Sun Ce finally asked the coachman a question: why he didn't stay overnight in Nanpi last night and had to rush back overnight.
The coachman's reason is simple.
Since he is not an official, he cannot stay in the post house for free and must pay for it himself.
Although the inn in Nanpi is clean and tidy and the people are polite, prices are high. Whether it is food for people or fodder for horses, they are much more expensive than Chengping across the water.
Because he would rather rush back to Chengping than stay in Nanpi.
The coachman couldn't tell exactly what caused the price difference between the two counties. He said that Chengping belongs to the Hejian region and Nanpi belongs to the Bohai Sea. The fields in the Hejian region are abundant and food prices are naturally low. The Bohai Sea region is not.
Even if there is food in the fields, it is still controlled by the wealthy families, which prevents the price of food from falling.
Sun Ce kept this in mind and began to carefully observe the situation along the way.
As the coachman said, although the people of Hejian Kingdom are not as polite as the people of Bohai, walking in the wind, speaking loudly and loudly, and some even wear shabby clothes with part of their bodies exposed, the prices are indeed much cheaper compared to those in Bohai.
, especially food prices.
This surprised Sun Ce.
Autumn is approaching. Normally, many families would be in a lean period and would not have much surplus food at home. The price of food on the market will rise until autumn food is available.
But there is no such situation in Hejian. Most people are very calm and have no worries about food shortage.
Sun Ce asked a few people and found that most of them still had a surplus of grain at home, enough to last until the autumn harvest. Even if they were short, they could easily borrow grain and pay it back after the autumn harvest. The neighbors' emergencies did not require interest, which was a heavy burden.
light.
As long as there is no shortage of food and there is no danger of starvation, there is nothing to fear.
Sun Ce deeply believed in this.
As a general who leads the army in battle, he knows very well the importance of food, even more than ordnance. No matter how well-equipped the army is, once it runs out of food, its morale will be in danger of collapse.
If you have food in your hands, don't panic in your heart. This is a wise saying.
Perhaps this is also the meaning of Dutian.
——
He rushed to Xingzai and submitted his request to see the driver. Sun Ce waited for the news.
Sun Quan rushed to meet him immediately.
Needless to say, family reunion is a joy.
Mrs. Wu was originally somewhat worried about Sun Quan, fearing that he would be negligent in his actions and be punished by the emperor. Now she saw that Sun Quan was not only intact, but also high-spirited, and his movements were filled with confidence and calmness. She breathed a sigh of relief and was even more happy at the same time.
tip of brow.
Sun Quan said some good things, and then strongly encouraged Sun Ce to send his younger sister Sun Shangxiang to Ma Guiren as an attendant.
Ma Guiren is about to give birth and needs several young women to serve as attendants and do some things that are inconvenient for men. There is no shortage of female riders, but the opportunity is rare. Many people want to use this as an excuse to send their daughters and granddaughters to Ma Guiren's house.
around.
If you become Ma Guiren's maid, it will be convenient for you to join the women's camp in the future.
The women's camp is famous all over the world. There are many women who want to join the women's camp, but not many can meet the requirements of the women's camp. This is a bit like a casual rider. There are few people at the beginning but many opportunities. Now that there are enough people, it is difficult to join.
.
At least for the children of officials, such opportunities are becoming increasingly rare.
Mrs. Wu was a little worried.
Sun Shangxiang is too young and does not know how to wait on others. It is better to let her second daughter Shang Ying go to wait on Ma Guiren.
Sun Quan disagreed and insisted that although Sun Shangying was of the right age, she had no interest in martial arts and would only work as a civilian when she joined the women's camp. Although Sun Shangxiang was young, she was talented in martial arts and suited Ma Guiren's temperament.
There will be more opportunities to make achievements in the future.
The family discussed it for a while, but couldn't reach a consensus.
Sun Ce decided to ask Yu Fan for his opinion.
So, he took Sun Shangxiang to see Yu Fan.
——
Yu Fan was very happy to learn that Sun Ce was here and brought his family with him. He asked Lu Yi to come out and take Sun Ce in.
Yu Fan is practicing a small-scale battle tactic.
There are not many people on both sides, about ten people, or they can gather together. If they disperse, they can be divided into two or three small formations that cooperate with each other, which is very flexible.
Sun Ce saw the beauty of it as soon as he took a look.
"This is a mountain and forest warfare method."
Yu Fan laughed. "The Lord is indeed a born general. He can see through it at a glance."
"It's just that the length and configuration have changed a bit, and this heavy armor..." Sun Ce pointed to the three infantrymen wearing heavy armor rushing in front. "Is this kind of armor suitable in the Conglin in the south?"
"This is not for fighting in the southern jungle." Yu Fan held out a batch of northern weapons. "They are prepared for the barbarians who are about to go south."
Sun Ce was shocked. "Is the emperor going to use troops against the north?"
"Not yet, but we have to prepare in advance." Yu Fan waved his hand, signaling Sun Ce not to ask any more questions. He turned to Sun Shangxiang and said, "Do you want to see the cavalry attack?"
Sun Shangxiang immediately became energetic and nodded repeatedly.
"Then open your eyes and watch carefully." Yu Fan pointed at the distance.
The soldiers in the drill were fighting fiercely, and suddenly knights ran out from both wings. The knights on horseback stepped on the stirrups, sat on the saddle, and drew their bows to shoot rapidly.
With a few "swish" sounds, several soldiers who were practicing were shot and left the battlefield in frustration.
The knights brandished their spears and swords, rushed into the "enemy group", defeated their opponents with overwhelming force, and walked away.
The infantry that had just withdrawn covered the enemy again, but they were cleaning up the battlefield and symbolically scratched the opponent's neck.
Some of the knights went to chase down the fleeing opponents, and some of the knights returned to Yu Fan.
One of them got off his horse, took off his helmet, and revealed his black hair.
"Jijiu, is the timing of this attack okay?"
Yu Fan nodded with satisfaction. "Although there are still some flaws, the progress is gratifying and the idea is correct. Practice this method a few more times and you will be able to pass this subject."
"Thank you for the wine." The female knight smiled happily, put on her helmet again, got on her horse, raised her hand and shouted: "Practice again."
The other female knights responded and rode away.
Sun Shangxiang's eyes grew hot and he clenched his fists.
Sun Ce was a little surprised. "Who is that woman? Her accent sounds like she is from Jizhou."
Yu Fan smiled. "She is the granddaughter of the famous official Zhang Yu and the wife of Wang Duan, the Marquis of Duting."
Sun Ce thought for a moment before reacting. "Are you talking about the emperor's cousin, Dutinghou Wang Duan?"
"Exactly." Yu Fan praised. "It is said that Yan and Zhao have many martyrs, not only men and women, but also women. Even compared with the people of Liangzhou, they are not inferior. Although Jizhou is in Hebei, it can dominate the north and south of the river.
, it has its own reason.”
Sun Ce started to speak but stopped.
He understood what Yu Fan meant.
Even if the emperor did not emerge from the sky and turn the tide, he would not be able to compete in the Central Plains. The final winner could only be Yuan Shao and his son who controlled Jizhou.
This was decided from the beginning.
"Who said only people from Jizhou can do it? I, from Jiangdong, can do it too." Sun Shangxiang put his hands on his hips and said loudly: "Mr. Yu, I want to learn too."
Yu Fan laughed loudly. "Okay, if you can pass the exam, I will make an exception and recruit you into the martial arts hall as a disciple."
"It's a deal."
Yu Fan beckoned. "Bo Yan, go get a horse and a bow. Let's test her riding and archery skills first."
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