Shen Wansan, who was tired from work and looked haggard, walked slowly into the palace under the leadership of the palace attendants, bowed down and worshiped, and shouted:
"Shen Wansan, meet your Majesty!"
Xiao Cheng turned around, looked at Shen Wansan who was a little thinner, nodded slightly and said:
"Get flat!"
"Thank you, Your Majesty!"
Shen Wansan stood up and immediately raised his hands and reported back:
"The common people have already collected all the materials needed for Your Majesty's reward for the army. The people who followed me to Jiangzhou City this time only have about 30% of the total materials. The following caravans and ships are hurrying up with all the materials. !”
The amount of rice, grain, cloth, and silk needed to reward an army of 300,000 was an astonishing amount.
Before Jiangzhou County was occupied, Shen Wansan, under Xiao Cheng's instructions, mobilized merchants of all sizes in the Yun Kingdom in advance to go to various places to raise supplies. It took him nearly half a year to collect enough.
Having said this, Shen Wansan raised his head slightly, looked at Xiao Cheng, and said:
"Your Majesty, the common people have one more thing to report."
"This time, Shen's Trading Company, in addition to the supplies needed to reward the army, also brought some miscellaneous items, large and small. Daily items such as shoes, socks and clothes, medicines and supplements needed by the army, and life-saving items at critical times. The sword, the breast mirror..."
When Xiao Cheng heard this, he thought for a moment, then looked at Shen Wansan with a chuckle and said:
"What's the matter? The officers and soldiers of the army have not yet received their rewards, but they are being targeted by a profiteer like you?"
Shen Wansan laughed sarcastically and said quickly:
"Your Majesty has wronged the common people. In business, the common people have done a lot of things like buying high and selling low, but these are all regular businesses. How can they be considered a profiteer..."
"It's just that in this war, the frontline soldiers took the land of seven counties and expanded thousands of miles. With such credit, I knew there would be gold and silver rewards from the court. When these soldiers have money, they will naturally have the desire to spend money. Instead of that, they will be rewarded with gold and silver. Rather than letting others earn it, it is better to let the common people earn it, which will also allow His Majesty to have more gold and silver in his internal funds."
With the troops on the front line serving, it is natural that the DPRK and China cannot be stingy.
In addition to the reward materials, three million taels of silver were also specially allocated just to reward the lieutenant generals. It was transferred to the hands of each soldier, which was almost ten taels per person, equivalent to one person's military pay for a year.
Such a large amount of gold and silver was left in the hands of the soldiers, which would greatly stimulate the desire for consumption.
The things Shen Wansan brought were not necessarily necessary, but they were also very popular among the army officers, so why couldn't they be sold?
When Xiao Cheng heard this, he couldn't help laughing and scolding:
"You have a vicious vision, as expected of Shen Wansan... I don't object to this matter. It's okay to make money, but for the soldiers on the front line, those are rewards earned with hard work. Just make a little profit, don't go too far! "
After hearing what Xiao Cheng said, Shen Wansan quickly bowed and said:
"Your Majesty, please rest assured, the common people know."
Xiao Cheng nodded slightly and said warmly:
"These days show your hard work. But the reward is related to the morale of the frontline army. The harder you work, the more you have to keep an eye on these days to make sure nothing goes wrong!"
After hearing this, Shen Wansan bowed again and said seriously:
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, ordinary people will never dare to be careless!"
Xiao Cheng pondered for a moment and then said:
"Since you have served me, you have presided over the tea-horse trade, purchased war horses, and made money for internal funds. Your contribution is really not small. I promise you that after this matter is over, I will reward you with the official status of a fifth-grade court council official. Serve in the imperial court, continue to be in charge of your Shen's Trading Company, and serve me!"
After the implementation of the New Deal system in Yun State, the official position of imperial court official became a false title with no real authority.
Hearing what Xiao Cheng said, Shen Wansan was overjoyed, bowed down again and shouted:
"Your Majesty, Shen Wansan, thanks you for your kindness! Long live, long live, long live your Majesty!"
He, Shen Wansan, joined His Majesty and worked hard and worked extremely hard for what? He was just a businessman and obtained an official position! How could he not be overjoyed now that he had achieved what he wanted? There was not even a specific reward. After coming down, he has already begun to call himself a minister...
"By the way, there is another good errand that I want to leave to you!" Xiao Cheng continued with a smile.
"Please give me your majesty's orders. I will go through fire and water without hesitation!"
"I want to set up a capital, so it's up to you to prepare the necessary manpower and materials in advance!"
"To accompany the capital?"
Shen Wansan muttered a sentence, and his eyes suddenly lit up.
He, Shen Wansan, didn't understand politics, so he didn't know why he suddenly set up a capital. But as a businessman, he was able to keenly sense the huge profits from it.
Although it is only a companion capital, it is also the capital of the Yun Kingdom. No matter where it is chosen, as long as it is established as the capital, according to the etiquette system, it will need to be expanded and rebuilt in order to match the status of the capital of the Great Yun Kingdom.
In addition to the city, there are also the palaces of the capital, government offices of various ministries, and the residences of hundreds of officials... These buildings all need to be built. Added up inside and outside, the cost of rebuilding a city is small, and there is a profit in it. , that’s too much!
As soon as he thought of this, Shen Wansan felt restless in his heart.
Shen Wansan, who had just received Xiao Cheng's promise, all the fatigue accumulated over the past few months dissipated on his face, replaced by an energetic look on his face. He quickly raised his hands and said in a loud voice:
"Please rest assured, Your Majesty, I will do it right now!"
After discussing the matter, Shen Wansan, who couldn't bear to rest, left excitedly and was about to activate the contacts of Shen's Trading Company to start preparing all kinds of materials and manpower needed for the construction.
Xiao Cheng watched Shen Wansan leave, and just as he was about to continue reviewing the memorials, a young eunuch quickly walked into the palace, leaned down and prostrated, saying:
"Your Majesty, the envoy of the Xia Kingdom is outside seeking an audience!"
When Xiao Cheng heard the report, he paused in his hands, turned to look at Feng Bao aside, and asked:
"How many times?"
"This is the third day in a row that I have asked to see you." Feng Bao quickly replied.
When Xiao Cheng heard this, he raised his eyebrows and said:
"I saw them coming here after a long journey, so I gave them a few days' rest. I didn't expect that the Xia State envoy would be so anxious, asking to see them for several days in a row..."
Feng Bao lowered his head and asked softly:
"Then Your Majesty, do you want to continue to block it?"
Xiao Cheng pondered for a while, then threw down the memorial in his hand, shook his head and said:
"No, I suddenly don't want to review the memorial today!"
Having said this, Xiao Cheng showed a playful smile and said:
"Feng Bao, you go do something..."
——
At this time, Jiangxiashan was temporarily outside.
A group of Xia State envoys stood here, waiting for Xiao Cheng's summons.
Perhaps because Xiao Cheng was not summoned for several days, the atmosphere of the Xia State envoys seemed a little restless at this time. The Xia State envoys whispered to each other from time to time.
If it weren't for the officials and soldiers of the Yun State's Ministry of Rites not far away, I'm afraid these people would have forgotten their manners.
At this time, Gong Yingzong was mingling among the Xia Kingdom's envoys. His expression was unusually calm, and he looked around from time to time, with strange movements in his eyes.
Next to Gong Yingzong, the envoy of the mission, Gong Caijie, the young minister of Dahonglu Temple in Xia Kingdom, turned slightly sideways and lowered his voice to remind:
"Master Gong, pay attention to your expression!"
Gong Yingzong, who was thinking something in his mind, was interrupted by Gong Caijie. He came back to his senses slightly and frowned:
"What?"
Gong Caijie raised his head and glanced at the Yun State officials in the distance, and whispered:
"Your expression, your Excellency, should be the same as that of the envoy of the mission, showing a little restlessness and fear!"
Even though Gong Yingzong had outstanding intelligence, when he heard Gong Caijie's confusing words, he couldn't help but look confused and said:
"What's the meaning?"
Seeing that Gong Yingzong still didn't understand, Gong Caijie moved his steps slightly, leaned towards Gong Yingzong, and said in a voice that only two people could hear:
"Master Gong just joined the mission halfway. I don't know what the adults in the court have told me before. It can't be blamed."
"Before leaving, Da Honglu secretly confessed that this time the mission came to the Yun Kingdom to submit the credential for the armistice... In other words, we are here to bow our heads and submit! It is not me, Daxia, the Emperor of Yun, who took the initiative to submit the credential.
Books, isn’t that just what I want to do to satisfy my desire to win and lose?”
"So this submissive gesture is very important! In order to satisfy Emperor Yun without damaging Daxia's face, we really don't have much room for performance. This is not a formal occasion, so we act more and more frightened.
, Emperor Yun, the young emperor, will be more satisfied."
If you show such a fearful and uneasy look in private, it won't hurt even if you act a little tougher in front of the Yun Kingdom monarchs and ministers in the future. In this way, the Xia Kingdom envoy will have a little more room for maneuver.
Gong Yingzong used to be a political strategist, so he naturally understood this kind of diplomatic method used by small countries to pretend to be soft.
It's just that neither he nor Gong Caijie expected that a dignified envoy of the Xia Kingdom would one day be reduced to the point of resorting to such means...
After a moment of silence, Gong Yingzong said in a low voice:
"It's hard for you, Gong Shaoqing!"
Hearing this, Gong Caijie forced a smile, but a trace of sorrow, anger and desolation flashed in his eyes. He couldn't help but sigh and said:
"Alas, I only hope to regain the country's power and regain its territory in the future... When the time comes, I will ask your Majesty to send an envoy to the Yun Kingdom with integrity!"
Gong Yingzong's eyes flickered and he murmured:
"There will come a day..."
At this moment, the sound of rapid footsteps was heard.
A palace eunuch, surrounded by the imperial army, came quickly and shouted loudly to the Xia envoy:
"His Majesty ordered that the envoys from the Xuanxia Kingdom should meet in Jiangzhou City!"
When the envoys of the Xia Kingdom heard the summons from Emperor Yun Xiao Cheng, their expressions froze, and the atmosphere became extremely solemn.
"Summoned so soon? I thought it would take a few more days..." Gong Caijie whispered to Gong Yingzong.
At this time, Gong Yingzong frowned slightly and whispered:
"It's strange. If you're summoned, you're summoned. Why do you have to be in Jiangzhou City? Isn't Emperor Yun going to Jiangxia Mountain today?"
Gong Caijie, who hadn't paid much attention at first, felt a little doubt in his heart when he heard Gong Yingzong's words. After thinking about it for a moment, his heart sank.
Indeed, something is very wrong...
——
The sound of horse hooves "ta da da da" suddenly sounded in Jiangzhou City.
The elite and brave Yunjun cavalry, dazzlingly armored, with gorgeous parasitic wing decorations on their backs, and full of murderous aura, rode past the street, shouting in unison:
"Your Majesty's carriage has arrived. Everyone should avoid it and kneel down to welcome it!"
"Your Majesty's carriage has arrived..."
"..."
The sound of shouting in unison echoed in the city, causing the people in the city to get out of the way.
Those who were dissatisfied immediately hid in houses and alleys. However, the people who had been favored by Xiao Cheng these days and were able to accept the rule of the Yun Kingdom chose to kneel on both sides of the road, waiting for Xiao Cheng's carriage.
brought.
After a while, the sound of military boots was heard.
The escorting soldiers, with spears like a forest, swords as bright as snow, and armed with bows and crossbows, lined up to kill in order, making people afraid to offend.
A majestic ceremonial guard followed closely, with flags and flags of various colors and ritual music playing, showing their majesty.
The jade chariot frame, which symbolizes the emperor, is slowly approaching under such a formation.
After Xiao Cheng's carriage, the Xia State delegation also followed in a carriage.
Gong Caijie pushed the boat and looked at the many people kneeling on both sides of the road. His expression became a little ugly and he whispered:
"Does Emperor Yun want to tell us that the people of Jiangzhou County have begun to surrender?"
Just looking at the large number of people on the streets in the city, we can tell that order has been restored in Jiangzhou City, and the folk businesses have also recovered.
But seeing so many people kneeling on both sides of the country respectfully, one knew that Yun Guo had gained some of the people's support.
If you think about it carefully, it only took a few months for the Yun Army to capture Jiangzhou City. It took even less time for the Yun State to formally establish an administrative structure. In such a short period of time, it can win the people's hearts to this point, but in the long run it will still be a long time.
Come on?
By the time the Xia army is able to counterattack, the people of Jiangzhou City may have forgotten their identity as Xia people...
Gong Yingzong glanced at both sides of the road, then withdrew his gaze, lowered his head and said in a deep voice:
"The news from the Embroidered Clothes Envoy is that Emperor Yun has been in Jiangzhou City for less than a month. He has reduced local taxes, collected Daxia officials, and distributed the land and property of the rich to the poor and landless local gentry in Daxia.
He also spent hundreds of thousands of taels of silver to win over the people's hearts. With such a large amount of money, the minds of ordinary people will naturally change."
Hearing this, Gong Caijie couldn't help but say:
"In the past three years, the Yun Kingdom has been involved in numerous wars, which have cost a lot of money. Now that Emperor Yun is still spending so much money, can the Yun Kingdom's finances really support the land?"
At this moment, Gong Yingzong couldn't help but sigh, and said helplessly:
"You have to ask the original Yun Kingdom Buddhist sect about this matter. Ask them how deep a foundation these monks have accumulated..."
"Money, money! If there was still money in the treasury, it wouldn't be like this!" Gong Caijie couldn't help but sigh.
While the two were talking, the traveling carriage slowly stopped.
Not long after, there were Yun Kingdom's forbidden troops walking outside the car:
"Please envoys get out of the car!"
Gong Yingzong and Gong Caijie looked at each other and immediately got up and got out of the car.
After getting off the car, Gong Caijie looked into the distance and found that he and others had arrived near the gate of Jiangzhou City.
In the distance, there is a temporarily built high platform, with many ceremonial guards on it, surrounded by twelve colorful canopies. Faintly visible, a figure wearing an imperial robe and a crown is sitting under it. Although his face cannot be seen clearly, the emperor's figure is
The energy came from all over the place, so bright and majestic that no one dared to look directly at it.
"Where is this?" Gong Caijie couldn't help but asked in a low voice.
"Zhonghemen." Gong Yingzong said in a deep voice.
"Zhonghe Gate? Why are you here?"
Gong Yingzong's eyes flashed, he looked around, his eyes condensed, and he said:
"Zhonghe Gate is the place where prisoners are executed in Jiangzhou City."
As soon as he said this, Gong Caijie suddenly broke out in cold sweat on his back and exclaimed:
"Impossible! No matter what, we are still the envoys of Daxia!"
At this time, a chuckle sounded from the side:
"Hehehe, Master Gong is probably thinking too much!"
Zhang Yi walked out slowly, with a smile on her face, and said to the two of them:
"My Majesty has always been diligent in his duties. Even though he is on tour now, he has not put aside all the affairs of the DPRK and the Central Government. He is extremely busy. Today, Japan has other arrangements. Just because your envoys have been seeking to see you for several days, Your Majesty is afraid of being negligent, so he
I would like to invite you all to come together and arrange to meet you at your leisure!"
No one present would believe this.
The emperor of a country does not need his approval for everything. As long as you are willing to spare some free time, it is naturally impossible not to be able to spare it. Let the envoys of the Xia Kingdom come here at this time, I am afraid there is an ulterior motive!
Gong Yingzong and Gong Caijie both understood, but at this time, facing the Yun Kingdom's monarchs and ministers who were pretending to be confused, they could only cooperate and pretend to be confused.
"That's it!"
"His Majesty Yun Huang is so diligent in his work, he is worthy of being a wise king!"
Zhang Yi responded with a smile, waved his sleeves and said:
"Everyone, please follow me!"
On the high platform, Xiao Cheng glanced at the Xia Kingdom envoy and the corners of his mouth curved slightly.
Yu Huatian, who came in a hurry from the side, bowed and saluted Xiao Cheng, then stood up and said:
"But some assassins in the world of Jianghu can be killed by His Majesty's decree. Why do you need to come to supervise the execution in person?"
There was such a movement today because Xiao Cheng had just issued an order to imprison in the prison and kill all the martial arts men in Jiangzhou City who participated in the assassination. He even came to Jiangzhou City in person to neutralize the situation just for this moment.
In front of the door.
When Xiao Cheng heard this, he said in a faint tone:
"That's not possible. I have been preparing for so long, but just for today's big show, how can I not be there in person?"
Big drama?
Hearing this, Yu Huatian felt doubtful in his heart and subconsciously looked at Feng Bao aside.
Feng Bao blinked at him as a signal.
Although Yuhuatian still didn't understand, he didn't dare to hesitate at all and quickly said:
"This slave is too talkative."
At this time, a group of Dongchang fans had already brought in all the captured martial arts men.
Most of these people were well-known people. People who gathered around the execution ground to watch the excitement knew many of them. At this time, they saw that these powerful heroes in the world had now
The embarrassment of being reduced to a prisoner immediately caused a discussion.
Yuhuatian bowed slightly to Xiao Cheng, then stood up and shouted with a murderous look on his face:
"A traitor who refused to obey the king's rule and assassinated the Holy Master is an unforgivable crime. Now, according to His Majesty's decree, all of them will be killed to shock the younger generation!"
Even though they had vaguely guessed it before, when they heard Yuhuatian's loud shouts, the people present were in an uproar.
A group of people from the martial arts community in Jiangzhou County who were being held captive had seen that Xiao Cheng and his group had not attacked them before. Many of them had placed their hope in Emperor Yun's fear of the people and that their lives would not be in danger.
It wasn't until the order to kill everyone was issued that these people suddenly reacted.
Some people were excited and yelled and cursed. Some people were crying and pleading loudly. There were even some people who were so frightened that they were paralyzed, with feces and urine flowing freely.
But at this time, Xiao Cheng's order had been issued and he made such a big noise, so he naturally had no intention of taking back the order. No matter how they struggled and begged, they were all dragged directly to the execution platform.
Dozens of military lieutenant generals quickly came behind these people and raised the sharp swords in their hands.
"Behead!" the chief captain shouted violently.
I saw a bright sword flash, the long swords were swung down in unison, and the sound of "puff" sounded.
Dozens of human heads rolled to the ground, and blood flowed all over the ground. Suddenly, the smell of blood overflowed. It was so murderous that people were dizzy and dared not look directly.
The timid people on the side had already screamed in surprise. The brave ones did not dare to look forward at this time.
The corpse was thrown aside, and dozens more people were brought up.
"cut!"
There was still the flash of the sword, and the sound of cursing, pleading, and crying suddenly stopped, leaving only the quiet sound of blood dripping on the ground.
Then dozens more people were brought up, the sword flashed, and dozens more heads fell to the ground.
Such large-scale beheadings have never been seen in Zhonghemen execution ground for hundreds of years.
Several times in a row, hundreds of heads fell to the ground, and blood flowed all over the ground. The bloody air on the execution ground seemed to be condensed, making people shudder and even feel difficulty breathing.
The Xia State envoys who were waiting aside were extremely pale. Some civil servants who had never seen a killing scene even started to feel sick in their stomachs.
Gong Caijie covered his mouth and gritted his teeth:
"Show off your power!"
Gong Yingzong's expression was as usual, but his expression was extremely solemn. He shook his head slightly and said:
"No, this is intended to intimidate. Merely showing kindness is not enough to win over the hearts of the people of Jiangzhou County. Only by showing kindness and power at the same time, making people respect and fear them, can Jiangzhou County be completely controlled."
Having said this, Gong Yingzong looked at Gong Caijie aside and said:
"These people are all loyalists who assassinated Emperor Yun and wanted to help the court. Emperor Yun summoned them after killing them everywhere, just to ask you, Gong Shaoqing, to hand over your credentials in full view of the public and let the world know that I, Daxia Company, protect the loyal and righteous
No one has the ability..."
When Gong Caijie heard this, his pupils shrank and he exclaimed:
"No wonder...Master Gong, how should we deal with this?"
Gong Yingzong hesitated for a moment, and after a long silence, he sighed feebly and said:
"It's just that this is a conspiracy. Daxia must cease war with Yun State..."
The so-called conspiracy is just like this. I knew that Xiao Cheng was causing trouble and knew his purpose, but in the end I could only force it step by step according to his idea.
Before he finished speaking, Zhang Yi led a young eunuch from the Yun Kingdom and said loudly:
"Everyone, Your Majesty invites you!"
Gong Yingzong immediately closed his mouth and looked at Gong Caijie.
Gong Caijie grabbed the Xia Kingdom Talisman Festival in his hand, straightened his back, took a deep breath, and led the Xia Kingdom envoys to the high platform.
Feeling the sight of many people in Jiangzhou City who had not dispersed, Gong Caijie could only bite the bullet and said with humiliation:
"The envoy from the Xia Kingdom came with the letter of credence and presented it to His Majesty the Emperor of Yun Kingdom!"
On the high platform, Xiao Cheng glanced at the people gathered not far away. Many of them looked livid and ugly, and some even walked away directly. He suddenly curved the corner of his mouth and smiled at Feng Bao:
"Although it is a small trick, it will have a serious impact on the hearts of the people!"
"Your Majesty is wise!" Feng Bao quickly flattered him.
