Yangshan Fucheng.
People were rushing around the interface, and dark brown blood stains were faintly visible in the ravines on the stone tile floor.
From time to time at the entrances of streets and alleys, you can see groups of soldiers wearing armor, patrolling throughout the city.
The common people in the city subconsciously hid when they saw these soldiers.
Sun Siwen rode through the street on horseback, followed by more than a dozen followers. Looking at this depressing scene, he felt endless emotions in his heart.
Among the mansions in Dongting County, Yangshan Mansion was originally considered a wealthy mansion.
The prefecture is connected to Nanhai County and Yuzhang County. It is the thoroughfare of the three counties. It has always been prosperous with business and people.
At its peak, Yangshan Mansion was said to have 60,000 households and 300,000 people, making it a truly big mansion.
It has only been two years since it was captured by the Miao thieves, but the city is already in such ruins.
'But now in Yangshan Mansion, let alone 60,000 households, I'm afraid there are even 30,000 households gone. '
Sun Siwen couldn't help but think while looking at the thin and sallow people on the street.
When the Miao people first rebelled, they massacred local Yue people in order to rob wealthy women.
In that catastrophe, hundreds of thousands of people in Dongting County died.
After the Miao people raised their troops, they did not rest and recuperate for two years. Instead, they launched successive wars, using as many as 300,000 troops at the highest point.
Naturally, the Miao people alone, with a population of more than one million, could not support such a large number of Miao soldiers.
The bulk of this expenditure has to be supported by the Yue people in the prefectures and counties occupied by the Miao people.
But when the Five Poison Sect was at its peak, it only occupied the land of the Five Prefectures. With this small amount of territory, the total population of two million people was enough to reach the sky.
The ratio of soldiers to civilians was more than ten to one, and it lasted for two years. One can imagine how severe this oppression was for the people at the bottom.
Therefore, the Yue people in the three prefectures in the south of Dongting County abandoned their homes and businesses and fled everywhere.
When Sun Siwen first governed Luyang, he recruited many refugees from Yangshan Prefecture.
According to what they said, if you work on the land in Yangshan Prefecture, you will have to pay taxes on more than 90% of your annual income. From time to time, they would be used as corvees to help the Miao people fight in wars.
The women in the family were often insulted by the Miao people. Some people often resisted because they could not bear the humiliation and were massacred by the Miao people.
This approach of denying people a way to survive and making people angry naturally caused people to panic and began to flee.
If the Miao people hadn't set up checkpoints in various places to intercept the refugees, the population under their rule would have been even thinner.
But even so, the situation in Jiuyi, Lingling, and Yangshan Prefectures is not much better.
"Now these three prefectures have suffered another military disaster. A large number of Miao people have died in the battle. If the place is subject to turmoil and massacres again, I am afraid that a lot of household registration will be lost again."
Sun Siwen thought of this and sighed: "In troubled times, life is so difficult for the people, so why should the people deserve it!"
After saying that, he couldn't bear to look any further, so he clapped his horse and headed towards the government office.
This time, the Luyang magistrate left his jurisdiction and came south to Yangshan Mansion. Of course, he did not come to mourn the spring and autumn, but was summoned by Lu Yuan and came here on official business.
Although his friend didn't say it explicitly, Sun Siwen secretly had some guesses on the way here.
My friend probably wants me to take over Yangshan Mansion and fix the mess here just like Luyang Mansion.
Sun Siwen has rich experience in this matter and naturally does not flinch.
He is also very happy to do more for the people in troubled times.
Even when I came here, I had already thought of several management strategies and was waiting to present them to my friends.
When they arrived at the government office, the soldier Lu Yuan guarding the gate naturally recognized the general's friend.
Moreover, Sun Siwen himself was also the magistrate of Luyang, a high-ranking official of the fifth rank. Naturally, they did not dare to offend him, so they quickly smiled and said hello to usher people in.
As soon as you enter the government office, the first thing you can see is the petty officials accompanying you who are constantly running back and forth, or the soldiers and generals from various battalions who are in a hurry.
The whole yamen was full of busy atmosphere.
Sun Siwen can also understand this.
After all, my friend had just captured the land of Sanfu. The rewards and punishments of the army's sergeants and generals, how to maintain public order on the ground, how to eliminate the rebels and their troops... and many other things need to be dealt with urgently.
When he first came from Luyang, he also experienced this kind of busy time.
Passing through the corridor of the hall, Sun Siwen soon met his friend in a study under the leadership of his own soldiers.
"Brother Sun is here. Please sit down for a moment. I will finish processing this official document soon. Let's talk later."
When they met, Lu Yuan was approving official documents.
In Jianghua County, Jiuyi Prefecture, a defeated Miao army occupied the local Miao village and formed a stronghold to defend themselves. They openly confronted the garrison in Jianghua County and seriously disrupted local security.
The garrison in Jianghua County were all civilians from Hengyang Prefecture, and their number was only five hundred. They were unable to deal with the Miao army's defeat.
Therefore, a message was sent, requesting the mobilization of an army to suppress it.
To this, Lu Yuan naturally could only reply: It is known that the army will arrive soon.
Then, I started to have a headache. Which army should I shoot to suppress it?
There have been too many similar situations in recent days.
Although Lu Yuan had defeated all of the 100,000 Miao people in the three palaces, they were 100,000 people anyway. How could he kill all the prisoners?
In the end, more than 10,000 Miao soldiers were defeated and scattered to various counties in the three prefectures.
After these Miao people were defeated, they did not dare to fight head-on with the imperial officers and soldiers. Instead, they returned to their own villages and formed a stronghold to defend themselves.
Or simply escape into the mountains and take advantage of the geographical advantages of the mountains to attack places and rob people from time to time. They are like flies and cannot be guarded against.
This kind of endless security war is undoubtedly the most time-consuming and energy-consuming.
In order to deal with these defeated troops, Lu Yuan even had to disperse all the 50,000 soldiers, horses and civilians on hand to various places in the three prefectures, and then sent out the masters of the Nanhai Sect to continue fighting public security and guerrilla warfare against the Miao soldiers.
In this way, the other party's arrogance was somewhat curbed.
But even so, the manpower is still somewhat insufficient.
For this reason, Lu Yuan had to bring over another 20,000 people from the 30,000 people who had already gathered in Luyang Mansion to help deal with public security.
In this way, the manpower will be sufficient to deal with local security.
After hesitating for a long time, Lu Yuan finally decided to transfer a battalion of soldiers from Lianshan County, Yangshan Prefecture, who had just suppressed a local Miao village, to Jianghua County.
Firstly, the two places are not far apart, and secondly, there are 500 soldiers in the first battalion. Cooperating with the local people, it was enough to suppress the ulcers of more than a hundred people.
After approving the official document, he wrote a transfer order and gave it to the soldier waiting next to him, asking him to pass it on.
Lu Yuan finally put down the pen in his hand, then stood up, came to Sun Siwen, made a cup of tea for his friend, and then said with a smile: "I have been busy with business these days, even I have been busy sleeping and eating all night, and I have neglected Brother Sun."
Sun Siwen shook his head: "Brother Lu manages the government for the people. This is the heart of the Duke. I'm just waiting for a while, so what's the point."
"I knew Brother Sun would say that." Lu Yuan smiled, and then said without any nonsense: "Brother Sun is here. I think you should have made some guesses on the way here. I asked you to come because I have an important entrustment. .”
Sun Siwen nodded: "Brother Lu should want me to be the prefect of Yangshan and govern this place, right?"
Lu Yuan nodded, and then shook his head: "That's true. But my wish is not only to make you the prefect of Yangshan, I also want you to help me supervise the two houses of Jiuyi and Lingling. Be the governor of Nansan Prefecture."
"The Sheriff of Nansan Prefecture!"
When Sun Siwen heard these words, he was immediately surprised. Everyone stood up, looked at his friend, and quickly warned him: "Brother Lu, I know you have great ambitions.
But the county governor was appointed by the imperial court and was a high official in the border area. In terms of his rank, he was higher than the Pingxi general. How could he be appointed by the local government?
Moreover, with my position, what authority do I have to supervise the two houses of Jiuyi and Lingling.
I can be the magistrate of Yangshan.
For the other two prefectures, Brother Lu should arrange for wise men to serve as prefects. "
Facing this arrangement that was close to rebellion, Sun Siwen was really scared.
First, out of his own justice, he did not want to betray the court. The second is that I don’t want to see my friends go to extremes and become traitors.
Otherwise, when he is caught between his friends and the court, he really doesn't know what to choose, and then he will no longer be a human being.
"Brother Sun, please be patient." Lu Yuan looked at Sun Siwen's frightened face and couldn't help but chuckle, then said: "When did I say I would rebel?"
When Sun Siwen heard this, he felt a little relieved, calmed down and said, "Brother Lu is not going to rebel, so why do you say that?"
Lu Yuan laughed and said, "You heard me say before that I have an agreement with the imperial court..."
At that moment, he told his friends about the imperial court's plan for the ten great masters and the plan to enfeoff the country.
Of course, Lu Yuan made some changes regarding the feudal land.
From the originally determined Jiuzhen County, it was naturally changed to Dongting County. Even the half-county land that was originally a feudal state was described by him as starting from half a county and ending with one county.
As for these conditions that are contrary to the imperial plan, will the imperial court accept them?
Lu Yuan, whose strength was rapidly expanding now, felt that the imperial court, which was now becoming weaker and weaker, would not be unhappy with him and would eventually agree.
As for what you should do if you still can’t think about it in the end and don’t agree?
Naturally, everyone relies on their own methods.
Anyway, Lu will not leave Dongting County.
As a martial artist, I always speak with my strength. The big deal is a fight to see who can win whom.
"So, I have half a county and can split the earth to seal the country. This is approved by the imperial court."
Lu Yuan looked as usual and said in a dull tone: "Brother Sun, if you are now allowed to supervise the three palaces, you are just trying to set up a central framework to prepare for the future closure of the country."
After hearing such secrets, Sun Siwen was stunned.
As a traditional Confucian scholar, he never expected that in order to perpetuate the rule of the country, the imperial court would suppress rebellion and fight against thieves.
He would actually do something like losing power, humiliating the country, and ceding territory to protect himself.
Split the soil and seal the territory.
If I really go by what my friend said, then wouldn't the imperial court have to carve out at least two or three counties, or even four counties?
Without these counties, would Dai Viet still be Dai Viet?
With such a confusion in his heart, Sun Siwen looked at Lu Yuan and asked with a dry throat: "Brother Lu, are what you said...true?"
Lu Yuan nodded matter-of-factly: "Of course. Otherwise, why do you think the holy monk Ji Hui of Baifeng Temple is willing to serve as the national master? Grandmaster Yan of the Nanhai Sect is over 140 years old, why do he still come out to give The imperial court fights?
Both of them are tycoons with tens of thousands of disciples and occupy a county.
In terms of status, it is not necessarily comparable to that of a county guard, so where is the difference?
But now they are willing to be used by the imperial court and serve as national advisors in name only. Do you really think that they are worried about the national crisis and want to serve the imperial court?
And just talking about me, this time I mobilized 200,000 troops to fight the traitors with all my strength for the imperial court. Do the two cultivators really think that I am dedicated to the country?
If the imperial court had not provided such conditions, why would I have expended my strength to help the imperial court suppress the Miao thieves? "
The exposure of these bloody facts immediately shattered the last trace of fantasy in Sun Siwen's heart.
As a good friend, he certainly knew Lu Yuan's temperament, and he was by no means a foolish and loyal person.
There is not much loyalty to the imperial court at all.
The reason why Lu Yuan was willing to take up an official position in the first place was because he was worried about his own safety, so he reluctantly took it.
Of course, it is impossible for such a person to be selfless, actively harm his own interests, and defeat thieves for the imperial court.
Therefore, the other party has only one reason for sending troops.
The imperial court gave him a great benefit, and this great benefit was to split the soil and seal the country.
"How could...how could..."
Although he had known for a long time that the imperial court was in decline, seeing this scene clearly was really hard for Sun Siwen to accept.
Seeing his friend's slightly lost look, Lu Yuan sighed, then walked up, patted his shoulder and said: "Since ancient times, the change of dynasties has been common sense. Brother Sun, you are worried about the court, but you just want to bring peace to the world. Just do good things for the people and make their lives better.
But today's court is unable to fulfill your wish. "
Having said this, Lu Yuan paused, and then said earnestly: "I know Brother Sun's abilities, and I also know Brother Sun's ambitions. When you and I were cooking wine in Qingmei, Yangmei Town, Brother Sun once said that one day, he would become an official. Officials must strictly control the place, eliminate bandits and bandits, prohibit force, and ensure peace for the people.
Now I am about to tear apart the earth and found a country, becoming the leader of a country. However, there are not many available talents under his command.
If Brother Sun is willing, I would like to use you as the prime minister of the country to help me stabilize Dongting County and create a peaceful foundation for this.
How about it, Brother Sun, can you help me? "
Lu Yuan took his friend's hand and made a sincere request.
There are too few assistants like Sun Siwen who are both capable and trustworthy in the world.
So few that besides Sun Siwen, he only thought of Zhou Qing.
But although Zhou Qing's cultural accomplishment is also good, after all, he reads scriptures every day, so his knowledge will not be much worse.
But his current development path is to become a general in charge of the army.
Lu Yuan has decided that after the founding of the country, the position of general will belong to his disciple.
So the head of the generals now exists.
But the head of civil servants is still vacant for the time being.
Looking at the people around him, the only one suitable for the position of prime minister is Sun Siwen.
This time, Lu Yuan approached the other party and asked him about the founding of the country. He wanted to persuade his good friend to help him establish the foundation of the country.
After all, the imperial court's plan for the top ten masters will be completed in more than a year.
When the ten great masters gather together, it will be the moment of decisive battle between the imperial court and the Zhou people, Shu thieves, and Miao people.
No matter how much this war is delayed, it will be over in two or three years at most.
At that time, it will naturally be time for the imperial court to fulfill its promise and give the four great masters in the world to split the land and seal the territory.
Therefore, if we calculate it carefully, it may only be three or four years before Lu Yuan founds the country.
Time is running out, if we don’t set up the framework now, by then, we won’t even be able to find all the civil and military officials.
So make preparations in advance now, let Sun Siwen supervise the government affairs of the three southern governments and set up a unified administrative framework.
After the shelf is set up, Luyang Mansion and Shaoyang Mansion will also be included in it.
At that time, after a period of running-in, the five southern prefectures of Dongting County will be integrated into one, and Lu Yuan will be able to incorporate the military system into it and truly turn the place into a country.
This whole set of steps was something he decided to implement slowly after careful consideration.
Now is the first step of planning.
And the most critical thing about this first step of the plan is the help of my good friend.
Otherwise, if the other party disagrees, Lu Yuan really doesn't know where to go to find a character who can replace the other party.
So what do Sun Siwen think?
At the beginning, our Magistrate Sun was naturally extremely disappointed and very angry at the court's various compromises.
But after you are full of anger and realize that nothing can be changed, you feel confused.
Because he didn't know where he would go after the Yue Kingdom ceded Dongting County?
After all, he is an official of the imperial court, and he may not necessarily be recognized by others when he establishes a country and seals borders.
But after hearing that Lu Yuan was planning to found a country in Dongting County, he was also planning to make himself the prime minister of the new dynasty.
have to say.
Our Magistrate Sun couldn't help but feel his heart pounding.
Don't laugh at him for failing to live up to his expectations. If he were to be the prime minister of a country in front of you, how could you not be moved?
Not to mention, the founder of this country was also his best friend.
So when faced with the invitation from his friend, Sun Siwen just struggled in his heart for a few seconds, and then he bowed down solemnly and saluted: "Sun Siwen has met the Lord, and he is willing to run for the Lord and serve the Lord without any hesitation."
Well, at this moment, Sun Siwen was not pretending to be a friend, but directly made a master-slave ceremony to Lu Yuan, confirming his status.
After all, from now on, one is the king and the other is the minister.
With this relationship, no matter how close the monarch is to you, your due status and due etiquette cannot be wasted.
As an orthodox Confucian scholar, Sun Siwen attached great importance to this.
"Hahaha!"
Lu Yuan burst out laughing when he saw Sun Siwen's statement. This friend's willingness to help him undoubtedly solved a major problem in his mind.
At this time, he quickly helped the other person up and said happily: "With Brother Sun helping me, I won't have to worry about the government affairs of the new country."
Sun Siwen also said happily: "It is also a blessing for me to be able to assist Master Zuo Ming and display his talents."
From the moment he decided on the title of monarch and minister, Sun Siwen no longer regarded himself as Lu Yuan's friend. At this time, the two of them began to talk as if they were monarchs and ministers, observing etiquette.
Lu Yuan noticed this and couldn't help but sigh.
But I also know that this is right, and most of the time I won’t be able to persuade my friends, so I can only feel helpless and secretly sad.
Fortunately, the preliminary preparations for the founding of the People's Republic of China have finally taken shape.
