In May, the advancing caravan passed through Zi Province, crossed the Iron Bridge, passed through the Shiling where the Jurchen army had finally retreated in a sorry state, and passed through the Boundless Mountains where battles had taken place … On the 22nd of May, they passed through Sword Gate Pass.
It had been more than a year since they arrived here, and many places had changed greatly. The roads that could be widened in the mountains had been widened as much as possible, and the original barracks had now been turned into resting points for the caravan to rest and rest, as well as for the staff along the way. After the opening of the southwest trade market, there were no longer enough roads to exit the pass. To ensure that a large number of tourists could come and go on this mountain road from Sword Garret to Sword Pass, many staff had been arranged to maintain order.
Most of these staff were stern and fierce, demanding that the people who came and went strictly follow the prescribed path, and that they were not allowed to linger in the relatively narrow areas. Their voices were very loud, and their attitude in enforcing the law was rather rough. They were especially arrogant toward outsiders and ignorant people, vaguely revealing the superiority of the "Southwest people."
The scholars in the caravan did not think much of it when they first arrived, but now that they had been traveling in Chengdu for some time, they began to talk about how these people were "foxes flaunting the tiger's might." They were just low-ranking officials, but they were even more arrogant than the high-ranking officials in Chengdu. There were also some who secretly recorded the situation, preparing to publish their experiences in the southwest when they returned home.
The general camp for the wounded soldiers that Ning Ji had stayed in had now been turned into an epidemic prevention and quarantine center for outsiders. Many civilians who came to the southwest had to undergo a round of inspection here. The main body of inspection was mostly foreign workers. They wore the same clothes and were often led by some leaders, curiously and cautiously observing everything around them. According to the scholars, most of these "pitiful people" had been sold here.
Along the way, there were many commemorative areas of the southwest campaign: what kind of battle had taken place here, what kind of battle had taken place there … Ning Yi paid great attention to this kind of "face-saving project," and had compiled a large number of statistics after the end of the battle. In reality, every battle in the southwest campaign had been quite tragic, and the Huaxia army had conducted internal verification, textual research, and compilation before carving monuments in the appropriate places. Due to the limited number of stone carvers, this project was still ongoing. As they walked, they could occasionally hear clanking sounds.
During the southwestern war, the mountain paths of Jiange had been a mess. The roads had been damaged, and transportation had been strained. This was especially true towards the end, when the Chinese army had to fight the retreating Female Enlightened Beings for the road. The Chinese army had to cut off the enemy's path, while the Female Enlightened Beings who were left behind would often fight to the death. Both sides fought hysterically, and many of the soldiers' corpses were simply too late to be collected and identified. Even if they were identified, they could not be transported to the rear for burial.
Later on, they only roughly distinguished the camps and burned them together. The ashes were either buried in the ground or scattered in the mountains. That was also why these warriors did not have graves in other places. The records in the mountains were not only their monuments, but also their real tombstones.
Green Mountain was fortunate enough to bury the loyal bones. No matter which side, they all showed enough respect for the records in the mountains. At night, when they were resting in their temporary residences, there would be people who would go to the monument nearby to offer incense and pray, causing smoke to rise in spirals. Every time someone burned joss paper money, they would be stopped by the patrols. They would even start a debate or quarrel, and if they got too heated, they would be taken away and locked up in the mountains for a day.
While the caravan was staying in the mountains, Ning Ji also went to offer incense twice. He did not like offering incense, preferring to cut up a plate of pig's head meat and some wine to eat together. A middle-aged pedant saw that he was very cute and enthusiastically told him the steps to pay respects to the gods and offer sacrifices. The heart had to be sincere, the steps had to be accurate, and each method had its own meaning. Otherwise, while this hero might be open-minded, he would inevitably anger the gods in the future. Ning Ji looked at him like he was looking at an idiot.
"I don't believe in gods. There is no god in the world."
His disdainful gaze was also very cute. The middle-aged pedant earnestly lectured him, "Young man, you are young and full of vigor, but you should not speak carelessly. Have you seen everything in the world? How can you say that there is no god? There is a god three feet above your head … Besides, your words are frank and honest, and it is easy to offend others … "
Ning Ji thought to himself, "I have already said that there is no god, but what if you say there is a god and offend me …" But after what happened in the small yard last year, he already knew that there were many idiots in the world who could not be reasoned with, so he did not bother to explain.
The middle-aged pedant thought that his reaction was cute and obedient. Although he was young and full of vigor, he did not talk back like other children, so he continued to say more …
Along the way, people had various reactions to the hero's memorial, but for Ning Ji, he was not too touched except for some memories in his heart. It was not the time for him to reminisce about anything at this age. When he offered incense, he said, "I am going out," and left the Sword Gate Pass. He turned back and waved at the mountains. The leaves on the mountains were rippling in the wind.
After leaving the Sword Garret, it was still the territory of the Huaxia army.
In the Southwest War, the final battle between the Seventh Army and the Jurchen Western Army had secured a large territory from the Sword Garret to Hanzhong for the Huaxia army. In fact, it had also created a lot of convenience for the transportation of materials in the southwest. Since ancient times, there were two routes to leave Sichuan, but in fact, whether it was the water route from Yibin to Chongqing or the land route from the Sword Gate Pass, it was not easy to travel. In the past, the Huaxia army could not control the outside world, and after leaving the Sword Gate Pass, the life and death of merchants were even more predetermined. Although the greater the risk, the higher the profit, in general, it was not conducive to the transportation of resources.
At this time, the Huaxia army had two distribution points outside the Sword Garret. One was near Zhaohua after leaving the Sword Garret, and the materials coming in and out could be gathered here once. Although many merchants preferred to enter Chengdu personally to obtain the most transparent price, in order to improve the transportation efficiency of the Sword Garret mountain road, the Huaxia government organized caravans to transport many ordinary materials to Zhaohua every day. They even started to encourage people to set up some small workshops with low technical content to reduce the transportation pressure in Chengdu.
As the development of Chengdu had only been going on for a year, the layout of Zhaohua could only be said to be in the early stages. A large number of people from the outside world gathered in the area outside the Sword Garret. Compared to the development area of Chengdu, this area was dirtier, messier, and poorer. The workers from the outside world usually had to stay here for about three days. They had to pay a sum of money, have a doctor check them for diseases, and take a hot bath. If their clothes were too old and tattered, they had to change. The Huaxia government would distribute a uniform set of clothes, so after entering the mountain, many people would look like they were wearing the same clothes.
At home, Ning Yi once complained that the clothes were unsightly and looked like prisoners, but his aunt rebutted him with the problem of cost.
Beggars in tattered clothes were not allowed to enter the mountain, but it was not impossible. Many factories in the southwest would recruit people here at a low price. Once a "contract of servitude" was signed, the cost of quarantine and changing clothes would be borne by the factory, which would be deducted from the salary in the future.
"… Speaking of which, Zhaohua still has a conscience."
The chatterbox scholar "Promising" Lu Wenke sighed with Ning Ji. "The Huaxia army helped to come up with a contract of servitude. Every family here has to have one. The contract is only for five years. Whoever wants the factory to pay, they have to work in the future to pay the debt. If they want to leave before the five years are up, they can still pay a sum of money to redeem themselves. However, other than the five years, there are also contracts of ten or twenty years. The conditions are better, and the promises are more. They are for those who have the ability to sign … But there are also black-hearted people who sign twenty years with nothing on the contract. If they really sign it, it will be terrible … "
"Since the Huaxia army has given a five-year contract, they should stipulate that they can only sign this contract." The middle-aged scholar who had taught Ning Ji to respect the gods was called Fan Heng. He frowned as he talked about this matter. "Otherwise, it is no different from taking off your pants and farting."
"Who knows what they are thinking. To be honest, it is good enough for those commoners who have nothing to walk here to sign the contract. Everyone should have heard of what it is like here."
A few scholars gathered together and liked to talk in riddles. After chatting for a while, they began to point out the various problems of the Huaxia army in Sichuan and Shu. For example, the problem of the import and export of goods could not be solved, and Sichuan and Shu were only peaceful and difficult to advance. Later on, they talked about the story of the Three Kingdoms.
The caravan of more than a hundred people traveled, and all kinds of people gradually formed small groups. There were a total of five scholars like Lu Wenke and Fan Heng. They mostly gathered together and chatted along the way. Ning Ji's identity was a junior doctor with a long history of learning. Although he had always been a bad student in the school of Zhang Village, he had a good foundation and could read and write. In addition, he was cute, so these scholars also regarded him as one of their kind. When they chatted, they would always ask him to stay with them. From time to time, someone would give him some snacks. Although most of the scholars and scholars were poor, they could travel with the caravan at this time, so they more or less had some money.
After entering the caravan, Ning Ji could not eat to his heart's content like he did at home. More than a hundred people traveled together and were organized by the caravan. Every day, they ate from the same big pot. Frankly speaking, the food in these days was really bad. Ning Ji could eat more with the excuse of "growing up", but with the speed of his metabolism after practicing martial arts for so many years, it was a little scary to really eat until he was full.
His identity as a doctor was a convenience. For such a long journey, most people could only rely on their legs to walk. After a few days, they would inevitably get blisters. Moreover, there were more than a hundred people, so there were often small accidents such as spraining their feet. Ning Ji quickly won the favor of most of the people in the caravan with his medical skills, attitude that was not afraid of being dirty or tired, and his cute and harmless face. This made him … freeload a lot of snacks during the journey.
This kind of mentality was really not in line with the identity of the future "world's most powerful master". Occasionally, when he thought of it, Ning Ji felt a little ashamed, but there was nothing he could do.
Mosquito meat was also meat. What else could he do when he was outside …
Along the way to Zhaohua, apart from treating many people's minor problems, the five scholars were the ones he spent the most time with. The middle-aged scholar Fan Heng, who taught Ning Ji to worship the gods, was relatively rich. Occasionally, when they passed by a cheap restaurant or a snack stall, he would buy something to feed Ning Ji, so Ning Ji had to bear with him.
When they traveled, the people who often set up camp next to them were often a father and daughter who performed martial arts in Jianghu. The father, Wang Jiang, had practiced some martial arts. He was middle-aged and looked strong, but there was an abnormal red flush on his face. He often bare-chested and practiced with the iron spear piercing the throat.
— — Practicing external martial arts by force would make one miserable when he was old. The middle-aged performer actually had various problems, but this kind of physical problem had been accumulated for decades and was very difficult to solve. Ning Ji could see it, but there was nothing he could do. It was like countless tangled balls of thread, and he had to be very careful about which one to pull first. Many famous doctors in the southwest could cure him, but he had been practicing battlefield medical skills for a long time. At this time, he was not even fifteen years old, so the prescription he gave him could only kill him. Therefore, he did not say much.
The performer's daughter was called Wang Xiuniang. She was about seventeen or eighteen years old. She had dark skin, a well-proportioned figure, and strong legs. She wore her hair in two braids. She did not learn any advanced martial arts from her father, because her father did not know any martial arts at first. She was best at performing somersaults, and she could do a hundred somersaults at one time. Other than somersaults, they also performed monkey shows. The father and daughter brought a well-trained monkey named Wang Sheng. This time, they seemed to have earned a lot from Chengdu, so they happily prepared to perform all the way back to Jiangnan.
Performers actually also knew how to fall, but not long after they set off, Wang Xiuniang once again did a somersault and sprained her ankle, so she came to find Ning Ji for help. The sprained ankle was not serious, but from then on, Wang Xiuniang often came to harass Ning Ji. For example, after setting up camp, she would give some wild fruits to Ning Ji, and would also give some to other people. Sometimes she would say "Brother Aotian is so cute", and then she would come and pinch Ning Ji's face. After a while, the few scholars also became familiar with her, and they could talk to each other for a while.
At first, Ning Ji only felt that he was cute, but not long after, he realized that this woman should be coming for Lu Wenke. When she stood there talking to "Promising" Lu Wenke, her hands would always subconsciously twist her braids, and some small movements of bashfulness, emitting a rancid smell of courtship … All women are like this, disgusting. But it was not strange at all.
Of course, although he understood this point, he did not have any intention to expose the other party's intention. On the contrary, he felt relieved. When the woman came to pinch his cheek, he would reach out his hand to pinch the other party's cheek and pull her away. In any case, the person this woman wanted to harm was not him, and Lu Wenke also did not look like a good person, so he did not care about the ending of these two fellows.
…
The caravan stayed near Zhaohua for a day. Ning Ji freeloaded a half-full meal and secretly ate a full meal before setting off with the caravan for the east.
After leaving the Sword Garret and passing through Zhaohua, he now had two choices.
One was to follow the Huaxia army's territory and go north along the Jinniu Road to Hanzhong, and then follow the Hanshui River to the east, so that he could go anywhere in the world. This road was safe and connected to the waterway, so it was currently the busiest road. But if he went east to Bazhong, he had to enter a relatively complicated place.
In the past, when the Huaxia army jumped out of the three counties of Hedeng, because of the lack of manpower, they occupied more than half of the Chengdu plain and did not have a strong intention to expand. Later, the Seventh Army occupied Hanzhong, and a large area east of Hanzhong belonged to Dai Mengwei under the instruction of the Female Immortal. Of course, this was the Female Immortal's behavior to make the Huaxia army look bad, but in fact, it was not the Huaxia army that was suffering on the road out of Sichuan.
After all, with the momentum of the Huaxia army last year, with the momentum of defeating the Female Immortal, it was basically no problem for them to penetrate the Hanshui River and reach Xiangyang. On the surface, the reason why they let Dai Mengwei go was because he "saved millions of people" was to create momentum, so they raised their hands. But at the same time, the two sides also signed many contracts, including Dai Mengwei giving up control of the Hanshui River and not being allowed to stop the east-west trade route, etc. This was the bottom line of the Huaxia army, and Dai Mengwei actually knew it.
This was the awkwardness of the difference in strength. If Dai Mengwei was determined to "do anything that annoyed you", then the Huaxia army would directly defeat him and take in millions or even millions of people. It might be tiring to talk about, but if Dai Mengwei really went crazy, it might not be that difficult to bear.
Dai Mengwei was not crazy. He was good at forbearance, so he would not act impulsively when it was meaningless to do something like "I'll bang my head against your face". But at the same time, he controlled the trade route, but he could not even collect taxes that were too high. Because on the surface, he was resolutely attacking the Southwest, but he could not directly do business with the Southwest. And every power that did business with the Southwest regarded him as a madman who could flip out at any moment. This was very uncomfortable.
If the Huaxia army had only given the world some simple commercial equipment, then that would have been fine. But starting from the second half of last year, he had opened up high-grade military equipment and technology to the world — this was a matter that concerned the lifeline of the world, and it was a critical moment that he had to slowly plan.
For example, I, Liu Guangshi, am in the middle of an important transaction with the Huaxia army, and you're standing in the way. What if you suddenly go crazy? You can't just ask me to believe you for such an important matter, can you? My transaction with the Southwest is truly for the sake of saving the world. It's very important …
Dai Mengwei had played the Huaxia army, using the Huaxia army's power to keep the Female Immortal in check, and then using the Female Immortal's power to fight against the Huaxia army. This series of methods had originally been interesting to all the powers in the world, and there were quite a few people who verbally supported him. But as the various powers began to have actual business dealings with the Southwest, most of them began to show this kind of worry when they faced Dai Mengwei.
Don't go crazy, don't interfere. It's enough for you to shout verbally, but don't actually do anything reckless … No, how can you guarantee this to us?
Once the Southwest became involved with the various powers, Dai Mengwei would appear to be an eyesore. The entire world had been trampled on by the Female Immortal for ten-some years, and only the Huaxia army had managed to defeat them. Now, everyone was thirsting for the strength of the Southwest. In the face of this kind of profit, ideology was nothing. The target of public criticism would sooner or later become the target of public condemnation, and the target of public condemnation would come to nothing. Dai Mengwei understood this all too well.
Thus, in the second half of last year, a rebellion broke out in Dai Mengwei's territory. A general called Cao Silong opposed Dai Mengwei and rose up in revolt, splitting up a region bordering the Huaxia army.
Although this General Cao was rebellious, he didn't like the Huaxia army next to him. On this side, he righteously expressed his acceptance of the legitimacy of the Wu dynasty and the command of Grand General Liu Guangshi and the others. He called for the chaos to be brought to order and for all rebels to be defeated. Under this grand and empty slogan, the only thing that actually showed was that he was willing to accept Liu Guangshi's command.
Liu Guangshi spent money like water in the Southwest, causing Mister Ning to smile from ear to ear. Regarding this matter, he very helplessly sent out a letter, hoping that the Huaxia government would understand General Cao Silong's position and be magnanimous. Mister Ning replied with a letter. Although it was a difficult task, since Daddy Fang had spoken, he had to give him this face.
Thus, between the Huaxia army, Dai Mengwei, and Liu Guangshi, an enclave similar to a free port appeared. This place not only had Liu Guangshi's faction garrisoned, but in secret, Dai Mengwei, Wu Qimei, and Zou Xu, who were unable to trade with the Southwest, also had some leeway to secretly play some tricks. If the goods coming from the southwest were to be transferred here, they might be able to fetch even greater value. And in order to ensure her own interests, Dai Mengwei had maintained this area rather well. The security of the entire trade route had always been maintained. This was truly an ironic matter.
"… On the surface, Cao Silong is Liu Guangshi's man. After rebelling against Dai Mengwei, he recognized Liu as his master. However, in reality, we feel that he has always been Dai's man. This matter of Duke Dai's is truly a wily old fox … "
As they neared Bazhong, Lu Wenke, Fan Heng, and the others began to talk to Ning Ji about the country and Dai Mengwei.
When going out of the Southwest, the average scholar would actually take the Hanzhong road. When Lu Wenke and Fan Heng came, they had been rather careful because the chaos of war had just subsided and the situation was not stable. After staying in Chengdu for a period of time, they finally had some judgment of the entire world. They were Confucian scholars who paid particular attention to traveling ten thousand li. After seeing the Huaxia army in the Southwest, they also wanted to see other people's territories. Some even wanted to seek scholarly honors outside of the Southwest, so they followed this caravan out of Sichuan. As for Ning Ji, he chose one at random.
"Duke Dai is now in charge of Ankang and Shiyan, both of which are on the banks of the Han River. It is said that the people there are living well. Duke Dai governed the world with Confucianism and has made great achievements. Therefore, we plan to see for ourselves on this journey. Little Brother Long, what do you plan to do next? "
The main purpose of this caravan out of Sichuan was to tour around Cao Silong's territory. When they arrived at a county town north of Bazhong, they would stop and consider where to go next. Lu Wenke asked for Ning Ji's thoughts, but Ning Ji did not care. "I'm fine with anything."
"Then why not travel together? At least we can take care of each other." Fan Heng laughed. "We have discussed this along the way. We will take a detour north from Bazhong, pass the direction of Mingtong Courtyard, and then go to Ankang to board a ship. We will take Jingxiang to the east. Aotian is young, so it is best for him to follow us. "
"I'm fine with anything." Ning Ji's mind was filled with the thought of eating a big meal after entering the city, so he was not picky about the route for the time being.
On the afternoon of the first day of June, the caravan passed through the crowded mountain roads and entered Bazhong.
Everything in the city was in chaos.
A large number of caravans gathered in the small city. Outside the newly built simple inns, waiters with towels on their backs and prostitutes with makeup on their faces were shouting for customers. The stench of horse manure on the ground was unbearable. For those who had traveled extensively in the past, this might be a symbol of prosperity, but for those who had just come from the southwest, the order here was much worse.
"Look over there …"
On the way to a cheap inn nearby, Lu Wenke pulled Ning Ji's sleeve and pointed to the other side of the street.
On both sides of the long road on that side, there were simple shacks built. Some of them were fenced outside, and they looked like prison cells displayed on the street.
The shacks were full of people.
There were men and women with gray faces and ragged clothes, as well as half-grown children. Some of them spontaneously sat under the shacks that were not separated from each other, and some were fenced in. Some of the children were wailing loudly, sucking their fingers, or chasing and playing in the environment that looked like a pigsty. The adults looked at them with empty eyes.
Being in prison was not like being in prison. It was not accurate to say that they were completely free.
"They are …" Ning Ji furrowed his brows.
"This is what we said in Zhaohua. Beggars who can make it there are considered lucky. Those people can still choose to sign a five-year contract. Maybe they can pay off their debts in half a year and work in a factory for five years, and they can still save a large sum of money … These people have nothing left in the chaos of war. Some of them are outside, and they say that they will bring them to the southwest. The southwest is a good place. Even if they sign a contract for twenty, thirty, forty years, their wages won't even be a tenth of what they get in Zhaohua … What can they do? For the sake of the adults and children in their families, they can only sell themselves … "
"I think this is the problem of the Chinese army!" The middle-aged uncle Fan Heng said as he walked to the side. "They say that they talk about laws and contracts, but in reality, they have no humanity! There is clearly a five-year contract in Zhaohua, so why not make all the contracts the same? These people went to the southwest and signed such a shameful contract. The Chinese army should uphold justice and change all of them. This way, the people will definitely support them! What Mister Ning? When I was in the southwest, I already said that he is also a muddle-headed person. If I handle this matter, in less than a year, I will return peace to them, and the southwest will have the best reputation! "
"Perhaps they should come themselves …" Ning Ji looked at those empty eyes and said in a low voice. He had compassion in his heart. He could kill the enemy, but he did not feel good when he saw such eyes.
The street was noisy. Fan Heng, who was criticizing the Chinese army, did not hear Ning Ji's words clearly. A scholar called Chen Junsheng, who was walking in front, turned his head and said, "Transporting people is not easy. You guys … where do you think these people came from?"
This question seemed to be rather complicated and somewhat sharp. The five people had mentioned it on the road, or perhaps they had heard some public opinion. Now that he asked this question, Lu Wenke, Fan Heng, and the others all fell silent. After a while, Fan Heng finally spoke.
"Let's go take a look … and we'll know."
He seemed to be hinting at something. The group continued to walk forward. Ning Ji, on the other hand, was somewhat curious. When they approached the inn, he asked Lu Wenke, "What are we going to see there?"
Lu Wenke tilted his head and said in a low voice, "In the past, there was a saying that the majority of the workers who have entered the southwest recently were sold from Dai's territory … With so many workers, of course, some came from Duke Dai's side, but it is hard to say whether they are the majority. We discussed on the way and decided that we should go there to take a look. In fact, Duke Dai is very knowledgeable. Although he is not on good terms with the Chinese army, he saved millions of people from the hands of the Female Zhenren during the war. This is a great merit that cannot be erased. We do not believe that we are slandering him with this matter. "
"Oh." Ning Ji nodded. If he met Dai, he would naturally kill him. As for judging Dai's merits and demerits with these people, he would not do that. Thus, he did not express any more opinions.
Perhaps because of the sudden increase in the flow of customers, the newly built inns in Bazhong City were no different from the wilderness. The air was stuffy and filled with the inexplicable smell of feces. At night, when Ning Ji climbed to the roof and looked into the distance, he saw the messy sheds and people who looked like animals in the street market. At this moment, he truly felt that he had left the territory of the Chinese army.
He felt a little homesick …
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