Chapter 49
Yichun City, outside the city gate
On either side of the official road leading to the city gate stood a recruiting station. Like a boxing ring, each side had several tables set up, and behind them sat several armored soldiers, each holding a large flag. One flag bore the words "Yichun Camp," while the other read "Yichun Military Station."
Before anyone arrived on the road, the two recruiting offices started fighting.
Over at the Yichun camp, a sullen-faced officer shouted at them, "Meng Yi, do you have any shame? Do you have the qualifications to recruit soldiers from your military settlement? Are you trying to snatch our men?"
Meng Yi said casually, "Isn't it your Marshal who decides the designation? Besides, we need to recruit people for our military settlement as well."
"Okay, if you want to recruit people, then go ahead and recruit them. Why not go somewhere else? Why do you have to set up shop right across from our Yichun camp?"
"Your opposite side has good feng shui."
As he was speaking, the soldier beside Meng Yi quickly reminded him, "General, look, someone is coming."
Ding! He rang the bell next to him and shouted, "Recruiting! Recruiting! Yichun Military Station is recruiting... Come and see! Unprecedented preferential treatment! As soon as you enter the gate, you will be given three months' rations. We keep our promise and we don't cheat anyone!"
The people who came were a group of people, dressed in rags, and no one believed them to be refugees. They heard the shouting and looked up. They had arrived in Yichun City. There was a recruitment office set up outside the city gate. Wait, why are there two recruitment offices?
They looked left, then right. Well, the banners behind them were different, too, with a different last character. It seemed like two different recruiting offices. They were confused and hesitant.
A soldier from the military settlement was the first to run up and speak to the big man he had taken a fancy to. "Brother, would you like to come and take a look at our Yichun military settlement? As long as you apply, we will arrange accommodation for you and provide you with three months' worth of food. You can also ask for silver. I will give you two taels of silver as a settlement allowance."
As soon as the conditions of the Yichun military settlement were announced, they attracted a large number of people. They walked up and gathered around the table in the military settlement, asking questions in a flurry.
"Is it true that once you apply for the military service, you'll be given three months' worth of food?"
"real!"
"Brother Bing, do you think I can be recruited?"
"You're in good shape, but you're too thin. That's okay, you'll grow stronger after you get some rest. Come here and press your finger. If you do, someone will take you away and give you food."
"Oh, alright."
"I don't want silver. I want food and supplies for the winter. Is that okay?"
"Can."
"My parents are sick and need to see a doctor."
"arrange!"
The people in the Yichun camp watched in amazement as their opponents skillfully picked out the best talents among the group of refugees.
After the black-faced officer realized what was happening, he jumped up and down, emphasizing, "Don't be fooled by them. They're just a military base recruiting soldiers. We are the regular military camp!"
The refugees who were just happy that they had been recruited looked at Meng Yi and the others with their eyes, "Did they say you were cheating?"
Meng Yi began to lecture them. "I'm lying to you! Did they not provide you with food, money, or arrange for doctors to treat your family members? You're all soldiers here anyway. It doesn't matter where you serve. Is there any difference between soldiers in a military garrison and soldiers in a barracks?"
Everyone was stunned by the scolding, and it seemed like that was the case.
"take away!"
With Meng Yan's order, these people were taken away one by one.
The soldiers in charge of recruiting soldiers at the Yichun camp stared blankly. They later discovered that whenever a promising soldier appeared, the people from the Yichun military settlement would rush over to grab him.
After a few times, they couldn't help but protest, "No, we are from Yichun Military Village. You can't do this. You just rush in when you see a good job. It makes it impossible for us to recruit people!"
"Yeah, what's going on with your military settlement? Are you always trying to steal our people? If you keep doing this, we won't be polite."
"Why are you so picky when recruiting soldiers? Just enough to be able to hold a hoe and a shovel and work the land. Look over there, you don't need to give them three months' worth of food; they're all willing to go with you in just one month."
The recruiter at the Yichun military settlement glanced in the direction they pointed, then curled his lips. He looked short and ugly, and asked, "What are they going to do here?"
The people in the Yichun camp protested, but the recruiting team in the military settlement did not hold back when it came time to recruit people.
The recruiting team of the Yichun camp was really angry and rushed forward to snatch people, but because the recruitment conditions offered by the Yichun military settlement were too good, they were basically successful every time they tried. Unless they didn't give them the chance to get involved, their camp could not recruit soldiers.
After such a morning, the number of soldiers they recruited in their camp was one-third less than that of the military settlement, which was very infuriating.
During the rotation at noon, a fair-faced young general came from the Yichun camp. When Meng Yi saw him, his eyes lit up.
When the fair-faced young general saw that the Yichun military settlement had also come to recruit soldiers, his eyelids twitched. When the squad leader in charge of recruiting soldiers reported the morning's recruitment situation with a sad face, he secretly cried out in his heart, he knew that when the military settlement people showed up, it would be bad news.
"General Zhou, there's so much food in the military settlements that we've lost a lot of good seedlings."
"Yeah, what should we do? We can't snatch it away from them..."
Zhou Yushu knew exactly where the other side got their food. Damn the Xing family army, taking their food and robbing them of the soldiers they wanted to recruit! Damn it!
Zhou Yushu thought for a moment and walked over. He planned to reason with them, asking them to move and stop competing with their military camp. If that didn't work, their military camp could move the recruitment office somewhere else, but they couldn't let the people from the military settlement follow them.
As he approached, Meng Yi said casually, "Hey, aren't you the chicken farmer whose three thousand chickens were stolen by bandits?"
Zhou Yushu's face darkened. What chicken farmer? What about being stolen by bandits? It's obvious that you stole it and framed it on the bandits. Shameless people!
Zhou Yushu ignored him, expressed his meaning with a stern face, and waited for the other party's reply.
Meng Yi felt quite regretful, but the other party had already made it clear that they would no longer tolerate their military settlement following them around. He nodded and agreed.
Zhou Yushu was very satisfied with the result of the negotiation. As soon as he turned around, he was stopped.
"Hey, General Zhou, you might also consider coming to our military settlement. Our Chief Secretary Yao and Chief Steward Lin are very optimistic about you."
Zhou Yushu turned around, expressionless: I thank you?
The members of the Yichun camp's recruiting team widened their eyes: You Yichun military garrison guys, don't go too far. Not only are you trying to steal our soldiers, but you're even poaching us?
"Hey, don't look at me like that. I'm not wrong. It doesn't matter where you serve as a soldier," Meng Yi said nonchalantly.
"Then come to our Yichun camp." Zhou Yushu made a counter-invitation.
“That won’t do!”
"hehe."
*******
After the Yichun military settlement began recruiting soldiers, a constant stream of new faces were sent there. Some came alone, some with their families. Once they arrived, they were examined by the veteran doctors. Those with illnesses were treated, while those who were not were given housing, provided with supplies, and assigned to new recruits for training.
Yao Chunnuan went to check the construction progress of the new recruits' barracks that day, and then happened to stroll over here. Seeing so many people coming at once, she couldn't help but ask the team leader next to her, "Why did you recruit so many people at once?" They looked ragged and like refugees.
The team leader said, "We're used to it. It's like this every winter. There are still many civilians and refugees on their way here, all trying to survive."
Yao Chunnuan stood there and watched for a long time before slowly going back.
There are so many refugees in Daliang every winter, and the general has absorbed so many people at once this time. These two things kept appearing in her mind, and then led her thoughts to other issues.
After she returned to the shogunate and sat down, she couldn't help but press her solar plexus, which was somewhat effective. The discovery just now forced her to consider the variables represented by the appearance of Xing Xingyue.
As mentioned before, the plot was so broken it was unbearable to watch. No one could be sure whether the Xing family would be wiped out again, or whether Xing Changfeng would die. And what was the exact reason for the Xing family's annihilation? She guessed that it was probably related to suspicion.
Frankly speaking, Xing Changfeng's actions after arriving in Yichun were anything but peaceful. At best, it could be seen as a sign of a rebellious military commander; at worst, it was a sign of something else.
But Yao Chunnuan knew that was not the case. According to her observation, Xing Changfeng was currently at a point where he wanted to be loyal to the emperor, but Daliang could not convince him; as for wanting to rebel, he did not seem to have that awareness yet.
But he didn't realize that being half-exposed was the most dangerous thing.
The Third Prince was a lunatic. She had used him to deal with the Han family, but that didn't stop her from scolding him. He was a lunatic to begin with, sitting in a high position above everyone else, below only one person, and completely incapable of self-discipline and self-discipline.
They had previously tricked Marshal Zhu, forcing him to help them apply for a new military unit. The application for a new military unit would likely irritate the Third Prince. Marshal Zhu, on his side, would likely be sullen and resentful. He would apply for a new military unit, but he would also secretly plot against them.
After repeated provocations, if someone else spreads some slander, for a madman like the Third Prince, Xing Changfeng will become someone he would rather "kill by mistake than let go."
The original novel doesn't explain why the Xing family was exterminated, but it's likely that Xing Changfeng's strong momentum stimulated the Third Prince, and coupled with slanderous rumors, the Third Prince decided to prevent the explosion. This is how Xing Changfeng embarked on the path of rebellion.
Yu Chen just came over and handed her a document. "What are you thinking about? You're sweating all over."
"I thought of some bad things." Yao Chunnuan said evasively, "Oh, by the way, I plan to bring my family to Yichun."
Yu Chen was surprised. "Why did you suddenly have this idea? Uncle and aunt have lived in the suburbs of Beijing for so many years. I'm afraid they won't be able to adapt to Yichun all of a sudden."
Yao Chunnuan shook her head in her heart. It was true that Yu Chen was the think tank of the shogunate, but because he had been taught the idea of loyalty to the emperor since childhood, he obviously didn't think about that. He probably just wanted to help the general expand his power, have more soldiers and generals, and gain more say in Yichun.
She waved her hand and said, "Compared to my life, this little discomfort is nothing."
Yu Chen was really surprised. "What do you mean? Is there anyone who wants to hurt your parents?"
Yao Chunnuan joked, "I'm quite famous now, and the general is not without enemies. As the general's power grows, I expect more and more people will want to kill me. I live in a military settlement, so it's not easy for others to deal with me, but they can threaten me with my family. What should I do then? Should I obey or not? Isn't that a dilemma? So, I have to protect my weaknesses. I don't want to be restricted by this."
Yu Chen listened thoughtfully. Yao Zhubo's thoughts were quite profound and made sense. He needed to think about this issue carefully.
Just be willing to think deeply about it. She reminded him once first, and then went to ask the general to borrow troops to go to the capital to pick up people later, which was equivalent to reminding him again. She did her best.
Furthermore, in two years, Daliang would be hit by a drought or flood, forcing many to flee their homes, even Jinniu Village. This was what she had said to her family when they parted: if they couldn't make it, they could come to Yichun to find her. She hadn't anticipated her rapid rise, and her words were simply a reliance on the old house. She hadn't realized how stingy the old house was, willing only to keep her alive and her unborn child safe, unable to count on anything more.
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