Chapter 305 Bon Appetit
Shi Le retreated, but did not leave completely. Instead, he continued to stay in the Puyang Kingdom and fought three more battles with Sima Yue, winning all of them, but with few casualties.
After ten days of fierce attack on Puyang, they failed.
This battle was very fierce, and Shi Le lost more than 7,000 people. But he didn't seem to care. Instead, he transferred 3,000 warriors from the defeated battalions to join the main force.
After Kui'an, Zhixiong, and Taobao returned with the remaining defeated troops, Shi Le looked at the troops in their tent that had almost been replaced by half, and he had the idea of retreating.
But Liu Cong had just commanded Zhao Gu and Shi Chao to attack Huai County and kill many people. He was in high spirits. If he didn't leave, how would Shi Le and Wang Mi leave?
However, the news from Pingyang quickly solved the siege of Shile: the emperor was seriously ill and might have to go on a grand tour.
When Liu Cong heard about this, he entrusted the army to Liu Xian, the king of Quyang, and went back to "fulfil his filial piety".
Shi Le was afraid of Liu Cong, but not afraid of Liu Xian. Their status was very different.
So he crossed the river from Puyang and entered Dunqiu. After some looting, he went to Yecheng to eat.
Wang Mi crossed the river on his white horse and entered Ji County. However, the remaining troops retreated in a hurry and were defeated by the right army general Wang Bing led by Song Chuo and Qiu Guang. More than 2,000 of them were beheaded.
Liu Xian also made no move.
The country will be mourned, and anyone with any brains will know that the town must be quiet.
However, the southward attack on Luoyang may not be over yet. Everything depends on what the new emperor Pingyang thinks.
Shao Xun stationed troops in the suburbs of Xingyang.
He has no intention of fighting now. He spends most of the day dealing with documents that require him to make decisions from Luonan, Xiangcheng, Yingchuan, Chenjun and other places.
In order to share the pressure, he transferred the Dianshu Prime Minister Maobang, the State Prime Minister Pei Xi, the Literature Yang Jiezhi, and the Zuo Changshi Hu Wufu to assist him in handling official affairs.
This is also an inspection.
If you can't satisfy him, change a group of people next time until you find the one you like.
"Is Pei Chun still ill?" Shao Xun finished reviewing an official document and handed it aside.
After Mao Bang reviewed it, he began to use the seal.
Shao Xun glanced at him, covered a line on the official document with his hand, and asked: "How much land does the Yingyin Tuntian Army have, and how many household registrations do they have?"
"There are 71 hectares of land. , 99 hectares of middle fields and 34 hectares of lower fields, with a total of 1,308 households and 1,823 people stationed there," Mao Bang replied.
"Yes, I'm not fooling around." Shao Xun took his hand back and said, "Send it out."
"No." Mao Bang responded.
Yang Jiuzhi watched the "little game" between the master and the apprentice with great interest, and said, "I heard that the prince intercepted the grain supply and was cured again."
Shao Xun said: "Let Duke Pei teach you a lesson."
Pei Chun, the governor of Xingyang, is the son of Pei Kang and the elder brother of Concubine Pei. He is as incompetent as his cousin Pei Xian, the former governor of Yuzhou.
The Huns army pressed on the border, but he did not run away, but he had no idea, no solution, and no idea what to do.
Shao Xun felt that if he had not personally led his troops to Xingyang, Pei Chun would probably have been captured and killed by Shi Le - and he did not know what his fate was in history.
Fortunately, he is quite sensible.
As soon as you come here, he becomes "sick" and doesn't care about anything. He just lies down and lets you do whatever you want.
Shao Xun felt very helpless. I want to see if you can be used. Why do you think I want to grab the territory? Why should I seize 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 prepared for the Eight Kings Rebellion very early, and ended during the Jiananfeng period, suffering two heavy blows in a row. The family's spokesperson in the court was swept away, and they had to go home to lick their wounds.
Seven or eight years ago, when Shao Xun first met Concubine Pei, the Pei family avoided participating in politics. Even their son-in-law Sima Yue refused to invest. But as the situation changed, they couldn't bear it anymore in the past two years.
If only Pei Dun sought the position of Xuzhou governor at the beginning, and it could be regarded as his personal behavior, things would be different later.
Pei Gong and Pei Zheng, who were from the Pei family branch, served as the prefect of Hongnong and the prefect of Hanoi respectively.
At the back, the main veins also began to enter.
Pei Dun, the governor of Xuzhou, and Pei Chun, the governor of Xingyang, were both Pei Kang's biological sons.
My nephew Pei Xian (son of his third brother Pei Kai) was appointed governor of Yuzhou.
My nephew Pei Bao (son of his eldest brother Pei Li) was appointed governor of Qinzhou.
Last year, another son Pei Shao (first as Pei He) was sent to Jianye to serve as an aide beside Sima Rui.
Among the large number of nephews, some work for the family, and some seek refuge with Sima Yue and Sima Rui.
If you include those who invested in Shao Xun, the Pei family actually has three boats, which is awesome.
Shao Xun has gradually gotten used to the basic ethics of a wealthy family, but it does not mean that he can accept this kind of thing in his heart.
But they still have to be used now...
"Yanggong, is there any news about the interception of grain this time?" Shao Xun looked at Yang Jiuzhi and asked.
Yang Jiuzhi pretended to ponder for a while.
Hu Wufuzhi just went out and hasn't come back yet.
Mao Bang here is a student of Chen Hou and should be very reliable.
Pei Kui was born in a distant branch of the Pei family. Chen Hou asked such an important question in front of him. He must have been tested and trusted him, just like he had just tested Mao Bang to see if he had any intentions.
So, he spoke: "There are many discussions in the court, and the emperor is not happy. Angels may come over in a while, so you should be prepared."
"What's the worst that will happen? ?" Shao Xun asked.
"Dismissal." Yang Jiazhi said.
Shao Xun thought for a while and realized that dismissal was not a big deal. At worst, he will turn the Yamen Army into government soldiers. What can you do to me?
If he really gets to this point, the court will have no reason to order him to fight this or that.
Of course, Shao Xun could not really watch the imperial court be destroyed by the Huns.
Once the orthodox emperor is gone, will Sima Rui of Jianye "supervise the country"?
This is the biggest risk, because it means that the entire southern attitude begins to become unpredictable and no longer the clear "ally" it is now.
As for establishing a new emperor, that is even more impossible.
Aristocratic families can support you, but you, Shao Xun, have such a bullshit background that you want to support him as emperor? Are you sick?
So, he and the Luoyang court actually had a close relationship, but there was also an internal game, which was very complicated.
"Actually, the monarch was reckless this time." Yang Jiongzhi reminded tactfully: "Even if you want to control people, you don't have to be so fierce."
Shao Xun was a little stunned. Is this how Yang Jiazhi sees him? Completely from a profit perspective?
"Yanggong, in the past I followed Mi Zihui into Guanzhong to conquer King Yong of Hejian. Seeing the Xianbei killings, I was so indignant that I killed all 5,000 Xianbei cavalry in Chang'an City." Shao Xun said slowly. Said: "Captain Mi was very confused and tried his best to dissuade me. Guess what I said at that time?"
Yang Jiuzhi shook his head. "I said that Xianbei is cruel and harms the people. If you haven't seen it, forget it. Now that you have seen it with your own eyes, if you still let it go, how different will it be from the people who live like flies and dogs?" Shao Xun said: "Now I see that the people are hungry and change their sons to eat. If you are still indifferent, that is too cold-blooded and not the behavior of a man."
Yang Jiuzhi glanced at Shao Xun, as if thinking about the truth in his words.
The massacre of five thousand Xianbei cavalry certainly hurt Sima Yue, but it was not without benefit to Shao Xun.
At that time, the relationship between Shao Xun and Sima Yue was already very tense. Maybe, Sima Yue had some murderous intentions in his heart, and wanted to get rid of Shao Xun quickly.
Killing five thousand Xianbei people cooled the relationship between Sima Yue and Wang Jun, cut off a major help from him, and also eliminated a major threat to himself.
Yang Jiuzhi doesn't believe in any sentiments and righteousness. He likes to analyze everything from the perspective of interests.
In his opinion, Shao Xun's method was a little fierce and a little thoughtless, but it was still a cruel move.
This interception of grain to provide relief to the victims was actually a way for Shao Xun to expand his own strength.
The words were so benevolent and righteous that Yang Jiuzhi felt that he was acting.
However, if you like to act, I will act with you.
Acting is also an indispensable skill for those who achieve great things. Shao Xun is quite talented in this aspect, so it is not in vain that the Yang family comes to help him.
"It's true that I had a misunderstanding. I'm ashamed." Yang Jianzhi sighed as he cupped his hands.
After sighing, he changed the topic and said: "Now that the matter has come to this, it is really meaningless to argue about right and wrong. I thought about it this morning. Chen County is the key point in controlling water transportation. As the hometown of Cao Wei, it is actually a powerful town for the imperial court. . The princes and nobles have the responsibilities of being pillars. If they collect hundreds of thousands of people who have been displaced by the disaster and make them settle down, they will be able to provide support to the army and support the country. "
Shao Xun nodded slightly after hearing this and looked at Mao Bang again.
Mao Bang immediately said: "You can also praise your great achievements."
Shao Xun's iron sand palm slapped Mao Bang heavily on the shoulder and said: "I just want to eliminate the bandits and eliminate the disaster. , Just to spread the imperial style."
After saying that, he looked at Yang Jiezhi and said sincerely: "Now Chen County has received more than 100,000 dendrobium of grain. If you use it sparingly, you can support more than 10,000. The people of each household will live until the bean harvest in autumn. But to manage so many people, Yang Gong needs help."
Shao Xun agreed to the standards set by Li Zhong without making any changes.
On average, a family is given seven liters of grain a day, which is more than two huks of dendrobium a month. If you sow miscellaneous grains this month, they will be harvested in September. If you leave some surplus, you will need to feed them for about four months, which will consume eight or nine hu of dendrobium.
In fact, among the disaster victims, most of them are large and medium-sized, while there are fewer small-sized ones. The food expenditure will definitely be more than this, and it will only be more.
When starting to plant miscellaneous grains, in order to give them strength, they need to be given extra rations ten days and a half in advance to raise them.
Including the expenditure on seeds, 180,000 dendrobium of grain can indeed only support the survival of more than 10,000 households.
"I heard that Professor Junhou has more than a thousand students, why don't you send them to take charge of them?" Yang Jiuzhi asked.
"There are not so many people who have completed their studies." Shao Xun said: "Most of them are in the army, and only a few dozen civil servants are assigned to various counties. Even if some are transferred, it is not enough."
Yang Ji believed.
In fact, in a few years, you can only become proficient in writing. When it comes to managing people and government, you still need experience.
At this moment, Chen Hou really had no choice but to turn to the gentry and ask them to provide talents to help him manage the civil affairs.
There is a huge talent gap that he cannot fill in a short time. And the larger the territory, the larger the gap.
“I wonder how many refugees you want to resettle?” Yang Jiuzhi asked.
"Fifty thousand households will always need it, and at worst there will be 40,000 households." Shao Xun said: "There will be no more than 10,000 households gathered here, and there will be more and more in the future."
Although Rao was prepared, Yang Jiuzhi was still startled.
What a big appetite!
What a big ambition!
What a big spirit!
"There aren't that many unclaimed lands in Chen County, right?" He sat up straight and asked.
"Maybe..." Shao Xun said: "Even if Chen County doesn't have it, there will always be Liang State, right? If that's not enough, I heard that the refugee commander Li Hong led more than 5,000 families to flee south, plundering Xincai, if you want to kill the Duke of Langling County, there should be a large area of unclaimed land in the south. "
At the turn of the Jin Dynasty, there were as many swamps and wild lands as there were in the old Runan Kingdom. You don't even need to get it from the nobles with dirty hands, just open up wasteland.
Of course, the cost of land reclamation is high. Wouldn’t it be good to just grab the cultivated land of Gong He’s family in Langling County?
"Is there so much food?" Yang Jiuzhi asked doubtfully.
"There will always be." Shao Xun replied without hesitation.
Yang Jiuzhi understands.
He was subconsciously worried, but also a little excited.
His mind has already begun to make rapid calculations, calculating the gains and losses.
The Yang family has no idea of crossing south for the time being, but Taishan County was repeatedly plundered by Cao Yi, causing considerable losses.
Yang Jiuzhi even wondered whether the Yang family would be forced to lose their footing and eventually be forced to cross south? But if we can develop in the north, isn't it better than going to Wudi? Is it so easy to let go of family property?
"Yanggong, Changhegong has been decided to serve as the prime minister of Lu, and he will take office soon." Shao Xun reminded again.
When Yang Ji heard this, he said: "It is our duty to help the victims. Please relax, sir. The Yang family will definitely send Junyi from the clan to come and help."
The Prime Minister of Lu is Yang. The family was running smoothly, but Lu Zhi, the governor of Yuzhou, did not stand in the way. In this matter, Chen Hou was worthy of the Yang family and allowed the Yang family to obtain the position of local governor with real power. Even if it means reciprocating a favor, you still have to help him.
“With Yang Gong’s words, great things will happen.” Shao Xun said with a smile.
"Changhe Gong" is Yangchen, whose name is Changhe.
Yang Chen's grandfather Yang Mi and Yang Jiazhi's grandfather Yang Dan are brothers and have a very close relationship.
In the eighth year of Yuankang (298), Shi Chong and Gao Dan, who were the governor and governor of Xuzhou respectively, were dismissed from their posts due to a drinking dispute. Yang Chen took office and served as the governor of Xuzhou for two years, and then transferred to another post. Taifu has a long history.
Sima Lun was in charge of the government, he was the prime minister of the country, and Yang Chen was recruited to join the army.
Yang Chen refused, so he got on a saddleless horse and ran away in a hurry. The envoy delivering the order chased him. Yang Chen was very skilled in martial arts and could shoot his bow left and right on a bare horse. The envoy was not allowed to get close, so he ran back to his hometown smoothly. He was also a strange man.
"The king has done a great job." Yang Jiuzhi said with emotion: "When the world is changing, it is so magnificent to suddenly rise up."
"Yang Gong praised what I have done. Why don't we go south together to avoid the angels?" Shao Xun asked with a smile.
"The prince wants to go south to Chenjun?"
"Of course."
"Then I want to have a look." Yang Jianzhi said with a smile.
"Prepare the horses." Shao Xun did not hesitate and directly ordered Tang Jian.
After saying that, he grabbed Tang Jian again and whispered: "Tell Lord Pei that there are two thousand county soldiers in Xingyang and transport troops in Aocang. If he dares to abandon the land and flee without authorization, I will try my best to offend Mr. Pei, but I won’t let him go.”
“No,” Tang Jian agreed.
Shao Xun nodded.
No one in the Pei family can worry, they are all good at running away. If he didn't say harsh words, he was really worried that the Huns could scare Pei Chun away by sending hundreds of cavalry across the river to conduct reconnaissance.
They are all pig teammates. Letting him engage in literary work in the future will be a huge burden and must not be entrusted with important responsibilities.
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 southward to Chen County.
(End of this chapter)