Chapter 369: Refugees and Bandits (Part 8) [Seeking Monthly Tickets]
Qin Li remained motionless, staring blankly at Qi Shan, and said in a low voice, "Qi Yuanliang, do you mean this also includes your pride as a literary scholar and strategist? It's truly astonishing to hear such words from you..."
Others may not know about the "evil plot" from a few years ago, but Qin Li had worked with him for a while and knew him.
Qi Shan hates it when people talk about these things.
To what extent did they hate it?
A subordinate offended Qi Shan with this incident, embarrassing her at a banquet. Qi Shan did not react on the spot, and even smiled and joked with the subordinate. About a month later, when everyone had forgotten about the incident, the subordinate was exposed for embezzlement and treason, and committed suicide after being imprisoned.
Their family property was confiscated, and their entire clan was exiled.
Outsiders only thought that this person deserved his punishment.
He certainly deserved his punishment, but the fact that someone secretly gathered evidence and exposed him, ultimately scaring him to death in jail, is undoubtedly part of the story.
Isn't it interesting that Qi Shan is saying this now?
Qi Shan scoffed, "Qin Gongsu, do you really understand me?"
Qin Li remained silent.
"You can't see Mount Tai because you're blinded by a leaf." Qi Shan continued, "You don't understand anything at all; you're just self-righteous, thinking you know everything. Do you really know who 'Qi Yuanliang' is? Do you really know who the person standing in front of you is?"
As is widely known, there are two paths for scholars in Qishan.
One is the treacherous act of "killing the lord".
This is something that is known to only a few people on the surface.
The second one is little known.
Or rather, those who know it believe it to be Qi Yuanliang's incantation technique, a near-perfect disguise.
This scholar's way is called "exquisite painting," or it can be described as "blinding one's vision with a leaf." What outsiders see—his outward appearance, his personality, and his habits—is merely the tip of the iceberg of his facade.
Qin Li had a feeling that Qi Shan's words had a hidden meaning.
But he doesn't have time to work on these details right now.
"These minor details are not important."
All he needed to know was that Qi Yuanliang, who stood before him, was an enemy, an opponent he needed to be wary of. That was enough.
"The men I brought will not be used by you." Qin Li said indifferently, making a gesture to drive the guest away. "Zhao Dayi owes Shen Youli a life, but we do not! Even if the lord orders us to help, I will do my best to dissuade him!"
Qi Shan refused to leave.
"Dissuade me? How would you dissuade me?"
"This move competes with the common people for profit! It may seem beneficial in the short term, but in the long run, it will inevitably make the common people lazy and neglect farming." Qin Li couldn't help but suspect that this was also one of the sinister and ruthless schemes of the River Governor, who could sow the seeds of disaster in Tianhai without lifting a finger.
The farming efficiency of a commoner family of several people cannot compare to that of a third-rank noblewoman. Instead of fighting, these martial arts masters compete with ordinary people for the limited land they own, cultivating their fields. What will happen to the vast majority of commoners left behind?
How did they handle it?
"What a wicked and insidious scheme!" Qin Li said with an expression that said, "I've already seen through your plan. By instigating martial artists to fight with commoners for land, a tragedy is bound to occur!"
Everyone should perform their respective duties.
Ordinary people should just farm and make a living.
A true warrior should train diligently and fight on the battlefield.
Only in this way can stability be maintained for all parties.
Faced with this well-reasoned and logically sound accusation, Qi Shan almost laughed in anger: "Competing with the people for profit? I'll return your words verbatim—it's truly astonishing to hear them from your mouth! With you assisting Wu Zhaode, I feel much more at ease. Because even the calamity of national subjugation hasn't taught you a lesson! You haven't changed your inherent arrogance!"
"It seems this is the end of my life..."
Qin Li was too arrogant, believing that everything would go according to his guesses and that what he saw and heard was the truth.
Qin Li's expression suddenly turned cold: "Qi Yuanliang!"
Previously, it was merely rejection and disgust, but now it had escalated into a strong murderous intent. He felt that if Qi Shan uttered another word of nonsense, he would disregard the relationship between the two families and kill Qi Shan directly.
Has this guy gone mad?
How could you provoke him with the pain of national subjugation?
Qi Shan raised her hand to the hilt of her sword, ready to defend herself at any moment.
He still wouldn't let it go.
Did I say something wrong?
Qin Li was so angry that his chest heaved violently, veins bulged on his forehead, and his hand gripping the sword hilt clenched so tightly that his knuckles were tense.
Hesitating between drawing his sword and not drawing it.
Qi Shan, still not satisfied, continued his tirade: "What did you just say, 'In the long run, it will inevitably make the common people lazy and neglect farming'? Qin Gongsu, you should have come to Heyin a year ago and seen for yourself! How many common people are eating dates, vegetables, tree bark, and clay! How many of them will live to see the 'long run' you speak of! They can't even survive now, and you expect people to talk about long-term prospects, the future, hidden dangers, the common people and warriors fighting over farmland? Talk about the common people having no land to cultivate, gathering to rebel, and shaking the royal regime?"
Qin Li pursed his lips tightly.
Every word Qi Shan uttered struck at his sore spot, and before he could even refute her, Qi Shan continued to escalate the situation: "Even now, do you still think that the fall of the country and the destruction of the family were my doing, that I was a traitor, that an enemy country took advantage of the situation? Heh, truly, everything is corrupt, except for your Qin family, who remain pure—"
Qin Li's face had turned ashen.
He was clearly furious.
Its eyes could practically shoot out flames.
Qi Shan stepped forward, her expression fearless.
"Do you think that by giving you time to plot and gradually build up your power, and by supporting another eligible ruler before the other royal families and nobles raise troops to force the abdication, you can stabilize the chaotic situation?"
"Qin Gongsu, how could you be so naive?"
"That king, my former lord, was cruel and inhumane. To preserve his youth, he used the placenta and still wasn't satisfied, so he dissected women alive to extract their infants for medicine. He was extravagant by nature, and to satisfy his selfish desires, he imposed exorbitant taxes, taking seven or eight tenths of the levy. He also thought that collecting money was too slow, so he abolished the currency three times, and finally went so far as to mint coins from pebbles. Do you know how many commoners were forced to their deaths that year? They were forced to raise an army, but the royal court labeled them 'bandits' and sent a large army to suppress and massacre them... Even a tyrant like Zheng Qiao only sent troops to drive them away, but what did the royal court do?"
"Slay them all!"
"Rivers are blocked, and the Chishui River has been blocked for over a month!"
Qi Shan launched into a tirade: "Commoners are blind, illiterate, and shallow; they only care about having enough to eat right now. They can't possibly understand your 'far-sighted plans,' Qin Gongsu..."
After being subjected to a barrage of sarcastic remarks, Qin Li's anger surged beyond its limit, and he regained all his rationality.
"To satisfy your hunger for a moment, you're sowing the seeds of even greater evil? This is truly something your 'wicked scheme' would do, harming others without benefiting yourself."
It wasn't that no one had considered this idea before—some had tried to have martial arts warriors fight in times of war and farm in times of peace, but they soon discovered that commoners couldn't protect their land from martial arts warriors, and this would only create more and more landless tenant farmers.
The only option was to stop it immediately.
Intentionally or unintentionally, they guided the martial arts practitioners to focus on their training.
The battlefield is the stage where they can make a bright future.
No matter how eloquently Qi Shan spoke, for ordinary people, the only difference was whether they died sooner or later.
How do you know that bad karma cannot produce good seeds?
Qin Li was too lazy to argue with him, and his unyielding attitude made Qi Shan's head throb with pain.
His own lord had given him a huge problem.
Qi Shan hated dealing with Qin Li the most.
Because this person is too arrogant and stubborn.
Even when others presented him with facts and reasoned arguments, Qin Li only believed what he saw and what he speculated about.
Who made Qin Li stand at the finish line that ordinary people could never reach from the moment he was born? He stood too high, and even if he was willing to look down at the impoverished world, all he could see was the panoramic view, but he could not see the suffering of the tiny creatures, let alone empathize with them.
Qi Shan felt that her mission was going to fail.
Even if he fails, he still wants to vent his anger.
He let out a long sigh of relief.
Qi Shan sneered: "Qin Gongsu, back then you couldn't stand the extravagance and corruption of the royal family and nobles, the infighting for the throne, and the persecution of court officials by the empress's relatives and eunuchs, which left the court without anyone to rely on. That's why you used the excuse of recuperating and practicing Buddhism to hide in a temple for peace and quiet?"
Qin Li took a deep breath to suppress his burgeoning anger.
"So what if it is?"
No one in this world knows his sore spot as accurately as Qi Shan, and he can hit the mark every time, causing his blood pressure to remain high.
Qin Li was born into a royal family and noble lineage.
However, his branch had no right to succession and was weak, yet it had no choice but to take sides, since neutrality was also a mistake. But if it chose the wrong side, it would face retribution upon the new emperor's ascension.
As the head of this lineage, Qin Li thought long and hard, and then arranged for someone to predict his fate. He was told that he was unlucky, short-lived, and would suffer from strange illnesses. He could only find peace by seeking refuge in a temple and asking Buddha for protection.
They used this as an excuse to avoid it.
The winner of the succession struggle is Qi Shan's former boss.
At first, he truly possessed the aura of a powerful and domineering ruler.
He cracked down on corruption, promoted meritocracy, reduced heavy taxes, streamlined tax categories, and issued several recruitment orders—his methods were swift and decisive. But this was all just a facade. Not long after he secured his throne, he began to reveal his true nature, causing all sorts of trouble.
Qin Li was not unaware that the country was doomed.
But he still wouldn't give up; how could he possibly give up!
"As far as I know, on the eve of the fall of your homeland, it seems that 90% of the common people had no land to cultivate, while nobles held 80% of the land—was this also caused by the struggle between warriors and commoners for land? There are so many warriors, but so few nobles in your royal family?"
"In terms of hidden dangers and disastrous consequences, which is worse?"
"Qin Gongsu, where is your foresight?"
Qin Li's face turned pale and then red as he was being talked to.
"you--"
Outsiders all say I have a wicked scheme, but—
Qi Shan opened her palm for Qin Li to see.
"This hand has killed a total of 108 people in my life. Seven were my lords, one was my enemy, and the remaining 100 were blind bandits and thugs. I estimate that several thousand have died indirectly at my hands. But Qin Gongsu, why don't you look down at your hands, which are so well-maintained that they don't even have calluses? Look at how many lives you have taken? How many of them deserved to die, and how many were commoners whom you naively caused to die, directly or indirectly? Or do you think that commoners are not human in your eyes?"
"Then what you said back then about how to be a ruler, and how you advised your former lord to love the people like his own children? Wasn't that just nonsense? Utterly hypocritical and absurd!"
After saying that, he snorted coldly and strode away.
He secretly thought that Tianjin Tianhai had no chance.
They're still going to fool the people of Shangnan and Yiru.
He hadn't walked more than two steps out of the courtyard when he encountered a frail young man bathed in moonlight. The young man looked sickly, with a slight smile on his lips.
"What are you doing here?" Qi Shan asked, displeased.
Gu Chi said, "I'll collect your body."
Qin Li's murderous aura could be felt even from half a street away; I never expected Qi Shan to actually come out standing up.
Qi Shan: "..."
"Hehe, no need to trouble yourself."
Seeing Qi Shan's relaxed brows and smiling eyes, Gu Chi knew that after his outburst of anger towards Qin Li, he was in a wonderful mood. But—Gu Chi looked towards the direction of the mansion.
Qin Li's mood was probably not good.
He said, "You made Qin Gongsu so angry he vomited blood."
It's not an exaggeration, it's a factual account.
Qi Shan grinned, inwardly cursing.
"As long as I'm not dead, I can give Wu Zhaode an explanation."
Gu Chi sighed, "Aren't you afraid of waking someone up with your scolding?"
Wouldn't that be creating a formidable rival for yourself?
Qi Shan, however, was not worried at all, and said with some pride, "Not to mention Qin Gongsu's stubborn nature, which makes it difficult for him to change his mind, even if he really comes to his senses—what do we have to fear?"
Qin Gongsu had been outmaneuvered by him several times before.
He has a better chance of winning if the two of them clash.
If we add the bonuses from their respective lords—
Qi Shan is confident of a sure victory over Qin Gongsu.
Gu Chi: "...How do you plan to persuade Shangnan and Yiru to send people? Shangnan's sixth brother, Gu Ren, seems gentle and easy to talk to, but his true thoughts—tsk tsk tsk, you really can't judge a book by its cover. Chao Lian, the twelfth son, is more naive and easy to fool. The people in Yiru should be easier to persuade, but they're calculating; I suspect they were born with a silver spoon in their mouths, and they probably won't work for free..."
Qi Shan was at her wit's end, and sighed deeply, "My lord has truly given me a huge problem—"
Gu Chi: "So, you admit you're no good?"
No, let him do it.
I guarantee I can handle both Shangnan and Yiru families.
Qi Shan looked at the sickly-looking man and was furious, inwardly wanting to stomp her feet: "Who are you calling incompetent?"
Be responsible for your words!
(へ╬)
This chapter wasn't going well; I had a lot of ideas in my head but couldn't put them into words, which was frustrating.
This chapter is missing 500 words; I'll add them tomorrow.
The extra update after Qingming Festival is scheduled for the 12th, which is the day after tomorrow (just in time for receiving royalties; poor Mushroom can finally have a decent meal, let's celebrate!).
PS: Qin Li and Qi Shan are two characters with rather extreme contrasts.
Qin Li came from a privileged background, and his education emphasized stability and a focus on the distant "future." Any factor that could destabilize the political situation required extreme caution. In his view (and considering the lessons of his predecessors), the powerful martial artists, essentially local tyrants with inherent military strength, could easily annex land. Ordinary people couldn't resist, and the land would remain firmly in the hands of the powerful martial artists. The result would be more powerful martial artists establishing their own independent kingdoms, potentially leading to not just a hundred kingdoms, but thousands, and even greater casualties.
Qi Shan came from an ordinary background; his education and experiences were all from the bottom up. Because he possessed little, he acted more aggressively and daringly. He had nothing to lose, so he might as well go all in. It was a mentality similar to that of a gambler. He cared more about the present, how many people died, and how many lived. Deep down, he was also confident that he could gradually resolve Qin Li's concerns.
Upon closer examination, the two actually share many commonalities.
This is probably one of the hidden reasons why they are so repulsed by each other.
Tang Mei falls somewhere in between them.
We must grasp both aspects; adults don't make choices.
(End of this chapter)
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