Chapter 21: Raising grain prices, the madness of the four major grain merchants

"Not allowed to be lower than 150 wen per dou?"

Once these words were spoken, everyone was stunned.

Lin Lao's beard trembled, and he almost pulled all the hair off his chin; his wrinkled old face was full of shock.

The heads of the other three grain merchant families also looked at Gao Yang in utter bewilderment.

For a moment, the entire County Yamen was silent.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

They even forgot to speak.

Because Gao Yang's words were completely beyond their expectations.

Du Jiang had originally been prepared to watch how Gao Yang would deal with these troublesome grain merchants, trying to get them to lower the price by a few more wen.

As it turned out, Gao Yang had no intention of lowering the price at all; on the contrary, he had directly raised it.

And in one breath, from the current one hundred wen per dou—a price many ordinary commoners could already not afford—it had soared directly to one hundred and fifty wen per dou.

And he even forbade these merchants from selling grain at a lower price!

What was Gao Yang trying to do? Was he trying to starve the entire Jiangcheng to death?

Du Jiang was full of anger, but the four major grain merchants were present, and Gao Yang had taken over all affairs in Jiangcheng.

Even if he had monstrous dissatisfaction, he could not question Gao Yang in front of the four major grain merchants.

Otherwise, it would be a grave crime of disrespecting a superior.

Shangguan Wan'er was also startled, her beautiful eyes filled with confusion.

Hadn't they come to Jiangcheng to lower grain prices?

And from the previous probing, Gao Yang should have been very clear that this was an assessment from the Empress.

It even concerned the entire Duke Prefecture.

Gao Yang wasn't thinking about how to lower grain prices; why was he raising them?

And by such a terrifying amount!

Shangguan Wan'er could not understand it at all.

She had been assisting the Empress in governing for two months and had seen too many officials—insidious ones, vicious ones, and upright ones who handled matters impartially.

But this was the first time she had seen an official like Gao Yang who did not follow the beaten path.

Lin Lao was full of shock, his eyes filled with disbelief. "Censor Gao, I might be old and my ears might not be working well. What did you just say? You want us to sell grain for no less than 150 wen per dou?"

Once these words were spoken, the eyes of the other three family heads all turned to Gao Yang.

Gao Yang tapped his fingers slowly on the table and smiled faintly. "Is my meaning difficult to understand?"

"At a price of 150 wen per dou, whoever dares to sell grain for less than this price, if I find out, their head will not be safe!"

"This time, have you heard clearly?"

Seeing Gao Yang confirm it again, no matter how deep their schemes were, the few of them could not help but smile.

They never expected that the situation would take a turn for the better; Gao Yang had summoned them, but had no intention of lowering prices.

On the contrary, he wanted to raise prices for them, and to an unbelievable price at that!

A full one hundred and fifty wen per dou!

Behind this terrifying number lay sky-high profits.

Furthermore, who in all of Jiangcheng didn't know that the majority of the grain was controlled by their four major families?

Grain prices had soared by more than double, rising to one hundred wen per dou.

This had caused them to suffer much abuse.

But this time, it was a mandatory regulation by the County Yamen that grain must be sold for more than one hundred and fifty wen per dou, so it was not their turn to bear the abuse!

Being able to make big money without having to bear the abuse himself, Lin Lao could not wait to laugh out loud.

He had lived for more than half his life; could there really be such a good thing in the world?

But the more ecstatic he was, the calmer he became.

Lin Lao's murky old eyes burst with a sharp glint, and he could not help but say, "Censor, will this matter be posted as a public notice?"

Following Lin Lao's words, the heads of the Qian, Han, and Zhao families all turned their eyes to Gao Yang.

Their eyes were also flashing with a sharp glint.

Posting a public notice and announcing it to the whole city would make it set in stone; otherwise, if Gao Yang changed his face, they would be the ones cheated.

Everyone present was a shrewd person; how could they not be cautious?

Gao Yang looked at Lin Lao with deep eyes and nodded. "After this meal, the public notice stating that grain prices must not be lower than one hundred and fifty wen per dou will be posted on every street in Jiangcheng."

Lin Lao looked at the other three major families, and their hearts were completely settled.

Today, a heaven-sent fortune had descended upon their four major families. If they didn't seize it well, they would be unworthy of the century-old foundation their ancestors had built.

Next, during the meal, except for Gao Yang who ate heartily, the others barely touched their chopsticks.

But the flattery from the mouths of Lin Lao and the three family heads was like a continuous, flowing river.

Soon, the four major grain merchants all took their leave. ===== CHAPTER 23 =====