The further Li Xiang got from Chang'an City, the more he realized that the road was difficult to travel. He originally thought that he could reach 80 miles a day, but after the fifth day of leaving, this number began to decrease.
Li Xiang's large carriage was replaced with a small carriage, and the four-row team became two-row team. Even so, the speed had to be stopped in the middle, mainly because the height difference between the upper and lower parts was too large. If they wanted to maintain the speed, except for those soldiers who were fighting seriously, no one else could keep up. In addition to these 3,000 soldiers, there was also a team of more than 600 servants, who had already fallen behind.
Li Xiang was different from other generals when he went to war. If other generals went to war, the local officials along the way would have a heavy burden. In addition to preparing food, drink, and toilet supplies for the soldiers, they also had to prepare another set for the army's commander. Li Xiang had not done this since the beginning of Tuyuhun.
Doing so certainly caused dissatisfaction among the veteran generals in the army. If you don't want to enjoy it, it will also make us unwilling to enjoy it. However, Li Xiang still implemented it. Although it made them dissatisfied, it did reduce the burden on the people. Apart from preparing some supplies, the people did not need to provide any help to the army. The people carried by the army could guarantee everything on the road.
Xiao Yu had only heard of Li Xiang's actions before, but he didn't quite understand them. This time, after leaving Chang'an City and marching for a few days, he finally realized that Li Xiang was different from others. Others might only consider their own gains and losses, but Li Xiang would put the people first. Such a person might not seem to have any advantages in the short term, but when the people of the world are at peace, such a person will be the strongest person in the political arena.
Xiao Yu was very happy that his family could be related to Li Xiang. Of course, there would be various things along the way, but Xiao Yu had already made up his mind. Putting aside the matter of his grandson, he and Li Xiang would try their best to follow Li Xiang's ideas in their future cooperation. After all, Li Xiang would not treat his partners unfairly.
Take the current Five Surnames and Seven Families for example. With the exception of Mr. Cui's lineage, all others have suffered varying degrees of loss, with some even becoming second-rate. How did Mr. Cui manage to preserve his power and wealth? It was because he submitted to Li Xiang immediately. Otherwise, he wouldn't be crying now.
Of course, there were also many people in the old Cui family who were unwilling to do so, so they parted ways with Mr. Cui Sanye. They continued to follow their original path, while Mr. Cui Sanye chose to fully cooperate with Li Xiang. Now Mr. Cui Sanye's side is thriving, but as for the rest of the Cui family, their lives are not going well.
Xiao Yu once hosted a banquet for Master Cui San and asked him about some of the mysteries. Master Cui San's answer was very simple. Some people have the aura of a king, and no matter what they do, they are blessed by God. If you stand on the wrong side, no matter how good your calculations are, you will fail in the end.
At that time, Xiao Yu thought that Mr. Cui Sanye's words were reckless and that he was most likely brainwashed by Li Xiang. Now he realized that he was not brainwashed, but was able to see through the matter clearly.
The most important thing is that they really benefited from it. Take the land of Goguryeo for example. Who would want it at the beginning? In the end, Li Xiang got 80% of it, and the remaining 20% was given to Cui Sanye. After the occupation of the peninsula, domestic immigration began, but the land of Liaodong was divided between them.
Of course, some people were jealous, but what could they do? The imperial seal was affixed to the land, unless they claimed it was useless. Even if Li Shimin were standing there, would he dare say so? The land of Liaodong was valuable, but compared to the reputation of the Tang Dynasty, it was nothing. Even Li Shimin couldn't afford to overturn the Tang Dynasty's credibility for a small piece of land, let alone others. So, they could only watch helplessly as Li Xiang and Cui Sanye amassed wealth, and they did so openly and honestly.
After walking for twenty-one days, they finally arrived in Chengdu, the seat of the governor of Yizhou. Li Xiang had been here in the 21st century. It was the largest city in the three southwestern provinces and one of the most famous cities in the whole country. But now, no matter how they looked at it, something seemed wrong. It was just a slightly larger town at most.
"Your Highness, your humble servant, Zhang Jiuli, Deputy Governor of Yizhou, greets you..."
Outside the city of Chengdu, the highest official here brought other officials to pay their respects to Li Xiang. They were far away from Chang'an City, and many people had lost confidence and felt that it was useless to achieve political achievements. After all, who would come here with strength? Most of those who came here had no foundation.
This time, after receiving the imperial edict from the court, their first thought was not to do the job well, so that Li Xiang would look upon them favorably and then transfer them back to Chang'an. Instead, their first thought was to seize the time to deal with it, and after Li Xiang left, they could resume their previous lives.
To put it bluntly, it is lazy governance. There is no ambition in such a place. What's more, when they worked hard in the past, Chang'an City did not see their achievements, but chose to ignore them. So no one works hard now. It's good to live comfortably here. As for what the local people think, they don't care. They don't behave like a parent official at all.
Li Xiang did not ask these people to stand up. According to the rules of officialdom, these people were already kneeling here, and Li Xiang would immediately ask them to stand up. However, as they walked along, Li Xiang became more and more angry. This was still the side close to Chang'an City. The people already had no food to eat. If they continued to move forward, people would probably starve to death in groups. Isn't this a mistake made by you local officials?
Let's not talk about the situation in the mountains. There are vast tracts of wasteland around Chengdu. If you people had any sense, you would organize the people to reclaim the land. Would you not have food to eat? You usually have no shortage of food, but the people are starving to death. Do you choose to turn a blind eye?
So Li Xiang was angry and didn't want to let these people stand up. Although Xiao Yu was the newly appointed governor of Yizhou, Li Xiang was the biggest one here. When Li Xiang didn't say anything, who else would dare to let them stand up, even if they had to kneel until their knees were broken.