Time quickly passed through the midsummer and late autumn of the eleventh year of Tongzhi.

The war in Yunnan is at a stalemate, the China Merchants Steamship Bureau is still making preparations, and the steel plant in Qinnan is gradually being completed......

At this time, it was already October in early winter, and it snowed heavily for the first time of the year in Hanzhong last night.

Stepping on the ground after the snow, although the weather is cold, the streets are still crowded with people. For the current Hanzhong, it is completely a center in southern Shaanxi, Dongchuan, and Longyou. It has become a commercial town on a par with Chongqing, but it is only inferior to Xi'an.

In the six years after the war, the foreign population was tens of thousands, and the overall household income recovered to eighty percent of the pre-war level. And the annual tax has doubled compared to a decade ago. If it weren't for political reasons, Li Ying's glorious achievements would be enough for him to enter the threshold of the third-grade master early.

In the Qingshi Pass south of Zheng, the military stronghold of the past, has long since been extinguished. If it weren't for the Qin army's new barracks still set up here, Qingshi Pass would have been handed over to the Hanzhong Yamen long ago.

It's just that with Liu Xian's southward movement, the rules of the new barracks here in Hanzhong have also changed. Training will not reduce the amount of training too much, and the discipline requirements will be much more relaxed.

The war is 'over'. Liu Xian can no longer expand his troops unscrupulously. The training of the recruit battalion must move from pre-war training to 'interest, voluntary' training of a 'militia' nature. Li Ying led the yamen and ran the names of regimental training and township soldiers.

There is a distance from Qingshi Pass to the entrance of the barracks, and a continuous stream of shops has been built on both sides. The recruit battalion has been crowded all year round, and as long as there is a subsidy for training, although Li Ying has not planned the development here at all, but the barracks with strong consumption power itself has driven some merchants to build shops here. Over the years, it has become one of the most prosperous commercial areas in Hanzhong Province.

Zhang Shouxun and Zhang Shuping looked at the lively restaurants and shops on both sides, and sighed with emotion The drive of interests, human nature for profit, is really irrepressible.

They are all members of the Wudi Zhang family. Zhang Shouxun is the eldest son of Zhang Yanzhong. Zhang Shuping is Liu Xian's genuine brother-in-law and Zhang Miaotong's younger brother.

Although the two are a generation apart, they are the same age and have a very good relationship. In this Shandong Township Examination, the two took the exam together, and the field was also unsatisfactory. Originally, Zhang Shouxun was going to go to Zhang Shoudai, who was the governor of Henan, and most of his subordinates were places for Zhang Shouxun to practice, but in the end, Zhang Shouxun followed Zhang Shuping to Hanzhong.

They are going to Guangxi. I first came to Hanzhong to see the foundation of the Qin army.

I feel that the prosperity of Hanzhong is better than that of Shandong. Since the rise of the Taiping Army and the severance of the canal, Shandong has not been completely free of war until four years ago. Four years of recuperation is not enough for Shandong to restore its former appearance. Moreover, today's grain is mostly transported by sea, and now Linqing and other places along the canal in Shandong are inferior to those of 20 years ago. Zhang Shouxun looked at the pedestrians in the store left and right, didn't pay attention to his feet, and slipped and almost fell down when he stepped on something. The followers behind him hurriedly supported him. Zhang Shouxun, who was a little frightened, had not yet stood firmly, and saw Zhang Shuping next to him covering his nose with a funny face. One of the two plainclothes guards who followed behind him even scolded and said, "Dog's day, which family's cattle are pulling dung on the street, and if they are caught, they must beat you with thirty military sticks!" ”

Zhang Shouxun seemed to smell a foul smell at this time. Looking down at the call, the expression instantly was a rich. Another plainclothes guard looked at the ground and said to Zhang Shouxun: "Seventeenth Master, now the people in Hanzhong are rich, there are more livestock, and the common people are raising them. It's better in the city, and we can also go to the Zhuangzi, and the officials and the head of the village and the chief of the security are in charge, and the feces are all picked up in the back basket. But when no one cares outside, it's everywhere. ”

Although Zhang Shouxun was embarrassed and disgusting, he also nodded in agreement, "It's a big place outside, but I can't take care of it." ”

Just throw away the shoes on your feet, but fortunately there are shops on the street to buy shoes. Zhang Shouxun was delayed for a long time, and the group returned to the road. They walked all the way to the gate of the barracks, and there happened to be a group of boy scouts in their teens coming out, these children were all orphans adopted by Liu Xian, dressed neatly in trumpet coats, and the team was neater than the average Qin army.

Zhang Shouxun and Zhang Shuping entered the barracks, skipped the militia who were training in the three squadrons in the school yard, and went directly to the boy boy camp. They wanted to see what the strongest supporters of the Qin army looked like in the barracks. The team of scouts just now had a golden light in their eyes.

Everyone knows that the Boy Scouts are good, but except for the Taiping Army at the beginning, whether it is the Green Battalion or the Xianghuai Army, no one has the ability to 'bring out' a Boy Scout. That requires a certain amount of financial resources and a lot of energy.

At the training ground of the boy boy camp, when Zhang Shouxun and Zhang Shuping arrived, they were catching up with a twelve or thirteen-year-old child, wearing a military uniform, and took the lead in shouting with confidence: "Loyal to Liu Junmen, loyal to the Qin army!" "That's the slogan.

A group of child soldiers roared in unison with red faces: "Loyal to Liu Junmen, loyal to Qin Jun!" The hot emotion seemed to have a magical power, and it clenched Erzhang's heart.

"Who's going to feed us?"

"Liu Junmen!"

"Who's going to clothe us?"

"Liu Junmen!"

"Who saved our lives?"

"Liu Junmen!"

"Who will teach us to go to school?"

"It's still Liu Junmen!"

"Who is the best in the world?"

"Liu Junmen!"

"Where is the best place in the world?"

"Qin Jun!" ……

Zhang Shouxun and Zhang Shuping looked at the boy scouts standing in front of them with complicated faces, this is a group of teenagers, the oldest is thirteen or fourteen years old. They have been contained by the Qin army for a short time, the longest is more than six years, their loyalty to Liu Xian, their love for the Qin army, completely infiltrated into their bones. Then there is the guidance and indoctrination of the so-called 'teachings' of the Qin army......

Zhang Shuping shuddered violently. If there is another three or five years, these children grow up, then Liu Xian will take them to death, and I am afraid that no one will have a word of complaint.

It may even be that there are quite a few such people in the current Qin Army who have served as officers. Zhang Shuping is very clear about his brother-in-law, whether it is Liu's Manor or the Boy Scouts, as early as when the Qin army was in Hubei and Henan to level the twist and intercept the Taiping army. How many years have passed since then?

Zhang Shuping was just a scholar who studied the books of sages and sages in the past, although he was familiar with the Hunan army, the Huai army, the Chu army, and the Qin army, but in his mind he even 'thought' that they were no different from the green camp, but they were more capable of fighting. Today, looking at the boy scouts in this school field who are openly shouting 'loyal to Liu Junmen, loyal to Qin Jun', he has a thorough understanding of 'X Army' - this is completely a personal private army. and not belong to the imperial court.

Compared with Zhang Shuping, who has an average family, Zhang Shouxun's follower father is well-informed and knows very well what kind of goods the four armies of Xianghuai, Chu and Qin are. There was no response to the Boy Scouts' slightly rebellious slogans. On the contrary, the light in his eyes flickered, revealing a look of great interest.

He wanted to know—

When these young people are cultivated in the barracks, their minds are full of wars, they can also read and write, and when they grow up, they will be filled into the upper and lower ranks of the Qin army, and what kind of strength will the Qin army reach!

Zhang Shouxun couldn't estimate it. But he can at least be sure that when these Boy Scouts who are loyal to Liu Xian enter the Qin army, Liu Xian's control of the Qin army will reach a peak point. And these boy scouts will also use their talents, knowledge, discipline, and vigor to quickly become the backbone of the Qin army's new life.

Liu Xian is simply invincible. Unless the imperial court completely erases the Qin army from top to bottom, it will remove Liu Xian's official hat, and the real power will still be in his hands.

Walking out of the bazaar of Qingshi Pass, the outside is still endless white. From time to time, the horses snorted and spewed out clouds of white gas.

Erzhang and his entourage did not turn back to their residence, but continued to rush to the Hanyuan Public School. Liu Xian has run a number of night schools and engineering schools in Liuzhou, and naturally runs schools in Hanzhong, his old base. And in addition to the night school, the engineering school and the school inside Liu's manor, Liu Xian also formally built a academy. However, in addition to Chinese studies, there are also history, geography, mathematics, chemistry, material resources and foreign languages.

In addition to the students of the school, Hanyuan Public School also opens its doors widely, and everyone is welcome to come to the school for auditing, and there is no charge for any fees. After a few years of development, the influence of Hanyuan Public School in Hanzhong, as well as in southern Shaanxi and Dongchuan, has increased day by day.

"I heard that in this Han Yuan public school, whenever geography and history classes are held, there are people, students, and even officials and gentry gathered. Even Master Li of the house asked his entourage to compare each lesson and write records. ”

Zhang Shuping asked the two plainclothes guards. The two plainclothes guards looked proud, and one of them said, "That's not the case. Although the two subjects of geography and history have talked about domestic knowledge, they are more about European, American and foreign affairs. A few years ago, our military family invited a lot of foreigners to come to Hanzhong, and these foreigners could not speak well in Chinese, and they could not teach in school. But there is ink in people's stomachs, and we have people here who understand foreign languages, and they only record and translate foreign affairs from foreigners, and then they are combed through and talked about in public schools. ”

"The talents are curious and want to know the geography and history of foreigners. The people are more curious, just like they are about to hear about books. Now there are a lot of rumors about foreigners in the market in Hanzhong, all of which are them, and they use them to show off after hearing a little understanding. With false rumors, a lot of nonsense has been made. ”

"The officials and gentry are also curious about foreign affairs, and like the talents, they also want to know some foreign affairs. Those who have a heart also send people to learn foreign dialects......"

"There are also businesses that let apprentices come to the school to learn arithmetic......

The development of Chinese studies, chemistry, and physics in the Hanyuan Public School is not good, and there are few foreign languages that are learned attentively, but relying on geography, history, and mathematics that teaches arithmetic, the prestige has grown in recent years, almost overshadowing the Hannan Academy, the government school in Hanzhong. R1152