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Chapter 358 Food
After the incident with Zhao Zhubu, the efficiency of the Xi'e County Office suddenly increased several times. Zou County Magistrate also changed out of his official uniform and went to the fields every day. The villages of the hungry people became clean and tidy, the daily rations were sufficient, and there were many more oxen when they were reclaiming wasteland.

Facts have proved that although the tactic of killing a chicken to scare the monkey is simple, it is the most effective.

The news soon spread to other counties. The county magistrates, county magistrates, county lieutenants and chief clerks suddenly became nervous and either reflected on themselves or hurriedly checked and remedied the situation. I will not go into details here.

Jiang Shaohua stayed in Xi'e County for half a month without leaving until he received a letter from the capital and an official document from the court.

"If the court wants to deliver the official document, just send someone to deliver it. Why does Chen Changshi have to make a special trip?" Jiang Shaohua did not expect Chen Zhuo to come to deliver the official document in person. He hurried forward to support Chen Changshi, who looked tired and out of breath, while scolding him softly.

Chen Jinyu felt sorry for his grandfather and hurried forward to support Chen Changshi's other arm: "Isn't it? Grandfather is also over 50 years old, and his physical strength is not as good as before. He still thinks he is a young man."

Chen Zhuo adjusted his breathing and laughed at himself, "I am indeed not as good as before. When I followed the prince on tours a few years ago, I rode horses every day and was full of energy. Now, I feel tired after sitting in a carriage for two days."

After a pause, he whispered, "Old Feng specifically urged me to come here to meet the princess and ask her in person how she plans to deal with the imperial court's grain collection."

Jiang Shaohua frowned slightly: "Let me read the letters and official documents first before making a decision."

There are five letters in total from the capital.

Jiang Shaohua read the letter from Emperor Taihe first.

In the letter, Emperor Taihe expressed his great satisfaction and joy at his cousin Shaohua's generous donation of grain, and promised that the Ministry of Revenue would return the full amount in the future when the harvest was good.

The second letter was a handwritten letter from Empress Dowager Zheng.

The Empress Dowager Zheng also expressed great praise for Jiang Shaohua's loyalty and courage. Because Nanyang County once again took the initiative to offer grain, the Empress Dowager's party gained momentum in the court. The Empress Dowager Zheng also gained a reputation for being good at teaching the younger generation.

The third and fourth letters were from people that the Nanyang Palace had made in the imperial court. They wrote to remind the court to be moderate in their grain donations and not let the court drain their wealth. The north, which was plagued by wars and locusts, was now like a bottomless pit. No matter how rich Nanyang County was, it was only a county. Could it rely on the power of a county to supply grain to more than 20 states in the north?
The most unexpected one was the fifth letter.

Jiang Shaohua looked at the signature on the envelope and raised the corner of his mouth sarcastically: "Prime Minister Wang is flexible and actually wrote a letter to this princess personally."

The weasel's New Year greetings to the chicken naturally had no good intentions. It was just a pretense to set a trap for Nanyang County, hoping to flatter and kill her, the Princess of Nanyang.

Sure enough, after opening the letter, I saw a lot of nonsense praising Princess Nanyang for her concern for the country and her loyalty. Such as "Daliang is lucky to have Princess Nanyang" and "Nanyang County's new grain harvest can be used for the court to collect grain." Of course, they did not forget to emphasize a few more sentences, saying that when the national treasury is full in the future, the court will repay the grain owed to Nanyang County.

"It's a good thing I took the initiative to write a memorial to offer grain," Jiang Shaohua sneered, "At least I got a good reputation. Otherwise, the grain would have been collected for nothing."

Whether it was a donation or a collection of grain, it was just a different wording. In reality, Nanyang County had to provide grain.

There were no outsiders around, so Chen Zhuo asked directly, "The number requested in the court document is too large. Feng Changshi has already made a preliminary estimate. If we follow the number in the document, 50% of Nanyang County's new grain will be requisitioned this year."

"That's impossible!" Jiang Shaohua's eyes flashed, and his voice was firm and powerful: "The new grain of Nanyang County must first feed the people of Nanyang County, supply the Royal Guard Camp and Nanyang Military Camp, and also allocate a portion to the hungry people. The maximum amount of grain donated to the court is 30%."

"Even if it's 30% of the grain, we can't give it all at once. Divide it into three batches, and there should be a half-month interval between each batch." "Also, I'll write back now. After giving so much grain, it's not enough to just have empty reputation, we have to get some tangible benefits."

Chen Zhuo heaved a sigh of relief when he heard the figure of 30%. He laughed softly and said, "Mr. Feng has been working hard for two days, and his calculations are almost falling apart. The figure he came up with is similar to what the princess said. The most that Nanyang County can use is 30% of its surplus grain, no more. Otherwise, it will shake the people's hearts and the foundation of Nanyang County."

The people work hard every day to grow food, so of course they should first feed themselves. It is not reasonable for them to let others take away their food.

As for asking for benefits, that is what we should do. While the imperial court is weak and lacks confidence, we should ask for what we should do without any hesitation.

Jiang Shaohua thought for a moment and said, "The number of people in the Nanyang Guard Camp is increasing day by day. It's impossible to keep this a secret forever. Let's take advantage of this opportunity to get through it."

"I wrote to the Emperor and the Empress Dowager, saying that the north was in chaos and Nanyang County needed to protect itself and Jingzhou, but they were short of troops. The Imperial Guard Battalion needed to be expanded."

Chen Zhuo nodded and added: "There is also the issue of the Nanyang Army's affiliation, which also needs to be made clear. Nanyang County is the imperial court's garrison, but the Nanyang Palace has the right to dispatch and issue orders."

Jiang Shaohua hummed, "I plan to let the Nanyang Army escort the food this time. It's a good opportunity to train the troops. Maybe we can also take the opportunity to expand our military strength."

The princess has mentioned the expansion of the army twice.

Nanyang County actually has enough troops to protect itself. But the county lord still wants to continue to expand the troops...

Chen Changshi's heart was moved quietly, and he looked at the princess deeply: "That's it. It's not advisable to ask for too much, these two are enough."

……

Jiang Shaohua stayed in the study for half a day and wrote memorials and several replies himself.

With Feng Changshi here, no one else needs to worry about the overall allocation of food. After Chen Changshi had his rest, he did not rush back to the Nanyang Palace, but accompanied the princess to inspect the counties.

Yang Zheng followed the princess silently.

The most excited and jubilant army was the Nanyang Army.

After receiving the princess's handwritten letter, Yu Chong let out a long sigh, and his dark face brightened up: "The princess has donated grain to the court, and the court's official document has arrived. The palace is urgently raising grain, which will take about ten days. We will set out in ten days."

All the generals were excited and rushed to recommend themselves.

As a military commander, staying in the barracks all day without being able to move is a comfortable but extremely boring life. It is a rare opportunity to stand out and gain merit, so how can I miss it?

Yu Chong grinned and said, "Don't argue. For the first delivery of food, this general will personally lead a thousand men. Li Tie, the barracks will be handed over to you for the time being. Start training every day."

Li Tie was excited and accepted the order with a bow.