Chapter 123: Grind reputation to 35
Empress Lü kept the people who brought the child there, but only for two days.
According to her, since this matter was also closely related to the soldiers on the front lines, she would only feel at ease after seeing the establishment of the Salesian Hall with her own eyes.
The people who came to escort the orphan were even more moved and expressed their gratitude to Lü Zhi.
Since there were already vacant houses in the city, it was quick to tidy them up and change the name. In less than a day, the extra institution officially opened.
Besides the dozen or so orphans sent there, there were also orphans sent from the surrounding villages. Those with relatives would not be sent there; only those who were truly destitute would be accepted.
The soldiers who escorted the people actually stayed here for a day, 'to see how the people they brought were doing, so they could go back and report.'
Lü Zhi led the group through the courtyard. The mansion had children of different ages in several courtyards, with the older children even looking after the younger ones. Wei Sheng Jiu Shi Jiu also followed along, observing the surroundings.
Empress Lü did not consider hiring someone to teach them to read, not because she was stingy, but simply because education was too expensive and they were too poor. In such times, just surviving was a blessing.
After walking around the courtyard, Lü Zhi and her group received many thanks. She looked at these people thoughtfully, thinking that it wasn't impossible to do something about it.
Before she could figure out how to proceed, the soldiers were already eager to leave.
They said, "We have been out for quite some time, and it would be best if we returned as soon as possible. Is there anything you would like us to bring to Lord Pei, Madam?"
Of course, Lü Zhi had no personal belongings to give to Liu Bang, and she and Liu Bang had no love; they were just putting on an act in front of outsiders. So she took out a letter that she had prepared beforehand and handed it to that person.
"Send this letter. The money and provisions will take some time. Should you go ahead or wait a little longer?"
The group exchanged glances and decided to take their leave. They should have left after seeing their loved one off, but they had already stayed for two extra days, so they decided not to linger any longer.
Seeing this, Lü Zhi didn't say much, but subtly reminded them: "When you go back, tell your brothers about the establishment of orphanages in the city, so that they will have no worries when they go to the battlefield."
"only!"
The group of men were excited and eager to return to their good brothers to tell them about it and boast about it. So they bowed and took their leave. Under Lü Zhi's arrangement, they rode away on horseback, a rare occurrence. The donkey cart they had brought with them was left in the city.
----
After a hurried effort, the group returned to Liu Bang's army. At this time, the allied forces of Liu Bang and Xiang Yu had failed to capture Dingtao and were in a state of low morale.
After discussing with Xiang Yu, Liu Bang decided to attack Yongqiu to the west, but he had not yet informed others.
The soldiers in the encampment were resting, and the few who came on horseback were very conspicuous. After they dismounted, someone immediately led their horses to the back to take care of them. The men knew that they might not have the opportunity to ride horses again, since their rank was not high enough to have dedicated horses.
While waiting to be summoned by Liu Bang, they recounted what they had seen and heard in the city, emphasizing in particular everything that Lü Zhi had done for them, the soldiers who had fought the enemy.
In everyone's eyes, Lü Zhi and Liu Bang were husband and wife, and there was nothing that couldn't be said. Besides, this was a great thing, so there was no need to block the news, and there was no chance of making any mistake of leaking secrets.
While the others sent representatives to meet Liu Bang, the remaining companions, who were still sharpening their knives together, chatted and talked at length.
In their view, after returning to Pei County, things were really different from usual, but they couldn't quite put their finger on why...
"I just feel that life is easier with Madam Lü around."
Those who listened were equally generous with their praise, marveling at how fortunate they were to have such an official, and while praising Lü Zhi, they also marveled at Liu Bang's benevolence.
In conclusion, what a kind and virtuous couple they were!
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Inside the tent, Liu Bang finished reading the letter that Lü Zhi had sent him. It began with the usual polite concern, but after a few sentences, the topic shifted to official business in Pei County, the management of the new territory, and other miscellaneous details.
Liu Bang didn't feel anything when he read the first two sentences of concern, but he read the long list of official business that followed very carefully.
He took out a blank sheet of paper, picked up a pen, and wrote: "The lady's contribution is indispensable..."
He replied with a long list of official business, and then inquired about agriculture and sericulture. After hesitating for a moment, he wrote a few words of concern for his wife.
Such a capable subordinate is rare these days. (crossed out)
When Liu Bang handed the letter to a designated person to deliver it along with the previous few letters he had saved up, he suddenly realized that he might have forgotten something.
Never mind, I'll definitely do it next time.
In fact, it's not certain that Liu Bang will leave his camp next time. Recently, their sieges have suffered repeated setbacks. First, they abandoned the attack on Puyang because Qin troops had reinforced the city.
After bypassing Puyang to attack Dingtao, they discovered they couldn't capture it either. At this point, they turned their attention to Yongqiu, but if they couldn't capture that either…
Liu Bang felt a chill run down his spine. Working with a hot-tempered person was really unpleasant, and he was afraid that Xiang Yu would suddenly go crazy.
It's one thing for Xiang Yu to perish, but don't drag him down with him.
Seeing Xiang Yu's increasingly dejected mood, Liu Bang prayed in his heart that this attack would go smoothly and that there would be no more massacres, for he feared that Qin would erupt on the spot.
Qin's power couldn't kill Xiang Yu, but his "assistants" might be "killed." Liu Bang, reluctant to give up his "cheat code," was very worried about Xiang Yu's unpredictable nature.
Although Taoism no longer exists, Liu Bang was well-versed in the principle of "better to die than to die," and he was not particularly benevolent; he was simply afraid of being implicated in the Tao.
I've been cursing Xiang Yu in my dreams these past few days. If he wants to massacre a city, stay away from him. Wouldn't massacring a city when you're allied with him be harming him? Enough already.
Liu Bang sighed, "This life is worse than a dog's."
Why did Liu Bang sigh?
Liu Bang turned his head in the direction of the voice and saw Zhang Liang. He then put on a smile and said, "It's Zifang. Is there something you need to see me about?"
"Yes, the news about the establishment of the orphanage in Pei County has been widely circulated in the camp, so I came to inquire about it."
In fact, the Qin Dynasty also had similar institutions, but in practice, few counties could implement them effectively. The emperor was far away and the first emperor could not personally manage them. In addition, at that time, clans existed, and even orphans would be taken care of by their clans. Clan members were ashamed to send orphans to the charitable halls established by the court, and countless charitable halls were abandoned.
It was more useful during times of war, but when war broke out, the imperial court wouldn't care about it.
In reality, everyone knew the true state of the court and wouldn't discuss this issue. Zhang Liang simply wanted to ask if Liu Bang was serious.
Chengyang was massacred, which is why there are so few orphans left. But if a real war breaks out, the number of orphans left behind by the dead soldiers will be considerable.
Zhang Liang did the math and realized he might not be able to afford to raise them.
Liu Bang nodded: "It cannot be confirmed at this time, but E'xu wrote in detail in her letter..."
As he spoke, Liu Bang took out a few pages from his pocket, and after carefully examining them, handed the two pages with useful information to Zhang Liang.
Zhang Liang had seen this thing called paper before with Liu Bang, and had long admired the talent of the person who created it. Now, he habitually took the thing and looked at the small characters written on it.
Because paper can hold far more characters than bamboo slips, Empress Lü did not use classical Chinese sparingly, but rather preferred colloquial language, writing down her thoughts in detail.
The neat and tidy rows of characters, with their elegant and dignified handwriting, seemed to possess some kind of allure, causing Zhang Liang to frown and then smile at the same time.
"So, Zifang, do you also think it's feasible?"
Zhang Liang nodded slowly, even asking with some curiosity, "May I ask who Lady Lü's teacher is? I really want to meet them..."
No matter how much Zhang Liang thought about it, he would never have imagined that Lü Zhi was taught by the system, and that her teachers were all AIs from within the system.
Liu Bang replied, "It must be talent. Look at me, I haven't studied military strategy, but I can still chat with you. Hahaha."
Liu Bang nodded confidently to himself. With Meng Tian in front and Zhang Liang behind, he had finally come to the same conclusion and was certain that he truly possessed this talent.
Looking at Liu Bang's hearty laughter, Zhang Liang wondered, "Are there really so many geniuses in this world?"
It's probably not possible. Zhang Liang heard that Liu Bang had studied abroad in his early years, but who knows if he was lying to him, or if he had studied but claimed he didn't know anything?
Zhang Liang's lips twitched. So what if that's the case? His lord has said so, so he might as well cooperate.
"You and your wife are both naturally gifted; you are truly a match made in heaven." As he spoke, Zhang Liang himself began to believe it.
He folded the two pages of paper with detailed plans written on them and returned them to Liu Bang.
There's no need to reveal the detailed plan for now. Several possibilities have been outlined above. The best outcome is that Wei Shengshi will produce high-yield crops as he predicted. Not only will there be no need to worry about supporting the orphans, but there will also be sufficient food supplies for the front lines.
The worst-case scenario would be encountering natural disasters. As Zhang Liang walked with Liu Bang toward the center of the camp, he sighed inwardly. The world was in chaos, and there were already enough man-made disasters. He prayed that no more natural disasters would occur.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, Liu Bang pretended to only then realize that everyone knew about the orphanage. He laughed heartily and said, "I was originally planning to announce it after everyone arrived, but since you all know, let's announce it now..."
"What you know is mostly true, but as it's passed around, there might be many different versions circulating, so I'll say it again here..."
"The dozen or so children we found in Chengyang have been sent back to Peixian. The remaining adopted children are all children whose family members died in battle and who have no one to take care of them."
Liu Bang spoke in great detail about the orphanage. This was the perfect time to win people's hearts, and he couldn't afford not to say more, as his wife had created the conditions for him. Of course, he didn't forget that the real proposer and person in charge was Empress Lü.
Anyway, the two of them were bound together, so as long as this matter didn't involve the Lü family, it didn't matter. Seeing that the relationship between Lü Zhi and the Lü family was quite delicate, Liu Bang even secretly wanted to stir up trouble, but in the end, reason suppressed this restless thought.
"Of course, I'm also trying to find a way to help those who were not from Pei County who had previously turned away from darkness to light."
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Author's Note: Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 2024-07-26 21:55:16 and 2024-07-31 15:52:48!
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