lady, please calm down

In late September, the Central Plains was still in lingering autumn, but Liaodong had entered winter early. By early morning and late at night, a thin layer of ice had formed on the water surface.

The 20th, noon.

Chen Chu, A Yu and Ximen Gong and his wife traveled to a place called Huanxi Ridge, thirty miles east of Ningjiang Prefecture.

Under the low hills, there is a dense network of water. The half-human-high bushes are covered with sedge, ula grass, and sweet grass. But when the wind blows, it becomes a golden wave.

Yang Dalang, who was traveling here with him, was in high spirits. He called Tiedan, and the two of them took their bows and went hunting.

In just half a minute or so, the two men returned triumphantly with several rabbits and a musk deer hanging on their horses' backs.

"Eldest son, have someone go to the stream and skin the deer. I haven't eaten game in a long time, hahahaha."

Dalang shouted, dismounted, and walked up to Chen Chu and Ximen Gong, exclaiming, "Liaodong is indeed rich in products! Just now, when the horse waded through the grass, hares and roe deer ran everywhere! If we had so much game near Qifeng Mountain back then, how could we have starved?"

"Liaodong, it's not just game that's delicious."

As Chen Chu spoke, he bent down and grabbed a handful of soil, clenched it in his palm and spread it out. Dalang had not forgotten the skills he had learned from farming in his early years, so he couldn't help but reach out and take a little black soil from Chen Chu's hand, praising him, "What fertile soil!"

After that, he looked at the endless wilderness and asked, "Is the fertile land like this for dozens of miles?"

Chen Chu said confidently: "It's not just a few dozen miles in radius, the 3,000-mile plain in Liaodong is almost all black soil like this!"

Upon hearing this, Dalang's eyes looked towards the wilderness even more passionately.

Chen Chu looked at Ximen Gong and said, "Brother San, Liaodong is a fertile land, the best in the world! Although the winter here is long and cold, spring wheat and corn can be cultivated. The cold-resistant rice cultivated by the Agricultural Research Institute is also specially prepared for Liaodong! If Liaodong is given a three-year tax exemption policy, can you turn Liaodong into our China's granary?"

Since Hebei Governor Ruan Xianfang was transferred to Anfeng Dynasty as Shangshu two years ago, Ximen Gong took over the post of Hebei Governor and was responsible for local development and production, with remarkable results.

Therefore, when Ximen Gong was transferred to Liaodong to serve as the Andong Tuntian Hujun Commander, he guessed that his mission must be to focus on "development".

Ximen Gong followed Chen Chu and rose from humble beginnings. He naturally had the common "pragmatic" temperament of Huaibei officials, so he did not agree on the spot. He only said: "If Yuanzhang can agree to my two conditions, I will dare to take on this task."

"Oh? Third brother, please go ahead."

"First, when Yuanzhang returns to the south, he must leave a brave general to take charge!" Ximen Gong immediately gave his reasons, "Every time I came here, every land reform was accompanied by blood and rain. In addition, I also heard that there are still dozens of uncivilized Jurchen tribes in the Xianbei Mountain and Taibai Mountain. If the mountains are prosperous in the future, we must prevent them from coming down the mountain to harass us."

"Okay, I agree to this."

"Secondly, Liaodong is vast and sparsely populated, and Yuanzhang needs to move a large number of people to fill it."

"We are already promoting this matter, but I can't guarantee how many people will be able to move here. Third brother also knows that we value leaving our homeland."

"Then..." Ximen Gong seemed to have done his homework, and said: "I will handle the labor issue myself, but Yuanzhang must allow me to act at my own discretion."

"Oh?"

When Ximen Gong said "do it for your own convenience", Chen Chu roughly guessed what method he wanted to use to solve the problem of labor shortage, but he did not expose it, "Okay!"

Beside a stream not far from the three people, the eldest son had already deftly skinned rabbits and deer roe deer. This guy did the most work in the mountains, and at this moment he actually had a feeling of reminiscing about the good old days.

He just looked at the peeled skin and cried out in pain: "Hey, this skin is so good! If I can bring it back to Tongshan, I can exchange it for hundreds of coins!"

"It's worthless!"

Dalang laughed when he heard this.

Chen Chu leaned over and plucked a few sweet grasses and threw them to Dalang, Changzi, Tiedan and Ximen Gong respectively. Ximen Gong took them in his hand and looked at them, puzzled.

Ke Dalang, Tiedan and the other two had already skilfully peeled off the dirt from the roots of the sweet impatiens, washed it in the stream, and put it in their mouths to chew.

Seeing that Madam Ximen and Ayu both looked incredulous, Chen Chu deliberately asked, "How is it? Does it taste the same as when you were a child?"

"Sweet, but a little old and prickly."

Tiedan made a simple summary, and the other three people who also came from runaway families couldn't help but laugh.

Madam Ximen and Ayu didn't know that this kind of thing was edible, and they didn't understand why they were laughing for no reason.

September twenty-two.

The Andong Administration Office posted a notice announcing the detailed land reform policy, which mainly included the following points.

1. The land and properties that originally belonged to the royal family, kings, dukes and other nobles of the Jin Dynasty were taken over by the public.

2. In principle, each resident of Liaodong will be granted ten mu of land, and each household is limited to one hundred mu, and trading is not allowed.

3. Slaves of the Han and Liao ethnic groups who were captured in the early years and registered as good citizens and are willing to stay in the local area will also enjoy the second treatment.

Fourth, we welcome people from the Central Plains and the south of the Yangtze River to settle here, and we will distribute land and provide them with resettlement expenses.

Fifth, merchants from the Central Plains and Jiangnan are welcome to go north to participate in the construction of Liaodong, and the governor promises to guarantee the safety of merchants' property and investments.

On the second day after the land reform policy was promulgated, the Tian Ce Mansion and its subordinate troops, as well as more than 40,000 civilians who were returning south to look for their relatives, set out on their journey back south.

Yang Zhen, the former commander-in-chief of the Tokyo Garrison, remained as the commander-in-chief of the Liaodong Guard, and sat in Liaodong with Ximen Gong, one civil and one military.

At first, Chen Chu wanted Xiao Xin to stay in office. After all, he led the Tiger Regiment soldiers in Liaodong for two years, eating raw meat and drinking blood, and made great contributions in the battle to pacify Liaodong.

But Xiao Xin said, "The Southern Dynasty has not been pacified yet, what's the point of keeping me in Liaodong? I am willing to lead the way for you, and drink water for you in the south of the Yangtze River, so that the golden bowl will be intact!"

Xiao Xin knew that with the fall of the Jin Kingdom, his opportunities to achieve success would become fewer and fewer.

He was not from Tongshan and had joined Huaibei only for a short time. If he could not seize the last opportunity, it would be difficult for him to catch up with the achievements of Peng Er, Dalang, Jiang Huaixiong and others.

Seeing that he was eager to fight, Chen Chu asked Dalang, who had become more mature and steady in recent years, to stay as the military support for Ximen Gong to promote the land reform.

The people returning south were generally not in good physical condition due to years of exploitation. In order to prevent them from suffering from the wind and frost on the way, the army only marched forty miles a day and then set up camp.

Therefore, we did not arrive at Dalingh River until late October.

That night, we camped by the river.

Although the army and the people were in different camps, they were not far apart.

At dusk in the You hour, Zhong Yi and a group of her male and female companions sat around the campfire, excitedly discussing how long it would take to return to their hometown.

After a long discussion, they still couldn't reach a consensus. A lady named Dong Ying looked at Zhong Yi and said, "Sister Zhong, you are very knowledgeable. How far is it from here to Tokyo?"

Zhong Yi, who was thinking about something, subconsciously looked up to the south when she heard the voice and said slowly, "When we were setting up camp just now, I heard from the Huaibei Army that we had passed Yongle City. At our current pace, I'm afraid it will take until the middle of December to reach Tokyo."

After hearing her detailed account, Dong Ying couldn't help but praise: "Sister Zhong knows a lot. I guess she was a daughter of a wealthy family before she suffered!"

Zhong Yi smiled but did not answer.

At this time, another companion said, "Mrs. Dong, I remember that you are from Tokyo. In more than a month, you will be able to see your family. Alas, unlike me, I don't know if any family members have come to recognize me."

As soon as these words were spoken, the atmosphere suddenly became much more depressed. It had been eighteen years since Dingwei. In those eighteen years, the world had undergone countless changes.

These people who returned to the south face many problems. Are their parents still alive? If their parents are not alive, will their brothers and sisters in their hometown be willing to accept them? After all, one more person means one more mouth to feed.

Even if their parents were still alive, how many of these women who had served as maids for the Jin people could still remain intact? Would their parents despise them, and would the neighbors point fingers at them?

Men were better off. If their relatives were unwilling to accept them, they could just turn back to Liaodong. Anyway, the land reform was being implemented by the Administration Office, and if they were allocated land, they would be able to support themselves.

On the other hand, if a woman cannot be accepted by her relatives, her future will still be bleak.

When Dong Ying was six years old, she was captured along with her mother. Her mother did not survive to be rescued by the Chu King's army. A few years ago, she was beaten to death in front of her by the Jin army's mistress because of a trivial matter.

Her memory of Tokyo is now very vague. Fortunately, her mother kept nagging her in the early years, "My family lives in the end of Kushuijing Lane, my father runs a satin shop, and his name is Dong Tianbao." Only then could she report her name as a monk when the Huaibei Army counted her identities.

At this moment, she was both looking forward to and afraid of seeing her family again in more than a month.

Everyone was silent when they saw a captain in the distance walking towards them, asking for directions. Dong Ying saw him and immediately whispered, "Sister Zhong, the commander of the Jinghu Army is here to look for you again!"

Zhong Yi turned around and Xie Tianlu happened to look over there. When their eyes met, Xie Tianlu, who had a rough appearance, was the first to feel shy. He subconsciously lowered his head and touched his head.

But then he remembered the secret to chasing girls that his brothers in the Huaibei Army had told him to "be bold, careful, and thick-skinned", so he plucked up his courage and walked over with a silly smile.

"Mrs. Zhong, the brothers have saved up some candies and asked me to bring them to you to try."

Xie Tianlu just stood in front of Zhong Yi, holding a small linen bag in both hands, his hands shaking with nervousness.

Seeing him like this, the people around the campfire couldn't help but snicker.

Zhong Yi didn't want to accept the candy, but seeing how nervous he was, she couldn't bear it, so she reached out and gently took the sackcloth bag. After a polite bow, she bowed her head and said, "Thank you, Brother Jie."

Seeing that she answered the phone, Xie Tianlu relaxed a lot and grinned at Zhong Yi.

Zhong Yi then said in a gentle voice: "Brother Jie saved my life at the County Lord's Mansion. I will never be able to repay you even if I die. In the future, Brother Jie, please don't bring me food. Brother Jie has been tired from marching and fighting, so you should keep more food for yourself."

Xie Tianlu's rough face was full of wrinkles from smiling, and he said hurriedly: "It's okay, it's okay. The prince didn't treat us harshly because we are not his subordinates. We eat and use the same standard as the Huaibei Army. Everyone can get one piece of this candy every day. My brothers in the Huaibei Army are tired of eating it, so they specially gave it to me so that I can pursue you."

Xie Tianlu, who used to be unable to do anything, turned into a nagging old woman when she saw Zhong Yi.

But if you talk too much, you will make mistakes. In the end, I accidentally let the cat out of the bag.

Zhong Yi's face turned red immediately, and Xie Tianlu was so embarrassed that he kept tickling his toes. Seeing that everyone around the campfire was looking at him with a smile, he felt even more embarrassed.

Lian said: "You guys eat, you guys eat, I have something else to do, I'll leave first."

After Jie Tianlu ran away, a burst of laughter suddenly broke out beside the campfire.

Zhong Yi blushed and shared the candies with everyone. She then sat on a tree stump and stared at the bonfire in a daze.

She was taken to Liaodong when she was ten years old. After being changed hands several times, she ended up in the mansion of the Duke of Fengnan.

On the night of August 26, the Duke of Fengnan followed Olewen in rebellion, and his mansion was besieged by the Qi and Zhou armies. When the mansion was broken, the Duke of Fengnan wanted to kill all the Han women in the mansion. At the critical moment, it was Jie Yingzheng who saved him.

Dong Ying, who was sitting opposite Zhong Yi, saw that she was distracted, so she quietly came over and sat next to Zhong Yi, whispering: "Sister Zhong, we still don't know what he will be like after we go back. Although Jie Yingzheng is not beautiful, he is a loyal person and will definitely treat people well. I think you should think about it carefully."

Zhong Yi sighed silently and said, "After eighteen years of wandering, how could I dislike her appearance? Brother Jie is a battalion commander, so he is a good match for me. Will my parents agree?"

"I think your sister is not bad. Although you never say it, I know from your words and actions that your sister must come from a scholarly family. Isn't she worthy of Yingzheng?"

Zhong Yi was slightly distracted when she heard this, but finally said in a bleak tone: "After going through so much in hell, how can I still have the face to talk about my family of scholars? Now I am just an unfaithful daughter who will bring shame to my family."

More than a mile away is the Jinghu military camp.

The same bonfire, but in addition to Zhu De'en, Cao Laoliu and other subordinates, Kang Shitou, Zhao Heng and others from the Huaibei Army were also here.

The two sides had fought outside Caizhou a few months ago, but now, after the battles of Dalinghhe and Huanglongfu, they are chatting enthusiastically.

At the end of the You hour, when Zhu De'en saw Xie Tianlu walking towards him, he quickly stood up and asked, "Boss! What's wrong?"

Xie Tianlu smiled shyly and said shyly, "It's done."

"Done?"

No one expected that Xie Tianlu, a rough guy in his thirties, could defeat the opponent so quickly.

Even Zhao Heng, who had personally taught him how to pick up girls, couldn't help but wonder, "Did Miss Zhong agree to marry Brother Jie?"

"That's not true."

Xie Tianlu answered truthfully, and everyone immediately sneered in disgust.

Kang Shitou, who had been excited for a long time, could not help but sit back on the wooden stake and said contemptuously: "If they didn't agree, then what are you?"

Xie Tianlu's face immediately turned red, and he shouted, "What do you know? The Zhong family's sister told me that my elder brother had worked hard in the war, and he should keep the delicious food for himself."

"."

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Everyone looked at each other in bewilderment, totally unable to understand what this sentence had to do with the word "successful".

But Xie Tianlu still tried to interpret it: "Didn't you hear it? The Zhong family sister asked me to keep it for myself, which means that the sister loves me! She is afraid that I won't have enough to eat! She is such a considerate person."

"Cut~"

Everyone once again expressed their disdain in unison.

"You just say the grapes are sour because you can't eat them!"

Xie Tianlu, who was still immersed in the excitement of "success", squeezed in and sat down next to Kang Shitou, saying, "Brother, do you know anything about Nacai and Najib? I have to prepare well when I go back!"

The fate hasn't even been decided yet, and Xie Tianlu is already planning to marry someone?
But Cao Laoliu next to him said, "Boss, don't forget the prince's military order!"

When they set out in September, the Tian Ce Mansion did issue an order. All soldiers in the army were not allowed to harass women returning home. If both parties were truly in love, Chen Jingyan, the chief of the Tian Ce Mansion, had to personally interrogate the woman before they could discuss marriage.

Zhao Heng quickly explained on behalf of his uncle, "Your Highness is not deliberately trying to embarrass the soldiers. He is just worried that someone might use their status as a soldier to force someone else to marry him, so he wants to personally investigate and identify the matter."

This is not difficult to understand. The common people who have returned home have been in a state of anxiety for more than ten years. Now most of them are timid and fearful. If a general uses his power to oppress others, let alone becoming their wife or concubine, even if they give away their bodies for nothing, those women, who are like frightened birds, dare not resist.

Understanding is one thing, but the actual operation is also quite troublesome. Apart from anything else, just finding the busy man Chen Jingyan is not an easy task for these middle and lower-level officers.

Xie Tianlu, who was originally beaming with joy, could not help but look sad, and muttered: "How can I know Chen Changshi? Old Xie is thirty-four this year. Do I have to be single for the rest of my life?"

Kang Shitou, who was standing by, laughed and patted Jie Tianlu on the shoulder, saying confidently: "Leave this matter to me." (End of this chapter)