The man who has traveled through time and space for a long time is so scary

Chapter 194 A policy of keeping the people ignorant?

Shen Wen was looking through the account books while waiting for someone in the backyard of the cloth shop. About half an hour later, Manager Wu came in from the back door with three people.

"Sir, the person is here!" the steward stepped forward to report.

"Okay, let them in and bring some tea for them!" Shen Wen put away the account book and gave the order.

"Okay!" Manager Wu stepped out for a moment and then led the person in front of his young master.

"Please take a seat, gentlemen. Have a cup of tea first, and then we can chat like friends. My last name is Shen." Shen Wen poured a cup of tea for all three of them before introducing himself.

"Hello, Mr. Shen. I am Xie Baiyang."

"I am Zhang Kangning"

"My name is Luo Wenxuan"

"They are all good names, showing that they have a family tradition of learning," Shen Wen smiled kindly.

"You are too kind, sir. I am still a student in the academy and have no achievements." Xie Baiyang said modestly. His words were unanimously nodded in agreement by the other two people, who were also students of the academy.

"I heard that you went to the government office to sign up to be a literacy teacher that day, but were told that the quota was full?" Seeing that the three of them were no longer reserved, Shen Wen asked directly.

"Yes, I heard the news and went there the next morning, but when I got there I was told that the quota was full!" Zhang Kangning replied.

"Me too."

"That's the case with me."

"Which adult did you ask this to?" Shen Wen asked again.

"No, sir. We entered the yamen and just explained our purpose, but we were chased away by the bailiffs, saying that the quota was full and asked to go back!" Luo Wenxuan replied.

"Have you heard of anyone who has successfully registered?" Shen Wenxuan continued to ask.

"We heard from each other that the quota is full!" said Zhang Kangning.

"Have you ever seen anyone organizing people to learn to read? Or discussing the issue of competition rewards?" Shen Wen continued to ask.

"That's true. I didn't even see the notice with my own eyes. It wasn't listed in the newspaper, and then it was dropped and I didn't care about it anymore." Xie Baiyang replied.

"Okay, thank you very much for answering my questions. Let me make a few points now. First, the character recognition contest will be held for half a year, twice a month, that is, on the first and fifteenth day of the lunar month. Second, there is no limit on the number of readers for the character recognition contest. This is a nationwide campaign to eliminate illiteracy. There is no news of military service epidemic in Shu. You can choose to go or not. It is voluntary to sign up. The people of Jincheng are very enthusiastic about joining the army. They believe that one person joins the army, and the whole family is honored! Now I think you all know why it has become like this. Someone must be playing tricks!" Shen Wen explained the matter clearly, and he asked them to spread these things. They only needed to keep the fact of meeting him secret, and everything else was up to them.

"Oh, so that's why. But why would the people in the county government do this?" Xie Baiyang asked puzzledly.

"..." Zhang Kangning and Luo Wenxuan also had puzzled expressions.

"Someone must want to gain profit from this. For example, the rewards for the literacy contest and the daily wages of literacy teachers. If these are fraudulent means of obtaining the prince's allocated silver and materials, the money and grain will be allocated, but the people are still illiterate and cannot even understand the government notices. They are just being deceived, just like now people can gain unfair benefits under the pretext of military service." Shen Wen connected all the connections between the things. It is very likely that the people in the county government are using a policy of keeping the people ignorant. The dumber the people are, the easier it is for them to control them. It is also possible that there are people behind the scenes with other intentions.

"Ah? Isn't this just fooling the people..." The three scholars were angry.

"It is very likely that there are other purposes. Here, I ask all the students and the people around you to publicize the facts, but remember not to confront the government office yourself. The government office has its own people from the prince to come forward. This is the only way to ensure the safety of the people. Is it possible?" Shen Wen made such arrangements. He was basically sure of what was going on. The only thing he was not sure about was who was involved. It seemed that there was a tough battle to fight. These black-hearted people exploited the people like this. Aren't they afraid of causing civil unrest? Maybe it was intentional?

"Yes!" the three scholars answered affirmatively.

"Well done! If you encounter any difficulties, please come to the cloth shop privately and leave a letter. I will arrange for someone to stay in Doucheng and be responsible for contacting you! The literacy contest must be held. National literacy will benefit the people and the country." Shen Wen arranged these and left first. He wanted to go back to find his second brother and ask him to start an investigation in the dark department to find out who is responsible so as to uproot them and deal with them all at once.

After Hua Heng returned to the inn and reported the situation to Nan Chen in detail, he was asked by Nan Chen to stay in the inn and pretend to rest. He would leave in a big way tomorrow so that he could arrange for someone to investigate secretly. If he guessed correctly, the enemy had been alerted and nothing would be found out today. So it was better to keep the troops in place for now. He had to go out at night.

Yanan could never have imagined that she would wake up to a completely different world after sleeping for a while, and she couldn't even go out! She felt helpless about such a trip. When Hua Heng explained it to her, she was stunned. What kind of world is this? Can people still act independently?! Shouldn't it be normal for people to pass orders from top to bottom? What's going on here? There is no Chinese character recognition contest, and people can decide on their own about military service?! It's really eye-opening. Once the truth is exposed, won't there be chaos everywhere?

"Husband, what should we do? We don't have enough manpower now!" Yanan was worried that she would be surrounded and what to do if she couldn't win?

"Not yet. We will pretend that we don't know and put it aside for now. We still need time to investigate the evidence!" Hua Heng was not worried, but he made the people suffer. He wondered in his heart if the bandits on the way today were also related. "Second brother, pass the information to the Anbu and have someone carry out the mission."

"You need to send a message and wait until you go out at night. I'm afraid someone is watching your every move. Besides, whether there are similar things happening in the surrounding cities needs to be investigated. Tomorrow we will eat and drink, stop and walk along the way to Mianzhou to divert their attention so that the Anbu will have time to investigate." Nanchen made the arrangements calmly. He himself did not expect that this trip would involve investigating a case, but he felt sorry for his wife.

"That means there's a high possibility that we've been targeted by someone?" Yanan felt a little embarrassed, as if her premonition had come true. She was afraid of being surrounded, but was it possible that she would actually be surrounded?

"Haha, at most they're just watching secretly, they won't do anything. Those who have ulterior motives and are greedy are more afraid of death!" Nanchen could still speak with a smile at this moment, which shows how strong his heart is.

"Second Young Master, the Fourth Young Master said he has checked into the inn across the street. Here is the letter he wrote to you." A guard knocked on the door while they were talking. They had booked this inn, and all the people inside were their own people. Why was the Fourth Young Master still staying outside? He must have noticed something unusual, so he did this.

"Okay, go back and protect your master, and don't reveal your whereabouts." Nanchen said this casually after taking the letter, and then read it carefully.

"What's written in it?" Yanan asked hurriedly when she saw him looking at the letter without saying anything.

"Old Four has more information than us. You two should take a look together!" Nanchen handed over the letter.

"This is really shameless. Everything goes into these people's pockets. Damn it!" Hua Heng and Yanan were furious after reading the letter!

"You two don't go anywhere at home. I'll have someone come to deliver the goods. Just ask them to buy about ten or eight kilograms. I need to go out for a while and will be back soon!" Nanchen felt that he could not sit still any longer and had to find a way to get out. He went to greet the innkeeper and asked him to arrange all the servants to go to the street to inform the local specialties and specialty merchants, and have the merchants deliver the goods to the inn for people to choose and pay. Ten or eight kilograms is no problem. He will give the servants a reward of one or two taels for completing this task. The innkeeper and the servants were all excited. There was such a good thing, so the ten servants set off excitedly. The noise was very loud and attracted attention, which probably distracted a lot of people. Nanchen took the opportunity to find a hidden corner and leave the inn. He wanted to contact the Anbu and ask them to bring people to handle the case overnight.

Such an unexpected move really made everyone confused. What was he doing? They were busy chasing the servants, but found that they were all running to the streets and alleys, running to the local shops with some small reputations. Then they saw that all the shops, big and small, were dragging bags of goods on carts and running towards the inn. Were they afraid that they would not be able to do business if they were late? My goodness, there were even food stalls opened in front of the inn? A row of food stalls, and the nearby residents were very surprised. A food street at the doorstep! Anyone who doesn't visit is a fool!

As a result, this temporary food street was surprisingly popular, especially for the guests in the inn, who stopped at every stall, saving them time for shopping! After tasting, they chatted with the shopkeepers, eating freshly made food, and took some away after tasting. As long as they liked the dried fruits and dried goods, they would weigh several kilograms of them if they could tell the origin. This also made the shopkeepers who came to set up stalls feel strange, how could there be such a shopping hobby. Buying things and asking people to tell stories? This also reminded the smart shopkeepers to realize that giving the things in their stores a historical origin and cultural heritage can attract more people to buy. People have the instinct to pursue profit, and how to make a better name, increase sales, and make more profits will naturally be understood.

Some people who have no education and can't speak can only pat their thighs secretly, saying that they have suffered a loss, and they have suffered a loss because they have not been educated! This is exactly what Zhonghua Heng and his friends want. They are busy talking about the word recognition competition. Knowing words and doing things are not in conflict. How can they not speak well if they know more words and practice more? They are sent by the prince to deliver enlightenment books to various places. The prince wants everyone to know how to read, so that it will be beneficial to both business and farming in the future. He said that he would encourage everyone to actively participate. For example, Jincheng has been in full swing, and even street homeless people are learning words with the crowd. For the prize of food, cloth and meat, they should learn hundreds of words!

As for the expressions of the people who heard it, they didn't care for the time being, and continued to happily visit the next stall. As long as you plant a seed of doubt in people, they will naturally figure out what's going on based on clues. The information has been passed down, but someone is holding back and not doing it. What's going on? Anyone who is not stupid can figure it out!

The temporary street stalls were set up until it was completely dark, and then they gradually closed their stalls and went home. To be honest, the sales in just an hour were enough to last for a whole day, and everyone was happy. Nanchen also came back, and the servants in the inn were very happy to receive the silver. They served even more attentively, and answered all the gossips. The dry goods that could be kept were loaded onto the carriage, and all the food was left for everyone to have as dinner!

This inn is bustling outside and then inside, which makes people confused and frankly incomprehensible. The county magistrate listened to the report from the visitor and smiled meaningfully. The more this happened, the more relieved his master was...