The summer is hot and the mountains and forests are quiet.
Ding Dazhuang and others, who were worried about Xia Jing, were at Jigong Mountain at the moment.
The terrain of Jigong Mountain is dangerous and the mountain road is difficult to travel, but they were still able to capture it.
After working hard all night, everyone in the guard camp was hungry. The smell of meat coming from the open space made everyone salivate.
Not to mention the prisoners who were captured.
For breakfast in the morning, I steamed white rice, burned the bacon and sausage saved by the bandits, and gathered all the vegetables grown next to the bandits' den to stir-fry a vegetable stew.
As soon as the leader of the group called for dinner, everyone in the guard camp held a large bowl with rice and vegetables, and ate it with big mouthfuls. It was so delicious!
It seems that the delicious food is not as good as the food in the bowl.
If anyone suffering from anorexia sees the way they eat, they will definitely recover immediately and pick up their rice bowl and eat three big bowls of them!
"Boss"
"Call the squadron leader!"
"Oh, squadron leader, it is better to be a bandit than a civilian these days. You see, the civilians have become refugees, fleeing everywhere. They are all so hungry and skinny, and even more exaggeratedly, they exchange their food for food. And these bandits have a warehouse full of food.
Bacon is hung all over the roof beams, and there are vegetables in the fields. If it weren't for the inconvenient transportation in the mountains, this place would be a paradise on earth, a paradise on earth."
Ding Dazhuang took the last bit of rice from the bowl into his mouth and said with a smile: "If you like it here, I will let you stay here after I report to the princess when I go back?"
"Ha, forget it then. Captain, I'm joking, don't take it seriously." The team member sneered.
Ding Dazhuang put down the bowl and wiped his mouth, "Okay, don't be so talkative. Eat quickly and clean up the spoils so that we can go back home. After being out for so long this time, the princess must be thinking about us."
After eating, your physical strength is replenished.
Even though they didn't sleep all night last night, because of the huge harvest, the guards in the guard camp were all as energetic as chickens and full of energy!
This time they brought five hundred guards out to suppress the bandits, but there were not many of them. Of course, they did not dare to touch the large bandit nests.
I picked up a small group of bandits and eliminated them along the way, and the harvest was pretty good.
There are four to five hundred bandits in Jigong Mountain, and nearly two hundred of them are old women, old women, and weak ones. Except for the bandits they invaded last night and put up a stubborn resistance and were wiped out, there are still more than three hundred people left.
"Captain Ding, the bandit leader will let him sit in the carriage. In my opinion, let him walk. This way our carriage can pull more cargo."
Cheng Gu is the captain of the 7th Squadron of the Guards Battalion. His little sister was killed by bandits, so he has a deep hatred for bandits.
Ding Dazhuang shook his head and asked: "The bandit leader is as cunning as a fox, what if he escapes? By letting him sit in a fixed cage on the carriage, we can feel much more at ease while traveling."
Chen Ming fixed the carriage and came over to pat Cheng Gu on the shoulder, "Dazhuang is right. After all, we have to guard hundreds of people on the road this time, so the manpower is a bit tight."
Cheng Gu gritted his teeth and clenched his fists and waved at the bandit leader on the carriage. After being ignored by the bandit leader, he wanted to rush over and beat him up, but Chen Ming held him back.
The bandit leader's original name was Li Dingguo, an Annan surname. He had a standard Annan figure and was not very tall. In later generations' terms, he was about 1.7 meters tall.
In addition, he has a soft appearance, three-dimensional facial features, and is a standard southern handsome man.
If the brocade robe is worn outside, it would be hard to imagine that this person would be a ruthless bandit leader.
Chen Ming pulled Cheng Gu aside, trying to keep him away from the bandit leader, and warned: "Enough is enough. Now we are escorting the prisoners back to the city. Who knows what will happen on the road? In order to avoid unexpected situations on the road, we must rush as soon as possible."
When you return to Fucheng, don't look for trouble. As for what to do with him when he is taken back, the princess will decide on her own."
Cheng Gu withdrew his hand and snorted coldly, "You don't need to remind me, I have my own sense of proportion!"
Chen Ming sighed and said helplessly: "I hope you can control your emotions."
He didn't want his brother's impulsive temper to be known to the princess. If she knew about it, he didn't know if the princess would let him serve as the squadron leader of the guard battalion.
The team moved slowly along the rugged mountain road.
The supplies taken from the bandits' den were loaded on horses and carts, and it was very difficult to transport them down the mountain.
If he fell into a low-lying earth pit, several men would have to push and lift him out of the pit.
Such a difficult journey meant that the convoy could not cover more than thirty miles in one day.
In the evening, the team found an open space to rest. Except for the old, weak, women and children who each received a steamed bun at noon, the other bandits in the bandits' den had not eaten anything all day except drinking some water.
When they arrived at the ground, the bandits, whose hands and feet were shackled, collapsed directly on the ground. They were so hungry that they had no strength to walk any further.
The team has guards who are good at hunting. If you go into the woods and wander around, you can get some results. You can always hunt a few hares and pheasants.
Ding Dazhuang checked the situation of the team, then sat down, watching a few guards collecting pheasants and hares, and said with a smile: "Don't say that Lingnan has much richer products than our hometown. At least there is plenty of rain here, and the wild animals in the mountains and forests are better than those in our hometown."
Where are we?"
Chen Ming nodded, looked at the mountains and forests in the distance and said with emotion: "If our hometown had more rain than Lingnan, there would be no drought."
Thinking of the villagers' narrow escape from the north to the south, I often thought how great it would be if the water and sky from the big rivers in the south fell to the north.
"When I was in my hometown, whenever I heard about someone being exiled to Lingnan, I always thought that Lingnan was a barbaric land, uncivilized, and living like a savage."
As he said this, Ding Dazhuang felt ashamed of his ignorance.
He laughed at himself: "After I came here, I realized that Lingnan's products are actually rich, and at least the people's lives are better than those in our hometown."
Although the life of fishermen living by the sea is difficult, there is no chance of people starving to death because of the sea.
On the land, there are mountains and trees everywhere, and high temperatures and abundant rainfall mean that plants grow luxuriantly. Even if there is no food at home, you can still fill your stomach by digging wild vegetables outside.
Chen Ming nodded and grabbed a lot of wild vegetables on the slopes of the fields in Lingnan. If you want to eat them, you can eat them till you die.
The two chatted for a while, then each inspected the situation around the team.
Bandits are rampant nowadays, so they don't dare to be careless outside. If they encounter a larger bandit team, they will be the ones who suffer.
King Qian took the copy list from Anu. First, he counted how many pieces of paper were used to make the list. After counting, he was secretly shocked. The Lou family was not even the strongest family. With such a rich family, that one was at the top of the list.
How rich is the Tong family's wealth?
"Is it true that poverty limits my imagination, or that the capital limits my imagination? I don't know that the rich heritage of aristocratic families outside the capital is so rich!"
Mr. Zhang stroked his beard and sighed helplessly: "Government orders cannot reach the local area, and they are like nothing to the government. The aristocratic families have no respect for the government or the court, so they gradually become local hegemons, annexing land, and losing wealth."
Everything was concentrated in the hands of the aristocratic families, and the people's lives were miserable, while the aristocratic families gradually became rats and cancer.
This time, the prince has removed a cancer in Lingnan and restored the prosperity of those hidden families who are dependent on the influence of the Lou family."
King Qian was indifferent to Mr. Zhang's flattery. He looked through the list and smiled coldly, "Huh, it's too early to say this. The hermits may still blame me for meddling in other people's business and breaking the rules."
It has destroyed the peace of their lives and left them with no support and they have to start running for their livelihood again.”
Mr. Zhang retorted: "How could it be? The reason why Yinhu is Yinhu is that the government did not receive their land tax, head tax, etc., but the family protected them and had to pay a lot of food. Now that the prince is here,
If they register with the yamen and pay taxes according to regulations in the future, no one will make things difficult for them. It is definitely better than being a hermit."
When you are a recluse, your wealth and life are in the hands of a powerful family, how can you have any freedom?
King Qian used to rely on his background to have a sense of superiority in front of the aristocratic family.
Now looking at the list in his hand, he had the illusion that he had lived in a slum.
The poor people in the slums became rich overnight!
"Sir, do you think this king's sudden wealth can be considered a sudden success?"
"My lord, please don't belittle yourself. You are rich in one state, six counties and twenty-four counties. How can you be compared to a second-rate family like the Lou family?"
King Qian twitched his lips in a self-deprecating tone and browsed the Lou family's real estate. There were quite a few houses.
He picked up the teacup and took a sip before standing up, "I have something to do and I'll be out for a while. You can continue your work."
After that, he picked up the list on the table and left the study.
Mr. Zhang touched his chin thoughtfully. After a while, he asked Mr. Yan: "Old Yan, where do you think the prince is going?"
Mr. Yan raised his head, glanced at him, and said calmly: "I went to the backyard to find the princess."
Mr. Zhang's eyes lit up and he ignited a raging fire of gossip, "The prince and the princess have reconciled? When did it happen? Why didn't I notice it?"
Mr. Yan rubbed his temples and was speechless after hearing his words, but he did not forget to warn him, "Don't get involved in the affairs of the prince and princess!"
"Give me the courage. I don't dare to get involved in the masters' affairs. I'm just asking here in front of you and me."
I really thought he was stupid. He asked about the affairs between the master and his wife.
Mr. Yan felt relieved and said, "As long as you know the appropriateness."
Mr. Zhang was unwilling to give in and asked again: "Then tell me, how do you know that the prince is looking for the princess?"
Mr. Yan shook his head helplessly, "In the past few days, the princess has been looking for a house for the Xia family, and even threatened to rebuild the north of the city. Now he has inspected the Lou family and got a lot of properties. Do you think the prince will choose one?
Are you going to give it to the princess to please her?"
Mr. Zhang suddenly realized, "The prince came over with the list?"
After saying that, he turned back to look at the prince's desk. There was really no list on it.
"Old Yan, you have keen observation skills. I am not as good as you in this regard."
When King Qian went out, he didn't pay attention to whether he had taken anything or not.
As for Prince Qian, he took Anu out of the study and walked briskly to the backyard.
When passing the garden, he said to Anu with great interest: "I used to think this garden was quite big, but recently I run around the garden every day. Now that I'm used to running, I think the garden is a bit small."
As he spoke, he lowered his head and glanced at his big belly, "Anu, do you think I have lost weight recently?"
Anu glanced at King Qian's waist, lowered his head and said, "I've lost a little weight."
"Haha, you still like to tell the truth, so you can't exaggerate to make me happy."
"My lord, something happy happened to me today. I heard your laughter from far away."
On a side road, Aunt Sun walked out slowly followed by several maids.
King Qian's smile faded slightly, and he squinted his eyes because of the sunlight. He stared at her and asked, "Why are you in the garden at this time?"
Aunt Sun slowly shook her fan and frowned slightly, as if something was bothering her.
She smiled a little reluctantly, "I have been busy with land reclamation recently, and I haven't been to the garden for a long time. It's rare to walk around today. I never expected to meet the prince. What an unexpected surprise."
"Your Majesty, where are you going?"
King Qian was very satisfied with the positive attitude of his wives and concubines towards land reclamation.
"Well, that's right. Once crops are planted during the summer planting, Lingnan will be able to harvest a lot more food during the autumn harvest."
He smiled happily: "If you have any difficulties in opening up wasteland, you can tell me, and if you can solve it, I will let others handle it."
Hearing this, Aunt Sun said in surprise: "Really, I thanked the prince for being here. Not to mention it was a coincidence, I really encountered some problems here."
"Oh, what's the problem? Tell me."
King Qian was very happy to hear that he could help his concubine.
Anu, who was following behind, looked at the sky speechlessly. The prince was fooled by Aunt Sun again.
Aunt Sun looked at King Qian lovingly, twisted her body, and seemed a little embarrassed to speak.
King Qian was full of self-confidence and asked patiently: "We are all one family. If you have any questions, just ask."
Aunt Sun hesitated for a moment, then stepped forward and took Prince Qian's arm, pulling him to the shade of the tree, "Your Majesty, please don't stand in the sun and talk, the shade of the tree is cool."
As he spoke, he fanned him, and finally said hesitantly: "Actually, I have no experience in this matter. If I had experience in handling general affairs, this situation would not have happened."
"What's going on?" King Qian enjoyed his concubine's service.
Aunt Sun made a full gesture before speaking, "The area of land reclamation this time is too large, and I did not plan all aspects from the beginning. As a result, now that the land reclamation has just been completed, I have no cash in my hand. What will happen next?"
We still need to plow the fields, breed seeds, and transplant rice seedlings, but I lack the skills to cultivate cattle, seeds, and money."
"this"
King Qian looked troubled. This time he ransacked the Lou family and confiscated a lot of livestock, including cattle, mules and horses. Of course, there were also seeds, grain, and a lot of money.
It's just that he has other arrangements for these supplies. Otherwise, how would he be able to feed nearly 20,000 soldiers and horses?
Seeing King Qian's hesitation, Aunt Sun shook his arm and said coquettishly: "My lord, please help me. I have been with you for decades, and you are the only one I can rely on. If you don't help, I will
I really don’t know who to ask for help?”
"Ahem! Okay!"
King Qian coughed lightly and took out his arm. It was a very hot day, and being held by someone's arm was like holding a ball of fire.
"You make a list of this matter and give it to Anu, and I will take care of it."
I agreed to this reluctantly.
Aunt Sun didn't have high hopes at first, but she didn't expect it to happen. She was so happy that she beamed, "Oh, thank you so much, Your Majesty. I will make a list of this and give it to Anu later."
King Qian nodded, his joy a little lighter.
It wasn't until the figure of King Qian's master and servant disappeared at the end of the garden that the maid next to Aunt Sun asked: "Auntie, I didn't expect that the prince would really agree."
Aunt Sun slowly shook her fan and said proudly: "Man, as long as you understand his temper and make good use of it, you can control him to death."
The maid looked at the end of the garden and nodded: "My aunt knows the prince best, and none of the others can compare with you. When the prince comes to the backyard at this time, which courtyard are you going to?"