Chapter 142 I am willing to fight for the cause of the Song Dynasty for my whole life (please subscribe and read)
"Greetings, His Excellency the Prefect!"
The soldiers on duty were in a bad mental state and looked weak and listless.
Yue Fei's encouragement seemed to have no effect on them. It was probably because they were used to the empty promises made by local officials.
This is unacceptable. Am I, Yue Fei, that kind of person? A strong general has no weak soldiers under him. You all must stand up straight.
"Soldiers, I've noticed your faith seems to be wavering lately. Please continue to stand firm and remain steadfast in your beliefs. Come and read with me. I am willing to devote my life to the prosperity of the Song Dynasty."
"I am willing to devote my entire life to the prosperity of the Song Dynasty."
"Louder your voice! Don't be so weak! Didn't you have enough to eat? I'll give you a chicken drumstick tonight. Come on, continue reciting with me. I am willing to fight for the cause of the Song Dynasty my whole life."
"Well, that's more like it."
"What is our Great Song Dynasty's cause?" The oldest soldier, named Xin Chunge, who had studied for a few years, couldn't help but ask.
"Simply put, everyone has land to farm, everyone has food to eat, officials and common people are equal, opportunities are equal, and the law is fair..."
“Does such a society really exist?”
"Of course, this is the ideal of His Majesty of the Great Song Dynasty. It's my ideal, your ideal, and the ideal of many people. The tragedy of the Xuanhe period will never happen again. The army before you is an army with ideals. They will not retreat a single step in the face of the enemy."
Yue Fei took out a tael of silver from his pocket and handed it to the oldest of the four men: "Do you see the army in the distance? Starting tomorrow, you will be incorporated into their team. I can't say that we will have meat every day, but eating meat for two or three days should be no problem."
"Keep this money. Take some brothers out for a good meal tonight and prepare to welcome a wonderful new life. There will be more money in the future."
Yue Fei took out another booklet and handed it to the oldest soldier: "Judging from your temperament, you seem to be able to read and write. Read this carefully when you have time. It will do you no harm."
Cai Gou took a sneak peek and saw that all the words written on it were inspirational, like chicken soup for the soul, such as:
“Although the road is long, if you keep walking you will reach your destination; although the task is difficult, you can accomplish it.”
“Without the accumulation of small steps, a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step; without the accumulation of small streams, a river or sea is formed.”
“The long journey will eventually lead to a return, and the bitter aftertaste will eventually return to sweetness.”
“All great things in the world must be done in detail, and all difficult things in the world must be accomplished in easy ways.”
"Without the bitter cold, how can the fragrance of plum blossoms be so strong?"
When Yue Fei and Cai Gou stepped into the city, they saw a desolate and dilapidated scene everywhere. Burned houses were everywhere, and there were only a few shops open for business, while most of them were closed.
"Xinde Prefecture is a big city, after all, but it's so desolate right now. The Jin soldiers have retreated, but haven't those who fled returned yet? It's almost spring plowing time. If we miss the season, how will we survive?"
"Master Yue, let me take you to the prefectural government office. His Majesty has ordered a population census in both the eastern and western Hebei regions. We just reported the results a few days ago, and the situation isn't optimistic."
Yue Fei was in a heavy mood. The scene he saw was even more tragic than Zhao Huan had expected.
The goal of building Sindh into a strong military town is a long and arduous task.
There were finally more people in the prefectural yamen, but there were almost no important officials. They were either accountants or yamen runners, and most of them were people working at the grassroots level.
Although he was airborne, Yue Fei was not at all panicked because there was no one to hinder him.
The problem Yue Fei faced was that there was no one available, so he could only wait for His Majesty to arrange for someone special to come.
Yue Fei found a place to sit down, and a yamen runner thoughtfully brought him a glass of boiled water. They didn't know how to make tea.
Cai Gou took out a yellow book.
This yellow book is a household registration book compiled by the Song Dynasty for verifying household registration and levying taxes and labor service. It records in detail the people's hometown, name, age, number of people, land and property, and assets. It also defines household registration according to their occupations, mainly divided into three categories: civilians, soldiers, and craftsmen.
In short, the Yellow Book is divided into two parts, and Cai Gou's Yellow Book is obviously the household name record in the government.
Cai Gou opened the yellow register and said, "This is the yellow register that Xinde Prefecture just completed a few days ago. It clearly records 12,345 households and 26,972 registered military and civilians."
“…”
"With over 10,000 households and over 20,000 people, that's a lot of layoffs. What's the gender ratio?"
"There were 8,657 men and 18,315 women, and nearly two-thirds of them had no relatives."
"Damn Jin beasts!" Yue Fei was speechless for a long time, then cursed fiercely: "Fuck their grandma."
"Among them, what about the landlords and the wealthy? What about the poor people? What is the land situation?"
"The wealthy landlords have money and are more resistant to risks. They left early, so there weren't many accidents. Once the situation stabilized, they returned and are already preparing for spring plowing."
"Poor people have little ability to withstand risks. Migrating south with their families will result in significant losses. It's also possible that some landless people will stay in the capital, Bianliang City."
"It's not impossible. There are indeed more opportunities in the capital. The court has recruited many people for service, and they are all paid. It's possible that they can come back later."
Yue Fei said, "I have written a letter and asked Lord Li Gang to check and see how many of them are from Xinde Prefecture. If there are any who are willing to return but have difficulties, please give them some travel expenses and return them after the autumn harvest in Xinde Prefecture."
"It's true that it's easier to get things done when you have someone in the court!" Cai Gou sighed. Listen, Lord Li Gang, he is a hero who fought against the Jin Dynasty. I heard that he has been promoted to deputy prime minister by the government and holds great power.
"Well, Lord Yue, the biggest problem we have in Xinde Prefecture right now is the severe shortage of labor for spring plowing. In the past, the landlords and wealthy families would hire local people to do the work, but now, there's no one available."
"Don't worry too much about that. I brought 30,000 people with me this time. Besides the Royal Guards, the remaining 20,000 can help with farming. Although we don't have cattle, we still have plenty of war horses, which is enough to handle it."
Before coming, Zhao Huan had discussed this issue with Yue Fei. Landlords and wealthy families were also people of the Song Dynasty and should be united with, but they also needed to be supervised and not allowed to oppress the people.
Most importantly, Sindh Province cannot prosper without them.
Yue Fei and his men can mine and smelt, which is very valuable, but it cannot be used directly for food, clothing, housing and transportation. The lives of 30,000 soldiers depend on the development of trade.
After all, they can't go against money.
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