The Humble Family's Daughter Has A Spatial Pocket! novel Chapter 1065

Chapter 1065: Chapter 888, Improvement

The Commander’s Office had issued an order for the Ganzhou Guard to recruit troops independently, and Xiao Yeyang immediately had people post recruitment notices at both the gates of the guard station and the city gates.

Upon receiving the news, Fan Tong and Xia Jianren gathered at the notice posted outside the gates and looked at its contents—one furrowed his brows disapprovingly, while the other remained silent, seemingly deep in thought.

Fan Tong shook his head, "Why suddenly start recruiting? The guard station is so poor they can’t even supply the border army’s grain, where would they get the money to recruit?"

Traditionally, the Ganzhou Guard supplied the food for the border army, whereas the military pay was allocated by the Imperial Court to the Commander’s Office and then distributed by them.

Now that the Commander’s Office had allowed the Ganzhou Guard to recruit troops and provide for themselves, did that mean both the food and the salaries had to be covered by Ganzhou Guard?

Seeing the worried look on Fan Tong’s face, Xia Jianren scoffed, "Why worry over nothing? Nowadays, Ganzhou Guard isn’t managed by us but by the new Fifth-rank Officer Xiao commanding it. Even if the guard station has no money, Xiao Residence does. If Xiao wishes to recruit, the matter of money is naturally for him to resolve."

Fan Tong’s face grew increasingly disapproving, "I know Xiao Residence has money, but the daily expenses of the troops are enormous. How long can Xiao Residence keep up?"

Xia Jianren smiled and shook his head, "Who cares, it has nothing to do with you or me."

Upon hearing this, Fan Tong felt dissatisfied, "We are both commanders of the Ganzhou Guard; how can such a major matter as recruiting troops be none of our business? No, Xiao Yeyang might not understand the expenses of the army; I have to go and advise him."

Xia Jianren quickly grabbed Fan Tong, "Xiao Yeyang is recruiting to gather a force of fifty thousand border troops. What use is there in you saying anything?"

Fan Tong frowned instantly, aware that the border army stationed in Ganzhou was insufficient. He had even urged Mr. Wei about it, but Mr. Wei had only deflected his requests each time.

With this independent recruitment edict from the Commander’s Office, weren’t they just passing the buck?

Xia Jianren saw the change in Fan Tong’s expression and a hint of mockery appeared at the corners of his mouth.

He truly couldn’t fathom why Mr. Wei favored Fan Tong more. Was it because he was a bit more foolish?

Xia Jianren didn’t bother with Fan Tong’s concerns, returning his gaze to the notice.

He understood the deeper reasons Mr. Wei had for letting Xiao Yeyang recruit troops. Recruiting was costly, and once Xiao Yeyang couldn’t bear the expenses, he would naturally leave.

Mr. Wei still wanted to push Xiao Yeyang out.

Seeing that quite a few people had gathered around the notice in no time, Xia Jianren sneered internally.

Life in Ganzhou Guard was impoverished; some families, to save food, would still send members to join the army despite knowing the risks of not returning.

Not to mention that the guard station was now recruiting by providing food and issuing silver as pay. Undoubtedly, many would come to enlist.

He hoped that Xiao Yeyang recruited more troops so that he could leave Ganzhou Guard and Xiliang sooner.

No longer pondering recruitment, Xia Jianren stepped toward the guard station. Just as he entered the main gate, he saw the cheerful-looking Chen from the Ganxi Battalion exiting.

"Chen from the Battalion, what brings you to Ganzhou City?"

On seeing Xia Jianren, Chen hesitated slightly but then approached him with a smile, "Sir Xia."

Glancing at where Chen had just exited, Xia asked with a smile, "Did Officer Xiao summon you here?"

Chen nodded and did not elaborate further.

A nervous twitch passed over Xia Jianren’s face as he inwardly sighed; Xiao Yeyang was indeed skillful, having quickly won over the battalion leader.

"I see you look quite happy; is there good news?"

Chen hesitated a moment, knowing Xia Jianren’s ties to the Commander, and vaguely responded, "I just came to report the agricultural status to Officer Xiao."

The Ganzhou Guard was the poorest among the nine guards of Xiliang, and the Ganxi Battalion the poorest among its five battalions.

In the past, even as military households of the Ganxi Battalion struggled fiercely, after turning in their military grain, the remnants barely kept their families alive and not starving.

But this year was different. The drought-resistant and high-yielding seeds issued by Officer Xiao during the spring planting had resulted in promising growth in the fields. Thinking of this, a smile returned to Chen’s face.

However, half a month later, the officials began to sense something was amiss. _{freёweɓnovel.com}