"Huh!"

Xia Huan, who was originally sitting on his knees, stood up with a little anger. stared at the steward of the Jing family, and said: "The tenants, craftsmen, and house slaves in the hands of the Jing family, I don't know how to do it, it's difficult, no one can take it out!" ”

The steward of the Jing family didn't have a hard time with Xia Huan, and immediately knelt down and said: "Your Highness, the head of my family is the most diligent and thrifty, not to mention our Chu country, how many people in the world don't know?" Although the Jing family has a large number of subordinates, they perform their own duties and dare not waste a trace of people's power. ”

"Humph!" Xia Huan's anger did not decrease, and he snorted coldly and said: "It's not busy now, it's raining, and most of the craftsmen in the workshop are idle, do you think you don't understand!" ”

"Your Highness, forgive your sins!" The steward of the Jing family, after listening to Xia Huan's words, actually began to cry.

"In the past month, the rains have been continuous, and the fields are waterlogged, and if they are not cleaned up every day, the roots of the grain will rot, and there will be no more grain for the next year!

Although there are many craftsmen in the workshop, each craftsman has land in his home. They don't have a job, and they need to go home to help! Therefore, we really can't spare manpower! ”

The steward of the Jing family cried and howled at the same time, as if there was some unjust case in this county office.

Xia Huan's face became more and more gloomy and ugly.

"I hope Your Highness will understand!" Seeing that the trick of the Jing family's steward was useful, the other old men also cried to Xia Huan one after another.

"If Your Highness really needs manpower, please bring me this old bone! Even if you die on the embankment, you will be old and decayed, and you will never complain! ”

The last sentence of the Jing family's steward was as if he was going to die on the battlefield.

"I hope you can remember what you said today, and don't come to ask for this gentleman in the future!" After Xia Huan finished speaking, he flicked his sleeves and left in a huff.

As soon as Xia Huan left the county office, a group of old men who were still crying loudly patted the hem of their clothes one by one and stood up with a smile.

"Brother Jing's plan is really good, foolish brother admires, admires!" On the side, Ji's steward also smiled and saluted the steward of the Jing family and said.

"Prizes, prizes!" The steward of the Jing family returned the salute. Then, he pretended to sigh and said: "His Royal Highness the Seventh is still too young, it's good to worry about the country and the people, but unfortunately, it's not stable enough!" ”

"That's a good point." Ji's steward smiled slightly, and seemed to have the same taste as some heroes.

Xia Huan, who was "angry" by a group of family stewards, did not seem to give up. The next day, he invited someone from Shoudu.

I heard that this person was recommended by His Royal Highness the Prince, and a few years ago, the governance of Changsha County was quite appreciated by the Chu Emperor.

Xia Huan personally accompanied this person and took a turn on the embankment. It seems that it is to find the loopholes that exist on the embankment, so as to convince those families.

However, when they returned, the family spies arranged in front of the monarch's mansion were rewarded, and both of them looked solemn. On the same day, the man returned to Shoudu in a hurry. It seems that the river embankment will not last enough to survive this year's rainy season.

However, the stewards of the family, on the one hand, were a little uneasy, and at the same time, they were worried that this was Xia Huan's fraud, and it was a little difficult to make a choice. Many people can only go to Shoudu overnight and ask the head of the family.

However, those heads of the family were also confused, so the answers they got from the shoe stewards were also the same, and they all waited and watched.

On the first day after that, Yingshangjun Xia Huan took more than a dozen palace guards back to Shoudu.

The next day, those who had crossed the embankment with Xia Huan dragged their families in the rain and left Yingshang. The direction is not the river embankment imagined by the stewards, but Shoudu in the southeast.

Those Changxiu sergeants, as well as the tenants, were ordinary people. Those who come into contact with it are naturally ordinary people.

Such a big move made those businessmen whose family businesses were on the wing suddenly panicked. Many people began to pack up, ready to leave for a while.

Panic, like a contagion, made the atmosphere in the city more and more tense.

In addition, the merchants who came from the ferry in the past few days have said that a major flood has broken out in the upper reaches of Yingshui, and it will not be long before it will spread here. It also made the people in the city panic.

The originally bustling streets suddenly became a little deserted.

……

In the Shoudu, Xu Chuchen, who had not closed his eyes for two days, walked into a simple palace with a river map.

"Your Highness, this is already the loopholes and deficiencies in the Yingshang River embankment. As long as it is used reasonably, Yingshang will become a country. ”

"Thank you for your hard work." In the palace, the thirty-year-old prince Xia Yan took the river map from the hands of the attendants, and just glanced at it.

"This time, there is a big flood in the south of Yingchuan, and the palace has asked His Majesty to ask for a decree that you will serve as the chief historian of Nanyang, assist the king of Nanyang, and rule the water first."

"Your Highness!" Under the steps, Xu Chuchen knelt down and thanked him.

"The eldest brother has excellent ability, and Taizu especially appreciated it back then. When you arrive in Nanyang, I hope you can get closer to him, understand? ”

"Wow. Minister, I understand what His Highness means. Xu Chuchen nodded and said.

Xia Yan waved his hand and said, "Go, you are a smart person, you should understand what to do today." ”

"Whoa!" Xu Chuchen deducted grace again, and then left with a hint of excitement in his tired eyes.

Picking up the river map on the table, Xia Yan handed it to the attendant beside him somewhat casually.

"Take it, take the people, pout the embankment."

Xia Yan's voice was unfazed, as if tens of thousands of lives were on his face, and in his eyes, they were just child's play.

The attendant respectfully took the river map, and after looking at it twice, he arched his hand and said: "Your Highness, killing a thousand enemies and losing eight hundred will not do us much good!" ”

"Kill a thousand enemies and lose eight hundred?" Xia Yan chuckled lightly and said, "It's just eight hundred, in exchange for my third brother a new army, no loss!" ”

The attendant was shocked in his heart, and asked tentatively, "Does Your Highness want to target the Southern Gu Army?" ”

A year ago, the state of Chu had an unhappy quarrel with the state of Yue under the control of Zhao Tuo in the south. A border army of Yue State sacked Hengshan County several times, causing panic, but fortunately, the king of Hengshan was in charge to control the situation.

However, although the situation is under control, the relationship between the two countries is getting worse and worse. For this reason, Chu Emperor Xia Ze specially asked the third prince Xia Xu to train a new army of more than 10,000 people, named Nangu, stationed in Changsha to make sure that everything was perfect.

"The third brother's training ability, this palace never doubts. This palace just wants to cut off my third brother's unrealistic fantasy. ”

The squire's heart suddenly understood. The crown prince pays attention to civil governance, and the third prince pays attention to martial arts. Therefore, the crown prince planted wings above the court. The third prince is training to improve himself.

The two are in a delicate balance.

However, the formation of the Southern Gu Army a year ago broke this delicate balance.

The three princes relied on the generals, and most of their influence was in Surabaya County and Wei State. Changsha, whether it is for the crown prince or the third prince, is still a virgin land.

Once the Southern Gu army is stationed in Changsha, it means that the hands of the three princes can reach Changsha County. This is unbearable for the crown prince Xia Last.

What's more, in his opinion, the Yue Kingdom has long passed the era of strength, and the legacy of the Qin State has been almost wiped out in the past fifty years. Today's Yue Kingdom is only a little better than the barbarians.

With the 30,000 pro-army of King Hengshan, the offense may be insufficient, but the defense is more than enough.

Since Emperor Xia Ze of Chu allowed the third prince Xia Xu to train his troops, he naturally handed over the Southern Gu army to Xia Xu as part of his pro-army.

Except for a small part of the money and food, most of them need to be solved by Xia Xu himself.

It's just that Xia Xu doesn't have a fief, so naturally he doesn't have so much money. Therefore, the general Ji Shu became his most important supporter.

In particular, Yingshang's financial resources accounted for almost half of the New Army's expenditures.

Pouting the river embankment, too, also represents pouting the money bags of the three princes. It will take at least a few years to make Nan Gu into an army. In this way, Xia Yan also has sufficient means to deal with it.