Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 832 The Journey to the West
When the emperor and the executive vice emperor went on their inspection tour, the oppressive power of the supreme authority of the great central empire was already palpable in the faces of the local officials along the way.

The terror of a sudden, unprepared attack is enough to terrify anyone. In some counties, there wasn't even time to prepare a welcoming ceremony. People would go out to use the outhouse and find the emperor's carriage already at the door. Once inside the government office, they would see the emperor sitting in the county magistrate's seat, reviewing the county's governance documents.

How frightening is that? Although the world is not lacking in elites, the vast majority of people are still just amateurs. In some places with a small population and less important strategic locations, these mediocre people are indeed sent to do things. So when people of this level suddenly encounter things that are beyond their control, panic is inevitable.

Xia Lin had warned Emperor Jingtai that it was fine to play along the way, but he should not touch anyone unless they committed one of the three unforgivable crimes. However, if he encountered someone whose influence was extremely bad, whose nature was extremely serious, or whose harm was particularly great, he should just uproot them and there would be no problem.

So this time, Emperor Jingtai really went to great lengths to investigate. He didn't care about ordinary cases, but if he encountered someone who was utterly wicked, whether an official or a commoner, once he caught them, there would be a good show to watch.

In other words, Emperor Jingtai wasn't doing these things for the country at this moment; he was simply indulging in the power he wielded.

But as the saying goes, a gentleman judges by actions, not intentions. Regardless of what someone is thinking, as long as they get things done, they are a good emperor.

As for why Xia Lin didn't stay by Emperor Jingtai's side, isn't that easy to understand? A team absolutely cannot have two people who have the final say, because disagreements are inevitable on certain matters. If two people who have the final say are present, what will happen to the people below them?
One of the most important rules in the workplace is never to make things difficult for subordinates for no reason, otherwise you will complicate simple matters. For this reason, after leaving the Jiangnan Road area, Xia Lin set off ahead of time with a few guards, forming a front-and-back structure. This way, he could not only scout out the problems along the way in advance, but also effectively avoid internal divisions and problems.

Returning to this place, he had a completely different experience from his first visit. The transportation here was much more convenient than when he came last time. Not only were the roads smoother, but the flow of people and goods was also incomparable to what it used to be.

What's even more gratifying is that many roads here have started to be built directly through the mountains. Simply put, explosives are used to create a lifeline through the mountains, opening up long mountain roads that used to take several days or even more than ten days to pass through, turning them into mountain roads that can be traversed in just a few hours.

Although the road's smoothness or width is sometimes unsatisfactory, in Xia Lin's eyes it is undoubtedly a monument to the builders and the most important part of his grand plan.

Anyway, when I came here last time, the local people and mountain dwellers lived in very separate areas. Some people spent their whole lives in the village, facing only endless mountains every day.

But as he traveled along the way, he discovered that a large number of mountain people had already migrated out of the mountains. Many of the scholars who had settled down there led these people out of the mountains and settled down around this major artery of the mountainous region.

Villages connected to villages merged into towns, and towns connected to towns, thus prosperity arose.

No one is born willing to endure hardship. When the people from the mountains came to the outside world, they quickly adapted to life there. Although they were not wealthy and bandits often appeared, overall, life was much better than before.

Those scholars who came from outside led them to farm, teach their children to read and write, help them repair bridges and roads, and even help them smelt steel and forge weapons to deal with bandits and thieves who might appear at any time. The deep mountains and forests endowed people with a vigorous vitality, making this almost unknown place full of life.

Xia Lin woke up early in the morning at the inn in the roadside town. The inn was run by a middle-aged couple and a dark-skinned, thin little girl. Because the couple couldn't speak Mandarin, the ten-year-old girl became their bridge to communicate with the outside world.

When Xia Lin came downstairs, the little girl was lying on the table, writing with charcoal sticks on a bluestone slab. She was carefully writing the eight characters "Today's dish: Braised pork with potatoes" from a book. This bluestone slab was their signboard, and she wrote down the main dish for each day.

"Aren't you going to school today? It's getting late."

"We've been planting these past few days, so school's on holiday," the little girl said to Xia Lin with a smile, looking up at him. "My mom and grandpa have already gone to plant, so I'm minding the shop here today."

Because the climate in the mountains is different from that outside, the planting season is later, so this is probably the most important planting season of the year for them.

When Xia Lin came here yesterday, he found a seed shop. It had affordable seeds, fertilizers and pesticides. It was all official sales, and they barely made any money and even had to subsidize some of it. No merchant would be willing to take on such a business.

However, when Xia Lin tried to go inside, she couldn't even get through the door. There were so many people queuing outside that the line stretched all the way from the shop entrance to the street corner.

Due to the mountainous terrain, rice cannot be grown well here, but potatoes and corn make up for the lack of grain crops in the mountains. In addition, every household grows some vegetables in front of and behind their houses. Although they have not completely escaped the days of relying on the weather for food, it is much better than before.

The place is called Lubian Town. To put it bluntly, it is a residential area that was spontaneously formed by mountain people who came out of the mountains. However, the business model here looks more and more familiar, and there must be Han people guiding it behind the scenes.

"Your handwriting is so beautiful! What are your plans after you finish your studies?"

“When I grow up, I want to teach other people to read and write,” the little girl said with a smile. “My husband said that his husband once told them that we study not to leave our poor hometown, but to make poverty leave our hometown.” “Hahahaha…” Xia Lin patted her head: “Well said. Go, get me a bowl of braised pork with potatoes, and a pot of your family’s homemade fruit wine.”

Thirty coins!

Xia Lin took out a silver coin from his pocket: "Do you recognize this?"

“I recognize it, one tael of silver.”

"Yes." Xia Lin nodded and said, "This is yours."

"This is too much, I don't have enough change." The little girl shook her head hurriedly and asked, "Do you have any change?"

Xia Lin shook her head: "Keep the change, take the extra money and buy yourself some new clothes."

But the little girl shook her head vigorously and said, "The master said that one should never take what is not rightfully one's own."

Xia Lin said "Oh," and nodded: "Okay, then bring me the food first, and then use the rest of the money to buy some cloth woven by the weavers in town. You can keep 100 coins for yourself as your labor fee. Is that alright?"

"That's acceptable, but one hundred coins is a bit too much... I dare not accept it."

Xia Lin laughed heartily: "One hundred coins it is. You don't dare to ask for too much, and I'm too embarrassed to give too little. As someone who comes from the capital, I still have some face to save. If word gets out, wouldn't it make me look like I'm ordering children around without paying them? Go ahead."

After serving Xia Lin a bowl of steamed potato stew with meat, a large bowl of rice mixed with corn kernels, and a small pot of homemade sweet wine, the girl went out to busy herself.

Xia Lin then leisurely ate his meal alone in the small shop nestled against the mountain and by the water. The meat had been steaming since midnight and was now so tender that it was impossible to pick it up with chopsticks. In addition, the potatoes, which had absorbed the lard, were fresh, fragrant, and soft. It has to be said that even the most ordinary ingredients could be made into an excellent dish, even though the seasoning was only a little salt and fermented black beans.

As Xia Lin was eating, she noticed that things outside were gradually getting lively, with vendors calling out their wares incessantly. Although many people still couldn't speak fluent Mandarin, they were already adept at using hand gestures to negotiate prices.

The saying goes, "Those who live near the mountains live off the mountains." Mountain people may not have many skills, but the mountain delicacies they possess are of exceptional quality. Every spring, a large number of merchants come along the way to buy all kinds of mountain delicacies from them. This undoubtedly gives the locals a great incentive. You know, if they are lucky enough to pick some top-quality and precious medicinal herbs, they might be able to lie down and do nothing all year round.

In the market, there were several young men who looked distinctly Han Chinese patrolling back and forth. These were mostly young men who had been forced to go to the countryside. Some of them had indeed settled deep in the mountains, putting into practice what they had learned in books in this barren land.

Their current role is to help locals communicate with merchants from outside, ensuring fair transactions between the two parties and preventing outsiders from taking advantage of information gaps to cheat locals, while also deterring locals from easily using their local advantages to bully outsiders.

Don't underestimate these people. Those who have settled down here are basically the ones who have led a village out of the mountains. A village can have anywhere from a few dozen people to a couple of thousand. These guys are second only to their clan chief in prestige. Some even have the right to speak at clan meetings. Ordinary people don't dare to easily disobey them.

Well, most of these young people are idealists who put their ideals into practice, using idealism to look up at the stars and find their direction, and using realism to be down-to-earth and take things one step at a time. And after being tempered by the mountains, they will eventually become the people Xia Lin hopes they will become.

There is no county magistrate in this place; the system of village elders still applies. There's not much that can be done about it, since the core of these mountain people is still their clan. However, they have gradually gathered and integrated here. Even though there are still many conflicts and crises, as long as they continue to develop, all the problems will cease to be problems.

"Lord Xia, we have already scouted Lubian Town."

At this moment, one of the accompanying personnel found Xia Lin: "This town is jointly governed by eighteen tribes. Every year, they will send one person to manage it in rotation. They are basically young people sent down from our side."

"Very good. Who is it this year? Tell him to come see me."

(End of this chapter)