Chapter 300 This is our fate
The permanent population of Hangzhou was rising at a very fast rate. As a result, the fat boy Su Shi was exhausted like a dog. After a month, not to mention cooking and enjoying delicious food, he lost a lot of weight and turned back into the handsome little scholar he was two or three years ago.
He just looked very tired. Fortunately, Lu Sen sent several boxes of bottled honey, which was enough for the boy to drink a bottle every day. He was like a chicken with blood, and he forced himself to handle his official business.
With a larger population, the food, clothing, housing and transportation that it brings are actually just trivial matters. The real trouble lies in the friction between locals and outsiders, friction between outsiders, and other public security or criminal cases.
Fortunately, this kid also knows what government affairs delegation means and does not handle all matters by himself.
In terms of cases, he seconded several reputable chief clerks from other places to help him review cases. If he encountered any difficulties, such as someone bullying others, it would not be too late for him to take action.
As for the rest of his time, he was running around outside the city... grabbing land, planning to build another city nearby.
Otherwise it would be difficult to divert the population of Hangzhou city.
This was originally an urgent and difficult matter, but fortunately, the newly appointed Hangzhou County Magistrate Lu Huiqing established a new county in the north, which was built and inhabited by the barbarian seafarers who planned to stay in the Central Plains. The infrastructure and planning were almost completed, and it was just right to divert a part of the population there to solve the urgent problem.
As for...the conflict between the barbarian sailors and the emigrant population?
Naturally, it is towards our own people.
Su Shi was very clear about this.
After two months of hard work by the Hangzhou government, the problem of large-scale influx of foreign population in Hangzhou was finally solved.
With Hangzhou city as the center, two additional cities will be built in the southwest and northwest to form a giant triangular urban cluster.
At this point, including the two affiliated cities, the population of Hangzhou City has exceeded two million, far exceeding Bianliang, becoming the veritable largest city.
It is also a real city that never sleeps.
It is prosperous here and bustling with noise.
Any Hai Man who had come to Hangzhou and was allowed to walk around the city were reluctant to leave this beautiful and rich land, but unfortunately... the household registration system of the Northern Song Dynasty was very strict, and it was not easy for the Semites to settle here. They could only come for a quick look and then leave reluctantly with a feeling of nostalgia.
Some big ship owners also asked Su Shi about it, relying on their close economic ties with Hangzhou.
"I want to settle down in the Central Plains and become a Central Plains person."
"no."
"Master Lu has a female compatriot in his body, so why can't we do the same?"
Su Shi sneered, "Because Master Lu likes her. She's pretty . How can a grown man like you?"
In short, the Seljuq merchants have a love-hate relationship with the city of Hangzhou. This city allows them to make a lot of money, it is prosperous and beautiful, and there are "gods" ruling over it, making it a true paradise on earth.
But...it has nothing to do with them, the Semites.
This is the city of the Song people, the country of the Song people, and the god of the Song people.
The Semites couldn’t even settle down, let alone seek immortal fate.
All the people queuing in front of the Xianyuan Pavilion are from the Song Dynasty, and they can only be from the Song Dynasty.
The yamen runners who were responsible for maintaining order would even check the household registration of people who did not look like people from the Central Plains.
On this day, Su Shi stood at the foot of the mountain, looking at the towering gate of the Immortal Family Mountain above, and sighed, "Whenever I see this scene, I will feel that the world is not worth living."
Su Zhe beside him said with a smile: "You are familiar with Master Lu, why don't you go and ask for a chance to become an immortal?"
"No need to beg. If I had the qualifications, Master Lu would naturally give me a chance. If not, he certainly wouldn't mention it."
Su Shi was very open-minded. He slowly walked past the team and headed towards the Xianyuan Pavilion.
When the people queuing next to him saw him, they would smile and bow, or say hello.
Su Shi can be said to be the most approachable person in Hangzhou in hundreds of years. He is not arrogant. He always brings a servant with him when he goes out and wears casual clothes. He has no airs at all.
Not only did the Magistrate of Su County like to eat pork, he also cooked it deliciously. What was even more outrageous was that he actually led Master Lu down the evil path of eating pork.
Nowadays, pork is no longer of low status and has even begun to surpass the status of mutton.
Many times, whether something is good or not, and whether it can be recognized by others, depends entirely on whether it is liked by "big shots".
Lu Sen is the only recognized true immortal in the world, and he eats pork. How dare others say that this thing is cheap?
Or do you think that your status and position are higher than those of immortals?
The popularity of pork meat has added a new type of meat to people's tables, and has also brought more economic benefits and advantages... Many farmers can cut grass to raise pigs, or go to the mountains to hunt wild pigs to earn extra income.
After all, pigs gain weight more easily than sheep.
Su Che looked at his brother being so popular among the people and said with a smile, "It seems that it is only a matter of time before my elder brother is transferred to the capital and appointed as a prime minister."
Su Shi shook his head and said, "But I prefer to work in the local area. It's not easy to get along in the court."
"If you don't have a backer, it's hard to get by anywhere." Su Zhe said with a smile, "But my brother doesn't have this worry."
"The help from others will always be just theirs." Su Shi sighed.
In fact, he is a little troubled now, because people always regard him as the "jester" beside Master Lu. It's not so bad here in Hangzhou, because people know that he is a practical person.
But the other parts are not clear. Many people secretly say that he is lucky and knows how to flatter people, and their words are very unpleasant.
As they walked, they arrived in front of the Xianyuan Pavilion.
Su Shi smiled and said, "Why don't you go in and try?"
"If I really want to try, I'll get up early tomorrow and queue up again." Su Zhe smiled. He didn't want to cause any blemish on his elder brother's reputation.
Everyone else abides by the rules, except me, Su Zhe, who doesn't queue. Others may not say anything on the surface, but they must have had some thoughts in their hearts.
Su Shi looked into the distance and saw a young lady walking out from the red curtain in a daze.
She looked confident before.
Su Che also saw it and asked, "How many people have obtained the immortal fate so far?"
"Not even one."
"It's really as difficult as ascending to heaven to seek immortal fate." Su Zhe sighed, and then he asked: "Brother, you are quite familiar with Master Lu. Do you think he has any intention of conquering the world?"
Su Shi turned his head sharply, his expression stern: "Did you ask this question yourself, or did someone ask you to ask it?"
Su Che was silent for a while, then asked, "Is there any difference?"
"If you asked this yourself, I would have ignored you." Su Shi looked at his brother, "If you asked this on behalf of someone else, I would have immediately enforced the family rules on behalf of my father."
The elder brother is like a father to Su Zhe. If Su Shi really wanted to beat Su Zhe, the latter would have no choice but to accept it.
Su Zhe smiled bitterly and said, "Can we enforce the family rules after we go back? Please save my face."
Su Shi snorted, flicked his sleeves and said, "Follow me back to the mansion."
The mountain gate has been opened for nearly half a year, but Lu Sen has spent most of his time in Xingqing Mansion.
With the 'opening' of the sect system, Lu Sen's personal abilities have been greatly enhanced.
Physical fitness has been comprehensively improved, and the area of the system home has doubled. As for other building formulas, weapon formulas, magic weapon formulas, etc., there have been a large increase.
However, what restricts Lu Sen's strength from increasing substantially is still the issue of 'spiritual energy'.
Moreover, many of the newly added recipes require special items such as 'Essence of Spiritual Energy'.
The source of the essence of spiritual energy comes from the sect system extracting it from the "disciples" and storing it in the sect's spiritual energy pool.
Now there are only Yaoyao and Kunkun in the sect.
Not only were there few disciples, but these two were also lazy by nature and not particularly fond of practicing martial arts, so the essence of spiritual energy in the sect's spiritual energy pool grew extremely slowly.
Lu Sen actually wanted to accept more disciples, but the number of people who could pass the system's "certification" as having immortal fate was extremely small.
So now the sect is just an empty shell.
Lu Sen walked on the city wall as usual, looking at the grayish-white distance.
The Western Xia army is on the other side, and... it is now difficult to see signs of their large-scale activities.
Because it was cold and because the Xixia army's food supply was running out.
The northwest did not produce much grain, and the largest grain-producing area, the Helan Mountains, was occupied by the Song people. The grain supply in Western Xia was almost running out.
Not to mention the civilian population, even the military is running out of supplies.
Di Qing stood by and said with a smile: "Master Lu, in two months, when the ice and snow in the north melt, it will be time for our Song Dynasty to destroy the northern Di."
Originally, Di Qing had planned to attack Xixia in the summer half a year ago, but... later, the emperor forced him to abdicate and the emperor changed his position, so Di Qing slowed down and stopped rushing. He continued to accumulate strength and waited for Xixia to weaken.
"What are General Di's plans after Xixia is gone?" Lu Sen asked.
Di Qing fell silent, and finally he chuckled and said, "If I can get away, I will resign and go home to be a carefree old man."
Having escaped the inevitable death in history and conquered most of the territory of Western Xia, Di Qing's personality was no longer as tense as before and he became a more relaxed person.
Once this person calms down, he can think of a lot of things.
For example, why I was excluded by civil servants in the past.
He now understands that if he conquers Western Xia, the fate that awaits him may not be very good.
Lu Sen smiled and said, "After we capture Xuanhua Prefecture, General Di will definitely be awarded the title of Marquis. I said so. If the court does not award you the title, I will help you vent your anger."
Di Qing was stunned for a moment, then he gently bowed and said, "In this case, I'll trouble Master Lu."
The two chatted for a while, and Lu Sen returned to the government office of Xingqing Prefecture. Unexpectedly, Mu Guiying was already sitting inside waiting for him.
After Lu Sen entered, he bowed and said, "Marshal Mu, what happened?"
This is a government office, not a home, so the two people naturally address each other by their official titles.
Mu Guiying said, "Let's go to the backyard. I have something to ask Master Lu."
Lu Sen nodded.
When the two of them arrived at the backyard, Lu Sen took the initiative to ask, "Mother-in-law, you seem to be a little confused?"
The backyard is considered a private place, so it naturally has to be called something else.
Mu Guiying sat down on the stone bench in the pavilion and said with a smile, "Just now I was patrolling with my troops passing by the city, and I happened to hear your conversation with General Di on the city wall."
Lu Sen was somewhat impressed.
The city wall was at least four zhang above the ground, and it was cold and windy at the time. He and Di Qing were talking on the city wall, and their voices should have been inaudible two zhang away.
But Mu Guiying still heard it, which showed that she was very strong and was getting stronger all the time. She was much stronger than she was five years ago.
Is this the benefit of daily hard training after having a spirit beast?
"Based on the past of our Yang family, if General Di really destroyed Xixia, he would definitely be dismissed by all the officials in the court." Mu Guiying sighed and said, "Sen'er, you want to protect him, but have you ever thought about what the emperor and officials are thinking now? Don't worry about them..."
"There's nothing to worry about." Lu Sen shook his head: "I was able to force them to give in before, and I can do the same in the future."
This is the confidence that comes from absolute strength.
Lu Sen had no intention of controlling the court, but he really couldn't stand some things that were excessive and violated his values.
Te Guiying stared at him, then shook her head, stood up, and said, "I am a woman after all, and I don't understand the thoughts of you men."
In her opinion, less trouble is worse than more.
After all, my son-in-law is a god in heaven, so he should just look down on the world from high above. There is no need for him to come down and meddle in other people's affairs and get himself into trouble.
Of course, she knew that her vision was limited, and perhaps her own ideas were truly ridiculous.
Therefore, she was just giving a suggestion and had no intention of persuading.
Watching Mu Guiying walk away with her slender waist twisted, Lu Sen sighed.
He knew very well that Mu Guiying was worried about him and the Lu family.
But he knew better that if he could not drastically change the course of the world and change the Song people's idea of valuing culture over military, then the Jingkang Incident would eventually occur again, the only difference was sooner or later.
Therefore, he must keep the warriors who are capable of fighting, and find ways to guide the pioneering spirit of the Song people.
Now the plan is going well, even Bao Zheng has gone to sea, so what remains is to proceed according to the plan and then leave everything to time.
Of course, there is still one biggest problem: where are the last two whales?
Where is the Fusang tree in the West, or the World Tree?
Three months later, outside the city of Xuanhua, Song soldiers attacked the city under a hail of arrows.
Ladders were placed on the city walls, and two battering rams, carrying the fallen rocks, came to the city gate and pounded on the thick wooden door one by one.
There were more than a dozen luminous well fences in the rear, and the Xixia soldiers could not see wherever they shone.
In the Xuanhua Palace, Li Liangzuo, the small ruler of Western Xia, sat on the dragon throne with a gloomy face.
The sound of shouting and killing could be heard faintly from outside the palace.
Several eunuchs knelt down in front of him, trembling.
Li Liangzuo straightened his crown and asked, "Where is the Prime Minister?"
"I heard... that he has escaped into a secret passage."
Li Liangzuo sneered twice, then smiled bitterly: "I originally thought that I would keep a low profile, wait until I grow up, win over loyal ministers, and then take down the old man in one fell swoop. However, I didn't expect that before I grew up, the Song army arrived."
At this time, Li Liangzuo was only thirteen years old. Although he was still young, he already spoke with the demeanor of a heroic leader.
Several eunuchs knelt down and dared not speak.
Li Liangzuo asked again: "Where is the queen? She should have run away with old man Mei Zang."
"The queen is staying in the pepper room and has not gone anywhere."
Li Liangzuo was stunned for a moment: "She didn't leave? Call her over."
After a while, a little girl wearing a wind crown came over. She looked no more than twelve years old.
She timidly walked up to Li Liangzuo, bowed, and whispered, "Your Highness."
"Why didn't you leave?"
"The emperor is here, how can I leave!"
Only at this time did Li Liangzuo begin to face up to his nominal wife.
After watching for a while, he found that although this young wife looked weak and indecisive, there was a tenacious look on her face.
"It's better not to leave. We will just wait here for the Song army to break into the city." Li Liangzuo smiled bitterly: "This is the fate of our royal family."
