Shanhe Festival 209. Goodbye Sisters



Shanhe Festival 209. Goodbye Sisters

There are still a few days to go before the full-month banquet for Prince Ding, but Ruyang City has already become lively. Because of the war in the northwest last year, many wealthy businessmen in the northwest fled to the interior, which also caused the entire northwest business to stagnate or even regress. This time, Mo Xiaobao was just born and Prince Ding’s Mansion announced to the world to celebrate for the young prince. Moreover, because of the relationship between the treasures of the previous dynasty and the imperial seal, people continued to pour into the northwest. In less than a month, Ruyang City seemed to be slowly prospering. Previously, Xinyang, the largest city in the northwest, turned into a sea of ​​fire. Now that Prince Ding’s Mansion is stationed in Ruyang City, Ruyang City seems to be gradually becoming the largest city in the northwest. In order to entertain guests from all directions, the people in the city had already prepared their own places early, preparing to make a fortune during this busy period.

In Prince Ding's mansion, Mo Xiuyao and Ye Li felt much more relaxed because of the addition of several members of the Xu family. In addition to Mr. Qingyun, who was old and was just recuperating in the mansion, and occasionally went to see Su Zhe who was recuperating in the mansion, from Xu Hongyu, Xu Hongyan to the five sons of the Xu family, even the youngest Xu Qingyan could follow Xu Qingbai to help with some small things. Xu Hongyu and Xu Qingchen were originally rare geniuses. With them, Mo Xiuyao immediately threw most of the affairs of the Northwest to them without hesitation, and his life was very relaxed and comfortable.

"Li'er, did you write this?" In the spacious study, several tables were put together to form a large desk, on which various documents and files were neatly placed. Several people sat around the desk, handling the files in their hands and talking from time to time. Although everyone has their own study, they generally like to handle official business in the big study, which is not lonely and boring, and they can ask for other people's opinions when they are undecided. Xu Qingchen raised his head and asked, holding a file about the business plan in the northwest.

Ye Li raised her head from the papers and looked at Xu Qingchen blankly, not knowing what he was talking about. Mo Xiuyao, who was sitting next to her, glanced at him and said, "About the plan for the development of business in the northwest."

"Ah... I wrote it." Ye Li just remembered it and said a little embarrassedly: "Actually, I only have a rough idea. I am not familiar with these. Didn't you say before that you would hand it over to Mingxi and Leng Er to handle it?" Mo Xiuyao said: "Leng Er went back to the interior of the country. Han Mingxi has to take care of the northwest and the affairs with Nanzhao and Beirong. He is too busy to handle it, so he put it aside for now." Hearing them say this, the others also raised their heads to look at Xu Qingchen. Xu Qingchen handed the things in his hand to Xu Hongyu. After everyone looked at it, Xu Hongyu nodded and praised: "Li'er's idea is novel. You can try it and it may work." Although the Xu family is a scholarly family, they are not pedantic. Naturally, they understand what business means to a city or even a country. Compared to the rich Central Plains and Jiangnan regions, the Northwest is not rich and even the food is poor. If they cannot find another way, the Mohist Army will gradually die out because of the poverty in the Northwest. At first, when people saw Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao going in and out every day to handle the political affairs of the Northwest and the military affairs of the Mohist Army, they were a little surprised, but seeing the generals of the Mohist Army acting as if they were used to it made people feel very relieved. Li'er has enough talent and ability, and most importantly, Prince Ding is willing to give her trust and space to show her ability, which makes the Xu family have a much better impression of Mo Xiuyao.

The file was passed around among the people, but Xu Qingbai was the most interested in this plan. He was originally sent to the southwest region, and was about to show his talents when he was called back to the capital. Now when he saw this plan, he immediately remembered the feeling when he first arrived in the southwest and wanted to show his ambitions. "Li'er, what do you think?"

Looking up and seeing that everyone was staring at her, Ye Li had no choice but to put down the memorial in her hand and asked Zhuo Jing to fetch a map and hang it on the wall, and also had someone bring some freshly brewed tea. After thinking carefully and organizing his words, he said, "The area of ​​the northwest is less than one-sixth of that of Da Chu, and the population is less than one-tenth of the entire Da Chu. Although Hongzhou is known as the granary of the northwest, it is still insufficient compared to the Central Plains, Jiangnan, and even the southwest, which is known as the land of abundance. If it is just peacetime, it doesn't matter. We only need a small amount of imported food to feed the people and soldiers in the northwest. But the actual situation is that the worst case scenario is that we may face more than three million troops from Da Chu, Beirong, and Xiling at the same time. Even if there is no war, the three countries only need to unite to block the northwest's food, economy, and other aspects. Even if the northwest will not fall into trouble immediately, it will only become poorer and poorer. Similarly, the Mohist army will become weaker and weaker, and extinction is only a matter of time."

Everyone was indifferent. What Ye Li said was all true. It was not that the people present did not know it, but no one had ever laid out these data so clearly in front of them. Because it was clear, it was even more shocking.

Feng Zhiyao frowned and said, "What if we take the initiative to attack? Expand our territory in the northwest?"

Xu Hongyu frowned and said, "It's not impossible, but... Xiling's land is poor, and their food comes mostly from the Western states of Dachu, Nanzhao, and the Northern Rong, which is a large grassland desert. The Northern Rong people mainly eat cattle and sheep. Dachu... can't move for the time being. Once the Mohist Army attacks Dachu, it is very likely that Xiling, Beirong, and Nanzhao will attack the Mohist Army at the same time. In fact, given the bravery of the Mohist Army, what General Feng said may not be impossible, but the losses are not enough. It must be huge. I think Li'er means to take it slowly. "Ye Li nodded and said, "Yes, if we make the northwest full of holes, we will have to clean up the mess in the end. Unless we can take down any country of Xiling or Beirong within half a year, otherwise, once the opponent retaliates, it will be enough for the Mohist Army to bear." The Mohist Army is not any army. They seem to be extremely powerful, but in fact they are full of crises. Because no matter who wants to dominate the world or do something, if the power is not strong enough, they will only be ignored. When the power is strong enough, they can unite and unite. And the Mohist Army has been positioned as everyone's opponent from the beginning. No one from Xiling or Beirong would cooperate with the Mohist Army. If they had a choice, they would rather destroy the Mohist Army first at all costs.

Xu Qingyan leaned over and stretched his neck to look at what Xu Qingbai was holding, and asked, "Sister Li'er has already considered so much, so there must be a way to solve it?"

Ye Li smiled helplessly, "How can we solve these problems in a short time? But I have ordered people to survey the entire northwest. Except for the area near Hongzhou, Ganzhou, which is the middle reaches of the Minjiang River, is a large plain area with excellent soil and water quality. It's just that this place borders the Northern Rong, so there are few people and large tracts of fertile land are not cultivated." Xu Qingbai said thoughtfully, "Does Li'er mean to move the people to Ganzhou to open up the land? There must be a large number of troops stationed at the border to prevent the Northern Rong from looting at any time."

Mo Xiuyao nodded and said, "That's not a problem. Right now, the Mohist Army still has hundreds of thousands of troops sitting around doing nothing. Moreover, the Mohist Army will certainly expand in the future, so there will be no shortage of people to guard the land." Ye Li also nodded and said, "If the people are worried, the Mohist Army can reclaim the land first, or cultivate the land together with the people."

"The Mohist army farms with ordinary people?" Everyone frowned, all a little hesitant.

Xu Qingchen raised his eyebrows slightly and smiled, "Li'er's idea is very good. It seems that the hundreds of thousands of troops do not need to fight for the time being, and it is also good to use them for farming. In this way, the Mohist army will have its own food harvest and can also reduce the taxes on the people."

Xu Qingbai nodded, and asked impatiently, "Then Li'er, what do you think of the business hub mentioned above?"

Ye Li pressed her temples, sorted out her thoughts, and said, "There are not only countries like Da Chu, Bei Rong, Xi Ling, and Nan Zhao in this world. There are countless small countries to the west of Xi Ling, and there may even be big countries that we don't know about. It's just that the distance is far, so most people don't know about them. Our northwest is now surrounded by these countries. If we sell the products of Dong Chu, Bei Rong, and Nan Zhao to more western countries through Xi Ling, and then bring their products back to sell to Da Chu or Bei Rong people. We can even guide merchants from those countries to come... Over time, Ruyang, and even the entire northwest will become an important area for economic and communication between the east and the west..." Xu Qingbai is a smart man, so he naturally understood it immediately. He smiled and said, "When is Li'er going to start? Count me in."

"I want one too!" Xu Qingyan has always followed the policy of following his fourth brother, and quickly stretched out his hand to make the decision.

Ye Li smiled and said, "We have already sent some people over to the agricultural side. As for the commercial side... Fourth brother has no experience, so you can ask Han Mingxi and Leng Haoyu..." Thinking of the busy Han Mingxi and Leng Haoyu, Ye Li felt a little headache. Thinking of someone who was now dead somewhere, she felt a little regretful that she should not have killed Su Zuidie so quickly. Otherwise, she would have gotten such a good free laborer.

"Your Highness and Princess, Prince Chu Jingli and Princess Li have arrived." As he was speaking, a guard came in to report.

"Prince Li? Mo Jingli?" Ye Li was startled. She didn't expect him to come to Ruyang, and bring Ye Ying with him. Speaking of which, Ye Li hadn't seen Ye Ying for nearly two years. She was originally imprisoned by Mo Jingqi. Now that Mo Jingli has returned to Beijing and has a large army under his command, he seems to be ready to fight against Mo Jingqi. As the Princess of Prince Li, Ye Ying is naturally free.

Mo Xiuyao stood up and said with a smile: "Mo Jingli? In that case... Ah Li, let's go and greet Prince Li and Princess Li. I also want to see how much strength Mo Jingli has gained after not seeing him for a long time." Ye Li naturally had no objection, so she stood up and followed Mo Xiuyao out. Only Xu Qingbai had some questions that he hadn't asked yet, and he seemed to be unsatisfied.

It was called a welcome, but when Chief Steward Mo invited people in, Ye Li and Mo Xiuyao walked to the door of the hall to greet them. Mo Jingli obviously didn't expect any good courtesy from Mo Xiuyao, and his expression was normal. As soon as he approached the hall of Prince Ding's Mansion, he saw a pair of beautiful people standing at the door. Mo Xiuyao was wearing a light purple brocade robe, with his snow-white hair casually rolled back, and he seemed to be more indifferent and scary than before. Ye Li was wearing a light blue dress with silver thread and peony patterns. Her smile was still gentle, but her eyebrows were more noble and charming. Looking at the green-clothed woman standing beside Mo Xiuyao with a smile, Mo Jingli's eyes flashed, and for a moment he couldn't tell what he felt in his heart.

"Prince Li and Princess Li are honored to be here. We are very pleased to welcome you." Seeing Mo Xiuyao who had no intention of speaking, Ye Li smiled.

After not seeing each other for a year, Ye Ying is quite different from the famous fourth daughter of the Ye family in Chujing. Her originally weak, helpless and charming look now has more resentment and woodenness. Her eyes, which were originally as clear as autumn water, have become much sharper, which has weakened her original weak temperament. She follows Mo Jingli silently and looks more like a princess than before. However, Ye Li did not miss the jealousy and resentment in Ye Ying's eyes when she looked at her. She couldn't help laughing in her heart. Ye Ying may have suffered a lot in the past two years, but what is there for her to be jealous of? Envy that she led the troops to fight and risked her life on the battlefield? Or envy that she fell off the cliff and almost died?

Mo Jingli looked at the two people standing side by side in front of him and said calmly, "It's been a long time since we last met. How are you?"

Mo Xiuyao raised his eyebrows in surprise. Mo Jingli actually knew how to greet him properly? It seems that he really learned something bad in the past year. He nodded calmly and smiled faintly: "Thank you for your concern." Mo Jingli's expression froze, and he looked as ugly as if he had swallowed a fly: Who cares about him? Ye Li smiled and glanced at Mo Xiuyao. Mo Jingli smiled and said, "Please come in, both of you." -

After entering the hall and sitting down, Ye Li noticed that Mo Jingli actually brought someone with him. It was also an acquaintance whom he hadn't seen for a long time - Princess Qixia. Princess Qixia followed Mo Jingli in the attire of a maid, but she kept her head down. Ye Li thought she was just an ordinary girl. But she followed everyone into the hall, and Ye Li realized something was wrong. No wonder Ye Ying's face was so ugly. When Mo Jingli left Chujing, he brought Princess Qixia with him. He didn't expect that he would bring her with him when he came to the northwest. It was obvious that Mo Jingli treated Princess Qixia very differently.

After the guest sat down, Ye Li hesitated for a moment and looked at Princess Qixia and said, "This..."

Before Mo Jingli could say anything, Ye Ying said calmly, "She's just a girl. Why would Third Sister care about her?"

Hearing this, Mo Jingli's face darkened, and Princess Qixia's expression was not good either. Originally, with Princess Qixia's identity, she was more than qualified to be a concubine. But after such a commotion at the wedding, Princess Qixia had to fake her death in a hurry. Originally, Ye Li thought that Mo Jingli should find another identity for Princess Qixia as soon as possible, but she didn't expect that she was still a concubine until now. Seeing that Mo Jingli didn't say anything, Ye Li didn't care and ordered someone to serve tea.

"Prince Ding's current appearance really scared me." Mo Jingli said. Although he had heard of Prince Ding's white hair, he was still a little surprised to see it with his own eyes. He glanced at Ye Li who was sitting next to Mo Xiuyao, and evaluated in his heart that it seemed that Ye Li was more important to Mo Xiuyao than they thought.

Mo Xiuyao didn't care at all. He casually brushed back the hair that fell on his chest and said with a smile, "Flowers bloom and fall, birth, aging, sickness and death are all common. Why should we care about it? I heard that Prince Li has been very happy in Jiangnan for more than a year."

Mo Jingli curled his lips and said, "Prince Ding is over-honored. How can Prince Ding occupy the northwest at ease?" The two men started to fight back and forth. If it were in the past, Mo Jingli might not have the courage and confidence to deal with Mo Xiuyao. But now it is different. Mo Xiuyao occupies the northwest, while he occupies the south of the Yangtze River. Compared with the poverty of the northwest, the rich south of the Yangtze River is obviously more advantageous.

Ye Li turned to Ye Ying with a smile and asked, "How has Fourth Sister been this year?"

Ye Ying looked at Ye Li with a complicated expression, snorted and sneered: "Don't you know that I'm imprisoned by the emperor? How good can a prisoner of a lower class be?" The implication was that she was blaming Ye Li for not rescuing her when she knew that she was imprisoned by Mo Jingqi. Ye Li didn't care. She and Ye Ying didn't have any deep sisterly love. If it was just a matter of raising a hand, she would have saved her, but at that time, Ye Ying could be said to be a hostage of Mo Jingqi to control Mo Jingli, so naturally she would have been heavily guarded. Why would she bother sacrificing her own subordinates? Facing Ye Ying's questioning, Ye Li looked normal and comforted her: "Now that the fourth sister has reunited with the Li Wang couple, and has the Li Wang's son, the days to come will finally be sweet after the hardships."

Hearing this, Ye Ying's face darkened and looked even uglier. Ye Li thought about it and understood immediately. It must be that Mo Jingli did not intend to make the child born by Ye Ying the crown prince. Yes, Mo Jingli is still young. When will he have a child? And now Ye Ying can be said to have no foundation except for her half-sister. She is not even as good as an ordinary small official family. And her sister has a bad relationship with her, and the two families are even enemies. Mo Jingli certainly would not consider making the child born by Ye Ying the crown prince. I'm afraid he has already planned to choose a woman with a good family background as his concubine.

Ye Li naturally had no business dealing with these matters. She simply stopped asking and started talking to Ye Ying about other things. Ye Ying listened to Ye Li in silence, and after a long while she suddenly asked, "Why did Third Sister want Father to retire and return home?!"

Ye Li raised her eyebrows. Is this a question?

Pursing her lips and smiling faintly, Ye Li's smile was a little cold, "Father is old and has basically reached the top in the court. Is there anything wrong with retiring at the peak of his career?"

Ye Ying bit her lip and looked at Ye Li with resentment. No one knew how she felt when she was released from prison and found out that her parents and relatives were not in the capital. The prince was no longer as attentive to her as before, but was cold and indifferent, and did not even look at her children. If her father was still alive, how could the minister be like this?

Ye Li certainly understood Ye Ying's resentment and hatred, and sneered in his heart. If Ye Shangshu had not retired, he would have been killed by Mo Jingqi long ago, and there would be no way he could wait for Ye Ying to come out. I thought Ye Ying had grown up after more than a year of suffering, but now it seems that she is still so naive and ignorant!


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