Xu Rao was surprised that Clerk Li could think so far ahead. He felt like he had found a kindred spirit. That night, he decided not to work overtime at the county office and invited Clerk Li to his home for drinks and a chat.
After passing the imperial examination, Li, the registrar, did not continue to take the exams. Instead, he used his family connections to find a job as a registrar in the county government. Fortunately, the registrar in the county government also had a rank. If he continued to work his way up, he might eventually become a seventh-rank county magistrate.
Fortunately, it was in Hexi, where conditions were poor and few people wanted to become officials. Li Zhubu stayed there for more than ten years.
Sister He cooked a few of her signature dishes, and Xu Di also dug up the plum wine he had buried under the south wall. These two jars of wine were made from some plums he brought back from the south last year. Xu Di thought it was quite interesting, so he buried two jars under the south wall. Since his father brought his colleagues back, Xu Di offered up his two jars of wine.
Li, the registrar, was a southerner and naturally liked to drink plum wine. However, Hexi was a remote area with inconvenient transportation, making it difficult to obtain plums from the south.
Clerk Li took a sip, smacked his lips, sighed, and said, "This wine tastes really good."
Xu Rao quickly poured him another cup and said, "It tastes good, so drink more. It's okay if you drink too much; I'll arrange for someone to take you home later."
Li, the registrar, laughed heartily and said, "My old wife is most afraid that I will drink too much outside, and that my old bones will fall and break on the way home."
Xu Rao laughed and said, "It's all the same, it's all the same. My wife is worried about the same thing. We should be understanding of them. They have to take care of the housework, the children, and us. It's not easy for them."
Li, the registrar, was surprised that Xu Rao could say such a thing, and his goodwill towards Xu Rao increased even more. He felt that they were getting along even better when they talked.
Li, the registrar, said, “For so many years, our Hexi region has been able to live in fear every winter because of Yanmen Pass, but we have never been plundered. However, we cannot let our guard down. Yanmen Pass is impregnable. What if the Northern Di break through other places and attack us from behind?”
Xu Rao sighed and said, "I've been worried about that too. Now that we have money, I'm thinking of repairing the city wall properly and making it more solid, so that it can hold out for a while in case anything happens."
Clerk Li held the wine cup in his hand, twirling it a few times, and said, "We still need to spend the money in our county government as soon as possible. I'm afraid that Magistrate Qian might have some ulterior motives. If the higher-ups find out, they might really be able to demand the money back under various pretexts."
Xu Rao said, "In that case, let's discuss it tomorrow. Fortunately, Magistrate Qian doesn't manage the money and grain. Let's quickly find people, buy materials, and build the city wall first. Also, I plan to build an underground granary between the county town and the General's Mansion, but we can't let too many people know about it."
Clerk Li gently put down his wine glass and said, "This matter is rather difficult to handle, mainly because there are too many people watching, making it hard to operate."
Xu Rao said in a low voice, "That's why I came to you, brother. How about I get you a piece of land outside the city so you can build a big house?"
Upon hearing this, Clerk Li understood what was going on and asked, "What about the craftsmen who built the house?"
Xu Rao said, "I've discussed it with General Wei and we'll transfer manpower from him. Although things are peaceful now, we still need to make all sorts of preparations."
Clerk Li nodded and said, "That's no problem. My house is a bit too small, and my daughter-in-law is pregnant. No one will say anything if we build a bigger house."
After the two discussed some more matters, Xu Rao arranged for someone to send Li Zhubu home, while he went to the backyard.
The decision to build such a hidden underground granary was made after Xu Rao and Wei Lang discussed it for a long time. Xu Rao had a clear idea in mind. Now that he was the magistrate of Hexi County, he had the responsibility to guard this city and the people in it. Because it was close to the pass, he knew what would happen if there was any war.
Xu Rao has already traveled all over the mountains and rivers of Hexi. It is unlikely that the Northern Di people will break through Yanmen Pass, but what if they come in from other places and attack from Hexi?
Hundreds of thousands of troops are stationed along the border of Daliang to defend against the southward advance of the Northern Di people. These hundreds of thousands of troops are stationed in different places. Small groups of troops can enter from other places, but if they really want to advance unimpeded, they would have to break through Yanmen Pass. If they break through other places, the troops stationed nearby can close the gap at any time, trapping the Northern Di army inside their territory, like closing the door to beat a dog. Therefore, if the Northern Di want to advance unimpeded, they can only do so by breaking through Yanmen Pass. This is why Yanmen Pass is so important.
If the Northern Barbarians were to attack from elsewhere, Yanmen Pass and Hexi would be trapped together, attacked from both sides. The people in the city would have no choice but to fight to the death to hold Yanmen Pass. This way, the main force of the enemy outside the pass would not be able to enter, and the initiative would still be in their own hands. Only in this way could they protect the peace of the thousands of miles of fertile land behind Yanmen Pass. In addition to good fortifications, the most important thing for holding the city was food.
There was a granary near the general's mansion, which stored the provisions for the garrison at Yanmen Pass. Xu Rao understood the principle of not putting all his eggs in one basket. For this reason, he discussed with Wei Lang for a long time before deciding to build such a large mansion in the west of Hexi County and east of Yanmen Pass, and then build an underground granary under the mansion.
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