Six Month. The sweltering heat of summer descended upon Bianliang City. As Li Shishi walked through the courtyard of Fan Lou, she heard laughter coming from under the eaves. Search: \(¨Complete¨ Book¨ God¨ Station¨) to read excellent literature for free.

"...The martial arts story that Zhuji (Bamboo Records) has been telling recently is truly captivating..."

"...Are there any manuscripts yet? Are there any manuscripts yet? Quickly bring them to me so I can read them..."

"...There aren't any new ones yet. I went to Zhuji myself last night to listen..."

"...This story is so long, waiting day after day is too difficult..."

"...The Zhuji caravans tell shorter stories, but the longer ones are better..."

"...Because of these stories that Zhuji tells, there are many more roughnecks coming to the capital recently..."

"...They're here to participate in the martial arts imperial examination, it's said to be in August..."

"...Can't beat their good health..."

The chattering voices were mixed with low laughter, as the girls in the building teased each other. Hearing the mention of Zhuji, Shishi stopped to listen for a moment, then pursed her lips and walked towards the front courtyard.

In the months since spring, the affairs of Zhuji had been constantly on her mind, never leaving her sight.

The disaster relief efforts in the north and south that began last year continued into this year. The autumn harvest was not yet in, and many places were still suffering from famine. However, the difficulties of snow blocking the roads had been resolved, and the central government's control over various regions had been strengthened. Although many places were still going hungry, it did not lead to widespread starvation.

However, the number of beggars wandering around the capital was greater than in previous years.

Zhuji had participated in the disaster relief efforts from last year to this year, contributing greatly, and had also established relationships with merchants in the north and south. This vast network of relationships had greatly assisted Zhuji's development. Not only were branches sprouting up like bamboo shoots, expanding into the surrounding markets, but when Shishi emerged from her disaster relief emotions and began to observe it from the perspective of the entertainment industry, she discovered that Zhuji was venturing into many other directions in a frantic manner. This development was extremely rapid, yet vaguely difficult to describe in detail. Only someone as well-informed as Shishi could sense the seemingly conscious tentacles and the myriad influences. However, for the time being, it had not yet become apparent.

Having been in contact with Ning Yi, Shishi was now able to realize what kind of abilities this childhood friend possessed. Sometimes she couldn't help but wonder if, before overseeing the disaster relief, he had foreseen that Zhuji would gain such great development assistance—of course, this was understandable. But within it, there were always some things she couldn't figure out.

In terms of ability, she did not understand business, but having interacted with many high-ranking officials and nobles, Shishi, who had seen many things, could also understand some of the implicit rules. Usually, wealth was not important. Having vast wealth, even if one was richer than a country, could not withstand the three-foot steel blade of a county magistrate. The majority of wealthy merchants would build bridges and pave roads after accumulating a certain amount of wealth, seeking a reputation for good deeds, and then try to improve the status of their families, developing in the direction of power.

In this world, whether it was anyone, power was the ultimate goal. Money certainly helped with this, but it was enough when it reached a certain level. Further development would only arouse the hatred of others and cause harm.

However, Ning Yi had the background of the Prime Minister's residence from the beginning. During the disaster relief efforts, although he was an enemy to most of the grain-hoarding merchants, he had also accumulated enough friends. With such friends, if he wanted power and influence, or to get rid of his status as a Son-in-Law or a secretary of the Prime Minister's residence, it would not be difficult. But at the moment, he was going against the grain.

Using his own influence, he was converting large amounts of money, expanding Zhuji at an amazing speed. Although it seemed astonishing, he had indeed controlled every step of this expansion. But what was the meaning of this? Like a rapidly expanding bubble, it would eventually burst someday.

Of course, she believed that Ning Yi could understand the things she could think of. But operating all this in an orderly manner, even knowing the consequences, what was the deep meaning behind it? She couldn't figure it out. Sometimes she wanted to ask him in person, but the person operating behind the scenes had disappeared somewhere since April.

That disaster relief, which was both exhilarating and immensely powerless, and then the development of Zhuji, was accompanied by a series of events. Some Green Forest bandits regarded Ning Yi as a thorn in their side, and even came to the capital to kill him. Then his counterattack was extremely fierce, not showing any mercy to these bandits. The Taoting incident not only alarmed the Green Forest, but also alarmed many officials.

More than a hundred Green Forest people were killed on the spot, and more than half of the more than a hundred people who were arrested were sentenced to be beheaded. In the past, people looked down on these ruffians, but they basically adopted a "close one eye" attitude. However, Zhuji's counterattack through the Prime Minister's residence was too ruthless. Some officials who came to Fan Lou said that this would be very troublesome, that they were originally desperadoes, and predicted that the Prime Minister's residence had gotten into big trouble.

The days that followed were turbulent. Sometimes news would come out that Zhuji had clashed with some desperadoes in a certain place. Shishi didn't know if this could be considered a prophecy come true. But Zhuji was expanding its influence anyway. While it was expanding, the storytellers under Zhuji began to tell stories about Green Forest martial artists, which caused a sensation, temporarily causing the martial arts atmosphere near Bianliang to rebound.

At this time, the novels and stories on the market in the Wu Dynasty included those about immortal foxes and monsters, those about talented scholars and beautiful women, and those about heroes and outlaws. But basically, novel stories were mostly written by down-on-their-luck scholars, and outlaws were not mainstream. Even if there were any, they were basically based on a bellyful of resentment, writing small-patterned books about using martial arts to defy prohibitions.

But Zhuji's stories seemed grander. The stories were part fact and part fiction, mostly talking about "the great chivalrous one, for the country and the people." A *Tian Long Ba Bu* (Demi-Gods and Semi-Devils), which imitated the Wu Dynasty background and was called the Song Dynasty, made paper in Bianliang temporarily expensive. Every night after the Zhuji storyteller finished a segment, people immediately copied it and competed to circulate it. Affected by this, the martial arts heroes who came to Fan Lou recently were obviously more numerous. Even some extraordinary scholars and young masters, who had practiced some self-defense martial arts, imitated the Tang Dynasty heroes, equipped with treasured swords, flaunting themselves back and forth, and then began to associate with martial artists. These people mostly had backgrounds in their families, and it was said that they were causing headaches for the Kaifeng Prefecture, which was responsible for public security.

Of course, even if a trend was admired by some people, it was still a "non-mainstream" of this era. Zhuji's approach also attracted some criticism at this time. The novels about outlaw heroes did not have much influence, and people were too lazy to pay attention to them. However, chivalry used martial arts to defy prohibitions. These vigorous and frustrated roughnecks were originally a public security hazard, so how could they be promoted?

For example, Zhou Bangyan, who returned to the capital this time to report on his work, was also quite dissatisfied with Zhuji's guidance. But fortunately, while telling stories of outlaws, some other stories told in Zhuji aroused the admiration of the literati. In particular, the story about the old man Qian Xiwen that occurred when he was trapped in Hangzhou made the scholars in the capital solemn and respectful.

Even in Bianliang, there were many people who were directly or indirectly related to the Qian family in Hangzhou. In the past, Qian Lao's death was just a concept to them. After the story was told, these people mourned or paid respects in their own forms, and a large number of literati came to Zhuji to listen to such a story, and then became excited and filled their clothes with tears.

Whether these people had the same courage of martyrdom as Qian Lao after listening to the story was another matter, but because Ning Yi was the last person to talk to Qian Lao, Zhuji therefore received some tolerance and care. The promotion of outlaw heroes was not unilaterally criticized, but divided into two factions, either scolding or discussing, and became the central topic of discussion among the Bianliang scholars recently.

While all this was being pushed forward in a complex manner, the man behind it had never appeared in public...

Thinking of these things, Shishi walked into her own courtyard. The large banyan tree in the courtyard cast a thick shade in the gentle breeze. Amidst the chirping of cicadas, the air still seemed a bit stuffy. Zhou Bangyan was sitting on the wooden floor in front of the tea table waiting for her. This man, who enjoyed a great reputation in the Wu Dynasty literary world, was already nearly forty years old. He certainly wasn't the handsome type of a cream-faced boy, but his meticulous clothes, the slightly white temples, the dust of travel on his body over the years, and his experience as an official still shaped him into a quite charming man. Seeing Shishi coming over, Zhou Bangyan raised his hand and asked her to sit down.

The two had known each other for several years. If there was a feeling of mutual understanding, it probably existed in this year where love was not strictly defined. After all, in a sense, this man was one of the men who had come closest to Li Shishi's heart, and they could be considered to get along well. After sitting down, they tasted tea and chatted casually. Zhou Bangyan said, "Regarding what I mentioned last time, does Shishi have a reply?"

The last time he came to Fan Lou, Zhou Bangyan had mentioned the matter of redeeming her. In a sense, it was an opportune time for the two to talk about this matter. Shishi's age had passed the golden age of a courtesan. Although many people still patronized her, she would undoubtedly decline next, and marriage would become a matter of course.

In terms of status, although Zhou Bangyan's official position was not high, he had enough talent, and he had been close to Li Shishi in the past. It could be considered a very good destination for him to take her as a concubine.

Shishi held the teacup and opened her mouth, but ultimately did not speak. The cicadas were chirping in the courtyard. Zhou Bangyan waited for a while and added tea for both of them: "Actually, you and I both know that among the people around you, I understand you. In the past, you loved to travel around and learn from famous masters. After we are together, I am afraid that only I can support you. Therefore, you and I should be the best together... You will eventually marry someone."

Shishi was silent for a moment. When she picked up the teacup again, she looked at the courtyard outside and said in a low voice: "Meicheng brother, actually, I have been thinking recently, maybe it is not necessarily... I have to marry someone..."

"...During the time at Mount Wutai, Zen Master Kongdu once said that you have Buddha-nature... That does not seem to be the first to say you have Buddha-nature." Zhou Bangyan was stunned, then smiled again, "But at that time you said that sometimes you can see through things, but you don't care, people always have to be the same as others to be happier... What's wrong? Have you finally encountered something you can't see through? Or have you seen through it and can't get over it?"

"Ah..." Shishi sighed, then said again, "Ah..." But it also sounded like a sigh of "Ai."

"I heard about your disaster relief efforts, and I also heard that... you have been going to the city to give alms to those beggars recently... Mother Li told me a lot..." Zhou Bangyan paused, "Actually, among those friends around you, although you are close to Yu Hezhong and Chen Sifeng, there is no possibility. Ning Liheng is a very powerful person."

Shishi did not speak. Presumably Li Yun had told Zhou Bangyan about Ning Yi. After a slight silence, Zhou Bangyan said: "However... This person seems to be enthusiastic about business. In his early years, I thought he was a gentleman who was indifferent to fame and wealth, but what I have seen later is that this person acts with both righteousness and evil, which does not conform to the way of a gentleman. At least I strongly disagree with him letting Zhuji promote the chivalrous deeds of outlaws..."

Zhou Bangyan had a very high reputation for talent, and he behaved relatively uprightly. He was actually quite direct in his speech. At this time, he looked at Shishi for a while: "I know that you went to disaster relief, and it was also presided over by him. Do you like him?"

Shishi's gaze was originally directed to the side, but at this time she seemed to be awakened, and then smiled and shook her head: "No, I haven't seen him for a long time either."

"He is not a good match." Zhou Bangyan took a sip of tea, "... The imperial decree has been issued, and I will only stay in the capital for five days."

"Hmm." Shishi nodded, raised her teacup and smiled, "Where are you going next?"

Amidst the chirping of cicadas in the courtyard, the two continued to talk about household matters. The breeze caressed the wooden leaves, mixing a monotonous rustling sound into the words. On a summer afternoon, the air seemed quiet in such an atmosphere...

Far to the north, thousands of miles away, Mount Lüliang.

The shouts of the horse team and the sound of bells broke the dullness of summer. In the afternoon, another caravan entered the outer market of Qingmu Fortress. This caravan was not small, with a lineup of nearly two hundred people, transporting dozens of carts of goods. It was a rare big order seen in Qingmu Fortress. Therefore, the fortress also sent many people to escort it. At this time, it arrived safely, and the entire outer market immediately became lively.

Extending from the outer market of Qingmu Fortress to the inside of the fortress, scaffolding and construction traces could be seen everywhere. Some places were dug up and just filled in, and the traces of the new soil also carried a different atmosphere from the past. Due to the unified planning, the new building complex built in cooperation with the old fortress appeared neat and orderly. Although there were not many yet, at least compared to the crowding and chaos of Qingmu Fortress two months ago, everything had become brand new.

Sometimes, the order itself can give people a clear and positive impression. When watching the fortress expand and renovate like ants moving soil, most people in the fortress will feel happy. Especially after experiencing the contrast, people will mostly remember who brought all this about.

After experiencing two months of changes, the managers of Qingmu Fortress have mostly felt the efficiency improvements brought about by many detailed improvements. Of course, the pursuit of efficiency through absolute mechanization may sometimes make people feel the loss of individual existence, but the current Qingmu Fortress will not come into contact with such emotions. For example, in such a summer, near noon, everyone does not need to work. Many things are done in the morning and evening—although for these poor people in the mountains, as long as there are some benefits, even if they are forced to work under the hot sun, they may not be unable to bear the hardship. But for now, Ning Yi does not intend to pursue efficiency to this extent.

Ning Yi no longer interferes much with the efficiency aspect, but he will still intervene in the resident management of Qingmu Fortress at this time.

In two months, the population of Qingmu Fortress has grown from six thousand to nearly eight thousand. Among them, five or six hundred are strong men who have recently joined, who are obedient, trained, or talented. The rest are the family members they brought.

Due to Ning Yi's intervention, the population expansion and resettlement were carried out in an orderly manner, but of course there will be problems with the sudden addition of so many new people. Ning Yi, who lives a normal married life with Hong Ti, meets with several fortress leaders and heads in charge of this aspect every three days or so. He basically does not take charge of specific affairs, but only sets the direction and does some ideological work.

Newcomers are integrating into Qingmu Fortress, and there will be more newcomers in the future. How to prevent the old people in the mountains from bullying the newcomers too much is a problem, but there is no need to pursue pure fairness. Ning Yi let Zheng Ashuan's daughter lead a small law enforcement team to record and intervene in the differences between the new and old people, so that the old people receive certain preferential treatment, but also do not allow the newcomers to the fortress to receive too many cold shoulders.

These meetings every three days are mainly equivalent to ideological work, to develop for the long term and not only care about the present, to strengthen the group and not only look at the temporary interests of individuals. In fact, in the early stage of the development of a small organization like Qingmu Fortress, several fortress leaders still have strong control over the people below. As long as their recognition is obtained, everything becomes very simple. Ning Yi is just laying the foundation for the future development of the fortress. Of course, in the eyes of a small number of people, this son-in-law from outside seems a bit nagging, confirming it every few days, always repeating the same old words...

Although there are such and such questions, under Ning Yi's simple management, the current situation of Qingmu Fortress is much better than many places outside Mount Lüliang. Regardless of where they are, the original residents are always exclusive. Even if there are disputes, the county magistrate's handling is often not clever. In Mount Lüliang, this is even more so. Many fortresses often accept people easily, but when they really get into it, they still have to stand in line, follow the bosses, and frequent quarrels and fights between each other. Sometimes, the old people in the fortress will beat the newcomers to death, or the heads will use their power to play with the wives and daughters of the newcomers. How can it be like Qingmu Fortress, where someone will actually mediate and handle things.

Even if there is a conflict between the new and old people, even if the newcomer is beaten, there will be places where the old people are reprimanded. Although it is not absolute fairness, even relative care is precious enough. Although there are still many small frictions, the upper echelons of Qingmu Fortress still strictly prohibit big problems—such as relying on power to bully men and women. Often, after small problems occur, the law enforcement team appears, intervenes, and mediates, and even makes some people feel warm inside.

After all, this is the world, and it is much better to be a little better.

Sometimes, looking at all this in the fortress, it is only two months of change, an old man named Liang Bingfu will also ask himself, some things, he has also thought about, why can't he do it, and on Ning Yi's side, it's just a few simple things. Of course, sometimes there are answers, sometimes there are not.

At this time, he was sitting in the shade of a tree in the small square, enjoying the cool. Hong Ti's husband was writing and drawing on a wooden board next to him, and Hong Ti was sitting behind him, fanning the old man, and occasionally fanning her husband. There were not many people in the small square. There were a few children playing with stones. Not far away, a young man named Yuwen Feidu was demonstrating his martial arts to another dark and thin young man.

"Look at this move! I turn over from the side and hit your knee, sweep! Sweep! Hey, you definitely can't dodge it..."

"And this move, hit your chest! Then hit your stomach..."

"And my Rising Cannon Fist, hit you a hundred times, wah la wah la wah la wah la—"

Yuwen Feidu was originally a young man. He was intelligent and outgoing. He recognized many masters in the Dulonggang camp and learned a good martial art. At this time, he was demonstrating in front of the young man who usually took care of Liang Bingfu, jumping around, his shots were like the wind—this was because Hong Ti said that the young man named Xiao Hei had also practiced martial arts and was very talented, so he wanted to compare with him, but unfortunately Xiao Hei was more silent and boring, and didn't want to pay attention to him.

At this time, Yuwen Feidu was dazzling in front of Xiao Hei, and the fist wind whistled and scurried close to Xiao Hei's face. There were several children next to him watching with their chins in their hands, and someone exclaimed: "Wow, Brother Yuwen is so amazing..."

"Brother Xiao Hei doesn't know martial arts, Brother Feidu, don't bully him..."

Ning Yi was writing and drawing on a wooden board. He looked up and glanced, and lowered his head and smiled and commented: "Hey hey, so cheap."

Then suddenly he heard Xiao Hei shout "Ah", and hugged Yuwen Feidu's waist, and rushed forward directly. Yuwen Feidu tried desperately to stabilize his lower body, but the two had already run out of the square, and only heard a bang, and fell into a pile of firewood on the side of the small square. Of course, Yuwen Feidu fell in a much more embarrassed state.

"Sneak attack—ah ah ah, eat my Black Tiger Steals Heart—" Yuwen Feidu, who climbed out of the firewood pile, looked embarrassed and rushed towards Xiao Hei. Xiao Hei turned his head and ran away. The small square became lively. Ning Yi, Hong Ti, Liang Bingfu and others all raised their heads, watching the two young men fighting from this end to that end, and then chasing back from that end to this end, and their necks followed.

"Who do you think will win?"

"Almost." The old man with a cane squinted his eyes and watched with interest, participating in it.

The little wife Hong Ti smiled and did not speak, half of a shoe sole that had been sewn was placed on her leg—she was doing this before the old man came out.

After a while, a figure came from a distance, it was Han Jing, the fifth fortress leader of Qingmu Fortress. He looked at the two young men fighting, bypassed them, greeted Liang Bingfu, sat down next to him, and said to Ning Yi: "Caught up."

"How is it?"

"Ma Jun's group also caught up with them in advance. He said he will give us an explanation."

"What do you think?"

"Wait for him to give an explanation, either hand over the person or hand over the head. Otherwise, let's cook them two thousand people together."

"Oh, good..."

What Han Jing said was the problem of the two thousand Liao soldiers north of Mount Lüliang. Now that the Liao Kingdom is dead, these original Liao soldiers are now homeless. After their leader came here, he changed his name to Ma Jun and temporarily gathered in the north of Mount Lüliang. After the Battle of Huochuan Ridge, Qingmu Fortress has been preparing for this battle, but Lüliang is very large after all. If the other party intends to run, it is not easy to carry out an annihilation battle.

After the results of the Battle of Huochuan Ridge were announced, these Liao people also behaved quite sensibly and were unwilling to have friction with Qingmu Fortress, and even once wanted to form an alliance with Qingmu Fortress. Ning Yi naturally rejected it, and this time, it seemed that dozens of people had split from the other party's fortress and almost robbed a group of caravans covered by Qingmu Fortress. Ma Jun sent people to apologize and said that he would give Qingmu Fortress an explanation.

In fact, this side does not care about any explanation. The policy for these Liao people has long been set. Either surrender to Qingmu Fortress and become the periphery of Qingmu Fortress, and Ning Yi and others have long prepared to scrape their bones and absorb the marrow, absorbing their elite for their own use, and the rest will be pulled to mine coal. Or fight them first and then make them the outer fortress of Qingmu Fortress, and by the way, scrape their bones and absorb their marrow, and the rest will be sent to mine coal...

Of course, because there has been no possibility of fighting an annihilation battle, the matter has been suppressed all the time. However, Ning Yi will not ask too much about these details. When to fight and how to fight is Han Jing's business. What he needs to do is to set a nasty operation name for this battle called "Beating the Big Rooster."

Therefore, after nodding, he turned the topic back: "... Who do you think will win?"

Han Jing looked at it: "Yuwen, his kung fu is very solid."

"It's hard to say, I think Xiao Hei is very smart..."

Everyone sat and watched the fight.

After a while, Liang Bingfu sat up straight and said, "Liheng, you already have people going to the old village?"

Ning Yi glanced at him: "Yes, some people have already gone over."

"Fu Duanyun has been living there..." Liang Bingfu sighed, "When, I want to go back and see it too."

Ning Yi frowned: "The journey is tiring..." Qingmu Fortress is still more than twenty miles away from the old village. In this day and age, even the best carriage will produce huge bumps. And recently, although Liang Bingfu has not been working hard for the village, he looks a little younger, but his body has deteriorated after all.

Hong Ti is a grandmaster and knows these things best, so she also came over to persuade him...