Three Kingdoms: A Million Soldiers Grown from the Fields

Chapter 130 A Strong Wind Rises (Bonus Chapter Due to My Eldest Daughter's Adorableness!)
Jiming'ao, Guangwu County.

Just as dawn was breaking, the piercing sound of a gong shattered the morning mist and struck old man Wang Shuan's heart.

"Wang Shuan! Wang Shuan! Come out! The rent from the third master of the Wang family has been delayed until today, do you want to delay it until the end of the year?!" Wang Er, the steward of the Wang family, said in a sharp voice with impatience.

Two burly servants with menacing faces, carrying sticks, followed behind him.

The broken gong he struck resounded loudly, startling several skinny chickens in the fenced yard, which flapped their wings and scattered wildly.

Wang Shuan, hunched over, shuffled out of the low, dilapidated thatched hut, a forced smile plastered on his face, his hands nervously rubbing against his patched clothes. "Manager Wang... please, have mercy and grant me a few more days! This spring drought has left the seedlings barely recovering... it's really..."

"Grace period?" Wang Ersan rolled his eyes, his spittle almost spraying onto Wang Shuan's face.

"You dare delay paying Third Master's rent? Spring drought? What does spring drought have to do with Third Master? Not a single grain is missing! Today, you either pay the grain, or you hand over the land, or..."

He glanced menacingly at the dilapidated house behind Wang Shuan, and at Wang Shuan's youngest son, who was peeking out half his head in fear through the crack in the door.

"Send your son Dazhu to work in Third Master's Village! He'll be released when his wages have covered the rent!"

The color drained from Wang Shuan's face instantly, his legs went weak, and he almost knelt down.

Dazhu is the only able-bodied man in his family. If he is taken away to take over the work, the Wang family will be a bottomless pit, and they will never be able to climb out in this lifetime!

"Manager Wang! This won't do! Dazhu, he..."

"Father!" A lean, dark-skinned young man suddenly rushed out of the house and stood in front of Wang Shuan; it was Da Zhu.

He gritted his teeth, his eyes filled with humiliation and resentment, but looking at his father's hunched figure and the menacing servants behind the steward, he could only lower his head in the end, his voice hoarse: "I'll go with you! Don't make things difficult for my father!"

Wang Er snorted smugly, "You're smart enough to know what's good for you!" With a wave of his hand, two servants stepped forward and shoved Dazhu away like livestock.

"Dazhu! My son!" Wang Shuan's old wife cried out and rushed out, but was kicked to the ground by a servant.

Wang Shuan clenched his fists tightly, his nails digging deep into his palms, and turbid tears rolled down his deeply lined cheeks.

He watched his son being shoved and disappearing into the dust at the village entrance, looked at his weeping wife on the ground, and then at his own few acres of withered, barren land. A chilling despair, like a venomous snake, tightly coiled around his heart.

These days are like being soaked in bitter bile, with no end in sight.

……

Under the same sky, a hundred miles away lies Zhao Family Village in Lüchi.

Smoke was already rising from the kitchen of Zhao Tian's house.

Freshly ground soybean flour mixed with chopped tender pumpkin vines makes steamed cornbread with a refreshing aroma.

Zhao Tian squatted at the doorway, using the sunlight to carefully scrape off the wet mud from the hoe blade with his newly acquired iron hoe, his movements as gentle as if he were handling a precious treasure.

The hoe blade was gleaming, flashing a cold light in the morning sun.

"Dad, dinner's ready!" Zhao Zhu came out carrying a steaming bowl of cornbread, his face radiating youthful energy.

Last night, he learned a new method for calculating grain at the thatched cottage. He also heard that the county government was recruiting people to repair the road leading to the coal mine, and the wages were not low. He was planning to apply for the job during the off-season.

"Hmm," Zhao Tian responded, put down his hoe, and sat down on a stone stool in the courtyard.

He picked up a cornbread, broke it open, looked at the bright green melon vines inside, took a big bite, and the coarse wheat bran mixed with the fragrance of melon vines and the slight sweetness of soybean flour spread in his mouth.

"Zhu Zi, go to the field later and press down the soil on the pumpkin vines at the east end. The agricultural official said that the pumpkins will only grow big if the roots are firmly established."

"I understand, Dad!" Zhao Zhu nodded and picked up the cornbread to eat.

"Father, I've figured out the grain calculation method that Mr. Chen taught me last night! Of our three and a half mu of new land and about ten mu of old land, according to the tax set by the magistrate, thirty percent goes to us. I can now calculate with pretty much a high degree of accuracy how much grain we can keep after the autumn harvest!"

His voice carried an unprecedented sense of steadiness.

Zhao Tian didn't say anything, just silently chewed his cornbread, looked at his son's bright eyes, and then glanced at the curved plow that the county government had rented, which was piled up in the corner of his yard.

The plowshare was made of good iron, sturdy and durable. He recalled the numbers he had written crookedly on the sand table in the thatched cottage last night.

Although the writing is ugly, what it represents is real, quantifiable, and tangible. These days are like newly sprouted wheat seedlings; though still green, they exude a heavy sense of hope.

……

In the west of Yu County, the door of Li's blacksmith shop was half-closed. There was no familiar clanging of hammers inside, only heavy sighs one after another.

Li the blacksmith squatted in front of the cold furnace, his calloused hands unconsciously stroking a half-finished plowshare blank.

The fire in the stove had been extinguished long ago, and the shop was filled with the smell of rust and cold ash. In the corner, a few finished farm tools were piled up forlornly, untouched by anyone.

"Husband..." Li the blacksmith's wife, Wang, came out from the inner room, carrying a half-bowl of millet porridge so thin you could see your reflection in it, her face clouded with worry.

"The blacksmith shop in the east of the city... lowered its prices again today. Their hoes and sickles are almost 30% cheaper than ours... How are we supposed to make a living like this?" Her voice choked with emotion. "Is our craft really going to rot in our hands?"

Li the blacksmith didn't take the bowl, but instead wiped his face hard, his voice hoarse: "An official shop? Humph! They call that ironware? What kind of rotten iron slag do they use? They can't even be quenched properly! Just for show! They'll be chipped and dull in a few days!"
But...they're so cheap! Poor people don't care if it's durable or not; every penny saved counts!

He slammed his fist on the anvil next to him, making a dull thud that sent dust flying.

His family's traditional craftsmanship involves selecting high-quality materials, forging the wood a thousand times, and quenching it to perfection.

In previous years, his hoes and sickles were renowned throughout Meng County, but ever since the descendants of Prefect Wang Ze opened that "government-run" blacksmith shop here...

Relying on his connections with government officials, he dumped inferior ironware made with shoddy materials at low prices, and his small blacksmith shop immediately became deserted.

"Craftsmanship... what good is craftsmanship anyway!" Li the blacksmith slumped down in dejection.

Just then, the shop's half-closed door was pushed open, and a dusty-looking cloth vendor with a thick accent poked his head in.

"Master Li? Are you busy?"

Li the blacksmith recognized him; he was Old Cui, who often went to Luqi to sell cloth. "Brother Cui? Come in and sit down, I'm not busy... I'm free." He greeted him with a wry smile.

Old Cui didn't stand on ceremony. He came in, sat down, took a sip of water, glanced at the deserted shop and the farm tools in the corner, and sighed, "Alas, making a living in Meng County is getting harder and harder, isn't it?"

The blacksmith and his wife could only shake their heads with bitter smiles.

Old Cui lowered his voice: "Master Li, it's a pity that your skills are wasted in this Meng County! Do you know Lüchi? It's the Lüchi County in Taiyuan Prefecture!"

"Luqi County?" Li the blacksmith looked up blankly.

"Hey! It's under the jurisdiction of Zhang Xian, the magistrate who slaughtered hundreds of cavalrymen and terrified the Hu people!" Old Cui's eyes lit up.

"They have ironworks over there too! In Lüchi, craftsmen are treasures! As long as you have good skills and are willing to work hard, you can get paid every month and have food and lodging provided once you enter the ironworks! Their hoes and sickles have gleaming iron edges and are quite heavy! Unlike those cheap shoddy things from our Mengxian official workshops!!"

Li the blacksmith's eyes gradually brightened, and Wang Shi also quietly clenched the hem of her clothes.

"Is...is such a thing really true?" Li the blacksmith's voice trembled slightly.

"Absolutely true!" Old Cui patted his chest. "I saw it with my own eyes! People in Luqi County value craftsmen and skills! With your skills, you'll be highly sought after there!"

"It's better than staying here in Meng County, sitting by a cold stove waiting to die, isn't it?"

Li the blacksmith abruptly stood up, pacing back and forth in his cramped shop. For the first time, a resolute light flickered across his previously worried face. "Let's go!" he shouted, stopping abruptly and turning to his wife. "Pack your things! Take your tools! Let's go to Luchi!"

"Okay, I'll listen to you, boss."

……

Twenty miles outside Maling Pass in Dingxiang County, the setting sun, like blood, made the charred ruins appear even more desolate.

A few wisps of smoke, not yet fully dissipated, rose from the collapsed roof beams. Broken pottery jars, overturned millstones, scattered chicken feathers, and dried, blackened bloodstains silently recounted the tragedy that had occurred not long ago.

The air was filled with a strong smell of burning, blood, and a nauseating muttony odor.

An elderly woman with white hair sat slumped in her "yard," which was now just half a mud wall. She clutched a broken earthenware pot tightly in her arms and stared blankly at the few clear and messy hoof prints on the ground.

Her chapped lips moved silently. Her son, daughter-in-law, and her three-year-old grandson had all fallen under the swords of the Xianbei cavalry that had rushed in the previous night. In this earthenware pot were the last few grains of millet mixed with dirt that she had left.

Not far away, several villagers who had also survived the disaster were rummaging through the ruins like zombies, trying to find something still usable.

A man found a half-sack of trampled wheat and was about to pick it up when a dirty hand reached out from the side and grabbed it tightly.

"Mine! This is my house!" another villager roared hoarsely, his eyes gleaming with a wolfish green light.

"Bullshit! I clearly dug this out from under my stove!" the man retorted without backing down.

The two men instantly began to wrestle, rolling around in the ashes, tearing at each other like wild beasts for the half-sack of wheat covered in mud and ash.

The surrounding crowd was indifferent, showing no interest whatsoever.

Several county soldiers, dressed in tattered leather armor and with pale faces, leaned lazily against the only relatively intact earthen wall at the village entrance, watching everything with indifference.

The leader of the team chewed on a blade of grass and spat, "Damn it, what bad luck! Another wasted trip! Didn't get a single thing!"

"Captain, are we... are we just going to go back like this?" A young soldier looked at the tragic state of the village and felt a pang of pity.

"What else can we do but go back?" The team leader glanced at him sideways.

"Chase? Where to? Those are just two-legged horses, are we four-legged people? Chasing them would be suicide! The officials in Dingxiang City aren't worried, why should we lowly soldiers be in such a hurry! We've reported it, that's enough! Let's go!"

He waved his hand irritably, and with a few equally listless soldiers, trotted away from this hellish village.

The old woman still held the earthenware pot, watching the soldiers' departing figures, then looked at the hoofprints on the ground leading to the northern grasslands. Finally, her turbid tears silently slid down and dripped onto the earthenware pot in her arms.

……

Jinyang City, the governor's residence.

The newly appointed governor of Bingzhou, Ding Yuan, dressed in ordinary clothes, looked at several urgent reports from different counties on his desk with a furrowed brow.

Dingxiang County reported: A hundred Xianbei cavalrymen broke through the pass, plundered three villages outside Maling Pass, killing and wounding hundreds, burning houses and looting livestock before leaving.

The magistrate of Yuanping County reported: Due to the spring drought, many people are suffering. Some refugees want to go to Taiyuan but are worried about the consequences. He requested the governor's office to strictly prohibit the migration in order to prevent unrest.

The Prefect of Meng County reports: Rumors are spreading throughout the region, all talking about how benevolent Zhang Xian is, and fearing that the people's hearts will be unsettled...

Guangwu:
Lucheng:
Ju Yang:
Yangqu:
Almost every county newspaper mentioned Lu Xi and Zhang Xian.

“Zhang Xian… Lü Si…” Ding Yuan’s fingers tapped the table unconsciously, making a dull sound.

This name appeared on his desk more and more frequently.

He established his authority by killing the barbarians, recruited soldiers, built water conservancy projects, and reclaimed wasteland, attracting refugees from all directions to flock to him! His momentum was already established!
He thought of his adopted son, Lü Bu, who was brave and unruly, yet also the most valiant in the army.

After returning from Lüsi, Lü Bu spoke highly of Zhang Xian, and also praised Huang Zhong and Zhao Yun. He even began to study halberd techniques!

This set off alarm bells in Ding Yuan's mind.

Zhang Xian's position as Protector-General of the Xiongnu was equivalent to a rank of two thousand shi (a unit of grain), and in terms of authority, he was in charge of the affairs of the Xiongnu in the border counties of Bingzhou. In theory, he could even control and mobilize the border troops of Bingzhou! This was like placing an increasingly powerful tiger next to Ding Yuan's bed!

“Lord Ding,” a soft, feminine voice rang out.

The speaker was Wang Ze, the prefect of Jinyang, who was sitting at the lower end of the table.

He was about forty years old, with a fair complexion and three long, neatly combed beards, but his eyes were like deep pools, revealing the reserved and calculating nature unique to aristocratic families.

“Zhang Xian is growing stronger. Look at these refugees, look at the people’s hearts… If this continues, it may not be a blessing for Bingzhou.”

Ding Yuan looked up at Wang Ze but didn't say anything.

Wang Ze smiled slightly and said slowly, "Although this person has some minor merits, he acts rashly and does not respect etiquette and law. Moreover, he has arbitrarily provoked border conflicts, which may provoke a great retaliation from the Hu people and endanger the peace of Bingzhou."

Moreover, by enticing the people with profits and engaging in commercial activities, they are not following the proper path of scholars. Now, they are attracting refugees from all directions, disrupting the order of the prefecture and county, which is truly a great calamity!

He paused, put down his teacup, and lowered his voice, carrying a hint of barely perceptible coldness.

"In my humble opinion, Your Excellency should make preparations as soon as possible. Perhaps you could submit a memorial to the court, stating that he is trying to win over the people and expand his military without authorization, plotting treason? Or perhaps..."

A cold glint flashed in his eyes: "The situation of the northern barbarians is complicated. If some powerful barbarian cavalry 'wander' and 'accidentally' harass the trade routes and even the military farms of Lüqi, they will be exhausted, lose soldiers and generals, and their morale will naturally decline."

At that time, if the governor, in his position of authority, were to step in to "mediate" or "assist in the suppression," the situation regarding the enemy's advance could be eased.

Ding Yuan remained silent.

Wang Ze's words made it all too clear that he was being used as a pawn.

Zhang Xian's rise to power did indeed threaten his authority.

Having witnessed his bravery firsthand, he didn't want to offend him too much.

“Prefect Wang’s words…” Ding Yuan spoke slowly, his tone deep: “Zhang Xian of Lüsi is an official appointed by the court as the General of the Xiongnu, in charge of the defense of the northern frontier.”

His recruitment of refugees and cultivation of wasteland were also aimed at storing grain for the country and stabilizing the borders. Although there were some hasty actions, his intentions were commendable. As for the matter of the barbarian cavalry…”

He looked sharply at Wang Ze: "The defense of the border regions is the shared responsibility of this official and General Zhang! If any barbarian cavalry dares to invade our borders, whether it be Luqi or Jinyang, this official will personally lead a large army to wipe them out without any leniency!"

"No need for the King or the Prefect to trouble themselves."

Wang Ze's smile froze slightly, but he quickly recovered and cupped his hands, saying, "Your Excellency is righteous and has the big picture in mind. It was my oversight." In his heart, however, he cursed inwardly.

Ding Yuan stopped looking at him and turned his gaze to another routine document from Lü Si on the desk.

Besides reporting on agricultural and mining affairs, the last sentence was unremarkable: "The newly recruited soldiers of the Luxi Army have completed their basic training. They are to defend against the Hu cavalry and patrol the border to protect the people."

Ding Yuan's finger traced heavily over the four characters "Patrolling the Border and Protecting the People," his eyes filled with complex emotions. Was Zhang Xian's action a gesture of goodwill? Or... was his military might no longer be content with just a small corner of Luqi?

　My update schedule has been a bit irregular lately, mainly because I'm not a full-time but part-time worker, and I also have to balance my regular work schedule and family matters.

　　Those who follow the book may know that I have two daughters, hahaha. The happiest thing for me every day is playing with them, so I apologize for the inconsistent updates. But I will try my best to ensure the quality and word count, and I will never let my readers down.

　　Also, my reading progress has been rather poor lately. I beg you all, even if you're just saving up a book, please turn to the last page and read it all at once.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)