Northern Prefecture Rivers and Mountains

Chapter 97 Marriage
The soldiers in the middle had eaten their fill and did not want to go back into the mountains, but the soldiers in the columns worked tirelessly, hunting not only the bandits but also the wild beasts in the mountains.

These days, people are sparsely populated everywhere and wild animals are everywhere.

There are foxes, hares, pigs, wolves, deer, sheep, and everything else. In addition to being edible meat, the fur of wild animals can also be used to keep warm. A solid fox fur coat can be worth tens of thousands of coins in Jiangzuo.

Women and children go up the mountain to pick wild fruits, vegetables, and wild delicacies...

In this world, there are very few people who truly make a living by farming. Everyone relies on the mountains and the sea to supplement their family income.

The mountains and swamps in Jiangzuo were occupied by powerful people, but Lanling had no such concerns. There was everything in the mountains, and the people came south from various counties in the north. They had strong survival abilities and knew what they could eat and what they couldn't eat.

The leader of the building is responsible for going into the mountains to suppress bandits and hunt.

The soldiers could eat a piece of meat and a few full meals every day, and they ran around in the mountains, and their bodies became stronger.

The meat and bones are boiled into soup, and the children can have a sip of it.

Liu Daogui was also busy. He exchanged the money offered by the powerful people into food and stored it in Qingguang Village.

The world is not peaceful. Natural disasters and man-made disasters can happen at any time. Money is just something outside of our body. It has value only when it is spent. Food is the hard currency.

Many times, food and cloth are more valuable than money.

The village chief led women and children into the mountains to pick and cut bamboo, and then made bamboo armor after killing the green bamboo.

This thing is simple to make. Although its protective ability is not as good as iron armor and leather armor, it is cheap. There are countless bamboo forests on the mountain, so it can be deployed on a large scale. It is also lighter than iron armor.

The key is that the production cycle is short. A woman can make one in five days. She won’t feel bad if it is damaged, and it does not require any maintenance.

Liu Daogui tried it and found that it couldn't block the stabbing of a sword, but it could block the chopping, and it also had a certain degree of protection against arrows fifty steps away.

"Just make do with it for now."

There are ways to deal with poverty, so don’t be too picky.

"Agui, look who's here." Liu Guangzhi led the two of them to the city.

One is Xiao Yuanzhi and the other is Xiao Tingzhi.

"Uncle!" Liu Daogui was overjoyed.

"You two brothers are indeed extraordinary people. In just half a year, you have wiped out all the bandits and restored peace to Lanling." Xiao Yuanzhi praised them as soon as he came up.

"Uncle, you are too kind. I am still far from it." Liu Daogui was not being modest.

Everything has just begun and is far from peaceful.

Xiao Yuanzhi stroked his long beard and said, "You are quite modest, my son. I have taught you well. You are already twenty-one this year, and you are old enough to get married. It is a good opportunity for your uncle to act as a matchmaker and visit your hometown while you are here."

"Thank you, uncle."

"Oh, there's one more thing. Bozhi had his own reasons for not lending you food and grass before. Don't hold it against him. The Xiao family will fully support you in the future."

"I'm sorry for offending you before, I hope you'll forgive me." Xiao Tingzhi bowed with a very humble attitude.

Liu Daogui originally had quite a grudge against him, but when he took the lead in donating money and grain during several "grain collection" events, his grudge was half gone.

It's not a blood feud, there's no need to dwell on it.

"Since my uncle has said so, the past is the past."

The Liu family was in a period of transition and relied on their uncle for support. Liu Daogui had no choice but to give him face.

"Thank you for joining the army." Xiao Tingzhi breathed a sigh of relief.

"Before I came here, I had already obtained your mother's permission to arrange this marriage. You can rest assured. The Cao family of Qiao County was also a prominent family in its time, and they are a good match for your family."

"Thank you, uncle."

Liu Daogui originally wanted to ask about some matters in the court, but with Xiao Tingzhi here, it was difficult to open his mouth, so he had to give up.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while, he was sent to Cao's house. Cao Ji's reception was very grand, with lanterns and decorations, a red carpet, and even the servants changed into new clothes. All the necessary ceremonies were present.

It was just a formality. After asking about the birth date and horoscope, the matter was finalized.

The Liu family's betrothal gifts included a wild goose, a lamb, and one hu each of wine, millet, sorghum, rice and flour. Xiao Yuanzhi also gave an extra copy of Wang Xianzhi's "Mid-Autumn Post".

The four sages in the book are Zhang Zhi, Zhong Yao, Wang Xizhi and Wang Xianzhi.

The Xiao family had painstakingly obtained this calligraphy piece, intending it to be a family heirloom. Unexpectedly, they gave it directly to the Cao family for the sake of a marriage. Liu Daogui was deeply moved.

This also shows how sincere my uncle is.

The Cao family now has both face and substance. Cao Ji also knows the value of the "Mid-Autumn Post" and is flattered.

Originally, the wedding had various complicated rituals, but Xiao Yuanzhi could not stay in Lanling for long. The "Mid-Autumn Invitation" had already expressed the intentions of the Liu and Xiao families, so the other rituals were kept simple.

It was agreed that the marriage would take place in March next year, and the marriage was settled.

It was not until Xiao Yuanzhi left and Liu Daogui saw him off that they found an opportunity to talk alone.

"Agui, you know that in the Battle of Luoyang, Commander Zhu, Huan Bucai, and Zhao Fan led 7,000 elite troops across the river, defeated Yan General Wang Ci, killed the vanguard Wu Zhi in battle, scared off Murong Yong, and then defeated Zhai Zhao through Shimen and defeated Zhai Liao in Huai County, forcing Zhai Liao to flee back to Huatai overnight."

"What a great general!" Liu Daogui exclaimed in amazement.

A famous general is indeed a famous general, and Zhu Xu's life is quite legendary.

In his early years, he served under Huan Wen to support Shuzhong and put down the rebellion of Sima Xun. Later, he followed Huan Wen in the Northern Expedition, repelled Murong Chui, and defeated the 20,000 infantry and cavalry of Murong Li, the King of Xia Pi of the Former Yan. Murong Li barely escaped with his life. Later, he and Deng Xia defeated the Former Yan general Fu Mobo in Linzhu.

In the first month of the third year of Taiyuan (378 AD), Emperor Xuanzhao of the Former Qin Dynasty, Fu Jian, sent generals Fu Pi, Yang An, Murong Chui, Yao Chang and others to lead an army totaling 170,000, divided into four groups to attack Xiangyang.

Zhu Xu resisted for a year, but the governor Li Bohu rebelled. With the help of internal and external forces, they finally captured Xiangyang. Zhu Xu was captured. Fu Jian admired him very much and appointed him as the Minister of Revenue.

During the Battle of Feishui, Xie Xuan and Xie Yan led 8,000 elite Northern Army soldiers to cross the river. Zhu Xu then shouted from behind the formation: Jian is defeated!

This caused the morale of Fu Jian's hundreds of thousands of troops to tremble and they fled...

After Xie Xuan was stripped of his military power, Zhu Xu took over his position guarding Pengcheng, stabilizing the military morale and repelling Zhai Liao's repeated attacks.

Now, relying on the strength of only one army, he successively repelled Murong Yong, defeated Zhai Liao, and saved Luoyang.

In the entire Central Plains, the real stabilizing force was not Liu Laozhi, but Zhu Xu.

Liu Daogui said, "If Liu Laozhi seizes this opportunity to launch a northern expedition, Zhai Wei and Western Yan will probably not have much time left."

Unexpectedly, Xiao Yuanzhi's expression turned strange. "Prince Xiang thinks that Commander Zhu's victory and defeat are evenly matched, and he has no praise or criticism..."

Liu Daogui was dumbfounded. Zhu Xu had saved the Sima family mausoleum and repelled the invasion of two powerful enemies, yet Sima Daozi had no words for him...

Liu Daogui even suspected that the brothers Sima Yao and Sima Daozi were the biological children of Sima Yi and Sima Zhao...

Xiao Yuanzhi also sighed, "Commander Zhu started his career in Jingzhou. He is a former general of Huan Xuanwu and has close ties with the Huan family. Of course, the Prince of Xiang is unwilling to praise Commander Zhu."

As expected, internal strife is more important than anything else.

Whoever launches the Northern Expedition will have a grudge against the Sima family, and the Sima family will punish them...

"The court...really..." Liu Daogui was speechless.

Xiao Yuanzhi said: "Prince Xiang abuses his power for personal gain. When Your Majesty takes power one day, he will be able to put things right."

"I hope so." Liu Daogui said this, but he didn't have much hope in his heart. Sima Daozi was also supported by Emperor Sima Yao to deal with Xie An. They were all the same kind of people...

"There is another thing. Jingzhou Governor Wang Chen died suddenly of illness. The court appointed Yin Zhongkan as the new Governor of Jingzhou."

Nowadays, anyone who dies suddenly from an illness has something fishy going on.

Yin Zhongkan was also from Wang Gong's faction, and the internal strife in the court seemed to be getting more and more intense.

(End of this chapter)