Standing barefoot in the paddy field, holding a handful of seedlings in his hand, Xiao Cheng, who rolled up his sleeves, separated out a few seedlings and inserted the seedlings into the paddy field very skillfully. He stood up and looked at Li Ge leaving behind him.

The uneven and crooked rice fields under the trees made me laugh out loud.

No wonder Xiao Cheng laughed at Li Ge, because behind Xiao Cheng, the seedlings were arranged in horizontal and vertical rows, as neat as the sergeants standing in the school field. In comparison, the seedlings planted by Li Ge could at most

He is considered a scoundrel in the market.

Li Ge smiled bitterly and shook his head. Speaking of which, with Xiao Cheng's family background, no one would have thought that this Mr. Guijie could afford to do these farm tasks. He had never seen how he practiced them!

The entire mountain has now been cultivated into dozens of terraced fields from top to bottom. At this moment, they are standing in the highest field.

This mountain is only a few miles away from the Wang family's mansion, but the terraced fields on this mountain were reclaimed one by one by Xiao Cheng and his personal guards. It can barely be regarded as a military camp!

Xiao Cheng encouraged his subordinates to open up wasteland and farm fields, so of course he had to set an example, even if he was just pretending, he had to do it in a decent way! What's more, he really wasn't just pretending, but all the smart people from all over the country who came here on official business

As long as you see the terraced fields on this mountain, you will know that Xiao Dianping is serious.

Some people were even lucky enough to be invited by Xiao Cheng to participate in the original land reclamation. They dug soil with their own hands, smashed stones with their own hands, and built forts with their own hands.

There is no stability without farmers, and there is no wealth without business. For Xiao Cheng, he also has to worry that the court will suddenly order a ban on food shipments into Qianzhou one day! So be prepared for a rainy day, and you have to make some preparations. Really?

On that day, I won’t just sit back and wait to die.

It is better to have it at home than to have to ask outside for help from time to time.

At the time of spring plowing, it is also the time of spring famine. The price of food in Qianzhou is rising rapidly. This is because of the control of the Qianzhou Chamber of Commerce. Who is causing the food shortage here!

Xiao Cheng didn't want this scene to happen every year.

He hopes that at this time next year, the price of grain shipped in from outside will be reduced by more than half, so that the people under his command can be willing to sprinkle a few handfuls of rice into the wild vegetable porridge, which is mainly filling their stomachs during this season.

Only when people are full can they talk about doing other things!

A government that makes people hungry may make people fear it, but it will never make them respect and love it.

Xiao Cheng quickly filled his own ridge with seedlings, climbed out of the paddy field, and stood on the ridge, but he only laughed at the staff officials who were in the same field as him.

None of these scholars could plant seedlings decently, but Li Ge was considered to be a good performer among them.

In another field on the side, some guards who came from farm families were struggling to hold back their laughter.

It turns out that these officials, who are unattainable in their eyes, are not as good as these mud-legged people!

Well, except for Xiao Dianjing.

But at this moment, Xiao Zhuanfeng seemed to have muddy legs. Looking at the young man standing on the field, everyone suddenly felt that the distance between them was much closer. He was no longer the usual awe-inspiring person who dared not look up.

The signing has been made.

Everyone is accustomed to calling Xiao Cheng Xiao Zhuanban, but in fact everyone knows that even Lu Ze, the magistrate of Qianzhou, has to stand in front of Xiao Zhuanban with his hands tied!

Standing on a high place and looking down, half of the soldiers were planting rice here today. Compared with their own field, the farming skills of the soldiers who came from peasant families were not comparable to those who were officials.

After a few months, the place will be lush and green, and in September, the golden ears of rice will bend over the branches. Come back then, take a handful of rice and rub it in your hands to admire the white as jade rice.

, how can I feel happy in my heart?

Because of his vigorous promotion, he even regarded land reclamation as an indicator for evaluating officials' performance. Nowadays, Qianzhou has naturally launched a massive land reclamation campaign.

There are military villages and official villages, and of course there is also land reclamation by the common people. While Xiao Cheng pacified the forty-nine Jizhou prefectures one by one, he also released a large amount of unowned wasteland, mountains, forests, and slopes, which were originally occupied by those parties.

Things that the overlords regarded as private property have now become public property.

Whoever cultivates the land will own it.

Anyone can apply to the local government for land reclamation.

The government has no other requirements. As long as you turn these wastelands into fertile farmland, the land will be yours.

Of course, you can do as many things as you have the ability. If you apply to the government for 100 acres, the government will give you 100 acres. But if you only cultivate 80 acres, the government will change its attitude and show you a fine.

You regret it.

Xiao Cheng doesn't care about those big families taking advantage of the opportunity to take over more. It doesn't matter. As long as you turn these barren hills and slopes into fertile fields and grow food, you are not allowed to sell it to me?

Xiao Cheng didn't care that there must be people colluding here to do some corrupt things. It didn't matter, as long as they could grow food.

Because no matter how we do it, those little people who have no power or money can always get benefits from this time of reclamation. Even if it is only ten or eight acres, it is their own land, right?

If an additional 100,000 acres of land can be produced, even if each acre can only produce 200 kilograms of rice, then Qianzhou can produce 20 million kilograms more grain, which is still 200,000 shi!

"Sign the verdict, sign the verdict!" A call came to my ears. I looked up and saw a guard running along the path up the mountain. "A visitor came to visit. He said his surname was Cen.

Where is the gentleman who signed the verdict?”

Master Cen?

Xiao Cheng's eyes widened, did it come so fast?

I only got the news a few days ago, and I didn't expect it to come today.

Waving to the people in the field, Xiao Cheng picked up one of his boots and did not put on any shoes or socks. He just followed the guards down the mountain with his bare feet covered in mud.

The old master, who was over sixty years old, stood at the door of the mansion, looking at the well-shaped fields spread out in front of him with his hands behind his back.

Not only are there people working on the flat land at the foot of the mountain, but even the terraced fields on the mountain are full of hope of harvest!

He never passed the Jinshi exam in his life, but he taught dozens of Jinshi apprentices. His two sons also passed the Jinshi exam. It is not an exaggeration to describe this old master with the phrase "peach gifts are all over the world".

However, in Master Cen's opinion, the most talented among these students is undoubtedly the one he came to see today.

Because of this, he is not only good at words, but also quick at actions.

The so-called unity of knowledge and action is the most perfect expression in this student. All my other students, taken together, cannot compare to the spirituality of the one in front of me!

They may be very good at being officials, but when it comes to doing things, no one can compare with Erlang of the Xiao family.

It is a pity that such a talented person was eventually implicated in the scandalous case in the capital. Of course, the current result cannot be regarded as unjustly accusing him. In any case, the eldest son of the Xiao family is indeed

It's a rebellion.

From Master Cen's point of view, a person who could have entered the imperial court, became the Prime Minister, and ruled the world, could only end up burying his talents in the countryside.

If you don’t join the center, how can you benefit the world?

There is a huge difference between benefiting a place and benefiting a country!

"Sir, sir, why did you come so fast? The students are too late to greet you!" There was shouting in the distance. Master Cen looked up and saw a man in coarse clothes holding a pair of boots.

He was running towards this side, shouting and screaming as he ran.

If it’s not Xiao Chongwen, then that one?

"This is your little junior brother!" Mr. Cen smiled and turned to look at a middle-aged man in his forties with a long three-strand beard and a jade-like face next to him. "What do you think of your father's close disciple?

"

Cen Zhong smiled and said: "Of course it is extraordinary. If it were commonplace, why would I come here so eagerly? But father, did you really teach such a person? Judging from the way he acts, it is definitely not your handiwork!"

"

Mr. Cen laughed and said, "What I teach is just how to knock on the door. As for how to do things, that depends on everyone's fate and has nothing to do with me."

"So among my father's students there are both government officials and powerful figures like Xiao Chongwen!" Cen Zhong laughed and said, "I will learn more from him in the future."

"You two, I'm afraid there are a lot of things you can talk about together." Master Cen said.

Xiao Cheng came like the wind, threw away the boots in his hand, clasped his fists with both hands, and bowed his hands to the ground: "The student has seen the Master! The student should have gone to see the Master, but he was always delayed because of such and such things."

Master Cen smiled and helped him up, looked up and down, nodded and said: "I thought that so many things had happened that would make you a little decadent, but now it seems that they have made you more mellow and mature.

, this trip has opened my eyes as a teacher. You, an official who is not an official, seem to have done a good job."

Xiao Cheng laughed and turned to look at Cen Zhong aside: "This must be the eldest brother. I have admired his name for a long time, but I have never been able to see him. This time, the eldest brother was burdened by my Xiao family.

Being sent to a remote and poor place really makes me, junior brother, feel ashamed!"

Cen Zhong smiled and clasped his fists and said: "Chongwen, just call me Qianli. This time I have indeed benefited from you, otherwise I wouldn't have been promoted? How can I say that this time I have become an envoy? From the past

The fifth-rank official jumped to the fourth-rank, but he was promoted several levels in a row! After leaving the circle of Gyeonggi, I felt immediately refreshed. I no longer need to do those meaningless things, and I can truly serve the country and the people.

Do something practical, so this is not called being implicated, it is called taking advantage of it!"

Master Cen laughed at the side and said: "Chongwen, you are wrong again. Your senior brother's remarks about the northwest matter. If the court really does what he said, I'm afraid your eldest brother will feel uncomfortable."

Xiao Cheng laughed.

What Master Cen said is true. The Cen Chong Cen Qianli in front of me is a guy with a beautiful heart!

Since the imperial court signed the humiliating treaty with the Liao Kingdom, it has completely turned its attention to the northwest, hoping to destroy Xiao Ding's Western Army in a short period of time.

Now the army of the imperial court is continuously gathering on the Shaanxi Road, and the grain and grass from various roads have also begun to be transported. In a year or so at most, this army, grain and grass will be assembled. In the eyes of the imperial officials, it will be a overwhelming event.

In a normal battle, Xiao Ding can be put down in one fell swoop.

Of course, if it were just the Song army, they would not be so sure, but this time, there is also the cooperation of the Liao army. The Song State has paid a huge price, isn't it just asking the Liao army to send troops to attack from both sides?

But the man in front of him, Cen Zhong, made an inappropriate statement to the court, saying that the Liao people could not be trusted at all. When the war begins, even if the Liao people really send troops as promised, as long as there is a slight difference in time,

, there will be big problems in the cooperation between the two countries, and this gives Xiao Ding a great opportunity to profit from it.

Don't forget, Xiao Ding had one hundred thousand cavalry, who came and went like the wind. This was the greatest strategic advantage that the Song Dynasty army could not possess.

With the danger of Hengshan Mountain and the difficulty of the vast sea, it is simply a matter of urgency to destroy Xiao Ding's Western Army. The imperial court must be patient and slowly build camps, build forts and blockades on the Shaanxi Road, and advance slowly.

.

This year we will build a stockade, and tomorrow we will build a fortress, and we will push it into the interior of Hengshan, mile by mile, land by land.

It would take a few years of effort to eliminate the Western Army's Hengshan advantage, and a few more years of effort would naturally bring about the collapse of the Western Army.

To be honest, after knowing the contents of this booklet, Xiao Cheng scolded his mother, even though this was his senior brother and his mother was his junior wife.

Because Xiao Cheng is really worried that the court will do this!

If we do this in five years at most, I'm afraid the eldest brother will be squeezed out and unable to survive.

Fortunately, the court still wanted to cut through the mess quickly.

With this sword slash, it was impossible to tell whether the Western Army or the Song Army would be beheaded in the end.

As for Cen Zhong, because of this incident, he was sent from Gyeonggi Road to South Guangxi Road to serve as a recruiter. It sounds like he was promoted, but in reality, he was pushed into a pit of fire.

The situation on Guangnan West Road as a whole is just a little more dangerous than Xiao Cheng's Qianzhou. The forces of all parties are mixed, the government is weak, all parties collude, and the forces are intertwined. If you want to

It's really not easy to find a good situation. If you don't do well, you will end up in a bad situation.

In the eyes of the officials at the time, Cen Zhong's piece of information was undoubtedly to buy time for Xiao Ding to gain a foothold. Furthermore, considering that this man's father was once a guest of the Xiao family and was Xiao Erlang's husband, he was originally suspicious.

This official, who was very important, was even more resentful.

If it weren't for Cen Zhong's many senior brothers and sisters, I'm afraid Cen Zhong's fate would be worse, but this recruiter also secretly had evil intentions. With this official's intention in it,

I'm afraid those local snakes on Guangnan West Road are already ready to give Cui Zhong, the Dragon Crossing the River, a blow on the head!

That's why Xiao Cheng said that he had implicated this senior brother.

But seeing that this senior brother came to him first after receiving the appointment, and even brought the old master with him, this thought is quite remarkable, or this senior brother, whom he has never met before, is really a powerful person.

Xiao Cheng was somewhat looking forward to it.
Chapter completed!