Chapter 81

Hearing that the new county magistrate wanted everyone to reduce their rents, the large landowners in Chengyang all complained bitterly, saying that if they collected rent at the current rate, they might starve in the second half of the year (Xun thought with a sneer, what a big lie, who doesn’t know that their wealth is all above ten thousand, even without any income, they could live comfortably for many years), and that they really couldn’t reduce it any further.

Xun patiently explained to them, saying that they had so much land left fallow, not producing a single grain, and that it would be better to lower the rent to attract tenants from other counties or even other prefectures. This year might be tough, but in the future, there would be more harvests. The two sides engaged in a fierce debate for a long time, and finally, the gentry were forced to agree to temporarily reduce the rent by no more than one-tenth and the interest on loans by no more than one-tenth.

The old landlords had always been stingy, and Xun was quite satisfied with this outcome. After all, you couldn’t compare it to the "25% rent reduction" in the liberated areas during the Anti-Japanese War, which had the support of the Eighth Route Army. If you proposed a rent reduction of more than one-tenth, they would get extremely angry, and tax resistance and rebellion would be minor issues. They might even start a rebellion on the spot—each household had servants, and if they joined forces, they wouldn’t be much less powerful than the few hundred soldiers in the county.

After the agreement was reached, Xun mentioned a few casual topics and finally said that the autumn harvest was approaching, and he hoped that everyone would put in more effort in the harvest. If the grain was collected, everyone would be better off. Sending clerks to collect taxes wouldn’t be too much, and he hoped that everyone would not make it difficult for him as the county magistrate. If everyone got along harmoniously, they would all prosper and he would get promoted. On the seal, there would be half for him and half for them.

The large landowners reluctantly left, and Xun began his busy work. He truly regretted it; if he had known this would happen, he should have rested a few more days at home and started work earlier to smooth out the county’s affairs. Now, in Chengyang, he was the only county magistrate, with no assistant or military officer, and all big and small matters had to be handled by him alone. Just reviewing the cases that had accumulated over the past half year took a lot of effort. Fortunately, Wu Zhi was very capable and familiar with the situation in Chengyang. With his help, things could be done more efficiently.

During the "autumn rush," Xun was so busy that his heels were kicking his back, and he had to pray every day that it wouldn’t rain—though he didn’t really believe in the heavens. Fortunately, the heavens were unusually cooperative, just sneezing and sprinkling a few raindrops, and the harvest was not delayed. After the harvest, it was time to collect taxes, another headache. The entire county, from the magistrate to the clerks, worked non-stop for a whole month to basically complete the task.

The amount of grain collected was limited—there was no way around it, with fewer households, the yield was naturally lower. Fortunately, Ning, Li Quan, and others were relatively cooperative, and the results were within the acceptable range for Xun and the Cao brothers.

Not only in Chengyang, but in all the counties and prefectures of Yanzhou, the harvest was much worse than in peaceful years, except for Cao Cao’s military farms, which achieved unexpectedly good results. In the late Eastern Han, the number of true self-cultivating farmers had been shrinking year by year, and most of the land was in the hands of large landowners, who took the lion’s share of the rent or loan interest, leaving only a small portion for the government and a pittance for the tenant farmers. However, Cao Cao’s military farms had no such middlemen, and more than half of the grain went into the government granaries, so Cao Cao was thoroughly fed up and immediately gathered his troops to attack Huainan.

Xun felt quite lucky. When Cao Cao first attacked Yuan Shu, he was traveling around the county and didn’t get involved. This time, for the second attack on Yuan Shu, he was a county magistrate in the rear, which was very safe. Others who had traveled through time had led troops and charged into battle, but he didn’t have the courage for that. More importantly, he had no illusions about the heavens. As the saying goes, "pots are bound to break near the well, and generals are bound to die on the battlefield." Weapons have no eyes, and even if you are highly skilled, you can still be cut down in battle—Sun Jian and Xiahou Yuan were the best examples, not to mention Yan Liang and Wen Chou.

However, he had a little regret, not being able to see the real scene of thousands of troops fighting. He had been on the battlefield before, helping to defend Jiameng City in the northeast, but it was dark and he only saw one enemy soldier chasing him. Later, when he called Taishi Ci and Guan Yu to lift the siege of Duchang, the Yellow Turbans numbered in the millions, but it wasn’t really a battle, just a large-scale brawl. This time was different; the Cao and Yuan armies would face each other in a pitched battle. If he could see it with his own eyes, it would be worth his time-traveling.

He didn’t expect that he would soon have the chance to go to the front and observe the battle—Cao De sent a public letter from Dingtao, saying, "Don’t send the autumn grain to me. My brother is fighting Yuan Shu in Yuzhou, and the Yellow Turbans in Runan have also joined in. The original plan needs to be revised, and the war will be prolonged. Quickly load 5,000 dan of grain and send it directly to the front."

5,000 dan of grain was not a large amount, and Chengyang could easily provide it, but the question was who would escort it. Xun originally planned to send Wu Zhi, but then thought that Wu Zhi was still a civilian, theoretically just a private secretary, and escorting military grain was a big deal. Sending a civilian would show a lack of importance, and Wu Zhi might not be able to control the soldiers and laborers. Reluctantly, he decided to go himself, and take the opportunity to see the battle.

The destination was also an important grain storage area for the Cao army, located in the territory of Song in Runan, about 50 li from the front. Xun thought, "I’ll deliver the grain, then quickly go to greet Cao Cao, find a vantage point to watch the battle from a distance, and my wish will be fulfilled. There shouldn’t be any danger."

Of course, he said that, but he still needed to prepare and be cautious. He immediately ordered, "Bring me my armor!"

This set of armor was made in his own manor and was packed in his luggage before he came to Chengyang. Xun was puzzled at the time, "I only asked them to make leather pants for convenience in riding, not armor." The little girl glanced at him, "I had it made. If you wear armor when you go out, I’ll feel more at ease."

Xun laughed, "I’m going to be a county magistrate, not to fight in battle. Why do I need armor? Do you think there’s any danger in the county?" Guan Si pouted and smiled, "Of course, my father and I have cut down at least eight county magistrates."

Xun felt a small shiver at this. He then had Guan Si unfold the armor and tried it on. The armor was made of leather pieces, with the largest piece on the torso, about the size of a palm, and smaller pieces on the head and shoulders for connection, about an inch wide and long. All the pieces were coated with black lacquer and sewn with red silk, making the red and black colors look both solemn and mysterious. Xun thought, "No wonder the Han people wore sacrificial robes in these two colors, and even the lacquerware was in these two colors. They do look beautiful."

The entire set of armor had many components: a helmet with three red-dyed goose feathers on top, a high collar, sleeveless arm guards, and a split skirt at the bottom for convenience in riding. Guan Si said that she had already ordered iron plates from the city blacksmith, but they couldn’t be installed in time. Xun thought, "This is already quite heavy, and adding iron plates would be too much!"

Unexpectedly, the little girl had foresight. This time, Xun could finally wear the armor and helmet to escort the grain to the front. After putting it on, he looked at himself in the well and felt... it wasn’t very impressive. When he had money, he would design a set of armor from the future, like the Ming armor. That would be impressive. What? You say the Ming armor is heavier? No problem, I’ll use all leather, not a single piece of iron, just for the look. I don’t plan to go to the front line.

More than 4,000 dan of dehusked millet, along with a small amount of beans, hemp, and flour, would be about 300,000 pounds in the future, plus dry rations, vegetables, tents, and tools, filling more than 200 large and small carts, and requiring more than 200 laborers. Xun looked at the long line and was intimidated, thinking, "How do they transport tens of thousands of dan of grain to the front? This war is really a money-burning business."

There were fewer than 300 soldiers in Chengyang, and Xun selected 100, giving them the best equipment—basically just a small leather armor for every two people. Just before setting off, he suddenly remembered that he needed a flag. But what kind of flag? In this era, there were no national or military flags, and the designs on the flags were all different, making them useless for identification. Writing "Han" would be too generic, as every army was "Han" except for the Yellow Turbans and the Southern Xiongnu. Writing "Cao" would be too direct... After much thought, he decided to have "Chengyang Grain Transport" embroidered in clerical script on a red flag.

The journey began, and everything went smoothly. Xun was cautious, as the chaotic era was not yet over, and Cao Cao had only recently taken control of Yanzhou. Moreover, most of the journey would be in Yuzhou, where they might encounter bandits. Theoretically, this group of 100 soldiers, though not elite, each armed with a sharp weapon, would not be easily attacked by bandits. But one must be prepared for the unexpected. If he was too careless, some bandit might take a desperate risk.

Better safe than sorry. So, Xun never took off his helmet or armor, and always kept a strong bow and arrows at hand. He often bargained with the heavens, "You were very cooperative during the autumn harvest, and I appreciate it. Please keep this kindness and let me go to work happily, meet Cao Cao, watch an ancient battle, and then return home safely. Please, please."

But unexpectedly, when they entered the territory of Liang and reached a place called Lumen Pavilion, they suddenly heard a drumbeat from the nearby forest. Xun looked up and saw a large "Yuan" flag heading straight for them. He couldn’t help but feel a sense of foreboding, sensing the full malice of the heavens!

——————————I am the dividing line of pleading——————————

The editor asked me to apply for the Three Rivers, and it was approved quickly. Now it’s in the voting stage—on the Three Rivers page, at the bottom. I hope readers who like my book will help vote (apparently you need to get tickets from the top of the page, one per day). Thank you, thank you! I won’t do a 360-degree roll to beg for votes, so I’ll just bow deeply.

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