readytorunbook Chapter 240: The court replied, and the brothers parted ways...
Chapter 240: The court replied, and the brothers parted ways...
Fufeng County is called a county seat, but almost half of the city wall has collapsed, and it looks like a ruin.
Such a city...
Not to mention defending against enemies, even preventing thieves is a problem!
The convoy slowly arrived at the county gate. Chen Baonian immediately stepped forward and bowed to greet him: "I am Chen Baonian, the magistrate of Fufeng County. I am honored to meet the Imperial Envoy..."
"Brother Baonian, we've only known each other for a short time, why are you so polite?"
Gu Jingzhi jumped out of the car, took Chen Baonian's hand, and asked, "It's been a few days since we last met. Is Fufeng County all right?"
"Much better! It's embarrassing to say, but only in the past few days have I felt like a county magistrate. In the past..."
Chen Baonian laughed at himself and then said, "It is a great honor for Fufeng County that the Marquis has come to stay here. This doorway is not the place for conversation. I have prepared a house in the city, but it is a bit shabby. I hope the Marquis and other distinguished guests will not be disgusted!"
"Brother Baonian, since we've come to Fufeng County and are ready, let's go... let's enter the city first!"
As he spoke, Gu Jingzhi led the way into Fufeng County. He observed the surroundings along the way and found that the entire county was quiet.
He asked, "Don't those tens of thousands of people assigned to you live in the city?"
"Yes! Lord... I thought, since they haven't been transferred yet and it's the busy farming season, I'd better distribute them among the villages. This will make things easier!"
"Oh! This seems like a job! Let the city remain empty for now. Once Fufeng develops, it will be overcrowded sooner or later!"
Gu Jingzhi smiled and asked, "Where are Wu Qi, Jin Yongnian, and Guan Meng?"
"Reporting to the Marquis, my three colleagues have also gone up the mountain these days and are learning how to build terraces!" Chen Baonian smiled.
It was Gu Jingzhi who proposed asking other county magistrates to build terraces.
Although Fufeng County is the poorest, its terrain is an ideal location for building terraces. It is necessary for the county magistrates of other counties to learn from it.
This isn't as simple as reclaiming a few plots of land on the mountain. How to irrigate and how to reclaim the land to effectively avoid landslides...there's a lot of knowledge involved!
Now, hearing that several county magistrates have taken action themselves and gone up the mountain in person, I feel particularly satisfied.
These county magistrates have only been in office for a short time and have been assigned to this impoverished Ningzhou. It is a good thing that their character has not changed.
Otherwise, if someone among these people is too opportunistic, his work may not be carried out effectively.
Although he could exercise his discretion and replace the county magistrate, it would take time for the new county magistrate to take office. He could wait... but Ningzhou could not.
Now that these county magistrates are all willing to do their job, that would be great.
……
Two months passed in a flash. After nearly two months... this grand terrace construction project was finally completed, and the crops were planted in the fields.
Although this newly reclaimed land is still a little virgin, and although Gu Jingzhi taught simple composting techniques to improve the land, the grain yield is estimated to be not that good!
But there is a saying that goes, "The first time is new, the second time is familiar", and it also applies here!
During this busy farming season, Gu Jingzhi not only led tens of thousands of people to reclaim enough land, but also successfully solved the problem of winter paddy fields!
The magistrates of other counties studied in Fufeng for half a month and then returned to their own territory. During this period, Gu Jingzhi also traveled around the major counties to inspect the governance situation in each county.
In general, the development of each county is very good. Although it is still as poor as before, crops are now planted in the fields. When the autumn harvest comes, Ningzhou can start other construction.
However, the imperial court also approved Gu Jingzhi's memorial, and the banditry in Ningzhou indeed caused a huge sensation in the imperial court.
As a provincial capital of Daxia, although it is one of the poorest places, there are so many bandits hiding here.
The key point is that Ningzhou has been reporting to the court every day for more than ten years, but the court knows nothing about it. For Emperor Xia, how can this be accepted?
At one time, many officials from the six ministries were implicated and a group of officials were severely punished. However, the court only allocated a symbolic amount of 100,000 taels of silver to Gu Jingzhi's request for money and food, and asked him to fend for himself for the rest.
Although Gu Jingzhi was somewhat dissatisfied with this, he didn't care.
He had anticipated this outcome. If it weren't for his meritorious service in suppressing the bandits, and if Ningzhou hadn't suddenly captured over 200,000 civilians, he probably wouldn't have gotten even the 100,000 taels!
Naturally, the ministers in the court could not give it because of the interference of the aristocratic families.
Emperor Xia wanted to see the limits of Gu Jingzhi's abilities...
Speaking of this matter... one hundred thousand taels of silver is definitely not enough, but Emperor Xia obviously didn't really care about those more than 200,000 people. To him, they were just criminals after all, and it was good enough to have something to eat!
As for whether they will be dead or alive three years later, it depends on their fate!
In addition, if he allocates too many resources, it might arouse the vigilance of the court. After all, there is still a deposed prince here.
Speaking of the prince...his life is not easy either.
In the past few months, there have been many accidents and several unsuccessful assassinations!
It's easy to guess that this must have been done by people from the capital. Fortunately, Gu Jingzhi had been prepared for this, and several accidents and assassinations were successful, and no substantial damage was caused!
Of course, the court also approved the documents regarding the handling of those bandits.
Gu Jingzhi's cousin Gu Huanzhi was exiled to the northwestern border and served as a criminal slave.
Fortunately, during these two months, although Gu Huanzhi had been following Gu Jingzhi to farm, Gu Jingzhi would use decoctions every few days to consolidate his foundation.
As long as you don’t encounter a situation where you are sure to die, the hope of surviving ten battles is quite high!
Tomorrow is the day that Gu Huanzhi will be sent into exile. Gu Jingzhi and his family gathered in a small farmyard, and the atmosphere was a little silent!
Except for Gu Jingzhi, no one else touched the drinks on the table!
Gu Yunzhi wanted to say something but stopped himself. Chen Yu remained silent, but there was some worry in her eyes. She was a little worried that her cousin would make other requests, which might make Gu Jingzhi feel embarrassed!
Fortunately, Gu Huanzhi still had some backbone. He looked at Gu Yunzhi and said with a smile: "Sister, I am already satisfied that my third brother can ask for an opportunity for me!"
"Nowadays, in the Gu family, the eldest brother was killed in his early years, and the third brother has been living under someone else's roof and has been deprived of his freedom for twenty years. Only you and I, brother and sister, have been dependent on each other!"
"Third brother is pursuing a literary career, but my Gu family is a military family. How can we not have someone to shoulder this heavy responsibility?"
"Today I have the opportunity to escape from the vortex and rebuild my Gu family. It is a great blessing. Sister and brothers, please don't worry about me. Just please take care of my wife and children!"
"The Northwest is often at war with foreign tribes, so I think ten battles won't take long! My third brother has been building my foundation for the past two months, and my martial arts have greatly improved. Compared to the brutal siege, I still have a great chance!"
"Come, let's have a drink together as a family. After we set off tomorrow, you will also return to Ningzhou. We will definitely meet again in the future..."