"How could this be possible? How could this be possible?!"

Zhang Yong threw the newspaper down and said angrily, "Isn't this a waste of ten years of effort?!"

Both the method of restraining water and attacking sand and the method of widening the river and retaining sand have their own advantages and disadvantages, and the debate has been going on since the previous dynasty. Zhang Yong didn't know which one was better, he only knew that the latter had consumed ten years of manpower and material resources.

How can you change it just like that? Your idea of ​​river management is contrary to expectations. Isn't all the previous efforts in vain?

So why did the new emperor do this? If we look into the reasons, it is not hard to understand.

The former crown prince was too brilliant, and his fall was even more heartbreaking. Although the new emperor ascended the throne in a legitimate way, he was overshadowed by him. He couldn't wait to make some achievements and completely suppress this lingering brother.

As one of the former crown prince’s greatest political achievements, what better place to start than river management?

Moreover, as a river management concept that has been controversial for hundreds of years, the concept of restraining water and attacking sand has always been equally important as the concept of widening the river and retaining sand. It does have its unique advantages and is not a fallacy.

It is a pity that the Chenliu Fugu section is not applicable, and the Kuanhe sand retention project has been going on for ten years.

Shao Qing sighed softly: "In late May, the imperial edict was issued."

As soon as Guo Yun took office, river management began immediately.

At that time, she and Wei Jing were still on the run. This official report was found in Qu's mansion after Qu Cheng's downfall.

But then again, even if the official bulletin was issued now, everyone present here are fugitives who cannot reveal their true identities, so what can they do?

Just thinking about how so many common people might have to pay the price of their lives for the new emperor's eagerness for quick success and instant benefits, Shao Qing felt very heavy-hearted. Even though he had known the news for a long time, he still felt depressed when discussing it.

Ji Huan frowned and asked, "Who proposed this strategy?"

According to the court reports, as soon as the emperor issued the order, memorials came pouring in like snow, with many voices of opposition. It was obvious that more than just a few people understood the pros and cons of the decree. Unfortunately, the new emperor insisted on his own opinion.

Whether this river management is good or bad, we will eventually see the results. Once the dam breaks, the proposer will become a sinner for all eternity, and killing him will not be enough to appease the public anger. Whose suggestion is this? Is it stupid flattery or ulterior motives?

According to normal theoretical reasoning, people who are cautious about their lives would not do such a thing.

Shao Qing had already found another official report, and Wei Jing took it and handed it to Ji Huan: "It's from Wu'an Hou Ding Hua."

Ding Hua was not only the father of the new emperor, Concubine Ding, but his eldest daughter was also chosen as Princess An. A new emperor appoints his own ministers, and he is a typical example. Half a year ago, he was conferred the title of Marquis of Wu'an and became one of the new emperor's favorite ministers.

Prince An was not favored by the previous emperor, and the princess was of ordinary birth. The once insignificant Ding Hua now holds power.

"Whether it is foolish flattery or ulterior motives, we will know in the future."

Wei Jing did not have a deep impression of Ding Hua. As a prince, he must have some spies everywhere, but he had no plans to contact them again, so he did not know the details.

However, the information in the court bulletin is sufficient for the time being.

Wei Jing said calmly: "He is eager for quick success and makes a stupid move, which is of great benefit to me and no harm at all."

The present Chu State is in danger. Once the Yellow River bursts its banks, the consequences can be imagined.

Misfortunes sent by heaven can be forgiven, but misfortunes brought upon oneself cannot be forgiven. Wei Jing was just waiting for such an opportunity.

What he needs to do now is to expand his strength as quickly as possible and wait for the east wind.

One county is really too small.

The host and the guest were thinking of the same thing. Ji Huan was in high spirits and immediately said, "My lord, we should try to take Anyang County first."

It was crisp and straightforward, and Shao Qing, who had been listening quietly, had her eyes light up. This was what Wei Jing said to her when he seized the court report.

He is indeed worthy of being the number one counselor under the King of Qi.

“That’s right!”

Zhang Yong slapped his thigh, gritted his teeth and lowered his voice, "Let's take Anyang first, and plan for the future. We must enter the capital and cut that dog emperor into pieces!"

The master was humiliated and the minister died. Han Xi and Chen Qi also showed indignation and agreed with gnashing teeth.

"good!"

Wei Jing stood up and said, "I am very lucky to have your help."

…

Everyone present has unanimously agreed to take back Anyang County where Pingtao is located as soon as possible. The next step is to discuss how to take over Anyang County.

Now that the chaos has not yet broken out, it is of course impossible to send troops openly. We need to use our wits.

The best strategy was for Wei Jing to find a way to replace Dong Du and become the prefect of Anyang County, thus naturally taking control of the county.

Ji Huan and the others did not understand the current situation, so Shao Qing explained: "The two sons of Yizhou Governor He Yun have grown up and split into two factions. Dong Du is the cousin of the fourth wife, who gave birth to the third son."

There was also a county lieutenant named Bao Zhong, who was a subordinate of Mr. He Er. There were two factions in Anyang County that were competing against each other. Wei Jing had long since joined the Second Young Master's faction because of the Qu Cheng case.

After receiving the letter from Bao Zhong, the second young master was very impressed with Wei Jing and wrote a letter to Pingtao himself. Wei Jing's reply naturally showed his great joy, expressing his willingness to sacrifice his life for the cause.

He was very tactful and displayed his talents appropriately, and the Second Young Master really valued him more. After that, they sent each other messages frequently. Although they had never met, "Yang Ze" had become a well-known figure in front of the Second Young Master.

As long as the opportunity is right, Mr. He will definitely not refuse to push Wei Jing to the position of county governor.

During the past two or three months, Wei Jing had established himself in Pingtao while paving the way for the future.

As the lord, Wei Jing could not give a detailed introduction to all this in person, so Shao Qing took the initiative to take over the conversation and explained the situation one by one.

At last she felt very regretful: "It's a pity that Dong Du, despite the efforts of the Third Master He, was only charged with negligence in the smuggling salt case and fined a little salary."

The truth is, Dong Du works for the Third Young Master, so the Third Young Master naturally tried his best to protect him. However, Governor He always adopted the strategy of smoothing things over between his two sons, so in the end, big things were reduced to small things, and small things were reduced to nothing, and the case was closed with only Qu Cheng and his gang being used as cannon fodder.

"Then where should we start?" Han Xi asked.

Now that the layout has been laid, the next step is to work out a specific strategy: how to bring down Dong Du? How to stop Bao Zhong?

Bao Zhong was the county lieutenant and the second young master's confidant for many years. Now that Dong Du has fallen, he is actually the most likely candidate to take the position. If the Wei and Jin dynasties wanted to take Anyang County, this stumbling block had to be removed at the same time.

Han Xi, Ji Huan and others did not have a deep understanding of Pingtao, let alone Anyang County, so they did not have any good ideas for the time being.

"Where to start?"

Shao Qing suddenly had an idea and blurted out: "Pu tribe?"

Since he wanted to be promoted from the magistrate of Pingtao County to the governor of Anyang County, no matter what strategy he finally decided on, if he wanted to achieve something from it, then this strategy must connect the two. Neither is indispensable, and the closer the better.

Shao Qing immediately thought of the Pu tribe, the barbarian tribe whose financial resources were cut off because Wei Jing intervened in the smuggling of salt. The latter had deep entanglements with Gao Ling, Dong Du, and even Bao Zhong.

In the case of smuggled salt, Dong Du tried his best to shift the blame to the Pu tribe in order to protect himself. This, coupled with the evil act of cooperating with Qu Cheng to smuggle official salt, made He Yun, the governor of Yizhou, furious. He ordered the severance of all official and private transactions with the Pu tribe, not just salt.

Not only can the well salt no longer be sold, but now even if the Pu people go out to buy daily necessities, they have to disguise themselves.

This grudge has become a big one.

The Pu people are famous for their vengeance.

It was the first time that Shao Qing participated in such a serious meeting. He felt a little nervous and expectant for a moment. After he finished speaking, he immediately looked at Wei Jing.

"That's right."

She looked expectant, her eyes sparkling. Wei Jing immediately gave her a look of approval. He affirmed, "Pu Man and I are deeply involved with Gao Ling. If we want to make a plan, we have to start from there."

This general direction is the most appropriate. As for the formulation of subsequent strategies, there is no rush. Let the Pu tribe move first, and then they can act according to the situation.

Wei Jing tapped the desk with his index finger and said, "Intensify the military training. We will attack the barbarians in the near future."

Only when there is turbulence will there be opportunities to take advantage of.

…

After the strategy was agreed upon, Wei Jing immediately assigned positions to a number of his trusted aides.

Ji Huan was the county magistrate, Han Xi was the military official, and Zhang Yong was the thief official. As for Chen Qi, he directly put him into the county barracks and temporarily appointed him as a sergeant, and would later promote him to a military marquis.

There were also dozens of Qing Zhai guards who were specially selected and put in the open, all of whom were given the title of constables and fully controlled the Pingtao County Government.

Wei Jing had no choice but to do so due to lack of manpower before, but now, of course, he had to ensure that the county government was foolproof.

He announced the above news at the evening reception.

Kou Xuan, Zhuang Yan and the others were not surprised. They smiled and said, "My lord is wise and knows how to appoint the right people." They raised their glasses again and toasted Ji Huan and the others, "Your arrival has greatly quenched the county government's thirst for talent."

Zhuang Yan smiled and joked: "As for me, I can finally go back home, but I'm afraid those naughty boys in my family won't recognize me anymore."

In the past February, he was so busy that he ate, drank and slept in the county government office and barely went home twice. He lost weight, but his spirits became more energetic.

Han Xi smiled and said, "In the future, we will need your advice!"

"How dare I, how dare I."

The atmosphere was warm and Ji Huan and others integrated into the county government smoothly; Han Xi, Chen Qi, Deng Guang and others drank a few glasses and became familiar with each other after the first contact.

Wei Jing saw that it was almost done, raised his hand and pressed it, and said in a deep voice: "Everyone, the Puyi and Yi barbarians have repeatedly disturbed the people under my rule, especially the Pu tribe. In the past two months, they have been burning, killing and looting frequently. I will never tolerate it."

Now that we have agreed to attack the barbarians in the coming days, the next step is to prepare for war, so it is a good opportunity to announce it all at the same time.

The reasons are also ready. Ever since the smuggling salt case was settled, the Pu clan, whose financial resources were cut off and who were ordered to be sanctioned, became furious. Well, if you don’t trade with me, I will rob you!

The Pu people returned to their old ways, coming with anger and hatred and using extremely cruel methods. They robbed and killed passing merchants and travelers, and looted the people in nearby towns and villages, taking their money, goods, and lives. In the past February, there have been more than 20 cases of varying sizes, each of which resulted in loss of life and bloodshed.

The county's police officers were busy running around, but the mountains near Pingtao were high and the forests were dense, and the Pu people were accustomed to using guerrilla tactics, but their efforts were ineffective and instead made the other side become more aggressive.

The biggest case happened yesterday, when a caravan from Gaoling was robbed. Gaoling was a thorn in the side of the Pu people. Dozens of people in the caravan, from guards to porters, were killed, without a single one spared.

From a public and private perspective, regardless of whether Ji Huan and others came or not, Wei Jing had actually reached the point where he had to send troops to suppress the barbarians.

"From now on, prepare to attack the barbarians!"

"yes!"

As soon as Wei Jing finished speaking, everyone stood up and responded.

After responding, Zhuang Yan frowned and said, "The Pu clan is so arrogant that we have to fight them. But..."

He was worried: "County Master, this place has high mountains and dense forests, and the Pu tribe's settlement is unknown. I'm afraid we're going to suffer."

The Pu people live in the mountains all year round and are very familiar with the terrain. They can enter and exit the mountains and forests as if they were walking on flat ground. They are also good at using poisons. They have always been very protective of their settlements and would never let the outside world know about them easily. Over the years, we can only determine the approximate range of Pingtao, but the specific location cannot be determined.

The barbarians' advantage is exactly their weakness, so all along, facing the opponent's harassment, Pingtao has mainly adopted a defensive approach and basically will not take the initiative to attack the mountains and forests to avoid a major defeat.

This is how we have been living for all these years.

It’s not that I don’t want to, but it’s too difficult and there’s no need.

After all, the two barbarian tribes near Pingtao are not large, so they dare not act too aggressively. In recent decades, the Pu tribe discovered salt wells, and because they wanted to cooperate with the Pingtao tribe to sell well salt, they basically stopped doing anything.

Thinking of this, Zhuang Yan sighed. Having said that, this time the Pu tribe’s methods were too cruel and the circumstances were too bad, so the previous strategies were simply not enough.

He cupped his hands and said, "Your Excellency, the two barbarians are not easy to deal with, especially the Pu tribe, who are very good at poisoning people. You must be extremely careful."

This is the first major move by Wei Jing after taking office. If it is done well, his future will be smooth; if not, his career may be hindered. Zhuang Yan has placed his entire fortune and future on the former, so he is naturally worried about her and hopes that she will rise to prominence.

Wei Jing nodded: "Wen Gui is absolutely right."

He ordered: "Chen Liang and Deng Guang, you two will select 200 soldiers tomorrow and sneak into the mountains and forests to check and supplement the topographic map."

Pingtao County Government has a topographic map of the nearby mountains and forests, but it is not detailed, and the map is completely blank where you go deeper. Wei Jing openly instructed Chen Qi and Deng Guang, but secretly sent the Qing Zhai Guards out. The Qing Zhai Camp of the past was an elite force, and one of its strengths was exploring terrain and drawing maps.

Chen Qi and Deng Guang stepped out and accepted the order solemnly.

Wei Jing then turned his gaze to Han Xi and the military officers of the county barracks: "You must train your soldiers diligently and be ready at all times."

"Under command!"

…

Wei Jing was methodical and arranged everything in a deep voice. Although he was dressed in casual clothes, he looked extremely dignified. Everyone who was called out was solemn and responded loudly.

Seeing that he had made all the arrangements, Zhang Yong was the only one left among all the military officers present. He was anxious: "My lord, what about me?"

"I have an important responsibility to entrust to Gongshu, so I stayed until the end."

Wei Jing said soothingly, his expression solemn: "I will be going to war soon, and the county government and the peace of Tao will be entrusted to Gongshu. This matter is important and cannot be missed. Gongshu needs to act carefully."

After saying this, he glanced at Shao Qing who had been quietly listening to his orders beside him. It would be better to say that Shao Qing was entrusted to Zhang Yong's hands rather than to say that the county government and Ping Tao were entrusted to each other.

The southwest jungle has high mountains, dense forests, difficult roads, many snakes and insects, damp and stuffy, and a lot of miasma. After hesitating, Wei Jing decided to leave his wife behind.

Shao Qing's importance to Wei Jing is self-evident. If it were before Ji Huan and others came, he might not be at ease leaving her alone, but now he can entrust her to Zhang Yong's hands.

Zhang Yong understood what he meant and said solemnly: "I will definitely fulfill your mission!"

"good."

Wei Jing then named a few more people and said, "Wang Jing, you will lead Yao Yue and Zhang Yuan to serve as Madam's personal guards from now on. You must be careful to protect her and not make any mistakes."

These three young men are his personal guards, and their trustworthiness is no less than that of Han Xi and his friends. This was not directed at this attack on the barbarians. He had this idea when he decided to contact Qing Zhaiwei.

Wang Jing and his two companions stepped out and said, "Your Majesty, I obey your orders." Then they turned to Shao Qing and greeted her again, "Your Majesty, I greet you."

Shao Qing hurriedly said, "The three of you should get up quickly."

At this point, all arrangements have been made. Deng Guang took the lead in raising his glass: "Let me toast to the county lord. We will surely win this battle!"

“Well said!”

This kind of wine is a must-drink.

In order to conceal his identity, Wei Jing did not show filial piety in his daily life, so the welcoming banquet was necessary and he had no reason to refuse the toast. Fortunately, Shao Qing was considerate and prepared vegetarian wine as the first dish, on the pretext that he could not drink much.

He raised his head and drank the wine in the cup. Chunsheng, who was holding the wine pot, quickly filled it up again. He raised his cup again: "Everyone, please!"

Shao Qing also drank two large cups in succession. The hot and slightly spicy wine went down her throat into her stomach. She found that she really couldn't hold her liquor. Although she wasn't drunk, she felt the alcohol rushing to her head, and her face felt hot when she touched it.

The banquet was almost over, so she simply whispered to Wei Jin beside her: "Husband, I'm going back first."

She drank some wine, her almond eyes were especially moist and bright, her cheeks were pink, and she blinked at him. Wei Jing whispered, "Walk slower, let Nanny Ping and Chunxi support you."

How can it be so serious?

But Shao Qing did not refute him, he just smiled and said: "Okay."

She smiled and said a few words to everyone, then left the table first. Wei Jing watched her all the way until she entered the back room before he withdrew his gaze.

Zhuang Yan smiled and said, "My lord and his wife are so deeply in love with each other. I really envy them."

Unlike Ji Huan and others, he did not know Wei Jing's original identity. Because the host and the guest usually got along well, and because they were drunk and in high spirits, he made such a joke.

Unexpectedly, when Wei Jing heard this, he was stunned.

A deep love between mandarin ducks?

Love?

Very unfamiliar and strange words. Wei Jing never thought that one day they would be applied to him. He couldn't help but frowned slightly.

…

In fact, in today's upper-class society, the highest word to praise the relationship between husband and wife is "treat each other with respect."

Bin means guest. When a husband and wife respect, love, and appreciate each other, and are considerate of each other without getting embarrassed, and treat each other with respect like guests throughout their lives, they have reached the highest level of a relationship between them.

This was the education Wei Jing received since childhood.

What's more, when the emperor's elder brother was young, he fell in love with a singer of humble origin. He doted on her and even favored her the only one in his family. After the queen mother tried to persuade him many times but failed, she severely punished the singer and scolded his elder brother. Afterwards, she solemnly told him that deep love does not bring longevity, so he should be careful.

At that time, even his elder brother, who was wise and intelligent, was depressed for a while because of this singer. Therefore, Wei Jingshen agreed with him and kept his mother's teachings in mind.

Zhuang Yan and he had different backgrounds, so their views were also very different. The former's words of praise were extremely flattering, but Wei Jing found them extremely uncomfortable at first.

He immediately recalled his mother's teachings and subconsciously rejected them.