Daqin Fusu: It is difficult to start the battle

Chapter 224
Jiujiang County, Shouchun County.

On the county road built with rammed earth, Chen Sheng was holding a short stick in his hand, and behind him was a bamboo basket covered with tarpaulin. From time to time, chirping sounds came from the bamboo basket.

These are more than 20 ducklings that he bought from the market in Linxian County before dawn.

As for why steal?
It was because the day before yesterday, an article about raising tea ducks together was posted on the bulletin board in the county.

Generally speaking, it is to raise ducks in the tea garden, and then use the omnivorous nature and active characteristics of ducks to remove weeds and pests in the tea garden, and the droppings of ducks can also help the growth of tea trees.

A piece of tea garden can harvest tea leaves, duck down, duck eggs, and duck meat at the same time. Once you invest in it, you can get a steady stream of returns.

So Chen Sheng took all the money in the family and set off on the road when the neighbors didn't think about it.

So this was also the reason why he was always looking around vigilantly with a short stick in his hand.

What he carried in his bamboo basket was the hope of the whole family!
…………

In the southeast of Shou County, about 300 kilometers away, there is a famous lake named Zhenze, which later became Taihu Lake.

It’s just that during the Qin Dynasty, the land-building along the southeast coast had not yet ended. Later, hundreds of thousands of square meters were still below sea level. In addition, large areas of saline-alkali land were caused by the erosion of sea water. Therefore, the Yangtze River Delta where the Taihu Plain is located is far less than that of later generations. The population is large and rich.

But rely on mountains to eat mountains, rely on water to eat water.

In the current shock, Xiao gathered a group of "Jiangdong disciples" who depended on the water for water, and their nominal leader was the Kuaiji hero, Huan Chu!

On this day, Huan Chu and his men gathered on an island in the middle of a lake.

When the sun is three poles high, a small boat floats towards the place where the waves are shimmering in the distance.

"The Major General is here!" Someone glanced at him and said with a smile.

The major general they were talking about was none other than Xiang Yan's second son, Xiang Liang.

Huan Chu raised his hand and drew a circle in the air, and everyone hurriedly assembled to welcome Xiang Liang's arrival.

Among these people, there are many veterans who followed Xiang Yan back then, so in a blink of an eye, a strict army formation was formed.

When Xiang Liang jumped from the boat onto the island in the middle of the lake, thousands of people shouted in unison:
"See Major General!"

Xiang Liang stood still on the spot, cupping his fists in return, but Xiang Ji, who jumped onto Jiangxin Island after him, raised his head carelessly and looked at the people in front of him.

Out of the intuition of a military genius, Xiang Ji felt that there seemed to be something wrong with the scene in front of him.

He frowned and walked in front of the army formation, and suddenly realized.

It seems that there are about one-third fewer Jiangdong disciples performing on the island this time than last time!

Xiang Liang also noticed this at the same time. He called Huan Chu to his side and asked in a low voice, "What's going on?"

Huan Chu said with some helplessness: "Well, spring is the time to be busy with farming, especially now that the imperial court harvests and collects tea at a high price, so some people have asked for a leave of absence... Major General, can we do this? Practice, when we are done with this period of time, let's..."

Under Xiang Liang's murderous eyes, his voice became lower and lower, and finally he kept silent.

Fan Zeng looked at the Jiangdong disciples lined up on the island in the middle of the lake, and secretly sighed in his heart. The reason why Huan Chu dared to make such an opinion with Xiang Liang was probably encouraged by them.

Although the family background of these Jiangdong children is better than that of ordinary Qianshou, they still have to work in the farmland when the farming season is busy, so they can't help being tempted by the new tea that costs tens of dollars a catty.

Xiang Ji walked up to Xiang Liang, cupped his fists and said, "Uncle, let me lead someone to catch them back!"

Seeing that Xiang Liang was a little moved, Fan Zeng hurriedly said with a smile: "It doesn't have to be like this, it doesn't have to be like this, let everyone practice first!"

Fan Zeng flirted with Huan Chu, and immediately pulled Xiang Liang aside and said, "This is Qin Ting's strategy to buy people's hearts. A few broken leaves cost dozens of dollars a catty! Why don't we follow the trend and obey everyone's wishes?" , just take this good opportunity to gather more money to prepare for the changes in the world!"

Xiang Liang closed his eyes and sighed, and said after a long time, "It's worth it!"

He handed it to Huan Chu and said: "It's just according to your words, but after working hard for a while, you need to redouble your practice. You must know that the destiny will be restarted soon. Whether we can restore our country of Chu is a gamble!"

Huan Chu clasped his fists and said solemnly: "Although Chu has three households, if Qin dies, Chu must die!"

The Jiangdong disciples in the distance also clasped their fists together and shouted loudly: "Although there are three families in Chu, if Qin dies, Chu must die!"

Thousands of people roared in unison, like a sudden thunder, and the wild ducks on the water were startled.

It's just that unlike Xiang Liang and others who raised their arms and shouted, Jiangdong's disciples were thinking about it in their hearts, so they hurriedly finished the practice, so they could go home and take the bamboo basket to pick tea, and before the tea collector Qin Guan left, he would take the money away. Change it back!

…………

Xianyang City, Zhangtai Palace, in a quiet room lit with incense.

Fusu was wearing black clothes and a crown of heaven, sitting cross-legged behind a long table made of rosewood. In front of him were Zhang Cang who was leaning on a low stool, and Zhang Cang who was sitting upright. Xiao He.

Fusu smiled and teased: "My censor Zhongcheng, if you don't lose weight, my palace will be crushed by you!"

Zhang Cang squinted his eyes, and said with an aggrieved face: "I have three good things, ancient books, beauties, and delicious food. Your Majesty wants my ministers to lose weight, and it is my life! When I go out, I might as well find one It looks like a beautiful pillar, but if you hit it with one end, it will be fine!"

Fu Su smiled and waved his hands and said: "Okay, just pretend I didn't say anything, when Yu Shi Zhongcheng leaves, bring two packs of snacks back..."

Zhang Cang sat up slightly and cupped his hands and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Today is not a formal court meeting, and before Song and Ming Dynasties, when ministers got along with the monarch in private, they were relatively casual.

Fusu pointed to the tea brought by several palace servants and said, "Taste the good tea just made this year!"

Xiao He picked up the teacup, took a sip and said, "The buds and leaves are tender, the color is green and fragrant, and the taste is mellow and beautiful. Could it be Mingqian tea sold at the market for four hundred yuan a catty?"

Hearing this, Zhang Cang took a sip with his eyes shining and said, "No, no, I've drank the Mingqian tea in the market. Compared with the tea here, His Majesty's, it's one in the sky and the other in the ground!"

Fusu said with a smile, "This is 'Sheqian Tea' brought from Kuaima in Wucheng County (now Huzhou, Zhejiang Province). It costs [-] yuan a catty, and the tea leaves of [-] catties were sold out in one morning..."

The so-called Sheqian tea refers to the tea leaves picked before the fifth Wu day after the Beginning of Spring.

Xiao He was speechless for a moment, feeling that the tea in the teacup tasted so much better.

Fusu met Zhang Cang's hopeful gaze and said, "One catty per person, it's ready."

Zhang Cang cupped his hands again and said, "Thank you, Your Majesty!"

Fu Su shook his head and said, "Don't be in a hurry to thank me, let me ask you, how much has the grain price in the Guanzhong counties increased?"

(End of this chapter)