I was living in the Five Dynasties period, just after crossing the Zhongdu Bridge.

The tombs of heroes are not always on the battlefield; sometimes they are in the arms of gentle women.

Since heading south from Daizhou, they had endured wind and rain, sleeping in the open, and fought two bloody battles. Only after entering Yaozhou City and receiving the money to save their lives could they finally breathe a sigh of relief.

The two beautiful women that Sun Ping sent to the room were indeed carefully chosen.

Not only was she exceptionally beautiful, but she was also extremely adept at interpersonal relationships.

They did not tremble at the smell of blood on Shen Lie's body; instead, they served their young new master with utmost tenderness as he rested.

In this chaotic world, one could be sent to the inner quarters of the defense commissioner, even if only as a concubine to warm his bed.

For these two women who had been raised as gifts since childhood, this was already a good ending.

At least, this Prefect Shen is young and valiant, and unlike those crude and vulgar warriors who are prone to beating and cursing.

Shen Lie accepted this situation calmly.

He is a normal man, and naturally he has normal needs for emotional release.

That night, with a beautiful woman by his side, he was swept away by waves of passion.

Shen Lie didn't wake up until the sun was high in the sky.

The maids who served her during her washing and grooming had been replaced by the two beautiful women, who moved gently and obediently.

It is clear that he has received excellent training.

Shen Lie enjoyed the service, but in his heart he was calculating another matter.

Yang Ting was already waiting in the front hall.

This fellow had a silly grin on his face today, and was carrying several account books in his pocket. When he saw Shen Lie come out, he hurriedly went to greet him.

"My lord, did you sleep well last night?"

Yang Ting winked and said, "This guy's face is glowing, he obviously had a good night last night too."

Shen Lie ignored his crude remarks, walked straight to the main seat and sat down, taking the tea offered by the guard to moisten his throat.

"Let's get down to business."

"Hehe, let's get down to business." Yang Ting put away his smile and opened the account book.

"Yesterday, the gold and silver were distributed as the magistrate instructed. However, the brothers did not dare to touch the private money sent by the county magistrates. They kept it for the magistrate's expenses."

Shen Lie was about to reply when Yang Ting chuckled and said, "And then there are those other women."

"Brother Zhao picked the two most handsome ones, and I, Old Yang, didn't stand on ceremony either, picking the one with the big butt. The rest were given to those meritorious squad leaders. Last night's commotion, hey, the whole rear camp heard it."

Shen Lie nodded, not finding anything wrong with it.

These days, leading troops is all about sharing joys and sorrows.

If the leader eats meat, the subordinates should have soup to drink; if the leader sleeps with women, the subordinates should also have a warm bed to sleep in.

Although the analogy may seem far-fetched, it was indeed a way to maintain morale and the morale of the troops.

"The remaining gold and silver shall be sealed in two parts and divided 30/70."

Shen Lie glanced disdainfully at Yang Ting's trembling legs.

"Send a few clever men on fast horses to deliver the seventh portion to Taiyuan and present it to Commander Shi."

"The other three portions are to be given to Commander Li Congxi."

Yang Ting was taken aback, feeling a pang of regret: "My lord, we've only just built up a little wealth, and you're already sending it all away? We were thrown out as pawns, why should we have to pay them tribute?"

"Because of this pawn, we have to keep playing the role."

Shen Lie glanced at the somewhat short-sighted commander of the personal guard and patiently explained, "Our current force of over five hundred men is called the Fuwei Commandery, but in reality, it's already overstaffed. According to military regulations, five commanderies form one command, and our force should have been upgraded to a command long ago."

This is the logic behind the military system of the Five Dynasties.

Each garrison was under the jurisdiction of five armies, each army under the jurisdiction of five commanderies, each commandery under the jurisdiction of five divisions, each division under the jurisdiction of ten squads, and each squad under the jurisdiction of ten men.

Previously, when Shen Lie was in Daizhou, he was nominally the Military Commander, but in reality, the people under his command were just a temporary cobbled-together organization with an unstable foundation, and his title did not live up to his name.

Now that the number of people has expanded to more than 500, it would be improper to still call it "Du".

If the name is not correct, the words will not go well, and if the words are not good, then things will not happen.

"Brother Zhao is a born general; we can't keep using the title of 'guest general' forever, can we?"

Shen Lie laughed and said, "Giving him the position of captain is a waste of his talent. If he is to be promoted to commander, he should be given the position of deputy commander, which would barely be enough."

"And you, Liu Qing, and all those squad leaders who have made meritorious contributions, you all need to be promoted. Only by being promoted can you gain the respect of the people and truly win the hearts of your soldiers."

Although Yang Ting was reluctant to spend the money, he understood the implications.

This money wasn't given away for free; it was essentially like buying an official position, a legitimate government job.

To truly gain control of the military, one must adopt a two-pronged approach:

One leg was a title given by the imperial court to a defense commissioner, used to win over the people and collect taxes.

The other leg was the military's system of assigning commanders, which was used to legitimately expand the army and promote cronies.

Moreover, although Shen Lie held the official document of the Yaozhou Defense Commissioner, Yaozhou was actually an awkward place.

According to the rules of the late Tang and Five Dynasties period, prefectures were divided into four grades: Jiedu Prefecture, Fangyu Prefecture, Tuanlian Prefecture, and Cishi Prefecture.

The Jiedushi (military governor) was a powerful regional official who controlled a large army and held military, political, and financial power. The Defense Commissioner was next in rank and should have a regular state defense army. The Tuanlianzhou (military commandery commander) was mainly responsible for maintaining stability and only had some local militia under his command. In reality, he was mainly responsible for civil administration.

The governors were at the very bottom of the administrative hierarchy, and their duties mainly involved civil administration.

Logically, a defense commissioner should be in charge of the state defense army of a province, but Yaozhou is actually a prefecture under a governor, so where does the proper state defense army come from?

Sun Ping, as the governor, previously governed Yaozhou, but his small military force was barely enough to fill the gaps between the bandits' teeth.

All that was left were old, weak, sick, and disabled yamen runners.

Therefore, Yaozhou, despite its name as a defensive prefecture, is actually not even as good as a low-level militia prefecture.

If Shen Lie truly wants to secure his position as the Defense Envoy, these five hundred men alone are not enough.

He needs to continue expanding the army.

Expanding the military requires a legitimate right to conscript soldiers.

Therefore, Shen Lie needed the title of "Commander".

If we want to expand the army and turn these 550 men into legitimate Yaozhou soldiers, we need to ask the higher-ups for official positions.

Who should I contact?

Naturally, we should look for Shi Hongzhao.

"Therefore, this money must be spent."

"In the letter to Commander Shi, you should write more sincerely, saying that Yaozhou has been captured, but the troops are stretched thin. Please promote Fuwei to the first commander of the left wing of Yaozhou, and we will recruit soldiers and horses ourselves without needing a penny of money or grain from above."

"That guy is greedy for money. As long as he doesn't have to pay out of his own pocket and can get an army under his command for free, he has no reason not to agree."

"As for Li Congxi, that money is hush money. It lets him know that even though we've gone abroad, we still acknowledge him as our old superior."

This elaborate scheme left Yang Ting speechless, and in the end, he could only give a thumbs up: "My lord...brilliant!"

Shen Lie smiled but didn't say anything more.

This is just basic practice in officialdom.

"Go."

Shen Lie waved his hand. "Call Zhao Yuanlang over. He should know about this promotion and fortune."

"Also, go and invite Governor Sun over. Tell him that I slept soundly last night thanks to his two beautiful women. Today, we'll host a banquet and invite him over to catch up and, incidentally... discuss the finances and taxes of Yaozhou."

Sun Ping arrived shortly afterward.

The governor had clearly not slept well all night, as he had dark circles under his eyes.

Upon entering, seeing Shen Lie's radiant face, I couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

It seems this gift was the right choice.

"Was Your Excellency well last night?" Sun Ping asked tentatively with a smile.

"Good, very good."

Shen Lie pointed to the seat below him, "Lord Sun, this gift is very thoughtful. However, I have summoned you here today not only to express my gratitude for the gift, but also to discuss important matters."

"Please speak, Your Excellency."