In the Heba Sheng Mansion in the south of Huazhou City, on a well-maintained horse's nest, a horse was galloping back and forth, with its bow drawn left and right, and its arrows hit seven or eight times out of ten.
"Uncle, what do you think of this strong man's bow and horse skills?"
Li Tai pointed at Zhou Changming who was still galloping on the small school field, and smiled and asked He Basheng who was sitting beside him.
"You are indeed very brave and impressive. I am envious of you in your prime!"
He Basheng himself is a world-famous brave general, and his vision is naturally high, but he also gave a high evaluation to Zhou Changming. After observing for a while, he asked: "This is what you choose in the countryside to compete with the local tycoons for power."
Candidate?"
Li Tai nodded: "Although Daxingtai loses rewards and selects scholars because of their talents, the country today is not peaceful and trouble-free. All candidates selected must also be based on their talents. Zhou Changming, the garrison leader of his hometown, has a brave and courageous ambition.
I can’t bear to see good people lying idle in the wild while mediocre people come to the fore, so I want to help them invest in them and develop them.”
The local tycoons in the county unanimously believed that they would not strive for the position of the township league. Although Li Tai was depressed, he had to admit this fact. The situation in Kansai was such that it was difficult for him, a foreigner, to directly control the township league.
The cronies in charge of the army also faced great obstacles.
Therefore, he made this compromise choice to help Zhou Changming, a friendly garrison leader, compete for the position of the township regiment. In short, he could not allow those village tycoons who were at odds with him to be elected.
"Before, I invited several households in the county to talk about this matter. The people also expressed their approval for this. The Zhou garrison leader is both talented and has the respect of his hometown. Uncle, how do you think this matter can be accomplished?"
There are more than a dozen big families in the county, but not every family has the strength and confidence to compete for power. Previously, because of the variable existence of Li Tai, the nostalgia was quite boiling, but when Li Tai clearly expressed his support for Zhou Changming, these big families
Their enthusiasm also cooled down and they began to assess the situation.
Zhou Changming did not have much talent in the village, so he was able to serve as the garrison commander of Shangyang. One was that he was brave and impressive, and the other was that he was loyal to the village and helped the poor and weak.
For the various families in the county, there is no direct conflict between them based on local assets. Compared with the wealthy and aggressive wealthy families in the county, Zhou Changming is indeed the best one among them.
A choice.
In addition, Li Tai, who had a large amount of capital, contacted and lobbied among them, and several inferior rural tycoons in the county also expressed their willingness to support Zhou Changming in competing for the position of the township league.
"Since you have already made up your mind, why bother asking me again? If I don't prepare to meet the enemy, I will be just an idler."
He Basheng smiled and waved his hand. He indeed had deep qualifications and a high status in the Western Dynasty, but he had to hide his power and bide his time. Apart from forming formations to kill the enemy, he hardly interfered with other major military and political affairs.
In his early years, he was defeated in Jingzhou and fled to Nanliang. He Basheng not only lost his own foundation, but also missed the opportunity to take control of Kansai.
When he just returned from Nanliang, He Basheng did have the ambition to summon his old troops and rebuild his career. However, when he saw that the personnel and affairs were in disarray and that Daxingtai had managed the military and administration of the Western Dynasty in an orderly manner, he gradually resigned himself to his fate.
He no longer has ambitions, but he has gained some open-mindedness and detachment from desires and desires.
After Li Tai heard this, he smiled and said: "Uncle, if you don't blame me for being willful and reckless, he is already the biggest guide for me."
When he made this little move, he was also worried that it would violate Daxingtai's bottom line of taboos. Since He Basheng said this, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Will you obey if I reprimand you? I originally thought that your thoughtfulness was brought up by Shuhu, but after this incident, I feel that Daxingtai's previous evaluation of you was accurate, and your courage and strategy are indeed not
Shuhu can take it in."
He Basheng pointed at Li Tai and cursed with a smile: "It has been several years since the imperial family moved westward. There are many celebrities from the old dynasty gathered in this dynasty, including powerful people from all walks of life. The sentiments in Guanxi are entangled, and there are many people who have suffered and tolerated it. You are the only one.
, the offense you suffered is not a major life and death crisis, but you dare to take advantage of the situation above and search for goods below, and you can actually make it happen!"
"I only think that my uncle is complimenting me. I am a new guest from Dongzhou. I am weak and have few resources. How can I have a foothold if I don't use my strength to build on my strength?"
Li Tai chuckled after hearing this. He and He Basheng became more and more familiar with each other, and they were no longer as cautious in their conversations as before.
"Am I praising you? I'm teaching you! Don't take dangerous measures unless it is a big danger. It is not easy for parents to raise this body. There is no need to waste this body in the struggle of spirit and spirit. This time, you used a clever plan.
Violating the criminal order can also relieve the resentment of the locals in time. But if you are addicted to it and become accustomed to it, honey will become poisonous, sooner or later!"
He Basheng put on a serious face and said seriously to Li Tai.
"I must remember my uncle's teachings! To make a living in troubled times, everyone must use their intelligence to the fullest. I am not a super human, and I have a few lives to test the restricted areas of humanity. After this incident, I have little local capital and can run my business with peace of mind.
, waiting for the timely reward, and no longer fighting against others."
Li Tai quickly lowered his head and expressed his stance. This time, the dispute based on the rural fight has not yet been completely resolved. Even if it is completely ended, he still needs to carefully digest the results. Indeed, he has no need to actively provoke others for the time being.
Skipping this section, He Basheng continued to preach: "Your Situ Gong may enter the Grand Wei Gong after the Autumn and participate in the Autumn Parade."
Li Tai couldn't help but smile after hearing this. Half a year of reorganizing the army has hardly achieved any remarkable results. This autumn's grand parade is obviously to wipe away the dejection of Mangshan's defeat. Putting Gao Zhongmi, He Liuhun's cheap second uncle, on the stage can also be ignored.
It has the effect of boosting morale.
When he thought that he and Gao Huan had gone around and become a family friend, Li Tai suddenly felt that he was also a person.
"No matter whether this can be accomplished or not, I will definitely remember Lang Jun's support on Wednesday! I am just a weak man from the countryside, and my muscles and bones are not worth the huge materials. If it weren't for Lang Jun's kindness and support, I would never dare to hope to fly in the countryside...
"
On the way back to Shangyuan from Huazhou City, Zhou Changming repeatedly expressed his gratitude to Li Tai.
"Chang Ming, if you say that again, it will be difficult to get along with you in the future! Friendship lasts a long time, and kindness is not as good as friendship. Talents and materials have their own strengths and weaknesses, and only by supporting each other can the loyalty be fulfilled.
My plan this time is because the local tycoons hate me. If your talents are trivial and difficult to compete with, I will not use goods to benefit you. If you think that I am cunning and difficult to work with, you will not even think about colluding with me. Since
Everyone gets what they need, and everyone gets what they need. From now on, we will discuss justice and not favor!"
Li Tai corrected Zhou Changming with a straight face and did not boss him around just because he gave away heavy goods.
This was his first attempt to make friends and interfere with the military organization structure of the Western Wei Dynasty after he came to the Western Wei Dynasty. He had fully considered it beforehand and had trust in Zhou Changming's character. Of course, he hoped that this relationship could last for a long time.
Before his own power can legitimately surpass Zhou Changming's, unilaterally deliberately emphasizing favors will inevitably cause the friendship to gradually deteriorate and become a blind pursuit of morality.
"Even so, if my husband doesn't have me, I can still be protected. If I don't have my husband, I will only have a future as a rural veteran in this life!"
Zhou Changming said with emotion: "If this matter comes true, I will be honored to be your confidant. If it doesn't come true, I will definitely serve as a pawn and I will never betray my feelings!"
Everyone in the village had already made arrangements for each other, and after consulting He Basheng, he understood that this matter was not taboo. After returning home, Li Tai began to organize the family's treasury and donated ointment to the government in the name of Zhou Changming.
Li Tai did not lie when he faced the big farmers in the village before. The sesame oil he collected was only more than 300 huks of dendrobium. Firstly, there was a stock limit in the nearby township, and secondly, the price of sesame oil was too high.
Although there was financial support provided by He Basheng, He Basheng's family did not have any gold or silver. Li Tai also had to set aside some fabrics to reserve futures. Of course, the purchase of materials had to be carefully arranged.
Although the quantity of sesame oil is insufficient, Li Tai is also purchasing other oils. In ancient times, there were many crop seeds that can be used to press oil. Sesame is famous for its high oil yield and good quality. Other oils include cabbage, brassicas, soybeans and even linseeds.
, are also common crops pressed for oil.
Vegetable oils in later generations mainly include peanuts, soybeans, tea seeds, etc., but peanuts have not been introduced to China yet, and soybeans in later generations have become the main oil crops after years of breeding and improvement.
The oil yield rate of soybeans nowadays is only less than one-tenth, which is much lower than that of sesame seeds. They are mainly used as food rather than oil.
Various miscellaneous oils are of varying quality, with different prices and uses. Li Tai has purchased more than 600 dendrobiums of various oils. After deducting the 500 dendrobes lost to the official, there are still more than 100 left.
Dendrobium.
In mid-July, the reward winnings had been officially announced for half a month, and the competitors in the nearby countryside had basically become clear. Specifically, in Shangyuan Township, there were only two competitors, Shi Jia and Zhou Changming, the leader of the Shangyang garrison.
This time the reward was lost, three governors of Wuxiang County were included in the reward list. In principle, the local township officials were in charge of the township regiments. This was particularly tempting to the township tyrants. Combining power with township capital, no matter what they were doing,
There are great conveniences in being an official or in business, which is why local tycoons actively compete.
The titles of Commander-in-Chief and Commander-in-Chief have long existed, but they were often used as additional titles for state and county chiefs, giving them the power to command township regiments. Now that this title is specifically listed for reward, it is naturally a move to encourage powerful right-wingers and officially include it as a title.
One of the steps for the military to carry out more systematic dispatch management.
After the competition became obviously fierce, Shijia took on an aggressive stance and was determined to win. The carriages and horses transporting materials were continuously transported to Huazhou from Shangyuan. Some convoys even went around the outside of Litai Manor, making it clear that they were in the process.
Demonstration.
Not to mention how Li Tai feels about this, Daxingtai Yu Wentai must be happy to see the local tycoons so enthusiastically donate: If you don't roll up, I won't be able to sleep well!
As local tycoons from all over the country enthusiastically donated money, there were several companies competing for the position in one place, and Daxingtai also made some adjustments to the reward system: in principle, it was still awarded once the loss was reached, but certain conditions were given for selecting the land.
The activity space is judged by the villagers' expectations, with priority given to the village chief as the native villager, and others will be taught elsewhere.
As for what counts as the head of the township, the right of interpretation naturally belongs to Daxingtai. In short, the materials that have been confiscated will not be returned, but you will be assigned a position in another county. If you don't want it?
Just when Li Tai was still lamenting that Yuwen Heita had evil intentions and was considering whether to add Baihu ointment, Wuxiang County, as an important place in Fuguo, had the first step to obtain the results of the selection.
"Mr. Lang, something bad has happened! Shixian Lieutenant has been elected as the county governor, and the Daxingtai Order has been issued!"
Zheng's face was covered with sweat as he rode into the manor and opened his mouth with such bad news.