Poor Family Chapter 481

  Chapter 481 Unwilling to play chess

  Two days later, Emperor Zhao Ji approved Wang Fu's proposal to set up a temporary military prison, composed of core senior officials from Yushitai, the Ministry of War and the Privy Council, responsible for monitoring the logistics and military resources for the preparations for the Northern Expedition.

But for the government and the public and the people in the capital, they don't care about the establishment of the military prison, but the price increase of the people's livelihood such as grain, wine, tea, sugar, pig iron, especially when the ten coins are approved to be issued, the prices in the capital suddenly fall. rise.

The price of rice rose from 30 yuan per bucket of rice to 40 yuan per bucket of rice, and the price of wheat also increased from 10 to 30 yuan per bucket. Food prices are the foundation. The rise in food prices immediately led to an overall increase in the livelihood of the people such as tea, sugar, and wine. The common people complained endlessly, and for a while the people's grievances boiled.

On the morning of the tenth day of the Lunar New Year, Li Yanqing took a car to Hongqiao Baoyanzhai. Today is a ten-day holiday, and the streets are extremely lively. Various stalls and hawkers occupy the roads, making the streets extremely crowded. Occupying roads has always been a stubborn problem in the capital that cannot be solved. Except for the military patrols on Yujie Street, other streets that were a little more lively were occupied by small vendors, and the government couldn't catch up with them, so they simply ignored them, making the road occupation business basically out of control.

  Hongqiao area is the hardest-hit area for road occupation. It is still in the morning, and there is only one passage for an ox cart left on the street.

  Although the imperial court was immoral and cruelly exploited the people in order to raise military expenditures, causing the people in the capital to complain, but the resentment turned to resentment, and life had to go on.

Li Yanqing also experienced the result of rising prices. For example, he hired an ox cart from Yunqiqiao to go to Hongqiao Baoyanzhai. It usually costs only 30 Wen, but after he got on the car today, the price became 40 Wen. , rose by ten pennies.

The coachman said to him with a sad face: "The officials have been riding in my ox cart. In fact, I don't want to increase the price, but I can't help it. I have two children at home. I can earn 150 yuan a day with this car. In addition to eating To cover rent expenses, I can still save a few hundred yuan a month to pay off my debts. Now everything has gone up in price. If I don't raise prices, not to mention paying off debts, I'm afraid even eating will be a problem. Yesterday the landlord found me and I rented A house in my house has an increase of 200 Wen per month, which has already reached the usual price."

  Li Yanqing said with a smile: "It's okay, I can accept the price increase, how about this? I'll take care of your bullock cart, and you won't have to pick up other customers anymore. What do you think?"

Ten strings of money equals 7,700 Wen. Calculated to have an income of 250 Wen per day, it is of course much more cost-effective than sporadically soliciting customers. If you are lucky, you can earn 200 Wen a day. Hundreds of coins, and now that the competition for ox carts is fierce, it is difficult to do business. The driver was overjoyed, "Of course I am willing, thank you, officials!"

   "I'll tell the butler when I come back, come tomorrow morning on time!"

Because Sisi didn't go out very much before, she borrowed Bao Yanzhai's bullock cart when she went out occasionally. Now that Sisi has learned to make up, as long as she doesn't speak, it's hard to recognize her former appearance. After getting a Hu Qing'er, the number of times he used the ox cart increased greatly, so Li Yanqing considered renting an ox cart for his own home.

  Now this driver is surnamed Sun, from Chenzhou. He is very honest and reliable, and his skills in driving ox carts are also good. Li Yanqing decided to rent this ox cart for his own family after taking more than a dozen rides in his ox cart.

Not long after, the ox cart stopped in front of Hongqiao Baoyanzhai. Li Yanqing got out of the ox cart and gave the driver a silver coin of one and three renminbi, "I don't need to run away today, go back and tidy up the car, and wash the cloth cushions." Let's go to my house tomorrow morning!"

   "The villain understands, thank you officer!" The coachman thanked again and again, and then drove the ox cart back to the city.

  Li Yanqing walked into Baoyanzhai quickly, saw his father Li Daqi in the yard, Li Daqi was taken aback, "Yanqing, aren't you going to the Cao Mansion for a banquet today?"

   "I won't go until the afternoon, I have something to do with my father."

   "Go and sit in the inner hall!"

  Father and son walked into the inner hall and sat down. A maid served them tea. Li Daqi asked, "Have you gone to the military prison?"

   "Not yet! The venue hasn't been approved yet, maybe tomorrow or the day after tomorrow."

Li Daqi sighed. He originally wanted to complain to his son. Instead of doing a good job as a censor, he went to do some military inspection. If he found a problem, he would offend others. responsibility, but the matter has been decided, and it is useless to complain, so Li Daqi had no choice but to not mention this matter, and asked: "What's the matter today?"

   "Daddy, do you still remember what I said before, that we should try to exchange money into gold and silver?"

Li Daqi nodded, "Of course I know. Since last year, I have stopped accepting money, and I try not to save copper coins. I mainly use silver in my hands, and I also have a lot of gold. I got the news yesterday that all major money shops have stopped exchanging gold." Silver, but it doesn't affect us much."

The price of silver against copper coins has been relatively stable. The official price and the black market price have basically remained at about one tael of silver to one thousand copper coins, and one tael of gold to ten taels of silver. After the news, the price of silver rose sharply, and all major shops ran to money shops to sell silver. The price of silver on the black market has risen to one tael of silver to 1,200 Wen.

The money shops can only maintain the official price, which leads to the fact that as long as they can be exchanged for silver, they can make 20% of the profit by changing hands. Although the major money shops dare not change the official price without authorization, they will not be taken advantage of, so they quickly suspended exchange for silver.

  Li Yanqing said: "I was just worried that my father would not be able to bear the temptation of profit, so he would sell his silver on the black market. This is just the beginning. Once the Northern Expedition breaks out, the price of silver and gold will continue to rise."

  Li Daqi smiled and shook his head, "How could I sell it! Such a small profit can't tempt your father."

   "It can't be stored in the capital, let alone in money shops. Once the imperial court urgently needs silver, it will exchange the silver from the major money shops. Dad will only get the money in the future."

  Li Daqi saw that there was no one around, so he lowered his voice and said, "I packed the silver and gold into big iron boxes and buried them in six manors in Ezhou. This matter was secretly operated by me and three Wenzhuang disciples, and it is very reliable."

Now that his father made such a statement, Li Yanqing was relieved. He was about to get up, but Li Daqi held him down, "Daddy is not forcing you, but you have been with Sisi for two years, but you haven't given birth to a son and a half. Of course, she is weak and it is not easy to have children. I can understand this, and I don't blame her, but I only have your son, and you are the only one in my lineage. When will you marry a wife and give birth to me? A grandson, I'm going to die of anxiety!"

  Li Yanqing smiled and said: "Dad, can't you just work harder? Having another son, all problems will be solved, and you don't need to worry about it here."

"you-"

Li Daqi was so angry that he couldn't speak. After a long while, he sighed and said, "Is my own situation still unclear? I can't have children anymore, so I can only count on you to raise a grandson for me, and then you can go to war. I don't care about suppressing bandits.”

  Li Yanqing felt the annoyance in his father's tone, and the joke in his heart disappeared, and asked in a low voice: "Daddy, what happened?"

  Li Daqi sighed, "Do you still remember Li Er and Li San who played with you when you were young?"

   "Of course I know, Guangzong Yaozu of the patriarch's family, what happened to them?"

"I just found out yesterday that Li Er got married at the beginning of last year. His wife gave birth to a son at the end of last year, and she is pregnant again this year. It is probably also a son. I remember that Li Er is as old as you, and he is about to have two sons." , but you don't even have a wife, how can you say I'm not in a hurry?"

Li Yanqing was silent for a while and said: "Everyone has their own destiny. Li Er got married early because he couldn't get into the Imperial Academy. For him, marriage is just to carry on the family line, but it's different for me. It's a suitable marriage. , is a huge impetus to my future career.”

   "But you are now a censor of the sixth grade, and the effect of marriage is still somewhat effective for Zhou Chun and the others, but it has little effect on you."

Li Yanqing shook his head, "My so-called sixth-rank censor is just a **** of Liang Shicheng. He can make me a fifth-rank official today, and demote me to a commoner tomorrow. This official position does not actually belong to me. I hold it in my hand for him, after all, it is because I don't have a strong force behind me to support me, and if I want to obtain this support force, marriage is a way."

   After a long time, Li Daqi finally nodded, "Daddy understands, okay! I won't force you anymore, you decide for yourself."

  (end of this chapter)

Chapter end