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Chapter 122 Gao Xiuwen! A Crucial National Strategy!

Chapter 123 Gao Xiuwen! A Crucial National Strategy!

The next morning.

After finishing his cultivation, Shen Yan left home.

I happened to see Gao Yi, who had moved in a few days ago, and he was just going out.

After a few days apart, Gao Yi's face had become much thinner; his once round face had become gaunt.

He greeted Shen Yan with a smile when he saw him.

Judging from his haggard appearance, things must have gone wrong.

Shen Yan had no intention of asking him any more questions. He smiled, nodded, and headed towards the prison.

The house near the prison was where he buried too many people, and Shen Yan felt the yin energy was too heavy every time he practiced his skills.

In addition, martial arts masters would often leap over his roof in the middle of the night.

It's not as peaceful as this house near the Duke's mansion.

Arrived at the Heavenly Prison.

The jailers were changing shifts, and seeing their bloodshot eyes, Shen Yan knew they must have been gambling all night again.

Since he took over the prison, the jailers' income has increased significantly.

However, no one could save any money. If they won gambling in prison, they would go out and gamble, and in the end, they all lost to the gambling den owner.

He could only shake his head and sigh, "Giving money to a gambler is the same as funding his gambling. It's just a pity for his family; having a gambler in the family will bring misfortune."

Respect the fate of others and let go of the urge to help others.

Now, Shen Yan is too lazy to even mention Sun Fugui.

He returned to his cell and continued to peruse the pile of books.

However, he discovered that several erotic picture books from yesterday were missing.

Shen Yan watched Qi Xuan calmly working at his desk and thought to himself, "You thick-browed, big-eyed Qi Xuan, you say no but your body says yes."

Qi Xuan was naturally unaware that he had become this way in Shen Yan's mind.

Around noon.

Shen Yan rubbed his sore eyes and couldn't help but sigh.

"I didn't study this hard even for the college entrance exam!"

After perusing many anecdotes from previous dynasties, he discovered that there were no records of any dynasties before the Daqian era.

At least some fragments of information about the Great Qian Dynasty can still be found, although most of them have become background for some novels.

It all tells the story of love entanglements between spirits and scholars.

The Great Qian Dynasty lasted for a thousand years, after which it fell into a period of fragmentation and warlordism.

The chaos lasted for decades until Li Yuan emerged out of nowhere, sweeping away all the feudal lords and establishing the Great Zhou Dynasty in just over a decade.

This brought an end to decades of chaos.

There is not much detail about Li Yuan's birth; it seems as if he appeared out of thin air.

Shen Yan murmured, "Is a thousand years a turning point? The Great Zhou is now in turmoil, and it has been exactly one thousand years since its founding. If no sage is born, the chaos will be almost irreversible."

He had a feeling that the emergence of martial arts masters like bamboo shoots after a spring rain a thousand years ago was related to the chaotic times.

Just like in the past, chaotic times always produce many heroes and outstanding figures.

Those people are all blessed with good fortune; perhaps good fortune is the key to their breakthrough.

Sensing a clue, Shen Yan's face showed some excitement.

At this moment, Qi Xuan interrupted his reverie.

"Sir, the Imperial Guards have brought the prisoner to your door."

The fact that Shen Yan needs to come forward indicates that the prisoners being imprisoned this time must be very important.

Upon arriving at the entrance of the prison, they encountered Jiang Lu, an old acquaintance.

Upon seeing Shen Yan, he looked somewhat awe-inspiring. Before Shen Yan could ask any questions, he said, "Lord Shen, this prisoner was personally ordered by His Majesty to be imprisoned in the Imperial Prison."

Shen Yan took the file and found that it belonged to the Provincial Governor of Jiangnan Prefecture, named Gao Xiuwen.

The case file did not provide a detailed account of the offenses; it only mentioned a few lines about poor performance.

"Sir? It's time to verify your identity so I can go back and report."

Seeing that Shen Yan hadn't moved for a while, Jiang Lu whispered to him in a high-pitched voice:

Normally his voice is as loud as thunder, but for some reason, when he sees Shen Yan, he unconsciously lowers his voice.

"Okay! Chen Xiaoshuan, take him inside!"

Shen Yan stared at Gao Xiuwen, a man with a square face, an upright demeanor, and bright eyes, though his complexion was somewhat listless.

He thought to himself, "Chen Yu just led his men out of Bianjing a while ago, and now, only a few days later, they've already arrested people and brought them back to Bianjing?"

Although Shen Yan had never met Gao Xiuwen, he had heard of his reputation.

"Converting rice paddies to mulberry fields" was a proposal put forward by Yan Dang in order to acquire land in Jiangnan for silkworm breeding and silk production.

The original intention was to weave more silk for trade with foreign countries.

Silk was expensive while rice was cheap. The silk produced was sold to earn money, which was then used to exchange for grain.

This move seems to be a win-win situation, as it both enriches the people and increases national treasury revenue.

However, in practice, it completely deviated from the original intention.

Both the Qingliu faction and the Yan faction were aggressively acquiring land in Jiangnan.

Just then, a flood struck Jiangnan Prefecture, causing the dikes to breach and the fields to be submerged.

The imperial court needed to provide disaster relief and also promote national policies.

Thus, Gao Xiuwen resolved the dilemma of "combining reform with disaster relief".

Merchants were persuaded to purchase the disaster-stricken farmland at high prices and plant mulberry seedlings.

The people will not go hungry, and the national policies will be implemented perfectly.

The following year, when these disaster victims went back to raising silkworms and producing silk, they were able to make a living.

With the acquisition of silk, the Great Zhou was able to trade with foreign countries and earn more silver.

When officials achieve political success, promotion is just around the corner.

If the people lose their land, then they will suffer even more.

Whether the matter went smoothly or not, Shen Yan did not know, but it did cause quite a stir in Bianjing at the time.

That's why he had heard about it.

Gao Xiuwen rose through the ranks, from a compiler in the Hanlin Academy to a fourth-rank provincial governor of Jiangnan Prefecture.

The one who recommended him was none other than the former Crown Prince Li Chengde.

Now things have changed; Li Chengde is dead, and Gao Xiuwen is imprisoned.

Shen Yan looked at Gao Xiuwen, who remained calm in the prison, and said, "If Lord Gao needs anything, he can speak to the jailer."

"Are prisons really this lenient with their inmates these days?"

Shen Yan smiled and said, "What you said is not entirely correct. It is about being lenient towards wealthy prisoners."

Gao Xiuwen shook his head and said, "These prison guards are still as short-sighted as ever."

Shen Yan said calmly, "Adults always have the country in their hearts and think about leaving their mark on history, while we little people only care about eating three meals a day."

He chatted with Gao Xiuwen for a few minutes, spouting Confucian doctrines, which made Shen Yan quite impatient.

So he left the prison and went to a teahouse to drink tea and get some fresh air.

Arriving at the teahouse, I noticed that many of the martial arts figures had left after the New Year.

The teahouse is slowly returning to its former liveliness.

Shen Yan sat at a table by the street, listening to the storyteller talk eloquently.

All I could hear were the voices of the people talking.

Most of them lamented the hardships of life and the difficulty of making a living.

A few days ago, Emperor Xuanwu raised taxes again.

Life has become even harder for ordinary people.

Due to the unfavorable autumn tax collection, those with spare money began to hoard grain.

The price of COFCO oil, rice, and noodles in Bianjing changes daily.

The street vendors selling white flour steamed buns have long since stopped setting up their stalls.

For the past few days, Shen Yan has been eating tofu pudding and other snacks every morning.

The cold winter is almost over, but things haven't gotten better, which is strange.

If Bianjing, the capital of the Great Zhou Dynasty, was in such a state, one can only imagine what the other places must be like.

At this time.

Sun Fugui ran over, panting heavily, completely out of breath.

After a long while, he calmed down and said, "Brother Shen, someone is looking for you outside the prison!"