The Emperor ordered Zhao Tang

Chapter 266 Epilogue
On the rugged Loess Plateau in northern Shaanxi, densely packed people are moving forward.

The young and strong carried the packages, while the old and weak squeezed into the car.

In front of us is the Qujin River in Fushi County, which is already frozen.

There is a Xuanyuan Temple across the river, which was built by Zang Xirang, the governor of Fuyan during the Dali period. After passing this temple, you are officially out of Guanzhong. It may be for this reason that small pearls flowed when the victims crossed the river.

The sentiment of being reluctant to move away soon spread to others. In addition to being cold and hungry, and with an uncertain future, everyone was in tears. Someone took out a jujube wood clapper and sang while playing tunes, singing a few lines of the bitter Qinqiang opera and crying a few times.

Cheng Li squatted on the hillside and watched with great interest: "Sad and graceful, tragic and generous, yet delicate and lingering, these Guanxi men, tsk, it's hard to evaluate. They are just like Youzhou warriors holding a pipa and humming Jiangnan songs."

Cheng Li's eyes swept across those faces.

Some people sighed repeatedly.

Someone pointed at the sky and cursed.

Someone turned back to look in the direction of the capital, his hair standing on end with anger: "I will never come back again!"

Someone was howling and wiping his eyes, and was shocked to find that the children in his arms had lost their voice. He no longer cared about being sad, and slapped his son's face and shouted to "call back the soul".

Seeing this, Cheng Li shook his head and stood up with his numb thighs, muttering: "The resentful spirits are so rampant, but they never consider the people's feelings. What the hell! What is the saint doing? Is he busy playing with his sister-in-law? Hey! How can Emperor Yang of Tang have the nerve to criticize the temple? I think the heavy rain this time is because he rebelled against the heaven and angered the ancestors."

"This tyrant king sought his own death, why did he drag millions of people to suffer with him? Now the retribution has come, okay?"

Gongsun Shi, a trusted aide, was silent for a moment and sighed, "The sage is determined to restore order. He would certainly not tolerate the actions of some of the sages."

"Humph!" Cheng Li snorted coldly, "This flood is really the fault of the saint! After the Chaos Rebellion, the late emperor returned to the capital, and he ran to the Imperial Ancestral Temple and Yuanqiu to confess his crime without even having time to eat. That's how the four seasons were kept in order. What did the saint do? The late emperor passed the throne to him, but he took away the late emperor's temple name, not even giving him a beautiful posthumous title, and committed adultery with his two widows and sisters-in-law. Is it the right thing for an emperor to humiliate a brother and treat a former lord like this?"

"I wrote a letter to debate the scriptures, but you didn't reply to me! Is this the way to treat a two thousand stone official?"

"This once-in-a-century flood is all his fault! He should be held accountable for this and reflect on himself in front of the military and civilians of the world! When I come to the court for the New Year's Day ceremony, I will have a good talk with him."

"My lord, please keep your voice down." Gongsun Shi tried his best to comfort him.

Fortunately, Cheng Li calmed down quickly after his rant. Looking at the sky that was brewing a blizzard, he turned to look at Taoist Xu and said, "Ask the ghosts, how many of these people can survive? If they don't have that kind of luck, I won't waste my food."

Taoist Xu followed the order and asked the ghost. After a moment, the ghost replied, "The ghost said most of them can survive."

Cheng Li stroked his beard, half believing and half doubting, but he did not dare to question the divination result, and confirmed: "If I don't provide relief?"

"Correct."

"That's good." Cheng Li stroked his chest and called his personal soldiers to warn them, "After Fushi, it's the Tuoba family's territory. We can't let them increase their population, nor can we give them the opportunity to show mercy. Moreover, Si Gong has just passed away, and Xin Qin is undercurrent, and it has no leader for a while. If gangsters enter the country, there is no guarantee that someone will not take the opportunity to recruit people to cause chaos. Therefore, when we go down the mountain, if there are disaster victims heading north, you must stop them. If anyone disobeys, arrest a few typical examples and kill them."

"What if we all have to go north?" the general asked.

"I'll give them an offer they can't refuse."

"Yes." They will not ask any more questions and will take the order and leave.

The Tang Dynasty is really full of disasters! Shaking his head, Cheng Li and the guards rode down the mountain, carrying rations and approaching the refugees. The closer they got, the more people slept on the ground. Everyone was not very interested in this strange governor who spoke with an oriental accent and occasionally used Shu jargons, and just stared at the slowly approaching convoy.

Cheng Li walked back and forth in the crowd.

A "corpse" moved in a sheltered earth cave. Cheng Li looked and saw that it was a young Dangxiang woman with her hands and feet curled up in the earth cave.

"Not quite dead yet?"

Cheng Li squatted down at the entrance of the cave.

Seeing that the young woman's feet were covered with red spots and frostbite, he took off his cloak and covered her with it, then took out a hot steamed bun and prepared to pass it to her. When his palm touched the woman's cold palm, he found that her pupils had lost focus and could not be focused together. Cheng Li withdrew his hand and looked at the young woman: "I can't do anything about this, don't blame me."

The young woman could not speak, and she only used her numb big toe to push against the earth wall in the cave. Cheng Li reached in and found a baby wrapped in straw. He took it out and turned it over a few times, only to find that the baby's lips and body were purple, and he had already died.

Cheng Li was speechless, not knowing what to say.

After thinking for a while, Cheng Li covered the baby's purple lips with his hand, and handed the swaddling clothes forward to the woman's sight, smiling nonchalantly: "It's still alive, just asleep, you can touch it."

The young woman moved her arm slightly.

Cheng Li saw this and grabbed her hand and put it next to the baby's face. The young woman was only breathing, her consciousness was already scattered, and she didn't notice anything unusual at all, but she kept bending her left index finger.

Cheng Li understood what she couldn't say, so he pursed his lips, shook the swaddling clothes in his arms, and said in a relaxed tone: "This child is lucky, I adopted him."

The white hot air from her nasal cavity slowly stopped, and the young woman rested her head on her arms, dead.

After confirming that the baby was dead, Cheng Li threw the baby to the guards and said, "Dig a deep pit and bury it."

After saying that, he turned and left. When everyone had vented their emotions, the crying and singing had basically stopped. Cheng Li climbed onto a big rock and cleared his throat: "Everyone, the court is benevolent--"

Before he finished speaking, he was interrupted by a loud voice: "Ren De, what the hell! What do you care about?"

"If it weren't for the fact that his surname was Li, I would have been upset."

"In order to fight and kill, they have been levying heavy taxes all year round, squeezing us dry. If we had more food at home, this wouldn't have to happen."
.
"Let us escape the famine."

Cheng Li was so embarrassed that his face turned red. Seeing his embarrassment, the guard drew his sword and pointed it at everyone: "What are you yelling for!"

The other Qingzhou soldiers also stopped their actions, showing their ferocious looks, and the commotion stopped instantly.

"If you dare to make noise again, humph!" The killers left threatening words asking everyone to be careful before putting away their swords.

Cheng Li called a few leaders to him and said, "I am Cheng Li, the governor of Beidi. The food stored in Lingwu can feed you. But it is several hundred miles away, and the transportation loss is high. I will give you seven days of dry food later. You can either go to Beidi where I have become a citizen or turn around and return home. I received a report yesterday that Sanfu is already providing disaster relief. Anyway, you can't run around. It's so cold and snowy, running around is seeking death, and you can't go north."

Several people were a little suspicious, but they didn't dare to speak out and disobey. Seeing that they were hesitant to speak, Cheng Li ignored them. He had no intention of discussing it with the people. This was his order for the highest interests of the court.

"Go down and explain my meaning to everyone." After saying this, Cheng Li waved his hand, asked them to leave, and then looked at everyone and comforted them.

As they were talking, the convoy arrived.

On wheelbarrows, horse-drawn carts, and camels, sacks were piled one on top of another, each bulging. After the victims saw the convoy clearly, they stared at it intently, as if being drawn by some kind of magic, and followed the convoy one after another.

"Governor, are we selling or borrowing this grain?" asked a skinny old man.

Cheng Li sneered, "Why, you're almost starving to death, and you still want to lend me money? You won't eat if I ask for money?" He paused, waved his sleeves, and flattered the saint, "Okay, the decree is free. Who do you think my Li family is? You're asking you to return a few kilograms of life-saving wheat?"

Upon hearing this news, everyone was delighted and their eyes filled with tears. The atmosphere of resentment immediately became joyful.

Snow was flying all over the sky, and men and women lined up to get cakes.

The officials maintained order while brainwashing people: "If you eat Saint Li's cake, you must be Saint Li's subjects! You eat with a bowl, but throw it and curse the saint. Who will save you the second time?"

"Prefect, please save my life. Just do as you say!" Someone shouted to Cheng Li to thank him while wolfing down the food.

Cheng Li's heart trembled: "Shut up."

He had the courage to secretly play the piano for the saint. Because he knew that with the saint's temperament, he would just laugh it off without solid evidence. But he really didn't dare to buy people's hearts and take credit for his achievements and blame his superiors for his crimes. As a former lord, he was most afraid of his subordinates doing such things. If there was any sign of it, he would find a way to kill them. So he quickly stopped the voice with a stern voice and disappeared from the public.

On November 25th, the saint also arrived in Fushi County, Shangjun.

The disaster situation in Fuyan area was not that bad, and he handed over the disaster relief here to Beidi and Qingyang, so he only brought a few thousand cavalry and rushed here at lightning speed.

Post-disaster work in the heart of Guanzhong is proceeding in an orderly manner. He has also made a circle, and Fushi County is the last stop.

The purpose of coming here is simple, just to take a look. The saint knows that if he does not show up this time, the disaster will not be handled so quickly and effectively. If he does not spread the news of the northern tour, Cheng Li will not appear here.

I took a walk around the south bank of Jin River and it felt pretty good.

After all, Jingzhao Prefecture was the worst hit this time, and other places were not so bad. And floods are something that will recover quickly once the rain stops.

In addition, we are also considering adjusting Cheng Li's work arrangements. This guy's talent is neither long nor short. He has achieved some results, but not much. It's not that he doesn't have enough ability. There is only one reason, he has no foundation in the local area, and it doesn't make much sense to continue to waste time. Talents should be placed in the right positions.

Li planned to recall Cheng Li to the central government to replace Li Qun as the Minister of Agriculture, or to replace Han Yi as the Inspector of the Imperial Capital, in preparation for the planned war after the spring of the new year.

"Your Majesty." When Cheng Li really saw the saint, he who had been shouting "I will have a good talk with him" became soft again, and he knelt down with his head lowered.

"How did you get here from Lingwu?" The saint asked, holding the whip in his backhand and pacing slowly.

"Riding a horse." Cheng Li replied.

"It's not easy." The saint praised.

"It's not easy for your Majesty either." Cheng Li asked and answered.

"But I am younger than you. Come up and sit next to me." The saint turned around and hooked his finger at him.

Cheng Li jogged up and lagged behind by half a step.

As he walked, he squinted his eyes and looked at Cheng Li for a while. Looking at his frosty hair, the saint suddenly smiled and said, "You are old too. Can you still work in the North?"

"Your Majesty..." Cheng Li felt like there was something stuck in his throat.

"It's hard for you. You have no money, no people, no soldiers, no power...it's too troublesome to get anything done."

It turns out you know it too!
Cheng Li slammed the table!

"Come back with me." The saint waved his hand and said, "Next year, when we have completely dealt with the Xia Sui forces and the remaining Shuofang Army, I will re-arrange the personnel for Beidi County. Come back with me first, in case anything goes wrong before then."

Cheng Li was surprised and happy.

On the day he entered the court and was "exiled" to the north, the sage said that he would not be able to return until three years later. Now he is going to be brought back in less than three years. He still says this. Does it mean that he has basically gained the sage's trust?

What was surprising was that the saint, who always liked to passively take a beating and then fight back, was actually starting to plan to take the initiative.

it is good.

Being passive and righteous is dangerous. A superficial justification for the sake of war is enough to lead to a slow death. We still need to make appropriate adjustments according to the changes in the situation. The problems of Beidi, Xinqin, Guiyi Army, and the remnants of Tubo can only be solved by resorting to force. If we don't get rid of those heretics through war, any policy we implement in the future may cause a second rebellion. Are we going to compromise and "negotiate" like this? There is no construction without destruction. Besides, this is a society where the strong prey on the weak, and justice lies only on the sword!
However, although the saint's ideas are in line with Cheng Li's values, but -

Cheng Li thought about it carefully and suggested: "Xin Qin borders Hedong. If the area is directly governed, the eight tribes of Dangxiang and the Ling and Xiawu groups will probably seek support from Li Keyong, and the civil and military officials of Hedong will also worry about the loss of their teeth and lips. The possibility of the three joining forces is very high. Moreover, I heard that Your Majesty has also entrusted Ma Yin to attack the Hunan patrol. Given Ma Yin's personality, he will definitely not be a knife obediently. If there is a rebellion..."

"Do you mean that the three families will join forces to deal with me?" The saint turned his head and looked at him with burning eyes.

"Not absolutely." Cheng Li said, "But if something like this happens, there may be more than three families joining forces to deal with Your Majesty. Although Your Majesty has more than 100,000 soldiers, he may not be able to defeat them. This is the situation of Emperor Wu and Emperor Zhuang. A single move can affect the entire body. Any initiative to attack is likely to make the situation out of control."

The saint nodded and said, "But I have no choice. Ling and Xia are full of powerful people and generals, and there are tens of thousands of uncontrollable warriors. Even with your ability, you will be constrained everywhere when you go there. It is difficult to allow others to sleep soundly beside my bed, so I have to get rid of them. Whatever you can do, just go with the flow."

"That's right." Cheng Li added, "The story of the Han and Wei dynasties is still fresh in our memory. When the local forces are strong, it is difficult for the government to govern the people and collect taxes. In the end, the country is weakened and the people suffer. The emperor bears the blame for nothing, and some people get rich in vain. It is right to break the situation with violence, but it must be done with caution."

"That's natural." The saint suddenly asked again: "Do you have any position you are interested in?"

"This..." Cheng Li was surprised at the generosity of the saint. In his impression, the saint had always been a miser. Based on the belief that pie in the sky would not fall, he said cautiously: "Whatever the saint asks me to do, it is my duty. How can I be picky?"

"Just say what I ask you to say." The saint rolled his eyes: "You and I are the king and his subject, why would I try to test you?"

What matters is attitude, Cheng Li muttered to himself.

"Captain of the Imperial Guards, Grand Minister of Agriculture, are you qualified for this job?"

Cheng Li thought about it and said, "With my family background, knowledge, and connections, the nobles in Guanzhong will not buy into my account. Most of the Sili soldiers are children of nobles, and it is difficult for me to control them. The Minister of Agriculture can do that, but——"

"Forget it, let's talk about this later." Stepping into a camp with smoke rising from cooking fires, the saint stopped talking.

"Your Majesty." When everyone saw him, they stood up and paid their respects one after another, led by the scholar.

"Eat when you should, drink when you should." The saint flicked his fingers.

Then everyone sat down again.

The saint stopped casually beside a bonfire, looking at the men and women who were holding their children and warming themselves around the fire. There was also a group of orphans who were taken in by these adults, who were also gathering around the fire and warming their frozen hands and feet.

"All your grandparents and relatives are gone?" The saint picked up a boy.

"Ah."

"What are your plans?"

The boy looked at him, his little head was at a loss for words. But an older girl next to him was a little bolder and said, "I, I want to go with your Majesty. I can wash clothes, I can cook, and I can survive on just half a cake a day..."

The saint choked.

Little girl, you have given me a difficult question. Boys are received by the palace and assigned to the palace maids to raise, and can also be trained as soldiers, palace officials, and eunuchs. Girls... well, in troubled times, women are just so worthless. In his previous life, when he was browsing the county annals of a certain place, he saw a record called "Baby Girl Tower". Whenever there was a difficult time, the people in this place would throw baby girls into a hollow tower to let them die, and when it was full, they would burn it directly without caring whether they were dead or alive.

However, as a big landlord, it is not difficult to support 20,000 or 30,000 palace maids, just to feed them and keep them alive. When they grow up, they will be released from the palace, such as marrying off to warriors in batches, or selling their bodies and doing business. Girls who are raised and trained in the palace from childhood are guaranteed to be loyal, and it seems that they can even develop a group of spies?
Well, it seems there is no need to think too much.

After all, the beauty of rich and powerful people is that they can always use money and power to do meaningless things that do not conform to the three views of ordinary people. On the other hand, if you can't use money and power to do meaningless things that ordinary people don't understand, why do you want to be an official and make money? What's the use of more money and greater power?
So, since you have money and power, just do what you want to do and be done with it, not to mention that it is something beneficial.

"That's fine. But it's difficult to enter and exit the palace. Once you're in, you have no freedom." The saint said, and then he found it funny. Isn't it funny to talk about freedom and dignity with these people who are struggling on the brink of death?

Hearing this, the girl raised her head in surprise, her red face facing the saint, then trotted to his side and stood obediently.

Just like a stone hitting the water, seeing the success story, dozens of children immediately came running over. Couples who felt they could not support their children also discussed with tears in their eyes about taking this opportunity to send their children away from the sea of suffering.

The adults looked at the children with envy.

"Don't run around, just follow my instructions." The saint looked around and said, "Those who want to go out to find food can go to the north from Chengqing. Those who want to return home can take some dry food with them. There is enough food, so just build a shack to keep out the cold. I won't let anyone starve to death this winter."

Men and women all smiled knowingly.

Disasters are ruthless, but saints are compassionate.

"What are you all looking at me for? Hurry up and eat something hot." The saint spoke in Guanzhong dialect, holding the first boy in his left hand, picked up the older girl in his right hand, led a group of children, and turned away.

Wherever he passed, the common people nodded, waved, and looked at him. Some of them were once landlords, some were tenant farmers, some were scholars, some were officials, and there were even children of distant branches of aristocratic families like the Jingzhao Du family. But now they all had only one identity: refugees.

While chewing the hard vinegar cake in his hand, someone burst into tears.

I can't tell why I'm crying.

For the rest of my life, I only wish for peace and prosperity for the country and the people.

For the rest of my life, I only wish for good weather, peace and prosperity.

For the rest of my life, I only hope that my descendants will be safe and prosperous, and that my neighbors will have enough food to eat every day.

On the third day of the twelfth lunar month, after the disaster victims who had fled to Fuyan, Qingyang, Xinqin and other places in the north had basically returned home, the saint also led the boy scouts on their return journey. They took in more than 3,000 boys and girls, plus those who had been taken in in Guanzhong, there must be tens of thousands of them. Men and women were arranged in teams, men in white and women in red. Zheng Yanchang and the officials jokingly called them: the Saint Sons' Army and the Saint Women's Army.

It’s over. Why does it feel like the Northern Song Dynasty reorganized the refugees into the garrison during the famine?
Could it be that this will be developed into a "precedent" by future generations?

Damn it!
I am simply trying to win people's hearts.

By the time he rushed back to Chang'an with the Army of the Holy Son and the Army of the Holy Daughter, the end of the year was already in sight.

Meeting my fairy sister-in-law, the battle of Luoyang, the alliance of princes, the killing of Zhu Wen, meeting her, the rain in Guanzhong... It feels like I have done a lot of things, but it also feels like time has passed so quickly.

The second year of Qianning just passed like this.

(End of this chapter)