Chinese New Year

Chapter 1387 Weathering
In mid-May, a convoy escorted by more than a thousand soldiers from the Left Feathered Forest Guard arrived in Bianliang.

Shao Xun was harvesting wheat for a widow in a military camp in Longxiang Prefecture, Pingqiu, when he saw the convoy in the distance and stopped, rubbing his aching back.

As I've gotten older, my "dog-like" waist is gone.

Back then, this waist helped him conquer jungles and swamps, and even sand dunes without vegetation could be traversed as if on flat ground, making great contributions.

Although the princesses and empresses wore expressions of shyness and guilt, in the end, their fair legs would involuntarily wrap around his waist, demonstrating his power.

After massaging his lower back, Shao Xun reached out and handed over a sickle. Shao Zhen hesitated for a moment before taking the sickle and continuing to harvest the wheat.

His cooking isn't as good as Tong Qianjin's, and his eyesight isn't great either. This adopted son is a bit slow.

"Your Majesty." Shi, the most powerful woman in the harem, stepped down from the carriage, carrying a child in her arms.

"Wait a moment." Shao Xun walked to the side of the reeds, took off his clothes, washed them roughly in the clear river water, and then changed into a new set of clothes.

After having his hair carefully checked to make sure there were no awns or grass stems, he walked to the carriage, took his daughter from Shi's hands, and said with a beaming smile, "My dear daughter, your eyes are so bright when you see your father for the first time."

“She was crying on the way, but she stopped crying when she saw her grandfather,” Shi said with a smile.

"You've worked hard." Shao Xun glanced at Shi Shi and said sincerely.

Shi nodded, feeling somewhat pleased.

The night she became pregnant, her mind went blank, and she trembled violently. There were large puddles of water on the ground. As for her subsequent attempts to kill herself, she didn't want to recall them.

Fortunately, the emperor treated her much better afterward and stopped humiliating her, which meant her suffering had finally come to an end.

Ying and Wang also got off the carriage, their faces full of resentment.

Shao Xun handed his daughter to Shi and asked her to take her to the car. After all, she was born last December and needed to be well taken care of.

He then squeezed and pinched Ying's round buttocks hard, and said, "Did you know that your father sent people to find sugarcane and plant it in his own fields in Luling?"

Ying shifted her body uncomfortably, her hips swaying alluringly, and she said with a blush, "But I didn't know."

"This year, ten jars of sugarcane were sent to the capital. It seems to be different from the sugarcane from Jiaozhou, but it is very sweet," Shao Xun said. "Your father is very capable. He is wasting his talents as a mere administrator. If I had known he was so good at managing industry, it wouldn't have been unreasonable to give him a prefectural governorship."

Ying turned her face again and looked at Shao Xun with a hopeful gaze.

"In a few days, I will send an official south to deliver an imperial edict, appointing him as the River Patrol Commissioner of the Gan River (Huhan River), and conscripting able-bodied men from Luling, Nankang, Ancheng, Linchuan and other prefectures to clear dangerous sections of the river and develop shipping," Shao Xun said. "If he can do this well, becoming a governor is not impossible."

Ying nodded and followed Shao Xun, her steps becoming much lighter.

Shao Xun smiled slightly. This young girl was so cute. She had only been married for a year before she was captured. She had lost her naivety, but not completely. She had both the cuteness of a young girl and the charm of a young woman. How wonderful.

Of course, his focus on observing Ying Xuan wasn't because of the woman herself; she was genuinely capable. It was also his suggestion to dredge the lake and Han River waterway, because most of the good land in Jiangzhou was in the hands of the imperial court, not powerful clans. For the sake of the future, making good use of the lake and Han River was the proper course of action.

Shao Xun quickly returned to the village and rested in the "mansion" of Feng Bachi, the newly appointed commander of the Pingqiu Longxiang Prefecture.

******
"Minister Feng, I won't eat your food for nothing." At noon, Shao Xun put down his chopsticks and said.

This time, Shao Zhen was quite clever and quickly led a group of soldiers to move the goods, including a jar of sugarcane, five catties of pepper, and twenty bolts of silk of various colors.

Feng Bazhi didn't stand on ceremony and accepted it directly.

He captured Murong Huang's female relatives for the Emperor, scratching the Emperor's itch. Shouldn't he be rewarded? Uh, why is there one soldier staring at him?

Feng Bazhi looked over in confusion. Wait, isn't that Murong Ke? He's become a personal guard?
Feng Bazhi was startled, but then slowly relaxed. Thankfully, it wasn't the emperor's personal guard. There were several thousand imperial guards; he must just be an ordinary soldier.

Upon seeing Feng Bazhi, Shao Xun was reminded of the campaign against Liaodong, and then he remembered King Gao Zhao of Goguryeo. A few days ago, this fellow had sent men to Bianliang, having heard that Shao Xun liked seafood, so he sent a large quantity of gifts, along with hundreds of furs and treasures, on the condition that Shao Xun's mother be brought back.

His mother, Zhou, was only forty years old and of average appearance. Queen Yu was much prettier, but still couldn't compare to the women in the Bianliang palace. Shao Xun wasn't very interested in either his mother or daughter-in-law, and had almost forgotten about them. Thinking about it now, he still wasn't very interested, but he still had to "check in" and get them both pregnant, then he would have achieved his goal.

I just don't know if Gao Zhao will accept his pregnant mother.

As for Queen Yu, it seems he doesn't want her anymore. He wouldn't even exchange her for precious jewels. Does that mean he wants to give her to me?

"I heard you went to Huainan recently?" Shao Xun asked.

"I went to see my son. I stayed for half a month and only came back after seeing that everything was fine," Feng Bazhi replied. As he spoke, Feng's wife, Madam Han, personally brought over tea and asked the two of them to rinse their mouths.

Shao Xun picked up the cup and took a sip, saying, "Feng Qing is different now, is this Yixing tea?"

"Your Majesty is indeed a master of tea." Feng Bazhi laughed, "We can't afford Mengding tea in Sichuan, but Yixing tea in Jiangdong is much cheaper."

"Back then, you had nothing but your life. Now you are surrounded by wives, concubines, and children, and you command an army. How do you feel?" Shao Xun asked.

“His Majesty rewards merit without regard to background, which shows his trustworthiness. In chaotic times, there are few places where one can earn a good price for risking one’s life,” Feng Bazhi said.

This statement sounded completely off, but Shao Xun laughed heartily, appearing extremely cheerful.

Feng Bazhi, that blockhead, laughed along too, completely oblivious to the world.

“Therefore, I have always taught my sons not to forget His Majesty’s kindness. If one day scholars and powerful people try to trample us down again, then we should pick up our knives and fight them!” Feng Bazhi added.

"Your awareness is truly remarkable," Shao Xun remarked.

“After the discussion in Jinyang, which general with a little knowledge didn’t know about it?” Feng Bazhi said, “Therefore, when His Majesty established a military headquarters in Huainan, I sent my son there.”

Feng Bazhi's second son went south last year and became the deputy captain of Yangyuan Longxiang Prefecture (located between Shouchun and Hefei) - if he weren't too young, he could have been the captain.

After the summer harvest this year, Shao Xun plans to establish three Longxiang Prefectures in Lujiang County: Shaopi, Chaohu, and Wankou. The soldiers will mainly be surplus soldiers from Henan Prefecture, plus some able-bodied men from the Hu and Han ethnic groups who have distinguished themselves in battle.

He also used the land, cattle, sheep, and prisoners obtained after suppressing the rebellion to establish the Longxiang Prefecture in Lueyang County.

They also built the Shangbai Longxiang Mansion on the old site of Shangbai Town, selecting 600 people from Shangbai Town and drawing another 600 men from the Right Flying Dragon Guard to establish a mansion.

That's all for this year. I don't have enough money, so I'll have to take it slow.

"Huainan already has five prefectures and six thousand soldiers. Is it possible to suppress the Xianbei and Goguryeo people who have migrated south?" Shao Xun asked.

Feng Bazhi was indeed qualified to speak on this issue. He said, "When I arrived at Yangyuan, I saw many tents scattered across the wasteland by the lake. I don't know if the government made poor arrangements or what, but the Hu people who migrated south didn't have many cattle and sheep, and they didn't know much about farming. When they were hungry, they would go hunting in the marshes and forests. My son was once ordered to capture more than a hundred Xianbei people because they hadn't settled in the designated place. After they were captured, the group complained that they didn't know how to farm at all, and that Huainan had been ravaged by war for many years, with few people and foxes and rabbits roaming the villages. They couldn't help but go hunting, and they didn't mean to run away."

Shao Xun nodded slightly.

Huainan, once the north and south are in a standoff, could easily be turned into a no-man's land. To put it bluntly, once the Xianbei people adapt to the climate of Huainan, the area becomes an absolutely beautiful "grassland".

“When I left, Governor Zhang transferred tens of thousands of soldiers from Jiangnan to cross the river at Caishiji and head north. He must be going to deal with these lawless people.” Feng Bazhi said, “There were originally good people in the area. With so many Hu people suddenly arriving, they are building earthen walls to protect themselves. If they are not dealt with, the local customs will definitely become fierce and wild, and in the long run, there may be banditry.”

"What about the Goguryeo people?" Shao Xun asked.

“When I returned north, I saw Goguryeo people between Shouchun and Xiquyang counties. I heard that they are relatively honest, easy to govern, and good at farming,” Feng Bazhi said.

"It's pretty much what I expected," Shao Xun said.

Historically, after the Tang Dynasty destroyed Goguryeo, Emperor Gaozong of Tang relocated its nobles and common people to the interior, mainly settling them in the Jianghuai and Shannan East Circuit (Hubei and southern Henan). Prior to this, Emperor Taizong of Tang had also resettled a large number of Goguryeo people in Huainan.

In contrast, the Tang people settled a large number of captured Turks in Shen, Guang, Cai, Tang, Deng and other prefectures, namely Nanyang, Xinyang and Zhumadian in Henan, which is the so-called "Huaixi" region, in contrast to the "Huainan" (also known as "Huaidong") region, which includes Lu'an, Fengyang, Xuyi and Huaian.

The Goguryeo people in Huainan posed almost no threat and gradually assimilated into the Han Chinese population. However, the Turks in Huaixi were not so easily assimilated, which led to the distortion of local customs. After the Han and non-Han peoples lived together, intermarried and integrated, the local people became fierce and aggressive. They often farmed during the day and stole at night, and even went to Jiangxi by boat in groups to rob, and then swaggered back, which was really a headache.

However, the Tang people really didn't pay much attention to the Turks in Huaixi. They even grazed their livestock in Nanyang and "lived by hunting," which was too permissive.

Shao Xun still intends to take charge.

Upon hearing Feng Bazhi's account of the local situation, he no longer hesitated and decided to order the most capable soldiers from Jingzhou in the south to march east and assist Zhang Shuo in managing these men.

Seventy to eighty thousand people from Goguryeo, Buyeo, and Xianbei were sent there in succession. There were even some people from Youzhou who had not yet been sent south. If we don't take care of them, things will really get out of control. From west to east, they were settled in seven prefectures: Yiyang, Anfeng, Xunyang, Lujiang, Huainan, Linhuai, and Guangling.

Think about it carefully: the Di people, Qiang people, Lushui Hu, Wushui Man, Baihu Yi, Xianbei, Xiongnu, Wuhuan, Fuyu, Goguryeo, plus the local Han people—wow, a melting pot of ethnicities that almost filled this sparsely populated region.

He didn't want a "Cai bandit" group to emerge in the Jianghuai region in the future. They might be fierce enough, but they would also cause poor public order and tarnish his reputation.

With this in mind, he decided that after the Huainan Prefecture Army was established in June, he would reorganize the eight military prefectures into the Right Tianwu Guard, appoint the veteran general Zu Yue as the Right Tianwu Guard General, stationed in Hefei, to vigorously promote moral reform and suppress this unhealthy trend.

(End of this chapter)