Reborn as Murong Fu: This time I am the protagonist

Chapter 547 Jingdong Road

"This is absolutely outrageous!"

Zhao Xu slammed his hand on the imperial desk, causing the brush washer, brush holder, and other items on the table to clang and clatter. The newly enthroned emperor had just assumed power and was already facing a difficult problem.

"Minister Murong, tell me, how can I tolerate such a thing?"

Murong Fu said, “Banditry in Shandong has a long history. Shandong is close to Yan and Yun in the north, borders Lianghuai in the south, and is surrounded by the sea on three sides. It is dotted with mountains, lakes, and seas, and has the benefits of fishing and salt production. The area is mountainous, and the people are fierce and valiant, making it a difficult place to govern. In recent years, the trend of land annexation has become rampant, to the point that the rich own vast tracts of land, while the poor have nowhere to stand. Floods of people have sprung up in Shandong. The officials of the prefectures and counties in the past were incompetent. Not only did they fail to enable the people to make a living, but they also colluded with local wealthy families, causing public resentment to boil over and bandits to rise up. This popular uprising is just a spark thrown into a pile of dry tinder.”

The matter is simple, yet it can be both a big and a small one: a group of rebels from Jingdong Road stormed Qingzhou and killed the local prefect.

The reason why this matter is considered significant is that the prefect was killed and the city was captured, which is equivalent to a medium-sized rebellion. It is no longer appropriate to describe it as a peasant uprising; a more accurate description would be that of a rebel army.

The reason this is considered a minor issue is that from the very beginning of the Song Dynasty, rebellions of all sizes never ceased. The illegitimate acquisition of power, coupled with the lack of suppression of land annexation, created an extremely illogical wealth gap. Despite having a territory far smaller than previous dynasties, the Song Dynasty became known among scholars as the wealthiest dynasty in Chinese history—a direct result of this extreme wealth disparity. Compared to the rebellions that raged for thirty years in the four circuits of Sichuan during the early Song Dynasty, this scale of rebellion seemed insignificant.

After listening to Murong Fu's words, Emperor Zhezong remained silent for a long time before slowly speaking: "According to Minister Murong's opinion, how should this matter be handled?"

Murong Fu said, "Your Majesty, I believe we should emulate Zhang Yong's method of governing Shu at the beginning of our dynasty."

In the early Song Dynasty, the Song army conquered Later Shu in less than three months. However, due to the Song army's misdeeds in Shu and the Song court's heavy taxes, Shu was plagued by rebellions for thirty years. Emperor Taizong of Song even considered abandoning Shu. It was not until the famous minister Zhang Yong entered Shu, deeply understood the hardships of the local people, and abolished a large number of heavy taxes, using both suppression and appeasement as a means, that Shu was finally stabilized.

Emperor Zhezong stared at Murong Fu for a long time, then smiled: "According to Minister Murong, who in the current court can compare with the renowned minister Zhang Yong?"

Murong Fu laughed and said, "His Majesty has his own divine judgment; how could a subject presume to speculate?"

Emperor Zhezong felt extremely comfortable. No monarch would dislike a minister who is both capable and obedient.

Although young, Zhao Xu was as clear-headed as a mirror: he had only recently assumed power, and yet the Liao envoy had been killed and Qingzhou had been captured by rebels—to call it a coincidence was simply unbelievable. He had only recently assumed power, his foundation in the court was extremely weak, and he had very few capable people. Those few he had were either incompetent or unreliable. In reality, Zhao Xu had no other choice.

Zhao Xu said, "If I were to send you to Jingdong Circuit to quell the rebellion, would you be willing to undertake this mission for me?"

Murong Fu smiled and said, "That is indeed my wish, but I dare not ask."

Zhao Xu laughed heartily: "What a wonderful wish!"

"If Your Excellency were to go to Jingdong Road to quell the rebellion, how many troops would you need?"

Murong Fu grinned and held up two fingers.

Zhao Xu frowned slightly and said, "Preparing the provisions and supplies for 20,000 troops is not something that can be done in a short time." Murong Fu shook his head and said, "If we need to mobilize 20,000 troops to attack a mere group of rebels, then what is the point of having me as the commander? Any court official could do this; how can that demonstrate any achievement?"

Zhao Xu said with delight, "According to Minister Murong's opinion, two thousand men are enough? Minister Murong is truly brave and valiant. If you can quell the unrest with two thousand men, I will definitely promote you greatly. From now on, you will be my right-hand man."

Murong Fu smiled and shook his head: "Your Majesty, please don't guess. What I mean is that just two people, along with twenty Imperial Guards, are enough to deal with a few petty thieves."

"However, I have a question for Your Majesty: is this military campaign a campaign of suppression followed by pacification?"

Zhao Xu pondered for a moment and then said, "I appoint you as the Military Commissioner of Jingdong Circuit, with full authority to handle this matter. The troops of Jingdong Circuit may be deployed at your own discretion."

Murong Fu smiled and said, "In that case, I have no more doubts. I will give you a reply in three months to half a year."

Three days later, Murong Fu led twenty-one men on a journey to Jingdong Road to suppress bandits.

Tong Guan looked miserable; if it weren't for so many people watching, he would have burst into tears on the spot.

Murong Fu rode the fine horse bestowed upon him by the young emperor, leisurely strolling at the front of the procession. Seeing Tong Guan's expression as if he were about to cry, he smiled and comforted him, "Eunuch Tong, cheer up! There's no reason not to accept military merit that's been delivered to your door. Once this matter is resolved, Eunuch Tong will surely rise through the ranks. His Majesty is really cultivating you."

Tong Guan managed not to come out on the spot, but he forced out an expression that was worse than crying and said, "Lord Murong, it's not that I'm criticizing you. Those are powerful bandits who can break through state cities and kill court officials! They have at least tens of thousands of fierce bandits gathered together. With just our twenty-odd men, they could drown us with a single spit from each of them. If you want to achieve something great, you should at least bring tens of thousands of imperial guards, right? You don't just want an empty title like this."

Murong Fu laughed, "The Imperial Guard? Eunuch Tong, don't be ridiculous. The Imperial Guard is nominally ten thousand men, but in reality, five thousand of them are just names on the roster. Of the remaining five thousand, at least three thousand are just figureheads who have never been to the barracks for a single day of training. Of the last two thousand, half are old and weak, and the other half are seasoned veterans. If they can fight a war with such a force, then it would truly be a miracle from the Great Ancestor."

Tong Guan looked around guiltily, then put his index finger to his lips and shushed, "My lord, be careful what you say! This is a grave offense of disrespect!"

Murong Fu laughed and said, "Don't worry, Eunuch Tong, these guards are all reliable and won't report us."

The twenty Imperial Guards, nominally sent by Zhao Xu to accompany Murong Fu, were actually trained by the Murong family and sent to serve in the Imperial Guard. Murong Fu refused to use the main force of the Imperial Guard, but instead requested that he select twenty Imperial Guards to accompany him. Zhao Xu, of course, did not suspect anything and readily agreed. Little did he know that Murong Fu was bringing Murong family spies to gain military merit.

The spies knew the patriarch's martial arts skills and plans, so they strolled around leisurely, not flustered at all, but rather somewhat eager to try.

Of the group, only Tong Guan was unaware of what was going on, feeling uneasy and inwardly groaning, as if he were a condemned prisoner being dragged to the execution ground.

Murong Fu suddenly reined in his horse and waved his hand, signaling the group to stop: "There is a large group of people fighting ahead, numbering around a thousand, which is quite a large-scale operation."

Tong Guan and the others looked puzzled: If there was such a big commotion, how come they didn't hear a thing?

Murong Fu didn't explain, but said, "You guys stay here and wait, I'll be right back!"