Northern Dynasties Imperial Industry

The morning light is dewy and the frost is thick. Villagers from all over the countryside are either walking with heavy loads or driving oxen and carriages to catch the morning market on the plateau.

But when they came to Yuanxia Avenue, the villagers discovered that it was already crowded with cars and horses and extremely congested.

"It's not Wangshuo City today, so why are so many people gathering here?"

A villager climbed up the big tree on the left side of the road and saw that the people in front of the team could not see the end, and he was full of doubts.

Someone next to him heard the sound and laughed: "I think I don't go out very often these days. The blackboards in the rivers and the market announcements have been announced for a few days. Li Lang, the former owner of the village, has been promoted to a high official position. Today he wants to test the skills of the men in the school village." , choosing talented people to follow and join the officialdom!”

"Promoted again? This Li Lang is already the Hebo of Luoshui. Is it possible that he has become a divine general commanding land and water?"

After hearing this, some villagers joked that they may not understand the meaning of the official position in the imperial court, so they made this joke to express their surprise.

"What kind of He Bo Divine General! Li Langxin hunted tens of thousands of thieves in Beizhou. His Majesty the Emperor in Chang'an came to Weibei to greet him. The heads of thieves were piled up in Jingguan, and even the Wei River was blocked. There were many people more than ten miles away. I can see it! How can I not be rewarded for such a majestic achievement? So Li Lang became the governor of Luoshui, and all the animals on the ground and the shrimps and crabs in the river obeyed his orders!"

Such exaggerated rumors in the countryside naturally aroused doubts and refutations from some villagers. They only thought that there were not so many beheadings as tens of thousands, and the drying up of the Weishui River was due to the season. How could it be blocked by human heads!

His Majesty the Emperor was still in the palace, and dozens of beautiful palace maids took turns feeding him roasted lamb smeared with honey. They did not even brave the severe cold to go to Weibei to greet Li Lang.

The refuted speaker was naturally unwilling to admit defeat. He pointed at the other party and sneered: "What kind of official are you, an old man? How many important court affairs do you know? The big families in the countryside are not smarter than you. They all fight to send their children to Li Lang." My disciples, on the other hand, you, a poor person with three acres of thin land, are making fun of others for their incompetence!"

This statement is so well-founded that no one can refute it. After all, we are all farmers in the countryside who face the loess and their backs to the sky. Whether things beyond their scope of knowledge are bigger than mountains or bigger than the sky, whoever speaks louder has the right.

The people down the slope were still arguing about the extent of Li Lang's achievements. On the slope, many villagers who had arrived since last night began to line up to enter the village.

Someone looked around at the many villagers who came to participate in the selection and couldn't help but sigh: "There must be more than 3,000 conscripts on the plateau, right? In the middle of the year, the family of the prefect Feng of the county was recruiting village warriors in Nan Wuquan. In preparation for the Grand Parade, in half a month, only a few thousand people were present for the expedition. On the first day of Shang Yuan's new expedition, there were so many people. The Feng family has been a big family in the county for generations. A year ago, who was there? Do you know who Shang Yuan Li Lang is?”

"Who can blame this? Don't the villagers know who is good and who is evil? The Feng family has been powerful for many years, but they only know their own glory. Every year they dig caves to worship Buddha. Many villagers were forced to work and their families were destroyed, and they never enjoyed shelter! Li Lang entered Over the years, the village has prospered and benefited the villagers, led the construction of rivers and canals, and promoted and rewarded the local people. They also exempted the entire county from taxation. People's hearts are not like earth and stone, how can they not feel the kindness? "

Some people also sighed: "If we really talk about rural virtues, Li Lang may not be the only one. After all, he has been in the countryside for a short time. Although Feng's moral character is mean, when Chishui Shu crossed the river to cause trouble in the past year, they also resisted for a long time and saved their lives. After all, people still look up to them. The Feng family is from a humble background, so recruiting is just a pawn, but Li Lang is from a well-known family, and it is better to follow and serve!"

This topic is more realistic and profound. Not everyone in the village may be aggressive and aggressive, but before this year's parade, state and county officials cooperated with the powerful people in the village to clear the ground and turn them into soldiers. In some places, in order to gather enough people to attend the parade, Even a single person in a small household is not immune.

The atmosphere of military expansion has been formed, and the helpless villagers have to face this problem. Since it is unavoidable, choosing a lord who has a better future and can be considerate of his subordinates is the lesser of evils.

Compared with those powerful people in the countryside, Li Tai also had the color of coming from a famous family. This is a secular value that has been formed and continuously strengthened since the Wei and Jin Dynasties, and it also affects the trade-offs of the villagers to a certain extent.

Not to mention that he has risen in power step by step, and he has become a rising star in the world from the countryside to the hegemony. Coupled with the two coordinated promotions and publicity by the Metropolitan Water Administration Bureau and the Canal Alliance, the appeal will naturally be reflected.

On the school grounds, several large iron pots were placed on the blazing stove, with whole racks of fat sheep being cooked in them. The rich, steaming milky-white soup seemed to greatly increase appetite.

"The brave warriors from the country who have seen the war come here to line up, each of them has half a catty of mutton and two cage cakes. They are well fed!"

The boss of the village beat the gong to maintain order, and while taking the scale to weigh the meat, he shouted loudly: "We, the villagers, can't share enough of the delicious and hot meat pie! The lord is caring and is afraid that you guys will be hungry and not brave. If you show up later, you will be disappointed." I can’t spare you for losing the delicious food!”

The village heroes queued up to receive meals in the canteen, blowing on the hot air and taking big gulps to eat. After eating and drinking, they wiped the grease from their mouths and walked to the selection field full of fighting spirit.

Li Tai did not come to the school grounds immediately. After breakfast, he went to the east of the plain to wait. About half an hour later, a group of people came from the mountain road in the direction of Huazhou City.

The recruitment of rural warriors in Shangyuan Village was so vigorous this time. Of course, not only the powerful rural households nearby were affected by the news, but also some state and county officials who heard about it also expressed their hope to attend the visit.

Naturally, these people are not just joining in the fun. A new armed force is about to emerge in the realm. Regardless of whether they are also in charge of the military, they all want to find out the truth. After all, they will inevitably have to deal with it in the future.

Even before the official expansion of the army, Li Tai had already ordered Li Zhusheng to visit the government office of Zujin County and proposed a joint campaign to suppress bandits. Some county officials who are interested in this will inevitably send people over to see if Li Tai has this ability.

There was still some distance between them, but a horseman from the opposite side was already riding ahead. Zheng Man on the horse, his face flushed with excitement, shouted from a distance: "Lang Jun, Zhang Wugong and Yuwen Shijun are also in the rear." Among..."

Li Tai was also surprised when he heard this. He really didn't expect that his recruitment would alert Director Yu Wen. Now Yuwentai is still patrolling the river defense, and Director Yuwen is staying in Zhenba Mansion. It's really a shame that he still takes the time to come here.

He did not dare to neglect, and hurriedly rode up to meet them. There was still more than a mile between them, so he dismounted and stood on the left side of the road. When Yuwen came in, he clasped his fists and said, "Unexpectedly, Duke Wu of Zhang is coming in person. We live in a humble place and I don’t have time to greet you with a warm welcome. I apologize.”

"I'm here to disturb you without telling you. I hate being a guest. You must be busy today, Li Lang, so don't worry about me."

Director Yu Wen nodded and smiled at Li Tai, motioning Li Tai to mount his horse, and then they walked up to the village together.

In addition to Director Yuwen, this group of spectators also included many county officials. Du Yun, the magistrate of Wuxiang County, came with the county captain, chief registrar and other major subordinate officials to support him. People from other counties also came, such as Huayin, Nanwuquan, Baishui, Chengcheng and other nearby counties. Someone has arrived.

When a group of people entered the village, it was already morning. More than 2,000 Xiangyong waiting to be recruited had gathered outside the school grounds. They formed a rough formation outside the school grounds. There were whispers and chaotic voices in the queue until Li Tai and others entered. In the school grounds, the cluttered voices subsided slightly.

The visitors could not help but be surprised to see so many village brave men participating in the war. Du Yun, the magistrate of Wuxiang County, even said directly with emotion: "Since Li Lang came to the countryside, he has always cared for the good deeds in the village. The situation in previous years Scattered in the countryside, now we are calling for a gathering to verify this moment!”

"The people of Guanxi are generous and repay their kindness. How much kindness can I accumulate by being a laggard? It's just that the villagers know that I will be rewarded by Daxingtai. I usually suffer from nostalgia and can't reach it. I love my house and I gather here today. I will donate my life to serve you!”

If all the ordinary guests were present, Li Tai would not be too polite. He happily admitted that he is such a person who is good at seeking fame and reputation. But now that Director Yuwen is present, of course he has to keep a low profile. I am just a person who relies on Daxingtai to spread kindness. small role.

After hearing this, Director Yu Wen also laughed and said: "There are many people who carry out orders on the stage, but those who can make the masses know and respond can be said to be qualified. The words of the people make gold, and the sentiments of the people are true. Li Lang is like this Class!”

While talking, a group of people went to the stands of the school ground and sat down. As Li Tai raised his hand to give the order, the troops responsible for selecting the local heroes began to work.

A wooden fence gate was set up outside the school yard, and a wooden stake was erected in front of the wooden gate. The village heroes walked in front of the wooden stake in order to measure their height. Some were put into the school yard, while others were blocked outside the gate.

When Director Yu Wen saw this scene, he turned to Li Tai and asked: "What is the height of this recruitment?"

"Five feet six inches."

Li Tai replied, and after hearing this number, the expressions of everyone present, including Director Yuwen, changed, and they frowned and said, "Is it too high?"

According to the scale of the Western Wei Dynasty, five feet and six inches was equivalent to 165 centimeters in later generations. This was not very high in later generations, but in today's scarce material conditions, it was enough to screen out 70% of the rural heroes who applied for military service.

"Since those people have come to the battle, they have given their lives to me. The selection may be successful, but going to the battle will mean life and death. If the selection is not suitable, it will insult the country's prestige and harm people's lives. I will look up to you and be ashamed." , It’s hard to live with yourself. Therefore, I don’t dare to be greedy for temporary power, but I hope that all the choices will be good.”

This is of course just a rhetorical statement. The actual situation is that after a battle with Jihu in northern Shaanxi, Li Tai felt more and more that soldiers are more valuable than more. Blind expansion will not only fail to effectively strengthen the power, but also encounter some difficult battles. , but you may suffer from it.

Moreover, his capital is still not deep at the moment, and the number of soldiers he can gather is limited. Of course, he must select carefully and prefer to have less than indiscriminately.