The white sandbank, this kind of contiguous plains, is the most suitable terrain for human settlement.

Now that the environment is benign and the environment is changing, it is indeed a reasonable and good policy for Tuntian to carry out early centralized development.

In addition, Yan Luo proposed to develop salt profits, and he also thought of it with Zhou Bai.

In the past, the world was mixed, the Ningjiang River led to the Tianjiang River, and the Tianjiang River led to the ocean.

In the case of smooth water transportation, it is very convenient for dragon boats to travel between the inland and the coast, and even Dingzhou does not worry about cheap sea salt.

Bei'an County is less than 100 years old, and its political resources are naturally insufficient, and there is no one in the central court to support it.

It is because the governors and county guards of previous dynasties did not think of wasting manpower and material resources to develop salt-producing land in Baishazhou, which is really a limitation of the system.

If Zhou Bai can take the border city county and unify the northern part of Dingzhou, then the development of salt mines, well salt, and salt ponds will be a smooth chapter.

In the era when countries stood side by side, sea salt would not be so cheap when it entered the inland areas.

Under the monopoly of salt and iron, only iron can do it, if the salt-producing land can be controlled, the salt can also achieve a monopoly, and the finance and taxation will increase greatly.

"The salt and iron house will be connected with you, and you, as the only civil affairs official in Baishazhou, will assist in the relevant matters of tuntian and salt mining."

"Write a note and hand it over, submit it to the central center of the governor's office for discussion, and then set the development regulations." Zhou Bai bowed slightly, agreeing with what Yan Luo said.

But that's all, it still depends on the next performance, Baishazhou is a good place to display your talents.

"Whoa." Yan Luo bowed in response, obviously understanding what Zhou Bai meant, and didn't say much.

At this time, He Zhiwu, after listening to the questions and answers between the two, seemed to think of something, but he was a little hesitant and didn't dare to say it.

Zhou Bai frowned, and said in a deep voice: "I'm so open-minded, I'll say anything." ”

He Zhiwu hurriedly confessed, hurriedly ran to the side of the road not far away, and pulled out a few grasses to come back.

Holding the grass, he explained: "Back to the capital, Xia Guan has been surveying in the field in the past few days, and found that this kind of grass grows in many places after the spiritual transformation, and there is a tendency to grow intensively. ”

"One hundred and twenty war horses in the town garrison, each horse has been fed and tested, and there is no rejection, and it can be used as staple food."

"What is the specific impact, it may be necessary for a professional groom in the carriage and horse house to identify and raise for a period of time."

Zhou Bai took the grass and looked at it carefully, it was violet blue, vanilla scent, green and tender, and had a very light aura connotation.

This era is the era of aura recovery, and the aura level of the entire Tian Yuan Continent has risen to more than one level, and countless beings are working hard for the leap.

However, even though the content of aura has far exceeded that of the past, there are still very few creatures that can have spiritual transformation.

Most of the animals and plants have undergone some changes in appearance, but they are still mortal due to the environment, and there is no aura left in their bodies.

Now the new grass of this white sandbank, if there is a trace of aura left in the leaves, it is very rare, and it belongs to a plant population with evolutionary potential.

Zhou Bai had a certain judgment in his heart, so he called out to the Jiaoma wandering in the distance: "Come, come here." ”

Running around, I thought that the owner told it to have a good thing, but when I saw that it was letting it eat grass, I was immediately unhappy.

The nostrils hummed and the white air was boiling hot, but he refused to open his mouth, as if eating some grass was abusing it.

"You're also a horse, what's hypocritical? Identify whether it has any effect on ordinary war horses. Zhou Bai laughed a little angrily, and slapped the horse's head, he was really used to eating delicacies from the mountains and seas.

I had no choice but to open my mouth to eat, but the taste was unexpectedly good.

Soon it communicated with each other, stumbling and telling Zhou Bai that this was a spirit grass, which was very suitable for ordinary war horses.

However, it is not suitable for Jiaoma who need to eat meat, and can only be used for dessert after a meal at most to eliminate food.

After listening to the appraisal of the scene, Zhou Bai knew that this grass was also useful for Jiaoma and was a good forage.

Zhou Bai drove away the scene, turned back to He Zhiwu and asked, "You mean to build a pasture in Baishazhou to raise horses?" ”

He Zhiwu took a deep breath and replied: "Governor Yingming, as far as the last general knows, there are no large pastures in Bei'an and Ruinan, and Baishazhou is located south of Cangshan, which is just right. ”

"There are many plains in the north, if the governor wants to dominate the north, it is inevitable to form a larger cavalry, and the purchase of war horses in the early stage can be called an expedient measure, and there must be a pasture for breeding and raising war horses."

"Jin, Xianbei and other grassland countries are ambitious, and once they have the opportunity, they will inevitably go south, and they must be guarded against."

Looking around the Baisha Town, as far as the eye can see, the rich greenery on the white soil renders the breath of life.

Zhou Bai laughed, patted He Zhiwu's shoulder and praised: "Hahaha, Dashan, Baishazhou is so big, then let's go to Tun Mu and Mu in parallel." Next, you will cooperate well with Yan Dianshi, and strive to build Baishazhou into a plug in the south of the Yangtze River. ”

In his eyes, the ability to jump out of his own limitations and maintain a broader vision is a necessary element of great talent.

He Zhiwu was stunned for a moment, and then saw that Yan Luo was congratulating him, and he didn't understand that he was going to be promoted.

While waiting for the main force to catch up, except for Zhou Bai himself riding around the scene, he didn't check the construction work of this humble city too much.

Because the Governor's Office had not invested much resources before that.

You must know that at the beginning, Chu Kai was only a town guard transferred from the head of the cavalry, and the defenders of Baisha Town only had 100 people in his headquarters.

Later, the governor asked Zhou Bai for instructions, and made it clear that the administrative level of Baisha Town was a special "deputy county level" above the township level and below the county level, so that the follow-up soldiers and resources were added.

The soldiers and horses of Baisha Town reached 500 people in a battalion, and also sent scribes to the official residence to assist Chu Kai in handling affairs.

It's just that because there are too few outsiders passing through Baishazhou, these scribes have not played a role.

It wasn't until Yan Luo, the first civil official in Baisha Town, arrived, that he began to register the resources and land of Baishazhou.

Zhou Bai walked through a field not far from Baisha Town, and happened to see several scribes with more than a dozen soldiers, measuring Xintian in full swing.

This was a very normal scene, but Zhou Bai always felt that the energy in them was stronger than the current officials of the Governor's Mansion.

It was very familiar, and suddenly he understood that this was the strength he had accumulated in Pingcang and worked together to create a foundation.

A spark can start a prairie fire, and the more white the paper, the easier it is to sway pen and ink......

Looking at the qi, I saw that the white sandbar was vast, and there was a hidden white gas rising on the original barren land.

Looking at its future weather, it seems that it is no less than any mature and fertile land, which can provide less foundation luck.

In particular, an area centered on Baisha Town has been initially developed, and the rising white air is like a bubbling hookah.

It's only been a long time, and in the sky above Baisha City, there is actually a cloud and mist connection, and it is constantly providing luck support to the Central Governor's Mansion in the distance.

It is an unexpected joy to have this experimental area, and it can be compared with other administrative counties.

What these ordinary scribes and soldiers didn't know was that because of them, Zhou Bai decided to upgrade the administrative rank of Baisha Town again after the founding of the country.

That night, the army gathered in Baisha Town to rest, and Chu Kai also returned in time.

Zhou Bai did not sleep in the town guard mansion in the city, but lived in the big tent of the Chinese army outside the city, and because of Chu Kai's report, it was still brightly lit in the middle of the night.

Chu Kai is an old subordinate, or a promising cavalry leader, since he was transferred to the barren Baisha Town, he has been conscientious and uncomplaining.

"The marching route, the last general has gone through it completely, and he can take the role of a guide...... Shazhou City is estimated to be only guarded by a battalion of weak soldiers, and there is no sign of development in the surrounding area, so it seems that the changes in Baishazhou have not yet been noticed...... Through Shazhou City, it is Hougang County......"

The relevant information was quickly reported, and a group of generals and staff officers spoke out from time to time, asking for more detailed information, and then adding to the previous temple calculation strategy.

After the time came, the big tent was empty, leaving only Chu Kai and Zhou Bai.

"It's been almost a year, and your old brothers have fought on the battlefield and made many achievements, and now they are all higher than your official position as an eight-rank town guard, how do you feel?" Zhou Bai looked at Chu Kai with a smile.

Chu Kai's face did not change, and he replied solemnly: "If you say that there is no sense of loss, it is self-deception, but the lord will simply pull me out in the field, and Chu Kai will die in revenge." ”

"I knew at the beginning that you sent me to guard this place, there must be a deep meaning, at least now it can be used as a transit point for grain and grass."

Zhou Bai could naturally hear the sincerity in his words, and there was no half-falsehood.

If you are a loyal minister and a good general, you should be promoted.

"Chu Kai, can you make progress in your kung fu this year?" Zhou Bai asked a little abruptly.

Chu Kai was a little unsure, but out of absolute obedience to Zhou Bai, he immediately beat his chest and saluted, and said very confidently: "The last general has always regarded himself as a horseman, and now he thinks that he is not inferior to any commander on the grassland." ”

Commander, this self-evaluation can be said to be very high for the Central Plains cavalry, and it is a basic skill to open the bow left and right, and to shoot a hundred shots.

Sitting on one side, coupled with the cultivation of official spirit, does the natal finally have a tendency to transform?

Zhou Bai's eyes narrowed slightly, looking at the top of Chu Kai's head, a red natal broke through the surrounding attack of the soldiers, as if there was a momentum of breaking the army.

"Chu Kai listened to the order, and now he has appointed you as the deputy commander of the horse army, leading 1,500 horsemen as the vanguard, and the third watch will set off first."

"Here, one is to attack and take Shazhou City, and the other is to cover the periphery of the border city and county, and you must not startle the snake!"

When Chu Kai walked out of the big tent with the Ma Jun Tiger Talisman, he hadn't come back to his senses a little, and he was stunned for a moment, before he knelt outside the tent with red eyes and kowtowed three times.

A year after the "distribution" of the frontier, he became one of the few high-level generals in the whole army, and at the same time shocked the inside and outside of Baisha Town.

This made many middle- and lower-level officers who were usually loyal and unknown full of confidence again, and Yan Luo, who had not slept all night, was also excited.

If you work under the Governor, don't be afraid of being buried.

……

After that, the army marched all the way west on Baishazhou, and there were no accidents, but the rambling march route without landmarks was quite boring.

If it weren't for the fact that the strikers would have reported the news from time to time, many soldiers might have thought that they were on the wrong track.

After accompanying the main force on the march for eight days, Zhou Bai deeply realized why Biancheng County and Bei'an County were obviously connected by land, but they were like a moat every other day.

The distance is too far, if you don't ensure logistics at any cost in advance, and mark the water source point in advance, even if Baishazhou is no longer a bad land, it will be difficult to cross with a large army.

On August 18, when he was only a day's journey away from Shazhou City, which was controlled by Border City County, Chu Kai lived up to expectations and brought good news to Zhou Bai.

The defenders of Sandbank City did not expect that there would be an enemy surprise attack in the east of Baishazhou, so they were rushed down.

After learning that it was not a Jin man, the defenders also chose to surrender very decisively, and it happened that from the performance of this small city, Zhou Bai saw the attitude of the people in the border city.

Perhaps, they don't mind a change of monarch on top of their heads?

Border City County is named after the northern border, which has a city wall that stretches for hundreds of miles.

In the later period of Daxu, the national strength declined, and the national policy of expansion was changed to defensive defense, until the conservative style of Emperor Xiangxing's accession to the throne reached its peak.

In order to avoid the steppe nomads' continued bloodletting of the northern border, the border states have come up with corresponding defensive measures, and the construction of the Great Wall is the most common means.

Border City County was renamed as a result, and before the construction of the Great Wall, it was just an ordinary military state like Cangbei County, and there was no people's livelihood development at all.

Of course, until now, Biancheng County is still the poorest county in Dingzhou.

After Daxu changed to a defensive national policy and no longer expanded northward, the population of the border city and county was greatly lost, and now there are five counties in one county, with a population of only 500,000.

However, more can not be raised, the year of the border city county to change from grazing to farming is not far off, and the land is not fertile enough.

On 19 August, the Anbei Army entered Shazhou City.

This city corresponds to Baisha Town, which also plays a role as a sentry post and transit, and it is also a place that no one cares about.

After Zhou Bai saw the defenders here, some of the heralds who understood the good news were a little embarrassed under his praise.

It is really not difficult to take Shazhou City, more than 100 soldiers, all of them are yellow-skinned, unkempt, and have no appearance of soldiers.

When I asked, I found out that they only ate one porridge a day, not to mention defending the city, and it was a blessing that they didn't starve to death.

And even so, none of the defenders of Sandbank City were willing to leave, just because the ordinary people in the rear were even more miserable.

The border city and county are forgotten corners, the imperial court and the state government do not care about it at all, and several natural and man-made disasters have destroyed it in a state of collapse.

In the same border county where the Ningjiang River has not flowed, Bei'an County can withstand the flood and drought, and the loss is not large, because the foundation is good and Zhou Bai has laid out in advance.

Who can the city and county over there rely on, they can only resist hard, nominally belong to the imperial court, but in fact, the central government and the state government don't care about it.

Half a year ago, the guards of the border city county abandoned the official and left, and now the border city county is jointly governed by several big families, and only they can barely have food and strength to maintain the most basic order.

In the mouth of the defenders, only one warship landed in the border town, and it is still attacking the county.

The county once wanted to take refuge in Lüding, hoping to get assistance, but was ruthlessly refused.

Just because of the famine in the border city county, 500,000 mouths are really a bottomless pit, and once it is received, it will definitely drag down the progress of Lu Ding's attack on Dingxi.

Hearing that Zhou Bai wanted to take the border city county, the more than 100 defenders not only did not get angry, but all of them were happy and wanted to lead the way.

When the continuous grain trucks appeared outside Hougang County, without firing an arrow, the army and civilians surrendered the city.

(End of chapter)