Chapter 32 Going South to Fengxian
"I heard that the flood in Fengxian City has passed and the city is thriving?" Yan Xuanyu sat at the top of Wenyuan Pavilion and threw the memorial on the table and asked the officials present.
The officials of Wenyuan Pavilion exchanged glances with a few acquaintances below, but none of them said a word.
Where Yan Xuanyu couldn't see, Prime Minister Jiang tilted his head slightly, as if signaling to someone.
"Your Majesty, that's indeed the case." An official of the lowest rank in Wenyuan Pavilion stood up and replied.
Yan Xuanyu narrowed his eyes and looked at the official sitting at the back. He had no impression of this official, so he asked him, "What's your name?"
"Your Majesty, I have heard of Yongwang."
Li Zhongxian leaned over and whispered in Yan Xuanyu's ear, "Your Majesty, I heard that you are serving as the Left Chief Clerk in the court."
In this dynasty, the Left Chief Clerk is an official under the Prime Minister. Yan Xuanyu glanced at Jiang Yuanhua who was sitting below him without leaving a trace.
I only heard Yongwang say some flattering words, the gist of which was that Fengxian City could be in its current state after the flood because of Your Majesty.
Yan Xuanyu listened with great interest. Needless to say, the rhetoric of this era could really make people feel flattered. Scholars were different from others when they boasted. In Wen Yongwang's mouth, Fengxian City's present situation was all because Yan Xuanyu celebrated his birthday.
The other officials saw that the emperor was happy to hear this, and asked Eunuch Li to give Wen Yongwang a seat near him on the right side of Wenyuan Pavilion and let him come forward.
Yan Xuanyu looked very happy. "Oh? According to what you said, if I go to Fengxian City, won't my grace spread even further throughout Fengxian City?"
"So, I heard that you, my dear minister, want me to go to Fengxian City in person! I've heard that Fengxian City is located in the south, and I've never seen the scenery of small bridges and flowing water."
Yan Xuanyu suddenly seemed to be intrigued. "I've made up my mind. I'll follow your advice and head south to Fengxian City!"
"Your Majesty, absolutely not."
Everyone looked in the direction of the voice and saw that it was Prime Minister Jiang who spoke.
Prime Minister Jiang stood up, his face filled with worry. "Your Majesty, the journey south is dangerous, and the palace has not yet made any plans for a tour. Moreover, we must not neglect state affairs."
Yan Xuanyu said nonchalantly, "With the officials of Wenyuan Pavilion and Duke Hanguo in charge of government affairs, why should I worry? It is a blessing for Fengxian City that I am here in person."
Prime Minister Jiang was silent for a while, and finally said nothing more.
Yuan Kang will be returning to the capital soon, but His Majesty suddenly wants to go on a southern tour. Is he trying to take the opportunity to keep Yuan Kang in the capital?
On the second day of court, Yan Xuanyu mentioned the southern tour, and naturally encountered many obstacles again. However, Yan Xuanyu had made up his mind, and there was no one in the court - it cannot be said that there were no officials, but it can be said that those who did were a very small number of officials loyal to the emperor. Each party had its own ideas, and it was not known which party's wishes were satisfied by the emperor's southern tour. In short, no one came out to stop him.
Today, the court is divided into three factions: the upright officials, the aristocratic families, and the civil officials. The Great Zhou Dynasty emphasizes civil officials over military officials, and the military officials have almost no say in the court, but they have military power. This has led to a very contradictory situation. The military officials seem to be the weaker group among all the groups, but as long as a military general guarding a certain area has rebellious intentions, or colludes with high-ranking officials in the court, the consequences will be unimaginable.
Yan Xuanyu’s next goal is military power.
————
"Teacher, is this a letter from my uncle?" Lin Fu asked.
"Yes." Han Yuan burned the letter after reading it without saying a word.
Lin Fu waited quietly on the side.
After a while, Han Yuan said quietly, "Your uncle has gone down the mountain."
Lin Fu was surprised. In the last letter, his uncle claimed that he couldn't see anything because he was looking into the sky. Why did he come down the mountain again in this letter?
"I can't tell how much truth there is in your uncle's words." Han Yuan stroked his beard.
Han Yuan's senior brother is more capable than Han Yuan, but he has always been a recluse. This time, he suddenly wrote that he wanted to go down the mountain to take a look. Han Yuan always felt that his senior brother was hiding something from him.
After seeing Han Yuan burn the letter, Lin Fu told Han Yuan everything the emperor had said in the court.
The teacher's reaction that Lin Fu had imagined did not appear.
Han Yuan sat on the armchair and picked up the cup on the table, but did not drink. He just said calmly: "Just do what His Majesty ordered. Don't tell me again in the future."
Lin Fu was puzzled, but said respectfully, "Yes, teacher."
...
It is not known how many people are pleased with Yan Xuanyu's move south, but it is true that it did not please Li Zhongxian.
Ever since leaving court, Li Zhongxian has been whispering cautiously in Yan Xuanyu's ear: "Your Majesty, don't rush the journey south..."
Yan Xuanyu interrupted him and gave a pretentious bow, "Besides, Fengxian City has just experienced such a severe flood, and the people are in a state of uncertainty. You should think twice, Your Majesty!"
Li Zhongxian was absolutely loyal to Yan Xuanyu, so Yan Xuanyu could relax more or less in front of Li Zhongxian.
Li Zhongxian: “….”
The emperor knows everything, why should we go?
"Your Majesty, please forgive me. I really don't know what your Majesty's intention is in coming here."
Yan Xuanyu said coldly, "Why are you asking so clearly? Just follow me."
When he went south to Fengxian City, Yan Xuanyu did not bring any concubines with him, let alone any beauties. He only picked a few officials to accompany him, as if he really wanted to use dragon energy to dispel the evil spirits that caused the flood.
...
On the other side, Yuan Kang also received the news that the emperor was heading south on his way to Beijing.
Yuan Kang's close confidant hesitated and asked, "General, what does the young emperor mean by this?"
Yuan Kang's eyes were like an eagle: "Yuan Xun, go and accept your punishment."
The confidant named Yuan Xun whispered, "Yes, General."
But he still refused to accept it: "The capital has cut off our food supply. The food we sent earlier had bags punctured and all that came out was sand and gravel! We don't have any warm clothes..."
Last winter, they buried their brothers who had died of freezing or starvation in the woods, and there were more wooden planks than trees in the woods.
Not to mention ordinary soldiers, even Yuan Kang, with the court's increasingly scarce food, had to count the food he ate with his belt like the other soldiers. How could he defend the city if he couldn't even get enough to eat?
Why would they still fight for a monarch who completely disregards the lives of their brothers?!
Not only Yuan Xun was angry, but the other soldiers were also angry! How would they feel if they saw their brothers starving to death or freezing to death?
Yuan Xun went down to receive the punishment, and a young general replaced Yuan Kang.
Yuan Kang sat on his horse, looking towards the capital from afar.
He was also tormented in his heart, on one side he was loyal to the emperor, and on the other side he was surrounded by his brothers...
Now that the emperor knew that he was about to come to the capital for an audience, he went south to Fengxian City.
Yuan Kang was afraid that His Majesty was planning to make him go without return, so he first found an excuse to keep him in the capital, and then...
He was not afraid of death, nor was he afraid of the king ordering his subject to die. What he did not want was to die not in battle on the frontier, but in the capital, the capital of the Great Zhou that had been guarded by their Yuan family for generations.
Thinking of this, Yuan Kang let out a breath.
After receiving several lashes, Yuan Xun limped onto his horse and, contrary to his usual behavior, said nothing.
Yuan Kang raised his hand and ordered, "Slow down."
The letter said that His Majesty had already left the capital and there was no point in their haste.
...
Upon hearing the news that His Majesty had come to Fengxian City, the people of Fengxian City were in panic for several days.
They were just ordinary people and had a natural fear of the emperor. They could not believe that His Majesty would come to Fengxian City from the distant capital.
Feng Guangwei also received the news early in the morning and made arrangements to welcome the emperor in Fengxian City in advance. For several days in a row, the number of officers and soldiers patrolling Fengxian City more than doubled.
Feng Guangwei has been the governor of Fengxian City for over a month. According to Your Majesty's method, all the orphans and beggars who are willing to earn a living by their own labor are gathered together for training and then sent to places where they work - of course, they are still in the training stage, and the work places... are not yet known what they will do.
At this time, begging was not considered a "profession" by some people as it was in Yan Xuanyu's era. In this dynasty, begging was their way of struggling to survive.
But just in case, we should eliminate those who want to take advantage of the situation and get something for nothing.
In a small peasant society, the people at the bottom are almost all very honest.
Fengxian City recovered well. When Yan Xuanyu's imperial carriage entered the city, the people from both sides lined the streets to welcome him despite being blocked by officials and soldiers.
Yan Xuanyu put a dagger in his sleeve, ready to be on guard against sneak attacks at any time.
But then again, the possibility of assassination is too low. Not to mention that it is difficult to squeeze out of the crowded crowd, if you want to drop from the sky, there must be buildings around to ambush.
As expected of the capable general chosen by Yan Xuanyu, the places Feng Guangwei chose for welcoming the emperor were all open on all sides. There were strong officers and soldiers outside watching closely, and there were a few of his own people inside mixed in with the people, observing at all times.
Many buildings in Fengxian City had been renovated by Feng Guangwei and his men before Yan Xuanyu came. The old ones were replaced with new ones. Even if Yan Xuanyu had not come, people rarely had gloomy expressions on their faces.
It was all thanks to Feng Guangwei who did it himself, parading the officers and soldiers through the streets every day.
Now even the blind old ladies in the alleys of Fengxian City are saying that Lord Feng is the great justice who has come to save Fengxian City.
The imperial carriage entered the prefectural mansion under the escort of guards.
The prefectural mansion is where Yan Xuanyu is temporarily staying during this period. Several officials including Wen Yongwang have also come with him this time, but they are carefully brought by Yan Xuanyu. Each family has one, so that they can take a good look at what Yan Xuanyu has done, so that the people behind him can feel at ease.
Feng Guangwei arranged for the officials to be taken to their rooms to rest, and then followed Yan Xuanyu to the study.
Fortunately, Lu Liang built the prefectural mansion large and grand enough, otherwise it would not be able to accommodate all these people.
Yan Xuanyu rubbed his wrist and threw the dagger in his sleeve to Feng Guangwei who was following behind him. No matter how light the craftsman made this thing, it still weighed down his arm and was very uncomfortable!
"Your Majesty, your trip..."
"Take me out for a walk tomorrow." Yan Xuanyu entered the study and started writing with the paper and pen that Feng Guangwei had prepared in advance.
Feng Guangwei agreed from the side.
What Yan Xuanyu wrote about was naturally how Fengxian City would develop in the future.
It's a place that's not ridiculously far from the capital, it's also the route for the future official road to the south, and it's also a city of considerable size. How can we justify it if we don't develop it?
"Find me a set of ordinary soldier's clothes and tell me I'm tired from traveling south and am resting. Anyone who comes to see me will be stopped."
On the way to Fengxian City, Yan Xuanyu carefully discovered that there were yellow and white flowers on the ground on both sides of the road that were about to bloom, and some buds had already bloomed, which looked beautiful.
Yan Xuanyu had never seen this flower before. It was similar in color to the magnolia, but the petals were small, thin, and tightly packed together. There were several flowers on one plant, and they looked very beautiful together.
He casually asked Feng Guangwei: "What kind of flowers are those outside the city?"
"Your Majesty, this flower has no name. It is a wild flower unique to Fengxian City. It has a faint fragrance when it blooms." Feng Guangwei thought for a moment, "But this flower is like a weed. It takes root as soon as it touches the ground and loves rain."
Originally, the wild flowers were not supposed to bloom now, but the excessive rain caused by the floods has nourished these wild flowers.
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