Chapter 181 Do you have a home? (6k)

After being away for ten days, Zhao Fujin missed his son so much that he stopped traveling on his way back and returned to Qinzhou in two days.

Thinking that they had not seen each other for a long time, Yang Chang thought that his wife and children would pester him, but the result was quite different from what he expected.

Qiu Qiongying was young and curious. She guessed that there must be a story behind the two of them being away for so long, so she pulled Zhao Fujin aside to ask him all sorts of questions, while Hu Sanniang brought Yang Huang to follow them and listen.

Yang Chang took a sip of tea and suddenly thought of the opening of "A Chinese Odyssey: Part One", where the wives were enjoying themselves at home and he seemed like an outsider.

You don't want to play with me, right?

Just when he was about to mock himself bitterly, Hu Sanniang suddenly came back.

She leaned close to his ear and whispered, "Master, please go and do your business first. We sisters need to chat. You have been away for a long time. Huang'er keeps talking about his mother. I am a little jealous. We will have a reunion dinner tonight. You will stay in the east wing tonight. Remember?"

"A busy lady."

"You and I are husband and wife, don't say such polite words. After all, Jiandi is too young, don't put all the burden on him."

"understood."

After being "taught a lesson" by Hu Sanniang, Yang Chang changed into a scarlet robe and went straight to the provincial government office.

When he reached the steps outside the front hall, he saw Yang Jian sitting in the "teacher's" seat from afar, frowning and busy at his desk.

"Busy now?"

"Brother, are you back? Official Lu sent me some documents this morning, including the grain harvest and tax revenue of each county this summer, as well as the estimated expenditures of each government office in the second half of the year. I roughly calculated that the income and expenditure are barely balanced. Fortunately, brother sent Liang Yuhou away, otherwise there would be a deficit at the end of this year."

"Of course. War is a bottomless pit. No amount of money or grain can fill it. This year, the people of Qinzhou have no corvée labor, so the harvest should be good. However, we can only break even. This shows that the various government offices are overstaffed, and we need to find ways to save money."

"Brother has just defeated Fang Shen, and officials at all levels in Qinzhou have been very restrained. If we force them to cut spending, I'm afraid..."

Yang Jian didn't finish his words, but his meaning had been expressed clearly. It was nothing more than to make officials at all levels dissatisfied, and perhaps they would report to the court and criticize him.

This term of Qinzhou officials, and even officials from nearby prefectures, spent real money to fill the vacancies.

When this person who bought the official position takes office, he will definitely exploit those below him and deceive those above him, and make a profit by making up excuses to take advantage of both sides.

Yang Chang was already prepared to rebel, so he was naturally not afraid of being impeached by his subordinates. However, there were more than a hundred officials in the state government, and he could not drive them all away at once. He needed to pretend to be submissive and complete the preparations.

During this period, we need domestic affairs talents to take the helm and not give corrupt officials the opportunity to become parasites.

Yang Chang's confidants were all brave generals, and there was no chance of corruption in the army. What he lacked at this time was civil servants, and the only literati he was familiar with was the talented calligrapher Xiao Rang.

Think of a way to recruit Brother Xiao?
I remember that in the original novel, before the expedition against Fang La, Xiao Rang was taken away by Cai Jing to be a writer. But now Cai Jing has retired and returned to his hometown. Is there anyone else who would take advantage of him to get him back?

While Yang Chang was deep in thought, Wu Song came with Cao Zheng.

"I'll just say I'm back."

"It's better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early."

Cao Zheng smiled at Wu Song, then stepped forward and saluted: "Brother Yang, please observe."

"From now on there will be no outsiders. You can call them what you want to call them. It's too formal to call them by their official titles."

"Haha, I know."

"Aren't you in Qinyuan? Why are you here in Tongdi to see me?"

Bai Li, who colluded with Fang Shen in the rebellion, was beheaded. At that time, the position of Qinyuan County Lieutenant was vacant, so Yang Chang asked Cao Zheng to take over. During the expedition against Tian Hu, he had been temporarily in charge of the defense of Qinyuan, so this move was a familiar one.

Cao Zheng looked around and saw that there was no one around, then he clasped his fists and reported to Yang Chang.

"There has been an urgent situation recently. It may be that our Qinzhou has no corvée and has distributed land to the people for free. Somehow the news spread to Lichuan County, and hundreds of families have fled to Qinyuan."

"Isn't this a good thing?"

Yang Jian leaned forward curiously, stared at Yang Changzhi and blinked after he finished speaking.

Cao Zheng hurriedly explained: "The recorder doesn't know that the registered population is the most important thing for local officials. Qinyuan is happy about the increase in population, but Lichuan will definitely complain to Pingyang Prefecture about the loss of population. Then there will be a tug of war between the states, which is not good for Yang Guanchao."

“So that’s how it is”

"It doesn't matter. If the people can't survive, why would they leave their homes to seek a way to survive? When I was stationed in Pingyang last year, I didn't see any people fleeing. It must be because the current officials are exploiting them too much. That's why I don't indulge my so-called colleagues."

"I know what my brother is thinking, but now is not the right time."

"It's okay. Ask my second brother to allocate a battalion of soldiers. Just make sure Qinyuan is stable. I will handle any troubles."

"Yes!"

After several years of contact with Cao Zheng, Yang Chang discovered that this man was calm and collected in his actions, completely unlike those reckless men in Liangshan.

You kid, you successfully aroused my curiosity.

Yang Chang pinched his chin, pretending to be in deep thought but silently chanting a spell: "To understand the creation of yin and yang, and to understand the mechanisms of ghosts and gods."

Later, he touched the center of his eyebrows and examined the panel of his sea of ​​consciousness.

Name: Cao Zheng

Cultivation: Mortal

Attributes: Successor of Pao Ding (butcher's proficiency doubled), Mindful and Intelligent (quick and studious, wise and intelligent, intelligence bonus)

Skills: Master Butcher, Gun and Stick Mastery, Sword Mastery

Possessing a unique skill: Butchering an Ox (The descendant of Pao Ding has a unique skill, which increases combat power by 30% with a knife)
He is indeed a natural born butcher, but it's a pity that you don't like him. However, the attribute of [Intelligence] seems to be good. No wonder he has a brain that can think.

The position of Qinyuan County Lieutenant is temporarily vacant, and Yang Chang has the power of recommendation. Should he push Cao Zheng to the position?
I have all the power in Qinzhou, so it seems unnecessary to recommend myself to the court. This position can be used to recruit people.
Thinking of this, Yang Chang suddenly had an idea. He thought, I can recommend Xiao Rang and get him from Song Jiang. As long as he arrives in Qinzhou, can't he decide what position he wants to take?

Snap.

Yang Chang clapped his hands excitedly, which made Wu Song look surprised.

"what happened?"

"Nothing, is there any news about the Ruan brothers?"

"Not so soon? I estimate it will arrive by the end of the month."

"The Ruan family has more than a dozen people, which is considered a large family in Shijie Village, so they move relatively slowly."

Wu Song and Yang Jian sang the same tune. When Yang Chang kept nodding his head in agreement, Wu Song murmured, "Qinzhou has no navy, but there are several rivers in the territory. When the Ruan brothers come, we will give them the task of river management. We can then select a few hundred people from each camp, preferably those who can swim, and let them take charge."

"Don't worry, Sanlang. Coach Lin and I will take care of the allocation of troops."

"That's good. We have a reunion dinner at home tonight. You and Yang Jian should come early. Let's have a drink together, brothers."

"Forget about today. Sanlang will be away for more than ten days. Let's reunite with his brother, sister-in-law and son first. The Mid-Autumn Festival will be in a few days. Then we can invite Master Lu and the others and have a good time together."

"also."

Yang Chang was not polite to Wu Song. For a true brother who had been through thick and thin together, a glance was enough. There was no need to maintain the relationship through eating and drinking.

Seeing Wu Song and Cao Zheng turning around, Yang Chang started to think about "peek" again.

Reciting the spell silently, the familiar panel appeared in my mind.

Name: Wu Song

Cultivation: Mortal

Possessing attributes: Fighting for Drinking (passively improves alcohol tolerance, drinking without getting drunk but turning into strength, improving strength), Blood Rage (a common man's anger will cause blood to splatter five steps, passively triggered when in desperate situation, greatly improving agility, explosive power, and damage)
Skills: Sumo Master, Gun and Stick Master, Sword Master, Fist and Kick Master

Possessing special skills: Jade Ring Step (special step skill, both offensive and defensive), Mandarin Duck Leg (special boxing and kicking skill, flexible and changeable)
After reading this, Yang Chang thought to himself, Wow! It turned out that the big beast on Jingyang Ridge triggered the second brother's double passive ability, so it was not unfair that he was beaten to death by random punches.

As soon as this guy finished sighing, he suddenly realized that his dantian was empty, and he could not peek anymore today.

He spied on Zhao Fu's golden nature on the way, and found that the energy in his dantian was only half consumed, and it recovered after two days of rest.

Wu Song is clearly at the mortal realm, but he consumes much more energy than those at the Qi Refining realm.

What is this measurement rule?
After seeing off Wu Song and Cao Zheng, Yang Chang asked Yang Jian for paper and pen, sat down at his desk and wrote a letter. Then he went to the official area at the back of the hall and found Qinzhou Procurator Lu Jie.

Yang Chang had no friends in the court, so he wanted to recommend Xiao Rang to Qinzhou, and the recommendation fell to Su Yuanjing. However, he had just returned from the capital, and he had no reason to return to the capital. His subordinates Wu Song, Lin Chong and others were not suitable either, so he set his sights on the "expert in solving cases" Lu Jie.

Lu Jie solved the "Fang Shen Rebellion Case", but neither the Ministry of Personnel nor the Dali Temple rewarded him. Yang Chang asked him to go to Beijing to deliver a letter at this time, which was a mission that "hit the mark".

Lu Jie agreed immediately as he could make himself known in the Ministry of Personnel and establish a relationship with Su Yuanjing.

After finishing his official duties at the government office, Yang Chang looked at the fiery clouds in the western sky and thought that the busy days passed quickly and he was stuck in paperwork for the entire afternoon.

Back in the front yard of Yang's mansion, the guard at the door told Yang Chang that Wu Song had just gone out with a jar of wine, and it was said that he went to look for Lu Zhishen.

Cao Zheng came to Tongdi City today, and some old friends from Erlong Mountain might have a small gathering, so Yang Chang went straight to the back house to see his wife and children.

It was dusk, and the east and west wing rooms were dark, except for the main room on the north side, which had lights on.

Hu Sanniang had already prepared the wine and food and was waiting for Yang Chang to come for the reunion dinner.

A family of five, sitting together.

Yang Huang sat next to Zhao Fujin. Seeing that he hadn't touched his chopsticks, Yang Chang asked curiously, "Aren't you hungry? Why aren't you touching your chopsticks?"

“No one feeds me.”

"This kid, why is his bad habit coming back again?"

"Sir, don't talk about him. Huang'er had been served by many people before, and he has been very well behaved since he came to Qinzhou. Don't ask for too much. Come, let me feed you."

"My lady, you"

Seeing Hu Sanniang protecting Yang Huang, Yang Chang guessed that during the few days he was away, she must have held her son in the palm of her hand, and thought to himself that she really treated him as her own son.

When Yang Huang was in the palace, he had everything handed to him. After he finally changed his ways in Qinzhou, he was spoiled by Hu Sanniang again so soon.

Well, there is only one of them, so you deserve to be the one being loved.

Looking back and seeing Zhao Fujin lowering his head again, Yang Chang felt guilty again and thought to himself that I shouldn't ask the same of you. The childhood of a royal family and a commoner is very different. It will be fine as long as my son doesn't develop bad habits.

"Madam, tomorrow, pick a few dozen of your female soldiers and bring them to the backyard. Put a few in each of your rooms. Don't let yourself and the princess suffer."

"I don't need it"

"Treat everyone equally."

"Oh fine."

Hu Sanniang and Qiu Qiongying are both very independent. Zhao Fujin knows that Yang Chang is doing this for him, and he suddenly feels warm in his heart.

Yang Huang ate briefly and then left the table to play by himself. Yang Changze was pulled aside by the three women for questioning. The topics basically revolved around the Ever-Victorious Army, the people of Yanjing, Pharmacist Guo, etc.

Zhao Fujin's information came from Yang Chang. Since she couldn't explain the causes and consequences clearly, she naturally had to ask "Teacher Yang" to explain it personally.

The internal army is incompetent and the external army is like bandits.
After listening to Yang Chang's explanation, Hu and Qiu showed contempt for Tong Guan and the court, but because of Zhao Fujin's status as a princess, they both refrained from complaining about Zhao Ji. At night, Yang Chang stayed in the east wing.

Qiu Qiongying, who had been enduring for a long time, closed the door, put her hands on her hips, and looked at Yang Chang with a righteous face.

"Your Excellency, you killed them well. Those beasts really deserved to die. I feel that they are even worse than Tian Hu. By the way, since Master Luo asked you to save Lujia Village, why didn't you bring the people in the village back to Qinzhou? If they continue to stay in Jizhou, they will be like ripe fruits on the roadside, which can be easily picked by outsiders."

"My wife thinks it's simple. First of all, how can we convince them to move away? Leaving home is not easy. Secondly, we have to take hundreds of people on the road and pass through so many states. I'm afraid there will be constant inspections along the way. How can I get through it? Again..."

"Well, I can't argue with you."

Qiu Qiongying interrupted Yang Chang and helped him sit on the couch, continuing to mutter to himself: "The people of Yan are enslaved like animals. Is this their fate? I don't know what the point of the court taking it back is."

"It's of great significance. It increases the land area and adds millions of people."

"The imperial court paid a huge price for this humiliating compromise and false prosperity. If the Ever-Victorious Army raises its flag to rebel, won't it all be in vain?"

"My lady is right, so the Zhao Song Dynasty should be destroyed!"

"What did the official say?"

Qiu Qiongying looked over with a shocked face, only to see Yang Chang frowning and answering seriously: "The Song army couldn't even defeat the remnant Liao, let alone the powerful Jin people? Just wait and see, the Jin people will invade the Song sooner or later."

"hiss"

Yang Chang's words were so convincing that Qiu Qiongying took a deep breath and hurriedly reminded him, "The Jin people also have a large number of troops in Yunzhong. If they really go south to invade Song, won't Qinzhou be in great danger?"

"Not only is Qinzhou in danger, the entire north is in disaster, so I made a decision to establish my own regime in Qinzhou. Of course, it is still in the preparation stage. When we have enough soldiers, money and food, we will rise up and make a name for ourselves."

"well said."

Although Qiu Qiongying was surprised, she firmly supported her man, so she nodded and encouraged him: "Sir, you are invincible and treat the people well, so you should do great things, and I will help you!"

"This matter cannot be made public. Only a few people know about it. Madam, please keep it secret."

"Don't worry, sir. I'm keeping my mouth shut. By the way, do my elder sister and the princess know?"

"I mentioned it on the way back to Qinzhou, but the princess thought I was joking. I can only explain it slowly later. Madam, tell her tomorrow."

Yang Chang hugged Qiu Qiongying and tried to do something good, but Qiu suddenly broke free from his embrace and asked seriously, "Eldest sister brought your fifth uncle's family to Qinzhou, but her family is still in Yan'an Prefecture. Since your husband is ready to do something big, shouldn't he also bring them to Qinzhou? Otherwise, he will be implicated in the future."

"Sisters really love each other deeply. I am naturally concerned about this matter. My brother Hu Cheng was under Zong Shidao before, and he should be a general under Zong Shidao now. I need to find a reliable person to negotiate with him, but I have not thought of a suitable candidate yet."

"Can I recommend someone? Uncle Ye is always meticulous in his work. It will be no mistake to send him to Yan'an to negotiate."

"correct."

Yang Chang happily clapped his hands, and the look he gave Qiu Qiongying became more ambiguous.

"My wife is really smart. We haven't seen each other for a long time. I want to see how tight your mouth is."

"What? I'll go turn off the lights."

Qiu Qiongying was stunned at first, then her cheeks quickly turned red. She turned around and tried to get up but was held by Yang Chang.

"Let me go."

"Oh"

Yang Chang blew out the lights and returned to the couch, preparing to relive his dream with Qiu Qiong Yingyang, but he heard her say with a sad tone, "I want to have a son, too!"

"Hmm? Why don't you hurry up?"

"I mean, sir, come here too often. I am not as gentle as my elder sister, nor as pretty as the princess."

"Why are you worried about this? Don't you have shifts?"

"I don't take turns to be attentive. Compared with my two elder sisters, I feel inferior and have no advantages."

"Don't worry, my lady is the youngest and she will have everything she needs."

The battle was fierce in the middle of the night and then the troops were called back.

It is true that Qiu Qiongying is tight-lipped, just as much as Zhao Fujin, but people who practice martial arts have better physical strength and greater flexibility.

The next day, he asked Hu Sanniang to write a letter home, and then sent Ye Qing to enter Yan'an Prefecture via Pingyang and Xizhou to find Hu Cheng at the headquarters of the Zhong family army. He also sent people to various counties in Qinzhou to invite Zhu Tong, Sun An and others to return to Tongdi to attend the Mid-Autumn Festival banquet on August 15th.

Yang Chang made up his mind to be independent. The first thing he did was to unify his thoughts with his core brothers and to arrange relevant preparatory work. He planned to hold a banquet on the Mid-Autumn Festival and talk things out during the reunion.

He returned to Qinzhou on the ninth day of the first lunar month. Just a few days later, it was Mid-Autumn Festival and people who were away returned one after another.

Among them, Zhu Tong arrived the latest because his place, Mianshang County, was the farthest away and he had been very busy recently.

A few years ago, there was a severe drought in Shanxi, which led to a decrease in grain production and the displacement of people. Tian Hu took advantage of the natural disaster to gather people and proclaim himself king. Later, Fang Shen was appointed as the prefect, but was constrained by Yang Chang, and the empty finances made it impossible to start construction projects.

It was not until Yang Chang was appointed as the inspector and Qinzhou collected taxes for the previous quarter that the magistrate of Mianshang submitted an application.

Although building a reservoir is beneficial to the people, Yang Chang did not trust these people who bought official positions. At that time, Zhu Tong took Yang De's family back, so he was sent to Mianshang County to help the people build a reservoir.

It was almost noon when Zhu Tong arrived at Yang's house. Wu Song, Lin Chong and others were sitting in the front hall, reporting to Yang Chang on the militia training, while Yang Jian was playing in the yard with Yang Huang.

There were guards at the gate of the mansion, several "big insects" were in the front hall, and his cousin Yang Jian was guarding nearby. In theory, Yang Huang would not have any safety problems.

But just as Yang Jian was about to take a short break, he suddenly noticed that Yang Huang was running straight towards the door. He was so frightened that he immediately ran after him.

"Huang'er, don't run around."

"Uncle Longbeard."

"I was shocked. It turns out that Zhu Jieji has arrived."

Seeing Zhu Tong walking out from the shadows, Yang Jian put his hands on his waist and let out a long sigh of relief.

"Little Yanei, come and let your uncle hold you."

"Huang'er, stop pulling Uncle Zhu's beard."

"It's okay, let him be."

Zhu Tong squatted down and picked up Yang Huang, and then recalled the past events in Cangzhou.

If Li Kui had not killed innocent people indiscriminately, he would not have felt guilty until now.

Yang Jian followed Zhu Tong and looked at Yang Huang playing with his beard in his arms. He joked, "My nephew is very picky. He refused to be hugged by Brother Wu Er, but he is so close to the Jieshi."

"Haha, all kids love to play, and Zhu has this long beard, so he's very approachable."

"Come in quickly, we'll wait for you to start the meal."

"Ah."

Zhu Tong kept walking, lowered his head and smiled as he asked Yang Huang: "Little yamenei, would you like to sit with your uncle for a while?"

"Then you feed me."

"no problem."

Later, when they entered the main hall, Wu Song saw Yang Huang lying in Zhu Tong's arms without making any noise, so he joked to Yang Chang: "Sanlang, your son treats people differently. I held him for a short while and then he kicked away. Look at him now..."

"Haha, second brother also has a beautiful beard?"

Yang Chang also responded jokingly, thinking that Zhu Tong has the attribute of [Good Look] and is naturally more friendly than me, but you are [Drinking Contest] and [Blood Rage].

"So can you just accumulate it?"

"I heard that the captain once tried to teach boxing? The young master is not even two years old yet, you are too anxious, no wonder he is not popular."

"No, I'll just let him stand still."

"Zhu Jieji has a good temper. He didn't get angry even when his beard was pulled like that. I almost couldn't help but scold him when he slapped my bald head a few times."

Taking advantage of the topic of amusing children, Lin Chong, Lu Zhishen and others joined in, which made the serious scene cheerful. Yang Chang then invited all the brothers to take their seats.

After drinking for thirty minutes, Yang Chang suddenly stood up and said solemnly: "The court is incompetent, treacherous ministers are in power, border troubles are serious, and China is about to sink. Yang is overestimating his own ability and wants to extend justice to the world, so that the people can have a house to live in and a source of food to eat."

"well said!"

Lin Chong was the first to stand up and clapped his hands in agreement, being even more enthusiastic than Wu Song.

Lu Zhishen followed closely behind, stood up and pointed at Yang Chang and said: "Brother Yang is just what I like, he dares to think, dares to do, dares to fight, unlike Song Jiang who only wants to be recruited. What can this imperial court recruit for?"

"Everyone has their own aspirations. Master, you don't have to be like this. We don't talk about people behind their backs."

Before Yang Chang finished speaking, Lu Zhishen pointed at Wu Song and shouted, "My family is the same in front of others and behind others. When we were in Liangshan before, we opposed the amnesty, and Brother Wu Song also followed us. What did he get for all his hard work? He is far worse than Brother Yang now."

"Okay, okay, today is the Mid-Autumn Festival, let's just toast to our reunion and not get angry over others. When the Ruan brothers arrive later, our team will be even stronger. Eh? Why do I always feel like I'm just starting out on my own?"

"Liangshan is just a lake, how can it be compared with Qinzhou? Moreover, our current lineup is much stronger than Wang Lun's back then. Even when Chao Tianwang was the leader of the village, he couldn't compare to these people now."

After listening to Lin Chong's consolation, Yang Chang frowned and shook his head gently: "The officials of Qinzhou this term are all filled with money. I only trust the brothers present here, but the number is still a little small."

"Brother Yang, don't worry. When the Ruan brothers arrive, there will be three more brothers, or even more."

"Hmm? What does the coach mean?"

Mid-Autumn Festival reunion, the beautiful moon is thousands of miles away.

Far away in the Liangshan military camp at Chenqiaoyi, Song Jiang also held a grand banquet to celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival.

Ruan Xiaoqi returned a few days ago and took Ruan Xiaoer away on the pretext of being summoned by relatives. He originally wanted to transfer the 3,000 naval forces under his command to Li Jun, but most of them resigned and returned to their hometown to serve the people after the Ruan brothers left.

Li Jun and his companions could not persuade them any more, so they reported to Song Jiang, returned their travel expenses and dismissed them.

These were veterans brought from Shandong. Song Jiang was worried that the three Ruan soldiers intended to escape with the navy, so he sent people to follow them all the way to Yunzhou. It turned out that they had really returned to their hometown.

But the followers did not stay long. These old soldiers returned home with their families and set off again for Qinzhou.

As the expedition against Fang La was about to begin, several thousand people suddenly left the team.

In order to eliminate the influence, Song Jiang held a grand banquet to rally people's hearts. He also made a generous speech at the banquet and painted a rosy picture for the future to the leaders.

When the banquet was in full swing, Song Jiang and Lu Junyi took their wine and went from table to table to reminisce about the past with their Liangshan brothers.

Song Jiang first paid his respects to Guan Sheng, Hu Yanzhuo and others, and then came to the table of Yang Zhi, the Green-faced Beast. Also sitting at the same table were Liu Tang, Shi En and Li Zhong.

"Brothers, we are about to go to war against Fang La. His Majesty has promised to make the first person with the most merit a Jiedushi. As long as you work hard and make merit, you can wear the scarlet robe at least."

"Brother, I don't want to go anymore. I want to go home."

Hearing Liu Tang interrupt him, Song Jiang was sobered up and stared at the man in front of him in astonishment. After a long while, he frowned and asked, "Your home is everywhere. Which home do you want to go back to? Do you have a home?"

"It's because I don't have anything that I want to settle down. Please help me, brother."

(End of this chapter)