Chapter 305 Good Appetite

Chapter 305 Good Appetite

Chapter 305 Good Appetite

Shi Le retreated, but did not leave completely. Instead, he continued to occupy Puyang State and fought three battles with Sima Yue, winning all of them but with few casualties.

Later, he attacked Puyang fiercely for ten days but failed to capture it.

The battle was extremely fierce, and Shi Le lost more than 7,000 men. But he did not seem to care. Instead, he drew 3,000 warriors from the scattered troops who had attacked the city to join the main force.

After Kui An, Zhi Xiong and Tao Bao returned with their remnants of the defeated army, Shi Le looked at their troops, almost half of whom had been replaced, and began to consider retreating.

But Liu Cong had just commanded Zhao Gu and Shi Chao to capture Huai County and kill people all over the place. He was in high spirits. If he didn't leave, how could Shi Le and Wang Mi leave?
However, news from Pingyang quickly lifted Shi Le's siege: the emperor was seriously ill and might die soon.

When Liu Cong heard about this, he entrusted the army to Liu Xian, the King of Quyang, and returned home to "fulfill his filial piety."

Shi Le was afraid of Liu Cong, but not Liu Xian, as the difference in their status was too great.

So they crossed the river from Puyang, entered Dunqiu, plundered some people, and then went to Yecheng to find food.

Wang Mi crossed the river from Bai Ma and entered Ji County, but the garrison troops withdrew in a hurry and were defeated by the two troops of Song Chou and Qiu Guang led by General Wang Bing of the Right Army, and more than 2,000 heads were beheaded.

Liu Xian didn't move either.

When the country is about to be in mourning, anyone with a bit of common sense knows that the right thing to do is to remain calm.

However, the southern attack on Luoyang may not be over yet. Everything depends on what the new emperor of Pingyang thinks.

Shao Xun stationed his troops in the suburbs of Xingyang.

He had no intention of fighting at the moment, and spent most of the day dealing with documents sent from Luonan, Xiangcheng, Yingchuan, Chenjun and other places that required him to make decisions.

In order to share the pressure, he transferred the Secretary Mao Bang, the Prime Minister Pei Yi, the Literature Officer Yang Jiongzhi, and the Left Eunuch Hu Wu Fuzhi to assist him in handling official affairs.

This is also a kind of investigation.

If he is not satisfied, I will change a group of people next time until I find the one I like.

"Is Pei Chun still sick?" Shao Xun finished reviewing an official document and handed it aside.

After Mao Bang reviewed it, he started to use the seal.

Shao Xun glanced at him, covered a line of words on the document with his hand, and asked, "How much land does the Yingyin Tuntian Army have, and how many households are there?"

“有上田71顷、中田99顷、下田34顷，计有屯兵1308户、1823口。”毛邦回道。

"Not bad, no messing around." Shao Xun took his hand back and said, "Send it out."

"Yes." Mao Bang replied.

Yang Jiongzhi watched the "little game" between the master and the apprentice with great interest, and then said, "I heard that the prince intercepted the grain transport and his illness has recovered."

Shao Xun said: "It's time to let Pei Gong teach him a lesson."

Pei Chun, the prefect of Xingyang, was the son of Pei Kang and the elder brother of Concubine Pei. He was as incompetent as his cousin, Pei Xian, the former governor of Yuzhou.

When the Hun army was approaching, he did not run away, but he had no idea, no way out, and had absolutely no idea what to do.

Shao Xun felt that if he had not personally led his troops to Xingyang, Pei Chun would most likely have been captured and killed by Shi Le - and he didn't know what would have been his fate in history.

Fortunately, he is sensible.

As soon as you come, he becomes "sick" and doesn't care about anything. He just lies down and lets you do whatever you want.

Shao Xun felt helpless. I wanted to see if you could be of any use to me. Why do you make me act like I'm here to grab territory? Why would I grab a frontline military battleground like Xingyang?

Now it seems that Pei Kang's sons are not very good.

Moreover, this is also an old wall lamp...

The Pei family had been preparing for the Eight Princes Rebellion for a long time, and it ended during the reign of Jia Nanfeng, suffering two consecutive heavy blows. The family's representatives in the court were swept away, and they had to return home to lick their wounds.

Seven or eight years ago, when Shao Xun first met Concubine Pei, the Pei family was very reluctant to participate in politics, and even refused to invest in their son-in-law Sima Yue. But as the situation changed, they couldn't help themselves in the past two years.

If at the beginning it was only Pei Dun who sought the position of governor of Xuzhou, it could be seen as his personal behavior, but things became a little different later.

Pei Yi and Pei Zheng, who were from branches of the Pei family, served as the prefect of Hongnong and Henei respectively.

Later, the main vein also began to enter.

Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou, and Pei Chun, the prefect of Xingyang, were both Pei Kang's biological sons.

His nephew Pei Xian (son of his third brother Pei Kai) was appointed governor of Yuzhou.

His nephew Pei Bao (son of his eldest brother Pei Li) was appointed governor of Qinzhou.

Last year, he sent another son, Pei Shao (also known as Pei He), to Jianye to serve as Sima Rui's aide.

Among his many sons and nephews, some worked for his family, while others joined Sima Yue and Sima Rui.

If we include the investment in Shao Xun, the Pei family actually has their feet on three boats, which is awesome.

Shao Xun has gradually gotten used to the basic practices of the aristocratic families, but that doesn't mean he can accept it in his heart.

But now we have to use them...

"Mr. Yang, has there been any news reported back regarding the grain interception?" Shao Xun looked at Yang Jiongzhi and asked.

Yang Jiongzhi pretended to be silent for a while.

Hu Wu Fuzhi just went out and hasn't come back yet.

Mao Bang who is here is a student of Chen Hou and should be very reliable.

Pei Yi was from a distant branch of the Pei family. The Marquis of Chen asked him such an important question in front of him, which must have been a test and he trusted him, just like he had just tested Mao Bang to see if he had any intentions.

So he spoke: "There is much discussion in the court, and the emperor is unhappy. An angel may come in a few days, so you should be prepared."

"What's the worst that will happen?" Shao Xun asked.

"Dismissal." Yang Jiongzhi said.

Shao Xun thought about it and decided that dismissal was not a big deal. At most, he could turn all the Yamen soldiers into government soldiers. What can you do to me?

If it really comes to this, the court will have no reason to order him to attack this or that.

Of course, it was impossible for Shao Xun to actually watch the imperial court being destroyed by the Huns.

Once the legitimate emperor is gone, will Sima Rui of Jianye become the "regent"?

This is the biggest risk because it means that the attitude of the entire South is beginning to become unpredictable and is no longer the clear "ally" it is now.

As for enthroning a new emperor, that is even more impossible.

Aristocratic families can support the emperor, but you, Shao Xun, with your shitty background, also want to support the emperor? Are you sick?

Therefore, he and the Luoyang court actually have a relationship of mutual dependence, but there is also internal power struggle, which is very complicated.

"In fact, you were too reckless this time." Yang Jiongzhi gently reminded him, "Even if you want to control the population, you don't have to be so drastic."

Shao Xun was somewhat stunned. Is this how Yang Jiongzhi sees him? From the perspective of interests?
"Mr. Yang, I followed Mi Zihui into Guanzhong in the past to fight against the King of Hejian. When I saw the killing of the Xianbei, I was so angry that I killed 5,000 Xianbei cavalrymen in Chang'an." Shao Xun said slowly: "Captain Mi was very puzzled and tried his best to dissuade me. Guess what I said at the time?"

Yang Jiongzhi shook his head. "I said the Xianbei were cruel and ruthless, and they harmed the people. If I hadn't seen it, it would be fine. But now I've seen it with my own eyes. If you still let it go, you're no different from the scumbags." Shao Xun said, "Now I see the people are starving, exchanging their children for food. If you still don't do anything, you're too cold-blooded, and not a real man."

Yang Jiongzhi glanced at Shao Xun, seeming to be thinking about the truth in his words.

Although the massacre of 5,000 Xianbei cavalrymen offended Sima Yue, it was not without benefits to Shao Xun.

At that time, the relationship between Shao Xun and Sima Yue was already very tense. Perhaps Sima Yue had already developed a murderous intention in his heart and wanted to get rid of Shao Xun as soon as possible.

The killing of five thousand Xianbei people caused the relationship between Sima Yue and Wang Jun to become cold, cutting off a major arm of support for Sima Yue, while also eliminating a major threat he was facing.

Yang Jiongzhi doesn't believe in sentiment or righteousness; he likes to analyze everything from the perspective of interests.

In his opinion, Shao Xun's method was a bit harsh and a little ill-considered, but it was still a ruthless move.

This time, intercepting grain to provide relief to the victims was actually just a means for Shao Xun to expand his own power.

He spoke so righteously that Yang Jiongzhi felt he was acting.

However, if you like to act, I will accompany you.

Acting is also an indispensable skill for those who want to achieve great things. Shao Xun is quite proficient in this area, so it is not in vain that the Yang family came to help him.

"It was I who had the wrong idea. I am ashamed." Yang Jiongzhi cupped his hands and sighed.

After sighing, he changed the subject and said, "It is pointless to argue about right and wrong now. I thought about it this morning. Chen County controls the key point of grain transport and is the former site of Cao Wei. It is a great town for the court. Your Excellency is a man of great talent and should shoulder the responsibility of being a pillar of the country. If you recruit hundreds of thousands of refugees who have suffered disasters and let them settle down and cultivate the land, in time, you can not only provide enough food for the army, but also provide for the country."

After hearing this, Shao Xun nodded slightly and looked at Mao Bang again.

Mao Bang immediately said: "I can also praise your great cause."

Shao Xun slapped Mao Bang's shoulder heavily with his iron palm and said, "I only wish to wipe out the bandits and eliminate disasters, and spread the imperial spirit."

After saying this, he looked at Yang Jiongzhi and said sincerely: "Chen County has received more than 100,000 bushels of grain. If we use it frugally, it can support more than 10,000 households to survive until the bean harvest in autumn. But to manage so many people, we still need Yang Gong's help."

Shao Xun agreed to Li Chong's standards without making any changes.

On average, a family is given seven liters of grain a day, which means more than two hu a month. If you plant grains this month and harvest them in September, leaving some leftovers, it will take about four months to feed them, which means eight or nine hu will be consumed.

In fact, among the victims, most are people of medium and large sizes, while small ones are relatively few. The food expenditure must be more than this, it may be much more.

When planting grains, in order to give them strength, we should give them extra food rations ten days or half a month in advance to feed them.

Taking into account the cost of seeds, 180,000 hu of grain could only support the survival of more than 10,000 households.

"I heard that your Excellency has no less than a thousand students, why don't you send them to take care of them?" Yang Jiongzhi asked.

"There aren't that many people who have completed their studies," Shao Xun said, "and most of them are in the army. The few dozen civil servants who are left are also assigned to various counties. Even if some of them are transferred, it's still not enough."

Yang Jiong believed it.

In fact, after a few years, one can only master some basic literacy. If one wants to manage the people and govern the country, he still needs more experience.

At this time, Lord Chen could only turn to the gentry for help and ask them to provide talents and help him manage civil affairs.

The huge talent gap cannot be filled in a short period of time. And the larger the territory, the bigger the gap.

"I wonder how many refugees you want to resettle?" Yang Jiongzhi asked.

"We need at least 50,000 households, or at least 40,000 households." Shao Xun said, "There are already more than 10,000 households gathered here, and there will be more and more in the future."

Even though he was prepared, Yang Jiongzhi was still shocked.

What a big appetite!
What a big ambition!
What a big spirit!
"There aren't that many unowned lands in Chen County, right?" He sat up straight and asked.

"Maybe..." Shao Xun said, "Even if Chenjun doesn't have it, Liangguo should have it, right? If that's not enough, I heard that the refugee leader Li Hong led more than 5,000 families to flee south, looted Xincai, and killed Langling County Lord He Xi. There should be a large area of ​​unowned land in the south."

At the turn of the Jin Dynasty, there were many large swamps and wastelands in the old Ru'nan State. There was plenty of wasteland. You didn't even have to dirty your hands to snatch it from the nobles, you could just open it up.

Of course, the cost of reclaiming wasteland is high. Wouldn’t it be better to directly seize the cultivated land of the He family in Langling County?

"Is there so much food?" Yang Jiongzhi asked doubtfully.

"There will always be one." Shao Xun replied without hesitation.

Yang Jiongzhi understood.

He was subconsciously worried, yet also a little excited.

His mind had already begun to quickly calculate, weighing the pros and cons.

The Yang family had no plans to move south for the time being, but Taishan County had been repeatedly plundered by Cao Qiu, causing considerable losses.

Yang Jiongzhi even wondered if the Yang family would be forced to move southwards because they could no longer stand. But if they could develop in the north, wouldn't it be better than going to Wu? Would it be so easy to give up the family business?
"Mr. Yang, it has been decided that Mr. Changhe will be the Prime Minister of Lu. He will take office soon." Shao Xun reminded again.

Upon hearing this, Yang Jiong said, "It is our duty to provide relief to the victims. Your Excellency, please rest assured. The Yang family will definitely send a talented person from the clan to help."

The position of Prime Minister of Lu was operated by the Yang family, but the governor of Yuzhou, Lu Zhi, did not hinder it. In this matter, the Duke of Chen was worthy of the Yang family, allowing the Yang family to obtain the position of local governor with real power. Even if it was a return of favor, he had to help him this time.

"With Mr. Yang's words, great things will be accomplished." Shao Xun said with a smile.

"Duke Changhe" is Yang Chen, whose courtesy name is Changhe.

Yang Chen's grandfather Yang Mi and Yang Jiongzhi's grandfather Yang Dan were brothers and had a very close relationship.

In the eighth year of Yuankang (298), Shi Chong and Gao Dan, who served as the governor and governor of Xuzhou respectively, were dismissed from their posts due to a dispute over drinking. Yang Chen then took over and served as the governor of Xuzhou for two years. Later, he was transferred to be the chief secretary of the Taifu.

Sima Lun was in power and appointed himself as prime minister. He recruited Yang Chen as a military officer.

Yang Chen refused and rode a horse without a saddle and ran away in a hurry. The messenger who was carrying the message chased him, but Yang Chen was very skilled in martial arts and shot arrows left and right on the bare horse, so the messenger could not get close to him. He then ran away smoothly and returned to his hometown. He was also a remarkable man.

"Your Excellency has done a great thing." Yang Jiongzhi sighed, "At a time when the world is in turmoil, you have risen up suddenly. How magnificent."

"Since Mr. Yang praises what I have done, why don't we go south together? It's a good opportunity to avoid the angels." Shao Xun asked with a smile.

"Your Excellency is going to head south to Chen County?"

"Of course."

"Then we have to go and take a look." Yang Jiongzhi said with a smile.

"Prepare the horses." Shao Xun didn't say anything more and directly gave instructions to Tang Jian.

After that, he grabbed Tang Jian again and whispered, "Tell Lord Pei that there are 2,000 county soldiers in Xingyang and transport troops in Ao Cang. If he dares to abandon the land and flee without permission, I will not let him go even if it means offending the Pei family."

"Yes." Tang Jian agreed.

Shao Xun nodded.

None of the Pei family members were worry-free, and they were all experts at running away. If he didn't speak harshly, he was really worried that the Xiongnu would send a hundred or so cavalrymen across the river for reconnaissance, and scare Pei Chun away.

They are all a bunch of pig teammates. It would be the best if they were allowed to engage in literary work in the future, but they should never be entrusted with important tasks.

On the sixth day of June, Shao Xun left two thousand Yamen troops and two thousand auxiliary troops to guard Guandu, and led the main force of the Silver Spear Army south to Chen County.

(End of this chapter)