When Bing'er returned to Shanhai City, none of the four little ones followed her.
Needless to say, Xiao Bai and Xiao Qing were going to stay in the Spirit Beast Pavilion and not come out. They were going to wait at the Spirit Beast Pavilion punctually every day. Hei Ya had to protect Little White, so he didn't return.
The strangest thing was Xue 'er. The little fellow could actually cultivate in the Spirit Beast Pavilion.
Cher was a top-notch artificial intelligence. In the game, she only existed as an ornamental pet. He did not expect the Spirit Beast Pavilion that Gaia rewarded him with was so miraculous.
Snow was the most intelligent of the four. According to the little fellow, as soon as she entered the Spirit Beast Pavilion, a mysterious voice echoed in her mind, imparting to her the Spirit Beast Cultivation Method.
Ouyang Shuo fell silent. Snow was becoming more and more like a 'player'. Needless to say, the cultivation method that the little guy practiced must be the same as the real secret manuals that the players practiced and could be brought into the real world.
He never thought that Snow would have such a fortuitous encounter.
Ouyang Shuo felt as if a lifetime had passed since he stepped out of the teleportation array.
Compared to when he left, Shanhai City had not changed much. The destruction caused by the battle in Lian Province had been gradually repaired, and the people in the city had also returned to their normal lives.
The dense number of barricades and arrow towers in the outer city had long since been dismantled.
In just a few days, there were almost no traces of war. Who would have thought that not long ago, this place was the focus of the world's attention and was suspected to be on the verge of falling.
Only the thousands of tombstones erected in the cemetery in the western suburbs spoke of the cruelty and mercilessness of war.
As the Spring Festival approached, the festive atmosphere diluted the sadness of the city.
The central commercial street was crowded with people. There were all kinds of traditional New Year goods. Compared to a year ago, when Ouyang Shuo still needed to personally purchase the New Year goods from the market, the difference was like heaven and earth.
The presence of the Chamber of Commerce not only brought with it investment and business opportunities, but it also brought all sorts of small goods from all over the world to satisfy the consumer needs of the citizens.
Not only were the locals of Shanhai City present on the commercial street, but there were also merchants, scholars, and ordinary people from all over Lianzhou County. There were even herdsmen from the mountain barbarians and grassland tribes.
Shanhai City gradually became the political, economic, and cultural center of Lian Province.
At the intersection of the Friendship River and the canyon, a large distribution center had been completed. Every day, there was an endless stream of merchant ships traveling to and from the distribution center.
The original dock had been expanded again and again, and now it had become a small city.
Thanks to the Friendship River and Qiushui River, the two rivers connected almost half of Lianzhou County. The connection between the East and West Prefectures and Shanhai City was getting closer and closer.
Under Wei Ran's governance, Shanhai City was thriving.
Before Ouyang Shuo returned, he didn't give any advance notice, so naturally, no one came to welcome him. When he returned to the Marquis's Mansion, he alarmed everyone. The huge Marquis's Mansion immediately became noisy.
There were too many matters in the territory waiting for Ouyang Shuo to decide. Relying on Mu Lanyue to pass the message was inconvenient in the end. Knowing that the Marquis had returned, all the military and political officials hurried over.
Ouyang Shuo smiled bitterly and shook his head. He knew it would be like this.
Seeing how Du Ruhui, Fan Zhongyan, and the others wished that they could stop him on the spot, Ouyang Shuo waved his hand and said, "We'll discuss everything after the new year!"
Hearing this, Du Ruhui and the others were immediately dumbfounded.
Ouyang Shuo frowned when he saw the bitter expressions on the ministers' faces. He teased, "What? Ministers, you work so hard that you don't even care about your lives. Do you want your ministers to suffer with you? If that's the case, everyone will blame this Marquis in their hearts. At the end of the year, I have to rest for a few days! "
Du Ruhui and Fan Zhongyan looked at each other and smiled. "Alright, alright, alright. We'll do as the Marquis says!"
"That's right. Ministers, you are all loyal ministers. You should also take care of your health."
Du Ruhui's health had always been poor. Although Ouyang Shuo was joking, he also had the intention of reminding her. He heard that Du Ruhui had been a little crazy when she worked recently and couldn't sleep at night.
"Thank you for your concern, Marquis!"
Ouyang Shuo nodded and continued. "At the end of the year, there should be some rewards. The two of you will take the lead in coming up with the year-end rewards for the military and the government, and report to the finance department to purchase them. "
Fan Zhongyan smiled faintly, but he remembered the same scene that happened on the eve of last year's New Year.
At that time, the Marquis had to personally purchase their gifts. The rewards were also set by the Marquis himself. Times had changed, and the Marquis was already handling such matters with ease.
After sending away the two ministers, Ouyang Shuo finally had time to return to his study.
As for Fan Lihua, she was naturally received by Bing 'er, the' Little Lord '.
When Bing 'er returned, the Marquis Mansion was naturally in a mess. When the people of the Marquis Mansion thought of the little princess's naughtiness, they felt both a headache and joy. Fortunately, this time the four little ones didn't follow, so there were fewer twists and turns.
Although Lang Bai Nanpu wasn't around, the secretary's office was still operating.
On the desk, some important official letters were neatly arranged, waiting for Ouyang Shuo to read and deal with.
Ouyang Shuo delayed the meeting until after the New Year because it was nearing the end of the year and he needed to rest, but he also wanted to use these few days to familiarize himself with and sort out the affairs of the territory.
In the afternoon, Ouyang Shuo visited Great Grandfather Jiang Shang and War Saint Sun Wu. Although these two powerhouses didn't participate in the territory's affairs, they couldn't be underestimated. Since Ouyang Shuo had returned, he naturally had to pay them a visit.
Apart from that, Ouyang Shuo also hoped to receive some advice from them.
Ouyang Shuo had his own considerations about the territory's next step. But before he officially implemented it, he hoped to hear Jiang Shang and Sun Wu's opinions.
As time passed, Jiang Shang's feelings for Shanhai City gradually deepened. Although there was still a grudge in his heart, he still gave a friendly response to Ouyang Shuo's advice.
Just a few words of advice had benefited Ouyang Shuo greatly.
Looking at the young Marquis in front of him, Jiang Shang sighed in his heart. This person was young, experienced, shrewd, and capable. What was rarer was that he had a farsighted vision.
In Jiang Shang's opinion, some of Shanhai City's actions were a stroke of genius.
Moreover, he was young and held a high position. Not only was he not arrogant, but he was also humbly asking for advice.
How rare, how rare!
Even King Wu didn't have such ability when he was young.
The opening of the military lecture hall was imminent, and Sun Wu was busy revising the teaching materials. Towards Ouyang Shuo's visit, Sun Wu's goodwill was naturally obvious.
Ouyang Shuo humbly asked for advice on the future military structure of the territory.
Sun Wu was indeed worthy of being called the War Saint. He directly pointed out a few flaws in Ouyang Shuo's plan, making Ouyang Shuo feel that this trip was not in vain.
The wisdom of the ancients couldn't be underestimated.
Before leaving, the two of them even exchanged some opinions on the construction of the military lecture hall. Ouyang Shuo wanted the first batch of students to be selected from the active soldiers.
Sun Wu nodded in agreement. He also knew the weakness of Shanhai City's army.
Ouyang Shuo's decision could be said to be well-intentioned.
After bidding farewell to Sun Wu, Ouyang Shuo walked around the city before returning to his residence.
The population of Shanhai City had already exceeded the 300,000 mark. Not everyone in the city knew him, the Marquis. If it wasn't for the personal guards following behind him, they would probably think that he was an ordinary scholar.
The next day, after Ouyang Shuo's morning exercise, he went to the Marquis's residence to deal with government affairs. Although he let his subordinates rest, he couldn't stay idle.
The consultation yesterday had made Ouyang Shuo's thoughts even clearer. He also needed someone to sort out his thoughts.
Ouyang Shuo instructed the secretary office not to let anyone disturb him unless there was something important.
Ouyang Shuo sat alone in the room. On the other side, two special guests came to Shanhai City.
The two of them seemed to have met each other by chance.
One of them was an old man. He looked strong and healthy, and he was dressed as a traveling doctor.
The other person was young, probably less than 30 years old. However, he was disabled and couldn't walk. The young man sat in a wooden wheelchair and was pushed by the old man.
What was even more peculiar was that there was a long scar on the young man's face, starting from his left eyebrow. Those who were familiar with the law would know that this was a scar left behind by the branding.
The two of them were stopped by the city guards at the city gate.
"Who are you?"
The old man cupped his hands and said with a smile, "Sir, I'm a traveling doctor. I heard that there are many precious herbs in the city, so I came to take a look."
The guard nodded and pointed at the young man in the wheelchair. "Who is this?"
There were thousands of people entering and leaving the city gates of Shanhai City every day, but the guards wouldn't check them one by one. It was because the young man was too special that the guards were alerted.
As a member of the military, the guard immediately recognized that the scar on the young man's face was the mark of the branding. Generally speaking, those who had been branded were either slaves or people who had committed the most heinous crimes.
Either way, it was enough to attract the guard's attention.
As the guard checked, a group of commoners gathered at the city gate.
Seeing the young man's appearance, there was a lot of discussion. Some were sympathetic, and naturally, some were mocking.
The young man didn't care about everything around him, as if he was already used to being pointed at.
The young man raised his head. His face was extremely handsome, and the scar on his face didn't affect his temperament. Instead, it added a different kind of charm to him.
"Sir, please know that I'm here to seek refuge with my grandfather!"
"Grandfather? Who's your grandfather? "
The young man waved at the guard, indicating for him to follow him.
The guard didn't suspect anything when facing a disabled person and immediately came up to him.
The young man whispered a name into the guard's ear.
"Ah, it's him? Is that true? "
The guard exclaimed when he heard that.
The young man's expression was calm as he said indifferently, "If you don't believe me, you can follow me to see my grandfather. It's my first time here and I'm not familiar with the way. Fortunately, I'll have to trouble you to lead the way. "
Seeing the young man's confident expression, the guard became solemn and said respectfully, "Please!"
As he spoke, he actually ignored the commoners who were watching the show and directly led the two of them into the city.
This unforeseen event naturally caused the commoners to be gossipy. They were all guessing who the young man's grandfather was, and he actually caused the guard's expression to change.
One must know that this guard was an elite of the city guard division, and he was usually very arrogant! (To be continued.)
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