Ascending a small mound, Du Zhongxiao looked at the surrounding scenery and did not speak for a while. Wansheng Town is bordered by the Bianhe River in the south, the land is flat, and the surrounding population is not large. This is a plain, but the soil is not fertile. Due to the frequent flooding of the Yellow River in history, a lot of land was salinized, in the words of this era, it was to repel brine everywhere. It is used for farming, and it has to be transformed.

After standing for a while, Du Zhongxiao said: "How the land here should be cultivated, you can consult the old farmers nearby, don't think about it yourself." There are many ponds and marshes nearby, and there are many lands that are repelled from brine, and not all grains are suitable for planting. ”

Cui Xiang hurriedly said yes. He was born in the forbidden army, and he has never farmed since he was a child, so he is really not familiar with these.

Du Zhongxiao said: "During the time of Taizong, there were many agricultural divisions in the world, which was quite beneficial to the locality. Now there are no more farmers, but you can invite some old peasants from the local area, give them money and food, and let them teach the prisoners. Also, you can buy some farm tools made by the iron superintendent. The place where the court farms the land here cannot be the same as the place, which looks stingy. ”

Cui Xiang said: "The official asked about this matter, and the farm tools are expensive. Although the prison camp has allocated money, it is still a little difficult. ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled: "It's okay, you write an official letter to the Privy Council, and reallocate the money." Since you want to farm the land, of course, you need to buy good farm tools. There is nothing wrong with the so-called desire to do good things, and you must sharpen your tools. ”

Cui Xiang hurriedly agreed happily. Du Zhongxiao agreed, of course, money is not an issue. In fact, with the identity of the prisoners held here, the money to buy farm tools is nothing. If, according to the opinions of some officials, it is necessary to raise these people, then it will cost a lot of money.

Turning around, Du Zhongxiao said to Yelu Xiantong and the three of them: "How is it here?" What is your opinion on what to plant? ”

Yelu Xiantong said: "Taiwei, we are all grassland people, and we have lived with the tribe since we were children, where do we know how to farm?" The arrangement of the court in this matter is that we will obey the decree of the court. ”

Du Zhongxiao said with a smile: "Everyone has long wisdom, and one person has short wisdom, although you are not familiar with farming, you can also give your opinion." Even if it's not right, it's nothing. From now on, this will be your home, and you will have to do something. ”

After speaking, he turned to Cui Xiang and said, "According to the previous plan, each person here will be counted as twenty acres of farming." Generally speaking, two or three thousand acres of land in a village is a lot, and if there are more, the road to farming will be far. In the prison camp here, I think it will take 100 people in one village and 2,000 acres of arable land. In addition to the land for growing grain, there should also be land for growing miscellaneous grains, and there should also be mulberry and jujube orchards. One village, all counted, is about 4,000 acres. If you plan well, you will divide the population into a dozen villages according to this number. Where the yamen of the prison camp is located, it is the town, and some shops are opened. ”

Cui Xiang said embarrassedly: "Taiwei, there are all young and strong men here, which one can weave cloth?" Planting mulberry trees is also useless. ”

Du Zhongxiao was stunned for a moment, and then said after a while: "What you said makes sense, then you won't plant mulberry trees." The nearby jujube trees are growing well, and they can be planted. In the famine years, dates can also be used to tide over the famine. Also, there are a lot of ponds and marshes here, so if you don't plant mulberry trees, you can open some fish ponds. ”

Cui Xiang wrote them down one by one. Du Zhongxiao has led the camp and field work, and he is no stranger to farming. I came here in person to take charge of the city camp, first, to miss the old days, and second, to avoid the current affairs of the DPRK and China.

The victory in Youzhou was a very important thing for the Song Dynasty. The rewards for the meritorious deeds of the personnel who participated in the war have not been counted until now, and countless things are involved. Zhao Zhen also wanted to use the post-war reward to win over the hearts of the people and grasp the military power, and the other ministers also had their own ideas. Du Zhongxiao didn't want to get involved in these things, the current army was originally set up by himself, and he couldn't arouse suspicion. In the Privy Council, I always can't hide from it, so I just come out for a few days. plus other things, in short, the affairs of the Privy Council are annoying now, and Du Zhongxiao really doesn't want to care about it.

Defeating the Khitan, where will the world go? Du Zhongxiao didn't know. Everything has its own providence, so why bother? Thinking that I know everything, arranging this and that, it may seem like a joke decades later. It's better to just let go and let someone else do it.

Steam engines were widely used, there was a strong army, there was a huge domestic market, and what would happen to the Song Dynasty has no precedent in history. The historical reference of Europe is of little significance, and there is a huge difference between the East and the West.

After going down the mound and seeing that the grass on the ground had begun to sprout, and the flowing water in the small river next to him was rattling, Du Zhongxiao felt that his body and mind were clear. In this battle of Youzhou, the Khitan was unexpectedly weak, which made Du Zhongxiao's ambition feel useless all of a sudden. Such a powerful Khitan is like this, which of the surrounding countries is worthy of a war?

Starting from Zhongjinshi, after so many years, Du Zhongxiao felt tired. In the coming days, you should have a good rest. As for the struggle for power between the DPRK and China, let others be busy. With my own merits now, not fighting is the best fight.

After taking a turn in the neighborhood, Du Zhongxiao said to Cui Xiang: "You choose a village to serve as a model for the prison camp." Together, we helped the village plan what to plant and how it should be arranged. For the rest of the villages, you can refer to it. ”

Cui Xiang was stunned for a moment, he didn't expect Du Zhongxiao to be so deeply involved. originally thought that Du Zhongxiao should go back after coming to take a look and explain some things. Unexpectedly, not to mention everything, but also to participate in how the village is arranged.

Hurriedly agreed. Cui Xiang instructed a soldier to go and prepare. What's so hard to choose from a model village? It is close to the yamen of the prison camp, and the place is big enough. On the north bank of the Bianhe River, not far from the river, there happens to be a village like this.

Returning to the yamen and seeing that it was not early, Cui Xiang instructed his subordinates to kill and prepare a banquet to entertain Du Zhongxiao. This is the case in this era, when a guest comes, a sheep is killed, and two chickens are slaughtered, which is a very high standard. Most of the things that are valuable in later generations are not worth much in this era. The so-called delicacies of the mountains and seas have either not been developed, or there are many of them in this era.

Du Zhongxiao said to Yelu Xiantong, Yelu Renxian and Xiao Xulie: "You have nothing to do, let's have a drink together." ”

The three hurriedly thanked them. They were Khitans, and they were always cautious now, for fear that some officials of the Song Dynasty would trouble them. No matter how noble his previous identity was, there was no one to support him in the Song Dynasty, so he could only live with his tail between his legs.

Everyone sat down, drinking tea and gossiping.

Du Zhongxiao said to Yelu Xiantong: "It took a lot of thought to set up this prison camp here, do you know why? ”

Yelu Xiantong arched his hand: "Taiwei is kind-hearted, I can't bear them to be hungry, so I can learn some skills here." ”

Du Zhongxiao smiled when he heard this: "You don't have to choose something good to say. They are prisoners of war, if they are not locked up, they will be released directly, how can they explain to the soldiers who died on the front line? So many people are just locked up, and they spend a lot of food a year, so they still have to do work. However, there is another reason. ”

Yelu Xiantong said: "We are ignorant and don't know what Taiwei thinks. ”

Du Zhongxiao said: "Song and Khitan were originally brothers, and they have been peaceful for decades. It's just that you Khitans only have money in your eyes. At the beginning, the Song Dynasty did not have a good fight with the party, so he asked for an increase in coins, otherwise he would go south to seize the land of Guannan. Last year, the Xingda army went south, and the dynasty had to send troops to meet it. It's no wonder you're where you are today. However, it was a brotherly state after all, and after the war was over, the friendship could not be broken. Locked up in the prison camp for a few days, and released them are ordinary people. Build a prison camp, in addition to letting them know that the harvest is difficult, but also remember the old friendship. ”

Yelu Xiantong and Yelu Ren nodded together, and finally understood what Du Zhongxiao meant. Xiao Xulie didn't think so. Of course, when the Song army occupied the party, the prisoners of war also built roads, and many of them were released. Now the treatment of Khitan prisoners of war is not much better.

Du Zhongxiao said: "When the party was destroyed, many prisoners of war were directly released as good citizens. However, most of their royal family, except for those who descended to the Song Dynasty, were executed. If you think about it, these people are much better off than the party. ”