For people in the six northwestern states and many who were paying attention to the situation in the northwest, the situation in the northwest between April and May of the first year of Tong'an in the Han Empire was extremely confusing, unpredictable, full of fantasy, and completely unpredictable.
At the end of April, several provincial governors gathered in Lanzhou City, and there was a tendency for them to compete with the King of Pingxi. During this period, the state armies of various states were frequently mobilized and gathered at the borders of various states. They were conducting exercises and suppressing bandits. The noisy and chaotic atmosphere almost made people think that a civil war would break out among the six northwestern states. Especially at this time, the unusual silence of the King of Pingxi's Mansion would be regarded by the outside world as some kind of ominous atmosphere. In this atmosphere, the price of grain in the six northwestern states saw a significant increase from the end of April to the beginning of May. From the wealthy families to the ordinary people, everyone was panicked, and for various reasons, they all stockpiled grain at that time.
In early May, a piece of news from Lanzhou City shook the entire northwest and even the Han Empire, leaving countless people stunned and hesitant like riding a roller coaster - the governors of the four northwest states spoke at the same time in Lanzhou City, announcing that the four northwest states were loyal to the Jinzhou court, and the military and political affairs of the four states were officially under the control of the Pingxi Wangfu. At the same time, the four governors also urged Pingxi Wang Yan Liqiang to form the Northwest General's Mansion, unify the planning and control of the military of the six northwest states, set up the Northwest Camp, and unify the six northwest state armies into the Northwest Army, which was controlled by the Northwest General's Mansion. The entire northwest was united, and under the leadership of Pingxi Wang, they stabilized the local area, resisted foreign humiliation, and quelled the civil strife in the Han Empire...
When this news spread from Lanzhou City, the entire Northwest was shocked. For those wealthy families and ordinary people, the degree of shock they felt when they heard the news was no less than the surprise they felt when they heard that Yan Liqiang led his army to pacify the seven Shatu tribes a few days ago.
Originally, the atmosphere between the Pingxi Palace and the four northwestern states was tense. How come the four states suddenly changed their minds
This is a question in the minds of countless people, but I'm afraid no one can answer this question except the person involved.
On the second day after the four governors in Lanzhou City spoke out, the governor of Ganzhou, Lei Sitong, followed suit and said the same words and made the same statement to a group of civil and military officials in Ganzhou and representatives of local wealthy families in Ganzhou City. After three days of silence, the governor of Huanzhou, Lin Zitong, who had previously stayed out of the matter, finally spoke in Huanzhou City, and the content was the same as that of the four governors in Lanzhou City.
Just two days after the governor of the five northwestern states said this in Lanzhou, the latest issue of the "Han Empire Times" published an article directly signed by Pingxi King Yan Liqiang on the front page. The title of the article was "United as One, Northwest One". In that article, Yan Liqiang gave the governors of the six northwestern states extremely high evaluation and praise, and there were too many words like "selfless", "high moral character", and "deep understanding of justice". In that article, Yan Liqiang also directly put forward his plan for the future of the northwest as the king of Pingxi. It can be summed up in eight words, "Northwest Oneness, Sharing and Building Together". Northwest Oneness means that the military and political affairs of the northwest will be integrated, the government will come from one source, and the military and political command system of the northwestern states will be unified. Sharing and building together means that the six northwestern states will share the dividends from the great development of Gulang Province and Heijie Province. At the same time, the states will gradually cancel many checkpoints and customs duties within the states, encourage industrial and commercial industries in the states, and open up the flow of people, so that all the people in the six northwestern states can live and work in peace and contentment...
That is, at the end of this article, Yan Liqiang directly invited the governors of the six northwestern states to come to Qiyun County on the 18th of this month to discuss the future plans for the northwest.
After this issue of "The Han Empire Times" was issued, the entire Northwest was in an uproar. In just one day, all the newspapers were sold out, and the newspaper office had to urgently print more copies at full capacity. Even so, this issue of the newspaper was still in short supply.
On May 18th, there was jubilation in Pingxi City, and both sides of the official road were filled with people who came to watch the fun. On this day, Yan Liqiang led the civil and military officials of the county and went ten miles out of the city to welcome the governors of the six northwestern states who came to Qiyun County together.
The two teams had not yet met, but from afar, Yan Liqiang had already seen flags waving on the opposite road. The six governors had already arrived at the official road ahead. Yan Liqiang was "very familiar" with the other county magistrates of the six northwestern states, except for Lin Zitong, the governor of Huanzhou. Lin Zitong, the governor of Huanzhou, looked to be in his fifties, wearing a purple-red governor's robe, with an elegant and handsome temperament. He rode a white rhinoceros horse, right next to Lei Sitong, and his aura formed a sharp contrast with Lei Sitong.
The governors of the six states rode on rhinoceros horses and walked in the front. Accompanying the six governors was Lu Peien, the new minister of the Pingxi Palace. The guards of the motorcades of the six governors followed in a line behind them, holding flags, in an orderly manner.
Of course, the governors of these six states did not arrive at the same time. For example, Lei Sitong arrived yesterday but did not enter the city. This was so that he could be welcomed by Yan Liqiang together with the governors of other states today, and then enter the city together. Although such a ceremony is a bit formal, it is indispensable at this time.
When the two horses were still more than 50 meters apart, Yan Liqiang jumped off Caiyun Zhuiyue and strode directly towards the six governors. The six governors also got off their horses at the same time and walked towards Yan Liqiang. The two sides met on the official road under the gaze of countless people.
"Greetings to His Royal Highness the King of Pingxi!" When the six provincial governors saw Yan Liqiang approaching, they stopped at the same time and then performed the audience ceremony to Yan Liqiang together.
"My lords are loyal to the country and are able to put aside personal opinions and interests. You put the well-being and future of hundreds of millions of people in several northwestern states and the country of the Han Empire first. You have taken the trouble to come to Qiyun County to discuss important matters with me. Please accept my greetings!" Yan Liqiang had a solemn face, and under the gaze of countless people, he bowed deeply to the six people at the same time.
Although Gu Tongan and others among the six people had different moods when they came and were not necessarily happy, but when they saw Yan Liqiang being so serious at this moment, their behavior was suddenly raised to a higher level. They felt mixed emotions and hurriedly returned the greetings, saying that they did not deserve it.
After a round of greetings and pleasantries, the two sides were officially greeted as host and guest.
"This must be Lord Lin Zitong, the governor of Huanzhou!" Yan Liqiang's eyes fell on Lin Zitong's face, "I heard that Lord Lin has made outstanding achievements in governing Huanzhou. Seeing Lord Lin today, he really did not disappoint me."
"I dare not. Compared with your highness's glorious feat of pacifying the seven Shatu tribes and the Heijie tribe with the power of one county, I can be considered mediocre in Huanzhou!" Lin Zitong said cautiously, without a trace of pride on her face.
Among the six governors, although Lin Zitong seemed calm on the surface, he was actually the most nervous one among the crowd, because he had no idea what kind of tacit understanding and compromise between Yan Liqiang and the governors of other states that could make those governors completely side with Yan Liqiang. It was precisely because he didn't know and didn't understand the interests involved and felt that he had suddenly become an outsider that Lin Zitong was nervous and uneasy. In the eyes of outsiders, the scene at this moment was a meeting between the King of Pingxi and the six governors of their states, but in Lin Zitong's perception, the scene here was a meeting between the King of Pingxi and the governors of the five northwestern states. Except for him, everyone else here was in the same group. With such a combination of forces, he would not be able to contend even if he was given five surrounding states, so he could only come obediently this time. Before coming, he had left a will to his family and arranged his funeral.
Yan Liqiang instantly knew what Lin Zitong was thinking, thanks to the power of the Mind Snake. He just laughed dumbly, looked around, and said to everyone, "I heard that the journey from various states to Qiyun County was quite lively, and the people along the way were excited and vied to escort you?"
"I didn't expect that you knew this!" Gu Tong'an sighed deeply and said with some genuine emotion, "I have been a governor for so many years, and I usually have a lot of ceremonial guards when I go out. But this time, on this journey of thousands of miles, I really felt what it felt like to be welcomed and escorted by the people. Along the way, the people along the way took the initiative to send me wine and meat. The local wealthy families and officials and the people came to greet me and sent me off. There was an endless procession of ceremonial guards. Such courtesy is unheard of. The other adults also encountered the same thing along the way. It is really touching..."
"Master Gu is right. It is our responsibility to make the Northwest prosperous and stable and avoid internal friction. It is also the wish of hundreds of millions of people in the Northwest. Your actions today are in line with the will of heaven and the will of the people. They have avoided a catastrophe. It can be said that your merits are immeasurable and will be remembered by the world in the future!"
“Your Highness is too polite. Without Your Highness, the six northwestern states would be in disarray and would not be as prosperous as they are today. To be honest, it is all thanks to Your Highness…” Wang Yushu was also smiling and patting Yan Liqiang’s horse.
"That's it!" The two governors next to him also said politely.
After the group met and exchanged greetings on the official road, Yan Liqiang took the six provincial governors directly, riding on rhinoceros horses, and returned to Pingxi City while chatting.
Compared to the outside of the city, Pingxi City was more lively. When the seven people entered the city, there were clean water sprinkled on the road, flowers spread on the ground, and people cheered, making it even more lively.
Everyone went directly to the reception hall of the palace. After the guests and hosts were seated, Yan Liqiang clapped his hands, and the six guards from the palace each carried a tray covered with a silver cover to the table in front of the six governors, and then withdrew.
Several provincial governors looked at each other in bewilderment. Even Lei Sitong didn't know what Yan Liqiang had arranged.
"Sir, this is..." Gu Tongan asked carefully.
"You will know once you open it..."
The six governors looked at each other, opened the tray covered with a silver cover, and then found what seemed to be a written contract under the tray.
Lin Zitong carefully opened the document in front of her, and after reading the contents clearly, she was stunned.
The written contract was a land deed, which marked out 200,000 mu of meritorious fields and grasslands on the Gulang grassland and put them in the names of several governors. According to the contract, the 200,000 mu of meritorious fields and grasslands were a dead deed that could not be traded or transferred, and could only be inherited by the families and descendants of the governors.
Two hundred thousand mu of grassland? Even someone like Gu Tongan couldn't help but feel dizzy when he saw the words and diagrams on the deed. He couldn't help but swallow his saliva. This was really a huge fortune. With the current wool market, the annual income of these two hundred thousand mu of grassland is definitely a huge number. If a family has such an inheritance, then the descendants will have a real guarantee of wealth and prosperity...
The blood-red seal of the Pingxi Palace and Yan Liqiang's signature on the contract were particularly eye-catching.
“I have said before that what you are doing today is in line with the will of heaven and the will of the people. It will avoid a catastrophe in the northwest and can be said to be of immeasurable merit. These 200,000 acres of grassland are the gift I give to you on behalf of hundreds of millions of people in the northwest. As long as I, Yan Liqiang, and my descendants of the Yan family are rich and prosperous for one day, you and your descendants will be rich and prosperous for one day…” Yan Liqiang looked at the governors and said seriously.
Gu Tongan and his brothers looked at each other with complicated expressions. At this moment, they were already like fish on Yan Liqiang's chopping board and could not move at all. They could only nod their heads to whatever Yan Liqiang said. They never thought that Yan Liqiang would prepare such a valuable gift for them that could benefit their descendants and families. If they were officials in the court, even if they were governors for ten lifetimes, they would not be able to get such a large reward and salary. And in terms of means, Yan Liqiang was ten or a hundred times more ruthless than the court.
Who would dare to have any disloyalty to a man whose means are ten or a hundred times stronger than those of the imperial court? If you submit to the imperial court, you are also a governor with the emperor above you. If you submit to the King of Pingxi, you are also a governor with the King of Pingxi above you. What's the difference? In such a chaotic world, perhaps under the command of such a man, your fate might be better!
At this point, the rebellious thoughts in the hearts of the governors were extinguished at once. Gu Tongan was the first to stand up from his chair, tears streaming down his face. He bowed deeply to Yan Liqiang, and was completely convinced. "Gu Tongan will follow your orders from now on..."
(End of this chapter)