Wang Zongbing jumped like thunder under the city tower, pointing at Dai Feng on the city tower and scolding.

However, Dai Feng didn't hear it, and ordered someone to send the holy decree back as it was, sneered a few times, and after telling the generals who defended the city to guard it strictly, Dai Feng went back to his house to rest with confidence.

Originally, Dai Feng was still a little worried, Wang Zongbing really had a holy decree to arrest people in his hands, but after carefully reading Wang Zongbing's holy decree, Dai Feng was relieved.

The holy decree is the real holy decree, and the emperor's great seal is on it, and it cannot be faked. However, it is not enough to use it to catch the prefect of the four grades. Frankly speaking, Wang Zongbing is purely bullying the officials of Pingliang Mansion who have never seen the world, and he uses chicken feathers as arrows, trying to deceive and deceive and reap some benefits. The holy decree said that the officers and soldiers of the Beijing battalion went to Shaanxi to quell the rebellion, and the prefectures and counties of Shaanxi wholeheartedly supported them, which was quite like that, but in fact it was just a polite remark in general terms, and did not refer to anything specifically, nor did it give General Wang the right to directly ask the local government for money and food.

Wang Zongbing took such a holy decree fox fake tiger might, but did he bully people who didn't know the goods in Pingliang Mansion? Dai Feng was the garrison general of Jinan Mansion decades ago, and in terms of experience and knowledge, he was much stronger than General Wang.

Wang Zongbing shouted under the city tower for a long time, but Dai Feng left early on the city tower, leaving the generals who defended the city and looked at Wang Zongbing coldly and scolded the street.

Wang Zongbing was very angry and helpless, and after scolding for a while, he felt quite down and very boring. Angrily, he led the team back to the East Camp.

After returning, the quartermaster waited at the door and reported an even worse thing to General Wang.

"General, the rice and grain in the army are only enough for two days. In addition, the mayor of the eastern suburbs said that he would send three more fat pigs tonight, but he has not sent them so far. The subordinates went to ask the chief, and he said that the prefect's yamen refused to let him send it...... Checkmate. There is no more food in the army. ”

Mr. Wang snorted angrily: "Has Guo Zhixian sent grain?" ”

"Nope."

"Damn, cool officer. It's so rampant! Wang Zongbing scolded angrily, "I can't cure them, I'll go find someone who can cure them!" ”

That night, the officers and men of the Beijing camp dealt with each other hastily, and the next morning, the whole army pulled out the camp and rushed to the direction of Xi'an.

As soon as General Wang left, Dai Feng took Liang Jun to settle in with a smile and prepared to train new soldiers.

Xu Liang didn't take General Wang's departure seriously at all, and learned that General Wang had evacuated. Immediately sent someone to call Lu Tongzhi and Huang Tuiguan, who were hiding in other places or at home, into the prefect's yamen.

What Xu Liang wants to discuss with them is a big matter related to people's livelihood. Shaanxi has been dry for many years, and the harvest of crops has been affected by strictness, although a while ago Huang Tuiguan presided over the inventory of fields and the distribution of farmland, these things have stabilized some people's hearts, so that the people in Pingliang Mansion are less unrestful and much more peaceful.

However, the weather is not beautiful, and it does not rain year after year. Even if Huang Tuiguan is full of strategy, there is nowhere to show it.

Xu Liang called Lu Tongzhi, Huang Tuiguan, and the governors and counties of several prefectures and counties today. It's about solving the problem of drought.

All the officials of Pingliang Prefecture gathered together, and a large map of Pingliang Mansion was placed on the large table, and Xu Liang pointed to several rivers marked on the map. Eloquently: "Huating, Chongxin." Jingzhou, plus Pingliang. Basically, they are all on the edge of Jingshui, and Zhenyuan City is close to Rushui, so if you want to completely reverse the problem of drought and water shortage, the only feasible way is to intercept the river and build a dam to store water. ”

Mao Yujie of Chongxin Zhi County, Lin Jialuo of Jingzhou Zhi County, He Cheng of Zhenyuan Zhi County, and Guo Tianxu of Pingliang Zhi County were all people who followed Xu Liang closely.

Now Xu Liang is the prefect of Pingliang, Shi Junsheng, the former governor of the original town, and Qin Feng, the former magistrate of Chongxin County, who did not listen to the greeting, have been ousted by Xu Liangshun. It is precisely because of this that Xu Liang dared to propose this project.

The officials listened carefully, and with Xu Liang's explanation, the general outline of the dam gradually formed in their hearts, and they couldn't help but nod their heads in agreement.

Xu Liang's idea is also simple, that is, the local government will come forward to build a dam on the edge of each of the five cities of Huating, Chongxin, Jingzhou, Pingliang and Zhenyuan, cut off the river water at the waist, form an artificial reservoir, and regulate the water source for irrigation of farmland.

It's a good thing, but it's a lot of difficulties in reality. Lin Jialuo, the magistrate of Jingzhou, couldn't help frowning and asked: "Futai, such a big project, is it reported to the Ministry of Engineering, and how much money is the court ready to allocate?" ”

Xu Liang shook his head and said: "The matter has already been folded in the court, as for whether the Ministry of Industry will allocate funds, I don't want to report too much hope." ”

The implication is that the probability of the court paying for it is very small.

"Hey, in that case," Lin Zhixian said, "where did the silver grain for the dam come from?" How to pay for forced labor? ”

All the officials looked at Xu Liang, obviously this was what they wanted to ask.

Xu Liang propped his hands on the table, his eyes swept over Lin Jialuo, He Cheng and others one by one, clicking on the wide map, Xu Liang said in a deep voice: "Everyone, building a dam to store water is a great thing for the benefit of the country and the people, and it is related to the stability of the people in each county, and it is also related to your political achievements. The urine nature of the court, you all know very well, until the point of piercing the sky, the court will never take a second look. It can be seen from the fact that the people's armies in various places are in turmoil, and the court reinforcements have not arrived for a long time. The construction of the dam is counting on the court, and I don't know when it will be completed. Pingliang is from the court, but it is even more with all of us here. The meaning of this government, you should not wait or rely on it, actively think about it, and organize people to build the river dam first. In the case of conscription, the people can mobilize the people who have been allocated to the fields, and as for the wages, they can be offset by the taxes of this year and next year. The annual tax of Hengzhu Pingliang Mansion could not collect a few taels of silver, so they filled the wages together. ”

The officials looked at each other, and Xu Liang's idea was also a good way. The crowd deliberated for a while and reluctantly accepted the idea.

Subsequently, Xu Liang solemnly recommended a crop to the county governors, that is, the sweet potatoes that Xu Liang wanted from the Liang family in Jingzhou, and after cultivating in the Hanwang Courtyard, the sweet potatoes grew well. Xu Liang decided to promote this drought-tolerant and high-yield crop in Binh Tinh Province.

After assigning the tasks of damming the dam and planting sweet potatoes, Xu Liang emphasized many issues of concern and announced the dismissal of the meeting. The heads of states and counties were given the task. Frowning, they left one after another.

Xu Liang's thinking fell on Wang Pu, the chief soldier of the Beijing camp, who was angry.

"Mr. Wang has been gone for four or five days. It's time to see Lord Hong, the governor of Shaanxi, right? ”

"Futai," Lu Tongzhi said worriedly, "We are so snub to General Wang. When Mr. Wang arrives in front of Lord Hong, he will definitely sue you fiercely. The government should deal with it. ”

Xu Liang looked at Lu Tongzhi indifferently, and sneered: "There are many officials in the court who want to sue this mansion, is this government the kind of person who can sue casually?" Wang Pu's face is full of virtue everywhere. In my opinion, even if he reports to Governor Hong, Lord Hong will not necessarily treat him. ”

Lu Tongzhi bowed his head, but still reminded: "Adults should be careful." ”

"You don't need to worry about this." Xu Liang waved his hand and said.

"Speaking of Governor Hong, even the government can't help but admire Hong Chengchou." Xu Liang remembered the secret report that Tsing Yiwei had presented to him in the morning. Attracted the attention of Lu Tongzhi and Huang Tuiguan, and said with admiration: "After Lord Hong took office as the governor of Shaanxi, he united the 40,000 horses sent out by our Pingliang Mansion, plus the officers and soldiers of the guard convened by the Shaanxi Metropolitan Command Embassy, a total of more than 50,000 people, launched an attack on the civilian army that retreated to Hanzhong Mansion, and in just over ten days, the official government won victory after victory, and the day before yesterday it had recovered Hanzhong City. At present, he is leading a large army to clear out the people's army that has fled to the mountains...... Now it is said that as long as the people's troops everywhere see the banner of Lord Hong, their legs and stomachs tremble. ”

Lu Tongzhi and Huang Tuiguan also happily agreed: "Although Lord Hong is a civil servant, he is proficient in the art of war, which is really an outlier. In the past, the lower officials only heard that the people's army heard the name of He Madman. will tremble, and now Lord Hong has also killed his majesty. ”

Xu Liang's face turned pale with a smile, and he said, "The people's army is not the same as they are afraid of He Renlong. It's not because Lord Hong is brave in battle and strong in martial arts. But there are other reasons. ”

"Oh, for what reason?" Lu Tongzhi and Huang Tuiguan asked in surprise.

Xu Liang looked at the two of them. He said with a difficult expression: "Do you know that Lord Hong fights and has a particularly scary hobby?" ”

Lu Tongzhi and Huang Tuiguan shook their heads, looking very dazed.

"Lord Hong's hobby is very unusual," Xu Liang said slowly, "The people are afraid of Lord Hong because Lord Hong killed and surrendered. The people's army resisted to the end, Lord Hong wanted to kill, the people's army laid down their arms and surrendered, and Lord Hong still wanted to kill. Since Lord Hong took office as governor of Shaanxi Province to preside over the war against bandits, in just half a month, more than 40,000 or 50,000 people of the civilian army have died under Lord Hong's penchant for killing and surrendering...... Lord Hong is so murderous, how can the people's army not be afraid? ”

Lu Tongzhi and Huang Tuiguan's faces turned white, and their sneering smiles were far-fetched.

The dam in Pingliang City is planned to be built on the edge of the Jingshui River 30 miles north of Pingliang City, and the person in charge of this work is Pingliang Tongzhi Lu Yifa, and the promotion of sweet potatoes is handed over to Guo Tianxu, the magistrate of Pingliang County. After Xu Liang assigned the task that day, Lu Tongzhi took over the errand of repairing the Pingliang Dam, spent a few days gathering people, touched more than 2,000 people, and began to work in full swing on the riverside.

The drought in Shaanxi is not just talking, it is a real drought. In the past, the river was deep and wide, but now it is only shallow, and the river flow speed is also small, and it looks like it is weak. Large chunks of sludge were exposed on the riverbed, which were exposed by the sun and cracked into dense cracks.

More than 2,000 people stepped on the hard sludge blocks and worked on the riverbed.

Xu Liang wore an old yellow straw hat, barely shielded from the scorching sun, and accompanied by a group of Tsing Yi guards such as Tietou, went to the construction site to inspect the progress of the project.

After looking around, he didn't see Lu Tongzhi, so Xu Liang sent someone to call him over. Taking advantage of this gear, Xu Liang sat down in front of an old man who stopped to rest, and asked with a smile: "Uncle, how long is your life this year?" ”

The old man raised his head and grinned at Xu Liang, "If you go back to your lordship, the old man is fifty-three years old this year." ”

"Hey, uncle, do you know that I am an official?" Xu Liang asked in surprise, "Secretly, don't we wear this straw hat on our head like a working person?"

The old man's mouth was even bigger, and he smiled at Xu Liang: "The old man knows that you are Lord Xu, and the old man has a daughter who is married near the north gate of the city, close to Lord Xu's mansion." ”

This...... Is this still an old neighbor?

Xu Liang touched the tip of his nose embarrassedly, and no longer pretended to be a peasant, took off the straw hat on his head, sat next to the old man, hehe twice, and asked the old man directly: "Uncle, the government is preparing to build a dam on this river, and many people have been recruited, and the government is in short supply of silver, and he can't afford to pay the ready-made wages, so he can only offset the taxes of this year and the next year, do you agree with these things, uncle?" ”

The old man smacked his mouth, picked a dog's tail and put it in his mouth, chewed it a few times with relish, was silent for a while, and smiled at Xu Liang: "I haven't studied, old man, and I can't tell many big truths." Lord Xu, no matter how it is rectified, as long as this dam is repaired, in the coming year, as Lord Lu said, you can divert water to water the ground, which is a great good deed. Tens of thousands of people in Pingliang will remember your kindness. Other people don't know about the old man, but the old man's family must set up an immortal tablet for you, Lord Xu, and the three pillars of incense will be ...... in the morning and evening."

"Don't mind," Xu Liang's face changed suddenly, and he hurriedly waved his hand and said: "If you are satisfied, there is no need to set up a tablet, and there will be three pillars of incense in the morning and evening, which will be even more unbelievable." ”

"Heh, the old man is just talking," the old man grinned again, "I won't know until the dam is built." Now it's useless to get all these empty heads! ”

Xu Liang smiled awkwardly, and once again persuaded the old man not to set up a tablet and not to put incense. The old man is a real person, Xu Liang chatted with him in detail, and knew that the old man had three sons and one daughter under his knees, his wife died of illness a few years ago, and the three sons were all bitter croppers, except for serving a few acres of dry land, they didn't understand anything.

The daughter and son-in-law's family is still better, and the old man often goes to his daughter's house to stay for a few days......

The old man raised his hands in favor of building the dam. His idea was very simple, the dam was repaired, the land of his three sons would be watered, the crops would be harvested, and the life of the old man and his sons would gradually improve, so that they would not be tight all year round.

is a very simple idea, and it is also the true thought of the vast majority of Pingliang people. Xu Liang felt that the old man's bearded old face was a little kind.

After chatting with the old man for a while, Pingliang and Lu Yifa finally came over. He was accompanied by two non-commissioned officers.

"Lord Futai, don't talk, hurry, go back to the mansion." Lu Tongzhi seemed to be in a hurry, pointed in the direction of Pingliang City in his hand, and said, "Lord Governor, Lord Hong has suddenly arrived at Pingliang Mansion, and he is sitting at the Yamen of the Prefect's Mansion right now." ”

Xu Liang sat up abruptly and asked suspiciously, "Is Lord Hong calm?" ”

At this time, the two sergeants who ran over with Lu Tongzhi hugged their fists at Xu Liang and said: "I have seen Lord Futai, the little one is Lord Zhongcheng's personal soldiers, Lord Zhongcheng has advanced to Pingliang Mansion in an hour, and he is in a hurry to see you." (To be continued......)