Three Kingdoms

"My lord, I am afraid that the food reserves in the army are slightly insufficient..."

As a military advisor, he is almost equivalent to being the chief of staff around Cao Cao. He is naturally very aware of the detailed changes in the army. Of course, when problems are discovered, he must find Cao Cao as soon as possible.

"Why is this happening?" ” Cao Cao frowned deeply, and there were wrinkles between his brows that were like knife carvings, which made Dong Zhao feel a little frightened.

Dong Zhao subconsciously looked at the chapter list in his hand, but in fact he remembered these things very clearly, and there was no need to read it again. "People in Yuzhou say they suffer from locust plagues more often, and they want to be exempted from it. Jizhou... I didn't say that." Something, it just takes time to raise..."

Although the people in Jizhou did not refuse to pay their share of military rations again, Cao Cao still did not think this was good news, "How long will it take?" when? 』

Although the nobles in Yuzhou refused to pay food and grass again, which somewhat made Cao Cao unhappy, what made Cao Cao feel even more unhappy was that even the nobles in Jizhou were dragging their feet. What does this mean?

Dong Zhao said: "This...has not yet been decided." However, if the lord offers money in lieu of food, he may be able to accept it quickly..."

"Exchanging money for food?" ”Cao Cao’s brows were still deeply furrowed.

Dong Zhao said: "You can only get one harvest a year of food and grass. In addition, Jizhou has suffered many losses due to successive campaigns. This is also true. Therefore, if the food and grass are collected by force, firstly, there will be insufficient surplus, and secondly, there may be changes. Instead of replacing food with money and purchasing it again, it might be able to solve the current urgent problem..."

Cao Cao understood.

Cao Cao appointed Dong Zhao and brought Dong Zhao all the way to Yecheng in Jizhou. The purpose was to enable Dong Zhao, who was originally from Yuan Shao, to serve as a bridge of communication between the Jizhou nobles. Of course, he did not rule out showing it to the Jizhou nobles. mean. But now, Dong Zhao is doing quite well.

"Replacing food with money" was a compromise solution proposed by Dong Zhao.

Jizhou and Yuzhou are populous states and important grain-producing areas, but similarly, a large number of people also need to eat. It is impossible to deprive these people of all their food rations. Then they may follow the path of Yuan Shu and eventually be overthrown. land.

What Dong Zhao said about the empty warehouses in Jizhou is true, but it is not entirely true. Cao Cao believes that it must be much emptier than before, but it is not completely empty. However, every family and clan has a line. The current food reserves are undoubtedly very close to this line, so he has such an attitude. Resolute, united in opinions, unwilling to provide food and grass again.

Therefore, as a bridge of communication, Dong Zhao must put forward a suggestion that can be accepted by everyone...

Because there is a shortage of grain and grass circulating in the market, almost everyone knows that the price of grain and grass will definitely increase in the future. Therefore, using coins to replace grain and grass payment is undoubtedly a relative term. It’s a proposal that is relatively easy to accept.

The Jizhou nobles felt that they would lose less, and Cao Cao could successfully collect some. Similarly, he could go back and force the Yuzhou nobles to pay as soon as possible...

Cao Cao knew why the Yuzhou nobles were not cooperating now, and Dong Zhao also knew it, but it was difficult to talk about it, so Cao Cao didn't ask, and Dong Zhao didn't tell either.

Cao Cao thought for a moment, and then took Dong Zhao's watch to look at it carefully. After pondering for a long time, he asked: "If you collect money, where can you buy it?" 』

"You can go to Jingzhou..." Dong Zhao obviously already had some clues, so he quickly said, "Although Jingzhou said that Jiangxia was damaged, the rest was not harmed. Food and grass cannot be stored for a long time. If they are purchased, If you save food, you should get two benefits..."

Cao Cao finally nodded slowly, "Maybe we can try it..."

Just give it a try, otherwise, what can you do?

After all, if there is only Cao Cao in the whole of China, then it is not impossible to delay or grant a period of grace if there are no external enemies to get food and grass earlier or later, but if others have food and grass reserves, But if Cao Cao doesn't, it means that Cao Cao will be in a very passive situation, and may even be unable to send troops!

Therefore, on the one hand, Cao Cao wanted to ensure that he had sufficient reserves in his hands, and on the other hand, he also wanted the nobles in Jizhou and Yuzhou to lead the manors to farm again to ensure future harvests, so it became inevitable to adopt a compromise method.

What Cao Cao didn't know was that in history, because of his large-scale farming in Heluo Pass in Hedong, Cao Cao was emboldened to pursue Wuhuan arbitrarily and even promoted the Battle of Chibi. But now, he can only be punished There are many restrictions...

Of course, in the early days of farming, a large amount of income supported Cao Wei's army, but after entering the middle and late stages, inevitable corruption began to spread among them. Coupled with the invasion of the Little Ice Age, these farming lands had There were more and better excuses to gobble up output, so that in the later stages of Cao's farming system, hundreds of thousands of people were wasted on farming, but it did not bring much benefit to the main body.

The original intention of farming is good, to restore order as soon as possible, not for corruption, but in the execution process... Just like the original intention of using money to replace food is also good...

After Cao Cao nodded, Dong Zhao took action. Soon, the news of "paying money in lieu of food" began to spread. At the same time, China's ingenuity was once again displayed...

"Move faster!" 』

"Get rid of those charcoal fires again!" 』

"Be more agile with your hands and feet!" 』

In a manor in Jizhou, thick black smoke rose into the sky, and three furnaces burned fiercely, melting the original copper utensils and coins into copper water.

The shirtless craftsmen were busy, smoked by flames and black smoke, but no one dared to stop to take a breath or rest for a moment. Overseers holding long sticks would patrol the field from time to time. When they saw those who were moving a little slower, they would curse and strike with sticks, just like driving animals, asking these craftsmen to speed up and smelt enough copper coins as quickly as possible.

Of course, it's five baht.

These people are already very skilled in the business of casting five-baht coins, but it is more troublesome to make Zhengxi copper coins, so naturally, these people chose to use five-baht coins. Anyway, Cao Cao did not ban five-baht coins in the market. Circulation...

"How much more is left?" How much more time will it take? ” A noble boy with a rich crown and silk scarf asked calmly, standing far away in the corridor with his hands behind his back, looking at the smoke-filled workshop.

The manager of the workshop bowed his head and said: "To the owner of the village, there are still more than 300,000... It will be completed within seven days, no, within five days!" 』

Bo Guan Lun Jin nodded and said: "If it is completed in advance, there will be a big reward... If it is delayed... Haha..."

The manager of the workshop almost touched his head to the ground, "I understand, I understand..."

At this moment, a scream suddenly came from the workshop, and then there was a commotion.

"what happened? ! ” Bo Guan Lunjin frowned.

A villager ran over and reported: "Someone fell into the copper water..."

In order for the copper to melt, it also needs to be stirred so that it heats evenly. Days of continuous operation, coupled with the high temperature and thick smoke, and there was no industrial protection in the Han Dynasty. The heavy metals in the smoke must have exceeded the standard, and it was probably poisonous. The unlucky guy was dizzy for a while and fell into the copper furnace. …

The outcome is naturally imaginable, after all, not everyone is Monkey King.

"oh? How could you be so careless? Bo Guan Lun Jin asked eagerly, "Where is the copper furnace?" Is there any damage? 』

Zhuang Ding replied: "I haven't seen any damage to the copper furnace..."

Bo Guanlunjin took a breath and glared at the workshop manager, "What are you still standing here for?" return! The person who died...just give an extra five...well, three guan of money to support his family..."

"The owner is kind..." The manager of the workshop nodded and bowed.

"Go!" Be careful with the copper stove! Don’t miss out on important events! ” Bo Guan Lunjin waved his hand.

This benevolent Jizhou noble thought that he was doing it without anyone noticing, but when he arrived at Yecheng with the five baht he should pay, he was stunned because he saw many people carrying Coins of even worse quality than his...

"Why don't you accept, this, this...isn't it money?" 』

"Is this money for you?" Look, it's as thin as paper and breaks when you fold it. It's not as good as Dong Qian back then! 』

"Why! Just take a look, don't do it! 』

"My money is good, take mine first!" 』

"Your money is also bad. It doesn't even have an outline. It looks like newly minted bad money!" 』

"How can you be better yourself..."

If he was the only one in the family, there would be no problem. Those who counted the taxes would just turn a blind eye. After all, if they were thrown into the warehouse and mixed together, under the tens of millions level, the ones worth hundreds of thousands would really only be worth it. It can be regarded as small money, but if a large amount of money is bad money, then it is not a matter of individual negligence. Even the head of the tax collector is not guaranteed!

Therefore, even if you give the tax collector ten more courages, he will not dare to accept it. "Stop making noise!" There is an order from above, only Western currency will be collected! Those who pay in levy currency should come forward, and the rest should retreat! 』

"Why do you only charge Western currency?" Isn’t five baht money money? ”Everyone was angry again.

The tax collector looked sideways and said, "If it's a full amount of five baht, the outline is intact, and the inner hole is square, that's fine!" 』

"This is all five baht worth of money!" 』

"really? Take it up and have a look! ” the tax official sneered.

Immediately, someone brought up the bamboo basket containing the money and placed it in front of the tax collector.

"They are all worn...a hundred pieces are consistent..." The nobleman said with a smile, saying that his five baht coins were good money, and then he seemed to take a bunch from the top of the bamboo basket casually, shaking it, "Look Look, they are all five baht high quality, look at the texture..."

The tax official glanced at the money in this man's hand, nodded slightly, and said: "What you have in your hand is good money..."

"That's it..." The nobleman smiled like a chrysanthemum, "Then... let's weigh it..."

There is no problem in counting thousands of coins. However, if each household has hundreds of thousands, and there are so many households, it would be unrealistic to count the coins one by one. Therefore, many times the coins are weighed directly. .

"Wait a minute...but the money in your basket may not be all good..." The tax collector stood up, looked at the nobles for a few times, then turned around and ordered, "Come here!" Empty this basket! 』

"Hey... why are you pouring it out... Why don't you have to pretend it later, how troublesome it is..."

"Crash..." The soldiers ignored it. When they came up, the two grabbed the bamboo basket and threw it to the ground.

A bunch of coins rolled down to the ground, and then they were obviously divided into two colors. A small amount looked like the kind that the nobleman held in the hand, and the more coins were blue and gray bad money.

The people watching suddenly burst into laughter.

That's it, although everyone is rotten, as long as you see someone being exposed as rotten and you haven't been exposed yet, then you are qualified to laugh at that rotten person.

The tax collector said in a deep voice: "That's it, do you understand?" We only accept levy coins, gold, silver, and copper coins are acceptable. Stop using bad money to fool Yu! 』

"snort! "Someone among the Jizhou nobles snorted and led others out. The rest, some of whom were quick-thinking, reacted immediately and followed suit. Jizhou is so big that it is impossible to have tax collectors in only one place, and there are naturally others in other places. The tax collectors in Yecheng who just took office are originally based in Yuzhou, so there is no need to give face to these children of Jizhou, but other places The local tax collector...

Therefore, even if they were defeated in Yecheng, many gentry children immediately turned around and went to other places, either with inducements or threats. Anyway, since the bad money has been minted, they must not fall into their own hands. !

So, naturally, a few days later, when the taxes collected from various places were brought to Yecheng, the "upright" tax collector of Yecheng found that the bad money he had rejected had returned to his hands. …

Cao Cao stood in the warehouse with a dark face, looking at the "five baht coin" in his hand that broke into three pieces when he squeezed it in his palm. His beard was shaking, and he stopped after a while and threw away the pieces. On the ground, "If someone comes, immediately seize the tax officials from Julu, Qinghe, Zhao, Zhongshan, Hejian and other places, as well as the tax payment records, and bring them to Ye!" 』

However, as Cao Cao's order was issued, something more interesting happened.

A Julu tax collector drank too much and fell into the river at night and drowned...

A Qinghe tax collector was hit by an enemy in a busy city and stabbed three times. He bled to death...

The tax collector of Zhao has fled and does not know where he is going...

A tax collector in Zhongshan hanged himself at home...

The tax collector from Hejian was captured because the soldiers went quickly, but on the way to Ye, he committed suicide by taking poison...

Cao Cao was furious and immediately arrested all the county magistrates.

A few days later, Cao Cao, dressed in imperial robes, was sitting in a high hall, and at the foot of the hall were a row of county and township officials kneeling.

Even Cao Cao couldn't expect things to reach this point.

But if you want Cao Cao to swallow this breath, firstly, Cao Cao can't bear it, and secondly, this kind of precedent cannot be set. Therefore, Cao Cao must give an explanation and have a result.

Before today's public trial, Cao Cao sent people to secretly explain to these county and township officials that as long as they confessed, they would not be held accountable...

Cao Cao did not want to clean up the Jizhou nobles in one fell swoop. After all, all the bad money was mixed together. Who can say which family must have minted the bad money? Isn't it possible that the coins still have the last name written on them? Therefore, we can only rely on witnesses, then arrest one or two as models, kill them directly, and then order the rest of the nobles to correct themselves.

After all, there was a fire in the granary... Well, tax evasion is also wrong. Minting bad money is not a capital crime. Isn't it still okay to educate...

However, when the script is in progress, it may not always be as the director wishes...

"Subordinate... I have something to say..." The Qinghe County magistrate kowtowed.

Cao Cao narrowed his eyes slightly, then glanced at the representatives of the major Jizhou noble clans who were listening outside, and said in a deep voice: "Speak!" 』

Qinghe County Magistrate, surnamed Fan.

Magistrate Fan slowly raised his head and said: "My subordinates are guilty... I failed to detect the bad people and used the bad to pass off the good, and paid the taxes cunningly, resulting in a lot of bad money in the taxes paid..."

Cao Cao exhaled slowly, nodded and said: "No one is a saint, and no one can have any mistakes. If he has made mistakes, he can correct them. There is no great virtue." Although you didn't notice, you are not the mastermind. If you report and expose the bad things, you can atone for your sins..."

The Jizhou nobles outside could not help but feel a little restless. Chirping sounds came out, and the soldiers suddenly shouted: "Silence!" quiet! 』

The scene fell silent again.

Cao Cao looked at Qinghe County Magistrate Fan, showed a slight smile, nodded and encouraged: "If what I remember is correct, you are from an imperial family, and you were appointed as an official in Hejian because of your filial piety and integrity. In the past, His Majesty returned eastward, and you have sent For the contribution of grain and grass, I ordered you to pay homage to Yilang, and later transferred to the Qinghe Order... Now you should know that the court is not easy, the country is the most important, it is necessary to be loyal and filial, and the honor will last forever... But if you have anything to say, you might as well say it directly..."

Magistrate Fan County of Qinghe slowly raised his head and said: "Those who are filial should not betray their relatives for the sake of their own benefit; those who are benevolent should not forget the emperor for personal gain; those who are ambitious should not take advantage of the situation and steal famous weapons..." Sikong Shou To be clear-minded and upright, to have the world in mind, to be virtuous and righteous, to advocate benevolence, to respect the emperor, to protect the country... As the saying goes, one cannot express filial piety if one's father is not merciful, and one cannot express loyalty if one forgets the place where one's ancestors live..."

At the beginning, Cao Cao listened and nodded slightly, but later his brows wrinkled slightly, his slender eyes stared at the Qinghe County magistrate closely, and his beard trembled slightly.

"...It is a pity to betray one's confidants while harboring evil fortunes, to be far away from fortune and yet close to danger, to abandon one's righteousness and embrace great shame! It is not a pity to be evil!" ” The voice of the Qinghe County magistrate became louder and louder, “During the Yanping period, the Yuan family collected grain and grass several times, and Qinghe turned over a total of one thousand and one hundred thousand dendrobium. In the first year of Taixing, another three hundred thousand dendrobium was collected. In the second year, another three hundred thousand dendrobium was collected.” Conquest of one hundred and thirty thousand dendrobium! When Cao Gong arrived at Yecheng, the taxes raised by the Yuan family were ignored, and taxes were levied again. Military resources were allocated, and the army was first mobilized to collect hundreds of thousands of dendrobiums. If it was less than ten months, they would collect another hundred and fifty thousand dendrobiums! The cold winter is over, but without regard for the people or the land, extortionate taxation is imposed, and the cultivation is not carried out. Another three hundred and seventy thousand dendrobium is transferred! If there is no food to adjust, it means losing money! In such a hurry, where can I find the money to pay? Therefore, this crime of mishandling money is an undetected crime on the part of the people below, but how can it be that Mr. Cao is not guilty on the part of the people above? The sky can tell, Qinghe, young and old, all have food on their faces and die of hunger in the wild! Nowadays, there are no seeds to cultivate, the fields have no power to work, and the people have no food to eat. This is the rule of Cao Gong, a bright world, and a great Han Dynasty! If someone is guilty, he will use his own body to pay for it. If he does not know the crime of Duke Cao, what should he do? ! 』

After saying that, the Qinghe County Magistrate hit his head on a stone, and his head split immediately and he died...

There was an uproar at the scene!

Cao Cao felt the blood vessels on his head pounding, and the pool of blood from the Qinghe County Magistrate not far away was like ink stain, getting bigger and bigger in front of his eyes...