It was early April, and the dam that had been built before winter had already taken shape on the mountain pass outside the Xiaocang River. The dam is built on a mountain, with a height of two feet and four feet (about seven meters in later generations), and is being tested by the flood season at this time.

In this mountainous area, during the flood season, the flood outlet next to the dam is now pouring out with a dangerous and alarming momentum, and the roar of the flood is deafening, and the road into the mountain is bypassing the riverbed.

Entering the mountain pass, the water of the Xiaocang River in the rear has expanded sharply due to the existence of the dam, and a dangerous blue wave pushes forward, and the narrow dam connected to this reservoir sometimes makes people feel trembling, worrying about when it will collapse. Of course, since the opening is open to the outside, it is not a big deal if it collapses, and at most the river valley and mountain stream outside will be washed into a large bathhouse.

Hou Yuanyan, who was chattering, entered from the mountain pass, and said hello to the soldiers guarding this side, and what appeared in front of him was a 100-meter-long road around the mountain, and the road seemed a little muddy due to the recent rainy season. On one side of the road there are caves, interspersed with wooden and earthen houses, inhabited by the army guarding this side. Further ahead, it is the gathering area of the residents of Xiaocanghe at this time.

The emergence of the reservoir caused the water level of the Xiaocang River to rise a lot, encroaching on many places in front of the valley, but the impact gradually decreased as it went back. Caves, rows of houses, and tents are gathering in this area, and from a distance, the various houses are still simple, but the planned area is surprisingly neat. At the beginning, Zhuo Xiaofeng participated in the delineation of this place, and the house may have been built in a hurry, but the lines of all the building areas were drawn squarely, which was strictly required by Ning Yi.

Even if you can't build it for the time being, put down your tent and live there. The edge of the tent is also not allowed to go out of the range of the line.

After all, although it is a residential area, the real most people in Xiaocang River are still soldiers. On the most difficult days of winter, some people came in from outside the mountain, and they once said that this side was blind and exquisite. But then it was suppressed and driven out of the valley. At that time, it was a bitterly cold winter, and the former soldiers of the Wurui Battalion had to work every day, and it was inevitable that some people were lax and almost participated in it, and then a rectification meeting of tens of thousands of people was held in this valley.

The Jurchens were in full swing, and the Tanguts were conquering the city outside, as evidenced by what happened to the refugees who came in. They are civilians who have lost their homes. You are soldiers, and you don't want to be in the future.

For soldiers, every rule will save the lives of several people on the battlefield in the future!

After this meeting, the military leadership also strictly regulated the use of briquettes and charcoal fires on a daily basis. When the chill subsided, the dam was built, and the huts gradually replaced the tents. But there is not a single wall that is beyond the original line.

At this time, the progress of replacing the tent with the wooden house was not yet complete. The entire settlement is basically built in the pattern of large and small houses around a central square. Although neatly drawn, the scene is chaotic and the roads are muddy. This is something that the people of Xiaocanghe have no time to take care of for the time being, from last autumn to the early summer in front of us, all kinds of construction in Xiaocanghe have hardly stopped for a moment, even in the harsh winter. There are all kinds of preparations going on.

When the construction of houses to protect against the cold, the digging of caves, the construction of dams, and the beginning of spring, the main work became to reclaim the land and plant wheat and other crops, and at this time of summer, the outline of the settlement of the entire valley gradually took shape. The wheat fields go along the river, stretching hundreds of acres on this side of the river valley, a suspension bridge connects both sides of the river bank, and farther away, the breeding area for war horses and various livestock has gradually drawn the outline, and several watchtowers on the hill have been built, but in terms of the living needs of more than 10,000 people in the valley, the really necessary work is far from reaching the standard.

All the way forward, the child named Hou Yuanqian was chattering with Zhuo Xiaofeng about the changes in the valley, the roadside was bustling with people, pushing a cart, and the man carrying the soil and stones passed by from time to time. It has been out for less than a month, and many places in the valley have been very different to Zhuo Xiaofeng. For half a year, the Xiaocang River has been experiencing growth almost every day, especially after the dam is formed, and the speed of change is even more drastic.

From time to time, some people also say hello to Zhuo Xiaofeng, and the young people of the "Yongle Youth League" and "Righteous Qi Society" in Hangzhou have mostly become low-level managers at this time, distributing and coordinating work here. When passing a ramp, the vehicle dragging earth and rocks was stuck in the mud, Zhuo Xiaofeng and Hou Yuanfeng went over to help push it, and a young man also came over and said casually: "Brother Zhuo, Chen Xing, they have made an ink meeting and are pulling people around." ”

"Ink Society?" Zhuo Xiaofeng frowned, at this time, the surrounding soldiers came and went, and several men next to the cart also shouted in unison, Zhuo Xiaofeng followed the sound of "ah-", and after pushing the cart out of the mud pit, he said to Hou Yuanqi: "Find some plaster planks to fill in here." Hou Yuanqian nodded and left, and he said to the young man who came over to talk: "I just came back, I don't know what is going on, I'll go see the teacher first, and I'll talk about it in the evening." ”

The man nodded: "I know, just talk to Brother Zhuo first." ”

Then Hou Yuanqian dragged a dustpan of gravel and wooden planks from the side, and the three of them filled the mud pit before continuing to walk forward. Although he just came back and didn't mention it anymore, Zhuo Xiaofeng could guess a thing or two in his heart about things like the ink meeting.

After going out of Beijing and going north, the Wurui camp settled down in Xiaocanghe. Out of the initial confusion, and then began to build Xiaocanghe, during this period, Ning Yi spent a lot of effort, not only did he control the construction of the entire valley, but also had a lot of lectures every day in terms of cultivating talents.

This kind of lecture is roughly divided into three categories: first, it is to explain the principle of all things and the principle of things to the craftsmen, second, it is to teach the managers in the valley the knowledge of manpower arrangement, about the concept of efficiency, and third, it is to tell a group of disciples, children, and even some relatively quick-thinking officers in the army about some of their own ideas, analysis of current affairs, speculation of the overall situation, and what people should look like.

And when he is arranging work for others, why he is arranged in this way, when he can say it, he will try to explain it to the government officials around him in layman's terms. Such things, including the first two lectures, are for Ning Yi. It is a crash course to inculcate modern science and modern management as quickly as possible and cultivate such talents, and there is only a third kind of course, which has a long-term and argument-like feeling, but in the eyes of others, it is naturally different. These things. will be considered to be the embodiment of Ning Yi's own philosophy.

Emphasis on law, efficiency, material, employment, craftsmen, businessmen, do not despise lowly industry, and emphasize personal self-discipline and awakening...... These things are naturally different from the Confucian system itself. Especially in the past half a year, except for the first few times he went out, Ning Yi sat in Xiaocanghe, and arranged everything almost personally, during this period of time - until now, the operation efficiency of Xiaocanghe is terrifying, from the initial delineation, preparation, to the later construction of the dam. The fields are now reclaimed like a giant beast in the valley, swallowing earth and rocks, leveling the ground, and turning desolate places into houses every day, and the rate of change seems to be increasing.

Goodbye to the well-informed. How have you ever seen such efficiency?

Fly into the sky with manpower and build a dam in a few days. After the dam was formed, the topography of the Xiaocang River changed dramatically in a short period of time. How shocking it is to use manpower to fight against the great power of heaven and earth, and it falls in the eyes of everyone. With the support of these things, someone has already said it. Mr. Ning's inheritance is very similar to the concept of the ancient Mohists. In the case of the existence of the Yongle Youth League and the Righteous Qi Society, there were originally several small groups composed of young officers such as the "Huayan Society" within the Xiaocanghe army, and it was naturally not a surprise that there would be another ink club at this time.

Get out of that ghetto. Passing along the road to the other side of the valley, the road is still full of figures running, and looking back, the muddy street market seems to contain full of life.

At this time, Xiaocanghe is naturally facing huge problems. Every day, in the small square of that settlement, someone will bring news from the outside world, the urgency of the Central Plains, and the battle situation of the 100,000 troops advancing in Western Xia. There will also be people in that square to announce the progress of Xiaocanghe's various things, but as long as anyone has a heart, they can see that Xiaocanghe is facing a threat of extinction from all sides.

The threat of Western Xia is one of them, as long as they gain a foothold in the northwest, the first thing Xiaocanghe will face is the problem of not being able to develop around it. This does not include the question of what Xiaocanghe should do when the Tangut people took the initiative to attack Xiaocanghe.

The food problem is the top priority, and the reclamation in the valley is already the speed at which the 10,000 people in the valley are doing their best. But the tools are not plentiful, and the time is short. In this spring, about 1,000 acres of farmland were planted along the valley in the mountains, and wheat was planted, and as far as the eye could see, but in a practical sense, the land here was already barren and had just been cultivated, and if a thousand acres of land were planted well, it would be able to feed a thousand people, but if it was a thousand soldiers, it would have to be malnourished.

Xiaocanghe currently relies on the blood transfusion of Qingmu Village, but the cultivated land of Qingmu Village itself is also insufficient, and it relies on blood transfusion from the outside world. However, as soon as the power of the Jurchens and Tangut people is stabilized, even if they don't consider being beaten, what this place will encounter will be a real catastrophe.

Therefore, even though Xiaocanghe seems to be full of vitality at this time, many people understand its problems, and the countdown never stops at any time. In the situation of Jurchen, Western Xia, and the world beginning to erode, Xiaocanghe has tentacles that must be stretched out and rooted roots, this is not a boat against the current, but completely on the edge of the waterfall, as long as there is a slight hesitation, it will inevitably be doomed.

A loud shout of "Ahh Zhuo Xiaofeng looked at the scene of the army below lining up and shooting guns, turned the road ahead, and farther away was the military and political council hall of Xiaocang River located on the mountainside. From a distance, it is just two rows of simple wooden houses, but at this time, there is also a quiet and solemn smell.

**************

From spring to summer, in April of the second year of Jingping of the Wu Dynasty, the Jurchens who invaded the south had squeezed out all the things that could be plundered in Bianliang City, and ordered Zhang Bangchang to be the emperor.

In the northwest, the Western Xia Emperor Li Qianshun began to expand around after recovering several cities such as Qingjian and Yanzhou, forcing Qingzhou and Weizhou to recover two hundred miles of Hengshan. At this time, the north of the Yellow River of the Wu Dynasty had fallen into a short-lived situation of "borderland", and the Jurchens, the de facto rulers, had not yet had time to digest this area. The newly established Great Chu regime is not justifiable, and Emperor Zhang Bangchang immediately took off his yellow robe and removed the imperial title after the Jurchens withdrew his troops, and did not go to the main hall of the palace to work. This also led to the government north of the Yellow River entering a state of love and doing whatever it wanted.

Patriots who still think of the Wu Dynasty account for most of them in various places, and the mountain bandits and rebels in various places also play the name of defending the Wu Dynasty, but among them, the various forces that have begun to seek a way out for themselves have also begun to move rapidly. Among them, in addition to some big clans and armies that were already deep-rooted, Tian Hu's power also jumped up during the period. At the same time, several Tibetan tribes divided by the vassal kings, after the influence of the Wu Dynasty faded, also began to move towards the land to the east. Stir.

At this time, the rebel army that had just begun to take root in Xiaocanghe was in a strange state, if you look at it from the back to the front, this army that relies on Ning Yi's strong operational ability to operate is actually like walking on the tip of a sharp knife. To put it more seriously, this army that rebelled after the killing of the monarch had no way forward and no way back. There are three reasons for the general direction of being able to maintain it, one of which is the obvious external pressure and the imminent collapse of the Central Plains - to make the people in the Xiaocang River Valley aware of this. It is also directly related to the internal propaganda power of Ning Yi's subordinates.

Second. It is because of the result of strong planning and employment ability along the way, the amazing work efficiency that occurred in the valley fed back to the workers themselves to a certain extent, resulting in the higher the efficiency, the higher the sense of surprise and accomplishment in everyone's hearts. In particular, the completion of the Xiaocang River Dam gives people an indescribable sense of satisfaction. It also further promotes the efficiency of people doing other things.

The third is because of the propaganda of the achievements of Ning Yi and others and the gradually formed personality cult, although everyone knows the predicament faced by Xiao Canghe, but before this, when Ning Yi was still a guest of the Prime Minister's Mansion, he had already started a war with the grain merchants in the world. These things were relatively clear to everyone who followed in the original bamboo record. At this time, Ning Yi sent a large number of people out to contact various merchants, constantly manipulating the pull line, in the minds of everyone, it was naturally a manifestation of his attempt to use commercial power to solve the food problem. At this time, the world is in turmoil, it is difficult to do this, but the demons have no last resort, manipulating people's hearts, when they are in the prime minister's house, they are known as the "God of Wealth", at least in this matter of business, most people have almost blind self-confidence.

These factors that promote the continuous operation of Xiaocanghe are interlocking, and the loosening of each link may lead to a complete collapse, but during this time, the whole overall situation is so weirdly operated. At the same time, in Ning Yi's personal side, Yunzhu, who was pregnant in early April and October, gave birth to Ning Yi's third child and first daughter, but due to dystocia during childbirth, after the child was born, both the mother and the child fell into extreme weakness.

The situation in the outside world is still deteriorating at this time. With the return of Zhuo Xiaofeng and the others, the intelligence brought back showed that the tiger king Tian Hu, who was nearly thousands of miles away, was actively uniting vertically and horizontally at this time, entangled some of the original Wu Dynasty clans, and now he has extended his tentacles to the northwest. The same attempt to maintain trade routes, and even open up the connection between Western Xia and Tubo, it can be seen that all this is in preparation for facing the Jurchens in the future. And looking at their methods and the conflicts that began to arise between the two sides, Ning Yi seemed to be able to see the figure of a woman on Tian Hu's side.

Even under an ideal state - even if Western Xia did not reach out to the northwest for the time being - it was difficult enough for Wu Ruiying to open up this piece of trade route, and at this time, the demons were dancing wildly, and it was even more impossible. On the Western Xia side, in April, Li Qianshun had already heard the name of the Wurui Battalion, the king-killer, and he sent an envoy to ask Xiaocanghe to submit to him, and at this time he was coming to the mountains where Xiaocanghe was located, ready to inform Xiaocanghe of his future fate: surrender or destruction.

The 100,000 troops of Western Xia came to pacify the northwest, and since they have entered their field of vision, if they do not surrender, there will be a war in the future.

Our story begins again here, plunged into this summer time. It's a calm, dreary summer that would be hard to survive without it...... (To be continued.) )

PS: It was supposed to be sent last night, but it was revised again today, so I dared to send it out. The second half of the retrospective advancement can go so far, and next, we get into the plot ^_^

Happy New Year to everyone.