Tiger Guards

Chapter 181 Four parties gather together
On the west bank of the Fen River, Chanyu Huhuquan also led his cavalry to observe the troops in Hedong and Henei.

Daze is on the east bank of Fenshui River. A tributary from the upper reaches of Fenshui River flows into Daze, and a tributary from the southern end of Daze connects with the lower reaches of Fenshui River.

The lake can store water in normal times and can store flood water during floods.

Therefore, the land surrounding the lake is fertile and the harvest is guaranteed regardless of drought or flood.

Not to mention the people of Taiyuan, even Huochequan liked the nearby land very much.

While Huochequan was observing, the imperial fleet that had sailed out of Queshu Valley approached the east coast and disembarked one after another.

The emperor was escorted to Zhongdu by land, while the rest of the fleet sailed along the tributaries into the Daze area.

Looking at the Han army on the other side, all dressed in uniform, Huochuquan could not help but sigh, "In terms of uniforms and military appearance, they are far superior to the other armies in Bingzhou."

Many cavalry nobles also responded, and the uniforms of the Hedong soldiers were made of fine cloth.

This time, the Tiger Infantry and Hedong Knights came by boat again, and their uniforms and flags were not stained with dust.

Looking across the river, it seems extremely bright and fiery red.

Yang Qi and others also got off the boat and boarded the bus, feeling reluctant to leave the fleet.

Compared with the awkwardness of the eastward migration, this inspection of Taiyuan organized by Zhao Ji was very swift.

Starting from Jiangyi, it took only one day to leave the county boundary and camp on the boat that night; it took another day to navigate the winding Queshu Valley.

After choosing a place to spend the night, we left Queshu Valley today, which took a total of three days.

When moving eastward, various opinions would arise and it would be difficult to make a decision, so they might have to stay in the same place for more than ten days.

If there hadn't been so much wrangling, Li Jue would have had no time to reorganize the army or to instigate Guo Si and others to rebel.

Perhaps when moving eastward, if they had listened to either Zhang Ji or Yang Feng, the imperial army might have passed Huayin and entered the territory of Hongnong before Guo Si led his troops to join the imperial escort team.

At this moment, the Huben were driving the carriage, and the ministers were each riding in one.

From time to time, former students and officials, or the children of former students and officials, would wait by the roadside, pay them a visit, and hand them visiting cards.

The scholars of Taiyuan would not give gifts on the roadside. Even if they did, they would only give various local specialties and local products.

After receiving the visiting card, many things will have to be discussed when you visit the guest, including giving gifts.

The enthusiasm of the Taiyuan scholars made it difficult for the ministers to adapt for a while.

Before this, when they were in Anyi, they had to take the initiative to harass the Wei and Fan families in order to raise some supplies. After they had eaten their fill, they would take the supplies to feed the officials and guards.

Yang Feng and others also used similar methods to obtain materials and manpower from the powerful or the common people.

Even though the people of Taiyuan were very enthusiastic, the ministers only responded appropriately.

It was too coincidental that the Huns cut off the passage. If the people of Taiyuan had had one tenth of their enthusiasm in winter and sent more than a thousand county soldiers south to support the king, they would have dealt with the Baibo Army long ago and solved the Hedong problem at the same time.

The suffering of half a year cannot be in vain. If I can’t deal with Zhao Ji, how can I deal with the Taiyuan clan thieves?
When it was dark, the ministers arrived at the emperor's camp outside Zhongdu.

The camp was located on the western outskirts of Zhongdu County, with its back against the embankment of Daze.

At dusk, one can still see large and small boats transporting goods back and forth on the lake, and outside the camp there are various prosperous military markets.

The military market was filled with thatched huts and sheds, selling all kinds of daily utensils and side dishes. There were also many Han and Hu women who greeted the passing knights.

The convoy stopped at the gate. Yang Qi rubbed his legs and got off the car after a while. He put his hands on his hips and looked at a row of thatched huts about 150 steps away from the gate.

Yang Biao also got off the car and observed. As he was observing, the Imperial Censor Yang Zhong rode up on horseback, jumped off his horse and bowed, "Brother."

Looking at Yang Qi, who was tanned and in exceptionally good spirits, Yang Zhong's eyes became sore and he didn't know how to mention many things.

It doesn’t matter that Fude is dead, and it doesn’t matter that the queen’s reputation is tarnished. What matters is that Fude lost the treasury.

This was an important bargaining chip in the negotiations between the imperial court and the people of Hedong, and it was lost so easily.

Seeing Yang Zhong's low mood and hesitation, Yang Qi felt relieved and pointed at the thatched cottage in the distance in a heroic manner: "Why is this? Why is the military market here so prosperous?"

"Brother, the people of Taiyuan have heard that the Marquis of Zhao has given generous rewards to his officers and men, so the military market is booming."

Wuzhu coins have always been hard currency, and heavy taxes and levies are inevitable, which became even more crazy at the end of the dynasty.

By exchanging goods and services for five-zhu coins and using the five-zhu coins to pay taxes, one can avoid a lot of exploitation.

Moreover, the people who came here to run the military market were mainly powerful individuals and the followers of the Xiongnu generals. Ordinary people from the nearby counties... you couldn't even come to Zhongdu, let alone set up stalls in the military market here.

The military market was profitable and was basically monopolized by Han and Hu tyrants; even if local people from Zhongdu came to set up stalls, they would have to consider their family background and pay a venue fee.

Yang Zhong briefly described the information about the military market here, and his mood was not very good.

The more prosperous the military market is, the more it shows that the people of Taiyuan have abundant savings; the sufferings suffered by the court in winter are even more unforgivable.

Yang Biao said, "The military market is prosperous, and it's run by servants from various households. Perhaps they..."

He looked at Yang Qi, who waved his hand, "Don't overthink it. We've done what we should do. If anything unexpected happens, just obey the emperor's orders."

Anyway, the palace guards have collapsed and have no soldiers. The four forces nearby are intertwined, and they are the only ones who are not qualified to cause trouble.

Just watch the fire from the other side of the river. Even if Zhao Ji loses, what guilt do those who were coerced have?

While they were chatting, the emperor's carriage slowly approached, escorted by knights from Hedong.

Yang Qi and others were waiting at the gate, bowing deeply and waiting for the emperor's carriage to enter.

On the emperor's chariot pulled by six horses, Liu Xie also saw the prosperous military market, but his face was expressionless.

Now people from Hedong, Henei, Taiyuan and Xiongnu gathered here, and who lives and who dies is no longer under Liu Xie's control.

The ministers can protect themselves wisely, and the emperor should do so even more.

Inside the military market, Wang Ling stood in the front row of the crowd, squinting as he watched the emperor's carriage, surrounded by torches, drive into the camp. He then asked his attendants, "How are the Hedong troops?"

Linghu Shao replied, "The army is well-organized and has high morale. They are even superior to the troops in Henei. Our county's troops are weak and cannot be compared."

Wang Ling nodded and asked the silent Guo Huai, "What does Boji think?"

"It's better to be a Tiger Guard. At noon, we went to observe the Tiger Guards. They were exhausted from the march, but they surrounded the Marquis of Zhao like tigers, wolves, and hawks."

Guo Huai replied in a low voice: "From my perspective, the imperial court is planning to take over Taiyuan."

The well-dressed young men around generally frowned; they didn't like this kind of thing.

Although the imperial court temporarily stayed in Taiyuan, it was convenient for them to enter officialdom, and once they did, they would hold high positions, which could save them several years.

But the court brought so many people, and none of them are easy to fool.

Especially the guards, their food is all fed by the savings of each family.

The people's savings were not enough to cover the expenses; and the cost of collecting food and other supplies from the people was also not small.

Only through donations from various families can the needs of the court be quickly replenished.

If the offices of various officials are gradually restored and a large number of officials are staffed, the huge salary burden will also fall on the heads of Taiyuan people.

At this time, a member of the Song family nearby asked Wang Ling: "Yanyun, how are Yanmen and Daijun?"

Wang Ling didn't answer, but went to see Linghu Shao coming from the north. Linghu Shao replied, "I don't know about Dai County yet. Yanmen Shentu Gong has led a thousand infantry and cavalry to escort taxes and local products south. He should be near Jinyang now and should arrive in three days."

Linghu Shao then asked, "The court has appointed Marquis Zhao to govern Taiyuan. If he were to recruit outstanding men from the prefecture tomorrow, what would be the plan?"

The well-dressed young men nearby were all observing Wang Ling, waiting for his answer.

The county seat was in Jinyang. Before Zhao Ji recruited new county officials, the original county officials could still perform their duties or resign voluntarily.

But resigning voluntarily like this would be tantamount to offending Zhao Ji, which would be a fatal offense.

If you refuse the appointment, there are many reasons to explain it and the offense is not serious.

Wang Ling remained silent on this question that concerned everyone. Seeing that everyone was still looking at him, he could only say, "Let's first observe what the Marquis of Zhao says and does. If he can be diligent in governing the country and care for the people, we will certainly serve him and benefit our hometown."

Having said that, he had no intention of responding to Zhao Ji's call.

Even his perfunctory mood was written on his face.

The court and the three highest officials are all here. Why bother to become a county official instead of taking the easy path to success?
As a county official, you may be a big shot in the county, but no one in the world knows who you are.

Only by being recruited by the government and serving in the government can one be considered to have brought honor to the family and stood tall in the world.

(End of this chapter)