Chapter 54: Ma Zhou Surrenders
"I want 30% of the future food."
Li Yuanji spoke without hesitation.
Li Shimin frowned, "No."
Li Yuanji stared at Li Shimin and said, "Second brother, have you forgotten that all the grain must pass through my hands? I said 30% and 30% respectively, and you don't have the final say."
The grain received by the transferred officials was collected and distributed by Li Yuanji.
Li Yuanji refused to give it, and Li Shimin could not take it away by force.
Li Shimin dared to do it on the first day, and Li Yuanji didn't mind doing it on the fifteenth.
Li Shimin subconsciously glared and shouted, "My food, I don't have the final say?"
Li Yuanji said, "Do I have the final say over my food?"
Li Shimin was speechless after being criticized.
It was Li Shimin who was unreasonable first, so he had no right to blame Li Yuanji for being unreasonable later.
Li Shimin had a gloomy face. He pondered for a long time and sighed, "Food is now the top priority. It is related to the life and death of millions of people in Hebei. I can't give up even a penny. Please change the conditions."
Changsun Wuji and others looked at Li Shimin, then at Li Yuanji, with a confused look on their faces, not understanding what Li Shimin and Li Yuanji were talking about.
Li Yuanji also expected that Li Shimin would not spit out the food he had eaten, so he immediately said: "Then you should give me 3,000 sets of armor as interest."
Before Li Shimin could speak, Li Yuanji added, "The armor is only interest, and the grain still needs to be repaid."
Li Shimin was stunned, frowned and asked: "What do you need so many armors for?"
Iron armor is a powerful weapon. Three thousand sets of iron armor are enough to arm a battalion of three thousand warriors, and destroying cities and strongholds is no problem.
If they occupied advantageous terrain, they could withstand attacks from tens of thousands of people.
Li Yuanji rolled his eyes at Li Shimin and said unhappily, "I will build an armored battalion of 3,000 men and have them guard the entrance to the granary. Let's see who dares to take my grain."
Li Shimin looked embarrassed.
Li Yuanji almost pointed at his nose and said, I will arm an army to prevent you, the evil thief, from stealing food.
Zhang Sun Wuji could not help but say: "Your Highness, the King of Qi, three thousand armored soldiers can create three thousand warriors, and it is easy to destroy the city and capture the stronghold. When necessary, they can also serve as surprise troops to deal a heavy blow to the enemy.
If it were handed over to someone with ulterior motives, it would probably become the source of trouble for our Tang Dynasty."
Li Yuanji glanced at Changsun Wuji and said calmly: "I know the severity of the situation, I don't need you to remind me."
Changsun Wuji made himself look awkward and was also embarrassed.
Li Shimin said with a headache: "Forget it, forget it. Send someone to the Luoyang armory tomorrow, and I will tell the warehouse clerk to get you 3,000 sets of armor."
Li Yuanji was going to use 3,000 sets of iron armor to arm a battalion of 3,000 warriors to defend against him, and he felt very uncomfortable.
It’s not that he was worried that Li Yuanji had other intentions, but if Li Yuanji did this, it would be difficult for him to steal grain again in the future.
"snort……"
Li Yuanji achieved his goal. He snorted and left the front hall of Luoyang Palace without caring about his relatives.
After Li Yuanji left, Changsun Wuji said to Li Shimin, not knowing whether to laugh or cry: "Your Highness the Prince of Qi is just fooling around."
Three thousand armored warriors can create three thousand brave warriors and change the outcome of a war.
However, Li Yuanji wanted to give it to the garrison, particularly the garrison guarding the granary.
luxury.
It's luxury to the extreme.
Li Shimin sighed, "Just do whatever you want, it's my fault."
Changsun Wuji wanted to ask what the food was that Li Yuanji was talking about, but seeing that Li Shimin had no intention of saying anything, he did not ask any more questions.
Li Yuanji returned to the side hall of Luoyang Palace and arrested the governor of Shanzhou and started to scold him.
The governor of Shanzhou is now his subordinate, but he only reads the orders from the commander and does not ask for his instructions.
This is dereliction of duty and must be reprimanded.
Although Li Shimin's commander-in-chief's orders were more important than his generals' orders.
But he is now the direct superior of the Governor-General of Shanzhou. When the Governor-General of Shanzhou saw that Li Shimin issued an order bypassing the chain of command, he should have consulted him before making a decision.
The governor of Shanzhou made the decision on his own without asking for instructions, which meant that he did not take him seriously.
Li Yuanji caught the governor of Shanzhou and scolded him for a long time. When he had scolded him to the point where he felt ashamed, Xie Shufang hurried into the side hall.
Only then did Li Yuanji let the governor of Shanzhou go.
After the governor of Shanzhou left, Xie Shufang stepped forward and said, "Your Highness, Ma Zhou has arrived outside Luoyang City."
Li Yuanji pondered for a moment, then ordered Xie Shufang to take all the guards and leave the Luoyang Palace with great fanfare.
They announced to the public that they would re-defend the granary and make it watertight so as to not give thieves a second chance to steal grain.
If Li Shimin knew about this, he would probably just say that he was narrow-minded and would not suspect anything else.
After leaving Luoyang Palace, Li Yuanji asked Xie Shufang to take people to the granary, and he secretly went outside the city to meet Ma Zhou.
When I saw Ma Zhou again, he was thinner, but looked very energetic.
When Ma Zhou saw Li Yuanji, he stepped forward without hesitation and bowed deeply to Li Yuanji.
"Your Highness, I, Ma Zhou, pay my respects to you."
Ma Zhou traveled around Luoyang for nearly half a month and witnessed with his own eyes how Li Yuanji spared no effort to resettle those refugees. His opinion of Li Yuanji changed and his attitude naturally became much better.
Li Yuanji was very satisfied with Ma Zhou's attitude and said with a smile: "Now I am not saying that I am also harming people by saving them?"
Ma Zhou cupped his hands and said ashamedly, "I was reckless before."
Li Yuanji nodded and said, "I already know what you have done in Luoyang in recent days. Not only did you stop the government offices on the border of Luoyang from driving the refugees from Hebei back to Hebei, you also invited the refugees hiding in the mountains and forests out, prepared houses for them, distributed land, and let them settle down in Luoyang.
Li Sixing said, you saved no less than 50,000 refugees.
You are very good."
Ma Zhou hurriedly said, "I don't deserve your praise. If I didn't have your cavalry to protect me, if I didn't have your reputation, I wouldn't be able to stop the border officials in Luoyang from driving the refugees back to Hebei. Even saving one person would be difficult for me."
Ma Zhou knew very well that the reason he was able to resettle and provide relief to refugees in Luoyang so smoothly was because of Li Yuanji's reputation and military power.
If Li Yuanji had not helped, the government offices in Luoyang would not have obeyed his orders, let alone cooperated with him in resettling refugees.
Li Yuanji smiled and said, "You have merit, so you don't have to be so modest. You can find problems and solve them, which proves that you have good vision and means.
I have always been a person who rewards meritorious service and punishes faults.
Since you have made great contributions, I will not be stingy with your rewards.
From today on, I will promote you to be the recorder and military officer of the Qi Wang Mansion, are you willing?"
Ma Zhou was obviously stunned for a moment, then he bowed to Li Yuanji and said, "Thank you for your appreciation, Your Highness. I am willing to serve you."
The recorder is an official of the sixth rank and above, and is of the same rank as the secretary.
He is several levels higher than his previous assistant.
Moreover, he was a recorder and military advisor, and an official in the inner court of Prince Qi's palace, so his future was limitless.
The reason why he left Bian and Cao states where he had traveled for several months and appeared in Luoyang was because he was humiliated by Cui Xianshou, the governor of Junyi, in Junyi. So in a fit of anger, he prepared to go to Chang'an to seek a good future so that Cui Xianshou could see who the real hero was.
After witnessing with his own eyes that Li Yuanji was not as cruel, cruel, and arrogant as the rumors said, he did not mind working for Li Yuanji.
Li Yuanji was happy, "Okay, okay, not bad, not bad..."
Finally, there was a guy who made his name in history and was willing to be used by him willingly. How could he not be happy?
Li Sixing is a traitor, and Ling Jing only joined his team reluctantly because he threatened him.
Therefore, Li Sixing and Ling Jing were not willing to be used by him.
Only Ma Zhou was willing to join his team, and he would certainly be of the same mind as him and help him with all his might.
Ma Zhou was very excited when he saw that Li Yuanji seemed to appreciate him very much.
He came from a poor family and few people appreciated him. When he told others about his great ambitions, they only laughed at him.
Li Yuanji was the second person he had met so far who appreciated him, and also the first person who truly appreciated him.
The first person who appreciated him was a Doctor of Confucian Classics in Bozhou. However, that Doctor of Confucian Classics only recommended him to the government as an assistant teacher to help share the pressure of teaching, not really appreciating him.
Li Yuanji was the only one who believed in his talents and made use of him.
He was also the only one who entrusted him with important tasks regardless of his background.
"There is something I need you to do."
After laughing for a while, Li Yuanji stated the purpose of this trip.
Ma Zhou's expression became serious, and he bowed and said, "Your Highness, please give your orders."
Li Yuanji waved to the guards, and after they left, he solemnly said to Ma Zhou: "I need you to go to Weizhou for me."
Weizhou is under the jurisdiction of Youzhou. Li Yi now leads his troops to be stationed in the Da'an Mountain area to resist the troops of the Eastern Turks.
Ma Zhou was stunned, and said thoughtfully: "Your Highness wants me to go see His Royal Highness the Prince of Yan?"
Ma Zhou had some understanding of the situation in Youzhou, so when Li Yuanji asked Ma Zhou to go to Weizhou, Ma Zhou guessed that Li Yuanji wanted him to see Li Yi.
After all, apart from Li Yi, there was no one in Youzhou worthy of Li Yuanji sending someone to meet him in person.
Li Yuanji nodded and said, "I need you to get some information and help me change a family."
Ma Zhou did not hesitate at all and said seriously, "Please give your orders, Your Highness."
The road from Luoyang to Youzhou is not easy to travel.
Hebei was occupied by Liu Heita. To get from Luoyang to Youzhou, one had to either go through Weize Pass and rush to Youzhou under the arrows of the Turks, or go out to the sea through Henan and go up the coast.
It is obviously unrealistic to go to Youzhou under the arrows of the Turks.
Therefore, the only way out to the sea is through Henan Road and up the coast.
But going up the coast also carries huge risks.
Li Yuanji showed great appreciation to Ma Zhou, and Ma Zhou felt that it was worthwhile for him to take some risks.
Li Yuanji stared at Ma Zhou and said, "Youzhou should be suffering from famine now. If nothing unexpected happens, Li Yi will ask Gao Kaidao nearby to borrow food. Gao Kaidao has ulterior motives and will most likely plot against Li Yi.
Li Yi's military strength is far superior to Gao Kaidao's. After Gao Kaidao plotted against Li Yi, Li Yi would definitely not let it go.
If Gao Kaidao wants to survive under Li Yi, he will definitely collude with the Turks."
