Chapter 3 Fuyao (4) However, now he is not even qualified to be weak as a de facto prince. In troubled times, weakness means destruction. Just like a huge stone tied to his arm, Li Xu raised his hand
He stood up and said, "Ziming, you come and draft the order to close the level! After you finish writing it, give it to me to seal!" He said in a strange tone, as if the voice coming from his throat was not his own.
"Guo Fang, early tomorrow morning, you will lead two thousand soldiers and horses to inspect Hengshan, the border between Zhaojun and Hedong!"
Without waiting for anyone to respond, Li Xu raised his voice a little more and added the order, "Back off, take a thousand shi of grain from the treasury to the pass and let the general guarding the pass give each of the refugees who have arrived at the pass three days of rations.
No deductions!”
"That might attract more people to beg for food!" Cui Qian thought for a moment and reminded loudly.
"We can't do nothing!" Li Xu stood up, holding on to the table, trying his best to look domineering. "That's why we will lose the support of the people!" He ordered loudly, regardless of anyone's obstruction, "This is the end of the discussion today.
, we’ll talk about other things tomorrow!”
It was rare for everyone to see Li Xu's attitude be so tyrannical. They were stunned for a moment, then stood up and left. As the head coach of one side, although Li Xu's performance today was not perfect, he had already made a compromise with everyone. Therefore, everyone thought there was no need to force him.
too tight
When he heard the last few footsteps disappearing in the corridor, Xuzi slowly sat down and supported his head with his hands. He knew what he had done. Within a month, maybe thousands, maybe tens of thousands of people would
He died because of his order today. His heart was full of guilt, but there was nothing he could do.
Zhou Daniu walked over quickly with a pot of tea, poured out the cold tea in front of Li Xu, and gave him a new cup of tea. "The Marshal has actually done much better than others. If there is a famine here, Hedong
The officials will definitely not let anyone escape to their rule! Nor will they give any charity..."
"You also go to rest." Li Xu waved to him gently. Only his closest subordinates understood his confusion, but no one could help him solve it. "By the way, give me the official documents that have not been processed today."
Come here, I’ll look through it myself later!”
Zhou Daniu took the official document, then turned and left. With the sunshine coming in from the window, Li Xu slowly looked through the place alone. There were hundreds of wastes to be renovated. Therefore, the affairs were quite complicated, but the biggest problem was that an official with the word "money" needed to issue a document.
Salaries, soldiers need to be paid, city wall defense facilities need to be improved, ditches and rivers and dams need to be repaired, and many other things, all of which require large amounts of investment.
"I wonder how others solved it?" Asahi rubbed her forehead and thought distressedly, "Are they also feeling confused and panicked?"
The answer seems to be no. In Youzhou under Luo Yi's rule, the tax rate and talent are almost double those of Boling. People who have lost all their money are constantly fleeing to Shanggu, and even to the fox lake where snakes and insects are raging, and beasts are rampant. After the Li family rebelled
, in order to ensure the supply of the army, the place was also scraped clean. For these strong men, the common people had no choice but to flee and were unable to resist.
Dou Jiande's governance style was relatively gentle. The taxes he levied were not high, and the land tax was also set according to the six counties. However, Dou Jiande continued to expand his power. Every time he conquered a county, he would confiscate the homes of some wealthy households and exterminate their clans, and then add the Dou family army.
Without paying enough attention to equipment and defense facilities, the lives of his leaders may be much easier than those of the officials in Boling.
Just thinking about Dou Jiande's way of governing, Xuzi picked up another official document from Zhao County. The content made him laugh and cry. Actually, a local official who served as county magistrate under Dou Jiande wrote a letter to Zhao County, which was close to his government.
The officials asked for advice on their experience in farming and raising the people, and hoped to cross the border to discuss it in person without causing misunderstandings. The officials did not dare to agree, so they wrote an official document and submitted it together with the other party's letter.
"This guy surnamed Cheng is a good man!" Li Xu read the letter from the Dou family ministers and smiled. The leader who wanted to write the letter was obviously a martial artist. His regular script was tense, but the meaning expressed in the letter was very sincere.
People think that since they have changed careers and become a local official, they have the responsibility of being a local official. If they cannot settle the people under their rule, they will not only betray the trust of the lord, but also drag down nearby allies.
Compared to Li Yuanji, who forced the people to abandon their homes and businesses in order to collect military rations, the official surnamed Cheng was much more knowledgeable. "What if we guide the people living in the east of the river to go to him? There must be a lot of wasteland there due to years of war!" Suddenly!
, Li Xu had a whimsical idea. He stood up, found the map from the table on the left side of the meeting hall, and looked carefully at the official title of the county magistrate surnamed Cheng. At first glance, he was secretly surprised. It didn't last more than a month.
Over time, Dou Jiande's power actually expanded by nearly twice. Not only did he include the two counties of Pingyuan and Qinghe, but also nearly half of Xiangguo and Wu'an, which are adjacent to Zhao County, fell into the hands of this person.
At this rate, Dou Jiande's superficial power will soon surpass his own. "Even a bandit leader seems to be more successful than me in becoming a prince." Li Xu felt a little frustrated and nervous at the same time. "If this continues, I'm afraid Luo Yi won't go south."
The Dou family's army also had to go north. The six counties are the place of the Four Battles, and they are indeed well-deserved!" A soft pressure came from his shoulders, which quickly pulled him back from his annoyance. He turned around with a smile, and Xu Zi's eyes met Zhen'er's concern.
s eyes
"Why are you here?" Asahi asked them in surprise. The husband and wife rarely appeared in the meeting hall at the same time. Even if there were exchanges on government and military affairs, they would try to do so at home to avoid leaving the brothers at a loss.
"Sister Qiao said you are a little upset!" Qier smiled, showing two very beautiful dimples on her face
Qiaojie is the name of Mrs. Zhou Daniu. As the commander of the personal guards, Daniu's home is close to Li Xu's mansion, so his wife naturally has a handkerchief with Qi'er. Sometimes it is inconvenient for Daniu to come forward, so he often uses his wife to get around Qi'er.
He and Li Xu understood the secret and tried not to expose it.
"It's not a big deal, I've already figured out some clues!" Li Xu smiled and took his wife's hand, explaining softly, "Hedong has been in chaos recently, and people keep fleeing to Hengshan and Zhaojun. The two counties can't accommodate them, so
Everyone is a little worried, but Dou Jiande’s side has just conquered a lot of places, and they are short of people..."
"Dou Jiande will be very happy! Thank you very much!" Zhen'er thought for a while and reminded from her own perspective, "In the past troubled times, when princes from all walks of life fought against each other, they would definitely try their best to reduce the population under each other's rule!
"
"The key is that Zhuojun does not dare to resettle a large number of refugees. Otherwise, when the Turks come, they will be displaced again. Our summer harvest this year was interrupted by Luo Yi, and we will not have much surplus!" Li Xu patted Qi'er's hand.
hand, whisper response
After his mood calmed down, he could immediately understand what Zhen'er meant. Population meant military resources and tax revenue. It was indeed a very short-sighted act to drive away the people who came all the way to join Muliu County in the name of prosperity. But Cui Qian
The reason why Zhao Ziming and Zhao Ziming insisted on Li Xu keeping the refugees out of the wall was because they were limited to the six counties' own strength, rather than because they could not see the long-term benefits.
"Let's squeeze some food out of our own homes, and let the big households in each county donate some. With you as the general manager taking the lead, others won't dare not donate!" Qier put her hand on Li Xu's shoulder with a slight force. She understood it better than Li Xu.
The rules of those wealthy families do not care about the life or death of the weak, but they do not dare to disobey the orders of a strong man, at least until a more powerful person appears in Hebei, they dare not
"It's not fair to them!" Li Xu's eyes quickly brightened up, and then dimmed again. He didn't want to make more enemies, especially when surrounded by powerful enemies. Destruction from within was often more severe than
Attacks from the outside have caused even greater harm
"Lang Jun can exchange with them!" Qier suggested while squeezing Li Xu's shoulders.
"What should I exchange with them?" Xuzi raised his head and asked in surprise.
"You are now the general manager of the six counties, so you can give them official positions!" Qi'er replied with a smile, "Many casual positions do not require work, nor do they need to pay a salary, but they can greatly satisfy people's vanity!"
"Didn't everyone become officials everywhere?" Li Xu didn't expect that there was such a way to make money, and his eyes suddenly opened as big as eggs.
"It's better to become officials everywhere than to do things for others?" Zhen'er pursed her lips and snickered. It's better than proclaiming herself a general as soon as she joined the army, naming her two brothers as county princes, and paying homage to the subordinates at every turn.
The father of a general and a county governor, my husband really doesn’t know how to be a prince. “Back then, His Majesty lost the support of the soldiers because he was stingy about giving people official posts. The lesson is right before your eyes. Why should you make the same mistake again?
"
"That way, money and food won't be a problem!" Li Xu was so happy that he pulled Qi'er over and hugged her tightly.
"I will give the order tonight to let all the fleeing people in." Holding the warm nephrite, he felt extremely fulfilled. Why should he transfer the penis that was given to them to Dou Jiande? The friendship between the two parties is far from unbreakable.
The point!
"Lang Jun can arrange them on both sides of the Sanggan River and form a stronghold in the style of a military camp!" Zhe'er quickly looked around and found that there were no outsiders, then she sat down in her husband's arms with a smile.
"Yes, I will transfer some of the weapons to them and let them form a stronghold to defend themselves." After solving a big problem, Xuzi's mind became more flexible. "It is better to rely on others than to rely on yourself. The Turks are just herdsmen, there is nothing to be afraid of if you have them in your hands."
If they have a knife but don’t know how to resist, no one can save them!"
"Yeah!" Zhen'er nodded, her neck bent into a graceful arc.
That arc attracted all of Asahi's eyes. He lowered his head gently, pressed his forehead against his wife's neck, and absorbed the tenderness and warmth from it.
When the storm comes, two geese fly together, it is easier to break through the sky than one alone.