Aspirations

Chapter 144 Saints have impermanent minds, and take the hearts of the people as their heart

Xia Xiang responded to Lian Ruohan with a knowing smile: "Wang Wei's "In the Mountains" is about the scenery in the mountains in late autumn and early winter. Its lofty ambitions are inconsistent."

Lian Ruohan chuckled: "It's enough to be consistent with this situation and this situation. The so-called "Autumn Ci" written by Xia Xianzun just now is not very consistent with the situation of Zhending. Chilling, cold, where is there any poetic and picturesque? Look at the fields, there are still refugees picking up things to eat, around the mounds, there are huts and tents, and there are people living in them. As a county lord, you want to Introduce poetry to Bi Xiao', or worry about the country and the people, and sigh at night?"

Xia Xiang has long seen the displaced people in the fields and the huts in the wilderness. He sighed: "Those who know me are even the lady. In the Tang Dynasty, one grain of millet was planted in spring, and ten thousand seeds were harvested in autumn. There is no idle land in the world." , the peasants are still starving to death. Compared with the Tang Dynasty, Daxia is much more powerful now. Look outside the city, there are a lot of idle fields and no one is cultivating them. Do you know why?"

Cao Shuli tilted her head and asked, "Could it be that the people are lazy, or is there not enough manpower?"

"Neither of them." Xiao Jia followed Xia Xiang, and she and Mantuo walked side by side, "Zhending is located in the hinterland of the Central Plains, with a flat river. Compared with Lingshou Mountain, there is more land and less land. There is no shortage of fields. It's just that the terrain outside the city is relatively low. It was originally a wetland and a salty land, so no crops grew."

Cao Shuli nodded again and again: "That's how it is. Keeping a large field empty, but unable to grow crops, there are nine out of ten unsatisfactory things in life. If the field in front of you becomes a good field, it is a great thing for these refugees to have land to grow. .”

Xia Xiang nodded and smiled: "Ms. Cao is a bodhisattva."

Cao Shuli blushed slightly: "Xia Xianzun made fun of me. I grew up in the capital since I was a child, and I don't know the sufferings of the world. This time I left the capital and went all the way south, so I have seen the hardships of the people's life. With... Mu Luoyan Nandu , the north wind is cold on the river. My home is on the Xiangshui River, far away from the clouds of Chu. The town is full of tears, and the lonely sail looks at the sky. I want to ask questions in the maze, and the evening on the sea is long."

"Meng Haoran's "Early Cold and Conceived" is envious of rural life and intends to go back to seclusion, but he also wants to ask officials to do things to expand his career. The scenery and thoughts are intertwined. Is the poem that the servant likes to recite the most?" Xia Xiang asked with a smile, Cao Shuli is at an innocent age, how could she have such a dilemma?
Cao Shuli lowered her head and smiled: "Xia Xianzun guessed right. Now it's time for Mrs. Xiao to recite poems."

Xiao Jia thought about it for a while, and said, "Autumn is approaching in the sky, and the shadow of the moon is clear in the world. There are no toads in the river, and the rabbits who make medicine will live forever..."

Lian Ruohan and Cao Shuli looked at each other, both feeling guilty and uneasy.What Xiao Jia sang was Du Fu's "Moon". The moon is full in the sky, but she is alone in the world, but she is very lonely.The two of them understood that Xiao Jia knew Xia Xiang first, but Xia Xiang only had a relationship with her as a brother and sister, not a man and a woman, and it was inevitable for her to be sentimental for a while.

Xia Xiang naturally heard Xiao Jia's implication, and wanted to comfort Xiao Jia a few words, but before he could speak, Cao Shujun said first: "Miss Xiao, please don't be sad, I wish to be with Miss Xiao, and never leave. No matter what Whether Mrs. Xiao hits or scolds, I guarantee that I will not fight back when I beat you..."

"Mr. Cao Lang, don't be sentimental, Mrs. Xiao doesn't need your company." Zheng Hao took a step forward and stood between Cao Shujun and Xiao Jia. He stretched out his hands to prevent Cao Shujun from moving closer to Xiao Jia. "Xiao Niangzi's favorite person is a young talent who is as young and promising as I am, and has a good life."

Cao Shujuan was very angry immediately: "What Zheng Tongpan means is that I am not a young talent? You are still facing the wind, autumn is deep, and all the leaves have fallen. You are so naked and ugly."

Everyone laughed.

As soon as they looked up, everyone had already arrived on the mound.

The mound is not big, with a radius of one or two miles and a height of less than ten feet. I don't know when it was accumulated in a place.There is no grass on the mound, but there is a wooden pavilion.In the pavilion, there are tables, chairs and railings.

Standing on the mound, looking around, you can have a panoramic view of the whole Zhending City.The Fuzun in the distance and the county government across the river, the gates of the east city and the north city, and the Dafo Temple shining brightly in the sun.

Xia Xiang was full of emotions for a while, and said in a loud voice: "If you let go of three autumn leaves, you can bloom flowers in February. You can cross the river with thousands of feet of waves, and enter the bamboo with ten thousand poles. When dealing with people, you should be like the wind, which can blow off the golden leaves of autumn and be able to bloom." Blowing open the beautiful flowers in spring. Blowing across the river can set up huge waves of thousands of feet, blowing into the bamboo forest can make thousands of bamboos tilt. It is also called the way of saints. Although Confucianism, Taoism and Legalism have very different views on everything in the world, they have surprisingly the same views on one point—sages have impermanent hearts, and they take the hearts of the people as their heart!"

Zheng Hao nodded in praise and said: "Although I don't agree with Xia Xianzun's saying that people should be like the wind, I agree that saints have impermanent minds and take the hearts of the people as their heart. The ancient saints gathered people to form a family, and gathered families And for the country, gather the country for the world!"

"Mr. Xia Lang, since the sage has no permanent heart and takes the hearts of the people as his heart, today's outing must be for the sake of the people's suffering?" Cao Shuli was clever, and from Xia Xiang's poems and words, he could tell whether Xia Xiangming was actually on an outing To plan something, I deliberately proposed it so that Xia Xiang could follow the trend.

Xia Xiang looked sideways, and saw Cao Shuli's hands were like catkins, her skin was like fat, her collar was like a grub, and her teeth were like a gourd rhinoceros.With a crescent head, smiling sweetly, and looking forward to her beautiful eyes, she couldn't help thinking: "Ms. Cao is really smart. As a county lord, I always care about the suffering of the people. People are on an outing, but my heart is on the displaced people. look……"

Everyone looked in the direction of Xia Xiang's finger, and saw a rickety old man leading a three or four-year-old child, looking for food in a barren field.No crops are grown here, and weeds are overgrown. What food can be eaten?Nothing but grains of wheat dropped by birds, or unpalatable berries.

The old man has gray hair, is at least sixty years old, and is thin and weak.The three- and four-year-old children are also extremely thin, and they are not as cheerful as children of the same age. They follow the old man weakly, and keep looking down for something.

"If this large piece of salt land can be turned into fertile land, it would be great." Tears flickered in Xia Xiang's eyes, one old and one young, one should live in peace, the other is in the Mood for Love, but can't eat How can he feel at ease as a parent official and the ruler of a county?

"What's the matter, I'll take out ten taels of silver and give it to the old people and children later, so that they will have no worries about food and clothing in the future, it's much better than us here here only knowing nothing but sadness." Cao Shujun took out an ingot from his bosom Silver is about to go down.

"Don't worry." Xia Xiang stopped Cao Shujun and pointed to the distance, "Teaching a man to fish is worse than giving him a fish. Can you manage one old and one young, or tens of thousands of one old and one young? "

There is a large hut in the distance, and many people can be vaguely seen coming in and out. According to a rough estimate, there are at least a thousand people.Cao Shujun stopped in his tracks, took back the money, and smiled: "Even if the good times are always there, I'm afraid I can't support so many people. But then again, the affairs of the government should be resolved by the government, not by the government." Folk people contribute money and efforts, right Xia Xianzun?"

Xia Xiang knocked Cao Shujun on the head: "You are very happy to let you take ten taels of silver. If you let you take 10 taels of silver, you will be in pain, right? How can you save all sentient beings with such a thoughtful mind? Ascension by day?"

"I'm not in pain, but I don't have 10 taels of silver at all." Cao Shujuan rolled his eyes in disbelief, "Don't make trouble with me, your family's wife is as rich as an enemy, and 10 taels of silver is too much for her. It’s just a drop in the bucket, why not let her take the money out?”

A gust of autumn wind blew up the thatch on the roofs of several thatched huts suddenly, and immediately attracted several people yelling and scrambling to catch up with the thatch that was blown away by the wind.In the end, he failed to catch up, and the thatch was blown far away by the wind and disappeared.The pursuers sat on the ground, wailing loudly.

Lian Ruohan has never seen such a scene since she was a child. She couldn't help feeling sad, and said with emotion: "In August and autumn, the high wind howled and rolled up the triple thatch on my house... I didn't expect that the Great Xia has been peaceful for so many years, and the people live happily. It's so difficult, I think I didn't know how to save and wasted a lot of silver taels. Xia Xianzun, from now on, I will donate 1 taels of silver every month to the poor people."

When Lian Ruohan said this, everyone was shocked.

1 taels of silver is not a small number, 12 taels a month is enough to have 10 taels of silver in a year, and the annual tax of some small counties is less than [-] taels of silver.

"No, and there is no need." Xia Xiang smiled and shook his head to reject Lian Ruohan's kindness. He walked down the mound with his hands behind his back, "I already have a plan for how to properly resettle these refugees. Mrs. Lian's kindness, It can be left to make long-term plans after resettling the refugees.”

"How to arrange it?" Seeing Xia Xiang's confident appearance, Lian Ruohan couldn't help being curious, "Quickly tell me, my little girl really wants to know what Xia Xiang's big plan is."

"Go, talk as you go." Xia Xiang nodded slightly to Lian Ruohan, then smiled lightly at Cao Shuli, walked down the mound, and walked south.

"Aren't you going to the hut?" The hut was on the east side, and Cao Shujun took the lead and walked a dozen steps toward the east. When he turned around, everyone turned to the south, so he had to trot all the way and followed, "What's there in the south? Why are you going to the south? Wait for me, you wait for me, without me, Yushu Linfeng Xiaolang, you will lose a lot of brilliance."

No one paid any attention to Cao Shujuan's self-promotion, Cao Shujuan made fun of it, and moved to Mantuo's side, giggling: "Ms. Mantuo, do you think I and Mrs. Xiao are more suitable, or Zheng Tongpan?"

Man Tuo responded with a cold look from Cao Shujun: "Zheng Tongjuan is too extreme, but you... are too frivolous."

"What do you mean? What do you mean?" Cao Shujun quit, "Does it mean that Zheng Tongpan and I are not good enough for Mrs. Xiao? Zheng Tongpan, you come to judge, but Mrs. Mantuo insists that I and Mrs. Xiao You are not good enough for Mrs. Xiao."

Xiao Jia turned around and glared at Cao Shujun: "Mr. Cao, can you live in peace? You see Zheng Tongpan has a gentleman's demeanor, calm as the wind, calm as a pine, unlike you, talking nonsense and talking nonsense .”

"I..." Cao Shujun's face was tanned by choking, and he smiled again after a while, "I am a madman from Chu, and Feng Ge laughs at Kong Qiu. Holding a green jade staff, I am heading towards the Yellow Crane Tower. The five mountains are not far away to find immortals, I like to travel to famous mountains in my life. Lushan Mountain shows off the South Douban, and the screen is full of clouds and brocades... I am a fake idiot, but I just want to entertain you. Alas, those who know me say that I am worried, and those who don’t know say that I want it? "

Xia Xiang turned around and glanced at Cao Shujun, and said with a smile, "Cao Langjun, something happened to you. There is a tile kiln in front of you. You should go ahead and find out."

"What are you looking for?" Cao Shujun watched from a distance, and sure enough, there was a tile kiln about a mile ahead, and he suddenly regained his energy.

"If you want me to clarify something, you are too useless." Xia Xiang deliberately provoked him.

"Understood, understood!" Cao Shujun nodded repeatedly, and responded to Xia Xiang's understanding look, and then strode forward.

"What did Xia Xianzun ask Cao Langjun to find out?" Zheng Hao was very curious about the tacit understanding between Xia Xiang and Cao Shujun.

"It's just to let him have something to do and save him from making noise." Xia Xiang smiled slyly, "Don't mention him, let him go to work, let's talk about cleaning up the mud in the Hutuo River first."

Cao Shuli covered her mouth and smiled, she knew Cao Shujun best, Cao Shujun's fickle personality was perverse, not to mention her, even his father sometimes had no way to deal with him, and only Mr. Xia Lang could play with Cao Shujun at will , it's strange, Cao Shujun just obeyed Mr. Xia Lang's words.

Thinking about it again, don't talk about Cao Shujun, even she can't forget Mr. Xia Lang?Even my father often mentions Mr. Xia Lang at home, saying that Mr. Xia Lang has roughness in his chest, if he is calm and unhurried, he will become a great weapon.Not only his father, Mr. Xia Lang also won the appreciation of Li Dingshan, the approval of Song Chaodu, and the approval of King Jing and King Qing. He was famous in the court at such a young age, and was regarded as a serious problem by King Xing. Another worrying man.

"Why clean up the silt of the Hutuo River?" Lian Ruohan was puzzled and dissatisfied, "Didn't you say that you want to resettle the refugees?"

"Arranging refugees and cleaning up the silt of the Hutuo River are actually the same thing." Xia Xiangchao solemnly crossed his hands and saluted, "I still need Zheng Tongpan's full assistance in this matter."

Zheng Hao nodded proudly: "As long as both public and private are fair and aboveboard, there is absolutely no reason for me not to support it."

"Thank you in advance, Zheng Tongpan." Xia Xiang continued to walk forward, "In addition to Zheng Tongpan's great help, we also need the support of Lian Niangzi, Ma Yuanwai and Xu Yuanwai to make it work."

"What's Xia Xianzun's plan, tell me quickly." Lian Ruohan couldn't hold back a bit, and eagerly looked forward to it, "As long as you can make old age useful, strong and useful, young and old, you can be respectful." Those who are widowed, lonely, lonely, and disabled are all taken care of, men have a share, women have a home, and the little girl is willing to follow the Xia County Lord and do the work of dogs and horses."

(End of this chapter)