eurekapd Chapter 262 Hit a snag, had to write IOUs to the two people.
Chapter 262 Hit a snag, had to write IOUs to the two people.
After cleaning the pig's internal organs, they were placed in a wooden basin and taken to the village canteen. Lin Xi and his "cooking team" prepared to cook a pig-killing feast for everyone!
Ah Li also returned, but he didn't look well. He walked to Gao Mengli's side and whispered a few words to her.
Gao Mengli quickly wiped her hands on her apron: "You mean, there are disaster victims gathered at the city gate?"
Ah Li nodded solemnly and lowered his voice: "Madam, on my way back, I passed through the city gate and saw a large number of disaster victims gathered there, men, women, and children, all dressed in rags and shivering from the cold."
Gao Mengli looked at the sky; it was snowing lightly again.
In this weather, Dou Weiyi probably can't even arrange for people to do the work.
Last year was a mild winter, this year there is a locust plague, and it has snowed here in winter, so it must have snowed earlier in places further north.
"And what is Lord Dou's opinion?"
Ah Li frowned slightly and spoke slowly: "Lord Dou has just sent his yamen runners to maintain order at the city gate and set up tents for the disaster victims."
However, the number of disaster victims was simply too large, and those supplies were merely a drop in the ocean.
Lord Dou, his face full of worry, was summoning the wealthy households who had just arrived in the city this year to discuss countermeasures, hoping they would donate some money and grain to help them through this difficult time.
Gao Mengli frowned: "A wealthy family?"
These people will only arrive at the end of autumn this year, and they may not listen to Dou Weiyi.
Dou Weiyi was also extremely angry, and she took Qin Shensheng to visit one family after another in the county town.
Every company gave the same answer; it was all the same: a rejection.
They said their businesses are all in Kyoto, they don't have any here, and they can't provide any.
That might fool a ghost, but it's not something you can fool Dou Weiyi.
Since Kyoto would confiscate the property of wealthy households based on their names, these people, having left Kyoto, would surely have sold off their assets as soon as possible.
Who would believe we have no silver or grain?
However, this is a donation, which is a matter of mutual consent and depends entirely on one's conscience; he cannot force others to do it.
"Qin Shen Shen, how much silver is left in the storeroom?"
Qin Shen looked troubled, after all, although they had made some money from embezzling public funds, they had not yet recouped their investment.
The warehouse only has less than three hundred taels of tax revenue for this month.
Seeing Qin Shen's expression, Dou Weiyi knew perfectly well what was going on.
With the money spent on buying tarpaulin to build the shed today, there's probably nothing left.
Qin Shen stepped forward: "Sir, why don't we go to Wangyue Village and ask the Lin couple? They already owe enough, so what's a few more times? We can just write an IOU!"
The Lin family paid for the iron from the back mountain, the coal used, and the blacksmith's wages.
Every month, they would press their fingers to sign the IOUs that Gao Mengli wrote down to keep track of the accounts.
What he said wasn't wrong. After all, Lin Xi and the others had already received a box full of IOUs from these two people, and they hadn't settled the accounts yet!
If we're talking about having the most supplies, then Wangyue Village is the place to be!
After all, although the rice tax was high this year, there was no surplus grain.
However, in the village, the escort agency from Nan Chang'an had previously traveled all over the country and stockpiled several batches of grain, so now every household has no worries about food.
Dou Weiyi felt somewhat embarrassed after hearing what Qin Shen said.
He hadn't settled the accounts before, and now that they were here again, he found it hard to speak.
Adding salt, they've already paid for it.
Qin Shengsheng didn't urge him, but quietly waited for Dou Weiyi to make a decision amidst her inner turmoil.
really.
As evening fell and the pig-killing feast was laid out on the table, Gao Mengli saw Dou Weiyi and Qin Shen Shen walking towards her in the distance, their feet sinking deep into the snow.
Dou Weiyi and Qin Shen exchanged a deep look. It's better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early!
This is... just in time for lunch!
The two quickened their pace and walked to the tarpaulin shed erected at the entrance of the canteen.
Upon reaching the shed and seeing the faces clearly, Hei Yi and Meng Ze tensed up and quickly stood up to look around.
This corrupt official actually delivered himself to our doorstep; it was all so easy for him!
Just as Mengze reached for the kitchen knife, he stopped.
Damn, forget they're not going to be assassins anymore. Xin Xin put down the kitchen knife in her hand and patted the excited Hei Yi on the shoulder.
Hei Yi immediately realized what was happening, and his excited expression froze on his face.
The two exchanged an awkward glance, and Hei Er and the others realized what was happening. They then pretended to be calm and sat down again.
Gao Mengli quickly helped Dou Weiyi sit down, "Lord Dou, Master Qin, what brings you here?"
Dou Weiyi was a little embarrassed, but seeing the steaming food on the table, she decided to eat first as a sign of respect, and started eating with her chopsticks and bowl!
Gao Mengli found it somewhat amusing to watch the two of them frantically shoveling rice into their mouths, so she simply stopped asking and sat down at the table to eat her own pig-slaughtering feast.
Let's eat first!
For a moment, the only sounds in the canteen were the clinking of bowls and chopsticks and people chewing and swallowing. Dou Weiyi and Qin Shensheng were obviously starving, shoveling food into their mouths like a whirlwind.
Before long, the two of them had eaten until their bellies were round, put down their bowls and chopsticks, and let out a satisfied sigh.
Dou Wei wiped her mouth, a look of embarrassment appearing on her face.
However, his gaze kept darting to the unfamiliar faces beside him: "These people don't look familiar?"
A-Li's heart tightened, and she quickly explained, "They are my relatives. They couldn't survive in the village anymore, so they came to seek refuge with me."
Dou Weiyi nodded knowingly.
That's exactly why they're seeking refuge, since there's a bunch of people at the city gate who "can't make a living."
He quickly beamed and smiled brightly at Gao Mengli: "Sister-in-law, look, even A-Li's relatives who can't survive come to him for help, at least they have somewhere to go!"
Gao Mengli glanced at Dou Weiyi and chuckled, "If you have something to say, say it. If not, we're going back to the village."
Dou Weiyi's smile froze, and the embarrassment on her face deepened.
He coughed lightly, his previous deliberately warm demeanor vanishing, and his expression became serious.
"Sister-in-law, to be honest, I have come here today with a request."
"You mean the disaster victims at the city gate?"
"how do you know?"
Dou Weiyi wondered, could it be that she went to the city today?
Gao Mengli glanced at Da Niu, who had finished eating and was happily playing with the village children while holding a pig bladder bag: "Here, today I sent Ali to the city to ask for leave for Da Niu at the school. He told me the situation when he came back."
Gao Mengli paused before continuing, "Sir, you're looking for wealthy households, but you're not getting any results?"
Dou Weiyi sighed, "That's right..."
"So what you mean is...?" Lin Xi also leaned over and asked curiously.
Dou Weiyi chuckled and nervously rubbed his hands together: "I thought that Wangyue Village has always been known for its simple and honest people, and everyone is kind and helpful, so I've swallowed my pride and come to ask you two if you can lend me a hand."
Seeing that the two men were just staring at him without saying a word, he quickly raised his hand and assured them, "Don't worry, give me an IOU, and I'll pay you back as soon as I have the money next year!"
Gao Mengli waved her hand: "Sir, we do have some grain stored up, which we can share with you. However, we would like to know what the attitude of the neighboring county is."
"The neighboring county? Pingding County?" Dou Weiyi asked, puzzled.
Gao Mengli and Lin Xi exchanged a glance and nodded.