Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 248: Keeping the Blade in Mind
"Wow……"

At the end of August, amid the loud cry of a baby, Liu Jilong, who was already 25 years old, finally welcomed his first child.

"It's the young master!"

"Haha, a man and a woman, each has its own advantages, there is no need to force it!"

In the inner bedroom, Mrs. Zhang happily came to Liu Jilong holding the cleaned baby.

Liu Jilong did not take it. He was worried that he might break the little thing, so he just smiled brightly and moved closer to observe it carefully.

I have to say that the newborn baby is not good-looking, just like a little old man.

When Mrs. Zhang saw that Liu Jilong didn't hold the child, she immediately took the child to weigh him, and then said with a smile: "General Jie, the little boy weighs seven pounds and eight ounces."

"Haha, let the people from the Imperial Hospital set up a nursery in the East Flower Hall and arrange six people to work in three shifts every day to take good care of the baby."

Liu Jilong didn't know if it was because he was emotionally indifferent. Although he was happy, he was not so happy that he went to his head.

He had already taught Huimin Pharmacy several years ago how to take care of children and how to protect them from dying prematurely.

Huimin Pharmacy is a public welfare institution opened by Liu Jilong in Longyou. It charges consultation fees but not medicine fees.

In addition to treating the people of Longyou, Huimin Pharmacy is also responsible for training doctors and researching diseases and pharmacology.

In this era, the Han people's achievements in medicine are certainly far superior to those of any civilization in the world.

Even so, the Han people have not formed a systematic training system in internal medicine and surgery.

The Huimin Pharmacy organized by Liu Jilong initially formed a training system for internal and external specialties.

Each county's Huimin Pharmacy recruits a certain number of apprentices every year. Apprentices must graduate from primary school and then be divided into majors according to their interests.

The apprentice’s salary is six dou of rice per month, which can only guarantee basic food.

After five years of study, you can be considered a doctor and receive a monthly salary of two shi.

After arriving here, they can choose to go to the army or stay in the local Huimin Pharmacy.

After joining the army, you will become a military doctor and need to follow the army to the battlefield. In addition to a monthly salary of two stones, you will also enjoy the same military pay as a soldier.

After staying at Huimin Pharmacy, he only enjoyed the treatment of a doctor at Huimin Pharmacy, and had to take an examination by medical officials at the end of each year to prevent his medical skills from regressing.

If one has excellent medical skills, he can enter the Protectorate as a medical officer, with official ranks ranging from the ninth rank to the seventh rank.

In fact, in this era when serious illnesses cannot be cured and minor illnesses do not need to be treated, the expenditure of Huimin Pharmacy is not large. The annual salary expenditure of more than 800 retained doctors is only 20,000 shi.

In comparison, the demand for military doctors in the army is higher and the expenses are also higher.

In the Longyou army, there were 21,600 regular soldiers, 1,200 military officers, and 1,400 military doctors, a total of 24,200 people.

The annual military expenditure was 350,000 dan of grain alone, not to mention other items such as diesel, cloth, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea, which amounted to about 240,000 guan in cash.

Including the expenses of government officials, teachers of the Imperial Academy, Huimin Pharmacy, and the orphanage, the annual expenditure of Longyou was about 400,000 strings of cash.

Under this circumstance, the tax revenue of one-fifth of the total tax revenue in Longyou alone was basically not enough to support the entire Protectorate.

Not to mention that Longyou is also engaged in import and export trade of horses and grain, which are big exports with no imports.

Because of this, Liu Jilong can be said to be very independent.

Just like now, he had just watched Mrs. Zhang send the child away, and then he walked into the bedroom.

The maids in the bedroom were carrying away the blood, and several midwives and female doctors were also taking care of Feng Hui.

Liu Jilong didn't dare to come forward, but asked from two or three steps away: "Xijun? Xijun?"

He asked quietly, but Feng Hui did not respond.

She was sweating profusely and her face was pale, which made Liu Jilong feel a little scared.

Seeing this, the female doctor reminded quietly: "Marshal Ji, Madam has just been exhausted and may not wake up for a while. Why don't you go to the East Flower Hall and wait?"

"Okay!" Adhering to the principle of leaving professional matters to professionals, Liu Jilong looked at the seal reluctantly.

Fortunately, although she didn't move, her breathing was very even and she didn't look like anything was wrong. Liu Jilong was completely relieved.

He walked out of the bedroom and immediately saw a nanny waiting outside.

"General, Chief Gao invites you to the main hall of the outer courtyard."

"Okay, I'll go right away."

Liu Jilong agreed, and then reminded: "If Xijun wakes up, send someone to tell me immediately."

He saw the nanny agree, then he raised his head and walked towards the main hall of the outer courtyard.

When he arrived, Gao Jinda, Li Shangyin, Cui Shu, Cao Mao and others had been waiting there for a long time.

"Marshal Ji, my wife..."

"Mother and child are safe, don't worry."

Liu Jilong responded to everyone and then sat in the main seat.

There were many documents and letters placed on the main desk, all of which needed to be dealt with by Liu Jilong.

"General, these are the messages sent from the east, south, and west. You may need to take a look at them."

Gao Jinda bowed and Liu Jilong nodded, then he read these things one by one.

It was now the end of August, and Wei Mo's suspension of the horse-trade had already been informed to Liu Jilong through a letter from Yang Fugong.

Liu Jilong didn't find it strange.

Although Wei Mo was upright, he was not pedantic and had great political talent.

Under his governance, the starving people in Xichuan were properly resettled, and with the autumn tax revenue collected in the government treasury, even if the money and grain from Xichuan were shipped to Chang'an, the remaining money and grain would be enough for Xichuan to repair the southern pass.

There were not many starving people in Dongchuan to begin with, and Cui Shenyou arrived too late. Before he could make any arrangements, many starving people were sold to Longyou by officials.

Although Lu Jun of Shannan West Road was not in charge of the affairs, he was still very concerned about providing relief to the victims.

In addition, the famine victims in the north fled to Longyou, and Shannan West Road was generally peaceful. The money and grain accumulated in the treasury were enough to resettle the famine victims.

Because of this, the number of people pouring into Longyou has dropped from thousands of people per day to a dozen people per day.

"In more than seven months, more than 14,200 people fled to Shannanxi Road alone, and 3,451 people entered through the horse trade."

"Five thousand seven hundred and sixty-five people flowed into the East Kawaguchi horse trade, and more than nine thousand four hundred people escaped."

"Nineteen thousand four hundred and fifty-seven horses entered the West Kawaguchi Pass, and more than seven thousand two hundred fled."

"On the import and export of horses, the government spent more than 76,000 strings of cash."

As Liu Jilong closed the last booklet, Gao Jinda reported with some emotion the situation of the horses and people fleeing to Longyou.

After seven months, the number of people fleeing to Longyou was about 60,000, which directly caused the population of the four states of Gu, Tao, Die and Song except Dangzhou to exceed 20,000.

In addition, the population of Lanzhou exceeded 50,000, the population of Hezhou and Minzhou exceeded 40,000, and the population of Cheng, Wu and Lan each exceeded 30,000.

Although this year's household registration map has not yet been finalized, the population of Longyou is bound to exceed 370,000.

It’s a pity that such a situation cannot happen every year. At least Bashu has not encountered such a severe disaster for more than ten years.

"What is the current situation of horse and population inflow?"

At the main seat, Liu Jilong also knew that such a situation was rare, so he asked about the population influx after the starving people were resettled.

Upon hearing this, Cao Mao immediately stood up and bowed, saying:

"The number of people who come in every month is only about 300 to 400, and the number of people who flee to Longyou is even less, no more than 100."

According to Cao Mao, if this number is maintained for a long time, the population that Longyou receives from abroad each year will be no more than four to five thousand people.

Even if we take into account the growing population of Longyou people, it will still take at least two or three years of hard work to break through the population of 400,000.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong did not get anxious, but asked Cui Shu:

"Have the commercial goods of Yu Conghui, Wang Tao and others arrived?"

“It just arrived yesterday, but now it’s too late to transport it to Hexi.”

Cui Shu answered respectfully, and Liu Jilong frowned after hearing this: "First transport it to Shanzhou, and allocate another 100,000 strings of money from the treasury to them to continue purchasing commercial goods."

"Wait until next spring and sell them to Envoy Zhang in Hexi."

"Yes!" Cui Shu agreed, and Gao Jinda also said:

"The troops that Chen Ying led to Guannei Road did bring back 280,000 strings of cash, but neither the Shuofang Army nor the Huining Army was willing to sell horses to us."

"I think the imperial court moved a lot of Hankou and Dangxiang Hukou to Huizhou, and there are no Hankou horses in Guannei Road anymore."

"In addition, Chen Ying should be heading to Hedong now. I wonder how the progress is."

In the face of Gao Jinda's worries and concerns, Liu Jilong didn't care.

Chen Ying is still quite capable. Even if he encounters trouble, he can always run back.

What concerns him most at the moment is the situation in Liangzhou.

The Uighurs and Emu did not take action against Suo Xun for a long time, and the Chishui army under Suo Xun did not cause any commotion.

If the Tang court had not relocated people from Liangzhou, Liu Jilong would have almost thought that the Tang court was really prepared to support Suo Xun to establish a foothold in Liangzhou. "Minzhou, Taozhou, Diezhou, Linzhou, Kuozhou, and Lanzhou should each dispatch an army to Wuquan to gather."

"It's only four and a half months until the end of the Chishui Army's garrison period. We must be prepared and not miss this opportunity."

Liu Jilong gave instructions to everyone, and everyone bowed in response.

For Longyou, Liangzhou is not only a large granary second only to Longxi's granary, but also a good place to train horses.

If Liangzhou is taken, the trade volume between Hexi and Longyou will increase several times, and Longyou will also have greater strategic depth.

As long as there is civil unrest in Liangzhou, the Ganzhou Uighurs and Liangzhou Umots will definitely find a way to go south, even if it means breaking off relations with the Tang court.

Anyway, the Tang court was unable to control the smuggling of military merchants such as Shuofang and Tiande, and they were not afraid of sanctions from the Tang court.

Now Longyou only needs to wait for the Uighurs and Umu to take action, and they can take over Liangzhou openly.

"With so much spending this year, can we still fill the other two government warehouses?"

Liu Jilong looked at Gao Jinda, who shook his head and said:
"Including the 100,000 strings of cash you just approved, 40% of the money in the treasury is tied up in commercial goods."

"After we hand it over to Hexi next year, we will be able to obtain a lot of spices, but at least 70% of the goods will still need to be dealt with by Hexi."

"Fortunately, these goods will be sold easily. We should be able to exchange them for spices and deliver them to Qilian City before the autumn harvest next year."

"As for storing grain, I'm afraid I can only fill half of the warehouse."

Hexi had a strong foundation, but it was almost exhausted in the battles with the Uighurs, Suoxun and Emu.

Today, Hexi can only rely on Liu Jilian to support a batch of goods, and then sell the goods to the Western Regions and get enough spices to pay back the money to Longyou.

After this happens several times, the situation in Hexi and Longyou will improve.

Even though the Silk Road had been destroyed by war, it was still enough for Hexi and Longyou to make a living.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong was not in a hurry, but just comforted Gao Jinda:
"It's OK. It won't be too late to store grain after the autumn harvest next year."

As soon as he finished speaking, Li Shangyin, who was familiar with the court's manners, bowed and said:

"General, that being said, I'm afraid the imperial court's tax increase this year is aimed at us."

"If it weren't for the floods in the three provinces, which forced the court to abandon the tax increase policy, I'm afraid we would have been forced by the court."

"I think we should make plans early."

After Li Shangyin finished speaking, Cui Shu, Gao Jinda and Cao Mao all nodded in agreement.

Liu Jilong was not anxious after hearing this, but looked at Cui Shu: "How is Shang Moyan's situation?"

"Excellent!" Cui Shu responded without hesitation, and then added:
"After he obtained 2,000 sets of armor and food from Diezhou, he immediately subdued the tribes in the Duomai area. At least in name, all the tribes submitted to him."

"Winter is approaching. If he is not planning to start another war, he should send a letter to Linzhou soon to ask for food in exchange."

Although there are still many river valleys on the plateau where crops can be grown, grain production has declined.

In addition, there is a high probability of a white disaster breaking out in winter. Therefore, if Shang Moyan really takes over the entire Duomai territory, the most important thing to do now is to sell cattle and sheep to Longyou to obtain more food.

As it turned out, Cui Shu's guess was correct, because when everyone was discussing this point, a captain hurriedly ran into the main hall.

"General, an urgent report from the governor of Diezhou!"

"Send it up!"

Liu Jilong looked at Cui Shu, and Cui Shu also chuckled to hide his secret joy.

When Liu Jilian received the urgent report sent by Cuoben and opened it, he found that the content was almost the same as Cui Shu said.

"It's just like what you said. Shang Moyan is offering 3,000 oxen, 7,000 yaks, 12,000 Hequ horses, and 70,000 sheep for trade. We also hope to receive 70,000 dan of grain, 1,000 sets of armor, 1,000 sets of military equipment, and 10,000 dan of tea."

After Liu Jilong finished speaking, he placed the urgent report sent by Cuoben on the table.

According to the price set at the beginning, these herds were enough to exchange for the above-mentioned supplies, so Liu Jilong did not hesitate.

"After these herds are eaten, in addition to cattle and horses, can Jiannan, Shannan and other roads eat more than 70,000 sheep?"

What Liu Jilian was concerned about was whether the provinces and states adjacent to Longyou could consume so many sheep. After all, they had sold tens of thousands of draft horses and 100,000 sheep in the first half of the year.

Gao Jinda said after hearing this: "They should be edible. Even if they are not edible, they can be kept in Longxi and sold next year."

"However, Shang Moyan sold so many cattle, sheep and horses this time. I'm afraid he took out all the spoils from his suppression of various tribes."

"If this deal is concluded, he will have 7,000 elite soldiers under his command."

"With Shang Bibi guarding the rear for him, he will probably go south next year to attack the Eight Kingdoms of Xishan in Weixi."

The Eight Prefectures of Weixi, also known as the Eight Kingdoms of Xishan, refer to the eight Qiang tribes on the plateau west of Chengdu.

Of course, the Eight Kingdoms of the Western Hills have developed into more than just eight tribes since the early Tang Dynasty.

If we really want to prove it, there are about fourteen tribes, each of which has built its own city and lives a self-sufficient life.

The area they ruled extended from Yaomi in the north to the Dadu River in the south. The population was not large, only tens of thousands, but the location was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

Liu Jilian was somewhat familiar with the Eight Kingdoms of Xishan.

After all, he had visited the beautiful scenery of western Sichuan many times in his previous life, so he had a general idea of the local situation.

If Shang Moyan wants to take over this place, there will probably be a lot of casualties.

However, after taking this place, he can go all the way south and border Xiangcheng County of Nanzhao.

With Shang Moyan's current strength, even if he takes over Weixi, it will be difficult for him to replace the Eight Kingdoms of Xishan and pose a greater threat to the western border of Xichuan.

Therefore, when Gao Jinda was worried that Shang Moyan would become too powerful, Liu Jilong felt that Shang Moyan was not strong enough.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong said, "Business continues as usual."

"Tell Shang Moyan that if he wants to rule Duomai better, he has to be more ruthless!"

The land is vast and fertile. If Shang Moyan can be ruthless enough to deal with those large tribes and bring out hundreds of thousands of cattle, sheep and horses to trade with Longyou, then his armored troops will soon exceed 10,000.

By then, he would have more funds to go south to rule Weixi and trade with Nanzhao.

When the Tang Dynasty fell out with Nanzhao and imposed a trade blockade on Nanzhao, Longyou was able to trade with Nanzhao via the Shangmoyan Road.

As long as Nanzhao invades the heartland of Xichuan, he will be able to send troops.

Thinking of this, Liu Jilong calmed his mind, briefly discussed the follow-up matters with everyone, and then returned to the inner hall to look after the seal.

On the contrary, when he was at ease, Suo Xun in Liangzhou had been waiting for a long time but never received any help from the court.

"The bastard court! I shouldn't have trusted them!"

Inside the government office of Guzang City, Suo Xun was so angry that he slammed the wine glass heavily on the table.

Suo Zhongyi, who had walked from Yizhou to Liangzhou, saw this and immediately frowned and said in a low voice:
"Keep calm and think about why the court didn't take action."

"What else could it be? You definitely don't want me to be in charge of Liangzhou!" Suo Xun gritted his teeth.

Seeing this, Suo Zhongyi stood up and walked over, then shook his head and said:

"No, there must be someone else obstructing this matter, otherwise even if the court was dissatisfied, they would not have sent no one."

"By the way..." Suo Zhongyi looked at Suo Xun, then glanced around and said in a low voice:
"The Chishui Army's garrison period is approaching. Has the court responded?"

"No!" Suo Xun clenched the teacup tightly and crushed it, not even noticing that he had stabbed his hand.

After hearing this, Suo Zhongyi no longer cared about his injuries and only felt that the matter was a bit troublesome.

"If they run away, we may not be able to stop them."

"When I came from the Hexi grassland, the Ganzhou Uighurs and Liangzhou Umos were not friendly to us."

"If the Chishui Army leaves, they will definitely go south to plunder Liangzhou, or even seize it."

"You must report this matter to the court immediately and let the court know that this matter is very important and must be resolved immediately."

Suo Xun listened impatiently and said: "I have submitted the petition several times, but the damn court just won't respond!"

"Then let's exaggerate the matter!" Suo Zhongyi gritted his teeth and said simply:

"Just say that Wang Shouwen and Wu Wei, the generals of the Chishui Army, are extremely dissatisfied with the garrison period and intend to lead their troops eastward."

"I just don't believe that the imperial court would allow five thousand armored soldiers to run rampant in the interior of the country!"

After Suo Zhongyi finished speaking, Suo Xun's eyes lit up and he immediately stood up and said:
"Okay, I will take care of this matter immediately and ask the court for soldiers and armor."

"Even if the Chishui Army leaves, I can still train new soldiers and defend Liangzhou!"

"Stupid!" Suo Zhongyi was so disappointed with his friend that he stamped his feet several times before saying:

"You are too harsh on the tribes. The tribes in Liangzhou are not friendly to you. If you give them armor and weapons, won't that encourage them to rebel?"

"You just write it in the program... That's all! I'll write it!"

Suo Zhongyi had no choice but to write a memorial himself as Suo Xun had high expectations but lacked the skills to do so. He then asked Suo Xun to find Wang Duanzhang and have Wang Duanzhang return to Chang'an with the memorial.

If this matter is not resolved, then their plans of several years will be turned into dust in four months...

(End of this chapter)