Fu Shanhe

Chapter 161 Special Envoy
Time flies, and it’s the end of the year in a blink of an eye.

Lianzhou Prefecture, which was devastated by war, regained its vitality under Li Mu's careful governance.

Shops on the street have gradually resumed business, and the sound of bargaining is endless.

Although there is still a long way to go before reaching its peak, we have finally taken the first step towards recovery.

In fact, apart from restoring agricultural production, Li Mu did nothing else.

The Dayu Dynasty was too lazy to even collect commercial taxes, so naturally there was no commercial policy.

The rapid revival of the streets was partly due to the disappearance of the blood-sucking parasites crawling on the merchants, and the other half was due to the consumption of the officers and soldiers.

Although the court's military pay was not paid on time, the soldiers' pay was never short of money.

While suppressing the rebels, the army also gained a lot of spoils.

Except for the generals who received a share of the profits, the rest was used as military pay.

As newly-emerged battalions, the officers of Huai'an Battalion and Yangzhou Battalion were all very young, and each of them wanted to climb up the ladder.

In addition, with the commander-in-chief keeping a close eye on the situation, the military salaries were paid in full.

As the year draws to a close, soldiers and officers with money in their pockets will naturally come out to spend.

Unfortunately, the private economy is still dead.

No wealthy family with a little wealth could escape the calamity caused by the rebels.

The rest are not only poor, but they don’t even have the mood to celebrate the New Year.

Under the White Lotus Sect's policy of conscripting every citizen into the army, young and strong men from every household were forcibly conscripted into the army.

Except for a few lucky ones who escaped, the whereabouts of many more are now unknown.

In order to appease the people, Li Mu issued an amnesty order.

As long as the forced conscripts did not commit serious crimes such as murder, rape, and looting and voluntarily left the rebel army, they would be forgiven.

Even so, most families still have a hard time this year.

Li Mu didn't care about the abnormal prosperity on the street.

It would be good enough if some business can be restored, and pursuing development is pure nonsense.

As long as the war does not end, the economy will not be able to return to normal.

The festive atmosphere is getting stronger and stronger, and the officers and soldiers' homesickness is getting stronger and stronger.

Including Li Mu himself, he also missed his beloved wife.

“Uncle Qi, the soldiers are homesick, so you should pay more attention.

It would be best for the generals to come forward and calm the soldiers' emotions.

There is still some cloth in the army, so we can just buy everyone a set of clothes as a New Year gift."

Li Mu reminded gently.

In terms of calming the troops' morale, the Yangzhou Camp took action early on, but the Huai'an Camp was slow to move.

It is obvious that traditional armies do not pay much attention to this aspect.

The generals themselves were homesick, so how could they care about the soldiers?
"Well, I'll arrange it later.

But there is no need to buy any equipment!

After entering Guangxi, we were issued two sets of military uniforms.

Even the soldiers from the nine frontiers cannot catch up with such treatment. "

Jing Yifeng said with a little hesitation.

The two commanders did not take a single cent of the captured spoils.

The two sides agreed to divide the remaining spoils together after the war.

According to Li Mu's lavish playing style, it would be lucky not to lose money, let alone have a surplus.

“It’s right that you can’t catch up!
If you want your subordinates to work hard for you, you have to let them see the benefits.

Being behind enemy lines, our situation is not so safe.

It is still necessary to spend a little money to stabilize the morale of the troops.

A set of clothes for each person would cost about 10,000 taels of silver, and you and I don’t need that much.”

After hearing what Li Mu said, Jing Yifeng was so angry that he wanted to vomit blood.

You don’t need it, but I do!
Although they are all children of noble families, their family backgrounds are not the same.

Li Mu was the only son in the family and had a family business left by his father in Hanzhong.

He is good at making money, and his life is going well. He doesn't care much about money.

Jing Yifeng's situation is different. He is from the side branch of the Jing family, and his parents are mediocre people who just eat and wait for death.

I have no way to make a living and rely entirely on the legacy left by my ancestors.

Although we can't be considered poor, we are not rich either.

I thought I could make some money from suppressing the rebellion, but now it seems that hope is slim.

"Forget it, I'll do as you wish!"

After hesitating for a long time, Jing Yifeng said with a hardened heart.

There will be many opportunities to make money in the future, but you only have one life.

Although he did not get rich while following Li Mu in the expedition to Guangxi, he gained more important military merits.

"General, the grain and fodder allocated by the Guangdong Governor's Office has been delivered to the port.

Also coming here are special envoys sent by the governors of five provinces."

Upon receiving this good news, both Li Mu and Jing Yifeng showed surprise.

Since the expedition began, the Guangdong Governor's Office has ignored them.

Every time he asked for food and fodder, he found excuses to shirk his responsibilities.

If the Governor of Guangdong had not gone too far, they would not have written a letter of impeachment.

I thought that by waiting for the imperial court to intervene, it would be next year before we receive the grain and fodder, but I didn't expect the Governor of Guangdong to back down so quickly.

Considering the special envoys from the five provincial governors who came with him, Li Mu immediately thought of Lord Xu.

In the Dayu Dynasty, the governor was a high-ranking official and it was impossible for him to be afraid of the impeachment of the two lieutenant generals.

Even if the matter became a big deal, the Governor of Guangdong would have plenty of excuses to shirk responsibility.

Those old bureaucrats are best at taking advantage of rules and deliberately setting up obstacles.

The only person who could make the Governor of Guangdong compromise and deliver the overdue grain and fodder was Xu Ge Lao, the Governor-General of Five Provinces.

Li Mu didn't know what exactly happened, but he knew that the Governor of Guangdong was most likely in trouble.

A new official has three things to do when he takes office. When Lord Xu came to serve as the governor-general of five provinces, he also had to establish his authority.

When the incident of withholding food and wages was exposed at this time, the Governor of Guangdong undoubtedly walked into the trap.

In addition, given his series of actions in the war to quell the rebellion, it would be unjust not to hold him accountable.

"Uncle Qi, please go and greet the special envoy!"

Li Mu spoke immediately.

Pushing the welcoming work aside is not because he does not attach importance to it, it is purely a factional issue.

No matter what purpose Lord Xu had in sending someone here, as Marquis Wuyang's confidant, he had to keep his distance.

Perhaps Lord Xu is more powerful, but the one who has stood in the court longer must be Marquis Wuyang.

The new emperor is unhappy with his ministers and will drive them out sooner or later.

As a relative by marriage, Marquis Wuyang did not have much power, but he was able to have a say in front of the emperor.

For a powerful general like Li Mu, it was only a matter of time before he would be suspected if he continued to climb up the ladder.

If the emperor wants to live a stable life, he must have someone around him to speak for him.

……

"Master Jia, I wonder what instructions you have for me this time?"

After a round of greetings, Jing Yifeng asked.

Being able to receive food and fodder, he has already developed some favorable impressions on the new Lord Xu.

Military generals do not have high requirements for civil officials.

As long as he can distribute food and supplies on time and does not give blind orders on the battlefield, he is a good boss.

"Why don't you see Lieutenant General?"

Jabo asked slightly annoyed.

As a special envoy sent by Lord Xu, he received great hospitality along the way.

When he was in Guangzhou Prefecture, he even caught the Guangdong Governor and cursed him, forcing him to reissue food and grass to the troops. Now that he had arrived in Lianzhou Prefecture, only one of the two lieutenant generals came to greet him, which made him unhappy.

If Lord Xu had not warned him before departure that the two lieutenant generals of Lianzhou were different and needed to be taken seriously, he would have turned hostile long ago.

"Commander-in-Chief Li is inspecting the front line.

We have sent someone to notify them and they will be here soon.

Lord Jia, why don't you go to the government office and take a rest first, you will be able to see Lieutenant General Li in a while."

After listening to Jing Yifeng's explanation, Jia Bo's expression suddenly looked much better.

It is normal for the head coach to inspect the front line. He came here without prior notice, so it is understandable that he was not there.

"Then let's talk about it after we meet Admiral Li!"

Jia Bo thought for a moment and said.

In official circles, no one will offend others easily.

Although he is a close confidant of Lord Xu, the Jing and Li families are also among the most powerful families in Dayu.

Being arrogant and offending others will not benefit your future career development at all.

Even if he wanted to establish his authority, he would bully someone like the Governor of Guangdong, a hapless guy who was about to fall from power.

I talked and laughed with Jing Yifeng along the way, and if I didn’t know, I would have thought they were friends.

……

"Master Jia has come from afar, and I am sorry for not welcoming you in person!"

At the yamen gate, Jia Bo's expression changed slightly when he saw Li Mu's clothes.

If he was really patrolling the front line, why wouldn't he be wearing armor?

Besides, coming back so soon is not normal in itself.

Anyone with a discerning eye could tell that the person was waiting for him in the yamen.

"It's been a year since I last saw Lord Xu. I wonder how he is doing?"

Without waiting for Jia Bo to lose his temper, Li Mu spoke again, which confused Jia Bo.

Judging from his tone, he is clearly an old acquaintance of his own elder.

When Lenovo arrived, he was at a loss for words when he heard the instructions from his own elder.

"The elder is in good health, he just caught a cold on the way here, but he is back to normal now.

Thank you for your concern, Lieutenant General Li!"

Jabo said with a smile.

Years of experience in officialdom told him that it was best not to offend someone before he could figure out the relationship between the other person and his boss.

What's more, Li Mu's own background was enough for him to put aside his differences between civil and military affairs and make friends.

"As long as the elder is in good health!

The White Lotus Rebellion in Guangxi caused misery for the people in five provinces.

It is a blessing for the country and the people that the elder can leave the capital and serve as the governor of five provinces.

I wonder what instructions Lord Jia has for you this time?"

Seeing that he had fooled the other party, Li Mu brought the topic to the point.

It's just bullshit after all. I have dealt with Lord Xu, but we can't say we have a close relationship.

I guess Lord Xu's impression of him is that he is a close confidant of Marquis Wuyang, nephew of Marquis Zhenyuan, and son-in-law of Duke Chengguo.

His understanding of Lord Xu was also very limited.

If we really continue talking, it's only a matter of time before we're exposed.

Rather than talking too much and making more mistakes, it is better to just brush it off and not go into the topic in depth.

“The Lord sent me here mainly because of the war on the front line.

Especially after learning that the Guangdong governor had withheld food and fodder from the front line, the elder ordered his subordinates to solve the problem of military rations for the front line officers and soldiers as soon as possible. "

Jabo said with a smile.

Forcing the Governor of Guangdong to distribute grain was his achievement.

Now he is showing it off to the two of them and he is not afraid at all.

As for other issues, we must first understand the actual situation in Lianzhou.

"Thank you Lord Xu for your concern. On behalf of the officers and soldiers on the front line, I would like to thank you for your kindness!

To be honest with you, Lord Jia, the officers and soldiers on the front line are having a hard time!
If it weren't for the food and supplies you delivered, we wouldn't know how we would have spent this New Year.

Since the recovery of Lianzhou, the Governor of Guangdong has not distributed a single grain of food.

We had to shamelessly ask for money for the army's expenses from the Southern Zhili Governor's Office.

But this is not Nanzhili after all. Although the court asked Nanzhili to provide financial support, it still had to pay the same as the frontline provinces.

In order to solve the problem of food and wages, we had to ask for favors from people everywhere and only then were we able to keep going.

Now that Lord Xu is here, the sky will be clear again!"

Li Mu lied without changing his expression.

It turns out that no one can resist the power of flattery.

Although the story was a bit exaggerated, Jia Bo believed it was true.

The officers and soldiers of the Dayu Dynasty were already suffering, and it would certainly not be easy to raise the food and fodder needed by the army when the Governor of Guangdong did not send them any.

Along the way, he saw many hungry soldiers.

The officers and soldiers of the Yangzhou Camp and the Huai'an Camp did not starve, which must have been because these two lieutenant generals with strong backgrounds used their personal connections.

As we all know, in the Dayu Dynasty, personal relationships are always easier to solve than corporate business problems.

"Thank you two lieutenants!

As for the Guangdong governor who withheld food and fodder, Lord Xu has already issued a document to reprimand him and reported it to Your Majesty.

If nothing unexpected happens, he will be held accountable soon.

In addition to these things, Lord Xu also wanted to know the situation in Lianzhou.

The contents of the military newspaper were all good news, but the minister was not clear about the specific information.

Please tell us the situation on the front line in detail, both lieutenants. "

Jabo said with a smile.

The feeling of being praised is always comfortable.

Although Li Mu mentioned Lord Xu and did not mention himself, this was exactly what he wanted.

Only by giving the credit to the boss can you get promoted quickly.

Once he has reached the position of Lord Xu, it is almost impossible for him to move up, and he will not compete for credit with his subordinates at all.

Only by giving credit to the boss will the boss think that he is a good younger brother.

“Master Jia, the situation in Lianzhou is very serious.

The rebels stationed heavy troops in Nanning and Xunzhou, ready to counterattack at any time.

In order to disrupt the enemy's plans, we are constantly looking for opportunities.

Unfortunately, the enemy was too cunning and didn't give us any chance.

After retaking Lianzhou, we only recaptured two county towns before we were forced to stop.

In addition to military pressure, there is more pressure on food and fodder.

In the previous war, we captured nearly 70,000 prisoners and accepted a large number of refugees.

Now, every day when we open our eyes, we have to worry about feeding hundreds of thousands of people.

At this point, let alone continuing to attack, we are already short of manpower for defense!"

Li Mu worked hard to exaggerate the situation.

These things are not afraid of being exposed. The prisoners of war staying in the camp are the best evidence.

They captured 70,000 prisoners of war and recaptured many cities. No one could say that they were not working hard.

"Is the situation in Lianzhou so serious?"

Jabo exclaimed.

According to Li Mu, there was no need to implement Lord Xu's plan.

Feeding hundreds of thousands of people is a serious problem.

“Master Jia, the real situation is even more serious!
Now we dare not recover the lost territory, otherwise the prisoners of war and refugees will consume us!"

(End of this chapter)