Hong Jie replied, "Since he came by boat, we will naturally wait for him at the next stop."
The coachman understood and turned the horse's head, heading northeast.
In the inn room, Liang Xiao looked at the hurried pedestrians in the misty rain outside the window and murmured to himself, "I can open a transit station here in the future."
This large county, located between Chuzhou and Jinling, was well-connected by transportation, and there were many raw materials for sugarcane and papermaking locally.
The forest coverage rate of the Great Gan Dynasty seemed to be higher than that of any ancient dynasty, which also provided space for the development of the paper industry, which was a good thing for Liang Xiao.
Liang Xiao did not look for the county magistrate of Longxi County, but simply let everyone rest in the inn, and was ready to set off the next day.
According to the intelligence provided by Steward Chen, the Jiangnan region had indeed experienced unrest among the populace for a period of time due to last year's famine.
However, after overcoming the famine, most areas gradually returned to prosperity and stability.
Hundreds of years ago, the Great Zhou Dynasty's people were fragmented, and various rebel kings fought endlessly, leading to barbarian invasions and the southward migration of the gentry, which in turn promoted the development of the Jiangnan region.
It was not until the founding emperor of the Great Heng Dynasty and the King of the East Sea destroyed the Great Zhou, launched a northern expedition across the river, annihilated the various rebel kings one by one, and then defeated the hundreds of thousands of Xiongnu cavalry of the Xiongnu King Heluofu in a decisive battle in Yanzhou, establishing their dominion over the land.
Since then, successive emperors and ministers of the Great Heng Dynasty acted perversely, causing widespread popular discontent and frequent rebellions, and the Xiongnu invaded the land of Yanzhou once again.
When the mountains and rivers were about to be shattered, the Great Gan High Ancestor, who was born a shepherd boy, rose up in rebellion, pacified Jiangnan, crossed the river to the north to unify the country, with the Marquis of Dingguo as the vanguard general and the founding prime minister Zhuo Mingfeng as the strategist, and the two sides fought fiercely in Yanzhou, and the Great Gan Dynasty greatly defeated the Xiongnu.
Unfortunately, to eliminate future troubles, the Great Gan High Ancestor led his troops deep into the desert. Due to unfavorable conditions such as water sources, logistics, and enemy ambushes, and encountering a once-in-a-century severe cold, he barely escaped complete annihilation and had to retreat to Yanzhou.
However, in order to prevent the Xiongnu from invading, the Great Gan High Ancestor, disregarding the obstruction of the aristocratic families, built the two great barriers of Yanzhou City and Yunzhou City at all costs, thus isolating the Xiongnu in the barbaric lands, and the Xiongnu thus became barbarians!
Also because of the decisive battle in Yanzhou and the deep penetration into the desert, the two campaigns resulted in the loss of a large number of elite soldiers who were not from aristocratic families, allowing the aristocratic families, freed from restraint, to rise again and threaten imperial power. The founding emperor then gathered the aristocratic families from all over the country in the capital to check and balance each other.
However, later these aristocratic families, who were scheming against each other, reached a consensus and formed an unprecedentedly powerful force, posing an increasing threat to imperial power. The royal family of the Great Gan Dynasty urgently needed an army that was absolutely loyal to the Son of Heaven and protected the royal family.
Thus, the Shadow Guard, which held the power of life and death, was born!
The Jiangnan region, being far from the threat of barbarians, was able to continue to develop, and its wealth was not inferior to that of the capital.
Even so, the Jiangnan region still could not escape the struggle of the aristocratic families, because new aristocratic families were born here, such as the Gongyang family of Jiangnan.
However. Emperor Wen, the father of Xiao Qing, later, under pressure, issued an imperial decree prohibiting personnel from major aristocratic families from serving as top local officials, such as prefects, county magistrates, governors, and marshals.
Of course, those aristocratic families were unwilling to give up. As soon as Emperor Wen left, they directly exerted pressure on the new emperor Xiao Qing, and allowed their family members to serve as prefects in some prefectures and counties again, such as Ouyang Che, the former prefect of Luzhou.
Liang Xiao looked up at the gray sky outside the window again, feeling melancholy.
In a daze, he seemed to see a loving father shielding his child, bearing all the pressure, and finally passing away peacefully, and his child successfully ascended the throne.
"Little Shuangzi, Shuang'er..." Liang Xiao murmured, his furrowed brow unfurling.
No matter when or where, thinking of these two words always made Liang Xiao happy and content.
Liang Xiao had already decided that on the day he returned to the capital and became the Son-in-Law, he would confess his identity as General Tian to Little Shuangzi.
"What are you thinking about?"
A gentle voice came from behind, it was Jian Qinwan.
"I was suddenly thinking of my Little Shuangzi, and Shuang'er." Liang Xiao said without hesitation.
Jian Qinwan was stunned for a moment, took Liang Xiao's hand, and couldn't help but chuckle.
She had been hesitating whether to privately tell this flower-picking thief the truth, but seeing him so blissfully ignorant, she found him both cute and amusing.
She could naturally see that Xiao Qing would not harm Liang Xiao, and now she could also understand Xiao Qing's thoughts: This is fun!
This clever, shameless flower-picking thief could also be "schemed against" by a girl?
Jian Qinwan hummed, "Could it be that you've fallen in love with your Little Shuangzi?"
Liang Xiao shivered all over and said tremblingly, "If you continue to be so mischievous..."
"Can't you occasionally let me have my way..." Jian Qinwan pretended to look wronged.
"Alright, how could I fall in love with a man? But, if..." Liang Xiao paused, but ultimately did not voice his guess.
"If what?" Jian Qinwan asked curiously.
Liang Xiao's eyes lit up, and he pouted, "If I find out later that you and Shuang'er colluded to deceive me, then I'll be the Ghost King Liang Xiao, and I'll devour you, this old maid!"
Jian Qinwan, who had been somewhat happy, instantly blushed, nervously observed her surroundings, and secretly breathed a sigh of relief: "Fortunately, we are in the room, and no one can see!"
Both shy and annoyed, Jian Qinwan pouted, "Then I'll have to get my fill first, and tease you every day!"
"Get your fill?" Liang Xiao smiled faintly, looking at Jian Qinwan.
Had this Bodhisattva started to speak like him after spending so much time with him?
Liang Xiao's prolonged gaze made Jian Qinwan quickly turn her head away and change the subject, "My father is in the Jiangnan area and could appear before us at any moment. You, have you thought about it..."
"I've thought about it. Of course, I'll call you father-in-law first." Liang Xiao laughed heartily.
Jian Qinwan weakly reminded, "If my father tells you what I said about you, don't believe a single word!"
"It's okay. When you were not here, I already asked my sworn elder brother." The shamelessness of a certain person was finally fully revealed.
Jian Qinwan was stunned and dared not respond.
This old grandfather Liu Yunzi is really annoying...
Liang Xiao stopped teasing Jian Qinwan and sat down to listen to her play the zither while he himself picked up his brush to write.
Relying solely on Mi'er's account would definitely not be enough. Occasionally, Liang Xiao would also write some content from "Romance of the Three Kingdoms," although there would be some discrepancies from the original text.
The complex and treacherous Cao Cao, the brave Zhao Yun, the dedicated Prime Minister Zhuge Liang, the righteous Guan Yu, the Three Heroes fighting Lu Bu... these brilliant stars were bound to conquer the people of the Great Gan Dynasty!
At night, Jian Qinwan, in her quilt, hugged Liang Xiao's arm.
Listening to the sound of rain outside the window, Jian Qinwan felt an unprecedented sense of peace.
Although she was frightened by this flower-picking thief during the day, as he said, as long as he was here, she was not afraid of any demons or ghosts!
In another room, Yue Lian and Zhuo Xun held each other tightly, trembling.
The two girls were still recalling the story of "A Ghost Story from a Mountain Village" that Liang Xiao had told them.
At the same time, Li Jinyu and Yu Qingchuan, in their respective rooms, looked out at the night rain with melancholy moods.
"I really don't want to see that dead ghost again!" Li Jinyu murmured, then sighed and grumbled, "But I should see him, to make a clean break!"
In another room, Yu Qingchuan stood with his hands behind his back, sighed for a moment, and muttered to himself, "Jinling, a hometown that brings back too many unpleasant memories..."
The next day, Liang Xiao's fleet set sail again, heading downstream towards Jinling.