Chapter 572 Test City

Chapter 572 Test City

Chapter 572 Test City
The sun gradually sets, and Kaocheng at dusk has a different kind of beauty.

A mother and son stood under a willow tree, quietly watching the man walking towards them from the south street.

"Grandpa!" The four-year-old child walked out from under the tree with childish steps, stretched out his hands and asked for a hug.

The man smiled, took a few quick steps, and picked up his son.

The woman looked quietly at the happy father and son.

After experiencing the turbulent times where people exchanged their own children for cannibalism, feeling the tremendous fear brought by the cannibal king and the murderous maniac, and seeing with my own eyes the scenes of warriors filling the streets and people living in fear of losing their tomorrow, I finally understand the value of a peaceful and tranquil life.

Pei Lingyan cherishes such days very much.

The man was working within her sight.

All I could hear was the sound of men talking.

In our spare time, our family of three goes out for a stroll. You hold the child's left hand, and I hold the child's right hand, feeling the cool breeze of the summer evening, walking through the bamboo forest and pine trees, and across the small bridge and flowing water under the bright moonlight.

When we were tired, we sat on the soft grass and looked at the moonlight over the lotus pond together.

After the child fell asleep, the two of them fell asleep in each other's arms.

After getting up in the morning, she would put the fumigated clothes at the head of the bed.

After the man finished practicing martial arts, she would bring him the breakfast she made and watch him eat it bite by bite.

When the man meets with his staff and handles official documents, she accompanies him and occasionally gives advice. If the man does not ask, she will not speak, so as not to leave a bad impression on the man. Sometimes men want to save face.

When the man was tired, he would boil a pot of tea and bring some dried fruit snacks. The two of them would eat together and chat about interesting things.

She always tolerates this man because she also relies on this man.

The only pity is that wherever this man goes, there will be women like her who take good care of his daily life and everything for him.

He has too many homes!

"Nian Liu is a little tired." Shao Xun said as he held his son in his arms and gently stroked his son's smooth little face.

"Yeah." Pei Lingyan took Shao Xun's arm, and the three of them walked back together.

"In this area of ​​Kaocheng, mulberry forests are lush and the wheat is growing densely. Thank you for your hard work." Shao Xun said.

"Some matters will be handled by the officials of the shogunate." Pei Lingyan said: "I just give you some advice from time to time."

As the Dowager Concubine of Donghai, Pei Lingyan is in charge of specific affairs.

Sima Pi, King of Donghai, is already married and should be in charge of the government, but until now, he has been excluded from the power system of the Yanzhou shogunate, and spends his days traveling and sightseeing with several royal family members of similar age.

When Shao Xun was away, except for military mobilization, all matters, big or small, were handled by the shogunate officials themselves. Concubine Pei was responsible for supervision, review, and final approval with the seal.

When it comes to raising military rations this time, to put it mildly, the Yuzhou shogunate was not as fast as Yanzhou.

Concubine Pei simply dismissed several of the officials who had often clamored for the King of Donghai to rule the country personally, and replaced them with local scholars from Yanzhou. As a result, the speed of raising grain increased suddenly - it sounds a bit like selling official positions, but this is the reality.

If Shao Xun was asked to handle it, he might be a little embarrassed to be so obvious and consider his reputation. But Concubine Pei really had no concerns at all. She directly dismissed the person who complained and then exchanged the official position for money and food.

What? You say I am narrow-minded and cannot tolerate opposing opinions? I am a woman, and I have a narrow mind to begin with. How do you treat me?
"It's not that easy to be in charge of a place." Shao Xun smiled and said, "Do you feel bored?"

Pei Lingyan glanced at him and said in surprise: "How dare you now..."

"In fact, we already know almost everything we need to know." Shao Xun said, "I don't want to let you down."

Pei Lingyan rolled her eyes at him and said, "You have wronged many people. Xiaohe has given birth to two children for you, but you still left her in Nanyang?"

Princess Liu of Nanyang gave birth to a son for him in March.

If Sima Mo, King of Nanyang, was still alive when the eldest daughter Fu Bao was born, she could have barely been covered up with the identity of "prince's daughter". But now this cannot be explained, and she can only be raised secretly in the mansion without being announced to the outside world.

Shao Xun also felt a little embarrassed.

Inviting princesses to review the troops every day, getting them pregnant and not taking responsibility, this is too fucked up.

He now has eight children, seven of whom were born to him by women in the Sima family: six were born to Sima's daughters-in-law, and one was born to Sima's daughter.

Those who didn't know the truth thought he was the reincarnation of Cao Mengde, who came specifically to seek revenge on the Sima family.

"When I establish a government office in Junyi and concurrently take charge of Yanzhou, you can join me then," Shao Xun said.

"Yeah." Pei Lingyan agreed without thinking.

She did not ask what status she would be given after entering the mansion, because it was useless to ask. This man was sometimes very affectionate, and sometimes very ruthless. He would give up everything, including his family, if necessary, for something he insisted on.

She also did not ask the generals of the Yanzhou shogunate how to make arrangements. It would be useless to ask, and it would only make her seem greedy for power.

This is the best outcome.

She can always be by the man's side, maintaining the current relationship that includes both love between a man and a woman and is like a family supporting each other.

Most importantly, it can give their son Nianliu an identity.

The children born in the future will also have the identity of members of the Shao family.

When the two entered the house, dinner was already prepared.

Shao Xun handed his son to the wet nurse and sat down.

"Why did you scare Pan Yangzhong in Junyi a few days ago?" The weather was hot, so Pei Lingyan helped him take off his robe and change into cool clothes, and asked.

"He wasn't scared, he was just suspicious." Shao Xun said, "Besides, I want to raise 4 million hu of grain and beans, so I have to scare people."

"So much?" Concubine Pei was a little surprised.

Her Yanzhou Shogunate, which governed eight counties and kingdoms, only raised 800,000 hu of grain and beans and 300,000 bundles of hay.

"Warfare requires so much food." Shao Xun said with a smile, "A soldier needs to eat two hu and seven dou of grain a month. What do you think? If you don't have enough food, you won't have the strength to fight."

War involves not only combat soldiers, but also auxiliary soldiers and conscripts.

In later generations, when the Ming and Qing dynasties fought wars, they would mobilize one or two thousand soldiers from this province, and three or four thousand from that province, to make up a few tens of thousands of people. It may not seem like a lot, but they were combat soldiers!
Auxiliary soldiers who set up camps, boil water and cook, take care of horses, and repair equipment for the soldiers are not necessarily included and are often recruited on the spot.

Not to mention the horse caravans, camel caravans, and convoys that transport food and fodder over long distances, the number of people is even greater - in the Qing Dynasty, business was often outsourced and was not counted in the total military force at all.

If fighting only requires combat troops, and does not require a larger number of auxiliary troops, or a number of teachers and servants that is several times the number of combat troops and auxiliary troops, then the consumption will definitely be small, but this is impossible. Four million hu of grain and beans can actually not sustain for long, only half a year, and the fight will end in winter.

"Last year's harvest was not good, and now we don't have enough food." Pei Lingyan took the plate from the maid and said, "No wonder you want to scare people."

"It's not just that there is not enough food stored." Shao Xun said.

Pei Lingyan thought for a moment and said, "Maybe some people are watching."

"What do you mean?" Shao Xun asked.

Pei Lingyan placed the spring okra that Shao Xun liked to eat in front of him and said, "There is a rumor in the south that the King of Langya is dissatisfied with you and may take action."

"Tell me in detail." Shao Xun frowned and said.

He knew that the noble families were divided into different places and had correspondence with each other. Even if they had professional ethics and were cautious, they would inevitably reveal some information in a few words - this was applicable to both Shao Xun and Sima Rui.

However, these staff members who came from aristocratic families would not necessarily reveal the news to their own lords after receiving it from their relatives. The reasons for this are very complicated.

"Jingwen (Sima Rui) once said to others, my lord, you are..." Pei Lingyan looked at Shao Xun and said slowly, "A thief who stole the country."

Seeing the woman's cautious look, Shao Xun held her in his arms and said with a smile: "Compared to stealing a country, I prefer stealing a beauty."

"Which of your women is not stolen?" Pei Lingyan leaned comfortably in his arms and said seriously: "In fact, Jingwen is a kind man, humble and polite. He usually doesn't say this to someone. Since he did this, he must be very angry. You can't take it lightly."

Shao Xun nodded slightly.

Sima Rui used to be Sima Yue's younger brother. How should I put it? This person has a gentle personality, is well-educated, is polite to others, and is not aggressive - at least on the surface, the character is like this, the real situation is hard to say, Shao Xun does not believe it, because Sima Rui is not without ambition or ability, in troubled times, no one is simple.

Sima Rui also flattered Concubine Pei, used her connections, sent her gifts frequently, and said nice things to her without asking for any money.

There was a reason why Sima Yue sent him to Xia Pi first to take charge and then to Jianye.

Simply put, he was the retreat route that Sima Yue had arranged in advance. Once the situation in the north became terribly bad and all measures failed to save it, Jianye could still serve as a back-up and provide him with support.

However, Sima Yue did not live to see that day, as he died first, and instead Sima Rui took advantage of him and took away part of his inheritance.

"If you are really worried," Concubine Pei said, "I will write a letter to Jingwen to explain it."

"It's useless. At this point, everything is clear, and no one is a fool." Shao Xun shook his head and said, "If you enjoy the benefits of the Four Wars Land, you must bear the disadvantages of the Four Wars Land. People only want to get benefits and don't want any disadvantages, but how is that possible? I will arrange this matter."

After saying that, he gently caressed and kneaded Concubine Pei's proud body, and said, "Flower slave, just rest assured and give birth to a child for me."

Concubine Pei hummed from the depths of her throat, with a long tail sound.

The maids ignored it, placed the food on the table one by one, bowed and left.

The two of them sat down and started eating.

Shao Xun ate while thinking silently.

Just now, Hua Nu mentioned that some people were watching, which was actually a reminder.

It turns out that some people are not optimistic that he can survive the attack from both the north and the south.

In fact, this is normal.

Aren't the generals and officers in the shogunate worried? They are worried too.

When they were halfway through the meal, a messenger arrived.

Shao Xun took the letter and looked at it. He met Concubine Pei's eyes and said, "It's from Wang Yifu. Wang Dun has been appointed as the governor of Jingzhou."

"This decree definitely did not come from the court." Concubine Pei was a little surprised at first, then she made a judgment.

Shao Xun nodded and said, "But Xun Song has already handed over the seal to him."

Whether the imperial edict is useful depends on whether others recognize it.

At present, it seems that even if it was not approved by the court and was an "imperial decree", Xun Song recognized it - Xun Song's family had already moved south, so it was normal for him to recognize it.

The secret edict issued by Emperor Xian of Han was also illegal from a procedural point of view and was an invalid imperial edict, but some people recognized it.

Of course, Sima Chi was much freer than Emperor Xian of Han. At least not all the people around him were replaced.

There were also many loyal ministers in the court, some real and some fake. When he summoned the ministers, they would not be searched when they came out - that would be too embarrassing.

He could even find a place for a private meeting, such as on the high ground of Jiuhua Terrace, where there were no palace guards around to monitor them. This was a power that was unimaginable for Emperor Xian of Han.

Shao Xun was too lazy to think about who had passed on the imperial edict, because there were too many possibilities and he couldn't guess it at all.

"No!" Concubine Pei grabbed his hand, shook her head gently, and said, "There are some things that Yuan Chao can do, but you can't."

Shao Xun nodded slowly.

Concubine Pei continued, "What you need to do is to accumulate prestige, the higher the better. Taking action against the emperor now will only damage your prestige, which is not worth the loss. The reason why Henan is so peaceful is partly because you eliminated the bandits and expelled the Huns, and partly because you allowed the emperor to maintain his dignity."

Shao Xun hummed.

Does he respect the emperor?
Actually, I don't respect him very much. But compared with other powerful officials in history? I respect him very much.

At least, in the eyes of the world, he did not do what Cao Mengde and Sima Yue did, which was outrageous enough to replace all the people around the emperor and lock him up like a bird in a cage.

At least, he did not use the emperor as a shield.

At least, he still delivered supplies when the palace was short of money.

At least, when he was stationed in a vassal state, he did not stand idly by like some people when something happened in Luoyang, but was truly loyal to the king.

Everything is achieved through comparison.

He is an image of a domineering official who is somewhat disrespectful to the emperor, but has remained upright so far.

This is one of the reasons why many people in Henan are willing to cooperate with him.

The Sima family may not be very ambitious, but they still have human hearts, so there's no need to seek trouble for themselves.

"I still have to go to the capital." Shao Xun said, "Talk to Wang Yifu. But, Hua Nu, you are right, victory on the battlefield is the most important thing. If we can't win, then there is no point in talking about anything else. If we win, then all the evil spirits will be powerless."

(End of this chapter)