You have truly caused me great suffering!

Before they knew it, it was already the hottest time of summer, and countless laborers from Hedong crossed the small paths of the Taihang Mountains to return to their hometowns.

They mostly choose to travel in the early morning and evening, and rest in the shade of the mountains when it is hot.

The military camps originally set up to defend against the Jin army still have troops stationed there, and some food is provided to them along the way.

Although they were traveling during the hottest days of summer, they were all happy.

He returned with some vouchers in his pocket, which he could exchange for wages from the local government.

Moreover, the family was allocated land, and it is said that the newly reclaimed land was exempt from taxes for three years, and it had already been cultivated.

You could say that if we go back and rest for a month or two, we can harvest the autumn crop.

If it were the old Song Dynasty, these farmers would have just listened and let it go. Being able to return to their hometown alive, and for their families to be alive after returning, would have been an immense blessing.

But this is an official document from our Taiyuan Prefecture, an order from the Prince of Dai, so it is very trustworthy and basically a done deal.

It was so hot that when Chen Shao got up that day, he found it was another sunny day with white clouds floating in the blue sky. Even early in the morning, the air felt hot.

He lay on the bed and suddenly felt lazy and didn't want to move. Perhaps because his body was hot, he sweated easily and felt damp as soon as he moved.

But then he thought about how he and the farmer from Hedong were about to return, and the first batch should arrive in Taiyuan today. He thought he should actually go there in person.

After all, the hearts and minds of the people in Hedong are extremely important to the Dingnan Army at present.

As for physical activities like martial arts training, he stopped doing them long ago because the weather was too hot, and Li Shishi wouldn't let him practice martial arts anymore.

Chen Shao himself felt that his daily activity level was more than enough; just riding around on horseback was enough to expend his energy.

For an entrepreneur like him, health is always the top priority.

Many heroes and powerful figures have fallen because of this, leaving future generations who read history with endless sighs: "If only we had xx more years!"

He slapped Jin Le'er's smooth, tender bottom, and she groggily opened her eyes, saying in a soft, sweet voice, "Le'er will help Your Majesty get up."

After saying that, he just shrank back and refused to get up, which made Chen Shao smile.

As soon as he sat up, the maids who had been waiting outside came in to help him get dressed and wash up.

After breakfast, Chen Shao led his personal guards to the outskirts of the city, where many officials had already gathered.

Upon seeing Chen Shao arrive, they all stepped forward to pay their respects.

Chen Shao found a shady spot under a tree, tore off a large sycamore leaf to fan himself, and asked, "Is the headcount, casualty compensation, and subsidy distribution all ready?"

Li Tangchen nodded and said, "We started making arrangements after the spring planting was completed, so there shouldn't be any major problems."

Chen Shao nodded. His finances were indeed tight at the moment, so he could only rely on low wages, supplemented by in-kind payments.

Food rations, salt, and cloth were all hard currencies.

The Song Dynasty did provide subsidies for conscripting laborers, but the prices were ridiculously low, and most of the money was pocketed by officials and military officers.

In peacetime, the laborers were theoretically given a subsidy of 100 coins for road repair, dam construction, and water management. During wartime mobilization, the subsidy was nominally 300 coins.

In reality, not only will you not get the money, you'll also have to pay out of your own pocket.

For the single project of the "Flower and Stone Tribute" initiated by Emperor Huizong of Song, Tong Guan and Zhu Mian conscripted a million laborers. These people had to sell their children to make ends meet, and the laborers "fled one after another, leaving piles of corpses from starvation."

In the fourth year of the Xuanhe era, after Tong Guan's failed attack on Liaodong, the people of Hebei and Hedong were left destitute due to war and famine, with the official death toll reaching hundreds of thousands.

This single comparison alone reveals why Chen Shao was able to win over people's hearts so easily.

It's all set off by peers.

Seeing the dust rising in the distance, indicating that a large army was approaching, Chen Shao stood up and looked east with the others.

Sure enough, the escorting troops took the lead, but there weren't many of them, only a small group of about twenty riders, because these laborers were unlikely to cause trouble.

The people near Taiyuan, seeing the laborers return, rushed to greet them and search for their relatives.

So many able-bodied young men walked past right before their eyes. The Taiyuan officials brought up the same old tune again, with Li Tangchen stepping forward and saying with a smile, "Your Majesty, look at these young men from Hedong. They are so strong and vigorous. If the front lines lack soldiers, this place is enough to form a strong army."

Chen Shao had no doubt that Hedong could train a strong army, and Hedong's own financial resources were sufficient to support a large army.

However, Chen Shao had other uses for the financial resources of Hedong, and the front lines simply couldn't afford to support so many soldiers, nor were they needed for the time being.

If we only consider the number of troops, the Dingnan Army is already sufficient, and most of them are unwilling to retire and return to their hometowns.

Chen Shao could only say, "The area around Yanmen in Yunzhong is the key to the north, so troops must be stationed there. Yunzhong Prefecture is sparsely populated and has always been connected to Hedong, so sooner or later the troops from Hedong will be trained to garrison it. The people of Hedong should also be relocated north and their land will be allocated accordingly."

"Therefore, the Hedong army will be established sooner or later, but the time is not right now. It is only appropriate for the military commanders and supervisors of each prefecture to recruit and train the local soldiers, rather than forming a large-scale army."

The officials had long anticipated this outcome, but they still asked whenever they had the chance.

Whether or not a child gets candy, they have to cry at least once, otherwise, if they really have the chance, the king might give it to someone else.

The Hedong region, bordered by mountains and rivers, is known for its separatist regime.

It's terrifying that they've formed such a large-scale army here.

Building up an army is easy, but disbanding it afterwards is a major problem.

Since Chen Shao couldn't directly confront the people of Hedong, he could only stall and delay until the matter was settled, at which point there would be no need to build up an army.

Even the current cavalry force of over 100,000 should be appropriately reduced.

To maintain 100,000 cavalry, one must be like the Mongols, constantly waging war and using war to sustain war.

Otherwise, the expenses would be truly outrageous.

Currently, the only force still undergoing large-scale expansion is the navy, because Chen Shao's subsequent plans require a large number of personnel for the navy.

No one in this world can do whatever they want. Even Chen Shao's current prestige requires compromise and balance.

Chen Shao always believed that this was the healthy and reasonable way to rule: to be the only one who was supreme in everything, and no matter how high one climbed, one might still fall into the abyss.

Because you are human, and your subordinates are human too, there isn't that much difference between you in essence.

In this world, there are no gods, and therefore no one can be above all rules.

The return of the large number of laborers was quite boring, but Chen Shao found it fascinating.

This scene of family reunion filled him with joy, and despite the bustling crowds in the suburbs, he felt a sense of peace.

What is the purpose of my visit?
Mencius said that when one is poor, one should cultivate one's own virtue; when one is successful, one should benefit all under heaven.

At this moment, Chen Shao truly understood the magnanimity of a sage.

After watching the laborers leave one by one, Chen Shao finally left. By then, many officials had already left.

Thinking that there hadn't been many reports in the past few days and there weren't any major issues requiring his decision, Chen Shao smiled and asked, "The laborers who were withdrawn this time showed no signs of fatigue, which shows that the various government offices did a good job."

"This is all thanks to everyone. Let's have a celebratory banquet to celebrate!"

The officials all smiled and agreed, noting that although the Prince of Dai was in Taiyuan Prefecture, banquets were rarely held. Chen Shao himself, in particular, seldom hosted banquets.

Having once again rejected Hedong's request for large-scale military training, Chen Shao felt it was time to strengthen relations with Hedong.

After he made the suggestion, everyone responded enthusiastically. After arriving at the Prince's Mansion, the officials who had originally returned to their offices, as well as some of his close subordinates, also arrived one after another.

Summer brings an abundance of vegetables, and Fenzhou in Hedong is a renowned wine-making region, so the food and wine prepared are exceptionally plentiful.

Thanks to the significant advancements in iron smelting technology during the Song Dynasty, stir-frying gradually became popular at this time.

The officials and scholars of the Song Dynasty paid special attention to the pursuit of fine food.

So in the Song Dynasty, if you had money, the food you ate wasn't bad.

The banquet was entertained with music, dance, and beautiful women, all of whom were courtesans invited by the officials themselves from Taiyuan.

The young men of the Five Mausoleums vied to shower her with gifts, and countless bolts of red silk were given for a single song.

In the Song Dynasty, although courtesans belonged to the "music register" (a lowly social class), they were often regarded by the literati as a symbol of elegance because of their outstanding talents.

Their names appear in countless famous phrases that have been passed down through the ages.

Moreover, to claim the title of "Queen of Courtesans" is, without exaggeration, no less difficult than passing the imperial examination.
There is a real competition rating system here; it's not enough to just call yourself the queen of the night or have someone flatter you.

Instead, the selection process was based on talent and appearance, with the top courtesan chosen through a "flower ranking" system, similar to the imperial examinations.

Selection criteria: Music, chess, calligraphy, painting, poetry, and demeanor and conversation are all indispensable.

The examiners had to be local celebrities or talented individuals, and many high-ranking officials also liked to serve as examiners.

These people used to command extremely high appearance fees, but as soon as they heard that they were going to the Prince of Dai's residence, they all came with their musical instruments.

If you go out and say that you once performed for the King of Dai, your value will increase.

After all, everyone knows that the Prince of Dai's ambitions are limitless. To put it bluntly, as long as he doesn't make any major mistakes, he can steadily become emperor.

Unless he's lost his mind, doesn't want to be in charge, and wants to ruin everyone under his command.

Chen Shao thought they sang quite well, but they couldn't compare to Li Shishi. Their appearances were too far apart to see clearly.

Because of his extremely cautious nature, every woman who could enter his palace had been thoroughly screened by Guangyuantang.

Therefore, it is highly likely that these people will not be able to enter the Prince's Mansion.

The atmosphere was joyful and harmonious, and everyone was enjoying the songs, dances, and delicious food when suddenly a bodyguard entered from outside.

After whispering a few words in Chen Shao's ear, Chen Shao put down his wine cup and glanced sideways.

"Let him in."

As Chen Shao spoke, a military officer entered from outside the hall. He looked at the scene inside the hall, smelled the fragrance, and swallowed.

This man had a rather robust facial structure and an air of bravery. He approached Chen Shao's desk, clasped his hands in greeting, and said, "Greetings, Prince of Dai!"

"Where do you come from, and what brings you here?"

Wu Qian thought to himself, "Didn't I just say that? Why am I asking again? Didn't these bird soldiers tell the King of Dai?"

Although he was grumbling to himself, he still respectfully clasped his hands and said, "Your Majesty, I am Wu Qian, the second deputy general of the Lingwu Army, a ninth-rank Chengxin Lang, and I am stationed in Henan Prefecture. Three days ago, a merchant ship from Huai Prefecture was transported to Luoyang via the Qin River when it was detained by Luoyang officials without cause."

"They also beat and insulted the merchants and crew members, and even when the second general of Lingwu Army, General Meicang, personally ransomed them, they still uttered wild and insulting words."

"General Meizang has sent me to inquire of the Prince of Dai how to handle this matter."

His voice was rough but loud enough, and it was true that he had a Kansai accent; everyone could hear it clearly.

Chen Shaohe, along with almost everyone who knew Brother Meizang Pang, instantly understood that Brother Meizang Pang was almost certainly the one who sent people to cause trouble.

What kind of cargo is on the ship?

"It's just some ordinary goods, including Huaizhou sesame, dried persimmons, and Huai yams."

Chen Shao slammed his fist on the table. "This is outrageous!"

As soon as those four words were uttered, everyone understood and became indignant.

The fact that Luoyang does not submit to the Prince of Dai is undeniable; they are perhaps the most stubborn group of forces.

The gentry of Luoyang were the clans of the most distinguished scholar-officials in the Song Dynasty. In a sense, they represented the Northern Song Dynasty even better than the Zhao family.

This group of people is really tough, so tough that even Qu Duan was quite angry with them.

Qu Da was the kind of person who never let himself get into trouble internally; he would retaliate immediately if he was angry. Even the powerful and influential families of Luoyang had to be wary of him.

"Go back and tell Brother Pang that he must act in accordance with the law and regulations. I won't ask about anything else."

After Chen Shao finished speaking, Wu Qian turned and left, a simple smile on his face.

He was originally a bandit leader on the Yellow River, skilled in naval warfare. Later, he surrendered to the Zhong family army. When fighting in Yinzhou, he felt that following the Dingnan army was more promising than following the Zhong family.

So he resigned his post and headed west to Xiping Prefecture to seek refuge. Just then, Chen Shao was recruiting for the Lingwu Camp, and he immediately volunteered.

Who would have thought that Lingwu Camp has no battles to fight, so he is still a ninth-rank military officer.

There were many soldiers like him in the Lingwu Camp who were so eager for military merit that they were almost driven mad.

After Brother Pang arrived, he caused trouble every day and provoked them, which was exactly what they wanted.

They are different from Chen Shao; they don't care about the big picture or the big picture. Military merit is more important than anything else.

As for whether a fight would cause widespread devastation, that was completely outside their consideration.

Just like the rebels during the An Lushan Rebellion, they're willing to fight any battle, and they're willing to fight anyone!

After this little incident, the hall remained quiet, and no one knew how much of a commotion this event in Luoyang would cause.

They were not the brutes from the Northwest; they were well aware of Luoyang's rich history and culture.

In terms of military strength, the Prince of Dai could probably sweep through Luoyang without much effort.

However, it will inevitably suffer a great loss in terms of reputation.

Fortunately, Li Tangchen and the others knew that Chen Shao was not a man who acted impulsively, but they couldn't help but worry for Luoyang.

Seeing that the room had quieted down, Chen Shao raised his wine cup and said with a smile, "Why did you stop? Come on, let's keep drinking!"

"Keep the music playing, keep dancing!"

The singers and dancers awoke as if from a dream, all feeling that their day had been worthwhile, having witnessed such a momentous event.

From now on, when I'm drinking with high-ranking officials and dignitaries, I'll have plenty to brag about. (End of Chapter)