Chapter 838: A Great Harvest

Unlike Liaodong in spring, Liaodong in autumn is far more beautiful.

From Suizhong northward, fields lined both sides of the road; when the wind blew, the millet ears swayed with it. There were also vast wheat fields, embodying the very image of wind sweeping over wheat waves.

People labored in the fields and at their edges; men were the main workforce, some wielding sickles, others without sickles making do with long army blades. Young women, eight out of ten visibly pregnant, performed tasks within their ability like binding sheaves. Young children trailed behind, dragging bamboo baskets to gather scattered grain, while occasionally chasing away birds that were also enjoying the harvest.

Older children, whose fathers might be soldiers—specifically archers or logistics troops—had obtained discarded bowstrings to make slingshots for them. These children were capable too; picking up small stones from the ground, closing one eye, aiming for a few breaths, then releasing, instantly a unlucky bird in the distance would tumble down, unable to fly again.

Immediately, the child would scamper over to retrieve it; once enough were gathered, several children, under the envious gazes of others, would run to the riverbank to pluck feathers and clean them, gather some firewood, and roast the meat to eat. With mouths blackened from eating, they would return to work, continuing to seek opportunities to hunt birds for meat.

No one paid them any mind; it was good that they could find meat for themselves. Besides, there were no animal protection laws; otherwise, the first one to be executed would be the Great General. These children were still young, the oldest no more than five or six, an age where they could work but not extensively; gathering scattered grain and hunting a bird or two for meat mattered little, as long as they didn't cause trouble.

Those slightly older, children of seven, eight, or nine, were different; they gritted their teeth and worked hard, with nearly everyone's workload maxed out...

A caravan of over ten thousand people and more than a thousand carts moved slowly northward, passing Linyu, going through Suizhong, heading straight for Tuhe City.

In a carriage located in the middle of the column, the curtain was lifted, revealing a petite and lovely little girl with large, watery eyes that were truly endearing. Leaning against the window, her big eyes were filled with novelty.

Traveling north for several months, passing through several commanderies, the farmers by the roadside all watched them cautiously; some even hid far away, daring not to approach.

But here was different; after being suppressed all along the way, the soldiers disguised as ordinary household guards were now chatting and laughing cheerfully. Some seemed to know the families by the road, calling out greetings. Even some children, fearless, ran over to follow the caravan, asking all sorts of questions. Of course, the people by the roadside were ultimately a minority; most were still in the fields farther away, heads down working hard, glancing only briefly from afar before pretending they saw nothing and continuing their labor.

Moreover, the biggest difference was that people elsewhere mostly had a sallow complexion, whereas the people here clearly possessed more vitality and spirit, undoubtedly eating much better.

She knew that all this was accomplished by a man named Wang Yan. Born a commoner, he joined the Huang Jin rebellion that plunged the country into chaos, gathered remnant troops in Zhuo Commandery to plot northward, and began to develop and expand from Anci. Afterwards, he swept through the populations of Yuyang, Youbeiping, and Liaoxi Commanderies, killing officials, slaughtering powerful clans, plundering grain and treasures, and marching north to Liaodong. At the Battle of Changli, he decisively defeated twenty thousand Wuhuan troops; in the battle that settled Liaodong, he fought across a thousand li, crushing a combined Wuhuan-Han army of over fifty thousand.

He was proficient in creation; white glass was sought after by powerful clans, and he further improved Cai Hou Paper, remedying its defects, facilitating cursive script, and replacing bamboo slips. Furthermore, there was the so-called printing technique, which pressed characters onto white paper to compile books. A single book contained ten times the characters of a bamboo slip.

She had also heard that he harbored great ambitions, wishing to leverage the benefits of white paper printing to greatly promote culture and education. Thus, he sent the Zhen clan to the Wu region to seek Cai Yong, intending to welcome Cai Yong north and take Cai Yong's daughter as a wife. However, Cai Yong's daughter had already been betrothed to the Wei clan. At that time, the envoy was very polite, but stated that the Great General had ordered that anyone who obstructed this could be killed.

Driven out by Cai Yong, the envoy did not use force. A second visit followed, still recounting Wang Yan's ambitions, desiring to build a library, appoint Cai Yong as its head, teach and nurture students, and greatly promote culture and education. Yet Cai Yong refused again, stating he would not serve a traitor to the Han.

On the third visit, Zhen Sheng of the Zhen clan arrived personally bearing books. Upon seeing them, Cai Yong was overjoyed. Zhen Sheng then spoke of Wang Yan's ambitions, describing his deep planning and foresight, his breadth of mind and depth of character; he also spoke of the ailments of the Han court, and further stated, 'China belongs to the vast multitude of its people; the Han court, lacking the Dao, has failed the people; now the people shall rule.' These were truly words that would bring calamity for a thousand years. Although delighted by the new books, Cai Yong pondered deeply for a long time and still did not wish to go.

That day, two hundred Yellow Turbans entered Cai Yong's temporary residence, bound the entire family, and led them out of the city. Three days later, Cai Yong's immense collection of books was also transported out of the city by cart, merging with the caravan to journey north together.

Why was she so clear about all this? Because she was Cai Yan!

She watched as the army, posing as rebellious refugees, entered their home in an orderly fashion. Without a word, they directly bound her father, then ordered her, her younger sister, and all the female family members to board the carts themselves. Her father took only his Jiaowei zither with him, nothing else; later, soldiers searched their house from inside out, taking everything they could. Thus, they were forced to come to Liaodong.

Gazing at the scenery outside the carriage, Cai Yan couldn't help but wonder: what kind of person would he be...

In this era, women had no choice. Even though Cai Yong had no sons and thus had to show his daughters slightly more affection, marriage was inevitable. Now, facing Wang Yan, a warlord controlling one region, who shamelessly dispatched three thousand soldiers southward, there was no choice but to agree. So although Cai Yan's heart was certainly extremely resistant, it was useless; unless she committed suicide, she could not decide her own fate.

Even regarding suicide, she did not dare. Regardless of whether she had the courage, she had to consider Cai Yong; if she killed herself and enraged Wang Yan, the Cai family would surely not survive.

Therefore, with no other option, how could she do anything but hope that Wang Yan would be a satisfactory husband to her heart, however unlikely...

The thoughts of a young girl mattered to no one. The caravan did not stop, marching grandly straight toward Tuhe. During this process, the refugees and defeated Huang Jin soldiers who had followed them all along were taken over by civil officials and marching simas; they were already very familiar with this, having a set of highly standardized procedures, with everyone performing their respective duties.

Only upon reaching Tuhe did the number of people in the caravan dwindle, until finally only the soldiers serving as cart drivers and the group including Zhen Sheng remained. This time, Zhen Sheng handled it personally; naturally, he had to come along as well. One must do the job thoroughly so that leadership knows...

At the city gate of Tuhe, Cai Yan was called down from the carriage. Holding her sister's hand, she followed the group of female relatives and her father forward, finally meeting the man who had forcibly bound her entire family and brought them here.

From a distance, he looked cheerful, giving an impression of gentleness and generosity. Dressed loosely in a dark green silk long robe, with a white jade hairpin in his hair, and not even wearing a sword, he simply stood there naturally, yet exuded a lazy, casual sense of approachability.

He was neither tall nor strong, lacking any martial general's imposing presence. It was easy to doubt whether this person was the fierce general who once alone held off three attackers beneath the walls of Lingzhi City. But strangely, just by standing there, he possessed an immovable, mountain-like confidence and power.

His deep eyes seemed to pierce through worldly affairs. Even though he had grown a short beard, one could still see a youthfulness that did not match his demeanor. Looking at him felt strange, creating a sense of dissonance. Powerful yet weak, steady yet frivolous, truly a strange person.

Ah! Cai Yan, blinking her big eyes while stealing a glance, quickly lowered her head when she saw Wang Yan's gaze sweep over, her little heart pounding thump-thump...

Chuckling, Wang Yan pretended to hurry forward a couple of steps, clasped his hands, and bowed, saying, "Wang Yan pays respects to Lord Cai. Lord Cai, possessing great righteousness, has come north to the bitter cold lands of Liaodong; Yan is infinitely grateful. Since you have traveled far, weary from boat and carriage, Yan has prepared a separate courtyard. Please rest well today; tomorrow, a grand banquet will welcome you."

"I dare not accept the courtesy of the Marquis of Liao; I possess no great righteousness. It was you who forcibly plundered and brought me here; why this hypocritical display?" Old Cai blew on his beard and glared, expressing strong dissatisfaction.

Cai Yong was fifty-two this year. Although his hair was white and hung down, he still bound his hair and wore a crown, every inch of him meticulous, maintaining the demeanor of a scholar-official. He was somewhat plump, a result of old age, possessing quite an air of dignity. His appearance differed from ordinary people; not ugly, yet not handsome, very memorable for this distinctiveness. Combined with his current temper-tantrum demeanor, it was still somewhat amusing.

Wang Yan smiled and waved his hand, suppressing the words Zhen Sheng was about to speak.

Although everyone in their hearts knew the truth, putting on a show was still very important; it demonstrated attitude. Therefore, the normal procedure at this moment should be for Zhen Sheng to plead guilty, saying he privately used military force to bind the entire Cai family and bring them to Liaodong. Then Wang Yan, as the leader, would criticize him in a proper manner, claiming ignorance of such matters, then hypocritically apologize to Cai Yong, express regret, and speak soothing words, muddling through the situation.

However, Great General Wang dared to act and take responsibility; he disdained such face-saving performances where everyone knew the truth yet still spoke nonsense. When he came to welcome them earlier, he certainly would not mention this matter; if Old Cai didn't speak up and just swallowed his anger, it would have passed. Now that Old Cai had explicitly stated it, there was definitely no need to engage in useless formalities, even less necessity.

The Great General laughed and said, "Lord Cai considers me a thief. After inviting you once, twice, and thrice without success, I had no choice but to adopt this inferior strategy. Meng Guang should have spoken to you of my ambitions and shown you the new books. Having exhausted all good words, what else could I do? If not for this, how could you have come to this place?"

"Your actions are not those of a hero or a true man. I have heard your name all along the way; now that I see you, your reputation exceeds the reality."

The reputation Cai Yong spoke of was actually orchestrated by the Zhen clan. Otherwise, given the transportation and communication conditions of this time, once you went ten li away, who would know who you were? Moreover, regardless of how Wang Yan was, except for those at the very top, who cared? What did Wang Yan's capabilities have to do with ordinary people?

This operation of building fame was a specialty of powerful clans. If not for this, how would those previous Yellow Turbans, who had fled into mountain gullies to become bandits, possibly know who Wang Yan was?

The Zhen clan traded everywhere, telling everyone about Wang Yan of Liaodong: how at Lingzhi City he alone fought three peerless fierce generals, how he treated the people with leniency, how his medical skills were superb, how he manufactured white glass, and so on. In short, for things that weren't true, they spoke vaguely; for things that did happen, they exaggerated. The wider, more miraculous, and better the spread, the better.

"Those burdened by excessive fame, no matter how loud the name of 'hero' or 'true man' rings, are merely mediocre. Only those who laugh last are the victors. Dying early with unfulfilled ambitions, even if one is the greatest hero or true man, what use is there? Lord Cai, I do not know what happens after death; what does reputation have to do with me? Now I only know that Liaodong needs your assistance; you must come, you have no choice."

Bullying words, yet spoken with such righteous solemnity; truly shameless...

Cai Yong laughed in extreme anger: "My coming here was indeed your forced abduction. My fourth daughter has already been betrothed to the Wei clan of Hedong; how can you do such a thing? It is all reliance on military strength. I truly have no power to resist and could only come here; do not think I will serve you!"

"Lord Cai, do not speak in anger. Now that you are here, how things will be done, can you really decide?"

Wang Yan laughed heartily. "Lord Cai has long enjoyed a great reputation as a great Confucian scholar of the age. Tomorrow, Meng Guang will widely announce that Lord Cai resides peacefully in Liaodong; scholars from under heaven will surely come here to study under you. Will you not transmit the Dao? Furthermore, I wish to greatly promote culture and education and broadly open the people's wisdom, teaching young children their introductory studies. No one but you is competent for such a task. With such a great matter, how can you, due to personal grievance, hinder the great undertaking of promoting culture and opening the people's wisdom?"

"How can you bully me to this extent?"

"Lord Cai is mistaken; it is not I bullying you, but rather the hope of the myriad people and the Mandate of Heaven instructing you to bear this heavy responsibility."

While speaking, Wang Yan smiled cheerfully, spread his hand open at his side, and a guard behind him deftly presented a long object. Taking it in hand, Wang Yan snapped the fan open to show Cai Yong. "Lord Cai, please look. This fan has a bamboo bone and paper surface; it can generate wind and also serve as an item of elegance for literati. I casually conceived and made it during the summer heat, only completing it recently. This fan is the first folding fan of the current age."

"I have long heard that Lord Cai excels in the way of calligraphy. This fan surface is plain white, perfect for your brush to embellish; this fan will surely be recorded in history. I now present this fan to you as a meeting gift; I hope you will accept it with a smile."

"Hmph." Old Cai gave a cold snort, snatched the fan with a swift hand, fiddled with it, and walked toward the city, displaying a touch of tsundere pride.

Wang Yan was not annoyed; having forcibly brought someone over, expecting them to show a good face was indeed excessive. Moreover, it wasn't just forced abduction; he also intended to forcibly marry Cai Yan, causing Cai Yong to lose righteousness toward the Wei clan and ruining Old Cai's reputation; it would be strange if he were happy. For his father-in-law, no matter how awesome Great General Wang was, he had to show some goodwill.

He smiled cheerfully at Cai Yan: "You are now eleven; in my territory, marriage is permitted only at eighteen. Wait another seven years. Henceforth, whatever you need, you may come to seek me."

"What about me? What about me?" Nine-year-old Cai Li seemed even more active, and perhaps a bit ignorant of propriety.

Wang Yan laughed heartily, rubbed her head, and said, "You just wait nine years."

Having said this, he raised an eyebrow at Cai Yan, then waved his hand to beckon everyone into the city.

Flirting with a minor was somewhat problematic. No matter how beautiful Cai Yan was, she was still just a good-looking little kid. Although the situation was different in this era, the developmental status wasn't much different.

It was just teasing for fun, nothing more.

Of course, women were certainly not lacking; although no daughters of powerful clans were betrothed to him, even the Zhen clan, who had already settled a marriage alliance, had sent women over. According to his rules, they were all eighteen-year-old beauties, numbering in the dozens. Apart from keeping two whom he had seen and approved of to attend to his daily life, the remaining women were bestowed upon his subordinate officers and soldiers.

Such matters are the same in ancient and modern times. Once strength is in place, there are always people eager to offer it up...

Cai Yong's visit brought quite a lot of goods, but the most important were books. Old Cai possessed a vast collection; describing his learning as "rich enough to fill five wagons" would be somewhat insulting, for he alone had over a hundred wagons full of books. There were also numerous miscellaneous antiques and curiosities, amounting to several dozen more wagons.

Wang Yan took no interest in the curiosities. Most were from over two hundred years ago, dating back to before Wu Di, all the way to the Spring and Autumn and Warring States periods. They were items dug up by tomb raiders to be sold for money; since they could not survive on the surface, they naturally sought sustenance underground.

Tomb raiding was not Old Cao's original invention. What he originated was large-scale, organized, and highly professional tomb-raiding operations, which could hardly be called mere tomb raiding. After all, he was, to a certain extent, an official entity. The difference from modern times was simply that Old Cao did not conduct archaeological verification; he just dug things up to sell for money to fund military expenses.

As for Cai Yong's book collection, Wang Yan took a liking to that, having it directly transported and stored near the Academy. Since preparations began for constructing the Library, the Academy had not expanded further. They were simply waiting to slowly reprint books, so that once the Library was completed, it could be filled to the brim.

After all, Cai Yong was the librarian of the Library; it mattered little where the books were placed.

The house he prepared for Cai Yong's family was also excellent, roughly equivalent to a three-courtyard compound. The rooms featured underfloor heating, large floor-to-ceiling windows, and all necessary living amenities were already in place. It was no different from what Wang Yan used himself, representing the highest level of courtesy.

Just as he had told Cai Yong, with Old Cai's addition, Wang Yan hardly needed to do anything himself. Simply knowing Old Cai was there would naturally draw a vast number of traveling scholars from the south. Moreover, he was constructing the Library, had even ordered Zhen Sheng to connect with the Ten Attendants to execute the plan of emptying the Han Court's book collection, and was actively collecting books from powerful clans. It could almost be said that he was gathering all the books under heaven.

Such an open Library, in this era, was nothing short of an ocean of knowledge. For people of this age who were devoted to learning, its attraction was immense.

With so many intellectuals arriving, they would naturally exchange ideas, leading to scholarly debates and disputes between schools of thought, reigniting literary contention. This, in turn, would be a huge attraction for scholars from other regions.

On the other hand, the arts of papermaking and printing were not so easily cracked. Although targeted specialization would certainly shorten the time required, it would not be achieved in a short while. Even if achieved, the quality would be impossible to compare with Wang Yan's.

Therefore, for a long period, if Wang Yan did not publicly reveal the arts of papermaking and printing, he would hold the lifeline of culture: publishing and distribution.

Once the scholarly struggles in Liaodong began, the superiority of their culture would emerge. People love fame; who does not wish for their propositions, theories, and thoughts to spread widely and be passed down to posterity? The only place capable of doing this was Liaodong. This meant they had grasped control of the Han's cultural sphere. How great this benefit was went without saying.

Moreover, with so many intellectuals coming to Liaodong, did they really think they could leave?

With the struggle for hegemony in the late Han beginning, peace was hard to find anywhere. Liaodong was considered a paradise, complete with a cultural atmosphere. Would they be willing to leave? It was easy to imagine that many would even bring their families over to seek safety in these chaotic times.

Even if they still wished to leave, General Wang Da would step forward to brainwash them. With a speech on national righteousness and duty, eighty percent would stay to work together on great undertakings.

If they still insisted on leaving, Wang Yan certainly would not stop them. Losing a few people meant nothing. He definitely could not kill them; at this time, he needed to cultivate a reputation for virtue. Otherwise, if no one came to join him in the future, that would be terrible. He could not always resort to binding people.

While these intellectuals pursued learning in Liaodong, they would inevitably incur expenses. Famous figures certainly lacked no money, but how many were truly famous? How many were from powerful clans? The majority were fallen families of the poor gentry, who could not afford the costs. After all, Wang Yan's domain had no arrangements for powerful clans or wealthy households to make advance investments.

Therefore, these people were the best teachers. Having them educate young children and teach advanced learning was perfectly suitable. The cost to them was merely a small amount of money, grain, and fine stationery.

Furthermore, ancient intellectuals valued general knowledge. Being able to wield a sword and fight single combat was the most basic quality. Additionally, a significant portion of them possessed medical skills, understood celestial phenomena, knew the I Ching, were familiar with geography, and mastered various arts of creation, each having at least a couple of unique skills. This was the continuation of the Hundred Schools of Thought, still being passed down.

With these people, if Wang Yan simply demonstrated his emphasis on these matters, provided institutional support, and bound these activities to national strategy and personal prospects, these people would naturally take them seriously. They would naturally specialize, naturally begin to summarize and conclude, thereby achieving the self-reform and cultural revolution Wang Yan desired, one that occurred without his direct interference. Following existing threads, they would develop a different set of things.

All the above benefits were brought by Cai Yong, the great Confucian scholar of this age. Although things could be accomplished without Cai Yong, it would have wasted much more time.

It was a good deed that made everyone happy except for Old Cai alone...

Cai Yong's family had settled in. Zhen Sheng had not yet begun his operations, and with winter approaching, it would be at least next year before scholars arrived from the south.

So, Cai Yong's family found themselves idle. Old Cai maintained his old habits: occasionally playing the zither, writing large characters on the paper Wang Yan had sent, or reading bamboo slips he had retrieved from the Academy that he had not yet read. From time to time, he would walk around inside and outside the city, sometimes even taking soldiers with him to visit other county towns to inspect the reality of Wang Yan's governance.

Cai Yan, accompanied by her younger sister Cai Li, played everywhere inside and outside the city, in the fields and along the roads, or read freely. She was a talented lady with considerable talent. Occasionally, she would come to the Academy to fetch books, meet Wang Yan, and discuss learning, music, and other topics with him, living in peace.

Old Cai was unwilling to see Wang Yan; every time they met, he wore a sour expression, blowing his beard and glaring. Wang Yan, however, quite enjoyed teasing Old Cai, treating it as amusement. But now, he had no time to attend to Cai Yong, his future father-in-law and mascot, because it was the time of the autumn harvest.

This was an autumn of great harvest.

Of course, with the current grain yield, it was certainly impossible for the people under his rule to eat their fill for a whole year. But compared to last winter, when the people had to survive on two bowls of thin porridge a day, the people under his rule this year could eat something thicker. The regular army could all eat their fill, sustained by self-produced grain.

In addition, breeding conditions had improved. The chickens, ducks, geese, cattle, and sheep in several large breeding farms had increased. Of course, it was still not enough to eat, and in fact, they could not be eaten. Only Wang Yan had achieved the freedom to eat various meats, with a small supply reserved for the army to supplement their oil and fat.

Even egg production was not very high. To provide for the common people, it would still take two years. By that time, chickens, ducks, and geese would be sold to the people so they could raise them themselves.

Regardless, from today on, Liaodong could be considered self-sufficient.

Moreover, Wang Yan had not stopped the trade of grain from powerful clans, storing grain and filling the granaries.

The salt fields he established in Pingguo were already producing. Most of the output was coarse salt, with only a small amount of fine salt sold to powerful clans in exchange for grain and coarse salt. Overall, he used fine salt to subsidize Liaodong's salt needs, no longer being cut by the powerful clans' salt taxes.

Most importantly, cotton had also been harvested. However, the yield was not high. He made two sets of cotton jackets, trousers, shoes, and quilts for himself, and similarly two sets each for Old Cai and his two daughters.

The remainder was all made into cotton clothes and shoes, provided from top to bottom to the mid-to-high leadership of Liao Hua's Brave Cavalry Guard. There was no more beyond that.

However, this year, more seeds were harvested. By next year, there would certainly be even more. In another two or three years, it would be possible to arm over thirty thousand regular soldiers; the future was promising.

Meanwhile, the opening of economic activities under his rule, which Wang Yan had previously considered, began to be implemented alongside the autumn harvest.

The land tax for the people under his rule was one-tenth of the harvest. He had introduced paper money, issuing currency based on the statistical total grain output and grain prices. Then, according to the grain prices he set for his domain, he used money to buy grain from the people and store it in the granaries.

However, although the people trusted the General, they were terrified of poverty and hunger, a lingering shadow. Therefore, very few people sold their grain. Wang Yan, however, did not mind. The money was printed first; he did the same with powerful clans. After all, he held a monopoly on trade, so he was not worried about them refusing the money.

As for the people's grain, they would certainly sell it next autumn. Letting them keep the grain in their hands also served to reassure them; they would not eat it. Even if they did, it would only be a little thicker than last year's porridge. The rest would be stored, so that if something major happened, they could endure for a longer time.

This was a very normal thing; once the grain was completely harvested, it would be fine.

The shipbuilding craftsmen that Wang Yan had previously instructed Zhen Sheng to find had long been brought over, and the design of large seafaring ships had begun. Once construction was completed and inspections confirmed no problems, they would set sail to find superior seeds and return. This was estimated to take over ten years.

No problem. Everything was improving, flourishing, and the future was long...