Red Mansion: Bastards rule the roost

The next day, everyone in the county, young and old, heard that the imperial army had arrived to punish the powerful and distribute money and food, so they all rushed into the city early in the morning, carrying baskets and bags.

The crossroads in front of the county was already crowded with people. There was an execution platform in the middle, and grain bags, silver, and copper coins were piled up like small mountains next to it, which made everyone's eyes red.

If it weren't for the new army armed with real ammunition guarding the place strictly, I'm afraid they would have been snatched away by the rush of people.

Seeing the red sun in the sky and approaching noon, Yan Shuangying waved his hand and ordered the prisoners to be brought in. The county supervisor hurriedly called on the officials of the county government to bring more than a dozen heads of various families onto the stage.

Yan Shuangying just stepped onto the stage and raised his hand and said, "Dear Korean people, I am a general under the command of Jia Huicong, Duke Dingguo of the Heavenly Dynasty. I am sending troops here today for no other reason than that the Duke heard that the people of Korea are in dire straits and suffering, so he sent me to sweep away the evil spirits and bring peace to the people!"

Every time he said a word, Li Chengen would quickly translate it loudly. After all the people heard it, they all prostrated themselves on the ground and expressed their gratitude.

"General, they said they wanted to thank Duke Dingguo for his grace in relieving their difficulties." Li Chengen translated with a smile.

Yan Shuangying secretly thought that the master's methods were indeed brilliant, so he raised his hand to stop everyone from talking, pointed his hand at the stage, and continued: "These people are rich but unkind, and have been bullying the people for many years. Today, in accordance with the order of the Duke, I will punish them and avenge the people!"

The people cheered, "Your Majesty is so powerful! Thank you so much for your love!"

"Kill!" Yan Shuangying gave the order.

Bang bang! Gunshots rang out, and more than a dozen prisoners' heads exploded, leaving red and white objects all over the ground, and they fell in a pool of blood.

Then another group was brought up and killed. Dozens of people were killed in succession. They did not stop until all the main figures in the families of the bullies and evil gentry were killed.

When the people saw that the old masters who had once been domineering and arrogant were shot one by one, they all felt relieved and shouted in joy.

After killing the people, Yan Shuangying said again: "Come here! According to the head, each person will be given three strings of money and one stone of grain! The confiscated land will be registered and distributed as well. Each poor household will get ten acres, and each middle household will get five acres!"

Hearing this, the people were instantly filled with passion and excitement. More than a dozen people fainted on the spot, and the rest of them quickly knelt on the ground and kowtowed, shouting, "Long live Duke Ding! Long live the Duke!"

In the agricultural era, nothing was more valuable to ordinary people than land.

Yan Shuangying laughed, stepped down from the stage, and said to Li Chengen: "Hurry up and get this done. If you dare to get involved, I will confiscate your house as well."

Li Chengen hurriedly said: "General, rest assured. How dare I harbor any suspicion of the Duke's benevolent behavior?"

"That's good to know. From today on, I will promote you to the position of county magistrate. You will be assigned the task within one day. Do not delay military affairs."

Li Chengen was overjoyed and quickly lifted his clothes to bow down to express his gratitude. He finally understood that this time, the situation in Goryeo was going to change. Since Duke Dingguo had sent such a powerful army, it was impossible for him to withdraw after doing a good deed.

Who will be in charge of Goryeo in the future will all depend on a word from Duke Dingguo. If he can leave a good impression in front of General Yan, he will have no worries about not being able to rise to prominence.

Yan Shuangying had just returned to the yamen when he heard someone shouting on the side of the road. He wanted to come over but was stopped by a soldier.

Yan Shuangying saw that he was holding the Nine-Headed Snake waist badge, so he ordered his men to let him go and asked, "Who are you?"

The man was agile and bowed down three steps away. He said in stiff official language, "I am a ninja from the Kii school. I have been ordered to rush to Goryeo to investigate military intelligence. I would like to present to you a military and geographical map of Gyeonggi Province." After that, he took out a bamboo tube from his back and presented it to you.

The soldier took it, unscrewed it and checked, and saw several rolls of papers inside, so he presented it to Yan Shuangying.

"Follow me." Yan Shuangying said.

"Yes."

After entering the government office, Yan Shuangying asked, "Any more news?"

The Genin said, "General, I and dozens of my companions have already sneaked into Goryeo and found out the military strength of Hancheng, Suwon, Icheon, and Yeoju. Except for Hancheng, which has 20,000 to 30,000 soldiers stationed there, the rest of the cities are vulnerable.

If the general takes Seoul, we can help him from the inside, and together we can capture the city."

Yan Shuangying clapped his hands and said, "Good! You should return to Seoul and prepare quickly. When the army attacks the city, fireworks will be used as a signal."

"Yes." The Genin bowed and retreated.

Yan Shuangying spread the intelligence he had just received on the big case, examined it carefully for a while, and said: "Li San, you quickly lead a thousand troops and eight small cannons, and advance eastward at full speed to capture Suwon, Icheon, Lizhou and other cities. Follow the method of Incheon to fight against the local tyrants and distribute the land, and follow the gourd to support the southern army to go north."

"Don't worry, big brother. I understand." Li San was also one of Jia Cong's personal soldiers, so he quickly took the order and left.

At the same time, Wei Wuji led the northern army to land successfully and captured the Haizhou county city.

The southern army led by Li Ke and Ming Yao also made rapid progress. After taking Baoning and defeating the local gentry, they continued to march straight to Gongzhou County.

Meanwhile, Seoul, dozens of miles away from Incheon, has received news that Duke Jeongguk has sent troops to attack. The current King Lee Seong has just ascended the throne for more than ten years. The old and young factions, southerners, and northerners are fighting against each other in the court, and the political situation is turbulent.

Li Cheng was also considered an accomplished ruler. Since he ascended the throne at the age of 30, he had executed treacherous ministers such as Jin Yijing in the past ten years or so, successfully put down the rebellion of Li Linzuo, and barely balanced the power of the Noron faction and eased the party disputes. He was just about to make a big move when he did not expect that Duke Dingguo would suddenly come knocking on his door.

"My Lords, please tell me what we should do with the current situation?" Li Cheng said with a gloomy face as he looked at the civil and military officials in the hall.

"I think we should first find out Duke Dingguo's intentions before making any plans."

"I heard that Duke Dingguo is the most talented and romantic man in the Heavenly Kingdom. Why not give him gold, pearls, jade, and beautiful women to appease his anger?"

"I think we can send envoys to contact the enemy generals, bribe them with a large sum of money, and ask them to stop and withdraw their troops. This way we can defeat the enemy without fighting."

"I think the heavenly soldiers' firearms are very powerful, but our army is weak and our military preparations are in disrepair. We must not fight with them out of impulse, but must put the overall situation first."

……

Li Cheng listened for a long time, and everyone said the same thing: the Celestial Empire's military might was invincible, and they could only buy peace with money.

It makes sense. Goryeo imitated the Celestial Empire's method of military farming and adopted a military system that combined soldiers and farmers. They were farmers in peacetime and soldiers in wartime.

The soldiers were self-sufficient in all the supplies they needed, such as food, clothing, weapons, etc. The country had no financial burden to maintain the army. Even so, there were only 200,000 troops in the entire country.

The biggest advantage of this military system is that the country has no burden, and the burden is passed on to the people. At the same time, it also has the biggest disadvantage: soldiers work in the fields for most of the year and have no time for military training. They are more like farmers than soldiers.

Qualified soldiers are not so easily found. Even if a farmer wears armor and takes up a sword or a gun, he is still a farmer.

If the soldiers' spirit, morale, technical and tactical qualities are not cultivated at all, how can they have any combat effectiveness?

It's different on Jia Cong's side. Not only are all his troops elite who have fought in the battlefield and seen blood, they have also undergone long-term professional and rigorous training. Their weapons are advanced, and their food and wages are well guaranteed. Every aspect is a dimensionality reduction attack, so how can they not be crushed?
Li Cheng thought for a while and sighed, "Send a special envoy to contact Duke Dingguo's people."

All the ministers volunteered. This was a good job. Bribery was not a war. Not to mention that their safety was guaranteed, whether they succeeded or not, they could make a lot of "hardship fee" from it.

Li Cheng naturally knew the reason and glared at everyone in annoyance, saying, "I've never seen you so enthusiastic in fighting."

Because he ordered Right State Councillor Park Kwang-dong to go to Incheon with valuable gifts and beauties, Park Kwang-dong returned in disgrace a day later.

"So? Did the general accept the gift?" the ministers asked hurriedly.

Park Kwang-dong nodded awkwardly: "I accepted it, but..."

"But what? You tell me." Park Kwang-dong was a little embarrassed to speak. He glanced at Lee Seong-hee on the throne and bowed, saying, "I dare not speak."

Li Cheng was quite calm and said, "You can talk as you like."

"General Yan said that he came here because the government of Goryeo is corrupt, the officials are incompetent, the powerful are tyrannical, the people...are living in misery, and the superiors...the superiors cannot control it..."

Li Cheng knew that Park Kwang-dong had euphemistically said this, and the original words must have been even more unpleasant, so he said calmly, "What does he want?"

"General Yan said that he... Duke Dingguo wanted the king to issue an edict of repentance and voluntarily abdicate the throne... Otherwise... Otherwise, he would capture Seoul and... depose the king."

The officials were in an uproar.

"This is too much!" Li Cheng finally couldn't help but said angrily.

Seeing that he was angry, all the ministers knelt down and apologized. Over the years, Li Cheng also established considerable prestige.

Li Cheng took two breaths, calmed down a little, and asked, "Does he have an imperial edict from the Emperor of Heaven?"

"No. I risked my life to ask him to show me the imperial edict of the Emperor of Da Wu, but he couldn't produce it. He kept talking about Duke Dingguo. I guess it was just Duke Dingguo's personal opinion." Park Guangdong said hurriedly.

Li Cheng sneered and said, "That will be easy. Quickly prepare a memorial and order the Minister of Rites to go on a mission to apologize to the Emperor of Wu and ask him to stop the war for the sake of our country's generations of homage and respect for the Celestial Empire.

He also issued an edict, ordering all provinces, counties, and prefectures to strictly guard the enemy. The enemy's forces are limited, so even if we have to attrition, we will kill them."

"As you wish." The ministers understood a little bit and were prepared to file a complaint if they couldn't win.
-
The armies from the Western Regions and Goryeo made smooth progress, capturing cities and strongholds. Jia Cong was happy to have some free time, and every day he just stayed at home to check intelligence and discuss the next arrangements with Pang Chao.

"Sir, Xue Ke and Jia Yun wrote to say that the Textile Bureau and the Commerce Bureau are profitable, the Mining Bureau is also operational, and the Steel Plant and Shipyard are nearly finished.

With the skilled sailors that the Xue family has accumulated over the past century, it is easy to operate the Western warships. Next, the Machinery Bureau, the Ordnance Bureau, and the Gunpowder Bureau can also be set up. "Jia Cong said.

Now Xue Ke’s father Xue Wen has just passed away. Before his death, he handed over all his business to Xue Ke.

Xue Ke was intelligent, calm, sophisticated and meticulous by nature. With the full support of the Jinling Guards, no one dared to make trouble for him when he took over the second branch of the Xue family, and all affairs were managed in an orderly manner.

Jia Cong was very pleased and donated the title of Tongzhi to him as a consolation and to facilitate his work.

Pang Chao nodded and said, "It's time to do it. Now that you are growing stronger, the emperor and the bigwigs in the court will always keep you in mind. You can't hide it, so it's better to show your strength and fight back with speed."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Speed ​​is of the essence in war. By the time the higher-ups react, my military industry system will have been completed.

If the emperor is sensible, he will not always be dissatisfied with the meritorious officials and always want to get rid of them. Then I will be a loyal minister.

If he insists on using the tactic of "the king wants his subjects to die, and the subjects must die", I won't be polite."

Pang Chao smiled and said, "This is the truth. Blind loyalty is not acceptable. In today's world, we can do without an emperor, but we cannot do without a ruler."

Jia Cong did not expect Pang Chao to think so highly of him, and could not help but ask happily, "Why do you say that, sir?"

Pang Chao laughed and said, "When it comes to political tactics and the art of ruling a country, there is no one better than the emperor. Although he is the emperor, he is diligent and frugal. After all, he is selfish and has no concern for the world. How can he make the country strong and the people rich?
But you, Cong'er, are different. You are not greedy for power and wealth, nor do you pursue fame and fame. Everything you do is for the good fortune of the country, not for personal honor or disgrace. You are a true hero."

Jia Cong said with a blush: "In fact, people outside say that Cong is good at collecting beauties from all over the world."

Pang Chao waved his hand and smiled, "This is a minor matter, not worth mentioning."

Jia Cong said: "Having a close friend like you, I will die without regrets."

After saying this, both of them laughed.

After Jia Cong finished discussing with Pang Chao, he returned to the back house with the envelope, which contained the obituary that Xue Ke had just sent back.

It was already the first quarter of the evening. Qingwen was helping Jia Cong to sleep. Seeing him heading straight for Baochai's courtyard, she hurriedly reminded him, "Master, didn't you say you were going to Miss Feng's place today?"

Qingwen is very careful about the affairs of the inner house, so it is best to avoid such things as making a feint to the east and attacking in the west. Although they may seem insignificant, they can easily cause conflicts and resentment, and become the source of chaos in the family.

Jia Cong sighed, "Just now a letter came from Jinling saying that Qin's father had passed away. I should first inform Baojie and ask her to tell him on my behalf."

Qingwen was shocked and sighed, "Such a good man, lost his father at such a young age."

"Who can predict the fortune or misfortune that may come to people at any time?" Jia Cong shook his head and entered the yard.

Seeing that the lights in the upper room had been turned off, she knew that Baochai had gone to bed, so she ordered the maids and old women on night duty not to make any noise and quietly knocked on the door and went in.

Xiangling stood up and opened the door. Seeing that it was Jia Cong, she was a little surprised and asked, "Why are you here, Master?"

Jia Cong said softly, "Something happened."

Xiangling smiled shyly, what good thing can you have?

When Jia Cong saw her wearing clothes and looking so soft and lovely, he couldn't help but hold her in his arms and sit on the small couch in the outer room to play with her.

Xiangling was both shy and happy, but also afraid that someone inside might hear some noise, so she pointed inside and whispered, "Master, the Madam is here."

Jia Cong smiled in her ear and said, "It's fun to play when Madam is here."

"Master...you...are so annoying." Xiangling couldn't suppress her shame and moaned.

Jia Cong put his hand into his bosom, only to feel the softness in his hand. He said, "My dear Xiangling, will you give it to me some other day?"

Xiangling leaned into his arms, her face flushed as she whispered, "I have been yours for a long time. You can have me whenever you want, but you have to ask Madam for her opinion first."

Jia Cong smiled and said, "Sister Bao will certainly agree to this."

It’s funny to think about it. There are so many beauties in the family, and after being married to Baochai for so long, he has always forgotten to eat up the pretty girl Xiangling.

By the way, Lingguaner and Liu Wuer should also be put on the agenda. After all, they are his people. It would be a waste not to eat them. Should he keep them for servants? Jia Cong thought he was not crazy yet.

"Master...don't you have something else to do?"

Xiangling was stripped naked by him in an instant. She was afraid that he would do something reckless and frighten Baochai, and then she would be too ashamed to face anyone. She gradually felt that she could not resist and hurriedly refused.

Jia Cong came back to his senses and said with a low laugh, "I'll let you go today." Then he stepped in.

"Hey... Master..." Xiangling was so upset by him that she suddenly remembered something. She was about to greet him, but saw that Jia Cong had already gone in. She wanted to go in and remind him, but she was naked and couldn't get down, so she hurriedly put on her clothes.

Jia Cong gently opened a crack in the sky-blue silk curtain that was visible after the rain, and he felt like playing a prank. In addition, the fire that Xiangling had just aroused had just been ignited, so he secretly laughed at himself and decided to tease Baochai to see if she would be moved.

I quietly put my hand under the tent and felt a soft, smooth, and boneless body. (End of this chapter)