Entrepreneurship in the Late Tang Dynasty

Chapter 36: Announcement
When Zhao Huaian woke up, Xian Yuyue had already returned.

Zhao Huaian breathed a sigh of relief about this. In fact, he knew a lot. When he was at Tongshan Pass, he knew that Xianyu Yue had not been completely open with him.

When Xianyu Yue was interrogating the Tibetan nobleman, Sun Tai was in the tent. He could understand Tibetan, so he knew that the Tibetan nobleman told Xianyu Yue that there was a traitor from Nanzhao in Chengdu, and that he had a very high status.

But Xian Yuyue never told Zhao Huaian about this.

It was the same this time. Although Xianyu Yue said a lot, he still didn't say why he joined Song Jian's army. He rescued Song Jian together with himself, but Xianyu Yue approached Song Jian too quickly.

According to what Lao Liu told him, Xianyu Yue has already become a general, with more than 500 elite soldiers under his command. He is already a mid-to-high-level military general in the general system.

But he actually got to know this news from Lao Liu, and Lao Liu heard it when he was drinking with Ren Tong.

And there was one thing that Zhao Huaian couldn't figure out, which was why Song Jian fell in love with him. Never mind saying he'd saved someone's life; for people like them, that was the most hollow thing.

If there is anything that needs to be done, it must be Zhao Da who handles it, and he must do it in the capacity of the United Malays National Organization.

He couldn't sleep last night because of this. He really wanted to ask Xian Yuyue:
"Old Yue, what merits and abilities have I, Zhao Da, possessed to be valued by Envoy Song and to be able to hear the secrets of power of these Jiedushi, Military Supervisors, and Generals of Eastern Sichuan? What does this have to do with me, Zhao Da?"

But Zhao Huaian held back, because he was afraid that if he asked, he would end up losing their brotherhood.

Although Xianyu Yue had hidden a lot from him, Zhao Da knew one thing very clearly, that is, his sworn brother had never harmed him at all, but instead had worked hard for him.

Just to say one thing, Xianyu Yue has been promoted to the rank of Tujiangjun. He is in charge of 500 people. How busy is he on weekdays? Zhao Da is in charge of a camp of more than 100 people, and he is exhausted, not to mention Lao Yue.

But even though he was so busy, he just called Lao Yue to come for a drink, and he didn't even go to call him in person, but Lao Yue came and slept on the same couch with him. It seemed like he really treated him as a brother.

Zhao Huaian has been through so much in the afterlife that he has learned a saying about dealing with people:

"Be confused about small things, but not about big things."

Xian Yuyue’s partial concealment was a trivial matter, so Zhao Huaian chose to be confused.

Alas, our Zhao Da is really walking on thin ice when he came to the Tang Dynasty. He really doesn’t know when he can reach the other side.

Just as Zhao Huaian was thinking, Zhao Liu's shout suddenly came from outside:
"Zhao Da, come out quickly! The rewards from the camp have arrived. Haha, we're going to get rich!"

At this time, Zhao Huaian remembered that Lao Yue said last night that his reward would come today, but he didn't expect it to come so soon.

With Lao Liu's loud shout outside, there was a sudden commotion. Zhao Huaian quickly put on his clothes, washed his face with a towel, and came out of the tent.

……

As soon as Zhao Huaian came out, he saw Zhao Liu directing the Five-Cun Ding and the Tongshan people to carry a baggage cart of supplies. There were more than a dozen carts behind them, lined up all the way outside the camp.

After seeing Zhao Huaian coming out, Zhao Liu pointed at Zhao Da, and then spoke to the two men in yellow round robes next to him.

Then the two men walked straight towards Zhao Huaian. One of them wore a black turban and had a small iron seal on his waist, which staggered as he walked.

After this person came over, he smiled and clasped his fists towards Zhao Huaian:
"Greetings, Mr. Zhao. I'm Wang Duo, a warehouse clerk, and I've come to deliver twenty carts of baggage and armor. Here are the registers. Mr. Zhao, please count them and sign if you see any."

After Wang Duo finished speaking, another warrior wearing a round robe and a military cap also clasped his fists and said:
"Lord Zhao, no, General Zhao, this is your official letter."

When Zhao Huaian heard Wang Duo introduce himself, he couldn't help but take a few more glances and felt that they had a good impression of each other.

But more importantly, he looked at the four-foot-long piece of hemp paper as thick as a coin that the round-robed warrior handed over to him.

Is this the imperial edict?
Zhao Huaian, overjoyed, took the piece of paper and unfolded it. He saw a densely written passage:

"In the first year of the Qianfu reign, on the Jiawu year, the twelfth month, the Jiawu day, the tenth day of the Guimao year. The Emperor said: "Ah! To honor the virtuous and the good is the model of a prosperous dynasty; to reward meritorious service is the noble rule of a wise ruler. I ask you, Zhao Huaian, your family has a long tradition of loyalty and righteousness, and a family steeped in benevolence. You are of a strong character, and possess both courage and perseverance. During this time of turmoil and unrest in Nanzhao, you have risen to the occasion, gathered the righteous troops, defended the country and the people, and repeatedly performed outstanding deeds. In every battle, you have fought bravely. Your ambition is commendable, and your conduct is worthy of emulation. I now appoint you as a captain of the Tutuan, and bestow upon you the title of 'Baoyi Du.' I hope you will be even more diligent, lead wisely, and manage your troops like an arm, resisting the harassment of bandits and protecting the country and the people. You will display your talents and live up to my expectations. You may be promoted to captain of the Tutuan, and the chief will carry out the decree."

Then below were the names of the various secretaries, ministers, officials, and officials in charge. Among them, Zhao Huaian clearly saw the names of Niu Cong, the governor of western Sichuan, and Song Jian, the vanguard envoy.

Zhao Huaian recognized most of the characters on Huang Ma Gao's body. Even those he didn't recognize were similar to the simplified characters of later generations, and he could understand them with a little thought.

So when he saw that the letter actually contained the emperor's words, he was so excited that he couldn't help but ask the round-robed warrior:
"Ha, is this a special gift from His Majesty?"

Now both the round-robed warrior and Wang Duo couldn't help laughing, but they both came from humble backgrounds, and were flattered when they first received their official certificates, so the elder brother didn't laugh at the younger brother.

They told Zhao Huaian that the words on this kind of certificate were all in a unified format, which only indicated that the certificate was approved by the court. Nothing else was important. The most important thing was the seal of the governor Niu Cong. Only with this would the certificate be useful.

After hearing this, Zhao Huaian understood. It turned out that this certificate was just a standard template, with his name changed.

Zhao Huaian looked at the sturdy warrior in the round robe and clasped his fists:

"May I know what this elder brother's name is?" The round-robed warrior smiled and introduced him with a fist clasp:

"A certain Ren Conghai, the judge of the foreign army in western Sichuan."

Zhao Huaian is no longer an ordinary person. During this period, he has also learned about the various military officers in the army. He knows that the Yuhou is in charge of military discipline in the army, and like the military judges in later generations, he holds a high position and has great power.

Although Yu Hou Judge was only working under Yu Hou, he should not be underestimated, so Zhao Huaian bowed and praised:
"Ren Yuhou has made great achievements."

Ren Conghai heard this and laughed:
"I dare not call you Yu Hou, so I'll just call you Ren Da. If I really want to talk about the capable one, it's you, Zhao Da. You are the special governor of Song Shijun. I don't know how many people are jealous of you just based on this certificate."

Zhao Huaian was moved when he heard this, but he still said:

"Mr. Ren is a capable officer. Isn't it only a matter of time before he becomes a military officer? So, Mr. Ren, Mr. Wang, we hit it off right away. Why don't we have a drink together and get in touch?"

Everyone was carrying the fancy sedan, and Ren Conghai was happy to hear that. He also wanted to get in touch with Song Shijun's favorite, so he readily agreed. However, Wang Duo next to him shook his head and said that they should count the weapons and supplies first before talking about it.

Ren Conghai curled his lips and stopped talking, while Zhao Huaian was fine with it. He looked at Wang Duo counting the baggage over there and thought to himself:
"This prince is a serious person."

……

While Wang Duo and Zhao Liu were counting the baggage, Ren Conghai was talking to Zhao Huaian.

Ren Conghai told Zhao Huaian that these equipment and supplies would probably be enough for about a hundred people. Although Zhao Huaian's army had a staff of 500 people, he needed to figure out how to take care of the rest himself.

Zhao Huaian had just seen the military order of "Bao Yi Du" issued to him by Gao, and was puzzled, so he asked hurriedly:
"Old Ren, don't we already have the Baoyi Army? Why did you give me a military horn like this?"

Zhao Huaian is like this. The first time he called him Ren Jun, the second time he dared to call him Lao Ren.

Ren Conghai originally wanted to make friends with Zhao Huaian. He knew that after this man built Baoyi City, he would become a small military leader in the army. Although he was close to the center of power, he had few subordinates.

So when Ren Conghai heard Zhao calling him "Old Ren" he was not angry, but explained in a friendly way:

"I know the Baoyi Army you're talking about. They're just rough and tumble country folk, unlike you. Although yours isn't on the military rolls, it's directly under the Jiedushi's command, and all the necessary money and food are paid like a hundred men. How can those people compare?"

After saying this, he muttered:
"Not to mention, whether the Baoyi Army will be there in this battle is another matter."

The latter part of the sentence was too vague, Zhao Huaian didn't hear it clearly, and it was not easy to ask again, so he asked Ren Conghai what the money and grain meant.

After Ren Conghai's explanation, Zhao Huaian roughly understood that his earth ball was really different from others'.

The Baoyi Army and the Muyi Army are now no different from the mountain sheds, with only a military name passed down from their ancestors. However, the local groups like Fatty Dou are more like powerful armed forces that rose to prominence after the difficulties.

But no matter which type, they are all local militia who bring their own food and are not included in the imperial court's organization.

But Zhao Huaian's local group with a military badge is different. It is more like a product of the founding period. It is a local armed force directly under the jurisdiction of the governor and the governor. Although it is not registered in the military, all equipment and supplies are issued according to the regular army.

After figuring out this, Zhao Huaian felt more and more weird. It turned out that he was just a contract worker without a regular position!

I am a contract worker in Datang?

While Zhao Huaian was still thinking, Ren Conghai added:
"By the way, Zhao Da, your group is from this region, so you can only receive one salary. I need to tell you this in advance so you don't make a fuss later."

Zhao Huaian was stunned after hearing this. What did Ren Da mean? Could there be people who received double pay?

Ren Conghai couldn't stand Zhao Huaian's shallowness, so he told him, let alone double pay, those in the Zhongwu Army received triple pay.

Then he explained to Zhao Huaian that soldiers from other garrisons like the Zhongwu Army came to western Sichuan to defend against the autumn, so they had to receive a portion of food before leaving the country, and then after arriving at the destination, they would be given another portion of food when they were repatriated. During this period, they would also receive another portion of food from the local vassal states in their hometowns.

These three portions together make up three portions of food.

After hearing this, Zhao Huaian was really shocked. He didn't expect that the Tang Dynasty was so humane. They would give triple salary for every business trip!

As he spoke, Zhao Huaian sighed in front of Ren Conghai:
"What a benevolent government!"

After hearing this, Ren Conghai finally rolled his eyes and cursed inwardly:

"This Zhao Da is such a piece of shit. How could Envoy Song be interested in this rough guy?"

At this moment, Zhao Da had no idea that he had made a fool of himself again.

(End of this chapter)