Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 297 Ma Xiuying

"King Ming!"

When the ship docked at Jiangdu, Li Shanchang, who had been waiting there for several days, rushed forward and exclaimed, "Something terrible has happened!"

"Don't panic."

After disembarking, Lin Dao relaxed his hands and feet, saying, "The sky won't fall down."

Even if the sky falls, it doesn't matter; he can travel through time and escape.

"It was I who lost my composure."

Li Shanchang calmed himself down and bowed to apologize.

In a teahouse by the dock, Lin Dao sipped his tea and asked, "Speak."

"Yes."

Li Shanchang began, “Your Majesty, the Yuan Dynasty’s prime minister, Tuotuo, bribed Sun Deyan and others, and together they captured Haozhou City.”

"Marshal Guo died in battle, and Haozhou City was massacred."

Lin Dao paused, his hand holding the teacup still.

"traitor!"

"Damn it!"

Lin Dao deeply hated traitors, especially those who defected to the barbarians and betrayed their own people.

“Sun Deyan, remember this man. Once you capture him, kill his entire family.”

"Yes~~~"

The original plan to take advantage of the siege of Tuotuo and cut off his supply lines became useless after the fall of Haozhou.

Nowadays, Tuotuo's movements have become a key focus of attention.

Lin Dao simply asked, "What's Tuotuo up to?"

"Are you going to Bianliang, or coming here?"

At this time, Tuotuo's army gathered in Xuzhou, Haozhou, and Sizhou.

Heading west, one can enter Yingzhou, and then head straight for Bianliang City.

If you head east, you only need to go around Gaoyou Lake to reach the forest trail.

"King Ming."

Li Shanchang reiterated, "The Tuotuo army has not yet set out; it is currently concentrating its troops, provisions, and military supplies in the Hao and Si regions."

"According to the spies sent out, Yuan troops from the Western Regions and other places have appeared outside Haozhou City with their flags."

"The camps stretched for a hundred miles, with countless banners, and were said to number in the millions."

Li Shanchang glanced at Lin Dao and said, "Recently, many Yuan spies have appeared in Gaoyou Prefecture. It is likely that they will attack Gaoyou Prefecture first."

What he didn't say was, 'If you, the Bright King, are here, Toqto'a will surely attack you first.'

According to the Mongol people's wartime habits, they always went for the enemy's capital and the enemy's king.

Ming Wang was the nominal leader of the Red Turban Army, so naturally he came to find Lin Dao.

"A million-strong army?"

Lin Dao scoffed at this, saying, "Even if he dug up all the earthworms in the soil, he still couldn't support a million-strong army."

He was experienced and knew that the productivity of the agricultural era simply could not support an army of this size.

It is possible that they would disperse and cultivate land in various places.

Similar to military garrisons, they were no different from farmers who cultivated the land.

Could a million-strong army be mobilized to fight a war?

Even if a person only eats two kilograms of rice a day, that would still require at least two million kilograms of grain to be consumed daily.

This doesn't even include the consumption of livestock.

The larger portion comes from the consumption of supplies along the long supply lines, which can be several times greater than those at the front lines.

In the northern regions, such as the Central Secretariat, social productivity collapsed, with grain yields per mu (a Chinese unit of area, approximately 0.165 acres) falling below 200 jin (a Chinese unit of weight, approximately 0.165 acres).

The grain transport route from Jiangnan was cut off by the forest roads.

The Yuan Dynasty simply could not afford to support an army of one million.

"At most, there are more than 200,000 soldiers." Lin Dao analyzed, "There must be a lot of conscripted laborers, but what kind of fighting power can laborers have?"

“Tötötö will definitely come to attack my side.”

"It wasn't just about the identity of the Ming emperor, but also about dredging the Grand Canal."

"Without grain from Jiangnan, Dadu would become a ghost town."

In the agricultural era, food was always the most important strategic resource.

With food, you can have everything.

Without food, everything will cease to exist.

"All troops are converging on Gaoyou City."

Lin Dao put down his teacup and stood up. "Before Tuotuo arrives, we must conduct as much training as possible."

Li Shanchang blurted out instinctively, "Shouldn't we be repairing the city and stockpiling more supplies?"

Lin Dao glanced at him, smiled without saying a word, and left.

The siege was to lure Toqto'a over.

The First World War severely damaged the Yuan Dynasty's manpower.

Having lost enough able-bodied men, the Yuan court became a dead dog, just waiting to be beaten.

As for stockpiling supplies~
The forest road has no shortage of supplies.

At this time, Gaoyou City became increasingly lively.

Because the forest road does not charge farmers a tax for entering the city, every morning, many people from various villages and towns bring their agricultural products to the city to sell.

In addition, there were numerous caravans.

The Chinese have never lacked business acumen and skills.

It's even stronger than the squid that's been blown into the sky.

Of course, this does not include the slave owners of later generations who were disguised as merchants.

Where there are business opportunities, there are businessmen.

The business opportunity in Gaoyou City did not lie in the fact that the Ming emperor built palaces on a grand scale and lived a life of extravagance, requiring all kinds of luxury goods and beautiful women.

The business opportunities here originated from the military dependents of the old camp.

The treatment Lin Daojun received was unparalleled in the entire world.

Moreover, the soldiers' food, clothing, lodging and transportation were all provided by the Ming King, unlike some armies where soldiers had to pay for their own meals and uniforms.

Soldiers who stayed in the barracks and had few expenses naturally had their salaries paid to their families.

Lin Dao issued a large amount of metal currency, which gave the military dependents ample spending power.

With purchasing power, merchants will naturally bring goods.

The city's commercial prosperity also stemmed from this.

After clearing out the city's officials, clerks, wealthy merchants, landlords, and gentry, and building many new houses.

The military dependents who had previously lived in tents outside the city also moved into the city. Because there were more people than houses, the living conditions were somewhat crowded.

It's like the kind of scene in a hutong (traditional alleyway) where several families live in one courtyard.

"Little sister."

In a cramped room in a mansion courtyard, Ma Xiuying instructed her sworn sister, "I'm going to get the medicine. Take good care of your younger brother."

Guo Guo'er nodded repeatedly, grabbing her sister's hand, "Sis, I'm hungry~~~"

Ma Xiuying glanced at Guo Tianjue lying on the bed and sighed silently.

He forced a smile and told her, "Wait for me to come back."

Pushing open the door, I saw Junhan in the next room brushing his teeth and washing up.

Recalling the shouting and commotion in the next room last night, Ma Xiuying blushed slightly and quickly walked out of the yard with her head down.

Chang Yuchun, who was brushing his teeth, glanced at her.

After washing up, she asked Lan, who was handing her a towel as she came out, "Who lives next door? They're a complete stranger."

"The children of Guo Zixing, the great general of Haozhou."

With a smile, Lan Shi, whose eyes were full of charm, explained, "I heard that she risked her life to escape when Haozhou City fell."

"We have come to Gaoyou to seek refuge with the Ming King."

"Since the King is not here, Chief Secretary Li has arranged for him to stay here."

"Her younger brother was injured when he broke through the enemy lines, and he has been taking medicine for days but his condition has not improved."

"This girl is very capable and also has a kind heart."

"They've helped me a lot on a regular basis."

"Oh." Chang Yuchun, having wiped himself clean, didn't ask any further questions.

"Husband," Madam Lan asked, "Why hasn't Lan Yu come back?"

“He is now the follower of the Ming King, and he is very busy following the Ming King around all day.”

Chang Yuchun joked, "It's pretty much like being the chief eunuch in the imperial palace."

"Don't talk nonsense!" Lan Shi shoved him. "He's the only male in our Lan family, he can't become a eunuch."

"Ha~~~"

Chang Yuchun, who had just returned from his business trip and had been granted several days of vacation, simply picked up Lan Shi and carried her into the house.

"If that's the case, then give him a few more nephews and nieces~~~"

Chang Yuchun was full of energy, and he was even more irritable when he returned from his business trip.

The Lan clan was truly both delighted and fearful.
After lingering outside the pawnshop for a long time, Ma Xiuying finally gritted her teeth and went inside.

"Tianjue is my godfather's last bloodline; we must protect him."

When Haozhou fell, he rushed out of the city, so naturally he couldn't have taken much wealth with him.

When they first arrived, Li Shanchang did give them some money and provisions.

However, Guo Tianjue's injuries were not minor, and most importantly, his wounds showed signs of infection.

Therefore, I sought medical treatment and medication, and had to take medicine every day.

Even in the modern world, hospital expenses are the second largest expense in a person's life after housing.

In the agricultural era, countless families were destroyed and people died because of medical treatment.

Ma Xiuying pawned her last piece of jewelry and got a few strings of cash in return.

She took a breath and, carrying the prescription, walked towards the clinic.

When I came out, I had almost half the money I had, which I exchanged for a ten-day supply of medicine.

As for what to do after ten days, she can't think of that now.

The food at home is almost gone, so we must buy some more today.

When passing by the rice shop, Ma Xiuying did not go inside, but headed towards the city gate.

Over the years, she has gained some insights.

Farmers outside the city sell their grain for a lower price than rice shops.

Although it wouldn't save her much money, every penny was extremely precious to Ma Xiuying, who had to be very frugal these days.

Farmers from villages and towns outside the city who come to sell their agricultural products in the city mostly line up in a row at the foot of the city wall.

Many housewives come here to pick and choose, and haggle over prices.

Ma Xiuying tirelessly ran around asking around and finally bought a bushel of grain from the farmer who offered the lowest price.

As I was about to leave, I looked at the stalls selling Gaoyou salted duck eggs not far away and felt conflicted.

"Guo'er hasn't eaten vegetables for several days."

The last time we ate vegetables, it was salted duck eggs given by the Lan family next door. Guo'er ate them with great relish, almost chewing and swallowing the shells as well.

Gritting her teeth, Ma Xiuying stepped forward and bought two salted duck eggs.

"Guo'er and Tianjue, each have one."

After catching her breath, Ma Xiuying was about to go home to prepare medicine and cook.

But then they heard a commotion coming from the city gate.

Watching the drama unfold is in the nature of people in China, and even Ma Xiuying was no exception.

She followed the crowd, curiously surging towards the city gate.

After watching for a while, I finally understood the ins and outs of the matter.

Farmers are no longer taxed when they sell their agricultural products in the city, but caravans are still subject to commercial taxes when they enter the city.

Luxury goods, in particular, are subject to very high taxes.

In such situations, some clever people would think of disguising themselves as farmers to enter the city and thus avoid paying commercial taxes.

Without a doubt, they've been caught red-handed.

The merchant cried out for justice, and the tax collector wanted to arrest him and take him to the yamen. The scene was very lively, and the crowd watched with great interest.

There was a burst of rapid horse hooves sounds.

A loud shout rang out, "The Bright King has arrived!"

The people all around immediately knelt down in worship.

Lin Dao, who was about to leave the city, saw the farce at the city gate and rode forward to inquire.

After learning the whole story, they took immediate action.

"You're evading taxes, why are you protesting your innocence?"

"The amount of tax evaded shall be punished tenfold."

"If it is repeated, the penalty will be twenty times the original amount."

"We'll keep punishing you until you dare not repeat the offense again!"

The businessman immediately confessed and accepted the punishment, daring not to offer any explanation.

After Lin Dao led a group of cavalrymen out of the city, everyone stood up.

Ma Xiuying watched Lin Dao's departing figure, lost in thought.

(End of this chapter)