Red Mansion: Seizing Jiangdong, starting with pirates

Chapter 296, Seven Feet of Wheat

On June 22, a rebellion broke out in Henan.

The rebel Tian Tianrui gathered 270,000 troops, named them the Protector of the Holy Army, and claimed to be an army of 600,000, and marched north to invade the capital.

In an instant, the imperial star faltered, the empire was on the verge of collapse, and the civil and military officials were completely at a loss!

At a critical moment, the loyal and righteous King Fang Yong of Wu was entrusted with the important task of fighting the enemy.

Fang Yong had anticipated Tian Tianrui's betrayal.

After all, Gao Jing was sent there by him.

The outcome of this battle was predetermined from the very beginning.

Sometimes, seizing power inevitably requires the use of ruthless methods.

Fang Yong felt a pang of guilt.

But he has no regrets.

For his first battle northward, Tian Tianrui immediately chose a major city.

Handan.

This is an ancient city with a history of thousands of years, the former territory of the Zhao state. It once blocked hundreds of thousands of Qin troops, so its defensive capabilities need no further explanation.

Fang Yong ordered Ma Laohei to lead 100,000 troops to garrison Handan.

Although the chances of the enemy breaking through the city are very small, we still need to pay attention to it.

Royal Garden.

Fang Yong and Daiyu walked hand in hand.

There were several potted loquat trees by the roadside, already bearing fruit, plump and juicy.

This pipa was originally grown by Consort Xiao Zhou. When it was cold, it was kept in the palace, but now that it's warm, it's placed outside.

Fang Yong took one and carefully peeled off the skin.

Daiyu watched from the side.

"Hmm, does your little sister want some too?"

Fang Yong noticed that Daiyu was looking at him, so he asked.

Daiyu shook her head and said, "I ate one the other day, but it tasted bland."

Fang Yong tasted it and said, "This place isn't very suitable for growing pipa (a type of Chinese lute), it's not like my hometown. Speaking of which, it's been a long time since I've been back. My sister must be homesick. I'll take her back to Suzhou sometime."

Daiyu was somewhat moved upon hearing this.

It's admirable that he's so busy but still thought of taking me back to his hometown.

Daiyu reached out and hugged Fang Yong.

"Brother, you should prioritize the greater cause and not let my sake affect these things."

Fang Yong gently stroked Daiyu's hair and said:

"In my heart, my sister is the most important person."

In fact, Fang Yong's desire to return to Suzhou was not entirely for Daiyu's sake.

Another very important reason was to inspect the situation in Suzhou.

What was the living condition of the people of Suzhou when he was away?

Whether the officials are corrupt, and to what extent.

Fang Yong was almost certain that some officials had been corrupt.

This kind of thing is simply unavoidable.

Even organizations like those in his previous life couldn't avoid it, let alone the people under his command.

I just hope that corruption isn't too serious.

Don't be like Old Zhu, who didn't even know there was a rebellion in his hometown.

Of course, Fang Yong kept these things to himself.

Outside, they were only using sweet words to coax Daiyu.

He was willing to spend time coaxing Lin Daiyu.

Seeing Lin Daiyu's happy expression, Fang Yong also felt pleased.

There just happened to be a rock in the garden where one could sit or recline, so Fang Yong led Daiyu over and said:

Let's rest here for a bit!

Daiyu nodded gently.

Fang Yong sat down and leaned back against the rock.

Daiyu also went up and was embraced by Fang Yong.

Looking at the lush green trees all around, the sunlight filtering through the shade, the birds chirping and flying, and the fragrance of flowers wafting through the air, the person in my arms is even more beautiful than a fairy flower.

Daiyu lay in Fang Yong's arms. Although she felt shy because they were close in public, she felt more at ease feeling the warmth of her brother's chest.

Suddenly, Fang Yong's hands started to wander again.

Fang Yong whispered a few words in Daiyu's ear, causing Daiyu's face to turn bright red.

"How can that be done!"

"No one will come," Fang Yong said, burying his face in Daiyu's mouth and kissing her gently, his hands caressing her.

Because of her cultivation techniques, Daiyu no longer had the sickly condition she once had, but she was still thin and frail, making her all the more pitiful.

Suddenly, Fang Yong felt a cool, soft little hand reach out to him.

He slipped his hand inside his robe and moved slowly.

Fang Yong closed his eyes and felt it.

Suddenly, Daiyu asked:
"Brother, I heard you're going to take another concubine?"

Fang Yong was stunned for a moment.

Oh no, Lin Daiyu has caught us red-handed!

Seeing Fang Yong's stunned expression, Daiyu covered her mouth and smiled, not wanting to make things difficult for her brother any further, and kissed him again.

……

In the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the Longqing Emperor was excitedly talking to the retired emperor about the matter of Tian Tianrui that had been discussed in court that day.

Tian Tianrui raised an army of 600,000 to attack the Fang traitors, and his Great Xi was finally saved.

However, the retired emperor did not think highly of this.

After all, Fang Ze had already found the edict that Emperor Longqing had written to Tian Tianrui, so how could Fang Ze not be on guard?

Just then, footsteps suddenly came from outside.

Emperor Longqing quickly stopped talking.

A young eunuch walked in carrying a food box.

"Your Majesty, this is today's meal."

The Longqing Emperor nodded.

The young eunuch placed the food on the table.

Six dishes and one soup: four hot dishes, two cold dishes, three meat dishes, three vegetable dishes, and one hot tonic soup.

To be fair, before the Longqing Emperor was imprisoned, he lived frugally and didn't eat as well as he does now!

At least in terms of treatment, Fang Yong didn't criticize him too much.

The retired emperor remained lying on the soft couch, pretending to be half-paralyzed.

The young eunuch served the food and squatted down beside the Emperor Emeritus to feed him.

Dai Quan and Xia Shouzhong were both killed by that damned traitor Fang.

Now that the Longqing Emperor has no one to serve him, this little eunuch has been taking care of him these past few days.

Perhaps the news of Tian Tianrui's uprising had improved Emperor Longqing's mood considerably, as he ate a lot of food today.

After eating and drinking his fill, Emperor Longqing happened to turn around and look at the eunuch who was feeding the retired emperor.

The young eunuch was half-squatting as he fed the retired emperor. The emperor, who had not been close to women for many days, suddenly found the young eunuch to be somewhat handsome...

The Longqing Emperor asked, "What is your name?"

The young eunuch said, "Little Yunzi..."

Handan is the first major city connecting Hebei and Henan provinces.

However, there were several small towns and counties before Handan.

These towns and counties are now deserted, having completed their relocation.

The land was covered with patches of huge golden wheat ears, each six or seven feet tall.

Is this still wheat? It's almost as big as corn!

Some shorter people aren't even this tall.

Faced with such a miracle, the people of Zhili were completely convinced of Fang Yong's merits and could no longer harbor any thoughts of betrayal.

The only regret for the people was that the wheat could not be fully harvested.

With two or three-tenths of the harvest still unharvested, Ma Laohei implemented a scorched-earth policy, relocating all the people.

Only the unharvested wheat remained growing in the fields.

In fact, Ma Laohei could have easily burned all the remaining wheat, preventing the enemy from replenishing their supplies.

However, Ma Laohei deliberately did not do so.

He believed that leaving the wheat to be seen by the enemy would be more effective in demoralizing them than burning it.

For a long time, rumors have circulated among the common people that Fang Yongtian was blessed with a divine mandate that could double grain production.

However, few people believe this rumor.

After all, this is just too bizarre.

At first, even Ma Laohei found it hard to believe.

What kind of destiny is there in this world?
That was merely a tactic used by Fang Yong to win over the people.

But the truth is the truth, and later Ma Laohei had to admit that fate really does exist in the world.

It remains to be seen how the enemy will respond when destiny is laid bare and manifested before them.

(End of this chapter)