After being exiled, I led my whole family to rebel.

Xu Zhenying set the tone, and everyone couldn't say anything else.

Xu Yinxi said, "The imperial court's food and grass must be heavily guarded. There are only a hundred of you, how can you escape unscathed?"

Xu Zhenying smiled mysteriously, "Well, of course I am pretending to be a ghost. White phosphorus powder is flammable, so I first made a pile of white phosphorus powder to form will-o'-the-wisps on both sides of the river bank, and then used a blind trick to make people float in the air, making them think they saw ghosts. Of course. They were so frightened that they threw away their food and ran away.”

Fang Ningmo was puzzled: "A blind trick?"

Xu Yinxi pointed to the corner, "The thing is over there, you can go and see for yourself."

Qian Zhenniang and Fang Ningmo were curious for a moment, so they walked over there and picked up the specially made floating crutches. Sure enough, looking at people from a distance, they seemed to be floating in the air.

Xu Yinxi was helpless and amused at the same time, "The imperial soldiers are too cowardly. They were deceived by us so easily and defrauded us of so much food and grass."

"It's not that they are bad, it's because they are uneducated. If they had studied the intermediate literacy class here, they would probably know the general principle of this floating crutch when they saw it."

Xu Yinxi thought thoughtfully, "No wonder the city lord requires all our soldiers to receive literacy class education. If the general is confused, it will really harm the three armies."

Xu Zhenying remembered what Wang Sanniang said before, and asked Xu Yinxi: "Have you heard any rumors about me recently?"

"Do you mean the rumor that you are a woman?"

Xu Zhenying raised his eyebrows, "You also know? Why don't you report it to me?"

"This... this kind of thing is getting darker and darker. Besides, the old people who follow us know about this matter, so it's not easy to investigate."

"Everything was calm before, but recently there was a sudden rumor like this. I think someone was dissatisfied with me, Xu Zhenying, and deliberately spread it."

Xu Yinxi's expression changed slightly. She didn't expect this. "City Lord, I will send someone to investigate in the next few days."

"I'm afraid this is difficult to investigate, but I still want to look for it to see who is behind it. By the way, for the people coming from several villages tomorrow, have the reception plans been prepared?"

"Qian Zhenniang will be in charge of the reception tomorrow. The initial plan is to go around the city, focusing on our research institute and medical school. We are going to have lunch at the county government office. After eating, we will take the villagers to meet at the demonstration base."

Xu Zhenying didn't know what he thought of, and said with a smile: "I'm afraid these villagers came here reluctantly, right?"

Xu Yinxi also laughed, "In the past few months, the gate of Lan County has been closed. The villagers cannot enter the city and don't know what is happening in the city. This rumor is spreading, saying that we have a new king here, and the county magistrate is All the people and the people were killed, and all the chickens and pigs were dragged away, as well as the grain. When our propagandists went to the village, the villagers were as if they were avoiding snakes and scorpions. We asked them to learn composting technology, but they were not only unwilling, but also He almost started fighting with our people.”

"Oh, is there anything else?"

Xu Zhenying left all this matter to Fang Xun. She never paid attention to the process, but only looked at the results. The people under her probably knew her temper well, and they would hardly come to ask for instructions until the matter couldn't be solved. she.

"Yes. Later, Fang Xun adjusted his strategy and borrowed dozens of people directly from the military camp. He threatened them with force and said that if no one came, he would send people to attack the village."

When Xu Yinxi said this, she was helpless, "There is no way, the villagers can't listen to the truth, so I can only use strong methods to make them obey. After they come, if they come, walk more and see more, maybe they will change." idea."

Xu Zhenying also agreed, "That's the truth. The people in the countryside are ignorant and won't know a few words in their lives. If you do them a favor, they will be wary. Why not let them come and see for themselves first. I heard that the people who are coming back here are also from us last time The head of Zhangjia Village?"

"Yes, after knowing that we occupied Lan County, his attitude was quite easy-going and very cooperative with our work. If he hadn't taken the lead, we might not have been able to do anything no matter how tough our methods were."

"Okay, let Zhenniang take them around the city tomorrow. We will wait for them at the demonstration base in the afternoon."

————————————————————

The next morning, the village chiefs of more than a dozen towns in Lan County and Ye County and the respected elders in the villages were all waiting at the main entrance of Lan County.

The old man from Zhangjiacun arrived neither early nor late. When he arrived, more than a dozen people had arrived. They all looked at the city wall and whispered, refusing to enter.

The reputation of this new king spread far and wide.

It is said that this king already owns the two cities of Lan County and Ye County, and has taken in tens of thousands of refugees, more than doubling the population.

The floods in Jinzhou Prefecture last year severely damaged the vitality of Jinzhou Prefecture. More than a dozen towns and villages, including theirs, also suffered a sharp decline in population, and they could barely survive the winter. They thought they would see a devastated Lan County that was in dire straits, but they discovered something different as soon as they walked to the gate of Lan County.

The official road at the door seems to have been repaired, it is wider than before, and the road surface is more compact.

The city gate was wide open, and there were small merchants and hawkers everywhere on both sides. Moreover, the soldiers guarding the city seemed to have changed. Not only were they tall and mighty, but they all wore uniforms and looked particularly energetic.

Not only that, the soldiers also had a resigned attitude towards the vendors. They only ordered them to take care of the hygiene in front of their stalls, but did not drive them away.

This Lan County seems to be many times more lively than before.

Especially after the floods, the people tightened their belts and lived a life. Although the farmers in the countryside did not starve to death, they still looked hungry. How could they be as energetic as the people in the city?

Some people couldn't help but wonder: "Is this... is this still Lan County? Why does it look different from before?" A vendor nearby heard this and responded with a smile: "It's Lan County! The old man hasn't been to Lan County for a long time, right? Our city lord strengthened the city wall, repaired the official roads, and encouraged us to go out to do small businesses to supplement our family income. Not to mention you, even I sometimes feel that Lan County is developing too fast. When I wake up, I find that there are changes outside. You, don't think about it, you only know what Lan County is like now when you enter the city!"

Everyone nodded, but because they were not familiar with the place, they were even more reserved. This time, their voices finally became quieter.

"Didn't you say that the great king has three heads and six arms and only eats the children in the city?"

"Oh, no, I heard that he sent people to rob all the pigs and chickens from people's homes, and even made a special place to raise them in captivity. He said he would cast a spell to make them grow up in half a year."

"I also heard that he killed Magistrate Sun. Magistrate Sun is such a good officer!"

"Why did I hear the opposite of what you heard? How did I hear that he led the people to open up wasteland and opened up thousands of acres of land? He also sent people to buy farm tools from us before -"

The village chief of Zhangjiacun stroked his beard, but did not join their discussion, and could not resist the encouragement of several other old people. Finally, he said slowly: "You are all just hearsay. I have also seen that king, and that Li Datou before." When they plundered our village, the king stopped them, otherwise everyone in our village would have died. Don't worry, this king is different from ordinary bandits. You should know from the prosperous scenery outside the city that the people's Life was good.”

Several old people shook their heads in disbelief, "Oh, in all this time, we have never seen any robbers who did not kill or rob? Anyway, Lan County has been occupied by others, and County Magistrate Sun is missing. We should ask for more." Bless you!"

"Village chiefs!" A few people were talking when they saw a fifteen or sixteen-year-old girl running out from the city wall with two soldiers. She was wearing common coarse clothes, smiled kindly, and came directly towards them.

Everyone was unsure of her identity, but they saw two soldiers following her. They also knew that her status was not low, so they did not dare to make any mistakes.

The girl looked them over with a smile, spoke very politely, and saluted them, "Everyone, are you the village chief of Lan County? My name is Qian Zhenniang, and I am the secretary of the city lord. You are all much older than me. Just call me "Xiaoqian". This time the city lord specially punished me for coming to receive all the village chiefs and old men."

secretary?

What's that for?

The old people didn't understand what he meant, but it didn't stop them from calling each other "little money girl" affectionately.

Nonsense, the people around the city lord, don’t they play the role of second master?

"I dare to ask little Qian girl, your Majesty... the city lord asked several of our villages to send representatives to tell us what composting techniques we want to learn. We are all here, where should we learn?"

"Don't worry, village chiefs and old men. The city lord ordered me to entertain you well, so I prepared a carriage for everyone. We walked around in the city first, then went to the county government for lunch and then went to the demonstration village. The city lord is also here Over there, representatives from Ye County Village will also be waiting there."

Everyone did not expect that they were treated so thoughtfully. Although they were all well-respected old people in the village, they had not been treated like this every time they went to the city before. They were a little flattered for a while and felt that the new king was quite good at doing things. .

While he was talking, an extra-large carriage stopped under the big willow tree on the city wall.

The carriage was made of pear wood and could accommodate more than ten or twenty people. It was made of unknown materials, and it was very stable to sit on. And the internal structure is also very strange. Unlike ordinary carriages with a small table in the middle and benches on the sides, this carriage only has rows of horizontal short benches, which can seat two people on one side, with room for walking in the middle, and on the sides. The car curtains were wide open, just enough to give an unobstructed view of the scenery outside.

Qian Zhenniang greeted all the old people to get on the carriage. Everyone was surprised. They also saw that the carriage seemed to be more stable than other carriages along the way. They couldn't help but asked in shock: "Little Qian girl, how come this carriage is not bumpy at all?"

Sitting in the front row, Qian Zhenniang turned around and explained with a smile: "This carriage was developed by the research institute and has the effect of anti-seismic and anti-bumping. The wheels below have anti-vibration strips, so the carriage will not run particularly badly." Bumpy. This carriage was originally used as a public facility, oh, that is, all ordinary people can use it. The city lord said this is called public transportation. For five cents, you can ride from Lan County to the demonstration village. But this carriage is currently only We have produced one, and I want to give it to you old men today. When the roads in the city are repaired and turned into cement roads, you can ride this carriage again and travel thousands of miles a day without any bumps."

"Institute? Where is that place?"

Qian Zhenniang was very happy, just waiting for the fish to bite the hook.

"Previously, the city lord gathered all the craftsmen in the city together and formed a research institute to study new things. We will pass by the research institute later. Then we will stop and go in to observe. Oh, by the way... ..." Qian Zhenniang pointed to the tallest tower in Lan County, "Look, that is the first thing made by the institute. The city lord said that thing is called a clock."

Everyone looked in the direction of Qian Zhenniang's finger and discovered that at some point, a huge thing had been erected at the top of the city tower, the tallest building in Lan County.

The huge thing was square and could be seen from all directions, southeast, northwest, and had some symbols they didn't recognize written on it, as well as two long bars, one long and one short.

"Ah, that long bar seems to be moving!" An old man shouted as if he had discovered something important, "Yes, the long bar is moving, look!"

"Oh, it's true!"

"What is that? My mother, why is she still moving?"

Even the head of Zhangjia Village stuck his head out to take a look.

Qian Zhenniang immediately said: "This was researched by the city lord and the craftsmen of the institute for countless days and nights. That thing is called a clock. The long one is called the minute hand, and the short one is called the hour hand. Whichever number the short one points to represents what time it is. Clock, oh, that’s what time we’re talking about. Look at it now, the short one is pointing to eleven, and the long one is pointing to twenty, which means it’s eleven-twenty now, and it’s about to be noon.”

When everyone heard this, they were even more surprised, and some even asked directly: "Didn't you say that the king captured all the craftsmen to do corvee labor?"

Qian Zhenniang smiled helplessly, "You guys, you are really spreading rumors. Who said that the city lord arrested the craftsmen for corvee service? Where did this rumor come from? I will take you to the research institute later to have a look. All those craftsmen are in good condition. And now they are working for the city lord, and they are paid at least one tael of silver a month, and three meals are included. If they make something the city lord wants, they will also receive rewards! I don’t know how many people in the city are envious of them these days. How come you are so embarrassed? Do you say it as if you are living in dire straits?"

The old man looked a little embarrassed and smiled coquettishly: "To be honest with you little Qian girl, we haven't been to the city for more than half a year since the flood. Don't think we old guys talk too much. It's really... it's really... The city has changed so much that we almost don’t even know the way around it. What’s more, we have never seen or recognized these strange things!”

"Hey, Village Chief Fan, you haven't been to the city for a long time. Our Lan County is different every day. I just have some free time today, so I will show you around. If you don't understand anything, just ask me!"

The head of the Fan family village immediately hit the snake with a stick, "The girl said that the clock can tell the time, but the old man still doesn't understand. How do you tell this?"