Hou Junji got Wang Fangyi's message and didn't take it seriously.

Since Xu Qilin joined the army, he has been very low-key, not to mention that he doesn't care about military command, even logistics or anything.

To observe is to observe, to see, as if it is superfluous to even put on the mouth.

Originally, Hou Junji also guessed that Xu Qilin would hold a secret decree or something, but looking left and right, it was not like it. This time, he simply said that he was sick and did not even participate in the attack on Gaochang.

It seems that he is really looking for a way to make a fortune. Hou Junji completely put his mind at ease, expressed his concern without being salty, and went to concentrate on commanding the army.

Xu Qilin returned to Tiandi City, and did not idle to recuperate, and under the protection of a small number of cavalry, he conducted a survey around Tiandi City.

After coming to the Gaochang jurisdiction, Xu Qilin found that although cotton cultivation was common here, people would also weave cloth for trading. However, the lack of textile technology makes it difficult for cloth to become a commodity that people like in terms of quality and color.

In fact, the introduction of cotton cloth in the Western Regions was earlier than the introduction of cotton. For example, the cotton cloth in India is very delicate, and it can be seen from time to time in the Western Regions.

But in the quality of textiles and printing and dyeing, Xu Qilin is very confident. Dayingku's weaving machinery is very advanced, and the technology improved by Huang Daopo is more than two dynasties.

Therefore, Xu Qilin has ordered the officials to buy a large amount of cotton and prepare to transport it back to Ganzhou for weaving. When the finished product comes out, it is common to earn several times.

And the messenger who flew from Beijing brought the edict of His Majesty Li Er. Only then did Xu Qilin know that Du Zhenglun was rushing to Ganzhou. According to His Majesty Li Er's intentions, Du Zhenglun may be allowed to serve as the assassin of Suzhou.

Regarding His Majesty Li Er's arrangement, Xu Qilin was a little puzzled. Didn't you let yourself take on the position of Suzhou Assassin, why did you change so quickly?

Soon, the letter arrived again. It was sent by Wei Chihuan and Cheng Chubi in their private names, and the content of the letter made Xu Qilin feel a little abrupt.

Has the separation of father and son reached this point? Xu Qilin knows the trend of history, and the conclusions he draws are naturally more profound and accurate than others.

Obviously, no matter what Li Chengqian's motives were, His Majesty Li Er was not prepared to let him achieve his goal. Although it has always been difficult to store the outside tone, there is a problem with letting Li Chengqian go.

The big family is still cautious about choosing an heir, lest it be defeated, let alone a country. Li Chengqian is so unbearable, but he doesn't know it, and there is really no one.

After thinking about this, Xu Qilin didn't have any feelings for Du Zhenglun. Anyway, it's not Li Chengqian's side, Suzhou Assassin Shidang should be.

Of course, Xu Qilin also saw that Jingshi was not calm. If he is in Chang'an, I am afraid he will also be involved.

Who made Li Chengqian still the prince, the prince. If you trap him, or trouble him, it's really hard to handle the size.

Du Zhenglun is an example, in order to maintain the illusion that it is not easy to store on the surface, His Majesty Li Er can only use these courtiers as valves.

Therefore, offending Li Chengqian now will definitely not lead to any good results. Even if it's a temporary debasement, Xu Qilin doesn't want to!

Well, it's hard to say, I'll have to spend more time outside.

Xu Qilin was a little distressed by this, but he didn't think of any other way for a while. I can only complain about the hypocrisy of His Majesty Li Er, and it is really difficult to put Li Chengqian on the table.

Three days later, Xu Qilin led people out of Tiandi City and marched towards Gaochang City unhurriedly.

Counting the time, Gaochang has almost been captured. Under Hou Junji's lead, the generals took the spoils of war privately, while the soldiers plundered the civilians.

As long as the killing is not too heavy, Xu Qilin will not interfere. Because, it was not only Hou Junji who he offended, but also the generals, and the soldiers who were full of wealth.

Xu Qilin doesn't want to be a virgin, and he doesn't want to be the target of public criticism. Although Gaochang is dominated by Han Chinese, Huhua is also very serious, and it may not be without benefits after this deterrence.

Of course, Xu Qilin also believed that Hou Junji would not be too stupid and take His Majesty Li Er's instructions before leaving as a deaf ear. Grabbing some money is not a big deal, but killing too much is not conducive to the Tang army's foothold and expansion in the Western Regions.

In fact, in Xu Qilin's view, whether Hou Junji privately took the treasures of the Gaochang royal family and his punishment is not very big.

The emperor's mind is difficult for ordinary people to fathom. But Xu Qilin can get a glimpse of it from all kinds of history, as well as what happened to Li Jing, the god of the Tang Dynasty.

Very simply, the four words "high merit and high shock" can sum up everything.

Li Jing's contribution to the destruction of the Southern Liang, the Eastern Turks, and the Tuyuhun was too great. Even if there was no false accusation of rebellion by Gao Yongsheng, the head of Shiozawa Province, His Majesty Li Er would have found a reason to suppress him.

When you lead the troops outside, you don't rebel, but when you return to Beijing, you want to find death? His Majesty Li Er knew it very well in his heart, but he still pretended to order an investigation.

In the end, although Li Jing's innocence was returned, Gao Yongsheng only commuted his death on false charges and exiled him to the frontier.

Li Jing saw it clearly, and immediately chose to retreat bravely, close the door and guard himself, and put an end to the guests, although relatives were not allowed to enter in vain. Look, Lao Tzu is an otaku, how can you find fault?

For military generals, "high merit and shocking the master" is only one aspect, and the jealousy of civil officials should not be underestimated. After making so many contributions, there must be red-eyed people, and it is not easy to pick a thorn. It just can't bring you down, and it adds a little disgust.

Therefore, if Hou Junji is a person who understands, he should have predicted it. After the destruction of Gaochang this time, His Majesty Li Er did not beat him, and the Chinese official of the court was also very likely to find trouble.

Punishment, big or small, will come nine times out of ten. But it must be a small punishment and a big commandment, it can't hurt your muscles and bones, you just accept it honestly, isn't it just scolding you and deducting your salary for several months, it's a fart!

If Hou Junji has this mind and this mind, there is still a long way to go! It's a pity that Xu Qilin can't see that this guy can have such signs of responsibility.

If you learn from Li Tao, then you will be smart. Needless to say, the credit is great, but it is also modest and cautious. Before His Majesty Li Er died, he demoted him out of Beijing, which was not only a test, but also left room for the heir to show grace.

Li Tao received the order, did not complain, did not even return home, and took people out of Beijing to take up his post, which is called a neat and neat.

Hehe, the emperor's profession is really immutable, and he thinks about the broken chair being snatched away every day. This calculation, that calculation, is so tiring!

With all kinds of cranky thoughts, Xu Qilin saw Gaochang City from afar. At this moment, several earthen houses on the side of the road suddenly heard the heart-rending cry of a woman.

A disheveled girl broke free and escaped the door, and an old woman blocked the door, kneeling and kowtowing and begging for mercy.

"Get out of here!" A Tang soldier kicked the white-haired old woman to the ground and scolded: "If you entangle it again, it will kill you." ”

The old woman was holding her stomach with one hand, and she couldn't get up in pain, but her hand was still covering, trying to stop the soldier from arresting her daughter.

"What's going on?" Xu Qilin reined in the horse's head and asked with a gloomy face.

The three Tang soldiers ran out of the house, saw Xu Qilin and the others, and hurriedly stopped, and one of them stepped forward to report: "The little ones are being ordered to capture the nobles of the Gaochang royal family who escaped and hiding. ”

Well, Xu Qilin snorted lightly, his eyes swept away, and the person who was stopped by the servant was obviously a Han girl, with delicate eyebrows and ordinary clothes, where did she look like the royal nobles of Gaochang.

His heart was immediately bright, it must be these guys who saw the color and took the opportunity to take the lead.

"Xu Cheng, the little ones are leaving." Tang Bing saw that Xu Qilin didn't speak, so he wanted to slip away first.

"What should I be guilty of robbing people's daughters?" Xu Qilin suddenly asked coldly, and turned his face to the Tang Army officer who was escorting him.

Without waiting for the officer to speak, Xu Qilin's eyes narrowed, and he gave a brief order: "Arrest them and hand them over to Hou Shangshu for disposal." ”

He has no military position, and he has no authority to dispose of these guys. But when this happens, he must also take care of it. The most unaccustomed to spoiling their own compatriots, although these three Tang soldiers may not have this concept.

Despite the pleadings of the three soldiers, they were all tied up with ropes. Xu Qilin beckoned and asked the servant to let the girl go.

The old woman also ran over at this time, and when she saw that her daughter was saved, she knelt down and thanked her.

Xu Qilin nodded, didn't say much, and continued to march towards Gaochang City.

Wang Fangyi, who got the news in advance, had already sent someone to wait at the city gate, leading Xu Qilin into the city and going to the residence.

When he entered the city, Xu Qilin found that the situation was relatively good, he did not hear the howl of his crying father and mother, nor did he see any traces of burning, killing and looting.

After sending away the sergeant who was guarding the guard, Xu Qilin came to the mansion. After a short rest, Wang Fangyi rushed to report to work.

Ju Zhisheng, the king of Gaochang, wanted to hold on to the city, but he learned that the defenders of the Khan's Futu City had surrendered, and under the fierce bombardment of the trebuchet, he had to open the city to ask for surrender.

The Tang army did not kill a lot when it entered the city, and Hou Junji had already issued a military order in advance, which played a great role in restraining military discipline.

But looting was inevitable, and it also began with Hou Junji's unauthorized seizure of royal treasures. From officers to soldiers, it can be said that it is up and down, and the princes and wealthy families in Gaochang City are the most suffered.

"Hou Shangshu obtained two large carts of treasures, both of which were moved out of the Gaochang Palace." Wang Fangyi was a little disdainful of this, and he was also a little anxious, "The generals are also effective imitations, and the wind of unauthorized property is difficult to stop." ”

Xu Qilin waved his hand and said, "As long as the killing is not big, it's fine." We are government officials, and we should not meddle in military affairs unless we have to. ”

Wang Fangyi glanced at Xu Qilin, looked at his state, and wondered if this guy expected something, so he hid in Tiandi City and refused to enter Gaochang City.

Xu Qilin pondered for a while and said, "After staying in Gaochang for a few days, how did you inspect it, and do you think there is potential for development here?" ”

Wang Fangyi hurriedly replied: "The personnel who sent the inspection have not yet returned, but the initial impression of the lower officials is that it is not a problem to develop and build this place and support tens of thousands of troops. ”

"Tens of thousands?" Xu Qilin smiled and suddenly asked, "Zhong Xiang, do you know 'Jingqu'?" ”

One of the major achievements of the Han Dynasty, especially Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, was the development of the vast northwest region.

At that time, the immigration of Shibian and the construction of canals and tuntian were regarded as part of the fight against the invasion of the Xiongnu. During that period, the northwest region became a key water conservancy area second only to Guanzhong, and the water conservancy engineering technology was also greatly improved.

The special type of water conservancy project in Xinjiang - karez, which was called "well canal" at that time, was founded in the Western Han Dynasty.

Because in some alluvial fan topography areas, the soil is mostly gravel, and the water permeability is very strong, after the snow water on the mountain dissolves, most of it seeps into the ground, and the groundwater is buried deeply.

In order to divert the water that seeps into the ground for irrigation in the plains, it is more convenient to dig wells and canals.

The well canal technology has been applied in the construction of Longshou Canal, and it has been introduced to new geographical conditions to create a new type of irrigation engineering.

Wang Fangyi thought for a moment and said, "Xia Guan remembers that there is a record of wells and canals in the "Historical Records". ”

Xu Qilin was not so knowledgeable, and he didn't want to say that he hadn't read the historical records, so he just took out a drawing and told Wang Fangyi about the structure and principle of the qanats.

The reason why qanats were built in large quantities in the Turpan Basin is inseparable from the local natural geographical conditions.

As one of China's extremely arid regions, the annual precipitation is only a dozen millimeters, and the evaporation can reach thousands of millimeters, which can be called China's "dry pole".

However, the qanats are used in underground culverts to transport water, which is not affected by the season and sand, has a small evaporation and stable flow, and can be irrigated by artesian water all year round.

Although Turpan is very hot and rainless, the basin has the Bogda Mountains in the north and the Karawucheng Mountains in the west, and a large amount of snowmelt and rainwater flows to the basin every summer, seeping into the Gobi and converging into an undercurrent, providing a rich underground water source for the qanats.

"The project is huge, but it can be carried out for a long time, and there is no need to abuse the people's power like Qin Shi Huang did when he built the Great Wall." After Xu Qilin finished explaining, he smiled at Wang Fangyi: "If it is completed, the watered fertile land can increase to hundreds of thousands of mu, and it will be no problem to feed more than 100,000 people." ”

Wang Fangyi nodded vigorously, and his face also showed excitement, which was far from the current number of fields he had inspected.

"Xu Cheng—" Wang Fangyi pointed to the drawings and said, "This also has to be written into the report of the Imperial Court?" ”

Xu Qilin nodded and said, "That's nature." ”

After a pause, he smiled and said, "Zhong Xiang will temporarily sign the assassination history, and take care of Gaochang's government affairs first!" ”

Wang Fangyi was excited, but also a little surprised, and asked, "The imperial court has no will, this-"

Xu Qilin laughed and said: "Your Majesty has an edict, which was originally to let a certain observer temporarily take charge of Gaochang, and he can also recommend someone to temporarily serve as an official. Zhong Xiang is talented, diligence is better than so, and the heavy work after the war will make you tired. ”

Wang Fangyi knew that Xu Qilin was helping himself, what inspection reports, what karez, were all to show His Majesty that he had a long-term management strategy and was worthy of the post of assassin.

"Thank you, Xu Cheng." Wang Fangyi got up and bowed to the ground.

Xu Qilin smiled and stretched out his hand to help him, and said: "The court has not made a decision, and it is too early to thank you at this time." ”

Wang Fangyi insisted on finishing the salute before sitting down and talking to Xu Qilin again. He knew that even if the history of the Gaochang assassin could not be done, the history of the Yizhou assassin would be nine out of ten.

While he was talking, someone outside came to report, and Hou Shangshu sent someone to send two boxes of things with a letter attached.

Xu Qilin rolled his eyes, immediately laughed, and said to Wang Fangyi: "The gift giver is here, this has to be accepted." ”

……………