sovbooks Chapter 30 This person should not be underestimated
Chapter 30 This person should not be underestimated
Cao Cao sat in the main seat, his brows furrowed, holding a scroll of secret reports that had just arrived from Qingzhou.
"Qingzhou... Li Zhao..." Cao Cao squinted his small eyes and tapped his fingers lightly on the bamboo slips.
"Fengxiao, what do you think of Li Zhao?"
Cao Cao looked down at a young scholar who was pale-faced and coughing frequently.
It was none other than the brilliant strategist Guo Jia.
Guo Jia took a sip of the medicinal wine, and a sickly blush appeared on his pale face.
"My lord, this man should not be underestimated."
"In just one year, he rose from a minor county magistrate to become the prime minister who controlled most of Qingzhou."
"He captured Linzi without bloodshed and used a strategy of 'using one enemy to devour another' to quell the Yellow Turban Rebellion. His methods were so shrewd and experienced that he was no ordinary person."
"What Jia cares about even more are the rumors about him."
Guo Jia put down his wine cup, his expression solemn.
"rumor?"
"Legend has it that Li Zhao of Pingyuan was a god descended to earth, possessing the ability to turn beans into soldiers and conjure grain out of thin air. Under his rule, regardless of drought or flood, there were always bountiful harvests. The people never had to worry about famine."
"Absurd!" Cao Cao sneered. "What's the point of talking about ghosts and gods in this world? It's just a smokescreen to win people's hearts. He must have secretly stockpiled a lot of grain or made some kind of fortune from the dead."
Although he didn't outwardly believe it, Cao Cao was inwardly somewhat apprehensive. Yan Province was currently facing a severe food shortage; if Qing Province was truly as prosperous as rumored, then this neighbor would be far too formidable.
"Bungo."
Cao Cao looked at another tall scholar.
Man Chong, courtesy name Boning.
This man was known for his strict enforcement of the law and his keen insight, and Cao Cao liked him very much.
"Your subordinate is here." Man Chong stepped forward, clasped his hands in greeting to Cao Cao, and spoke loudly.
"Go to Qingzhou for me."
A glint of shrewdness flashed in Cao Cao's eyes as he turned to Man Chong and said, "You and I will go together to congratulate Li Zhao on his promotion to Chancellor of Pingyuan. Actually, I want you to take a good look at this Li Zhao and see if he's a good person or a bad guy. Where did all those granaries of grain come from?"
"Yes, Your Majesty! I will certainly not fail in my mission and will get to the bottom of this!" Man Chong said after accepting the order.
……
Half a month later, Man Chong's delegation arrived in Linzi.
As soon as he entered Qingzhou territory, Man Chong sensed that something was wrong.
In his imagination, Qingzhou should be like Yanzhou, with starving people everywhere, thieves running rampant, and people with pale faces and lifeless eyes.
But what he sees now is not like that at all.
The official road was smooth and wide, with neat farmland on both sides. Although there was drought, water was still flowing in the ditches.
Although the farmers working in the fields were thin, they were full of energy.
Most importantly, these people did not shy away from the officers and soldiers; instead, they greeted them with smiles.
The people are not afraid of officials!
This gave Man Chong a sudden shock.
Although the post station was simple, it surprisingly provided hot millet porridge and pickled vegetables, and it didn't charge a penny.
And all of this is related to Prefect Li.
Man Chong grew increasingly alarmed as he walked.
This is hardly a chaotic world; even a peaceful and prosperous era wouldn't be any different.
Upon entering Linzi City, Man Chong felt like he didn't have enough eyes to see everything.
The streets were clean and tidy, lined with shops, mostly selling daily necessities, yet bustling with people.
What was even more unbelievable to him was that when he saw several soldiers changing shifts at the city gate, the squad leader actually gave each of them a white steamed bun!
That's wheat flour! In Yanzhou, only Cao Cao and his high-ranking generals could occasionally afford to eat it. Here, it's become the rations for ordinary soldiers?
Man Chong felt that her worldview was collapsing.
That evening, Li Zhao hosted a banquet at the governor's mansion to entertain Cao Cao's envoy.
Man Chong had assumed that even if Li Zhao was wealthy, the banquet wouldn't be too lavish in this year of famine. After all, he needed to appear frugal and kind to the people.
However, when he walked into the banquet hall, he was completely dumbfounded.
The hall was brightly lit, using extremely rare whale oil candles, and there was no trace of smoke or fire.
The table was filled with food that left him speechless.
The staple food is not the kind of brown rice mixed with sand and wild vegetables, but high-quality white rice with plump, translucent grains, along with steaming white flour buns and meat patties.
The dishes were ridiculously lavish.
Roast suckling pig, stewed mutton, steamed fish... large chunks of meat were piled up like small mountains, emitting an enticing aroma of fat.
The wine is the finest aged Dukang, not the sour and cloudy kind.
Man Chong looked at all of this and felt like he was dreaming.
Before he left Juancheng, Cao Cao specially ordered a chicken to be slaughtered to see him off, which was already an extremely high honor.
This place is simply a paradise of wine, women, and food!
"Mr. Man has come from afar; you must have had a long and arduous journey."
Li Zhao sat in the main seat, dressed in a brocade robe, exuding an air of elegance. He smiled and raised his cup, "Qingzhou has nothing much to offer, just some simple tea and rice. Please don't find it offensive, sir."
Man Chong's lips twitched. Simple meals? You call this simple meals? What do we eat in Yanzhou then? Pig swill?
"You're too kind, Prime Minister Li," Man Chong replied stiffly, mechanically stuffing a piece of mutton into his mouth.
The long-lost aroma of meat exploded in his mouth, almost bringing tears to his eyes.
It's so delicious! He'd almost forgotten what meat tasted like.
During the banquet, a small incident made Man Chong's heart jump.
When a guard was pouring wine for Li Zhao, he accidentally spilled a few drops on the table. The guard was so frightened that he immediately knelt down and begged for forgiveness.
Man Chong thought Li Zhao would punish him, after all, food was precious in those days.
To everyone's surprise, Li Zhao simply waved his hand casually and said with a smile, "It's alright. You've worked hard on your shift, so this plate of mutton is a reward for you. Take it and eat it."
The guard, feeling as if he had been granted a pardon, thanked him profusely and took the plate of mutton, which weighed at least two pounds, as he retreated.
Man Chong's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when he saw that the whole plate of mutton was given to a servant.
What a spendthrift! This is meat! Meat that could buy a life in Yanzhou!
He now seriously suspects that Li Zhao may have unearthed some treasure from the previous dynasty.
After the banquet, Man Chong returned to the inn and didn't sleep a wink all night. Lying in bed, his mind was filled with the image of white rice and glistening mutton.
"Something's not right, absolutely not right." Man Chong thought to himself, "Even if he confiscated Tian Kai and Zhang Mao's property, they couldn't possibly be this rich. This doesn't make sense! There must be something fishy going on!"
As a ruthless official under Cao Cao, Man Chong possessed a professional sensitivity. He was convinced that beneath this prosperous facade, some kind of evil must be lurking.
For example, cruelly exploiting the people? For example, having illicit relations with foreign tribes?
The next morning, Man Chong proposed to take a walk around the city and its surroundings to understand the people's conditions.
Li Zhao readily agreed and sent Sun Fu to accompany him.
Manchong refused to take the car and insisted on walking.
He would venture into remote alleys and construction sites outside the city, wanting to see the most authentic side of things.
Outside the city, a large group of laborers were repairing the city walls.
Man Chong walked over and, with a stern face, asked a middle-aged man who was carrying bricks, "How much wages does the government pay you? Are there any deductions? How many meals do you get each day?"
He was prepared to hear a torrent of grievances.
To everyone's surprise, the man stopped what he was doing, wiped his sweat, grinned, and revealed two rows of large yellow teeth.
"Replying to your Excellency, Your Excellency is benevolent. We are not performing corvée labor, but are doing manual labor. We are provided with three full meals a day, each consisting of thick porridge and pickled vegetables, and every few days we even get to eat meat. Our wages are ten coins a day, never delayed!"