RPAGF Chapter 1076 Declaring Himself King
Chapter 1076 Declaring Himself King
Although Grand Tutor Qian has aged considerably in recent years, he is still in good spirits, with deep, bright eyes that subtly reveal his sharpness.
After resigning from his official post, he recuperated in Lin'an, spending most of his time gardening and fishing, and rarely concerning himself with politics, appearing as a recluse. However, no move of the court escaped his keen eyes and was entirely under his control.
When he resigned from his official post, he made a prediction to his sons that His Majesty would definitely invite him to return to service within a year.
But Zhou Pu's decadence and incompetence were beyond his expectations. In such an uncertain situation, he did not even think of lowering his stance to win over the Qian family.
Instead, it pushed all the major families away.
If a winner and loser must be determined between the emperor and his ministers, it must be under circumstances where the strength is extremely unequal, such as a powerful emperor like the late emperor who could win in the power struggle without shaking the foundation of the court.
Otherwise, things will turn out like they are now, with the snipe and the clam fighting while the fisherman profits.
The one who reaped the benefits was naturally the restless foreign tribes from beyond the Great Wall.
"Master, should we discuss this matter with the eldest master and the others?" the butler asked, bowing.
Grand Tutor Qian didn't rush to answer. Instead, he put down his chess piece with a sigh, shook his head, and said, "I never expected His Majesty to cut off the garrison's supplies. I really don't know whether to call him confused, stupid, or both. Now, apart from Su Zheng, who can still do some work for him, he has no one else of use. Compared to ten years ago when the late Emperor was alive, it's incomparable. Now even the Northwest Army needs to ask for help from outside. It seems we've truly reached a dead end!"
The butler bowed silently, knowing that the old master only needed a listener at this moment, not his help in coming up with ideas.
After a long while, Grand Tutor Qian patted his clothes and stood up, instructing, "Send messages to the First Master, Second Master, Third Master, and Fourth Master, explaining the situation clearly so they can be prepared. As for the grain and provisions the court wants to collect, my Qian family, as one of the prominent families, will naturally do its part. I will give Su Zheng whatever amount he asks for."
At this point, Grand Tutor Qian paused, stroked his beard, and suddenly changed the subject, his tone turning cold: "But when it's given to us is up to us. If things don't go our way, we should reflect on ourselves. Our aristocratic families are not pieces of meat to be slaughtered at will!"
"Understood!" the steward replied, bowing.
He then asked, "In addition, the Ge family raised the price of rice by 30% today and sent people to our residence to buy rice. Should we go back directly, or sell some of it?"
"Well, this..." Grand Tutor Qian pondered for a moment before saying, "Sell half of the old grain and double the price."
"Twice? Isn't that too much?" Even the butler was taken aback.
You must know that since His Majesty ascended the throne, natural disasters and man-made calamities have occurred frequently, and the price of rice has been rising all the way. In recent years, the world has been in bad shape, and the roads have been inconvenient, so the price is going to skyrocket.
If the price is doubled on top of that, the Ge family will still profit from it. Ordinary people will have no chance to survive; they simply can't afford it.
Upon hearing this, Grand Tutor Qian's expression remained unchanged, and he said calmly, "Just do as I say. As for how the Ge family sets the price, that's their business. If the common people want to criticize, they should criticize them. Why should we worry about it?"
"Yes," the steward replied, not daring to say anything more, and went to carry out the instructions.
Because the price was too high, the people who came to discuss the matter did not dare to make a decision on their own and returned to the Ge residence to report to Green Bean Eye.
Upon learning the price, Green Bean Eyes couldn't help but curse Master Qian, that old fox. Everyone says that merchants are cunning and treacherous, only interested in profit, but little do they know that these officials are the hardest to please.
"Master, shall we still accept it?" a clansman asked.
"Take it!" The beady-eyed man took a deep breath, his gaze resolute. "Take as much as you can get. From today onwards, tell the counter staff that no customers will be allowed to pay on credit. Protect our cash reserves."
"Well, with grain prices so high now, could we reduce the amount of grain the Zhang family is asking for? Otherwise, we really can't afford it," the clansman said after a moment's hesitation.
"The grain and salary are a bottomless pit. If we manage to deal with it this time, there will be a next time. It should be the imperial court's concern. Why should we merchants have to empty our pockets here!"
"Alright, stop talking," the beady-eyed man interrupted his clansman. "We're all educated people, so we should know what the consequences would be if an army in a certain area ran out of supplies, especially on the border. Even if the Zhang family asked me to do this, or even if General Lin himself wrote to me, I would definitely help him."
"But..." the clansman wanted to say more.
"No buts. Let's do it this way. When the nest is overturned, no egg remains intact. If things continue like this, I think my time as an official is coming to an end. Then our Ge family will be a piece of juicy meat that anyone can take a bite out of. If no one protects us, we will probably die a terrible death. Money lost can be regained. Even if Father is alive, he will definitely support me. I will talk to the other elders."
"Alright!" The clansmen reluctantly agreed. Everyone understood the principle, but it was really too difficult to do, especially with such a large sum of money, and it might not even be settled in one go.
After his clansmen left, Green Eyes slumped his shoulders and sighed, feeling troubled by his current predicament.
With the Ge family's wealth, they have naturally recruited many private soldiers and trained them in private over the past two years, but they are no match for the regular army.
Despite his immense wealth and status as a royal merchant, he felt a deep sense of crisis, knowing that countless people were watching him from all sides.
Several years ago, some people wanted to target their family. If Zhang Ping'an hadn't stepped in to protect them, their family would probably have been ruined long ago. Now, there are only more people eyeing them.
It took a lot of manpower and money for Green Bean Eyes to finally prepare the food and provisions Zhang Ping'an needed and arrange for them to be sent to the Northwest.
But before they even reached Huainan, they were attacked on the way.
If Zhang Ping'an hadn't sent a large number of men to provide support beforehand, and if the soldiers hadn't had highly powerful firearms to fight back, the outcome would have been very uncertain.
"Although the world is in chaos now, it hasn't reached the point where anyone would dare to openly rob the imperial court of its grain and provisions. This matter must be thoroughly investigated," Zhang Ping'an said angrily upon hearing the news.
Just as one wave subsided, another arose. Before this matter could be resolved, more bad news came from the southeast: someone had rebelled and declared himself king.