As the appointment of the county governors was announced, Zhou Haichen entered the public eye and became the most popular person in the territory. Zhou Haichen's background and resume were thoroughly investigated.
Cui Shousi, who had been promoted to Prefectural Governor, had the support of the Cui Clan and the First Princess of the Protectorate, Cui Yingyou, as a mediator.
Zhou Haichen was different. He came to the territory as a refugee. He had no relatives or friends in the territory. He relied on his own hard work and Jun Shang's appreciation to get to where he was today.
The only connection was that he had been trained by Fan Zhongyan when he was in the Administrative Office.
Ouyang Shuo still remembered that he had weighed the pros and cons between Zhou Haichen and Qin Shijian when he was establishing the subsidiary territory of Friendship County.
In the end, Zhou Haichen was appointed as the You County Magistrate, and Qin Shijian as the Head of the Administrative Department Merit Examination.
To this day, Zhou Haichen was already a high-ranking military official, while Qin Shijian was still the chief of the examination department. However, at this time, the Merit Examination Department was already a department under the Administration of Officials under the General Administration of Administration.
From the looks of it, going down to the ground to gain experience would be a better way to gain political achievements and be promoted.
As for the twists and turns in the appointment of Lei Fan, due to the protection of Lei Fan, only Ouyang Shuo, Xiao He, Zhang Ting Yu, and a few others knew about it. Outsiders did not know the inside story.
Even Lei Fan himself did not know much about this.
Ouyang Shuo considered promoting Lei Fan to the County Chief of Yizhou. Firstly, when Shanhai City took over Yunnan City, they did not find any outstanding historical talents.
Secondly, Lei Fan was born in the Mountain Barbarian Tribe, so he was very familiar with the multi-ethnic policy of the territory. It was beneficial for him to work in Yizhou County, which was dominated by the indigenous High Mountain Tribe.
In addition, Ouyang Shuo also had political considerations to appease the Mountain Barbarians. Ouyang Shuo was the [Barbarian King], and the Barbarian Mountain Barbarian warriors had continuously made contributions on the battlefield. It was time to give the Barbarian Mountain Tribe more authority.
Lei Fan's advancement would undoubtedly further increase the Mountain Barbarian Tribe's loyalty and cohesiveness towards their territory.
This would also lay a solid foundation for subduing the barbarians of Shu in the future.
Of course, Xiao He's concerns were not without reason. Before Lei Fan became the Gushan County Magistrate, he was only a tribal chief. He had never received an orthodox education, so he was naturally flawed.
However, just based on this point alone, Lei Fan could not be vetoed.
In history, how could there be a few who were born in the wilderness who eventually became generals and ministers? Even Xiao He himself was just an inconspicuous county official in Pei County at the very beginning.
Meritocracy referred to one's abilities, not one's birth.
Ouyang Shuo was confident in Lei Fan. The evaluation team led by Zhang Tingyu would bring Xiao He a pleasant surprise.
Gaia fourth year, 15th January. Dongchuan County.
It could be said that Dongchuan Prefecture had been plagued with disasters during this period of time. First, it was plowed by the Imperial Guards. Then, it was destroyed by the allied army and the allied army. Finally, the army of Swordsman City stirred up trouble in the territory.
The Swordsman City's army did not stay for long before the Imperial Guards returned.
The common people of Dongchuan County were suffering unspeakably. Because of the lack of information in ancient times, the common people did not know the war situation in Yunnan. Every morning when they woke up, they did not know which hero was ruling this city.
On this day, Huo Qubing led the imperial guards to the outskirts of Yong Ren City.
The corpses outside the city had already been cleared by the System. The land that was dyed red with blood was proof that a great war had taken place not long ago.
The soldiers of the First Regiment of the imperial guards were in a daze. Many of them had been buried here before, but were miraculously resurrected and once again set foot on this bloodstained land.
Yong Ren City was a place of shame that the imperial guards could not erase.
As soon as the imperial guards stepped into Dongchuan Prefecture, the lord of Yong Ren City had already abandoned the city and fled. The Yunnan City State had already disbanded, and the Yanhuang Alliance had also been defeated by Shanhai City. Facing the menacing and vengeful imperial guards of Shanhai City, the lord of Yong Ren City could not think of anyone else who could help him.
Although Feng Qingyang was arrogant, the army of Swordsman City did not even stay here. They quickly returned to Sichuan and stationed themselves 50 miles away from the border. It was obvious that they did not want to fight the army of Shanhai City.
Staying here at this time was no different from waiting for death.
The lord of Yong Ren City was decisive. He packed up his belongings and ran away. As for the promise that the Yanhuang Alliance had given him before the war, he was not going to fulfill it.
If he tried to reason with the Yanhuang Alliance now, he would probably be eaten alive by Di Chen and the others.
Ever since the end of the war in Wenshan City, the China forum had not stopped. Discussions about the war, the post-war structure of China, and the future of the two alliances were endless.
However, there was one thing that was surprisingly consistent.
No matter what they were discussing, they were all optimistic about the future of Shanhai City and the Yanhuang Alliance.
The Water Army that the Yanhuang Alliance had hired wanted to make their presence known and speak up for their master. They wanted to change the direction of public opinion, but they were immediately drowned out by other players.
Such a serious situation was something that Di Chen and the others had never encountered before.
Some well-informed people said that the members of the Yanhuang Alliance had been meeting frequently in the past few days. They were probably thinking of ways to resolve the crisis at hand.
At this time, if the lord of Yong Ren City were to go against Di Chen and the others, he would be courting death!
Therefore, seeing that the imperial guards had arrived outside the city, the only remaining city guards in Yong Ren City immediately left the city and surrendered. Along with the City Guard Brigade, the city's gentry and wealthy merchants also came out of the city to welcome them. There were hundreds of them.
Huo Qubing did not know whether to laugh or cry at their first question.
"General, since you're here, you won't be leaving, right?" When he asked this, he looked very nervous.
Huo Qubing laughed in his heart. He did not have a good impression of Yong Ren City. However, as the commander of the army, not only did he have to understand military affairs, he also had to consider the interests of the territory.
The commander represented more than just military power.
"Don't worry. The entire Yunnan City has already been conquered by our army. Do you think we can still leave? "
The moment the news came out, the hearts of the wealthy merchants trembled.
"Wow, so the Southern Cloud Province has really changed." With this thought in mind, the wealthy merchants finally heaved a sigh of relief and were no longer on tenterhooks.
To them, the most important thing was not who ruled the city. The most important thing was stability.
"All hail the General! Please come in! Please come in!"
The aristocrats and merchants immediately put on brilliant smiles.
However, Huo Qubing did not fall for this. He was born noble and did not like to interact with merchants. Moreover, as the saying goes, 'Once bitten, twice shy'. Huo Qubing would not recklessly barge into the city.
Although the spies from the Bureau of Military Intelligence had confirmed that the Lord of Yong Ren City had indeed left, the territory stone tablet was still standing in the Castellan's residence and the teleportation portal was still working.
No one could guarantee that [Yan Huang Alliance] wouldn't launch another sneak attack.
Huo Qubing arranged for a battalion to enter the city first and destroy the territory stone tablet. Only then could he lead his troops into the city with confidence and officially complete the occupation of Yong Ren City.
However, Huo Qubing was overthinking things. Di Chen and the others really did not have such thoughts at the moment.
…
That night, the wealthy merchants in the city jointly invited the generals of the imperial guards to a banquet.
Huo Qubing could not refuse. Although the attitudes of these wealthy merchants were humble, it did not mean that they were insignificant. If the officials sent by Shanhai City wanted to govern Yong Ren City well, they would need the support of these people.
The wilderness had already belonged to Gaia for four years and was no longer Gaia for one year. Even in the player's territory, there were all sorts of social classes and complicated entanglements.
It was no longer the era where a new official could wipe out all sorts of evil people as soon as he took office.
Otherwise, Ouyang Shuo would not have started a month-long inspection right after the battle of Lingnan. It was to appease the people and at the same time, deal with the wealthy merchants.
In the heat of the wine, the true colors of the merchants were revealed.
A merchant held a glass of wine and approached Huo Qubing. With his signature merchant smile on his face, he bowed and said, "General, I am Zhu Jin. I do some small business in the city. Allow me to offer you a toast."
As he spoke, he was the first to drink.
Huo Qubing remained calm and raised his glass. "Zhu Jin, Zhu Bancheng. You monopolize more than 90% of the cloth, sesame oil, and rice business in Yong Ren City. Your personal wealth can buy half of Yong Ren City. You call that small business?"
How could Huo Qubing not do his homework before attending such a banquet? Although Huo Qubing did not like to interact with merchants, it did not mean that he could not handle such a situation.
On the contrary, the other Imperial Guards were all very uneasy under the merchants' praises, wine, and delicacies. Only Huo Qubing was leisurely sitting at the head of the table, with the demeanor of a noble young master.
Huo Qubing was able to handle the merchants with ease.
During the day, the Mountain Sea Guards had sent detailed information to Huo Qubing. Zhu Jin was highlighted and the information was the most detailed.
He was not a refugee from Yong Ren City. He was the president of a merchant association that the Lord of Yong Ren City had recruited from Dali City at a great cost. It was because of this that Zhu Jin could monopolize the cloth and rice business in the player cities.
Without a doubt, he was the representative of the Yong Ren City merchants.
How could Huo Qubing underestimate such a god of wealth?
Zhu Jin did not mind being exposed. This was something he had expected in the first place.
Seeing Huo Qubing drink the wine in his glass, Zhu Jin's smile widened. "Great General, you flatter me. I dare not say anything else, but if the army needs any supplies, I can still help."
As he spoke, Zhu Jin's tone suddenly changed and he put on a long face. "To tell you the truth, before the damn Swordsman City army left, they robbed us clean and emptied our vaults and warehouses. We can't even pay the salaries of our workers and are about to close down. Now that the Protectorate is in power, don't you think it's time for them to compensate us? "
"Yes, yes, yes!"
The people around him immediately echoed.
Obviously, this was the purpose of inviting Huo Qubing to a banquet. It was not to comfort the soldiers as they said.
Hearing this, Huo Qubing cursed in his heart, "Shameless merchants!"
How could they think of this? How could they expect Shanhai City to compensate them after they were robbed by Swordsman City?
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