Chapter 297

Chapter 297

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 9: The Calamity of Drought and Locusts, Flying Troops to Liaodong Chapter 297: Dual Front Assault

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Can a strategist not ascend the throne?

Chapter 297: Dual Front Assault

The water gushing from the depths of the earth gave everyone who heard the news a glimmer of hope.

Their eyes instinctively turned from the bottom of the well to the pulley above.

This well-digging tool had never appeared in their memory, only vaguely heard of in the salt mines controlled by officials, where some salt wells were dug in this manner.

Now, improved and recorded in the Leping Monthly Report, which could be bought for three five-zhu coins, it became a tool for survival in the drought!

And it appeared before them.

“Don’t just stand there, we need to dig deeper,” someone said, breaking the trance of the crowd around the well.

Indeed, even though water had been found, it was far from the time to stop.

Although this well-digging was not like digging a salt mine, where after using a fan-shaped chisel to open a large hole, it would take years to use a six-hundred-pound silver chisel to narrow the hole and dig deeper, to prevent the water level from dropping further during the drought, as the newspaper said, they needed to dig another ten feet deeper.

Then they had to widen the well.

After all, this fan-shaped chisel, said to dig a large well, was only one and a half feet wide.

Calculating this, although water was found, to make this well a stable water source, it would take at least another half month.

Fortunately, the surrounding streams and their drying home wells still had some water, enough to last them this period.

“Wait, wait, don’t rush to continue,” the old man who was persuaded by Yu Niang to go to Qishan County interrupted the crowd’s action of setting up the fan-shaped chisel again.

He hurried home to fetch a small bamboo jar, then ran back.

The crowd saw that the bamboo jar already had ropes on both sides, now tied with a longer rope.

The bamboo jar, along with the rope, was handed to Yu Niang by the old man, “Here, draw water from this well.”

“Me?” Yu Niang looked at the bamboo jar in front of her in surprise.

“Who else if not you? If it weren’t for your reminder, how could we have dug this new well so quickly,” someone immediately chimed in.

Yu Niang took the bamboo jar and, pushed by the crowd, walked to the well.

In fact, what was in front of her couldn’t yet be called a well, but in the darkness at the bottom, the water surface reflected a glimmer of sky, making it seem no different from a real well.

The bamboo jar tied with a rope was thrown into the well, and because it was tilted, water quickly entered the jar, filling it and making it stand upright.

Yu Niang carefully pulled it up.

In this newly dug well, there were still some unsettled sand and stone fragments, mixed in the water, but this did not affect the crowd’s gaze at it as if it were gold dusted off.

“The first cup of water from the new well after the drought, should it be offered?” someone asked.

In their small village of about a hundred people, there was no ancestral hall, but it wasn’t impossible to offer it; they could set up a small land temple in the middle of the village.

Someone immediately had a similar idea, “The water should be offered, but shouldn’t this newspaper be offered even more?”

This suggestion was immediately echoed: “I’ll contribute three coins to buy another copy from the county.”

“Then I’ll also contribute three coins to replace the torn March issue.”

“Since we’re going to the county, should we find a scholar who usually helps write letters to read the newspaper for us again? Although we’ve guessed most of what we wanted to know by blind guessing, who knows if there’s any misunderstanding?”

This was indeed a problem.

Blind guessing based on the pictures, so far, hasn’t caused any issues, but it doesn’t mean this method can be applied to other content.

Someone else said, “It’s best to also ask when we need to return this well-digging cart. If there’s enough time, wouldn’t it be better to dig another well and try the well-channel irrigation mentioned in the newspaper? After all, we can’t really give up this year’s harvest.”

“Yes, yes, ask again, with experience, the next one won’t take so much time.”

“Or negotiate with them, we can provide manpower and a deposit for the iron chisel, let us dig another one.”

“…”

Listening to the villagers’ suggestions, Yu Niang suddenly felt her eyes moist.

Since the war seven years ago, most people felt that being born on this land was a misfortune for them, because no one knew whether disaster would come from the sky, the court, or the barbarians from Xiliang.

In any case, it would appear before them in a way they couldn’t resist.

Even those living together here no longer dared to get too close to their neighbors.

If a neighbor was conscripted or killed tomorrow, it would add another layer of pain to their already difficult lives.

But now, in this muddled life, there seemed to be a sign of change.

Even with the drought, life seemed much more hopeful.

This is today’s Guanzhong…

In the spread of the April drought, it wasn’t just Yu Niang’s village trying to save themselves.

Thanks to the Leping Monthly Report, many people not living in the county went to collect well-digging carts.

To prevent confusion and incorrect use, the Guanzhong garrison was dispatched to various population centers for inspections.

Meanwhile, Qiao Yan was flipping through the account books, listening to Xianyu Fu, who was temporarily assigned to assist with this matter, ask, “With the Grand Marshal’s distribution method, is there enough iron?”

It’s no wonder Xianyu Fu had this question.

A fan-shaped chisel requires a thousand Han pounds of iron, only with such weight can it penetrate underground rocks.

But what does a thousand Han pounds mean? With this amount of iron, who knows how many weapons could be made!

Is it worth spending so much iron on these wells?

Xianyu Fu wasn’t trying to oppose Qiao Yan’s decision, just genuinely feeling a bit heartache.

Qiao Yan replied, “Do you know this year’s drought isn’t just happening in the Central Plains?”

Xianyu Fu was momentarily confused, not quite understanding why she suddenly brought up this off-topic issue.

She continued, “Take the Xianbei grasslands for example, their most suitable state is the winter snow melting to nourish the pastures, and several spring and summer rains to green the pastures, but with little rain, what happens?”

Xianyu Fu had served in Youzhou, where the situation was somewhat similar to north of the Yinshan and Yanshan mountain ranges.

It’s said the grasslands have little rain, but they can’t really have no rain.

If that were the case, the grasslands would quickly become bare. For the Xianbei people who follow the water and grass, this is almost fatal.

This bareness isn’t just due to insufficient water for grass growth, but also because the Xianbei’s livestock eat too much grass.

Qiao Yan didn’t plan to keep Xianyu Fu in suspense, speaking plainly, “The Xianbei chieftain Budugen made a deal with me, I buy the livestock they can’t afford to keep, and promise them a temporary residence in Bingzhou if the drought becomes uncontrollable, while he temporarily doesn’t take back the laborers who helped mine coal and iron in winter, even adding more hands.”

“The Qiang people in the Huangzhong River Valley also need to worry about this issue, rather than risk losses in raising livestock, it’s better to store or sell them to me and participate in these paid jobs.”

“You don’t need to worry about the waste of these iron tools, relatively speaking, the fan-shaped chisel requires the least manufacturing process, and when the need for well-digging decreases, they can be melted down and reused.”

Xianyu Fu curiously asked, “But this way, won’t the Grand Marshal’s expenditure for buying livestock be too much? Even Liangzhou and Bingzhou would feel the pressure to supply feed for these livestock, right?”

Qiao Yan shook her head, “Why must I raise them after buying? Making them into jerky as military rations is just fine.”

Now they are eager to get rid of the pressure of livestock farming, and among the people they’ve contacted, only Qiao Yan can handle such a large livestock order, so the price is naturally cheaper than raising them herself.

This isn’t about bargaining, it’s just a mutual choice.

In a year of natural disasters and with plans to send troops, the soldiers’ rations will inevitably have less grain and more meat products, which are just right as supplies.

Once the disaster year passes, these Xianbei people and…








The Qiang people can return to the grasslands now. Some of them may have already adapted to life within the passes, becoming assimilated foreigners, while others genuinely need to repurchase cattle and sheep.

As for this demand, she has already covered it through the natural reproduction of her existing cattle and sheep.

Qiao Yan raised her eyes, “Are there any other issues?”

Xianyu Fu replied, “No.”

As the commander of the Imperial Guards, he didn’t need to ask so many questions; he just needed to assist in notifying the villagers.

Xun Yu and Huang Wan, who were also borrowed by Qiao Yan, had more to think about than Xianyu Fu.

On the surface, it seemed that Qiao Yan could easily purchase cattle and sheep from the Qiang and Xianbei people and provide them with jobs and wages because she still controlled the three officials in charge of coin minting. But in reality, that wasn’t the case.

Mass printing and selling the Leping Monthly Report at low prices allowed her to accumulate a considerable fortune.

The strictly controlled alcohol trade over the past two years also brought her astonishing profits.

The newly occupied soy sauce market, due to its raw materials, also provided her with substantial income.

Therefore, a significant portion of the funds used to purchase cattle and sheep came from these sources, not from abusing the power of coin minting.

It was precisely this meticulousness that allowed Liu Ba, who was more sensitive to economics, to take over these economic affairs without finding any issues and directly proceed with price control.

In this regard, Qiao Yan’s performance was truly admirable.

However, there was one thing that puzzled these two.

If the development of printing and paper-making technologies made large-scale printing inevitable, and the emergence of soy sauce and its salt-based industrial chain profits were necessary to bind the noble families and the Chang’an court, then the two-year alcohol restriction order seemed to be in preparation for this drought.

It’s no wonder they had such strange associations.

The timing was just too coincidental.

But from Qiao Yan’s sometimes methodical arrangements for disaster relief and her genuine concern for the people’s suffering, it was hard to see any clues.

Moreover, how could anyone predict the weather?

If she could really do that, she should have made more comprehensive preparations for last year’s Mount Hua collapse and the Chang’an earthquake, rather than letting Yuan Shao use them as a pretext to attack her.

Thinking this, they felt they were overthinking it.

Instead of pondering such baseless possibilities, it was better to think about other issues.

After arranging Xianyu Fu’s duties and sending him away, Qiao Yan turned to Huang Wan and Xun Yu, saying, “There are two matters I need your assistance with.”

“First, the measures to combat the drought by tapping underground water sources in the Guanzhong region are progressing smoothly, but we can’t forget the accompanying locust plague just because we’re focused on the drought. Earlier, with ample water, we could have the people irrigate the land more, but now we must have them directly prepare for adult locusts.”

Qiao Yan addressed Huang Wan, “Minister Huang, I intend to ask His Majesty and the Three Dukes to lead by example, catching and killing locusts in the suburbs of Chang’an as a demonstration. What do you think?”

“Not all measures in this drought and locust disaster should be proposed by me, so I would like you to bring this up in court.”

Locusts are not invincible; this has already been published in the Leping Monthly Report. However, some might still hesitate when it comes to taking action, so a demonstration is needed.

If Qiao Yan were to lead this demonstration, it would make her seem too prominent in this disaster relief effort. It’s better to step back a bit.

After all, the people already know who brought them these changes; there’s no need to compete everywhere.

Huang Wan replied, “That’s reasonable. Having His Majesty announce it in the Hall of Enlightenment will make it known to more people. What is the other matter, Grand Marshal?”

Qiao Yan said, “Regarding the refugees who might flood into Guanzhong.”

“I would like to discuss with you two how we should treat them.”

Xun Yu excelled in internal affairs, and Huang Wan had risen from being a governor. Given that this issue wasn’t just to be discussed within the Grand Marshal’s office but also with Chang’an court officials, it was indeed most appropriate to consult these two first.

It’s not that Qiao Yan wanted to think the worst of people.

The population migration during this period was entirely different from the earlier exodus caused by the relocation of the Luoyang court and the influx of people into Guanzhong after the establishment of Chang’an as the capital in the first year of Jian’an. It was also more likely to cause civil unrest and other disasters.

At this time, land distribution in Guanzhong was relatively saturated. Even if there was extra land, it was either within the military colony system or in areas temporarily abandoned due to current water channel planning.

The former couldn’t be relinquished by Qiao Yan in the short term, as this surplus grain production was her guarantee for military provisions. The latter was quite difficult to develop.

Moreover, these people, traveling thousands of miles to Guanzhong, were likely already in dire straits in their original locations.

In such circumstances, it was highly probable that they had no food reserves.

How much relief funds should the court allocate to make them feel welcomed and accommodated by Chang’an, preventing unrest, without making them feel that the court’s assistance was a given?

Qiao Yan expressed these concerns.

After listening, Xun Yu replied, “Is it possible not to settle them in Guanzhong? I don’t mean relocating them to Bingzhou or Liangzhou, but to places like Hongnong Commandery and Henan Yin.”

“Since the capital was established in Chang’an, the control of the Sili Xiaowei Department has never been fully reclaimed. Although Sima Jiangong, the Henan Yin, has clearly expressed loyalty to Chang’an, no troops have been stationed there. This area could serve as a buffer zone at this time.”

Seeing Qiao Yan’s thoughtful expression, Xun Yu said, “If the Grand Marshal permits, I can draft a plan for handling this.”

Qiao Yan said, “Then I’ll trouble you, Wenruo.”

Hongnong Commandery and Henan Yin…

These were indeed the two most suitable places!

Having Xun Yu handle this and placing the refugees outside Guanzhong didn’t mean she was abandoning efforts to win their hearts.

On the contrary, it meant she was finally taking a step beyond Tong Pass!

Compared to the Central Plains, the coastal Xuzhou hadn’t experienced such rapid hydrological changes during the drought.

But as various regions in the Central Plains entered a phase of intense disaster preparation, the two opposing forces of Xuzhou’s governors on either side of the Huai River temporarily ceased hostilities.

The reasons weren’t entirely the same.

In the north, it was because Zang Ba, Sun Guan, and others from Langye Commandery demanded a significant amount of grain reserves from Liu Bei and Chen Deng in April, claiming it was to prevent unrest among their subordinates in case of drought and locust disasters.

These men, originally bandits, made it unclear whether their demands would turn into plunder. It wasn’t yet time for Liu Bei to confront them directly.

For this reason, Liu Bei was forced to withdraw some troops to establish a northern defense line.

In the south, it was because, at this critical juncture, Zhou Yu needed to focus more on the local situation in Yang Province, thus reducing support for Zhang Yi.

In this state of truce, the group of teachers and students who had arrived in Hailing just a month ago found some free time. After understanding the various situations in Xuzhou, they decided to visit the shipyard to admire the newly built ships.

Gan Ning naturally accompanied them.

However, from the moment he entered the shipyard, he felt something was off.

Not only was the roof here much higher than those in places building river ships, even surpassing the height of tower ships.

The smell in the air, along with some scattered items in sight, didn’t seem like they were just building river ships.

River ships do use tung oil, but they rarely use fish oil!

River ships occasionally use some insect-repellent and anti-corrosion paints, but they hardly ever use luxurious materials like litharge and orpiment.

River ships require some hemp materials, like white hemp and jute, but ramie is specifically for sea ships.

When he saw the four-masted sea ship before him, Gan Ning’s ominous预感 turned into reality.

He suddenly turned to look at Lu Lingju and Lu Yi, who had “tricked” him into coming here, only to see these two children meeting his gaze without any guilt, smiling encouragingly, and then directly admiring the ship’s nailing techniques.

Their expressions seemed to say, isn’t this ship quite beautiful?

Gan Ning’s face turned as colorful as a spilled paint palette.

What the hell!

This ship couldn’t possibly be for crossing the Huai River!

It was more like for crossing the sea!

He had been tricked onto a pirate ship!