Tiger Guards

Chapter 658 The Name of Xinyang
Inside Wangyuan City, the wounded soldiers of the Jin army lived in warm houses and were properly cared for and treated.

Military doctors, apprentices, and nurses all have military ranks, and those with ranks receive corresponding military benefits commensurate with their status.

If they wanted to be promoted to military rank, they had to take good care of the wounded soldiers. The recovery rate and proportion of the wounded soldiers were the criteria for evaluating these medical staff.

As for the captured wounded rebels, in this cold weather, they could only be stuffed into spacious, makeshift sheds and left to their fate.

Apart from a few military doctors leading the team, the treatment and rehabilitation of the wounded rebel soldiers were handled by apprentices and novice nurses.

Only a traitor of Zhao Ang's stature could receive care from a senior military doctor.

To save his life, the military doctor had no choice but to brutally amputate his left calf, which had been trampled by a horse's hoof.

Coupled with the arrow wound, Zhao Ang was now suffering from a persistent high fever and was in a deep coma.

Given his status, the military medical team had a responsibility to keep him alive until Zhao Ji officially executed him.

When Zhuge Liang and other low-ranking officials were ordered to inspect the wounded soldiers' camp, Zhuge Liang saw a young nurse take a big gulp of honey water, then pry open Zhao Ang's mouth with both hands. Another nurse then inserted softened wheat straw into Zhao Ang's mouth and gently helped him up.

The nurse, who had drunk the honey water, bit one end of the straw and began blowing the honey water onto the unconscious Zhao Ang.

Zhuge Liang took a few more curious glances, then went with his colleagues to inspect other areas.

These people had different tasks. Some were checking the food and treatment of the wounded, while others were checking the quality of the medicines. Zhuge Liang also knew some medicine and was in charge of checking the medicines.

The medical team was in an unfamiliar place, and in such a war-torn area, so it was impossible for them to embezzle medicinal materials and resell them to civilians or enemy caravans.

The main problem with the medicine was that many of the military doctors and apprentices had been promoted through battlefield 'crash surgery' training, and these people were very good at handling bloody scenes.

Therefore, there are some shortcomings in the transportation, storage, and decoction of medicinal materials.

After completing their inspection, Zhuge Liang and the others returned to the central camp to await Zhao Ji's summons.

Zhao Ji was busy discussing military matters, and it was mealtime, so Zhuge Liang and the others could only eat under the newly built thatched shed.

Perhaps because of a bloody battle, the food was mainly light; in any case, it looked light and didn't taste very meaty.

However, the actual ingredients used still include various kinds of meat.

However, the chefs who followed Zhao Ji were very generous with the ingredients and had accumulated experience in handling various meats.

Even Zhuge Liang, who had some inclination towards fasting and vegetarianism, could eat as long as he didn't see chunks of meat in his bowl.

As Zhuge Liang was eating dumplings from his wooden bowl, he overheard several people whispering next door, vaguely mentioning something like "Xinyang".

He was slightly surprised, but he still ate slowly and carefully. After finishing a bowl of dumplings, he was only about 60% full. Zhuge Liang stopped himself from having another bowl. Over the years, he had developed the habit of eating small meals frequently.

With his stomach slightly empty, Zhuge Liang could perceive that his thinking was more agile and clear.

After carrying his bowl and chopsticks out of the misty, steamy thatched hut, Zhuge Liang saw Zhuge Jin walking briskly. Zhuge Liang stepped aside and, like the other minor officials, lowered his head.

Zhuge Jin clearly saw Zhuge Liang and stopped as he passed by, saying, "Kongming, last night the Grand Tutor dreamt of the blazing sun rising over the Wei River. Now we wish to change Wangyuan County to Xinyang County to commemorate this event."

"Xinyang?"

Zhuge Liang looked surprised. In the official documents of the court, there was no Tianshui Commandery at all, only Hanyang Commandery.

Tianshui is the Milky Way, and the brilliance of the Milky Way is the brilliance of the Milky Way.

Tianshui is located north of the Han River, so renaming it Hanyang is quite reasonable.

Although the name has been changed for a century, the government and the public still refer to Hanyang as Tianshui.

The key to the name Hanyang is that it is north of the Han River; the south side of a mountain and the north side of a river are called Yang.

However, now that Wangyuan County has been renamed Xinyang County, it is only the name of a county that has been changed. In the future, it may be used as a basis to change Hanyang Prefecture to Xinyang Prefecture.

At that time, the new place name Xinyang will be crucial. "Xin" (new) distinguishes it from "Jin" (old), inevitably bringing to mind the Xin Dynasty; while "Yang" (yang) naturally refers to Zhao Taishi's dream, referring to Zhao Taishi himself.

Zhuge Liang uttered the words "Xinyang," then asked in a low voice, "Chief Clerk, this..."

Why is Kongming so worried?

Zhuge Jin feigned doubt, knowing full well what the name Xinyang meant. He instructed, "Kongming will come with a team of officials and soldiers shortly to replace the landmark inscriptions at various locations along the Wangyuan. From this day forward, there will be no more Wangyuan, only Xinyang."

Wangyuan is a place name that sounds like it's related to astronomy.

According to the meaning of the words, it means a place where one can look out over the city; given the special political and astronomical relationship between Tianshui and Hanyang, Wangyuan is one of the three Yuan (three walls) that one can look up over.

The Three Enclosures are three celestial regions divided around the North Star: the Purple Palace Enclosure, the Supreme Palace Enclosure, and the Heavenly Market Enclosure.

Therefore, the place name Wangyuan is very harmonious with Tianshui; if it were changed to Xinyang, the North Star would be hard to see after the new sun appears, let alone the other stars that make up the Milky Way.

Who would dare refuse such a blatant test?
Moreover, given the current status of the Zhuge family, if Zhuge Liang dared to refuse, it would be tantamount to cutting himself off from his clan and fellow villagers in Langya.

This was not a test of the Jin army's internal situation, or even a test anymore; it was a declaration to both internal and external forces!

Unmarried Zhuge Liang didn't have much mental burden. After bidding farewell to Zhuge Jin, he returned to his barracks, packed his bowls and chopsticks, and then went to Zhuge Jin to collect his military officer's documents.

Zhuge Liang and seven colleagues were housed in the courtyard of this powerful family. He was not worried about his belongings being stolen, as stealing from his comrades was a serious crime within the Jin army.

At this moment, Zhao Ji was eating pilaf, while Zhang Lu, sitting to his left, was also enjoying his meal with a wooden spoon. Behind him sat Zhang Wei and Yan Pu respectively.

While eating and drinking to moisten their throats, Zhang Lu feigned curiosity: "Grand Tutor, you created a dish called 'Pilaf' which is eaten with a spoon and chopsticks. Why is it called 'Pilaf'?"

“After washing your hands, Brother Gongqi, you may also eat with your hands.”

Zhao Ji calmly replied that as the victorious side, he had no need to be arrogant or conceited, so there was no scene of youthful triumph and overbearing arrogance that Zhang Lu had imagined.

As Zhao Ji spoke, he put down the wooden spoon with his right hand and made a grasping gesture, saying, "When you squeeze the rice ball tightly and put it in your mouth, it actually has a unique flavor. Moreover, when we were young, we also used our hands to grab food. So now, when we grab food with our hands, we feel a kind of childlike joy and carefree happiness."

Seeing Zhao Ji say this, Zhang Lu also felt it made a lot of sense, and nodded solemnly with a thoughtful expression: "As the Grand Tutor said, the joys of life are far less than the innocent joys of childhood."

As he spoke, Zhang Lu rolled up his right sleeve. He had washed his hands before eating, and now he grabbed a grain of rice, a raisin that had expanded from the steam, and a piece of dried meat, kneading them into a ball with a faint sense of oil seeping out.

Zhang Lu then put the food in his mouth, and as he chewed, his eyes lit up. He truly felt the primal satisfaction and peaceful joy of eating with his hands.

His face was filled with admiration and astonishment, and he almost looked up at Zhao Ji: "Grand Tutor, your learning is profound and you can see things that ordinary people cannot see. I admire you greatly."

"Brother Gongqi, you flatter me."

Zhao Ji picked up a wooden cup and raised it as a gesture of respect. After exchanging toasts from afar, they each took a sip of wine to moisten their throats.

Zhao Ji picked up the wooden spoon and said with a smile, "I entrust the affairs of Hanzhong to Brother Gongqi. I have no other requests and do not need Brother Gongqi to pledge allegiance. When I lead my troops south, I hope Brother Gongqi can lead the people of Hanchuan to respond. Once the world is at peace, you will naturally retain your position as a duke or marquis."

When Zhang Lu saw that Zhao Ji didn't want the hostages, he was overjoyed, but even more so, he was horrified.

After a long silence, he tentatively asked, "Does the Grand Tutor mean...?"

“Brother Gongqi and the families of his officers and soldiers are all in Chengdu. How can I force Brother Gongqi to be an unfilial and inhumane person? After the handover of Shanggui, I will send troops to follow and escort Brother Gongqi back to Hanchuan.”

Zhao Ji smiled as he spoke, revealing that he was truly unprepared, both psychologically and materially, for an attack on Yizhou.

"I will never forget the Grand Tutor's kindness!"

Before Zhang Lu could speak, his brother Zhang Wei got up, moved to the side, and kowtowed repeatedly to Zhao Ji, his emotions so intense that tears streamed down his face.

Zhang Lu was also quite moved, looking at Zhao Ji and repeatedly saying, "When I am in Hanchuan, once the Grand Tutor leads his troops south, I will surely raise an army to support him!"

"Excellent, Brother Gongqi, please drink to your heart's content!"

(End of this chapter)