过了忙碌的中秋节之后，丫鬟呈上了最近收到的礼单，李师师看了一遍，无意间找到了宁毅送过来的礼物，才想起两人倒是有一段时间未曾碰面了。
After the busy Mid-Autumn Festival, a maid presented the recently received gift list. Li Shishi glanced through it and inadvertently found the gift from Ning Yi, reminding her that it had been some time since they had last met.

她叫丫鬟将礼物找出来，礼物是一幅画，画的是中秋月圆，画作者叫做唐止规，乃是百年前的山水名家，想必这画值不少钱。稍稍看了一眼，师师让丫鬟收回去了。
She asked the maid to bring out the gift, which turned out to be a painting depicting the full moon of Mid-Autumn Festival. The artist, Tang Zhigui, was a renowned landscape painter from a century ago, suggesting the painting was quite valuable. After a brief look, Shishi instructed the maid to put it away.

值钱的画儿，代表的未必是心意，女孩子对这方面最是敏感。想到这里，对于宁毅，她便多少有些腹诽起来。
A valuable painting doesn't necessarily represent heartfelt intentions; girls are most sensitive about such things. Thinking of this, she harbored some resentment towards Ning Yi.

中秋佳节，矾楼之中生意繁忙，她预定好要参加的诗词聚会，要说话聊天谈心的客人也很多。清倌人的花魁，又不陪人睡觉，要么说在大场面上添添声色，要么就是单独聚会，给人一两个时辰的清净舒心。
During the Mid-Autumn Festival, Fanhua Brothel was bustling with business. She had scheduled poetry gatherings and had many guests wanting to talk and confide in her. As a "qingguanren" courtesan, she didn't sleep with clients, so she either added flair to grand occasions or held private gatherings to provide guests with an hour or two of peace and comfort.

见一个人，便是一两个时辰，参加一个聚会，时间便更长。京城之中，她得罪不起或者不想得罪的人，也是挺多的，就算把自己掰成两半，其实也不够用。而空闲的、或者可以挪出来的时间，她就全都投在了童舒儿的案子上，要么去到开封府打听案情，要么跟其余几个牵涉进来的姐妹碰碰头。这些女子并不都是矾楼的，但这一次算是烟花行业的同仇敌忾，师师并不管事，但在其中，也是重头中的重头。
Seeing one person took an hour or two, and attending a gathering took even longer. In the capital, there were quite a few people she couldn't afford or didn't want to offend, so even if she split herself in two, it wouldn't be enough. Any free time she had, or could make, she dedicated to Tong Shu'er's case, either inquiring about the case at Kaifeng Prefecture or meeting with the other involved sisters. These women weren't all from Fanhua Brothel, but this time it was a collective effort from the "fireworks" industry. Shishi wasn't in charge, but she was a key figure within it.

青楼女子要表达态度，当然不能聚个牌子满大街的抗议，那就是作死了。她们终究是通过各种各样的“朋友”表达不满，这些朋友涵盖官场权贵，商场豪绅，风流名士。
Courtesans couldn't express their stance by holding signs and protesting in the streets, that would be suicidal. They ultimately voiced their grievances through various "friends," who included government officials, wealthy merchants, and romantic scholars.

这段时间闹得沸沸扬扬以后，对于童舒儿命案，开封府尹那边的压力也是相当的大，另一边，那个作为凶手的吏部员外也颇有些关系，跑了好些个门路，塞钱送礼，上下活动。随后便有清流出来说，青楼女子竟敢对朝廷命案指手画脚，要挟民意，非得狠狠打打她们的气焰。师师她们倒也不怕，遇上大官了，做柔弱状向他们哭诉，然后又有文人士子私下撰文流传，要将吏部员外治罪，又要将那抛弃了童舒儿的负心汉钉上耻辱柱。物议汹涌中，两边终究还是形成了拉锯战，而且看起来，那个吏部员外，多半是逃不掉了。
After the uproar during this period, the pressure on the Kaifeng Prefect regarding Tong Shu'er's murder case was immense. On the other side, the Ministry of Personnel official, as the murderer, also had connections and was pulling strings, bribing officials, and lobbying up and down. Subsequently, some "qingliu" (pure stream) officials came out saying that courtesans dared to interfere in a state case and were coercing public opinion, and that their arrogance must be suppressed. Shishi and the others weren't afraid. When they encountered high-ranking officials, they feigned weakness and cried to them. Then, scholars secretly wrote and circulated articles to condemn the Ministry of Personnel official and to nail the heartless man who abandoned Tong Shu'er to the pillar of shame. Amidst the public clamor, a tug-of-war eventually formed, and it seemed that the Ministry of Personnel official would likely not escape punishment.

对这类事情，师师她们原也不必去到开封府听审案，但是审案之时到了场，还是令师师感受到一种愉悦。她们终究是在做很好的事情嘛，大家都来帮忙，才有这样的结果，开封府虽然一再拖延判案的时间，但终究是包庇不了坏蛋，拖不到地老天荒去的！
For such matters, Shishi and the others originally didn't need to attend the trial at Kaifeng Prefecture, but being present at the trial still made Shishi feel a sense of joy. After all, they were doing a good thing, and only with everyone's help could such a result be achieved. Although Kaifeng Prefecture repeatedly delayed the sentencing, it ultimately couldn't protect the villain and couldn't drag it out forever!

而真到这个时候，才多少能够看清楚谁是朋友。自从得知她关系童舒儿的案子之后，不少以前认识的才子都过来了，帮忙写东西，出主意，一些在衙门当差的，也来表示了愤慨，有的估计也在暗中推动了对那吏部员外的定罪。不过这个时候，宁毅却没有来，让她想起来时，多少有些不是滋味。
Only at this time could she truly see who her friends were. Since learning of her involvement in Tong Shu'er's case, many of her former scholar acquaintances had come to help write, offer ideas, and some officials expressed their indignation, and some were probably secretly pushing for the conviction of the Ministry of Personnel official. However, Ning Yi didn't come at this time, which made her feel somewhat uncomfortable when she thought about it.

当然，她知道宁毅是来过两次的，当时恰巧都遇上了她有事，回来得丫鬟通知后，对方又已经走了。这多少显得有些没诚意：我没空，你可以等等啊。另外，自己单独见客时固然没法出来，若是在某处参加诗会，以你这种大才子的身份，真要进去莫非还有人挡着不成？简直像是在吝啬他的几首诗一般。
Of course, she knew that Ning Yi had come twice, but both times it happened that she was busy, and by the time she returned after being notified by the maid, he had already left. This seemed somewhat insincere: "I'm not available, you could wait." Besides, she couldn't come out when she was seeing guests privately, but if she was attending a poetry gathering somewhere, with your status as a great talent, would anyone really stop you from entering? It was as if he was being stingy with his poems.

往日里还不太熟的时候，她多少觉得宁毅的性格古怪，到得这半年多相对频繁的来往相处，对于宁毅的性格，她就从古怪变得习惯了。那家伙最近老想着做生意，每一首诗都要拿去配一栋竹记的分店——师师从没见过对诗词如此“吝啬”的才子，偏生他的诗词又真正的让人欲罢不能，到得最后，只能认为他在作诗这件事上，稍微有点“懒”。
When they weren't very familiar in the past, she found Ning Yi's personality somewhat strange. But after more frequent interactions over the past six months, she had grown accustomed to his strangeness. That guy was always thinking about doing business lately, wanting to match every poem with a Bamboo Branch Store branch - Shishi had never seen a talent so "stingy" with his poetry, but his poems were truly irresistible. In the end, she could only assume that he was a bit "lazy" when it came to writing poetry.

大家当朋友，这倒也不算是什么受不了的性格，熟了以后反倒觉得有趣。平日里宁毅若在忙碌之中，打个招呼说几句话就走，师师也觉得寻常，因为她原本就性情豁达，唯有最近这段时间的事情，对方竟没来参加，让她多多少少的，有了些怨气。
As friends, this wasn't an unbearable personality trait, and it became quite interesting after getting to know him better. If Ning Yi was busy, he would just say hello and leave after a few words, which Shishi found normal because she was naturally open-minded. But it was the fact that he hadn't participated in recent events that made her feel somewhat resentful.

不久之后，那怨念又增加了些许。
Soon after, that resentment increased slightly.

那是中秋过后两天，于和中与陈思丰结伴过来看她，对比一下，这份心意便着实让师师感到有些温暖。其实于和中与陈思丰两人现在也都在京城里当官，虽然都是小官，但官员当中，京官最为尊贵，旁人想当都当不到，不过由于平日里接触的多是地位更高之人，师师对于两人的身份，倒还仅止于童年好友的范畴，说起宁毅时，陈思丰有些冷笑地摇头：“立恒他，未免有些太看重钱了……”
Two days after Mid-Autumn Festival, Yu Hezhong and Chen Sifeng came to see her together. In comparison, this gesture truly made Shishi feel somewhat warm. In fact, Yu Hezhong and Chen Sifeng were both officials in the capital now. Although they were minor officials, capital officials were the most prestigious among officials, and others couldn't even dream of becoming one. However, because she usually interacted with people of higher status, Shishi still viewed them only as childhood friends. When Ning Yi was mentioned, Chen Sifeng shook his head with a cold smile: "Liheng, he values money a bit too much..."

两人之中，陈思丰颇有傲气，于和中则稍微好些，但对于宁毅所作所为，两人都是没法理解的。随后又陆陆续续说起一些事情：“听说，南北两边都在闹粮荒。”
Among the two, Chen Sifeng was quite arrogant, while Yu Hezhong was slightly better, but they both couldn't understand Ning Yi's actions. They then spoke about some things one after another: "I heard that there are grain shortages in both the north and south."

“米价涨太高了，不过，竹记最近也在收粮吧……”
"Rice prices are too high, but Bamboo Branch Store has been buying grain recently, right..."

“其实京里京外的，最近都不太平，部里的气氛，也不怎么轻松……”
"Actually, things haven't been peaceful in or outside the capital lately. The atmosphere in the departments isn't very relaxed either..."

“听说右相府公器私用，要将朝廷的资源拿来做生意，冲的就是这次粮价飞涨。结果物议汹汹，最近几天就有好些官员被摘了帽子了，两位相爷都很有准备，但我认识的那些御史清流们，最近也有点动静，我在想啊，会不会又要闹出问题来了。”
"I heard that the Right Chancellor's mansion is abusing its power, using government resources for business, targeting this soaring grain price. As a result, public opinion is in an uproar, and several officials have been dismissed in the past few days. The two Chancellors were well-prepared, but the Censorate and "qingliu" officials I know have also been making moves recently. I'm wondering if there's going to be trouble again."

“御史中丞秦大人与右相是本家啊，打不起来吧？”
"Censor-in-Chief Qin is from the same family as the Right Chancellor, they shouldn't fight, right?"

“难说，秦中丞性格刚直，去年的时候他连蔡太师敢参……”
"Hard to say, Censor Qin is upright. He even dared to impeach Grand Tutor Cai last year..."

作为底层官员，他们虽然接触不到上层，但对于风向变幻却颇为敏感，多少感受到了一点山雨欲来的气息。师师这边则记下了粮荒的事情，从某种意义上来说，趁着粮价飞涨赚钱，是所有商人都会做的，若是说宁毅最近都在忙碌此事，并不是不能理解。
As lower-level officials, they didn't have access to the upper echelons, but they were quite sensitive to shifts in the political winds and felt a hint of an impending storm. Shishi noted the grain shortage. In a sense, taking advantage of soaring grain prices to make money was what all merchants would do, so it wasn't incomprehensible that Ning Yi had been busy with this recently.

但那可是饥荒啊，这等时候，怎么能只想着赚钱呢……
But it's a famine! How can one only think about making money at such a time...?

心中是这样想，又知道这等想法在许多人看来，多少有些天真。此后几天里，在关注着童舒儿案进展的同时，她也略略打听了南北两面的灾荒情况，与她来往的人中也有些了解内情的，说了今年的受灾状况，而后商贩们囤积粮食，抬高粮价，已经将范围扩大到南北好几路的程度！人们说起这事，多半也要叹一口气，今年多半有不少人要死了，随后又说起那些囤粮者的毫无人性。
That's what she thought in her heart, but she knew that such an idea seemed somewhat naive to many people. In the following days, while keeping an eye on the progress of Tong Shu'er's case, she also inquired about the famine situation in the north and south. Some of the people she interacted with had inside information and spoke about the disaster situation this year. Then, merchants hoarded grain and raised prices, expanding the scope to several routes in the north and south! When people talked about this, they mostly sighed, saying that many people would probably die this year, and then they talked about the inhumanity of those hoarding grain.

如此一致到八月二十二的这天，第一轮的忙碌过后，晚上恰好空出些时间来，师师跟李蕴告了假，离开矾楼去宁府拜访。登门之时遇上苏文定，才知道宁毅还在竹记处理事情，她于是又折回竹记，通报过后，一名掌柜的请了她进去，让她在偏厅等等，道是东家正在开会，待会出来：“东家方才还说了，正好找师师姑娘也有些事情。”
This went on until the 22nd of August. After the first round of busyness, she happened to have some free time in the evening. Shishi asked Li Yun for leave and left Fanhua Brothel to visit the Ning residence. Upon arrival, she met Su Wending and learned that Ning Yi was still handling matters at Bamboo Branch Store. So she returned to Bamboo Branch Store, and after announcing herself, a shopkeeper invited her in, asking her to wait in the side hall, saying that the owner was in a meeting and would come out later: "The owner just said that he also has some things to discuss with Miss Shishi."

师师便在偏厅里坐下来了。
Shishi sat down in the side hall.

***************

同一时刻，矾楼外的街道上，一名穿戴华贵的男子挥着折扇，在夜色中信步而行。在他的身后，跟着马车以及多名随从。
At the same time, on the street outside Fanhua Brothel, a richly dressed man waved a folding fan, strolling in the night. Behind him followed a carriage and several attendants.

手中摇着折扇，看着一路而来这繁华的情景，男子的脸上露出的是淡淡的笑容，他偏头对身边的人低声说道：“杜成喜啊，朕，有时候在宫墙上往外看看，那一片灯火繁华，但总还是觉得高处不胜寒，只有每次出宫之时，置身于这繁华之中，才觉得，这才是京城该有的样子，就像是朕最近读到的诗词，一夜鱼龙舞啊……好，到了，我们进去吧。”
Waving the folding fan in his hand, looking at the prosperous scene all the way, a faint smile appeared on the man's face. He turned his head and whispered to the person beside him: "Du Chengxi, sometimes We look out from the palace walls, at that expanse of bright lights, but We always feel that it's lonely at the top. Only when We leave the palace and immerse Ourselves in this prosperity do We feel that this is what the capital should be like, like the poem We recently read, 'A night of fish and dragon dance'... Alright, We're here, let's go in."

此时出现在这里的，乃是微服出宫的景翰帝周喆。最近这段时间，朝堂上酝酿着一丝不和谐的气氛，若在平时他多少会有些烦，但近期对北方战事的顺利，将他心头的阴霾一扫而空。他以轻松的心态看着这一切的发展，又抽出了时间出来散散心。矾楼已经不是第一次来了，上次来没有见到李师师，让他觉得有些遗憾，这一次若能见见，想必会心情不错。
Appearing here at this time was Emperor Jinghan Zhou Zhe, who had left the palace incognito. Recently, an atmosphere of discord had been brewing in the court. Normally, he would have been somewhat annoyed, but the recent success of the war in the north swept away the haze in his heart. He watched the development of everything with a relaxed attitude and took the time to relax. This wasn't his first time at Fanhua Brothel. He felt some regret for not seeing Li Shishi last time, and he thought he would be in a good mood if he could see her this time.

不过这一次，对方又不在矾楼。认出这位是上次高太尉带来的皇家贵胄，妈妈李蕴连忙出来，拼命道歉。周喆倒是颇有气度的，挥挥手表示并不在意，便叫了另一名花魁作伴。
However, she wasn't at Fanhua Brothel this time either. Recognizing this person as the royal aristocrat brought by Grand Commandant Gao last time, Mama Li Yun quickly came out and apologized profusely. Zhou Zhe was quite gracious, waving his hand to indicate that he didn't mind and called for another courtesan to accompany him.

周喆并不常来矾楼，但看李妈妈的姿态，他显然身份绝高，楼中的一些丫鬟私下里便议论起来。待到不久之后，周喆出来时，却无意间听到了两名丫鬟的对话：“那说起来，师师姑娘今天是去哪里了啊？”
Zhou Zhe didn't often come to Fanhua Brothel, but judging from Mama Li's demeanor, he was obviously of extremely high status. Some of the maids in the brothel privately discussed it. After a while, when Zhou Zhe came out, he inadvertently overheard a conversation between two maids: "Speaking of which, where did Miss Shishi go today?"

“听说是去找宁毅宁公子了，你也知道，他们儿时便是朋友嘛……关系挺亲热的。”
"I heard she went to find Ning Yi, the Ning公子, you know, they were childhood friends... their relationship is quite close."

周喆皱了皱眉，随后便对着身边的********杜成喜笑了起来：“杜成喜啊，这个宁毅宁立恒哪，可不简单哦。”
Zhou Zhe frowned, then smiled at the eunuch Du Chengxi beside him: "Du Chengxi, this Ning Yi, Ning Liheng, is not simple."

杜成喜皱眉道：“小的知道，皇……老爷方才吟的那句诗，是他作的。”
Du Chengxi frowned and said: "This humble one knows, the poem that Your... Master just recited was written by him."

“哎，不是这事。”周喆笑着，“我上次来啊，这位师师姑娘便是去替什么竹记做表演去了，这竹记就是他家开的。也就是说，这位宁公子，两次抢走了朕看上的女子，难道还不厉害？哈哈……”
"Hey, it's not about that." Zhou Zhe smiled, "Last time I came, this Miss Shishi went to perform for some Bamboo Branch Store, which is opened by his family. In other words, this Ning公子 has snatched the woman We fancied twice, isn't that amazing? Haha..."

他这样说着，声音却不高，走出一步，回头看看杜成喜的表情，才陡然皱起眉头来：“你啊，不要露出这种样子！不要因为这种事找人的麻烦！才子佳人，风流佳话，自古皆然，我只是闲暇时出来寻点乐子，他又不知道，这能算得了什么事！跟你说，这宁立恒乃是右相手下得力的人，是个人才！这也是我跟他的缘分哪……好了，忘了这事，你当……朕是昏君么？”
He said this, but his voice wasn't loud. He took a step, looked back at Du Chengxi's expression, and then frowned suddenly: "You, don't make that face! Don't cause trouble for people because of this! Talented scholars and beautiful ladies, romantic stories, have always been the case. I just came out to have some fun in my spare time, and he doesn't know, what does it matter! Let me tell you, this Ning Liheng is a capable person under the Right Chancellor, a talent! This is also My缘分 with him... Alright, forget about this, do you think... I am a foolish ruler?"

再度压低声音说了最后那句，他转身露出了笑容，回去陪佳人去了……
Having said the last sentence again in a low voice, he turned around, smiled, and went back to accompany the beauty...

***************

竹记，摇曳着灯火的大房间，二十余人聚集其中，看着正前方黑板上的一张大地图，宁毅还在上面一面说一面圈圈点点，这边的掌柜，低声跟宁毅说了一句话，却是：“师师姑娘要走了。”
Bamboo Branch Store, a large room with flickering lights, with more than twenty people gathered inside, looking at a large map on the blackboard in front of them. Ning Yi was still talking and circling on it. The shopkeeper on this side whispered something to Ning Yi, which was: "Miss Shishi is leaving."

“嗯？”宁毅眨了眨眼睛，随后看看众人，“有点事，先出去一下，待会回来我们继续说，不二，怠慢了。”房间的末端，今天才回京的闻人不二其实也在听他说事情，此时笑着向他拱了拱手。
"Hmm?" Ning Yi blinked, then looked at everyone, "Something came up, I'll go out for a moment, we'll continue later when I come back, Bu'er, sorry for the interruption." At the end of the room, Wenren Bu'er, who had just returned to the capital today, was actually listening to him talk about things, and at this time smiled and cupped his hands at him.

宁毅与那掌柜追出去：“还没有走远吧？”
Ning Yi and the shopkeeper chased out: "She hasn't gone far, right?"

“方才说，应该还没走远。”
"She said just now, she shouldn't have gone far."

“真是……正好有事要拜托她，干脆叫她一起进来听算了……”
"Really... I happen to have something to ask her, might as well ask her to come in and listen..."

宁毅低声说着，快步走出去，快到竹记的侧门时，才赶上师师与她的丫鬟：“李师师，等等，这么快就走，我正好找你有事……”
Ning Yi said in a low voice, and walked out quickly. When he was near the side door of Bamboo Branch Store, he caught up with Shishi and her maid: "Li Shishi, wait, leaving so soon? I happen to have something to discuss with you..."

师师那边露出一个为难而又迷人的笑容：“今日只是路过这里，顺道过来看看，立恒你有事先去忙，我这边也得快点赶回去了。”
Shishi showed a troubled yet charming smile: "I was just passing by here today, so I came to take a look. Liheng, you go and take care of your business first, I need to hurry back as well."

“哦……”宁毅怔了怔，随后也点了点头，“那……真是怠慢了，我下次找你。”
"Oh..." Ning Yi was stunned for a moment, then nodded, "Then... I'm really sorry, I'll find you next time."

“好。”师师盈盈一礼，朝门外走去。
"Okay." Shishi bowed gracefully and walked towards the door.

待到出了门，街市上的灯火照过来，她脸上的笑容才收敛起来，叹了口气，旁边的丫鬟听她轻轻叹道：“既然有事，却不说明日找我，后日找我，只说下次……唉……”
After leaving the door, the lights of the market shone over, and the smile on her face faded. She sighed, and the maid beside her heard her sigh softly: "Since you have something to discuss, why not say 'find me tomorrow' or 'find me the day after tomorrow,' but only say 'next time'... Alas..."

*******************

另一边，宁毅皱着眉头，快步返回房间里，继续与众人看那张被圈起来的大地图。
On the other side, Ning Yi frowned, quickly returned to the room, and continued to look at the circled map with everyone.

“……我们继续说，在这里的各家各户，都有他们不同的情况，我今天在这里例举出来的，只是一些想当然的方法，真正如何去说服他们，需要的是你们的随机应变，而随机应变的基础，还是应该建立在情报上。从这张图上看起来，还有相当一部分可以拜访的人，被你们暂时的遗漏掉了。当然，时间虽然并不充分，我还是提倡一步一个脚印，只要是去拜访了的，话要说透，工作要做扎实，不要去过了就算，要有效率，如果他们只能忍受你一次的说话，那么你的这次说话，一定要很有质量……”
"...Let's continue. Each household here has their own unique circumstances. The methods I've listed here today are just some assumptions. How to truly persuade them requires your improvisation, and the foundation of improvisation should still be based on intelligence. Looking at this map, a considerable number of people who could be visited have been temporarily overlooked by you. Of course, although time is not sufficient, I still advocate taking one step at a time. As long as you visit, you need to explain things thoroughly and do solid work. Don't just go through the motions; you need to be efficient. If they can only tolerate you speaking once, then your speech must be of high quality..."

大大的地图上，标出的是汴梁附近方圆几百公里的地形，范围超过后世的一个多省，上面又标有大大小小的点和圈，这是汴梁附近，但凡家中土地超过一千亩的地主的位置，而这样的人，在地图上有两百多个。但由于汴梁是富人聚居的地方，在汴梁城中定居，土地却在外地的人，并没有算。
The large map marked the terrain of hundreds of kilometers around Bianliang, an area larger than a modern province. It was marked with dots and circles of various sizes, indicating the locations of landlords near Bianliang with more than a thousand acres of land in their families, and there were more than two hundred such people on the map. However, since Bianliang was a place where the rich gathered, people who lived in Bianliang but had land elsewhere were not counted.

“情况其实是不乐观的……”待到与众人说完了，议论完了，时间已经不早，宁毅才跟闻人不二在一边轻声说起整个事情的进展，“十多天的时间，真正确定下来的，只有大概六千石左右的粮食，而加上有意向的，大概可以达到两万石，但首先攻坚的是最容易的，接下来要扩大，难度就提高了……”
"The situation is actually not optimistic..." After he had finished talking with everyone and they had finished discussing, it was already late. Ning Yi then whispered to Wenren Bu'er aside about the progress of the whole matter: "In more than ten days, only about six thousand shi of grain have been truly secured, and with those who have expressed interest, it can probably reach twenty thousand shi. But the easiest to conquer are tackled first, and it will be more difficult to expand next..."

他叹了口气，其实五千石一万石的粮食，说起来似乎不怎么多，但帐却并不好算。
He sighed. In fact, five thousand or ten thousand shi of grain didn't seem like much, but the calculation wasn't easy.

以如今的情况来说，此时武朝的土地亩产，大概是一百多斤的样子，分出去给佃农的，地主拿到手的每亩进账，其实也就是半石多一点。家里一千亩土地的大地主，一年可以有六百石的粮食，吃是无论如何吃不完的，囤积几年，千亩土地的地主，拿出一千石来，其实通常没什么压力。
Under the current circumstances, the yield per mu of land in the Wu Dynasty at this time was about one hundred jin. After deducting what was given to the tenant farmers, the landlord's income per mu was actually just over half a shi. A large landlord with a thousand mu of land could have six hundred shi of grain a year, which they could never finish eating no matter what. After hoarding it for a few years, a landlord with a thousand mu of land could take out a thousand shi without much pressure.

事实上，如今的武朝商业虽然发达，但这一个半省的范围内，有一种情况，是频繁出现的：在这些大地主之中，至少有一半以上，他们不卖粮，当粮食在仓库里储存到发霉的时候，他们会拿到田地里一把火烧掉。
In fact, although commerce was developed in the Wu Dynasty now, there was a situation that frequently occurred in this area of one and a half provinces: among these large landlords, at least more than half of them did not sell grain. When the grain was stored in the warehouse until it became moldy, they would take it to the fields and burn it in a fire.

在许多地方没有粮食卖的情况下，以火烧的方式解决粮食储存问题，说明很大的一片地方上，存粮是有的。但在另一方面，宁愿烧掉，也不会以出售的方式解决掉它们，就足以证明自我封闭观念的牢固，当然，这其中还有其它的理由：例如没有渠道，又例如厌恶经商。
The fact that they solved the problem of grain storage by burning it when there was no grain for sale in many places showed that there were grain reserves in a large area. But on the other hand, the fact that they would rather burn it than solve it by selling it was enough to prove the firmness of their self-enclosed mindset. Of course, there were other reasons for this: for example, they had no channels, or they disliked doing business.

只有“没有渠道”这一种情况是最好解决的。而在这两百多户人家中，有一小半——通常还是粮食最多的人——竹记是说不动他们的，他们有自己的渠道和方式，剩下的人当中，又有一半是性格顽固，绝对无法说服的，再加上其他的许多问题，最后宁毅预期的成果，并不会太多。
Only the situation of "no channels" was the easiest to solve. Among these two hundred households, a small portion - usually the people with the most grain - Bamboo Branch Store couldn't persuade them. They had their own channels and methods. Among the remaining people, half were stubborn and absolutely impossible to persuade. With many other problems on top of that, the results Ning Yi expected in the end wouldn't be too many.

“……最理想的状态，在明年有东西吃之前，我们要撬动的粮食，至少是五十万石往上，竹记这边，我觉得能搞定五万石，应该是可以预期的，十万石就没什么可能了，而在外面，秦相的关系、康驸马他的关系，年公他们的关系，还有觉明大师这些人加起来，能不能说动四十五万石，我觉得……不容易。”
"...In the most ideal state, before there is something to eat next year, the grain we need to leverage is at least five hundred thousand shi or more. On the Bamboo Branch Store side, I think we can secure fifty thousand shi, which should be expected. One hundred thousand shi is unlikely. And outside, can the relationships of Chancellor Qin, Consort Kang, Duke Nian, and Master Jueming and others combined persuade four hundred and fifty thousand shi? I think... it won't be easy."

虽然宁毅说竹记是小
Although Ning Yi said Bamboo Branch Store was small

头，但这样的遍地开花，其实是有效率的。秦相他们面子大，也许可以说动几个三五千石甚至上万石的大地主，但真正能够触及的数量，却又有限。宁毅说了这些，闻人不二点了点头：“另外，官场这边，听说也不太平……他们开始要围攻秦相了……”
though small in scale, such a widespread approach was actually efficient. Chancellor Qin and the others had great influence and might be able to persuade a few large landlords with three or five thousand shi or even tens of thousands of shi, but the actual number they could reach was limited. After Ning Yi said this, Wenren Bu'er nodded: "Also, I heard that things aren't peaceful in the officialdom either... They're starting to attack Chancellor Qin..."

宁毅摇摇头：“这个我倒不担心，老人家那边，是有准备的，我们看他表演就好……”他顿了顿，“其实，闻人啊，我最担心的事情，还没有到呢……”
Ning Yi shook his head: "I'm not worried about that. The old man is prepared for it, we can just watch him perform..." He paused, "Actually, Wenren, the thing I'm most worried about hasn't come yet..."

商人逐利，受灾地区在屯粮，这一边，也是另一种模式的屯粮，此时两边各做各的，还谁都没有惊动。一旦粮食进入灾区，真正的在商业上开始打压价格，那个时候，被损害了利益的各类人群，才会真正前仆后继地跳出来。
Merchants pursue profits, and the disaster-stricken areas are hoarding grain. This side is also hoarding grain in another form. At this time, both sides are doing their own thing, and no one has been alarmed yet. Once the grain enters the disaster area and the prices are truly suppressed commercially, then all kinds of people whose interests have been harmed will truly jump out one after another.

而在这之前，就在八月下旬，一场规模不小的官场风暴酝酿完毕，开始在朝堂之中爆发开来。两名丞相与御史清流之间的战争，在一片混乱中看似突兀地展开了……
Before that, in late August, a significant political storm had been brewing and began to erupt in the court. The war between the two Chancellors and the "qingliu" officials of the Censorate seemed to unfold abruptly amidst the chaos...

这一切，许许多多的人，暂时并没有太大的感觉。只是在这天晚上，李师师照例的失眠，她看着月亮，心中能够明白，这个朋友变质了。
Many people, for the time being, didn't feel much about all of this. But on this night, Li Shishi, as usual, suffered from insomnia. She looked at the moon