When Fang Xuanling, the prime minister of the dynasty and the famous minister of Zhenguan who was unanimously praised by later generations, Li Shimin's right-hand man and the first think tank often had a sentence on his lips: "The three armies have not moved, and the grain and grass go first - to fight, what you fight for is money and grain!" ”

Li Shimin said that he was the little daughter-in-law of the Tang Dynasty, and while teasing, he was actually a recognition and praise for him.

Qin Mubai mostly reads military books and Xi's martial arts way, but he also deeply agrees with Fang Xuanling's wise saying. Especially after the march arrived in Lanzhou for half a month, he deeply felt that in the border area of Lanzhou, money and food were the top priority.

He also knew very well that every word the emperor said to him that day in the Wei Mansion was not nonsense. The reason why he told him about the complicated surrounding situation of Lanzhou and the future national plans was also of great interest to him, a young man who had not yet gone into battle.

First, Qin Mubai's identity is special. First of all, he is Qin Shubao's son, and Qin Shubao has always been more serious about his son, and he will not disagree with him too much. This is the end of Li Shimin's worries - there is no shortage of capable ministers and officials in the court, many times more capable and skilled than Qin Mubai, and there are many people. But if these people are sent to partner with Qin Shubao, with Qin Shubao's arrogant and outstanding character, he may not take others seriously at all. The people sent without him as the governor will inevitably be hindered everywhere; Second, Qin Mubai is engaged to Princess Gaoyang, and he is a relative of the emperor, and he has the emperor's golden signboard and big backer behind him. Even if he has no qualifications to serve the public, the local officials must look at the emperor's face and cooperate, which is very conducive to him to go to the local government to do things in a big way; Third, Qin Mubai is young, aggressive, impulsive, and dares to be different. This is also what Li Shimin values him most.

Li Shimin has been on the throne for more than ten years, and when he attacked Xue Ju in the west to win Lan, he can still trace some more years forward. Over the years, Lanzhou has not been weak, but it has always been the same. There is more than enough to defend, and there is not enough to develop. In the final analysis, it is the lack of self-sufficiency in this place, which depends on the supply from the rear. No matter how good a general is and how brave a soldier is, it is difficult to succeed without the support of follow-up money and food. Therefore, if Li Shimin wants to realize his imperial hegemony and use Lanzhou as a springboard to dominate the Western Regions in the future, he must break this pattern.

At such a time, using a newcomer who has no experience but dares to innovate, Li Shimin is undoubtedly betting.

This is a proud gamble that bets the glory of the entire empire on a weak-crowned youth!

I'm afraid that only an ambitious emperor like Li Shimin dares to bet on such a gamble.

However, the pressure was more on Qin Mubai's shoulders.

After coming to Lanzhou for half a month, he has been in the suspicion and speculation of many officials. He is not in a hurry, and he is not in a hurry to show and prove anything. Every day, the troops were trained in the morning and in the afternoon, and the governor's office was in the afternoon.

Ruoda, a Lanzhou Governor's Mansion, has four states under its rule, with a radius of thousands of miles, and a total of 100,000 soldiers and civilians under its rule. Naturally, there are many kinds of government affairs, and most of them are related to money and food. In addition, the land of Helong has always been a typical area of Han and Hu mixed settlements, especially after the Tang Dynasty pacified the Turks in the early years, many Turkic people moved to Helong to live, or agriculture or herding, and the population was quite large. There are many sensitive issues related to ethnic contradictions, and we must be very cautious in handling them.

The local officials in Lanzhou, seeing that Qin Mubai had been here for so long and hadn't released a fart or two, sneered in their hearts: Son, but that's it! It seems that Lanzhou still has to look at us, don't count on him!

You must know that this is Qin Mubai's usual style of behavior. Whenever he arrives in a new environment, he always devotes himself to learning and adapting for a period of time to understand and familiarize himself with the surrounding environment and master the rules here. Planning and then moving, quiet as Mount Tai, moving like a wind sweeping the forest, Li Jing's art of war essence was integrated into government affairs by him.

On this day, Qin Mubai suddenly recruited important officials such as the Assassin History, Sima, Changshi, and Zhu Cao in the Lanzhou Assassin's Mansion to the Governor's Mansion.

Assassin Shi Xiaoliang and the others didn't care, and still joked and said: This newcomer is not a major general, and his biggest preference is to discuss politics. It's nothing more than putting two bowls of tea, chatting and talking nonsense, then having a meal and going home to sleep. If they all govern like him, they will be too good to be officials!

But as soon as they entered the political hall today, Xiao Liang and the others were a little surprised.

Because in the hall, there are no tables and couches, and there are no tea, water, melons and other things. On the contrary, Qin Mubai was dressed in a military uniform, and behind him stood the two generals of the Yi Mansion, Yuwen Hongtai and Xue Rengui, and another hundred horsemen and ten people followed.

"Why is this posture put on, is it still a Hongmen banquet?" Xiao Liang and the others were hesitant, and when they entered the hall, the arrogant look that often appeared on weekdays was also restrained under the power of this slaughtering army.

"Colleagues." After everyone arrived, Qin Mubai said loudly, "This official has been in office for more than half a month, but he has not implemented a government or issued an order, what do you think?" ”

Xiao Liang and the others are all old people in the officialdom, although they are slanderous, they are beautiful on their lips, and they all said, this is Qin Bei's young man, and he has his own strategy in his belly and then moves, Yunyun.

Qin Mubai smiled indifferently: "That's right, this official is really planning and then moving." Without investigation, there is no voice. The official already has a policy in his chest, but he has not made an on-the-spot investigation, so he specially invited all his colleagues to go to all the prefectures and counties under the jurisdiction of the Lanzhou Governor's Mansion today. ”

"All states and counties?" When everyone heard this, they couldn't help but be dumbfounded.

It is the middle of winter, and Lanzhou is already pouring water into ice and dust. At this time, when you go out to "investigate on the spot", isn't it asking for hardship? And go to all the states and counties...... That's not a matter of ten and a half months, maybe three or two months.

"That's right, all states and counties." Qin Mubai said with certainty, "What, do you have doubts? ”

Xiao Liang hesitated for a moment, and arched his hand: "Don't drive Qin, please forgive me for saying too much." The lowly people have been in Lanzhou for many years, and they know the local customs and hydrologists to govern the people's livelihood. Don't want to know anything, just ask, there is no need to do this nonsense. ”

"Nothing to do?" Qin Mubai smiled and said, "Xiao Tingshi, on the age of the teeth, you are a senior, I shouldn't have said such disrespectful words." But since I am a feudal official, I have to talk about it publicly-according to me, your colleagues have been operating in Lanzhou for many years, can they improve? Can it be brilliant? Lanzhou is still the poor Lanzhou, with less than 10,000 households and poor and self-sufficient. Food and clothing, people chew horses, and they all rely on the rear to transport them. If you don't know the difficulty of transportation and the preciousness of grain and rice, you can escort a return of grain and grass like this official did. ”

Xiao Liang's face changed, and he was naturally annoyed in his heart, but he didn't dare to say anything, so he had to swallow his sullen breath back.

"I know you're not convinced. Where is Xue Zhonglang? Qin Mubai said.

"The end will be." Xue Rengui came out of the queue and hugged his fists.

"Report the food consumption of this trip to your colleagues."

"Yes." Xue Rengui spread out the list of excerpts that had been prepared long ago, and said, "On this trip, General Qin led 10,000 soldiers to ride 1,400 miles away, escorted 100,000 stones of grain and grass, and accompanied nearly 10,000 people and people. There are also more than 20,000 horses and mules. When he arrived in Lanzhou, there were only more than 50,000 stones of grain and grass left. The repatriated husband gave more than 20,000 stones of grain and grass, but only 24,656 stones of grain and grass were actually stored in storage. Complete! ”

After Xue Rengui finished speaking, the scene was silent.

"Did you hear that?" Qin Mubai said lightly, "If anyone doubts the authenticity of these data, they can check the accounts in detail to open the database for verification." If someone is greedy for a grain of grain, the military order will be decided! ”

Xiao Liang finally squeezed out a smile and said, "Don't drive Qin, let's get down to business!" Qin Beijia wants to lead our subordinates to travel around local states and counties, what is the matter? ”

"It's not a trip, it's a visit." Qin Mubai smiled faintly and said, "Historically, those of us who are officials, most of the news comes from the reports of subordinate officials, which is hearsay. Therefore, it is very necessary for us to deign to visit and understand the people's feelings. Second, under the rule of the Lanzhou Governor's Office, the territory is vast, and the land is vast and sparsely populated, with more Gobi and less green fields, more wind and dust and less agricultural reclamation, and the canal water is not conducive to the green grass and is not connected, and it is a notoriously poor and poor land. But these can be changed. Afforestation to defend against wind and sand, cultivating land and land for self-sufficiency, raising livestock to enrich the people and the army, opening up the province to attract business and reduce expenditure, and persuading farmers to attract and live in order to expand the population are all good policies. What do you think? ”

When the officials heard this, they all laughed.

The smile was still very obvious, and contemptuous.

One of the two King Kongs standing behind Qin Mubai, Yuwen Hongtai, who had a fiery temper, was annoyed: "You birdmen, why are you smiling?" My General Qin is right, why don't you listen to it, but laugh shamefully? It's really annoying to me! ”

His voice roared down like thunder on the ground, which frightened a group of literati and officials into a shudder, and they burst into laughter.

"Hong Tai, don't be rude! This is the council hall, not the barracks, Sven. Qin Mubai said.

"Oh, then I'm a little bit gentle." Yuwen Hongtai scolded and said, "I won't curse anymore." Whoever dares to laugh at you disrespectfully, just take it out and hit the board! ”

Xiao Liang and the others were disdainful in their hearts, but they only dared to smile bitterly. Xiucai can't explain why he encounters soldiers, it's nothing more than this situation. Qin Mubai is not only an adjutant, but also a general with troops...... Take him!

"Ladies and gentlemen, General Yuwen is a rough man, don't worry about it, let's continue to deliberate." Qin Mubai said, "Xiao Tingshi, do you think these strategies that this official just said are appropriate? ”

Xiao Liang smiled bitterly and said, "Don't drive Qin, if you tell the truth, will you be taken out by General Yuwen to play the board?" ”

"Naturally not." Qin Mubai smiled, "If you have something to say, just talk about it." ”

"Then the lowly duty is said." Xiao Liang said, "These strategies of General Qin, if you get any local state or county, it is a feasible strategy. But in Lanzhou, that's a big no-go. ”

"Why?" Qin Mubai was not in a hurry, and asked patiently.

"The reason is simple." Xiao Liang said, "Lanzhou, from the beginning of the founding of the Tang Dynasty, has been a military town and a choke point for soldiers. If you want to persuade the farmers to teach the mulberry, you can, then first let the Hu people know what the agriculture and mulberry are; If you want to build water conservancy, you can also, then you have to recruit people to serve as servants; If you want to attract merchants and people, you can also - if the merchants and the people are willing to come, will it be difficult to send someone to arrest them? For decades, Lanzhou has been a pure military town, not producing grain, not self-sufficient, with less than 10,000 households, and no farming, as has always been the case. Therefore, when we heard Qin Beijia's governance strategy, we couldn't help but laugh, which made General Yuwen furious. Actually, we don't have any malice, just a slight ...... It's just absurd! ”

"Is it absurd?" Qin Mubai smiled slightly and said, "I don't deny these facts you said, but there are some things in this world that always need to be changed. People who are accustomed to sticking to the old ways always have the idea that no fault is a great achievement, when a monk hits the clock for a day, how can he think about the long-term plan of Datang? Xiao Tingshi, since this official has been ordered by the Holy Order, he is not here to take you to eat this comfortable bowl of idle rice. I have just said that I must do every single thing. Whether it will succeed or not, I don't know. I, Qin, am young and shallow, and I have to rely on the help and support of Xiao Tingshi and my colleagues everywhere. But if anyone doesn't want to join me, I won't force it. Since the meeting, I will write to His Majesty and give the transfer of officials another appointment, and I will never be embarrassed. This is an oath! ”

When everyone heard this, their hearts beat drums - this is really a Hongmen feast! This kid is ruthless enough! The current situation is: follow him or get out of here! Choose one of the two, no centrists and two-faced will not be allowed!

"When I'm done, let's take a stand!" Qin Mubai sat down on the special Taishi chair in the army at the beginning, and quietly looked at Xiao Liang and the others.

Xiao Liang and the others looked at each other and hesitated.

"Don't worry, you can go and discuss it." Qin Mubai crossed his hands on his lower abdomen and said with a smile, "Everyone, please!" An hour later, I am still here waiting for you! ”

Xiao Liang and the others couldn't ask for it, so they came to the other hall one after another, and discussed anxiously and nervously.

Only Qin Mubai and others were left in the hall, and Xue Rengui said: "General Qin, I see that Xiao Liang and the others are unconvinced for a while. They are accustomed to the old policy of governance, and as soon as this new strategy is introduced, they are not suitable for it. Moreover, these strategies of General Qin are contrary to the normal state of Lanzhou, and they must be suspicious. ”

"That's nature." Qin Mubai nodded with a smile, "So I gave them the opportunity to choose." Or, follow me Qin someone to transform Lanzhou in a big way; Or, don't come to mix in this muddy water, transfer to another prefecture and county, and still be their old-fashioned idle officials. ”

Xue Rengui wrinkled his brows: "What if, Xiao Liang and the others are in unison, and they join together to show resistance, and all of them submit their resignations?" ”

"Then replace them all!" Qin Mubai said categorically, "Lanzhou, I'd rather be the only one left than accept a mediocre official and a layman!" ”

"General Qin, please forgive me for saying too much." Xue Rengui said, "The general used to be in Xiangzhou, but it was not like this. At that time, you were just adapting to the environment in Xiangzhou, and you were mostly comforting and exhorting the local officials. Why did you come to Lanzhou? ……”

Qin Mubai smiled slightly: "That's because Xiangzhou doesn't need much change, and at that time, I was just a lieutenant with troops, and it had little to do with governing officials and governing the people; And Lanzhou must be remodeled! Since I have come, I am not afraid of offending people, and I am not afraid that they will throw the impeachment of me on the desk of His Majesty the Emperor like snowflakes! ”

"What a spirit!" Xue Rengui couldn't help but praise, "No matter whether things are successful or not, anyone who achieves great things must have the courage of General Qin at the beginning!" ”

"Huh! …… Never talk about it, they're back. ”

Xiao Liang and the others all returned to the council hall as they were.

Qin Mubai walked up to them with his hands cut on his back and said with a smile: "How is it, Xiao Tingshi, how is the discussion?" ”

Xiao Liang replied: "Don't drive Qin, I waited again and again, and agreed that Qin Don't drive far-sightedness and courage are commendable." Lanzhou needs Qin Beijia to be a capable person like Qin Beijia to lead us to revisit this important Guanhe fortress. We have agreed that without exception, we are willing to follow Qin Beijia and implement a new policy! ”

"Good!" Qin Mubai laughed twice and didn't say much, "Then, all colleagues, please go back and prepare!" ——Leave the government affairs to the deputy officials and adjutants, pack up your own mules and horses, and follow the officials to visit all the states and counties in Lanzhou! At this time tomorrow, this official is here to wait for you! ”

"Yes...... Retirement from the inferior ranks! ”

Xiao Liang and the others retreated one after another, and only a few steps out of the hall door, Yuwen Hongtai laughed loudly: "General Qin, why did this group of birdmen suddenly become obedient again?" Aren't they still laughing at you? ”

"I'm still laughing at it, but I'm just stuffing it in my heart." Qin Mubai smiled disapprovingly and said, "They have all been officials for many years, and the best thing is to watch the wind and steer." The current situation is either follow me or get out of here. Fools know how to choose. ”

"Uh...... That is, it is not as good as even being a fool? Yuwen Hongtai shouted depressedly, "Since the facts are already like this, why do you bother to make this one, isn't it an extra move?" Just give the order! ”

"Of course it's different. General Qin's hand is of great significance. Xue Rengui said with a smile, "This is called being open and honest and making your position clear." After today's incident, if we want to implement the new policy in the future, no matter what these officials think in their hearts, they must also be honest and diligent and diligent to get things done first. Otherwise, it is a violation of the preamble to overturn one's own position. At that time, General Qin will be able to clean them up justifiably. If they don't do this today, they will be able to resist the new policy one after another, citing the old precedent. In fact, this is similar to governing the army. The military orders in the army are strict, and the regulations and provisions are all there. Whoever commits a crime shall be punished according to the law. If there were no prior instructions for these military orders and military regulations, there would be no way to talk about orders. ”

"Well, Rengui has a lot of knowledge!" Qin Mubai smiled and said, "Hong Tai, you are a big old man, learn more." ”

"I don't learn!" Yuwen Hongtai glared at the tiger, "It's dizzy to hear this, learn a bird!" I just need to know how to cut people! ”

"Haha!" There was a lot of laughter in the hall.

The next day, Xiao Liang and the others came back. They each brought a carriage and a horse to help, and prepared to follow Qin Mubai to do a "Helong Couple Day Tour".

Qin Mubai left Yuwen Hongtai to lead the Chinese army to train men and horses, and together with Xue Rengui, he led a brigade of Yue cavalry armor, and set off with these officials.

A total of more than 300 people left Lanzhou City and went straight to the wilderness in the east. He accompanied a number of guides and local officials, and marked the map at each point. Where can you open up wasteland, where you can divert canals to fill water, where you can plant grass for grazing, where you can open mines and smelt, where you can build towns and build villages, accommodate people to live or open fu to do business, all of them have made key marks.

By the way, whenever I encounter scattered herders or farmers, I will visit and inquire about them. Ask them about their local customs, what they need most, and what they want to do the most.

For more than two months, Qin Mubai and the others did not return to Zhou City, and even spent the New Year outside with the herdsmen.

In the blink of an eye, it is the beginning of spring.

The implementation of Qin Mubai's new policy has come to the official rollout. The group traveled more than 1,000 miles and finally returned to Lanzhou City.

Those officials have been wandering outside with Qin Mubai for so long, needless to say, they have suffered a lot, but they have a lot of identification with him in their hearts. After all, there are not many princes and nobles like Qin Mubai who are pragmatic and willing to endure hardships now. Moreover, many of his views and propositions are indeed quite unique. Although he is young and inexperienced, he is humble and diligent.

Two or three months of asceticism and field investigation also gave Qin Mubai the most intuitive and profound understanding of the large territory of Lanzhou. Some of the policies that were conceived behind closed doors at the beginning have also undergone many large-scale revisions in light of local conditions.

After returning to the city, Qin Mubai did not stop, and immediately summoned all the officials at or above the county level under the jurisdiction of the Lanzhou Governor's Mansion to come to the Governor's Mansion to discuss politics. For seven days, all the new policies were discussed and then laid down to all the states and counties. From now on, it will be implemented.

Lanzhou Helong, this ancient and vicissitudes of life, because of the arrival of Qin Mubai, a weak crown prince, there was an unprecedented whirlwind of new policies.

According to the central idea of the New Deal, all the population under Lanzhou's rule, including the soldiers of the army, must participate in farming and mulberry farming. This is not new, and many people have done this in the past. However, Lanzhou has always been a place full of war, and the soldiers are all ambitious and warlike. Let them temporarily put down their knives and guns and pick up hoes and sickles to farm and raise mulberries, but there are many people who are aggrieved!

Less than three days after the promulgation of the new policy, Qin Mubai encountered the first big trouble.

Xue Wanjun, the commander of the Shancheng front line and the general of Zuo Weiwei, and Xue Wanche, the governor of Liangzhou and the general of Zuo Weiwei, ran to Lanzhou together.