Goose Three Kingdoms

Chapter 581: Shanggu Qushuai
After the Liao people's migrating group entered Liaoxi County, they headed straight for Jundusai along the road.

The terrain of Jundusai is even more rugged, and the narrow mountain road can only accommodate four or five horses running side by side.

Between Jundusai and Changping, a mixed cavalry drove the herds of animals to the side of the road and began slaughtering them, setting up tents and cutting wood on the spot.

When Gongsun Kang arrived, he saw densely packed tents on both sides of the road, with dismembered cattle and sheep hanging on them.

The army's large pots were set up in rows, and the hot soup boiled.

A Taiping Dao priest who was waiting on the roadside stepped forward and saluted: "We are here to welcome the general on the orders of the Lord."

Gongsun Kang was about thirty-seven or thirty-eight years old. He left his guards behind and stepped forward to pay his respects. "Is the Grand Marshal all right?"

"Shangjun is healthy."

The chief priest pulled Gongsun Kang to the side of the road and pointed to the temporary camp. "Your Majesty heard that there were 130,000 Liao people who surrendered to the imperial court. He was worried about the hardship of the journey, but the journey was long. He ordered us to drive the beasts from Guangning five days ago and come to meet the general's troops."

Gongsun Kang was no longer afraid of any ambush at this point, so he waved to the caravan and cavalry behind him. The caravans sped up, and the whole camp quickly became lively and noisy.

Gongsun Kang then turned his gaze and bowed solemnly: "May I ask your name, sir?"

"I, Zhang Ning, the chief priest of the Taiping Dao, have been appointed as the commander of the Shanggu Fangqu in Youzhou."

Zhang Ning returned the gift and continued, "The people have suffered a lot from the migration. Your Majesty is moved by the Liao people's kindness, so he settled them in Dai. In addition, the people who have been relocated and have their native places in various states can all return to their hometowns with grain when the grain storage is abundant in the autumn harvest next year."

"The Grand Marshal wants to place me in Daidi?"

"Not necessarily. For example, the generals and some of the Liao tyrants will be relocated to Guanzhong for proper resettlement."

Zhang Ning said with a smile, looking at the migrating team slowly advancing on the road, tilting his head and lowering his voice: "I heard that the Lord originally wanted to take 2,000 households and divide them between the two general brothers, but now that many people have surrendered, he may take 3,000 households."

The joy on Gongsun Kang's face gradually faded: "If the people can be properly resettled, I don't care if there are one thousand more or one thousand less households."

"General Benevolence."

Zhang Ning pointed to the nearby tent and said, "General, please move."

Gongsun Kang thought that Zhang Ning was asking for a bribe. He also knew these people, so he gave the guard a look and smiled, "General Qu, please go first."

"The general is the guest, please go first."

Zhang Ning insisted again and again and guided Gongsun Kang into the leather tent.

It was much warmer inside the tent. Gongsun Kang took off his thick and fluffy mink hat and put it aside. He took a piece of silk book from the guard and handed it to him. He said sincerely, "I cannot thank you enough for saving my life. I have been in Liaodong for a long time and have some local specialties. Please don't reject them."

Zhang Ning took it calmly, examined the materials recorded on the silk book, and turned around and called out, "Someone come."

"Qu handsome."

"These are the supplies General Gongsun donated to my Shanggu side. They are registered and stored in the warehouse."

Zhang Ning handed the silk book to his subordinates, and then went to see Gongsun Kang, who also went to see the guards: "Hand over the messenger clearly."

Gongsun Kang thought it was just a polite remark from Zhang Ning, and he didn't believe that a person trusted by the Grand Marshal would be so honest.

Zhang Ning did not bother to explain. Compared with these financial gains, what he pursued was to achieve immortality and go to the legendary paradise on earth.

After their subordinates left, Zhang Ning brought Gongsun Kang a bowl of hot tea and said, "I envy you, General. When the world was in chaos, you and your son protected the people and enjoyed peace. Now that the Grand Marshal has cleared the north and the barbarians have been subdued, you can enter Guanzhong and enjoy the peace. Compared with the people in the Central Plains, you are so lucky."

Zhang Ning picked up his tea bowl and blew on it, then said, "Originally, when the shogunate held a meeting, everyone suggested taking a thousand households and dividing it equally between the general and his brothers, and each of them would be granted the title of marquis of a village. But the Lord, because of the merits of the general's father, increased it to two thousand households, and the general's brothers should each be granted the title of a thousand households and a title of marquis of a village. Now, to congratulate the general, he can be promoted to the title of a marquis of a county." Two thousand households is exactly the starting point for a marquis of a county, and a marquis of a county and a marquis of a village are two different treatments.

The number of county marquises under the jurisdiction of Guanzhong is limited. Even if the title of Grand Marshal is promoted to prince, another prince will not appear.

"I will never forget the love and care that Grand Marshal has shown me."

Gongsun Kang then asked, "May I ask, Commander, what was Liu Xuande's original intention in appointing him as the General of the Expedition to the Barbarians?"

"It means conquering the various barbarian nations."

Zhang Ning sipped his tea and said, "In your eyes, the Dongyi are far more harmful than the other Hu peoples, and you think that the general was resigned and indulgent when he ruled Liaodong. But Liu Xuande's troops are skilled and brave, so I sent them to conquer the Dongyi."

Zhang Ning stood up and took out a newly-edited cowhide map and spread it out: "This is the map of the Dongyi countries. When the Dongyi are pacified, the world should be pacified as well. This is where Liu Xuande will stay from now on. It is close to the East China Sea and not as bitter and cold as Liaodong."

Gongsun Kang looked at the map with curiosity on his face. Although he also had maps, they were far less detailed than this one.

I immediately believed that the map was real. Maps are highly confidential state secrets. This is the core of the center.

Zhang Ning put away the map and said, "When the world is at peace and the population grows, the Lord will develop Liaodong. If the Liaoze is dredged, the swamp will become thousands of miles of fertile land. This move is comparable to the Qin Dynasty's great governance of Guanzhong. When the general enters Guanzhong, he can study water conservancy, which can help him pass the time and also be useful in the future."

Gongsun Kang also knew that the thousands of miles of fertile land in Guanzhong were created by water conservancy projects, as it was a swampy land before that.

It is also clear that Zhang Ning might have said these words at the instruction of the Grand Marshal.

Most of the Liao people were settled in Daidi, and most of Shanggu County can also be considered as Daidi area.

Zhang Ning is the commander of Shanggu. In the future development of Liaodong, Zhang Ning will most likely go to Liaodong.

He immediately felt very close to Zhang Ning. If nothing unexpected happened, they would be working partners in the future.

Gongsun Kang asked: "The Grand Marshal has subdued the various Hu tribes and his achievements are outstanding, which are hard to match in ancient and modern times. In my opinion, he should be given a higher title. I wonder what your opinion is?"

"The Grand Marshal has followed the previous emperor's heroic spirit. Now that the fake emperor is still alive, it is not appropriate for him to be called king."

“Why not go one step further?”

Gongsun Kang bowed in the direction of Dai and said, "Although I am in a remote place in Liaodong, I also know the life of the Grand Marshal. The people of Ruying have a reputation but no virtue. They colluded with the Yuan family to kill the King of Chen. The Grand Marshal was determined to take revenge, and he called himself the Black family because of his upbringing. Now there is no leader in the country, and the people of all places are grateful for the kindness of the Grand Marshal. How can we hesitate?"

He looked at Zhang Ning seriously and said, "Although I have left Liaodong, I still have more than 100,000 Liao people, and no less than 30,000 soldiers wearing armor and holding bows, all of whom can serve the Grand Marshal. If there is any unrest in Hebei, I am willing to be the vanguard to suppress it."

"General, you are confused. If the emperor takes the title of emperor, wouldn't that just tie his own hands and feet?"

Zhang Ning also bowed in the direction of Daidi and said, "There are many people like the general under your rule, but your Majesty has repeatedly declined. It is not because he is false, but because the world is not peaceful and people's lives are difficult. Your Majesty is firstly sympathetic to the people's feelings, and secondly, he is setting an example by personally risking his life to encourage loyal people to fight against the false emperor and the traitors."

"When the four directions are at peace and prosperity, and the people are strong and prosperous, there is no need for us to persuade you to ascend. Your Majesty is sincere and will take it when the time comes."

Zhang Ning sighed and said, "I really envy the general for living in a peaceful place for so long."

Gongsun Kang didn't know what to say. He was indeed very lucky.

I just picked up the tea and took a sip. Although Liaodong is a remote area, the custom of drinking tea has spread to Liaodong in recent years.

As long as it is related to health and longevity, the profit is very high and it is easy to spread.

(End of this chapter)