Taking advantage of the night to rush back to Qingyun Temple, Qi Yun was naturally overjoyed to see his disciples returning.

The master and apprentice talked for a long time until late at night, and then they returned to their rooms.

On the second day, after leading his apprentices to do the morning class, Kong Zhuo told his master about his experience in recent years, and mentioned the turmoil in various parts of the Chu State in the past few months, and Qi Yun couldn't help but sigh.

"When I met Lu Daoyou in the past, I met for the first time, and your father and I were greatly surprised, thinking that it was the root bone of the immortal family, the seed of the immortal.

And that's exactly what happened.

The road has consulted and comprehended the Taoist scriptures of various families, and they all entered the realm quickly, but in a few years, they caught up with the realm of me and Kong Daoyou.

At that time, I thought that there would be one more true immortal in my Dao Sect, and one more Dao lineage inheritance.

It's a pity that after Lu Daoyou took office to help his friend, he had to give up the days of living in the wild clouds, and instead joined the army and entered the battlefield of the soldiers.

After that, when he exterminated the Seven Star Thieves, he would return to Qingyunguan and meet me. At that time, it was known that it had become a pillar of the cave.

In the back, Lu Daoyou rose step by step, step by step into the king of Changsha, and then to the current king of Chu, and has become the lord of three counties and one country.

The war in this Dongting territory was also pacified step by step.

In the past few years, with the governance of Lu Daoyou, the prosperity of all industries in the Chu State, and the gradual abundance of local household registration, I originally thought that we would usher in a peaceful and prosperous era and let the people be happy.

In this way, although my Dao Sect has lost an immortal talent, there is one more virtuous monarch in the world, and it is also immeasurably meritorious.

I don't want the war to rise again, the place is chaotic, this chaotic world, I don't know when it will stop. ”

After Qi Yun sighed, he couldn't help sighing: "Although I know that in this world of great controversy, all countries are changing their laws and trying to become stronger, and they are fighting foreign wars to achieve national strength. It is also common sense for the state of Chu to do this, and it is to survive.

can see the regeneration and chaos in Dongting County, although Poor Dao is an outsider, he is still inevitably worried.

If people really mess up the place, it will be thousands of lives, and the soul will return to Huangquan. ”

Although as a Taoist priest, he is also a natural character, Qi Yun does not pay much attention to the things under the mountain.

Even in the past few months, I didn't know that there was chaos at the foot of the mountain.

But then he is a hermit, and occasionally he needs to go down the mountain to buy daily use.

Therefore, for the past few years, Dongting County has been getting better little by little, and Qi Yun can see it.

He saw with his own eyes that the villages and towns under the mountain had changed from the original withering hukou after the war and the hardships of the people to the prosperous hukou, people's livelihood and prosperity.

It is these changes that I have seen and felt these peaces. That's why he doesn't want to go back to what he was ten years ago.

The world is fighting, how can the people be innocent?

However, even though he has kindness in his heart and can't bear it, Qi Yun is just an outsider after all, and no matter how much he thinks, he can't change anything, and in the end, he can only sigh here twice.

Seeing his master sighing like this, Kong Zhuo next to him did comfort: "Master doesn't need to worry. When the disciple came back, he heard the news that Zhou Qing, the general of the Chu State, had now broken through the innate and become a generation of grandmasters.

With such a grandmaster in the Chu State, it is enough to consolidate the country and ensure the stability of the place.

Those who intend to plot chaos can't make any waves. ”

"Xiaoqing?"

When Qi Yun heard this, he was slightly stunned, but in his mind, he remembered the young man who often came to Taoist Temple with Lu Daoyou more than ten years ago, and couldn't help but sigh again: "The young man who followed Lu Daoyou at the beginning has now become a grandmaster. ”

Saying this, he felt more and more that he was getting old.

As his years increased step by step, Qi Yun now entered his twilight years and was over sixty years old.

The hair on the head has been born, and although the bones of the body have internal strength, they often feel tired. Even memory has declined.

In the face of this destiny, in the face of the current situation of this decaying life, he who was originally determined to seek immortality, has become more and more exhausted.

Therefore, in the past few years, the main energy has also shifted from cultivating immortals and seeking the Tao to inheriting the Dao system and cultivating his own disciple.

At the moment, I didn't think about it, I begged for immortals for a lifetime, and I searched for immortality for a lifetime, but I didn't get any gains. But his former Taoist friend and his apprentice have now attained immortality.

One hundred and fifty years of congenital life, although it is still not long, it is far better than mortals.

Qi Yun thought like this in his heart, slightly lonely, and even more bitter.

Kong Zhuo noticed the change in his master's mood, and he, who had been with his master for more than ten years, suddenly realized what was going on, and at the same time, his heart was sad, and he hurriedly changed the topic and said, "By the way, Master." This is the disciple rushing back to prepare for next year's Tianluo Puja.

It's the first time for a disciple to participate in such a grand event, so I don't know what to prepare for this festival, but Master has to teach me well. ”

For the Tianluo Festival, Kong Zhuo can be said to have been longing for a long time.

Since he was a child, he has listened to the wonders of his master's teachings, told about the wonderful methods of the immortal family demonstrated by the true immortal cultivators on it, and the grand occasion of the great avenues and veins of the world's Kyushu gathering to discuss the law, and he has long wanted to see it with his own eyes.

How.

If you participate in this puja, if you don't have enough mental concentration, you can easily shake your mind and damage the path.

Therefore, the cultivation was not enough, and Kong Zhuo couldn't participate, and he couldn't follow his master and Lu Yuan to participate in that grand event ten years ago.

But now that he has been practicing for ten years, he has entered the second-rate realm, and his state of mind cultivation can be regarded as a small achievement.

This is enough to go to the puja.

In addition, Qi Yun also felt that he was already old and might not be able to support him for a few years, so he wanted to take his disciples to participate in the festival while he could still move, and communicate more with his colleagues.

It can be regarded as announcing to the various avenue veins that he is the successor of the Qingyun lineage.

Therefore, Qi Yun attaches great importance to this festival, because it is related to the inheritance of Qingyun Concept.

Therefore, when I listened to my disciple's lecture at this time, some of the original sad sighs were immediately left behind, and I immediately cheered up and told my disciple some details: "This day Luo Fa will be ......."

In the small mountain view, the old Taoist priest who had been living alone at this time, after the little Taoist priest returned, he regained the warmth of the past and began to become a master seriously.

The happy time is like the old days, simple and clear, and makes people feel peaceful.

Perhaps seeking immortals does not necessarily require immortality, just seeking this peace of mind, and it is enough.

……

Just as the riots in various parts of the Chu State were gradually emerging, thousands of miles away, an army that had just put down the rebellion was also on the way to the north.

The long army marched north along the road, the villages on either side were dilapidated and barren, and unmanipulated weeds grew onto the flat official roads, where they were finally trampled into dust by the cold iron boots.

Su Xuange rode a horse, although the horses were moving, his body was extremely tall when he sat on it, and his mighty armor shone in the sunlight, making him look particularly dazzling.

His eyes swept around, and as he skimmed the bushes, he could occasionally see one or two dark shadows.

The cold wind blew from the north, mixed with the smell of earth and a little bit of a different rancid smell.

Those who are familiar with death, when they see the black shadow and smell the smell, they can instantly understand that it is the smell of the dead body lying on the ground that has begun to decompose.

The war has been going on for almost a year.

Su Xuange fought in the south and in the north, and after hundreds of battles, he finally pacified the Seven Islands Society, Guangchang Dao, and the Duchang Rebellion.

But the damage caused by this war is also enormous.

After a major war, the Ningyue, Shi'an, Cangwu, Xiping, and Gaoliang prefectures in the main areas of the rebellion were all halved, and the number of dead was 100,000.

The remaining five prefectures have also been affected to a greater or lesser extent, and they have also suffered heavy losses.

After a counterinsurgency, almost the entire Soviet Union was smashed and destroyed.

Although the losses have not yet been counted, and the local government offices in the counterinsurgency area have not yet been rebuilt, according to the statistics of Su Xuange's courtiers.

In this rebellion, the Soviet Union should have lost about 500,000 to 800,000 people, and the entire production of Guangwu for four years was wasted, and not only was the tax confiscated, but the family funds of previous years were also used to cover military expenses.

What's even more terrifying is that although the rebellion was put down this year, the country's fiscal revenue will still be extremely bad in the next two years, and it should not be able to provide much in taxes.

The five prefectures that participated in the rebellion are now all destroyed, the localities need to be rebuilt, the displaced people need to be appeased, and production needs to be restored, all of which cost money.

It's okay if you don't ask for money, don't expect output here.

Although the other five provinces are a little better, the combined population of these five provinces is 7.8 million. Even if the heavy tax that has been increased to two out of five taxes is still maintained, the annual income will only be worth four million taels.

But this kind of heavy tax is the kind that is to quell the rebellion, to squeeze the people at the bottom, and not to give them a way to live.

Maintain it for a year or two, and the people below can still support it by relying on the savings of previous years, by selling their sons and daughters, and by selling their fields and bodies. If it continues for a long time, it will inevitably lead to a new rebellion.

This will not be because the people are afraid of Su Xuange's force, so they dare not touch it.

People can't live anymore, and they're still afraid of your royal law?

Paying taxes is death, and not paying taxes is death.

It's all death, it's better to rebel before you die, indulge it, and it's not in vain to walk in the world.

Therefore, next year, it is inevitable to change the five taxes and two taxes to three taxes and one, or even to four taxes and one.

But in this way, the income of the imperial court will be greatly reduced, and it would be good to have a three-million two-year income.

But the problem is that after a year of fighting, constantly recruiting rebels and recruiting villagers, and now Su Xuan's singer has dismounted his troops, not only has it not decreased much, but it has further expanded.

Up to now, in addition to the original forbidden army of more than 40,000 people, he has not only restored the local quota of 50,000 prefecture and county soldiers, but also set up an additional new army of about 50,000 people.

All of the above are regular troops, the kind that have to be paid every month.

This huge army, even if the monthly salary of each soldier in the Soviet Union is generally lower than that of other countries, only three taels of silver, and the soldiers of the prefecture and county are only two taels of silver.

The expenses of 150,000 people a year will cost 4 million taels of silver only for their salaries.

If you count all kinds of other expenses, the annual military expenditure of 5 million taels of silver is already a guarantee.

Then, in addition to military spending, all kinds of other expenses must also be guaranteed by one million silver.

It adds up to six million taels of silver.

Therefore, from next year, the Soviet Union will face a deficit of three million taels of silver.

At that time, if they can't come up with the money, they can only default on the soldiers' salaries and officials' salaries, and then the morale of the army will be low, local riots will arise again, and the administrative efficiency of the imperial court and government will be further reduced.

And if you don't give them money, they will naturally find a way to ask for it, and people have to live.

At that time, the burden on the local people will be further increased.

The finances of the entire Soviet Union fell into this vicious circle.

But if Su Xuange was allowed to disarm, he wouldn't dare.

The rebellion was finally put down, and the elite of those rebels were included in the army and strictly controlled. At this point, you disarm them and put them back in place, these people have no livelihood income, what do you guess they will do?

It's okay to fall off the mountain and be a bandit.

Be bold, believe it or not, people are killing officials and wrapping up the people again, rebelling according to the city?

Then the Soviet Union will have to go through another rebellion.

It is precisely because of this that even if he knew that his finances could no longer afford it, Su Xuange had to grit his teeth and take those rebels with tears in his eyes.

When people take it, they have to solve their income problem.

Otherwise, the army will rebel on a large scale, which will be more terrible than a local rebellion.

'It's hard. ’

Su Xuange sighed in his heart, then turned his head and asked, "Where is the former army?" ”

The guards around him immediately replied: "Back to the king, the former army has arrived in Longcheng County." ”

"Longcheng County ......" Su Xuange recalled the location of this county, and nodded slightly: "Order the army, speed up the march, arrive in Longcheng quickly, and join the whole army." Before the end of the year, King Gu will conquer the southwest. ”

"Yes!"

When a guard heard the order, he immediately rode to the front and back of the queue and conveyed the order.

Soon, the army was a little faster.

Seeing this scene, Su Xuange couldn't help but nod with satisfaction.

Sending troops to conquer Southwest Yi was his way to solve his financial difficulties.

Lead the army to fight those Yiren, and if you win, you can plunder the Yiren, occupy the land, and alleviate your own financial difficulties. If you lose, you can also reduce the number of troops under your command and achieve the purpose of disguised disarmament.

Regardless of whether he wins or loses, for him and for Su Guo, he will not lose.

Therefore, Su Xuange, who felt that the financial pressure was too great, was impatient to lead his army north when he had just quelled the domestic rebellion, preparing to conquer the southwest.

It's not that he doesn't want to recuperate, it's really a last resort.

"How did all this come to be?"

Su Xuange looked up at the sky, his eyes full of confusion and unwillingness.

Lu Yuan, who is called the alliance in the north and is actually the great enemy in the future, has been expanding his army, and there are no problems in the Chu State. Why did the same change to the Soviet Union and expand the army by itself, so it became a mess now?

Su Xuange, who was born in martial arts and has been dealing with martial arts and rivers and lakes all his life, really can't figure out this problem in his heart.

In confusion, he went to see a fast horse in the north, and galloped towards this side.

"Newspaper—"

After passing the inspection of the personal guards, the messenger was released, and when he arrived in front of him, he directly dismounted and knelt down, and presented a secret scroll: "Your Great King, there is an urgent message from the Chu State in the north." ”

"Chu State?" Hearing this name, Su Xuange frowned, and opened the letter he had received.

His eyes swept over the secret letter, and when he finished reading the contents of it, his hand suddenly froze, and he grabbed the letter and wrinkled, but the person didn't realize it, just a pair of eyes, staring at the words on it.

Zhou Qing, the general of Chu, broke through the innate and was congratulating the country at this time.

In just one line, the news contained in it shocked people's hearts.

Zhou Qing ...... Congenital ......"

Su Xuange remembered the heroic general who followed Lu Yuan during the Northern Expedition a few years ago.

How young, how vibrant, and how radiant that man was.

He should have been a junior, but now he has broken through the innate nature?

And the state of Chu has more him, and after careful calculation, there are three grandmasters at this time.

"This sky, how thick it is to treat Chu. Treat my Su country, how thin. ”

Su Xuange's body shook, gritted his teeth, and exhaled such a breath.

He looked at the north, the sky was shining with golden sunshine, and he only felt that he was looking at the Chu country, which was so dazzling and disgusting.

"Pass the order, speed up the march!" Su Xuange said.

"My lord, I have just given the order to speed up the march." There is a reminder from the guards next to it.

"Then pass the order one more time, and let them speed up again." Su Xuange suddenly turned his head and looked at the guard who made the sound, his eyes were cold.

"Yes, yes!" The guard was frightened, trembled and replied, and then ran away to pass on his life.

Su Xuange looked at this scene, and his eyes became colder and colder.

Chu has another congenital, for him, for Su State, it is not just a matter of his neighbor's strength becoming stronger.

It also means that whatever the Su State wants to do in the future, it will be subject to the pressure and interference of the Chu State.

With such a powerful country in the north, whatever he wants to do will always be threatened.

Moreover, the strength of the Chu State has become stronger, who can guarantee that after the defeat of the Southwest Yi this time, the ambitious Lu Yuan will not set his sights on Lingnan.

A huge sense of oppression and crisis enveloped Su Xuange, making him eager to make any changes to cope with the change in the situation.

'The pace of Chu expansion is too fast. Now it occupies the land of the three counties, and this year it is fighting in the southwest, and I heard that it has also won successive battles and seized a large area of land.

If our Su State does not hurry up and become stronger and catch up with the footsteps of the Chu State, I am afraid that in the future, when the national strength of the two sides becomes more and more different, we will face the danger of losing the country.

The Lone King would never allow this to happen.

Conquer the Southwest Yi, before the end of this year, we must conquer the Southwest Yi, the Soviet Union has no time. ’

Su Xuange gritted his teeth, with fear and anxiety, and looked around at the army that was forced by two consecutive military orders to run faster, and his eyes turned to the south again.

"And Wei'er, he has also broken through to the first-class, so I have to hurry up and urge him, let him hurry up and cultivate the Jiuchuan Sword Technique. Lu Yuan's eldest disciple can break through the innate nature, and my son of Su Xuange must not be left behind. ”

Stimulated by Zhou Qing's breakthrough, Su Xuange, who originally planned to slowly cultivate his son, also planned to speed up his pace at this time.

Su Guo is the only one born with himself, and his strength is still too thin.

There must be at least two of them.

Only in this way can there be a person who sits in the country and stabilizes the place. One person is out to fight, rest assured to fight.

At this time, he led the army to the expedition, which was actually a bit risky.

"Why is this world so difficult?"

Su Xuange couldn't help but sigh bitterly.