Your entire fortune can turn on a single dialog box warning you of a bad year for the floods or an angry local deity. If you don't deal with the angry gods immediately, your city could easily regress ten years. According to the religious advisor, a festival is needed. Consult the treasury to see how much money is available. Most of your time will be spent moving scarce resources to meet unquenchable demand.
Grain is harvested from the fields and shipped to the granary for temporary storage.
From there it is shipped to the local residential districts via couriers, who deposit the goods at a bazaar. Citizens then visit the bazaar to purchase grain. Most goods are delivered through the same mechanism. Any breakdown in the supply chain creates waves that ripple through your economy, wreaking havoc with unintended consequences. Fortunately, every aspect of the game is fairly logical and predictable, which makes the various game flaws a bit more palatable.