After sending off the Mountain Barbarian Tribe's various chiefs, Ouyang Shuo prepared to receive the second group of guests.
This group of guests had even more special identities.
They were the leaders of the tribes of the grassland. Apart from the Sky Order Tribe's Khan Meng Ke, who did not come in person due to health issues, the leaders of the other seven medium-sized tribes were all present.
On the eve of the Spring Festival, the leaders of the various clans were "invited" to Shanhai City by the Second Division.
After Ouyang Shuo returned to Shanhai City, he didn't have the time to rest.
"Greetings, Marquis!"
Walking into the main hall, the leaders bowed in unison.
It was a historic moment.
The leaders' kneeling represented that the grassland tribes had officially submitted to Shanhai City.
Ouyang Shuo sat upright on the seat of honor and calmly accepted the greeting, then he indifferently said, "Everyone, please sit!"
"Yes, sir!"
The leaders sat down obediently, their expressions uneasy.
Among them, the one representing the Sky Boundary Tribe was Meng Ke's eldest son, Jida, who was also close to thirty years old. Unlike the other leaders, this person had an arrogant expression on his face as he sat boldly on the first seat on the left.
Ouyang Shuo frowned imperceptibly when he saw this.
Among the leaders, there were some who were meticulous and were already gloating in their hearts.
Ji Da was really reckless. At this time, he was still putting on airs as the number one tribe of the prairie.
Compared to the amiable expression he had when he received the Mountain Barbarian Tribes, Ouyang Shuo's current expression was a little cold as he said, "Before everyone surrendered, there was a leader called Dari Achi on the prairie who led his troops to surrender."
As soon as he finished speaking, the leaders' hearts trembled.
During the battle of Lianzhou, the news that Dari Achi had attempted to collude with the allied forces, but because of his careless plotting, he was thrown into prison by Shanhai City had long since spread throughout the prairie.
The reason why the Marquis of Lianzhou suddenly mentioned this matter was obvious.
Sure enough, Ouyang Shuo's face was filled with anger as he sternly said, "Shanhai City has never treated Dari Achi unfairly. Who would have thought that this person actually had the ambition of a wolf and wanted to rebel? This Marquis will never tolerate such an ingrate. The Punishment Commissioner has already come to a conclusion. In the next few days, Dari Achi will be beheaded on the street to face the truth. "
The leaders' faces were pale as they said shakily, "The Marquis is wise!"
His feelings were really complicated.
"I won't hide it from you. There was once a minister who advised this Marquis that Dari Achi is the role model of the prairie, that this kind of person can only be one, but not two. We should deal with the tribes of the grassland with thunderous methods and eliminate them by the roots to serve as a warning to others. "
Ouyang Shuo's expression was calm, but the words that came out of his mouth were like a raging ocean.
"What do you all think?"
Ouyang Shuo's words were not entirely a bluff.
The minister he mentioned was Tian Wenjing, the head of the Internal Affairs Department.
Dari Achi's case was single-handedly handled by the Ministry of Internal Affairs. After Tian Wenjing reported the case to Ouyang Shuo, he took the opportunity to propose the extermination of the various clan leaders.
At that time, Ouyang Shuo's noncommittal attitude was equivalent to shelving Tian Wenjing's suggestion.
Compared to slaughter, Ouyang Shuo was more inclined to adopt a relatively gentle method to solve the problems left behind after the tribes of the grassland submitted to him. He did not want to capture all the nobles in one fell swoop.
After all, Dari Achi was just an exception.
Now that the grasslands were unified, even if they wanted to rebel, they had no conditions.
Most importantly, if Ouyang Shuo wanted to win the hearts of the people in the prairie, he had to treat these nobles well.
Otherwise, there would be endless troubles in the future.
Ouyang Shuo did not want to see a prairie that was in constant chaos under his rule. Unifying the Lianzhou Basin and operating Lianzhou County like an iron bucket was Ouyang Shuo's strategic choice.
Taking ten thousand steps back, if he really massacred the nobles of the grassland, not only would it disappoint the grassland herdsmen, but it would also disappoint the mountain barbarian tribes. It was not a joke to say that the fox grieves when the rabbit dies.
The leaders looked at each other, their faces turning paler and paler.
Seeing that the situation was becoming more and more unfavorable, the leaders did not want to sit still and wait for death. One by one, they stood up to declare their loyalty and whitewash their names. Each and every one of them spoke with sincerity.
"Marquis! Marquis!! " One of the leaders directly fell to the ground. His voice sounded like he was about to cry. The dignity and self-respect of a clan leader were nowhere to be seen. "Marquis, Dari Achi's death is not to be regretted, but he cannot represent the tribes of the grassland. We sincerely submit to you, Marquis, and we have no other intentions. Please investigate this, Marquis! "
"Please investigate this, Marquis!"
…
"Marquis, please investigate this, Marquis!"
Among the people, only Ji Da did not plead for mercy. His eyes even revealed a hint of disdain towards the leaders' behavior, and his nostrils emitted a disdainful snort.
Ji Da's words and actions were like a crane in a flock of chickens. It was impossible for him not to attract attention.
"Young Master Ji Da, you seem to have a different opinion?"
Ouyang Shuo's expression was indifferent, but his words hid a hidden meaning.
Hearing this, Ji Da said carelessly, "Since ancient times, the winner takes all. Dari Achi deserved to die, but there is no need to implicate us. There are no cowards in the Tianjian Tribe. "
Ouyang Shuo's eyes lit up. Ji Da's words were soft but firm.
Not only did he express his position, but he also maintained the pride and dignity of the royal family.
It was a short sentence, but it was said with great skill.
Ouyang Shuo had to re-evaluate this person.
Perhaps, cynicism was only a "coat" that Ji Da used to protect himself.
Meng Ke had raised a good son.
Ouyang Shuo nodded and said, "Good, well said."
He looked around, and his voice was slow but full of power. "As the ruler of the human world. "As the ruler, I have responsibility for the territory, so I naturally have the magnanimity of a ruler and understand the way of forgiveness. But if there are people who are stubborn, in order to maintain the order of the territory, I will not hesitate to show my thunderous fury and drown all of you in a sea of blood! "
Majesty, majesty and killing intent that towered like a mountain filled the entire hall.
It was an irresistible and solemn aura.
All the chiefs knelt at the same time. Even the "cynical" Ji Da also knelt at this moment.
All the chiefs prostrated themselves, and no one dared to make a sound. The hall was deathly silent.
Looking at those trembling figures, Ouyang Shuo sighed inwardly. The people prostrating in front of him were the top figures of the prairie, and they represented the peak strength of the prairie.
But now, they were all prostrating at his feet, not daring to breathe loudly.
This was where the power of authority lay.
No wonder since ancient times, countless heroes would go through water and tread on fire for this.
That afternoon, Ouyang Shuo made a promise.
He would allow the chiefs and nobles of the prairie to bring their personal wealth and move to Shanhai City to settle down.
Shanhai City would demarcate an area in the outer city and build an exclusive neighborhood for them to live in.
On normal days, the nobles were not allowed to leave the neighborhood, and they were not allowed to contact their clansmen.
Once they were found out, they would be severely punished.
Other than that, the punishment system would also be implemented.
If one person was investigated, the entire tribe's nobles would be punished.
A light punishment would be confiscation of their assets, and a heavy punishment would be forced into labor.
If they had any rebellious thoughts, their entire clan would be annihilated!
Under the carrot-and-stick policy, the prairie tribes could only prostrate themselves at Ouyang Shuo's feet.
February 22nd, the second day of the first lunar month.
On this day, Ouyang Shuo put aside all his affairs and met with the prefectures and city guards in his study room.
Four prefectures and a city guard reported to Ouyang Shuo in turn.
Ouyang Shuo received them one by one, pointing out the plans and requirements for each prefecture and city. The main target was none other than Duanren Prefecture's Prefectural Magistrate, Zhou Haichen.
Although Ba Dao was militaristic, he had left behind a territory with a solid foundation.
According to Zhou Haichen's report, Duanren County's total population was more than 210,000, equivalent to two fully populated third-class counties.
In one fell swoop, Duanren Prefecture became the most populous territory after Shanhai Prefecture.
Even the Mulan Mansion paled in comparison.
With such a large population, if they relied on Shanhai City to accumulate resources, who knew how long it would take. Duanren Prefecture was also the most successful example of Ouyang Shuo's Gu Raising Plan.
Other than that, Duanren Prefecture's greatest wealth was the gold mine that Ba Dao discovered.
Similar to the Wolf Mountain Mine, the gold mine that Ba Dao named as the North Mountain Mine contained an astonishing amount of gold. What Ba Dao mined was just a drop in the ocean.
Ouyang Shuo immediately promised that the North Mountain Mine would be placed under Duanren Prefecture's direct jurisdiction. He also hoped to improve Duanren Prefecture's financial situation through the North Mountain Mine.
During Ba Dao's reign, more than ninety percent of the territory's revenue was used to develop military equipment. The expenditure on people's livelihood and public finances was almost zero.
Duanren Prefecture urgently needed to recover its strength.
Of course, although the North Mountain Mine was placed under Duanren Prefecture's jurisdiction, the Marquis Mansion did not really ignore it. In addition to the stipulated ratio, the funds had to be turned over to the Finance Bureau in the form of fiscal revenue.
Ouyang Shuo also instructed the Wolf Mountain Mine to dispatch experts and skilled personnel to guide the Northern Mountain Mine and improve their mining and refining standards in order to increase their gold production.
In the end, Ouyang Shuo raised three requests for Zhou Haichen.
First, Duanren Manor must immediately establish the East La Lake Naval Battalion to clear out the water bandits and create conditions for the development of the East La Lake. Whether it was fishing or artificially cultivating pearls, they had to be done as soon as possible.
Secondly, all the counties and counties under Duanren Manor, especially the secondary counties, must be removed and the population concentrated in the main city, focusing on developing the main city.
Third, the construction of Duanren City's outer walls had to be carried out in a timely manner. They had to strive to complete the city walls before the spring sowing. If it couldn't be built, it would have to be temporarily shelved. After the spring sowing, they would continue to build.
Apart from that, Ouyang Shuo had also ordered the military to be in charge of establishing Duanren City's City Guard Brigade.
Compared to Gushan County, Duanren City was closer to the Hundred Thousand Mountains.
In the future, Duan Ren City would be the frontline defending against Chiyou City.
After the debriefing, the magistrates set off for the administrative center the next day.
Spring was the start of the year. As magistrates, they really did not have much free time. Even Cui Shousi, after a brief meeting with his cousin, Cui Yingyou, had no choice but to return immediately.
Before Zhou Haichen left, Ouyang Shuo gave him a token. It was the Village Creation Token that Ouyang Shuo had fused with the Fusion Token. This token would be used to reactivate Duanren City.
After giving away this token, Ouyang Shuo still had three similar tokens in his interspatial pouch. (To be continued.)
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
