Ang Lee did not want to provoke the bandits nearby at this time, and there was no need to do so. If such a bad thing happened in the Tang dynasty, he would definitely take care of it immediately. However, there was a serious food shortage here, and many ordinary people were forced to become bandits. In this case, it meant that bandits were everywhere in Dongnu Province, and almost every civilian was a bandit. How could he take care of it? He could not wipe out all the people here! In addition, Ang Lee loved his troops very much. The death of one person could make Ang Lee's heart ache for a long time. These hungry bandits were very strong, and the Tang Army could not achieve zero casualties. In fact, the casualties would not be too small. Therefore, he naturally did not want to take risks. It was better to stabilize the overall situation first and wait for the arrival of a large number of food and supplies from the imperial court of the Tang dynasty. This was the only way to solve the problem fundamentally.
The officials and generals of the Holy Mountain City had the same idea as Ang Lee. They were also guarding the city and waiting for a large number of food aid to arrive. Without enough food, they did not have the ability to eliminate the bandits outside the city. Even the pressure of defending the city was great. However, as long as they had food, they could use food to disintegrate most of the bandits and turn them back into ordinary people. Then, they only needed to eliminate a small number of stubborn bandits to completely eliminate the problem of bandits in the Holy Mountain area.
In other words, food was the most powerful weapon at present. With enough food, they could eliminate the bandits. Without food, it was simply wishful thinking to eliminate the bandits. As for drawing a big picture and mobilizing the people to produce and save themselves, it was just an unrealistic idea. The people now had no food to eat, so how could they have the strength to produce and save themselves? They must be provided with food first and let them eat and drink until they were full. Then, they could be guided to produce and build irrigation works, so that the entire imperial court of Dongnu Province could get on the right track.
At present, food had become the life-saving straw for the entire Dongnu Province. It was a necessary condition for everything to be done. With food, all problems could be solved. Without food, no problems could be solved. At least, the population would continue to reduce to the extent that food could be afforded.
Since ancient times, every time there was a famine, it was accompanied by a large reduction in the population and the turmoil of the entire society. There would even be a change of dynasty. The process of changing dynasties was not smooth. After many cruel wars, when a new dynasty was born, only a small part of the population was left. Most of the population disappeared in the process of changing dynasties. Because of the reduction of the population, the demand for food decreased. Therefore, the food problem was easier to solve, the whole society was easier to stabilize, and there was no problem with social order.
Using this natural elimination method to eliminate a large number of people and leave a small part of the population in the end was really a cruel method. Sometimes, it was the only way to use it. But unless it was a last resort, it was better not to use this method. After all, the reduction of the population also meant the reduction of the productivity, which was the so-called population withering. Without enough population, how could one vigorously develop the productivity and realize the prosperity of the empire? Therefore, almost all the prosperous times happened decades after the birth of a new dynasty, that was, after the population had increased again. For example, today's Chang 'an City had a population of several million, which led to the prosperity of Chang' an City. Without such a large population, Chang 'an City would never be so prosperous. Without a sufficient population, it was impossible to ensure the development of various technologies and workshops. Therefore, a large population was also an advantage, a very huge advantage.
The current situation faced by Dongnu Province was mainly the shortage of food. As long as the food problem was solved, the existing population would be the productive force. Dongnu Province was mountainous, so there must be a lot of minerals. When the road to Central Sichuan was built, the minerals here could be sold to Central Sichuan. If there was a food shortage crisis again, there would be a large number of food transported in at any time. Dongnu Province would not encounter a food shortage again. Of course, Dongnu Province would no longer exist, and it would soon be changed to Dongnu Province. It was believed that under the governance of the Tang dynasty, this place would become more prosperous and stable, and the people's lives would become more and more prosperous. This was Ang Lee's dream, and it would definitely be realized.
After returning to the Holy Mountain City, Ang Lee's team was ready. The vanguard had already set off. Now, Ang Lee wanted to go to Guichang City as soon as possible to see Zhao Yefu as soon as possible and solve the goddess's worries.
The Holy Mountain City was not very far from Guichang City. It was only thirty to fifty miles away, but they needed to cross the iron chain bridge over the Great Golden River. This iron chain bridge was covered with wooden planks, so it was completely possible to pass by vehicles, but it was only one-way. When one vehicle passed by, the people on the other side had to not get on the bridge. Fortunately, the width of the Great Golden River was limited, so it was not a big problem for everyone to take turns to pass by. It would not take too much time, and there would not be a situation where two vehicles walked to the middle and no one could pass by. With the coordination of the soldiers guarding the bridge, all the embarrassing things would not happen.
The road from the Holy Mountain City to Guichang City was relatively good. There were almost no mountain bandits along the way. There were more officers and soldiers here, so there was no soil for mountain bandits. Therefore, Ang Lee's team moved smoothly along the way, and their speed was also relatively fast. When it was dark, they had already arrived at the iron chain bridge of the Great Golden River.
As the officials of the Holy Mountain City had already sent the news back to Guichang City in advance, so the high-ranking officials in the city knew that Ang Lee had come. So, naturally, there were people at the bridgehead of the iron chain bridge to greet them.
From a distance, Ang Lee saw a familiar figure. This person was the Prime Minister of Dongnu Province, Zhao Daiwen. This guy was much fatter than a few years ago. However, it was not caused by eating well, but by some puffiness. It seemed that it was caused by too much pressure in life. One must know that when a person's life was too stressful, it would really lead to obesity, which was the so-called pressure obesity.
Some people may think that when a person is under pressure, they will lose their appetite and will definitely become thin. However, this kind of thinking is very wrong. Some people will lose their appetite and will indeed become thin. However, there are also some people, under strong pressure, not only will they not become thin, but they will become fatter and fatter. This is the so-called pressure fatter.
Many people did not understand pressure obesity. They did not understand why pressure obesity would occur. This was a scientific problem. Perhaps only scientists could explain it!
According to the scientific theory of the future, when a person was under too much pressure, there would be an increase in hunger. Once the hunger increased, they would relieve the pressure by overeating. Although Dongnu Province was seriously short of food, for a high-ranking official like Zhao Daiwen, there would definitely be food at home. Even if he ate more than usual, there would be no pressure.
In addition, when a person was under too much pressure and had to deal with more difficult things, it would also lead to a disorder in work and rest and a decrease in metabolic capacity. When a person was under too much pressure, the sympathetic nervous system would be in a constant state of excitement, which would easily lead to sleep disorders. Lack of sleep would lead to an irregular work and rest schedule, which would affect the normal metabolism. This would intensify the supply of energy, which would lead to an imbalance in energy consumption. Naturally, more food would be needed to replenish energy. Also, psychological stress would lead to a lack of rest, which often made people feel listless and unenergetic. Naturally, they would not want to go out to the gym to exercise, which would not provide an opportunity for fat consumption.
Therefore, it was normal for people to be obese. Finally, since there were a lot of difficult things to deal with under pressure, it was necessary to think carefully about how to deal with them. When thinking, most people would sit. The longer they thought about a problem, the longer they would sit. Long-term sitting would affect the blood circulation of the body, slow down the exchange of breathing gas, reduce the metabolic rate, and reduce the efficiency of work. As a result, people would appear fatter.
There was a clear difference between obesity caused by good living conditions and obesity caused by stress. One was normal obesity, while the other was morbid obesity. Normal obesity was healthier, while obesity caused by stress was morbid. Although fat, one would look haggard and not have the slightest bit of energy.
Because of the distance, Ang Lee could not see clearly whether Zhao Daiwen was energetic or not. However, judging from the current situation in Dongnu Province, it was impossible for Zhao Daiwen to be in good spirits. His obesity was undoubtedly due to stress.
Although he was not in good spirits, Zhao Daiwen still greeted Ang Lee with a smile. The smile on his face was not much different from many years ago. If there was a slight difference, it was probably that he was older. At the same time, there was a slight feeling of meeting a savior in his expression.
"Assistant Minister Li, you're finally here. Now, we're saved."
Zhao Daiwen said excitedly.
"Not at all, not at all. I haven't seen you for many years. You've become much fatter!"
Ang Lee greeted him.
Zhao Daiwen smiled and said, "I'm just a little fat. I'm not fatter at all!"
"Hahaha! Let's go to the palace. "
Ang Lee did not stand on ceremony and said with a smile.
"Assistant Minister Li, please. The Queen is already waiting for you in the palace."
Zhao Daiwen said with a smile.
The iron chain bridge was a little shaky, but it was relatively stable. The technological strength here was limited. It was very difficult to build an iron chain bridge. Only the current strength of the Tang Dynasty could possibly build a stable hard bridge. In the future, a solid bridge would definitely be built here. Not only should it be stronger than the iron chain bridge, but it should also be wider. At least, it should be enough for two cars to cross each other. It would be best if it was a four-lane bridge to avoid congestion.
These were all in the future. As long as the funds were in place, building roads and paving bridges would be a piece of cake for the Tang Dynasty. As long as the construction team of the Tang Dynasty entered Dongnu Province, it would be enough for them to build a bridge here in half a year, which would greatly improve the traffic conditions here.
Because Dongnu Province was a place where five rivers converged, mountains and rivers were particularly dense. Therefore, there were a lot of bridges to be built here. In the future, at least dozens of rivers would be built here to meet the travel needs of the local people. Without these bridges, the local people could only cross the river by boat, or even run a long way to cross the river from a distant bridge, which would seriously affect the convenience of the people's lives.
After crossing the iron chain bridge, it did not take long for them to see Guichang City in front of them. This city was not significantly different from a few years ago. It was still the same, and the nine-story palace was still standing there.
A familiar feeling came to him, which made Ang Lee feel very comfortable. Guichang City, which he had not seen for a long time, was right in front of him. Those unforgettable stories that happened here many years ago were now reappearing in front of Ang Lee's eyes. It was a wonderful feeling.
"My goddess, I'm coming!"
Ang Lee smiled and rode his horse to Guichang City. Hundreds of transport vehicles needed to cross the river one by one, which would take a long time. Obviously, Ang Lee would not wait for all the vehicles to cross the river before going to Guichang City. It was very appropriate for him to lead a small number of people first, and the transport team behind him would be escorted by the soldiers and horses of Dongnu Province. Anyway, Guichang City was right in front of him. There was no need to worry about being robbed by thieves, who did not have the guts and ability to do so.
Spring was the season of recovery. The spring breeze was so warm, and the trees and flowers on both sides of the road were so charming and so green. If it were not for the lack of food, this place would definitely be called heaven on earth. It was precisely because of the lack of food that this place became hell on earth.
In the case of unbearable hunger, no one would care about the beautiful scenery around them. No one who was hungry would be in the mood to appreciate the beauty of nature. Appreciating beautiful scenery was a feeling that would only arise after eating and drinking. How could one be in the mood to think about enjoying the scenery when one's stomach was growling from hunger?
When he was two miles away from Guichang City, Ang Lee saw many people waiting at the gate of the city. These were obviously the high-ranking officials and soldiers of Dongnu Province. It seemed that they attached great importance to his arrival.
"Why do they have to make such a big scene? It's completely unnecessary."
Ang Lee sighed.
The Great Minister Zhao Daiwen said, "Assistant Minister Li is a high-ranking official of the Tang dynasty. We dare not neglect him. The people who are waiting at the gate of the city are the Young Minister and others. The Queen and the Great Minister are waiting at the gate of the palace."
Ang Lee nodded and looked at Chen Long beside him. His eyes were full of stories.
"Assistant Minister Li, this Young Minister, isn't she …"
Chen Long whispered. He already knew who the Young Minister was. His mood suddenly became a little complicated. After all, he also had to consider his mother.
This Young Minister was Zhao Mengjie, Zhao Yefu's aunt. She was a charming and beautiful woman who made Chen Long's father, Chen Long, fall head over heels for her. When he thought of this woman, Chen Long did not know what kind of mood he should have.
Zhao Mengjie should be in her thirties, about the same age as Ang Lee. However, time did not seem to have left too many traces on her face. She was still so young, and there was little change from her state many years ago.
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