knife

Chapter 39 Digging a hole
Outside the camp, the cries of women and children could be heard. Chen Liang's face was ashen, and he kept banging his forehead on the ground. Linghu Zhishu's men acted extremely quickly. Perhaps when the meeting had just begun, the Iron Curtain's troops had already surrounded Chen Liang's residence; otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to capture all of Chen Liang's family so quickly.

Linghu Ye slowly flipped through the list presented by Linghu Zhishu, which contained valuable items confiscated from Chen Liang's house.

"Only 30,000 taels of silver! Chen Liang, where did you hide the stolen goods?" Linghu Ye's voice was always very soft, which meant that everyone in the camp had to strain their ears to listen carefully so as not to miss or mishear him.

If you misheard, then it is naturally your fault.

"General, the money has been distributed to the soldiers!" Chen Liang said in a hoarse voice.

"Good, good, good!" Linghu Ye laughed: "That's a good reason. If you distribute it to the soldiers, it'll be difficult for me, the commander-in-chief, to ask for more. If I do, it could very well incite a mutiny. I remember you have three thousand men under your command, right? How much did each of them get?"

Chen Liang looked up and saw Xiao Changche resting his head on the back of the armchair, seemingly lost in thought. Across from him, Li Guohua maintained a constant grin. General Wang De turned his head, glancing at Chen Liang and then at Linghu Ye above him, while Wan Feng stared intently at Chen Liang.

"This humble general, this humble general doesn't remember, this humble general didn't clean it up! This humble general deserves to die!" Chen Liang kowtowed heavily on the ground again with a sob in his voice.

“Three towns, more than two thousand people! They were all wiped out!” Linghuye sighed. “Chen Liang, what crime do you think you should be charged with?”

"Please, General, in consideration of my years of fighting against the Northern Yuan without ever retreating a single step, spare only my family and spare my life. I will serve you like a slave in my next life!"

"Chen Liang, look around this tent. Who among you isn't a decorated warrior, who isn't covered in wounds?" Linghu Ye sneered. "If you were to go out and rob the Northern Yuan people, rob those barbarians, I would recommend you for merit. But you've turned your knife on our own people. Do you think your head alone will be enough to settle things? Even if this happens outside the pass, and it's reported to the imperial court, do you think your entire clan will be spared?"

Chen Liang collapsed to the ground, trembling all over, unable to utter a word.

"Changche, what do you think we should do about this?" Linghuye turned to ask Xiao Changche.

Xiao Changche lazily raised his head: "General, rewarding the good and punishing the evil is the duty of the chief secretary. Whether to kill or spare is your grace to your subordinates. I cannot overstep my bounds."

"You, you always see things so clearly, never getting involved if it doesn't concern you?" Linghuye laughed. "Guohua, you tell me!"

Li Guohua cleared his throat and said, “General, Chen Liang has committed such a heinous crime that he naturally has no choice but to die. However, he is still a general officially appointed by the Ministry of War. The court is currently accusing us of being arrogant and domineering, and of disregarding their orders. So, if we kill Chen Liang, it will only give them another excuse. My suggestion is to thoroughly investigate this guy’s crimes and then report them to the court for them to decide. Whether to send him to Chang’an or execute him on the spot will be up to the court. What do you think?”

Linghu Ye sighed, “We’ve been enduring snow and wind outside the Great Wall, risking our lives to defend Qin against the invasions of the Northern Yuan and various barbarians, while those fat-headed bastards in Chang’an are still racking their brains to suspect and scheme against us. It’s truly disheartening. That’s it. Zhishu, investigate Chen Liang’s problems over the years thoroughly and clearly, make it an ironclad case and report it to the court, so they won’t accuse me of purging dissidents!”

"Yes, sir!" Linghu Zhishu said, bowing.

Chen Liang was dragged away.

As he was being dragged away, his eyes were filled with the relief of surviving a disaster.

In fact, the other generals in the room were also very surprised. Given the commander-in-chief's temper, he would have just beheaded a general of Chen Liang's rank. Why did he change his mind today and actually want to hand him over to the court?

Given the court's current suspicion of the Grand Marshal, it's likely that someone like Chen Liang, upon returning to Chang'an, would immediately be found innocent and instead be put in charge of troops to deal with the Grand Marshal!
For those powerful figures in Chang'an, whether it's an ironclad case or not is not just a matter of a few words.

"Alright, let's not talk about these discouraging things. What's the point? As long as I, Linghu Ye, am still the commander of this 100,000-strong army outside the pass, I must devote myself wholeheartedly to guarding the border for Great Qin and not give the enemy even the slightest opportunity. Everyone, let's talk about the specific situation in each region! Don't worry about the money. Before the New Year, at least make sure everyone gets their allowance up to 70%, okay? Don't even think about getting 100% this year!"

"Thank you, Commander!" The generals in the room were all overjoyed.

Seventy percent is already quite remarkable.

In previous years, the number was about the same.

This year has been so difficult, yet we still managed to get 70% of the target. What more could we ask for?

The greater difficulties of this year stemmed not so much from the Northern Yuan, but from the court's suspicion of those outside the Great Wall.

The money and grain allocated to areas outside the pass were reduced by half.

Even though Zhang Ruo, the scholar in charge of the court's finances, has been banished to the border by the court, what's the point if the man is sent but the money doesn't?

The wickedness of some people in the imperial court is truly astonishing.

Zhang Ru attacked Linghu Ye, so the court sent Zhang Ru to Linghu Ye to show its absolute trust in him.

However, they withheld the money and food that Linghuye urgently needed.

This is a classic example of empty promises.

If Zhang Ruo truly died at Linghu Ye's hands, then Linghu Ye's reputation within the pass would be ruined. With the court's intentional or unintentional promotion of him, Linghu Ye had already become a powerful minister entrenched in one region; killing the well-known Zhang Ruo would have predictable consequences.

Linghu Ye genuinely wanted Zhang Ruo dead. But this man could die at the hands of bandits, he could die at the hands of assassins, but he couldn't die by his own hand, he couldn't die in Zhenwu City.

Linghu Ye already had his own ideas about how to deal with Zhang Ruo.

If you can't kill him yourself, then just use someone else to do it.

Hasn't the imperial court been quite interested in Xiao Changche these past two years?
Alright, then give Zhang Ruo to Xiao Changche.

Given Zhang Ruo's bad temper, Xiao Changche's disdain for those who dared to abandon the area beyond the Great Wall, and Zhang Ruo's violent temper, it would probably take only a few days before he beheaded Zhang Ruo.

At that time, everything will be fine.

Aside from the difficulties imposed by the imperial court, there was also the infiltration by barbarian tribes from abroad.

The area outside the Great Wall is too vast. The barbarian tribes are like rats on the ground; you never know when they will sneak in. Over the years, so many have been captured and killed, but these barbarian tribes still keep emerging one after another, and their numbers are only increasing.

It is said that the temperature in the northwest and north dropped sharply, making them unsuitable for human habitation, forcing these barbarian tribes to migrate south.

At present, these people are not yet capable of making a significant impact.

But what if these people eventually surrendered to the Northern Yuan, or were conquered by the Northern Yuan?

"General, we can't just let this happen!" Xiao Chang stood up and shouted, "Two years ago, we received relevant intelligence, and a year ago, the intelligence was confirmed. The Hu tribes in the north and west have launched a large-scale southward invasion. The Northern Yuan Emperor personally led the expedition and fought them fiercely. We have already lost a year, General. If we sit idly by and watch the Northern Yuan subdue these Hu tribes, we will be the ones who suffer the most."

“Xiao Cheqi, you’re going to bring up the Northern Yuan again! How do we fight? We’ve fought before. When our army marches out of the pass, the main force of the Northern Yuan immediately retreats in large numbers. Long-distance logistics are our Achilles’ heel. Not to mention that our current reserves of money and food are already insufficient, even if they were, we wouldn’t have a sure chance of victory! The Northern Yuan can afford to lose, but we can’t!” Wang De glanced at Linghu Ye at the head of the table and said.

When he said he couldn't afford to lose, he wasn't referring to the Qin Dynasty, but rather to Linghu Ye.

"General, we don't need to launch a large-scale attack on the Northern Yuan!" Xiao Changche said. "As long as we take Shazhu Ridge and Qingtong Gorge, at least in the future when we clash with the Northern Yuan again, we will be able to attack or defend as needed."

“Xiao Cheqi, Killing Pig Ridge and Qingtong Gorge are key points. We know this, and so does the Northern Yuan. If we attack there, it will be tantamount to a major battle with the Northern Yuan. How is that any different from a full-scale offensive?” Li Guohua said, spreading his hands. “The Northern Yuan emperor’s second son, Tiele, is guarding Qingtong Gorge precisely to occupy this strategic point, isn’t he?”

"If the commander agrees, I am willing to give it a try!" Xiao Changche turned to look at Linghu Ye.

Linghu Ye slowly shook his head: "Changche, this matter is of great importance and cannot be taken lightly. Let's discuss this later!"

"General, once the Northern Yuan completes the integration of these Hu tribes, we'll be in trouble!"

“We are in serious trouble now! To defeat the Northern Yuan, the Great Qin must exert its full strength,” Linghu Ye said. “Otherwise, even if we win once or twice, it will only be a superficial victory. What good will that do? The Northern Yuan recovers very quickly, but we will only get weaker and weaker with each battle. Changche, tell me, what benefits would that bring us?”

Xiao Changche sighed and sat back down.

Essentially, Linghu Ye was right. To completely defeat the Northern Yuan, the Qin Dynasty would have to mobilize the entire nation's strength. The 100,000 troops outside the pass were not enough to defend the borders, and their strength was too weak to launch an offensive.

What if we could unite Tai'an City and Li Dachui's group? What if we could integrate all the forces outside the pass?
The thought flashed through Xiao Changche's mind, but he immediately rejected it.

This is impossible.

The relationships between the various forces outside the Great Wall are complex and intertwined. Some of them have unclear and ambiguous relationships with the Northern Yuan, while others are backed by the Northern Yuan. How can they be integrated?

The commander-in-chief had no intention of attacking the Northern Yuan at all.

He was only thinking about how to make himself stronger.

He was waiting for an opportunity. If there was a chance inside the pass, this guy would definitely abandon the area outside the pass and lead his troops into the pass.

These are the words Li Dachui said to Xiao Changche.

Xiao Changche was too lazy to listen to what the generals were saying next. The only good news from the meeting was that they could still get 20% of the money and grain.

But where will Linghuye find this money?
Chen Liang, that guy, can't produce one.

The commander and Li Guohua are setting traps for people again. Thinking of Li Guohua's righteous words earlier, Xiao Changche couldn't help but purse his lips.

(End of this chapter)