Chapter 175 Settlement of Accounts
After the fall of Yanhui Pass, Yuan Kuishan and the Fourth Prince held Huaizhou against the Tatars. However, after fighting for over a year, there was no sign of regaining Yanhui Pass, which led to the people of Huaizhou fleeing, except for those who died in battle.
Especially in the past six months, there have been corpses everywhere.
Lu Chenyang was actually very concerned about the war situation in Huaizhou, but firstly, Huaizhou was too far away, and secondly, Lu Chenyang had a lot of things to do, so he couldn't take care of it.
Gao Ming had been keeping an eye on the news over there and had even sent people to inquire about the situation. Therefore, he specifically discussed with Chen Songyuan and decided to set aside a caravan to take the route over there to gather information.
Lu Chenyang's expression was solemn. "A bunch of trash."
The people of Huaizhou fled everywhere. Some of them formed gangs and became robbers, while others became refugees. Unable to survive, they joined the Yilin Army.
Lu Chenyang took out a map. Huaizhou was next to Jizhou, so the people went to Jizhou because they couldn't survive. The title of Yilin Army's million-strong army was still very convincing, but if the Yilin Army continued to grow, it would be even more dangerous.
Lu Chenyang frowned. "The Yilin Army is a motley bunch, but they are numerous. There will definitely be a war between the imperial court and the Yilin Army in the future, but these are innocent civilians."
Lu Chenyang's purpose as an official is to ensure that the people can live and work in peace and contentment. He doesn't want to engage in direct conflict with these people. They just want to survive. How innocent are they?
There are more than one million Yilin soldiers, and they are all the working people.
Gao Ming looked at the pain on Lu Chenyang's face and sighed in his heart, knowing that his master was feeling sorry for him again.
This is what Miss Zhaoxi said. Her master is a very good person and cares about the world, so he feels pain because of this chaotic world and the plight of ordinary people.
Gao Ming said, "Sir, only by unifying the country and electing a wise leader can we end this chaotic world."
Lu Chenyang knew what he said made sense, so he asked, "Who is the leader of the Yilin Army? Can the imperial court recruit them?"
Gao Ming shook his head. "The Yilin Army has had several leaders, and they've been constantly fighting among themselves. The current leader is Yao Mincai, and he took over after we drove the Yilin Army back from Ningzhou. As for recruiting them, that's unlikely. I heard Yao Mincai already has ambitions of independence."
Lu Chenyang: “…”
Chen Songyuan said sarcastically, "Self-determination? Where? From Jizhou?" He snorted coldly, "You want to establish yourself as the ruler of a tiny country? Where's the nerve to do that?"
Even the adults in his family didn't think about being independent, so how dare Yao Min?!
Chen Songyuan said to Lu Chenyang, "But it can be seen from this that Yao Mincai has no talent. There is no need to worry too much."
This opponent is too weak. He is not their adult at all and is not on the same level at all.
When Chen Songyuan thought of this, he couldn't help but puff out his chest proudly and looked at Lu Chenyang with a loving face.
Look at his lord: talent, vision, literary grace, even martial prowess! This is a lord worth following! He'd die for him!
Lu Chenyang felt a little numb on his scalp when he saw his gaze. To be honest, even his mother had never looked at him like that.
Lu Chenyang said, "It doesn't matter if he's stupid, but I'm afraid it's a problem when someone is stupid and hardworking. He's working so hard to gather refugees and gather so many people. I'm afraid he's just harboring ambitions, and in the end, it's the people who will suffer."
Gao Ming and Chen Songyuan both agree with this point.
Lu Chenyang looked at the map and then set his sights on Anzhou.
Anzhou has always been a low-key place. If I were to describe it in one word, it would be moderation. Geographically speaking, it is located in the lower left corner of Jizhou and Huai'an. No one would deliberately make a detour to Anzhou.
Economically speaking, it is not as good as Ningzhou.
So many people ignore this place, but it is one of the few places in the entire Dagan where there is no war. Even the Yilin Army subconsciously ignores this place.
Anzhou is poor anyway, and there is nothing good to be found by robbing, so it is better to go to Ningzhou.
Yes, I dislike it so much.
Lu Chenyang's eyes lit up, and he said, "If I send a batch of food and fodder to Anzhou and have the governor of Anzhou gather the refugees, do you think anyone will still join the Yilin Army?"
Gao Ming and Chen Songyuan looked at each other. Gao Ming didn't say anything. He felt that Chen Songyuan would take the initiative to scold him.
Chen Songyuan, who had just made up his mind to fight for his lord, now felt that his lord was too generous with his money.
Chen Songyuan said, "That's certainly an idea, but sir, how much grain do we need to invest?" He rattled off a string of figures. "Now the people of Shu and Lingnan are indeed well fed, but sir, you love the people like your own children and have been reducing taxes. Most of our tax revenue comes from commercial taxes. The amount we rely on to support the Lu Family Army pales in comparison. Disaster relief requires just as much grain as supporting an entire Lu Family Army."
Chen Songyuan thought for a moment and continued, "The silver we are spending now is the spoils of war captured in this attack on Quzhou. But we will send a batch of food to Ningzhou in a few days." He glanced at Lu Chenyang and continued, "If you are willing to sacrifice yourself and marry the daughter of the Cui family, perhaps the Cui family will help us with the food and fodder because you are their son-in-law. However, now that the Yilin Army has been repelled, we are stationed there for you. I think the Cui family will definitely not provide us with food and fodder anymore."
Lu Chenyang: "...No, just speak nicely and don't mention marriage."
Why does it feel like the reason I’m short of money now is because he’s unwilling to sacrifice himself?
Chen Songyuan nodded slightly and said respectfully, "Yes, sir. Now that you are building a school, we need to purchase pens, inkstones, and other supplies. Of course, most of these are purchased from the Shen and Zhao families, and they are already at cost. Moreover, we have always relied on your face to buy some of them on credit, and we will use them against the taxes next year... But even paying only part of it is still a considerable amount of money."
Chen Songyuan looked at Lu Chenyang sincerely and said, "Sir, we have no money left. We have to set aside 20,000 taels of silver for emergencies, and the rest of the silver we can use," he stretched out his fingers to count, and gave the exact number: "It's only 8,765 taels." In both decimal and integer amounts.
Lu Chenyang sighed lightly, he knew he was telling the truth.
He actually felt bad for Chen Songyuan, who came from a wealthy family, one of the richest in Lingnan. Mr. Chen used to spend money without blinking an eye, but ever since he'd been with him, he'd become incredibly stingy, haggling with merchants over every penny when purchasing supplies.
Lu Chenyang saw it once and felt sad.
In the eyes of his family, everything seemed to be a must. Schools had to be built so that children could receive an education, and canals had to be built quickly for the people's livelihoods. He knew they had a point, but he still felt sorry for him.
Many people think that Chen Songyuan is not as respected as Gao Ming in front of Lu Chenyang, because Gao Ming helps Lu Chenyang to make plans and Lu Chenyang will follow his advice on many important matters.
Gao Ming was especially responsible for the appointment and removal of officials, while Chen Songyuan was much more low-key, even though he was in charge of Lu Chenyang's purse. However, everyone knew that managing money was not as important as managing power, especially under Lu Chenyang, who would not embezzle the money he was owed, making Chen Songyuan seem less important.
But in fact, Lu Chenyang never thought so. Instead, he gave Chen Songyuan great respect, especially when outsiders were around. He showed his respect and respect for Chen Songyuan without any concealment.
Because Lu Chenyang knew that Chen Songyuan had done a lot. He couldn't touch the Chen family's property, but almost all the money belonging to Chen Songyuan's family was subsidized to Lu Chenyang by him.
Of course, Lu Chenyang also made a promise that when their conditions improved in the future, he would return the money with interest.
Every time Chen Songyuan nodded seriously and said he believed in the master. Every time this happened, Lu Chenyang would blush a little, because neither of them knew when they would be able to pay back the money.
Lu Chenyang said, "I know it's difficult for you, sir, but some things still need to be done." He said, "Let's do as much as we can. I will write a letter to the governor of Anzhou, offering a batch of grain and fodder, and ask him to join me in distributing grain relief. This must be done, otherwise more and more people will flee to Jizhou and become rebels, and there will be a battle with our Lu family army in the future! Our disaster relief efforts are not only to save the refugees, but also ourselves."
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