Thief Emperor

Chapter 177: Sharing Fruit

These words left Qiu Dian stunned, and he was speechless for a long time.

Ever since they raised the flag of rebellion, they have always positioned themselves as the righteous side and regarded the imperial court as the evil side. Naturally, Li Yun and other imperial officers and soldiers became what they called "dog officials and soldiers."

But thinking back on this less than one year of rule, there seems to be no difference between what they did and what the government troops did.

It can even be said that it is even worse than before.

At least when the government troops did bad things, they would do them secretly and make up excuses, so they would not do evil openly and engage in burning, killing and looting.

After all, the government troops were somewhat fearful in their hearts. They were worried that if they went too far, they would be blamed by the imperial court, and they would not be able to afford the punishment.

The imperial court also did not allow local forces to go too far and affect the stability of the court's rule.

These rebels, when they lost discipline, also lost all scruples. The dark side of human nature was aroused, and many of the things they did were horrific.

Li Yun looked at the distraught middle-aged man in front of him and said calmly: "After I recovered Qiantang, at least a hundred women in Qiantang City committed suicide. There were countless more who died of humiliation before the recovery."

"There's no place to bury people in the mass grave outside the city."

"King Qiu, are those your subordinates?"

Qiu Dian raised his neck and looked at Li Yun, gritting his teeth: "If you want to kill me, just kill me, why are you talking so much!"

"If I don't kill you, no one in Yuezhou will kill you."

Li Yun smiled and said, "I don't know how many people are counting on your head to get promoted and make money."

"Qiu Dian, ah Qiu Dian."

Li Yun asked: "Are you really worried about the inequality between the rich and the poor?"

Qiu Dian gritted his teeth and sneered, "I rebelled because you, the dog soldiers, were bullying me too much! If I don't rebel, I have no way to survive. Since I want to rebel, I have to speak louder and clearer!"

Li Yun nodded and sighed: "I understand."

After saying that, he left with his hands behind his back.

The incident of Qiu Dian was very inspiring or instructive for Li Yun. For Li Yun, Qiu Dian was a living negative example, and this case was very vivid.

After all, Li Yun participated in this matter almost throughout the whole process.

Not all people who rebel can be called righteous men. Rebels are rebels, and righteous men are righteous men.

Up to now, Li Yun has seen two groups of people who want to rebel. The first group of rebels, the Hexi bandits, appear and disappear from time to time, and there are still some movements from time to time, but for now, the noise is not too big.

To the government, they were more like bandits than rebels.

However, Qiu Dian, who had made such a big fuss, did not seem to last long after gaining power. He was like a bunch of straw that burned vigorously when caught in a fire, but the fire would slowly go out once the straw was gone.

Neither group of people can be considered as rebels.

As for the group of people who started the rebellion in the Central Plains... Li Yun had never met them, but he might have a chance to meet them in the future.

Of course, he might be crushed to pieces by General Su and his son.

With a myriad of thoughts in their mind, Li Yun, Su Sheng, and a group of subordinates returned to Yuezhou City.

Now, the main culprit has been caught and is about to be taken to the capital to be tried. So even if there are a few fish that have escaped the net, there is no need for a large-scale manhunt.

At this point, although Zhao Cheng and his remnants escaped from the Yuezhou Rebellion, it had generally come to an end.

After General Su personally interrogated Qiu Dian, he ordered local officials to send the three animals to Yuezhou and hold a grand banquet in Yuezhou city to reward the three armies.

After celebrating for several days, General Su sent someone to call Li Yun to his temporary office. After Li Yun arrived, he motioned for Li Yun to sit down, and then said, "There are bandits in the Central Plains again. In just a few months, they have affected seven states. I have received four imperial edicts from the court, and I don't have time to stay in Jiangnan for long."

He paused, looked at Li Yun, and said, "I have already sent the letter of recommendation for you to be the Sima of Yuezhou and suppress the remaining Qiu bandits. If the court approves, the appointment document will be issued by the end of this year or the beginning of next spring."

"Qiu Dian's troops were only dispersed by me, but not completely eliminated. When you are appointed as the Sima of Yuezhou, you must handle the follow-up matters well and prevent the rebels from reviving."

Li Yun quickly bowed his head and saluted: "General, I will never forget your kindness!"

Su Jing forced a smile on his face: "Now, you have finally learned to be polite. When we first met, it was as if you had eaten thunder and fire."

Li Yun smiled and didn't respond.

General Su continued, "This mission is given to you. You can't be without any achievements. You have to catch some rebels. Do you understand?"

Li Yun patted his chest and said, "Don't worry, I will definitely arrest more traitors for the court!"

Su Jing nodded and continued, "Originally, I wanted to keep you in Yuezhou as the military commander, but all your subordinates had to go with me to the Central Plains to quell the rebellion. However, considering that there are still many rebels in Yuezhou, your former subordinates should stay in Yuezhou temporarily. When the imperial court appoints you as the military commander, you can recruit them into the Yuezhou local army."

"You will have to make up for the shortfall on your own."

The people under Li Yun's command had all fought in wars. They were trained troops that could be deployed to the Central Plains battlefield, so Su Jing naturally wanted to take them with him. However, General Su also knew that most of those people had already followed Li Yun. If they were forcibly transferred there, not only would some of them desert, but there would definitely be unpleasantness.

Instead of doing this, it’s better to do a favor.

Li Yun nodded and said with a smile: "Thank you, General. I will recruit the rest of the people myself."

"Ah."

Su Jing nodded and sighed, "It has rained a few times in the past few months in Jiangnan Road, but unfortunately..." He shook his head and did not continue talking. Instead, he looked at Li Yun and said, "After half a month of rest, I will lead my troops west. Before I leave, I will write you a document and your troops will stay to guard Yuezhou."

"Prevent the remnants of the bandits from causing chaos."

At this point, Su Jing paused, looked at Li Yun, and continued: "In the past half month, even if it is your vacation, you can go back to your hometown to take a look, or you can go around Yuezhou."

Li Yun was moved when he heard this, and then he lowered his head and asked, "General, can my subordinates also rest for a few days?"

"They are your subordinates, so they will follow you."

Li Yun bowed his head and clasped his fists: "Thank you, General!"

Afterwards, Su Jing gave Li Yun a few more instructions before letting Li Yun leave.

After leaving General Su's study, Li Yun called Zhou Liang, Li Zheng, Deng Yang, Chen Da and others together.

He looked at everyone, explained the situation, and then said, "If I were to be appointed as the Sima of Yuezhou, everyone could serve in Yuezhou."

As he spoke, Li Yun looked at Chen Da and said with a smile, "They should have no objection. The main thing is you. Do you want to go back to Qingyang, or stay in Yuezhou with me?"

Chen Da said without hesitation: "Of course I will follow the leader!"

After saying this, he continued, "However, I want to go back to Qingyang first, firstly to visit my family, and secondly to explain the situation to my family."

Li Yun patted his shoulder and said with a smile: "Okay, let's go together tomorrow and go back to Qingyang. I also want to go back to Qingyang to take a look."

Deng Yang was confused when he heard this. Li Zheng and Chen Da looked at Li Yun with mischievous eyes. Li Zheng smiled and said, "It seems that the second brother is thinking about the second sister-in-law."

"Don't talk nonsense."

Mr. Li coughed and said, "Qingyang still has a lot of things to do. I have to go back and deal with them."

As soon as these words were spoken, Li Zheng and Zhou Liang immediately understood what Li Yun meant.

Their roots, whether it is the Cangshan Great Village or the Lingyang Mountain Ten Kings Village, are all in Qingyang. Now their base has changed, but there are still many brothers in Qingyang who cannot be forgotten.

Whether it is moving all the assets to Yuezhou, disbanding some of the personnel there, or letting them develop independently, Li Yun needs to handle it personally.

After explaining the situation, Li stood up, looked at everyone, and said with a smile: "When we get to Yuezhou, everyone will have an official position!"

Li Zheng looked at Li Yun and said with a smile: "I am afraid that my second brother, the Sima, may not be able to come down."

"probably not."

Li Yun said softly, "With such a great achievement in suppressing the rebellion, the court will not fail to give face to General Su. Besides, it's not like we didn't contribute. If we are only given a Sima, it still owes us."

Li Zheng disagreed and said with a curled lip: "The court..."

"All right."

Li Yun interrupted him and said with a smile: "If he really doesn't give it to us, we won't force it. After all, we already have the foundation. Whether he gives it to us or not, the difference is just a name."

These words made Chen Da shudder with fear.

The other three just laughed and didn't take it seriously.

After all, Chen Da was the only one who came from a government office and was in awe of the imperial court.

Li Yun patted Chen Da on the shoulder and said, "Go back and get ready. We will go back to Qingyang together tomorrow. The brothers in the anti-theft team who are willing to go back can also go back with us."

Chen Da responded and turned away.

Seeing Chen Da leave, Li Zhengcai looked at Li Yun and whispered, "Second brother, it's time to let Lao Jiu come over."

Li Yun nodded first: "Let's go back to Qingyang together and meet them all."

At this point, he looked at Zhou Liang and said with a smile: "Uncle San, you will be the one taking care of our people for the time being. I will be back in ten days or half a month."

Zhou Liang nodded quickly in response.

Li Zheng said with a chuckle: "If the second brother really becomes the Sima of Yuezhou, we will take the second sister-in-law over as well."

"What second sister-in-law?"

Li Yun glared at him, kicked him on the butt, and scolded him with a smile: "You are the only one who talks nonsense every day."

"Whether it's my second sister-in-law or not, you know it well."

Seeing Li Zheng being kicked, Deng Yang, who was watching from the side, was frightened, but Li Zheng, the person involved, was not afraid and still had a playful smile on his face.

"Whether it's my second sister-in-law or not, you know it in your heart. If you have the ability, go back and don't go to see her!"

Mr. Li glanced at him.

"Then the girl you like..."

Li Zheng's face changed drastically, turning red, and he begged for mercy repeatedly.

"Don't say it, don't say it..."

(End of this chapter)