Chapter 0109 Portrait
Xiao Rong returned to his temporary residence. He put the wooden box containing the magic herb on the table, then took out some letter paper and wrote a letter to Chen Liu.
The victory report was sent back early in the morning. They rode at full speed and were probably already across the Fen River by then. The letter he wrote contained more details, including casualties, spoils obtained, and subsequent affairs.
The wealth of the Xianbei made the Zhenbei Army rich all of a sudden. Before, they could only be considered no longer worried about food and clothing, but now they have stepped into the middle class. ...Yes, they can only be considered middle class, not rich, because with this money, Xiao Rong no longer has to focus on building Chenliu. They once had no energy or financial resources to take over the north of the Huai River, but now they can take it into their pockets.
Money makes the world go round; money can also make fence-sitters bow their heads. Once money and government orders are issued together, there will not be so many officials who want to resist.
As for the issue of corruption…Corruption is like cockroaches, it has existed since ancient times and is extremely tenacious. There have been so many people in history who were determined to eradicate corruption, but no one has been able to eradicate this phenomenon. Xiao Rong will naturally not make things difficult for himself. His goal is not to wipe out corrupt officials, but to suppress them as much as possible. Doing things is the most important thing. If you can't even get things done and still think about how to make money every day, then you can say goodbye to your head. …
After finishing writing, Xiao Rong put the letter away and handed it to the guard beside him.
This letter was sent ahead of time. The Xianbei's wealth would have to stay here for a while. Once Shuofang was conquered, Qu Yunmie could free up manpower and then arrange for the army to escort these things back to Chenliu.
The messenger left quickly, and Xiao Rong went back to the warehouse to take a look. Jian Qiao's soldiers were loading these things onto the truck in an orderly manner. Next, this small courtyard alone would be guarded by three thousand soldiers to prevent anyone from having any improper thoughts.
As the saying goes, it comes true. As soon as Xiao Rong walked out of the warehouse, he saw a familiar face.
He Tingzhi smiled at Xiao Rong, and Xiao Rong blinked, as if trying to recall who he was. After remembering, he said with surprise, "Your Highness Prince Dongyang, long time no see!"
He Tingzhi: “…………”
Haven't we been seeing each other these days?
For seven consecutive days, every day when you stared at the figure of King Zhenbei like a man waiting for his husband, wasn't I standing behind you?!
But Xiao Rong obviously didn't remember, or rather, he didn't notice He Tingzhi's existence at all. He exchanged a few words with the stiff-faced He Tingzhi, and then He Tingzhi stated his purpose: "I heard that Mr. Xiao was here, so I came here to look for him."
Xiao Rong waved his hand: "Your Highness, you don't know that I am no longer a commoner."
He Tingzhi: “…”
Didn’t you say last time that you no longer had an official position?
The changes in official positions in your Zhenbei Army are too great. It’s only been a few days and it’s changed again!
He held his breath, then asked with a smile: "Oh? I wonder where Mr. Xiao is now?"
Xiao Rong smiled: "I am a humble person, barely promoted to the position of Situ of Zhenbei State."
He Tingzhi: “…”
He Tingzhi's thoughts suddenly became complicated.
He had known for several years that there was a new King of Zhenbei in the world. However, neither the King of Zhenbei himself nor anyone else in the world had ever called the area under the King of Zhenbei the Zhenbei Kingdom.
Others would also call He Tingzhi's fiefdom Dongyang Kingdom, but that was different. Dongyang was a specific place, so what did the two words "Zhenbei" refer to?
Before Xiao Rong appeared, the entire Zhenbei Army took an indifferent attitude towards this, but after Xiao Rong appeared, he emphasized the legitimacy and compliance of the King of Zhenbei in various places. Now the appointment and dismissal of officials in Chenliu are even reported to the court by the King of Zhenbei, and the court re-copies it, and then His Majesty stamps it with his own jade seal and sends it back to Chenliu.
I don't know when the word "orthodoxy" became blurred.
He Tingzhi felt a little disappointed. After all, his last name was He. The decline of the imperial court would bring both advantages and disadvantages to him, while the rise of the King of Zhenbei would only bring disadvantages and no advantages to him. He hoped that he could become the savior of the imperial court, but this vision seemed to be getting farther and farther away from him with this great victory.
Putting away the slight resentment in his heart, He Tingzhi continued to play wit with Xiao Rong. He was currently in decline and his ability to collect intelligence was not that strong. He was completely unaware of the news that Nan Yong had brazenly attacked Yizhou and Ningzhou. He thought that they could continue to send troops in the name of Yong Dynasty as agreed before, and as for the spoils, they could also take advantage of them.
Xiao Rong listened with a smile on his face, but he rolled his eyes in his heart.
He Tingzhi only brought 2,000 men with him, and 500 of them stayed behind to protect him, the King of Dongyang. He Tingzhi himself wore armor every day and wandered around the military camp, drinking tea with one person and playing chess with another. He did have a sword on his waist, but it was not as often unsheathed as Xiao Rong's Chilong Sword. At least Qu Yunmie would help maintain his Chilong Sword whenever he had time. ...
He Tingzhi himself knew that he would not get much spoils of war or much food, so he made this special trip, not for himself, but for the reinforcements.
More than two months of good communication cannot be wasted. Just talking is not enough to make these people trust him, so he came to Xiao Rong to ask for actual benefits. Tens of thousands of old, weak and sick people in exchange for real gold and silver and high-quality food and fodder. This deal is not a loss.
These people had long forgotten how they cursed the heavens and the earth at the beginning. They felt unlucky whenever the matter was mentioned. Now that they had won the battle, their eyes were glued to the spoils.
He Tingzhi said a lot, implying and explicitly doing it, and after listening to it, Xiao Rong nodded to him: "King Dongyang is right, you all came thousands of miles to help the Zhenbei Army, King Zhenbei and all the soldiers will remember it in their hearts. If you think about it carefully, the reinforcements and the Zhenbei Army are like brothers, just like a family. Or maybe we shouldn't even say like, because we are all Central Plains people, we are one."
He Tingzhi showed a touched expression: "Xiao Situ is right!"
Xiao Rong immediately looked back with an even more touched expression: "Since we are a family, then there should be no division between us! Whatever the Zhenbei Army has, the reinforcements must also have! I have already issued an order that all Zhenbei Army soldiers will have enough food in the next two days, three meals a day! I guarantee that every soldier will have a full belly. This is the King and this Situ's thanks and reward to the soldiers!"
He Tingzhi was about to cry when listening to the first half, but when he heard the second half, his tears got stuck in his eyes.
He Tingzhi: “…”
After all this talk, just a few meals?
Did he care about those meals? What he cared about was the spoils of war, the spoils that were distributed among the nobles and generals!
Ordinary soldiers were certainly not qualified to take things from the Xianbei Palace. If they followed the previous rules, they should have burned, killed, and looted every household as soon as they entered the city gate, and whoever got the loot would own it. The property of ordinary people was the spoils they could take.
But the Zhenbei Army did not have this rule. After the reinforcements rushed into the city gate, they wanted to break the law knowingly, but they were seen by the Zhenbei Army and chopped down with their swords.
They didn't die, but they were scared half to death. Although they had already noticed the differences between themselves and the Zhenbei Army before, they realized more things at that moment, for example, the Zhenbei Army never regarded them as comrades.
This incident made some of the reinforcements feel resentful, but it also made some other soldiers thoughtful. Although places with strict military orders do not have so many practical benefits, internal strife and laxity will be reduced a lot, and upright people will get more opportunities in such places.
Some people have been thinking about secretly defecting to the Zhenbei Army after this matter is over, but their superiors don't care about this at all. They want to know more about whether they can get a share of those good things.
The answer is - dream your dreams. ...
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