The fiercest soldier of the border army

Upon hearing this, everyone present was stunned.

Renovation?

Zheng Wenhan swallowed hard; he had always thought he was ruthless enough.

But in front of the pacification envoy, he acted like a kind person!

The people were emaciated, barely clothed, and had no food to eat!

He not only mandated that grain merchants sell their grain for no less than 200 coins per dou, but he also wanted to build a temple?!

Zheng Wenhan's heart skipped a beat, feeling that Tang Shun was being far too audacious!

But then I thought, even if we expose the entire Wenchi County, we have Tang Shun, the imperial envoy, to protect us. What is there to fear?

The more chaotic the hot springs are, the more profit can be made from the chaos!

So he readily agreed, "Yes!"

Tang Shun didn't look at him again and turned to walk towards the foot of the mountain.

There was a depression at the bottom of the slope, filled with rainwater. The water was clear and reflected the sky.

Tang Shun squatted down and stirred the water with his hand, causing ripples to spread.

He stood up and sighed, "It seems I won't be able to worship Buddha as I wish."

"However, if there is a place to fish, it can be considered a way to keep a low profile."

Tang Shun looked at Zheng Wenhan and asked, "Magistrate Zheng, are there any ponds or fishing spots in Wenchi County?"

Zheng Wenhan smiled helplessly, "Your Excellency may not know this, but the northern region suffers from drought nine out of ten years. Last year, the riverbed cracked open, deep enough to swallow a person. This year, the drought is severe, and the autumn harvest is poor, which is why grain prices have skyrocketed."

"There has never been a pond in the entire Wenchi area, so it seems unlikely that Your Excellency will be able to fish there..."

"Oh~" Tang Shun drawled, ignoring Xie Anzhi's increasingly dark expression, and said with his hands behind his back, "The puddle in front of us is quite nice."

"If we dig deeper and create a large pit, then draw some mountain spring water, it will become a pond when the rainy season arrives."

"The temples on the mountain are always filled with the smoke of incense, and you can build a pavilion at the foot of the mountain, go fishing, which can not only cultivate your mind but also wash away evil spirits."

Zheng Wenhan felt a sudden surge of energy in his head and cautiously asked, "Is Your Excellency... planning to dig a pond to fish?"

Tang Shun nodded slightly, as if he were talking about a trivial matter, "Indeed, in a few days, we will recruit several thousand refugees to dig."

Xie Anzhi followed behind. Ever since Tang Shun ordered the forced conscription of displaced people for labor in the morning and proposed the repair of temples and the construction of ponds, he had been feeling uneasy.

Upon hearing this, he finally couldn't hold back and said coldly, "When you inspected the area today, all you saw were the cries of starving people and corpses lying everywhere."

"Instead of lowering grain prices, you've mandated that rice cannot be sold below 200 coins. Grain merchants are taking advantage of this to hoard it, frantically sweeping up the market's stockpiles last night. Today, the price has already risen to 220 coins per dou!"

"The common people can't afford rice and can only eat dirt and chaff, yet you're here talking about building temples, digging ponds, and fishing for pleasure? What kind of logic is that!"

Tang Shun glanced back at him, his expression displeased. "Making a fuss over nothing."

"I, this envoy, lead soldiers from Xiushui, and have lost thousands of Xiongnu lives. How can I feel at ease if I don't rid myself of this bad luck?"

"If your conscience is uneasy, how can you provide disaster relief? If you can't provide disaster relief, how can you explain it?"

Xie An was furious!

He had studied the classics for many years and endured ten years of hard study. He considered himself knowledgeable and experienced, but this was truly the first time he had ever heard such an absurd statement!

"So, this is your explanation?"

Xie Anzhi's voice trembled, "You'd rather build a golden statue than save lives? The skyrocketing grain prices aren't enough? You want to dig ponds? You want to build pavilions?"

"Why don't you just build a palace on the city wall and drink and make merry day and night!"

After he finished speaking, he didn't look at Tang Shun again and turned to leave.

His steps were extremely fast, and the hem of his robe kicked up dust.

Tang Shun watched his retreating figure without stopping him, his eyes filled with profound emotion.

Xie Anzhi hurried along the long street and returned to his study in the county government office.

He closed the door, locked it, took out paper and ground ink, his hands trembling slightly.

I recall the woman kneeling on the street early in the morning, holding her sick child and pleading.

I recall the old woman crying out in front of the rice shop, "Two hundred coins a bushel, how are we supposed to survive?"

I recall the numb light in the eyes of the refugees, as hopeless as a dry well.

Tang Shun, from yesterday to the present, has demonstrated his incompetence and folly!

No, it's not just incompetence!

This is a horseshoe crab! This is a treacherous official!

Xie Anzhi, his hands trembling, picked up his pen, unable to bear it any longer!

"Your subject Xie Anzhi kowtows and weeps as he writes: Emperor Shun of Tang, holding the position of pacification, did not think of comforting the people, but instead treated them like dirt!"

"They arrived last night, held a banquet with local officials and merchants, and amassed a fortune, collecting gold, silver, and jade artifacts weighing a thousand taels!"

"An order was issued forbidding grain merchants in the county from selling grain at low prices, which led to unscrupulous merchants hoarding and speculating, causing the price of a bushel of rice to soar to over two hundred coins overnight!"

"The starving people await their fate, yet they turn a blind eye and a deaf ear, instead driving them to build temples and ponds, solely for their own pleasure!"

"Furthermore, under the pretext of 'warding off bad luck,' they sought to conscript displaced people to recast the Buddha statues, subjecting them to endless forced labor!"

"His actions are tyrannical and his heart is cold-blooded; he is not the kind of person who should be a parent to the people!"

"We earnestly request the General to investigate this matter thoroughly and quickly dispatch a capable replacement to save the countless lives at Wenchi from this dire situation!"

After writing, Xie Anzhi blew the ink dry, put it into a letter box, and sealed it with sealing wax.

He ran alone to the post station and said in a deep voice, "This letter is of great importance. We must ride a fast horse and set off immediately to deliver it to the military governor's residence tonight!"

"You must not let it pass through anyone else's hands, open or read it, or stop on the road. If anything goes wrong, you will be held responsible."

After verifying his identity, the courier accepted the order, took the letter box, and soon set off on a fast horse.

Xie Anzhi stood there for a long time without moving, watching the horses gradually disappear into the distance.

Tingzhou.

The Governor's Office.

Crown Prince Zhao Lang, who commanded the three towns of Hedong, Hexi, and Beiting, served as the Grand Commander of the Army. Now that the war was over, the Crown Prince was stationed in Beiting to handle the aftermath.

Fires broke out everywhere in the northern part of the Great Qian Dynasty.

At this moment, Zhao Lang, who was already forty years old, was dressed in casual clothes and sitting behind his desk, rubbing his eyes.

"Your Highness, you have been reviewing documents for three hours. Why not take a break?"

Sitting to one side, Li Qing'an gently advised, "These are turbulent times; things always take time to resolve. Don't overwork yourself."

Zhao Lang gave a bitter smile. "Commander Li, the people of Beiting, and the people of Lianghe are all suffering terribly."

"If I handle things quickly, my subordinates will know how to do it, and the people will be able to settle down more quickly."

He sighed softly, "I dare not rest, I dare not stop."

Then, he changed the subject and chuckled, "However, on another note, I'd like to see how that little fellow Tang Shun, with no money and no food, will settle the tens of thousands of refugees in Wenchi County."

"Judging by the dates, he should have arrived last night, right?"

Li Qingan nodded in response, "That's right. If there hadn't been any delays, we would have arrived last night."

"Cui Yuanlang from Lingwu County set off today, and if nothing unexpected happens, he should have arrived by now."

"That's good." Zhao Lang nodded with a smile. "No need to worry about Lingwu County."

"It's nothing more than the Cui family being wealthy and powerful, using their influence to suppress grain prices."

"As for Wenchi, the matter remains unresolved."

"Report back as soon as you have any news."

Li Qing'an nodded, about to respond, when he heard his personal guard outside shout anxiously, "General, an urgent dispatch from Wenchi County!"

"Oh?" The crown prince laughed loudly, "What a coincidence!"

"Bring me the document. So urgent! I want to see what good plan Tang Shun has!"

The guards respectfully handed the document to Li Qing'an, who immediately gave it to Zhao Lang.

Zhao Lang smiled, tore off the sealing wax, and looked at the contents of the document.

pat-

His eyes widened, he suddenly stood up, his face filled with disbelief!

The calligraphy brushes on the table all rolled to the ground.

The carpet was instantly covered in dirt...