a sound of pangs in his world, which scattered like smashed glass, and the blood tendons on his forehead beat…


    『The head of the house, the head of the house...』


    The calling sound seemed far away, and it took a while for Kuai Liang to react, turning his head to look at the guards around him.


    『Patriarch...sorry...』The guard looked at Kuai Liang somewhat worriedly.


    Kuai Liang suddenly burst into big tears, and then couldn''t stand anymore, staggered to the side and fell down. The guard hurried forward to help him, and then helped Kuai Liang to sit down on a flat rock beside him.


    Kuai Liang looked at the scars in front of him in a haze, the beautiful scenes in his memory collided with the ruins in front of him, which made Kuai Liang feel very sad.


    This gazebo, this corridor, was originally hung with six-color silk and carved with colorful patterns, but now there is nothing left, only a piece of ashes and wreckage.


    『Jiangdong thief! Kuai Liang yelled, "I and Jiang Dong, swear not to be invincible!" 』


    Very heartbroken, heartbroken, very blue and thin, very shiitake mushrooms, witnessing the tragic destruction of his homeland, under the shock of his heart, Kuai Liang immersed himself in grief, some negligence is naturally inevitable...


    That''s right, he forgot that he is not only a child of the Kuai family, but also the leader of the team going south to Jiangling.


    However, Kuai Liang, who was too touched by the scene, forgot this matter. He was either sad or angry, and immersed himself in his own emotions. Under the command situation, they acted independently and looked for a place to live in the dilapidated Jiangling City by themselves.


    Where there are humans, there will naturally be less other things, but like Jiangling City, it is basically a city that has been abandoned for a long time. It is okay during the day, but at night, some things come out...


    Not zombies, but rats.


    Mice can be said to be mammals with strong survivability. They can eat anything and live anywhere, even in high-radiation areas where humans cannot live. Mice can still survive. In addition, their reproductive ability is particularly strong. Mice They can enter the breeding season in two to three months. As the saying goes, there are one male and one female, two hundred and five per year...


    Gangneung City, which lost human order, became a paradise for rats in a blink of an eye.


    Night is the time for rat carnival.


    In addition to the toxins accumulated by eating rotten things, rats can also carry a variety of parasites and viruses, and these things will unknowingly infect those humans who don''t pay attention to hygiene, such as those who temporarily live in Jiangling City Kuai Liang et al.


    When President Kuai Liang recovered from his grief and began to prepare to rebuild Jiangling, he was surprised to find that the problems he was facing were not only the destroyed city, the collapsed ruins, but also the people who did not know when to spread it. And open the disease!


    And the decoctions that Kuailiang brought from Xiangyang in the north of Jingzhou to dispel the plague and prevent diseases were completely ineffective!


    Traditional Chinese medicine is originally the most particular about one person and one side. Even if it is the same disease, the manifestations are the same, and the prescriptions prescribed may be completely different. Those who really have some attainments in Chinese medicine, especially in emergencies, pay attention to the disappearance of the symptoms after taking the medicine. If you don’t see any improvement after taking three or five prescriptions, then the doctor still says to eat and see, ha ha...


    So, for the illness in Xiangyang in the north of Jingbei, how could the prescriptions that Cao Jun and others stole learned could be able to deal with the new changes in Jiangling?


    At the beginning, Kuai Liang subconsciously concealed it and did not report it, because this time leading the soldiers to Jiangling was an opportunity he won with great difficulty. He has only arrived in Jiangling for a short time now, and this situation has appeared. Doesn’t it prove that its incompetence? If it is reported, how can he continue to play the role of the rebuilder in Jiangling? If you think about it casually, it becomes clear that if it is true that Jiangling City is successfully restored, how much benefit will the Kuai family gain from it? !


    However, if you want to hide it or not report it, you must have the ability to solve problems, and this ability does not know that if you think that you can do it, it will become possible.


    The more you delay, the more troublesome the result will be.


    In the end, it was naturally impossible to hide it anymore, but the problem is that when Kuai Liang sent someone to inform Jiangling of the situation, the Cao Jun doctors in Xiangyang were also helpless. They didn''t have much ability to deal with the plague before. Or relying on the presence of doctors from Hushi''s Hundred Medical Center, they barely follow the gourd, so they have the ability to solve the new epidemic in Jiangling?


    In desperation, Xiahou Dun sent Cao Zhen to find Liao Hua with a cheeky face, but Liao Hua spread his hands. He was only responsible for picking up the refugees. As for other things...


    Please find General Hussars.


    Then when Cao Zhen ran to Zhuyang, he realized that General Hussars was no longer in Zhuyang...


    …^(OO)^…


    Chang''an.


    Sansuke.


    Hoarding was once regarded by many people as a magic weapon to get rich.


    Indeed, in the thousands of years of economic history, many people realized their dream of getting rich through this method. For example, Tao Zhugong, the originator of the Chinese businessman, was proficient in this method, and there was also a well-known miser, Grandet, who It was also during the war that he entered the ranks of the rich by means of hoarding.


    Many examples of such sudden wealth are also common. This is because there are huge differences in the prices of many products in terms of time and region, resulting in a lot of profit margins and fattening of many well-connected and intelligent speculators.


    In Dahan, food is undoubtedly the hard currency. The common people''s fear of hunger makes it easier for food to become an important material for hoarding to some extent.


    『If you take this bite, it will be gone tomorrow! 』


    『This is all left today, and the price will be even higher tomorrow! 』


    Under such inflammatory remarks, the large-scale food price fluctuations that started from Zuo Fengyi finally began to spread to all directions. This kind of panic made ordinary people start to rush to buy the spot food that can be seen on the market, and at the same time further promoted The spread of panic caused even the most unresponsive grain sellers to hang up the "short selling" sign.


    In other words, there is still a lot of grain and grass on the market, but all grain sellers are waiting and watching, and this kind of wait-and-see in turn promotes a further surge in grain prices, and every step of the soaring will make these grain traders once again. Clinging tightly to one''s own food pockets, it is becoming more and more difficult to find a stone in the market.


    For large families, there are usually cellars built to store grain in their homes. At the same time, they also choose to buy grain when the price of grain is extremely low, and then store it properly. In addition, most of these families also have their own fields, so the higher the price of food, it means that their wealth is increasing in value. Among the dancers.


    The most persecuted are the general middle class and the poor, because these people have no way to store a large amount of food and can only choose to buy in small batches, which makes it impossible for these people to grasp the period when the price of food is the lowest. At the same time, these people There is also not enough money to pay for large purchases, so under such a surge in food prices, these people are immediately cut to pieces.


    Many people get up in a hurry every day before the sky is bright, and line up at the grain store in the city, not for anything else, but to be able to buy some rations when the grain store opens, otherwise even if the grain store is still open There is food to sell, and the price is one day...


    And almost all the anecdotes of grain shops are saying that their grain shops are out of stock, but if the guest officials want to "sincerely", they can also "transfer goods" to other places, just to see how "sincere" these people are. 』Yes, it’s better to be as sincere as gold and silver, the bigger the piece, the more sincere, and then they can take out the grain bag from under their buttocks in a blink of an eye to show that they have finally transferred the goods.


    In a sense, all seasonal things are special commodities for hoarding, not just food, there are many other things, but if there is a wave of hoarding, all of them Everyone wants to make a fortune. Just like this time, even other merchants who have nothing to do with those grain merchants have seen such a rise in grain profits, and some greedy people want to take a share of the pie.


    Such a change in the situation naturally made the officials in the Hussar Mansion in Chang''an, Guanzhong, notice, and then quickly summarized the situation and put it on Xun You''s table.


    Xun You thought for a long time, then put this report in his writing sleeves, and left his "office" to look for Pang Tong.


    Fatty Hei has been very busy recently.


    After all, according to Fei Qian’s intention, it is not an easy task to clean up the corrupt elements among officials, there are too many things to do...


    After all, in the Han Dynasty, it has not yet reached the level of complete corruption in the feudal dynasties of later generations. At least most of the people still hate "copper smell". Therefore, those who dare to take bribes openly are a minority. Most officials will use some relatively hidden methods, and it will take a lot of energy to find out these ways of bribery.


    So Pang Tong really didn''t care about the market for a while. After Xun You brought the news of the high food supply, he didn''t look at it a few times, frowned, and said angrily, "How dare you!" 』


    But immediately Pang Tong put down the report, turned his eyes, looked at Xun You, and said, "This matter... does Gongda have a good plan?" 』


    "When the hussars left the pass, this happened..." Xun You gave Pang Tong a meaningful look, and then said in a deep voice, "There must be someone trying to do something wrong... Although this matter only involves food and grass, there are many people involved... If it is not possible Dispose of it properly, and there will be chaos...」


    "D? ’ Pang Tong sneered.


    Xun You sighed slightly, and nodded, "Besides, there is no ban on the sale of grain, grass, salt and iron in the law of hussars, and when it comes to market transactions, hussars have spoken first, as a last resort, you can''t order merchants..."


    "What''s more..." Xun You said, "Now that there are more and more refugees in Jingzhou, the price of food has risen, which was expected, but it''s so high, it''s just someone taking advantage of the opportunity... If you use this to blame the public, you may hurt the economy. and also…"


    Pang Tong nodded, "Gongda is very worried. 』


    In the final analysis, the panic about food and the panic buying and hoarding of other daily necessities actually represent the people’s fear of life, which reflects a sense of insecurity, that is, uncertainty about future life.


    Especially in the past few years, the wars between various parts of the Han Dynasty have greatly deepened the sense of insecurity among the people. A little bit of trouble is like a frightened bird...


    That''s what Xun You meant. Those who push up food prices are not all those hoarders and panic-stricken people. They are actually fuel for food prices to go up. Without the support of these people, these hoarders The merchants of grain and grass did not dare to follow up easily.


    So in such a situation, it is not simply a matter of arresting a few, or a dozen businessmen, or large households, because even if these businessmen are killed, no one will take the risk next time what? If this is the case, then why are hoarders so common in all dynasties?


    In fact, Xun You still has some things to say, because ordinary people are always lagging behind and slow to news, and will not feel the pain until they are really cut by a sharp knife, but walking in front of ordinary people, one step ahead Are the people who got the information and grabbed more resources just ordinary merchants?


    After catching these ordinary merchants with low execution, what about the profit-seekers above the merchants?


    More often, these ordinary merchants are like knives and guns. When the knives and guns are stained with human blood, they don''t trace who is holding the knives and guns, but just smash and destroy the blood-stained knives and guns.


    『Nowadays in Chang’an, there are more and more types of goods... 』Xun You said slowly, 『It may not be comparable to the market in Luoyang back then, but there are more markets, and the people may not...』


    Simply put, it’s like there are a lot of goods in the supermarket, but there may not be goods in the residents’ homes.


    For the current Han people in Sanfu, Chang''an, they are living in a relatively happy era ahead of time. On the market in Chang''an, you can see goods from various places. There are various types and large quantities. But for each individual family, firstly, there is not enough financial support, and secondly, there may not be enough space for storage, so many families are still used to purchasing when needed.


    In this mode, the manor economy has an advantage.


    Manor owners, that is, big landowners, naturally have more spare money and free space to play games with the market.


    In the feudal era, due to the relationship between productivity, there were some limitations in both production techniques and commodity circulation. Therefore, generally speaking, materials are relatively regional. For example, the fruits and vegetables of Changan Sanfu are generally It is also listed and sold in Changan Sanfu, which has a relatively strong seasonality.


    Products from other places, such as Qingxu salted fish, vinegar cloth, etc., are transported, and the prices are basically in a relatively constant range.


    『Therefore, it is not difficult to clear up the merchants, but the difficulty is that it can only treat the symptoms, not the root cause. Xun You said in a deep voice, "Furthermore, now Hussars, farmers, businessmen, and businessmen are simultaneously involved... If food and grass are profitable, and there are those who hoard them, they will be killed... If the price of seats is high, and there are people who hoard seats, will they be killed?" 』


    『Hmm…』 Pang Tong squeezed his fat chin, looked at Xun You with interest, and said, 『Gongda seems to have made a decision? 』


    Xun You arched his hands and said: "Ling Jun, don''t hide it from Yu... I''m afraid the hussars have already made up their minds..."


    Pang Tongtong was stunned, then smiled and said: "... I don''t know where there is a flaw? 』


    "Before I met Lingjun, I hadn''t come to a conclusion...But when Lingjun saw this, he was angry but not chaotic..." Xun You glanced at Pang Tong, "What''s more, food, grass, salt and iron are essential for a military country. The reason why human hands are allowed to be kneaded? 』


    『Hey...really...』 Pang Tong shook his head and sighed, then smiled again, "Gongda is really... this matter... why not for now... well, it''s not right to ignore it, why don''t we just issue a notice..."


    Xun You swallowed a mouthful of saliva and felt the hairs on his arms stand up a little, "...Don''t let me speak...you will be punished if you don''t teach? ! 』


    (end of this chapter)