In the next ten days or so, Wu Feng and Xiao Tang attended a banquet hosted by prestigious businessmen from Qingyang Mansion to thank Wu Feng and his troops for their great contribution to the defense of Qingyang City. Wu Feng was also present. He did not refuse, participated in each one in person, and constantly encouraged the businessmen to expand their business. During the banquet, the businessmen intentionally or unintentionally asked whether Wu Feng and his army needed support and help. The businessmen were willing to do their best to meet the needs of Wu Feng and his army within their ability. Some businessmen even asked They directly proposed how much money, food and material support they were willing to provide, but Wu Feng politely declined them with a smile, and told them that when their support was needed, they would be asked at the appropriate time, which made the businessmen feel a bit agitated. Terrified, not knowing what kind of request Wu Feng would make—
After several days of observation and conversation, combined with the intelligence he had, Wu Feng had a certain understanding of the situation of this group of businessmen—
Qingyang Prefecture has been experiencing war for more than ten years, and its economy is actually on the verge of collapse. Many people have fled with their families to escape the war. The population has dropped sharply from nearly 700,000 at its peak to the present day. There are less than 150,000 people in the city, and the urban population is less than 100,000. The industry has almost completely come to a standstill. Only a few larger workshops in the leather processing industry, which has always been very famous, are still surviving, and the others have either gone bankrupt or moved elsewhere. The originally prosperous commercial trade gradually shrank due to the Luobi people controlling the main channel to the west. Later, as wars became more frequent, social security deteriorated extremely, horse thieves and bandits were everywhere, and the lives and property of merchants from all over Qingyang were in danger. The territory of the government was not protected, and business and trade plummeted. Qingyang Mansion, which was once prosperous, has since declined, and it is getting worse day by day -
Local businessmen were also forced by the situation to move their workshops, shops and even small businesses to other places one after another to seek new development. Some even moved their families away and never came back. Those who stayed in the local area were determined to do so. Note that as soon as the situation is not right, close the door and leave. And now Wu Feng led the Imperial Army to defeat the strong with the weak, the many with the few, and the news of the great defeat of the Luo Bei people had quickly spread throughout the empire, and had a great impact on the surrounding countries, and Wu Feng also stated that he would lead the army. His troops stayed in Qingyang and continued to protect the security of Qingyang Mansion. This immediately ignited the long-disillusioned hopes of local businessmen. Even many businessmen who had left Qingyang long ago and businessmen from other places were also full of expectations -
After all, the geographical location of Qingyang Prefecture is very advantageous. The northwest is close to the Tengger Prairie, the raw material producing area of leather. It has always had a tradition of leather processing, and the labor resources (skilled workers) are also relatively abundant; more importantly, it is located in the east It is an important passage from the northern part of the continent to the Central Continent and the Western Continent. Because the north-south Great Hengduan Mountains straddle the Central Continent and the Eastern Continent, the terrain is not only steep and precipitous, but it is also surrounded by virgin forests that have never been developed, making it impossible to cross. , only there is a plain to the north and south of it, so it naturally becomes the upper passage between the two continents connecting the Central Continent, the Western Continent and the Eastern Continent. Qingyang Mansion is also located at the throat of this large passage to the north. In addition, Qingyang Prefecture has a vast territory and is the largest among the six prefectures in the northwest county. The land is fertile and rich in grain. The surrounding area is rich in products and has many specialties. It is the best place to become a distribution center for materials.
The businessmen who are still staying in Qingyang Prefecture and want to return to Qingyang Prefecture are naturally divided into two types. One is the businessmen who take advantage of being close to the origin of leather raw materials and operate the leather processing industry; Merchants engaged in commodity trade in a special geographical location, the former type is represented by the Zhan family, and the latter type is headed by the Wei family. In short, the two types of merchants constitute the upper class of Qingyang Prefecture, while landlords are more common in other places. The power in Qingyang was almost completely eliminated due to repeated raids and looting by the Luobi people for more than ten years. Except for farmers cultivating land near the city and near the borders of other provinces, other parts of Qingyang Province are basically deserted. Especially in the western and northern areas close to the Luobi people's territory, it is rare to see human habitation for dozens of miles. —
The notice of Wu Feng's appointment came via the Express on October 28. After learning that Wu Feng was indeed appointed as the guardian of Qingyang City, the residents of the city spontaneously set off firecrackers to celebrate, which made Wu Feng very happy. Touched, it also deepened the businessmen's trust in Wufeng -
More than ten days passed quickly. Wu Feng attended the celebration banquet prepared for him by various businessmen, and urged Xiao Tang to seize the time to set up administrative agencies. During this period, Mo Lun and Su Minshun also came to Qingyang as scheduled. Wu Feng was very worried. He was happy, but due to time constraints, as soon as the reception banquet was over, he asked the two of them to get to work immediately to assist Xiao Tang in completing the tasks he assigned -
At the same time, the day after receiving the appointment, Wu Feng announced that he would split the Qingyang Prefecture Security Division under preparation into two, and issued his first order after assuming the position of Qingyang Prefecture City Guard, appointing Liang Chongxin as the northwest county of the empire. The First Guard Division of Qingyang Prefecture is the division commander, and Mulig is appointed as the deputy division commander. Cui Wenxiu is appointed as the division commander of the Qingyang Prefecture’s Second Guard Division in the northwest county of the empire. Kamapov is appointed as the deputy division commander. Kang Jianguo was appointed captain of his own personal guard brigade. Lu Man is not in office for the time being, but is responsible for the logistics work of the entire Qingyang Prefecture army—
The arrival of Mo and Su greatly relieved Xiao Tang's pressure. After several contacts, Xiao Tang discovered that the two of them were really capable, and the three of them became close friends who talked about everything. It's no wonder that Wu Feng was full of enthusiasm for the two of them. Confidence, especially in Molun's internal affairs and judicial management, Su Minshun is very good in industrial and commercial management, even Xiao Tang also admired it very much -
With the full support and cooperation of the two, the establishment of the administrative organs of Qingyang Mansion went very smoothly. However, due to the extreme shortage of manpower, especially the shortage of qualified staff, the framework was erected and no one was working. Xiao Tang had to work several times. I discussed privately with Liang Chongxin and Cui Wenxiu at this time, hoping to select some talents from the army officers and soldiers to fill the local administrative agencies. However, because the two were actively forming their own divisions under Wu Feng's order, the manpower was not enough. Where Xiao Tang was still willing to give in, Xiao and Tang negotiated many times, but all failed, which made Xiao, Mo and Su restless. After several discussions, the three finally decided that they had to find Wu Feng to coordinate, otherwise the task would not be completed as scheduled—
At this time, Wu Feng was indulging in the love game with Lu Xianxian. He accidentally met Lu Yunshan and Lu Xianxian at several banquets. Wu Feng was also an old hand in flowers. With the help of thoughtful people, Wu Feng The relationship with Lu Xianxian quickly became closer—
When Xiao and Tang and the others came to Wu Feng's study in the city guard's mansion, Wu Feng was having an intimate conversation with Lu Xianxian. Wu Feng gave full play to his eloquence of deceiving people and making Lu Xianxian happy from time to time. trembling. Before Xiao and Tang could approach the door of the study, they heard Lu Xianxian's charming laughter coming from inside the room, "This boy is born with a love life. Wherever he goes, he is destined to be a woman." Mo Lun sighed -
"It is not only a destiny of love, but also a destiny of blessing. Unlike the three of us, we can tell at a glance that we are destined to work hard." Su Minshun also agreed -
"You can't say that. A superior person has his own work arrangements, but our boss is also very good at enjoying himself." Xiao Tang was also a little envious, "Everyone has his own destiny, but I still like myself at the moment. I believe you both feel the same way about this busy and hard-working but fulfilling life.”—
Mo Lun and Su Minshun looked at each other and nodded in agreement—
When the three of them stepped into Wu Feng's spacious study, Wu Feng's originally cheerful face immediately turned into a bitter melon. Lu Xianxian was very sensible. Seeing Xiao and Tang coming together, she knew that there must be something important to discuss, so she immediately stood up and left, " Brother Li, you have to talk in advance, I will come back tomorrow." The charming body quickly disappeared into the room -
"Didn't we agree that there's nothing particularly serious, just the three of you make the decision. It's such a disgrace, and we're about to succeed..." Wu Feng looked at the disappearing figure with regret -
"Sir, we don't want to disturb your good things, but you have to come forward to solve the problem. Who asked you to arrange so many things for us." Xiao Tang complained endlessly -
"Yes, you can still enjoy it easily. Our hair is almost exhausted." Su Minshun also complained bitterly -
"You can't say that. The division of labor is different. Okay, if you have any questions, just ask." Wu Feng quickly stopped the three of them and asked about business -
When the three people reported the specific difficulties, Wu Feng also felt that it was indeed a problem. Now Qingyang City is in the most difficult initial stage. After suffering from war, the total number of residents is less than 150,000, and most of them They all belong to the lower class people who have not received much education. It is obviously unrealistic to select a certain number of talents in a short period of time. How to resolve this contradiction is directly related to the future development of Qingyang Mansion. However, there were certain difficulties in the demobilization of the troops proposed by the three. In this battle, the army suffered considerable losses. In addition, due to strategic needs, they expanded one division that was already short of manpower into two divisions. The personnel gap appears to be even larger. Now if we want to draw more people from the army, it will inevitably affect the construction and development of the army. I am afraid that it will be difficult to get through the ideological work of Liang Chongxin and Cui Wenxiu -
After careful consideration, Wu Feng notified Liang and Cui. After intense discussions and negotiations, both parties finally felt that the plan proposed by Wu Feng was the most suitable and acceptable to them. That is, they agreed that Xiao Tang would send troops among nearly 6,000 people. Select from among the sick and wounded, but not from existing units that have been formed. After selection, the remaining personnel will be divided equally between the two divisions to which Liang and Cui belong -
When everyone returned satisfied, Wu Feng was still thinking deeply. The problem of talent is one of the biggest problems currently, especially the development and construction of a place cannot be separated from the support of sufficient talents. He should clearly realize that In the current harsh situation, the ancients said that it is difficult to conquer a country, but it is even harder to sit on it. It seems that there is indeed a reason for him -
Just when everyone was engaged in the preparation work in full swing, the special envoy from the imperial capital also arrived in Qingyang with the official appointment of His Majesty the Emperor. Because the appointment received some time ago was only transmitted through the post, and now it is a formal official appointment. The special envoy came from the Imperial Administration. He was a middle-aged man in his forties named Pu Shide. He didn't look out of the ordinary, but Wu Feng always felt that this man was not as simple as he seemed.
At the reception banquet. Wufeng invited several well-known local gentry in Qingyang City, including Zhan Zhaobai and Wei Dongchen, and he also accompanied Xiao Tang. Both the guests and the host seemed very harmonious, and they drank and talked happily. The next day, just as Pu Shide was about to leave and return to the imperial capital, he asked to interview Wu Feng alone. Wu Feng invited him to the study and ordered the guards not to disturb anyone. Pu Shide took out a secret letter. After Wu Feng read it, he handed it back to Pu Shide, who also destroyed the secret letter in person. No front. I would like to express my gratitude to His Highness for your concern. If you have any difficulties, please ask for His Highness’ support.