Chapter 153 Sword Pointing at the Centurion!
Similar scenes were playing out in other rooms as well.
Shen Yuanxu and Shen Yuankun each carried two bags from a corner of the courtyard into the house.
"Father, Mother, there's charcoal in the yard, rice and meat in the rice jar, and... these are the spoils we looted from the bandits!"
Shen Conglian and his wife were so happy that they couldn't sleep all night!
Besides those who profited and couldn't sleep, those who didn't profit also couldn't sleep!
"It's just some worthless stuff they brought back, look how smug they are!"
“My son is destined to pass the imperial examinations and achieve official rank; he cannot associate with those uncultured peasants!”
"Auntie, I want to go too!"
The Shen brothers got up an hour early in the morning, woke their father up, and talked for a while.
When they set off again, the carriage not only had several younger members of the Shen family on board, but also Shen Conglian!
“My son, your father is not good at lifting heavy objects, so you must tell Lanxi to arrange an easier position for me.”
"Yuanjing, especially you, your second uncle is here on behalf of the family to support you. If a fight breaks out, you have to protect me!"
Shen Yuanjing glanced sideways at the two brothers from the second branch of the family, while Shen Yuanxu and Yuan Kun turned their heads away in embarrassment.
Since we're already here, let's see what the older sister has to say!
...
Shen Lanxi sat down and waved for the people on either side of her to sit down as well.
"I've called you all here today to tell you that I'm going to become a centurion before the end of the year!"
The people on both sides felt a bit numb.
There was a familiar tone to those words; hadn't they just heard them a couple of days ago?
It hasn't been long since she said she took over the position of head of the company. Is her family's promotion speed measured in days?
Cheng Zheng wrote in a few strokes: "Kill the farmers!"
Shen Lanxi nodded in satisfaction as she watched her subordinates become increasingly familiar with her way of thinking.
Liu Yan replied, "We just dealt with Niu Zhuang. If we then target Tian Nong, won't that arouse suspicion?"
Wei Dongzhu: "Tian Maofeng has many men under his command, and many of them want to take the position of centurion. How can we let him leave the centurion position vacant and give it to someone under him?"
Appointments for important positions are generally made with close associates first, unless...
Shen Lanxi raised a cold laugh: "The bandits of Grass Camel Ridge are about to run rampant again!"
The group raised an eyebrow. Hadn't they already wiped out all the bandits there?
How did she know the bandits would become rampant?
Suddenly, everyone who thought of her held their breath and stared at her!
Shen Lanxi calmly looked at everyone: "I believe that with your abilities, killing a mere centurion is not difficult!"
Killing them isn't difficult; the difficulty lies in sending more centurions later, and then continuing the killing spree. If the centurions sent later all die on their way to their posts, it's hard not to suspect them!
Wei Dongzhu calmly said, "Tian Nong must die at the hands of the bandits!"
Liu Yan replied, "Perhaps we can at least make his death more glorious!"
Cheng Zheng: "Protect the people!"
Xiao Fang felt a chill run down his spine. This was no military garrison; it was practically a bunch of bandits!
He's even more skilled at murder and robbery than a proper horse thief!
~
Just one day later, Tian Nong died on his way to the Baihe County garrison. According to the people of the county, Tian Nong was fighting bravely against the bandits to protect the people of Baihe County. The people of Baihe County were deeply moved and made a "Ten Thousand People Umbrella" with a letter written in blood and presented it to Tian Nong.
This matter even alarmed the officials of Donglin Prefecture, who specifically inquired with Suiyuan Prefecture. Suiyuan Prefecture then questioned Tian Maofeng, pressing him down layer by layer until his old back was about to bend.
The emperor commended Tian Nong for his love for the people, but reprimanded Tian Maofeng for his mismanagement, which allowed bandits to run rampant and even kill an official of the imperial court.
Furthermore, given that Tian Nong was promoted by Tian Maofeng, and considering Tian Maofeng's somewhat complicated connections in Suiyuan Prefecture, his merits and demerits cancel each other out. Therefore, Tian Maofeng was ordered to kill all the bandits before the end of the year, otherwise his position as commander of three counties would be given to a more capable person!
Tian Maofeng has spent most of his life scheming; how could he tolerate being used as a stepping stone for others!
Immediately issue a bounty in the garrisons under your jurisdiction: whoever can kill all the bandits will be made a centurion!
Shen Lanxi stepped forward without hesitation and made a solemn pledge in front of Tian Maofeng: if she failed to kill all the bandits before the end of the year, she would bring him her own head!
When the other two competitors saw that she was willing to risk her life for military merit, they had no choice but to back down. A military pledge is no joke; if you fail to fulfill it before the new year, you really could be beheaded.
Tian Maofeng admired Shen Lanxi's willingness to risk his life. If all his soldiers were like Lanxi, he might have already risen to the position of Marquis of Ten Thousand Households.
Overjoyed, Tian Nong granted Shen Lanxi command of a military garrison. He even declared, "If you don't have enough troops, recruit them yourself; if you don't have enough supplies, you can go to the county government to collect them!"
A sharp glint flashed in Shen Lanxi's eyes, and she quickly accepted the order!
After returning, she didn't rush to suppress the bandits; instead, she called a few people over for a meeting.
"Tian Maofeng gave me the authority to recruit soldiers and collect grain!" A county's military garrison is basically equipped with two hundred people, which means she can place two hundred people in the military garrison!
Wei Dongzhu reported: "We have now taken control of the Baihe County Military Garrison and the Dayutun Military Garrison. There are 150 registered soldiers and 108 unregistered soldiers, for a total of 258 men!"
Shen Lanxi's eyes burned with emotion as she said, "We can finally recruit soldiers openly and legitimately!"
Wei Dongzhu was equally delighted. If he understood correctly, Shen Lanxi wanted to recruit a group of private soldiers under the guise of recruiting soldiers.
The recruitment notice was posted that very day, stating that those who signed up would receive a settlement allowance of twenty taels of silver, or they could exchange the silver for food and charcoal!
As soon as the notice was posted, people flocked to sign up!
When Liu Yan was registering the people who had signed up, she saw an acquaintance in the queue.
"Brother Zhang, why are you queuing here?"
Zhang Liao was surprised to be recognized and covered his face, feeling somewhat embarrassed!
“Mr. Liu, to be honest, ever since Cao Lianwang died, I’ve been completely forgotten about as a squad leader. I figured I couldn’t recruit any soldiers in Hongliutun anyway, so I might as well take over myself!”
Of course, he was after the silver and the food!
Liu Yanhui knew about Zhang Liao's past conflict with Cao Lianwang. Previously, when Cao Lianwang went to Hongliutun to collect grain, he demanded too much, and Zhang Liao argued with him. From then on, Cao Lianwang began to constantly suppress Zhang Liao. According to seniority, Zhang Liang should have been promoted long ago, but he had been kept in the position of squad leader.
The sergeant's salary was already meager, and the imperial court had withheld his salary for half a year, which forced Zhang Liao to leave Hongliutun to seek opportunities.
It was thanks to Cao Lianwang's malicious intentions—his desire to slowly wear down and suppress Zhang Liao, preventing him from joining the main force—that Zhang Liao, now dead, has actually benefited from the misfortune!
"Brother Zhang, you don't need to wait in line anymore, come with me!" Liu Yan called out to Zhang Liao.
The latter was startled when he heard this. Would Mr. Liu charge him with embezzling salary money?
(End of this chapter)
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