Datang: Just been appointed as the crown prince, the counterattack system is here

Chapter 94 My grandson has the potential to be an emperor! [Please subscribe]

"Madam, Madam, the Emperor???"

The moment Deng Rong saw Li Yuan coming out, he was almost scared to death.

You know, in his impression, Li Yuan had already been imprisoned after Li Shimin launched the Xuanwu Gate Incident.

Although no one dared to speak openly about the imprisonment, it was a common knowledge.

At least for these officials, it is definitely not a secret.

But now, Li Yuan actually appeared in front of him, making him feel a little dazed for a moment, thinking that he was dazzled.

However, just as he was in doubt, Li Yuan had already walked to a position about half a meter away from him and asked solemnly, "Am I arrogant?"

"mad"

Deng Rong reacted in a split second, then quickly knelt on the ground, speaking incoherently, "Your Majesty, I pay my respects to you! Please forgive me, I was unaware of your presence. I acknowledge my guilt."

"Humph!"

Li Yuan snorted coldly and said solemnly, "You just suspected that my grandson was a fake prince, right?"

"The blame lies with the minister, the blame lies with the minister"

Deng Rong kowtowed quickly, feeling terrified.

Although he didn't know why Li Yuan left the palace and why he came to Nanyang, Li Yuan's appearance foreshadowed a signal that the situation in the Tang Dynasty was about to change again.

You must know that Li Yuan was forced to abdicate by Li Shimin. Once he wanted to restore the throne, the Tang Dynasty would probably be engulfed in war again, and he himself might become the first soul to be killed by him in his attempt to seize power.

After all, he was originally a man of the former crown prince Li Jiancheng, but now he works hard for Li Shimin. To Li Yuan, he is definitely a fence-sitter.

As for the fate of a fence-sitter, it goes without saying.

Alas, I have fallen into the trap!

If I had known that Li Yuan was here, I would never have gone upstairs rashly.

Now all the people upstairs are Li Yuan's men. Even if he breaks out of the siege, he is no match for Du Caigan!

Moreover, the group of people downstairs have already firmly believed in His Majesty's imperial edict.
Thinking of this, Deng Rong couldn't help but feel sad, and even the movement of bowing became more serious, which made Li Chengqian, Li Yuan and Du Caigan look confused.

There was only one question swirling in my mind.

Can this guy also be a governor?
"Uh, well, Governor Deng, there's no need for that. Let's get down to business first."

Li Chengqian grinned awkwardly.

He didn't know the impact of the Xuanwu Gate Incident on Deng Rong, and thought that Deng Rong was frightened by Li Yuan's words, so he helped Deng Rong change the subject.

When Deng Rong heard Li Chengqian's words, he quickly raised his head, completely ignoring the bleeding forehead, and said with a folded hand, "Prince, please tell me what you want. As long as you spare my life, I will do it!"

Hearing this, Li Chengqian and Li Yuan looked at each other, and then said somewhat depressedly: "What are you thinking? When did I say I wanted your life?"

"what?"

Deng Rong looked surprised, and then looked at Li Yuan.

But Li Yuan said gloomily: "I never said I wanted your life!"

"Ah? This"

Deng Rong's brain was atrophied. What on earth was going on?!

Didn’t the retired emperor Li Yuan come out to seize power?
Then why did he come out?!
However, before Deng Rong could figure it out, Li Chengqian interrupted him with a wave of his hand, saying, "Think about the four methods I mentioned earlier. They will definitely be useful in dealing with the disaster!"

"But."

Deng Rong glanced hesitantly at Li Chengqian, then at Li Yuan, and said cautiously, "The four methods your Highness has proposed are somewhat unbelievable. I wonder if your Highness could share the details so I can consider them further."

"Your political achievements in Nanyang were not very good, weren't they? How come you still can't figure this out?"

"I"

Deng Rong was speechless, thinking that no normal person could come up with those methods of yours.

But Li Chengqian didn't waste time talking to him and explained directly:
"Opening the granaries and releasing grain is the first choice for disaster relief. There's nothing much to say about that. As for why we don't supply grain to Guanzhong, there's even less to say. Because distant water can't quench a nearby fire, the food shortage in Guanzhong is caused by suppressing grain prices. As long as Nanyang sets an example, Guanzhong's problems will naturally be solved!"

"Then may I ask, Your Highness, why are you raising the price of grain?"

This is what Deng Rong finds most puzzling.

It is obvious that the people now cannot afford to buy food because the food prices are too high, and yet you raise the food prices again. Isn't this pushing the people into a desperate situation?

However, Li Chengqian disagreed: "You have seen the situation in Guanzhong. Suppressing grain prices will ultimately result in foreign grain merchants being unwilling to supply Guanzhong. Without grain coming in, what good will lower prices do? The people will only suffer more!"

"This"

Deng Rong was speechless and fell into deep thought.

Originally, the arable land in Guanzhong did not require too much food supply, but due to the influx of disaster victims, Guanzhong's self-sufficient food supply was not enough.

In addition, grain merchants maliciously raised prices, causing many people to have no food to eat. Emperor Li II suppressed the prices of grain merchants in the hope that people could afford to buy grain.

Unexpectedly, the result was counterproductive.

However, the situation in Nanyang is different from that in Guanzhong.

The grain prices in Nanyang have not been suppressed, and there are still no grain merchants transporting grain to Nanyang. Why is this?
Will grain merchants come to deliver grain if we raise the price?
Deng Rong snapped out of his thoughts at this point and wondered, "The price of grain in Nanyang has already risen to 120 wen per dou. Normally, the price is between 50 and 80 wen. With prices so high, why aren't grain merchants rushing in to ship grain?"

"That's because it's not high enough!" "Huh? It's not high enough?"

"Exorbitant profits are what drive merchants to pursue this. If you raise the price of grain to 180 wen, I guarantee that the surrounding grain producers will rush in!"

"What!?"

Deng Rong was shocked.

Even Li Yuan was shocked by Li Chengqian's words.

How many people can afford to eat grain at 180 wen per dou?

Will this really work?

As if seeing through their doubts, Li Chengqian patiently explained:
"If we don't use this high price to quickly attract grain from the surrounding areas into Nanyang, once Nanyang's grain runs out, the local wealthy families who have large amounts of grain will hold the people's lives hostage and sell them at a higher price. The result will be that more people will starve to death!"

“Ah! This, this, this.”

Deng Rong was so frightened that he couldn't speak, and cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

He never imagined that the situation would be so serious.

But Li Chengqian continued:
"So, the best way is for the government to raise grain prices, attracting grain from outside the province into the market and offsetting the price with the grain held by local wealthy households. By then, the total amount of grain will have increased, and the government can then regulate the grain price to a normal level."

"hiss"

Deng Rong and Li Yuan couldn't help but gasp when they heard this.

genius!

What a genius!
First set a high price to let the food come in, and then use this food to lower the price. One thing leads to another, it's amazing!

"Awesome! So awesome!"

Why are those local grain merchants hoarding grain at this time? Some are even buying grain at high prices. Aren’t they just waiting for the people to eat up the grain and there is no grain coming in from outside, so that they can sell it at a higher price?
At this time, the government raised the price of grain to attract a large amount of grain into the market, and the grain in their hands became a competing product.

Why would you buy yours if the price is the same?

If no one can sell at this time, there is only one result, which is a scramble to lower prices!

In this way, the people are the ones who benefit from this!

Even if they wanted to transport the food out, it would be impossible.

Because the government will never sit idly by and watch the grain it has obtained flow away again.
It’s so amazing!
This series of calculations is so terrifying!
He was not just calculating against a certain grain merchant, but the entire grain market.

Having said that, this move is really cruel.

With just these two moves, all the foreign and local grain merchants would bleed, and how many people who bought grain at high prices would lose their fortunes?

"call"

Li Yuan and Deng Rong took a while to digest it, but their heads were still buzzing.

The shock in my heart was like a surging river. Not only did it not diminish, but it became even more intense after I savored it carefully.

It is no exaggeration to say that Li Chengqian's move to raise grain prices was a stroke of genius.

Disaster relief grain, this difficult problem that has troubled all officials in the Tang Dynasty, is no different for Li Chengqian now.

Hahaha, my grandson is comparable to the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors!

The happiest person now is Li Yuan.

Although he had known for a long time that Li Chengqian had a way to resolve the disaster, he was still extremely shocked when he heard Li Chengqian say it himself.

"Why are they using the monks recently recalled by the imperial court to encourage local wealthy merchants to hold competitive entertainment events?"

After figuring out the purpose of raising grain prices, Deng Rong began to look at Li Chengqian with new eyes, and hurriedly asked him again about the purpose of other methods.

After all, only by knowing Li Chengqian's purpose can he better execute Li Chengqian's orders.

But Li Chengqian said calmly, "The boat race requires hiring manpower, and Buddhist activities are charitable acts that can solve the employment and food problems of some of the hungry people."

"Oh I got it."

Deng Rong nodded suddenly and continued, "What about the large-scale construction in Nanyang?"

"The purpose is the same as the previous method. You can persuade the abbots and masters of the surrounding temples and Taoist temples, saying that labor costs are lowest during famine years, making it a good time to use temple and temple property to hire workers to build temples and Taoist temples!"

"Also, you can take this opportunity to renovate your own governor's mansion, official residences, warehouses, and dormitories of other government offices to provide various jobs for the victims."

"This way, the people's hearts will be at peace, and the disaster victims will not be turned into rioters."

Hearing this, Deng Rong's eyes widened and he was filled with admiration for Li Chengqian.

What does it mean to see the big picture from the small details and be a true hero?

This is!
"Your Highness, please accept my respect!"

Deng Rong was convinced and bowed respectfully to Li Chengqian.

Li Chengqian accepted the gift with a smile, thinking it was compensation for his rudeness to him just now.

As for Li Yuan, he watched this scene with satisfaction.

I feel like I own the world with my grandson in my hands.

(End of this chapter)