Chapter 119
On the first day Xu Chong arrived in Yichun, he ran to the gate of the Yichun military settlement and observed for a long time, drank a cup of tea, went to the toilet, and then went back.
The next day, after bathing and washing his hair, he dressed neatly and had breakfast before arriving at the gate of Yichun Military Settlement in a respectable manner.
Guard Ning Xiaocong was stunned for a moment when he saw the person, then said, "Sir, is there anything I can help you with?"
Xu Chong had been keeping an eye on him. From the change in his expression, he knew that he had clearly recognized him from the previous visit. After recognizing him, his tone was not one bit dismissive. Xu Chong nodded secretly, "You—are not bad."
Then he took out a uniquely shaped wooden sign and handed it to him. "The young man who gave me this sign said that as long as I get to the Yichun military settlement and take it out, someone will come to take it. Is that true?"
"Yes, may I ask your name, sir?"
"Miangui's surname is Xu, and his single character is Yichong. He comes from western Shanxi."
"Mr. Xu, please follow me." Ning Xiaocong gave his seat to his companion, preparing to personally lead him to the General's Mansion. Before doing so, he had already gestured for the messenger to go and report.
This is the Talented Man's Order. Anyone holding this order is either a sage or a capable person. All those associated with them have been instructed to treat anyone holding this order with courtesy, no matter where they are. He is guarding the gate, and upon seeing this order, he will allow anyone holding this order to pass.
Xu Chong arrived with the Talented Scholar Order, and the soldier quickly passed the news back to the General's Mansion.
When Xu Chong arrived, the general of the military settlement received him solemnly, and he was accompanied by general Wu, Yu Chen, Yao Chunnuan, Meng Yi, Zhou Yushu and other senior military settlement officials.
Xu Chong met with the high-ranking officials of the Yichun Military Settlement in the spacious meeting room. He paid special attention to the only woman present, Yao Shi Yao, the Chief Clerk, and was surprised to find her seated fourth. The appointment of women to military settlements was already a precedent, but she was seated last. This meant she was a truly exceptional talent. Furthermore, there was no hint of seduction in her expression, suggesting she possessed considerable talent.
Xu Chong's mind raced as he thought a lot, which improved his evaluation of the Yichun military settlement and made him more serious about the subsequent conversation between the host and the guest.
The conversation was mainly conducted by General Manager Wu, because among them, General Manager Wu was slightly older than Xu Chong, and General Manager Wu himself, like Xu Chong, was very proficient in internal affairs. The two had topics to talk about, and the general would say a few words from time to time, and the atmosphere of the conversation was very harmonious.
The atmosphere was tense and when things were about to get off to a good start, the general took the opportunity to recruit him, appointed him as a military officer, and asked him what he thought.
Xu Chong had a favorable impression of the military settlement's senior officials and readily accepted their offer without further ado. "I'm deeply grateful for the General's appreciation and kindness, and I'm very happy to work under his command alongside you all. But I have a question: Can I return to Jinxi Prefecture, bring my family over, and then take up my new position?"
"Yes. But it's not safe for you to go back alone. If you don't mind, I'll order a general to bring a group of soldiers with you." The Xu family was still in western Shanxi, and it might not be easy to rescue them from Wei Yuanwang's clutches. But to prevent him from overthinking, the general asked him what he thought.
"Thank you, General. This is exactly what I was thinking. Even if you don't arrange it, I will ask for your help."
"It's a small matter, not worth mentioning."
Then, the general saw that he looked very tired and suggested that he go to Xinfu Di to rest for a while, and then set off after they had prepared their troops.
Xu Chong gladly accepted the general's kindness and took the opportunity to see the new mansion allocated to him by the military settlement.
Later, they arranged for Zhou Yushu and selected 800 cavalrymen to escort him back to western Shanxi.
Meng Yi also wanted to seize the opportunity to escort Xu Chong, mainly because he had never been to western Shanxi and wanted to broaden his horizons.
Yao Chunnuan cruelly rejected it. It was she who had suggested Zhou Yushu just now, "It's not appropriate for you to go this time."
"What's inappropriate?" Meng Yi asked back. He admitted that the chicken farmer was very capable, but he himself was not bad either.
Yao Chunnuan smiled but said nothing. Instead, he asked, "Isn't arresting the Diluo people who entered Yichun to cause trouble enough for you?"
"We've captured too many Diluo people before. Maybe the other side has heard something. Fewer and fewer Diluo people dare to step into Yichun and cause trouble. It's a bit boring."
After Meng Yi found out that this matter could not be changed, he went back to the training ground to train his troops in a bad mood.
Yu Chen seemed to be thinking, "Are you worried that Meng Yi and Xu Chong won't get along?"
Yao Chunnuan nodded. "Well, everyone has their own little flaws. Xu Chong pays attention to details, so we can't arrange the carefree Meng Yi to be his partner. Because some of Meng Yi's behaviors may make him feel uncomfortable, but Meng Yi himself doesn't feel it."
Yu Chen nodded. "In that case, Zhou Yushu is indeed more suitable for this escort mission than him."
Yao Chunnuan: "I'm not worried about him." Zhou Yushu is gentle and refined, has the air of a scholar, has good manners, and is not the kind of person who is domineering and dictatorial. He should be able to get along well with Xu Chong.
Yu Chen said, "You are very thoughtful. But isn't it a bit too much trouble to think about so much?"
Yao Chunnuan: "Nothing is easy. Since there is nothing to do anyway, let's just accommodate his temper. He has just joined the group, we can't arrange for him to go there even though we know that Meng Yi might cause trouble. Besides, this arrangement now can also reflect our attention and respect for him. In the future, when the situation becomes urgent, we still have to work together. I believe he is not the kind of person who lacks a sense of the overall situation." Why don't we make people happier at normal times?
Before leaving, Yao Chunnuan had someone give Xu Chong a stack of old documents about the Yichun military settlement over the past year or two. Of course, some core secrets were withheld. He believed that reading this information would help him adapt to the working methods of the military settlement and gain a general understanding of the situation. Once he brought his family back from Jinxi Prefecture, he would be able to get started right away.
Ever since Yao Chunnuan used the old information from the military settlement to guess the location of Marshal Zhu's secret vault, the senior officials of the military settlement have realized the importance of the old information, so they now pay great attention to protecting various information.
Perhaps these old materials would be of little use in the hands of someone of average ability, but in the hands of someone of exceptional ability, they could definitely produce unexpected results. Therefore, Yao Chunnuan's handing of these materials to Xu Chong was definitely a sign of her appreciation for him.
Xu Chong took the information with great care. As he was an expert in internal affairs, he naturally understood the importance of this information.
Although he had not yet officially assumed his position, the performance of the general and his colleagues after joining the Yichun military settlement made him realize that he was valued. Although his temperament did not move him to the point of dying for his friend, he felt that he had made the right move by abandoning the Jinxi prefectural government for the Yichun military settlement.
*****
Because of Ba Yuan, the number of ordinary people and talents who migrated north this time reached an astonishing number.
Almost all of these people were absorbed into the Yichun military settlement.
People are poor when they leave their hometown, and the expenses outside are very high. Most of those who can come to see Dr. Ba from far away are those who bring their families with them. After all, patients need their families to take care of them, and curing diseases is not something that can be done overnight.
For the Yichun military settlements, as long as they were willing to work, all sorts of arrangements were made. With jobs and work to do, they gradually settled down in Yichun. Once they adapted to life there and found Yichun appealing and decided to build a home, they put down roots.
Because of Wang Lang's reminder, the prince ordered the prefect Lei to pay attention. The prefect Lei noticed these phenomena and was secretly surprised.
*****
Upon arriving in Yichun, some of these people couldn't resist asking the locals about the Yichun military settlement. Gu Bin was one of them. After they disembarked, they found a nearby inn to stay. After dinner, while his father and friends retired, he went out for a stroll.
The elder sister he stopped asked, "Are you asking about the Yichun military settlement? It's very good. I have relatives who are settlers there, and they live very well."
Gu Bin discovered that the envy on her face was real. "You seem quite envious of your relatives? Then why don't you move to a military settlement? It seems that military settlements are always recruiting residents, right?"
The eldest sister sighed, "Look at this house of mine. I built it with great effort two years ago. We still have a few acres of farmland at home, and jobs for my two children were also found by me through connections and money. None of these things can be abandoned. So no matter how good the military settlement is, we can't just leave these behind and go there." She could only sigh that the timing was wrong. If the Yichun military settlement had been like this two years ago, she would definitely not have built this house, and she could have saved the money to find jobs for her two sons through connections.
Her family also worked hard for many years to have the prosperous life they have today, but her relative who went to the military settlement in Yichun and his family worked hard for more than half a year, and their life is not worse than hers. How can she go to seek justice?
Gu Bin suddenly had an idea and asked, "Why do the residents of Yichun Military Village live so well, better than other Yichun residents? What do you think is the reason?"
The eldest sister complained, "What other reason could it be? We, as ordinary people, are all hardworking people. We can only say that a good soldier makes a good general." She did not dare to say the last sentence out loud, and just muttered it in a low voice.
The common people at the bottom are not wrong, it is the people at the top who are wrong. It is not their fault, but their lack of ability.
There are even many ordinary people in Yichun who privately say that it would be great if the entire Yichun was governed by the high-ranking officials of the military settlement. Then they could live the same life as the residents of the Yichun military settlement, or even better.
Gu Bin: This is really heartbreaking. When you say this, have you ever thought about how your Yichun officials feel? Although you didn't mention them by name, I understand.
The eldest sister continued to complain, "We're both from Yichun, but I'm even slower than the residents of Yichun Military Village in buying Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills. Isn't that infuriating?"
After the production capacity of Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills increased, the purchase limit was raised again, from 15 pills per person per month to 30 pills, making it very convenient for people in the military settlement to exchange them.
By then, Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills had become so famous in Yichun that the Yichun residents outside the military settlements flocked to it, either using connections or paying a high price to obtain Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills from the residents.
For a time, the residents of Yichun Military Village were extremely welcome, but also very busy. They kept what they needed and traded away any surplus. The residents who had made a profit were so happy that it was like New Year's Day.
On the contrary, Yichun, who was not a resident of the settlement, was very angry and said that the military settlement did not make money for itself, but let the residents make all the money.
The settlers feel guilty and proud. They feel guilty because what those people said seems to be right, and the senior officials of their military settlement can make money without them. They feel proud because the leaders of their military settlement are so smart and must have predicted the consequences of raising the purchase limit, but they still did it. They probably don't mind making money from it.
The settlers were right. These were all deliberate actions taken by Yao Chunnuan and his team after careful discussion. Firstly, it would allow the people to benefit from the wealth, enhancing their cohesion and solidarity, and also the appeal of the military settlement. Secondly, it would create momentum. After this incident, the hype surrounding Huoxiang Zhengqi Pills intensified, and their fame even spread beyond Yichun.
When the first Liangyaozhai opened in the name of Yichun Juntun, countless orders poured in and Juntun made a lot of money.
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