On the Hetao Plain, by the Wuliangsu Lake.

Bonfires blazed fiercely, their torches illuminating the entire central army camp.

Officials from the Prince of Yunzhong's palace and the heads of various other palaces all arrived at the scene, and those who were married brought their wives.

A large crowd gathered.

Guo Luo, who was in charge of coal mining, honeycomb briquette production, and two workshops—a blacksmith's shop and a carpenter's shop—also came to Woye Town.

He is no longer the same person he used to be; he is no longer the commander of Liu Wei's guards, but a mine manager overseeing 20,000 to 30,000 people.

Upon learning that Liu Wei had returned from Hexi, he personally escorted a convoy of coal to Wuyuan, hoping to meet Liu Wei.

Meanwhile, in Wuyuan City, Yang Yi, who was in charge of training a thousand boy scouts, and ten other guards, were also in charge of the people of five hundred fiefdoms in the city.

These 500 households of people in the fiefdom comprised over a thousand men and women aged sixteen to sixty, providing labor.

Yang Yi divided them into three groups, each led by one of the two old guards.

Some remained in the city to build workshops and refine fine salt.

Some of them followed Zhang Liao to Dongsheng, where they set up workshops on the spot at Qingyanchi on the edge of the Ordos Desert to produce salt.

There is also a story about someone who goes to the Western Regions to instruct and teach Princess Sharde of Loulan how to dry salt from the Puchang Sea.

In short, the twenty guards, including Guo Luo and Yang Yi, who had followed Liu Wei out of Beiman Mountain in Luoyang, all found good places to go.

They are responsible for the investment and operation of the Yunzhong Royal Palace's economic industries, and have already begun to generate revenue for the palace.

Sixteen of Guo Yang's twenty veteran guards also came.

Of course, Liu Wei allowed his subordinates to bring their wives to the banquet, and Liu Wei's family members, Diao Chan, Liu Yifei, and Cai Yan, also participated in the banquet.

In the small square in front of the main tent, there were about ten tables, each with a hole cut out in the middle and a coal stove underneath.

In the very center is a large pot, steaming hot and fragrant.

Lamb, beef, Yellow River crucian carp from Wuliangsuhai Lake, wild rabbits and wild boars from Yinshan Mountain, pheasants and wild ducks, radishes and cabbages.

Xiao Guizi directed a group of servants and female slaves to shuttle back and forth, serving up all sorts of delicious food and side dishes.

Before long, the entire tent was filled with the aroma of meat, making everyone's mouths water.

Yao Guangxiao, Guo Luo, Yang Yi, and Shen Lian, these subordinates, were already used to the hot pot banquets that Liu Wei set up.

They had eaten there many times back in Shanwu City.

Cai Yong, Wei Ji, Chen Qun, and others found this quite novel, never expecting that a banquet could be organized in such a way.

You can put anything in and cook it until it's soft and tender. Then, take it out and dip it in dogwood mustard, scallion, garlic, and ginger juice. It tastes absolutely delicious.

Although it is far from the so-called elegance of banquets held by princes, nobles, or even in the palaces of the Central Plains.

But Liu Wei's actions actually brought him closer to his subordinates, creating a harmonious atmosphere.

In the eyes of these people, Liu Wei was showing respect to the virtuous and sharing joy with the people.

There were ten tables in front of the main tent, filled with about a hundred people.

Everyone faced Liu Wei and raised their cups in unison, waiting for Liu Wei to give a speech before they began to feast.

"If General Xue, General Di, Lieutenant Zhang, Lieutenant Liu, Prefect Zhang, and others were all here, our Yunzhong Prefecture would be complete!"

"However, I believe that day will come soon. I will raise a glass with you all again, and many more new colleagues will be present."

"In about ten days, it will be winter, but unfortunately, I have to set off on a long journey again."

"This banquet today is my way of welcoming the New Year with everyone in advance."

"Come on, everyone, let's drink a cup to the brim!"

Liu Wei's down-to-earth remarks made everyone feel very comfortable listening to him.

Many people also discerned a thought-provoking subtext in it.

They thrived in the borderlands under the leadership of the King of Clouds, and Liu Wei never mistreated them.

Liu Wei gave them five times the salary of their equivalent positions in the Han Dynasty!

In addition, cattle, sheep, and grain were awarded according to rank.

What excited them even more was that Liu Wei's officials, and even ordinary soldiers, all had the opportunity to be assigned wives.

If you are single, the military advisor and civil officials will assign you women from different ethnic groups such as the Xiongnu, Xianbei, Jie, and Qiang to be your wives.

For the land in the three counties of Hetao, Liu Wei implemented a tax policy of merging the poll tax into the land tax.

The large landowners of the three counties of Hetao were forced to pay more taxes.

For the people who had previously lost their land, the government provided them with farming tools to encourage them to cultivate the land. Once the land was cultivated, it was registered and belonged to the people.

If this policy is forcefully implemented, tax revenue will increase exponentially.

Furthermore, Liu Wei received nearly 300,000 people from the system in the three counties of Hetao.

This has greatly changed the ratio of non-Han people to non-Han people, with Han people accounting for more than 70%.

In at most twenty or thirty years, the Hu people in the three prefectures of the Hetao region will be completely Sinicized, except for the specially reserved settlements.

For example, Liu Du's 50,000 Xianbei tribe raised 100,000 warhorses for Liu Wei on the Tumote grassland between Wula Mountain and Wuliangsuhai.

In short, the Hetao Plain has changed dramatically in the past two months, changing every single day.

"Thank you, Your Highness! Long live the Prince!" the crowd chorused.

Before long, the small square in front of the main tent was filled with jubilation, and everyone was drinking heartily.

Liu Wei, accompanied by three women, went around toasting each table.

Since ancient times, has there ever been a prince bringing his family to toast his subjects?

Moreover, it came from the group of lower- and middle-ranking officials who were furthest away from him.

The group of people were immediately flattered and overwhelmed with gratitude; some even wept uncontrollably.

Upon witnessing this scene, Cai Yong and Chen Qun were already deeply moved.

If this prince is so considerate of his subordinates, how could they not repay him with their lives?

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