Chapter 1365: The Exhausted Working Man (Part 2) [Requesting Monthly Tickets]

Gong Xichou is simply a nemesis of military generals.

Those who can out-argue him can't beat him, and those who can beat him can't out-argue him; in a way, he's invincible.

The reinforcements suffered a crushing defeat in the first battle, with many fleeing.

Those who couldn't escape became prisoners, awaiting their fate.

Anyone who frequently leads troops into battle knows what kind of treatment prisoners receive—generally speaking, it's proportional to their ability and status.

Only those with ability and status are worth being recruited and redeemed!

Prisoners of this caliber are usually treated to good food and wine, while the real decision-maker steps in to decide their fate.

The prisoners who had no ability or status suffered terribly. Enduring hunger and beatings were the norm. They were subjected to methods similar to those used to train eagles to completely suppress any thoughts of resistance. Some were even used as live targets and pushed onto the shooting range to entertain the enemy generals at their banquets.

For a warlike general, what's more interesting than a motionless, dead target, a living target that can run, jump, beg for mercy, and scream?

Judging from Gongxi Chou's behavior, he was also a ruthless person.

They waited anxiously for several days.

They weren't cheated out of their food, nor were they dragged out and beaten. Apart from their Dan Palace being confined and their freedom restricted, things were no different from usual. No one harbored any illusions, only fearing this was the calm before the storm: "...Sigh."

Just as he was sighing, an uninvited guest entered the tent.

The people inside the tent were on high alert.

_(:з」∠)_

To save manpower guarding the prisoners, these reinforcement generals were imprisoned in multi-person cells, saving Gongxi Chou the trouble of notifying each cell individually: "His Highness is back. You all need to prepare yourselves and look presentable. Remember, say what needs to be said, and pretend you're mute about what shouldn't be said. Be sensible, or you'll force me to punish you on my happy days..."

Gong Xichou's disrespectful attitude drew angry glares from the crowd.

"A scholar can be killed, but not humiliated!"

"Such a humiliating disgrace, it would be better to kill us!"

"Yes! Don't think we'll submit to you just to survive, letting you speak so disrespectfully and humiliatingly!" These men weren't low-ranking military officers; even if they weren't from noble families, they were wealthy households. They'd never been treated like this before! A warning to know their place? Did they think they were nobody?

Gong Xichou hadn't expected his casual warning to provoke such a strong reaction. He said in surprise, "You defeated opponents, not very capable, but quite arrogant. It's His Highness who thinks too highly of you that I'm running errands to deliver a message, and you're already acting all high and mighty?"

"you--"

Gongxi Chou was too lazy to listen to their endless, repetitive ramblings. They all just talked about not wanting to be humiliated, and while they spoke with unwavering resolve, none of them actually drew their swords to commit suicide. If they wanted to kill themselves, he was sure no one would stop them from doing their duty!

He thought it to himself, but didn't say it out loud.

If he really provokes someone to the point of suicide, he will be criticized.

Gong Xichou arrived suddenly and left in a hurry.

No one knew what was wrong with him.

They came over, said a bunch of infuriating things, and then ran away?

"...What did he just say, 'Your Highness is back'?" The title "Your Highness" isn't something just anyone can use. First of all, there's a proper prince; Xiahou Li and his band of outlaws clearly don't qualify. "Is this 'Your Highness' referring to Xiahou Li?"

We'll find out soon enough what they're up to.

When the time came, they found that they still couldn't understand it.

The banquet that night was indeed a victory celebration.

As prisoners of war, they weren't bound and gagged as spoils of war; instead, they were seated in lower positions. The leaders of the various reinforcement armies weren't fools either, and seeing this, they felt somewhat reassured. Even if the seating arrangement wasn't ideal, at least they were seated.

This proved that Xiahou Li didn't intend to wipe them out completely; her intention to win them over was more obvious. Those among them secretly breathed a sigh of relief; no one wanted to die meaninglessly if they could live. Even so, attending the victor's victory banquet as the defeated side would be somewhat awkward.

Looking up, the main seat was empty.

Shifting the focus again, Gongxi Chou naturally took the seat of the top military officer.

The other generals had no doubt about this, and their eyes were filled with reverence, respect, and an indescribable eagerness as they looked at Gong Xi Chou. They even saw an extremely tall and burly man shyly approach Gong Xi Chou to offer him a toast. This man had a rugged appearance, with a full beard and a strong masculine air, but at this moment he spoke in a soft, low voice, looking at Gong Xi Chou with a shrewish demeanor.

"This humble servant will pour you some wine."

The ending note had a three-wave tremolo.

"Speak like a human being, don't force me to hit you!" Gong Xichou's hand holding the wine cup visibly trembled as he rubbed his arm back and forth to wipe away the goosebumps that had risen up. Clearly, he couldn't stand it either. "It disgusts me."

The military officer said solemnly, "I have a request."

Gong Xichou recovered and said, "You tell me."

The military officer leaned close to his ear and whispered something.

"Really?" Gong Xichou initially reacted with a mixture of amusement, shock, bewilderment, and disbelief, his eyes frequently glancing in their direction. This look made everyone uneasy, and they couldn't hear what they were saying. Their intuition told them it was definitely not good news!

"Please grant my request, General! This is the only condition left!"

Gong Xichou: "..."

Sometimes he really wanted to report it to the authorities.

The simple-minded boy from a reclusive family always seemed out of touch with worldly trends because he wasn't eccentric enough. He still couldn't understand why anyone would enjoy collecting other people's underpants. The military officer, noticing the change in his expression, hurriedly waved his hands to explain his innocence!

"This humble general has no such hobby; I just wanted to complete the set."

It's unclear where this strange trend originated, but there's a practice of collecting items in sets. For example, a set might consist of several martial artists of similar age from a certain region, several martial artists with the same surname, or several members of a father-son family… These sets are even assigned star ratings based on their strength and reputation. If any of them dies, it becomes a rare, limited-edition item, and some of these rarer sets command astonishing prices in the martial arts world!

Those who aren't fixated on this are fine...

Once you become fixated on something, seeing a set missing someone, especially when the last one is missing, is incredibly agonizing!

Don't ask him why he doesn't just ask the prisoners.

It wasn't that he beat them into submission; forcibly demanding it would have no symbolic meaning.

If we go through Gongxi Chou's side...

Yes, the value increases immediately.

Gong Xichou: "...What series is it?"

The military general knew immediately that there was hope.

The two huddled together and whispered to each other.

Gong Xichou grunted in response, noticing that among the seven people in the group, one stood out conspicuously, seemingly lacking real skill and appearing to have jumped the queue through connections. His comment was overheard by Xiahou Yu, who coughed out the words, drawing Shen Tang's attention.

"...This trend really needs to be rectified." The strange custom continued to evolve, and the label of "calf-nose trousers" was truly impossible to remove.

Shen Tang gestured in the direction of Gong Xi Chou with her eyes.

Xiahou Yu nodded: "...I've heard before that some martial artists, in order to quickly gain fame, will deliberately group themselves with some famous and powerful martial artists. Wandering knights often like to follow the crowd, so they really believe that this person can be as famous as others."

Even if they're not as famous as each other, they definitely have some skills.

Otherwise, why would they be in the same series?

Shen Tang was silent for three seconds: "Is this how you stage an accident?"

Isn't this just a case of piggybacking on a trending topic?

Sure enough, there's never a shortage of quick-witted people.

Xiahou Yu had enjoyed a few drinks today, his cheeks flushed and slightly tipsy. He seemed much more lively than usual, less serious and composed. The young man smiled and said, "There's more to it than just this..."

Shen Tang: "...Huh?"

When the leaders of the various reinforcements saw the "maid" take her seat in the main position, they all inwardly gasped in surprise.

No, this is a Xiahou pear???

It's not just anyone, it really is Xiahou Li?

While they were still in shock, Xiahou Yu had already led the civil and military officials to toast and congratulate Shen Tang. Shen Tang offered a few humble words, then attributed the credit to everyone else, proceeding with the usual rewards and honors. These arrangements had been carefully finalized before the celebration banquet, ensuring that everyone was satisfied, from major military merits to minor promotions.

The prisoners listened with great interest.

I also took the opportunity to get to know everyone else.

After one round was over, the officials took their seats one by one before it was their turn.

Unlike Gongxi Chou's harsh and sarcastic manner, this Lady Xiahou was quite polite to them, making them feel flattered. However, they dared not let their guard down, as a sudden twist of fate was not uncommon; such tactics were all too common. But Shen Tang did not play by the rules, going straight to the point: "Do you gentlemen have any plans for the future?"

Everyone: "..."

They have a plan, will Xiahou Li let them achieve it?

For example, reclaiming the Qi Kingdom...

"I wonder what Your Majesty means by this?"

Shen Tang sincerely said, "Although I am not very talented, I have always had a heart to save the world and help those in distress. If you gentlemen are willing to quell the chaos and save the people from suffering, you may join me in this endeavor!"

The group exchanged bewildered glances.

One of them, the bolder one, seeing that Shen Tang had lowered himself to talk peacefully, put aside his initial worries: "...If we are weary and tired, and do not wish to start another conflict?"

“Retiring to the mountains and forests, and living a secluded life in the Eastern Hills, is a truly delightful thing.”

Everyone fell into deep thought once again.

They did want to choose the latter, but they weren't alone; each had family and relatives. The female ruler's meaning was clear: either submit to her, or retreat into seclusion as long as she lived. If she didn't die, they and their families would never rise again, a fatal blow to a family with a weak foundation. Past enemies would also take advantage of their misfortune; that would be true despair. They hadn't considered that Shen Tang's talk of seclusion might be true seclusion…

Putting ourselves in their shoes, they wouldn't have that kind of magnanimity either.

Someone was spying on Gong Xichou; the person's eyes were fierce, like a vengeful ghost.

The rather timid and cautious man swallowed hard, thinking to himself that this was indeed a trap—Gongxi Chou was playing the villain, while Xiahou Li was pretending to be a good person, feigning magnanimity to lower their guard! Although they were annoyed, no one dared to step forward and be the first to do so.

"Thank you for your kindness, Your Majesty. I am willing to serve you like a dog or a horse."

Some people couldn't withstand the pressure and made a choice first.

Seeing this, the others also sporadically got up to echo the sentiment.

Some people, however, defied the odds and chose a different path. The result was predictable: they received a ransom bill; paying it off would restore their freedom. When they saw the amount, their faces turned green.

Only one sentence remained in my mind—

As expected of someone who started out as a bandit, their robbery tactics are ruthless!

Despite my inner grumbling, I felt relieved.

Normal people have a sense of shame. Since they've demanded an exorbitant ransom, they'll likely consider past grievances settled and won't continue to harass or extort money. In any case, it's much better than the worst-case scenario.

As everyone expressed their opinions, Shen Tang showed no emotion on her face.

After everything was settled, the celebration banquet officially began.

Despite being called a victory celebration banquet, the leaders of the various reinforcement armies were surprised to find that it was more like a court meeting. Although they were self-made warlords, their demeanor was even stronger than that of a proper Qi Kingdom court meeting.

They even saw someone in a corner with a mask of pain, eating tasteless food, looking exactly like someone being tortured.

Those seated near the front, both civil and military officials, listened attentively.

Oh, not including Gong Xichou.

This guy ate his rice with his head down, then looked up to drink his wine, thoroughly enjoying it.

Even when Xiahou Li was speaking, his mouth didn't stop, showing no respect whatsoever for a leader. In contrast, everyone else sat upright, their backs ramrod straight. The content of the court assembly… no, the victory banquet, ranged from the redivision of the various regions and counties of Qi Kingdom to how to restore people's livelihoods in different areas, and how local government agencies should adopt the best practices and discard the worst… Before they knew it, this group of people had subconsciously put down their chopsticks, their hands resting on their knees…

Isn't this more like a court assembly than the old ones?

The Qi Kingdom has been destroyed and restored many times, and its regional divisions are quite arbitrary, basically based on the opinions of local strongmen. This Lady Xiahou proposed from the outset that the land be divided in a grid pattern, according to the contours of mountains, rivers, lakes and seas, without having to consider the opinions of the local strongmen.

Anyone have any objections?

Then go and talk to her troops.

As a result, the original government jurisdiction had to be reorganized.

Even a child could tell how much work this was.

The complexity of the content was secondary; the most challenging issue was the efficiency of communication between superiors and subordinates, and whether the measures could be effectively implemented. After listening for a good half hour, their expressions grew increasingly strange—no, a regular army?

If this is just a makeshift operation, what was the original Qi Kingdom?

Is this a joke?

Thinking of his former master who was hanged that day, he felt complicated.

"Reporting—My lord, we've found them!"

The long and tedious court sessions are exhausting.

Just then, a soldier came to report, and the few people who had been secretly distracted during the meeting put away their masks of anguish and forced themselves to be fully alert to see what was happening. They saw a person holding an object covered with red silk in both hands.

Judging from the outline and shape, everyone understood.

It's the Imperial Seal!

Shen Tang played with the pale white imperial seal with a calm demeanor, his eyes showing no eagerness or greed, as if it were not a treasure coveted by heroes of the world, but a useless ornament: "Where was this thing discovered?"

"In the well."

There really was a palace maid who threw herself into a well with the imperial seal.

Shen Tang: "..."

The appearance of the national seal presented her with a difficult problem.

Starting a new country with a different name is clearly not an option. The connections between this region and Kang State are already limited; creating a new country with a different name would only exacerbate future conflicts arising from the merger. The higher-ups are aware of the branch company's ties to Kang State and are prepared for this, but most of the lower and middle management are not. Even disregarding this, the situation with our ally, Qu State, must be taken into consideration.

After a moment's thought, Shen Tang had an idea.

Well, just say there are no auspicious days this year.

It's normal for those in positions of power to be a little superstitious.

＿|￣|●

I drank a can of cocktail, what a flavor! It tasted awful...

P.S.: My friend Yunji has finally started a new book!

"The Pride of the Feather": The princess seizes the throne and begs her father, the emperor, to die. (*v)

P.S.: This sounds exactly my type, my mouth is watering!

PPPS: I'll see if I can apply for the monthly pass event tomorrow.