coobybook Chapter 115 County Lieutenant Jin Dali
Chapter 115 County Lieutenant Jin Dali
Xiao Li went to see Jin Dali, who was the county lieutenant and the third in command of Nan'an County. He was in charge of military affairs and public security, and assisted the county magistrate in managing the county.
There were also refugees fleeing famine outside the city, eyeing the city covetously. Jin Dali spent most of his time on the city wall to prevent any unusual movements from the refugees outside the city, which would put the city in a passive position.
Because it was General Ma Xiaoli who brought them here, Jin Dali came down from the city wall and took them to his resting hut. He poured a bowl of water for each of them and said, "There's only plain water here, don't be disgusted."
When he spoke, he was mainly looking at Xiao Li and Shen Congzhou. Both of them were not like ordinary people in terms of their clothes or temperament. He had discovered this yesterday.
Now that they were face to face, the feeling was even more obvious, especially the feeling that Xiao Li gave him was a little dangerous, which made him subconsciously tense.
While he was looking at Xiao Li calmly, Xiao Li was also looking at him.
However, compared to the other party's self-proclaimed covert observation, Xiao Li was observing the other party openly without concealing anything.
Jin Dali also noticed this. After a moment of hesitation, he laughed out loud twice. He was not as nervous as before. "I wonder what you do, sir?"
It’s not that he wanted to pry into other people’s privacy, he was just a little curious. The other person’s unscrupulous appearance meant that he was either from a powerful family like him or from a wealthy family. He felt that the latter possibility was more likely.
"I'm a farmer." Xiao Li told the truth. Whether the other party believed it or not was his problem.
"Farming?" Jin Dali was stunned, clearly unconvinced. He stared at him suspiciously, "Young Master, your demeanor is more like that of a scholar. You don't look like a farmer at all."
The main reason is that Jin Dali's family also farms. Even though he is now a county lieutenant, he still has to go back to the village to help with the fields during the busy farming season.
In his impression, no farmer is like this young man. Not only does he have a gentle and refined temperament, but he also looks like a pampered young man. How can he look like a farmer?
"It's not much, it's enough to be self-sufficient." Xiao Li didn't explain too much and turned the topic to business. "How does the county lieutenant plan to deal with the disaster victims outside? Or, how does the county magistrate plan to deal with the disaster victims outside?"
It was obviously not feasible to let the enemy block the city gate all the time. Moreover, although the people in the city had stored food and water, they were always unable to make ends meet and could not hold on for long.
And it's not just a problem of food and water, there's also firewood and so on, the sources of which mainly come from villages near Nan'an County. It's obviously not an option to stay indoors all the time.
Jin Dali heard Ma Xiao talk about his identity yesterday and knew that his concern was not pure, but mainly for his own convenience. However, at this juncture, there were not many people who could care about these things.
The question he asked was nothing that could not be answered by outsiders. Jin Dali thought for a moment and answered, "There are too many victims outside, and the city lacks troops. Even if we want to drive them away, we can't."
While speaking, Jin Dali was still observing Xiao Li's expression. He saw that he had no reaction the whole time, and was not even moved by what he said about driving away the victims. Now he didn't look like a scholar, but rather a man who had seen a lot of storms.
He had only seen this kind of feeling in the general before. The general was so indifferent when facing the dead bodies all over the battlefield.
But he didn't think the other party was a general. He felt that the other party was more ruthless than the general.
Xiao Li knew nothing about the other party's speculation, and even if he knew, he would not be curious. He only cared about when he could bring his husband and children back to Yangliu Village without being targeted by the disaster victims outside, thus bringing trouble to himself or Yangliu Village.
After hearing the other side say that they were short of troops, he pondered for a moment and said, "There should be many young and strong men in the city. If they unite, they will not be outmatched by the group of hungry people outside."
Thinking of one of the purposes of this trip, Xiao Li paused and continued, "I have a cooperation plan. I wonder if the county lieutenant is interested."
"Cooperation?" Jin Dali, who already had a serious look, now frowned and looked even more formidable. "Sir, why don't you tell me about it?"
"I can help deal with the people outside. In exchange, within three years after the disaster, I hope that my industry in Nan'an County can be fully supported."
Before this, Xiao Li had no idea of doing business formally, mainly because of the plot.
With the convenience given by the current emperor, it will be very convenient for him to do business or other things in the future. However, the emperor is far away and a strong dragon cannot defeat a local snake, so an extra layer of protection is always good.
Naturally, he couldn't do the business himself, and Shen Congzhou couldn't be in charge of every small place. When the time came, it would still be the people below who would take over.
Xiao Li never expected the people under him to be very capable, because capable people would not still be struggling at the bottom. After all, not everyone is like Shen Congzhou, who was born into a prominent family but ended up in trouble.
He had never thought about meeting another Shen Congzhou who could be his right-hand man.
Jin Dali's face darkened upon hearing this, and he subconsciously straightened his back even more. "Sir, how can you guarantee that you can do this? And that you're not lying to me?"
Although he is the third in command of Nan'an County, he does not actually directly manage the county on a daily basis. Even if the other party can finally persuade him to agree, he still has to ask the county magistrate in the end.
Fortunately, the magistrate is a good man. If the other party can really guarantee that what he just said is true, then it is not impossible for him to be a lobbyist.
There was no need for Xiao Li to come in person to present the facts. Shen Congzhou had already taken out five silver notes worth ten thousand taels from his pocket and placed them on the table. "Our young master is not short of money, but what he lacks is the means. As long as the adults agree, we will find someone to buy grain from the Central Plains.
But before that, we can collect some food from the people at a high price and appease the disaster victims outside first.
Your Excellency can rest assured. Since our Master has said that he will resolve this matter, he will also resolve the resettlement of the disaster victims at the same time.
However, we may need the government to open the door to convenience when the time comes. Otherwise, even if we can find a way to settle them, if they continue to live as refugees for a long time, it will cause unrest again."
Yesterday, Jin Dali had a brief exchange with the other party and found that the other party was a very smart person. After hearing the other party's remarks, he was more certain that his feeling yesterday was not wrong.
Moreover, everything the other party said made sense, and even if he wanted to disagree, he couldn't. However, the premise of all this was that they reached a cooperation.
After all, he was not in charge of these matters. After a long silence, he still hadn't made a decision. He just said, "I can't decide this matter alone. I will take you to see the county magistrate. Everything will be decided by him."
Shen Congzhou and Ma Xiaodu subconsciously looked at Xiao Li, waiting for him to decide whether to go and meet the magistrate of Nan'an County.
Xiao Li had no interest in meeting the officials. "Mr. Shen can go. He should be clear about my thoughts."
"Don't worry, sir." Shen Congzhou didn't say anything explicitly, but his meaning was very clear: he would not let Xiao Li down.
In the past few years, he has been responsible for most of Xiao Li's external affairs. He knows where Xiao Li's bottom line is. On this basis, he will try his best to obtain the greatest benefits.
Jin Dali glanced at the two of them in surprise, "Young Master, aren't you going with us?"
Before this, he thought the two were friends, but he didn't expect that Mr. Shen seemed to be taking orders from Mr. Xiao.
Who was this person? Was it just as simple as Ma Xiao had told him? Was it right or wrong for him to introduce him to the magistrate?
Xiao Li shook his head, "No, I have a husband and a child at home, I can't leave them alone, so I won't go with you."
Hearing this, Jin Dali was even more surprised.
In this era, even if someone truly loves their wife and children, they would not openly say "I'm worried about my husband and children" in order to maintain their reputation. The other party is really...
Thinking about what he had said before about how he thought the other person was cold-blooded, Jin Dali suddenly had the urge to slap himself hard.
How could I judge a person by his appearance? Young Master Xiao cared so much about his wife and children. I think he just looked a little cold, not really cold-blooded.
However, what he didn't know was that he was not wrong. There were only a few exceptions in Xiao Li's world.
But whether he knew it or not was unimportant.
Because the county government office was in the east district, Jin Dali invited Shen Congzhou to ride a horse, and the two left first.
Ma Xiao did not follow them, but remained beside Xiao Li. He watched the two of them walk away and asked, "Master, where are we going next? Are we going back, or do you want to go somewhere else?"
"Go back." Xiao Li was not joking when he said that he was worried about his husband and children, but was serious.
If it was in Zhuangzi, it would be fine, but it is not here. Not only that, it is also a small place that is suffering from drought. There is a shortage of food and water everywhere.
Even with the emperor's orders, there will inevitably be some people who pretend to obey but actually disobey, fail to make adequate preparations, or run out of food and water due to various problems. What will they do at this time?
The bold ones might burn, kill and loot directly, while the timid ones might steal. No one can guarantee that their home will not be targeted.
At least Xiao Li didn't dare, and no matter from which perspective, the Xiao residence in the North District was extremely easy to be targeted. Even though Ma Da and Ma Er were left behind by him to look after his husband and children, he still couldn't feel at ease.
Human nature is the most fragile thing, and he dare not gamble with the safety of his husband and children.
I don’t know if it’s true that doing more good things will bring you blessings from God. When Xiao Li returned to the vicinity of Xiao’s house, he happened to see two sneaky people staring at the direction of Xiao’s house, leaning against each other and whispering something.
He stopped and raised his hand to signal the other party to be quiet before Ma Xiao could say anything, and then went to listen to what the two were planning.
Compared to the late apocalypse, his mental strength had not changed much, but it had also improved a little. He could still hear the other person's whispers even at a distance of twenty or thirty meters.
"Did you really hear it? Was there a child's voice in there?"
"Of course. We've been doing business together for so long, and when have I ever cheated you? If there weren't two men inside who I couldn't handle alone, do you think I wouldn't come to you? Can't I make a little more money on my own?"
"Have you found out clearly? Who are these kids here? Don't provoke anyone you shouldn't, or you and I will be in big trouble."
"Don't worry, I've found out everything. This is the residence of the owner of the Nan'an Bookstore. The three brothers who usually live in it are the owners of the Nan'an Bookstore. The child is probably their relative. You know, it's very normal to seek refuge with relatives these days. If I had relatives, I wouldn't do such a thing." The person who spoke had an ordinary appearance, and he sighed earnestly after he finished speaking.
The man next to him had a shifty look on his face and didn't look like a good person. His pair of inverted triangle eyes gave people the feeling that he was full of evil.
The man with triangular eyes thought silently for a long time, still looking afraid of provoking the wrong people. "Are you really sure? Children are very cheap nowadays. We can just buy them with money and then sell them to those wealthy families."
Before he could finish his words, he was interrupted by the unremarkable man in a cold voice, "You can't catch a wolf without sacrificing a child. The lamb meat these days is too tough, and the masters don't like it.
Relatives of this kind of family usually come from well-off families, and their children must have been raised with care and attention to detail, and they must be able to satisfy the master's picky taste.
More and more people are experiencing food and water shortages, and we don't know how much food and water will sell in the future. Guizhou might as well find a way to get more silver now, so that at least we don't have to worry about starving to death."
"You're right." The man with triangular eyes was gradually convinced by the man, and his eyes became more fierce. "When will we start?"
"The night is long and dreams are many, so let's do it tonight!"
"Okay, let's meet at the old place then."
After the two of them made an agreement, they went their separate ways.
Unlike the ordinary man who left openly, the man with triangular eyes looked around cautiously, and then accidentally met a pair of cold and heavy black eyes.
Although the sun was still scorching overhead, he suddenly felt like he was in winter. The temperature all over his body seemed to have dropped a lot, so much so that he forgot to look away for a moment and just stared in the direction of Xiao Li.
When Xiao Li heard the other party say "mutton", his murderous intent could hardly be suppressed, and at this moment he didn't even bother to hide it.
Using his psychic powers, he silently planted a mental suggestion in Triangle Eyes: after meeting at the old place, kill that person, and then commit suicide.
Ma Xiao saw him stop and stare at a certain place, thinking that he had discovered something important, so he didn't dare to disturb him.
After doing all this, Xiao Li returned to the house with a cold face. His expression gradually softened until he saw the three of them, the father and his two sons.
He never overestimated human nature, but he still didn't expect that even if things hadn't reached the worst point, something like "meat sheep" would actually appear, and it was a "little meat sheep" at that, just to satisfy the appetites of some evil people.
These people deserve to die!
Compared with these people, Zhou Yucheng didn't seem to make him want to kill him that much.
But those who should be killed still have to be killed. He never leaves himself any trouble. As long as the time comes...