Chapter 57: This is called flexibility

Su Zhenzhen completely respected Hensheng's idea, "But Chunzhi may not be so easy to talk to. Didn't she say before that when the world is unified, the people will be of one mind? You have nothing on your hands, so you have no bargaining chips at all."

"If I were to enter the capital alone and kill the puppet emperor," Hensheng said with anticipation, "would you think that could be used as leverage? I think I could definitely do that now."

Su Zhenzhen certainly believed that Hensheng, after drinking the gene optimization fluid, could travel thousands of miles to take the rebel's head, but the question was, what would happen if he killed that puppet emperor?

"Have you thought about this? Those powerful families can install one puppet emperor, and they can install a second one. Besides, although he is a distant relative of yours, he still shares the surname Jiang. There's no need to be branded as unfilial and heartless because of this. Moreover, although I don't understand your era, powerful families are all the same. Their foundations are very deep. You need to have troops to fight them. Let me think about it."

Su Zhenzhen did start to seriously consider this matter. If she didn't ask the Huo family army to come out of seclusion, the best way would undoubtedly be to persuade Chunzhi to surrender.

Hensheng was a scholar, and even though he had read some military books, he had no practical combat experience.

I am a pure, unadulterated 906-century working stiff.

General Huo and those eight ghosts are fine, but humans and ghosts are different, so we can't do that.

Starting from scratch to recruit soldiers is a challenge, and even if you manage to recruit them, training them is still an issue, let alone finding a way to recruit them.

Recruiting soldiers...

Su Zhenzhen's eyes lit up. "I have an idea. There's a saying, 'An army marches on its stomach.' Winter is coming soon, and Chunzhi might not have enough supplies. We don't need her troops. You can borrow them from her and repay her with supplies. She'll definitely agree."

As someone from the 906th century once said, when profits reach 300%, one can trample on all laws.

I refuse to believe that you can resist lending your soldiers enough food for a lifetime, even if it's just for a few months.

Su Zhenzhen explained her plan in detail.

Hensheng was shocked upon hearing this, "It is actually possible to do this. There is no record of this in military books."

Of course, this is called being flexible. If you don't lend it to me when I ask you for it, that's fine, and I even rewarded you handsomely.

"But where are we going to get so much grain?" Hensheng asked with a worried look. "Should we steal from the national treasury? That's not impossible, but we don't know if there's any grain left in the treasury."

Hensheng felt no guilt about saying this, since the national treasury belonged to the Jiang family dynasty, and it was perfectly acceptable for him, as a descendant of the Jiang family dynasty, to take some money.

Su Zhenzhen glanced at Hensheng with some surprise. She hadn't expected this kid to be so quick-witted, even thinking of robbing the national treasury, but it didn't have to be that complicated.

“I have high-yield grain seeds, but of course, we can’t grow them all by ourselves. I plan to recruit local people to grow grain. I will give them 100 catties of grain for every acre they plant, and they will be paid immediately. It won’t be long before the grain is grown.”

The more Su Zhenzhen thought about it, the more she felt she was a genius, using this pyramid scheme to recruit labor, while all she had to give in return was food.

Food is a scarce commodity for people who toil in the fields in this era, but for Su Zhenzhen, it is only necessary to purchase it from the mall using the points she has.

Seeds are even cheaper. All you need to do is provide the first meal to get the people planting their land, and then you'll pay them for the seeds later.

The high-yield grain varieties of the 906th century have short growth cycles and can be harvested regardless of the soil type. This is why the seeds in the system store are so cheap.

Su Zhenzhen suddenly realized that she had forgotten to buy food after receiving the points from the various Wang sisters. Great! Now she wouldn't have to ask Jiang Sijin for help getting rice when she returned to Shanxian County.

Haha, I'm feeling better too.

Su Zhenzhen was so overjoyed that he didn't notice the veterans gathered together, and his image of standing with his hands on his hips and laughing loudly was clearly seen by everyone.

"Lord of the Underworld... are you performing a ritual?"

Su Zhenzhen snapped out of her daze and realized that so many people were watching her. She glared at Hensheng with a mixture of embarrassment and anger.

Hensheng smiled faintly, for the underworld official looked much more alive than usual, unlike his detached demeanor.

“General.” A man stepped forward; he was the one who had sent his son out to pay his respects last night.

“We brothers discussed it and are willing to come out of seclusion, but we have to follow the rules of our Huo family army.”

Hensheng asked, puzzled, "May I ask what the rules are for the Huo family army?"

The one-eyed old man climbed down from the tree. "Let me tell you!"

He staggered over to Hensheng and said, “Simply put, it’s all about who has the bigger fist. Our Huo family army only respects those who are capable. Here, we don’t care about rank; we only care about who kills the enemy the most fiercely on the battlefield! Little Yuezi is number one, and I’m number two.”

Speaking of this, the one-eyed old man let out a bitter sigh, "If I hadn't been beaten into submission by Xiao Yuezi back then, I would be the uncrowned king of the jungle now."

General Huo nodded. “One-Eyed is right, Your Highness. If you want to be the leader of the Huo family army, you must defeat all the brothers. When I took over the position of general from my father, I defeated them one by one.”

Without wasting any words, Hensheng said, "Then please enlighten me, generals."

The women and children retreated to stand under the eaves, clearing the area.

The first to issue the challenge was that man, who said, "This humble general, Qingshan, humbly requests your guidance."

Without weapons, they had to fight bare-handed.

Su Zhenzhen watched intently. This Qingshan was quite skilled, and being in his prime, every punch he threw was full of power.

Hensheng, having been trained by General Huo, possessed solid basic skills and handled the situation with ease.

The outcome was decided in the time it takes for an incense stick to burn; without a doubt, Hensheng won.

Next, the second and third challengers took the stage.

The young and energetic are placed in front, and the older ones in the back. This is the rule of the Huo family army, after all, they use a rotation tactic. Putting the young people in the back would be unfair to the challengers.

Furthermore, if the young and strong can win, how can the old not win?

Hensheng is different now. He looked utterly broken when we first met, but now he can defeat generals one by one without even breaking a sweat.

The last person to take on the challenge was the oldest person here, besides the one-eyed old man.

He is exactly ninety years old this year.

"This humble general is He Liao. Please enlighten me!"

The old man threw away his cane, assumed a fighting stance, and swung it at Hensheng.

Hensheng neither dodged nor flinched, but steadily caught the punch.

The old man moved very slowly, and his moves were full of flaws.

Someone like him would only be waiting to die on the battlefield.

Yet he still challenged his commander as a soldier.

Because he was a member of Huo Jiajun, even though his life was about to decline, he did not want to withdraw from such a glorious moment.