Chapter 123

Chapter 123

In the evening, Pan Yong and his son Pan Dai returned to the rented courtyard of the Pan family.

This courtyard was a small yard separated from a larger house in the city for rental purposes, consisting of three rooms: one for the kitchen and two bedrooms. The five members of the Pan family lived separately by gender, which was less convenient than living in Lingshui Village.

However, after the news spread that the Xiao family would temporarily manage the Acropolis, wealthy families from towns and villages believed the city to be safer and rushed to move into the Acropolis. The Pans acted early enough to secure such an independent small yard; otherwise, they would have had to share a courtyard with other families.

Almost all vacant houses in the city were occupied, making it impossible for the Pan family to quickly exchange their current residence for a larger mansion despite receiving a generous reward.

Wang Shi was complaining about this to her mother-in-law and daughter when she saw her husband and son return. She happily prepared water for them to wash their faces.

After washing up, it was time to eat. The family of five gathered around the square table, and Pan Yong said, "Both I and Dai'er have been promoted to commandants. I will stay with the Acropolis Army, while Dai'er will continue serving under Fourth Master Xiao in Yuxian."

Wang Shi looked at her son with reluctance: "Yuxian is too far away. Can't you discuss with Old Master Xiao to keep both of you in the Acropolis?"

Pan Dai did not mind: "Fourth Master is also far away in Yuxian. With the Xiao family now managing five counties, important positions like commandant must be selected from the Acropolis Army. It's a great honor for both Father and me to be chosen. Mother, please don't be so picky. Many others would love to serve as commandants in Yuxian."

Wang Shi slapped him in anger: "A mother worries when her son travels far. Yuxian is over four hundred miles away. What's wrong with me saying this?"

Pan Dai smiled and lowered his head to eat.

The old lady of the Pan family sighed: "It is indeed too far. It might be better if you two switched places. In case of conflict, Yong has more strategic thinking than Dai'er."

Pan Yuerou defended her father: "In terms of ability, Father is much stronger than those young commanders like Third and Fourth Masters Xiao. He could easily lead a county on his own. Old Master Xiao must know this but fears that Father's reputation surpassing theirs would embarrass the family, so he keeps Father in the Acropolis under his direct supervision."

Wang Shi huffed: "In the end, it's all about favoritism. They don't trust outsiders. If Old Master Xiao truly appointed Father as a county commander, then I would be convinced."

Pan Yong said, "If I were given command of a county, what would I do? Lead the troops to another rebel king or declare independence during the chaos?"

The old lady was shocked: "So that's what they're guarding against."

Pan Yong continued, "I would guard against it too. Old Master Xiao just took control of seven counties, with a pile of military and civilian affairs to handle. Although Third Master and the others are young, they have helped Old Master manage Weixian step by step and have gained experience. They can handle these tasks well. Moreover, if Old Master Xiao promoted me, he would need to replace someone younger. Those young people have accomplished more than I have recently. Why should they step down?"

Weixian used to be too small, and the rebel kings too weak, failing so quickly that there was never an opportunity for him to achieve significant merit and prove himself.

If Old Master Xiao recruited more soldiers and continued to attack the two rebel kings to the south, Pan Yong would have such an opportunity. However, Old Master's words on the city wall suggested that he intended to peacefully manage the seven counties without expanding his territory.

"By the way, Old Master will allocate a house in each of the seven counties to each commandant, making it easier for them to bring their families closer. We expect to receive the keys tomorrow. Since Dai'er will live in the military camp in Yuxian, Old Master specially chose a three-compound courtyard for our family, considering it a joint effort between us."

Wang Shi asked joyfully, "Will we get the deed to the house?"

Pan Yong laughed, "Old Master Xiao said both houses are temporary residences, so naturally, the right to reside is also temporary."

Wang Shi immediately put on a serious face: "Pretending! They say it's temporary, but they still hold onto the deeds and land rights left by corrupt officials and the four major powers. The houses they give us could be taken back at any time."

Pan Yong warned, "Let's talk about this at home. Don't mention it outside."

---

On November 13th, Sun Wei, Zhang Wengong, Qiao Changan, and the cavalry from Wei and Ding Counties returned, bringing wagons loaded with grain and military pay.

At the southern camp,

The three men placed a general ledger and twenty-eight separate ledgers before Old Master.

The general ledger summarized all the military pay, grain, weapons, and land in the seven counties, while the separate ledgers detailed the estimated costs for weapons and the amount of grain and military pay needed to support the army for a month. The four ledgers for Wei County were the thinnest because everything was already well-prepared, requiring only occasional checks and adjustments.

These resources were accumulated through the plundering of officials and wealthy households in the five western counties and the confiscation of properties from powerful and corrupt officials in Ding and Wei Counties by the rebel kings.

The land would allow all poor farmers in the seven counties to have fields to cultivate, and the gold, silver, grain, and grass could support the armies for more than three years.

However, part of the gold, silver, grain, and grass needed to be reserved for the welfare of the people. For example, for next year's spring plowing, although the poor farmers now had land, they lacked sufficient seeds, which the county governments would lend to the people and collect back after the autumn harvest. If all went well, the seven counties would levy a half-dou tax per mu of land from the people next autumn to maintain the military.

All these matters required careful calculation. Currently, Xiao Mu needed to distribute the grain and military pay required for the next month to the other six counties.

Sun Wei and the others had calculated everything. To facilitate transportation, the supplies needed for Cheng and Ding Counties had already been delivered along the way. The remaining supplies were stored in Huai County, waiting for Old Master to verify the accounts before distributing them directly from Huai County to neighboring Yun, Yu, and Ying Counties.

Xiao Mu nodded and called over commandants like Tong Gui and Pan Dai who were stationed in other counties. He instructed them to gather one hundred soldiers from the Acropolis Army each, go to Cheng County or Huai County as assigned, collect the military pay and grain, and then proceed to their new counties.

The next day, Old Master took Tong Sui and fifty soldiers out of the city with the newly appointed magistrate of Wei County to distribute land to the poor farmers in various towns and villages.

Families without land received five acres, and those with less land were supplemented to five acres.

Naturally, the poor farmers who received land were overjoyed, kneeling down to express their gratitude. However, some of the residents who already owned five acres or more were unhappy. All being residents of Wei County, why should the poor benefit while those with slightly better lives did not?

Deterred by the troops led by Xiao Mu, these people did not cause trouble, but their murmurs reached everyone's ears.

The new magistrate explained, "The unclaimed land in Wei County is limited, so we must prioritize the poor farmers to ensure every household can plant crops in the spring and harvest in the autumn."

"General Xiao's actions are for the welfare of the entire county. Those who feel aggrieved for not receiving land should remember that when Liu Ying was our magistrate, he colluded with the four major powers to seize our land and forcibly collected forty percent of our produce last month. Think also of the recently executed rebel king, who, when plundering the five counties, labeled families with twenty acres or more as local tyrants. These families indeed had more land, but they also died because of it!"

"General Xiao is willing to defend our seven counties with his family, but he cannot guarantee that he can resist all rebel invasions. If General Xiao gives too much land to the people, and a new rebel king conquers the seven counties and sets new rules, labeling families with more than five acres as local tyrants, wouldn't General Xiao be harming everyone?"

The greedy ones felt a chill down their spines.

The poor farmers who received land made up the majority of the village population. In their hearts, the Xiao family were living bodhisattvas who saved them from suffering, and they spoke up in support of the Xiao family.

At this point, Xiao Mu spoke, "I do indeed have some land left, reserved to reward the soldiers who risk their lives to protect our seven counties. I believe there are families here whose sons and husbands have joined the army. Tell me, would I let your loved ones take unnecessary risks?"

"No!"

"General Xiao is doing the right thing! Please focus on training and leading the troops, and we, the elderly, women, and children, will not be a burden to you!"

"If anyone is dissatisfied with General Xiao's land distribution, step forward. Let's discuss it properly instead of whispering and causing delays in the land distribution for the entire county!"

---

The land distribution in the southern part of the city alone took four or five days. By the time it was the turn of Lingshui Village, located forty miles north of the city, it was already late November.

Xiao Mu and his party were still a li away from the village entrance of Lingshui Village when Village Headman Sun Xinghai had already led the villagers out to greet them with excitement.

Xiao Mu dismounted from his horse in simple clothes and took Sun Xinghai's hand, saying, "Since our last parting, it is fortunate that heaven has protected me, allowing me to return and see all of you!"

Regardless of whether these words were sincere or just polite, two streams of hot tears rolled down Sun Xinghai's eyes: "It wasn't heaven's protection; it was your seasoned military skills that safeguarded Wei County. You are the savior of all the county's people, and you have saved Lingshui Village several times!"

Without the Xiao family, more people in Lingshui Village would have died at the hands of refugees and bandits. Without the Xiao family's military training, when the rebel king attacked, other villagers might have been spared, but the Sun family, with over a hundred acres of land, would surely have been wiped out.

The men gathered around the old man, while the women and children surrounded Tong Sui. Someone noticed her nose was red and took off their own scarf to tie around Tong Sui's neck.

Tong Sui's eyes also welled up with tears at this warm scene.

After the greetings, the distribution of land was the next priority.

Both the poor and wealthy farmers of Lingshui Village cooperated fully. When a couple of people started to complain, they were quickly silenced by those around them.

While the old man was being invited by Sun Xinghai to his home for tea, Tong Sui led eight guards to the northwest corner of the village, where the Xiao family resided.

All three courtyards had their doors tightly shut, the locks intact without any signs of forced entry.

Tong Sui took out a set of keys and unlocked the door to the eastern courtyard.

The guards, fearing there might be intruders inside, wanted to follow, but Tong Sui smiled and told them to stay outside.

Inside the courtyard, the central open space was swept clean by the wind, while some leaves had been blown under the eaves, giving the place a desolate look.

Tong Sui stood there for a moment before entering the eastern wing where she and Xiao Zhen used to live.

Everything was as it was when she moved out, with a thick layer of dust on the cabinets and the kang bed.

Looking around, almost every corner held memories of Xiao Zhen and herself—him sitting on the threshold watching her wash her face, him placing her on the desk to tease, and finally, the intimate moments on the kang bed.

Suddenly, a sound of footsteps came from outside.

Tong Sui thought she had misheard, but as the sound grew louder and approached the door boldly, she suddenly turned around, quickly drawing the dagger hidden at her waist.

The curtain was lifted, revealing Xiao Zhen in a black robe, looking as if he had just returned from hunting in the mountains or finished planting crops.

He stood at the door, glancing at the dagger in Tong Sui's hand and then at her surprised expression, and smiled, "How long has it been since you couldn't recognize my footsteps?"