After returning to the Prime Minister's Mansion, Xiao He immediately called his son Xiao Lu over.
"Hurry up and keep an eye on the prince's group. If there is anything important, report it to me immediately. Don't hide it."
Xiao Lu hesitated and said: "Father, I think the prince has always been courteous and righteous and will not do anything wrong. You are worrying too much."
"What do you know?" Xiao He scolded sternly, "Go if I tell you to!"
Xiao Lu had no choice but to agree.
Seeing his son leave, Xiao He shook his head and sighed to himself, Liu Bang was like this in his early years, shouting in front of him and running rampant in the streets. He drank, gambled, entertained cats and dogs, he did everything.
He also seduced a widow named Cao who sold wine and gave birth to a son, Liu Fei...
Although Liu Ying was still young and would definitely not be able to do such a ridiculous thing, after all, as the prince of the Han Dynasty, if anything disgraceful happened, he, the prime minister, would definitely be blamed.
I heard that Lu Ze would be returning to Guanzhong soon. When the time came, he would be able to breathe a sigh of relief with his uncle here.
Xiao He thought for a while, shook his head vigorously, and hurriedly threw himself into government affairs.
From this day on, no matter how busy Xiao He is, he must take some time to inquire about Liu Ying's situation.
"Father, you are really worrying too much. The prince and his big guys were just patrolling the city of Yueyang. They didn't do anything wrong to Shang Minqiu. He also asked the children of each family to clean the streets and prepare hot water for visitors from far away. Meals.”
Xiao He frowned, "What are you talking about? Sweeping the streets? Can those idiots do this?"
Xiao He didn't believe it at all. Who didn't know that this group of wealthy young men had always been lawless. If they could restrain them from causing trouble, it would be good. I expected them to do something good. The sun was coming out from the west.
Xiao He stared at Xiao Lu closely and said in a deep voice: "Don't lie to me!"
Xiao Lu was confident and unafraid, "Of course I don't dare to deceive my father. The prince has prepared a lot of small red flowers. Anyone who performs well will put a small red flower on his forehead to show encouragement. Xia Houzao even got three You’re done, you’ve worked really hard.”
Xiao He stared again, "Do you think it's useful?"
"Why is it useless? It's quite fun to watch. If it had been two years earlier, I would have wanted to grab it too!" Xiao Lu said excitedly.
Xiao He frowned and sighed for a long time, "Okay, it seems I was wrong. The prince and Naifu are different!"
After sighing, Xiao He turned his attention to the table. There were more than a dozen wooden sticks of the same length on it. At first glance, he thought they were bamboo slips, but they were much smaller. This was the most important calculation at the moment. Tool: Calculate!
Xiao He was born as a county official, so he naturally had basic skills in calculating and calculating. But in the face of such a huge country, things were too complicated, and he did not dare to slack off at all.
"General Han is commanding troops and horses to attack the city and seize territory. Once the defense line of Xingyang is complete and can resist the Chu army, General Han will go north. Guanzhong still needs to mobilize 500,000 stones of military provisions, 200,000 civilians, and the remaining supplies are consumed, countless . On the Prince's side, if there is nothing major, just come and report once in three days."
Xiao Lu agreed and looked at his busy father again. He couldn't help but feel distressed, but he had no way to share the burden for him, so he could only bow and retreat.
Reporting once every three days is good, but Xiao Lu still has to keep an eye on Liu Ying every day and cannot slack off.
He came in a hurry that day, but Liu Ying did not lead the people out, but sat around with the others and started chatting.
"How do you feel after walking around the market for a few days?"
The kids looked at each other and didn't know what to say. The oldest Cao Cheng said in a dull voice: "I feel it's quite desolate. It's not as lively as Pei County. I can't even see anyone doing business."
What he said immediately resonated with everyone. Indeed, as the temporary capital of the Han Dynasty, Liyang was too depressed and deserted. There were no sideshows and entertainment. There were very few small businessmen selling snacks and fruits, and there were not many craftsmen. indivual.
What can be seen are either soldiers and horses mobilized under orders, or civilians recruited from various places.
The only lively commercial activities are those that supply military supplies.
For example, the big merchants in Bashu would traffic dozens of carts of refined iron, raw lacquer, rubber tendons, and feathers, all of which were urgently needed by the Han army.
There are long lines every day for handovers.
In the past, the Han army had to pay to purchase, but in recent days it was different. Xiao He would select a batch of freshly produced paper to offset the payment.
Liu Ying wanted to know how Xiao He set the price, but they kept it secret and didn't tell him at all.
I just heard that one foot of ordinary paper can be exchanged for three feet of Shu brocade, and there is no need to bargain!
Liu Ying's heart bleeds when she thinks that she sells paper by the pound. When it comes to profiteers, it also depends on the person named Xiao!
"Cao Cheng is right. Do you know why?" Liu Ying continued to ask.
"I know!" Guan A said hurriedly: "It's Xiang Yu. He burned Xianyang, robbed Guanzhong, and did so many bad things that he couldn't even finish the article by cutting down all the bamboo on the mountain."
Liu Ying smiled and nodded, "Yes, this answer is worth a little red flower."
Guan A is arrogant and looks down on others, which is called complacency.
Liu Ying asked again: "Are there any other reasons?"
The little ones were scratching their heads. Xiahou Zao wanted to get the little red flower and was so anxious that he said, "Yes, it's because he is a bad official!"
"Why?" Liu Ying asked.
Xiahou Zao thought for a while and muttered: "I, I don't know, my father said before that it is the official's fault that the people are not living well."
At this time, Chen Mai suddenly said quietly: "But your father is an official!"
Xiahou Zao was stunned and opened his mouth wide, "You said my father is incompetent?"
Chen Mai nodded, "How else could this happen?"
"But my father always says that dogs are incompetent!"
Zhou Sheng laughed loudly, "It's not that you are incompetent, it's your father. You are the son of a dog, your father is the father of the dog, and the father of the dog is incompetent! Hahaha!"
He laughed wildly, but Xiahou Zao didn't react yet. Is the dog father really incompetent?
"No, your father is also an official, and your father is also a dog father. The dog father is incompetent!"
Xiahou Zao pounced on him with his teeth and claws bared, but Zhou Sheng quickly parried and shouted to other spectators: "Come and help! Anyone who doesn't help me is a dog!"
Guan A and others stared angrily, "Okay, let's ask someone to help, but they dare to threaten us!"
"Beat, beat this bitch to death!"
This group of cubs quickly became one physically, and the voices of father and son could be heard all the time.
After a long time of quarreling, they finally calmed down. Xiahou Zao was beaten black and blue, Gua'a had a nosebleed, and Zhou Sheng was kicked several times... Among the bunch of brats, only Chen Mai stayed away. Yes, after they finished fighting, they came over.
"In fact, the greatest official in Guanzhong is the King of Han."
King of Han?
The cubs immediately looked at Liu Ying. Did we make a mistake? This is the biggest dog?
In an instant, several kids were eager to try.
Liu Ying gave Chen Mai a hard look. This boy was not only lustful, but also sinister. He was exactly like his father!
"Listen, our fathers are incompetent and cannot govern the place well. If we let this continue, one day we will only inherit a shabby world. This is not okay!"
"The world is in tatters, we mend it. This is what the great master should do, don't you think so?"
Xia Houzao and others nodded together, "Yes, the prince is right! We are better than those dog fathers!"
"It is your duty to surpass the dog father!"
In the blink of an eye, the gang of dogs formed a front again, and they all rebuked the dog father for his incompetence.
Cao Cheng asked curiously: "The prince said it well, but what should we do?"
Liu Ying smiled and said: "I have been around for a few days and I already know what I know. We need to make money and goods flow smoothly in order to gather popularity and prosper. If a worker wants to do his job well, he must first sharpen his tools. Let's start from this point. !”
With that said, Liu Ying took out a bundle of small wooden sticks from her arms and said, "This is the calculation tool used by the officials now. If any of you understand it, come over and demonstrate it."
Liu Ying asked twice, but no one answered.
At this time, Xiao Lu's heart moved and he suddenly squeezed in, "Prince, I saw my father playing with this before."
Liu Ying smiled, "Well, it's you!"
Xiao Lu squeezed into the middle, first showing how to use the calculation chips, and then the discussion became more and more in-depth, and it turned into how to improve the calculation chips and increase the efficiency of calculation... Three full days passed before Xiao Lu remembered that it was time to ask A The day when the father reports.
"Prince, I'm going to see my father." He was about to leave, but he leaned over and put something into his arms.
Xiao He worked all night long last night, his eyes were red and he was very tired, but he could still tell at a glance that his son seemed different from a few days ago...
"What's going on? Are you in trouble?" Xiao He asked in surprise.
Xiao Lu held his head high, took out something, and placed it solemnly in front of Xiao He.
"Father, please take a look!"
