Chapter 307 Fighting but not breaking
Chapter 307 Fighting but not breaking
After entering Chen, Shao Xun settled down and personally handled government affairs.
Converting refugees into Chinese nationals is his most important task for some time to come, no doubt about it.
A part of the army was sent out, with Li Chong, Jin San and Wang Que'er as generals, each leading several thousand soldiers to suppress the refugees who were causing unrest everywhere.
The time is right to intervene now.
If we wait another month or two, small groups of refugees will gather into large groups, and thousands of people will gather into tens of thousands of people. They will then have the ability to capture prefectures and counties and kill county officials with a rank of two thousand stones. By then, it will take a lot of effort.
After leaving Luoyang, the angel headed east, passed Chenggao, and entered Xingyang.
A "medical miracle" happened to the prefect Pei Chun. He jumped up after being bedridden for many days and risked his life to entertain the envoys headed by the Minister of Finance Wang Xuan.
In the year of the disaster, there was little wine to be found, but Pei Chun gritted his teeth and took out the aged wine that he had treasured for a long time, and drank it with Wang Xuan and the others for half a month.
Then he introduced them to tourist attractions and took them to visit brothels, dragging this group of people until late June before they left.
After arriving in Junyi, we waited a long time for the boat to arrive.
Yang Bao, the captain of the Ministry of Revenue, was also nowhere to be seen. One moment he said he had gone to Luoyang, another moment he said he was in Ao Cang, and another moment he said he was in Guandu. He was not sure.
In early July, Wang Xuan decided to travel south by car.
Yang Bao suddenly appeared and mentioned that the refugees in Yuzhou were in turmoil and the roads were in turmoil. They said that if they waited for three to five days, they would be able to find a boat to the south.
On the third day of July, Wang Xuan was counting the approaching ships one by one outside the water fort of Junyi County. There were thirty-two ships in total, loaded with more than 150,000 hu of grain.
Almost half of it is gone! Seeing this, even though his father and Lord Chen always had a good cooperation, he could no longer sit still.
He is the Minister of Finance! If the soldiers and civilians in Luoyang don't have enough food to eat, they will blame him.
So they found Yang Bao, and after a lot of threats and inducements, they finally got him to take a boat south to Chen County on the fifth day of July.
But after arriving in Chen County, he was picked up by Lu Zhi, the governor of Yuzhou who was heading north, and was not able to escape until ten days later.
When he finally met Shao Xun, it was already July 23rd.
"Meizi, look how well these bean sprouts are growing." Shao Xun, who was weeding in the field, pointed to the endless bean field and said with a smile.
Wang Xuan suddenly calmed down.
He chatted with Shao Xun while observing quietly.
Chen Hou's smile seemed sincere, and he was really happy for the beans that had broken through the soil.
In fact, the beans have grown a lot. Under the gentle south wind, they sway in the wind, as if they are singing something happily.
"Inter-cultivation" is mentioned in "The Book of Si Sheng".
There was a locust plague this year, but no drought. There was plenty of rain and adequate irrigation. As the beans continued to grow, all kinds of weeds also grew wildly, as if they were trying desperately to make up for the losses caused by the locust plague.
Therefore, tillage and weeding are very necessary.
In the fields, not only Marquis Chen was weeding, the refugees - no, perhaps they could no longer be called refugees, as they had apparently settled down and did not exist in the imperial household register - were also working hard and sweating profusely.
They were so attentive that they didn't leave out any weeds, as if they were the enemy who killed their father.
People who have been hungry are really different. They don’t want to recall those difficult times at all and cannot accept returning to such a desperate situation.
One can imagine their attitude towards Chen Hou, who saved them from desperate situation.
Wang Xuan sighed softly and said, "Your Excellency, are you managing the beans? Are you managing the country?"
"Governing a country depends on governing its people. People are like beans, and they need to be carefully cared for. Even if you want to eat the beans, you have to let them grow well and big first, and the more the better." Shao Xun threw the hoe to Tang Jian, wiped his sweat, and said, "Let's talk over there."
The two came to the bank of Suiyang Canal.
It was midsummer and the heat was unbearable, but there were already some children playing in the Suiyang Canal.
It’s not quite right to say they were playing, in fact they were using various tools to catch duckweed.
Duckweed can be used to feed chickens and ducks, and can also be eaten by humans - the daily ration is limited, and weeding and soil must be weeded and turned over. Everyone feels overwhelmed and must try every possible way to supplement food.
There is a limit to the amount of duckweed, and it will disappear as you try to pick it up.
The children simply jumped into the river and played in the water.
"It's quite interesting to see children playing in the water." Wang Xuan looked at the children bobbing up and down in the water, occasionally fishing out a river clam, and praised: "If there is someone who is good at calligraphy and painting here, maybe he can draw it."
"Meizi, have you ever seen a child in a steamer?" Shao Xun asked.
Wang Xuan was stunned.
Shao Xun smiled faintly, pointed at the children, and said, "If I had acted ten days or half a month later, they might have been in the steamer, feeding people."
Wang Xuan was choked and didn't know how to answer for a moment.
Saying that Lord Chen was right, doesn't that mean he was encouraging him to seize the grain ships?
To say that he did something wrong, isn't that the same as just watching these children being eaten?
After all, he didn't have as profound skills as his father.
Therefore, he could only change the subject and get straight to the point: "How many refugees have you collected, my Lord?"
"More than 18,000 households." Shao Xun said.
"When will you stop?" Wang Xuan couldn't hold it in any longer and asked directly, "A few days ago, another 150,000 hu of grain was seized. If this continues, the court will not be able to suppress it. You should know that the emperor is furious and has not issued an order to punish the perpetrators. It is all thanks to my father and Yu Shizhong's mediation. But if you insist on doing it your own way and continue like this, this matter will not end well."
Shao Xun did not answer, but pointed to a vacant lot opposite and said, "This is the red beans planted in late June, and can only be harvested before the snow falls. The other one is the mung beans planted even later, in early July."
"Why so late?"
"It's too late when the people gather here." Shao Xun said, "The Silver Spear Army is chasing Li Hong in Nandun, Xincai, and Runan. The thieves are cunning, not very good at fighting, but very good at escaping. The Yamen Army went to Liang State, and although they defeated the rioters, they took a lot of effort to capture them. There will be more people coming this month, but I don't know if they will have time to plant anything. Maybe we can only get some turnips to plant, at least we can dig them up and eat them in winter."
Shao Xun explained his plans clearly like an old farmer.
Wang Xuan had read "The Book of Si Sheng" and had some knowledge about what crops to plant in what season, what to interplant and rotate, and the benefits of each. But he still didn't know as much as Shao Xun - this agricultural knowledge may seem superficial, but people who haven't been to school really don't understand it. This is also the advantage of children from aristocratic families, and old farmers who have been farming for many years may not necessarily understand it, because their own agricultural skills may not be very advanced.
"Are you determined to intercept the grain transport?" Wang Xuan decided not to be led by Shao Xun anymore and asked directly.
"Meizi, do you know this person?" Shao Xun answered the question irrelevantly and pointed at an old man walking in the fields on the other side of Suiyang Canal and asked.
"Isn't that Yang Jingqi?" Wang Xuan looked closely and was shocked.
Yang Jingqi's name was Yang Jian, and his courtesy name was Jingqi.
His father, Yang Ji, once served as the General of the Central Army who protected the Xiongnu and has passed away.
His elder brother Yang Wei once served as Grand Coachman and Governor of Yan and Xu provinces, and has passed away.
Yang Jian is the "handsome and extraordinary" Yang mentioned by Yang Jiong.
Shao Xun thought it was an outstanding young man, but it turned out to be an old man in his fifties.
However, he was indeed accompanied by several young scion of aristocratic families, as well as dozens of servants and distant branch members of the Yang family with management experience. To be honest, Shao Xun was still very touched. By transferring the backbone personnel like this, the production management of the Yang family would be affected, right?
Yang Jian also has another identity. He is Wang Dun’s uncle, only a few years older than Wang Dun…
The relationship between the aristocratic families is very complicated, not to mention the gentry in neighboring counties - Langya State is just to the southeast of Taishan County.
Among the aristocratic children around Yang Jian were members of the Langya Zhuge clan, and the two families had also intermarried.
Zhuge Hui of the Zhuge family had already moved south with his family.
As a fellow countryman of Sima Rui, it was natural for him to serve as the chief clerk of the shogunate. Now he is the magistrate of Jiangning County and is very favored.
"Do you want to go and say hello?" Shao Xun asked with a smile.
"I'll go back later." Wang Xuan shook his head and asked, "Has Lord Jingqi come to Yuzhou to take up his post?" "Lu Yuzhou has recommended Yang Jingqi as the magistrate of Chen County."
"Mr. Jingqi has great talent, and you are right to employ him."
Shao Xun sneered and said nothing.
Yang Jian's talents are just average, but the people he brought with him have a lot of experience in handling miscellaneous affairs. These people are truly talented - perhaps they are not great talents, but they are very sophisticated and experienced in the areas they are responsible for.
He needs these "screws" now and the demand is huge.
"Your Excellency..." Wang Xuan suddenly realized that Shao Xun had confused him again, so he returned to the previous topic: "The next batch of grain ships will go north in early August, Your Excellency, please don't stop them."
Shao Xun sighed and asked, "Does Meizi know the news about Pingyang?"
"Is Liu Yuanhai seriously ill?" Wang Xuan asked.
Shao Xun nodded and said, "I don't know how he is now, but he probably won't have much time left. Otherwise, Liu Cong wouldn't have been so eager to rush back. Once Liu Yuanhai dies, do you think the new emperor will attack Luoyang?"
Wang Xuan was stunned.
He vaguely heard that Lord Chen was negotiating conditions.
If the Huns attack Luoyang again, will you use me?
He suddenly thought of something, and his face looked a little unhappy. He asked, "Do you think the Huns will come soon, Lord Chen?"
"Maybe." Shao Xun looked at him helplessly and said, "Meizi, even businessmen know that they need to maintain long-term relationships. If the Xiongnu don't come this year, will the whole court arrest me and punish me? What if they come next year? I won't be able to live next year?"
I think you are the merchant apprentice! Wang Xuan secretly complained, but he had to admit that what Chen Hou said made sense.
Judging from the current situation, the war with the Huns will not last for one or two years, but a long time.
If the Huns don’t come this year, they will come next year. We really can’t be too short-sighted.
If Marquis Chen was really punished, he would become disheartened and hide behind the three passes of Luonan, watching the fall of Luoyang. That would be the result of the officials in the court's own actions.
In fact, this was also what his father had said in private - Wang Xuan still remembered the way his father gritted his teeth when he mentioned that Marquis Chen was controlling him and the court. At the time, his second sister also sighed repeatedly, while his eldest sister was just laughing foolishly.
"Don't worry." Shao Xun put his arm around Wang Xuan's shoulders and whispered, "The bandits who robbed the canal boats have been defeated by me. Several bandit leaders are still in prison. They will be sent to Luoyang in a few days and beheaded for public display."
"This..." Wang Xuan was a little surprised.
Is Lord Chen trying to give the court a way out?
"What about the canal transportation..." Wang Xuan asked.
"Nothing will happen again." Shao Xun patted his chest and promised.
He knew that the next batch might not be able to be intercepted on a large scale.
Perhaps they could use excuses such as transportation losses and robbery to get a little extra, but most of the goods still had to be delivered safely to Luoyang to maintain a situation of fighting but not breaking.
"It's time to make an effort in Guangling." Shao Xun added, "In recent years, there have been frequent wars in Luoyang, and a lot of grain has not been transported to the capital in time. There must be a lot of money and grain stored in the treasuries of Xu, Qing, and Yang. Even if it was burned once, it would not be difficult to collect it again. The King of Langya is still loyal to the court, so perhaps the emperor can issue an order to strictly supervise the transportation of grain in Guangling."
Langya King Sima Rui is now indeed loyal to the imperial court, at least on the surface.
Because Wang Kuang led the Huainan troops to support and was completely annihilated in Changping, the scholars in Wu were reluctant to support Luoyang. However, Sima Rui still repeatedly urged General Jianwei Qian Yu to lead the Wuxing troops to the north, and even threatened to execute him, forcing Qian Yu to rebel on the spot.
This guy is even more loyal than Quanzhong.
This year, Jingzhou also transported money and grain to Beijing by land and water.
Although Wang Cheng and Shan Jian were incompetent, they still supported the imperial court. They collected the money and grain from Jing and Xiang states, and transported part of it to Hefei by water, and part of it by land and water, heading north via Nanyang.
Shao Xun meant to ask the court to urge them and stop focusing on Hefei.
Honestly, he felt he had done enough.
In the original time and space, Shi Le had most likely conquered Xingyang and cut off the grain transport. It would have been impossible for the money and grain from the five states of Yang, Jing, Xiang, Xu and Qing to enter the capital, and the great famine in Luoyang would have occurred as expected.
I've worked so hard, is it excessive to charge some management fees?
"My father is already supervising this matter." Wang Xuan said, "But it may not be accomplished this year."
"Hundreds of thousands of bushels of grain and beans have been transported to the capital. The soldiers and civilians in Luoyang can eat them first." Shao Xun said, "I will keep an eye on the grain transport in Yuzhou, so the court has nothing to worry about."
Wang Xuan was a little skeptical and asked, "Is there really nothing wrong with the next batch?"
"No big deal." Shao Xun said vaguely.
Wang Xuan sighed.
He understood his father's feelings. Why was this man so stubborn? The key was that he knew when to stop. After finding out your bottom line, he still tried to take advantage of you. Damn it!
Wang Xuan even wanted to swear.
Grace, grace, he muttered to himself and calmed himself down.
Shao Xun quietly withdrew his gaze from Wang Xuan's face, knowing what was going on. So he took his hand and said with a smile: "Meizi, come again in winter, and I'll treat you to red bean porridge."
I'm eating shitty red bean porridge! Wang Xuan cursed in his heart, thinking to himself why not send his eldest sister over and let her mess around with Chen Hou.
Of course, that’s just thinking about it.
Shao Xun had already pulled Wang Xuan to the ridge of the field.
When he saw several team leaders and battalion commanders, he greeted them casually and said, "This is the son of Taiwei Wang, a famous scholar in Langya. He loves red bean porridge the most. I invited him to drink porridge with me on the Laba Festival. You must work hard and don't embarrass me."
"Sir, the land is fertile and the red beans are growing well." Someone laughed.
"The commander is a man from heaven, and he knows us?"
"When we were in trouble, we didn't know where the general was."
"Zhang Heipi, shut up and don't talk nonsense."
Everyone was noisy and even dared to smile in front of Shao Xun. It seemed that the recent collective labor had made them familiar with Shao Xun and they were no longer reserved.
Yes, Lord Chen is now also a man of high rank. He can actually put aside his pride and help weed together. Where can we find such a lord?
What's more, everyone's lives were given by Lord Chen, which makes it even more difficult.
Wang Xuan gently broke away from Shao Xun's hand and watched him walking on the ridge of the field. Wherever he went, people saluted and greeted him. He felt very complicated.
He is not a fool, he can see many things.
The prestige of Lord Chen gradually grew among these refugees.
Eating red bean porridge together on the Laba Festival may not just be a casual remark, but a real thing.
He could easily imagine that in the dead of winter, everyone sat together, thinking of the tragic scene of eating their own children half a year ago, crying bitterly, and then looking at the thick red bean porridge in the bowl, they were full of confidence in the future.
That's how prestige comes from.
Perhaps, when these refugee leaders grow old, they will still remember this incident clearly and tell it to their descendants over and over again.
The legacy of Marquis Chen can also be passed on to his descendants.
From generation to generation, isn't this a stable feudal state?
What is the foundation? This is the foundation.
Alas! He sighed softly.
The sons of the aristocratic families played around, but in the end, none of them knew how to play as a military strategist.
This person is going to be very successful.
(End of this chapter)