As Zhou Bai expected, the city gate was not open because it was waiting for him.
Qu Zhi, the commander of the personal soldiers, was obviously not qualified to take over Bei'an City. Those in the city knew very clearly that this city was their best gift to show their goodwill to the new master, and it was important to whom it was handed over.
The late spring wind blew away the haze, and the bright sunshine irradiated the entire city.
In less than a stick of incense, the city gate opened with a bang, and several gentry leaders wearing brocade robes and smiling harmlessly on their faces came forward.
Behind them are the people of the county and city who are lined up neatly and anxious. This period of time has been very difficult for them. The overwhelming stone bullets are simply everyone's nightmare.
However, the image Zhou Bai created before was really good. The people of Dafeng in the north of the county lived and worked in peace and contentment. They had some expectations, but there was actually a warm atmosphere to welcome Master Wang.
Each brought a reward of wine and food, which was placed on both sides of the road, showing their attitude of respectfully welcoming the new owner.
Zhou Bai's eyes first looked at the common people, and he felt relieved after finding that there was no excessive rejection or hatred.
In a sense, he was the one who took the initiative to attack the city. During this period of siege, he also caused damage to the city and caused many accidental injuries.
Of course, Zhou Bai believes that after a period of governance, life will get better and better, and all grievances will disappear.
The broad public sentiment can be put aside for the time being, and these people in the lead are the actual representatives of the current public sentiment, and we must pay attention to it.
Zhou Bai wanted to unify Bei'an, so he was naturally well prepared and could recognize who they were at a glance.
They are nothing more than the heads of big families in Bei'an City, the Chen family of the county, the Wang family of the county, the Qi family of the county...
Ta da~ da da~
The scene suddenly became quiet, leaving only the sound of tapping. Generals Zhou Yuan, Gao Hu, Jiao Tu and Qu Zhi followed a few steps behind with a group of murderous soldiers.
Jie Jing is already a serious Taoist dragon horse. He is majestic and tall, and the white air he spits stirs up the dust on the ground. Zhou Bai is riding on the back of such a big horse, which adds a bit of majesty.
Not long after, he had already ridden in front of a group of gentry family heads, and felt a sense of oppression.
The power was so powerful that for a moment they didn't even dare to look up, so they all bent down and knelt down to pay homage.
Swish, and then the rows of people behind him knelt down and shouted.
"I'm waiting to meet General Fumo!"
Unlike the gentry, what Zhou Bai felt was not oppression, but the overwhelming popular sentiment of surrender. This was the fate of the "lord and minister".
The attitude of the "People's Heart" representatives was very good, so Zhou Bai stopped putting on airs, got off his horse, and stepped forward to help them up one by one.
"Please get up quickly. It's my fault that I'm late in rescuing you all."
The heavy power that had made them breathless just now disappeared in an instant, and was replaced by Zhou Bai's gentle and kind words, which made people feel like a spring breeze.
Several family heads looked at each other, understood Zhou Bai's attitude, and began to give gifts in turn.
Chen Xian, the head of the Chen family, the commander of the county, held a wooden box and said respectfully: "Lin Ren, the staff member of the pseudo-Jiedu Mansion, tried to prevent the king from entering the city, so I present my head here."
Zhou Bai opened a corner of the wooden box, and inside was indeed Lin Ren, the great strategist who helped Sun Yucheng stir up troubles in his previous life, but now he died so easily.
However, at best, he was a little emotional. After all, the trajectory of life's luck is so unpredictable, and it is difficult to get back on track even if you make a wrong step.
Then came the other gentry, presenting in turn the keys to the treasury, the key to the granary, the population register, the fish scale atlas of private fields, etc.
After learning that Sun Yucheng was defeated, all the key areas and important power in the city were in the hands of big families in just one night.
This is why Zhou Bai believes that the few people in front of him are the representatives of the people in the city now.
No matter how we treat them in the future, for the time being, we must stabilize them first.
Zhou Bai asked people to collect all the things as ordered, and then laughed and said: "Hahaha, these gifts have saved me a lot of trouble. I will need more advice from you in the future. Bei'an is so big and cannot do without you."
"Where, where... these are what I should do."
The big gentry had all shown their faces, and then it was the turn of the forces of the Jiedu Mansion, the former "officials".
When the Sun family and his son were fighting each other in Jiedu Mansion, the civil and military officials had already been purged, and then they were purged by the gentry forces in the city.
Lin Ren, the only Jiedu staff member who was still in charge, was also killed for getting in the way. Now there are only a few small fish left to ask for surrender, and there is not a single official who leads the official officials of Jiedu government.
In the end, it was only a few trembling civil servants who respectfully presented the Great Seal of Bei'an Jiedu and completed the surrender process.
As for the three to four thousand soldiers beside them who were dejected and put down their weapons one after another and surrendered, they were just the background that was ignored.
Zhou Bai just turned his head and glanced at these surrendered soldiers, and concluded in his heart that his militiamen were unnecessary.
They were all rogue soldiers captured by Sun Yucheng. They were simply used to fill the numbers. Their energy and spirit were completely broken, and their physical fitness was also extremely poor.
After all, they were not even brought along for last night's decisive battle, which shows that they are not trustworthy.
After the process was completed, Zhou Bai received the Great Seal of Jiedu and immediately felt how heavy it was, as if a thousand pounds of weight were pressing on his back.
Take a closer look at it. It is printed on the back in a tidal style, and four lion patterns with different postures are engraved on the four slopes.
A slope-like two-story platform is raised in the back, and a squatting lion is cast as a button. The lion's head is slightly raised, the hair is draped back, the eyes are straight, the mouth is slightly closed and teeth are exposed, the chest is protruding, and the tail is drooped on the right rear side. frame.
The silver lion button is the standard seal of the feudal lord. If the specifications are one level higher, it is the gold seal that can only be used by kings or kings.
This is the final carrier of the fortune of the entire Bei'an County and the destiny of the imperial court. It is also the place where a few people still rely on the orthodoxy of the imperial court.
If Zhou Bai now announces that he will succeed Bei'an Jiedushi and issues orders with a large seal, it will immediately be logical to take over an intact Bei'an County.
Because judging from the current situation of the imperial court, if Zhou Bai wants to be the governor, he will never refute it, and it is not even possible to appease him by giving him a higher title.
This depends on the real message. It does not mean that we have to slowly sort out the government decrees and use means such as good harvests, tax cuts, and defense against foreign enemies to bring everyone back home.
Suddenly, the lion on the big seal seemed to come to life, and a domineering lion roar sounded in the dark.
This lion's roar actually gave birth to boundless temptation for power in Zhou Bai's heart.
It was as if the Lion Button Festival was urging him to return to the court and enjoy the title of orthodoxy.
Raise the big seal to call on Bei'an...
Zhou Bai really raised the Jiedu seal at this moment. Chen Xian and Wang Yong, the heads of the Junwang family who knew some secrets, had complicated expressions on their faces.
Could it be that this person really wants to succeed Jiedushi?
Luck is deeply implicated. If you want to escape, you won't be able to resign as before. Now this unscrupulous behavior will no longer exist.
However, when Zhou Bai held up the Great Seal of Jiedu, the words he announced were not what they expected.
"From now on, I will be known as the Governor of Anbei, and I will change the Jiedu Mansion in Bei'an to the Governor's Mansion of Anbei. This Jiedu Great Seal will be cast into the Governor's Great Seal."
"See Governor Anbei." Before others could react, Zhou Yuan's generals were already leading the demon-suppressing army to kneel down.
Is this self-reliance?
However, with Zhou Bai's power in hand, the gentry family heads who had received hints and promises before would not raise any objections.
They all followed him and knelt down to pay homage. General Fumo stopped calling him, and just called Zhou Bai his new self-proclaimed name.
Governor of Anbei.
There is always a layer of separation between ruling the mortal place in the name of General Fumo Mansion. Now that Zhou Baigang claimed to be the Governor of Anbei, for a moment, he realized the destiny's will in the dark.
Fighting for dragons is always an internal matter within humanity, and there is the concern and blessing of the general trend of humanity, not just the supreme heaven.
Seeing that Zhou Bai claimed to be the Governor of Anbei, he was in a good mood. Someone who was good at observing people immediately reported: "Whether the Governor is entering the city now, the people in the city have been waiting for Master Wang for a long time."
"Send the order, the army will enter the city and put up notices to calm the people. If anyone disturbs the people, military law will be dealt with!" Zhou Bai nodded slightly, waved his hand, and the army behind him began to march into the city in an orderly manner.
The gentry and nobles hanging behind looked at the backs of Zhou Bai and Dajun and began to discuss in low voices.
A county wealthy family leader was the first to ask: "What do you think of this name brought up by Zhou Fumo?"
"Wonderful, wonderful beyond words." Wang Yong, the head of the Junwang family, praised decisively.
"Is it possible that it is wonderful to have shed one's heavenly status and act as a human master?"
"Yes, this person is a heavenly being, but he has to do things like hiding from dragons and fighting for the Way. That's why he needs the title of governor..."
Wang Yong did not comment on the speeches of others, and turned to Chen Xianfa and asked: "Where is the head of the Chen family, what do you think is so wonderful?"
The Bei'an Chen family and the Ping Cang Chen family are one in the sky and the other in the earth. The former is a long-established wealthy family that existed when Bei'an County was first established, while the latter is just an ordinary county wealthy family.
Chen Xian is also the vaguely recognized leader among the powerful forces. Yesterday, he was the first to give the decisive order to kill Lin Ren and take control of Jiedu Mansion.
Facing everyone's gaze, Chen Xian looked like he had the pearls of wisdom in his hands. After a moment, he explained calmly: "The best thing is that the two characters Anbei in Anbei Governor, Bei'an, Anbei, seem to be just two characters. The order has been changed, but there is a real gap in status."
"The governor of Bei'an is too restrictive and can only be used to control one county, which is not conducive to subsequent development. However, the foundation for founding the country and proclaiming the king is not enough, and the destiny pattern cannot bear it.
"Therefore, it is just right to use the word "Anbei" to replace the titles of princes, princes, princes, etc. At a small scale, it can be north of Dingzhou, and at a large scale, the entire northern border is not a bad idea..."
These family heads and gentry thought the conversation was secret, but they didn't know that Zhou Bai had been paying attention to them.
However, Zhou Bai quite agreed with Chen Xian's statement. He wanted to use the title of Governor of Anbei to transition.
But it will definitely not take too long. When the time comes, a country will be established. How can we wait until the entire northern border is conquered and still use the name of Governor Anbei?
Of course, the most important thing is to call yourself yourself and not use the name of the court.
Otherwise, if you want to be independent in the future, you will greatly damage the people's support and suffer losses in terms of justice, and other Qianlong heroes will also take advantage of this to make a fuss.
In my memory, there was a great tycoon in Blue Star. Because of the constraints of his name, he remained a minister of the imperial court until his death.
Zhou Bai took the words of the family heads to heart, and he never forgot the words of the common people.
"These demon-suppressing armies are so powerful, no wonder the Sun family can't defeat them."
"I have traveled all over the country and gained extensive knowledge, but I have never seen such a neat military appearance, marching as one body."
"In these troubled times, we Bei'an people may really have a hero who can protect everyone and live safely."
"Welcome to the Commander-in-Chief, and welcome to Master Wang!"
The people in the county and city were astonished and admired him so much that the chests of the soldiers entering the city became straighter and they walked in unison with each other even more tacitly.
Who would have thought that these rural children would settle in the central city of Bei'an County as "masters" today.
Who brought them this honor was Zhou Bai, so when Zhou Bai entered the city from the middle of the military column, the atmosphere among the people was enthusiastic, and the morale of all the soldiers was also extremely high.
The several family heads who were following him couldn't help but wonder if their new governor now proclaimed himself emperor, and these big-headed soldiers would follow him to the death.
However, no matter what atmosphere people create, the real environment in the city is difficult to see.
The first time a counterweighted giant trebuchet was used was in Bei'an City, Zhou Bai's future political and economic center.
As far as the eye can see, there are all ruins and ruins, and there are countless houses that have been destroyed by bombing. There are almost no intact buildings on a street, and there are dilapidated buildings everywhere.
Moreover, due to the continuous siege war, the garbage cannot be cleaned, human and animal filth is piled in the corners, and the stench is high.
Therefore, Zhou Bai's first order after entering the city was to disarm all troops except the troops guarding important areas.
Strive to help the people rebuild their homes in the shortest possible time, restore the cleanliness and tidiness of Bei'an City, and restore the bustling and prosperous times.
As the soldiers and soldiers went deep into the ruins to clean up regardless of the mess, the people of Bei'an City also felt a strange feeling in their hearts. Maybe this army was really different.
"Fellow folks, we are responsible for building your damaged houses!"
"Come here, kill the remaining livestock in the back camp and distribute them to the people as a gift of apology for our sins..."
In the center of the city, there is the former Bei'an County Government Office, the former Bei'an Jiedu Government Office, and now the Anbei Governor's Office.
This was the only place in the city that had time to clean up. Even though the marks of sword collisions on the pillars were clearly visible and the smell of blood could be smelled from time to time, Zhou Bai moved in directly without any scruples.
As long as he sits in the official office, it means the official establishment of the Anbei Governor's Office, and it means that the Governor's Office will begin to manage the entire Bei'an County.
Several messengers were sent out in succession, bringing good news to the north, carrying Zhou Bai's order to move the general's government office as a whole; to the south, a message that many people had been shouting could be confirmed, and Zhou Bai's personal surrender document would be delivered. To the four counties south of the county.
While Zhou Bai was busy dealing with the affairs accumulated in the army, Li Yuan and Yao An came together after investigating the situation.
"Report, my lord, the ancestral house of the Sun family is full of blood. It is true that there is no one alive. One hundred and thirty-two direct descendants were all sacrificed to blood."
"The person who presided over the blood sacrifice was Bu Yuanzi. He was in charge of the evil blood sacrifice formation at the Sun Clan's ancestral hall. Now his luck has backfired and his soul is gone."
(End of chapter)
