Ma Erniang's Splendid Pastoral

Chapter 150
Xia Zhen and Ma Min'er were startled, and jumped out of the carriage one after another, "Come on—"

Zhang Nianmei stepped forward immediately: "The King of Beijun——"

"Is there any news about Turkic and Liao sneak attacks recently?"

"No." Zhang Nianmei shook her head.

The new gentleman who took Zhuang Hao's place - Wei Ren also shook his head, "General, during this time, the entire border is fairly peaceful, there is no large-scale war, if it is a small scale, the general will not be trapped, I will ask first Come on."

Xia Zhen nodded.

Wei Ren waved as he walked forward, and quickly spoke to the guards who came, and after a few words, he quickly turned to Xia Zhen, "Return to the general, it is not foreigners who surround the general, but Liang People from the state city."

"Civilian?" Ma Miner asked suspiciously.

Wei Ren nodded.

This is not easy, no wonder the general will be surrounded with [-] troops, it can't be fought at all, very passive, Ma Miner looked at Xia Zhen.

I saw him with an annoyed look on his face: "What's going on?"

Hearing the question, the guard stepped forward cautiously, "Go back to the general, there is nothing to eat in the city, they surrounded the general and wanted to rob the army food."

Is that so?

Xia Zhen thought of the desolation of the west, of the hardships of the west, and thought of everything, but she never thought that she would encounter such a difficult problem when she arrived here.

Playing hide-and-seek with the emperor, pretending to be foolish with the dignitaries in Beijing, Xia Zhen felt that he had found the way, but food...he couldn't help it.

"General, in March and April, we have no food, and we have no food." Wei Ren reminded.

Of course Xia Zhen knew. He had been in the army for more than ten years. Of course he knew when there was food and when there was no food. His brows were furrowed tightly, and he could kill flies. "Write to Mr. Tian and ask him to adjust the food first."

"General, Pingding is more than 1000 miles away from here. It may be too late to transport the grain here."

"What about it?" Xia Zhen asked the new staff. He was a talent newly trained by his grandfather in recent years. He had been placed in the military headquarters in Fucheng. Without Zhuang Hao, the old general picked him up and transferred him to his side.

"General, adjust the food nearby." Wei Ren bowed his hands and saluted.

"The closest to Liangzhou is Qingzhou. Qingzhou Prefecture is more than 300 miles away from here. One day and one night, it can barely do it." Xia Zhen analyzed, "It's just that the garrison of Qingzhou Prefecture..."

Zhang Nianmei said softly: "They were originally independent, but now they are under the jurisdiction of King Beijun, I'm afraid..."

"Beijun King, are you Baitiao Grain?" Ma Min'er asked suddenly.

"Bai Tiao? What do you mean?"

Ma Min'er explained: "It means that you force people to take food."

Xia Zhen was stunned for a moment, "It belongs to me, and I have the right to adjust the food and make it cheaper."

Ma Min'er nodded: "But you are not familiar with them. You are worried that the transfer order will not be implemented, but the food has to be transferred. Is it because of hesitation?"

"Yeah." Xia Zhen didn't deny it.

Wei Ren looked at the future general's wife, his shrewd eyebrows twitched, "Madam, do you want to buy it with money?"

Ma Min'er frowned, looked at the young man, squinted and smiled, "What do you think?"

Wei Ren pursed his lips lightly: "I'm afraid to start, next..."

"It can be done in another way." Ma Min'er reminded.

"Another way?"

Wei Ren looked at Xia Zhen.

Xia Zhen looked at the little daughter-in-law.

Ma Min'er said: "I guess they must have no money to pay the army, why don't you, the king of Beijun and the king of Beijun, pay the army first?"

Wei Ren's eyes lit up, "Madam's brain is moving so fast!"

Xia Zhen quickly ordered, "Come here—"

"General—"

"Let Mr. Mu come here."

"Yes, General."

"Nianmei—"

"North County King..." Zhang Nianmei stepped forward.

Xia Zhen said: "Go with Mr. Mu to pay the money, and find two capable generals to go to Qingzhou Mansion to adjust the grain."

"Yes, general!" Zhang Nianmei gave a standard military salute, and with a wave of his hand, several generals from the fifth rank came to him, and immediately followed Mr. Mu to pay the money.

This Mr. Mu, Ma Miner met in Pingding Camp, but Mr. Tian was always by Xia Zhen's side before, so she didn't pay attention to it. Now Mr. Tian is in charge of affairs in Pingding Camp, and this Mr. Mu is by his side .

After the matter was settled properly, Xia Zhen was about to head into the city.

Ma Min'er grabbed his arm, "You..."

"Help my father out."

"How to solve it?" Ma Min'er said, "Don't you discuss it with your generals and staff?"

Xia Zhen stretched out her hand and slapped her forehead, "I can't change my frizzy habit."

Ma Min'er smiled and said, "You and Mr. Wei have just cooperated and are not familiar with each other."

Wei Ren's brows twitched, he cupped his hands and said, "It's my subordinate's fault, my subordinate didn't remind the general."

Xia Zhen stretched out her arm, "Remember to remind me next time."

"Yes, General!" Wei Ren immediately cupped his hands.

Seeing that Xia Zhen's heart had calmed down, Ma Min'er quietly took a step back, left the world of men, and went to find a place to rest.

Outside Liangzhou City, the weather was still very cold in mid-March. Ma Min'er walked around with her neck curled up. When she came back, the tents on the camp had already been set up. Shan Xiaoshan trotted up to her, "Little Master, The one in the middle near the city gate is yours."

"Oh." Ma Min'er put her hand to her mouth and laughed to warm up, "Where is the King of Beijun?"

"Discuss things with the generals in the tent."

"not finished yet?"

"Probably not."

"The hot water is there, I want to pour a hot woman, it's too cold."

Shan Xiaodan said: "I'll get it, Er Niang, what do you want to eat?"

"I want to eat the pot in the tent."

"Okay, I see."

Xia Zetao couldn't get out of the yamen in Liangzhou City. The yamen was surrounded by civilians. Tens of thousands of people surrounded him several streets away. He didn't even dare to send a soldier, for fear of causing unnecessary trouble and hurting the These common people.

The magistrate has been standing opposite him, sweating from hunger, and dare not speak.

Slowly, it was almost dark, why did the sent out man not come back, he walked around in the main hall, his head was dizzy, finally, the sent out guard came back.

"How about it, what does Zhen'er say?"

The guard replied: "General, the King of Beijun has sent General Zhang to Qingzhou, three hundred miles away, to borrow food."

"That's great." Xia Zetao's eyes lit up, and his depressed mood was swept away, "It's more than 300 miles, non-stop, and it will be tomorrow night at the earliest!"

"Yes, General, the King of Beijun asked me to tell the General, please be safe and don't worry, he is trying to find a way to evacuate tens of thousands of people."

Xia Zetao nodded, "I see." Heaved a sigh of relief and sat down on the chair.

When the magistrate heard that he would be able to get out of trouble tomorrow night, he also secretly breathed a sigh of relief, "General, can you ask the kitchen to bring some pancakes?"

"Ah."

"Okay, little one understands."

When it was dark, Xia Zhen just finished the business meeting, and when she arrived at Ma Miner's tent, she was sitting on a small stool, beside a small clay stove, resting her cheeks on her hands, squinting her eyes, as if she had fallen asleep.

Xia Zhen glanced at the small table next to her. There were a lot of dishes on it, and she was waiting for her to come back to eat, so she fell asleep waiting.

"Min'er...Min'er..." Xia Zhen patted the young daughter-in-law's shoulder lightly.

"You...you're back!" Ma Min'er patted her face to wake herself up.

"En." Xia Zhen said: "If you are sleepy, you can eat and sleep first."

Ma Min'er's eyebrows curved: "It's boring to eat alone, wait for you to eat together."

"Then eat quickly, I'm really hungry."

"Okay, I'll cook the vegetables right away." Ma Min'er straightened up, stretched out her hands to boil the vegetables, and soon lost all sleepiness.

Xia Zhen thought that the daughter-in-law would ask about the result of the negotiation, but she was busy cooking the dishes and didn't mention the matter of going to the city to rescue the siege. While waiting, he gradually understood that the daughter-in-law didn't want to meddle in his own affairs.

Really a sensible little daughter-in-law, Xia Zhen sat on the small stool, looked at her busy background, and smiled happily: "Why don't you ask about the situation in the city?"

"I asked."

"..."

"Really, I asked." Ma Min'er straightened her waist, "When I was out shopping just now, I met someone entering and leaving the city gate, and asked about the situation inside."

Xia Zhen shook her head and laughed.

Ma Min'er asked nervously: "Is there something about the general..."

"It's nothing, my father is in the government office, it's all right."

"Oh, all right."

Xia Zhen reached out and touched the little daughter-in-law's head, "After eating, you go to bed first, I will go to the city to see my father."

"Then do I want to go together?"

"No, you stay here."

"Okay." Ma Min'er took a small white porcelain bowl, mixed some bean paste, and handed it to Xia Zhen, "Eat it while it's hot."

Xia Zhen took the bowl, took some bean curd from the pot, put it into the bowl, and ate frozen tofu and yuba, but no meat.

"Why don't you eat meat?" Ma Min'er asked strangely.

"Recently my throat feels dry."

"You drink little water." Ma Min'er said.

A few hundred miles to the north, an ordinary carriage was walking on a desolate gravel road. The driver was a middle-aged man, and a younger man was sitting beside him. The two looked forward and whispered, "Hurry up! It’s the land of Liao and Jin.”

"Well, there's still half a day to go."

The younger man bared his black and yellow teeth and said, "This time, these women are good. They are both fresh and charming. The men of Yelu's family must like them."

"Since when did Yelu's men fall in love with Miss Dawei?"

"You don't care when they like it, as long as we can sell it for silver, don't you think?"

"That's true." The man who drove the carriage said regretfully, "The woman rescued by some shopkeeper that day was more beautiful, and she had the charm of our big Wei woman. It's a pity, a lot of money is missing."

"What a pity, the ones in our car are also pretty!"

"Haha..." The two wretched men covered their mouths and secretly laughed.

In the dilapidated carriage compartment, there were no stools, and a few women with disheveled hair sat on the cold wooden boards. They were tied behind their backs, and their mouths were stuffed with stinky cloths, so they could not utter a word.

Ling Ruya sat among these few people, both in skin color and appearance. She curled up in the corner of the room, heard the conversation outside, knew that she had been abducted to the clan, and hated her teeth itchingly, but She doesn't regret running out, she wants revenge, she wants to kill those who made her life worse than death, and don't even try to escape.

It's just that I was arrested, it doesn't matter, as long as there is a chance, I will escape, and none of those who harmed me can escape.

In Liangzhou City, Xia Zhen took his subordinates to the Yamen and saw his father.

Xia Zetao was very happy to see his son: "Son, is Master Yao here?"

"Father, Lord Yao won't come until June."

"But why?"

"I asked him to come back after the summer harvest."

"Oh, I understand." Xia Zetao asked, "Then how to solve the food shortage in Liangzhou City?"

Xia Zhen replied: "Father, I have already transferred food to the nearest Qingzhou government in the past two days."

"Qingzhou Prefecture was also hit by a disaster last year, so I'm afraid it won't be spared!" Xia Zetao said worriedly.

"Father, the transfer will only be made for a few days. I have already sent a letter to Mr. Tian asking him to transfer grain to the west."

"That's all right." Xia Zetao said: "In the past, the army of all the prefectures asked the capital for food. Now the emperor has given us the five northern prefectures, making it clear that he doesn't want to give us food."

"Father, don't worry, there must be a way for the car to reach the mountain."

"That's true."

Xia Zhen said: "Father, after solving the immediate difficulties, we must guard against Liao and Jin on the one hand, and encourage farming on the other."

"I only know how to fight, and I have never done these things." Xia Zetao sighed.

"Father, I don't know how either. Let's cross the river by feeling the stones and learn together."

"it is good!"

Xia Zhen talked to his father about the army recruitment again.

"You mean to recruit people with food as military salary while they have no food?" Xia Zetao asked.

"Yeah!" Xia Zhen nodded, "This kills two birds with one stone. It not only solves the problem of feeding the population, but also recruits adult men into the army, reducing the chance of turmoil and enriching the army."

"It's a good idea." Xia Zetao nodded, "It's just that our military rations are limited."

"Father, we can use the silver to buy food."

"Oh."

The night gradually deepened. On the camp outside Liangzhou City, the bonfire was burning fiercely, reflecting the outside of the city like daytime. Ma Miner tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep.

Shan Xiaodan slept on the other side of the tent, "Er Niang, what's the matter?"

"It's nothing."

"Is it too bright outside?"

Ma Min'er tilted her head and looked, "No..."

"Why is that?" Shan Xiaodan asked.

"It's okay, you go to sleep."

"Are you worried about the king of Beijun?" Shan Xiaodan asked, "Or, I'll sleep with my mother."

"No, that's not the question."

"Oh." Although the boss said so, Shan Xiaodan felt that she was just worried about the North County King and wanted the North County King to come over. It seemed that it was not good for Mother to let herself sleep here.

Ma Min'er was really not worried about Xia Zhen, nor did she blame Shan Xiaodan for living in her tent, but she seemed to know the Xia family's secret all of a sudden.

What, the Xia family's secret?what is it then?We will not show it for the time being.

In the distant capital city, on Emperor Yuantai's dragon case, the papers were piled up as high as a hill, and he was still in the middle of the night to approve one after another, so much that he almost threw away the papers in his hand.

Seeing the emperor put down the pen, the servant approached him and hurried forward, "Your Majesty, let this old slave press your forehead for you!"

Emperor Yuantai leaned back, with his head resting on the dragon chair, and the servant quickly stepped forward to massage him carefully, relieving his fatigue while doing so: "My lord, are you worried that you have no food to eat?"

"Yeah, I can't handle one, those tough ones..." The emperor didn't finish his sentence, but everyone knew what it meant.

"My lord, it's the same as in previous years, it will pass after a while."

"I didn't think so!" Kai Yuantai snorted coldly, "But... this year, the five northern mansions are finally missing, and I feel that the pressure is much less."

"Your Majesty, isn't the north a barren land? How can there be food?"

"You don't understand this!" Yuan Tai said proudly, "I have been to the north, and the area around Nayi and Xiang grows grain for two seasons, so they don't have to worry about food."

"Then the other three prefectures..."

"That's not true, but I gave the five mansions to the Xia family, and the Xia family will naturally use Yixiang's food to subsidize the three mansions of Qingliang and Ning."

"The emperor is wise." The servant smiled and patted the emperor's flattery, feeling that his mood has improved a lot, and secretly heaved a sigh of relief.

-

It was late at night, and the eldest princess was still awake, so she asked her servants to ask if her sister had come back from time to time.

The servant replied: "Back to the eldest princess, she hasn't come back yet."

"Where did it go?"

"Going back to the eldest princess, I didn't go there either, it was in your restaurant."

The eldest princess frowned again, "And Mr. Zhuang?"

"Yes, Princess Eldest." The girl said, "I heard that Mr. Zhuang brought all the family members to the capital."

"It's true that one person attains the Tao, and chickens and dogs ascend to heaven."

"Back to the eldest princess, I heard that Mr. Zhuang's family relied on the second princess to buy shops and properties in Beijing."

The eldest princess had a sullen face, and sneered: "Being in power and being greedy for money is not the traitorous face that these low-level people are used to."

The servant said again: "Princess, I have heard people say that Mr. Zhuang wants to learn the art of Qihuang from Grand Master Feng."

"Just him?" The eldest princess snorted coldly, "Why doesn't he seek immortality to attain the Tao?"

"Elder...Elder Princess, there are rumors that Mr. Zhuang seems to be asking Xiande..."

The eldest princess Huo stood up, "That Feng Jiangyi is nagging all day long, his wife is living a hard life with him, is it possible that Yunbao will live like this in the future?"

"Long... long princess..."

"No, I'll find my queen tomorrow."

-

On the night of March, the warm wind is slightly smoky, making people intoxicated unconsciously. Walking out of the feasting and feasting, it is really a princess hugging. Zhuang Hao, with Yun Bao nestled in his arms, raised his head slightly and looked at the night sky. The clear air took away The smell of alcohol on his body cleared away, and his mind became sober in an instant.

Looking down at his arms, the girl of the sky hangs her hands around his neck, sleeping soundly, what a princess who doesn't know the sorrows of the world!Shaking his head, he walked out of the restaurant step by step and got into his carriage.

As soon as she sat in the carriage, Princess Yunbao seemed to wake up, she poked her head into Zhuang Hao's arms, and said in a nasal voice, "I don't want to go back to my sister."

Zhuang Hao shook his head, reached out to touch her head, "Be obedient, go back to the princess mansion."

"No, I won't."

"Come out to find me privately at night. Your sister must be angry. Go back."

"I haven't been anywhere else, just in her restaurant, she will definitely not be angry." Princess Rainbow Dash raised her head, pouted her small mouth, her ruddy look fascinated people.

Zhuang Hao looked away, reached out and patted her on the back, "Be good, be obedient!"

"I don't want to be good, I don't want to be obedient." Rainbow Dash hugged his waist, and acted like a baby in his arms.

Zhuang Hao said softly: "If you don't obey me, I'm going to become a Taoist priest!"

"No...not allowed..." Rainbow Dash was extremely nervous, raised his head, his face was full of nervousness.

Zhuang Hao smiled slightly: "Then you are obedient and go back to the princess mansion."

"Okay... okay." Yun Bao tightly hugged Zhuang Hao's narrow waist with both hands reluctantly, "Father, don't you know when the marriage will be granted?"

Zhuang Hao's eyes sparkled, but he didn't answer this sentence, he knew that the Holy Majesty would definitely marry his daughter to her, but just like Yun Bao complained, he didn't know when to give the decree, was he testing himself, or was he related to the Xia family?
Not in a hurry, Zhuang Hao sent the princess back to the princess mansion. When he reached the door, Yun Bao refused to get off the car. He tapped her forehead lightly, "Go back obediently. I still have to come out to play in the future. Disobedient , It won’t be so easy to come out next time.”

"Oh!" Rainbow Dash turned her head three times, and finally entered the princess mansion.

Zhuang Hao quietly disappeared into the night, and the dark sky was covered with dots of bright stars, which looked extraordinarily dazzling.A round of bright moon hangs high in the sky, and the faint light is like a thin gauze, fluttering, reflecting on the street, like a layer of broken silver, shining brightly.

The wind on a spring night is dizzying, and it blows slowly, which is extra warm and pleasant.A guard quietly approached the carriage, "My lord, General Xia has arrived in Xiliang."

"How's the situation over there?"

"I heard it's not very good, it's desolate."

Zhuang Hao sighed, "Well, I see."

"Young master, the north is already far away from us, you should live your own life."

"My own life?" Zhuang Hao seems to be talking to himself: "From now on, I will be in front of people all day long, living a life of luxury and luxury."

"My lord, this is a life that no one can ask for."

Hearing the envious tone of his subordinates, Zhuang Hao walked out from his concentration, and smiled, "That's really..." Disdainfully dismissed, "Go home!"

"Yes, son!"

Ma Min'er felt that she had not slept soundly. When she woke up, it was not yet dawn. She raised her head and found that Shan Xiaodan was not there. She probably went out to make breakfast.

Putting her head down again, she was about to sleep back into the cage, when she turned over and turned in, the door curtain was lifted, and Xia Zhen came in, "Why so early?"

Xia Zhen didn't speak, and sat beside her couch. The couch was also low, and it was almost a plank on the floor. His long legs were curled up, and his eyebrows were not loosened. "We can't go into the city today."

"Why?"

"Wait for food."

Ma Min'er sat up, "Why don't we learn how the rich give porridge to the poor during Chinese New Year, and set up a big pot outside the city to cook porridge for those who have no food to eat. They no longer surround the general?"

Xia Zhen frowned and looked at the young daughter-in-law loosely, then put her head in both hands, and kissed her on the forehead, "I'll do it right away."

Alas, Ma Min'er couldn't sleep because of such a disturbance, so she simply put on her clothes and tied her hair on top of her head, just like a man. It was still very cold in March in Xiliang, so she put on a hat and wore a Cotton robe, like a boy, with his hands out of the tent, to the front of his own stove.

"Little Boss, be hungry, breakfast will be ready soon."

"I'm not in a hurry, take your time." After finishing speaking, he took Aunt Shan's tongs, "It's warm here, I'll light the stove."

"Okay!" Aunt Shan saw that she was going to cook, so she went to the small altar to pick out pickles and prepare side dishes for breakfast.

On Xia Zhen's side, let the school lieutenant under him organize a large stove, "Cook a thousand catties of grain, and the porridge should be neither thick nor thin, and it should not be too ugly."

"Understood, King Beijun!"

Seeing this, Wei Ren stepped forward, "Prince Beijun, I'll send someone to send an announcement in the city to let everyone know that the new king will serve porridge to everyone."

Xia Zhen nodded, "Paste all the streets and alleys."

"it is good."

Wei Ren immediately led his staff team to shake their arms and start working.

When the sun was fully up, breakfast was ready. Ma Min'er found a tall man to look at Xia Zhen's army, and found that he was busy, so he didn't go there. He still sat behind the stove to keep warm and waited until he came.

"Sit here in a daze?" Xia Zhen walked over with a big knife in hand.

"Hee hee, are you coming over for breakfast?"

"Ah."

Ma Min'er quickly jumped up, lifted the lid of the pot, took out the gruel from the top of the bamboo bowl, and took the flower rolls, "Hurry up and eat!"

It was really busy, Xia Zhen didn't even look for a stool, she just stood there and ate her breakfast. After eating, she wiped her mouth, "I'm going to be very busy, take care of yourself."

"It's okay, there are tens of thousands of troops here."

"Yeah." Xia Zhen went to work with the sword in hand.

Ma Min'er then slowly started to eat breakfast.

Near the city wall, a porridge stall was being set up, but the hungry civilians had all crowded out of the city gate and crowded in front of the porridge stall. If it weren't for the tens of thousands of troops, the porridge stall would have been gnawed down to the point that there was not even a log left.

After another half an hour, the porridge finally started. Standing in the distance, Ma Min'er saw that the crowd was gathered into a team by the army, and finally it was not chaotic. She unconsciously breathed a sigh of relief.

"Miss Shan—"

"Little boss..."

"Everyone is out, let's go into the city and have a look."

"Little boss, there is still some chaos outside, I'm afraid it's not good."

"Everyone came to grab food, it's okay."

"Oh."

Shan Xiaodan hurriedly went to call Xiaoyou and his brothers.

Ma Min'er always thought that desolation refers to the outside of the city, a prefectural city, at least the inside is not bad, but when she entered, she realized that the city here is too far away from Yizhou and other places.

There are no decent buildings, there are small buildings everywhere, and the buildings are made of a mixture of stone and sand, very exotic, but not prosperous, full of desolation, and people walking on the street generally hang their waists , looking like they can’t eat well or dress well, they are very poor, but there are also rich people who walk straight up, not many.

"Little master, this place is not even as good as Yunshui Town." Shan Xiaodan whispered.

Maybe people have gone to grab porridge outside the city, but there are not many people in the city. There was an old woman with a stick in one hand and an earthen pot in the other, "It's selling water, it's selling water!" Xian Liang quickly grabbed them, "Your lord, do you want some water?"

Fu Xiaoyou asked curiously: "Why would someone sell water? Isn't water everywhere?"

When the old woman heard this, she looked like a ghost, "Water, that's gold."

Ma Min'er turned her head suddenly, "Miss Shan, where did we get the water for breakfast?"

"I don't know, it seems that Aunt Qiu Ju said that it was given by General Gu."

"Gu Dun?"

"Ah."

Ma Min'er keenly felt that the water shortage in Liangzhou was more serious than the food shortage. How are you doing these days? She signaled Xiaoyou to buy all the old woman's water, and asked with a smile, "Old woman, there was a flood last year. Did Liangzhou City have any water? ?"

The old woman laughed, "God, the water you bought is the water saved last year. Otherwise, where did the water come from?"

"There's very little precipitation here?" Ma Min'er was taken aback.

"I don't know what is too much and what is too little. Anyway, there has been little water here since ancient times, and people just wait for the rain to live." The old woman turned her head and walked away happily after taking the copper coins.

Fu Xiaoyou held up the crock: "Er Niang, this little water is worth eighty coppers."

Ma Min'er's expression became serious.

(End of this chapter)