In the main hall of Zhou Zhai, when Zhao Junchen saw the male disaster victim again, he realized that he had never known this man's name.
At this time, the male disaster victim knelt in front of Zhao Junchen, his face full of anger, and looked at Zhao Junchen with anxious eyes. It was obvious that he was in a very anxious mood, but when Zhao Junchen did not speak,
Although this person was anxious, he did not speak first. He just waited for Zhao Junchen to speak first.
"This person has a strong body and a powerful temperament, but he also knows how to behave, and he can also ride a horse..."
Thinking of this, Zhao Junchen looked at the male victim again and suddenly asked: "What is your name? Where are you from? Have you ever joined the army?"
The male disaster victim knew that Zhao Junchen had a noble status and expected Zhao Junchen to help him, so he did not dare to hide it and quickly replied: "To my lord, my name is Zhao Dali. He was originally Anbian Guard Jingyuan, a subordinate of Datong Military Town.
The fort does not close at night... But because a Mongolian tribe suddenly attacked in May this year, the Jingyuan Fort was attacked by the Mongolian Tatars. All the military households in the fort were slaughtered, and the civilians happened to be outside to spy on the news.
, so I escaped. Seeing the military fortress being destroyed, the common people simply returned to their hometown in Xinzhou. Unexpectedly, they encountered another natural disaster, so they fled with the people in their hometown."
Zhao Junchen nodded and did not bother with the man's status as a deserter. He just asked: "I asked you to ride on horseback to find your companions. Why are you the only one who came back? Where are your companions?"
Zhao Dali looked sad and kowtowed to Zhao Junchen again: "Sir, Xiaomin did not find his companions. Instead, he found out the news that the companions who fled with Xiaomin have been captured by Lu'an Prefecture officials! Sir, Xiaomin did not find his companions.
A total of more than 310 people from the village fled the famine, and 37 people died of illness and starvation along the way. All the remaining companions were captured by officials from various places, and their whereabouts and whereabouts are still unknown.
What will happen to them, whether they will be alive or dead, and I don’t know why the officials wanted to arrest them... Sir, you have a noble status and are a Qingtian. You must find out the whereabouts of the people and uphold justice for them!"
Seeing Zhao Dali's appearance was really pitiful. Before Zhao Junchen could say anything, Bao Wenjie couldn't help but interjected: "Don't worry, the prefect of Lu'an just left not long ago and will be back here soon.
When the time comes, Lord Zhao will naturally ask him to let go of your companions."
Zhao Junchen turned to look at Bao Wenjie, a little dissatisfied with Bao Wenjie's decision on his behalf, but did not express anything. He just said to Zhao Dali: "Get up and talk... Don't worry, I will naturally tell you about your companions."
An explanation.”
After hearing Zhao Junchen's expression, Zhao Dali's expression finally relaxed a little, and then he stood up and stood with his hands down respectfully.
In any era, soldiers are the group with the strongest class consciousness. The Zhao Dali in front of him may seem rough, but his every move is still hard to find fault with.
For Zhao Junchen, rescuing Zhao Dali's companions was just an insignificant matter. After learning Zhao Dali's identity, collecting some intelligence on the border situation from Zhao Dali was the most important thing.
From this aspect, Zhao Junchen was quite lucky. He actually met deserters from Datong Military Town in Lu'an Prefecture, and was able to find out some of the border defense situation in advance.
In addition, some of the content that Zhao Dali accidentally revealed just now also aroused Zhao Junchen's interest.
Therefore, Zhao Junchen immediately ended the topic of Zhao Dali's companions and just asked: "You just said that in May this year, Mongolian tribes invaded Datong Military Town? As far as I know, in March this year,
Several Mongolian tribes united to invade Shaanxi and Gansu... In previous years, the invaders always invaded around the autumn harvest. Why did the Mongolian tribes not only invade in advance this year, but also so frequently? And the scale was so fragmented? You can
Do you know any news?"
Zhao Dali shook his head blankly and replied: "The status of the common people is low, and I don't know the details, but as you said, the behavior of the Mongolian Tatars this year is indeed a bit abnormal. From time to time, some tribes will go south to plunder, and
Their behavior was quite crazy, as if they were cornered."
On the side, Bao Wenjie interjected again: "Nowadays, Shaanxi, Gansu, and Shanxi are in serious disasters. I'm afraid that Mongolia is also having a hard time. I guess they also have no food. They are really pressed by God... Hey, they have repeatedly invaded.
I robbed my territory and robbed my people, and they deserved it."
Because of various events in Nanguan Village, Bao Wenjie's view of Zhao Junchen has changed. Now that he keeps interrupting, he accepts Zhao Junchen's performance from the bottom of his heart.
But I have to say that Bao Wenjie's performance is really annoying.
Zhao Junchen still ignored Bao Wenjie, and just asked again: "According to what you said, it was the Mongolian tribes that invaded Datong Military Town, not the Mongolian cavalry... In other words, when the Mongolian Tatars invaded Datong Military Town, not only
Did the Mongolian cavalry appear, and these Mongolian cavalry also brought their families, old, young, women and children from the tribe with them?"
Zhao Dali nodded again and said: "Your Majesty is wise and can see through the strange things at a glance. The common people also find it strange. It stands to reason that when the Mongolian Tatars invaded in previous years, they only sent out cavalry. The old, young, women and children from each tribe would still stay in the grassland.
However, the Mongolian Tatars who invaded this year were not only Mongolian cavalry, but also all the people in the tribe went south, as if there was no place for them in the grassland."
On the other side, Bao Wenjie once again expressed his opinion, nodding and saying: "It seems that the disaster in the Mongolian grassland is even worse than imagined!"
After Zhao Junchen pondered for a moment, he suddenly asked: "You are Ye Bushou in the border military town, responsible for spying on intelligence. Have you ever seen those Mongolian tribes going south with your own eyes?"
Mr. Zhao still nodded and replied: "Xiaomin once saw him from a distance while riding a horse, and was almost caught by the Mongolian Tatars."
Zhao Junchen asked slowly with a serious expression: "What is the mental outlook of those Mongolian tribes who went south?"
Zhao Dali didn't understand what Zhao Junchen meant by "mental outlook" and couldn't help but look confused.
Zhao Junchen had no choice but to explain further: "I mean, what do they look like? More like hungry refugees? Or more like a defeated army with no way out?"
Bao Wenjie was a little confused about what Zhao Junchen meant, but Zhao Dali was thoughtful and said: "After listening to your reminder, the common people also thought that something was wrong. The Mongolian tribes that invaded south looked very embarrassed. Not only
There are not many cattle, sheep, and horses, and even daily utensils such as tents are not complete. There are also many people with injuries. It does not look like they just moved south to avoid natural disasters, but more like they were expelled after defeat."
Zhao Junchen was also thoughtful, and after asking some questions about the border defense situation, he let Zhao Dali leave.
After Zhao Dali left the room, Zhao Junchen's expression was more serious than ever.
In fact, Zhao Junchen's expression has been very serious since he arrived in Shanxi. The more he learned about the details, the more solemn he became. He found that the situation was far from being as simple as he had expected. He was as relaxed as when he first left Beijing.
The mentality has long since disappeared.
Then, Zhao Junchen sighed softly and said: "Since entering the northwest, I haven't encountered any good news... Now it seems that not only is there something weird in our northwest provinces, but there are also some strange things happening in the Mongolian grasslands.
Changes, the two things may be related... This year's border defense situation may be much more severe than imagined."
Bao Wenjie asked curiously: "Why did Mr. Zhao say this?"
Zhao Junchen glanced at Bao Wenjie, then at Hong Gaogong, but shook his head and said: "Now it's just some speculation. It's not certain yet, and there is no evidence... Let's wait until we meet Shanxi Governor Zhang Xun to talk about everything."
Zhao Junchen was the imperial envoy. He did not intend to explain it clearly, and it was not easy for Bao Wenjie and Hong Gaogong to question him, but he became more and more confused.
In fact, many people speculate that Zhao Junchen did not tell Bao Wenjie and Hong Gaogong because he was afraid that his speculation would scare them.
Moreover, once Bao Wenjie and Hong Gaogong are frightened, they will definitely do bad things. With Bao Wenjie's character, once he is frightened, he will definitely report the details to Emperor Deqing and request Emperor Deqing to send another court official to the northwest to take charge of the overall situation.
, this is not conducive to Zhao Junchen's control of the situation, and once Hong Gaogong is frightened, he will definitely retreat and never dare to go north again, which will also hinder Zhao Junchen's plan.
Therefore, Zhao Junchen can only bear many things alone at present.
While the three of them were deep in thought, Mao Jiadong went into the room again to report that this time it was Mr. Wang from Nanguan Village who wanted to see Zhao Junchen.
*
In the afternoon of this day, Sun Miao, the prefect of Lu'an, rushed to Nanguan Village again. Not only did he bring the road guide that Zhao Junchen needed, but he also brought a lot of things that Zhao Junchen and his party could use on the way.
something arrived.
For example, the clothes of the people fleeing the famine and the local officials, the chains and torture instruments used by the local officials to escort prisoners, and some identification badges, and even a real official from Lu'an Prefecture was hired as a guide.
It's considered well thought out and well prepared.
When Sun Miao was led into the room by Mao Jiadong, she found that Zhao Junchen was talking to the elders of Nanguan Village with a kind expression, so Sun Miao kept silent and just stepped aside to wait for the conversation to end. At the same time, she raised her eyebrows
He listened carefully to Zhao Junchen's speech and secretly paid attention to it in his heart.
This elder of Nanguan Village is naturally Wang Laozhang. He asked to see Zhao Junchen because he was entrusted by the people of Nanguan Village to inquire about the court's agricultural rectification plan from Zhao Junchen.
The imperial court's agricultural reform plan was handled by Zhao Junchen, and Lu'an Prefecture was also one of the pilot prefectures in the plan. According to the imperial court's decree, the people of Lu'an Prefecture will have half of their land to plant a plant called corn.
At this time, corn was only grown in a few areas in the south. Most of the people in Lu'an Prefecture had never seen this kind of corn. Naturally, they had doubts, so they asked Mr. Wang to inquire about Zhao Junchen.
At this time, Zhao Junchen patiently told Mr. Wang: "Corn is not only cold and drought resistant, easy to cultivate, but also has a very high grain yield. The land in Lu'an Prefecture has always been relatively poor, and things often happen.
Natural disaster, planting corn is the best choice! To be honest with Mr. Wang, I personally presided over the imperial court’s agricultural rectification plan. This matter will definitely be beneficial to Lu’an Mansion without any harm. Mr. Wang, can you still
Can you not trust me, Zhao Junchen? In fact, this policy is still in its first year. The imperial court has not reserved much corn seeds, which is not enough for large-scale promotion. I have included Lu'an Prefecture in the plan and given them to the people for free.
The corn seeds are also special care for the people of Lu'an Prefecture."
After hearing Zhao Junchen's explanation, Mr. Wang's expression became slightly more relaxed and he asked again: "When the imperial court sent corn seeds, the villagers cooked some to see if they could be eaten, but they found that this
The taste of the food is not good, and it is difficult to chew... Although it is better than bran rice, I am afraid that the merchants will not accept it. If the merchants do not accept it, or if the price is too low, the villagers will not have money to pay taxes.
, all your work will be in vain..."
Zhao Junchen shook his head and said: "Don't worry, I came to Shanxi this time just to solve the problem of merchants purchasing corn. I will soon summon the Shanxi merchants to explain the matter. I think those merchants will also give me some advice."
It's a matter of honor for the official. I also guarantee here that Lu'an Prefecture is not far from the capital, only six or seven days' journey. In the future, if the merchants do not collect corn, or deliberately lower the price, the people of Lu'an Prefecture will
Just come to the capital to find me, Zhao Junchen, and I will personally resolve the matter for you..."
After a pause, Zhao Junchen went on to talk about the benefits of growing corn in order to reassure Mr. Wang: "This corn doesn't look good in taste, but the yield per mu is several times that of ordinary crops, and it is not affected by the weather and the land.
No matter what, the common people will not suffer a loss... In fact, I also suggest that the common people should not sell too much corn to merchants this time next year, but keep more for themselves. Corn is a good thing, whether it is to feed chickens, ducks or pigs.
Rabbits are the best feed. People can also take the opportunity to raise more livestock, which can make more money than simply growing food."
Zhao Junchen's words are naturally well-founded. The main use of corn in later generations is feed. Countless examples have proven that corn feed can significantly increase a country's meat production. With the basic conditions of the Ming Dynasty, in the future,
It would not be surprising if meat production has continued to double over the past few years.
Of course, based on the living conditions of the people in the Ming Dynasty, corn was still mainly used for food, and the development of breeding industry was only a means of getting rich in a few places. Today, most people in the Ming Dynasty mainly eat coarse grains, and corn can be completely substituted, but the output will be higher.
It is several times higher, so the imperial court's promotion of corn cultivation can definitely benefit the people.
After hearing Zhao Junchen's repeated assurances, Mr. Wang finally felt at ease and nodded: "Since Mr. Zhao has spoken to guarantee it, we people in Nanguan Village will naturally believe it! Mr. Zhao, you are the great master of Qingtian, and you cannot cause harm.
us!"
Zhao Junchen smiled and said: "It's not enough for you to believe it. You also have to tell the people in other villages what I said today, and tell them that all this is my measure to benefit the people of Lu'an Prefecture.
Everyone can follow the court with peace of mind. If there is any trouble in the future, I, Zhao Junchen, will personally resolve it and will never let the people have any worries!"
Naturally, Mr. Wang repeatedly assured that the people of Lu'an Prefecture believed in Zhao Junchen, and the people of Nanguan Village would definitely spread Zhao Junchen's words everywhere to reassure the people of Lu'an Prefecture.
Finally, seeing Sun Miao's appearance, Mr. Wang did not dare to disturb Zhao Junchen anymore and left with a lot of gratitude.
At this time, Sun Miao was secretly thinking about Zhao Junchen's words, thinking that he should pay more attention to the court's agricultural reform plan, and vigorously urge the people of Lu'an Prefecture to plant corn, which might be a dazzling political achievement in the future.
However, after Mr. Wang left, Sun Miao no longer thought about it, and just hurriedly reported to Zhao Junchen: "Sir Zhao, everything you need on the way to Taiyuan Mansion has been prepared, and I have made the decision privately.
A government servant from Lu'an Prefecture was summoned. This person's name was Ma Jia. He had been responsible for the official correspondence between Lu'an Prefecture and Taiyuan Prefecture. He was very familiar with the government offices along the road. Letting him lead the way would also reduce a lot of trouble...
...In addition, the official saw that Mr. Zhao's more than 200 men were all riding horses. Such a large number of horses would also arouse unnecessary suspicion, so the official prepared an extra road guide to show that these horses were from Lu'an Mansion.
Support the Datong Military Town, which can also reduce a lot of trouble..."
After hearing Sun Miao's report, Zhao Junchen nodded with satisfaction and praised: "You did a good job, much more thorough than me!"
Sun Miao was a little flattered and said quickly: "My lord, you are responsible for handling important affairs of the court. Naturally, you don't need to think too much about these trivial matters, otherwise there will be no use for me and other subordinates."
After Zhao Junchen smiled, he suddenly remembered what happened to Zhao Dali, and asked Sun Miao: "By the way, did your Lu'an Mansion arrest a group of victims who were fleeing famine two days ago?"
Sun Miao replied: "It is indeed true. In the past ten days, a total of 213 victims have been intercepted. All these victims were sent to Taiyuan Prefecture yesterday morning."
Zhao Junchen was stunned and asked: "Has it been sent to Taiyuan Mansion?"
Sun Miao nodded in agreement, and was a little surprised why Zhao Junchen suddenly asked about this matter.
Zhao Junchen shook his head slightly, but stood up and told Bao Wenjie and Hong Gaogong: "In this case, there will be nothing going on here. Let's make preparations and let the men change into the clothes of officials and victims, and then set off.
Taiyuan Mansion... In addition, send someone to tell Zhao Dali about the victims so that he does not have to worry. After I arrive at Taiyuan Mansion, I will naturally rescue his companions!"
Hong Gaogong couldn't help being surprised and asked: "Master Zhao, it is already the afternoon, and it will be dark soon. Should we set off at this time? How about we rest for the night and wait until tomorrow morning to set off again."
Zhao Junchen glanced at Hong Gaogong, but shook his head and said: "The matter is urgent now, and we can't delay even for an hour. I always feel that the situation in Northern Xinjiang is changing, so we have to set off as soon as possible... and we have to travel day and night these days.
, the journey will never be easy, you should also explain it in advance, so that everyone can prepare in advance, so as to save you from complaining and complaining. "
In fact, Hong Gaogong wanted to complain now, but he didn't dare not listen to Zhao Junchen's instructions, so he finally agreed with a grimace.