Wei Ni

A tree as big as two people's embrace starts from a tiny seed, and a towering building starts from a pile of earth.

No matter how eager he was to return to the capital Luoyang, Xiahou Hui's top priority was to ensure a complete victory in the Liaodong campaign. Moreover, only if the Liaodong campaign was victorious would he be qualified to stand tall in the government.
After another night's rest, Xiahou Hui quickly led his troops back to the Jieshi Mountain outpost.

There was no conversation along the way. When he entered the camp, he smiled and responded to the many White Horse Volunteers. After letting Han Long and other troops rest, he went to Ding Mi's house.

Without further ado, he first roughly stated that Guanqiu Jian had already accepted the "food consumption" strategy, and then directly conveyed the matter of asking Ding Mi to go to Ji County.

Ding Mi did not refuse, nor was he surprised.

Instead, he smiled and praised: "Guanqiu Envoy has the demeanor of an elder! Zhiquan is now working with him, and we should be close friends. It will definitely benefit his career in the future."

"Hey~"

Hearing this, Xiahou Hui, who had already taken his seat, chuckled, raised his water bag and drank slowly without saying a word.

A scheming person like Ding Mi is used to analyzing the pros and cons and thinking about how to take advantage of whatever happens, so there is no need for him to tell him what to do after going to Ji County.

But Ding Mi had something to ask him.

"Zhi Quan, why don't you send five or six young men to fight with Wei Yangyuan?"

He said so, which made Xiahou Hui raise his eyebrows.

When he led the Zhenhu Department to Jizhou Yecheng to station, he brought a total of 40 troops; after being exiled to Liaoxi Yuguan, he kept 10 of them as assistants in the Zhenhu Department and brought 30 people to Youzhou. More than 10 of them were Lu's followers, and they also followed Lu Fan to Qianhong's army, so he only had more than 10 young men to serve him.

In addition, Han Long recruited soldiers who could fight in the battlefield, so he handed these young men over to Ding Mi for management. They were too young to fight in the battlefield, but they could all read and write, so they were more than qualified to be used as minor clerks to help deal with paperwork.

Moreover, Xiahou Hui originally wanted to train them to become civil officials and low-level military officers in the army.

Now Ding Mi actually wanted to give five or six to Wei Shu right away. There must be a reason for this, which naturally made Xiahou Hui look sideways.

It's not that he can't bear it.

Instead, he felt strange in his heart: Wei Shu was also a soldier, so wouldn't it be the same whether he was equipped with a young man or not?
Could it be that Ding Mi was planning to go to Ji County and ask Guanqiu Jian to recruit Wei Shu as his assistant?
If that's the case, isn't it a bit too ugly to eat like that?

After all, he had arranged for Lu Fan to follow Qian Hong, who was in charge of the Wuhuan cavalry.
"Yan Jing, don't hide your intentions."

After a brief pause, Xiahou Hui asked softly, "What is the purpose of separating the young troops from Wei Yangyuan?"

"It is the Fei Ru Zuo family that is interested."

Ding Mi responded, rummaged through the desk for a while, found two letters and handed them to Xiahou Hui, "I think this matter is beneficial to Zhiquan, and Wei Yangyuan is not young anymore, so I thought of going with the flow."

As fat as Zuo’s?

Can't you just drop that scholarly posturing and just say what you want to say?

Glancing at him with some displeasure, Xiahou Hui took the two letters, spread them out on the desk, and read them carefully.

One of the letters was written in the voice of the seventy-year-old grandfather of the Zuo family.

Of course, it began with some flattering remarks, and then recorded in detail the process of Zuo Junbo going to Liucheng to persuade the remaining pro-Yuan Wuhuan tribes to surrender. Finally, the topic changed and praised Wei Shu's character.

Finally, he claimed that he had a legitimate granddaughter who was very beautiful and virtuous, and could marry Wei Shu, who was a good match. After asking Wei Shu about the matter, he learned that Wei Shu was an orphan and Xiahou Hui treated him like a son or nephew, so he wrote a letter to ask Xiahou Hui if he could help them get a good son-in-law.

Even the dowry has been prepared in advance.

Not to mention the dozens of carts of wealth, but also a hundred private soldiers of the Zuo family were given as a dowry.

Xiahou Hui understood this immediately.

Earlier, when chatting with Liaoxi Governor Fu Rong, Fu Rong mentioned that the Zuo family planned to select one hundred private soldiers to follow Zuo Junbo to join the army and avenge the humiliation suffered by Gongsun Yuan in the past.

Now that Zuo Junbo has surrendered the remaining pro-Yuan Wuhuan tribes for the court, Guanqiu Jian will certainly have to report to the imperial court to record his merits and give him a position. In addition, since Xiahou Hui had previously revealed that he would recruit him into the central army in Luoyang, the Zuo family will naturally not allow a hundred private soldiers to accompany him.

Serving in the Luoyang Central Army~
Even Xiahou Hui, who was the garrison general, did not dare to bring too many troops with him. How could Zuo Junbo dare to bring a hundred private soldiers with him!
Wei Shu's letters are much simpler.

He just mentioned the process of going to Liucheng in general, and then added a sentence to Xiahou Hui regarding the hospitality of the Zuo family, "Shu, it's all up to the general," and that was it.

"Yan Jing's intention."
Therefore, Xiahou Hui closed the letter, twirled his beard and thought for a moment, then looked up at Ding Mi and asked, "Are you planning to let Yang Yuan stay in Youzhou to serve?"

"Yep."

Nodding, Ding Mi revealed all his despicable ways without hiding anything.

"I know that Zhiquan thinks highly of Wei Yangyuan and intends to train him in the direction of a shepherd, but Zhiquan cannot deny that under the current Nine-Rank System, it is too difficult for him to succeed as a civil servant with his background. Now, he has participated in the surrender of the Wuhuan, and Guanqiu Shijun also happens to want to promote his achievements. It would be better to let him enter the official career in Youzhou and participate in the war against Liaodong as an official to accumulate experience and merits, so that his future path can be smoother. Moreover."

Having said this, he lowered his voice.

"Furthermore, since Zhiquan recommended to your majesty that Zhongquan stay in Liaodong in the future, you should prepare a few helpers for Zhongquan in advance. Guanqiu Shijun is an old friend of your majesty, and your majesty cannot let him stay in Youzhou for too long. Qian Shiyi's father has made great contributions, and he will definitely be promoted and transferred to another place in the future. In this case, Lu Junsheng is the only one left in Youzhou, and at his age, it is difficult for him to help Zhongquan."

"But Wei Yangyuan is different. With the support of the Zuo family and the goodwill of the pro-Yuan Wuhuan tribe leaders who have just surrendered, it will be easy for him to gain a foothold in Youzhou. Perhaps in just two or three years, he will be able to lead an army on his own. Moreover, he and Jun Sheng are on good terms, and they can take care of each other."

"Um"

Xiahou Hui, who was listening with his eyes lowered and his beard twirled, nodded and snorted slightly, but did not respond immediately.

Ding Mi also saw this and couldn't help but add, "Zhi Quan hesitated because he felt that such an arrangement was unfair to Wei Yang Yuan? If so, then Zhi Quan was blinded by one thing. Zhi Quan has always treated Yang Yuan and Jun Sheng equally, and Yang Yuan is older than Jun Sheng. Now Jun Sheng has been sent to the Wuhuan Tuqi by Zhi Quan, so how can he keep Yang Yuan by his side to continue to be a commoner? Besides, although Yang Yuan is a reserved person and taciturn, he never lies. Now that he is offering his daughter to the Zuo family as a wife, and he has not refused and let Zhi Quan make the decision on his behalf, doesn't it mean that he agrees!"

Yes!

Xiahou Hui slapped his forehead in annoyance, a look of sudden realization on his face.

He was just being too picky.

He felt that it was unfair to Wei Shu to use marriage as a means to win over the Zuo family and achieve his goal of placing his own confidants in Youzhou.

But I forgot to think about the problem from Wei Shu's perspective.

In today's world of blind marriages, in-laws pay attention to matching and consider the support of the family. Marrying the daughter of the Zuo family to Wei Shu is a good choice for Wei Shu.

After all, men all have the ambition to achieve success.

Wei Shu has come to serve him as a subordinate, so how can he not yearn for achievements?
"Just follow Yan Jing's advice."

Xiahou Hui nodded in agreement after thinking it through. After a pause, he bowed his hands and thanked him, "It's not Yan Jing, I'm obsessed! I have little experience and am ignorant of human nature. I hope Yan Jing can give me more guidance in the future."

But Ding Mi rolled his eyes at him, "We are brothers, why are you being so polite?"

It was just a criticism, but the smile on his face became very bright.

This is what he likes most about Xiahou Hui.

Be neither arrogant nor proud, be humble, know that everyone has their own strengths, and never be stubborn.

If he had previously devoted himself to serving as an aide in order to restore his family's reputation, now he sincerely wanted to lend a helping hand to Xiahou Hui so that he could achieve something successful.

The next day, early in the morning.

Xiahou Hui, who personally escorted Ding Mi more than ten miles away, felt that he had nothing to do for a while after returning to the military camp.

Zhang Hu and Qian Hong are still in Youbeiping, cooperating with local bureaucrats to incorporate the Xianbei people into the register. It is estimated that it will take them half a month to return to Liaoxi County.

Moreover, Xiahou Hui also wrote a letter and asked the postman to deliver it to them.

On the pretext that severe winter was approaching and there was nothing to do in Jieshi Mountain, they were allowed to return to Liaoxi and were stationed directly in the military camp outside Guzhu City.

Zuo Junbo and Wei Shu are now in Zuojiawu Fort, Feiru.

It was even later when they arrived in western Liaoning.

They would not come until A Luo Pan went to the capital Luoyang to pay tribute, the imperial court appointed Youbeiping Wuhuan Chanyu Kou Loudun, Liaoxi Wuhuan Governor Wang Huliu and others, and Guanqiu Jian relocated thousands of their tribesmen inland.

Calculating the time, the earliest would be March of the following year.

At that time, the Zhenhu tribe that was attacking Liaodong had almost reached Liaoxi.

Therefore, Xiahou Hui also asked Ding Mi, who was going to Ji County, to take a letter to Zuo Jia and Wei Shu, asking them to take advantage of the winter when there was nothing to do to get married.

Well, if not, why don’t we go to Guzhu City to visit the governor Fu Rong in a few days?
Since Guanqiu Jian has agreed to the "consumption of food" tactic, it is only right and reasonable for me to go and inform him.

I just happened to go over and see the school lieutenant Wang Qi. I have been in Liaoxi for so long, and I haven't had time to talk to him!
When visiting the prefect Fu Rong, he had the "food consumption" tactic. Would visiting him, who was also very familiar with Liaodong, bring him new surprises?

Xiahou Hui sat in his room, thinking out of boredom.

“Knock, knock~”

Soon, the sound of fingers knocking on the door interrupted his thoughts.

When he looked up, he saw a white horse Yicong smiling and bowing, "General, good news, someone is coming!"

What a mess.

Xiahou Hui was a little confused by the incoherent words, but he also noticed that there seemed to be several people coming to the door, so he nodded, stood up and walked out of the house.

It turned out that the home he had been looking forward to for a long time had finally arrived.

Following them came the attendant Zhang Li who was escorting the ink maker and an unexpected person: his nephew Xiahou Zhuang.

When Xiahou Hui saw him, he did not dare to recognize him for a moment, even though he had met Xiahou Zhuang when he had returned from Huainan to the capital Luoyang and made a special detour to Taishan County to meet his fourth brother Xiahou Wei.

Well, Xiahou Zhuang is Xiahou Wei’s second son.

His courtesy name is Zhongrong. He will be sixteen years old in two months.

He is talented and handsome, but he is the son that gives Xiahou Wei the most headaches.

Because Xiahou Wei was fond of chivalry in his early years, his family married him off early in order to make him settle down. However, he did not delay in having children, and his children are almost the same age as his elder brother Xiahou Heng's children, but his chivalrous spirit did not diminish in the slightest.

Because of this, Xiahou Heng had a lot of headaches in his early years.

Only when his second son, Xiahou Zhuang, grew up did Xiahou Heng feel a little comforted.

Because Xiahou Zhuang grew up in the Anning Pavilion Marquisate, although he did not fall behind in his studies, he was active and chivalrous by nature. Even when he was brought by Xiahou Wei to discipline him, he still caused trouble. This also made Xiahou Wei experience the pain of his elder brother in his early years, and he also knew that evil will be punished by evil, and the law of heaven will not spare anyone!
So it was no surprise that Xiahou Hui was stunned for a moment when he saw him.

So, my fourth brother is trying to divert the blame to someone else and rather let his friends die than let me die?
Well, that's not right.

Why are you running around everywhere instead of staying in Taishan County?
After coming to Youzhou, will you still have the chance to marry the daughter of Taiyang family and become Sima Shi's brother-in-law as per historical trajectory?
"Nephew has met Uncle Six."

Xiahou Zhuang, who had no idea what he was thinking, bowed respectfully as soon as they met, and took out three letters from his bosom with a smile on his face, "Uncle Six, these are letters from my uncle, my father, and Aunt Six. Previously, my family planned to send them by post, but later my uncle knew that my nephew would come, so he asked my nephew to deliver them instead."

I was wondering why there has been no news for so long!

It turns out it was because of you~
Xiahou Hui, who had privately complained about the slow speed of the postal service in the past few days, showed a look of realization, took the letter and put it in his sleeve pocket, helped Xiahou Zhuang up and took a rough look at him, then patted his shoulder affectionately and praised, "I haven't seen you for more than a year, Zhongrong has become more handsome. Well, come in and rest first, I'll talk to you later when I'm done with some things."

"only."

Xiahou Zhuang responded obediently, picked up his bag and went into the house.

Zhang Li's followers and the ink-making craftsmen standing by also hurriedly bowed to Xiahou Hui and said, "Master."

"Well, it's been a hard journey."

Nodding with a smile, Xiahou Hui walked towards the house where Han Long and his troops were staying, "Follow me."

Since ancient times, there has been a distinction between the high and the low. His nephew Xiahou Zhuang can live in his house, but Zhang Li and others must be placed in the residence of his subordinates. However, Xiahou Zhuang is a man who can't sit still. He casually threw his bag into the corner of the house and followed with a smile, not caring at all whether this action would disturb his sixth uncle.

After having Han Long gather all his troops, Xiahou Hui told him about making pine soot ink.

At first, these troops did not feel much, thinking that Xiahou Hui was just following the style of the wealthy families to use human and material resources to make money. But when Xiahou Hui claimed that he would not take a penny of the profit from making pine soot ink, and all of it would be shared equally between their families and the Zuo family who sold it on their behalf, they were all moved.

Even Han Long is not immune to this.

You know, the Zuo family has had people serving as officials in Liaoxi County for generations and have a dense network of connections. And with a little reliance on Xiahou Hui's reputation, there will be no problem selling pine soot ink in the entire Youzhou!
They will not be suppressed by the government or harassed by other powerful families.

In this way, the profits are considerable.

Even after dividing it equally with the Zuo family, their family would no longer have to work on the farm or weaving and would be able to have enough food and clothing without having to worry about it.

Moreover, according to the current social trends, if those who are recruited as followers do not want their families to become followers, the master will only give them a one-time settlement fee.

There is no one like Xiahou Hui who directly plans a livelihood for his family.

"General, let's divide it into three parts."

After hesitating for a moment, Han Long used his eyes to seek the opinions of other troops, and then he began to decline, saying, "We all rely on you for food, clothing, and daily expenses. Now that my family has made such a big profit, I really feel ashamed to accept it."

"Is it a lot? Not much."

After a joking remark, Xiahou Hui calmed down and said, "As I said before, Yun Cong and others risked their lives to follow me, and I can't sit idly by and watch your family have no means of livelihood. Besides, Youzhou is bitterly cold, and compared to Jizhou, Sizhou and other places, there are fewer wealthy noble families, and the demand for pine soot ink will not be too much, so I will not compete with your family for profit. If the profit is good by then, you can use it to buy some land or hire a teacher to teach your children to read and write."

After these words, the soldiers' breathing became heavier, and some of them even had slightly red eyes.

They all came from poor families. In addition to working in the fields during the busy farming season, they also had to work as hunters, woodcutters, or guards for wealthy merchant caravans to ensure that their families would not suffer from hunger and cold. They could not even think of saving money to send their children to school.

Have a chance to learn to spell.
You can be an accountant for a wealthy merchant caravan, become a senior official in a settlement, or even get a job as a clerk in a county government if you are lucky! Xiahou Hui's move gave their children a chance to break away from their status as farmers.

Therefore, Han Long did not refuse anymore.

As a person who has some knowledge of literature and art, he knows the difference in education between people from the lower classes.

Instead, he stood up with his troops and bowed to Xiahou Hui respectfully and solemnly to express his gratitude.

The men of Yan were generous and sad, most of them were not good at speaking, but they would silently remember the kindness of others in their hearts, waiting for the opportunity to repay. It was also from this moment that these troops who had originally gathered together because of Han Long officially returned to Xiahou Hui.

For example, Shi San, who was born into a hunter family and was particularly good at shooting, glanced at Xiahou Zhuang after paying his respects, and then asked Xiahou Hui with a grateful look on his face, "General, how about I take a few people to Jieshi Mountain later to see if I can hunt a few grouse and bring them back for you to taste?"

Little general?
Hearing this, Xiahou Hui was stunned for a moment before realizing that it was referring to Xiahou Zhuang.

I was thinking of declining and saying it was not necessary to go through so much trouble, but when I saw the sincerity and expectation in Shi San's eyes, I came to my senses.

The common people in the border areas are the most simple and honest. After receiving a favor, they always think about doing something for their master to the best of their ability, and Shi San, who spoke suddenly, is one of them.

If you refuse, it would be unkind.

Therefore, Xiahou Hui nodded and agreed, and even said jokingly, "Okay. Although grouse are delicious, you can't be stingy with arrows if you encounter a herd of wild boars and deer!"

"Hahaha~"

Everyone burst into laughter at the same time.

Shi San, who was teased, was scratching his temples and laughing.

Being a hunter, how could he let go of a herd of wild boars and deer just for a few grouse?

After some laughter and chatter, Xiahou Hui continued to give some instructions on how to make pine soot ink, then got up and went back to his room.

With Han Long around, he didn't need to worry about arranging people to take Zhang Li and the ink makers to Wuzhong County, Youbeiping, or how to gather the families of all the troops to work together.

But after walking a few steps, Xiahou Zhuang came up to him with excitement in his eyes, "Sixth Uncle, can you let me go hunting with you?"

No wonder Fourth Brother is so troubled by you!

In your mind, a long-awaited conversation between uncle and nephew is not as important as hunting?

Muttering to himself, Xiahou Hui waved his hand, "It's up to you. But remember, don't try to be stubborn and cause trouble, or I'll ground you for a month!"

"Hehe, I will definitely not let Sixth Uncle have the chance to punish my nephew!"

Xiahou Zhuang replied in a very casual manner, then ran to find Shi San in a familiar manner.

Shuzi!

No matter how big or small!
Smiling and shaking his head, Xiahou Hui slowly returned home.

After sitting down, he took out three letters from home from the inner pocket of his sleeve and placed them on the desk.

After hesitating for a moment, he opened the letter from his wife Wang Yuanji first. After reading just the first two lines, he was overjoyed.

He has a son! (End of this chapter)