69novels Chapter 21 Intelligence Summary, Underground Layout
Chapter 21 Intelligence Summary, Underground Layout
In the following days, apart from going to Xinhua Bookstore once to buy a detailed national map and some miscellaneous books introducing the customs and agriculture of various provinces, Lin Yan basically did not go out again, and completely lived a life of "being sick and resting".
At 2 a.m. on the seventh day, the Shicha coast was completely silent, with only the faint sounds of water and wind.
Lin Yan's figure appeared silently. He stood quietly on the shore, as if blending into the night. Soon, blurry figures, barely perceptible to the naked eye, began to converge from all directions, landing silently in front of him—the puppets sent across the country to carry out missions.
Before 3 a.m., the last puppet also returned safely.
Without further delay, he summoned all the puppets back into his spatial storage and then sped silently toward the courtyard like a ghost.
Back in his study on the second floor of his home, he immediately drew the curtains and slipped into the Qiankun Realm.
He ordered the five hundred puppets responsible for intelligence gathering to assemble outside the study in the small courtyard. He took out a blank jade slip and commanded, "From now on, starting from the Northwest region, in order of China's terrain from highest to lowest elevation, imprint the information you have gathered about the grain reserves of each province, signs of drought, groundwater levels, grain requisition at the grassroots level, and... information about the famines that have already occurred, onto this jade slip in detail."
Five hundred puppets silently accepted the order and began to proceed in an orderly fashion, precisely injecting the information streams they carried into the jade slips. This process lasted for quite some time. After completion, the puppets orderly withdrew from the study area to await further instructions.
Next, Lin Yan summoned the two hundred puppets specifically responsible for "gold mining." Their reporting was much simpler; all the spoils had already been stored in the spatial warehouse.
Lin Yan's mind raced, and he probed the warehouse area with his divine sense. Even though he was mentally prepared, the scene before him still made him gasp, exclaiming inwardly, "Good heavens!"
Gold, piled up like a small mountain, roughly estimated to exceed twenty tons! Silver, piled up like scrap iron to the side, amounted to over one hundred and thirty tons! Various porcelains, paintings, calligraphy, bronzes, jade, gold and silver jewelry, ornaments… a dazzling array, their quantity simply uncountable! There were also over thirty large boxes filled with various uncut jadeite roughs. In addition, there were many small boxes, neatly categorized with rubies, sapphires, cat's-eye stones, and diamonds of considerable size!
According to the information provided by the puppet, most of these gems and diamonds were discovered underground in the Shanghai area, which made Lin Yan sigh, "It seems that the people of Shanghai have always had a special fondness for these things."
After calming down from the shock of the enormous wealth, Lin Yan picked up the now heavy intelligence jade slip, pressed it to his forehead, and unfolded the huge national map.
A deluge of information flooded his mind, matching it one by one with the provinces on the map. His expression grew increasingly grim.
The situation was more severe and...heartbreaking than he had anticipated.
It was only March 1958, and the reduced grain production due to drought wasn't yet particularly alarming in terms of data. However, the groundwater levels measured by the puppet regime in various regions revealed a frightening trend—in Shandong, Jilin, and Anhui provinces, especially Jilin, groundwater levels had dropped significantly, potentially jeopardizing this year's grain harvest!
What's even more worrying is the "man-made disaster." The nationwide steelmaking campaign led to the depletion of a large number of able-bodied laborers in rural areas, severely neglecting farmland cultivation. Meanwhile, some officials, eager for quick results and to achieve their political goals, inflated grain production figures at each level, resulting in the vast majority of the already precarious grain rations held by communes and production brigades being requisitioned under the guise of "delivering public grain"!
Farmers' grain reserves are far from enough to last until the next harvest! Reports from the puppet regime indicate that people are already starving to death in parts of Shaanxi and Gansu! And this is just the beginning!
Lin Yan sat at his desk, silent for a long time, as if a huge rock was pressing on his chest. Anger, helplessness, and a deep sorrow were intertwined.
He spread out paper and pen and began to write "Preliminary Response Plan to the 1958 Food Crisis".
He knew very well that the grain he had in his hands could not be presented directly to the authorities at this time.
"Experience teaches people, and they learn it in one go." Only when faced with harsh reality will people truly wake up.
Therefore, his plan had to be circuitous yet effective.
He decided to immediately dispatch another thousand Foundation Establishment stage puppets and grant them the authority to directly obtain supplies from the space warehouse according to a set quota.
Their mission is to start in the provincial capitals and gradually infiltrate and control the black market network across the country!
Step 1: Reorganize the existing black market, examine the character of black market personnel, and recruit participants who are driven by poverty but are not inherently bad, especially those who are veterans.
The second step is to establish a hierarchical structure, gradually expanding from top to bottom and radiating to the black market in prefecture-level cities, county-level cities, and even important towns. The ultimate goal is to control the pricing power and distribution channels of the national black market!
Specific operations:
1. Targeting the common people: Large quantities of locally produced potatoes, sweet potatoes, corn, and other coarse grains, as well as basic necessities like soybean oil, rapeseed oil, and cotton, will be released on the black market. Key point: Prices will be the same as or even slightly lower than the official prices set by the supply and marketing cooperatives! The aim is to provide ordinary people who are truly starving with a secret and affordable way to survive.
2. Targeting the "Elite": Wild boars, wild sheep, rabbits, pheasants, and other animals from the special ranches outside the designated supply zones—animals that reproduce too quickly and whose meat quality far surpasses that of ordinary livestock—are sold at prices far exceeding market rates to special groups with connections and spare cash. The reason? "Because they have money!" This exorbitant profit will be used to maintain the entire black market network and fund subsequent plans.
Lin Yan knew that such a large quantity of scarce and inexpensive goods suddenly flooding the black market would inevitably attract the attention and suspicion of the authorities.
And this is part of his plan!
His goal is to attract the attention of the authorities! If any officials do come into contact with his puppets, he will have them give a unified story and create a mysterious image of a "patriotic businessman"—a "patriotic grain merchant" who has overseas channels and is willing to take great risks to smuggle grain into the country!
Immediately afterwards, he would send puppets to Hong Kong to register a "Hong Kong Grain and Oil Trading Company" and a "Yuanhang Shipping Company." Using these as a springboard and cover, starting in 1959, under the name of the Hong Kong Lin Group, they would sell low-priced grain to mainland China on a large scale!
The settlement method can be a barter system using hard currencies such as antiques, gold, gems, and jade.
In this way, the situation will become: the authorities will tacitly approve or even secretly support this smuggling because it can indeed alleviate the food shortage and does not consume foreign exchange; the people will receive life-saving food; and Lin Yan will successfully launder the output of the space, exchange it for huge wealth, and lay a solid foundation for his future industry layout.
Three birds with one stone!
After finishing the proposal, a sharp glint flashed in Lin Yan's eyes. A silent rescue operation focused on food was about to begin on this land in a different way.