Chapter 76 Arrival (1000 words added) This is where you set foot...
Mo Jingchun was appointed as the head of Sifang County.
This news shocked most of the people in Anling County.
Of course, everyone knows that Minister Mo is very outstanding. He can not only do his job well, but also deal with and resolve emergencies, and organize large-scale events.
But...
After all, she...
There are many voices of discussion, many voices of doubt, and many voices of questioning.
Ke Heqing personally stood up for Mo Jingchun, suppressing all his dissatisfaction.
Thus, the work was able to continue smoothly.
The list of personnel to be dispatched to Sifang County was quickly finalized and sent throughout the county via newspapers published in Anling County.
The people on the list from each county quickly handed over their work, packed their belongings, and headed to Anling County to assemble.
On the morning of departure, everyone lined up in the square in front of the administrative building for a rally.
He Qinglan stood on the high platform, looking down at everyone: staff members of the county administrative office, staff members from various counties who volunteered to go to Sifang County; workers from the county workshops, workshop workers from various counties who volunteered to work in Sifang County; and local people who came to watch.
She parted her lips slightly, and her clear, cool voice rang in everyone's ears:
"I believe in Mo Jingchun's abilities, and I also believe that you will cooperate with her to do a good job in Sifang County."
"Gentlemen, this is your second step into the world."
"I hope you will not disappoint the people of Sifang County, and you will not disappoint me."
Mo Jingchun stepped forward, looked up at He Qinglan with determination, and said, "Please rest assured, Goddess, we will do our utmost to live up to your expectations!"
Among all the staff members standing behind her, about to head to Sifang County, someone shouted, "We will certainly not fail the goddess's trust!"
Immediately afterwards, people shouted one after another, "We will certainly not fail the goddess's trust!"
Finally, a unified voice resounded throughout the square: "We will certainly not fail the goddess's trust!"
Someone lit firecrackers, and they popped and crackled.
The group set off amidst the incessant sound of firecrackers, traveling by carriage or horse, and left the county town under the watchful eyes of the people of Anling County.
They will embark on their own future.
He Qinglan stood on the city wall.
Watching the long queue gradually recede into the distance and eventually disappear from sight.
Even though she has long been accustomed to the constant partings in life, she still personally sees people off when they leave.
The goddess gazed in the direction of Sifang County, her eyes filled with melancholy.
She whispered, "Keep it up."
Sifang County.
After Ning Huai'an led his army back to the county town, everyone held a meeting.
“We need to leave half of our people to guard Sifang County, and the other half to go back and guard Anling County,” Xiang Yuesheng said.
That's natural. If there were no troops stationed there, the administrative staff would probably have to travel far before the territory they had just seized was taken away by others.
However, not everyone can stay in Sifang County, otherwise it would be putting the cart before the horse.
Anling County currently has very few troops, and the city's defense force cannot rebuild an army in a short period of time.
Therefore, half of the people must go back to protect the people, land, and property of Anling County.
Hu Dazhu nodded repeatedly, "We can recruit soldiers in Sifang County, train them, and then send some to Anling to supplement Anling's military strength."
Everyone agreed with Hu Dazhu's proposal.
So the question is, who stayed and who went back?
The group looked at each other in bewilderment.
But Ning Huai'an spoke up first, "I'll stay."
All eyes were on him, filled with curiosity and doubt.
Ning Huai'an explained, "I'm not married or have children yet, so I have no ties. It's the same wherever I am."
His words sparked an idea in Fang Qin's mind, and he said to everyone, "General Ning's words reminded me of something. When deciding who should return, we should consider the family circumstances of the soldiers."
Xiang Yuesheng raised an eyebrow, "You mean..."
Fang Qin said, “If both father and son are alive, the son stays and the father goes back. If both brothers are alive, the younger brother stays and the older brother goes back.”
Xiang Yuesheng understood, "Those who have no father, brothers, or adult children at home should also go back."
"Huh?" Shang Xiaorong asked in surprise, "But if we do that, won't there be enough people left?"
Fang Qin said, "Don't worry, we will recruit soldiers from all directions immediately, then establish a new recruit camp to quickly train new people."
Hu Dazhu nodded. "With so many people in Sifang County, they can make up for our numbers."
Ning Huai'an said calmly, "We can recruit again from Anling."
"Now that we have plenty of experience training new recruits, we're no longer in the exploratory stage, so the pace should be quite fast," Xiang Yuesheng joked.
Pan Songshi laughed upon hearing this, "I offer my condolences in advance to the new recruits, and hope they are resilient enough to endure hardship."
We reached a consensus on this matter: everyone should try to sleep better at night.
They started implementing it early the next morning.
Ning Huai'an and Fang Qin led their men to stay behind and wait for the administrative office personnel to arrive.
Hu Dazhu and Xiang Yuesheng then led their men back to Anling County.
Each battalion's captain summoned their own centurion to quickly ascertain which soldiers met the criteria for "must return" and made a separate record.
After understanding the details, the list was handed to Hu Dazhu and Ning Huai'an.
They compiled the list and began to "divide" the soldiers.
The statements, such as "Take these people back to Anling" and "Leave these people in Sifang," were like dividing up family property.
A few days later, the two generals summoned all the soldiers.
Based on the list they discussed, everyone was divided in two.
Two days later, Hu Dazhu and Xiang Yuesheng led the soldiers who had been reassigned to their command back to Anling.
The army left Sifang County.
Some of the original inhabitants of Sifang County, seeing that half of the army from Anling had left, thought they could start making trouble and were quite arrogant for a few days.
Then, soldiers from the camp pointed long spears at his neck, and he obediently squatted on the ground, admitting his mistake and begging for mercy.
Ning Huai'an glanced at those guys who only dared to act lawlessly in front of ordinary people and scoffed.
You don't think our soldiers patrol the whole city every day just because they're bored and want to have fun, do you?
We're keeping an eye on you beasts to prevent you from doing anything wrong!
The people were very moved. To be honest, these soldiers from Anling County did not oppress them and even protected their safety. They were really good!
It's so good it's hard to believe.
It would be even better if they could maintain this state.
Half a month later, Mo Jingchun and his group passed by Hu Dazhu's army on the road from Anling to Sifang.
A month later, they arrived at Sifang County and met with Ning Huai'an and Fang Qin.
“I, Mo Jingchun, am the governor of Sifang County appointed by the goddess.”
After Mo Jingchun finished speaking, amidst the surprised or curious gazes of Ning Huai'an and the others, she showed the documents given to her by He Qinglan to the people on the military side.
Fang Qin took it and carefully read it from beginning to end.
The words were written by Cheng Hui himself and stamped with He Qinglan's personal seal.
He raised his eyes, surveyed all the soldiers, and said in a deep voice, "It's true."
Everyone fell silent.
Then they all turned to look at Mo Jingchun.
Minister Mo stood tall and proud, a gentle smile on her wheat-colored face. She looked at everyone present and said confidently and calmly, "I hope you will all cooperate with me so that we can build Sifang into a second Anling!"
The young woman's profile was soft, yet it revealed a hint of resilience.
For a moment, he really did look a bit like Cheng Hui.
Ning Huai'an and Fang Qin did not raise any further questions.
Now that they've seen the appointment letter from the goddess, the matter is basically settled.
Since it's an appointment by the goddess, everyone should cooperate.
Ning Huai'an said, "Okay, we will cooperate with you in carrying out the relevant work."
Fang Qin asked, "Where do you plan to start?"
Mo Jingchun replied, "We need to count the population, gather the refugees, reclaim wasteland, build roads, and at the same time establish workshops."
Ning Huai'an quickly reminded him, "We need to recruit new soldiers."
Mo Jingchun nodded, "We also need to hire staff."
Let's get to work!
On the afternoon of the day Mo Jingchun and his entourage arrived, the soldiers gathered all the people of the county town in a large open space to listen to Prefect Mo speak.
Mo Jingchun became increasingly composed. Standing at the forefront, she announced to the entire city that she would be their leader from now on!
She conveyed the goddess's care for everyone, stating that the goddess would protect all the people under her rule. She had obeyed the goddess's command: "I will lead you to work hard and become rich, and build a new world!"
The people stared blankly at the young woman, not yet twenty, wondering if they were dreaming.
Why would that "goddess" send such a young girl to manage them?!
Do they really intend to take over Sifang County?
However, the next moment...
They each received a bowl of meat porridge!
The people of Sifang County were stunned, as if struck by lightning.
They could hardly believe their eyes! But the bowl of porridge they held in their hands was filled with the fragrant aroma of rice, sprinkled with finely chopped meat and some unidentifiable black stuff.
My mouth was watering uncontrollably!
Immediately, some people disregarded everything else and started feeding the food to their mouths from the bowls!
Steaming hot meat congee!
Black egg bits!
Three delicious flavors converge in your mouth, spreading from the tip of your tongue to your stomach.
The first people to drink the porridge squinted their eyes with delight.
Those who hadn't dared to drink the porridge saw the people around them drinking it heartily and seemingly without any problems, so they also picked up their bowls and started drinking!
It was a delicious meal I'd never tasted before, so good it made me want to cry.
Crystalline tears dripped from her eyelashes and fell into the meat porridge.
Mo Jingchun suppressed her momentary pride, straightened her posture, and, imitating her teacher, spoke gently and calmly to the people of Sifang County: "The goddess has bestowed upon every person under her rule food to fill their stomachs! As long as you believe in the goddess, you will never go hungry again!"
She looked at those eyes that had been lifeless, and they gradually began to shine.
The people holding their bowls of congee with preserved egg and lean pork looked at her and cheered loudly.
Someone shouted, "Goddess!"
Someone else shouted, "Goddess!"
Mo Jingchun looked at them, her eyes stinging with tears.
A smile touched her deeply as she looked up from her lips.
She told herself, "I will work hard, I will work hard to give you a good life!"
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