Li Bi had been in Fan Yang for a few days. Although he was unwilling to assist Xue Bai, he was very curious about the situation in Fan Yang. Every day when Xue Bai came to ask for his opinion, he listened with interest. In order to let Xue Bai say more
Sentence, it is inevitable to give some suggestions.
"By the way, today Zhang Zhongzhi's two sons led a group of students to cause trouble in the state school. I asked Hun Yao to arrest them all."
"It's too much to make a fuss out of a molehill." Li Bi said: "A few young men are naughty and dispatched elite officers and soldiers. On the contrary, it may make an originally small matter get out of hand."
"This makes sense." Xue Bai said: "But if you leave these generals and disciples alone, it will only encourage their arrogance and make them despise the court. Sooner or later, they must be controlled. It is better to control them sooner than later."
These words coaxed others, but Li Mi could see Xue Bai's thoughts at a glance and said: "It seems that you are not satisfied with Fan Yang's current situation. What's the matter? You still want to beat those surrendered generals again."
"As expected of Li Changyuan."
"Too much is not enough, be careful if you overdo it."
"No one is being targeted this time." Xue Bai said: "What I want to change is the current situation of the Hebei army, and then change the current situation of heavy troops stationed in Henan, Hedong, and Jianghuai in order to prepare for Hebei. I just wanted to ask Brother Chang Yuan about this matter
What do you think?"
Li Mizhen didn't want to plan for him, but after all, this matter was beneficial to the country. After pondering for a long time, he still responded: "There is a way."
Having said this, he looked around and saw Xue Bai sitting quietly waiting for the next step, as if he was taking his advice as a matter of course.
"But King Yong must have thought of this method, so why bother asking me?"
"Brother Changyuan still needs to consult for details." Xue Bai said: "How about this, how about we write it down separately?"
Although Li Mi knew that this was another ploy by Xue Bai to win over him, he was really happy to play such a game that could test his intelligence, so he still nodded.
"Let's each write it down."
The two then wrote their respective answers on the paper. After exchanging them, they found that they all had the word "juntun".
Xue Bai's eyes lit up and he said: "It seems like this is feasible."
"To prevent the feudal towns in Hebei from separatism, it is necessary to restore the military system of the government." Li Bi said: "To restore the military system of the government, we must first restore the farming. But before we can farm, we need to make the troops fully obey the court's orders. In such a short period of time, what can you do?
arrive?"
"Just give it a try." Xue Bai seemed unsure about this, but still asked: "Brother Changyuan, can you teach me something?"
"No."
Li Mi answered simply and closed his eyes after speaking.
He was not used to the dry and cold weather in Fan Yang, so he sat by the fire and wanted to maintain his aloof attitude, but from time to time he still had to drink water and reach out to warm himself up by the fire. When he moved, he couldn't help but ask a few more questions about the situation he was curious about.
"What happened to the Khitans after they beheaded Li Huaixiu?"
Xue Bai replied: "The Khitan internally recommended a man named Kailuo as Khan. I don't know if he is Li Huaixiu's brother or son or someone else. It's hard to find out."
"There are many people named Kailuo. Li Guangbi's father was named Li Kailuo."
"Um."
Li Mi asked: "Did the Khitan send an envoy to ask for surrender?"
"That's natural."
Li Mi pondered and said slowly: "There should be a lot of silk and silk left by the rebels in Fanyang Jiedu Mansion. We can open a trade with the Uighurs, Khitans, and Xi people to exchange silk for their cattle and one hundred thousand pieces of silk."
Maybe it can be exchanged for 30,000 cattle. Then you can make farm tools. You must be good at this. You once made iron tools and sent them to your private soldiers."
Xue Bai said: "National affairs are the most important thing, why bother with insinuations?"
Li Bi said: "With farm tools and cattle, we will lend wheat seeds to the Hebei armies to open up wasteland. If there is a harvest next year, we only need to let them repay the wheat seeds in double the amount, and the remaining grain will be increased by five points above the market price."
One of them was bought as military rations.”
"In this way, the soldiers will benefit. In the future, more and more people will be willing to cultivate the land, and the problem of money and food will be solved. The soldiers' food and clothing will come from the court, and they will no longer be instigated by the feudal lords to rebel, and the border will gradually become more stable.
Come down."
Xue Bai understood Li Mi's strategy and it was a worthwhile trip. However, he did not ask Li Mi for his advice on conquering the armies in Hebei. He had his own way.
"Right."
At this moment, Xue Bai turned around again and said: "Recently, more and more people say that they didn't see the comet that night."
Li Mi's calm face also showed a hint of worry.
He is a Taoist, and he is best at celestial phenomena. He knows best whether there is any abnormal movement, and whether the calendar should be changed according to the time given by heaven.
But the biggest problem in this matter is not whether there was a comet that night, but the fact that the saint reused eunuchs, which caused dissatisfaction among the courtiers.
Even Li Mi complained in his heart.
"Dou Wenyang has a little cleverness, but it's just a way of scheming among slaves. He doesn't know how to govern the country at all, and he is unscrupulous in his actions. If the saint reuses this person, he may cause big trouble..."
~~
Yingzhou.
After the rebel general Zhang Zhongzhi surrendered, he was ostensibly relieved of all military posts, but in fact he was still very influential in the Pinglu Army.
Feng Changqing is now in charge of Pinglu, but the Anxi Army will withdraw sooner or later. When the time comes, Zhang Zhongzhi still has the final say in Pinglu.
On this day, he was lying naked in the arms of several concubines, preparing to have several sons, when he received a piece of news, and he was suddenly surprised.
"What?"
"The two gentlemen made trouble in the school and got into trouble. The teacher asked A Lang to pick them up."
Zhang Zhongzhi blinked, but still didn't understand.
It's not that this sentence is difficult to understand. He has also seen the teacher call the father to complain when a child gets into trouble in school.
But after all, he had a different identity, so he couldn't help but wonder if King Yong wanted to deceive him into Fan Yang and get rid of him.
Otherwise, why would this little thing matter?
Zhang Zhongzhi hurriedly put on his clothes and got up, summoning his close aides to discuss.
"It is essential to be on guard against others. King Yong is going to kill the general. Why doesn't the general kill him first? Gather his troops, rush into Fan Yang, and rescue Lang Jun!"
Zhang Zhongzhi was a little confused at first and didn't know what to do. After hearing this advice, he made a decision.
He raised his hand and slapped the counselor, cursing: "You want to kill me?!"
If you want to rebel, you must secretly contact the generals and get rid of Feng Changqing, and then you can raise troops to Fan Yang.
But when he thought about the famous generals he would face next, Li Siye, Hun Yao, and King Yong, he felt completely unsure.
"I don't believe he dares to kill me, otherwise there will be an uprising in Pinglu."
Having said that, Zhang Zhongzhi still sent people to contact several surrendered generals, such as Tian Chengsi, Hou Xiyi, Liu Kenu, etc., prepared generous gifts for Yan Zhuang, and inquired about the specific situation of Yan Zhuang's situation.
Many days have passed since this ordeal. Regardless of whether his two sons are being held in confinement in Fanyang, Zhang Zhongzhi must first ensure his own safety.
At this time, he realized that in fact King Yong had not ordered him to rush to Fanyang within a certain number of days, and he felt much relieved.
Finally, Yan Zhuang’s reply arrived.
Yan Zhuang accepted the heavy gift and tactfully revealed some of King Yong's intentions. King Yong now planned to trade with the barbarians, hoping that the generals would hand over the silk they had robbed before.
Zhang Zhongzhi suddenly realized that King Yong had kidnapped his son for blackmail because he was short of money.
Then go and redeem it.
He then ordered more than a hundred of his confidants to escort him, secretly armed with bows and knives, and headed for Fan Yang. He was careful to be on guard along the way, for fear of being plotted by King Yong to get rid of him.
But when he entered the city gate, no one came to greet him, so he rushed to King Yong's Mansion to ask for an audience. With great difficulty, he finally waited until a steward came out, but he just scolded him.
"Zhou Xue asked you to teach your son a lesson, why did you come to King Yong to do this?!"
Zhang Zhongzhi was stunned.
However, the visitor even yelled at the general on his side.
"What? You know that your son is naughty and you are afraid of being taught a lesson by your husband, so you want King Yong to go and intercede for you in person?!"
Only then did Zhang Zhongzhi realize that he was too nervous and treated a small incident in school as a matter of life and death.
He then went to study in the state.
There was no state school in Youzhou City before, but now An Shouzhong's old residence has been opened up and renovated.
It was Zhang Zhongzhi's first time to visit such a place. He saw all the students wearing clean and simple winter clothes, walking around the statue of Confucius standing in the main courtyard, and felt an inexplicable sense of solemnity.
He went to the Prefecture School and reported his majestic name that could intimidate all the troops. However, the other party did not raise his eyes or look at him and said: "Zhang Weicheng, Zhang Weiyue's father, come with me."
.”
The professor led him outside. When passing by the school, he could see young men sitting upright, holding books and making a loud sound of reading.
One of the young men turned his head and glanced here, was stunned, stood up, bowed to the gentleman who was teaching, took leave, and walked this way.
That was Zhang Zhongzhi's youngest son, Zhang Weijian.
After not seeing each other for a month, Zhang Weijian's temperament has undergone earth-shaking changes. When he walks, he is no longer the crab-like and wobbly figure he used to be. Instead, he is upright, upright, and much more calm and elegant.
"I've seen my father, I've seen the teachings." Zhang Weijian came in front of the two of them, crossed his hands and saluted.
"Okay, okay."
Zhang Zhongzhi looked at his youngest son with satisfaction and nodded repeatedly.
He was originally a Xi man, and after years of fighting, he finally gained a foothold in Hebei, and his family gained a certain status. Seeing his son's success, he couldn't help but imagine that one day his descendants would be like those noble families.
"Father, Jiayu, are you going to see your two brothers? I will go with you." Zhang Weijian said.
Thinking of those two naughty sons, Zhang Zhongzhi immediately felt bad. He followed the instructions and left Zhouxue with a sullen face, turned around an alley and arrived at the Tixue Department.
On the way, he asked Zhang Weijian in a low voice.
"Sanlang looks different, what's going on?"
Zhang Weijian said: "The child should be like King Yong."
Although Zhang Zhongzhi was opposed to Xue Bai, and even secretly disliked Xue Bai, it would be great if his son could become a person like Xue Bai, so he reached out and patted his son on the back.
"Good boy, ambitious!"
The Tixue Department is a serious official office, with the same specifications as the Transportation Department. There are two guards standing at the door.
After the announcement, we entered the lobby.
Brothers Zhang Weicheng and Zhang Weiyue were already kneeling listlessly in the hall, while Du Tixue was sitting upright in the hall.
Zhang Zhongzhi looked around and saw that the academic officer was thin, with sparse hair and a sad look on his face.
"I've seen the teaching officer." Zhang Weijian and the teaching officer saluted one after another, very respectfully.
In theory, Zhang Zhongzhi's rank and title was higher than that of Du Fu. Seeing the solemn expression on his younger son's face, he somehow did not dare to be too arrogant in front of Du Fu, so he also lowered his voice and called "mentor".
What he respects is not the official position, but the broad and profound culture.
Zhang Zhongzhi was a rough man and he used to look down on scholars. If there were scholars in the army, he would even tease them. But today the atmosphere was different. His son respected Mr. Zhang, and he followed suit.
It is always good to respect your teachers.
"The general neglects to discipline his son." Du Fu started to criticize, "If this continues, how can it be successful?"
Zhang Zhongzhi was full of anger, and his murderous face suddenly became very solemn. He bowed and said, "What Du Tixue said is true, and they should be taken care of! These two damned people should be disciplined strictly. I will take care of them now."
!”
Zhang Weicheng and Zhang Weiyue have been in solitary confinement for these days and cannot talk to anyone every day. They have lost their minds due to being locked up. They are looking at the scene of their father and younger brother paying respect to the academic officer with dull eyes. They are very frightened after hearing this.
They knew very well how grandpa would discipline them.
really.
Zhang Zhongzhi turned his head with a fierce look in his eyes, picked up a chair and threw it on the ground, picked up a wooden leg and hit Zhang Weicheng on the back.
"I asked you to study, and you went to cook chicken, and you even used the books from the state school to cook chicken."
"Grandpa, stop fighting, the child is wrong."
Zhang Weicheng and Zhang Weiyue were beaten until they burst into tears. In the end, they had no choice but to beg Du Fu for mercy.
"Dudi Xue, the student is wrong, the student must study hard..."
~~
After teaching his son a lesson and settling the matter in the state school, Zhang Zhongzhi was reluctant to leave Fan Yang.
He felt that it would never be that simple for King Yong to instruct Du Fu to invite him over. If he left rashly, he might miss some important news or even be in some danger.
Sure enough, Tian Chengsi also arrived the next day. Tian Chengsi's son got into trouble with the Zhang brothers this time, so he went to the state first to teach his son a lesson.
Zhang Zhongzhi found out the news, held a small banquet, and made an appointment with Tian Chengsi.
"I won't drink any more. Let's make a long story short. We are all surrendering. If someone with an intention of suing him comes to King Yong, everyone will have a hard time."
They were all surrendered generals. Tian Chengsi surrendered earlier and had a higher status. He didn't even touch his chopsticks after sitting down.
Zhang Zhongzhi asked quickly: "I heard from Yan Zhuang that King Yong wanted to confiscate our silks and trade with the barbarians, so he used the topic as an excuse?"
"You can still use idioms." Tian Chengsi asked back: "Then do you know what you are trading with the barbarians in exchange for?"
"What to change? Stability?"
"That's cool." Tian Chengsi was a little disgusted that Zhang Zhongzhi had no news, and he had a look of impatience on his face.
Zhang Zhongzhi was stunned for a moment and didn't realize what kind of bull he was.
Tian Chengsi could only say: "With fields, it is natural to cultivate them."
"Tuntian?"
When encountering a critical issue, Zhang Zhongzhi was still very keen. After thinking for a while, he said: "If we send our soldiers to farm, who will listen to our orders in the future?"
"That's what it is." Tian Chengsi said, "What are you going to do? Are you going to rebel again?"
"Brother Tian, what do you think?" Zhang Zhongzhi asked: "Not to mention that when Anshi founded the country, we were granted the title of princes. Even before the rebellion, we were much more comfortable than we are now. Now we are under Yong's rule.
The king is in charge and his hands are tied."
Tian Chengsi sneered, looked at him sideways, and said nothing.
"What? Brother Tian, tell me what you have to say."
"I think you haven't figured it out." Tian Chengsi asked: "For you, what is the difference between King Yong in Fan Yang and An Lu Mountain?"
"Prince Yong was the imperial court, and An was our own military governor at that time..."
Halfway through, Zhang Zhongzhi stopped and seemed to understand.
Tian Chengsi smiled and then said: "You follow Anlu Mountain and want to contribute to the founding of the country. Then let me ask you, what is the difference between King Yong and Anlu Mountain?"
Zhang Zhongzhi suddenly realized this.
Of course he knew that King Yong was not only no worse than An Lushan, he was much better.
So, since he could follow An Lushan in rebellion, why couldn't he help King Yong seize the throne?
If King Yong ascends the throne as emperor in the future, he will still be a founding hero, and his status will be much more respected than that of the aristocratic families in Chang'an City now.
"Have you figured it out?" Tian Chengsi snorted coldly, "You have been in the city for such a long time, and instead of expressing your loyalty to King Yong, you came here to entertain me. Do you want to hurt me?"
After that, he walked away without even having a drink.
Zhang Zhongzhi drank all the wine on the table and couldn't wait to see Xue Bai.
Stopped at the door, he didn't say any nonsense and directly said that he wanted to offer advice to King Yong to reduce the military expenditure of Fan Yang's garrison and eliminate the long-standing disadvantages of generals not obeying the court's orders.
This time, Xue Bai met him quickly.
"The general will pay homage to King Yong!"
The etiquette of poetry and books is indeed useful. Zhang Zhongzhi only went to the state school once, and his manners and etiquette immediately became much more decent. After bowing to Xue Bai, he immediately offered good advice and was willing to serve in the military camp.
Xue Bai was not surprised by Zhang Zhongzhi's confession of loyalty.
Xue Bai didn't even ask Li Mi how to conquer the generals in Hebei, but he had already made up his mind to give these people a new hope.
If the Prince of Dongping County can become the Emperor, can he not become King Yong?
~~
Xue Bai's affairs in Fan Yang have been going smoothly recently. Some domineering generals have bowed their heads to him, and military affairs, military affairs, and academic affairs have gradually begun.
But in October, the Diao brothers came back from Yangzhou, but they did not bring Yan Yan and Qing Lan, but only brought a few letters.
Yan Yan coquettishly said in the letter that Fan Yang was so cold and she was weak, so she didn't want to come.
Only then did she speak seriously, thinking that at a time when Xue Bai's every move was being watched, it would not be appropriate to give people the impression of separatist intentions by bringing his family members to Fan Yang.
Finally, she bet that Xue Bai wouldn't be able to stay in Fan Yang for more than a few months, and would probably return to Chang'an soon.
She also jokingly said that when the New Year started and the weather got warmer, if Xue Bai had not returned to Chang'an, she would go north. But if her bet was right, she would ask Xue Bai to go to Yangzhou to pick her up.
Xue Bai read the letter and felt sad.
For a moment, he even thought of going to Yangzhou himself.
But Yan Yan's bet was a bit arrogant. Regardless of Xue Bai's judgment, she made the bet without authorization.
In fact, Xue Bai also believed that he would not be able to stay in Fan Yang for too long.
After all, Li Cong was already struggling more and more in Chang'an.
In addition, spring will not bloom when the new year begins. Because Li Cong changed the year, it will still be the coldest month of winter when the new year begins.
~~
The seventh day of October.
The New Year is coming soon, but there is still no festive atmosphere in the city of Chang'an.
Even though the imperial court repeatedly issued edicts to remind them, the people were still not used to the fact that November this year is Zhengshuo.
The messenger came from the north. When he entered the city gate, he saw people squatting at the place where the list was posted and discussing.
"If you think about it, this year is only ten months old."
"Anyway, it's the off-season for farming, so if you're idle, you'll be idle. Let's just celebrate the New Year."
"How do you think the eunuch thought of changing our calendar?"
"I heard that a magician calculated for him that he would suffer a bloody disaster on the first day of the twelfth lunar month in the second year of Yingshun. In order to avoid the prophecy, he changed the year."
"Damn eunuch!"
After someone cursed, everyone heard the sound of horse hooves approaching and dispersed.
The messenger rushed all the way to the palace city and handed Fan Yang's information to Dou Wenyang.
Because they failed to place an informant around Xue Bai, all they could find out were facts that all the officials in Fan Yang knew.
"King Yong set up official schools in Hebei, smelted farm tools, and opened military camps..."
Just by looking at the numbers listed in the letter, Dou Wenyang can feel the rapid changes in Hebei.
He couldn't help but wonder how Xue Bai had so much money to support his lavish spending.
"Has Mr. Dou forgotten? The large number of gold and silk children plundered by Fan Yang's rebels have all become the spoils of war for King Yong."
Dou Wenyang suddenly realized it, clapped his knees and said: "No wonder, I said he stayed in Fan Yang, it turned out to be this idea."
In this way, if we compare financial resources, the saint is far behind Xue Bai. After all, as far as he knows, he doesn't have much money in his own money.
He took the information and went to see Li Cong.
As the two analyzed Xue Bai's movements in Hebei, the sense of urgency became even stronger.
"Sage, if King Yong acts like this, within two years, the hearts of the troops in Hebei will be subdued by him."
They are not stupid, they know that all the generals' children are taught by Xue Bai, and the soldiers cultivate the grain and then buy it by Xue Bai, they will firmly control Fan Yang's army. Moreover, Xue Bai still has a lot of money left by the An family and the Shi family.
, the court could not wait until he ran out of money.
In this way, the longer Xue Bai is left in Hebei, the more dangerous they will be.
Li Cong wanted to respond and win people's hearts, but he was suffering from lack of money and couldn't help but sigh deeply.
"What should I do?"
"My slave has two ways." Dou Wenyang rolled his eyes and said, "First, the imperial court collects taxes from Hebei. This will increase one thing and eliminate the other, but I am afraid that King Yong will not obey the order."
Li Cong also believed that Xue Bai was intent on separatism and would definitely not pay taxes as ordered.
"What's another way?"
Dou Wenyang said: "Since we can't collect taxes from Hebei, we can only collect them from other places."
It was simple to say, but Li Cong knew that this matter was not easy, and asked: "Yan Zhenqing controls the court, so he will definitely not agree."
Dou Wenyang had already suspected it, and responded: "The mediocre rent adjustment and various miscellaneous taxes cannot increase the revenue. Since the reign of the Supreme Emperor, officials from various places have had the practice of paying tribute to the emperor."
Paying tribute is not the same as collecting taxes. It goes into the emperor's treasury, not the national treasury. When Li Cong heard this, his eyes couldn't help but light up.
"However, officials from various places have not taken the initiative to pay tribute to me."
"Have you forgotten, saint? When the Supreme Emperor was in Shu County, he paid tribute for taxes from various places, but he arranged for Jiedu envoys and county officials, such as King Yong, to be sent to every province in the world."
Li Cong immediately realized that it was time for him to need the support of his father and brother...