After being demoted, my 300,000-strong army trampled the imperial city!

While Liu Longyue was away, Guan Xing also did some things in Beiwu. Her intelligence network had practically infiltrated Beiwu like a sieve, and she even sent intelligence agents to the grasslands for close reconnaissance. The intelligence that the Hu people's army was about to invade was sent to Yu Qian by her.

Chen Futu gave Guanxing a secret order, instructing her to investigate the secrets of Beiwu and why Liu Longyue was so determined to enter the Central Plains but not to merge with it.

Over the course of more than half a month, the chaos in the capital gradually subsided.

Chen Futu received the supplies that the merchants had spontaneously donated to support the army, and he generously rewarded the three armies and held a banquet in the city to entertain all the people of the city.

The merchants were spending heavily because they wanted to divide up the profits in the capital. After the Qianlong Emperor moved south, the capital's commerce was vacant, and everyone wanted a piece of the pie.

Chen Futu was too lazy to deal with this kind of thing, so he let Yan Qing bring the caravan over. She was familiar with the merchants of the Northern Frontier, so it was most suitable for her to make the plans.

It is worth mentioning that during this period, Chen Futu lived in the palace, while Qin Liangyu was arranged to live in the Fengyi Palace, which represented the Empress, although she never went there to stay.

This arrangement was intended to demonstrate that she was the only empress in the heart of the Northern Frontier King, and that had never changed.

"Your Majesty, the Western Regions allied forces have retreated southward."

The Embroidered Uniform Guard sent a message, along with a secret letter from Zhuge Liang.

Zhuge Liang suggested not sending troops to pursue them, but instead driving the Western Regions coalition and various local rebel forces southward and across the Milky Way.

"Zhuge Liang was just as ruthless as Zhang Liang. This tactic of diverting disaster eastward could increase the strain on the south."

Thinking of this, Chen Futu asked the Imperial Guard, "What is the Northern Martial Army doing now?"

"Your Majesty, not long after you occupied the capital, they left Yangcheng and headed south."

"They run pretty fast."

Chen Futu wanted to get the dragon scale back from Liu Longyue, but she ran away again.

Forget it, let her use it for now. Red Hare is part of a set, so we can't discard it. We'll find an opportunity to get the horse back later.

Chen Futu inspected the Gyeonggi Province and found that the people's livelihood had been severely damaged.

Just then, Yan Qing was leaving the city. Chen Futu scurried into her carriage. Yan Qing, who was looking at the accounts, was startled. When she realized it was Chen Futu, she couldn't help but roll her eyes coquettishly, "Your Majesty, you've frightened me."

Chen Futu grinned and grabbed her small hand. "My beloved concubine, how are things? The merchants are behaving themselves, aren't they?"

"Your Majesty's reputation is widespread. He single-handedly charged into battle and routed all the armies. How could the merchants dare to offend you? They have put a lot of thought and money into competing for the commercial opportunities in Gyeonggi Province."

"As long as it's reasonable and their character isn't too problematic, they can be used. Local people's livelihoods need their assistance to recover quickly."

Chen Futu didn't care about the emergence of new powerful families, or rather, it would be more appropriate to call them companies now.

A unique commercial system has formed in northern Xinjiang, merchants have become major taxpayers, industry has been further strengthened, people will gradually be freed from the fields and have more opportunities to make money, in addition, agricultural tools have been improved and productivity has increased.

The artisans of northern Xinjiang have been committed to agricultural innovation. For example, the plowshare used for farming has been changed from the traditional plow to the curved plow, and a weeding plow has been invented with a hub, which allows a single person to complete the work in a short time.

Such inventions, promoted by the Ministry of Commerce, have spread throughout the northern border regions.

In other words, the current productivity per person in the northern frontier far exceeds that during the reign of the Great Qian Dynasty.

Chen Futu and Yan Qing arrived at a construction area in Gyeonggi Province and found that many people were involved in the construction.

The original corvée system in the Great Qian Dynasty involved working far from home, paying little money, and leaving no one to care for you if you fell ill.

Chen Futu implemented new policies. For example, before the war, people needed travel permits to perform corvée labor. Chen Futu simply recruited people nearby, with higher wages, closer to home, and subsidies from the royal court and merchants. This was hardly corvée labor anymore and was considered a pretty good job.

People don't have to travel far from home, and they can earn money without even standing up. Everyone is happy.

With the implementation of a series of new policies, the recovery of people's livelihood in the short term is not a problem. Most importantly, now that most of the nobles have moved south, the land they left behind can be subject to the "equalization of land tax and poll tax" policy, and the land will be nationalized and private sales will not be allowed. This has greatly alleviated the problem of land annexation.

Once the war in the north is over, Chen Futu will move the royal court to the capital and formally implement the monetary and imperial examination policies that he has planned long ago.

Later stages of the war involved not only a war of attrition but also a commercial war.

Chen Futu will teach that dog emperor of the Great Qian Dynasty what a dimensional reduction attack is.

Unexpectedly, Chen Futu met Xu Guangshou and Su Yun, among others.

Several people stepped forward to greet them; it turned out that Yu Qian had sent them.

They also represented their respective families in setting up workshops and waterwheels near the waterways of the capital.

Xu Guangshou is a promising young talent favored by Chen Futu. His arrival is a good thing; we can give him a try. If he can shoulder great responsibilities, he can be promoted to a position in the imperial court to participate in government affairs.

As for Su Yun, he is quite familiar with the family business and is suitable to assist Yan Qing. In time, he will be able to take charge on his own.

Next, Chen Futu and Yan Qing carefully inspected the situation in Gyeonggi Province. The houses destroyed by the war were being rebuilt, and the newly planned villages were centered around the development zone. In the future, the income sources of the people would not be limited to the fields.

As for the people who came from other war-torn areas, Chen Futu did not intend to let them stay in the capital region. Instead, he temporarily resettled them to participate in the construction. Once he made money, he would send them back to their hometowns. People care about returning to their roots, so he thought they would not refuse.

At dusk, Chen Futu hosted a bonfire banquet by the river with a group of talented young men.

Their faces were full of energy and they all looked very excited.

Su Yun couldn't help but ask, "May I ask Your Majesty, what will be the next step after taking the capital?"

She was being rather reserved, but what she really wanted to ask was when she would ascend the throne?

Chen Futu did not answer, but instead asked Xu Guangshou, "What do you think?"

"Your Majesty, the most urgent task is to resolve the war in the north and allow the people to sleep peacefully."

If one rushes to ascend the throne when the common people have no one to rely on in their old age, it will inevitably invite criticism. In any case, the general trend has already been set, so there is no need to rush.

Chen Futu wholeheartedly agreed. He was a steady person and knew that haste makes waste.

As for Su Yun and the others, their vision wasn't that far-sighted, but their intentions were good. Establishing a nation in the Northern Frontier would allow them to confront the Great Qian head-on, boosting the people's confidence.

Yan Qing whispered, "Your Majesty, I heard that things have gotten chaotic in the Western Regions as well. Zhao Xi'er led a large army to launch a surprise attack on Yecheng in the Kingdom of Shi."

Now that Yue Fei has blocked the retreat route of the Western Regions Allied Forces, it is the perfect time for Zhao Xier to make her move. Once the Kingdom of Shi is captured, Zhao Xier will have become a force to be reckoned with.

"Aren't you afraid that she's too powerful and might develop inappropriate thoughts?"

"Hmph, the word 'fear' doesn't exist in my dictionary."

Chen Futu never considered whether Western Zhao would rebel. No matter how strong Western Zhao was, it was just a vassal state. If she wasn't stupid, she wouldn't have betrayed it. Otherwise, Yue Fei's counterattack would have been enough to give her a hard time.

The enemy is currently concentrated in the south.

With the Great Qian Dynasty, the rebel king, the Northern Wu, and the Western Regions allied forces, the days ahead are going to be quite exciting.

Earlier, Chen Futu issued an edict to all armies, ordering them to drive the rebel kings and princes to the Daqian region as much as possible. The armies were bound to fight to the death.