Chapter 75

Chapter 75

Can a strategist not ascend the throne? Volume 3: Galloping Through Bingzhou, Troops Depart Hedong Chapter 75: Observations in Leping (Part 3)

The book it belongs to:


Can a Strategist Not Ascend the Throne?

Chapter 75: Observations in Leping (Part 3)…

If Guo Jia were to translate Xi Zhicai’s expression, it would most likely be—

“Who are we to each other? Could I not know whether you’re making excuses for yourself or truly thinking this way?”

Even though it has been over three years since Xi Zhicai left Yingchuan for Leping, it’s not hard to see from their correspondence that the person remains the same.

So Guo Jia wasn’t surprised at all when Xi Zhicai extended the phrase “books as food” and, after claiming to treat him to a meal to welcome him, set up such a scene on the table before them.

On his side were proper dishes, while on Guo Jia’s side was a row of thread-bound books.

“…” What is a toxic friend?

If this isn’t one, no one dares to claim the title!

Of course, Xi Zhicai also had a stiff smile as he looked at the bizarre gift of a handful of chicken feathers, feeling a sense of meeting his match when he glanced at Guo Jia.

This guy really hasn’t changed—still not acting like a proper human!

But overall, as the host, he still had the upper hand.

Xi Zhicai consoled himself with this thought.

He set the strange gift aside and leisurely stirred the glutinous rice balls in his bowl with a wooden spoon.

The aroma of sweet fermented rice wine mixed with osmanthus was one thing, but Xi Zhicai, well-versed in “hospitality,” also served up Dongpo pork, smashed cucumber, and turnip stewed ribs all at once.

Guo Jia’s eye twitched as someone brought out another plate of pheasant with greens.

The dozen or so neatly arranged books in front of him still stood there, separating him from the wooden bowls and plates.

“Is this how Zhicai treats guests?” Guo Jia asked as he casually picked up one of the books.

“Although Marquis Qiao took you to Dongpo Garden, those not from Leping can’t see what’s before you,” Xi Zhicai said, lifting his chin to hint at the contents of the book.

Guo Jia glanced down at the book in his hand, seeing it was a re-copied version of the “Book on Agricultural Practices.”

If it were just that, it wouldn’t be a big deal. The “Book on Agricultural Practices” was written in the late Han Dynasty, focusing on agricultural planting and breeding. Although Guo Jia had studied classics and strategies, he had also skimmed through it due to his broad interests.

But the version in his hand was different.

Since the recording method wasn’t limited to bamboo slips, the content wasn’t restricted to text.

There were also illustrations.

The “Book on Agricultural Practices” documented farming experiences in the Yellow River basin, especially the Guanzhong Plain. Given the distance between Luoyang and Leping, what could be grown in Luoyang could mostly be grown in Leping too.

On his way into the county, Guo Jia had seen the aftermath of the autumn harvest. From the remnants and the dishes before him, it seemed the book’s contents had been put into practice in Leping’s agriculture.

Thus, the originally sparse text had been expanded with annotations and illustrations for easier understanding, along with notes on the results of practical applications.

Take the “Qu Tian” method, for example. To achieve drought resistance and increased yield, the book described dividing the field into 15 strips, with one-foot intervals for deep trenches. The visual representation undoubtedly made it easier for the county’s residents to understand.

Guo Jia flipped through the book and saw the same approach applied to seed storage.

After completing the transcription and supplementation of the “Book on Agricultural Practices,” an appendix followed, detailing Leping’s yam cultivation methods.

Unlike the simple mention of a bountiful harvest in Xi Zhicai’s letters, the illustrated planting process in the book showed several intricate steps.

As he read, Guo Jia sighed inwardly. Behind Leping’s peaceful life, the mobilization of manpower and the effort put into these projects were no small feat. He wondered how Qiao Yan had managed to persuade everyone.

Thanks to the illustrations, even someone like him, who knew little about farming, found the book quite accessible. Unconsciously, he had flipped to the end and set it aside, picking up another.

This one was also a practical book.

After Wu Pu, a disciple of Hua Tuo, arrived in Leping, Qiao Yan supported his efforts to collect medical cases across Bingzhou and provided ample medicinal supplies. In return, Wu Pu didn’t mind using his surgical skills and drawing techniques, learned from Hua Tuo, to record other things.

For example, castrating pigs.

This could also be considered a type of surgery.

Although pig castration had been practiced since the Shang and Zhou dynasties, it was unlikely that anyone had recorded it in such detail in a book, complete with illustrations.

Included were also methods for building pigsties and raising pigs.

This was another instance where Xi Zhicai’s letters only mentioned the result, while the actual process was quite complex.

Guo Jia couldn’t help but glance at the guy across from him.

After three years apart, and now working in such a county, Xi Zhicai looked healthier and rounder than before.

Xi Zhicai clearly felt no guilt about his euphemistic letters. Under Guo Jia’s gaze, he even picked up a shiny piece of Dongpo pork and calmly enjoyed the meal, clearly relishing the perks of his job.

Guo Jia felt a bit sour but still reached out to flip open the third book.

This was a medical book, but a special one—a medical book for women. It collected remedies related to gynecological diseases from the “Classic of Herbs by Shennong” and cases provided by Wu Pu during his practice.

Given the coeducational system in the county’s academy, it made sense to compile such a specialized medical book.

Thanks to the illustrated format, Guo Jia didn’t realize he had flipped to the end again and opened the fourth book.

Unlike the previous agricultural and medical books, this one was about the construction, maintenance, and repair of agricultural machinery, using the Dragon Bone Waterwheel as an example.

The detailed diagrams even made Guo Jia consider trying to build one himself.

But he quickly shook his head, dismissing the idea.

He wasn’t cut out for that kind of work.

Still, he couldn’t deny that this method of recording made it easier to absorb information and be influenced by it.

To come up with such a method of dissemination, Marquis Qiao Yan of Leping was undoubtedly a thorough pragmatist.

He set the book aside and picked up the fifth one.

With the first four books as a foundation, he almost forgot his initial thought that Xi Zhicai was being stingy by treating him with books.

Just seeing these four books made his trip to Leping worthwhile.

He wasn’t surprised to find that the fifth book detailed methods for preventing and controlling locusts, specifically the strategies Qiao Yan had ordered during the recent locust plague in Bingzhou.

Previously, it was said that while the surrounding regions suffered heavy losses during the locust plague in the second year of Zhongping, Bingzhou was spared thanks to Marquis Qiao Yan of Leping.

Now it seemed this “sparing” was no mere coincidence but the result of a well-prepared battle.

The sixth book contained basic rhymes for literacy in Leping.

But when he opened the seventh book…

Guo Jia clearly saw the word “cement” on the cover, but the pages inside were blank.

He immediately looked up and asked Xi Zhicai, “Did you grab the wrong book?”

“How could I make such a mistake?”

Xi Zhicai was already enjoying his dessert.

He had mentioned making yam cakes, and now he was doing so right in front of Guo Jia.

The warm yam cakes, mixed with the sweet aroma of honey, became even more enticing as he broke them apart.

Guo Jia had initially claimed to be hungry as an excuse, but now he was genuinely tempted by the smell.

Yet the guy across from him seemed completely oblivious.

While eating, he replied seriously, “I’m nimble on my feet and sharp in mind. I wouldn’t make such a mistake. It’s just that you’re merely a passerby in Leping. How could I let you know everything we have here?”

“The previous books were fine. Many things spread by word of mouth in Bingzhou are beneficial to the people. But some things just can’t be shared.”

This wasn’t entirely because Guo Jia might turn around and use the information against them.

Guo Jia might seem reckless, but Xi Zhicai still trusted his character.

He just knew that some of the things Qiao Yan had developed over the past two years, if known by outsiders, whether intentionally or not, would be inappropriate.

Take the academy building they were in, for example.

At first glance, it looked ordinary, but it was actually built with bricks.

However, unlike regular blue bricks…








The red bricks used were produced under Qiao Yan’s command with a simplified manufacturing process.

Because of these red bricks, the construction of the academy in Leping County and the housing for the Black Mountain Army on the mountain saved a significant amount of cost.

And it wasn’t just the Black Mountain Army.

Since two years ago, Chu Yan has been taking yams that were inconvenient to store in the county outside and brought back a considerable number of refugees.

These refugees were even unknown to Cui Lie, Qiao Yan’s supervisor, and were hidden by Qiao Yan in a manner similar to the northern aristocratic families’ fortresses, engaging in activities that were relatively more secretive in Leping County.

Of course, for them, having a place to live peacefully and being able to eat their fill was already the best thing in the world.

However, Qiao Yan, considering that the red bricks indeed saved costs but were too conspicuous in appearance, “invented” cement.

To be precise, it was a local method of making cement.

Xi Zhicai had been shocked by Qiao Yan’s actions several times and didn’t realize that developing a local method of making cement was a bizarre thing, regardless of the reason.

According to the ideas he was instilled with, she first developed honeycomb briquettes due to the efficiency of coal burning, then thought of making red bricks with coal gangue and clay, and finally developed cement with limestone, clay, iron ore, and coal, which was quite a comprehensive business.

In the end, the red brick houses in Leping, which were covered with curtains during construction, were soon coated with a layer of cement and painted, becoming the low-key and sturdy appearance that Guo Jia saw.

Guo Jia accepted this reason quite well.

He thought that if Xi Zhicai had directly mixed a book containing Leping’s secrets among these books, he would guarantee that he would open it without defense due to his interest in such recording methods, and then he would be forced to stay because he had seen something he shouldn’t have.

But even so, after having already read those six books, it was too difficult to have no curiosity about that blank book.

He flipped through the blank pages in his hands, feeling extremely restless, but he was still trying to maintain his previous thought—he couldn’t just decide his direction like that.

Yes, he couldn’t!

The next moment, the blank book in his hand was taken away by Xi Zhicai.

“You really don’t know the cost of living without managing a household. Although this mulberry bark paper-bound book hasn’t started copying content, it’s not something you can find everywhere. It’s not for you to mess around with,” Xi Zhicai said, waving his hand, and someone came to take away the empty plate in front of him and the books in front of Guo Jia.

“Let’s go, I’ll take you to see other places in Leping that can be shown to outsiders.”

“…” Guo Jia didn’t get up.

It didn’t matter that the book was taken away; it wasn’t his in the first place.

But he still had some youthful temper, and he gritted his teeth and spat out a few words, “I haven’t eaten yet!”

After weighing between teasing his friend with the idea that books are spiritual food and completing the task of helping Marquis Qiao deceive him, Xi Zhicai smiled and said, “Serve him a plate of soup noodles.”

Soup noodles were not actually noodles but a term for noodles at that time.

Due to Qiao Yan’s preference, the cooks in the academy were used to pulling the dough into sheets rather than strictly defined strips, which was more in line with the name of soup noodles.

The soup noodles were made semi-dry, with the soup base being the turnip and pork rib soup from the table earlier, and the topping being minced pork with a mix of fat and lean.

Guo Jia, who was in the midst of growing, had long been looking forward to the food in Leping. When the soup noodles entered his mouth, he didn’t care about his friend’s thoughts and quickly picked up the noodles with chopsticks, not even sparing the soup base, feeling that it was too easy to understand why Xi Zhicai had gained weight.

After eating and drinking to his heart’s content, he leisurely stood up and said, “Let’s go, let’s see other places in Leping.”

He thought that the shocks he had received in the Leping Academy upon entering the city were enough, and there shouldn’t be anything else that could make him lose his composure.

But the facts proved that he was still too young.

Walking around Leping County, he realized that the sense of cleanliness he felt upon entering the county was related to the obviously renovated drainage ditches and culverts in the county.

Considering the time Qiao Yan had arrived, achieving such improvements in basic conditions was not easy.

To be precise, mobilizing the county’s residents to complete this project meant that her prestige in the local area had reached an extremely terrifying level.

But apart from the soldiers training outside the county, such as Fu Gan, the county did not present a militarized appearance.

Guo Jia stood under the eaves for a while, watching the sugar cake shop opposite burning a fire stronger than usual, and the vendor quickly handed the freshly baked cakes to two children waiting outside.

The two children paid with satisfaction, holding the cakes and nibbling as they walked next door, where their mother was the owner of a clothing shop.

A vendor carrying a large box passed by on the street, with a logo similar to the one painted in front of the Leping Academy, and after being called by the shop owner, took out a few squares from the box and made a deal.

Guo Jia heard them talking about something called soap.

He, of course, knew about soapberries.

The Classic of Herbs by Shennong had records about their ability to remove dirt. Hearing Xi Zhicai say that the “soap” was also used to remove dirt, he asked, “What’s the connection between this and soapberries?”

“No connection,” Xi Zhicai slowly replied. “This is actually a product of our Leping pig farming industry. Because its effect is similar to soapberries, it got this name. It’s also placed where you’re staying.”

When he arrived at his accommodation, Guo Jia realized that not only was the soap unfamiliar, but even the tool for brushing his teeth was somewhat special.

He held the oddly shaped thing and fell silent with the soft paste in the box next to it.

Thinking of the many new things he had seen in Leping today, he had a strange premonition that this was definitely not used according to his inherent cognition.

But asking Xi Zhicai at this time would be too embarrassing!

He gritted his teeth, dipped the brush into the soft paste, mixed it with water, stirred it evenly, smelled the willow, ginger, and faint asarum scent, thought it should be similar to mouthwash, and simply used it.

Guo Jia didn’t realize what outrageous thing he had done. He only felt that he had finally successfully completed his first day’s experience in the city and lay down on the guesthouse bed.

Perhaps because the military strength displayed by Leping gave a sense of security, or perhaps because of the positive appearance of the entire county, Guo Jia, who had been traveling since leaving Yingchuan, finally had a good night’s sleep today.

He slept until he woke up naturally.

Because he had rested early, when he got up, in this autumn when the dawn had been delayed, he pushed the door open and walked into the yard, and there was only a faint white light on the horizon.

He simply walked out of the yard.

The entire Leping County was still in the silence before dawn, with only occasional rooster crows and occasional movements from various houses.

Guo Jia himself was a bit surprised that he could wake up so early, and he wasn’t even troubled by the bizarre scenes he had seen here in his dreams.

But suddenly thinking of yesterday’s misunderstanding, he subconsciously glanced towards the eastern mountains.

This glance made him notice something unusual.

With his good eyesight, he clearly saw a moving color on the mountain path.

It was a fiery red color.

This crimson cloak fluttering in the mountain wind, as its owner was not walking but riding a horse, looked almost like a waving red banner.

Even though he couldn’t see the horse or the person on the horse clearly from such a distance, he had an almost intuitive premonition that this might be the Marquis of Leping.

But this figure soon disappeared from his sight, leaving him no way to verify his judgment.

Qiao Yan didn’t know that her guest had seen this scene. She just rode her horse swiftly on the mountain path, as she had developed the habit in the past six months, until she stopped at the high point of the eastern mountains.

The direction where the mountains extended to the north was where her special fortress and workshop were located, and to the south, beyond a mountain field, was a village.

And in front of her, below, was the gradually “coming to life” Leping County in the faint morning light.

The various differences Guo Jia had seen in the county yesterday, from this overlooking perspective, even the Leping Academy didn’t look particularly special.

But as the master of this place, Qiao Yan could almost distinguish with her eyes closed where the first call of the county would come from.

“This is the current Leping…”

She looked towards a wisp of cooking smoke emerging in the morning light, her eyes seemingly lit up by the rising sun, gradually spreading to her youthful face, turning into a wanton smile, “And it’s my Leping.”