Lu Zhengyuan distributed a booklet to the officials in front of him.

"This is yours."

"This is yours."

"These are all important errands that you need to complete immediately. Remember not to neglect them. I will conduct an assessment in person in five days."

As Lu Zhengyuan spoke, his smile became more intense.

He took the examination method to its fullest, and directly compiled the important documents, and then distributed them to the officials, set time limits, and established assessments.

The officials complained endlessly that this was too much and it was quite burdensome.

Measure the land and inventory the property.

This is not an ordinary task, it cannot be that easy.

"Don't complain about hardship, the hardest part has not yet been handed over to you."

Lu Zhengyuan thought to himself that the errands assigned by His Majesty must be carried out personally. Measuring the land and checking the property are just add-ons.

When he went to the Ministry of Household Affairs, Xue Qing told him that due to the war, many important tasks of the court had been affected. Land measurement and property inventory had not been done for a long time.

But it is not easy to do this. There is serious local deception and it is difficult to obtain accurate figures. Especially in the Jianghuai area, land annexation has begun to occur again.

As a minister, you should share your Majesty's worries.

Xue Qing was already thinking about how to solve it.

Now that he is here, he has the opportunity to do this. The most important thing is to get the accurate amount.

This is an investigation for the Southern Dynasty, for myself, not for the imperial court. There will never be any deception.

Seeing the bitter faces of the dozens of officials in front of him, Lu Zhengyuan said directly: "There is a lot of trouble outside now, but it has nothing to do with you."

"You are all officials. You are not as rich as the gentry, nor as powerful as the dignitaries. You are already officials in the Southern Dynasties. Don't have any extra thoughts, just do your job well and be done with it."

"If you don't do your job well, you won't even be able to serve as an official in the Southern Dynasties. Without this layer of skin, you will lose your protection. Will there be a good ending?"

Everyone's faces became even more bitter.

This group of officials rebelled because they had passed the law exam. Unexpectedly, they rebelled now and still can't escape.

What is this picture?

"Go and do it."

"It must be meticulous and correct. I have to check it myself!"

Under the dispatch of Lu Zhengyuan, these people were busy running errands.

Time cannot be wasted, there is still a long way to go.

Lu Zhengyuan was not idle either. He personally went to take people to check the granaries, and he brought with him the sergeants who were with Dong Zheng...

The Southern Dynasty was in complete chaos, but fortunately the people were not greatly affected.

This is the consensus they reached. The prosperous age of Yuanwu is not the end of Longjing. The people are not only wealthy, but at least they can live and work in peace and contentment. Your rebellion ruins other people's good lives, and they will rebel against you every minute.

But someone has already rebelled.

Under the coercion of Dong Zheng, a reckless man, several gentry and dignitaries united to rebel against the Southern Dynasty.

What's very funny is that their slogan is to suppress the rebels and never collude with them. This is completely different from their original behavior.

There was nothing they could do.

Those people in the Southern Dynasty had eaten their way to the cat, and they couldn't control it at all. Now it was no longer just a matter of paying taxes, it was also a matter of all their wealth.

These gentry families were not vegetarians either. They had great influence in the local area and began to fight against the Southern Dynasties.

It’s really a dog’s mouth full of hair.

Dong Zheng was originally planning to lead the Zhennan Army to garrison Zhenjiang, the gateway to the Yangtze River and Huaihe River, but now he couldn't care less about it. He led his people to search homes everywhere, and even forgot about his position as the chief instructor of the Southern Dynasties Lecture Hall...

Lu Zhengyuan snickered in the dark. With such a situation in the Southern Dynasties, he should be considered the driving force behind it.

No one knows how much he told Dong Zheng in private...

This is the situation he wants to see.

Your Majesty is no longer willing to touch these gentry. The 16th year of Yuanwu was not a chaotic period when the new dynasty was first established. But now that the Southern Dynasty is in turmoil, this has nothing to do with your Majesty.

He could take advantage of this chaotic period to do some research.

As the head of the state, I have to share your worries for His Majesty.

.......

The Southern Dynasties fell into chaos, and Dong Zheng was crazy about making money. Wen Xu couldn't hide it and had no face to face the Jianghuai gentry. He felt very ashamed. As a local representative, he should deeply safeguard the interests of this group of people.

But he turned his back and extended the butcher's knife to his own people.

The dragon slayer eventually becomes the evil dragon.

There is no way, rebellion is a road of no return. Only when you have money and food can you have soldiers. This is the simplest truth.

The collection of taxes and confiscation of families began to fill the treasury of the Southern Dynasty, which also gave them more confidence.

The newly built 100,000 Southern Dynasty troops have begun training, and the foundry bureau and even the blacksmith shops in Lin'an City are working day and night to build military equipment.

If the taxes are not paid, the Southern Dynasty will draft another 100,000 troops.

By then, with an army of 200,000, we will be able to truly compete with the imperial court.

The opportunity they saw was that the imperial court had suffered huge losses during the five years of war.

The military is fundamental.

If there is a chance to win over Daning Navy, we will be more confident.

Although Wen Xu was deeply hidden, he was never idle and sent handwritten letters one after another.

The current rebellion is mainly concentrated in Jianghuai Prefecture. If more prefectures can be won over, the power of the Southern Dynasty can be strengthened.

Huzhou and Yongzhou in the south and Huizhou in the southeast are all his goals.

When Wen Xuguan came to Jiangzhou Prefecture, he had a wide network of contacts and many old disciples. This was also his current priority.

Fang Jie was mainly responsible for the recruitment and training of the new army. This Southern Dynasty army was also under his command.

This is determined by prestige status.

Fang Jie also has another very important thing to do, which is to win over Sun Pusheng.

As the three masters of water transportation, their friendship over so many years is unparalleled. Originally, it was very slim to win Sun Pusheng over.

But if there is a way, there is hope.

Fang Chi returned to the mansion, and he lived in the former Lin'an mansion, in a separate and quiet courtyard.

He first went straight to a room, which was the residence of his son Fang Wenyao.

"Father, are you back?"

Fang Wenyao's eyes were a bit frightened.

"How's your recovery going?"

"I can already go to the ground."

Fang Wenyao gritted his teeth and said, "Father, even if I did it, you have already punished me. I was bruised all over my body and my legs were broken by you. This punishment is enough."

"What do you want to say?"

"I've been in the room for two months. I've had enough. Now that you're in Lin'an for a long time, there's always someone to take care of you in Huaizhou. Why don't you let me go back to Huaizhou?"

Fang Wenyao prayed a little.

He stayed in the house as if he were trapped. He couldn't see anyone except the old housekeeper, and he was really suffocating to death.

"I heard that the Southern Dynasty Army has been established. It's okay if you don't let me join the army. We have rebelled and there is no way back anyway. You should forgive me."

"Want to go to the army?"

"Yes, father."

Fang Wenyao looked excited, and he felt that his father had calmed down.

"Is your leg healed?"

"I can go to the ground now, no problem."

"Then interrupt again."

Fang Chi said angrily: "You still want to go to the army, what else do you want to do? If it weren't for you, how could I have ruined my reputation for a lifetime!"
Chapter completed!