The pork butcher is smoother than a pig butcher!

Chapter 338 Sorrow

Speaking of which, which of the children of the border town's military households have any respectable names?

The older generation believes that a humble name makes a child easier to raise!
They were calling things like cats and dogs, very casually.

Therefore, being named after a famous general's spear by the family head was of great significance to these young boys.

Especially since they gave it such a majestic and imposing name!

The ninety-seven people looked at Lu Ye, Lü Chen, and Li Quan with envy.

Gan Minglan encouraged everyone:
"Don't be impatient. There will be another task like literacy every one or two months. As long as you complete the task, I will bestow a name upon you."

Well, if we run out of famous spears, we can always find famous swords and the like. With so many weapons, we can always gather a hundred!

The guards then became excited again, shouting in unison, "Yes, sir!"

Little did they know how many tricks their patriarch had up his sleeve. For the next few years, they would be dangling this carrot around their necks, endlessly learning from him.

Of course, these are things to follow.

Having just left the quarantine site, Gan Minglan asked Steward Zhu to arrange everyone's accommodation and duty schedule before riding off to the General's Mansion.

Hami City is currently under martial law.

The burgeoning businesses were severely impacted by the widespread infection of toad plague, leading to a severe downturn.

You can't do any buying or selling at all!

Because no one was out walking around on the streets and alleys.

Although General Xiong and others had seen the medical records and treatment plans for the toad plague that Gan Minglan had brought back a few days ago, compiled by the doctors.

Hearing her recount the perilous situation at the scene brought another wave of sighs.

General Xiong highly praised Gan Minglan's response at the time:
"If it weren't for General Gan organizing doctors to examine those immigrants, the entire Guanzhong Plain would probably be infected with this plague by now. Not to mention, the General also brought out such a precious prescription and personally led people to the Flaming Mountains to find the medicine! I must again commend the General."

This achievement is no less significant than the one that wiped out the main force of the Hu people.

It should be noted that the toad plague has now spread widely across various states and provinces!
And the only effective medicine to completely suppress this plague is this cactus.

The generals showered the generals with compliments and praises, but in their hearts they were incredibly envious.

It only took them a few days to be promoted from the fifth rank to the fourth rank.
Based on their understanding of the prince, such a beneficial remedy and medicine for the people and the country deserves a great reward.

Perhaps in another month or two, General Gan will be able to become the second-in-command of the Nine Guards of Guanzhong!

General Xiong, too lazy to even look at that bunch of good-for-nothings, spoke gently to Gan Minglan:
"Speaking of cactus, I wonder if this medicinal herb can be cultivated in large quantities? The toad plague has a long history; if everyone knew that cactus could be used to cure it, then..."

"I think we can try planting them in other ravines of the Flaming Mountains. It's not just seeds; I think even burying those thick leaves in sand can help them take root."

In this way, all the uncultivated mountain gullies near the Flaming Mountains can be utilized.

The group, who had just been feeling sour, suddenly perked up:

"I'm not saying I want to sell this elixir for an exorbitant price; I just want the people inside the pass to know that this medicine comes from our Guanzhong region!"

"That's right! And those snow lotuses that the vanguard battalion brought back! Once word gets out about these two herbs, just wait and see! Won't all those famous doctors flock to Guanzhong?"

Soldiers know all too well the value of a good doctor.

We've managed to gather about a hundred doctors.

Is it too much?

The nine guards of Kansai have a combined population of seven or eight hundred thousand!
What can so few doctors do?

General Xiong's brows, which had just relaxed, furrowed again. He had only been in charge of the household for half a year, and a third of his hair had already turned white from worry.

They worry about food every day.

"It's worrying, really worrying! No matter how many sheep we have, it won't be enough to feed hundreds of thousands of people for several months. I thought we could build the new city in three months, but look at the current progress. We'll be lucky if we can finish building the city walls by the end of next month!"

Is it slow?

Actually, these people are not slow at all!

Who told you to demand that the walls of the new city be rammed as high as the border gate!
But General Xiong also had his concerns:

"It's not that we're worried about delaying the coal mining. Once the city walls are built, we can mine however we want! But at the current rate, it will probably take more than half a year for this new city to be fully built. What are we planning to do by bringing all these immigrants to Kansai?"

What's the motive? Naturally, it's to cultivate land.

But now, even the most inept and strong laborer on that construction site can earn nine coins a month, so who would want to reclaim wasteland and farm the land?
If we don't reclaim the land, where will the staple food for hundreds of thousands of people come from?
If the ransom and reparations from the Kashgar Khanate can be delivered in a month, that would alleviate the situation for a few more months.

What should they do if the other party denies the debt?

Moreover, the longer the construction period, the more wages are required.

The immigrants' families just use the advance payment for food and drink; it's only a small amount of money.

The project expenses and the military pay for next year's garrison require money from all sides.

The gold mine obtained from King Chungshun was clearly insufficient to satisfy both of these huge deficits.

However, with the rampant epidemics everywhere, the plan to sell the coal has to be temporarily shelved.

Wouldn't that cause worry?
One of the fifth-rank generals shouted, "If the barbarians dare to break the treaty, we'll take our brothers to Shache for the New Year!"

General Xiong, clutching his slightly flushed cheek, glared at his troublesome subordinate:

"It's easy to say. Leading a large army to attack Shache? It's thousands of miles away. It would take more than a month to even reach their territory. The cold winter weather would be a great test for both cavalry and warhorses."

Even though we wiped out the main force of the Hu people, every one of their leaders, big and small, had hundreds or even thousands of slaves. They were a nomadic people; the men could ride horses as soon as they could walk, and their horsemanship and archery skills were truly not to be underestimated.

Putting everything else aside, how many cities would you have to pass through to get from Verum to Shache? Once the news gets back, the enemy only needs to scatter iron nails along any possible route; a few feet of snow will fall, and any that try to reach it will be destroyed.

If the horses of the Tatars and the Hu people are trapped in the cavalry formation, then everyone will be happy.

But who would be happy if it happened to their own family?
Even a fifth-rank general is promoted through his own military merits; how could he not know the dangers of a long winter expedition?

Isn't this just being envious?

Last time we fought against the Hu people, we left 30,000 men to garrison various garrisons.

He was also one of the generals who stayed behind.

The rule on the battlefield since ancient times has been that whoever seizes the spoils of war owns them.

The commander-in-chief and all the generals, of course, received their share.

Therefore, this general was truly envious as he watched his familiar brothers make a fortune one by one.

Therefore, he was exceptionally enthusiastic about sending troops to the Hu people.

In his mind, no matter how powerful the Hu chieftain's private army was, it couldn't be stronger than the elite troops. As long as there was a vanguard battalion leading the charge, they could follow behind and reap the benefits.

How magnificent must the capital of the strongest known kingdom in the Western Regions be?

(End of this chapter)