Chapter 1 On the Road

On the official road, teams escorting convicts could be seen everywhere. Zheng Fan rode his horse, with Si Niang and A Ming by his side.

Marquis Jingnan truly treated Zheng Fan as one of his own, entrusting him with the handling of his family’s funeral affairs. Zheng Fan spent a considerable amount of time bringing everything to a close.

Si Niang and A Ming accompanied Zheng Fan on this trip to the capital, but because Zheng Fan rode in Marquis Jingnan’s carriage at the start, they followed at a distance.

Only after Zheng Fan had experienced the incredibly thrilling twelve hours in Yanjing did A Ming and Si Niang get summoned by Zheng Fan to help collect the bodies at the residences.

Although he didn't personally participate in the purge of the aristocratic clans, the endless streams of convicts on the official road over the past ten days or so gave him a clear understanding of the scale of the cleansing.

Those being escorted were mostly young and middle-aged men, and even the slightly older ones could be sent to the front lines as laborers without any problems.

The Yan Emperor wanted to sweep away the aristocratic clans of Yan, but he didn’t slaughter them all. Of course, the top-tier great clans would definitely be eradicated physically, but there were so many aristocratic families in Yan. These convicts, forcibly labeled as "criminals," would, under the Yan Emperor's will, advance toward Yinlang Commandery in the south.

There,

would be the front line of Yan's attack on Qian,

and war would indeed consume a lot of resources, money, and food,

but the most direct consumable of war was still human life!

Zheng Fan didn't know if Emperor Qin Shihuang's conscription of convicts and laborers was the same back then, but seeing it with his own eyes now, he was still shocked by the scenes on the official road.

When the army began to wield its blades in accordance with the monarch's will,

the entire Yan Kingdom began to carry out the most cruel and direct war mobilization under the Yan Emperor's orders.

The vast estates owned by the aristocratic clans were naturally confiscated, and the huge hidden population that originally belonged to the aristocratic clans but not to the state was re-registered by the imperial court. Most of them would continue to cultivate the original land, but the master had changed from the original aristocratic clan to the state.

In ancient times, the process of centralization was a tug-of-war between the central government and local authorities for "land" and "population."

In the historical process familiar to Zheng Fan, it seemed that every ancient dynasty that had created glory had undergone centralization before creating glory, so as to concentrate its strength to accomplish great things.

However, when passing by these teams of convicts, Zheng Fan could clearly feel the resentment in them.

Originally, the high and mighty descendants of aristocratic clans had now been reduced to prisoners.

For hundreds of years in the political system of Yan, the Ji family and the noble families had jointly ruled the world. These noble family descendants, strictly speaking, were also masters of the Yan Kingdom.

In fact, the balance between imperial power and noble families had never been broken.

Imperial power had even been further weakened because the late emperor had ascended the throne with the support of the Zhenbei Marquis’s (Marquis of the North) mansion, coupled with the late emperor's extravagance during his reign. The noble families had never slackened in their vigilance against the expansion of imperial power.

But no amount of vigilance, no amount of cunning, could match two words: naivety.

The Yan Emperor naively believed that his childhood friend, who had once fought over chicken legs with him, wouldn't rebel despite possessing heavy troops, and accepted everything from the Zhenbei Marquis;

The Zhenbei Marquis naively believed that the Yan Emperor wasn't testing him, handed over the 300,000 Zhenbei troops to his majesty, and personally became a plow, willingly bearing the infamy of plowing through the aristocratic clans that had existed for hundreds of years on the land of Yan;

Marquis Jingnan naively joined the Zhenbei Marquis and the Yan Emperor, not hesitating to slaughter his entire family to show his break with the past.

Imperial suspicion and the boundaries between monarch and subjects seemed to be completely absent from the three of them. The three naive fellows forcefully worked together to turn Yan upside down.

Three outstanding figures emerged in one generation, and these three outstanding figures stood together.

When the Zhenbei Army and the Jingnan Army cavalry rolled in behind the Yan Emperor that day,

the officials and aristocratic clans all felt a simultaneous "thump" in their hearts.

They understood,

that the sky of Yan,

had changed!

As if overnight, their wealth, their status, their dignity, which had belonged to them, were completely stripped away. They were sent by the Yan Emperor to the southern frontier, to take up arms and atone for their suddenly imposed "sins," to fight for the "freedom" they had once possessed but lost overnight.

In Zheng Fan's view, they were very much like the barbarian soldiers under his command. The barbarian soldiers under Zheng Fan's command came from criminal tribes, their relatives were controlled by large tribes, and they were reduced to cannon fodder for the large tribes' conquests.

These convicts were the same; their families were controlled in their original hometowns or in the capital, waiting for them to exchange military merits for freedom.

From a chick to a sparrow, then from a sparrow to an eagle, suddenly, they turned back into chicks again, and had to continue working hard to become sparrows again.

"A grand scale," A Ming sighed.

Zheng Fan looked at A Ming and nodded.

Although A Ming was a vampire, he wasn’t very old, at least not so exaggeratedly old. He couldn’t compare to Liang Cheng.

Zheng Fan was even clearer that the current Yan was being boiled by three dreamers.

It was like going all-in. If the subsequent attack on Qian failed to achieve great results and the external expansion didn't succeed greatly, this boiling water was likely to burn their own people.

This was a gamble;

those three,

were gambling with the fate of the nation.

Finally,

Zheng Fan and the others stopped.

Nanwang City had arrived.

……

Since the Jingnan Army withdrew from Nanwang City, Xu Wenzu finally experienced the feeling of being a commander-in-chief.

But before he could breathe in the fresh air of freedom for long, the news from the capital directly scared him out of his wits.

Good heavens, over three hundred pounds of fat directly collapsed on the ground. The attendants beside him had to exert a great deal of effort to help him up.

Immediately afterward, the military order from Marquis Jingnan, returning with the murderous aura of slaughtering his entire family, was issued, and the aristocratic clans of Yinlang Commandery suffered the trampling of the Jingnan Army.

However, firstly because a batch had been cleaned up earlier on the pretext of an assassination in the Commander-in-Chief's office, and secondly because Yinlang Commandery itself had been the battlefield of Qian's northern expedition a hundred years ago, the climate of the aristocratic clans here wasn't as abundant as in other parts of Yan. This second round of cleansing didn't take too much time.

Subsequently,

various supplies from the imperial court began to be transported to Yinlang Commandery, to the Jingnan Army, and to Nanwang City. After the terrifying wealth accumulated by the aristocratic clans for hundreds of years was confiscated by the imperial court, it was immediately transported by the Yan Emperor to the "war zone."

This was a battle for the national fortune of Yan!

After entering Nanwang City, Zheng Fan went straight to the Commander-in-Chief's office.

After receiving the servant's report, Xu Wenzu immediately came to the reception hall to meet Zheng Fan.

Zheng Fan was drinking tea.

Seeing Xu Wenzu,

"Pfft..."

Tea spilled directly from the corner of his mouth.

"Brother Zheng, Brother Zheng?"

Zheng Fan raised his hand, signaling that he was okay. There weren't any napkins here, so he had to make do with wiping his mouth with his sleeve.

Xu Wenzu's current appearance was too sudden.

It could be seen that Xu Wenzu was very tired, but he hadn't become skinny from exhaustion. Instead, he had become even more bloated, especially after his dark circles drooped down, giving him a strong cartoonish effect.

As for Xu Wenzu calling him "Brother Zheng," Zheng Fan wasn't too surprised. Even the Sixth Prince didn't refer to himself as "I" in front of him anymore, so it was normal for Xu Wenzu to no longer refer to himself as "this official."

Commander Zheng also found it amusing that he had been waving the Zhenbei Marquis's banner all along, but in the end, it was the Jingnan Marquis's coat that he actually put on.

But no matter what, after all the tossing and turning, he had finally managed to make something of himself, and didn't have to go toadying as frequently as before.

"Brother Zheng, come."

Xu Wenzu personally led Zheng Fan to his study, where Zheng Fan had been before.

Xu Wenzu's courtyard was full of people coming and going. Everyone was busy, unlike the last time when it was so deserted.

After entering the study, Xu Wenzu closed the door and then walked to the armchair and collapsed directly into it.

Zheng Fan had only heard that "women are made of water,"

but now,

he witnessed that as long as you were fat enough, you could also be made of water.

After Xu Wenzu slumped down, several folds of waves rolled from his stomach to his chin, and it took a long time for them to subside.

"Brother Zheng, this official, has lost weight from exhaustion..."

"Indeed."

Zheng Fan was clear that working that required staying up late and expending a lot of energy could easily make people become bloated.

"Ah, I've been an official for half my life, and this is the first time I've been so exhausted."

"It's not easy for you to work so hard for the country, sir."

"Enough with the nonsense. I'm just taking a breather while talking to you. You don't know how many orders this commander-in-chief's office has to issue in a day, damn it!"

Massive amounts of supplies and convicts were being transported to Yinlang Commandery wave after wave, and all of it needed to be handled by Xu Wenzu, the commander-in-chief of Nanwang City.

He didn't know if it was out of concern that someone would interfere, but the vacancy for the Nanwang City governor hadn't been filled.

But from what Zheng Fan had seen along the way into Nanwang City, the city was a bit bloated, but it could still be considered well-organized.

This was enough to demonstrate Xu Wenzu's ability. Perhaps the reason why the imperial court transferred him here was because they valued his ability to handle complex tasks.

Xu Fatty had indeed lived up to the imperial court's expectations.

Perhaps, life was like this;

Zheng Fan still remembered that when he was in Hutou City, Xu Wenzu was discussing with him how he should surrender the city after the Zhenbei Army rebelled.

At that time, most of Xu Wenzu's energy was actually focused on political struggles and choosing sides. In short, he was more like a bureaucrat than an official. But now, although he was tired, it could be felt that his energy was still good.

Not having to consider scheming and infighting, and being able to work wholeheartedly was also a kind of enjoyment.

"I already know about the matters in the capital. Hehe, hahahaha..."

Xu Wenzu laughed loudly.

The two people who had once plotted the Marquis's plan below hadn't expected that their Marquis and the Yan Emperor were actually on the same side. This was the most dreamlike result, but at the same time, it was also the best result.

Yan didn't have to face terrible internal strife and civil war. Instead, it could mobilize all its strength to carry out the largest and most expensive external expansion in a hundred years.

"Sir, I just returned from the capital and haven't returned to the fortress yet. I came here to see you first."

Xu Wenzu pointed at Zheng Fan. He naturally guessed Zheng Fan's intention.

"Don't worry, I'm keeping it for you. You and I are the real insiders."

Zheng Fan nodded. Although he didn't understand how he, who had become a running dog of Marquis Jingnan, had become an insider with Xu Wenzu, he wouldn't be foolish enough to spoil the atmosphere when his superior was taking the initiative to build a relationship with him.

"The Huo family of Huwei Commandery, although it is an aristocratic family with a hundred-year tradition, this family has a strong martial arts tradition. All the members of the Huo family are martial arts practitioners.

I didn't break them up, and I didn't assign them out. I've been keeping them here just for you."

The convicts who were escorted over were naturally not all used as laborers. They were more like reserve troops, or they were used to replenish local troops.

The Jingnan Army had its own 50,000-strong rear camp reserve, and blindly expanding elite forces like the Jingnan Army would only lead to a decline in their combat effectiveness. Therefore, the Jingnan Army didn't absorb many convicts, but instead allowed the various fortresses and armies of Yinlang Commandery to absorb them.

Anyway, local security forces were mostly used as cannon fodder. Whether they could be refined into gold depended on the refining process.

To speculate with a bit of dark thought, wasn't the imperial court sending the aristocratic convicts to the front lines to deliberately consume them?

If they didn't die and stayed in the country, they would be hidden dangers instead.

"The Huo family, how many people?"

"More than seven hundred people."

According to tradition, these family convicts would most likely be broken up and assigned. Even when settling displaced people in a place, attention would be paid to breaking them up, let alone a family.

But whether to break them up actually had advantages and disadvantages. If you couldn't suppress them, these people would band together to resist you, or even go so far as to abandon their families left behind and defect to the enemy.

But if you could suppress them and tame them, seven hundred family members with the same surname would be less likely to collapse and run away on the battlefield. They would have greater resilience.

"Good, I'll take them. Armor, weapons, provisions, these..."

"Don't worry!"

Xu Wenzu gestured for Zheng Fan to help him up, and said at the same time:

"Let the people below say I'm biased, so be it. Anyway, I'm fat and thick-skinned, hehe."

In fact, Zheng Fan's Cui Liu Fortress wasn't lacking in provisions, weapons, armor, and warhorses, but this stuff was always better to have more of.

"Thank you, sir."

"Hey, hey, don't stand on ceremony, don't stand on ceremony. I've placed my bet on you, so you have to fight for me. The war is about to begin. To be honest, I might have to go into battle myself then!"

"..." Zheng Fan.

Zheng Fan's mind conjured up a picture of Xu Fatty charging on a warhorse,

and then a group of people hiding behind Xu Wenzu to avoid arrows while charging...

Or, during a city defense battle, directly using Xu Wenzu as a sandbag to block the enemy's charge against the city gate...

Of course, these situations were unlikely to happen. If the Yan army really reached the point where even Xu Fatty had to charge, then the country was really not far from its demise.

Xu Wenzu would definitely go to the battlefield; he was the commander-in-chief, and it was impossible for him not to lead troops. But what he was doing now was, based on his relationship with Zheng Fan, to build his own direct lineage.

If Xu Wenzu knew that the Shatuo Qieshi who had smashed his carriage was now lying in Cui Liu Fortress, he probably...

"This subordinate will definitely not fail your expectations, sir!"

Since he was being given such a big favor and such great benefits, Zheng Fan didn't mind giving a loud and sincere salute.

……

After leaving the Commander-in-Chief's office, under the leadership of a trusted captain sent by Xu Wenzu, Zheng Fan arrived at a training ground in the city.

The training ground was crowded with people, and many convicts were being held there. Some convicts were in shackles, but most weren't restricted. They were just confined to various areas.

Around the perimeter of the training ground, armored soldiers with bows and crossbows were responsible for guarding.

Inside, there were many military leaders and scribes shuttling back and forth.

A Ming, who was following behind Zheng Fan, whispered to Zheng Fan:

"It looks like a livestock market."

"Indeed." Zheng Fan nodded in agreement.

"Master, if this battle doesn't go well, then this Yan Kingdom will have big problems."

"Yeah."

Zheng Fan also felt it. If he had previously admired the Yan Emperor and the two Marquises for their grand ambitions, now he truly felt the signs of a volcanic eruption hidden beneath these grand ambitions.

Perhaps, Yan had only had one Zheng Fan before, but now, the Yan Emperor had personally created countless Zheng Fans.

If there were problems with the war against Qian, and if one of the Yan Emperor and the three Marquises suffered an accident, then the people with revenge in their hearts...

It should be known that most of the elites in this world were labeled with the mark of aristocratic clans.

If not handled well, it would be a new Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period.

"Sir Zheng, the Huo family is over here."

The captain sent by Xu Wenzu led Zheng Fan to a fence.

Behind the fence, a group of people were sitting, and you could clearly see the order that they brought with them.

At this time, one person stood up from the crowd and took the initiative to walk over. His gaze fell on the captain, and finally, it fell on Zheng Fan.

He said in a very unruly tone:

"Oh ho, which sir wants to buy us back!"

"Impudent!"

The captain immediately reprimanded.

Zheng Fan didn't bother to get angry because of the other party's unruly attitude. Firstly, he believed that no matter how tightly knit and untamed the group was, after being handed over to Liang Cheng and Blindman Bei to transform, the problems shouldn't be too big.

Secondly, Zheng Fan's attention was attracted by the fence next door, just like when he first noticed him at the funeral of the former Commander-in-Chief, Xiao Dahai.

The other person was leaning there, seemingly in a daze.

Zheng Fan didn't pay attention to the troublemaker of the Huo family first, but walked to that side of the fence, reached out, and knocked on it.

"Brother Zuo?"

The other person's body trembled upon hearing this title. Then, he turned his head to look at Zheng Fan.

His hands immediately grabbed the fence excitedly,

and he shouted at Zheng Fan:

"Brother Zheng, no, no, no, Sir Zheng, Sir Zheng, please, please, take me, take me!"