Three Kingdoms: A Million Soldiers Grown from the Fields

Chapter 191 Come again
After arranging for yamen runners to go to the farmland and pastoral areas to retrieve supplies, Zhang Xian's gaze returned to Guo Jia.

He nodded slightly: "Fengxiao, once the supply trucks are ready, you can go to Daling together to take charge."

"We can accept or not accept the Xihe County people, but the existence of the grassland people is ultimately a hidden danger. Your responsibility is to implement the strong Yin model in Xihe County."

"After Fengxian Zilong and his men have terrified the grassland people, they will gradually devour them with sheep, trying to educate and subdue them. If they cannot be subdued..."

“Kill and tie them up. Bingzhou is in dire need of development. Roads need to be repaired, mountains need to be dug, and we also lack a lot of labor for dangerous work.”

Guo Jia's lips curled into a smile as he exhaled a breath of wine: "Rest assured, my lord, I will definitely break the spines of those barbarians!"

"Ah."

“Wenruo, let’s continue. Since March, nearly 300,000 refugees from Jizhou have poured into Bingzhou. According to the news from Weize Pass, at least several hundred thousand more will come through Jingxing Pass.”

"How to allocate resources to each county, the selection of new county sites, and the allocation of materials are the most pressing issues on the table."

"The number of officials is also insufficient. With the establishment of the new military command, it is impossible to continue to transfer junior officers. The same is true for the armored troops, as a large number of new recruits cannot be mobilized to supplement the officers."

Zhang Xian opened the official document book on his desk and began to review and correct it as he spoke.

Xun Yu, who was standing next to him, was the same.

He nodded slightly: "I am aware of what you mean, my lord. The influx of hundreds of thousands of people will inevitably dilute the number of officials, which is unavoidable."

"The military is the fastest at literacy education, and since we can't mobilize them right now, we can only select the best students from the county and prefectural schools."

"Thanks to the decrees of the lord last year, a large number of poor students and commoners enrolled in school before the beginning of spring this year. In addition, with the literacy night schools in various places, it is likely that several thousand or even tens of thousands of officials can be selected."

"But Yu's concern is whether these people can shoulder such important responsibilities in just six months?"

Guo Jia listened from the side and also shared his own insights.

"They're not being put in charge of a county; they're just being put in charge of clerks and officials. People can be trained. As long as they can read, no, even if they can't read, they can do these jobs. It's just a bit more troublesome."

Zhang Xian nodded slightly and smiled: "What Fengxiao said makes sense. Talented people are ultimately forged through experience. It's normal to encounter some setbacks in the early stages. Even a well-read scion of a noble family can't have a smooth journey when he first takes charge of government."

"Not everyone has the talent of Wenruo and Fengxiao. If we can find a few people among these people who are comparable to even one tenth of you, that would be a good thing."

"Wenruo, let's do it this way. Let Yuanfang hold another examination to select the best candidates for future civil service positions. The number of candidates will be set at six thousand for now."

"only."

Xun Yu stopped writing, clasped his hands in response.

"Six thousand." Zhang Xian continued writing, smacking his lips a few times before letting out a sigh.

"Alas, it's just that there wasn't enough time. If there had been a month or two of buffer time, the quality of the clerks might have improved considerably."

"There's nothing we can do about it. Our lord is too fast. He has achieved the rank of county magistrate and general, a feat that would take generations for others to accomplish. Yet, our lord has only taken a year to take control of the entire Taiyuan. It is already extremely rare that he can still produce a group of officials whom he has personally cultivated at such a speed."

Guo Jia pursed his lips and teased, feeling a bit like jumping up and down at his lord's somewhat boastful narrative.

What kind of good person could produce so much stuff in just two years?

Zhang Xian thought about it and agreed, so he shook his head slightly: "Sigh, when will I be able to take a proper rest?"

the other side.

In a secluded teahouse on the second floor of a private room in Jinyang City, two pairs of shrewd eyes were also "worried" about the same thing.

Wang Lie took a sip of coarse tea, looked at Tong Yuan across from him, who was dressed in a tight-fitting outfit but had deliberately lowered his bamboo hat, and said in a low voice, "Elder Tong, you are now like a close relative to the magistrate. You should take good care of his offspring."

Tong Yuan nodded slightly: "I am naturally very anxious about Zixu's matter, otherwise I wouldn't have come as soon as you mentioned it, Brother Wang."

Wang Lie put down his teacup, his voice tinged with urgency: "Although Your Excellency currently only holds the territory of one prefecture, your prestige already covers an entire state. The matter of establishing an heir is of utmost importance!"
Bingzhou has just been pacified, and all industries are in need of development. There are hundreds of thousands of displaced people, and the northern barbarians are eyeing us with hostility! I helped arrange for the Ma family to come here, but this Miss Ma is completely absorbed in her crafts. The magistrate is also a blockhead, only concerned with official duties. They've been in the workshop for almost a month, yet they haven't had any interaction whatsoever. What kind of situation is this?!

Tong Yuan sighed.

After arriving in Bingzhou, he also learned some things about Bingzhou.

He spoke in a deep voice.

“The girl from the Ma family is simple and honest. Her father and brother are both very talented and are very important to Zixu. My disciple may not seem remarkable in other aspects, but his judgment has never been wrong. The fact that he values ​​that young boy Ma Jun shows that Ma Jun has excellent aptitude and talent. There is no doubt about that.”

"But his sister seems... clueless about romance?"

"That's why we need your and my secret assistance!" Wang Lie's eye twitched.

Nothing else is remarkable? Look at what you're saying! No one can beat your disciple in martial arts, and he's not bad in literature either. In less than two years, he has governed Taiyuan many times better than before.

Why is this old man so infuriating?

Tong Yuan's face twitched upon hearing this.

However, considering that this was the most important event in his life for his last disciple, he nodded in agreement.

In the morning, Zhang Xian handled official business at the county government office, and in the afternoon he went to the craft workshop to do both without delay.

Even in the afternoon, the summer heat lingered, and the workshop was filled with the smell of freshly planed wood and the faint, greasy scent of tung oil.

As Zhang Xianguang stepped over the crooked wooden threshold, a cacophony of sounds, accompanied by waves of heat, rushed towards him: the hissing of saws, the clanging of hammers, and the rough shouts of craftsmen.

His gaze swept past the bustling scene and landed directly on a newly assembled model of a waterwheel, which was about half a person's height.

Ma Yan was standing next to the model, her indigo narrow-sleeved Hu-style dress accentuating her slender waist. Her hair was neatly tied up at the back of her head, revealing her smooth forehead and focused profile.

She pointed her finger at the rows of newly made wooden buckets on the model, speaking rapidly and clearly.

“…If the angle is increased even slightly, the depth of immersion in water must be maintained at this position.” She gestured precisely with her fingertips to the markings on the model.

"After the magistrate's advice last time, I tried it three times. The water flow is strong enough that the water volume has increased by at least 20%!"

Her voice was tinged with excitement, and her cheeks were flushed with a healthy rosy glow from her focus and the heat of the studio.

“Miss Ma,” Zhang Xian said.

Hearing the sound, Ma Yan turned around abruptly. Her bright eyes met Zhang Xian's gaze, and a blush quickly spread from her cheeks to her ears, though it was not very noticeable because her face was already flushed.

She strode forward, her movements swift and decisive: "The magistrate has arrived! Perfect timing, please take a look!"

She led Zhang Xian closer to the model, her fingers unconsciously tracing the edges of the intricate wooden brackets: "Look here..."

Zhang Xian's gaze followed her fingertips, landing on the smoothly curved and exquisitely angled wooden waterwheels. He leaned down, getting closer, and gently adjusted the waterwheel with his calloused fingers.

"Very good." Zhang Xian straightened up, a smile of approval on his face.

"He's quick-witted and gets things right in no time; the angle and seal of the water trough have been modified just right."

This straightforward affirmation warmed Ma Yan's heart, her ears turned bright red, and even her breathing became lighter.

She suppressed her slight excitement and tried to keep her voice steady: "Thanks to the magistrate's guidance! Father also said that it was all thanks to the ideas you provided!"

She turned to the side and pointed to several newly made iron tools piled up in another corner of the shed: "There are also newly made seed drills and plowshares, all of which have been improved quite a bit. The villagers have tried them out and all say they save a lot of effort. Would you like some, Your Excellency...?"

Before she could finish speaking, a gentle and clear voice abruptly cut through the noise in the workers' shed.

"Uncle is here too? What a coincidence."

The sound was like a cool breeze, dispelling the heat and noise of the workers' shed.

Everyone followed the sound.

The light at the entrance was partially blocked by a graceful figure.

Guo Tang, dressed in a pale yellow spring gown with a moon-white gauze shawl over it, and with a delicate silver hairpin in her hair, stood gracefully by the threshold, leading a young maid.

She was slender and graceful, with a face like a newly blossoming pear blossom. Her almond-shaped eyes sparkled with just the right amount of surprise and a smile. Her gaze swept over the people in the shed, finally settling on Zhang Xian and Ma Yan.

His gaze lingered briefly on that indigo-colored Hu-style robe stained with sawdust and oil, before quickly shifting back to Zhang Xian.

Immediately, she moved gracefully forward, her skirt swaying slightly, and gave Zhang Xianying a graceful curtsy.

"After Uncle settled Tang'er and Tang'er, it was truly a rare sight to see them."

Guo Tang raised her head, looking at Zhang Xian with gentle eyes, her tone carrying just the right amount of coquettishness from a junior to an elder.

"Your mother invited you to family dinners several times, but you were always too busy to attend. I never expected that you would come out today to relax and take a walk along the Fen River. I saw what looked like your uncle's figure in the distance, so I took the liberty of coming over, and it really was you!"

Zhang Xian was indeed somewhat surprised.

The Guo family, along with some members of Taoyuan Village, had moved back to Jinyang half a month ago, and he personally arranged for them to stay in a quiet and spacious courtyard in the city.

Guo Huaiyuan was in Jizhou. He felt that as an uncle, he should avoid any impropriety with the women of the Guo family. In addition, he was preoccupied with official duties, so he kept postponing his visit.

"What Tang'er said is true."

Zhang Xian smiled helplessly: "You know perfectly well that Taiyuan is in dire need of rebuilding, and your uncle is so busy I wish I could split myself into eight pieces to do the work."

Guo Tang covered her mouth and chuckled softly, causing the silver leaves on the hairpin to tremble gently.

"Uncle is the busiest man ever! That boy Tang'er talks about you every day at home. Several times he tried to sneak out to look for you, but his mother stopped him. He was so anxious that he was jumping up and down."

Her voice was gentle, and her words conveyed a sense of familiar intimacy.

Ma Yan stood quietly a step behind Zhang Xian.

The faint, elegant fragrance emanating from Guo Tang, the sheen of her clothes, the exquisiteness of her hair, and the natural grace of her every gesture were like invisible needles, pricking her heart again and again.

She subconsciously lowered her head, her gaze falling on her hands, which were stained with black grease and had wood chips stuck between her fingers. A strong sense of shame surged up, burning her cheeks.

She quietly put her hands behind her back and rubbed them hard against the rough fabric.

“If he wants to see me? That’s easy, just have him come.” Zhang Xian’s attention was still on the waterwheel, and he didn’t notice Ma Yan’s sudden stiffness and silence beside him.

"What are you doing keeping such a young child cooped up inside all the time? He should be out running around and having fun." He paused, his gaze returning to Guo Tang's face.

"By the way, Tang'er, what's this...?"

Guo Tang's smile deepened, and her dimples appeared faintly on her cheeks: "I've been kept under house arrest by my mother for too long, so I came out to get some fresh air. I came to this waterside and saw how clear it was, and I was just looking for a place to sit down."

As she spoke softly, she naturally turned to the side and nodded slightly to the maid behind her.

The maidservant immediately stepped forward and deftly opened the lid of the exquisite food box.

Inside the food box, several plates of pastries were arranged naturally. The crystal-clear jade dew cake was adorned with golden dried osmanthus flowers, and the small lotus pastries were layered on top of each other with a crust as thin as a cicada's wing. There were also a few green rice dumplings coated with emerald green mugwort powder, their colors fresh and tempting.

Guo Tang stretched out her slender fingers and carefully picked up a piece of jade dew cake.

She didn't hand it over directly, but first took out a clean white silk handkerchief from her sleeve, carefully placed it in her palm, and then gently lifted the warm and smooth pastry and handed it to Zhang Xian.

Her movements carried a gentle and reserved quality unique to young women, yet her eyes held a hint of expectation and an almost imperceptible intimacy.

"Uncle, you've worked so hard, why don't you try this?" Her voice softened even more.

"This is something Tang'er learned from a cook from the south when she was in Weize Pass. It took her some effort. Why don't you try it and see if it suits your taste?"

Zhang Xian's gaze was drawn to a tiny tenon joint on the waterwheel model, and he subconsciously hummed in agreement.

His fingertips inevitably brushed against Guo Tang's fingertips, which were holding the handkerchief.

Guo Tang's hand paused almost imperceptibly, and two blushes suddenly rose on her fair cheeks.

She quickly lowered her eyes, her long eyelashes fluttering like startled butterfly wings, and her fingers holding the silk handkerchief curled up slightly, gripping the plain handkerchief even tighter.

Zhang Xian, however, was completely unaware of this; his mind was still preoccupied with estimating the efficiency of the wooden buckets and the water flow.

He took the jade dew cake, didn't even look at it, and put it straight into his mouth.

The soft, sweet taste melts on the tongue, with a rich aroma of osmanthus honey, making it truly refreshing and pleasant.

"good."

He casually offered a compliment, his gaze still lingering on the waterwheel model, pondering whether a certain lever transmission structure could be further optimized.

All of this was observed by Ma Yan, who was standing to the side.

She bit down hard on the soft flesh inside her lower lip, her gaze returning to the waterwheel model.

However, the exquisite wooden buckets and smooth lines before her eyes now seemed blurry and unfamiliar, no longer able to hold her full focus and passion as they had before.

She just stared, her fingernails unconsciously digging into the rough, oily grime of her palm.

(End of this chapter)