In present-day China, nearly all grain must be obtained through Shen Feng of Yuzhou. Otherwise, they would be unable to acquire sufficient food. However, this also presents a problem: if Shen Feng were to hoard the grain, they would be powerless. They could not possibly fight Shen Feng, as his special ability could easily destroy a city.
If he wished to destroy a city, he only needed to summon a typhoon to hover above it. When countless torrential rains fell from the sky, due to the Earth being in an ice age, the temperature would be extremely low. This would sometimes result in scenes of a thousand miles of ice. If anyone were walking outside, they would freeze to death instantly, and even houses could very well be turned into ice sculptures.
If anyone were to offend him at this time, it would be tantamount to seeking death. This is because a single downpour on the ground could destroy an entire city, leaving countless people displaced. Therefore, it was also unrealistic to try and seize grain from him.
Thus, after much deliberation, many regions could only reluctantly make one decision: to seize grain from the cities below them.
If they did this, things would inevitably look bad, and everyone would lose face. But if they did not do this, they would ultimately regret it, because doing nothing would mean the complete disappearance of their power in the future.
"There is no other way. Even if we know this is a scheme, even if we know it is an open stratagem, we have no choice. We must seize the grain. Only by doing so can we continue to hold power and issue commands to other cities under our jurisdiction!" Ultimately, these people made the bitter decision to seize the grain of others.
Thus, after a month, grain from various regions was successively delivered. These lists were generally divided by population and region. Once these cities received sufficient grain, they distributed it immediately. They understood that if this grain were kept in granaries and disbursed gradually, it would inevitably be lost. Therefore, the best course of action now was to distribute it directly.
These smaller cities immediately distributed the grain. The residents who received the grain quickly hid what they had obtained. Some people were very honest, knowing that only those with registered household registration in the vicinity could receive grain. Going to other places often resulted in dire consequences, only receiving grain once. Afterward, they would need to participate in various labor to earn legitimate grain.
Some, however, did not believe in this. As soon as they received the grain, they fled with it to other cities, then found ways to register their household status, and could still receive grain elsewhere. In this way, as long as they kept moving and found ways to register their household status, there would be no problem.
However, these fugitives, after receiving the grain, arrived in other cities and discovered a strange phenomenon: registering household status had become extremely difficult. If one were to be a commoner, they could receive thin gruel, enough to ensure they didn't starve daily. But to register household status, one had to have their entire family, from grandparents to grandchildren, thoroughly investigated. Otherwise, it would be impossible.
Consequently, these people regretted their actions and hurried back to their original cities to perform labor. However, they had already been blacklisted, making it impossible to enter the city.
Upon discovering this phenomenon, others dared not claim grain frivolously. After receiving the grain, they followed instructions and went to work. The work they did was mostly construction-related tasks such as repairing roads or building bridges. Since there was nothing else to do, they might as well focus on infrastructure.
Under these circumstances, the populace finally had a chance to breathe. Although they worked hard every day, they at least received grain to fill their stomachs. For these people, being able to eat was already good enough; they could not have more demands.
However, at this very moment, the rulers of all regions, whether good or bad, issued orders to collect the grain from their respective cities and then distribute it uniformly.
But the grain had already been distributed in various regions. So, the people in the smaller cities said, "The grain has already been distributed this time. How about we hand it over later?"
These people naturally believed that once the grain was distributed, the higher authorities would have no hold over them.
As a result, when the higher authorities heard this answer, they directly stated, "Since it has been distributed, then search every household and ensure you find enough grain!"
These individuals dispatched by the higher authorities were all arrogant people. They spoke in a condescending manner. The reason for their demeanor was the countless soldiers behind them. These soldiers had experienced numerous battles during the apocalypse and carried an aura of killing. Their appearance intimidated countless people.
"This won't do. The grain has already been distributed. If it's collected now, it will surely cause public resentment!" someone then voiced their opinion. If the grain in people's hands were forcibly seized, it would undoubtedly lead to unrest among the subordinates.
"I'd like to see who has grievances, who dares to have grievances! Anyone who dares to oppose our plan will be shot. My subordinates are all battle-hardened elites who strictly follow our orders. Don't think that crying poverty here will make them change their minds!" These people, ordered to collect the grain, were extremely arrogant and directly issued threats.
Upon hearing this, everyone began to discuss amongst themselves, saying in private, "Hide all the grain we received and don't let these people find it. No matter how they ask, just don't say anything. Let's see what they can do to us!"
After hearing the threat from the army, others dared not disobey the order. This was because defying the order at this time would likely result in being killed with a single blow. They also had their own methods, as they had already hidden the grain beforehand. Whether it was digging three feet into the ground or setting up hidden compartments, many places in their homes could not be found.
Subsequently, countless soldiers rushed into these smaller cities and began collecting grain from every household. Many people hid the grain in their homes, often in secluded corners. With careful searching, the grain could be found immediately. No matter how secluded the place, the grain could be located.
If the grain could not be found in these places, then things became bizarre. Many soldiers would find the children of these families and ask them where the grain was. If the children did not speak, their parents would be hung up and beaten. Usually, children could not resist revealing the hiding places of the grain in their homes.
If there were no children in the family, and if there was a married couple, they would be captured separately and interrogated individually. Under severe beating, these people would certainly reveal the hiding places of the grain.
If it was a single man living alone, and the grain still could not be found, their lives would be directly threatened. They were given a choice: either be shot or honestly hand over the grain, and their lives would be spared. If there were any who resisted, a few would be taken as examples to the streets and shot with a burst of bullets. Seeing this, others were terrified, realizing that even if they had grain, they wouldn't be lucky enough to use it.
If they truly refused to hand over the grain, their lives would still be threatened. Thus, in the end, these people could only reluctantly hand over the grain they had hidden for a long time to exchange for a chance to live. Some clever people had already learned to hide it separately to avoid having it all confiscated at once. Thus, they handed over one-third or half of the grain, claiming the rest had been eaten. The soldiers could do nothing to them.
Now that the army was personally collecting grain, even if people were resentful, they could only suppress their grievances in their hearts and dare not say anything more. This was because the current environment was not one where they could speak freely. Speaking out and angering the other party at this time would likely lead to death. Not handing over grain had the same outcome. Now, they could only grudgingly hand over the grain.
Thus, in the large cities, where the rulers resided, a large amount of grain was collected again and then redistributed.
This step seemed very redundant, but it was a necessary process for power. Since what others gave you was not what I gave you, in order for you to be grateful to me, I had to personally distribute the grain. Only then could I wield power.
However, after this step occurred, people finally discovered that the grain that fell back into their hands was less than one-tenth of what was handed over. The whereabouts of the remaining grain were unknown. They could only curse these people in their hearts. The grain that was already in their hands was taken away, making them feel extremely humiliated and distressed, as if a duck that had reached their mouths had flown away.
Following this, many smaller cities mobilized their citizens to work. Since they had already distributed grain, these citizens should now abide by their rules and complete the work they were supposed to do.
However, after experiencing the crisis of much of their grain being seized, the populace now held a distrustful attitude towards everyone. No matter how others persuaded them, they refused to work, instead stating that they would start working when they were given enough grain.
Thus, under Shen Feng's operations, relationships in all regions had become tense. Especially the relationships between the large cities where the rulers resided, their capitals, and the smaller regions they controlled had deteriorated further. Originally, one large city could govern a surrounding area of smaller cities, but now, the conflict between large cities and smaller cities was extremely prominent. It was now impossible to command them as easily as before.
"It's all the fault of this damned Shen Feng. If he hadn't used this terrible idea, how would we have ended up like this? This stratagem has completely divided the relationship between our upper and lower levels, causing disharmony in our relationships. It will be difficult to exert our due strength in the future. His intentions are malicious!" He Qiuan also said at this time.
He faced the same situation. He had not ordered his soldiers to collect grain but had first observed the actions of other regions, wanting to know the consequences of their grain collection practices.
He saw that in many places, rifts had formed between the upper and lower levels, and conflicts were likely to erupt later. This would further weaken the control of the higher authorities.
Therefore, facing this situation, He Qiuan chose to remain calm. He did not dispatch troops to collect grain but instead intensified the training of his trusted subordinates, preparing to gain the ability to produce grain once his trusted subordinates were trained.
"If Shen Feng's open stratagem cannot be broken, the only way is to improve my grain production capacity. I also have oil here and can produce plastic, so I can build greenhouses. I don't believe I can't produce grain!" He Qiuan thought to himself.
He Qiuan's calm approach, however, earned him the unanimous support of his subordinates. They were finally relieved. Seeing many regions continuously collecting grain and then deducting it at each level, they were also worried about their own fate. Unexpectedly, the situation in the North China and Northeast regions became different. They could receive the grain that had already been distributed without any psychological burden.