Guo Huai thought about his father's approach and taught Liu Zhuang what to do.
"Hedong, Hedong... In Hedong County, there are three most prominent families: the Wei family of Anyi, the Jia family of Xiangling, and the Pei family of Wenxi.
You make friends with the three noble families, make friends with them, use the power of the governor to promote people from these three families to be officials, build your cadre team, put some of your most loyal people in, and then you can lie down and relax. "
"what?"
Liu Zhuang was a little surprised. So simple?
"It's not as complicated as you think. County magistrates and prefects are unstable officials. God knows how many days, months, or years you work for, and you may be promoted or demoted for various reasons.
In order to avoid the turmoil caused by frequent changes of officials, the people who really do the work in every county are the subordinate clerks - these clerks can read and write, which also means that they are all born into aristocratic families, or at least from humble backgrounds, or like Gongsun Zan, the illegitimate daughter of a wealthy family, and have a stable job here all their lives.
They are the ones who are in charge of every county and every prefecture, so no matter what you do in Hedong, don't offend the noble families and petty officials, and your position as prefect will be secure."
Guo Huai was very familiar with the official atmosphere of the Han Dynasty.
"To put it bluntly, you are a governor who changes with time, while they are the permanent masters. You are just a seal in the shape of a human flesh."
"Well, Boji, I'm about to take up my post in Hedong. Do you want to follow me or go back to Bingzhou?"
After talking about all the work that the prefect would face, Liu Zhuang asked again.
"I...may have to go back to Bingzhou. Your White Horse Camp now belongs to the Hedong Order, so there is no reason for me to supervise your army. This time I've been away from home for nine months. I've never been away from home for such a long time. I want to go back and see my parents."
Guo Huai's expression was somewhat gloomy. Liu Zhuang was a first-class commoner who had climbed up to the position of prefect from a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood. He had fought side by side with him the whole time. Seeing this man climb all the way from a farmer to a prefect, it was really hard not to be tempted, but he was married... Damn it, if he had come earlier, what would Lü Bu and Tuoba Yun, two mud-legged people, do to fight against his family? They were concubines at most!
"We have fought side by side for nine months, sharing weal and woe. Now we all have our own territory, finally a piece of paradise. Don't you want to go to Hedong with me? Has anyone in the camp hurt your feelings? Your father is the governor, and I am also the governor. I can give you the official position your father gave you."
Liu Zhuang panicked when he saw that his casual question had revealed Guo Huai's intention to leave him.
"Yan Sheng, I returned to my hometown not because of my official position..."
Guo Huai was a little irritated and aggrieved. His face turned red and pale. He didn't even dare to look at Liu Zhuang. He lowered his head and fiddled with a ring. I was imagining you and your wife being intimate outside the tent. My heart was about to break! Nine months! Do you know how I spent these nine months? !
With his excellent vision, Liu Zhuang had already noticed the abnormality in Guo Huai's expression - huh? Why did she look like that?
The ring she was fiddling with was a reward given to her by him personally after she won the great victory at Changshan Pass and made her first military achievement. Add to that the two blushes on her cheeks, the resentful look, and the red lips with teeth marks...
Liu Zhuang thought very calmly for a while. Guo Huai was the most gentle and generous one among the noble families he had ever met. He could even play well with the peasants in Baimaying. He was so beautiful that he seemed like a beauty walked out of an ancient painting. The nine months of living together day and night and fighting side by side were unforgettable. Some things, once missed, are really missed.
After figuring everything out, Liu Zhuang solemnly held Guo Huai's hands and swore an oath next to the boiling teapot.
"If Boji doesn't abandon you, I am willing to pay a large sum of money and marry you as my second wife. I am willing to live with you as an equal for the rest of my life, grow old together, and spend the rest of my life together. This matter is also recorded in ancient books. It is said in Zhuangzi that Duke Ling had three wives. There were also cases of second wives in the Western Han Dynasty."
"Ugh?"
Guo Huai was stunned for a moment. He did not expect Liu Zhuang to propose to him suddenly. His dignified and elegant face quickly turned red like a ripe apple. He was so frightened that he did not know what to do.
Liu Zhuang's sudden proposal made this arrogant eldest daughter of aristocratic family completely at a loss as to how to respond.
Accept it. Doesn't that prove that I like him very much?
Refuse it. This is my last chance. I will be 17 next year. When I return to Bingzhou this time, my father will probably arrange a marriage for me immediately.
Some things are missed, and they are really missed.
As for the punishment for polygamy in the Han Dynasty, it was more like a limiter.
It was already terrible for the aristocratic families to marry each other and form in-laws. If they could marry multiple wives, an incredibly large network of interests would be formed between the aristocratic families in a matter of minutes. That was why the Han Dynasty specifically restricted polygamy, and those who violated the rules would even be deprived of their titles and official positions - after all, it was impossible for these prominent young ladies from aristocratic families to be humble concubines.
However, this error correction mechanism does not apply to Liu Zhuang. His other two wives were a small Xianbei chieftain, a civilian merchant woman and a small military officer, and the last one was a girl from an aristocratic family. No one is bothered by this. We are concerned about the random marriages between aristocratic families.
Guo Huai was in a state of panic and tried to break free, but the strength of a little Confucian scholar like her was not enough to break free from Liu Zhuang's strong hands. Looking closely, his handsome face was extremely determined, as if he had made up his mind, just like his expression every time he went to war, without a trace of joking.
"me……"
Guo Huai's heart beat faster and his breathing became disordered. His beautiful breasts hidden in the snow-white Confucian robes rose high with his heavy breathing, then fell slightly, drawing lovely arcs in the air. His usual dignity and composure had all disappeared, leaving only endless shyness. His heart was pounding with extreme excitement, and the shackles of reason gradually collapsed. It took him a long time to regain his composure.
"Promise me three things first! As long as you agree to all of them, I will reluctantly marry you!"
Guo Huai blushed, and he mustered up all his courage to say these words.
"First of all, I want you to marry me in a formal way, and all the procedures and rules of the marriage shall be carried out according to the top standards of the aristocratic family! After all, I am the eldest daughter of the Yangqu Guo family, and my marriage must be dignified!
I know that the money the court gave you was distributed to the officers. If the money is not enough, I have saved a lot of money on weekdays, and I can give it to you now. But in the eyes of other outsiders, you must marry me with the top standards of aristocratic families!"
Guo Huai said with a red face.
"Of course. I saved a lot of money fighting the Yellow Turbans. Although I distributed the 100 gold coins awarded by the Han Emperor to the soldiers, the remaining money should be enough."
Liu Zhuang nodded in agreement.
"Second, I want you to learn the etiquette of the aristocratic family from me honestly. Since you want to marry me, then learn all the etiquette with me! Then you can go to my house to propose marriage."
"no problem."
Liu Zhuang agreed immediately. What was there to disagree with? He was now a prefect. He could have ignored such etiquette and rules before, but now he had to learn them seriously.
"Third, even if I agree, my father may not agree. Once things are settled in Hedong and you have learned all the etiquette, you can come back with me to Yanmen and propose marriage to my father and the elders of the family. No matter how many difficulties we encounter, we must face them together! I will not give up on you, and you can't give up on me!"
Looking at Guo Huai's unusually solemn and blushing face, Liu Zhuang thought for a moment and directly used the folk songs of the Han Dynasty to express his determination on this matter.
"The mountains have no peaks, the rivers have dried up. In winter the thunder roars, in summer it snows. Only when heaven and earth unite, will I dare to break off with you."
The author says:
Author's words: More chapters for every 1650 monthly tickets!
Chapter 112: First Love
Seeing Liu Zhuang making such a romantic vow using poetry from the Han Dynasty Yuefu, Guo Huai was so excited that he couldn't help himself and unconsciously moved closer to Liu Zhuang. After establishing the relationship, there was no need to maintain the previous reserve. The two of them moved closer and closer involuntarily, and could even feel each other's hot breath on their faces.
Guo Huai blushed, and carefully tilted his nose to the side, and gently kissed Liu Zhuang's lips with his pink lips, and then immediately retracted, like a frightened bird. Is this what a kiss feels like? It feels good.
Liu Zhuang gently embraced her and kissed her back passionately. Their four red lips pressed tightly together, and their two red tongues teased and entangled each other between their lips and teeth, making Guo Huai feel hot all over. He subconsciously hugged Liu Zhuang's strong body tightly, and the two of them hugged each other tightly. Their soft breasts rubbed against his hard chest. Guo Huai subconsciously twisted and turned in his hot arms, and his neat clothes were messed up.
I don’t know how long it was, the two of them kept kissing until both of them had difficulty breathing, and lustful lines of water were drawn between their two red tongues.
Liu Zhuang was also aroused at this moment. His hands restlessly rubbed Guo Huai's slender waist, slowly climbed up the two tender snow-capped peaks, and gently lifted up a pair of jade breasts through the expensive brocade, then slightly put it down, letting it shake in the air in seductive arcs.
The unprecedented strong stimulation immediately woke Guo Huai up from his intoxication, and he grabbed Liu Zhuang's restless hand.
"Stop, stop! Isn't what's coming next something that can only be done in the bridal chamber? I'm not some lowly singing girl or concubine. I'm the legitimate daughter of Yangqu Guo!"
Guo Huai looked at his disheveled appearance, even exposing his breasts, and blushed even more. Oh my God, what did I just do? An extremely strong sense of betrayal instantly surged into his heart, but he still couldn't break the shackles of education from childhood to adulthood, and really took that step, refusing to take the next step.
"Okay, okay, let's talk about it after I marry you. Then kissing is still okay."
"Well, this is fine."
Guo Huai blushed and nodded slightly. Liu Zhuang rushed over again, held this classical beauty in his arms and kissed her deeply. She collapsed in Liu Zhuang's arms like water, unable to lift a finger. They lingered for a long time before they said goodbye reluctantly with lip marks on their faces.
After getting married to Guo Huai, Liu Zhuang immediately went back to the camp to explain to his two wives to avoid misunderstanding. Lu Bu was not jealous this time. After all, Guo Huai was his sister. They had fought together and had a better background than the bunch of inexplicable singing girls and dancers sent by Dong Zhuo. So he just married her.
But that night, the two women still expressed their little dissatisfaction with practical actions. Lu Bu asked to be on top again and rode directly on Liu Zhuang's waist. His smooth and firm buttocks sat on Liu Zhuang's thighs. The amazing elasticity and softness made people unable to stop.
With her slender jade hands, she held the long spear and slowly pushed open the pink nipples, going deep into the deep cave among the mountains. Then she shook her delicate buttocks in a huff, grinding the long spear that penetrated her flesh. The two proudly erect breasts on her chest cast a huge shadow on Liu Zhuang's body.
After a while, when Liu Zhuang slapped her buttocks with one hand and kneaded her clitoris with the other, he launched a fierce attack on several of her sensitive points. Although Lu Bu was overwhelmed by the happiness, she still gritted her teeth and insisted on riding on Liu Zhuang and refused to get off, even though waves of happiness hit her mind like a tide, pushing her consciousness high into the sky several times, and her delicate body swayed in the air, casting sexy shadows, but she still held on and refused to give in.
After a while, Fengxian was shaking wildly in ecstasy, sweat dripping down her face, her black hair like a waterfall, messy and sticky on her fair skin, making her look even more sexy and lewd. Her unruly and beautiful face also had a touch of charming spring. Finally, after being poured by a torrent of hot and boiling water, she screamed and fainted in ecstasy. Tuoba Yun hurriedly supported her fallen body, allowing the two of them to attack and defend the alien.
As for Tuoba Yun, Liu Zhuang discovered a secret. Because of horse riding and archery, her waist was trained to be extremely flexible. If Tuoba Yun lay on the bed with her four hooves facing the sky, then her upper human body could bend over and interlock her fingers with his, just like a human doing a forward bend.
Liu Zhuang also knew about the little dissatisfaction in the hearts of the two girls, so he doubled his efforts to satisfy them at night. Tuoba Yun didn't care. In the Han Dynasty, one wife and multiple concubines were allowed, and people could have more fun on the grasslands, so he could just find one. But she also enjoyed Liu Zhuang's favor very much. For a while, the sound of flesh colliding, sexy gasps, and lewd splashing sounds echoed back and forth in the room.
At this moment, it was Zhao Yun who felt unbalanced - why? Guo Huai was listening to the voices outside the camp, and felt uncomfortable with the scene. He got a little mad and wanted to leave, so Liu Zhuang married her.
As the chief guard of the Lord of the Mansion, I listen outside the door every day! How about I make a scene too? But that would be bad. The Lord of the Mansion trusts me so much and promoted me to my current position. If I make a scene, would it be too much? Would he be very sad...
Zhao Yun thought about it all night but still couldn't come up with an answer.
The next day, Liu Zhuang began to prepare in an orderly manner before taking office in Hedong, starting with the prisoners.
After Xiaquyang surrendered, the coalition forces gained 70,000 new prisoners, 50,000 civilians, and 20,000 soldiers. All of these people had to be relocated to Hedong or Fufeng to guard the border. Dong Zhuo took the lion's share, taking away 40,000 civilians, and leaving 10,000 civilians for Liu Zhuang. Liu Zhuang would not be able to take in any more.
Afterwards, everyone divided the power equally among Zhang Bao, Zhang Liang and the 20,000 surrendered soldiers - the other person's younger brother paid money to bribe the eunuch just for this merit, these civilians, and such a large number of prisoners, no one except Dong Zhuo could take them all.
After some calculations, Liu Zhuang got Zhang Bao, the two sisters of Zhang Liang, fifty captured Thunder Warriors, three thousand Yellow Turban Army, and ten thousand people from Xiaquyang - Dong Zhuo didn't want to take these two hot potatoes at all. I only want these more than 50,000 prisoners to go with me to Guanzhong as coolies and soldiers. If these two guys are not taken care of, they will lose their heads, so let Liu Zhuang take care of them.
Including the captives captured previously, Liu Zhuang already had 30,000 Yellow Turban captives. These were all captured surrendered soldiers, almost all of them were young and middle-aged men between the ages of 14 and 50, among whom there were even 500 who had defected to the Jizhou Army.
Faced with this situation, Liu Zhuang first expanded the Baima Camp to the size of Wuqu, absorbing the 500 most elite Jizhou troops into it, expanding the number of people in the Baima Camp to 2,500.
The sacred number of the Han Dynasty may be five. Confucianism respects the five primary colors and talks about yin and yang and the five elements. The most basic infantry unit is a squad. Generally speaking, five garrisons managing a hundred people form a group, and five groups form a camp managed by a colonel. For every five colonels, a general can be appointed to control them.
Liu Zhuang was not going to change this rule. The White Horse Battalion and the several new battalions he was going to add would only have a fixed number of 2,500 people. By setting up more battalions, he could also make a wish for promotion.
Because these Yellow Turban surrendered soldiers were accepted on the banks of the Zhangshui River, and most of them were refugees recruited by the Black Mountain commander in Julu, Liu Zhuang named them Zhangshui Camp and Julu Camp respectively. Jizhou was a hinterland, so there was no need to set up a colonel, so the county name of Julu was used and no one cared.
Liu Zhuang immediately used his power as a prefect and the emperor's newly delegated power to recruit soldiers to assign Zhang He a new position: Sima of the Julu Camp and a separate department.
The rank of a separate Sima and a military Sima is the same, but a military Sima is only the deputy commander of a regular regiment, while a separate Sima is the commander of an independent regiment. It is a waste to have a talent like Zhang He as a deputy, and there is still a shortage of generals who can lead troops independently under his command.
Zhang He's original troops were all slaves of the Zhang family. After the battle, they all went home to farm. If the battle continued, there would be no one to farm the Zhang family's land. But it doesn't matter. Your soldiers have all gone home to farm. I will give you another 2,500 people, which is times the previous number.
As for the Sima of the separate army of Zhangshui Camp, it was his elder brother-in-law Lu Ze.
Lu Bu lacks brains, Guo Huai is a little immature, and Zhang Liao has only learned how to lead cavalry troops. She is not good at using infantry. In fact, a large number of generals under her command who can lead troops alone are cavalry generals, and only a few can lead infantry.
Zhang He, his elder brother Lu Ze, and his second brother Lu Shi, who had just been assigned here, were probably the only ones under his command who were both civil and military, and were good at commanding infantry - Zheng Jiang could fight but was illiterate.
After determining the number of additional troops, Liu Zhuang began to build an officer framework. He selected ten Baima camp leaders and team leaders with outstanding military achievements and promoted them to the expanded eleven-qu military officers to fill the newly added one qu in Baima, as well as the ten vacancies in the Zhangshui Camp and Julu Camp, and became the new qu military officers.
At this time, almost all the garrison commanders and team leaders who had left the Beidi Camp with Liu Zhuang and Lu Bu became officials of the rank of Qujunhou, with a rank of six hundred stones, the same level as a county magistrate.
The positions vacated by them and the positions of the village chief and team leader of the eleven newly added camps will be filled by the former squad leaders and platoon leaders of the White Horse Camp.
The veterans of the Baima Camp were promoted to new sergeants and squad leaders. The command structure of the Zhangshui Camp and the Julu Camp was instantly established by these loyal veterans.
It can be said that the elite infantry of the White Horse Battalion have now become officers of all levels of the Third Battalion.
Then, they selected another 5,000 well-dressed men from the surrendered Yellow Turban soldiers and stuffed them into the third battalion's troops to fill the vacancies at the grassroots level that had arisen after a large number of officers were promoted. While allowing all the veterans to get promoted and make money, the number of troops was expanded from 2,000 to 7,500 in one go.
Finally, it was time to distribute weapons. Liu Zhuang had already seized a thousand sets of armor. After Xiaquyang surrendered, the five men divided the spoils and got another 500 sets. Liu Zhuang gave 500 of them to the White Horse Battalion, turning all the 1,500 infantrymen into heavy infantry.
The remaining one thousand sets were given to the Zhangshui Camp and the Julu Camp, so that the two camps would have five hundred heavy infantry and two thousand light infantry respectively.
As for the cavalry... I only have the 100 extra horses given by Dong Zhuo. I can go to Hedong and buy more horses and train cavalry.
However, Zhang Bao and Zhang Liang were still tied up with ropes and placed under house arrest in their rooms. The fifty Thunder Warriors who surrendered were also imprisoned separately and were not included in this list.
"Brothers and sisters! You are already the officers of the Qu Army. From now on, when others see you, they must address you by your official titles! People of the same rank from other armies must also address you by your courtesy names! I know that you all came from poor families and do not have courtesy names at all. My courtesy name was also chosen for me by my teacher a few months ago.
So today, please ask the eleven Qujun candidates to step out! I, the governor of Hedong and the lieutenant of Baima, will personally choose your names!"
After recruiting the captives and expanding the army, Liu Zhuang not only promoted people and gave them wealth, but also gave them words that symbolized glory in front of all the soldiers, including the surrendered Yellow Turban soldiers.
The common people who had followed him throughout the Yellow Turban Rebellion cheered and celebrated wildly, their loyalty and trust in him growing. The Yellow Turban surrendered soldiers were also somewhat surprised by the atmosphere of this army - such a harmonious atmosphere, such a generous leader, and you tell me this is the Han army?
Liu Zhuang also flipped through a thick stack of bamboo slips and bestowed words of honor on the fifteen Qujun generals under his command. The first one was Tuoba Yun.
"Hmm - your name is Yun, which is the same as Gao and the same as Yun. You are Tuoba, and your courtesy name is Gao Yun."
"Okay, that's it."
Tuoba Yun nodded with satisfaction. The next one was Zhang Liao. Liu Zhuang wanted to give her a name with the character "八佰" out of mischievousness, but after thinking about it, he decided not to. He just used the character she had earned for herself in history: Wenyuan.
"Thank you, Lord!"
Zhang Liao cheered and celebrated with great enthusiasm. From today on, he would have his own character just like those nobles from aristocratic families.
In this way, three battalions of soldiers and fifteen Qujun Hou, surrounded by thousands of soldiers and cheering, all had characters that only big men could have. They showed off their achievements to the villagers with red faces, which made others very envious. I am now the head of the village. Oh, how come the Yellow Turban Army surrendered so quickly? I can be promoted to Qujun Hou after a few more battles! Have your own character!
"Hey, Yun, why are you still standing here? You are my captain of the guards, and your status is the same as Qu Junhou. Come, I will help you get one too."
In front of everyone, Liu Zhuang affectionately held Zhao Yun's hand, expressing his trust and love for her.
"Well, your name is also Yun, Yun Conglong. You are so young, why not call yourself Zilong?"
"Thank you, Lord, for the calligraphy!"
Zhao Yun looked at his brothers and sisters who were cheering and celebrating for him in the audience, and his face flushed with joy. He happily bowed his hands in thanks, then proudly straightened his chest and stood behind Liu Zhuang. His pair of bright white eyes, twinkling with little stars, had his own words on them, which was a symbol of escaping from the bottom of the society.
After dealing with the high-level generals and middle-level officers, Liu Zhuang swore an oath and made a wish to all the low-level soldiers and surrendered troops.
"The world is in a state of turmoil. Outside, the barbarians are invading the borders. Inside, bandits are rising up, causing the people of the world to suffer. I am a poor commoner like you. If I had a few acres of thin land in Yanmen, how could I raise an army and march south to wear this governor's seal?
If everyone present here can live a stable life in Jizhou, why do you have to live on the edge of a knife? You are in danger of losing your life every day? The court has issued an order to only imprison the main culprit! The rest of you will not be held accountable! Whether you were bandits, domestic slaves, or refugees before, from today on, you are all free people like me! "
"I wonder if you warriors are willing to follow me to conquer Hedong, clean up the world, and win our own land and our own future for ourselves, our relatives and friends?!"
"I swear to follow the Lord till death!!!"
The old subordinates from Yanmen raised their left arms one by one, responding to Liu Zhuang, whom they had followed for a long time.
