In the early morning, the sun had just set over Chengdu, and Xu Mu was already rubbing his waist and walking into the familiar palace.
Jia Zhou smiled slightly and said, "My lord, you need to take care of yourself."
"This is natural... By the way, Wenlong, how is the situation in Xishu recently?"
Having been in Cangzhou for a long time, in general, the political affairs of Western Shu were handled by Jia Zhou.
"There is no problem. According to the strategy left by the lord, it is developing steadily. The autumn harvest is about to happen, and I am afraid that this round of food and grass in Xishu will be full."
In the three years since they entered Shu, both Xu Mu and Jia Zhou spent almost all their efforts on accumulating grain and casting weapons in Shuzhou.
"Now, it's time for the heroes to compete for hegemony." Jia Zhou raised his head, his voice a little moved.
After destroying the demon queen, the Yuan family's royal family is gone. No matter which prince or king he is, he knows in his heart that now is the best time to fight for the emperor.
"My lord needs to decide on a strategy. My guess is that if we are seeking hegemony, our lord's goal should still be the land south of the Yangtze River."
"It's indeed Jiangnan."
Picking up the teapot, Xu Mu helped Jia Zhou pour a cup.
"Today, among the thirty states in the world, the most powerful one is undoubtedly the King of Yuzhou. He occupies the land of the ten states and has the support of the world's famous families. In addition, the inner city is rich and has a large population. No matter how you look at it, the King of Yuzhou is It is the appearance of an emperor.”
Xu Mu nodded silently.
"If the king of Yuzhou becomes the emperor, even though he and his lord are old friends and share weal and woe, the king of Yuzhou may not take action against Xishu while he is alive. But what happens after the death of the king of Yuzhou? ? Will his heir, his crown prince, let me, the young master of Xishu, sit in charge of southern Xinjiang and Jiangnan?"
"No." Jia Zhou sighed, "Throughout the ages, political power that is independent of the monarch will only be regarded as a traitor party."
Xu Mu understood clearly. The meaning also vaguely points out that in the near future, there may be a competition with Chang Shiro.
"The Nine-fingered Man should have reminded the King of Yuzhou of these words. Although I know that your lord is very wise, no matter what, as a staff member of Western Shu, I must say something."
"Wenlong, you and I are brothers, no need to be polite."
Jia Zhou smiled happily and said, "If my lord can listen, that would be great. However, I estimate that by the beginning of next spring, the entire Central Plains will enter a period of rest."
They had just cooperated to destroy the Demon Queen, and then rejected Beidi and Rouran. Logically speaking, the various forces in the World Alliance would not immediately break up with each other.
Furthermore, after the autumn harvest, winter will soon begin, and there is a high probability that we will not be able to start fighting.
During this period of time, what Xi Shu needs to do is to replenish its troops and train the new army. If possible, try to tinker with some craftable objects such as wooden kites.
"Wenlong, what do you think about Kezhou?"
"Kezhou must perish. But I don't want my lord to get involved in this muddy water first."
"how to say."
"Yuan Song owned the land of three states and proclaimed himself the King of Donglai. After gathering the remnants of Qingzhou's army, he had nearly 80,000 troops. Moreover, Yuan Song was good at training troops, and there were many iron mines in the territory. Mountains cannot be underestimated.”
"Of course, it may not be a bad thing that my lord kept Yuan Song in the first place. With him here, firstly, he can contain Zuo Shiren, secondly...if the King of Yuzhou wants to go south to conquer, Yuan Song will definitely stop him. Thirdly, The two states of Laiyan are too far away from Xishu, even if Yuan Song is destroyed, the only person who will benefit is Zuo Shiren."
"What Wen Long means is that the strategic location of Kezhou is likely to cause a fight between Yuan Song and Zuo Shiren."
"Exactly." Jia Zhou nodded, "At that time, my lord can think of some ways to reap huge profits. The focus of Western Shu in the past two years should still be to hibernate. In hibernation, slowly eat the entire Jiangnan .”
Today's Western Shu has a territory of six and a half states. But to be honest, the three states of Liangdi, plus Dingzhou, are a bit barren. They only have many horse farms and can form a world cavalry.
"When harvesting grain, I suggest that your lord send troops to guard the passes of each county."
"Wenlong, why is this?"
"Both my lord and I know that with my lord's political talents, Shuzhou will have a great harvest of grain and grass, and the granaries will be filled with it. But these things cannot be seen by outsiders. Guard the passes of each county. In this way, even if there are spies, they will be able to Unable to properly coordinate the grain and grass that I put into the warehouse in Xishu."
"In addition, before winter comes, my lord can write to the king of Yuzhou and inquire about purchasing grain and grass. However, I can guess that the man with all his fingers will definitely advise the king of Yuzhou not to sell the grain and grass to my lord. .”
"The army has not moved yet, but the food and grass go first. If the Lord wants to fight for hegemony, the food and grass strategy is indispensable."
"I understand." Xu Mu nodded.
There is still a long way to go in Western Shu. In the dark, there are still powerful people like Liang Wang who have been hidden for thousands of years and do not like Western Shu's people-oriented approach. It is estimated that they will use all their methods to make Xi Shu's struggle for hegemony fall by the wayside.
"Some time ago, I thought about it for a long time." Jia Zhou continued, "Kezhou Huang Daochong... is most likely a plan for Jin Chan to escape from his shell."
"The golden cicada escapes from its shell?"
"Exactly, my lord has not seen his body with his own eyes, nor has he personally examined it. It is more like a trick played to blind the eyes of everyone in the world. Of course, this is just my idea and there is no evidence. .”
Jia Zhou's sense of strategy is so keen. Since he dares to speak out, it means that he is at least 50 to 60% sure.
"Huang Zhizhou, if you don't stay in the General Hall first, you may be of great use in the future."
Jia Zhou probably said it happily, picked up the tea cup, and took two sips slowly.
"After the incident in Hezhou, it's time for Bo Lie to come back. And Chai Zong has also begun to take over the military affairs of Dingbeiguan. Chang Ling died in battle... The vacancy of Zhenzhou general should be filled. Lord, do you have any ideas? ?”
"Chai Zong is the general of Dingzhou, and Fan Lu is the general of Bingzhou."
Although Fan Lu was reckless, his fighting ability was not bad. When the time comes, I will send a few more staff to go with me. With Chen Zhong and Chai Zong by my side, I won't be too worried.
"General Hall, I have selected three new generals, and they are the three generals of Chengdu who can accompany the army to participate in the war. Lord, this is the list."
Xu Mu looked at it and remembered the name. Without aristocratic families to send talents, his generals and staff could only be selected layer by layer, and then through the training of the general hall, they would enter the stage of troubled times.
"Also, one last thing." Jia Zhou paused, "Over in the Western Regions, Princess Zhenlan City has sent people back to Chengdu. She has been waiting at the post house for the past few days. If my lord is free, you might as well join me. Go check it out.”
"Very good." Xu Mu was slightly happy in his heart.
Shuzhou has a good harvest of grain and grass. Next, it is time to prepare money. If the Silk Road could be opened up, the benefits would be terrifying.
"The king of Yuzhou has newly acquired the land of Hebei, and has Yanzhou as a horse breeding farm. In addition, the inner city is extremely wealthy... It is time for my lord to move forward."
Jia Zhou stood up, as if he had said too much today. After a pause, he covered his mouth and coughed.
