You have truly caused me great suffering!

Chapter 42 Micro-management
Almost all the officials and soldiers of the Song Dynasty were engaged in business.

Especially the Imperial Guards; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say they were among the top three merchant groups in the Song Dynasty.

Moreover, when it comes to doing business, these families of imperial guards are absolutely adept at making money through harmony.

Over the years, they have developed a standard business mindset. They will never bully others unless absolutely necessary.

It wasn't that these powerful families had particularly strong self-discipline, nor that they were of high moral character; rather, it was that once violence was involved, the outcome became uncontrollable.

Established families are different from nouveau riche; they value stability.

The border troops in the Northwest are different.

They were constantly at war, which was extremely costly, and the imperial court's provisions and salaries were almost always delayed.

Being a few months late is already a blessing; on time and in full is simply impossible, not even worth a second thought.

So they go into business not for money, but to save lives.

They'll try any unorthodox method.

If you dare to try to outsmart them, dozens of Western Army soldiers might come to your door that night to reason with you.

Liu Guanglie used his own channels in Fuyanbing to sell off Li Shishi's assets in just three to five days, and surprisingly, he didn't lose much money.

Tens of thousands of strings of cash is a considerable sum anywhere, but if you insist that it's in the hands of shrewd magnates like Cai Jing and Tong Guan, it's indeed insignificant.

The Great Xiangguo Temple also helped in this process; they had so much cash that they could afford to eat anything.

Chen Shao was genuinely willing to sell, and there was indeed a profit to be made, so the two sides quickly reached an agreement and the cooperation was very pleasant.

Daxiangguo Temple thought that it had unknowingly formed a connection with Grand Commandant Tong, and its attitude became even more enthusiastic.

Early in the morning, few houses on the street had opened their doors yet.

On the outskirts of the city, the men and horses had already been prepared.

Liu Guanglie and his brothers were all tall and strong, and they all wore long robes and turbans.

Apart from three carriages, everyone else rode horses.

Chen Shao mingled among them with a smile. They were all his original friends, and he was very familiar with each of them.

In addition, Chen Shao treated them extremely well during their trip to Beijing, and each of them received a gift before departure. The gifts were not empty but consisted entirely of money, so the group naturally had no complaints.

Liu Guanglie also felt proud, and in his heart he praised Shao Ge for indeed growing up after being bumped into.

I wasn't lying when I said I should have crashed long ago.

Liu Guanglie winked and laughed, "What's the point of talking to these roughnecks, Shao-ge'er?"

He gestured towards the carriage with his lip, and the people around him laughed and joked.

Chen Shao laughed heartily, walked to the front of the carriage, and gently knocked on the wall panel. A beautiful face peeked out through the window.

Looking at Chun Tao's resentful expression, Chen Shao pinched her cheek and peered through the gap in the carriage window at Li Shishi, who was wrapped in a cloak.

"Be careful on this journey, don't go out easily, and don't catch a cold. I have already told my cousin that we should stay at inns along the way, and we would rather travel for a few more days than sleep in the wild."

Li Shishi smiled and said, "I understand. My lord, please take good care of yourself. We will wait for you in Fuzhou."

Chun Tao found it hard to accept that Brother Chen had suddenly become her brother-in-law.

Seeing how affectionate the two were, she couldn't help but roll her eyes.

There were two middle-aged female servants in the carriage, who had voluntarily followed Li Shishi away. As for the other maids and nannies in the building, Li Shishi did not trust them.

They were given some money as severance pay.

Seeing that Chen Shao had not yet left.

Li Shishi lowered her head, tears welling up in her eyes, afraid that he would see them.

Chun Tao abruptly pulled down the curtain. Li Shishi looked at this younger sister and, to be honest, didn't feel much closeness to her. Seeing her suddenly lower the blue curtain in front of the window, blocking Chen Shao from her view, she felt somewhat unhappy.

I guess I'll need to get used to it gradually.

Li Shishi sighed inwardly.

Liu Guanglie and the others mounted their horses, their hooves clattering and wheels rumbling as they moved slowly forward.

Stroking the soft cushions on the carriage seats, Li Shishi realized that although the carriage prepared by Chen Shao was inconspicuous on the outside, the interior was extremely comfortable. The large seats could be used for sitting or lying down, and there were also various snacks and treats such as candied fruit and fruit shops on the side.

He is such a thoughtful person.

Li Shishi felt a surge of sweetness in her heart, and her younger sister seemed more pleasing to the eye.

She lifted the curtain again, her head bowed out of the carriage window, her eyes gazing back at Bianliang, the city where she had grown up.

In the morning mist, a tall, blurry figure was waving goodbye to her.
-
Chen Shao was eager to return home.

With start-up capital and the support of Tong Guan, his ambitions were more than halfway to success.

As for how much of a stir it will cause in the future, that depends on human actions.

Unfortunately, that old scoundrel Tong Guan has no intention of leaving yet.

Just as he saw off the caravan, a fast horse galloped up and, before the horse's hooves could stop, Cui Lin shouted, "Master, the Grand Commandant is summoning you!"

Chen Shao nodded, mounted his horse, and rode towards the city with Dong Dahu.

Upon arriving at the Tong residence, they learned that Tong Guan had already gone to the palace to meet the emperor and had instructed Chen Shao and the others to wait outside the palace.

The ever-changing Genyue Garden, with its Wanshou Temple built in the northwest corner, was considered the residence of Emperor Huizong of the Song Dynasty.

Because the imperial city wasn't grand enough for him.

Bianliang, the capital of the Song Dynasty, was originally just a military prefecture. Although Emperor Zhenzong and the current emperor have made great efforts to expand and build it, it was naturally cramped and could not compare with the palaces of previous dynasties such as Chang'an of the Han and Tang dynasties, nor with the Forbidden City of later generations.

It was about the same size as the wealthy families in Nanjing during the early Ming Dynasty.

What kind of temper does Emperor Huizong have? Could he tolerate this?
So they built another temporary palace, Genyue, and moved it out of the imperial city.

Chen Shao had just finished his roll call at the Japanese army camp when he learned that his transfer order had been issued.

Chen Shao then realized that he was no longer in charge of supporting the Japanese army, because it was Tong Guan who gave the order, so there was no need to follow any procedures.

The Three Offices were just like Tong Guan's backyard.

This person is truly extremely pampered.

His subsequent actions completely betrayed Emperor Huizong's trust in him.

Outside Genyue, Chen Shao found Tong Guan's personal guards and noticed that they all had solemn expressions.

"Brother, what exactly happened?"

"A major defeat at the front."

Chen Shao suspected there was something wrong with his ears; a crushing defeat?
"Did the Liao people strike first?"

"It's not Liao, it's Xia."

In the Song-Xia War, at this point, if we had simply held back, we could have worn down the enemy. So how did we suffer such a crushing defeat?

Yang Keshi glanced around and whispered, "Commander Xuan wants to present His Majesty with a great victory before the Lantern Festival, so he ordered Liu Fa, the military commissioner of Xihe, to attack Shuofang."

Chen Shao was speechless for a moment, his face full of black lines.

Since the start of the Battle of Hengshan, the Song army has been advancing step by step, layer by layer, with five routes of troops advancing cautiously.

The Western Xia people were desperate for battle, but could not win. If we could just trap them, build fortresses, and implement a scorched-earth policy, victory would be within our grasp.

This is just great
At the Western Xia's victory celebration banquet, no one should touch their chopsticks unless Tong Guan is present!
(End of this chapter)