Chapter 53 Surrender (Part 1) Would any of you be interested in visiting our Anling...?
When Xiao Yong and his envoys from Maozhou arrived in Anling County with a letter from Sun Yannan, it was already autumn.
The sky is high and the clouds are light; the autumn air is crisp and refreshing.
The people are harvesting the ripe crops and preparing for autumn planting.
The publicity department posted promotional posters for the autumn sports meet, calling on farmers and workers to actively sign up and participate.
"Everyone should register first, and then the preliminary rounds will be held in each county. The top three winners will then go to Anling County for the final round."
"Whether it's at the county or prefecture level, the top three in each competition will receive prizes awarded by the Goddess!"
The next sentence drew cheers from the onlookers.
The prizes awarded by the goddess in the previous essay contest—a solar-powered desk lamp and a calculator—are impossible for anyone to replicate.
Now that the autumn sports meet is about to be held, everyone is very much looking forward to what kind of prizes the goddess will award this time.
They all signed up very enthusiastically.
There are single-player projects, double-player projects, four-player projects, and multi-player projects.
People with good physical fitness either participate individually or in teams with others. Villages and workshops are also actively organizing people to participate in group projects.
When Xiao Yong and his party arrived, it was a lively time.
Led by the soldiers guarding the city gate, they walked through the long street toward the administrative hall.
Along the way, I frequently saw groups of people gathered together, excitedly discussing something.
Xiao asked the soldier leading the way out of curiosity, and the soldier laughed and said, "They're talking about the autumn sports meet."
Hmph, when it comes to sports competitions alone, how can ordinary people compare to the city guards and soldiers?
Xiao Yong: "?" Autumn Sports Meet?
He looked at the soldiers in front of him, then at the civilians, and sighed: People who can eat three meals a day are different; they look healthy and strong, and their complexions are rosy.
Unlike the people they encountered along the way, who were all sallow-faced, emaciated, and bony.
He grew increasingly curious about the woman who claimed to be a goddess.
The person who received Xiao Yong and his entourage was Cheng Hui, the "prefect" of Anling County.
With a kind smile on his face, Cheng Hui, along with the staff who remained in the administrative hall, bowed to Xiao Yong and the others.
Xiao Yong and the others returned the greetings.
After exchanging names, Cheng Hui invited them inside to sit down.
The Executive Office Reception Room.
Xiao Yong took out the letter that Sun Yannan had written to He Qinglan, explained his purpose, and expressed his request to see He Qinglan and present the letter in person.
Cheng Hui's expression remained unchanged, and his tone was kind, "The Goddess is not currently at the Goddess's Residence. Please rest in the Administration Hall for a while. She will meet with you when she returns."
Xiao smiled and said, "I'm sorry to bother you."
Cheng Hui is a cunning old fox; he doesn't show his thoughts on his face, but the other staff members aren't as experienced.
Xiao Yong's gaze swept lightly over the people in the room. After hearing his purpose, they all showed surprised expressions, but then some showed curiosity, some showed doubt, some showed resistance, and some showed joy.
He chuckled softly.
Beside Cheng Hui, a young man winked at a middle-aged woman: Sister Juan, where is Minister Mo?
The middle-aged woman sighed silently.
The young man raised an eyebrow: "Back to the countryside again?"
The middle-aged woman's eyes darted around, her gaze asking: Where is your Minister Yun?
The young man's lips twitched: "He's been sent to the countryside too."
The two looked at each other and sighed silently: People from Maozhou came to offer surrender, but our minister wasn't even here!
The Minister of Agriculture also went to the countryside, so he couldn't be notified.
Gu Lanying from the Publicity Department is busy promoting the Autumn Sports Meet; Zhu Youchuan from the Justice Department is reviewing case files for the current quarter at the yamen; Dr. Xu from the Medical Department is busy setting up separate civilian and military medical clinics; Qian Shiwen from Longyuan Academy is holding a staff meeting regarding the Autumn Sports Meet; Huang Dade from the city guard team is inspecting the construction of the local city guard team in the county town…
Therefore, Cheng Hui quickly sent people to inform the heads of various places about the surrender, but they were unable to come over immediately.
Cheng Hui and others sat in the reception room chatting.
They chatted about important matters, the current situation of the imperial court, the recent conditions in various prefectures, droughts and floods, and the autumn harvest.
You praise your lord, I praise my goddess.
Fortunately, although He Qinglan was in the deep sea retrieving medicinal herbs for her friends in the apocalypse, she sent a message to Cheng Hui: "Why don't you show them around Anling? Sitting around like this is tiring."
I might not be back until tonight.
Cheng Hui breathed a sigh of relief and looked warmly at Xiao Yong and the others, "Would you all be interested in visiting our Anling?"
Xiao Yong paused for a moment, then smiled and replied, "I would be honored to accept your offer."
They naturally wanted to see for themselves what Anling County under the rule of the "Goddess" was like.
She, a woman, single-handedly recovered more than a dozen counties and unified them into Anling Prefecture.
How did she govern it? And what was the result?
Xiao Yong and his entourage, accompanied by Cheng Hui and others, visited Anling County.
The central area of Anneung County consists of the Goddess's Residence, the Administrative Hall, Yongyeon Academy, and the Anneung County Library.
The Goddess's Palace was built beautifully and grandly, using the finest wood and stone. The beams and pillars were carved with exquisite dragons, phoenixes, unicorns, birds, beasts, and immortal herbs, and each door was adorned with beautiful plaques and couplets.
The mansion features artificial hills, ponds, fishponds, and flowers and trees, which complement the pavilions and towers, creating a beautiful scene at every turn.
Two lifelike stone tigers were placed at the entrance, carved based on the little white tiger that Qiu Tang kept.
The building of the administrative building doesn't prioritize aesthetics; it adopts a minimalist style.
The houses are arranged in a staggered manner, divided into public areas and separate areas for each department, interspersed with pavilions, corridors, flowers, trees and shrubs.
The central area of the house is a very large square.
A large park was built between the administrative hall and the Goddess's Palace.
There are stone tables and chairs for resting, a spacious open space for playing, a flower garden for enjoying flowers, a lotus pond with swimming fish, and stone sculptures of historical figures.
There's also the fitness area suggested by Mo Jingchun based on his answers to the provincial civil service exam interview, where both the elderly and children can exercise.
There are trash cans in the park, and public toilets have been built.
Longyuan Academy and Anling County Library are located across the street from each other.
When the designers and carpenters were building the academy, they specially designed the administration building and the library in the center of the academy to be two symmetrical buildings.
In addition, several teaching buildings, a gymnasium and a large playground were built in the academy, as well as teachers' apartments and student dormitories.
To the east is a residential area built around the market, where many people live, and the clinic is also located here.
To the south were various workshops, including embroidery workshops, wool weaving workshops, paper mills, printing workshops, furniture factories, pond factories, fruit factories, and wineries.
To the west were ironware workshops, firearms workshops, and weapons workshops; further away were military camps, with military medical clinics and laundry facilities located within the camp grounds.
To the north were the government offices (civil and criminal), prisons, and the city guards.
The farms and orchards are located in the suburbs.
Meanwhile, expansion continues in the north, with plans to build a large commercial center.
Of course, once the commercial center is completed, this area will be developed into an economic center, and residential buildings will be constructed, at which point the prison will have to be moved.
Cheng Hui and the others led Xiao Yong and his group on a tour, introducing each place to them.
"I'm sorry, but no one may enter the Goddess's Palace without her permission."
"The administrative building is just a place to work. It just needs to be spacious and large enough. There's no need to make it too beautiful."
“Longyuan Academy is actually a branch of Qinglan Academy. Qinglan Academy is in Yunhe County, and we did not move to Anling.”
"I guess Brother Xingzhi will like our library. Brother Xingzhi, you can come and look at the books tomorrow."
Xiao Yong and his companions were overwhelmed by the sights.
Upon entering the East Market, they were even more astonished: the goods here were dazzling, and some of them, in terms of quality alone, surpassed the similar goods they had seen in Maozhou City and Xingzhou City.
Xiao Yong sampled tea at a teahouse, tasted wine at a tavern, examined writing brushes, ink, paper, and inkstones at a bookstore, looked at tables, chairs, and benches at a furniture store, and examined bowls, plates, cups, and bottles at a ceramics store…
He was startled.
Who exactly is He Qinglan? How could she have so many good things in Anling County?
Given Anling's current strength, would they still be willing to pledge allegiance to their lord?
Xiao withdrew his hand from the celadon lotus-patterned vase, a smile of appreciation on his face, but a sigh in his heart.
The various workshops, military camps, and city guards are naturally not open to the public.
Xiao Yong and his accompanying strategist exchanged glances, remained silent, and returned to the administrative hall under the guidance of Cheng Hui and others.
It just so happened to be dinner time.
Xiao witnessed firsthand how plates could appear out of thin air!
The iron plate contains five dishes and a soup: Kung Pao Chicken, stir-fried mutton with scallions, scrambled eggs with chives, eggplant with garlic sauce, and romaine lettuce with garlic sauce, plus yam and pork rib soup.
The aroma of rice and vegetables mingled together, making it incredibly tempting.
Cheng Hui smiled and said, “We also have restaurants and noodle shops in Anling County, but people prefer to eat the food bestowed by the goddess because we don’t have many of the seasonings needed to make these dishes.”
He gestured for Xiao Yong and the others to enter, saying, "Please have some."
The staff of the administrative office sat around, eating while secretly glancing at Xiao Yong and the others.
Seeing the officials from Maozhou taste the food bestowed by the goddess and show expressions of amazement, they were both satisfied and proud: So what if they were from Maozhou, or were officials? They had never eaten such delicious food!
The goddess's blessings are unique to the people of Anling. Long live the goddess!
After the meal, Xiao put down his chopsticks and showered the food and the "goddess" with praise.
"I had heard that the goddess provided food for the people of Anling, but I did not believe it. I never expected that a goddess would actually descend to the mortal world and bestow blessings upon the people! It is truly a blessing for the people!"
"If the people of Maozhou and Shengzhou could also receive the protection of the goddess, many of them would surely be able to survive this winter."
He sighed deeply.
Cheng Hui: "..."
hehe.
Is this what Xiao Mo meant by "moral blackmail"?
"Someone from Maozhou has come to offer surrender?"
In the military camp, Fang Qin and Xiang Yuesheng received the news first.
Fang Qin sneered, "Sun Yannan is quick on his feet. What kind of conditions does he plan to offer to become our Goddess's master?"
Xiang Yuesheng stroked his chin. "He's smarter than Hu Lin."
Hu Lin, relying on his position as governor of a prefecture, was single-mindedly focused on conquering Anling. Unfortunately, both of his military campaigns failed.
However, if Anling County were in Maozhou or Shengzhou, Sun Yannan would probably have sent troops directly instead of trying to persuade them to surrender.
Xiang Yuesheng smiled at Fang Qin and asked, "Shall we go and meet the envoy from Maozhou?"
Fang Qin shook his head. "No rush. The heads of the Ministry of Civil Affairs, the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the city guard are all still in the countryside. What's the rush for us soldiers?"
Xiang Yuesheng glanced at the infantrymen who were training and said, "That's right, we're not in a hurry."
He paused, then added, "Hopefully there will be fewer idiots."
-----------------------
Author's note: 12000/20000, keep it up! Keep it up! Keep it up!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
