Chapter 42: Positioning of Bibo Valley
"Xiucai, you discuss with Zhu Bingkun and Zhou Li to come up with military regulations and rules on rewards and punishments as soon as possible. In addition, identify the people in the valley who can do things. There will be more and more things in the future, and you can't handle it alone." Ying Yi said this.
The scholar nodded: "Don't worry, sir, I'll save it. In three days at most, I will discuss it with Zhou Qianhu and Zhu Qianhu, and come up with a statement for your review. There are more than 20,000 people in the valley, although Ye County Those with names and surnames have all moved away on their own, but there are still many who are in such a state of desolation as my subordinates, so it is not difficult to select some minor officials."
Looking at his appearance, Ying Yi couldn't help but sigh in his heart and nodded: "Put up the rack as soon as possible. Don't be too exclusive with the original officials in Ye County."
Originally, a county government had, in addition to a few officials such as the county magistrate, a group of petty officials. But the situation in Ye County is different. There are very few useful people under Zheng Yunzhi. Those who were able to run away basically ran away after Zheng Yunzhi decided to let them go. Therefore, there are less than ten minor officials up and down. And these people were promoted by Zheng Yunzhi.
That's why Ying Yi said this.
Without petty officials, officials would be blind and crippled. Small officials are indispensable.
Sun Xiucai responded and said yes, expressing his understanding.
Ying Yi then said to Lian Biao: "The Crescent Valley is very important, so I want someone who can trust me to guard it. I chose you. To maintain stability in the valley, just keep an eye on Zheng County Zun and make sure not to leave your sight." You can’t be harsh, do you understand?”
Although Lian Biao had not been with Ying Yi for a long time, he was already convinced. Now that Ying Yi has seized power, although he feels a little guilty towards Zheng County Zun, he feels even more excited. Because he felt that following Ying Yi had more expectations and was more in line with his own wishes than following County Zheng.
Hearing this, Lian Biao slapped his chest loudly: "Please don't worry, sir!"
Although he only leads the troops of one hundred households for the time being, Zhou Li has already made thousands of households. But he was not dissatisfied. Firstly, he is not as brave as Zhou Li, and secondly, Crescent Valley is indeed very important to Ying Yi. Entrusting him with the task of guarding Crescent Valley was a sign of Ying Yi's trust in him.
"We must ensure stability in the valley." Ying Yi warned seriously: "The most important thing for me next is to train troops, so I will leave it to you two to watch over here. If anyone makes trouble, he will be dealt with severely. Don't let Yue Ya The grain creates chaos.”
He added: "There are too few people in the Crescent Valley, and many people have nothing to do all day long. Then find a way to give them something to do. There is a salt mine over there in the Bibo Valley, and you, the scholar, know it, so organize the manpower to mine and make salt; in the mountains Although it is barren, it may not have treasures like salt mines. Organizing manpower to explore and search can also absorb a lot of idle labor."
The three of them were walking and talking. When Sun Xiucai listened to Ying Yi's words, many things in his heart suddenly became enlightened.
He said: "The salt mines in Bibo Valley are very large, and mining and making salt requires a lot of labor. In this case, perhaps we can focus on developing Bibo Valley first."
Ying Yi nodded slightly and said with a smile: "That's exactly what I thought. Bibo Valley is no better than Crescent Valley. There is only one valley, covering an area of only more than ten acres. It is not cost-effective to grow food. There are salt mines there, and there are more than two hundred Craftsman, my idea is to build Bibo Valley into a workshop. The army needs weapons and armor, farming needs rakes, and other various needs can be completed in Bibo Valley."
Sun Xiucai was deeply convinced and said: "Your Excellency is wise. But I'm afraid we need a trusted person to watch over there."
Ying Yi nodded: "I plan to let Er Niu and Fourth Sister-in-law be temporarily responsible for the affairs of Bibo Valley. What do you think?"
Sun Xiucai was startled and couldn't help but said: "Er Niu and Fourth Sister-in-law are worthy of trust, but their abilities..."
Ying Yi said: "So I need someone capable to assist them."
Sun Xiucai thought for a moment and said, "My subordinates will select a suitable person as soon as possible."
Ying Yi nodded with satisfaction: "The sooner the better. Three thousand soldiers and horses are empty-handed and have nothing. At least build a workshop for forging weapons and armor in Bibo Valley as soon as possible. When I transport some iron materials from Ye County, we will start Make a batch of gun heads and arm the army."
Nowadays, there are so many things going on, and Ying Yi just feels like there are so many things in a mess, and they all need to be considered and sorted out. He couldn't help but sigh in his heart. Being a person in power may seem like a beautiful thing, but it is indeed not an easy task. There are more than 20,000 people and 3,000 troops here, which makes him feel heavy. If this is such a huge Chinese state, with hundreds of millions of people carrying it on its shoulders, what a huge burden it would be?
Right now, Ying Yi also had concerns in his mind. For now, as long as the stability of Crescent Valley can be ensured, that is, ensuring that the people do not go hungry, this is the most important thing. Equally important is arming the army.
As for other things, you can put them aside for the time being.
"If you have the chance, sir, you should try your best to transport all the materials stored in Ye County." Sun Xiucai suggested: "Grain, iron materials, etc. The mountains are so poor that there is nothing. Everything must be started from scratch."
Ying Yi was convinced.
"I will go to Bibo Valley later to make arrangements for the workshop in advance." Ying Yi finally said: "I'll leave it to you here. By the way, there is also the Wang Zhongguan, Lian Biao, please pay attention to him. If there is If anything happens, come to me immediately. If I'm not here, go to Xiucai."
...
Taking advantage of the good weather, Ying Yi left Crescent Valley alone and headed straight for Bibo Valley.
There are now a total of more than 250 people in Bibo Valley. Except for the dozen or so people who survived in Xiaowangzhuang, the others were all craftsmen. These craftsmen and their families moved from the county seat to Crescent Valley a long time ago. When Ying Yi arrived at Bibo Valley, the craftsmen recommended an old craftsman to ask Ying Yi when he could go to Crescent Valley to reunite with his family.
They were very uneasy. It had been a day or two since they arrived in Bibo Valley, but there had been no news, which made them very uneasy.
The old craftsman named Pu Tiechui is very prestigious among the craftsmen. Although he is gray-haired and short in stature, his waist and arms are extremely thick, his hands are covered with calluses, and his face is extremely honest. Facing Ying Yi, he seemed hesitant and his posture was extremely low.
The status of craftsmen in the Ming Dynasty was very low. Especially at the end of the dynasty, most craftsmen were in danger. Because they have to rely on the court's "orders" to survive. But the weaker the court, the fewer orders there were. And it is becoming more and more corrupt, and officials have their hands on them. Even if there is an order and money, it is difficult to guarantee even a few tenths of what will fall into the hands of the craftsmen after layers of exploitation.
And if you take on the work yourself, that is, to meet the needs of the people, it is also difficult to do it in this world. People can't even afford food, so what other needs can they have?
"Sir, I don't know when I will be able to reunite with my family."
