Jizhou is located in the middle of Hebei, about 300 miles away from Damingfu. It has a small jurisdiction and only governs five counties. Its population is less than 150,000. Previously, due to the geographical location of Damingfu in the south of Hebei, it was too remote.
The issuance and implementation of the decree has increased administrative costs. Some officials have suggested moving the Hebei administrative office to the central region, and Jizhou is under consideration.
However, due to some resistance from inside and outside, the proposal was shelved, which also caused Jizhou, a central prefecture and county, to miss the opportunity to re-emerge.
In autumn, Hebei has already ushered in the harvest time, and the vast plains have been dyed golden. The weather is good this year, and there is no disaster. At least the people of Hebei will not have to bear the impact of other force majeure other than war.
On the dark yellow dirt road, a group of knights galloped quickly, throwing away the fields and woods along the way. There were about thirty people in this group of knights. Apart from the obvious guards, the most eye-catching one was one of them, Lan Jin.
Middle-aged.
The high-speed running caused the coat to lift up and make a sound under the influence of the wind. After a long time, he slowed down until he stopped, reined in the reins, and observed a field beside the road.
The autumn wind blew up waves of wheat, and the rustling sound was so sweet. There were some farmers scattered among the wheat fields, burying their heads in the wheat carefully.
Although it is the harvest season, the atmosphere is not as relaxed and joyful as in previous years. In addition to sweat on the foreheads of the farmers at work, there also seems to be a layer of indelible haze and worry.
In the fields, in addition to the sound of wind, wheat harvesting and the chirping of animals, from time to time there would be a burst of children crying, coming from the backs of peasant women working in the fields.
It can be found that only more than half of the farmers who are busy harvesting in the fields are young and middle-aged, and the rest are all old farmers, healthy women and teenagers. As for where the men in the family have gone, it can be easily concluded that they are not convinced.
Military service means hard labor, basically serving the Northern Expedition. On weekdays, if the government wanted to call for corvee service, it would not be at such a time of year.
Looking at the desolate and busy scene in the fields, the middle-aged man standing by the road seemed to be somewhat affected by his emotions. He sighed: "Along the way, not only are there fewer farmland plantings than in previous years, but the harvest is also vigorous.
The lack of labor is visible to the naked eye!"
"Shou Gong, the situation in Jizhou is not serious yet. With a little organization and busyness, we can always deal with it. It is the northern states and counties that have mobilized the most people and have been the most affected!" A person with a certain temperament beside him said:
The elegant old man with a goatee treated the middle-aged man with obvious respect in his words.
The status of middle-aged people in the Han Dynasty is noble. They are not only relatives of the emperor, but also the twenty-four ministers of Qianyou, the Duke of Shou, and Li Shaoyou, the chief envoy of Hebei.
More than twenty years have passed, and the former libertine in Jinyang is now a flamboyant man with colorful hair and dyed temples. At the age of five, he can no longer see the chic appearance in his early years. He can only be seen from the indescribable temperament.
Some shadows of the past are vaguely found. Even though he has been pampered all year round, the years have left some traces on Li Shaoyou's face.
In particular, his love of wine and sex put a considerable burden on Duke Shou's body. Even though he had dismissed his concubines once in his early years, there are still eleven concubines in Li Shaoyou's house today. However,
, as he grew older, Duke Shou also began to pay attention to restraint and self-cultivation.
Of course, the fatigue on Li Shaoyou's face at this time was not only due to the hard work of traveling, but also due to the high-intensity work in the past few months. Hebei is the most important logistics base for the Eastern Route Northern Expeditionary Army. As a chief officer, he was responsible for all aspects of work.
Locally mobilize local people and financial resources, and the energy required will naturally increase greatly.
This time, he was already inspecting and mobilizing the central and northern prefectures and counties. He was originally investigating the manufacturing and transshipment of medicinal materials in Puyin. When he learned that Emperor Liu had visited Hebei, he hurried to Lusheng. Although Emperor Liu
He was not summoned specifically, but it did not affect his proactive behavior and positive attitude. After all, the cousins had not seen each other for some years since the death of the Queen Mother.
"Is this already in Jizhou?" Li Shaoyou asked.
The political advisor next to him summoned his guide and reported: "My lord, it is true that this place is under the jurisdiction of Hengshui County. The county seat is in the southeast, and about thirty miles to the south is the capital city of Xin!"
"Shou Gong, you have been traveling day and night, do you want to take a rest for the night at Hengshui or Xindu?" the political participant asked for instructions.
"No! Can we still let His Majesty wait for us?" Li Shaoyou shook his head, waved his hand, and ordered: "Dismount and rest on the spot! Go and call the local Li Zheng!"
"yes!"
Soon, Li Zheng from the hometown arrived. He was a standard Hebei man, with a rough face full of traces of time, and a rough and heroic atmosphere. He was missing two fingers on his right hand. He had obviously been on the battlefield.
In the countryside, Li Zheng, who kept his word and could be domineering, behaved well in front of Li Shaoyou, as honest as a quail.
Not to mention the strong and ruthless knight who found him, the aura naturally displayed by Li Shaoyou and his entourage frightened the "well-informed" Li Zheng. This was definitely not what the county officials could show.
He was definitely a powerful person in the state. No matter how high he was, it was beyond his scope of knowledge. Even when he was in the army, the highest-ranking officer he had ever interacted with was just a battalion commander of the army.
"I don't know where your distinguished guest is from. I've called you down. Do you have any advice?" He probably has experienced the upper class society in this county and his hometown. He is obviously a rough man and speaks in a refined manner. When he clasped his fists, he even deliberately raised his short fingers.
Revealed, it seems to show off his experience.
Seeing the careful and shrewd performance here, Li Shaoyou smiled softly, handed him a water bag in his hand, and said: "I am from Damingfu, passing by your place, I have something to ask! Take a few sips of wine, this is your Hengshui's
liquor!"
Hearing this, Li Zheng's eyes lit up. After hesitating for a moment, he still couldn't help being greedy. He took the exquisitely crafted wine bag and took two big sips. When the wine entered, his eyes widened even more.
He soon showed an expression of enjoyment.
He handed it back respectfully and exclaimed: "This wine must be quite old. Even in Hengshui, ordinary people can't drink it!"
"Hengshui's wine is famous in Hebei and even the whole country. My family has few assets, so I can buy some!" Li Shaoyou replied.
Li Zheng shook his head and said: "Although I am just a country boy, I also know that the distinguished guest can use this wine as a traveling drink and have these warriors as escorts. He is definitely not an ordinary person!"
Li Shaoyou: "Oh! According to your opinion, what is my identity?"
Li Zheng chuckled: "It must be a powerful person. The distinguished guest does not want to reveal his identity, and I will not ask too much!"
"You are a shrewd person. With your integrity, the local governance of this town should be very stable!" Li Shaoyao said.
"It used to be okay, but now there is a war in the north, and 40% of the people in the village have been transferred out. There are fewer troublemakers, but the work in the fields is difficult! I heard that some places have released some laborers.
"No one from our village has come back yet!" Li Zheng said calmly.
"After all, it is to support the soldiers fighting at the front!" Li Shaoyou nodded to express his understanding and asked: "What do you think about the Northern Expedition?"
"What can we ordinary people think? The court wants to fight, and the government wants to collect military service. All we have to do is obey. What's more, we are still fighting the Khitans. If I had this hand intact, I might have to lead people to the front line. My father still has two
Brother, we all died at the hands of the Khitans back then..." Li Zheng said.
Although this was just a family rumor, and even the shrewd Li Zheng deliberately catered to himself, Li Shaoyou was still pleased with his "awakening" and said with a smile: "Could it be that your broken finger was caused during the battle with the Khitan people?"
"Exactly! More than ten years ago, during the first Northern Expedition of the Han Dynasty, they fought with the Khitans at the south entrance. They failed to escape and lost two fingers!" Li Zheng was a little proud.
Li Shaoyou was a little in awe and said with emotion: "The battle at Nankou was very fierce. Many soldiers died at that time!"
"Yes!" Li Zheng seemed to recall the bloody and cruel battle that year, and responded: "I was under the command of General Han (Han Lingkun) at that time. I was lucky and survived. There were more than 20,000 brothers in the front camp.
, there wasn’t much left after the war! I beheaded seven Khitan people at that time, and then I was awarded the honor and returned to my hometown as a local official. Lao Lizheng retired, and I took up the post of chief here."
"Take two more bites!" Li Shaoyou handed him another bag.
Although he was a little embarrassed, Li Zheng still couldn't help but take a few sips, with an almost intoxicated expression on his face, and sighed: "I am a local, these days, I need to drink some Hengshui."
Even wine is not easy!”
Li Shaoyou seemed surprised: "Why, it's still difficult for Hengshui people to drink Hengshui wine?"
"The county government has issued a strict order not to make wine, and the grain is collected. Except for tax revenue for personal use, everything else must be sold to the government!"
Hearing this, Li Shaoyou nodded slightly and said with a smile: "In extraordinary times, filling your stomach is more important!"
"I just pity those brewing shops. There are several brewing shops privately, but they have all been imprisoned and convicted by the county!" Li Zheng said with emotion.
Li Shaoyou was even more satisfied. The wartime work in Hengshui County seemed to be done quite well.
"There are a lot of strong laborers in the countryside. The autumn harvest work will be a little difficult. Is it too late?" Li Shaoyou asked again.
Li Zheng replied: "There are some difficulties, but they have been harvested in advance. The difficulty is that for those families whose labor has been transferred, a strong laborer can do what a strong laborer can do during the busy farming season, but not those strong women and young men can do it.
That’s okay. However, the county has issued a decree, asking all townships and villages to organize the remaining young men to help these families. The cost of hiring will be borne by the county..."
"Oh?" Li Shaoyou became more interested.
After asking some more about the local farming situation, he returned home. Since he was satisfied with his performance, he even gave him a bag of wine.
"Who is the leader of Hengshui County?" Li Shaoyou asked before leaving.
"The county magistrate's name is Zhang Qixian, and he is a Jinshi in the fourth year of Kaibao!"
"When the Northern Expedition is over, you can be promoted!" Li Shaoyou ordered.