There were a lot of people in the front hall. In addition to the generals and county magistrates from various places, almost all the officials and generals with positions and titles in the Changyi Army were present.

Shi Kuangwei is sitting in the center of the throne, wearing black gauze with his feet raised, a purple round collar robe, and a bunch of flowers embroidered on his chest. Under the flowers, there is a pair of vivid lions.

Since the reign of Emperor Wu, the imperial court has developed a tradition of distinguishing grades based on the patterns on official robes.

It's just that official robes embroidered with patterns were mostly used as regular and seasonal clothes. They were given by the court to officials at all levels according to different seasons. The style of supplementary clothing in the Ming and Qing Dynasties has not yet been formed.

The grade of a Jiedushi envoy ranges from the second to the sixth grade, and is often determined based on the nominal title of the Jiedushi envoy.

Shi Kuangwei served as the governor of the Zhangyi Army and also held the title of governor of Jingzhou. According to the system, he enjoyed the treatment of the fourth rank in the imperial court.

Those above the third rank wear purple, and those above the fifth rank wear red. According to the rules, Shi Kuangwei is not qualified to wear purple.

It's just that after years of war, rituals and music have collapsed, and most of the vassal towns have become independent. As long as they express their submission and loyalty to the central court, the emperor and the court will turn a blind eye to other aspects.

As a small warlord, Lao Shi was the local emperor in the three-thirds of an acre of Changyi Army, and the Jiedu Mansion was his small court.

Compared to those charismatic commanders who wear ocher yellow robes in private and regard themselves as princes, Lao Shi is already quite low-key and shabby.

Of course, even with Zhang Yijun's conditions as a beggar, Lao Shi would not be allowed to be arrogant and domineering.

There were two empty chairs placed slightly lower on the left and right sides of Shi Kuangwei. No one was sitting on them yet. Zhu Xiu dusted off the snowflakes on his body and stepped into the hall. He glanced at the two empty chairs and knew that he was not the last person to enter.

In the hall, the noisy private discussions suddenly stopped, and more than a dozen pairs of eyes looked at Zhu Xiu, their eyes full of questioning, curiosity, and repulsion...

Obviously, they already know that a new young man has appeared next to Shi Jieshuai, and Zhang Yijun may need a pair of chopsticks at this already small dining table.

"Students pay homage to the handsome man!"

Zhu Xiu had a sullen face and bowed meticulously.

Shi Kuangwei pointed to the empty seat on the left side with a smile: "No courtesy, sit down!"

"Thank you, handsome man!"

Zhu Xiu walked towards the empty seat, bowed his hands in greeting to the two nearby officials, and then sat down quietly, looking at his nose and heart, with a calm expression on his face.

The person sitting at the top of his head was the envoy Pei Jin, and the one above him was the judge Song Shen.

The magistrate is in charge of the warehouse, soldiers, cavalry, and bodyguards in the feudal town. He also controls the financial power such as money, grain, and taxation. His position in the civil service system of the feudal town is second only to the marching Sima.

The envoy is under the magistrate and is responsible for assisting the magistrate and handling specific cashier matters.

Sitting below him is the official in charge of prison litigation, which is equivalent to the chief judicial officer in the feudal town.

Zhu Xiu sat below the envoys and above the official officials, which was exactly the position of the secretary-general in the bureaucracy of the feudal town.

Shi Kuangwei arranged it this way, and his intention was obvious.

All the officials looked at each other in confusion. Could it be that the commander-in-chief wanted this young man to hold the post of secretary?

Judging from his appearance, he is still a young man. Is he too young and too sloppy?

Shi Kuangwei held a large pottery bowl and sipped tea leisurely, watching the reactions of his subordinates with a black face and an expressionless expression.

Zhu Xiu's face was indifferent, she raised her eyelids and glanced quickly, with a sneer on the corner of her mouth.

Since he decided to stay in the Changyi Army and serve as Lao Shi's dog-headed strategist, sooner or later he would come face-to-face with these old forces, and Zhu Xiu was well prepared for this.

Just looking at the reaction of everyone in the hall, it seemed that they did not welcome him as a newcomer to Jiedu Mansion.

It seems that what Lao Shi said is right, even if he is a commander in chief, the Zhang Yi Army is not his only one.

There were at least two chairs, almost equal to him.

Zhu Xiu looked at the first two empty chairs. Commander Jie was sitting high in the hall, but he had to wait patiently for his subordinates to arrive. These two people were really arrogant.

A quarter of an hour later, two men in brocade robes walked back and forth into the hall.

The officials who were dozing and whispering hurriedly pushed each other to remind each other, stood up one after another, and saluted the two of them respectfully.

Zhu Xiu also stood up and bowed with his hands.

"The handsome master came back from the expedition, but my brother failed to come out of the city to greet him. It is really rude. Please forgive me, handsome master."

Xue Xiuming, the commander of the marching army, bowed and saluted with a face full of shame. Next to him was his younger brother, who everyone knew was Xue Xiuliang, the commander of the army.

Shi Kuangwei sat upright with a golden sword and asked with concern: "How is the old man?"

Xue Xiuming said gratefully: "Thank you for your concern, handsome man. My father occasionally caught wind and cold and had a sudden headache this morning. Now after the doctor's diagnosis and treatment, he is much better. He just fell asleep peacefully."

"That's good." Shi Kuangwei nodded and pointed to the chairs on both sides: "You two can sit down."

"Thank you, handsome man!"

After sitting down, Zhu Xiu had the opportunity to observe carefully.

The marching Sima Xue Xiuming, who is sitting in the first place on the left, is about forty years old. He has a slim appearance, a goatee, and a plain expression. He is somewhat dignified as a member of a distinguished family.

On the right, Xue Xiuliang, the well-known military commander, is in his thirties, with a sinister face and a ferocious appearance. When he was greeted just now, his attitude seemed a bit arrogant.

Zhu Xiu looked at the two of them and secretly cursed that these two brothers were definitely not born from the same mother, nor even from the same father...

Shi Kuangwei put down his tea bowl and cleared his throat: "Everyone is here, let's start the discussion!"

Xue Xiuming was the first to speak, giving a brief statement to Shi Kuangwei on the overall situation of the Zhangyi Army over the past year.

Zhu Xiu listened for a while and couldn't help but nod. He heard that Xue Xiuming was a scholar in the second year of Qingtai in the Later Tang Dynasty (935) and a Jinshi in the fifth year of Tianfu in the Later Jin Dynasty (940). As expected, there was still some ink in his stomach. After some words

It is clearly organized and detailed, so a rough guy like Lao Shi can easily listen to it, and he has a good idea of ​​the situation in the two prefectures of Jingyuan over the past year.

After Xue Xiuming finished speaking, Judge Song Shen stood up again and reported.

This Song Shen was also extraordinary. In the third year of Changxing in the Later Tang Dynasty (932), he passed the Jinshi examination at the age of only twenty, and was called a child prodigy.

Song Shen spoke a little more verbosely, and quoted scriptures from time to time. Zhu Xiu listened with great interest, but Shi Kuangwei kept yawning.

Song Shen gave a long talk and explained clearly the four matters he was in charge of. When it came to the logistics and general affairs of the whole army, he was able to summarize them clearly by category, which was not easy.

After mentioning a few financial matters incidentally, he gave the opportunity to introduce important matters of money and food to Pei Jin, the envoy.

Pei Jin's speech was concise and the content was also very simple. Two words summarized the current financial situation of Chang Yi Army: lack of money and lack of food.

To sum it up in one word: poor!

After hearing this, Shi Kuangwei's face turned darker and darker, and he scratched his head hard.

Next, skipping Zhu Xiu, the recommendation officer, the inspector, etc. reported their work in turn.

Among the main civil servants of the Jiedu Prefecture sitting in the first row on the left, only Zhu Xiu did not make a report.

Shi Kuangwei looked to the right again, and the military commander Xue Xiuliang said in a rough voice: "Shuaiye, in April, there were mobs in Linjing and Liangyuan counties who were dissatisfied with the grain requisition and rioted. I led my troops to suppress it and suffered heavy losses.

There are many soldiers and horses, please allow me to recruit strong and brave men, and then expand the Yawai army to 3,000 troops!"

Shi Kuangwei frowned: "With insufficient money and food, I'm afraid it will be difficult to support a thousand soldiers."

Xue Xiuliang smiled and said: "Guanzhong has not been peaceful recently. A large number of refugees have fled from Ningzhou and Pizhou. In order to prevent the mobs from causing chaos, it is indeed necessary to expand the army of foreign troops! If the commander-in-chief allows it, my Xue family can bear the responsibility for the commander-in-chief.

Food and wages for thousands of soldiers and horses.”

Shi Kuangwei stared slightly, then smiled and said: "Most of the money and food for the 3,500 Ya soldiers depend on the Xue family. How can we add burden to the Xue family? What's more, the population of Yuanzhou in Jingzhou is thin, and we will expand the army again."

If so, I’m afraid it will be difficult for the people to afford it and this is not feasible!”

"But handsome man..."

Xue Xiuliang still wanted to fight for it, but Xue Xiuming interrupted: "Given the current situation of the Zhangyi Army, it is indeed impossible to recruit more men into the army. We will discuss this later!"

Xue Xiuliang lowered his eyelids, clasped his fists with some reluctance and said: "I will obey the commander-in-chief's order!"
Chapter completed!