156: Chapter 0156 You, a Military General

Lin Xiao was not very familiar with the local area, so he simply brought Prefect Cai Heng along as a guide.

Assistant Minister Cai had been in charge of the reconstruction work for the past few days, and the more he learned about Northern architecture, the more he marveled at Lin Xiao's brilliance!

Therefore, upon hearing that Lin Xiao had something to discuss with him, he rushed to the city gate in a hurry to pay his respects.

After setting off, he learned that Lin Xiao was heading to Xinghua Village to inspect whether it was feasible to build a winery there.

Prefect Cai Heng's expression turned somewhat strange; he frowned, wanting to say something but holding back.

"Prefect Cai Heng, if you have any thoughts on this, just speak your mind."

Lin Xiao had the intention of grooming this fellow to see what kind of talent this unpolished gem could become.

"General, although I don't drink much, I know that brewing is physically demanding work."

"The reason Xinghua Village is so impoverished is that the mountainous land is barren and unsuitable for farming, so the men have all gone to the county towns and villages along the river to make a living."

"There are only some elderly, weak, women, and children left there, relying on growing a few vegetables and gathering wild fruits to survive."

Prefect Cai Heng frowned and said, "Moreover, access to the place requires passing through a valley. Once heavy snow blocks the mountains, it's easy to be trapped inside for a month or two."

"The local gazetteer once recorded that, historically, dozens of villagers in Xinghua Village starved to death due to heavy snow."

"The only thing worth mentioning there is the beautiful environment and the wild apricot trees covering the mountains."

"In spring, you can enjoy the flowers; in summer and autumn, you can make apricot jam. Other than that... it really doesn't have much value."

Lin Xiao was not surprised after hearing this.

If it were a place where one could easily profit, it wouldn't have fallen to Hua Nongying to sponsor it.

Lin Xiao continued to ask, "Since it's such a poor little village, how do you know it in such detail?"

Prefect Cai Heng respectfully replied, "Since I serve in Lincang, I naturally must have an understanding of all the areas under the commandery. I have reviewed the local gazetteers and visited the places in person, so I have an impression of them."

"Oh? So you've seen the beautiful scenery of Xinghua Village as well?"

"I have had the honor of seeing it twice. The stunning scenery of the apricot blossoms covering the mountains is truly refreshing," Prefect Cai Heng nodded.

"Very good, then there is no problem," Lin Xiao said with satisfaction.

No problem?

Prefect Cai Heng was completely confused. Had Lin Xiao actually understood what he was saying?

This place has nothing; can a workshop really be opened there?

Prefect Cai Heng shook his head secretly. Oh well, once Lin Xiao arrives and sees it for himself, he will surely give up.

After traveling for a full hour or more, the group finally arrived at the valley outside Xinghua Village.

Lin Xiao looked around; the cliffs on both sides were steep, and it was indeed easy for snow to accumulate and block the path.

After walking not much further, they saw a crystal-clear stream.

Looking around, there were apricot trees everywhere on the mountain.

Thinking of the coming spring, with apricot blossoms covering the mountains, the scenery would surely be like a fairyland.

"Good! Very good!"

Lin Xiao sighed with emotion; only a place like this had real class!

Prefect Cai Heng, standing to the side, was full of confusion. "General, what is it that you say is good?"

"The scenery, of course. Don't you think this place is like a paradise on earth?"

"What is a paradise?"

Lin Xiao then remembered that there was no Tao Yuanming here, so he smiled and said, "It just means a place that is detached from the world and extremely beautiful."

"It is beautiful, and when spring comes, it will truly be a stunning sight... but you want to build a winery, and scenery is useless for that," Prefect Cai Heng reminded him in a low voice.

Lin Xiao did not answer and continued to walk inside.

Before long, they saw the group of courtesans brought by Hua Nongying, as well as over a hundred women, children, and elderly people from the village.

Hua Nongying seemed determined to change her identity; she had taken off her gorgeous dress and changed into a simple, elegant gown, with her long hair adorned only by a simple wooden hairpin.

"Greetings, Lin Xiao. The thirty-nine sisters under my command and the over one hundred people of Xinghua Village are all here."

Hua Nongying's expression was slightly nervous and uneasy.

Although she had returned yesterday and told her sisters the news about opening a winery here.

But the clever subordinates, such as Yue Hong and Xian'er, immediately raised doubts upon hearing it.

What they had learned since childhood was how to kill and how to serve men.

They were skilled at tricking men into coming for wine and entertainment, but they really had no experience in brewing wine!

Besides, relying on a group of women like them, how much wine could they brew throughout the year?

Half of Xinghua Village consisted of young girls; it would be good enough if they didn't cause trouble, let alone help with anything.

Moreover, this place had nothing; everything had to be transported in from the outside.

The winter could freeze people to death, and even after the wine was brewed, transporting it out would be a difficult problem.

Upon hearing this, Hua Nongying realized that she had been hot-headed and had agreed too quickly!

Although she still felt that as long as they could produce distilled spirits, this path was worth trying.

But if Lin Xiao discovered that Xinghua Village was so poor and destitute, with nothing at all, she was afraid he would go back on his word...

"Miss Hua, will you show us around?"

Lin Xiao smiled and dismounted his horse.

"As you command!"

Seeing that Lin Xiao seemed to be in a good mood, Hua Nongying immediately perked up.

They crossed two simple wooden bridges and arrived in the village.

Looking around, it was all mud-walled thatched cottages, many of which had already collapsed and were barely covered by some woven straw mats.

It was unimaginable how cold it must be here in winter.

The only thing that looked decent was a shrine to the Earth God built of stone.

"General, the villagers here have it very hard. This shrine was repaired by people I hired with my own money."

"In the winter, everyone huddles together in the shrine to keep warm and doesn't dare to go out."

Hua Nongying said cautiously, "I am not saying this to fight for anything for myself, but just to ask the General to give them a way to survive."

"These houses are indeed not very good."

Lin Xiao turned back to Prefect Cai Heng and said, "Assistant Minister Cai, after returning today, recruit two construction teams locally to rebuild the houses for Xinghua Village."

"Do not think about cutting costs or saving money; even the wooden bridges leading in should be replaced with stone bridges!"

Upon hearing this, Hua Nongying's face lit up with joy, and she hurriedly called out, "Thank you, Lin Xiao!"

"As you command..."

Although Prefect Cai Heng agreed, he felt in his heart that it was too wasteful; rather than rebuilding the village here, it would be better to relocate the residents.

Lin Xiao then pointed to the mountain ridge not far away and asked, "What is the name of that highest mountain over there?"

"Reporting to you, sir, that is just a wild mountain with no name," Prefect Cai Heng said.

Hua Nongying said, "The villagers call it 'Big Apricot Mountain,' and the one next to it is 'Little Apricot Mountain.'"

Lin Xiao smiled; the names were straightforward indeed.

"Are there any local products in the vicinity? Besides apricots, are there any fish, birds, flowers, or anything else?"

Upon hearing this, Hua Nongying was afraid of disappointing Lin Xiao, so she hurriedly asked the villagers of Xinghua Village behind her to introduce them.

"General, there is a type of river fish here; they are not big, but they are very delicious."

"White cranes often pass through here, and they often land on the Earth God shrine; they are very spiritual!"

"Besides apricot blossoms, there are peach blossoms, wild chrysanthemums, azaleas, and so on; it's so beautiful!"

The villagers spoke all at once, and some little girls were even more excited, proudly introducing the fun things.

After listening for a while, Lin Xiao turned back and asked:

"Who among you brought paper and a brush?"

Prefect Cai Heng hurriedly took them out from his personal bag. "General, I have them with me. Is there any government order you need to write down?"

Lin Xiao couldn't help but be stunned. This kid is professional; he carries his own notebook?

"No government order. There are a few lines of poetry; write them down for me."

"Poetry?"

Not to mention Prefect Cai Heng and Hua Nongying, the group of women behind were all dumbfounded. You, a military general, are suddenly inspired to write poetry?