Chapter 157: The female emperor misses Lu Yuan, wants to go see Lu Yuan

These things were all transported back by ox cart.

If you had your horse do this, your horse probably couldn't even stand.

When Lu Yuan returned, he casually hired two laborers by the East City Gate.

One coin each, they helped Lu Yuan carry things home.

The aunts in the courtyard all came out of their houses to watch the two laborers repeatedly carry things into Lu Yuan's home.

And it's still this much.

"No, why are you buying so much stuff?"

Finally an aunt couldn't hold back, she pulled Lu Yuan and asked curiously.

Lu Yuan was startled, then he gave a hehe grin.

"Buying things each time is too troublesome; it's better to buy more at once so we don't have to go each time."

This matter definitely cannot be told to the people in the courtyard.

If this gets out, the people in our courtyard will definitely also rush to buy.

If the people in the courtyard go rush-buying, needless to say, within half a day everyone will be rush-buying.

In that case……

Where could there be any good?

If this matter blows up, then the government office will intervene.

Putting it lightly, it's just returning the rush-bought grain; putting it heavily……

Lu Yuan, this is causing a disturbance and spreading rumors, which could get one's head chopped off.

Lu Yuan is living well, his little life is beautiful; how could he possibly seek this kind of trouble?

Of course, he had to make up a story.

And the people listening to Lu Yuan's explanation were speechless.

Is there anyone this lazy in the world??

There's no good in buying white flour to eat first!

Of course…… this actually matches the virtue of Lu Yuan the lazybones in how he does things.

But, the important thing is……

These five big sacks of white flour are a thousand jin, plus an uncountable amount of cured meat, and that big ham!

Good fellow……

How much money does this cost?

Instantly the crowd looked at Lu Yuan and asked curiously:

"How much money did you spend buying these things??"

Lu Yuan blinked, then slightly shook his head and said:

"I don't know the number."

Lu Yuan truly doesn't keep count; when buying things he never calculates, he just buys what he wants.

The things bought are many, buying from one shop in the east, another in the west, each shop's price, Lu Yuan really hasn't calculated.

The people hearing Lu Yuan's words were speechless:

"So you bought this much at once, does your family still have money? Is your bonus enough to spend?"

Lu Yuan blinked, then broke into a smile:

"Gone, the bonus is all spent."

Hearing Lu Yuan's words, the people had a strange expression:

"Then your family's future days are over, you don't keep any spare money in hand?"

At this moment Lu Yuan laughed and said:

"It's fine, there's still over a week until wages are paid again, my wife now earns thirty-six coins a month~"

The people hearing Lu Yuan's words shook their heads repeatedly.

This really isn't someone who knows how to manage daily life.

This really doesn't save any money at all!

Having spent all the money, if something happens and you can't come up with money, there will be times to cry!

Moreover…… this guy spends money really lavishly!

Who buys this much white flour for daily living!!

Look at this big ham, and these strings of cured meat.

Good fellow, with this much stuff, to procure it would cost not one or two hundred coins?!

This is probably Lu Yuan spending his entire family fortune down to the last cent!

If Lu Yuan ate white flour plus this big meat every day, at most he could last half a year.

How could one possibly do this?!

But after thinking it over.

Hey!

Everyone just wants to see Lu Yuan like this!

Now everyone really has something to look forward to~

Before, everyone day after day hoped, hoped, just hoping Lu Yuan's money would be spent quickly.

But Lu Yuan's bonus keeps coming again and again, everyone really is a bit confused about how much Lu Yuan still has in hand.

But now, Lu Yuan's money has all been spent.

Well, that gives us something to look forward to!

Everyone's just waiting to see Lu Yuan spend all his money, eat up everything, and then see if he can still be as well-off as he is now.

See if you can still go out and have fun every day!

Meanwhile, the two laborers had moved everything inside.

After stepping out of the house, he looked at Lu Yuan and said with a smile:

"Landlord, we've put everything away; we're leaving now."

When the wages came, Lu Yuan gave them to the two men, and immediately nodded with a smile, saying:

"Alright, thanks."

The two laborers were taken aback, then repeatedly waved their hands with a smile, saying:

"Oh, don't say that, landlord—you're being too polite."

"Today's work is really great."

"Just a few trips back and forth, and we made a dollar outright."

"This landlord really is just as the big shot at East City Gate said—truly generous!"

After the two laborers left, Lu Yuan couldn't be bothered to say anything to the old lady in the courtyard.

He went back, tidied up, locked the door, and then Lu Yuan rode off on his horse again.

First, he ran to his second uncle's restaurant.

At this time, it was two or three in the afternoon.

His second uncle and Changyu had just finished tidying up and were now sleeping in the room, catching up on sleep.

Lu Yuan ran straight to the back gate of the restaurant and knocked on the door.

Not long after, Changyu came to open the door; seeing Lu Yuan, he exclaimed happily:

"Brother-in-law."

Changyu knew that his brother-in-law didn't come often.

Because his brother-in-law's family usually goes to a proper restaurant.

Lu Yuan nodded and then said:

"How's your father?"

Lu Yuan had just finished speaking when his second uncle also came out.

While watching Lu Yuan approach, he smiled and said:

"I'm getting old, my hands and feet are a bit slow."

Lu Yuan didn't go inside; he immediately handed over two thousand-dollar notes from his hand.

Seeing the two thousand-dollar notes, both his second uncle and Changyu were completely stunned and didn't dare to take them.

Lu Yuan knew what they were thinking, and before the three of them could speak, he stepped forward and whispered:

"You two, don't sleep—take the money and quickly buy two thousand dollars' worth of white flour. The kitchen can't hold any more, so store it in the cellar of my big courtyard."

After Lu Yuan finished speaking, he continued:

"Southern floods have inundated many fields; Huangcheng will start controlling grain supplies in the next half year. If you don't buy now, you won't be able to get any even if you have money later."

"If you buy two thousand dollars' worth and store it, that should last at least half a year."

"Although my potatoes will be ready soon, if luck is good, the first batch could yield a good variety that can be planted."

"Then this matter would last at most half a year."

"But we can't completely pin our hopes on Lu Yuan's potatoes, can we?"

"If luck is bad and the first batch doesn't come out, we'd have to delay another two or three months."

"If Lu Yuan's potatoes don't work out, the grain shortage could last over a year."

"Anyway, storing a bit more can't hurt."

"This flour isn't afraid of being stored; sooner or later it can be sold."

Both his second uncle and Changyu looked at Lu Yuan, somewhat dazed.

They didn't doubt Lu Yuan's words at all, but Changyu blinked and said:

"Brother-in-law, do we really need that much money? Even if we run the restaurant, we wouldn't use two thousand dollars' worth of white flour in half a year..."

"How could we use that much? In the past couple of days, Changyu calculated that with two meals a day, we could sell at most two or three dollars' worth of white flour."

"The main thing is, the factory's canteen sells white flour steamed buns."

"Moreover, those steamed buns are especially cheap."

"Many people who come out to eat at the restaurant first buy white flour steamed buns from the canteen, then come to the restaurant to order a dish."

"That works out to at most six or seven hundred dollars' worth of white flour for half a year."

"There's no need to buy two thousand dollars' worth."

Lu Yuan, after hearing that, shook his head and said:

"Once grain supplies are controlled, the threshing machine factory won't have buns for sale every day—maybe only once every two or three days."

"Moreover, by then other restaurants won't have buns, but we will."

"Those who want buns will have to come here to buy them, and then it won't be just a few dollars a day."

"If you listen to your brother-in-law, you definitely won't be wrong."

After Lu Yuan finished speaking, Changyu was about to nod, but the second uncle next to him, annoyed, gave his own son a hard smack on the back of the head.

Pa! —it really was crisp.

Changyu covered the back of his head, his face full of bewilderment as he turned to look at his father.

At this moment, the second uncle, with an annoyed expression, muttered a curse:

"You talk too much nonsense; just do what your brother-in-law tells you to do—why are you asking so much?"

"Hurry up, put on your clothes and shoes, let's go now!"

"This second uncle, looking at his son now, is just furious beyond measure."

"Just do whatever this father-in-law says."

"You still don't understand?"

"You still don't know how?"

"The second uncle found that his son, compared to that Changliang, is far behind."

"That Changliang listens to his brother-in-law's words, does what he's told, says nothing, asks nothing."

"If it were Changliang, he would have already taken the money and gone to buy it."

"Nothing like my son, who keeps asking about this and that."

"At this moment, Su Changyu also feels wronged; it's not that he's afraid his brother-in-law will spend too much money…… he also means well……"

"However, Su Changyu didn't dare say anything; after acknowledging, he hurried into the house, put on his coat and such, preparing to go out."

"Lu Yuan then handed the money to the second uncle and said:"

"You finish this matter today; this order will probably come down either tomorrow or the day after."

"The second uncle nodded repeatedly and took the money with both hands."

"And Lu Yuan, without waiting for the second uncle to say anything else, immediately said:"

"Second uncle, I'm leaving now; I still need to go find Changliang to have him stockpile some food for the family."

"Having said that, Lu Yuan turned and left."

"As for the food matter, Lu Yuan didn't have any other thoughts."

"He didn't say he wanted to buy more, then wait for the grain control order to come down and sell at a high price."

"If he were to secretly sell it at a high price privately, that would be pure speculation and profiteering, and he would definitely be locked up."

"The most important thing is……"

"This matter, actually, is a bit like profiteering from a national disaster."

"Although Lu Yuan lacks morals and is not a good person."

"But there are some things that Lu Yuan can still see clearly."

"Don't get involved in this matter!"

"As long as my family has enough to eat and drink, I don't care about anything else."

"After all, Lu Yuan isn't short of money either!"

"After Lu Yuan left, Su Changyu also put on his clothes and came out."

"At this moment, the second uncle handed the two-thousand-yuan note to Su Changyu, then, while bending over and lifting his leg to put on his shoe, he raised his head to look at Su Changyu beside him and said angrily:"

"From now on, whatever your brother-in-law says goes—don't say so much!"

"Su Changyu said, feeling somewhat wronged:"

"I'm not afraid that my brother-in-law will spend too much money……"

"The second uncle glared and said:"

"What kind of person is your brother-in-law? He's so capable, his thoughts aren't any less than yours!"

"Come on, hurry up."

"........"

"In the coming week."

"Indeed, many major events occurred."

"The day after Lu Yuan finished buying grain, the grain control order was issued."

"From white flour to coarse cornmeal, even sweet potatoes and potatoes, all were listed in the grain control roster."

"From now on, each person's monthly food intake is fixed!"

"Calculated per person."

"In the city, cadres, teachers, doctors, and the like each receive 27 jin of grain per month."

"While rural cadres receive 33 jin of grain per month."

"Ordinary citizens receive 24 jin of grain per month."

"Children receive 15 jin of grain per month."

"For workers, special trades get 45 jin per month, heavy manual labor gets 37 jin per month."

"Ordinary manual laborers get about 30 jin."

"Light manual laborers get 27 jin."

"Lu Yuan's household has two people; Lu Yuan counts as a cadre, receiving 27 jin per month."

"While Su Liyan counts as a light manual laborer, also receiving 27 jin per month."

"In other words, Lu Yuan's household gets a total of 54 jin of grain per month."

"Don't think fifty-four jin is not much."

"The key is that this grain isn't just white flour, mixed flour, coarse cornmeal, etc."

"It also includes filler grains like sweet potatoes and potatoes."

"If it were an ordinary household, these two adults' fifty-four jin would truly not be enough to eat."

"Of course, Lu Yuan is not an ordinary household."

"That day, after informing Su Changliang, when he returned home in the evening, Lu Yuan bought several large bags of rice."

"Anyway, Lu Yuan's family has nothing to worry about."

But the people in this courtyard are not easy to talk about.

What to eat each day, how to eat—it really takes some planning.

Fortunately, most of the people in this courtyard are workers.

At noon, they have a meal in the factory cafeteria.

But if they weren't workers, it would indeed be a bit tough; by the end of the month, they might have to go borrow a bit from neighbors who have extra grain.

Of course, Lu Yuan doesn't care how others get by; anyway, his days are still filled with fish and meat.

Whenever he has free time, he keeps going out to eat.

Of course, eating out now costs much more.

Although the Imperial Court has added extra rations to these eateries, it's still far from enough.

Wanting to eat a meal of white noodles outside, the price has basically doubled.

But Lu Yuan has money, so it's no issue.

Just eat however you want.

When Lu Yuan has nothing to do, he takes the big scallion pancake his wife made for him, fills it with pork head meat and scallions, and goes out strolling while eating it.

Looking at the people in this siheyuan, it's pure hatred!!

……

Another day, morning.

Imperial Palace, Chonghua Hall.

Gu Qingwan finished approving the memorial submitted by the morning cabinet.

Leaning sideways on the dragon throne, she rubbed her eyes with her jade hand.

"Your Majesty, shall we go to the garden?"

The senior eunuch beside him handed over a bowl of silver ear soup and asked.

At this time, after the Emperor finishes the silver ear soup, he usually goes to the garden for a stroll to have a look.

Gu Qingwan closed her beautiful eyes and remained silent.

The garden—Gu Qingwan has really had enough of it……

These days…… to be honest…… Gu Qingwan actually misses Lu Yuan a bit……

Want to go see Lu Yuan……

Thanks to Old Brother Kan for the 1666 book coin reward, thank you very much~

Thanks to Old Brother Hu Wu Ke Lian for the 600 book coin reward, thank you very much~

Thanks to Old Brother Xing Yao Qian Huan for the 200 book coin reward, thank you very much~

Thanks to Old Brother Yi Shi Ying Ming Haha Ha for the 204 book coin reward, thank you very much~

Thanks to Old Brothers Huo Zhong Tan Shui Yu and XooX for the 100 book coin reward, thank you very much~

……

Oops, it's already 4 PM today, and I've only just updated a chapter.

(End of chapter)