From Chief to Ball

"What Xiacheng lacks now is people, not slaves. I don't care about the affairs of the west either. I am tired of managing these people in Xiacheng now. I have to check everything. I just have ten more hands and two heads. We will also be exhausted. Our Xiacheng will go east in the future, so we can only do things to go west by ourselves, not the energy of the whole city. It’s okay, if you can’t do it well, you can’t do it well. People are lost and land is gone. Now, brothers can still make you hungry?"

Wolfpi smiled and said, "I'm not worried about that. Forget it, you and Yuqian will collect thirty slaves from your private property, and I'll sell some land for more slaves. If I do this well, I'm sure it won't happen." Break the rules of the city, don't use new troops, don't use clansmen, and buy weapons and the like from the market."

After the agreement was made, he returned to Xiacheng. Langpi did something that shocked everyone in the city. He sold his land to others in exchange for some slaves. At the same time, he bought some weapons from Fangshi with the land as a pledge. And boasted in front of everyone: I am going to the west to do a major event that will shock the city.

Selling land and conquering alone are things that people in the city have never experienced.Many people think that the big cake Chen Jian drew is beautiful, and many people don't know what to do. It is too general and always feels that Xiacheng cannot be abandoned at all. It will take three to five years to expand westward.

Using Xiacheng's army to subdue those clans, the clansmen thought it was easy, but it was unreliable to lead some slaves to do it. After all, there was no precedent for this matter: Is it really that simple?

During Huaizi Festival on March [-]rd, the wolf belt brought nearly a hundred slaves and the grain and weapons obtained from the sale of the land to his empty and barren land. Several slaves who were good at farming were instructing the people in those villages to burn wasteland and plant corn and beans. .

The slaves who came here with the wolf skin were anxious, not knowing what kind of fate they would usher in. They were all so-called familiar slaves in Xiacheng, that is, slaves who knew the language of Xiacheng and understood the rules of Xiacheng.

Looking at the barren land, the slaves sighed one by one, and said that they were afraid that they would start to cultivate the land again, which was the most tiring job. The masters cherished the cattle and horses, but they did not cherish the cheaper slaves.

However, what surprised them was that they were not forced to reclaim the land. On the contrary, a jar of wine and meat was placed in the wild at noon. Cows are not as good as cows. In order to reward them for their hard work in farming for a year during the Huaizi Festival, Xiacheng people will make dumplings stuffed with shepherd's purse and eat with cows.

Langpi was accompanied by a few younger brothers of the same family and the same mother, but the slaves all knew that this man was powerful, even though there were many people in the wild, they didn't have the thought of resisting and fleeing. The saliva did not dare to take any action.

Wolfpi's younger brother poured the wine, and the slaves counted the number of bowls, guessing that there should be one of their own.

When the wolf skin raised the wine bowl, the slaves heard the voice of the wolf skin.

"Hold it up, I have something to tell you. Are there any of you who don't want to be slaves who are not as good as cows and horses? Now I have a way to get you out. If you do it well, not only will you not need to be slaves like cows and horses in the future. things, and on the contrary may have their own lands, slaves, and even women."

When the slaves heard this, they were silent for a while and couldn't believe it was true. According to the rules of Xiacheng, one must become the kind of dead soldiers who attack the enemy, or do well in farming and corvee, in order to change from a slave to a person who cannot be killed at will. Li Nong became a living person, and then he became a wild man step by step.

But the slaves also knew that Langpi was Jixia's clan brother, and he was also a figure in Xia City, so they definitely wouldn't talk nonsense. Finally, some slaves couldn't help asking: "I don't know what the master wants us to do? If there is such a way, We are willing to do it."

Langpi nodded and said: "You also know that I am sealed in this land, and there are countless clans in the open area to the west. Jixia doesn't like this place, and says that as much land as is allocated to us is ours. Although you are slaves , but at least understand the language of Xiacheng, and many of them were warriors of the clan. I also made it clear that you are mine now. If you are not afraid of death, follow me, make meritorious deeds and capture slaves, I will share some with you. You just need to fight, and if you do well, you will not only have wine and meat to eat every day, but you will even have your own land, slaves, and women. But in the future It is also my responsibility to go out with my children, and I guarantee that your land slaves and women will not be taken away by others, and you will capture slaves and seize the land for me."

"If you want to do it, drink this bowl of wine and swear to me. If you don't want to do it, I won't embarrass you. You will still be slaves. The land here has not yet been cultivated, and you are familiar with it, so I don't need to say more."

When the slaves heard this, they were afraid that the wine in front of them would be robbed, so they hurriedly picked it up. After a little thought, they knew that this was a good road, much better than cultivating land here.

"We are willing to follow the master, but..."

Wolfpi laughed and said, "When Ji Xia made the oath, I had some habits that I couldn't get used to, and he always said it very clearly. Now when I want to make an oath with you, I understand why I have to say something. Three or four. Listen to the oath, if you wish, drink your blood and drink this bowl with me."

"One, you are loyal to me, your descendants are loyal to my descendants, and loyal to the lord of this territory, it will never change."

"Second, those who fight the enemy bravely and make great achievements in battle will be given slaves and land. This is yours and can be passed on to your descendants. You need to practice bows and arrows and spears hard, and you cannot shoot those who cannot hold spears, whether it is you or your descendants. I will take back your land slaves."

"Three, after you have land slaves in the future, you need to bring your own weapons. When I need to go out, I must follow. I guarantee that you will be no different from ordinary people in the territory. Capture slaves and kill enemies. Do not violate."

……

According to Chen Jian's instigation, Langpi clarified this kind of slavery system bound by private slaves bit by bit, rights and obligations, peace of meritorious service, hope and future... All these things were clearly explained.

"Finally, if I do well, I can report to Ji Xia and let you have the same surname as mine, and you will be no different from the people of the country. You can also participate in sacrifices, and you can also pass on your surname to future generations."

The slaves heard it clearly and secretly swallowed.After the wolf skin finished speaking, he took out the bronze short sword and pierced his finger, dripped the blood into the wine jar, asked his younger brother to pour out the wine, and said: "If you want, you will make an oath with me. If I violate , Heaven and earth will not allow ancestors to cast aside. If you disobey, you will be slaves for generations and your blood will not continue! The ancestors of heaven and earth bear witness."

The slaves looked at the wine in front of them, without much hesitation, bit their fingers, repeated their vows, and gulped down.

Although these people are not good at drawing bows and archery, they are very good at wielding sticks and spears. More importantly, they have concentrated on working on the land for several years, and they have already acquired a certain degree of discipline. Either to eat or to play the gong or to go to work, and I know that my life is not as good as cattle and horses without even a woman.

After drinking blood wine and getting drunk, the weapons were distributed the next day, and the daily practice was not mentioned.

At the beginning of April, the peach blossoms will fall, the summer fish are not fat, all the beasts give birth, and the apricots are still fresh. It is the time when the clans in the wilderness are most weak and green.

With nearly a hundred slaves under his belt, the wolf set off westward, and within half a month, he opened up a hundred and fifty miles westward.

The three clans expressed their obedience and vowed to respect him as the lord, willing to live in their territory and abide by the oath, and sent young people from the clan to Xiacheng to study.

The two clans were captured as slaves because of their resistance, and half of them were sent back to Xiacheng, and the other half remained in their own territory.

The slaves who followed him on the expedition were also given some soup, and the eleven outstanding slaves were assigned to their own slaves, and even two were assigned to manage the clan within the clan.

Wolfpi fulfilled his promise, ordered the slaves to build a house, distributed them to the 11 female slaves, and gave them weapons. There is a special status between slave owners and slaves: In terms of status, they are still slaves of Xiacheng legally, and they still have to give way to poor Xiacheng people who are dying of starvation; in terms of living standards, they are detached. Slaves only need to fight and even have slaves and land, surpassing their own slave status in the territory.

Within two months, the settlements in the Wolfskin Territory changed from two to five, expanded 150 miles to the west, and captured more than 300 slaves. The news returned to Xia City, asking the city council to recognize his expanded fiefdom and population.

The people who had rumored that the wolf skins were crazy are now dumbfounded, watching a group of slaves being escorted back by wolf skins. At this time, slaves are in short supply. These slaves alone have made up for the land that was sold at the beginning, not to mention his The fief has increased a lot.

Those who were entrusted outside were envious and enthusiastic, and they invited the wolf skin to drink and chat, and asked how to do it. Under the premise of not breaking the rules of Xia City, many people's thoughts were transferred to the west: those who want to go west must have made meritorious deeds Xiacheng's new aristocratic class, many people have a certain influence in the city, and they are the part that Chen Jian is most worried about when he goes out.

Those who don't have fiefdoms are even more eager to confiscate some land after their meritorious service, and there are still many villages waiting to be confiscated.

And the butterfly effect brought about by this incident is more than that.Because of the increase in the price of cooked slaves, the slaves in Xia City are more expensive, and they have a layer of human status.

The new aristocrats who made meritorious deeds did not follow the example of wolf skin, but found ways to cultivate more land with less manpower under the premise of retaining the land of Xiacheng, so as to free up more private soldiers.

In order to improve production efficiency, slave owners spontaneously purchased more advanced production tools, which drove the development of Xiacheng's handicraft industry.

At the same time, in order to prevent these new agricultural tools from being destroyed, the living standards of slaves had to be improved to reduce some oppression, and in some models set by Chen Jian, a new way of exploitation appeared in which slaves cultivated the land of their masters and handed over most of their income—— Turning unpaid slave exploitation into income from land cultivation is closely related to the life of slaves, which greatly improves the productivity of slaves.

Slaves with surplus products also have the ability to consume handicraft products, which can make a large number of handicraft slaves become craftsmen, improve production efficiency, increase the income of Xiacheng scissors in disguise, and make Yuqian'er's work much easier.

If Chen Jian had forced this a year ago, he would have been opposed by the slave owners.

If public property is used to support the innovation of production tools, Xiacheng’s income will not be able to support the city, and the city government will go bankrupt; and if slave owners are forced to update their tools, they will backlash. Chen Jian’s ass is now supported by slave owners Yes, he didn't dare to oppose the entire class, so he could only use this method of model change to implement it little by little.

The promotion of plowshares, oxen and horse harnesses and ridge farming has given Xiacheng the basis to do so, and the opportunity for change is also quietly beginning. I believe that after a year, those models of exploitation that have been changed in a different way will be more profitable than normal slavery. More.

At that time, people will naturally follow suit to buy new tools, digest the rapidly developing handicraft industry in Xia City, and rely on domestic demand to support the establishment of Onozawa City in order to use water transportation to dump it abroad. .If it is formed early, it will be sluggish if it cannot be sold, and if it is formed late, it will not be able to keep up with the heat.

At the end of May, when the vision of the new nobles was all in the western fiefdom, some adjustments were made quietly inside Xia City. Hundreds of soldiers were assigned to guard their territory with wolf skins, in the name of preventing unbeatable enemies from appearing in the west. They are monitoring the enfeoffed clans with foreign surnames.

Baima returns to Xiacheng to train the remaining new army, and resents Shi Shan, who decided to divide the troops in the Battle of Baima Grassland, to garrison Yangguan because of his meritorious service in seizing the big banners of various tribes in the grassland, and increases the strength of Yangguan.Civet cats and acorns are in charge of Xiacheng's soldiers and foreign operations in the event of foreign enemies.

At the same time, E-strider, Wei Xi and the others went to Onozawa by boat in the name of following Chen Jian's experience and training, accompanied by some clansmen from the Acropolis of Echeng.

On the first day of June, Chen Jian left Xiacheng and went down the river to Sucheng with a large amount of copper ingots, gunpowder, farm tools and war horses, as well as a hundred new troops and some craftsmen.

Chapter 50 Male Cat and Tigress

The end of June and the beginning of July are the best days in Onozawa, especially after Suyue Youqiu and Chen Jian acquiesced in the various actions of the Xiacheng people in Onozawa, the necessities of life such as salt are not so tight, at least in hot summer. The gray beads that condense on the hair after sweating, the white salt on the pile of soil accumulated in the toilet, are no longer things that the escaped slaves in Onozawa cherish.

The exchange would be carried out every once in a while. Ze, the leader of the fugitive slaves, carved the various goods that needed to be paid each time on the slate. Seeing the more and more goods owed, the uneasiness in his heart became heavier.

The witch doctor named Ji Bo who Xia Cheng came to Onozawa has lived here for half a year, he is a good person.This is the evaluation of Ji Bo by the escaped slaves in the whole Onozawa.

However, Ji Bai did not agree with this evaluation in his heart. He knew very well that he was different from his elder brother. Perhaps his elder brother would sincerely help these people because he could not bear to see their suffering. His purpose of helping these people was only so that Chen Jian would reuse him. that promise.

The thoughts are different, but the things they do are the same. Xiacheng is a city that doesn't care about the heart, but he always knows what he thinks in his heart.

Tolerating things that ordinary people can't bear can be of great use.However, Ji Bo's life here is not unbearable. On the contrary, there are still many women who are intoxicated by the stories and wisdom he brought, and three or five women are even pregnant.