Tang Dynasty Swordsman

Page 141

Taking advantage of the opportunity, Xue Yong presented Du Huangshang's exam paper. Xiao Xin glanced through it and couldn't help but frown—the policy essay seemed to be well written (but there was no time to savor it carefully), and the classical texts were also acceptable, but the problem was that this person's poetry was really lacking; the rhyme was smooth, the style was correct, and there were no major flaws, but it was dry and lacked literary flair, as tasteless as chewing wax.

Originally, the Jinshi examination prioritized policy essays, while the "studying the classics" section merely tested one's familiarity with Confucian classics—a fill-in-the-blank question where right or wrong was straightforward. During the reign of Emperor Gaozong, poetry and prose were added as extra points. However, since the Kaiyuan era, with the empire at peace, the atmosphere among officials and common people became increasingly extravagant and decadent, and gradually, the weight of prose overshadowed policy essays. If one's poetry and prose were subpar, the examiners might simply reject them, not even bothering to read their policy essays—after all, policy essays were lengthy and mentally taxing, far less interesting than reciting poetry and prose.

Therefore, if the roles were reversed, Du Huangshang's miscellaneous essays would be excellent, while his policy essays would be mediocre. Perhaps, since Xue Yong had invited him, Xiao Xin would have simply passed the exam. But this particular essay was simply not to the liking of the old gentleman Xiao… He believed that even though Xue Yong had been transferred from the Longyou Military Headquarters to the central court, he wouldn't value this person's policy essays so highly, yet overlook the shortcomings of his poetry and prose.

So he asked Xue Yong directly, "Who made the request?"

Xue Yong bowed and replied, "The Third Young Master Guo and Li Changwei of Weibo both have connections."

Xiao Xin stroked his white beard and slowly said, "It's Guo Xi, not Situ himself..." In fact, even if Guo Ziyi had personally delivered the message, Xiao Xin wouldn't have dared to ignore it. After all, that old man was just a military man who entered officialdom through the military examination. Now he was taking the Confucian examination. What did he know?!

“But Li Changwei…the Emperor has placed his hopes on him, appointing him to guard Hebei. And since he has praised me, he must be planning to summon him to his staff,” Xiao Xin smiled slightly. “He’s just at the bottom of the list anyway, so I’ll grant his request.”

Therefore, it was concluded that: "Twenty-seven people passed the imperial examination this year, with Hong Yuan at the top, Gu Zhiqi second, and Du Huangshang at the bottom. You may submit your proposals."

----------

Li Yu quickly approved the list of newly appointed Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations) submitted by the Ministry of Rites. As was customary, the list was posted at dawn the following day in the southern courtyard of the Ministry of Rites. However, before the list was posted, Xue Yong copied the examination papers of the twenty-seven successful candidates and ordered someone to deliver them to Li Ji.

However, this was ultimately a minor leak. Even if Xue Yong used this to curry favor with Li Ji, he dared not be too blatant. Therefore, he had already agreed that on the appointed day, Li Ji should enter the capital city ahead of time and come to the vicinity of the South Courtyard of the Ministry of Rites. Xue Yong would then send someone to deliver the examination papers to Li Ji. Even if it was only a little earlier, it was still considered keeping his promise.

Most of the central government offices in the Tang Dynasty were located in the Imperial City, south of the Taiji Palace, within eight wards and courtyards, two in the north and four in the east and west. Among them, the Ministry of Personnel was located at the southernmost end of the northern ward on the east side of the main street (Zhaoyangmen Street), while part of it was located at the northernmost end of the southern ward directly opposite, including the Ministry of War Selection Office, the Ministry of Justice Selection Office, the Ministry of Personnel Selection Office, and the Ministry of Rites South Courtyard.

Therefore, Li Ji entered the capital city early and settled in the Ministry of War's selection office—after all, he held the title of Acting Vice Minister of War, so he could freely enter and leave the Ministry of War.

Xue Yong sent a clerk with a thick stack of papers. Li Ji rewarded the clerk handsomely, then, by candlelight, began to peruse the copied examination papers. He started by looking at the names—Hong Yuan? Unfamiliar; Gu Zhiqi? A good name, but is he truly extraordinary? Hmm, Gao Ying is seventh… He flipped to the very last paper before finally finding Du Huangshang's name.

"It doesn't matter, even the last place is still a Jinshi (successful candidate in the highest imperial examination)." Li Ji breathed a sigh of relief. He then instructed the Ministry of War clerk who was serving him, "When Gao Ying and Du Huangshang arrive, bring them to see me."

At this moment, thousands of candidates—many of whom had just finished the exam and were returning home disheartened—had already gathered outside the Zhuque Gate. As soon as the gate opened, they filed in, passed through Zhaoyang Street, and turned left towards the South Courtyard of the Ministry of Rites to see the results. However, the South Courtyard of the Ministry of Rites was located in the northeast corner of the ward, while the Selection Courtyard of the Ministry of War was in the northwest corner, blocking the candidates' only way of passing through.

So Du Huangshang had just entered the imperial city with trepidation when, after turning a corner, he was stopped by a minor official in a green robe who asked, "Are you Du Huangshang, the Prefect of the Capital?"

"It is indeed I, Du. And you are...?"

"General Li is waiting for you at the Ministry of War Selection Institute. Please come with me."

Du Huangshang dared not disobey and had no choice but to follow the young official in the blue robe into the Ministry of War. Upon reaching a side courtyard, he had just removed his boots and stepped onto the veranda when he saw the door ajar. Li Ji sat inside, pointed at him, and sighed, "What a pity, what a pity..."

Du Huangshang's heart skipped a beat. He had considered that Li Ji might have obtained the list of successful candidates in advance; otherwise, why would he send a minor official to lead him to the Ministry of War at this time when everyone was anxious? He should at least wait until he had finished looking at the list, whether he had passed or failed, before speaking to him. However, Li Ji's expression was so unusual that Du Huangshang panicked on the spot.

Forcibly suppressing the fear and frustration in his heart, and striving to maintain an unwavering and dignified demeanor, Du Huangshang slowly bowed to Li Ji and asked in a trembling voice, "Is it because I have not passed the imperial examination this year, and therefore have no chance with Commander Li?"

Li Ji shook his head and said, "What a pity, what a pity—only twenty-seven people passed this year's exam. If you miss one more, it will be twenty-eight."

Even someone as perceptive as Du Huangshang, in the midst of his anxieties, had to rack his brains before finally understanding Li Ji's meaning. He immediately breathed a sigh of relief: "I don't care about the ranking, as long as I pass, that's enough." He then bowed deeply to Li Ji: "Thank you, Commander Li."

He knew his exam results were poor. His poetry and prose were already weak, and this time, he didn't know what had gotten into him. It was as if all his energy had been put into his policy essays, and by the time he wrote his miscellaneous essays, his inspiration had dried up. It was a miracle that he could even manage to meet the rules of prosody and rhyme. He had already prepared himself for failure, but now that he heard he was at the bottom of the list... it was probably because Li Ji had intervened on his behalf.

Whether it is true or not, it's always good to express gratitude first—at least thank you for informing me in advance, saving me the trouble of jumping around in the crowd to see the list. Then my gaze shifted and I saw the stack of papers in Li Ji's hand, so I asked, "What about Gao Gongchu? Does Commander Li have his exam paper?"

Li Ji casually pulled out a few sheets of paper, handed them to Du Huangshang, and slowly said, "Gao Ying came in seventh place."

This Gao Ying, also known as Gao Gongchu, was the outstanding man recommended by Du Huangshang to Li Ji—he only recommended this one, saying that the rest were mediocre and could not possibly catch the eye of Commander Li.

Gao Ying was from Bohai, but coincidentally, his ancestors had moved to Weizhou, making him a fellow townsman of Li Ji. When the rebel army captured Chang'an, his father, Gao Boxiang, was serving as the magistrate of Haozhi County. He was captured and about to be executed. Gao Ying, who was seventeen years old at the time, let his hair down and took off his clothes, pleading to take his father's place. The rebel army, considering him a righteous man, actually released both father and son.

Li Ji had also visited Gao Ying, but was turned away. Gao Ying sent someone to say, "Brother Zunsu has already sent a letter. I know the governor's intention, but you must calm down and study. It is not advisable to meet before the results are announced."

Li Ji wasn't annoyed at all; instead, he smiled and said, "What a madman!" I like this child's temper.

Now that Gao Ying has come in seventh place, Du Huangshang asked Li Ji for his exam paper, quickly read it, and couldn't help but sigh, "He really fell short in the miscellaneous essays..." Gao Ying's policy essay was also excellent, on par with Du Huangshang's, but compared to Du Huangshang's almost unbearable poetry, Gao Gongchu had performed exceptionally well this time. His talent, which was originally six points, suddenly increased to eight points. No wonder he was able to enter the top ten.

Li Ji had already read through the works of the various scholars, focusing mainly on their policy essays and paying little attention to their miscellaneous writings—such geniuses, so learned and eloquent, are hard to come by, aren't they? Even Li Bi's poetry was only so-so... And Du Fu? He will surely be remembered for all time and revered as a great poet for all ages, but his vision, knowledge, and even practical abilities were probably at the bottom among those who had served in the Longyou government together.

After reading them, Li Ji felt that, in terms of policy essays, apart from the two he had chosen, the rest were all rubbish—including the top scholar, Hong Yuan. Indeed, out of the twenty-seven successful candidates, I could only pick two at most, right?

Just as Du Huangshang was sighing to himself, Gao Ying arrived gracefully, bowing to Li Ji before him. Li Ji was meeting him for the first time, and upon closer inspection, he saw a handsome young man in this turbid world, whose appearance surpassed even Du Huangshang's. Moreover, Gao Ying did not possess any of the slight flaws that Du Huangshang had.

Moreover, they are all young people—Du Huangshang is twenty-six years old this year, Li Ji is twenty-five, and Gao Ying is twenty-four.

Li Ji couldn't help but sigh: If I had such a handsome appearance, I would have a much smoother career among civil officials.

However, when it comes to actually going into battle, he'll probably have to imitate that Prince Lanling, Gao Changgong, and wear a mask first...

He returned the greeting to Gao Ying and then said with a smile, "Congratulations, Mr. Gao, you have come in seventh place."

Gao Ying tilted his head slightly: "Then I will follow Brother Su's lead..."

Du Huangshang forced a smile: "I came in last on the list."

"In that case, congratulations to Brother Zunsu."

Li Ji leaned forward slightly: "Well? Now that you've passed the imperial examination, would you be willing to join my staff and come with me to Weibo?"

Gao Ying hesitated for a moment before replying, "My nature is too rigid; I'm afraid I'll have difficulty getting along with the military commander..."

Li Ji laughed and said, "Does Lord Gao think I lack the capacity to tolerate others?"

"I hope that Commander Li will promise that if I offend him in the future, he will not harm my life, but will expel me."

“If your advice is sound, I will not blame you; even if there are some errors, we can part ways if we disagree, and there is no reason for me to harm you,” Li Ji said, glancing sideways at Du Huangshang. “Besides, I trust Zunsu’s judgment.”

Gao Ying bowed deeply: "In that case, I am willing to serve under your command."

"Aren't you going to ask about the pay and position?"

"As Commander Li decides, it is acceptable if it is second only to Brother Zunsu."

Chapter Sixteen, The Eunuch Supervisor

Li Ji had roughly assembled the civil service staff of his headquarters, appointing Yin Shen and Du Huangshang as judges. The former was in charge of all the affairs of the headquarters, equivalent to a chief steward, while the latter was in charge of the four departments of granary, military, and cavalry. He appointed Gao Ying as chief secretary—because although Gao Gongchu's literary talent was not first-rate, he could completely outshine the two judges. It should be noted that in officialdom, welcoming and seeing off guests is not just about writing good documents.

In addition, he recruited two other talented individuals: Liu Ji, a native of Shu recommended by Yang Wan, who was said to be honest and upright, and was appointed as a clerk; and Luo Yiping, a friend of Han Hui from Shangdang, who was said to be well-versed in Tang law, and was appointed as a judge. He secured official positions of the eighth or ninth rank for all of them.

As for other positions, we had to search for them in Weizhou.

Therefore, a memorial was submitted to the emperor, confirming the date of departure from the capital, and requesting the appointment of the military supervisor.

The system of military supervisors has existed since ancient times, but before the Tianbao era, they were mostly supervised by censors. Even when eunuchs were appointed during the Tianbao era, they were only temporarily assigned to supervise marches and camps. After the An Lushan Rebellion broke out, both Emperor Xuanzong and Emperor Suzong increasingly distrusted generals outside the capital, yet they had to appoint many officials such as observers and military governors, creating one new regional military governorship after another. To this end, a military supervisory office was set up in each region, with eunuchs in charge of its affairs and supervising the troops under their jurisdiction.

Li Ji had also discussed with Li Bi that appointing a eunuch as military supervisor showed the emperor’s extreme distrust of his subjects and could easily cause discord or even conflict between local powerful figures and the central government—represented by the military supervisor eunuch. So, could I not have this military supervisor eunuch?

Li Bi bluntly rejected the idea on the spot: "Even if Yan and Zhao surrender, they will still be subject to military supervision. How dare you shirk your responsibility?"

He also warned Li Ji that he absolutely must not mention this matter, lest he arouse the emperor's suspicion—"I originally intended to slowly advise the emperor to abolish the system of eunuch supervisors in the army, but now that you have been appointed to a post, it is inappropriate for me to submit a memorial under suspicious circumstances. I can only hope for the future..."

Having no other option, Li Ji went to discuss the matter with Cheng Yuanzhen.

The most powerful eunuch at present is Cheng Yuanzhen. Aside from not holding any real official position in the outer court and not interfering in the prime minister's affairs, his power in the palace and influence in the court are gradually approaching that of Li Fuguo in his prime. Li Ji deeply fears that Cheng Yuanzhen will become a second Li Fuguo, but for now, the two have no conflict, and it seems they can even join forces on the issue of dealing with Yu Chaoen. Cheng Yuanzhen understands this as well, hence his rather warm attitude towards Li Ji.

Li Ji made a request, saying, "Since I am going to Weibo, the palace must appoint a eunuch to supervise the army. This power is in your hands, Lord Cheng. Could you help me choose a suitable candidate?"

Cheng Yuanzhen asked, "What kind of person does Changwei want?"

Without hesitation, Li Ji replied, "One should prefer quiet and be easily satisfied."

Upon hearing this, Cheng Yuanzhen burst into laughter.

The term "preferring tranquility" meant that the military supervisor should be content with his duties, not greedy for merit or hoping for advancement, and would not go to great lengths to inquire about local illegal activities or even fabricate evidence to report to the court in order to climb the ranks by stepping on others. The term "easily satiated" meant that Li Ji knew most eunuchs were greedy, and he could offer them generous gifts and even bribes, but the eunuchs couldn't be insatiable. With Hebei newly pacified, the treasury could not possibly be full. If the majority of the funds were used to feed the military supervisor eunuchs, how could he fulfill the mission entrusted to him by the court?

Cheng Yuanzhen immediately understood Li Ji's intention and couldn't help but laugh, "Ran Mao'er, who once served Prince Yong, is also familiar with the guards. He is actually a good candidate..." Based on past interactions, Li Ji also knew that the chubby boy who looked like a raccoon cat had no scheming or courage. To be honest, if he really sent Ran Mao'er to monitor the Weibo army, Li Ji was confident that he could have him completely under his control.

However, Cheng Yuanzhen changed the subject—"Alas, Ran Mao'er's rank is too low, and he is truly incapable of handling affairs..." Even eunuchs have ranks, and the military supervisors of each town have certain requirements regarding rank—for example, a military governor, theoretically, is a temporary appointee without rank, but whether civil or military, if you can't even wear a red robe, you have absolutely no chance of becoming a military governor of a town. Back then, Dou Wenchang, Huo Xianming, and Ran Mao'er were all assigned to serve Li Bi. At that time, the first two were ninth-rank officials, while Ran Mao'er was not; but now Dou and Huo have already donned red robes, while Ran Mao'er is neither capable nor ambitious, and he's still stuck with his green robe.

Therefore, Cheng Yuanzhen ultimately selected Jiao Xiwang, the Inner Attendant, and promoted him one rank to Inner Attendant of the Fifth Grade, appointing him as the Military Supervisor of Weibo. He also specifically summoned Jiao Xiwang to Li Ji and earnestly instructed him: "General Li has just been favored by the Emperor and entrusted with high hopes by the court. He has been sent to Weibo to guard Hebei and cannot be hindered in the slightest. I have appointed you to this post because of your diligence, frugality, and prudence. You should be loyal and sincere, and have a harmonious mindset to assist General Li and ensure the stability of Guandong for the country. You must not harbor any greedy thoughts."

His face hardened immediately, and his eyebrows shot up: "Otherwise, even if Commander Li spares you, I won't!"

Li Jiya was unwilling to owe Cheng Yuanzhen a favor, but had no choice. Since he couldn't avoid having a eunuch as military supervisor, he had to choose the lesser of two evils. However, when he later mentioned this matter to Ma Sui, Ma Xunmei had a different perspective—

"Changwei's actions weren't exactly due to Cheng Gong's favor; it was a mutually beneficial arrangement. The military supervisors of the various garrisons, though seemingly powerful in their localities and able to report directly to the emperor, actually greatly enhance their influence and power within the palace, regardless of their effectiveness. Cheng Gong has only recently taken charge of the Inner Palace Secretariat, and although he holds the title of Marshal Sima, he is actually quite unfamiliar with the outer armies; unlike Yu Chaoen, who has long been supervising the outer regions, and most of the garrisons both fear and respect him, daring not to offend him—otherwise, he would have been overthrown by Cheng Gong long ago."

"Therefore, if Lord Cheng appoints his cronies to oversee Weibo in order to expand his influence in the region, Yu Chaoen will inevitably obstruct it. However, since Changwei is favored by the Emperor and the Marshal, if he approves the candidate first, Yu Chaoen will be powerless—everyone knows that he has a grudge against Changwei, so even the Emperor will suspect that the person he recommends has ulterior motives; even if there are no ulterior motives, Changwei will definitely refuse to accept the position. The two prefectures of Weibo are of vital importance, as they are the key to the court's control over Hebei. How could the Emperor want to see the Marshal and the overseer at odds?"

So in mid-March of that year, Li Ji finally took his leave and departed from Chang'an. He did not bring his family with him on this trip—not to leave hostages, but because his daughter was too young to travel far, and he was sure he would not feel at ease leaving Qingluan and her daughter in the capital; therefore, he made an agreement with Cui Cuo that after Li Bi turned one year old, Cui Cuo would bring the whole family to Weizhou to reunite with him.

Before her departure, Cui Cuo naturally gave her countless instructions and reminders, even Li Ji thought—how come he never knew she was so fussy before? Especially when Cui Cuo said, "My lord is still young, and he probably can't do without women by his side. Even if he takes a few concubines in Weizhou, I can't stop him..."

Li Ji thought to himself, "Oh, you can't stop them, it's not that you don't want to..."

Cui Cuo raised her eyebrows and suddenly warned sharply, "But there is already one official prostitute in the house. Do not bring a second one in!"

This was also the advice of the Cui women before their marriages. In families like ours, it was common for husbands to have three wives and four concubines. We could only be wary in secret and never show jealousy easily. Most importantly, the concubines should ideally come from different backgrounds and have different experiences. If they had something in common, they could easily join forces to fight against the first wife!

Li Ji was not alone; he brought not only his advisors Du Huangshang and Gao Ying, but also dozens of servants and over a hundred veteran soldiers from Suiyang under the command of Generals Nan Jiyun and Lei Wanchun. He had already written to Li Qiyun to plead his case—previously, the imperial court had temporarily assigned the Shangzhou army to his command for the eastern expedition, so he had borrowed men from him. But now things were different; he wanted to directly change the affiliation of Nan, Lei, and others. However, this was out of necessity, as he had no one else to rely on, and he hoped that his uncle would grant his request.

Li Qijun was quite magnanimous, stating that now that the chaos in Guandong had been quelled, there was no need for Shangzhou to station strong generals and heavy troops. Since Changwei needed it, he could take it. The key point was that Li Qijun had no intention of permanently stationing troops in the four prefectures of Shang, Jin, and others. His consistent ambition was still in the central court, and he quite hoped to become prime minister.

Nan Jiyun and the others were all in their thirties, nearing the forties. They had followed Zhang Xun in battles across Yongqiu and Suiyang, all the way to Chang'an, never removing their armor. It wasn't until they joined Li Qijun in Shangzhou that they finally settled down, and each of them married wives and concubines. Lei Wanchun even had a son. Therefore, Li Qijun escorted their families out of Shangzhou, where they met Li Ji and his party in Huayin.

One major reason why Li Ji only selected a hundred or so men from the Shangzhou army, especially his former troops from Suiyang, was that many of them had settled down in Shangzhou and might not be willing to follow him on his long journey. He was confident in his martial prowess and didn't really need many personal guards or elite soldiers. He intended to distribute these hundred or so men among the Weibo army as junior officers to help him quickly gain control of the troops; therefore, those with only fighting ability but no command skills were temporarily unnecessary.

But he hadn't expected that the supervising eunuch Jiao Xiwang would have more followers than he did...

The military supervisor was not a single person. Just as a military governor needed advisors and subordinates to assist him, the military supervisor was the chief official of the military supervisory office in each town. Under him were deputies, advisors, subordinates, and even soldiers. Jiao Xiwang's subordinates were half eunuchs and half scholars—of course, there couldn't be any Jinshi (successful candidates in the highest imperial examinations)—a total of about twenty people. In addition, according to custom, Cheng Yuanzhen also allocated two hundred elite soldiers from the Northern Army to serve as the military supervisor's guards.

Presumably to curry favor with Li Ji, these two hundred imperial guards were all from the Baoying Army and were Li Ji's old subordinates. Therefore, given the current situation, if the commander and the supervisor were to clash, it's hard to say whose side they would listen to...

Jiao Xiwang seemed to know his place quite well, serving Li Ji attentively throughout the journey, displaying the true nature of a servant. But Li Ji was displeased with this—"You're still wearing a red robe, you should understand that eunuchs are officials too. If you still have the heart of a servant, you should stay in the palace to serve the emperor and concubines. Why go to other places?"

I offered a few subtle suggestions, but unfortunately, Jiao Xi's comprehension was limited and his ingrained habits were hard to break, so I could only let it go.

—If you were truly willing to be my obedient servant, I would actually feel quite at ease; what I fear is that you would become disrespectful if I get close to you, and resentful if I keep your distance, then it would be difficult for us to get along in the future.

There were also coins and silk bestowed by the imperial court, worth five hundred strings of cash—to be honest, not much, but even this was something Li Shi had managed to squeeze out after competing with Liu Yan. It was only after Cui Cuo took out the gold from the basement of the Ya Xuan Tea House and gave it to Li Ji to take to Hebei that Li Ji felt a little more at ease.

With this gold, even if the treasuries of Wei and Bo provinces are empty, they can barely maintain the salaries of their staff and the food and clothing of their soldiers until the autumn harvest.

The group traveled eastward along the road. When they passed through Luoyang, Guo Yingyi, who was left in charge, naturally treated them with great hospitality. Li Ji then ordered someone to summon his old friend, "Yu the Millionaire" Yu Ling, and asked him, "I am going to Hebei, and I may lack food and clothing. I will need to trade in another prefecture—can you arrange that for me?"

Yu Ling asked cautiously, "What does Commander Li need?"

Li Ji smiled and said, "I haven't taken up my post yet, how would I know? I'm just informing you in case of any unforeseen circumstances."

Yu Ling said, "If there is a shortage of food, it should be transported from the Jianghuai region via the Yongji Canal to Weizhou; if there is a shortage of clothing, I can search for it for Commander Li near the Eastern Capital..."

Li Ji waved his hand: "But after this year, Weibo should be able to be self-sufficient in grain and cloth. What about copper, iron and horses?"

His words revealed two things: first, he wanted to do business with "Yu Baiwan" in the long term, not just a one-off deal; second, to build a strong army, weapons, armor, and warhorses were indispensable, but unfortunately, Weibo did not produce them and had to purchase them in large quantities from abroad.

The wandering swordsmen whom Li Ji had previously sent out to investigate the local customs, land, and products of Wei and Bo provinces have begun to send back some news. Upon hearing this, Li Ji was both pleased and worried.

Fortunately, Hebei is an important grain-producing area with relatively fertile land, a large cultivated area, and relatively advanced agricultural technology.

The main grain-producing areas of the Tang Dynasty were divided into four major regions: one was from the Wei River Plain to the Fen River Valley. However, because this region was also the most populous, and major cities such as Chang'an had gathered an unprecedented large number of non-agricultural people, the income gradually became insufficient to cover the expenditure from the reign of Emperor Gaozong onwards. Even in years of good harvest, grain had to be imported from other places. If there was a poor harvest, the emperor might have led his officials to Luoyang to seek food.

Secondly, the Sichuan Basin, where most of the grain was exported—mainly to the Guanzhong and Northwest regions.

Thirdly, the Jianghuai region, specifically from the eastern part of the Huai River basin to the north bank of Zhejiang, was also supplied in large quantities to Guanzhong during the previous turmoil. Although less should be transported thereafter, the taxes from this region still constitute the largest portion of the imperial court's revenue.

Fourthly, there is the Henan and Hebei region, stretching from Bian and Xu in the west to Deng and Lai in the east, bordering Huaibei in the south and Youyan in the north. With its crisscrossing fields and abundant produce, its arable land area and grain output exceed the combined total of the other three major grain-producing areas! This is the main reason why the An Lushan Rebellion lasted for a full eight years, and why the puppet state of Yan, despite its extremely weak local control and production organization, was still able to mobilize hundreds of thousands of troops to fight against the Tang army.

But now, the imperial court cannot directly control most of the farmland in this region...

Moreover, the textile industry in Hebei was also very developed. Although it was basically a sideline business for small farming families, and there were very few workshops with more than ten people, it was enough to meet local demand and could also be sold to other prefectures. This was the case during the Tianbao era, so it should not be too difficult to restore it.

Li Ji's mission to govern Weibo was naturally to restore and develop agricultural production, but the crop yields were too cyclical—millet and wheat were basically harvested only once a year—and even silk fabrics weren't considered top-quality goods. To become wealthy through farming and weaving would truly require "ten years of preparation and ten years of learning from experience." Therefore, he turned his attention to mineral resources…

Chapter Seventeen, The Red Thread of the Xue Family Mansion

In Li Ji's previous life, there was a saying, "Having a mine at home," which was used to describe someone's immense wealth. Even in the Tang Dynasty of this timeline, mining was the most lucrative business—especially since it could yield results in a short period of time.

Unfortunately, according to preliminary investigations, Wei and Bo prefectures had few decent mineral resources. Not only were there no copper mines that could be used to mint coins—the latest monetary law allowed local governments to mint coins independently, with the imperial court only required to send officials to supervise and collect taxes—but there were also no decent iron mines.

Iron is a strategic resource. To build a strong army, one must have sharp weapons; to have sharp weapons, one must have refined iron. Within the two prefectures, there are only a few small iron mines between Liaocheng and Wushui in Bozhou. Not only are the iron mines of poor quality and unsuitable for forging weapons, but their annual output is also less than a thousand catties... It's not even enough to provide each soldier with a single iron nail!

The only decent mineral resource is rock salt in Shenxian and Liaocheng counties, but it is difficult to mine and can barely supply 70% of the salt demand of the two prefectures.

In Li Ji's previous life, he only remembered that this area seemed to have oil... But before the 20th century, no large oil fields that could be easily extracted with the technology of the time had been discovered in the entire China. Moreover, even if they were lucky enough to find one, they would need sufficient refining technology and supporting applications; otherwise, it could only be used to make ink...

Left with no other choice, Li Ji sought out Yu Ling to discuss business matters—"I have too many supplies that I need to purchase from abroad; I can't rely on the imperial court for allocations."

Li Ji naturally wanted to build his own business empire, but he lacked capable subordinates. Even though he himself possessed a certain business acumen, he couldn't dedicate his main energy to this area, which forced him to seek help from established merchants. After all, he had a long-standing relationship with "Millionaire Yu," having received Yu Ling's assistance on both of his trips to Luoyang. Moreover, from the second year of the Zhide era to the second year of the Baoying era, a full six years, Luoyang changed hands several times, yet Yu Ling's wealth and influence remained unshaken, suggesting that the old man was quite capable.

Yu Ling was quite willing to cooperate with Li Ji. Firstly, Li Ji was a favorite minister of the emperor and was about to be sent to suppress a powerful warlord. Even if he had other backers, it was best to latch onto this powerful figure. Secondly, Li Ji had twice entered Luoyang and plundered a large amount of wealth from the Yu family, which made "Millionaire Yu" very unhappy. He wanted to find an opportunity to get it back. Although the money came from the people, and Li Ji's actions were to protect the family business of Yu Ling and others, in the eyes of merchants, if they didn't make a profit, they would lose money!

Therefore, Li Ji asked Yu Ling, "I need a long-term supply of copper, iron, and horses. Do you have any plans?" Yu Ling thought for a moment and replied, "Since Weibo does not produce its own copper and cannot mint coins, it would be pointless for the commander to purchase it. As for iron, the nearest source is the Zhaoyi Army..."

He reminded Li Ji that Ye County and Linlu in Xiangzhou, and Zhaoyi in Cizhou all had large-scale iron mines, and that there was also a top-notch iron smelting workshop in Hebei Province near Ye County.

Upon hearing this, Li Ji couldn't help but twitch his lips. He thought to himself, if we're talking about iron ore resources, then as Du Huangshang said, Wei and Xiang are indeed more important than Weibo... Why not send Xue Song to Weibo instead of ordering me to guard Wei, Xiang, Ci, Ming, and Xing?

Of course, he also knew that if he placed himself in the position of Wei and Xiang, he would be on the flank of the surrendered generals in Hebei and could only adopt a defensive posture, unlike Wei Bo, which could take an offensive posture and make it easier to spread out from the center... It seems that he really must maintain a good relationship with Xue Song, otherwise he will definitely be cut off by him in terms of supplies.