As time passed, the impact of the war on Guanzhong faded, as if those turbulent years were only a brief moment in the long river of history.

The people regained their old smiles, and in the midst of the strangeness, laughter continued.

In the distance, in the field, the wheat planted in the past year is already green and green, waiting for the heading to bear fruit.

On both sides of the official road, there are constant carriages and horses, some are businessmen, some are officials who come to report on their work, and more are people who have migrated from Yizhou and Jingzhou.

Most of them are nobles, servants of the family.

Chang'an has fallen, and the capital of the Han Kingdom has naturally become Chang'an.

Those nobles of the noble clan who originally gathered in Chengdu wanted to come to Chang'an to open a hall number.

There must still be people in the DPRK and China, otherwise, they will not know that they have suffered losses.

There are people in the DPRK and China who are easy to do.

The caravan was also back to its former busyness, and the sound of camel bells and horses' hooves mingled, the sound of money.

Merchants from far and wide gathered here to exchange goods and information from all over the world, and the market in Guanzhong became prosperous again.

Silk, tea, ceramics and other commodities are dazzling, attracting the attention of many people.

Some people have rivers and lakes, and some people have business.

Therefore, on both sides of the official road, a lot of tea shops were opened for pedestrians and caravans to settle down.

Tea is very cheap, one dollar is a bowl, three dollars are all-you-can-drink.

These tea shops do not earn money from tea, but some of the food in the tea shops.

Lamb, dog, pork

Vegetable cake, steamed buns, meat and vegetable soup.

Of course

Like mutton, dog meat, and pork, ordinary people can't afford to consume them, so the merchants and nobles who come and go have money to consume.

Dressed in a brocade robe, guarded by five men with knives behind him, the businessman Li Ming slowly walked into the tea shop.

When the owner of the tea shop saw this scene, he immediately stepped forward to greet him.

"Hey, hey, please come inside!"

These rich people, a little peeking out of their fingernails, is enough for him to eat for a month, so the shopkeeper is very active.

Li Ming chose a position near the official road and sat down slowly.

"Come on a few bowls of tea, what's delicious, just come up!"

This arrogant tone made the store's eyes light up.

"The shop also has home-brewed turbid wine, which has a unique taste, I wonder if the guests want to taste it?"

"What wine haven't you drunk? Just go get some food. ”

There was food in the caravan, and there was no shortage of wine.

However, most of the food eaten is dry food and the like, and there are relatively few fresh ingredients.

If you are only a person in the survival stage, of course you will cope with it.

But it is clear that Li Ming has now passed the stage of survival and has begun to enjoy life.

He was originally a businessman in the south of the business, because of an opportunity, he got married to Liu Chan, who was the prince at the time, and since then, with the help of the east wind of the business alliance, plus Liu Chan's endorsement behind him, it can be said that he has risen to the top.

Not only did his son Li Ji enter the court as an official, but the family headed in the direction of the wealthy family.

The family is even richer, and he also manages the affairs of the business alliance for the current emperor.

It can be described as an imperial businessman.

Speaking of official positions, he is also an official now, a subordinate official of the Shaofu Qing under his name.

There is a world of difference from those white bodies.

Li Mingmei sighed.

After a while, a whole hot sheep came up.

Li Ming looked at the whole sheep and thought: This store really regards him as the God of Wealth.

Today's meat in the store, I'm afraid it's contracted for him.

"Chop off this sheep's head and get another bowl of hot oil!"

The sheep's head was placed on the cutting board, and Li Ming poured the prepared spice chili powder into a bowl and poured it on it with hot oil.

"Pour over the scalding tea seed oil."

"Pour it in~"

Immediately, Li Ming divided five by two in order, and in less than half an hour, he wiped out a big sheep's head.

The shopkeeper was stunned on the side, such a hot sheep's head was eaten so quickly, aren't you afraid of being hot?

And also

Those spices and chili powder, but something more valuable than gold, can be poured so much after eating a sheep's head?

Isn't that a waste?

Sure enough, I don't understand the world of the rich.

"Hiccup~"

A sheep's head ate the belly, and Li Ming burped happily.

"The sheep in the store are really nice and fresh!"

"That's not it, I bought it from the Huns, I don't need to add anything else, boil it in water, add a piece of salt, and it's very comfortable!"

Xiongnu Han is the name given to those Xiongnu who have been sinicized.

"Listening to the accent of the store, it seems that he is not from Guanzhong?"

"The guest officer has good eyesight, and he is indeed not from Jing Zhaoyin, but from Xiangyang."

Jingzhou?

This back and forth is thousands of miles, and few people can walk such a long way at this time.

"That store is also a person who has seen the world."

"My family Erlang Erlang is a soldier in the army, Dalang was beheaded when he broke the formation and died when he attacked Wu last year, Erlang inherited Dalang's position, and now he was named a centurion for his merits, and he was guarded in the capital in turn, and I was also alone, so I followed Erlang to Guanzhong."

Speaking of the death of his eldest son, the shopkeeper's face was still a little sad, but when he talked about the second son, his eyes were shining brightly.

Li Ming has seen this kind of look, which is full of longing and hope for life.

"So, the store has purchased a lot of properties in Guanzhong?"

The shopkeeper said proudly: "It is all placed by His Majesty himself, the fields of the forbidden army guarded by the rotation are divided in Weibei, although my son is not a weapon, but relying on the shadow of his brother, he is divided into three hundred acres of land, but unfortunately now there are not enough people in Guanzhong, and the slaves are too expensive, my family only got a slave in the army, and I can't plant so many fields, I opened a shop here, just to make some money, buy a few more slaves, and buy the family business." ”

Three hundred acres of land is indeed not something that two or three people can cultivate.

"It's always easy to recruit tenant farmers to farm."

"Tenant farmers are also hard to find, and if the fields are planted by tenant farmers, the harvest will be reduced by more than half, which is really not worth it, I am now spending money to let people farm, and when Erlang's army rewards it, I should be able to buy a few more slaves."

Li Ming looked at the shopkeeper's shiny expression, and understood in his heart that although these people were not locals in Guanzhong, they had already taken root in Guanzhong.

Moreover, whether they are fields or slaves, they are basically given by the emperor, and their loyalty goes without saying.

With these people here, His Majesty's basic plate is there, and no matter how much those families bark, it is useless at all.

In this world, the way of the sword still speaks.

"When the imperial court marches west to Longxi, Erlang has made meritorious contributions, and naturally there will be a reward, and when the time comes, not only will the family business be purchased, but also a good house will be bought in Chang'an!"

Li Ming said: "On the battlefield, the sword has no eyes, what if your Erlang dies on the battlefield?"

The shopkeeper was silent for a moment, but there was a little smile on the old face.

"Erlang is dead, and Sanlang and Shiro are all practicing martial arts at home, just so that one day they can go into battle to kill the enemy and serve Your Majesty! Your Majesty is benevolent and righteous, and there will be rewards for your life, they are dead, they are also dying for the country, dying for Your Majesty, and dying without regrets! ”

Hearing this, Li Ming immediately stood in awe and said, "The store is noble! ”

Da Lang died on Erlang, and Erlang died on Sanlang.

With these people here, it's no wonder that His Majesty can win every battle.

"Meeting is fate, your family is short of slaves, and there are slaves in my caravan, so I will use a slave to make today's meat money."

Hearing Li Ming say this, the store immediately reacted violently.

"This must not be, my family's things are all dignified, and they are taken with confidence, how can they ask for things for no reason?"

Li Ming smiled and said, "How can it be said that it is for no reason?" I have a person like the shopkeeper, so I can revive the Han family, and I admire it in my heart, so I do what I can, and my husband doesn't have to excuse himself. ”

After speaking, despite the refusal of the shopkeeper, Li Ming found a local official on the spot, handed over the slave's deed, and left a file for the government.

"The green mountains do not change, the green water flows forever, I hope that the next time I come again, I can still see my husband!"

After speaking, Li Ming followed the caravan and gradually moved away.

Leaving behind the store full of excitement, and that more ardent heart to serve the country.

The changes in Guanzhong are changing in a good direction.

With the influx of a large number of people, Guanzhong, which has a thin population, has become very lively!

The government has invested a lot of manpower and material resources to dredge water conservancy, so that the original hundreds of thousands of hectares of land have been turned from wasteland into fertile land.

The fields were distributed, the people poured in from all directions, and the Guanzhong was in all directions, and it was really full of vitality and all things were competing.

On the other side, Cao Zhen, who was facing each other across Longguan and Guanzhong, was not so comfortable.

The night was dark, and the moonlight was dappled through the window lattice.

The lights in the house were dim, but it was difficult to dispel the heavy depression.

Cao Zhen sat alone at the table, with a pot of wine in front of him, the glass was full, but he didn't drink it for a long time.

His face was gloomy, and there was an indescribable bitterness between his brows. The once high-spirited general looked extremely tired at the moment.

His eyes were deep and complex, as if he was hiding endless thoughts.

Cao Zhen slowly raised his hand, the wine glass trembled slightly, and the wine glowed coldly in the light. He took a deep breath and drank the wine from his glass, a burning sensation coming from his throat, but it seemed that this was the only way to ease the anxiety in his heart a little.

Guanzhong was lost, and Liangzhou in Longxi became an enclave of Wei, and the deterioration of the situation made him feel unprecedented pressure.

He knew he had a lot of responsibility, but the situation was getting bigger and bigger out of his control.

This sense of powerlessness made him feel deeply frustrated and unwilling.

Cao Zhen's fingers unconsciously tapped on the tabletop, making a dull sound.

His eyes gradually blurred, as if he was recalling the glory of the past and thinking about the way out of the future.

Sticking to Longxi, is it really valuable?

Or is it really possible?

As the Han Kingdom gained a firm foothold in Guanzhong, not only did the morale of the sergeants in the army slump, but even he, the general of Shangjun, was a little suspicious.

"General, Guo Huai, Hao Zhao, Fei Yao, and Wei Ping ask to see you!" The soldiers in the house came to report.

So many people came to see him?

Cao Zhen was stunned for a moment, then thought about the joints clearly, and said, "Let them in!" ”

Soon, the four of them walked into Cao Zhen's mansion.

Cao Zhen has been decadent for a long time, described as withered, and the heroic spirit of the past has been lost. I saw that his face was as pale as paper, the light in his eyes was dim, his beard was disheveled, his clothes were disheveled, and he looked depressed. The smell of alcohol in the house was smoking, and it was obvious that he had indulged in it and couldn't extricate himself.

Seeing this, Guo Huai was heartbroken, stepped forward, and persuaded him: "General, the loss of Guanzhong is not a crime of war, it is really a few days. However, now that Liangzhou in Longxi is still in my hands, how can I destroy the Great Wall because of a temporary setback? I hope that the general will cheer up and regroup in order to plan for the future. ”

Hao Zhao also hurriedly stepped forward, and his words were earnest: "General, victory or defeat is a common thing in soldiers, not to mention the general trend of the world, it will be together for a long time, and it will be divided for a long time." Although there is a small setback today, he will be able to make a comeback one day. General Wanwang take care of his body, don't indulge in wine anymore and miss a big thing. ”

Fei Yao followed closely, and his voice was excited: "General, I want you to gallop on the battlefield back then, how majestic!" How can today's difficulties stump heroes? As long as the general gives an order, we are willing to serve the death force, and vow to recapture the lost territory and revitalize the Wei Banner! ”

Wei Ping was not to be outdone, and said loudly: "General, how can it be smooth sailing in life? Today's predicament is the time to test us. I hope that the general will cheer up his prestige and tide over the difficulties with us, and he will become famous day by day, showing his true heroic qualities. ”

The four of them spoke earnestly and heartily, although Cao Zhen had been decadent for a long time, he couldn't help but be moved when he heard this. He slowly raised his head, a glint flashing in his eyes, as if he had rekindled his fighting spirit.

But after a moment, he sighed deeply.

"I am very relieved that you have such a fighting spirit, but what can we do now? Do you have a clever plan to break the game? ”

Faced with Cao Zhen's question, everyone was silent, and after a long time, Hao Zhao stood up and said to Cao Zhen: "I can only wait for a long time, waiting for the situation to change, Longguan has been run by the last general like an iron bucket, that is, the Han army raised 100,000 troops to come, and the last general is confident that he will not return!" ”

Hao Zhao is good at defending the city, Cao Zhen knows it, but you can defend the city alone, how can you turn the situation around?

"The news over there in Liangzhou, is it still smooth?"

Hearing this, Hanyang Taishou Fei Yao shook his head gloomily.

"General, Lu Shui Hu Yijian's prostitutes, Zhiyuan and many other rebels, there are tens of thousands of chaotic people, Hexi is very disturbed, and now the road to the counties of Liangzhou is no longer passable."

Just Lu Shui plotted chaos, can he block the roads in Liangzhou?

Is that what it means?

It was the local wealthy who got in the way.

"If you can't settle Longxi, Liangzhou's strong heart, I'm afraid that Longxi and Liangzhou don't have to wait for the Han State to attack, and they will collapse!"

People's hearts are the most critical, once the big guys feel that there is no hope of following you, then you are really going to be finished.

This is still the reason why he had suppressed Liangzhou and Longxi before, and his prestige was relatively large, and the wealthy families in Longxi and Liangzhou Haoqiang would be afraid of him and sell him a face.

If it's someone else, I'm afraid that Longxi Liangzhou is already going to be reversed!

"How to stabilize the hearts of Longxi and Liangzhou?"

This is a problem that Cao Zhen urgently needs to solve.

Sometimes hope is worthless, but sometimes, it can't be bought with ten thousand gold.

For example, now.

"After the Great War, the Han State must recuperate for a year, and after a year, Your Majesty will definitely return to attack the fortified positions, and then it will be our chance!"

If the east and west are in the opposite direction, there is a possibility of recovering the pass!

It's just that

Now that they are in Longxi, can they really survive this year?

"The military division has frequent actions in Longxi and Liangzhou, there must be many conspiracies, which are brewing, once the wealthy clans of Longxi and Liangzhou merge with the Han State, it will be useless for us to fight again."

Cao Zhen's eyes were burning, he looked around at everyone, and said in a deep voice: "What do we need to do to change the current situation, what must be done!" ”

Can.

What can they do now? (End of chapter)