This round of reorganization was expected to last until the middle of March.
Once the conference was over, the Divine Generals would return to their barracks and cooperate with the General Administration of Military Affairs in reorganizing the army while they rested and trained in preparation for the next major battle.
The matter of constructing a fortress on the northern border also needed to be set up immediately and could not be delayed.
That was especially true for Bai Qi. It was not easy at all.
The Dragon Stallion Army not only had to clean up the remaining poison in the three counties of Yunnan, but they also had to keep an eye on Dali Commandery. More importantly, the Dragon Stallion Army's headquarters had to be moved to Yunnan Province, and a new headquarters and barracks had to be built outside of Lingxi City.
The Combat Division also had to work with the Dragon Stallion Army to prepare rations and fodder.
The Dragon Stallion Army had suffered heavy losses in the Battle of Yunnan, and all its divisions had suffered casualties. The newly recruited soldiers also had to work with each other through training to help them integrate into the system of Shanhai City.
In short, there were many complicated matters to attend to, and it was not as if they could relax just because there was no war. Fortunately, Bai Qi had been a soldier for a long time, so he was very skilled at handling military affairs. He would not be able to adapt to being away from the barracks for a long time.
It was not just Bai Qi. The three newly appointed governors of the three counties of Yunnan were not having an easy time either. In order to organize their subordinates as quickly as possible, they had even given up on the New Year's holiday.
It was reported that they were even working overtime on the most important New Year's Eve.
There was no need to mention Cao Can. The Dongchuan Commandery he had inherited was a complete mess. Not only did he have to heal the wounds of the common people, but he also had to deal with the "debt" demands of the aristocrats and merchants.
Zhu Jin's request for "compensation" from Huo Qubing in Yongren City was not an isolated case. Every county that had been looted by the Swordsman City army would run to the newly established yamen to demand an explanation.
As the governor of a county, how could Cao Can have peace?!
Especially after Swordsman City compensated Shanhai City with eight hundred thousand gold coins, the merchants became even fiercer in their "debt" demands. These merchants had sharp noses, and nothing could escape their notice.
Cao Can could only brace himself and report to the Protectorate Office for a decision from the General Administration of Finance.
Strangely enough, Fan Li immediately replied that the General Administration of Finance would take out two hundred thousand gold coins from the eight hundred thousand to "compensate" the aristocrats and merchants who had been looted by the Dongchuan Commandery.
Not only that, but the Bank of the Four Seas would also open branches in Dongchuan Prefecture within a month. The Bank of the Four Seas would give preferential loans to the merchants who were robbed.
Although the funds allocated by the General Administration of Finance was only half of the looted amount, the merchants were satisfied with the loan support. They were even overjoyed.
Although they were making a ruckus, they didn't really expect to get any compensation.
As the saying goes: Every injustice has its perpetrator, every debt has its debtor.
No matter how hard they tried to collect the debt, they would not be able to trace it to the newly established yamen.
The merchants were doing this because they wanted to gain sympathy in front of the new superior, so that their future business would more or less be taken care of by the government, and not be too "exploited".
It could only be said that these merchants did not understand Shanhai City at all.
In the entire wilderness, other than Lord Chunshen's Dan Yang City, Shanhai City had the most complete commercial system. The status of the merchants was also rather high, and they would not receive any unfair treatment.
It was even more impossible for the government to exploit merchants.
On the contrary, since the beginning of the territory's construction, Ouyang Shuo, the Lord, had been supporting the territory's business to flourish, and he worked hard to create a relaxed business atmosphere.
As long as the merchants paid their taxes on time, and at the same time, they would have no more worries.
Shanhai City did this, but the other territories in the wilderness were not the same. They were either influenced by the aristocrats and bureaucrats who looked down on the merchants, or they were pretending to be ignorant, and more or less "exploited" the merchants.
"There's nothing we can do, we're poor!"
The merchants did not dare to resist, and the Lords naturally felt more at ease when they "exploited" them. It was reported that some territories' exploitation of the merchants had reached an appalling level, and they were basically treating the merchants as money bags.
When they ran out of money, or wanted to build an army, they would be exploited out of habit.
The previous territories of Dongchuan Commandery were mostly like this.
Because of this, even Zhu Jin, an outsider from Dali Royal City, did not dare to pester Huo Qubing a second time after he was rejected by him in Yonren City.
In comparison, the General Administration of Finance's actions this time were too benevolent, so benevolent that the merchants did not dare to believe it, and felt like they were in a dream. After confirming it, they were naturally ecstatic.
The merchants' approval of the new government shot up like a rocket.
Ouyang Shuo was very much in agreement with Fan Li's actions. Compared to Cao Can, the Prefectural Governor, Fan Li was clearly more far-sighted, and he looked at the problem more thoroughly.
First, should they pay compensation? Yes!
When the imperial guards attacked Yonren City for the first time, Dongchuan Commandery had already belonged to Shanhai City. The series of events that happened afterwards only served to prove one thing: Ouyang Shuo failed to protect the people under his rule.
Let's say that your people were robbed by the enemy, and now you've helped them seek justice, and even received double the compensation. Don't tell me you're going to take all the compensation for yourself?
Impossible!
Therefore, there was nothing wrong with Fan Li's actions.
What was even more brilliant was that Fan Li only paid half of the compensation, and used preferential loans as a disguised form of compensation. Through this method, Fan Li was also secretly warning the merchants of Dongchuan Commandery, "Be content, don't push your luck."
Merchants had always been a group of greedy fellows, born to pursue profits.
Since they were greedy, they did not know what satisfaction was.
Once Shanhai City lowered its stance too much, these fellows would take advantage of it. In this way, Cao Can, the Prefectural Governor of Dongchuan Commandery, would not have an easy time in the future.
Fan Li only paid half of the compensation. Although it seemed stingy, it was actually brilliant. Coupled with the preferential loans promised by the Bank of the Four Seas, it was enough to restore the destroyed businesses of Dongchuan Commandery to prosperity in a short period of time.
From this small matter, one could see the political wisdom of the Director of Finance.
How could a Saint-level historical figure be ordinary?!
If one felt that they did not perform well, that was only because they had not truly acknowledged them. And the current Fan Li had undoubtedly integrated into the system of Shanhai City.
… …
Besides the Prefectural Governor of Dongchuan Commandery, the other two governors did not have it easy either.
The Prefectural Governor of Mengding, Tian Wenjing, was even more miserable. The Mengding Commandery that he had taken over was the one that had been most thoroughly attacked by the Dragon Stallion Army. At least ten percent of the youths in the commandery had died at the hands of the Dragon Stallion Army.
This was a blood feud.
Even now, the officials of the various prefectures and counties would occasionally be attacked by the locals on their way to their posts. For this reason, the Zhang Liao Corps stationed in Tengyue Commandery had no choice but to send a division to guard these officials.
The public security within the commandery was simply terrible.
If the people's hearts were not stable, the blood feud would not be resolved. Even the festive atmosphere of the Spring Festival had been washed away.
Placed in front of Tian Wenjing was a gargantuan problem.
The cold-faced governor was calm and unhurried. The first thing he did after taking office was to use the special funds Ouyang Shuo had allocated to pay a generous pension to the families of the deceased.
In addition, Tian Wenjing ordered all the officials of the various prefectures and counties to move out with sincerity and Spring Festival gifts to express their apologies and condolences to the families of the deceased.
The Spring Festival gifts were not fake. They were all practical items such as rice, flour, oil, and cloth. This was in line with Tian Wenjing's practical style.
With this series of actions, he finally managed to quell the resentment of the people.
After the Spring Festival, during the Qingming Festival, Tian Wenjing prepared to hold large-scale memorial ceremonies in the various prefectures and counties in order to further dispel the resentment of the people and win over the hearts of the people.
The dead were the most important, and nothing could be done.
Tian Wenjing was keenly aware that if the hearts of the people did not return, it would be difficult to carry out any government orders.
The Spring Festival holiday had just passed, and Tian Wenjing was busy again. He went to various prefectures and counties to investigate the local customs. He encouraged the farmers to open up terraced fields outside the city and promoted the welfare policy of mulberry planting and silkworm rearing.
Tian Wenjing also encouraged the herbalists to take advantage of the superior forest environment of Mengding County to introduce the planting techniques of medicinal herbs, vigorously develop the medicinal herb industry, and embark on the road to riches.
Every time he went to a place, Tian Wenjing was able to put forward reasonable suggestions to get rich according to the local conditions.
This time, it completely revealed the solid foundation of the cold-faced county chief. Historically, Tian Wenjing was a very practical official. He was very familiar with the lives of the commoners and was proficient in various industries.
It was naturally easy for him to guide them.
Previously, there was compensation and condolences to ease the trauma of losing their loved ones. Now, they saw the hope of getting rich. The commoners of Mengding County gradually changed their minds and gradually acknowledged the governor.
As such, Tian Wenjing initially stabilized the situation of Mengding County that was on the verge of collapse. It was considered a great achievement. Ouyang Shuo even specially issued an imperial edict to reward this meritorious official.
The title of a model governor was not just for show.
Tian Wenjing's methods seemed ordinary, but they required a solid foundation. It was truly an impressive way of governing.
… …
Compared to Tian Wenjing, the governor of Tengyue County, Zhou Haichen, who also served in the south, was much more relaxed.
Firstly, Tengyue County had surrendered in the later stages and was not damaged by the war. The overall order in the county was still considered stable. Secondly, with Zhang Liao's army holding the fort, the small fry would not be able to cause much trouble.
The only thing that Zhou Haichen needed to worry about was the settlement of the mountain barbarians.
When Ouyang Shuo contacted the mountain barbarians in the mountains of Yunnan and asked them to go down the mountain to assist Shanhai City in the battle, he had made a promise. Now that the war was over, Tengyue County naturally had to fulfill the promise.
Zhou Haichen would follow the model of Wuzhou County and bring the mountain barbarian tribes living deep in the mountains to live at the foot of the mountain. He would build hundreds of mountain barbarian autonomous towns.
This was a considerable expenditure.
In addition, he had to organize people to train the mountain barbarians in skills and help them quickly change from a hunting civilization to a farming civilization.
The mountain barbarians had seen the rich life of the mountain barbarians in Wuzhou County. They would not be as hesitant as the mountain barbarians in Lianzhou Basin at the beginning. They could not wait to go down the mountain as soon as possible.
Although the various matters were not difficult, they were complicated.
For Zhou Haichen, the new governor, it could be considered a good experience.
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.
