Xingyang Taishou Pei Chun changed into a military uniform, took care of his beard, and prepared to go out to meet Shao Xun.

Before leaving, he even planned to rub some powder, but was dissuaded by the servants.

"Fu Jun, I heard that Chen Hou never rubs powder, and prefers strong warriors, so don't you want it?" The servant suggested.

"That's right." Pei Chun is as good as a stream, and he immediately stopped being blind.

He didn't bring any pomp, just two servants and an ox cart, and left the Tiger Prison Pass in a low-key manner. After seeing the large group of people from afar, they got off the ox cart and waited by the roadside.

A group of armor soldiers came over in a neat queue.

They advanced to the Tiger Prison Pass, and after controlling the various points, they sent people to send a message to the rear.

Not long after, another group of armor soldiers came and pushed the people on both sides of the road outward, leaving only a few people.

When all this was done, Shao Xun finally appeared on the post road in the distance.

"It's quite a big show." Pei Chun secretly slandered himself.

Zheng Zun stood behind him, half a step behind, and silently looked ahead.

The big families in Henan have to make choices one by one.

Stay or go south? What kind of attitude do the people who stay have? Which side to turn to?

It's not easy to decide, but you have to do it, otherwise you won't be a person inside or out, and whoever comes will mess with you.

Li Ju stood further back than Zheng Zun, his status was too low.

A native of Pingyang, a homeless marshal from other places, has now become a Wubao marshal. If it weren't for the fact that he himself would be sophisticated and took the line of Yuan Fu and Sima Yue, life would be much more difficult than now.

This time, he also selected 300 elite troops and sent them to the Tiger Prison Pass to help defend the city. He has always been very concerned about the maintenance of the Great Jin Dynasty.

Chen Hou Shaoxun was the first loyal minister of the Great Jin Dynasty, with countless meritorious contributions, Li Ju admired it very much, and he had to look at it from a distance when he said anything.

There are also some petty scholars and local tyrants next to Li Ju.

The scholars are still relatively reserved, and the local tyrants have nothing to care about, standing on tiptoe and reaching their necks to look there.

In fact, there are really not many people in Xingyang.

Like Chen Liu and Puyang next door, Xingyang is on the front line of the war, and whoever comes will grab a wave.

It has only been robbed for less than a decade, and it is very withered, and the population has plummeted - this is still in the case of replenishing the large number of displaced people from other places.

If you grab another ten or twenty years, you can't imagine it.

By that time, there may only be a small number of large dock forts and manors left in the county, and there will be large open spaces between the manors.

The vacant land may have been cultivated for a long time, but it was abandoned, and then overgrown with weeds, becoming a paradise for the Hu people to graze - during the Northern and Southern Dynasties, there were two Hu armies fighting for a certain city, one grazing outside the west gate, and the other outside the east gate.

The scholars and heroes of Xingyang now hope that someone can take up the heavy responsibility, shelter them from the wind and rain, and protect this originally very rich place - the territory is dominated by plains, rivers are vertical and horizontal, irrigation is convenient, and there are canals and business travelers, closer to Luoyang, can you not be rich?

Some may be destined to disappoint them, though.

Shao Xun sent a number of people to Xingyang, Puyang, and Chenliu counties yesterday to carefully draw maps and measure the distance from the ferry to the key cities—he did not trust the imperial court's maps.

Many people don't understand the act of measuring mileage, but a few smart people see that it's purely for military purposes.

Xingyang, Chenliu, and Puyang, I'm afraid they won't be able to get rid of the fate of the front line.

"Pei Fujun."

"Prince."

After Shao Xun dismounted, he walked arm in arm with Pei Chun, very enthusiastic.

He is really very satisfied with Pei Chun now, holding a sword to supervise the battle late at night, scattering all his wealth to recruit strong men, this kind of determination, this kind of courage is something that ordinary people can have?

"The prince of the town guards the tiger prison and cuts off the contact between the thieves and the east and west, which is a great achievement." Shao Xun said with a smile: "When I return to Luoyang, I will definitely show Pei Jun's merits to the Son of Heaven." ”

Pei Chun smiled and said, "Where, where." The work of the end is not comparable to the great cause of the prince Kuangfu Sheji. ”

"The prince is too modest." Shao Xun said.

Pei Chun shook his head and said firmly: "Cao Yun is kept by the prince. If there had been no prince, I would have been in possession of Shile in May when he went south. ”

Shao Xun smiled, and at the same time was a little puzzled.

In terms of the Luoyang famine in history, Cao Yun was obviously cut off, and it was this year.

Could it be that Xingyang Taishou in history is not Pei Chun?

While the two were talking, they had entered the city.

In the narrow and cramped streets, there are almost no houses, either barracks, warehouses, stables, etc., and there are silver-speared sergeants standing guard at this time.

Pei Chun was a little shocked when he saw it.

Chen Hou's pomp and circumstance is indeed big, and he takes three steps and one post and five steps and one sentry wherever he goes, and the degree of strict security even exceeds that of many governors, assassins, and kings.

Some people ridiculed him for being afraid of death, but it was not groundless.

"I have something to ask the king." Walking and walking, Shao Xun said suddenly.

"Prince, please speak."

"What is the existing household registration in Xingyang County?"

"Less than 10,000 households." Pei Chun pondered for a while and said.

In fact, this data is just speculation.

I haven't done it for many years. And these years, precisely the stage of extremely frequent wars, how can there be accurate figures?

The statement "less than 10,000 households" is actually just a number that many people said when Pei Chun chatted with the county officials after the locust plague in May this year.

This is, of course, inaccurate, and probably greatly underestimated—most of the officials come from different places and have their own positions.

"That's all there really is?" Shao Xun asked.

"Maybe 20,000 households." Pei Chun said again.

Shao Xun was a little speechless, you directly doubled the number, is it so unrigorous?

"Junhou, there should be 20,000 households, and I can't say how many there are." Pei Chun said: "If you count the displaced people from Bingzhou, Yongzhou, and Jizhou who live in Chengwu, there may be thousands more, or even 10,000. ”

Shao Xun believed him.

Displaced people are the biggest variable because you don't know how many people they came. At this time, the government is incapacitated, and it is impossible to carefully investigate. The homeless marshal and the dock marshal report a number, what else can you do but believe?

"If the people are migrated south...... Shao Xun paused, and then said: "Does the prince think that there will be any rebellion?" ”

Pei Chun was taken aback, and immediately persuaded: "Prince, if you forcibly move the people away, there will really be turmoil." ”

"Who is making trouble? Scholar or strong? ”

"Both."

"It's the dynasty that spoils them." Shao Xun sneered and said, "If you fight for another ten or eight years, see if they can move." ”

"Why did the prince move the people?" Pei Chun was a little puzzled and asked.

"It's only forty or fifty miles from the crossing of the big river to Guancheng." Shao Xun gestured: "Guancheng is ninety miles south to Xinzheng, Xinzheng is south, another forty miles to Yingchuan Changshe, and another sixty miles to Xuchang." This is the thoroughfare, a total of 240 miles up and down, what do you say? ”

Guancheng was the county of the Qin Dynasty. The county is long gone, and the place name is still there.

Xinzheng was still a county in Cao Wei, and the province of the State Dynasty entered Yuanling County, and the city was still there.

A big post road in the north-south direction of the country, when entering Xingyang, all pass through Guancheng and Xinzheng, but the county town Xingyang is not on the post road.

Guancheng has two post roads in the north-south and east-west directions, and the location is very important, so in the Tang Dynasty, Guancheng was once again placed in the county, and became the seat of Zhengzhou (Xingyang County).

From the ferry on the south bank of the Yellow River to the important town of Xuchang, the distance of 240 miles is not far away, but it is not close, but it can still be used well.

"Doesn't the prince care about Xingyang?" Pei Chun exclaimed.

"Haha, what nonsense? I gave up Xingyang, if it was occupied by others, wouldn't it be troublesome? Shao Xun laughed and said, "Don't think about it. Next, you find an opportunity to repair Guancheng and Xinzheng well. Guancheng may have to rebuild the city, there is no need to build too big, it can garrison 5,000 soldiers and 1,000 horses, and Cangcheng can reserve half a year's military funds. There are old city walls in Xinzheng, but they are dilapidated, and the foundation site is still there, so we will find a way to repair it. Outside, a warehouse city was built to hoard grain and grass materials. ”

"No." Pei Chun thought about it, and didn't understand Shao Xun's intention for doing this for a while.

But he had a bad premonition, and he always felt that it was not a good thing for Xingyang.

Looks like we're going to have to find a way to move around. It's better to change to a big county that is a little richer and deep in the hinterland of the rear, and you have to get back the money you lost this time.

After the two entered the city, Shao Xun did not rush to find a place to live, but first inspected the wall.

The Xiongnu had retreated, and some of the peasants who had been recruited had been disbanded and returned to their respective homes.

The county soldiers have not had time to leave, and they will probably not retreat until before the Chinese New Year.

The other 2,000 soldiers in Xingyang had already been lost, and only a few hundred remained.

After the New Year, they still have to be re-recruited, and then drive to the Tiger Prison Pass, farm near the gate, and defend by the way - the conditions in Xingyang cannot afford to support professional soldiers at all, and at most they are half-full-time.

The three places of Tiger Prison Pass, Guancheng, and Xinzheng are, to some extent, more important than the county towns that have just been recovered.

As a last resort, Shao Xun can tolerate the fall of the county, but it is best to hold these three strongholds.

"Set up a banquet in the evening to entertain the elders of Xingyang." After getting out of the city, Shao Xun instructed: "The wine man will come out, I will come with the meat, and the horse meat." ”

"Father Xingyang is trying to get acquainted with the prince." Pei Chun smiled: "It must be arranged." ”

It's in the field he's good at again, Pei Chun suddenly felt very comfortable, and his mouth was full of answers.