Did the eldest daughter ascend the throne today?

Chapter 200: Maintaining the Army

Ning Zhiwei handed the letter over. Ning Liu took a few glances and immediately jumped up. "He actually wants to marry Fourth Sister. How shameless! Fifth Sister, you must not agree. He wants to annex Yumen Pass through marriage and target the 100,000 Ning Family Army."

These princes are all arrogant and obsessed with power, and are not good matches.

The eldest prince is in an awkward situation now. There is a new emperor in the court, and he is just a prince who defected. The court cannot tolerate him.

He wanted to gain control of more power through marriage so that he could return to the capital and seize the throne.

In his view, as long as he extended an olive branch, these people should accept it with joy.

But Ning Zhiwei doesn't want to make wedding dresses for others.

She knew the character of these princes best, and knew that they could only share hardships but not wealth.

That is to say, they will endure hardships with you, but once they become rich, they will turn against you and attack you at any time.

Of course, the benefits are so great that there are always people willing to take a chance.

"Don't worry, I won't use your marriage as a bargaining chip. I want you to be happy more than anyone else."

The Ning family’s marriages are decided by their elders, and she would not interfere without permission.

"Thank you, fifth sister." Ning Si secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

None of the three took it to heart.

Today, there is a lot of work to be done, government affairs are heavy, and there are too many things to deal with.

Ning Zhiwei called everyone to a meeting, including Ning Ran, Jiang Feiyun, Huo Shaokang, Ning Liu, Ning Si, and Dongsheng.

She looked at the two or three kittens and felt a little headache because there were still too few people.

"Many facilities in the city are dilapidated. We will recruit a group of refugees to work in exchange for relief. We will build and reinforce the city walls, roads in the city, and dredge the river. Huo Shaokang will be in charge of this."

The city garrison was responsible for maintaining public security, catching thieves, patrolling day and night, and ensuring the safety of the city. This was originally Huo Shaokang's responsibility.

"Yes."

"This part of the north city is too dilapidated, so we've demolished it and rebuilt it. The plan has been drawn up, and Huo Shaokang is still in charge. I'll allocate 100,000 taels of silver in the early stages, and you can ask me for more if it's not enough. But the quality of the houses must be guaranteed, and you're not allowed to be greedy."

"Yes." Huo Shaokang's eyes lit up. It's easier to get things done with money.

I didn't expect the master to be so generous, giving one hundred thousand silver coins at a time. You have to know that the soldiers on the border have a hard life. The salary from the court is very little, and sometimes it is delayed. They all rely on subsidies from the Ning family.

However, no matter how much subsidies are provided, they are limited.

In recent months, the imperial court has cut off salaries, and the brothers have no food to eat. Life is so difficult.

He hesitated for a moment, "Um... can you give me some extra salary?"

Ning Zhiwei sighed, "I have urged the court, but they just said it was difficult and asked us to solve it ourselves."

Just when Huo Shaokang thought there was no hope, Ning Zhiwei changed the subject and said, "Brothers, it's not easy. I'll pay for it and make up for the salary of the past few months."

She paid for them, so they were her soldiers and had nothing to do with the imperial court.

"Thank you, Master."

Ning Ran couldn't help but ask, "Master, where are our Ning Family Army?"

The food and grass during this period had long been cut off by the imperial court. They had to rely on Ning Zhiwei to continuously deliver food, and on themselves to raise and collect food, so they lived a very tight life.

"All."

Everyone is happy, but the young lady still has to take care of things at the critical moment.

Ning Zhiwei had been frantically accumulating wealth in the capital city just for this day. It is no exaggeration to say that she has enough money to rival a country.

The Ning sisters were looking at the plan. It was named Anlefang, with a total of eight districts. It was quite large. "Who will live in this house? There aren't that many people in our city, right?"

Ordinary courtyard houses of uniform specifications, with shops along the street, are well organized.

"In the future, there will be many, many people." Ning Zhiwei ordered, "Post a notice that every refugee who comes to settle down will be given three mu of land and two taels of resettlement fee. People are allowed to open up wasteland, and no tax will be paid for the improvement of wasteland within five years."

When these words were spoken, everyone was stunned. Recruiting refugees over?

If you want to develop, the more population the better. How to attract people is a problem that Ning Zhiwei needs to consider.

"Fourth sister will be in charge of compiling the household register. Chunsheng, you will bring others to assist."

"Yes."

Ning Si readily agreed, "Okay, when you asked the people to collect food with their household registration, they had already registered it, so you just need to sort it out."

Ning Zhiwei continued, "Displaced orphans can be seen everywhere on the streets. We will build an orphanage in South City to house these children, teach them literature and martial arts, and train them according to their different aptitudes. Ning Liu will be in charge, and Xia Sheng will lead others to assist."

When Qingluo was away from the village, he also trained a group of children in the village. Ning Liu was considered an experienced hand. "Okay, leave it to me."

"Ning Ran." Ning Zhiwei looked at the young man sitting opposite her. Among these people, he was the direct descendant who had followed her the longest.

"My subordinate is here."

Ning Zhiwei asked loudly, "Are the other six cities guarded by our Ning family army?"

"Yes, both inside and outside the city."

Ning Zhiwei nodded slightly, "Quickly summon the leaders of these six cities to come to Yumen Pass to see me."

"Yes."

"Are there any unusual movements in the army?" For Ning Zhiwei, the Ning Family Army is her foundation.

"No, don't worry, I'll be watching."

Ning Zhiwei sorted out the affairs in the city and finally had time to spare. "Dongsheng, send invitations to the wealthy merchants from the seven cities and invite them to attend the succession ceremony I will hold. The time is set for ten days later."

"Yes." Dongsheng's eyes lit up. It was time to let these people come to pay homage to the new master.

For this purpose, Ning Zhiwei specially went to the backyard and said, "Madam, I have to trouble you to prepare the banquet."

Madam Ning readily agreed. This was what she was best at. "How many people are you inviting? What are the requirements? Who are the guests? Tell me about it."

The two men were discussing something and talking very logically, when suddenly a scream was heard outside.

"What's going on here?"

Since taking over all the affairs, Ning Zhiwei has been very busy. He simply set up a dormitory in the front yard and slept there after finishing his work. He rarely went back to the backyard.

Madam Ning sighed softly, "It's your seventh sister-in-law who's causing trouble again. She's upset. How about you go and persuade her?"

As a woman, she could understand, but it was annoying to see her making such a fuss every day.

Ning Zhiwei shook his head. "The person who tied the bell must be the one who can untie it. Only Brother Seven can solve this problem."

She won't meddle in other people's household affairs, as this will easily make her unpopular with everyone.

She had good thoughts, but some things were beyond her control.

The Seventh Young Master's wife rushed in, "Xiao Wu, you are here, come and judge for yourself. Your Seventh Brother's heart and eyes are full of that mother and son. I just went to see them for a few times, and he called me a chicken-hearted person. Whose fault is this?"

Ning Zhiwei rubbed her brows, things were definitely not as simple as she said.

"Is Seventh Brother feeling better? What did the doctor say?"

Seventh brother is not a talented general, but he is a talented general. If he gets better soon, he can join the army and lead troops, but his current situation is too difficult.

Madam Ning sighed softly, "The doctor said that the tendons were broken and not properly connected. They need to be broken and reconnected again. This process will be very painful, but this is the only way to get him to stand up."

"Your seventh brother said to wait a little longer."

Ning Zhiwei asked curiously, "What are you waiting for?"

"I don't know. He's like a taciturn person and doesn't talk to people much." Madam Ning was also very troubled. Young Master Ning's temperament had changed drastically and he was no longer the same as before.

The Seventh Young Master's wife snorted coldly, "Yes, he ignores me and doesn't even look at me, but he pays attention to that little bastard and you, his biological sister."

Ning Zhiwei frowned slightly, what he said was too harsh.

The Seventh Young Master's wife said confidently, "Why? Did I say something unpleasant? This is what your Ning family owes me."

Ning Zhiwei didn't indulge her. "You're wrong. This is what Seventh Brother owes you. It has nothing to do with the Ning family. If you really feel bad, you can ask for a divorce."

The Seventh Young Master's wife's face changed drastically. "I am a member of the Ning family in life and a ghost of the Ning family in death. How can you say such a thing? Do you think nothing of me?"

Ning Zhiwei was so busy that she wished she had more hands. She really had no intention of settling this lawsuit with her.

It seems that these people are too idle.

She rolled her eyes and said, "Sister-in-law Qi, I have an idea that can make Brother Qi look at you straight in the eye and please you."

The Seventh Young Master's wife's eyes lit up, "What is it?"