Guiyi Fei Tang

Chapter 504 Drinking Water from the Yangtze River (A Long Chapter of 10,000 Words)
"Damn it... It's so hot in the south, we're afraid we'll die of heat on the road before we even see the rebels."

"It's not just the heat, I just feel like I can't breathe right now."

In late June, as the heatwave brought on by the severe drought continued to swelter, places like Sannam Dong-do, with its many forests and lakes, were particularly hot and humid.

On the official road, Zhao Ying and Cao Mao were not wearing armor; their robes were half-length, exposing their chests and abdomens to dissipate heat.

Even so, the two were still drenched in sweat.

Compared to them, Liu Jilong, who was ahead of them, was still able to maintain his composure, but his turban and collar were soaked with sweat.

The long procession, stretching for nearly a mile, stood in front of and behind them, drawing attention from onlookers.

The cavalrymen serving as guards were riding on horseback, with their own horses following behind them, completely unburdened.

They were dressed in red short jackets, wearing turbans, with daggers and swords at their waists, and holding bows and arrows and horse reins in their hands; they were all drenched in sweat.

Between each cavalry unit, more than ten two-horse carriages, driven by dozens of laborers, transported armor, food, fodder, and marching tents to the troops in front.

The wooden axles of the wagons transporting grain creaked shrilly with every half turn, and the armor plates tied to the haystacks were jolted upright, like a group of restless silver fish.

Compared to soldiers who had to endure military discipline, the local laborers hired by the Han army were not so disciplined. They basically rolled up the sleeves of their short coats to their elbows and exposed their chests and breasts.

This procession stretched for over a mile, and along the official road they were traveling, there were no villages in sight, not even flat land. To the left and right were countless dense forests, making it extremely easy to set up an ambush.

Compared to the routes they had traveled before, the natural environment of Shannan East Road was like taking Liu Jilong to Guangdong and Guangxi in later generations—humid, hot, and densely vegetated.

Even though the official road was built far from the lakes and marshes, one could still feel the strong scent of ripe grass from the vegetation.

"If it's this hot in Shannan East Road, how hot must it be in Hunan and Lingnan?"

Liu Jilong, on horseback, wiped the sweat from his forehead. He had been in Nanyang for nearly a month and was now preparing to head south to Xiangyang, and then gradually south to Jiangling, waiting for the start of the war after winter.

However, he seemed to have overestimated himself. Even though it was almost autumn, he was still somewhat unaccustomed to the climate and environment of the countryside in Sannamdong Province.

Thinking this, Liu Jilong felt a little regretful, thinking that he should have postponed his trip south for another month.

However, there were indeed many things at the front that Liu Jilong needed to understand personally before he could formulate a strategy, and he could not back down just because of the hot weather.

"Let's just grit our teeth and go!"

Liu Jilong gritted his teeth and pressed on, but then a series of piercing wooden whistles suddenly came from ahead.

"Beep beep!!"

"Lulu lulu—"

Before the wooden whistle had completely stopped, the roar and hiss of some unknown animal came from afar once more.

"What's that sound?!"

In an instant, countless horses became agitated, and the cavalrymen tried to calm them down. Even Liu Jilong's horse couldn't help but panic for a moment.

At the same time, cavalrymen began to rush in from the south in a panic. They rushed to Liu Jilong and his men and hurriedly saluted, saying, "Your Highness, there is a giant beast blocking the road from the south. Please give way for the time being!"

"A giant beast?" Liu Jilong heard the familiar sounds coming from afar, but instead of retreating, he spurred his horse southward.

Upon seeing this, Cao Mao and Zhao Ying quickly led over a hundred cavalrymen to follow Liu Jilong and gallop forward.

The group did not travel for long; after about half a cup of tea's time, they saw a group of huge creatures blocking the middle of the official road in the distance, confronting more than ten cavalrymen.

"Your Highness, what is this?!"

Cao Mao stared wide-eyed at the tall figure in the distance, a hint of fear creeping into his eyes.

“This is an elephant. Don’t provoke it. Let Tang Qi retreat first.”

Liu Jilong never expected to encounter elephants on his way south to Xiangyang, as he had only ever seen them in zoos in his later years.

Even if there are wild ones, they usually only exist in the dense forests of southern Yunnan and the Indochina Peninsula.

From the Shang Dynasty to the present day, as global temperatures have been generally decreasing, these tropical animals have begun to migrate south.

However, in some particularly hot years, they will selectively return north and then continue south during the winter.

Historical records from Chang'an and Luoyang show instances of elephant herds migrating north to the south of the mountains during the Kaiyuan, Zhenyuan, and Yuanhe periods, but these records cease afterward.

Unexpectedly, Liu Jilong encountered them in the wild.

“Lululul…”

Under Liu Jilong's orders, the cavalrymen who were confronting the elephant herd began to retreat. Seeing that Liu Jilong and his men did not continue to approach, the dozen or so elephants quickly began to walk into the dense forest to the west of the official road.

Half an incense stick's time after they left, Liu Jilong led everyone forward and saw the tracks left by the elephants.

The bushes in the dense forest looked as if they had been trampled down, leaving a dirt path.

"You pig-dog creature, how big is this thing?"

Cao Mao dismounted and measured the footprints left by the elephant herd with his hands, his face full of amazement.

He had never been to Chang'an or Luoyang, so naturally he had never seen the rare and exotic animals imprisoned in the palace.

Among those rare and exotic animals, there are quite a few, such as tigers, elephants, rhinoceroses, bears, and so on, and their daily food and drink costs a considerable amount.

"An imperial edict was issued to officials of all prefectures and counties, ordering them not to interfere with the elephant herds."

Seeing Cao Mao's behavior, Liu Jilong thought of the officials' habit of presenting treasures and gifts, so he gave instructions to Zhao Ying.

If he hadn't given the order, the officials of the various prefectures and counties in the Shannan East Circuit would have certainly sent people to capture the elephants and present them as tribute once they learned that a herd of elephants was heading north.

This was how the various prefectures and counties had handled the previous northward migrations of elephant herds, but Liu Jilong disliked it.

Having been to zoos in later generations, he had no curiosity about these animals. He could accept the capture of two pandas, since bamboo could grow in Luoyang anyway.

"Alright, the cavalry will continue south. We'll rest in Dengcheng today and cross the river to Xiangyang tomorrow."

After the interlude ended, Liu Jilong felt that it wasn't so hot anymore. He ordered the cavalry to continue scouting and then led a force of two thousand soldiers and civilians to continue southward.

After witnessing the actual conditions of the official roads connecting the various prefectures and counties of Shannan East Circuit, Liu Jilong's desire to expand southward in the future intensified.

If this is the case in Shannan East Circuit, one can only imagine how it is in Hunan, Lingnan, and Lingxi further south.

Braving the sweltering heat, the army continued marching south for more than thirty miles until dusk when the weather gradually became cooler and the vegetation around them began to thin out.

When a flat plain appeared ahead, the soldiers and laborers on the march all breathed a sigh of relief.

Sure enough, once they entered the flatlands, they saw paddy fields and rice seedlings everywhere, and a city of not much size was located several miles away.

Because Cao Mao had given prior instructions, the city gates were not closed as scheduled, but instead awaited the arrival of Liu Jilong's troops.

The county officials at the city gate waited anxiously until they saw troops approaching from the south in the distance. Only then did they hurriedly straighten their clothes and bow before the troops arrived.

"Your humble servants pay their respects to Your Highness, the Prince of Han..."

More than ten officials and fifty clerks from the entire Dengcheng County government office chanted salutations, their voices loud enough for Liu Jilong, who was far away, to hear.

Liu Jilong rode forward, with Cao Mao and Zhao Ying following closely behind.

Upon arriving before the officials, he gave a brief greeting and then instructed Cao Mao to arrange for the soldiers and laborers to enter the city and rest in the military camp.

These laborers were only responsible for traveling from Nanyang to Dengcheng. Now that they have arrived, the county government needs to allocate money and grain, settle their wages, and then recruit more laborers to transport supplies for Liu Jilong and his men so that they can cross the Han River tomorrow and head south to Xiangyang.

Since it was already night, there was nothing to see about people's livelihoods, so Liu Jilong did not wander around but went to bed early.

The following day, after the county government recruited laborers for Liu Jilong and his men and prepared a ferry, Liu Jilong went to the ferry.

It must be said that although the states north of the Han River were greatly harmed by Huang Chao, Qin Zongquan and others, Xiao Ye was quite good at defending the cities.

As a ferry crossing in Xiangyang, Dengcheng was naturally much more prosperous than other prefectures and counties.

As Liu Jilong observed, there were dozens or even hundreds of boats at the ferry crossing, and thousands of porters carrying goods.

They don't represent themselves, but their entire families.

"Dengcheng County is not big, but it has a lot of laborers."

Looking at the bustling ferry crossing, Liu Jilong couldn't help but talk to Cao Mao and Zhao Ying beside him.

Upon seeing this, the magistrate of Dengcheng immediately explained, "Back then, when there was war in the north, many people flocked to Xiangzhou. Although these people have settled down now, the summer harvest is over and the autumn harvest is still more than half a month away, so they naturally cannot stay at home to rest."

"You can't reclaim much land in half a month, but you can work at the ferry crossing. The daily wage is ten coins, which is enough to buy a few pounds of rice to take home and solve your food and clothing problems."

Even after arriving in Dengcheng, the local people's wages were still around ten coins.

"What are the prices like in Dengcheng and Xiangzhou?"

Liu Jilong questioned these officials from the Kansai region, and they then explained things to him.

In general, prices in Xiangzhou and even the entire Jiangling Prefecture are relatively low. After all, apart from a freezing rain, Jiangling Prefecture has hardly suffered any other disasters in recent years.

Otherwise, nearly half of the population of Sannamdong Province would not live here.

After learning about the prices, Liu Jilong recalled the elephant herd he had encountered the day before and couldn't help but ask, "The Yangtze River is so wide, yet yesterday when I traveled south, I saw a herd of elephants crossing the official road. How did these elephants manage to cross the Yangtze?"

"Your Highness," the magistrate replied, offering his explanation upon hearing Liu Jilong's inquiry.
“We were also surprised when we learned of this yesterday, so we asked some of the senior officials in the government office.”

"According to them, the elephant herds will take advantage of the shallow waters of the Yangtze River to cross the river using sandbars, and then head north to forage for food."

"When the migration to the south takes place, they will cross the Yangtze River via Shazhou and head south to places such as Guizhou and Hunan."

Liu Jilong was taken aback. He really didn't know that elephants could swim, let alone cross the Yangtze River. After all, he had seen what the Yangtze River looked like.

In contrast, Cao Mao, who knew little about the Yangtze River, thought that the Yangtze River's dry season was similar to that of the Yellow River, so he laughed heartily and said, "That kind of giant thing can actually swim. It's true that the world is so vast and full of wonders."

While they were discussing the elephant herd they had encountered the day before, the soldiers and horses had already made several trips back and forth across the Han River, carrying a thousand elite cavalry and more than two thousand military horses and mounts across the river.

The Han River between Dengcheng and Xiangzhou is a good mile wide. Although it cannot compare to the Yangtze or Yellow River, it is still one of the top ten rivers in the Central Plains.

Seeing that the troops had passed, Liu Jilong, along with Zhao Ying and Cao Mao, left the ferry and boarded a boat to head towards Xiangyang.

The Han River ferry crossings mainly consisted of Jianghan boats, Hanjin barges, and canal boats, with a carrying capacity ranging from several hundred to a thousand shi (a unit of dry measure). They consumed a lot of timber and were inferior in performance to the Fujian ships of the Han army.

Even so, the feeling of dozens of boats sailing against the wind and waves still made Cao Mao, who had never been on a large ship before, shout and yell.

Seeing that he was over thirty years old but still had such vitality, Liu Jilong couldn't help but laugh heartily a few times.

A river breeze swept by, carrying away the original heat and leaving only coolness and comfort.

Looking out over the Han River, one can see that the vast areas on both banks, except for the ferry crossings, are shaded by green trees and covered with verdant mountains, the scenery of which speaks for itself.

Such mountain scenery and river views are truly rare to find in later generations.

After quietly admiring the scenery for a quarter of an hour, the ferry soon arrived at Xiangyang Ferry on the south bank of the Han River.

It must be said that even though Xiangyang's status was not as high as Jiangling's at that time, Xiangyang's layout, with mountains behind it and rivers on three sides, made it a place that was easy to defend and difficult to attack.

"If a fortified city were built here, even tens of thousands of troops would likely find it difficult to breach it."

Upon seeing the distant city of Xiangyang, Cao Mao couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. Liu Jilong nodded, acknowledging that he was right.

"Once we have pacified Jiangnan, we will need to reinforce both Xiangyang and Nanyang."

He casually mentioned it, and those around him quickly wrote it down. By then, he had already disembarked from the ferry and stepped onto the land on the south bank.

As a key location connecting the north and south of Shannan East Road, Xiangyang naturally attracted many merchants from both the north and south. Therefore, its ferry crossing was several times larger than that of Dengcheng to the north, and it had hundreds of ships moored there.

Upon seeing this, Liu Jilong immediately instructed Cao Mao: "Go and discuss with the governor of Xiangzhou about recruiting boats to send the army south by water, and then by land to Jiangling. This will save a lot of time."

"Yes!"

Seeing the prosperity on both sides of the Han River, Cao Mao would offer suggestions even if Liu Jilong didn't say so.

It wasn't that he wanted to be lazy, but it was just too hot here. Traveling by boat was not only comfortable, but also fast, so there was no need to go south by land.

After Liu Jilong gave his instructions, Cao Mao soon met with the governor of Xiangzhou and a group of officials from Xiangyang who had been waiting for him.

Under their arrangement, Liu Jilong and his men quickly recruited more than two hundred boats to sail south.

The next day at noon, the army entered Jiangling Prefecture, disembarked at the ferry closest to Jiangling City, and continued their journey to Jiangling.

By the time they arrived in Jiangling, it was already the end of June.

"Your Highness, we, your humble servants, pay our respects..."

On June 30th, when Geng Ming led hundreds of officials from Jiangling Prefecture to welcome Liu Jilong at the city gate, the people living in the towns outside Jiangling City also came to watch the Prince of Han's demeanor.

Geng Ming mobilized three thousand soldiers to maintain order, which shows that Jiangling is now much richer and more prosperous than it used to be.

Liu Jilong arrived with nearly a thousand cavalry escorts. Liu Jilong looked around at the surroundings.

The market outside the city gates has built countless houses, which basically expanded outwards from the base of the city wall, stopping at the moat.

The town street at the city gate was about ten zhang wide, and there were traces of recent road widening on the ground, which suggested that Geng Ming had widened the road recently to welcome him.

"The city gate is a crucial point for the entry and exit of troops. The street should be kept at a distance of ten zhang (approximately 33 meters), and the common people should be strictly prohibited from crossing it."

Liu Jilong was well aware of the ability of ordinary people to illegally construct buildings, and his methods of encroaching on roads were endless.

Don't be fooled by the fact that this main street is ten zhang wide now. If we don't take care of it, it will be encroached upon and reduced to only five or six zhang, or even narrower, in just a few years.

"I will obey your orders!"

Geng Ming remained as taciturn as ever, even when facing Liu Jilong, he simply smiled and agreed to everything.

However, if anyone underestimates him because of his simple smile, they will suffer the consequences.

"Let's mount our horses and head into the city."

Seeing the growing crowd, Liu Jilong couldn't help but give instructions to Geng Ming.

At his signal, officials of higher rank quickly mounted their horses, while those of lower rank rode donkeys.

Under the protection of the soldiers, the group entered Jiangling City. Geng Ming lagged behind Liu Jilong by half a step and began to explain the situation of Jiangling City to him.

Jiangling City, as the seat of Jiangling Prefecture, was also one of the major secondary capitals of the Tang Dynasty after the An Lushan Rebellion, and was designated as the Southern Capital by Emperor Suzong of Tang.

For this reason, Jiangling City was built on a very grand scale, with the outer city wall alone having a circumference of eighteen li, a height of 26 zhang, and a thickness of 4 zhang.

The entire city was divided into the outer city, the inner city, and the outer city from the outside in. The outer city was where the common people lived, the inner city was where the officials lived, and the outer city was the palace of the military governor and the emperor.

The main street of Jiangling City is fifteen zhang wide, which is obviously the result of renovations.

The streets were lined with walls, so Liu Jilong couldn't see the houses of the common people. He could only occasionally see pagodas and pavilions standing inside the walls.

After walking a mile into the city, you will see the inner city wall made of rammed earth and brick. The inner city is only about three miles in circumference, so it is not very big. The layout is not much different from the outer city, except that the ground is paved with bluestone strips, which is much better than the rammed earth road of the outer city.

Continuing through the inner city, Liu Jilong was confronted with the outer city, which was made of piled stones.

The city wall was four zhang high and five zhang thick, built of piled stones, with a circumference of one li and eight hundred paces. It was originally the emperor's temporary palace, but was later converted into the military governor's office due to lax management.

However, after Geng Ming arrived, he moved the military governor's office to the inner city and forbade anyone other than the guards from entering the outer city without authorization.

The palaces within the city were mainly converted from the palaces of the Liang Emperor in the past. After a hundred years, although some of the palaces of the Jiedushi Yamen are still well preserved, the other palaces have long been dilapidated.

Upon learning that Liu Jilong had gone south, Geng Ming immediately recruited craftsmen from Jiangling Prefecture to repair the structure for three months, restoring it to its original condition.

"This place is quite nice. I'll stay here. Zhao Ying, you'll be in charge of the city's defenses."

"I accept your order!"

Liu Jilong gave instructions to Zhao Ying, and the surrounding officials understood his attitude through these words.

Geng Ming appeared honest, but he was actually testing the waters. Otherwise, he wouldn't have built such a grand palace, clearly intending for Liu Jilong to reside in the emperor's palace.

Since Liu Jilong chose to stay there, it naturally indicated his attitude towards becoming emperor. "Your Highness has had a long journey, so we will not disturb your rest any longer. Anything Your Highness needs can be arranged by Commandant Zhao and the military governor's office."

Geng Ming smiled sheepishly and bowed, and hundreds of officials behind him followed suit.

Liu Jilong didn't stand on ceremony and said directly, "Move all the important documents to the palace so I can examine them myself."

"Yes!" Geng Ming and the others responded, and then they saw Liu Jilong enter Yacheng via the Dragon Bridge.

Only after Liu Jilong's figure disappeared did Geng Ming turn to look at the crowd, and asked in a seemingly kind manner, "Have you remembered what His Highness said?"

"All important documents from each department must be delivered to the city before sunset; those who fail to do so will be dealt with according to the law."

"Yes……"

Many officials bowed and agreed, and were then dismissed at Geng Ming's instruction.

At the same time, Liu Jilong also entered Yacheng and saw the former Liang Emperor's palace.

Although the area was not large, the pavilions, towers, palaces and corridors were in no way inferior to the Ming and Qing palaces of later generations. It is unknown how much money and grain Emperor Yuan of Liang, Xiao Yi, and Emperor Suzong of Tang, Li Heng, spent on this.

During his visit, Liu Jilong naturally learned that he was staying in the Sizheng Hall in the central palace. In addition, there was a pavilion several meters high in the palace called Yanguang Pavilion, which was where Bai Juyi and Yuan Zhen sat and discussed and enjoyed the scenery of the Yangtze River.

In addition, there were many palaces, but because this imperial palace focused more on military and political affairs, many of the palaces in the inner palace were demolished or converted into government offices.

Liu Jilong didn't think much of it, since he probably wouldn't come to Jiangling much in the future, and building too many palaces would only increase maintenance costs.

As he was thinking this, he himself arrived at the Sizheng Hall, which occupied seven-tenths of an acre, stood four zhang high, and was six zhang deep.

Two icicles, each nearly a foot thick, were placed at the entrance of the main hall, and two more were placed at the entrance of the side hall as well. As a result, once inside the hall, one felt much cooler.

"Were these ice pops prepared last winter?"

Liu Jilong inquired with the official in charge of the palace, who quickly replied:

"There are two ice storage rooms in the palace, which can store thousands of ice bars. Every year after the start of summer, each government office can receive a corresponding number of ice bars to escape the heat."

"Based on past experience, these four ice bars should allow Your Highness to govern safely on that day."

Upon hearing the official's statement, Liu Jilong instructed, "From now on, placing two poles at the entrance of the side hall will suffice. All meetings can be held in the side hall; there is no need for such extravagance."

"Your subject obeys..." the official hurriedly replied, and then withdrew after Liu Jilong gave no further instructions.

Shortly after he left, Cao Mao and Zhao Ying had already chosen their accommodations and then went to the side hall to pay their respects to Liu Jilong.

In addition to their own arrival, they also brought Lang Jingxiang, the clerk of the Imperial Household Department, who had been instructed by Liu Jilong to investigate various matters in Shannan East Province.

Liu Jilong was very familiar with the name Jing Xiang, but for some reason, he just couldn't remember it.

Seeing him arrive, he simply asked, "How's the investigation going?"

"Your Highness," Jing Xiang said respectfully, bowing to Liu Jilong as he stood in the side hall.

"The counties and townships have indeed neglected these released soldiers. Furthermore, I have discovered that many county and township officials are making things difficult for these people. Even worse, some are supporting wealthy households in the villages, which is gradually forming powerful clans."

Jing Xiang appeared calm, but in reality, he knew after receiving the order that if he only investigated these released soldiers, he would not achieve any special merit.

For this reason, while investigating these matters, he also uncovered many instances of collusion between officials and local wealthy and powerful families.

"Is there any evidence?"

Liu Jilong remained calm upon hearing this, as if he had known about these things all along, and did not even ask Jing Xiang whether the Censorate's inspectors were aware of them.

Faced with his attitude, the still young Jing Xiang was unsure whether the prince was happy or not, so he could only bite the bullet and say, "All of these are my residences."

"You will hand it over to Commandant Zhao later. You don't need to worry about the rest. Go back to your job as the Imperial Recorder."

Liu Jilong gave the instructions, and Jing Xiang breathed a sigh of relief and immediately agreed.

After he agreed, Liu Jilong gestured for him to leave and rest, and only after he left did he look at Zhao Ying:
"Investigate what needs to be investigated, but don't make a big fuss. We are at a critical moment now, and stabilizing the internal situation is the most important thing."

"The problems of these officials can be dealt with after the war in the south is over."

"Yes!" Zhao Ying replied without hesitation, while Cao Mao listened to these words in silence.

Before long, Liu Jilong told the two to go and rest, and the cooks he brought with him quickly prepared a meal for him.

As the meal was served, various government offices in Jiangling Prefecture also sent over their documents. Liu Jilong ate and read them at the same time, quickly getting a general understanding of the situation in Jiangling Prefecture.

As the southern capital and a vital area of ​​Jingxiang, Jiangling Prefecture was highly developed in both commerce and agriculture.

Today, Jiangling Prefecture has a population of 270,000, of which 90,000 live in and around Jiangling City, most of whom are engaged in the shipbuilding industry.

Shipbuilding in Jiangling began in the Han Dynasty and has now developed to the point where there are 72 shipyards of various sizes, building 100 ships every year with a load capacity of 3,000 to 5,000 shi.

After Geng Ming arrived, he quickly relocated shipbuilding craftsmen from Yuzhou and other places to Jiangling. Now, Jiangling can build and launch twenty large Fujian ships with a carrying capacity of five thousand shi every year.

This large Fujian-style ship, modified by Liu Jilong, had twenty-four bronze cannons inside its hull. The cannon carriages had wooden rails underneath to counteract the recoil when firing.

The large Fuzhou ship, with a capacity of 5,000 shi (a unit of dry measure), is about 180 zhang (a unit of length) long and 44 zhang (a unit of length) wide. It requires 180 sailors to operate and can sustain a two-month operation when fully loaded with supplies and fresh water.

The Jiangling Navy already has a total of twenty such large Fujian ships, and two are launched every three months.

Because of these warships, Liu Jilong dared to immediately begin preparations for the southern expedition after pacifying the north.

Although Gao Pian knew that Geng Ming had a navy, Gao Pian believed that the Han navy was only the tip of the iceberg because of Geng Ming's previous show of weakness.

The real deciding factor was these twenty-odd large Fujian ships.

Lost in thought, Liu Jilong continued to peruse the documents from Jiangling, which included the grain supplies that the imperial court had transported from Jiannan Road eastward and which had already arrived.

Of the 2.24 million shi shipped, 1.89 million shi were transported to Jiangling. Among them, 1.7 million shi were transported north along the Han River to the Shannan East Road, then overland to the Henan Road, and finally 1.36 million shi were transported to the Henan Road. More than 20% of the shi were lost.

It must be said that Gao Pian's blockade of the Yangtze River caused considerable losses to the imperial court.

Based on this loss rate, 40% of the 3 million shi (a unit of dry measure) would be lost by the time it reached Henan, and this figure doesn't even include the data before it reached the various prefectures and counties.

If the goods are indeed transported to various prefectures and counties, the losses will be at least 45%, which is much greater than originally expected.

However, with over a million shi of grain entering Henan and Hebei, the problems in Henan and Hebei this year should be resolved.

As long as the decisive battle is won before the summer harvest next year, and with the Jiangnan region providing logistical support, the pressure on Henan and Huainan will not be so great.

His thoughts settled, he closed the document and rubbed his temples. Just then, footsteps sounded outside the Hall of Political Thought, and he couldn't help but look up.

Zhao Ying led two clerks carrying wooden trays filled with documents into the side hall and then bowed to Liu Jilong.

"Your Highness, news has arrived regarding the war in Jiangdong."

"Tell me about it." Liu Jilong breathed a sigh of relief, his gaze falling on the documents laid out by the officials.

"The rainy season had just ended when Gao Pian sent troops to seize Caishiji and Dangtu County, and then mobilized a large force to drive Li Shenfu into Muzhou. Now he has occupied Shezhou."

"If nothing unexpected happens, he will probably continue to send troops north to deal with Yang Xingmin, who is entrenched in Liyang."

"Understood." Liu Jilong nodded in response, showing no sign of worry.

In his worst-case scenario, he had prepared for Gao Pian to seize the entire Jiangnan region and engage in a decisive battle with him.

However, despite the concerted efforts of Yang Xingmin, Qian Liu, Li Shenfu and others, Gao Pian has yet to occupy the entire Jiangnan region.

Although Gao Pian has captured Xuan and She prefectures, he has likely suffered numerous casualties.

However, in just three months, Gao Pian probably wouldn't have enough energy and manpower to quell Yang Xingmin's forces.

For Liu Jilong, all Yang Xingmin and the others needed to do was buy him three months.

As September arrived, the rainy season in central Guizhou ended, the autumn harvest began in large areas of the north, and the sweltering heat in the south subsided. That was the time for Liu Jilong to launch his military campaign.

"How long have Wang Jian's troops been training?"

Liu Jilong asked Zhao Ying, who thought for a moment and then replied, "It has been about five months."

"Hmm..." Upon hearing this, Liu Jilong nodded, gesturing for him to sit down, and then picked up the documents on the table.

These documents were not sent by the Jiangling government office, but rather came from Luoyang and Hebei in the north.

Luoyang sent the summer harvest tax register, while Hebei sent the population register compiled by Luo Yin over ten months.

Liu Jilong reviewed the records and found that this year's summer harvest was indeed dismal, with only less than six million shi of beans and wheat and less than three million guan of salt, iron, mulberry, hemp and other miscellaneous items.

Without hesitation, he picked up his pen and wrote an imperial edict to transport the grain to Guandong to stabilize grain prices there, and to sell the miscellaneous items for money and silk to purchase grain in Jiannan Road.

After reviewing it, he finally looked at the population register that Luo Yin had spent ten months completing.

As expected, even after a century of turmoil, the population of Hebei Province was not nearly one-tenth of what the various provinces had reported in their own memorials.

"Ninety-four hundred and sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty households, four million eight hundred and seventy-two thousand and sixteen people."

Liu Jilong read out the string of numbers in Luo Yin's memorial without having the slightest doubt about them.

In his memorial, Luo Yin even explained that these people did not represent the entire population of Hebei Province, because many powerful families in Hebei did not participate in the rebellion of the imperial guards, so he had no reason to suppress them, and these powerful families had obviously concealed a considerable number of people.

According to Luo Yin's own estimate, the population of Hebei Province was probably no less than 5.5 million, a number that also met Liu Jilong's expectations.

After all, even after the late Tang and Five Dynasties period, the early Song Dynasty still managed to find over three million people in Hebei Province, which had lost the Sixteen Prefectures of Yan and Yun. And this was without the conversion of poll tax into land tax and the abolition of corvée labor.

If the Song Dynasty had followed Liu Jilong's policies in the early Song Dynasty, and had not relied on the sons of powerful families to conduct population censuses, perhaps even more people could have been found.

"Four million eight hundred and seventy thousand people. If we include the seven hundred and seventy thousand people in Huainan, it is about five million six hundred thousand people. The population under the rule of the imperial court has reached twenty-seven million people."

Twenty-seven million people, though still somewhat few and insufficient to support Liu Jilong's future ambitions of recovering Liaodong, Yunnan, and gaining actual control of the Western Regions, Liu Jilong was only forty years old, and he still had time to govern the people and allow the population to continue to grow.

With these thoughts in mind, Liu Jilong wrote a message to comfort Luo Yin and asked him to quickly survey the land in Hebei. He also suggested that the survey be conducted in order to mobilize the people's strength for land redistribution.

In addition, he also reminded Luo Yin to govern Hebei according to policy and not to put too much burden on the people. If the drought this year is too severe and the autumn harvest is poor, he can submit a memorial to exempt the autumn tax as appropriate, so that the people can recover their stability as soon as possible.

"As long as the people are at peace, it wouldn't be difficult for Hebei's population to exceed six million within ten years."

Liu Jilong commented that he felt he was luckier than Zhao Kuangyin and Zhu Yuanzhang.

Zhao Kuangyin faced a situation of fragmentation and widespread retreat of Han Chinese after the end of the Tang Dynasty, while Zhu Yuanzhang faced a situation where the Jiangnan region was heavily reliant on other areas but relatively weak in other regions.

Compared to them, they had no powerful countries around them, and the division that had not yet begun was largely ended by them, while their population was in a situation of strong borders and weak central regions.

Both Hebei and Jiannan Circuit have populations exceeding four million. While migrating and controlling the Yanshan Mountains, Liaodong, and Yunnan would be somewhat difficult, it would be much easier than Zhu Yuanzhang's efforts.

Thinking this, Liu Jilong continued to instruct Zhao Ying: "Issue an edict to Zhang Wu, ordering him to mobilize funds, provisions, and 10,000 troops, and place them under the command of Wang Jian, the governor of Qianzhong, to enter Qianzhong, primarily to defend against the southern barbarians taking advantage of the chaos to plunder and invade Qianzhong."

"An imperial edict was issued to Wang Jian, changing the Mid-Autumn Festival to the day of attacking Qianzhong."

"The imperial edict ordered Wang Shi to choose a day when the weather is cool and launch an attack on the eight prefectures north of the Yangtze River."

"Yes!" Zhao Ying quickly raised her hand in a bow, and then left the Sizheng Hall at Liu Jilong's signal.

Under Liu Jilong's edicts, the atmosphere across the entire Yangtze River region began to change.

The mighty Yangtze River keeps washing over both banks, and even under the blazing sun, one can still feel a chill from the bottom of one's heart.

Wang Shi, aged sixty-two, traveled a long and arduous journey to Caizhou and stayed in Ruyang, the capital of the prefecture.

"Is this what artillery is?"

Inside the Ruyang military camp, thirty seven-foot-long golden cannons were placed in front of Wang Shi, prompting him to reach out and touch them.

"It was with these thirty cannons that Governor An was able to conquer so many fortified cities in Hebei so easily, right?"

Wang Shi turned to look at the artillery commander in charge of the thirty cannons, and Zhang Yanhui, standing next to him, introduced him:

"This is Chen Wenlong, the eldest son of Chen Dujian of the Arsenal, a military officer, whose courtesy name is Yuanshu."

"This humble general, Chen Wenlong, pays his respects to Magistrate Wang."

At Zhang Yanhui's introduction, Chen Wenlong, who was in his early twenties, also respectfully bowed to Wang Shi.

Wang Shi nodded in satisfaction upon seeing this and asked, "How far can this cannon travel? Can it break through the city wall bricks?"

"It can fire four hundred paces, which is not as good as the later cannons, but it can break through the city wall bricks within three to five days without any problem."

Chen Wenlong reported the truth, and Wang Shi couldn't help but gasp: "With such a powerful weapon, what difficulty would it be to conquer eight states?"

"Protect these cannons well. Whether our army can quickly conquer the eight prefectures depends on these powerful weapons."

As Wang Shi gave his instructions, the troops in various regions had already made preparations and began to head south to adapt to the climate of Huainan, waiting to cross the Yangtze River and head south after conquering the eight prefectures.

From early July to August, the war clouds in the north grew heavier as temperatures dropped in the Yangtze and Huaihe River basins.

On the ninth day of the eighth month, Gao Pian, who was in Jiangdong, did not launch a strong attack after taking Shezhou and Xuanzhou. Instead, he rested for a month, recruited tens of thousands of new soldiers, and retrained them after they were reorganized.

Seeing that the troops were well-trained, Gao Pian was preparing to break camp and continue the eastward attack when Gao Qin brought him bad news.

"Father, Liu Jilong has arrived in Jiangling!"

"What did you say?"

Inside the tent, Gao Pian, who was studying the sand table and planning to quickly conquer Jiangdong, suddenly looked up.

"Liu Jilong has been stationed in Jiangling for at least a month now; this is intelligence sent by our spies."

Gao Qin stepped forward and handed him the intelligence report.

Gao Pian reached out and took it, but after only glancing at it briefly and confirming that the contents were true, his expression turned ugly.

"He's a precious person now, yet he dares to come all the way to the south. Does he really not want peace in the north anymore?"

"Or perhaps he was too confident, thinking that he could bring peace to the north with his troops and officials?"

Gao Pian's expression shifted; at this moment, he only wanted to understand Liu Jilong's thoughts, while Gao Qin beside him asked, "Father, should we continue attacking Jiangdong?"

Faced with this question, Gao Pian did not answer, but continued to ponder.

After a moment, he seemed to return to reality and looked at Gao Qin: "Attack!"

“But Liu Jilong…” Gao Qin was somewhat worried, but Gao Pian said:

"I had hoped to drag it out until now, but it seems that won't work now."

"The imperial edict ordered all spies in Jiangbei to spare no effort in spreading rumors that the late emperor had established Prince Pu as emperor, that the eunuch Yang Gongqing had killed Prince Pu, and that Prince Pu had escaped with the protection of righteous men."

Gao Qin was speechless, and couldn't help but say, "But Li Yi was the crown prince appointed by the late emperor, the late emperor..."

"That's not important. What's important is spreading rumors to build momentum for King Pu's ascension to the throne."

Gao Pian interrupted him, his face darkening, and said, "The officials are under Liu Jilong's control. Apart from his troops, he mainly controls the late emperor's children."

"If we can spread this rumor and make it go viral, it will make it easier to build momentum later."

"When Prince Pu ascends the throne, the generals under Liu Jilong will surely have different thoughts."

"Regardless of whether Liu Jilong declares himself emperor at that time, these rumors will be enough to give him a headache for a while."

"Seize this opportunity, we must pacify Jiangdong and then turn west to guard the Yangtze River and the strategic passes of central Guizhou."

"Yes!" Gao Qin nodded in agreement and hurriedly left.

After he left, Gao Pian's composure began to crumble, leaving only worry and unease.

He himself knew that rumors and gossip could not break Liu Jilong, and the memorials from those generals could only annoy Liu Jilong, but could not sway him.

Given the situation, Gao Pian wouldn't let it go, even if it only caused Liu Jilong the slightest trouble.

If he wants to stop Liu Jilong's advance, he has to resort to any means necessary...

(End of this chapter)