Song Liyun spent another day learning household management from the garrison commander's wife at the garrison commander's residence. In the evening, Zhao Tingduo entered the pass, looking travel-worn.
He didn't stop traveling at all after receiving the message from the carrier pigeon, and didn't rest for a day, crossing hundreds of miles of Gobi Desert to pick up the person.
Upon seeing him, Song Liyun felt as if she had seen a great Buddha, and she was so excited that she was almost moved to tears.
My head was throbbing from the garrison commander's wife's nagging all day. She talked about women's work, needlework, being a wife and mother, and almost made me write a book on women's virtues and precepts.
Zhao Tingduo hugged Song Liyun tightly as she threw herself into his arms, her eyes glistening with tears.
He felt an overwhelming tenderness and longing in his heart, wishing time could stand still at this moment.
I miss Ayun every day, and Ayun feels the same way. After being apart for half a month, I feel like I'm sick with longing.
The two were oblivious to the affection shown by others, which had already stunned the garrison commander's wife who came out to greet them. This... all the admonitions she had given her to be a lady all day had been for nothing!
The maids and servants around them lowered their heads in embarrassment, but their eyes kept darting around.
Zhao Tinglei eased the awkwardness: "Ahem, third brother! Your horse has run away!"
The garrison commander's wife had prepared a family feast in advance, and the atmosphere was warm and cozy.
The brothers Zhao Tingduo and Zhao Tinglei chatted and laughed.
The garrison commander's wife smiled and asked Zhao Tingduo about his daily life. She then had a maid serve him a bowl of carefully prepared mutton soup, without mentioning any etiquette or rules.
In the evening, Zhao Tingduo finally enjoyed Song Liyun's service, undressing and taking a bath.
These are all things that the garrison commander's wife said a wife should do for her husband.
Now, Song Liyun.
The two were all lovey-dovey, and eventually Song Liyun rolled into the bathtub, spilling hot water all over the floor...
Before dawn the next day,
The garrison commander's wife also said that as a wife, she should get up earlier than her husband to prepare hot water and breakfast.
That makes sense. Ah Shi worked hard during the day and again last night, so I should treat him to breakfast as a reward!
She wanted to get up, but someone didn't want her to.
She had just pushed one arm away from her chest when another thigh was placed on her stomach, and she was being held tightly in her arms.
A sleepy male voice murmured in my ear: Ah Yun, it's still early, sleep a little longer!
……………………………………
Xiashi Pass was built in the mountains. The city wall was more than two zhang high and one zhang thick, and was made of large bluestone blocks.
Like a grand gate, it stood majestically, keeping the Di cavalry at bay outside the densely populated villages of the Wu Dynasty.
This was Song Liyun's first time leaving the pass. Zhao Tingduo accompanied her through the pass walls and pointed to the vast desert to the northwest, saying, "Ayun, the route we've surveyed is this way, but we need to cross the Gobi Desert, which is the most difficult part."
Zhao Tinglei once said that when Zhao Tingduo wanted to conquer the Mida River Valley, he couldn't get the Zhenbei Army to come out of the pass to help because, apart from the grasslands, there were also several Gobi deserts between Hecheng Xiashi Pass and the Mida River Valley.
The Gobi Desert is filled with yellow sand and swirling winds, making it impossible for horses to gallop quickly, and even more impossible to hide in case of enemy attack.
Moreover, these places lack water sources, making it difficult for large groups of people to stay for extended periods.
Zhao Tingduo is now running back and forth in the middle, trying to find a suitable campsite and water source to build a rest station, so as to provide clean water and fodder for caravans traveling through the area in the future.
It's already April, and the cold wind slaps hard against my face. It's less bitingly cold, but still sharp.
Song Liyun, with her head wrapped in a headscarf, gazed into the Gobi Desert with only her eyes visible.
Inside the garrison headquarters, after some discussion, they decided to open the mall as soon as possible.
Once the new city is established, it will surely shine like a bright pearl, attracting tribes from all over to trade, thus making the city's commerce even more developed.
Both taxation and the crackdown on smuggling merchants from the Di tribes will become more focused.
The Mida River Valley holds a special position, situated in the middle of the grassland and surrounded by many tribes.
As long as the Wu Dynasty's Northern Garrison gains a foothold here, it will be like setting up a springboard in front of the Di tribe's royal court.
The benefits are self-evident; otherwise, Zhao Tinglei and Zhao Tingduo wouldn't have planned this so early.
But before you see any benefits, there is one crucial thing.
silver!
Since the new emperor ascended the throne, the Zhenbei Army's pay has no longer been withheld. However, the weapons and armor have suffered severe losses over the past twenty years, and it will take time and a large amount of silver to replace them.
The Zhenbei Army was not wealthy.
Building rest stations, even if they were all dug into dugouts, would still cost money to house people and feed the horses.
With the abilities of the Wuda tribe and Song Liyun alone, they could only build an empty city with walls.
The buildings inside still need to be added gradually, and the company is unable to afford the expenses of the rest stops.
Zhao Tinglei has already submitted a memorial to the imperial court, requesting an increase in the number of Zhenbei Army troops stationed in Yunzhou and an increase in military funds in order to deal with the Di tribe's royal court's plundering.
But given the bureaucratic red tape and the constant wrangling and bureaucratic wrangling in the imperial court, it's anyone's guess when that will happen.
There's always a way, and the Zhenbei Army has many talented people.
The Zhao brothers had discussed in private that they wanted to look for minerals in the Mida River Valley area.
Zhao Tinglei had previously sent people to investigate gold mines in Suijin Town. The Dilu Grassland was large enough, and the Mida River Valley was long enough. With careful searching, one or two mines could always be found.
Jade and agate can also be found in the Gobi Desert, which can be sold as military supplies.
This is a good thing for the Zhenbei Army.
As for the troops used for protection.
The result of everyone's discussion was just as Song Liyun had thought: the Zhenbei Army could not openly send troops out, but they could change their uniforms.
With Mida New City as the target, each rest stop is a military post, with a small post every twenty li and a large post every fifty li, with a small team of ten people and a large team of fifty people.
Stretching over a distance of several hundred miles, it would form a serpentine formation of several hundred men. Adding the four hundred men from the Lei Battalion, Zhao Tingduo could mobilize over a thousand troops...
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