Winter in the land of Yanzhou has finally arrived, and at the beginning of November, the snowflakes began to fall in the capitals of Yanzhou. Ge Xin finally stayed in Fengwei and other three counties as officials to govern the localities, but every one of the three counties was dominated by the Shanyang army. In addition to Ge Xin, more than a dozen officials sent by the Yanzhou government army were also retained by Zhao Xun, and finally stayed here to continue to manage local government affairs.

In order to explain the situation to Xu Jie, Ge Xin and others also reported the situation to Xu Jie. However, his recital was secretly intercepted by the Sanyang Army, and it was sent out after a delay. Not only that, but also added a lot of words of appreciation and support for the policies of the Shanyang Army, and even hoped that Xu Jie could follow suit.

Although Ge Xin and the others explained the situation to Xu Jie, they were still very dissatisfied with Ge Xin and the others' first cut and then played. Coupled with the subsequent several reports, the policies implemented by the Shanyang Army had no choice but to be implemented in a big way, which made Xu Jie very distrustful of Ge Xin and others. Especially after learning that the family members of Ge Xin and the others were quietly picked up, Xu Jie's trust in them was completely lost, and he already regarded them as the people of the Shanyang Army in his heart. Unlike others, Ge Xin was Xu Jie's cronies and a member of the Governor's Mansion, and such a person rebelled, which made Xu Jie very unoptimistic about the future of the Yanzhou Mansion Army.

Snowflakes continued to fall, turning the barren fields, towering walls, and high and low houses in the city into a white patch. Standing between the snowy sky and the earth, it is really very emotional. In the streets and alleys, many children are building snowmen, having snowball fights, and having fun.

"Squeaky ......" feet on the snow that is already five fingers deep, making a series of crunchy sounds, which is a different feeling. The sky is still fluttering with large snowflakes, slowly falling.

"Wow! What a beautiful snowfall! Let's build a snowman here! Behind Zhao Xun and the others, there was a still childish voice, followed by an echo that was also childish. You don't have to look back to know that these are the little ghosts in the city. Maybe it was because of the proximity of the Shanyang Army, or maybe it was because of the fearlessness of the children, they followed the 20 or so Shanyang soldiers who were dressed in cotton clothes and wrapped in thick clothes, running and playing all the way. Of course, you can also get some sugar cubes made from five grains.

The current Fengwei and other three counties are very different from the beginning. Through the cooperation of the Shanyang Army and Ge Xin and other civilian officials, most of the people's taxes were reduced, and the autumn grain in the autumn was also killed by the Shanyang Army, so that the people almost got all the harvest, of course, there are still some taxes, but they are not high. In addition, these people sold most of the surplus grain to the Shanyang army, exchanged it for Youzhou coins, and bought the supplies needed for their families. After trading with the Xiaoguo Army, many merchants in Jizhou entered the land of these three counties under the arrangement of the Department of Commerce and opened various shops, which can be described as good quality and low price, and also made the life of the people in these three counties several levels better.

In addition, tenants and landless people, who had been burdened with heavy taxes, were now given land. It also made the people more cooperative with the actions and policies of the Shanyang Army.

Even for the winter, the Shanyang Army also sent a large number of soldiers to wear some shabby winter clothes to ordinary people, especially the people in various villages and towns outside the city, and they were properly resettled by the Shanyang Army. made Ge Xin and the others have to admire the kindness of the Shanyang Army to the people, and also made them feel the difference between the Shanyang Army and the Yanzhou Mansion Army and the gap between the Yanzhou Mansion Army and the Shanyang Army. Let them tremble involuntarily, if Xu Jie's subordinate land can be the same as this, it will be a good feeling.

It is precisely because of this that the people of the three counties began to look to the Shanyang army instead of Xu Jie and the Yanzhou army. It is also because of this that these children are not afraid of these soldiers.

"General, since the beginning of winter, more than 30,000 displaced people and disaster victims have entered the land of the three counties. Most of them came from the north, especially after the first light snow five days ago, and more people came in. Even the government in the north was unwilling to stop it, and even directly induced these victims into our territory. In addition, according to the report of Lord Feng, there are more victims in Yanzhou Prefecture. Tang Li said in a deep voice.

Seeing the fluttering snowflakes falling in front of him, melting into a part of the snow on the earth, Zhao Xun said in a deep voice: "It seems that this snowy scene is very beautiful, but for ordinary people, it may be a disaster, and it is sad in winter!" As for the official government of the Yanzhou Prefecture Army, I am afraid that it has also been ordered by Xu Jie, and these displaced people will be put into our territory in order to consume our materials and drag us down. ”

Tang Li said with a smile: "However, they don't know that we have purchased a large amount of grain and grass from Jizhou, which is enough to resettle these displaced people."

The snow is falling heavier, getting denser and thicker, and the snowflakes are getting bigger and bigger. Those snowflakes fell on Zhao Xun and the others, and they scattered one after another, turning into misty snow powder. Every qiē in the city was covered with a piece of snow, and the whole heaven and earth were covered with white.

Zhao asked: "Don't be careless, the city is still better, let the township inspection department pay more attention, and any place where there may be problems must be investigated in more detail." If there is a disaster, settle them. Well, this matter is let the governor's three counties make Lord Ge fully controlled. ”

Lu Yu said with a smile: "General, I'm afraid that now Master Ge also understands the meaning of this Xuanfu envoy who represents the head of the civil officials of the government." The subordinate pondered that he was going to come to the adult to theorize recently. ”

Tang Li said: "Isn't this very good, it also shows that the estrangement between Ge Xin and Xu Jie is difficult to dissolve, that is, he can be co-opted by us." ”

Zhao Xun smiled and said, "The time has come, and it is also extremely beneficial for us to be able to win over one." Even if he can't be wooed, let him and Xu Jie's be completely separated. By the way, how is the Guards Battalion doing now? ”

Zhao Xun handed over an additional 2,000 soldiers to Tang Li, and asked him to mix 2,000 pro-guard soldiers and 1,000 young and strong soldiers to form a pro-guard battalion, and finally select 3,000 of the most elite soldiers from among them.

Tang Lidao: "Three thousand people have been selected, and the remaining two thousand soldiers, although they cannot become the elite of the pro-guard battalion, are also the best among the ordinary soldiers, and they are all assigned to each other." ”

Zhao Xun nodded slightly, now the soldiers of all capitals have undergone strict training and are almost in the army. Most of the soldiers were veterans of a hundred battles after bloody battles, and a few of them had also experienced the encirclement and suppression of the surrounding mountain bandits. The avant-garde army now has 25,000 regular soldiers and 10,000 baggage soldiers, and these baggage soldiers serve the army in wartime and the people in peacetime. They have to go through training, and they can also get half of the salary of the regular soldiers. Of course, if the regular soldiers are killed, the baggage soldiers who are willing to make up for the regular soldiers can also enter. When necessary, they will be forced to join the regular army to fight.

Although the government affairs of the three counties were handled by Ge Xin and the civil officials left behind by Ge Xin under the command of the original Xu Jie, who accompanied Ge Xin, in fact, most of these civil officials had been incorporated into the Shanyang Army. Since the departure of other people who were unwilling to stay and who were not favored by Zhao Xun, Xu Jie stopped giving them a stipend. In other words, they all have to live on the Shanyang Army now. What's more, all their families were quietly relocated here by the Shanyang Army and given proper placement. Although many of them are in the land, so they will be completely separated from Xu Jie, but they have no choice and regret. Moreover, now they are treated better than Xu Jie's subordinates. You must know that especially officials like them who really do practical things are difficult to gain a foothold under Xu Jie. Before they were sent here, they were idle officials, or rather, they had no real power.

After the winter, Ge Xin also began to be busy commanding the county soldiers of the three counties and the small officials and servants in various places to be busy inspecting and arranging the city, but he did not pay special attention to the connection between him and the Yanzhou Governor's Mansion, and did not know that the relationship between himself and Xu Jie had been severed.

But after distributing winter clothes to some poor people and relocating the homeless, he suddenly realized that there seemed to be something wrong with his family's presence here, as if he had not been ordered by the Governor's Mansion for a month, and the message he sent to the Governor's Mansion had not been answered. Now, he was a little anxious. After immediately inquiring about his wife, he realized that they had been quietly left Jiyin Mansion with his warrant.

After questioning the officials who stayed with him, he realized that he seemed to have been deceived. It turned out that everyone else had become officials of the Shanyang Army, and they had already taken refuge in the Shanyang Army with the Shanyang Army's money.

What made Ge Xin even more annoyed was that all the officials who stayed with him under his command knew about it, and he was still in the dark, and he didn't know anything, and no one had asked him about it, and no one had talked to him in detail, all of them silently accepted this fact, and what was even more annoying was that they all went to meet their new bosses in person. It doesn't seem to be anything, but in the eyes of Xu Jie and Yanzhou Mansion Army, I am afraid that he is already doing things for the Shanyang Army sincerely.

"A bunch of bastards, why don't you tell me about it?" After all, Ge Xin still couldn't hold back the anger in his heart, and angrily asked the officials of the Xuanfu Envoy Yamen. Of course, a small number of these officials were left with Ge Xin. The rest, some of them were recruited from the local government, some were transferred from Shanyang Prefecture, and some were quietly dispatched from Jizhou.

"My lord, that's what the shogun meant. Besides, we all thought that the adults already knew about the situation, after all, our family members were quietly brought back by the general. In addition, we are also taking the Shanyang Army's Yulu. An old subordinate said in a deep voice.

"I ...... What an idiot I am! Xuanfu envoy, haha...... Xuanfu envoy, the head of the civil officials of a state. It is no wonder that General Lee temporarily designated my officials for this purpose, in order to separate us from the Governor. Ge Xin shook his head and smiled bitterly, by now, he had completely understood.

"My lord, it's not that his subordinates are disrespectful to Xu Dudu. As far as the adults can see, compared with the land under the jurisdiction of the Yanzhou Prefecture Army and the land under the jurisdiction of the Shanyang Army, the lives of the common people should be clear to the adults. Don't hide it from adults, in the past, we can't be like here, so smoothly as officials, so freely display what we have learned and thought in our hearts. If there were no series of actions of the general, the subordinate would also be willing to work under the general. The official said in a loud voice.

Ge Xin was speechless for a moment, as an official of the Governor's Mansion, he naturally knew very well about the places under the jurisdiction of the Yanzhou Mansion Army. Not only him, but also many capable officials have built a system to reduce taxes and reform the rule of law. However, Xu Jie, who was busy with the conquest of the Wuwei army, needed a lot of money and food, and would not reduce taxes, plus he needed to rely on the local clans, and he would not go up to reform the localities, nor would he dismiss those officials who colluded with the local clans. In addition, Xu Jie is a military attaché, and he still doesn't understand civil affairs very well, so he naturally won't change too much about government affairs.

A series of reasons have made the government affairs of the areas under the jurisdiction of the Yanzhou government army mixed. It can be said that many local officials and local gentry colluded with each other and acted recklessly, which made the people hate these officials to the core, but they had to swallow their anger and pretend to be snakes. The local people are eager for the early death of these officials behind their backs, for these situations, not only he Ge Xin understands, but many people know it, but Xu Jie is unwilling to change, so what can he do?

Looking at the people of these three counties, they welcome the local officials, and they all welcome the policies of the Shanyang Army. Otherwise, it would not have caused the surrounding people to migrate here. In the land under the jurisdiction of the Yanzhou army, the people are afraid of the army, but here it is not. In the areas under the jurisdiction of the Yanzhou government, the people were afraid to join the army, but here they enthusiastically participated. Why? In addition to the fact that the soldiers are well paid, it is not because they want to protect their current lives.

"Forget it, this official went to see General Li in person and asked, your choice was right!" After a while, Ge Xin said in a deep voice, and then went to the general's mansion.

Stepping on the snow and looking at the children playing on the street, Ge Xin felt empty for a while. Maybe he should have expected it here, maybe he should have understood it when his family arrived. But he didn't investigate it in detail, he didn't pursue it.

"Could it be that in my heart, I also want to stay in the Shanyang Army to serve?" Ge Xin looked at the fluttering snowflakes and couldn't help but ask himself about his heart. The snow on the ground was thick, white, immaculate, out of sight. It's all snowflakes falling slowly, and it's easy to give people the illusion of tranquility. But his heart kept tumbling.

When Ge Xin arrived at the General's Mansion, Zhao Xun had already completed his inspection of the four gates of the city. The guards in charge of the guards saw that the Xuanfu envoy, who rarely came to the general's mansion, arrived, and they didn't even ask, and directly let him in.

Lin Lei, who was on duty, welcomed the Xuanfu envoy, who was about to be co-opted by the general, into the hall of the general's mansion, and said understandingly: "Lord Ge rarely comes to the general's mansion, you wait, my general has just returned from inspecting the four gates, and he should be disarming and changing clothes at this moment, I have already reported it, and I will not delay you for a long time." ”

Ge Xin hurriedly said, "Thank you, just wait for the general here." ”

Lin Lei asked people to bring hot tea and put it beside Ge Xin, and then he said goodbye and left.

Looking at the back of Lin Lei's departure, Ge Xin secretly sighed, compared with the personal guard officers of the General's Mansion, the comparison of the Governor's Mansion is far behind. Not to mention that the attitude of the officer on duty is very good, and the guards outside the door are also very good, in winter, their tall figures have left a good impression on Ge Xinxin. Compared with the Governor's Mansion, it is simply heaven and earth.

A moment later, Ge Xin heard Zhao Xun's footsteps. Zhao Xun, who was wearing a samurai uniform, walked quickly like an ordinary young man. If you don't know the identity of the other party, you will definitely see the other party as the son of a family of people, rather than a general who leads tens of thousands of troops.

When Zhao Xun saw Ge Xin, he happily bowed his hand and said: "Master Ge, you are a rare guest, since you have been here for a few months, you have rarely come to the door!" ”

Seeing Zhao Xun, the corners of Ge Xin's mouth were bitter, he sighed slightly, and said, "General Li inspected the whole city early in the morning, and admired him. In the land of the three counties, the people encountered the raging war, and they did not dare to have the slightest negligence. I forgot to visit General Li here, and I hope to atone for my sins! ”

Zhao Xun said with a smile: "It's okay! What could be more important than people's livelihood? Have a seat! Have a seat! Lord Ge came this time, is there any difficult problem to solve? ”

Ge Xin looked strange, and he stopped talking. Although Zhao Xun said that he didn't come to the general's mansion very often, it didn't mean that he didn't come. It's just that every time I come, I ask for advice or ask for help, not come to visit or whatever.

Seeing Ge Xin like this, Zhao Xunyan didn't know what was going on, but naturally he wouldn't say it directly. So he frowned slightly and said, "Master Ge, you are outspoken on weekdays, why are you a little unhappy today." There is no need to taboo anything, but it doesn't hurt to talk about it, I can solve it, and wait for the right to help. Besides, helping you isn't helping myself. After all, my Shanyang Army also needs your help here. ”

After thinking about it, Ge Xin said: "General Li, in fact, you didn't gain much from the land of the three counties, but paid a lot for the land of the three counties. In this way, the people of the three counties are the burden of the general. I say that, right? ”、

Zhao Xun was slightly stunned and said with a smile: "Since Master Ge asked like this, General Ben will also speak bluntly." According to the income and expenditure of money and grain, there is indeed not much gain, and even, the expenditure is greater than the harvest. ”

Ge Xin was a little stunned, he didn't expect that the other party would be blunt and didn't hide it. So he looked at Zhao Xun and asked: "However, in mid-September, the reason why the general asked the governor for the land of the three counties was that the land of the three counties could provide logistics support for the general. But now, it seems that the general's goal cannot be achieved, why is this? Could it be that the general is so willing to dedicate himself to my Yanzhou army? This is not the temperament that General Li should have. ”

Zhao Xun smiled: "What is Lord Ge suspicious? To be honest, from the point of view of income and expenditure, our Shanyang Army has indeed suffered losses and has not received great benefits, or in other words, it will not be able to see benefits in the short term. Of course, if my Shanyang Army is the same as the Yanzhou Army, it will naturally be a different matter. However, how are the people living in these three counties now? They can sincerely support our Shanyang Army, and can provide 40,000 or 50,000 young people for our Shanyang Army at any time, without affecting the lives of the people. When necessary, they can provide nearly 100,000 young men to defend against the Wuwei Army together with our Shanyang Army. ”

"In this cold winter season, when heavy snow is blocking retreats and reinforcements, isn't this the most advantageous support? Master Ge should understand that in many cases, money and food are not necessarily omnipotent, and the soldiers and horses have money and food, which is the foundation of war. Lord Ge, if the people of Luzhou Mansion can be the same as us here, and sincerely support Xu Dudu, you say, can the counties in the central part of Luzhou Mansion be attacked by the Wuwei Army like this? ”

"Lord Ge, what I value is not only money and food, but more importantly, the people's hearts. My Shanyang Army is here, there is a Wuwei Army in front, and the Yanzhou Mansion Army in the rear is not waiting for trust, but has to be guarded against, you say, this is the place where my Shanyang Army is stationed, can I rest assured that he will be in charge of Xu Jie? ”

A series of questions, Ge Xin has no way to answer. He naturally understands the good and bad of what he said, indeed, now these three counties are sincerely supporting the Shanyang Army. Because of the entry of the victims from the north, the people here are even more aware of the good and bad of the Yanzhou military under the rule of the army. Now more than 20,000 Shanyang troops are between the Wuwei army and the Yanzhou government army, and when the heavy snow is blocked, they are indeed worried about the surprise attack of the troops in the north and south. But now, if the Yanzhou government army dares to come, Ge Xin believes that not to mention the Shanyang army, even the people in the city will fight back.

Ge Xin asked dryly: "Then why did the general move the people of Changli County and Fengwei County to Jizhou?" Wouldn't it be better to let them stay? ”

Zhao inquired: "Half of the local people are not relocated, how can Xu Jie agree to give us these empty places." When the people are gone, there will be more fields and houses left, and it will be easier for the victims to be naturalized. In addition, moving to Jizhou, the people's lives will be better, not to mention, they can also exchange a large amount of grain and grass materials, which is also a win-win situation. ”