The New Year is spent in the shadow of death.
By February, the epidemic seemed to be less severe, and the people struggled to survive the most frightening and difficult moments.
On February 15th, Wang Yan observed the stars at night and believed that the accumulated corpse energy in the Western Pleiades and Bi Ersu had been greatly reduced, there were not many new evil spirits, and the epidemic situation was about to weaken.
On the 16th, the minister ordered Pei Miao to observe the sky again. The north was empty, and the Yin Qi in the four divisions of Wei Ersu's tomb also showed signs of disappearing, which meant that there were fewer evil ghosts.
As soon as this was said, everyone celebrated.
Accumulated corpse qi brings out evil spirits, and yin qi brings out fierce ghosts. Both types of things will come out to harm people and make people suffer from epidemics.
In principle it makes sense, there’s nothing wrong with it!
Starting from late February, people who need spring plowing go out to do spring plowing, and those who don't need spring plowing start to hold Nuo ceremonies and dance to the gods.
The government came out and smashed several Nuo ritual stalls and ordered the crowds to reduce gatherings.
But it was impossible to guard against it. Such activities continued unabated in various places, and the owners of Wubao didn't care at all. As a result, the epidemic reappeared, and they suffered a second wave of damage, and many people died. Only then did they become honest.
After all this trouble, it was not until the beginning of March, when spring plowing was gradually completed after a delay of half a month, that the situation finally improved.
March 3rd is a day for flirting, so naturally it is prohibited.
Shao Xun spent his days fishing in the pond in front of Zhaode Hall in the harem.
This hall is the residence of Yu Wenjun. The third daughter Mu'er, the sixth son Liang Nu and the youngest son Quji who were born in the twelfth lunar month of last year also live here.
Yang Xianrong gave birth to a daughter two months earlier than Yu Wenjun—well, it was still kept secret.
Liu Ye is also pregnant.
Before that, she had given birth to a son in February of the fifth year of Shengui (321), named "Gong".
Shao Xun was really obsessed with her big butt.
In terms of shape, those two buttocks are the most beautiful ones in the harem, even more perfect than Le Lanji's, so round that Shao Xun can't control them.
Surprisingly, Song Yi was also pregnant.
In these years, Shao Xun actually didn't touch her a few times. The only time he had a good time with her was that Song Yi was unlucky and couldn't get pregnant.
Unexpectedly, I followed him on a boat trip on the Fen River, and after a boat earthquake, I became pregnant immediately.
This is luck.
"It's already March in a blink of an eye..." Shao Xun suddenly sighed.
Mu'er, who was already eleven years old after the New Year, sat aside obediently and watched her father fishing.
Yu Wenjun held his youngest son to relieve his illness. His eye circles were slightly red, as if he had just cried.
"That's all, I don't want to see you cry, so I will give way to the prime minister this time." Shao Xun put down the fishing rod that had not moved for a long time and winked at the palace commander Shi Wuli.
Wu Li understood and made another nest in the water.
Yu Wenjun was even more sad.
A few days ago, a group of officials, headed by Prime Minister Yu Chen, once again sent a message: please implement benevolent policies to avoid the epidemic.
Shao Xun was unhappy when he heard this.
There is nothing wrong with benevolent governance, but using the epidemic as a weapon is a bit excessive.
Let’s look at the core requirement of benevolent government: to avoid food and silk.
The meaning is very clear, this year I will do less work and less wealth, so as to reduce the burden on the elders of the world.
The burden was already reduced last year. This year, due to the plague, God has given us a warning that we need to implement benevolent policies. Therefore, we must continue to reduce the burden and "stop violence with force."
Shao Xun didn't know whether Yu Chen and the others really thought so, or if they were just making excuses. It might be both.
"Husband." Yu Wenjun wiped his tears and said, "I will leave the palace today and talk to my grandpa."
"Don't go anywhere, just stay in the palace." Shao Xun said.
"Why do you stay in the palace? I am not afraid of illness..." Yu Wenjun said blankly.
"Stay with me in the palace. I can't be away from you for a moment and miss you." Shao Xun said helplessly.
Yu Wenjun blushed and stopped talking.
Wu Li had finished making his nest and quietly retreated.
Shao Xun asked Yu Wenjun to hand the child over to the wet nurse, and then said: "Let's wait for another two months. When the epidemic is over, there is really nothing we can do now. Alas, even one-tenth of the Silver Spear Army died. They are all veterans of hundreds of battles. The Xiongnu and Xianbei want to kill so many elite warriors, but I don’t know how much effort it will take.”
"The Xiongnu and Xianbei must also be dead." Yu Wenjun consoled him.
"That's true." Shao Xun said with a bitter smile.
He remembered the rare locust plague many years ago, which had suspended the war between him and the Huns. The horses could not run, and the people were annoyed by the overwhelming locusts.
"That's it." He said, "I will obey the Prime Minister this time. Anyway, I'm afraid I won't be willing to ask them to send food over now."
Yu Wenjun laughed through his tears.
"Yuan Gui is so awesome this time, one hundred thousand breaks eight hundred." Shao Xun mentioned another thing.
Ancestor Ti of Huaiyin sent troops to the north to plunder. When Yu Liang heard the news, he was very nervous. He sent a message to all the counties and immediately recruited 30,000 men, known as "100,000". He captured a group of Wu soldiers who had not retreated south after the plunder, and all of them were Encirclement and annihilation.
After the war, there were only 800 people.
This was Yu Yuangui's "one hundred thousand breaking eight hundred" battle, which left Shao Xun unable to complain.
It's a bit of a loss to go to such a big fight and only achieve so little in the end!
Fortunately, Li Chong has been appointed governor of Xuzhou, taking over the local military affairs, while Yu Liang is solely in charge of civil affairs.
There was also an epidemic in Xuzhou, and both sides had no intention of fighting and each of them stopped fighting.
"I can't catch any fish either." Shao Xun swung the fishing rod and stood up directly.
He even suspected that the fish were full and unwilling to take the bait because of too many catches.
Mu'er quietly took the fishing rod, widened her eyes, and looked at the pond seriously.
"Wang Yan satirized the government and said that the country's personnel were inappropriate. I think he is also old and confused." Shao Xun walked up and down the pavilion with his hands behind his back and said, "You want me to 'examine my faults' and 'be modest'" Accept advice', only in this way can disasters be avoided."
He didn't even dare to think about what would happen if he proclaimed himself emperor. At least for now, Sima Chi was still taking the blame, and God hated Jin De.
Wang Yan is so old!
Shao Xun guessed that he knew what the plague was about, but he was pretending to be crazy and selling private goods.
These people just don't want him to fight, they just want to live their own lives behind closed doors.
After all, it was made very clear during the Eastern Han Dynasty: "You can live a life of freedom, looking down on the sky and the earth. You will not be held responsible for the time, and your life will be preserved forever."
Hiding in his own manor, "you can reach the sky and go beyond the universe! How envious is it to enter the gate of the emperor!"
Some scholars just want to rely on the manor and be a stay-at-home guy to enjoy themselves as much as they want.
You took away their money and food, and Ding Zhuangzheng left. Your interests were directly damaged and your quality of life was reduced. How can you still be free?
This is the rebound.
I took a year off last year to recuperate, and I thought they had stopped. Unexpectedly, they started making noise again this year due to the pandemic.
seek death!
However, after getting angry, Shao Xun slowly calmed down.
First of all, Yu Chen and Wang Yan actually support themselves. They are just reminding them to be moderate in their oppression and putting pressure on themselves.
During the epidemic, they kept asking about the situation in the palace, fearing that they would catch the disease and die...
Shao Xun was angry and funny at the time.
At the same time, he also understands that if he gets sick and dies, it will not be in the interests of Yu Chen, Wang Yan and others, nor in the interests of the world's scholars. Although some fools may think that he, Shao, has completed his historical mission and has saved the world.
It doesn't matter even if I die now.
But on the whole, knowledgeable people still don't want anything to happen to him. After all, the civil war may be more terrifying than the invasion of the Huns and Xianbei, with more casualties.
Therefore, everyone has the same overall interests, but there are differences on individual issues. The conflicts are within control and can be resolved through negotiation.
"Wow!" There was a sound of water coming from the pool.
Shao Xun turned around and saw Mu'er catching a fish, and he was immediately stunned.
"This..." He quickly reacted and said with a smile: "Good girl, please give the fish to me, okay?"
Mu'er smiled shyly and said, "I listen to grandpa."
Just like her mother, she focuses on being obedient.
Wu Li stepped forward, took off the fish and put it into the basket.
"Keep fishing, there will definitely be people who take the bait." Shao Xun encouraged, and then left the pavilion, went to Zhaode Hall, and picked up the official letter for review.
During the epidemic, the government did not completely stop operations, and news continued to come from various places, many of which were relatively important military intelligence.
Liu Can suffered a serious injury last year.
Chen An surrendered and rebelled again. He sent Jin Zhun to lead an army to conquer. Halfway through the battle, there was a serious epidemic among the army and he was forced to stop.
Shao Xun was a little gloated when he saw the news. How could I be the only one suffering?
In addition, Liu Can sent more troops to Beiyi Mountain (Helan Mountain) and continued to operate for more than a year. I don't know if there are any results. I only heard that Anding County added Sanshui and Quyan counties.
If these two counties are both in the old land of Qin and Han Dynasties, then the results will not be great. It can only be said that they are still in the preparation stage, and they have to continue to operate before they have a base.
Liu Can is actually not easy either.
There are only a few expansion directions in Guanzhong. One is to go south into Hanzhong. There is currently no progress, or they have not chosen this direction.
The second is to go west, but it only stops after taking the entire territory of Qinzhou to avoid direct conflict with Liangzhou.
In fact, Liangzhou was also worried about the Xiongnu, so it sent envoys to Shengle to profess vassalage to Tuoba Xianbei.
The third was to go east, go out of Tongguan and Pujin Pass, and attack Hedong and Hongnong, but Liu Can did not dare. He only had small-scale harassment and testing, but no large-scale attack.
The fourth is to go north, which is what they are currently doing: wooing the Hu tribes and joining their small court in Chang'an.
The effect is mediocre, the progress is very limited, and it is highly likely that it will be difficult to rule directly. In the end, it will probably be like naming Yang Nandi as the "King of Wudu" and implementing the rule of restraint.
Liu Can is a child, so there is nothing to be afraid of.
They just relied on the geography of mountains and rivers to hide behind the Yellow River and Tongguan. If Guandong was not in chaos, they would have no chance.
After Shao Xun reviewed the official letter, he sent someone to deliver it to the Prime Minister's Mansion.
By the end of March, the epidemic had been greatly reduced.
After repeated requests from Yu Chen, Wang Yan, Pan Tao and others, he came forward to offer sacrifices to the gods in order to avoid the epidemic.
At the beginning of April, news came again from Tuoba Xianbei. There were roughly two pieces of news:
First, there was an epidemic in the grassland, and many people died in Shengle;
Secondly, under the guise of avoiding the epidemic, Qi mother and son made a plan and decided to send people to Dongmugenshang to select a site to build a city and move the capital there.
As for when the capital was moved to Dongmugen Mountain, it was probably around June or July when the Yinshan Mountains were frosty.
At this time, the leader of Tuoba Xianbei will patrol all directions as usual. Qi mother and son are likely to eliminate the Dugu tribe in one fell swoop and seize Dongmugen Mountain as the new capital.
This is a clever move, because Dongmugen Mountain has an excellent geographical location, which can not only connect with the new party forces in the east, but also unite with the new people in the central part to suppress the local old people.
If the Qi family and their son really succeed, then with the huge power of the Eastern and Central Divisions, they will make it difficult for the old people in the West to resist.
They showed their swords, He Lan showed his head, should Wang Feng rise up and fight, or should he continue to swallow his anger?
Chapter completed!