Neon Clothes and Iron Clothes

————————————————————————————

Chang'an, Pingkang Square.

Pingkangfang is one of the closest cities in Chang'an to the Imperial City. Going west from here is the Zhuque Gate of the Imperial City, to the east is Dongshi, to the north is Chongrenfang, and to the south is Ruqibancai An ordinary city. Only the top dignitaries in Chang'an City are qualified to live here. From a distance, the forbidden area with red walls, yellow tiles, painted pillars and carved beams is only separated by a street. The houses in the square are stacked one on top of another, giving the appearance of "the music returns to the courtyard and the lights come down from the balcony".

Although Liu Peiji, the Minister of Household Affairs, was considered to be part of the Tang Dynasty's inner circle, his foundation was shallow after all. He did not have a mansion in the cities near the imperial city. In order to save some energy in the morning, he rented one in Pingkangli. He spent less than half of his salary on a three-bedroom mansion. If he didn't have some extra money in other areas, he, a dignified minister of household affairs, would probably have to make ends meet every month and would not be able to live in Chang'an City. Decent.

At noon that day, he worked a night shift at the Political Affairs Hall. In the morning, he visited a fellow villager in Guiyifang in the southwest of the city. He was riding back and was about to return to his residence for lunch.

"Hey, this market is much deserted than a dozen days ago!" Looking at the streets that were once bustling with people and merchants coming and going, but now have become empty and deserted, Liu Peiji observed and thought to himself: " Who would have known that so many things would happen in less than half a month. No matter whether it was King Pei or Shizhong Pei, it was just that they couldn't defeat General Wang, but even a few of General Wang's left behind Even the eagles, dogs, and claws can't fight against it. A mere palace incident can cut off all water routes and devastate all living beings. It's really unbearable!"

Regarding the evolution of the future situation, Liu Peiji's speculation has changed a lot. In the first two days, although he had some contempt for Pei Judao, after rational analysis, he still felt that this coup had at least a 60-70% chance of success: after all, no matter how unsightly Pei Judao's actions were, he still controlled the court. Winning the title of righteousness, with this, no matter how great Wang Wenzuo is, he can only surrender, otherwise he will have to use the power of the northeast corner to fight against the entire empire, which is obviously beyond his power. However, as Cui Hongdu, Heiji Changzhi and others fled to Shaanzhou, they joined forces with Yiji Lianbode to cut off the water transportation route, and sent people back to Chang'an to openly threaten Pei Judao. He was surprised to find that Chang'an, which was stuck on the Cao Road, had difficulty in maintaining itself, let alone commanding the four directions. In this case, Sifang Prefecture and County would probably sit back and watch the success or failure. If Wang Wenzuo could take the opportunity to lead his troops southward, he would march forward. Going straight down to Luoyang, the situation is completely different.

"In the end, whether the emperor or your father-in-law, you still have to rely on our household department. Without the boats of food and cloth coming along the canal, it would be difficult for Chang'an City to maintain itself, let alone control the four directions. !" After weighing it secretly, Liu Peiji became more and more satisfied. He straightened his body from the horse and began to look at the surrounding scenery with an attitude that was detached from all living beings. He found that there were many people selling stalls on both sides of the street. Originally, according to the laws of the time, merchants had to do business in the market, and it was prohibited outside. Of course, it is common for people to do small business in remote places at dusk, but this is the first time that they are sold openly on the roadside at noon. He jumped off the horse with great interest, threw the reins to his followers, and walked to a stall. The person looking after the stall was a neatly dressed middle-aged man. When he saw Liu Peiji coming, he quickly raised his hands and said, "Mr. Sir, what did you fancy, so you took it. In this world, hey!" At this point, he was helpless. 's sigh.

Liu Peiji nodded and squatted down to select items. There were folding fans, incense burners, books, folding knives and other miscellaneous items on the stall. There were thirty or forty items in total. From Liu Peiji's perspective, the quality of the items was average, so he picked them casually. I bought three or four pieces and asked the man to wrap them, and asked, "How much does it cost?"

"Hey, just give it to me!" The middle-aged man smiled bitterly: "It would be great if I can exchange it for a few liters of rice to make porridge to satisfy my hunger!"

"How many liters of rice? It's not that big, right? The few gadgets you have are still a lot, right?" Liu Peiji laughed. Although in his opinion, these sundries were of average quality, they still had some origins. If the world was good, At that time, any item could be exchanged for two to three hundred cents. If I picked three or four items, I would buy one or two. Even if rice is expensive now, I wouldn't be able to buy only a few liters of rice.

"It was a good time, not now!" The middle-aged man sighed: "Now the streets are full of people selling things. If 10% of the goods can be sold for 10%, it would be good! But the price of rice is skyrocketing. Go up. I have two children at home. Counting my mother and my wife, there are five people in total. Even if I eat porridge, I still need three liters of rice a day. How can I live like this!"

Hearing the man's complaint, Liu Peiji's face became a little ugly. He could tell that the man was probably a scholar, and he didn't want to take advantage of the other person, so he coughed: "Let's do this! If you are willing, I will use a How about I exchange some rice for these things? It’s just that I don’t have rice here, so you have to follow me to your home to get it!”

"A bucket of rice? Seriously?" The man was overjoyed when he heard this. He was afraid that Liu Peiji would regret it, so he quickly stuffed those things into Liu Peiji's hands: "Okay, okay, where do you live, let's go together!"

"No rush!" Seeing the man's appearance, Liu Peiji felt a little sad in his heart. He handed over the things he bought to the person beside him: "No rush, you pack your things first so as not to drag anything down!"

The man packed up the items for sale and hung them on his shoulders. He followed Liu Peiji, and the two chatted on the road. Only then did Liu Peiji find out that this man was working in the Ministry of Justice and was an official in green clothes.

"Since you have an official job, why are you still so miserable?" Liu Peiji asked.

"The imperial salary is meager!" The man said with a wry smile: "The price of rice and firewood has soared during this period. I can hardly support myself with my salary, let alone support my family!"

Liu Peiji sighed after hearing this and didn't know what to say. When he returned home, he asked someone to get rice and said to the man: "Go home quickly. If you finish eating, come to my place to get it!" The man thanked him profusely and left.

After sending the man away, Liu Peiji returned home. His family looked at his face and dared not say anything. However, his wife sent him meals, but they only had millet porridge, pickles, pancakes, and mutton.

"Mr. Lang, everything is so expensive these days and the food is simple, so please make do with it!" said Liu's wife.

"This is already good!" Liu Peiji picked up the steamed bun and took two bites: "I'm afraid the days ahead will be bad, so you have to be prepared!"

"Was it worse?" Liu's wife was surprised: "Worse than now? Hasn't the imperial court already sent troops to conquer Shaanzhou? Wouldn't it be great if the water transportation was opened?"

"As a woman, things can't be that simple!" Liu Peiji snorted coldly.

"Does it mean that the imperial court cannot defeat the rebels?" Liu's wife became more and more frightened: "Isn't it said that the rebels only have a thousand people and can be defeated overnight?"

"You, you -" Liu Peiji put down the steamed bun: "You believe whatever others write. How can things be so simple? Do you know who the rebels are -" Liu Peiji was about to continue, but there was news from outside. The voice came to follow him: "Mr. Lang, there is a summons in the palace, and the envoy is waiting outside!"

"That's all, I'll be here soon!" Liu Peiji shook his head helplessly. He walked to his wife and patted her on the shoulder: "Don't worry too much. Just take care of things at home. Take care of yourself!" Liu's wife nodded, tears already filling her eyes: "Mr. Lang, you should also take care of yourself!"

Seeing his wife's appearance, Liu Peiji felt a little sad. He turned around and left the house, got on his horse, and asked the messenger, "What's going on?"

"General Ge sent an envoy from Shaanzhou! Shizhong Pei summoned officials from the Ministry of Household Affairs for a discussion!"

"General Ge? That's a frontline battle. I don't know whether we will win or lose!" Liu Peiji thought to himself: "If we win, that's all. If we lose, the people of Chang'an will have to suffer a lot!" Thinking of this, the cries of stalls selling goods on both sides of the road became more desolate.

Political Hall.

"So, General Ge was defeated in the first battle?" Zhang Wenguan asked after listening to Ge Dewei's letter.

"It's not that we were defeated!" Pei Judao's face turned a little dark, and the veins on his forehead twitched: "It's just that the enemy's fortress was strong and we came with a light force. We couldn't attack the city without equipment. That's why General Ge wrote a letter asking the court to send soldiers from various states. , civilians, besiege Shaanzhou!"

"If you don't win, you will lose!" Zhang Wenguan seemed not to have heard Pei Judao's generous speech at all: "They control the grain road, have endless food, and have sufficient equipment and materials, not to mention Wang Wenzuo; but Chang'an is short of food, and time is running out. The longer it is, the better it is for them! Recruiting soldiers and civilians from various states will only require more food, where will it come from?"

"What did Mr. Zhang say we should do?" Pei Judao asked, suppressing the anger in his chest.

"Agree to their conditions, as long as they are willing to transport food to Chang'an!" Zhang Wenguan said.

"No!" Pei Judao said angrily: "How can the imperial court be threatened by a group of traitors?"

"The situation is stronger than the people now!" Zhang Wenguan's voice was as cold as iron: "Did Shizhong Pei look at the situation outside when he was passing by the street? Do you know how much the price of rice in Chang'an is now? If you order to send money to the state capitals Soldiers, the food supply in Chang'an will only become more scarce. Besides, everyone knows that most of the young and capable warriors from the various military offices in Guanzhong have been deployed to Longyou to resist the Tubo people. Most of those who can be mobilized now are not strong enough to fight. If you use these temporarily recruited old and weak people to attack a fortified city, what will you do if you fail to win?"

Pei Judao was speechless by Zhang Wenguan's barrage of questions. After a while, he defended: "I have ordered that the price of rice in Chang'an shall not exceed twenty cents per dou, and those who disobey the order will be exiled!"

"It will only make things worse!" Zhang Wenguan sneered: "If you don't let the price of rice exceed 20 yuan, they will simply stop selling it. As a result, you can't buy food on the market at all, and you can only buy it in the ghost market." , I sent a servant to ask last night. If you want to buy rice in the market, a dou of rice already costs a thousand cents. Tell me, how many people in Chang'an City can afford to eat a dou of rice for a thousand cents? Chang'an City needs it now. It’s food, not a ban!”

"Then, what do you think we should do?" Pei Judao replied distractedly. He wanted to get angry, but he also knew that Zhang Wenguan was right, and there were many people behind this old man. He could kill one person, but he couldn't. Make people angry. Otherwise, you are not far from destruction.

"I just said that food, no matter what conditions are agreed to, must be sent from Shaanzhou first. The water transportation cannot be cut off. If the water transportation is cut off, not only Chang'an will be destroyed, but Longyou will also be finished." Zhang Wenguan shouted loudly. Said: "In my opinion, it's better to release that Murong Parrot first, and don't rush to label him a traitor. Don't they say that they are loyal ministers of the Tang Dynasty? Well, the loyal ministers will sail the ship first. Food, how can there be a loyal minister who lets the Holy Emperor and the soldiers of Longyou starve? Each side should give in and take the overall situation into consideration!"

Pei Judao heard Zhang Wenguan's words a lot, especially the second half, which gave him a flash of inspiration. Yes, as long as the food is brought first, everything else can be given way first, and retreat can be used to advance. I still know the truth.

"Okay, I'm not someone who doesn't want to take the overall situation into consideration! As long as Shaanzhou is willing to provide food, other people can give in! After all, the saint is still my son-in-law, and everything I do is for Saint, for the Tang Dynasty! As long as it is beneficial to the Tang Dynasty, my personal honor and disgrace don't matter!" Pei Judao said at this point: "But Mr. Zhang, how can you ensure that the other party is willing to send food?"

"Your Majesty, when you first sent troops to fight, I didn't say anything, because if you could win the battle and the canal transportation was connected, that would be the best. But now that you haven't connected, you have to talk. Only by talking can you have food. If you don't talk, then you can get food." Nothing!" Zhang Wenguan said: "You can't get food if you put people in prison."

"Okay, then who will talk about it? How to talk about it?" Pei Judao sneered: "I must make it clear first, I cannot agree to exchange your majesty's children for food."

"I didn't say that I would agree to this point!" Zhang Wenguan said: "But we have to talk first, right? You must have heard of the principle of asking for high prices and paying back on the spot, right?"

"You are asking for a high price and you have to pay it back on the spot?" Pei Judao laughed: "In the eyes of Mr. Zhang, the most important thing in the country is the vegetable seller on the roadside!"

"A sage like Yi Yin also uses the five flavors to harmonize and govern the country, let alone a fool like me!" Zhang Wenguan sneered: "If Shizhong Pei can't lose his face, just let me talk. In short, we can't continue the fight! "

Hearing this, Shizhong Pei was about to give in. At this time, there was a message from outside. He nodded after hearing this: "Shilang Liu of the Ministry of Hubu is here. Money and food are the envoys of the Ministry of Hubu. You and I should listen to what he wants first!"