As time went on, it was harvest season and farmers were starting to harvest their own grain for the year.

Jizhou and Yuzhou, which were previously affected by drought, have ushered in a rare bumper harvest after experiencing a sharp decline in population.

The rebel army stationed in Yuzhou harvested the first crop of grain, which was a preliminary solution to the food crisis, and it was only necessary to wait for the follow-up grain collection to be able to recruit troops and buy horses.

On the other hand, although Jizhou also harvested a good harvest, most of the grain obtained in the fields was concentrated in local counties and counties, and the state capital could not collect grain taxes at all.

For this situation, Jizhou Governor Xia Ming felt deeply worried, but he could not give orders at will like his father when he was in power.

Being able to sit in the position of governor of Jizhou is actually the result of the balance of various families in Jizhou.

In addition to being a prince who can rightfully take over the position of governor, Xia Ming is also a powerful protégé in the local aristocratic circles.

Among them, several gentlemen who studied under Xia Ming were local officials from local clans.

Now after Xia Cheng's death, the murderer who poisoned the governor of the first dynasty has not been found, and this case of poisoning has become an unsolved case in the history books.

But now the situation in Jizhou is completely out of Xia Ming's control, and the local armed warlords who are no longer under the control of the state capital all maintain a high degree of autonomy.

If the war ignites in Yuzhou, Jizhou, which is fighting separately, will not be able to spare its hands to help Xiao Jiu, who is in the cracks.

Now Xiao Jiu in Yangcheng County has become a lot more mature and stable after more than a year of precipitation.

Especially after Li Luoyao is pregnant, it won't be long before Xiao Jiu will have his own heirs.

Once a person has something that he thinks is precious, he cannot think about the problem from a perspective that is just based on enthusiasm.

Now Xiao Jiu doesn't have many cards in his hand, such as gunpowder and cannons, which are basically famous brands that have been made public.

The only secret card that no one knows is perhaps the navy that is not taken seriously.

But with the completion of Wanpingkou seaport, the originally dilapidated fishing village has become a bustling and lively trading city overnight, which can't help but make people's eyes hot.

The difference between Xiao Jiu and others is that he has endless ways to make money, which always makes people envious, and I don't know what he thinks in his head.

The long-dormant Lingshui caravan was also revitalized after the completion of the Wanpingkou seaport, and a large number of goods were constantly transported back and forth.

For example, some of the by-products of the coastal fishery were also traded inland, and jewelry such as pearls was favored by dignitaries from other regions.

Everything is developing in a good direction, and now Xiao Jiu is only afraid of these rebel armies in Yuzhou.

Although Lu Yaoliang of Qingzhou has always regarded Xiao Jiu as a threat, he has not made much action since he took Yang County.

On the contrary, the rebel armies in Yuzhou continued to expand their troops with the collection of military rations, and some began to be ready to move.

A few years ago, Xiao Jiu quickly took Yangcheng County at a thunderous speed, and the rebel army in Yuzhou chose to avoid its edge for various reasons.

Now that the grain harvest in the fields is the time when the soldiers are strong, many people have suggested taking this opportunity to send troops to Yangcheng County.

But Gu Chong, the high priest of the Vulcan Sect, has never given an order to send troops.

Those high-ranking people in the Yuzhou rebel army had much more to think about than the big soldiers under them.

Since the harvest, on the border between the Zhili area and Yuzhou, there has always been a group of tens of thousands of imperial forbidden troops, and the leader of the forbidden army is Wang Meng, who has an old relationship with Xiao Jiu.

The more than 10,000 Kyoto forbidden troops were not the rabble of the rebel army, most of them were elite divisions drawn from Huya Pass.

If these rebel armies in Yuzhou raised food and grass and led a large army out of the city to attack Xiao Jiu, the county would definitely usher in a severe blow from the imperial army.

So the current situation is instead maintaining a delicate balance, just waiting for an opportunity to break it.

During this period of time, Xiao Jiu was not in such a hurry as he imagined, in addition to paying close attention to the completion of the Wanpingkou Military Port, he also paid special attention to the newly opened schools in Lingshui County and Yangcheng County.

The current school is no longer the one-third of an acre of land in Lingshui County, and with the continuous expansion of Xiao Jiu's ruling area, the number of people under his hands is also increasing.

These parents have high expectations for sending their children to the school that Xiao Jiuyi has set up to study.

They don't ask their children to gain any fame and fortune, but sincerely hope that their children can build their hometown.

Some of Xiao Jiu's policies ahead of this era have received enthusiastic responses from the local people after they have been issued.

Now there are no landlords and some mountain bandits who occupy various mountains and claim hegemony in Yangcheng County.

The people have all been allocated their own land, and naturally they have 100% support for Xiao Jiu's administration.

Therefore, since Xiao Jiu decided to invest a lot of resources to form a navy, these officials and people under his command did not have much opposition, but supported them behind their backs.

In the city lord's mansion of Yangcheng County, when he was walking in the backyard with Li Luoyao, who was pregnant, in the backyard, an unexpected visitor quietly arrived here.

The people who came were from some local families in Yuzhou, about fifty years old, with a dusty literati temperament.

In addition, the middle-aged literati also has another identity, which is the father of the arrogant young man who was under house arrest in the city.

"Lord Xiao, those who have attained the Tao have much help, and those who have lost the Tao have little help.

If you rely on the strength of adults alone, how to deal with all the heroes who are eyeing the world?

Today, the old man came with sincerity, if the adults cooperate with my Yuzhou, they can also take the opportunity to shake hands with the Yuzhou rebel army. ”

Listening to the angry persuasion of the man in front of him, Xiao Jiu still took Li Luoyao's hand and walked in the backyard, as if he didn't hear the sound, so he hung the person in front of him.

It didn't take long for Xiao Jiu to help Li Luoyao back to the room, and the other party was constantly persuading Xiao Jiu to be serious.

And Xiao Jiu looked at the other party with a frown on his face after he was busy, "What you said is the same as what Leng Gongzi said." ”

Listening to Xiao Jiu's unhurried words, Zhao Qinghe showed a hint of doubt on his face, not knowing what Xiao Jiu meant.

The two of them were silent for a while, and Zhao Qinghe took the lead in asking, "Could it be that Lord Xiao really wants to fight with Yuzhou?" ”

Listening to Zhao Qinghe's rhetorical question, Xiao Jiu couldn't see joy or anger on his face.

"Threaten me?"

As Xiao Jiu spit out these three words in a cold tone, the scene fell into a cold silence for a while.

The stalemate didn't last long, and Xiao Jiu continued in a deep voice, "First, the Yuzhou you are talking about is not the army of Great Xia, and I am the county guard of the imperial court.

Second, you and I can see each other without swords, but the people under my rule will never tolerate any family coming in. “

In the end, the meeting between the two ended unhappily, and Zhao Qinghe took away his son, who had been under house arrest in Yangcheng County.

It's just that this time, I don't know what choices those rebels in Yuzhou City and the big families behind them will make.

The reason why these families in Yuzhou sent Zhao Qinghe to lobby today is nothing more than that Xiao Jiu has shown his strength and value in the previous battles.

Now in the face of the olive branches thrown by these local families, Xiao Jiu could have used the donkey to fight against the rebel army in Yuzhou.

In this way, the current dilemma will naturally be solved.

But Xiao Jiu also knew that once he cooperated with these clans, he would completely overturn his policies.

The reason why Xiao Jiu was able to quickly raise tens of thousands of troops in a short period of time was because of the support of the people at the bottom.

If you really choose to cooperate with the Maison, it is tantamount to moving your own foundation.

If even the roots of a tree are rotten, then death is not far away, which Xiao Jiu knows very well in his heart.

Even though Torrent Yong can now be a rich man, he really can't bear to let these people under his command who just have some hopes be exploited by the local wealthy clan again.

When Zhao Qinghe returned, he was afraid that what he waited for would make the resurgent rebel soldiers come to the city.

But Xiao Jiu had no choice but to go further and further on this lonely road, and what supported him was his own insistence in his heart.

In addition, there is also good news that Xiao Jiu's depressed mood has been somewhat relieved, that is, the formation of the first navy in Wanpingkou has been completed.

As Kuroko took root in Yujun, the local people who benefited from it also dispelled their initial concerns, and the two sides had a foundation of trust.

Therefore, as soon as the order to call up the navy was issued, the generous treatment was instantly met with a fierce response from the local people.

These fishermen, who have been fishing for generations, are all too familiar with the affairs of the sea, and recruiting the local people as soldiers can be regarded as a tiger with wings.

The newly recruited navy has a total of 3,000 personnel, all of whom are locally selected young men who are proficient in water.

In the process of selection, it also adheres to the principle of elimination, and a large number of people who are lucky or unsuitable are screened out.

However, under the temptation of generous treatment, there are still many local people who want to join the navy.

Such a situation is also thanks to the large amount of financial support provided by the Lingshui caravan, and Li Gui, the president of the Chamber of Commerce, has also become the honorary commander of the navy.

In addition, the super-large sea vessels, which took months to build, were also officially put into operation after testing the waters.

More than a dozen huge sea ships were all built according to Xiao Jiu's drawings, and the dense sails covered the sky and the sun, which had a majestic posture.

In the event of war, these ships will be used as a means of transporting troops and carrying the newly formed navy everywhere.

As the supreme leader of this first navy, Kuroko looked at the behemoth-like ship under his feet, and his heart was full of infinite imagination.

Judging from the current situation, the regimes of Yangcheng County and Lingshui County headed by Xiao Jiu will have a war with Qingzhou and Yuzhou.

This newly formed navy may not be able to play a big role in the battlefield of Yuzhou, but it is undoubtedly a sharp weapon for Qingzhou.

Once Qingzhou raises troops to attack, the navy can go up the river and attack Qingzhou directly.