Farming Beneath the Changbai Mountains

Li Mingrui wanted to see around, so Zixuan left the things in the yamen and stayed with him every day. Fortunately, Wenxuan and Wenchang were in the yamen and could handle ordinary matters, so nothing went wrong.

Zixuan first took these people to the grassland, which was the closest place to Beiyuan Kingdom. On the grassland in early autumn, the endless green is like a fine carpet. The sheep and cattle are like scattered patterns on a carpet, making the whole world come alive.

This was the first time Li Mingrui saw such a scenery. Riding on horseback and looking at the endless grassland, his mood naturally broadened.

Zixuan took them to Batu's home. When the people in the tribe saw that Zixuan was coming, they were very happy to come forward to say hello. In the past two years, they have been able to make some money just by selling wool. Now the number of sheep has increased several times compared to before, and there will be more wool in the future. Moreover, the women in the tribe can spin their own wool when they are free, and then sell it to the weaver. In this case, there is another income.

The warm and hospitable prairie man quickly let Zixuan and his party into the felt tent. The elders of the tribe came over after hearing the news. Everyone sat on the ground and chatted affectionately.

Jinghan also came with him. When he saw this situation, he went to eat with some women in the tribe. "Sister Wuya, those people are distinguished guests, we have to prepare some good things." Jinghan whispered.

"It's easy to handle. Our life is better now. This is easy." Wu Ya didn't care. She went out to look for people and actually killed two sheep and a cow. "Madam, we have raised a lot of this beef, but we have never been able to let you taste it. It just so happens that you come here this time and have a taste of this beef. It is guaranteed to be delicious."

Jinghan nodded, thinking that she would leave something for Wu Ya later. Every time we come, these herdsmen warmly entertain everyone. It’s not good that they always spend so much money. "Sister Wuya, if you make these things well, I won't do anything. Just try to make them as delicious as possible."

The women next to him nodded quickly and went to work on the meal.

During dinner, everyone spread out a felt blanket on the open space outside and sat on the ground. Various foods were placed in front of them, and a fire was lit in the center of the open space. Wuya and the others actually built a rack and roasted a whole lamb.

Many people from the tribe came, and they all brought all kinds of delicious food from their homes. Everyone gathered around. Some people also brought various musical instruments and melodious music floated over the grassland.

Li Mingrui and others had never experienced such a scene before, and they all found it very novel. Eating a mouthful of crispy meat and drinking a mouthful of fragrant kumiss is definitely a different experience.

Several enthusiastic and beautiful girls came to the guests and invited everyone to dance together. Of course, the most girls came to Li Mingrui, which made him stunned for a moment.

"Master Li, this is the custom of the herdsmen. They are expressing their welcome to you." Zixuan explained from the side. "Go and dance. The people on the grassland are good at singing and dancing. When distinguished guests from afar come, they will express themselves in this way."

So everyone got up together, came around the fire, and danced. Against the backdrop of the firelight, people's faces were filled with happy smiles.

This night, everyone played until very late, and then the herdsmen arranged for the guests to rest in a nearby felt tent.

The next day, Zixuan took everyone away from the grassland and headed towards Xianghaipao. Since Li Mingrui wants to take a good look at this place, let him take a good look.

"Zixuan, the herdsmen are really enthusiastic, and the food they ate last night was also very special. By the way, were some of the dishes tonight made of beef? I tasted it, and it was much more tender than ordinary beef. Huh?" Mr. Han asked Zixuan while walking.

"Well, that beef is a special breed that can only be used for eating. That kind of cow usually does not work, grows very fast, and the meat is very tender and delicious. Now there are a lot of them raised here, and it is estimated that in two years By that time, people in the mainland will be able to eat this kind of beef." This is the kind of cattle he reported to the court to open the restriction on cattle killing, and will be brought to the herdsmen on the grassland in the future. Huge profits.

Jinghan had already bought a large piece of grassland near Xianghaipao and built a farm. So when they come here, they don't have to stay in the villagers' homes, they can just live directly in the village. When Li Mingrui knew that Jinghan had bought these, he praised her for her vision.

Everyone rested on Zhuangzi for a day, and the next day they went to play nearby. When everyone saw the flying cranes and various birds, they were amazed again.

This time, since Jinghan did not bring her son out, everyone had easy mobility, so they found a place to hunt under the leadership of local villagers. At dusk, everyone came back with a large number of prey. Although everyone was a little tired, they were all in good spirits.

In the evening, we must eat these game meats. People from the village and nearby villagers came to help, and it was a lively time for everyone to be together.

This year Jinghan also got a lot of ducks and geese to raise here. Now they are growing well. The village chief came to ask Jinghan what to do with these things. There is no need to worry about this. Jinghan has already found a market through the Sun brothers. When the villagers heard this, they were relieved and didn't have to worry about not being able to sell it.

Zixuan and his wife had been accompanying Li Mingrui and his party for seven or eight days. Finally, they had seen all the beautiful scenery here and eaten all kinds of good food. Then everyone returned to the county government office.

"Zixuan, the products here are so rich, and you and your wife have put so much effort into doing things, this place will definitely become a beautiful and rich place in the future. However, don't you think the defense here is too poor? The county seat is a The houses are piled up, and even the city walls are so broken. If the Beiyuan Kingdom attacks one day, we will probably be able to capture it without any effort. We didn't prepare for them with so much effort." Li Mingrui suggested. own ideas.

"Master, why don't I want to build it properly, but you have to have money in the yamen to do it." The matter of Li Mingrui coming here is confidential, so these people call him Master. "Since I came here, no taxes have been collected for exactly two years. The county government has no money and can't do anything. Jinghan used her own dowry to buy these weaving and wine shops. At least now that we have a profit, we can finally turn around. I can't let Jinghan pay for the construction of the city wall, right?" Zixuan was also helpless. Jinghan had already put in too much effort when he came here. Besides, there are some things that they cannot do as a couple.

Li Mingrui pondered for a moment, "In this way, the taxes for the next three years will not be handed over to the court, but will all be used to strengthen the defense of the border. In addition, I will ask the Ministry of Household Affairs to allocate some silver to seize the time to repair the county wall. In addition, I will ask the Ministry of Household Affairs to allocate some silver coins and seize the time to repair the county wall. In addition, I will ask the Ministry of Household Affairs to allocate some silver coins. , all important towns will be rebuilt according to the county seat. With you and your wife running it, in a few years, a state government will be established here. This place is too big for a county to manage. Come."

The main purpose of coming this time is to do this. Zhendong is the border. If it cannot be managed well, then all these years of hard work will only be prepared for the Northern Yuan Kingdom. Li Mingrui would not allow this to happen.

Zixuan nodded, "Okay, since the court can pay attention to this, then I will naturally have nothing to say and just work hard." Of course, he did not want the beautiful home that Jinghan spent so much effort to build. It will be handed over to others when the time comes.

"Okay, this matter has been settled. After I go back, I will ask the Ministry of Revenue to allocate funds here. In addition, some troops will be transferred here. The troops here are too empty and are not useful at all. On weekdays, if there is nothing, just let those The soldiers will help with the work. The sooner it is built, the better. In addition, the population here is still too small, so we have to find a way." Li Mingrui has made up his mind to consolidate the border to ensure stability.

The monarch and his ministers discussed many issues related to the border. Zixuan had his own opinions on many things. This made Li Mingrui very happy. He felt that it was a very wise choice to let Zixuan become the county magistrate. "Zixuan, serve as an official here for a few years, and I'll leave this place to you. Not only do you want to make the local area rich, but you also have to protect the border. Your burden is not light." Li Mingrui also wanted to test him. Zixuan's ability is why he made such a request.

"I will definitely live up to the trust of the young master."

Li Mingrui stayed in the county government office for another two days before leaving with everyone. Before leaving, he talked with Zixuan alone for a long time, and then he took Yunfei and others and galloped back to the capital directly.

After sending these people away, Jinghan finally breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh my God, I finally sent away these plague gods. These days, I am always on tenterhooks, just afraid that something will happen." She was so worried these days that she couldn't even eat. "Okay, I have to get something to eat. I can't even eat in the past few days."

It was almost noon, and the kitchen had cooked a lot of delicious food. Chuntao put some dishes on the table, "Madam, we stewed fish for noon today. You haven't eaten well in the past few days, so eat well."

A smell of fish wafted over, and Jinghan suddenly felt her stomach churn, covering her mouth and about to run out. Chuntao next to her took a look and quickly found a spittoon and handed it to Jinghan.

After Jinghan vomited violently, she took the water from Zixuan's hand and rinsed her mouth. Then I thought about it carefully, and it seemed like a while had passed this month. He looked up at Zixuan and saw his somewhat understanding expression. He reached out and punched Zixuan on the shoulder. "It's all your fault."