“Can a strategist not ascend the throne?”
Chapter 74: Leping Observations (Part 2)…
In front of Qiao Yan stood none other than Zhang Niujiao and Zhang Yang.
It could be said that Zhang Yang had previously concocted a tale about how the character “Zhang” was a granted surname from Zhang Niujiao, which indicated they shared a bit of a kindred spirit.
Of course, Qiao Yan had very different plans for these two.
Zhang Niujiao’s vision was quite limited; at most, he could lead a thousand men. His greater talent lay not in commanding troops but in connecting with the native bandits of similar ilk.
With Zhang Niujiao as a bridge for communication, Qiao Yan could effectively infiltrate her developmental ideas for Leping into these folks, subtly yet surely.
In contrast, her expectations for Zhang Yang were considerably higher.
After all, with Zhang Yang’s bravery, she hoped he could be a vanguard for her.
But a vanguard general still needed enough training and education.
Training was straightforward enough.
Cui Lie, the Governor of Bingzhou, was relatively easy to work with; Zhang Liao served as a military officer, and now the Prefect of Yanmen was Guo Yun, an acquaintance. Qiao Yan thought sending someone to the border to gain battle experience was a piece of cake.
As for learning…
It was clearly evident from the current state; these two guys were learning at the Leping Academy, which had been systematically developed over the past two years.
Now, they stood before her, staring at each other awkwardly.
Qiao Yan took the papers from Guo Jia, glancing at the shoddy handwriting, and felt a headache coming on.
Suddenly, Guo Jia asked, “Are you trying to copy Lord Bao’s teaching style of equal opportunity?”
“Not at all,” Qiao Yan shook her head. “With so much to be done in Leping and a mixed bag of people, it’s crucial to cultivate understanding to prevent any banditry. Plus, I’ve been shut away for learning as per the Emperor’s wishes these past two years. If the county officials and local leaders can learn to read and reason, we wouldn’t need to impose late punishments, hence the arrangement.”
“Additionally, Leping is just a small area, with limited households eligible for status benefits; it would be better to promote people through exams.”
Of course, Qiao Yan wouldn’t mention to Guo Jia that the exams weren’t meant to evaluate the response papers submitted by Zhang Niujiao.
These included specialties in agriculture, engineering, and medicine; passing any category would suffice, no need for everyone to become a scholar.
Reflecting on how a good chunk of students today were not in the county but up in the mountains at the academy, Qiao Yan smiled, “There are many talented individuals in Yingchuan, especially—if Xie doesn’t mind visiting our Leping Academy.”
Guo Jia was keen to learn more about Leping and naturally wouldn’t refuse the invitation.
He followed Qiao Yan’s gaze and noticed a slightly taller building not too far off, its exposed structure resembling the walls he had seen on the mountain houses before, which piqued his curiosity even more.
As he got closer, he affirmed that this was not made from any construction materials he had ever encountered.
What appeared to be a typical earthen wall had been reinforced and painted with a layer of decorative lacquer. However, when he casually knocked on the wall from behind, he realized that its sturdiness was far superior to regular earth walls.
It was clear that Qiao Yan had intentionally designed the academy to look low-key and unassuming, and she obviously wasn’t going to tell him what materials were used.
With a mind full of questions, Guo Jia redirected his attention to the academy’s only decorative feature—the sign hanging at the entrance.
It didn’t take long for him to recognize that the characters were written in Cai Yong’s Feibai Script.
Cai Yong, a renowned calligrapher of this era, had left behind a significant number of calligraphic works that were not just private documents but also epitaphs, making rubbings of his inscriptions commonplace among calligraphy enthusiasts.
Guo Jia had a few of these at hand and readily recognized the familiar style.
Just as he was about to inquire whether Cai Yong was also teaching here, he noticed Qiao Yan turning around to glance at Zhang Niujiao with a look that said, “I’ll need to talk to you later.”
How do I put it? This expression was entirely different from her earlier fierceness in battle; Guo Jia couldn’t help but chuckle and look away.
From what he observed, Qiao Yan seemed far more vibrant within Leping than she did outside, which might explain why the Leping citizens, while admiring her, did not fear her as a ferocious beast.
Then, he watched as Qiao Yan adjusted her expression, stepping through the entrance of Leping Academy first, prompting him to set aside his questions and follow her inside.
The material used for the outer walls appeared to have been used within the academy, giving the rooms a rustic charm, but the complex itself had quite a commanding presence.
However, compared to the buildings, Guo Jia found it hard to tear his eyes away from the papers posted on the stone tablets on either side of the entrance.
On the left side was what could be referred to as an announcement.
He skimmed through it, which included:
The academy’s food list for today—any food with a chance of causing wind sickness was separately noted.
A simplified map of the academy’s various functions—displaying quite a different style from what existed at that time.
Today’s class schedule—he indeed found Cai Yong’s name listed therein.
On the right side, there was a larger section, titled with the results for August.
However, below the title was a line of smaller text advising those who did poorly due to writing exams not to be disheartened.
Guo Jia guessed this was likely akin to the question-and-answer sheet Zhang Niujiao had submitted.
As he scanned the paper, the name at the top was none other than Cai Yan.
Cai Zhaoji, daughter of Cai Yong.
Guo Jia didn’t suspect she received any favoritism due to her father, but he couldn’t help thinking that with Qiao Yan first and then Cai Yan, wouldn’t everyone soon consider the character “Yan” to be an excellent choice for a name?
Contemplating such a literary coincidence, he found it rather amusing.
The second name on the list was Xu Fu; were it not for the two smaller characters “Yuan Zhi” following it, the name sounded a bit plain.
He looked further down and saw a name he had heard earlier from Qiao Yan.
“Is this Yan Cai the same one we saw outside the city?” Guo Jia asked.
“Exactly,” Qiao Yan replied.
Hearing her respond, Guo Jia’s gaze shifted to the name preceding the characters “Yan Cai.”
Fu Gan… another name Guo Jia hadn’t heard before.
But for Qiao Yan, Fu Gan’s arrival was particularly significant.
In the fourth year of Zhongping, the bandit forces invaded Liangzhou, leading to the death of Prefect Fu Xie of Hanyang.
Upon hearing the news of his death, Qiao Yan couldn’t help but be taken aback.
Last time she heard from Fu Xie was when Cui Lie casually mentioned him, saying he once had the brilliant idea of giving up on Liangzhou, and got publicly roasted by Fu Xie for it.
Then, when he was promoted to Governor of Bingzhou, Fu Xie landed a sweet gig as the Prefect of Hanyang, helping out with the Liangzhou Governor, Geng Bi, in the fight against the chaos.
But with the bandits invading Liangzhou like they were on an express train, and the court losing its grip, Fu Xie’s loyalty and talents weren’t really gonna help him stop Han Sui and his gang from snatching up allies left and right.
This was nothing like the gathering of the masses during the Yellow Turban Rebellion—words alone weren’t going to cut it here.
Fu Xie wasn’t one to just toss up a white flag outside the city, and it seemed like the only way out was to sacrifice himself for the nation.
His death felt more like a sure thing.
But when Fu Gan popped up out of nowhere after being escorted by Chief Clerk Yang Hui, showing up in Leping, that was a surprise!
The death of his father left this thirteen-year-old with an unusually cold expression. Even the rough travel and lack of food only made him look a bit ragged, but didn’t change his calm demeanor.
When Qiao Yan asked him why he was here, he replied, “Father said that Yang Chief Clerk is the same as Cheng Ying; that’s not incorrect. If it weren’t for the clerk risking his life to protect me, I’d never have escaped Hanyang. I think what Father said about having a son like Qiao Yeshushu is also true; he’s quite the exceptional talent! I want to avenge my father but don’t know where to start. I hope not to be rude, but I’d like to ask Lord Qiao for guidance.”
“I initially intended to ally with General Huangfu, but now Huangfu isn’t even facing off against the Liangzhou commander. Even if he’s reinstated within the year, if I went and took down my enemy, it’d only backfire and cause trouble for him.
I also thought about lying low in Liangzhou, looking for some enemy of Han Sui to side with, but with the bandits storming in, I doubt I’ll find that chance anytime soon.
Han Sui decisively killed Beigong Boyu, leaving no remnants for me to rally… if you don’t mind, I’d be happy to serve Lord Qiao like a faithful dog.”
Fu Gan wasn’t just a hothead driven by revenge.
In fact, he was originally on a similar path to his second idea in the actual course of history.
As tensions between Ma Teng and Han Sui grew, particularly during the battle between Cao and Yuan, he managed to convince Ma Teng to attack Guo Yuan, leading Ma Teng to switch sides to Cao Cao.
But he probably didn’t expect that six years later, after Ma Teng became the Minister of Defense, Ma Chao would join forces with Han Sui against Cao Cao, leading to Ma Teng’s death.
Luckily, Han Sui ultimately got trounced at Weinan, and after fleeing back to Liangzhou, he was defeated again by Xiahou Yuan and soon passed away. From then on, Fu Gan operated as a Military Strategist under the Chancellor.
But now, with it being tough to stop his father from heading home and even tougher to prevent him from dying for his country, he thought of how his father praised Qiao Yan, convincing Yang Hui to take him to Leping.
To Qiao Yan, he wasn’t just a brave warrior influenced by Fu Xie; he was also a clever strategist with good character—if nurtured right, he could become a great asset.
Besides, Fu Xie’s death at the hands of Han Sui meant that if Qiao Yan had the chance to avenge him, Fu Gan would surely be loyally devoted till the end.
Before Fu Xie’s funeral, Fu Gan even managed to say, “The state is in disarray, and the lord isn’t welcome in court,” so he was definitely not just a blind loyalist to the Han dynasty.
However, Qiao Yan didn’t directly promise anything; instead, she sent him to Leping Academy to develop his strength before worrying about Liangzhou.
Upon arriving at Leping, Fu Gan saw Qiao Yan training cavalry and making sure everyone mastered archery and spear techniques. He couldn’t help but respect the assessment Fu Xie had given her, making it impossible for him to reject her proposal.
In this academy, which focused more on practical skills rather than just book learning, Fu Gan armed himself with knowledge at a jaw-dropping speed.
Qiao Yan was thrilled about that, but what excited her even more was—
Most of the women from the Black Mountain Army, due to their contributions, were registered at Leping, and with the establishment of Leping Academy, figures like Zhang Niujiao wanted to gain some knowledge, leading the women to enroll too.
They were taught by Lu Yuan, with Cai Yan as their role model, showing that women could also gain knowledge.
Qiao Yan didn’t put too much pressure on Zhaoji to have her come out on top of that list they posted.
But she couldn’t stop Zhaoji from excelling, thanks to Cai Yong’s guidance. Whether in reciting scriptures or in mathematical calculations, she was way ahead of the rest, leaving Xu Fu and Fu Gan far below her.
But this was fantastic news for Qiao Yan!
She needed to put some pressure on those potential talents and give those trying to learn new things a little motivation.
So when Guo Jia went with Qiao Yan to the inner chambers and saw young women carrying books out greeting Qiao Yan, there was an unmistakable refreshing vibe about them compared to elsewhere.
Mi Zhu, following behind, hadn’t seen what the academy was teaching yet, but he couldn’t help but think,
“This academy of Lord Qiao seems to be doing quite well; I wonder if I can send my sister here in a couple of years.”
Putting other things aside, their wealth in the Donghai Mi Clan would definitely help his sister stand tall. If she could also gain confidence and knowledge here, that’d be a good thing.
But he needed to wait until they could settle their deal with Lord Qiao, stabilizing their relationship.
So he kept quiet and just followed the two ahead.
Of course, Qiao Yan would never take these two to the more confidential areas, especially the agricultural section.
That place was where the curved plow designed according to Qiao Yan’s vision was still being tested and adjusted, so how could she let them see that?
As for the medical part, Qiao Yan had borrowed a student from Hua Tuo called Wu Pu, and for now, it was also temporarily inconvenient for observation.
She turned her steps and led them toward the back of the academy. While passing a door, Guo Jia looked up and saw a sign with Cai Yong’s calligraphy, spelling out “Dongpo Garden.”
Guo Jia vaguely found the name familiar, recalling the Dongpo pork mentioned by Xi Zhicai earlier, and instinctively thought this might be the cafeteria in the academy, raising an eyebrow, “Isn’t it too early for lunch?”
But then he remembered seeing the menu at the door, which mentioned a dish called sweet rice balls today that Xi Zhicai hadn’t mentioned in his letter, and it caught his interest.
Just then, Qiao Yan shot him a weird look, replying, “What are you talking about, Fengxiao? This garden’s east side is actually at the foot of the Taihang Mountains, hence the name, but it’s really just the library within the academy.”
Guo Jia was quick on his feet, retorting, “Books are like food for the soul; no wonder I felt hungry as soon as I stepped in here—makes perfect sense, perfect sense.”
However, barely had he finished that when he caught the playful gaze from inside Dongpo Garden—
It was Xi Zhicai giving him that teasing, bemused look.
“Books are food for the soul?”
