Chapter 856 Preparation
Zhuge Qiao was not familiar with Huawan, but he had interacted with him several times.
After all, no matter how fair and strict the Prime Minister of the Han Dynasty is, Zhuge Qiao's mark of being the prime minister's son cannot be erased.
So when Zhuge Qiao was assigned to Nanzhong by the Prime Minister, although he was not given much authority, he still had some face.
It is true that no one in Nanzhong dares to deliberately embarrass the flower lady, but there is a prerequisite, that is, she also does not dare to take the initiative to cause trouble.
Because what the court needs is a barbarian woman who knows education and etiquette, not a barbarian woman who doesn't know how to advance or retreat.
Huawan is a barbaric girl, and she is not a fool. She naturally knows the sensitivity of her identity.
Zhuge Qiao knew that Hua Niangzi was related to the Feng family. He heard that her horse farm in Yuexun was built under Feng Yong's personal care.
Wei County is now the seat of the Governor's Mansion of Gajiang. Huawan's cavalry must pass through Wei County if they want to go south.
So Zhuge Qiao took advantage of his reputation because of Feng's younger brother, and he took care of Huawan's cavalry on weekdays.
Huawan knew that Zhuge Qiao was connected with King Feng Gui, and heard that King Feng Gui even called him brother.
It is only natural that the two of them have interacted with each other several times over time.
“Where does the flower lady want to go?”
After seeing Hua Wan bowing, he was about to go out again. Zhuge Qiao was afraid of disturbing the girl, so he didn't dare to stop her, so he had to ask loudly behind him.
"I have to find that Ma Su to make it clear." Hua Wan hummed, "I have to find someone to explain the loss of my cavalry team."
“Ahem, Lady Hua, it’s not urgent. I’ve sent someone to invite you over. I really have something to tell you.”
Upon hearing this, Huawan had to retreat reluctantly: "I wonder what Mr. Zhuge has to do?"
“It’s not me, I have something to ask you.”
As Zhuge Qiao spoke, he stretched out his hand into his arms again.
Maybe there were too many letters hidden in my arms, so I took a long time to fumble this time. After a while, I took out the fourth piece of paper:
“Flower lady, this is an express letter to you.”
After Hua Wan subconsciously took it, she was stunned and asked in disbelief:
"This...Feng Gui...junhou really wrote me a letter?"
“This is natural. Is it possible that someone would dare to write you a letter pretending to be plainly written?”
I hope this is someone pretending...
Hua Wan’s expression changed slightly after receiving the letter.
The name Feng Ghost King has a great deterrent effect in the Nanzhong area.
After calming down, Hua Wan could not help but whisper in her heart:
Then King Feng Gui is also a man of great wealth. I just sent two bonuses to Jincheng Fengzhuang. Isn't that why he came to question me?
You can't blame me for this. There is chaos in Yunnan and business roads are blocked. He should know about it.
Huh? If Ma Su refuses to compensate me for my losses, I can take this opportunity to say something to King Feng Gui...
Zhuge Qiao never imagined that his words would cause Huawan to think so much at once?
After thinking for a long time, Hua Wan still couldn’t figure out why King Feng Gui wrote to him.
She was too embarrassed to open it on the spot, so she hid the letter carefully.
Over the years, the more things Huawan has experienced, the more she understands the power of the Xinghan Society in Nanzhong.
Not to mention that Feng Yong has become more and more famous in recent years.
At this time, the flower girl was no longer the innocent young man who dared to say "bah" in front of Feng Junhou without any scruples when she was in Yuexun.
The letter from King Feng Gui is definitely much more important than Ma Di.
After all, Ma Su could only lose half a year's income at most, but Feng Gui Wang could lose a lifetime's income.
Hua Niangzi had no choice but to go out to find Ma Su to settle accounts. She planned to go back with the letter and think about it carefully to see why Feng Guiwang wanted to find her.
After waiting for Hua Wan to leave for a long time, Ma Su sneakily peeked into the yard.
Seeing that Zhuge Qiao was the only one in the yard, he breathed a sigh of relief, coughed, straightened his clothes as usual, and stepped into the courtyard calmly.
The Yiren maid who had been hiding somewhere before also appeared with tacit understanding and brought tea to the two of them.
"Youchang, this is not your solution. This Nanzhong is considered the territory of the flower lady. If you can escape today, how can you escape tomorrow?"
Zhuge Qiao was worried about Ma Su.
When mentioning this, Ma Su had a bitter look on his face: "Do you think I want this? Aren't you waiting for Feng Junhou to send a letter to Lady Hua?"
According to what he learned, Hua Wan and Feng Mingwen are inextricably linked.
So in Ma Di's view, it was not a big deal to trap Huawan's cavalry and lure out all the evil-minded people in Yunnan County.
Why should a man stick to trivial matters when doing things?
As long as Yunnan County settles down, the income from opening the tea garden on the Yuyuze side alone will be enough to be worth countless cavalry teams.
Besides, even if the tea plantation will not be profitable until three years later, isn’t the labor right in front of us?
Ma Shusheng believed that given his gentlemanly relationship with King Feng Gui, King Feng Gui would not blame him.
As a human being, you must take a long-term view.
This time it was Zhuge Qiao's turn to be surprised: "How did you know that you would expressly send a letter to Lady Hua?"
When Ma Su heard this, he immediately remembered Zhuge Qiao’s previous words:
"Bosong called the flower girl over. Could it be that he was looking for her because of something?"
"I was explicitly asked to deliver a letter to Lady Hua." Zhuge Qiao's eyes flashed with admiration, "I didn't expect that You Chang could even anticipate this."
When Ma Su heard this, he said "ha", with a look of relief on his face.
He shook his hands subconsciously and found them empty. He turned his eyes to the corner, then stood up and went over, picked up the broken cattail leaf fan, shook it again, and said proudly:
“I even guessed what the letter said before I expected it.”
"Oh?" Zhuge Qiao's eyes lit up and he subconsciously wanted to ask, but he was a gentleman after all and held back in the end.
Seeing Zhuge Qiao's appearance, Ma Di knew what Zhuge Qiao was thinking, so he took the initiative and said:
“I predict that the letter from Feng Junhou will most likely be related to the affairs in Yunnan. He will explain his interests to Lady Hua and will no longer embarrass me.”
is that so?
Zhuge Qiao looked at Ma Su, who was very confident, with some suspicion, not knowing whether to believe it or not.
However, when he saw Ma Su waving the broken cattail leaf fan in his hand with such confidence, he couldn't help but feel a little shaken:
Is it possible that it should be communicated with Youchang in a clear way? Otherwise, why would You Chang be so confident?
Just for this kind of thing, it was impossible for him to go to the flower lady to find out what happened, so he did not continue to delve into this topic.
But asked about a more important thing:
“You Chang, the Han Dynasty regained Liangzhou and issued new orders to recruit talents. You Chang is now free, why not go to Liangzhou and give it a try?”
The cattail leaf fan in his hand paused slightly. After a while, Ma Di slowly said:
“This matter is of great importance, let me take a look before talking about it.”
In the battle of Jieting, Feng Yong was beaten violently, and there were subsequent friendships, and finally three years of staying in the southwest border.
The arrogance that Ma Su had in his early years has long been worn away.
Even his temperament has changed a lot, and many things have become clearer.
"You Chang had better make a decision as soon as possible. I heard that if you want to pass the Liangzhou exam, you must first understand the governance strategies of the Liangzhou governor's office."
“And under Feng Mingwen’s rule, the officials mostly used the method of overall planning and did not know the skills of arithmetic, which will definitely not work.”
Nanxiang arithmetic is the best in the world.
All the standards for properties under the name of Xinghanhui come from Nanxiang. As long as they are connected to the properties of Xinghanhui, they must implement this standard.
The so-called coordinating method is actually to use arithmetic to calculate the people's livelihood under governance, and then implement targeted policies.
All of this is based on Nanxiang arithmetic.
So if you want to pass the exam, you must be proficient in arithmetic in Nanxiang.
If you want to understand the governance strategies of the Liangzhou Governor's Office, it is best to go to Liangzhou to find a connection first, become an aide or something like that, and get familiar with it.
It is true that the main local officials of the Han Dynasty were appointed by the imperial court, but most of the staff around them were recruited by the chief officials themselves.
This rule just provides convenience for Liangzhou exams.
To put it bluntly, if you really want to pass the exam, you must at least work in various levels of government in Liangzhou. That is inevitable.
While working, you also have to find ways to learn arithmetic well.
This kind of thing should be done sooner rather than later. If you do it early, you can learn it one day early.
So Zhuge Qiao persuaded Ma Su to make a decision early.
Hearing this, Ma Di nodded: "Thank you Bo Song for your concern. I have my own plan."
Seeing this, Zhuge Qiao didn't want to force him to persuade him.
He could not stay in Nongdong for long, and went to look for Ma Su again the next day, wanting to say goodbye and revisit the county.
Unexpectedly, I found two or three Yunnan horses parked in Ma Di's small courtyard from a distance.
Looking closer, there are already two or three packages on the horse. It seems that he is going on a long trip?
In this area of Nanzhong, rich people rely on Yunnan horses to travel long distances; poor people rely on cars to travel long distances.
This cart is a wheelbarrow that came from Nanxiang.
Because it looks a bit like a chicken and also makes a squeaking sound, some people also call it a chicken bus.
Zhuge Qiao walked into the small courtyard and saw someone helping to move things, and he was even more convinced.
“You Chang, what’s going on?”
Finding Ma Su who was shaking a broken cattail leaf fan, Zhuge Qiao couldn't help but asked in confusion.
Ma Da said without changing his expression: "Oh, I heard that Feng Junhou will go to Liangzhou to take up a post. I had a relationship with Junhou at least back then. Anyway, I have nothing to do recently, so I wanted to go and congratulate you."
The gentleman Zhuge Qiao twitched the corner of his mouth and said seriously:
“Youchang, I remember yesterday you said you wanted to see it before talking about it, didn’t you?”
Ma Di glanced at Zhuge Qiao strangely:
“Yeah, haven’t I been watching it all night?”
Zhuge Qiao, a gentleman:…
Zhuge Qiao, who was holding a breath in his chest and almost broke it, came to his senses after a while and took a deep breath:
“You Chang, where did your horse come from?”
Although there are often cavalcades composed of Yunnan horses on the official roads, most of them belong to the Xinghan Hui, and a small number belong to the aristocratic families who entered Nanzhong to open plantations in the early years.
Those who did not invest in Yuexun Racecourse in the early days are thinking nonsense if they want to acquire a large number of Yunnan horses now.
Let alone a large number, even if an ordinary person wants to find a few horses, it is not easy, let alone finding them temporarily overnight.
However, this matter was not difficult for Ma Su. He answered calmly:
“It’s because of the relationship with Prefect Lu that I can borrow some time.”
Lu Kai had a close relationship with Ma Su. In addition, Ma Su had made great achievements in planning and quelling the rebellion. It was only natural to send a few Yunnan horses, let alone borrow them.
Hearing this, Zhuge Qiao sighed: It turns out he had a plan.
At the same time, I felt a little desolate: Our brotherhood is really as shallow as paper...
Even though Ma Su was exiled here, he still had a letter from King Feng Gui in his arms, so he didn't have to worry about starving to death even if he came empty-handed.
So there aren’t many things in the small courtyard.
The porter was busy for a while, and the Yiren maid made preparations, so everything was packed quickly.
Ma Di left in a hurry. Although Lu Kai, the governor of Yunnan County, was reluctant to part with him, he also knew that this was a matter of great importance to his future.
After three years of exile, now that I am pardoned, my heart will have already flown to Liangzhou.
After all, Ma Su is already quite old, and in addition to Fu Zheng's three years, it is natural to go here to show off his ambitions.
Lu Kai then held a banquet to bid farewell to Zhuge Qiao.
Zhuge Qiao even returned to Wei County with Ma Su before they separated.
When parting for the last time, Ma Di finally said to Zhuge Qiao:
"Bosong, Liu Zhou in Yunnan is causing rebellion. Although some people have evil intentions, Governor Zhang's strict enforcement of the law is also one of the reasons."
"Although Liu Zhou's rebellion failed this time, the imperial court will definitely reconsider the governance of Nanzhong. Anyone who governs the people should be lenient and strict while being generous."
“According to my expectation, Governor Zhang can only serve as Governor for one more year at most, and the court will most likely send someone else to replace him.”
“Now that the Han Dynasty has captured Liangzhou, it no longer has any worries. Within a few years, there will be a battle in Guanzhong.”
When Ma Su said this, he emphasized his tone: "At that time, the Han Dynasty will definitely send out all its elite soldiers and generals to fight the Wei thieves in Guanzhong."
“Within a few years, Nanzhong will definitely be stable, and the governor of Nanzhong will be surrendered. I am afraid that he will also lead the army northward."
"Bosong is not good at leading an army, but he has been managing the logistics of the army over the years. If he can make preparations early so that the army in front can have enough food and clothing, it may not be a way out."
When Zhuge Qiao heard this, his eyes suddenly lit up.
He knew that his talents were not outstanding, so he worked diligently over the years, only seeking to have no faults, not any merit.
It is normal for the official position to be small and promotion to be slow.
How can you not be happy now that you have received Ma Su’s advice?
“How can a place like Nanzhong provide adequate food and clothing for a large army?”
Zhuge Qiao looked at Ma Su and asked with some distress.
Ma Su said "tsk": "The only person in the world who can let Feng Mingwen call him brother is Bo Song. Bo Song doesn't know it?"
Zhuge Qiao was not a fool, and he immediately understood: "Xing Hanhui?"
“If you want to govern Nanzhong, no matter who comes to serve as the commander-in-chief, you must use the power of Xinghanhui..."
Ma Su said something meaningful.
“I understand.”
Zhuge Qiao nodded repeatedly, sighing that the friendship between You Chang and him was really as deep as the ocean.
Then he reached into his arms and took out a book:
"It's a long way to Liangzhou. If you are bored, you can read this book. It will be very helpful to pass the Liangzhou exam."
Ma Su took it and took a look at it with confusion. He saw on the cover: "Mock Examination Questions of the Liangzhou Prefectural History Department of the Great Han Dynasty".
After a long time, Ma Su raised his head and said slowly: "Where did Bosong come from with this book?"
“It was sent together with the plain letter.”
“Why did you give it to me today?”
"Actually, I wanted to give it to you at that time, but didn't you say you wanted to see it before talking about it? So I forgot about it for a moment."
Zhuge Qiao, a gentleman, said sincerely, "You should keep it carefully, you Chang. This book is very expensive. It is expensive in Liangzhou but has no market. I don't know how many people have paid a high price to buy it but can't get it."
Ma Su suddenly discovered that Zhuge Qiao was not actually such a gentleman.
While Ma Di was heading north, Hua Wan was preparing to reorganize the cavalry team and head south.
She took out the letter from her pocket more than once and read it again and again:
“Seeds? Do you want seeds from the southern countries for cultivation? The Han people have everything, so why do they need seeds from those barbarians?”
The countries in the south are all small countries. Compared with the big Han Dynasty, they are completely different.
A piece of silk can be exchanged for a large amount of jade. If you are willing to spend the money, you might be able to exchange it for the kind of transparent jade that King Feng Gui has been looking for.
As long as you find transparent jade, you will make a lot of money.
Xinghanhui has been purchasing high-quality transparent jade at high prices. I heard that this is the request of King Feng Gui.
Feng Guiwang is ruthless, but he is also generous with his actions, very generous.
After Hua Niangzi finished making money from the southern countries, she used the transparent water jade to earn money from King Feng Gui. She felt very happy when she had two fish for one fish.
It's just that King Feng Gui made her feel happy. When King Feng Gui wanted to feel happy occasionally, Hua Wan had to find ways to satisfy him.
At this time, it was already a bit late to organize the cavalry to go south.
But this time, Huawan did not want to make money, but sent someone to inquire first and make some preparations.
Because the cavalry team had never paid attention to the information about farming in the small countries in the south before.
After all, many tribes in southern China didn’t even know how to farm a few years ago.
(End of this chapter)