Chapter 787 Reconstruction (Part 1)
After the rooster crowed three times, Wang Chen left the Yunlong Gate, took dozens of carriages, built his own Spring Gate, turned around, and walked south for seven or eight days. Inside and outside, stopped outside a village.
He looked at it steadily for a long time, then wiped his tears with his sleeve.
Once upon a time, these villages belonged to him.
The manor that has been converted into an arsenal, a fighting arena, and an orchard was also his former manor.
Alas! After taking bribes for half a lifetime, I had accumulated so much wealth, and it was suddenly taken away.
It would be false to say that you are not heartbroken, but what is the use of being heartbroken again?
Ling Xiu, Guo Yi and others complained and were killed.
Of the five eunuchs who once controlled Ningshuo Palace, only he and Xuanhuai were left alive.
He is responsible for purchasing, while Xuanhuai is responsible for cleaning, and his status is low.
Even the newcomers who were captured and became eunuchs in the palace because they could not survive or were defeated did not seem to have much respect for them, alas.
The nearly 100 members of the Wang clan have been dispersed to various counties in Pingyang, where they have divided their fields and houses to support themselves, just like a farmer.
Wang Chen hated it in his heart, but he was also very frightened. He only had one obsession now, to find a chance to start over.
I was able to coax Liu Cong into doing things back then, and I can definitely coax Shao Xun into doing things now. The opportunity still exists.
"Prince!" Several farmers who were weeding in the fields saw him and fell to the ground one after another.
"Don't call me 'Prince', I am no longer your lord." Wang Chen sighed and waved his hand for them to get up.
The farmers stood up quickly, feeling a little embarrassed.
Indeed, they are already registered citizens. They are no longer anyone's dealer. It is just a habit of many years to bow to them just now.
Furthermore, when the prince is the owner of the manor, compared with other Wubao commanders and manor owners, he is actually pretty good.
The food levy was light, the harvest was small, and the life was comfortable. Now that they have become self-cultivated farmers, their burdens have suddenly become heavier - for families who are not Huangtou Army soldiers, one person from two households helps transport grain and grass to Lishi, which is hard.
While Wang Chen was talking to others, his subordinates had already begun to enter the village to buy various supplies, mainly fresh fruits and vegetables.
Although Lao Wang is not very respected by his subordinates, he still has a certain amount of power. Procurement like this is not the kind of "half a horse of red silk and one foot of silk, tied to the head of a cow and filled with charcoal" For a semi-robbery transaction, the price given is relatively acceptable.
After loading fruits, vegetables, poultry, and eggs from farmers on the truck, they were not given any deceptive coins, but "Yongjia Tongbao" newly minted in Dongyuan County.
In the end, Wang Chen still wants to take care of his old friends and let them still think of him. Maybe it will work someday in the future?
While Wang Chen was shopping, another convoy came from the south. Upon inquiry, it turned out that they were a team going to the countryside to collect grain.
When the motorcade passed by, Wang Chen took one look and was speechless.
Some carts were loaded with newly harvested wheat, while others were loaded with last year's millet and various miscellaneous grains. This search was thorough enough, and the people were afraid that they might not have much food left.
Remembering that a few months ago Pingyang ordered the people to reduce silkworm rearing and collect mulberries as food, I am afraid that I have thought of this day for a long time.
This is an old affair between Cao Cao and Yuan Shao!
In this world, people like Wang Chen who have no shortage of food feel miserable, let alone ordinary people who face tax collectors?
Cao Cao has only been dead for a hundred years. Everyone knows more or less who he is.
The King of Liang cannot degenerate into a cruel person like Cao Mengde.
"Oh..." A guard came back with some chickens, awakening Wang Chen from his reverie.
Wang Chen stepped aside a few steps and stood in the middle of the road.
Not long after, another group of people came from the north.
Carrying flags and wrapped in yellow scarves, followed by several carriages and donkey carts.
Wang Chen secretly thought that this must be a building of people. If there were no accidents, they were probably the Yellow Head Army living in a nearby village.
Sure enough, every time they passed a village, some people left the team.
When they were dozens of steps away, the people carrying the flag also left.
They went straight to the manor, unloaded the drums, armor, and baggage from the convoy, inspected them one by one, and stored them in the warehouse. The sergeants were allowed to take their sidearms home.
There were also soldiers returning from Wang Chen's village, but from what they said, it seemed like one of them had died and not all of them had returned.
The house where the dead man lived is at the end of the village.
The woman was holding two children, with one still pregnant in her belly, and listened silently to her colleague's narration, saying that they went north with Xie Ba and Xue's tribe from Hedong, but were repelled by the Xianbei cavalry and suffered losses. There were hundreds of people, one of whom was from this village.
The woman's face had no expression, as if the last trace of luster had been worn away by this heavy world, leaving only numbness.
Two husbands died in two years of civil war. What did you ask her to say?
Fortunately, the Pao Ze people are more loyal. They said that they all survived the flood in Hebei Province and have an extraordinary bond. They will help if there are any difficulties in the future.
When she heard this sentence, the woman's face had a hint of life, as if she had finally come to life. She covered her face and cried non-stop.
Being pregnant with a child and having two young children at home, it would be really difficult if there was no one to help - Silver Gun and other soldiers had pensions, but it was really hard to say whether Huang Toujun had any.
"Let's go, we won't receive much." Wang Chen sighed when he saw that the palace servants and guards coming and going were still unable to fill the car.
Everyone obeyed the order and drove away.
Wang Chen took one last look at the Zhuangzi he once owned. After the Huangtou Army soldiers returned, the village finally felt a little alive.
They barely rested.
After putting down their swords and guns, someone began to flood the garden.
Someone started to water the soybean field that had just been planted for more than a month.
Someone took a sickle and started mowing the grass.
Someone went to chop wood.
Someone helped his wife weave the mat.
Some people are planning to tidy up a corner field that has been abandoned for a long time and plant some vegetables.
The food levy did not reach the heads of the Huangtou Army soldiers, so the lives of these families were relatively easy. But the battlefield is too cruel. I really can't tell which is better: to be a field man who tightens his belt and live a hard life, or to face the enemy's cavalry incoming in overwhelming numbers.
Maybe it's not even good.
******
When Wang Chen returned to Ningshuo Palace, it was already afternoon.
When he entered through the closed door and saw Wang Yan sitting in the chariot awarded to him by King Liang, he respectfully gave way to the roadside.
Wang Yan didn't notice him, just frowned.
After the car stopped, we walked to the right side hall of Guangji Hall.
Yu Wenjun sat at the top, looking majestic and solemn, but his eyes wandered without focus, and he didn't know what he was thinking.
Wang Huifeng was writing and drawing on the side, and occasionally took out a copy to show to Yu Wenjun.
Only at this time, Yu Wenjun became a little more serious and discussed with Wang Huifeng in a low voice.
After Wang Yan came in, everyone stood up and greeted each other.
"Princess." After Wang Yan sat down, he organized his speech and said: "To restore the old view of Taiyuan, it will take a few years. There is not much food and grass in Hedong, Pingyang, and Xihe. After all the effort, we only collected more than 190 It’s just 10,000 hu of dendrobium. If you want to cultivate it in the counties of Taiyuan, you may not be able to accommodate too much. Besides, long-distance transportation will consume a lot of money. You need to think twice about this matter.”
Yu Wenjun suppressed the idea of asking Wang Huifeng for advice. , asked: "May I ask the military commander, is it more expensive to transport grain and grass from Yuzhou to Jinyang, or is it more expensive to transport grain and grass from Pingyang to Jinyang?"
"It's almost the same." Wang Yan was silent for a moment. replied.
"Then transfer them." Yu Wenjun looked at Wang Yan and said calmly: "Husband, the king said that there may be disaster victims in Hebei, and some of them can be moved to Taiyuan for resettlement."
When he said this, he held the hem of the skirt tightly with both hands, almost making a twist.
"Okay." Wang Yan looked at Yu Wenjun in surprise and nodded in agreement.
Yu Wenjun secretly breathed a sigh of relief, glanced at Wang Huifeng from the corner of his eye, and found that she was also looking at her.
"There is another matter." Wang Yan added: "There are only a few people in Taiyuan, so the king decided to merge the counties. The three counties of Wu, Zhongdu, and Jingling were merged into one county, called 'Pingyao County'. Yang The three counties of Qu, Langyu and Yu were merged into one county, called "Yangqu County". Pingtao County was destroyed by floods last year and has been unable to recover. The elders asked to move to Dagancheng built by Liu Yuan and organize the tribal people into it. People. This requires a seal, Princess——"
Wang Yan said as he handed over the official letter.
Yu Wenjun took it, read it carefully, picked up the pen and said: "It should be punished quickly."
The palace attendants took the seal, stamped it at the designated place, and handed it over to Wang Yan.
Wang Yan's eyes were a little complicated, and he secretly glared at Wang Huifeng.
Wang Huifeng lowered his head and pretended not to see it.
Her father was blaming her for teaching the princess how to do things, but she had her own ideas.
To be honest, if Prince Liang hadn't been staring at her and insisting on killing her, she would rather stay by his side and give him advice. But - there is no way, King Liang has the disease of few people. If you want to realize some ideas, you have to pay something.
"Military Secretary." Yu Wenjun glanced at Wang Huifeng subconsciously, and then said: "The king wants to build Sanjiao and Shiling Erlongxiang Mansion. When can it be completed?"
Wang Yan pondered for a moment and said: "Princess, you don't know something. There are nearly ten thousand households in the two Longxiang mansions. Calculated as five people per household, there are 48,000 people. Even if they feed on wild vegetables, fruits, vegetables, and mulberries, the food It also requires more than two million grains a year."
"There are probably only five people in each family, and not all the soldiers in the government are tired of it," Yu Wenjun said.
Wang Yan frowned and had to admit: "What the princess said is true."
"In this case, it may only cost more than one million dendrobium grains." Yu Wenjun said: "Three Jiao is in the north of Jinyang, and Shiling is in Yangqu. These are all critical places..."
When saying this, Yu Wenjun glanced at the map Wang Huifeng pushed to her.
"There is still not enough food. Hebei also needs millions of hu of dendrobium for disaster relief." Wang Yan reminded: "There are complaints in Henan. If you peel off the bed and skin, you may become angry."
< br>Yu Wenjun was stunned.
Wang Huifeng couldn't help but raise his head and look at his father.
I am afraid that some scholars from Henan have asked my father to advise him to stop the grain collection for disaster relief. It was inconvenient for the father to mention it in front of King Liang, but he came to bully the princess.
Father and daughter looked at each other quietly for a moment. Wang Yan was so angry that he secretly said that all the daughters he married were losers. In the end, I could only say bitterly: "I'll find a way to raise some. The government soldiers can be filled by the victims, killing two birds with one stone."
"Okay." Yu Wenjun said happily.
Wang Huifeng lowered his head again, looking at the official letters that seemed to last forever.
Wang Yan was a little sad and broke his guard. After saying a few words casually, he left.
(End of this chapter)