Demoness, where are you Fleeing to?
Chapter 942 - 779: Wen An the World, Wu Ding the Universe (Seeking Monthly Votes)

Chapter 942: Chapter 779: Wen An the World, Wu Ding the Universe (Seeking Monthly Votes)

"Can’t you tell they came from the cellar?"

General Commander Han Dong sneered as he looked at Zhang Jiuling, "Besides, in this freezing cold weather, where could they find such fresh green fodder?"

The silage of The Ninth Guard was personally harvested by Han Dong, along with a large number of herdsmen and his former subordinates from the Weisuo Institute of Datong – over ten thousand people.

The Court, in its efforts to promote silage, not only distributed many sickles but also a large number of simple machines for cutting grass. Additionally, they dispatched over thirty spellcasters skilled in the ’Wind Blade’ to assist.

With people working day and night, Han Dong had managed to store up to 1.2 million stones of fodder in the cellar before September.

——In theory, this should suffice to feed the over 100,000 livestock of The Ninth Guard until the spring thaw next year.

Although Zhang Jiuling had not participated, he had witnessed it with his own eyes, which is why Han Dong was quite displeased.

"My apologies, I misspoke," said Zhang Jiuling candidly, realizing his remark had been inappropriate as soon as it left his lips.

The Ninth Guard might be able to fool people with a few bundles of fodder, but spring was several months away, and they couldn’t keep up the deception indefinitely.

At that moment, his attention was entirely on the troughs.

While the two men were speaking, the sheep in the pens had already made their way to the troughs.

First, they sniffed curiously, then showed hesitation in their behavior.

Possibly because they hadn’t eaten since the heavy snowfall, and were starving, the sheep didn’t hesitate for long before they began to munch voraciously from the troughs.

Zhang Jiuling noticed the sheep were eating very enthusiastically, consuming the food at a remarkably rapid pace.

"Not bad at all!" Xue Bai, unable to contain his joy, exclaimed, "This year we could only mix in sorghum, soybeans, vegetables, and kudzu root into the fodder – expensive and inefficient. Next year, by adding corn and sweet potatoes, they should eat even better and at a lower cost."

Xue Bai paid close attention to the Shennong Institution founded by Li Xuan.

He knew their research findings – blending corn and sweet potatoes with the fodder was most economical and best for fattening livestock.

Several herdsmen standing nearby also watched with sheer delight.

The biggest concern for them, after settling north of Daning City as ordered by the government, was the lack of fodder for their livestock.

Who would want to trek across the grasslands in the midst of winter searching for water and grass? It was only due to snow-cover and freezing conditions, which left the livestock unable to find food, right?

Even in areas untouched by heavy snow, the grass was dried out.Livestock actually didn’t favor such grass, so they would lose weight every winter and, in many cases, die from freezing and starvation en masse.

Sometimes, they also had to vie for grasslands with other tribes, fighting fiercely over withered grass.

"Honorable officials, if all the fodder in the cellar can be like what we saw today, it would be a tremendous act of kindness for us herdsmen," said one of the Mongolian herders who spoke Chinese, his speech almost incoherent with emotion. "Thank you, Changsheng Heaven! Thank you, Prince Fenyang! His Highness must surely be sent by Changsheng Heaven and Buddha to save us poor herdsmen. He is our Tenggeri Khan, sparing us the hardship of travel and the plight of cold and hunger."

The so-called ’Tenggeri Khan’ means ’Khan of Heaven.’

Zhang Jiuling heard the genuine gratitude in the man’s words, not mere flattery, and felt somewhat uncomfortable. He immediately let out a cold snort, "The title ’Khan of Heaven’ was an honorific for the emperors of the former Tang Dynasty. It is the Great Jin Dynasty’s Court that has allowed you to live and prosper here! How dare you bestow such an honorific title on Prince Fenyang?"

The herdsman gave him a sidelong glance, then brought his hands together in prayer, "Thank you, the honorable champion Bodhisattva!"

Zhang Jiuling’s face twitched slightly, and then he turned to Xue Bai, "This fodder smells different from normal grass, and we still don’t know what effects it will have after the livestock have eaten it."

Upon hearing this, Xue Bai chuckled. He knew that the fodder, after being made into silage, was fermented by something called ’lactic acid bacteria’ which not only killed many germs but also aided digestion for the livestock.

But he couldn’t be bothered to explain to Zhang Jiuling and instead mounted his Earth Dragon, "Let’s continue to observe then. Feed them well. I will come back tomorrow to check on the condition of these animals."

He then visited over twenty herdsmen’s homes within The Ninth Guard until the sunset, when he returned to stay temporarily in the stone fort of The Ninth Guard.

Zhang Jiuling accompanied him throughout, not missing a single home.

His original purpose in visiting The Ninth Guard was to update the household registrations for over a hundred herdsman families that had recently pledged allegiance, and incidentally to enjoy some peace and quiet. But after encountering Xue Bai, he forgot his original purpose.

The next day, Zhang Jiuling, without waiting for Xue Bai to get up, went to a familiar herdsman’s home to check on the situation before dawn.

To his disappointment, he found that the cattle, sheep, and horses in their pens were all well.

"These cattle and sheep are eating marvelously, even more voraciously than when they graze on tender grass in spring! In previous years, these animals would be listless, but look how lively they are now, and none have upset stomachs," said the master of the house, a robust middle-aged man in his thirties, with his hands clasped in prayer. "Praise Guanjun Venerable Buddha of Namo! They were right; not only is Prince Fenyang an undefeated hero, but he is also a compassionate Bodhisattva."

His family actually had a brother who died in the battle at Xuanfu last year.

However, the middle-aged man took this quite well, as the Mongolian herders themselves would lose many people just fighting over pasture lands.

The men of the plains, excluding nobles and the warriors they supported, rarely lived past forty.

And to die on the battlefield, a death in honorable combat, there was nothing to complain about.

Now, his brother’s wife and daughter were living in his tent, both taken care of by him.

Zhang Jiuling’s lips twitched, and then he moved on to another family nearby.

But the result was much the same, except for one ox that seemed unwell for reasons not due to the forage— the animal had a serious stomach illness, so the owner was preparing to slaughter it and share the meat with other families.

On the third day, Xue Bai left.

The Fourth Guard of Daning was also starting to use "silage," and he needed to go check on the situation there.

Zhang Jiuling, on the other hand, stayed for almost half a month.

What gradually furrowed his brow was the fact that there were no problems with the hay taken from the cellars.

The livestock not only enjoyed eating it, but there was also no sign of them losing condition.

By early November, southern merchants came to place large orders for wool and hides. With the witnessing officials of the Zhihuishi Division of the local guards, each family received several silver yuan as a deposit, making the herders overjoyed. They were all preparing to raise even more lambs and calves at the beginning of the year, causing the prices of ewes and cows to skyrocket.

Then, that evening, the herders of The Ninth Guard prepared a grand religious ceremony for the "honorable champion Bodhisattva" and even had several Lamas to protect it. They planned to pool money to build a small Lama temple nearby to worship the "honorable champion Bodhisattva."

Zhang Jiuling spent the night sleepless and, at dawn the next day, penned a memorial rapidly, writing a "proposal for the establishment of administrative provinces in both MoNan and MoBei."

He realized that Prince Fenyang’s policy of registering and settling the nomads on the prairie was bound to succeed.

The nomadic peoples that had troubled the Central Plains for millennia were about to be thoroughly subdued by Prince Fenyang.

What was frustrating was that Zhang Jiuling himself was one of the leading figures who had previously obstructed Prince Fenyang’s efforts to establish administrative provinces in MoNan and MoBei.

And with the expected success of the silage method, once the Court expanded its territories to the north, he, the right Buzhengshi in charge of only miscellaneous affairs, feared he would receive no benefits from it.

The ones who would truly earn merit were the officers of the Zhihuishi Division of Ning State who were in charge of the matter, as well as the left Buzhengshi of Ning State and the Zhifu of Daning.

Zhang Jiuling could not allow such a situation to unfold, so he decided to go back on his words.

The establishment of provincial administrations in the north by the Court would be highly advantageous for him.

He would be able not only to attempt to get involved in the politics of silage but also to avoid the frustration he currently felt.

At this time, above Zhang Jiuling there were not only a left Buzhengshi Xue Bai but also the General Commander of the Zhihuishi Division of Ning State, a Zhihui Tongzhi, and several Zhihui Qianshi to oversee him. Although he held the title of a 3rd-rank right Buzhengshi, he was in reality just a clerk dealing with trivial matters.

Only the actual establishment of provincial administrations would enable the Buzhengshi Division of Ning State to become independent and operate alongside the Zhihuishi Division of Ning State.

However, when writing the memorial, Zhang Jiuling thought of the recent widespread saying in the Central Plains, "When a Saint emerges, the Yellow River shall run clear."

He wondered if Prince Fenyang, who could subdue the Mongolians, could really be a Saint with heaven’s mandate?

Zhang Jiuling couldn’t be sure, but he knew that if the administrative provinces in MoNan and MoBei were successfully established and the herders settled down, Prince Fenyang would surpass the cultural and military achievements of the Han and Tang Dynasties and firmly assert Li Xuan’s name as a "Saint."

Even Zhou Gongdan, esteemed by the Great Sage, did not have such accomplishments as Li Xuan.

And it was Duke of Zhou whom Confucianism revered and whose governance policies were considered a source of inspiration.

How could this "Saint" recognized by Confucianism be compared to Li Xuan?

The current Prince Fenyang was truly establishing peace through culture and securing the world through military might!

No, this can’t be possible. Since the Pre-Qin Dynasty, the rites and music have collapsed; how could another Saint possibly emerge?

Zhang Jiuling was deeply worried, yet his pen moved like a deity, completing the memorial in a moment.

Then he sent his servant to rush to the Capital City overnight, directly to the Tongzheng Division. He was worried that if the memorial was delayed for even a few more days, it would be too late.

At the same time, this servant also carried several letters he had written to his colleagues.

What Zhang Jiuling now feared most was that his peers might go too far in opposing the registration and integration of the Mongolian nomads, following in his own footsteps.

At this time, Zhang Jiuling did not know that Shang Hong, who had followed Li Xuan in the northern campaign against the Mongols in the past, had also once felt similarly.