Chapter 57: Valuing Farmers (1)

The weather at the end of June was unbearably hot. No matter where you hid, the scorching sun high in the sky would mercilessly bake the earth, every inch of land in the streets, alleys, fields, and ridges.
Next to a tavern in Tangzhou City, close to the southern part of the city, the shopkeeper Xue Gui sat cross-legged outside, scanning the surroundings. Looking up at the sun as big as a millstone, he couldn’t help but sigh deeply. It was already noon. Normally, customers and drinkers would have flocked to his tavern long ago, filling its already limited seats. But now, not a single soul was in the streets, let alone customers who came for drinks.
If this continued, there was no point in running his business. It would be better to take down the sign and go home to farm and retire.
As he grumbled to himself, suddenly the sound of horse hooves came. Xue Gui quickly raised his head. A cloud of yellow dust blew over, making him cough nonstop. He was about to curse when he recognized the figure on horseback. The vulgar words dying on his lips were replaced by a smile as he stood up to greet them.
“Wow, isn’t that General Li? What brings you to my humble shop? I’m truly honored! Please come in, come in!”
Even if Xue Gui were blind, he wouldn’t fail to recognize this man—it was Li Kuo, the local governor of Tangzhou! If not for him leading ten thousand troops from the Jianghuai Regiment to guard this area, who knew how the surrounding lands might have been ravaged by barbarians.
Li Kuo lightly kicked his horse and jumped off, tossing the reins to Xue Gui.
“Mu Zi, Mu Zi! Damn it, stop sleeping! Come out and welcome our guests.”
Soon, a young man in a vest, still groggy from sleep, came out.
“Uncle Xue, why did you call me?”
“Heh, you little rascal! Are you trying to lie? Can’t you see General Li has arrived? Go and lead the horses for these officers!”
“Oh, it’s General Li!”
The boy named Mu Zi seemed to snap out of his daze immediately. He scratched his head, laughed, and stepped forward to lead the horses.
“Old Xue, it seems your tongue has gotten sweeter since we last met. Don’t worry—I’ll definitely pay you for the liquor!”
Clearly in a good mood, Li Kuo teased Xue Gui.
“What are you saying? I’m just being cheerful for a moment.”
Xue Gui tied Qingfeng to the peg and invited Li Kuo and his group inside with one arm. …

“Damn you, Dezi, come out quickly! Third daughter, come out too—hurry up and serve our honored guest!” Xue Gui shouted loudly while taking out two jars of fine wine from the cabinet and placing them in front of Li Kuo. Wiping his hands on his clothes, he chuckled and said, “I wasn’t ready for your sudden visit. As you know, the streets are in chaos these days, with hardly anyone around.”
Li Kuo picked up a large bowl filled to the brim with wine and frowned. “Is it still like this? Can your shop even survive?”
Xue Gui shrugged and said with a wry smile, “It’s still the same, but it’s much better than before you arrived in Tangzhou. Back then, the whole city was dead silent—everyone stayed indoors, as if going out meant encountering ghosts! Although it’s quiet during the day now, at least half as many customers come at night, which helps me get by.”
Li Kuo nodded. Xue Gui was right. When he first arrived in Tangzhou, the county officials—the magistrate, county commander, clerk, and others—had all fled, and even the court servants rushed to leave. The entire county office was left empty.
If the government was like this, the common people were even worse off. Those with some wealth rented carriages to flee to areas like Jianghuai, while those without much wealth stayed locked at home, trying not to go outside. After all, most of Henan Province had fallen to the enemy, and even the eastern capital, Luoyang, had been captured by the rebels and made their capital. Who knew if the rebels might attack Tangzhou the next day and burn and loot everything, destroying people’s homes?
With the people living in such restraint, businesses like taverns, tea houses, and restaurants naturally suffered. Owners like Xue Gui, who relied on customers for a living, were in dire straits, almost on the verge of poverty.
“But ever since you arrived in Tangzhou, not only have you stabilized the situation here, but you also set fire to the Luokou Granary, turning it to ashes. Without food supplies, the rebels dare not expand further, and life here is gradually returning to normal.”
Xue Gui swallowed hard before continuing, “The people of Tangzhou regard you as their savior. Without you, not to mention others, I, old Xue, wouldn’t be able to survive.”
Hearing him list so many of his “great achievements” in one go, Li Kuo couldn’t help but laugh.
“Isn’t that right? My general is a young warrior feared by even the Tubo and Arabs—a hero who can defeat tens of thousands of enemies! Not to mention a few rebels—even if An Lushan led his army to the gates of Tangzhou, my general would scatter them in one strike.”

Wang Xiaochun eagerly cut in, declaring loudly, “Our general launched a surprise attack with 2,500 men on the rebels’ rear, setting fire to the Luokou granary and cutting off their supply of food. Such courage is beyond ordinary people! Then, our general led his troops to retake Nanyang and Fangcheng from the rebels, completely sealing off the northern gateway for their invasion. Even if Cui Qianyou were reborn as a deity, he couldn’t take a step further into the southern mountains!”
“Xiaochun, don’t be rude!”
Li Kuo forced a smile and said, “Old Xue, don’t listen to Xiaochun’s nonsense. That’s just his nature.”
Xue Gui waved his hands repeatedly, saying, “It’s fine, it’s fine. General Xiaochun is also a man of passion—purely driven by emotion!” He then filled another bowl of wine for Wang Xiaochun, smiling broadly. “How many more cities has General Li captured this time? Right now, in all of Tang, only Generals Guo Ziyi and Li Guangbi in the northern regions, along with you, can win battles.”
Wang Xiaochun glared at Xue Gui irritably and said, “Do you think waging war is like running a tavern? That you can capture a city just by wanting to? Timing is crucial! Our general has already sealed off the rebels’ path southward, so of course he must now rescue the people in the Henan region. Yongqiu and Xiangyi have been besieged by the rebels for a long time, yet no one went to rescue them. Naturally, our general went to Yongqiu to address the urgent situation.”
“Oh, I see!”
Xue Gui immediately understood. Though he couldn’t fathom why General Li would go hundreds of miles to Yongqiu instead of fighting the rebels right where they were, he didn’t say much. After all, General Li was in charge of Tangzhou now, and he had worked hard to establish this relationship—there was no need to ruin it over something unimportant.
“What are you thinking? Are you going to let our general drink alone? I really don’t know how your brain works—how could you run a tavern? Your customers would be driven mad by you!”
Wang Xiaochun angrily tapped Xue Gui’s forehead with his chopsticks and sneered, “The usual three dishes—hurry up and have them prepared!”
“Ah, ah! A plate of fried peanuts, a dish of pickled cucumbers in sauce, and a pound of spiced mutton. Just wait, I’ll be right back!”
After being hit by Wang Xiaochun, Xue Gui finally snapped out of his daze and rushed off to the back kitchen.