Chapter 161 Appointed Commander of Four Counties to Build Military Farms and Fortifications!
"General, we are currently preparing to march to Yongzhou after the spring, and we are really unable to spare the time!"
"General, I find this young general to be very brave and capable. Now is the time when we need good men. Why not give this young general a chance?"
"General, we still need to send troops to Yongzhou, and we really can't spare any more troops!"
They're being sent to even a small county, and if they win, they get no credit. It also consumes supplies and provisions, and nobody has much food left these days—it's not worth it!
Ma Feng actually intended to promote a few of his subordinates, but since they all looked down on him, he decided to hand the reins over to this young man!
"Well done! If you can get Zhao Nanshan's head back, Tian Maofeng's position is yours!"
Shen Lanxi: "Thank you for your guidance, General. I will do my utmost to complete this mission!"
The massive recruitment drive began. This time, there was no need to hide it. She was ordered to recruit soldiers; the higher-ups commanded that the more soldiers the better!
"My lord, when shall we kill Zhao Nanshan?" Liu Yan asked with a smile.
Fortunately, it's winter now, so if you just throw the body into a snowdrift, it won't decompose all winter.
They initially thought Shen Lanxi had a penchant for picking up corpses, but they never expected her to be so useful.
All I can say is that she really knows how to make the most of everything!
"Give me five more days, I need time to recruit soldiers!" As soon as Shen Lanxi said this, Liu Yanhui and the others understood.
After all, they reported that half of their soldiers had been killed or wounded. If they went to attack now, their superiors would ask how they killed them. They couldn't very well say that they killed them all by themselves, could they?
Five days later, Shen Lanxi led a small, weakened army and slowly made her way to Shili Slope!
The performance had to be elaborate, including shoveling snow, digging up tree roots and wild vegetables, and hunting—all of these had to be shown off along the way!
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"Reporting to the General, the people of Baihe County have set off. They are mostly the old, weak, sick, and disabled, like beggars. They can't walk anymore after a while and have to stop to dig up tree roots and wild grass to boil water to fill their stomachs!"
Ma Feng also suspected that Lan Xi's rapid promotion was suspicious, given past instances of subordinates beheading generals while they were drunk and seizing power. He had specifically ordered people to keep an eye on Baihe County, but he never expected it to turn out like this!
"General, this man is willing to risk his life for military merit!" Ma Feng's subordinate exclaimed.
Ma Feng felt a little awkward. Only then did he realize that when they requisitioned grain before, they had taken away 80 or 90 percent of the grain from the garrisons below. After recruiting soldiers, wouldn't there be a shortage of grain?
Even so, he did not budge on providing supplies!
"That's true bravery, that's a real soldier who obeys orders!" Ma Feng deliberately used Shen Lanxi as an example, so that if anyone complained to him about not having enough supplies, they would learn from Lanxi!
"You can come back now, you don't need to keep an eye on it anymore!"
"yes."
Little did Ma Feng know that what he was hearing was what Shen Lanxi had made him hear!
Someone had already informed her as soon as the scouts entered Baihe County.
Normally, a march would take less than a day to reach the destination.
Who could blame them when they were all old, weak, sick, or disabled, and the ground was covered in thick snow?
That means we have to walk slowly, right?
Shen Yuanjing led his men on a stroll around Shilipo, and ten days passed between the two trips.
Ten days later, Shen Lanxi presented Zhao Nanshan's head, and Ma Feng praised her endlessly. She was then appointed as the commander of four counties and given a task.
After the start of spring, we urged the four counties to cultivate the land and ensure that all the land was planted with grain before the solar term arrived!
With the recent recruitment of soldiers of varying quality, it's time to take a break and recuperate!
Back in Baihe County, Shen Lanxi tossed aside her commander's badge and summoned everyone for a meeting.
"Spread the news of Zhao Nanshan's murder. How you spread it is up to you to decide!"
Liu Yan exclaimed "Oh dear!" and said in a comical manner, "Zhao Nanshan was so unyielding that he was beheaded by General Ma Feng himself. How admirable and lamentable!"
Wei Dongzhu: "That's too easy on him."
Xiao Fang: "What should we do then? Ma Feng isn't a good person either!" We can't exactly praise Ma Feng for his loyalty and courage, can we? Nobody would believe us anyway!
Shen Lanxi: "Let's arrange it like this for now. As for whether Zhao Nanshan is loyal or treacherous, that depends on who has the last laugh." As the saying goes, history is written by the victors!
"Next comes troop training and land reclamation. Troop training will be handled by Hu Zhu, Xiao Fang, Yuan Jing, and Cheng Zheng. Land reclamation will be the responsibility of Cheng Zheng and others!"
"Recruit soldiers throughout all four counties, and summon the magistrates of the remaining two counties to see me!"
"Afterwards, I will inspect the garrisons in the four counties. In addition to the basic guards in the county towns, I will gather all the soldiers from the other four counties together for training!"
Liu Yanhui's eyes darted around: "There's no place that big!"
Shen Lanxi: "Then let's find a bigger place and expand!"
Wei Dongzhu raised an eyebrow: "Does the lord intend to build a military camp?"
"Military fortress!" Shen Lanxi unfolded the map and lightly tapped a few locations on it.
"I will build military fortresses in these locations, using smoke signals. If one fortress is attacked, the others will immediately rush to its aid. Anyone who dares to touch a fortress will be attacked by the remaining fortresses!"
Liu Yan and the others immediately gathered at the chosen spot to look, and after they finished looking, their expressions were all very strange.
The places she chose were either well-connected, nestled against mountains and beside water, or situated on high ground. They were excellent choices not only for building fortresses but even for building cities!
"These two places are not within the lord's jurisdiction, are they?" Liu Yan asked back.
Shen Lanxi raised the corners of her mouth: "Not now, but it will be in the future!"
Look at the boastful words they're making! If it were anyone else, they would have already started laughing at them.
If it were her? Maybe it really would work!
"Ahem... let's put those aside for now. The most important thing right now is supplies. We're running out of food, clothing, charcoal, and herbs!" Liu Yan began to skillfully feign poverty.
Shen Lanxi sighed.
Maintaining an army is really expensive!
Wei Dongzhu: "Didn't our lord just get a granary full of grain and cotton-padded clothes?"
Liu Yan shrugged: "Not enough!"
With a snap, Shen Lanxi put away the map.
"Come with me to ransack Tian Maofeng's house!"
Are you blind to leave such a big, fat pig unslaughtered?
Liu Yan smacked her lips and said, "I almost forgot about Tian Maofeng!"
Tian Maofeng had been firmly in charge of the four counties for many years, and he was rolling in money!
Shen Lanxi personally led a group of people there, and under the pretext of being familiar with the affairs, she gave them a good talking-to, and managed to extract most of the money and grain that Tian Maofeng's subordinates had divided up.
As for the remaining small portion, they still need to take in the soldiers left behind by Tian Maofeng; things shouldn't be taken to extremes.
"My lord, we have seized a total of 300 dan of grain, 6,000 taels of silver, and a box of jewels."
Shen Lanxi opened the box, glanced at it, and sneered, "The number is wrong!"
Harada Shigemine's centurions, deputies, and sergeants were filled with indignation. Lanxi was trying to force them to their deaths as soon as he arrived!
"Investigate whether Tian Maofeng's relatives have transferred any money, whether he has any mistresses, and how many mistresses he has."
Harada Shigefu's hand froze. Damn it, no wonder they presented so many good things to Shigefu, but only managed to steal this little bit. It turns out they were keeping a mistress.
As for why they aren't Tian Maofeng's relatives? Can we say that all the good-looking ones have been taken to their backyard?
One hour later
"My lord, Tian Maofeng has kept four mistresses outside the home. These mistresses live in large, secluded mansions, and their storerooms are filled with grain, gold, and silver!"
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