The Jagged Emperor of the Three Kingdoms

Chapter 167
After obtaining the post of Jingzhou special envoy, Liu Chan sent Zhuge Qiao to coordinate with his father Kong Ming to prepare gifts for Jingzhou soldiers, and at the same time sent Deng Ai to the Yizhou barracks to personally select [-] elite soldiers as the escort for this trip. In this way, the number of troops under the direct control of Liu Chan and Deng Ai has exceeded [-].

In fact, according to the Han system, although Deng Ai took the position of deputy general of Zhao Yun, his actual official position was only a school lieutenant, and he could only lead one army, not more than 2000 people.But now in this troubled autumn, some things can only be done cheaply.

Two days later, Liu Chan came to Han Mansion to meet Han Long in person after some careful consideration.Han Long had already heard that Liu Chan was going to Jingzhou as a special envoy, so he was very happy to welcome Liu Chan into his home, and he kept congratulating Liu Chan along the way.

Liu Chan couldn't help being a little surprised. He was worried about his trip to Jingzhou. Why would Han Long congratulate him?After questioning, Han Long laughed and said, "My lord, now that General Guan Yu has conquered Xiangyang in the first battle, and now he is driving troops towards Xuchang, I am afraid that he will be able to attack him soon! You are here as a special envoy. The meaning of consolation must be warmly welcomed by the officers and soldiers of Jingzhou, isn't it an extraordinary honor?"

Liu Chan secretly sighed in his heart, now that Guan Yu's reputation is so powerful in China, the people on Hanzhong King's side seem to have a kind of blind optimism because of this, thinking that Guan Yu will surely win every battle in the future.Some people even began to think that the Jingzhou army under the command of Guan Yu could sweep across the north and destroy Cao Wei in one fell swoop!

Liu Chan bowed his head in silence, and came to the living room of his house with Han Long.Han Long saw that Liu Chan was not talking and laughing like Yan Yan when he came to his house in the past, and asked, "Did your son encounter any troubles again?"

Liu Chan wanted to nod, but also wanted to shake his head, so he had to tell Han Long his views on the situation in Jingzhou.Han Long was a little stunned when he heard that, and quickly comforted Liu Chan, he should be like the king of Hanzhong, giving full trust and affirmation to General Guan's ability.Otherwise, how can a special envoy full of worry and distrust inspire the soldiers of the Jingzhou Army?

Hearing this, Liu Chan raised his head to look at Han Long, and found that there was nothing special about Han Long and what he saw on weekdays, but what he said today was indeed very reasonable.Liu Chanfan suddenly realized that in fact, he had been trying to make ends meet for the past two days.

——The success or failure of Guan Yu's Northern Expedition is still unknown, but he has become so worried. If he really encounters Guan Yu's defeat on the battlefield in the future, won't he be at a loss?He immediately got up and bowed to Han Long to show his gratitude, but Han Long didn't dare to accept it, so he quickly helped Liu Chan up.

After the two sat down again, Liu Chan explained solemnly: "Mr. Han, please don't let out what Chan said to you just now, otherwise there may be troubles in the court again."

Han Long nodded. He had not been by Liu Chan's side for a day or two. Naturally, he could avoid these things.Liu Chan also told Han Long that what he said just now was the conclusion he reached after careful consideration. Mr. Han should not be overly optimistic about Guan Yu's ability.

Han Long saw that the son seemed to have something to order, so he asked: "The son has something to say, but it doesn't matter. As long as it is the son's order, Han will definitely assist with all his strength, there is no other word."

Liu Chan didn't answer directly, but suddenly mentioned that they went to Jiangdong together, which made Han Long suspicious.Then Liu Chan finally turned to the topic and said: "Mr. Han probably also understands the purpose of spending so much effort to make friends with Shanyue and Wuximan. Over the past year, although the current situation has changed, you have been developing with them. Therefore, for the sake of Jingzhou this time, I am afraid I will have to let them help me!"

Han Long immediately stood up and said: "Mr. Han immediately prepares people to go to Jiangdong!" He has spent a lot of money in Shanyue and Wuximan according to Liu Chan's instructions in the past two years. Help, otherwise, wouldn't my capital be in vain?

But Liu Chan told Han Long not to be so anxious, to sit down first, and he still had something to say: "Mr. Han, please send your confidantes who you absolutely trust to go this time, so as not to leak your whereabouts is not good. Besides, , Wuxi Man must let them dispatch troops with all their strength and join me in Jiangling City. As for Shanyue, unless the Soochow army really attacks our territory, otherwise, don’t let them act lightly.”

Han Long knew that Liu Chan's keeping Shanyue would be of great use in the future, so he agreed to leave again. It seemed that he also began to feel the urgency of the situation, but was stopped by Liu Chan again.

Liu Chan said with a smile: "Mr. Han, don't be in such a hurry, we still have time. Now please go and find the heads of Sun, Qian, and Luo's families, and say that this son has something important to discuss."

Han Long originally wanted to ask Liu Chan casually, and now he should be busy with the mission, why did he suddenly summon so many great merchants?But he knows the rules, Liu Chan treats him with sincerity, and he can't act arrogantly, except for sending comrades and three families to discuss matters.

Han, Sun, Qian and Luo, four wealthy Jingzhou businessmen, soon gathered in the living room of Han Long's house.Everyone was already quite familiar with each other, so they didn't stick too much to etiquette. After Liu Chan invited everyone to sit down, he asked Han Long to repeat his worries about the situation in Jingzhou.

The reason why Liu Chan did this in front of the other three families was not to say that he trusted them as much as Han Long, but he just wanted to make these three families feel the urgency of the situation.Sure enough, Sun, Qian, and Luo's family seemed a little flustered. After all, once the war broke out in Jingzhou, it would be difficult to protect their family wealth in Jingzhou.

Seeing that the expressions of the three families had changed, Liu Chan suggested that the three families quickly transport all the money and food stored in the main family in Jingzhou to Yizhou as soon as possible, and ensured that the Yizhou government would never touch a grain of their rice.

Liu Chan naturally has a profound purpose in doing so.As long as the money and food are transported into Yizhou, they must be used in Yizhou, and they can become the money and food of Yizhou people no matter what.Once the Yizhou army lacks food and grass in the future, even if you spend money to buy it from them, it will be cost-effective!

But not only the three families, but also Han Long felt that this move was a bit embarrassing.Seeing that the expressions of the four people were different, Liu Chan was startled when he asked carefully.It turned out that these four people all felt that the amount of food hoarded in their homes was too large, and it would be very difficult to transport it into Yizhou.

Liu Chan just remembered that when he robbed the Sun family's grain depot, the grain in it was as large as [-] stones!The details of Han Long and Liu Chan are clear. He now sells grain every year, but he still hoards more than [-] shi of grain in his family.As for the other three families, their wealth is much stronger than Han Long's, and they probably have more food in storage!
After Liu Chan inquired, the number of each of their families was astonishing: the Han family had 21000 shi; the Sun family had 30000 shi; stone.

Liu Chan calculated in his mind that the food in these people's homes added up to 231000 shi!I'm afraid it is enough to support the needs of millions of residents in Yizhou for a year, and I don't know how long it took them to store such grain!

Then, Han Long told Liu Chan of his worries that it would be extremely unrealistic to transport such a large amount of food by land.But if he went up the Yangtze River by water, where did he find so many boats?
Liu Chan knows that each of these wealthy people has built a merchant fleet, but it is obviously impossible to have too many.Han Long had no choice but to tell Liu Chan that the capacity of their merchant ships was not particularly large, and it would take at least two years to transport 23 shi to Yizhou!

When Liu Chan heard this, he immediately felt dizzy, and his brows were tightly frowned. After two years, the day lily was cold.In the end, he suddenly had an idea and laughed out loud, because he thought that his father-in-law Zhang Fei was now guarding Berkshire, and its seat was Jiangzhou.Doesn't the navy there have a large number of ships, maybe they can borrow them for use!
After Liu Chan said this idea, the four of them were dumbfounded, because they had never heard of someone using a warship to help private merchants deliver food!

Luo Tong couldn't help but said: "My lord, I'm afraid this is not good? If the King of Hanzhong finds out, I'm afraid we will have our family ransacked and exterminated, right?"

Liu Chan waved his hand and smiled, "Mr. Luo is serious. You didn't use the warships privately, but I asked the King of Hanzhong to allow my third uncle to use the warships to help you. Come back late, I'm afraid everyone will have to pay some money."

The four wealthy businessmen were overjoyed upon hearing this.In fact, of course they would not object to transporting grain into Yizhou.Due to the geographical factors, Yizhou has always been very prosperous and stable. It is indeed very reassuring to store food here.Now that the eldest son Liu Chan is actively assisting him, it would be great.

After negotiation, the five parties decided to jointly offer [-] shi to the Yizhou Army as a reward in proportion.Ten thousand shi is not a small amount, completely exceeding Liu Chan's original psychological price, and immediately went to Han Long's study to write a letter to Liu Bei.

When Liu Bei saw Liu Chan's appearance, he was naturally very interested. The most important thing for any force in this era is naturally food and grass.This time, after Liu Chan obtained [-] shi of grain for himself in Jingzhou last time, this time he sent [-] shi for himself, which really made him look at Liu Chan with admiration!

Liu Bei immediately approved Liu Chan's request for instructions, and ordered Zhang Fei of Berkshire to be notified to rectify the ship.Since then, the food transportation problem of the four major merchants has finally been solved, and all the food has been transported to Jiangzhou at the fastest speed.

Later, according to the actual situation of Yizhou's topography, the four major merchants jointly built a series of granaries in the riverside area of ​​Jiangzhou City to store all 23 shi of grain.

However, grain cannot always be hoarded. According to the businessman’s concept, distribution channels are always needed when selling. Therefore, civilian wharves were built on the riverside near the granary, which will later form part of today’s prosperous Chaotianmen Wharf in Chongqing.

(End of this chapter)