Shuozhou is located north of Yanmen Pass, in the upper reaches of the Sanggan River.

Shuozhou is close to the Great Wall in the north, adjacent to the Khitan grassland, has been oppressed by the Khitan, Xi and other foreign races, has always had the name of the bitter cold land, the huge place is only three counties, sparsely populated, it can be seen that it is not an easy place to live.

The three counties of Shuozhou are Mayi, Shanyang, and Changning.

Shanyang, the seat of Shuozhou, is the place where the Assassin's Mansion is located, and Zhu Li and others have decided to take action immediately.

Zhang Guimu was left to lead the cavalry and infantry with a total of 5,000 people to guard the north entrance, and the others went to their destinations.

At the gate of Shanyang Thorn Mansion, Zhu Li had just arrived here, and two people came to him, one on the left, wearing a shirt and dressing as a scribe, but he walked like a tiger and looked dignified; The person on the right has a stout black face, which looks a bit like Li Kui on the New Year painting.

"Subordinate Zhang Zhen, the chief of the Assassin Mansion, has seen the envoy." A middle-aged man dressed as a scribe arched his hand.

"Subordinate Zhou Dewei, Sima of the Assassin Mansion, has seen the envoy." The stout young man with a black face also bowed.

When Zhu Li heard this, he glanced at the other party, his expression was a little suspicious, and he said indifferently: "Two months ago, this place was invaded by the Shatuo people, how can the two of you be fine?" ”

When Zhang Xun heard this, he looked ashamed, and said again: "Don't hide it from the envoy, when the Shatuo people attacked Shanyang, the two of us were few and weak, and they were arrested, and later Li Guogong surrendered Gao Wenji, and we were released. ”

Hearing him say this, Zhu Li's expression eased slightly, took Zhu Ning'er from the hands of a maid on horseback, and turned around and instructed: "Gao Yuan, you lead your subordinates directly to Tanglong Town, there can be no shortage of people there, maybe when, the Khitans will come over, and if there is anything missing, you can tell me." ”

"Nuo" Gaoyuan did not hesitate, and after answering the order, he waved his hand and drove straight to the side head with more than 5,000 swords and shields.

As for Zhang Guiba, he had already led his bow and cavalry, together with the three thousand guards sent to him by Zhu Li, and hurried to Yanmen Pass, at this moment, I am afraid that he has already occupied the Xiongguan, after all, Zhu Mei is the assassin of Daizhou, but he lost Daizhou before, even if Tang Ting continues to use him to guard Daizhou, there will inevitably be some refinement, he is afraid that he is still in the governance office, and he is eager to wait for the edict, let alone attack and plunder.

"Mr. Guo, Brother Chongtao, please ask the two of you to understand the situation with Zhang Shen and Zhou Dewei first, and then tell me later, I will take Ning'er to see the residence first." Zhu Li gave an order to Guo Qizuo and Guo Chongtao, and said earnestly.

"Nuo" Guo Qizuo and Guo Chongtao hurriedly responded to the order and immediately walked to Zhang Shen and Zhou Dewei.

Zhu Li asked Shi Yan to send Yue Qi into the military camp in the city first, and he himself took Zhu Ning'er and two maidservants into the Assassin's Mansion.

The Thorn Mansion is so big, it is not only grand in scale, magnificent, the shape is also very handsome, solemn and generous, dozens of houses are neat and tidy, gorgeous but not delicate, stretch but not ostentatious, full of antiquity, full of vitality, let people have a sense of comfort.

The foyer is very spacious and is used to entertain guests; Passing through the vestibule, you are greeted by a large two-story attic, and on either side of the attic there are more than a dozen small buildings, connected to each other by corridors.

On the right is a very open martial arts training ground, on the left is a small pond rockery, a neat and spacious bluestone road runs vertically between the two, from the front hall to the attic in the middle.

The first floor of the attic is very spacious, it should be used for deliberations or banquets, through the attic, it is the inner courtyard, the inner courtyard is more elegantly arranged, the levels are different, and the main side is distinct.

There is a courtyard behind the inner courtyard, but it is a garden, the winding path is secluded, the small pond is bursting with stones, the pavilions and small pavilions, the arch bridge is by the water, it is a good place to rest and enjoy.

"Big brother, this place is so big, it would be nice if Ah Lang and Ah Niang were here." Zhu Ning'er followed Zhu Li to visit the entire Thorn History Mansion, and while she was happy, she suddenly opened her mouth and said longingly.

Zhu Li stroked her head, was silent for a while, and said gently: "Does Ning'er miss them?" ”

"Well, Ah Lang and his mother went to fight the bad guys, and said that they would come back soon, but we all had a New Year's and didn't come back, did we go too far and they couldn't find us?" Zhu Ning'er's little face was melancholy, and she said bitterly.

When Zhu Li heard this, he felt bitter in his heart, he never gave up looking for his parents, as early as when he was in Shenmen Village, he asked Yu Chi Jin to ask her to help inquire about his parents' news, but there has been no result.

Coming to the Northland, the news of his parents is even more bleak, Zhu Li is okay, he only has a faint sadness, and most of it is the natural reaction of this body, after all, his current soul is from the next life, and he has never gotten along with his parents in this life, and his thoughts and worries are not so unforgettable.

But Zhu Ning'er is different, the little girl is a year older, but her mood is not as cheerful as before, but she often worries, on the one hand, because of the lack of news from her parents, and on the other hand, because Zhu Li has too little time with her.

No, you have to find something to do for your sister, once you have something to do, you will concentrate more on what you think, which can also distract her, and at the same time you have to step up the tracking down of her parents.

Zhu Li called a tooth soldier captain and asked him to go to the city to inquire, he wanted to find a teacher for Zhu Ning'er, and buy a few clever and lively school-age maids to play with Zhu Ning'er.

The brother and sister settled down properly, and also cleaned up two rooms in the inner courtyard for Guo Qizuo and Guo Chongtao.

In the evening, Guo Qizuo, Guo Chongtao, Zhang Xian, and Zhou Dewei came to visit, Zhu Li took them to the study, and after a few people sat down, Guo Qizuo said: "Envoy, the situation in Shuozhou has been sorted out, a total of three counties, about 6,000 households, and a population of about 30,000 people. ”

"How can it be so little?" When Zhu Li heard this, he was taken aback, the history of a state is equivalent to the current mayor, and the population of a city is only more than 30,000 people, on average, that is, about 10,000 people in a county, which simply subverts his cognition. (Envoy: In the Tang Dynasty, the name of the history of the assassin, when he arrived in Shuozhou, Zhu Li was the assassin who took office)

Zhu Li's expression was different, which suddenly made Zhang Xian a little uneasy, and he hurriedly explained: "Envoy, the north is bitterly cold, and the population has always been small, and when Shuozhou was in Xuanzong, the population was only more than 80,000 people at its peak, and in recent decades, there have been more than 30,000 people in chaos, and now it is not easy. ”

"In this year, there are Khitans who often come to loot outside, warlords who are fighting more than once, and now there are more than 30,000 people, which is already a blessing to invite heaven." When Guo Qizuo heard this, he sighed and said to Zhu Li.

"The men and horses I brought from Danzhou are close to 15,000 people, plus the auxiliary soldiers, there are nearly 30,000 people, and there are only 30,000 people in Shuozhou, including the elderly, children, and women and children, how can these people support these 15,000 guards?" Zhu Li's expression was ugly, and he questioned Guo Qizuo and Zhang Xian.

Transferred to Shuozhou, he didn't have much grain and grass, plus the savings he had accumulated in the past to suppress bandits, he could only support two months at most, how could he not be in a hurry.

When Zhou Dewei, who had a black face like Li Kui, heard this, he hurriedly spoke: "Envoy, we have a military camp, and we should be able to be self-sufficient." ”

Hearing this, Zhu Li glanced at him, shook his head and said: "I want to train the main battle unit to become a professional soldier, and the military tun can only rely on the auxiliary army at most, but even if there is a military tun, this is a later story, and our grain and grass will not last long." ”

Guo Qizuo saw that Zhu Li said very firmly, raised his eyebrows, thought about it, and arched his hand: "Make you worry about grain and grass? ”

"Not bad." Zhu Li said calmly.

"My subordinates have a strategy to solve the urgent need." Guo Qizuo's eyes narrowed slightly, and he said lightly.

"Well, since Mr. Guo has a way, let's talk about it quickly." Zhu Li was shocked, looked at Guo Qizuo, and hurriedly urged.

When Guo Qizuo saw Zhu Li's impatient expression, he didn't dare to sell Guanzi anymore, and said: "Shuozhou is located in the north, and the north of the Great Wall is the grassland, since the Khitans can cross the Great Wall every year to loot us, why don't we rob them, kill their men, plunder their wives and daughters, and rob their cattle and sheep." ”

"If everything goes well, cattle and sheep can be used as military food, or they can be exchanged for grain and grass from the people, and women can be rationed to local men, and even military guards, and within 20 years, the population of Shuozhou will inevitably increase greatly." Guo Qizuo talked eloquently, and didn't seem to think that there was anything wrong with doing this, the Di people could be treated as Han people as pigs and dogs, slaughtered and looted at will, why did the Han people still treat them as human beings.

"There are a lot of people in control of the Khitans, and if they come to retaliate because of this, we alone can't resist it." When Zhang Xun heard this, he was a little worried.

"Hmph, who said that we did it, it was clearly done by the horse bandits, and the reason why the cattle, sheep, and women fell into our hands is just the trophies we snatched from the horse bandits." Guo Jiayun said lightly. "What's more, on the grassland now, there are still many Han compatriots in the tribes of those Khitans, who are being humiliated and living secretly as slaves and maids, if these Han people are brought back to Shuozhou for resettlement, it can also increase the population of this state."

"Okay, that's it, as for the people's taxes, let's say that the new official of this assassin has three fires in office, and this first fire is that within three years, the people in the territory will be rent-free and tax-free."

As soon as these words came out, Zhang Zhen and Zhou Dewei immediately looked at Zhu Li, after all, the two of them have been officials in Shuozhou for a long time, and they are also locals, Zhu Li's pardon is all their fellow villagers, so the two of them can't help but be grateful.

"By the way, sir, you draw some clever guards from the guards, and you are responsible for cultivating them into fine works, specially for you to dispatch, spy on the dignitaries and nobles in Shuozhou, since this assassin history said that it will be rent-free and tax-free, if someone dares to go beyond it and fill their own pockets, don't blame me for being polite." Zhu Li said again gloomily.

"Nuo" Guo Qizuo happily agreed, Zhang Zhen and Zhou Dewei also did not question it, they also hated those officials who bullied the township and the people in the name of the government, so they naturally agreed with Zhu Li's decision.

"Guo Chongtao, you and Zhang Shen are responsible for handling other government affairs in the Assassin's Mansion, by the way, give priority to helping the people solve difficulties, advocate education, and encourage the construction of private schools in cities, towns, and even villages, and set rewards, which must be implemented." Zhu Li thought of the late Tang Dynasty in history, the scene of martial artists rising up and literati withering, so he focused on it.

"Nuo" Zhang Zhen and Guo Chongtao hurriedly responded to the order.

"As for Zhou Dewei, you are a military general, right?" Zhu Li looked at Zhou Dewei, who was as black as a carbon head.

"Yes, Envoy."

"Then follow me, wait for me to try your martial arts, if you can pass my level, I will immediately promote and reuse you, no lie." Zhu Li looked at the other party solemnly.