Chapter 900 The Man Who Feeds Horses

Summer had truly passed, and golden autumn had long since arrived;

But in Jindong, the seasons weren't really distinct, manifesting in short springs and autumns, and long hot and cold periods;

It'd be warm, then suddenly cold; freezing and shivering, then suddenly hot.

Xu Sunyoudao, who once served as Grand Secretary of the Dacheng Kingdom, once had a conversation with Situ Lei that circulated.

Situ Lei asked: Why is Jindong's cultural legacy inferior to Qian's?

Sun Youdao replied: Qian has distinct seasons, but Jindong doesn't. Not experiencing distinct seasons is like not experiencing the full range of flavors; especially lacking the exuberance of spring and the desolation of autumn. Without these two elements, how can poetry be created?

Therefore,

When the sun set at dusk and the Prince entered the Sword Saint's small courtyard next door, Liu Dahu brought him a sour plum soup iced drink from home.

The ice was naturally from the Prince's ice cellar, and Xiao Yibo arranged for people to send the corresponding share to the Sword Saint's house every day.

In short,

The Sword Saint's family lived frugally, but it was by no means impoverished. It was more like the kind of… pastoral life that people in later generations imagined.

A duck approached the Prince, stretching its neck and bowing its body, as if to show itself off.

The Prince pointed at the duck and said to the Sword Saint:

"Have you ever had spicy duck neck?"

"..." the duck.

In the courtyard, there was a crib, and the Sword Saint's youngest son was holding onto the railing, staring at Zheng Fan with wide eyes.

"Going out again?" the Sword Saint asked.

"Yes."

However, Zheng Fan quickly added;

"This time, I won't trouble you to come with me. It's not a big deal."

After all, he had just had someone accompany him on a campaign, and he had only been home for a short time. It wouldn't be good to ask him to go on another trip.

The Sword Saint looked at Zheng Fan,

And then at his youngest son,

And said:

"Or... should I still go with you?"

"Alright."

The Sword Saint was used to it.

Zheng Fan stretched and said, "This time, I won't be gone for too long. I'm going to Xuehai Pass, and after Xuehai Pass, I have to go to Zhennan Pass. The hearts of my subordinates are getting a little wild, so I have to go and weed them out myself."

"Oh, I see. Since I've been back, I've heard that there are a lot of complaints because you didn't bring Jindong soldiers on this campaign."

"That's unavoidable." Zheng Fan took a sip of sour plum soup. "Our system was originally designed to deal with frequent wars."

The system under the rule of the Prince of Pingxi first took shape in Shengle City and was completely formed in Xuehai Pass;

It possessed the spiritual core of the Qin army's military achievements from another time and space, as well as a production and military system modeled after the Eight Banners;

With the addition of his own "ever-victorious" reputation at the top, it was inevitable that the soldiers and civilians of Jindong would be delighted by war.

Zheng Fan put down the bowl,

And sighed;

"But for the next five years or so, the general policy will be to recuperate and rejuvenate, so I have to personally stop this current trend."

"Recuperation is good." The Sword Saint was somewhat perfunctory, but then he glanced at his youngest son. "At least, many children can have a stable childhood."

Life for the registered households (biao hu) in Jindong was naturally excellent;

The common people outside the registered households were actually equivalent to the serfs in the era of powerful clans in Yan, except that in Jindong, the only powerful clan was the Prince of Pingxi's manor. The Prince's taxes weren't low, but without middlemen making a profit, their lives weren't wealthy, but they could certainly be called stable.

In addition, the Prince's manor was constantly reclaiming new land and carrying out large-scale land distribution, so the lives of the lower-level people would inevitably improve in the future.

In this era, not fighting wars plus an efficient government was basically a direct path to a golden age, but these two points were extremely difficult to achieve.

At this moment, the Sword Maid opened the door and walked in. Seeing Zheng Fan was here, she blinked and gave Zheng Fan a very perfunctory blessing, then ran over to play with the child.

But Zheng Fan noticed that the Sword Maid had a sword hanging at her waist.

The little girl who had dragged her master's corpse by the Bian River had now grown up. Girls developed earlier anyway, and her physique was suitable for an adult's sword, so it didn't seem out of place.

"You're wearing a sword?" Zheng Fan asked.

"She can practice swordsmanship now." The Sword Saint said, and then gave Zheng Fan a meaningful look.

The Sword Maid turned to look at the Prince, reached out to fiddle with her sword, and said:

"Prince, are you scared?"

The Sword Maid had once said that she would avenge her master.

Zheng Fan smiled dismissively.

The Sword Maid pouted angrily, snorted, and then said:

"Prince, my swordsmanship will improve very quickly!"

Zheng Fan believed this statement.

When the Sword Maid was still a little girl, she was forced to enter the ranks because she couldn't restrain herself. Now, after several years of lurking and being taught by the Sword Saint, she was well-prepared.

"Good, this Prince is waiting for you to kill me."

"You said that, Prince."

"Yes, I said it. How much did you weigh when I first met you? How much do you weigh now? Before you kill this Prince, settle the accounts first."

The Sword Maid frowned and immediately said, "I'll deduct silver for what I eat and drink from you!"

"This Prince doesn't want silver. This Prince doesn't lack silver. This Prince only wants your flesh."

"Absurd. If I don't eat your food, won't I eat and grow somewhere else?"

"Hahahaha, but if you hadn't eaten this Prince's food back then, you wouldn't have had the chance to eat and grow anywhere else."

"..." The Sword Maid.

The Sword Saint could only smooth things over, saying, "You can coax her."

"Coax her about what? She's just a young girl. She should let go of what she should let go of. It's not good to always dwell on the past."

The Sword Maid glared at Zheng Fan.

She only meant it as a joke, but who knew that this Prince would seriously calculate with her and turn around and say that she couldn't let go.

In fact,

Zheng Fan wasn't really worried about the Sword Maid.

This girl had been raised in front of him since she was a child. She could enter the inner courtyard at will, and she used to play behind his butt every day. She could even hold Da Niu.

If he couldn't be sure of her temperament, she wouldn't be allowed to enter the inner courtyard at all.

As for the vengeance for her master or something, that was war.

"Are you going with me this time too?"

"Yes!"

The Sword Maid didn't feel embarrassed,

But she did feel a little guilty. She was a sincere child, stubborn but honest,

And added:

"Before I kill you, you can't be killed by anyone else."

That was heartwarming,

Good,

These years of raising her hadn't been in vain.

Since his daughter was born,

A certain place in the Prince's heart had become a lot softer,

And he immediately slapped his thigh,

Saying:

"Just because of what you said, if A Li dares to treat you badly in the future, I, as his master, will be the first to spare him!"

"Tch!"

The Sword Maid's pretty face flushed red.

Seeing this,

The Sword Saint sighed.

The Prince pointed at the Sword Maid:

"Hahahahaha!"

……

"Hahahahaha!"

Inside the General Military Office of Fancheng,

Gou Moli pointed at the Xie family's envoy standing in front of him and burst out laughing.

As he laughed, he wiped away his tears;

"Conferring me as Pillar of the State? Enrolling me into the Da Chu noble sequence? Hahahahaha!"

Gou Moli stood up,

Put his hands on his hips,

And paced back and forth;

"Oh, oh, your Chu Kingdom is really getting more and more out of shape.

The garrison in Fancheng now is the Savage Army, as you should know;

The commander-in-chief of Fancheng now is me, and I haven't made any attempts to conceal it. People may not know, but your Chu Kingdom's Phoenix Nest Inner Guard couldn't possibly fail to uncover the slightest clue about my identity.

Alas,

I'm a Savage,

And I'm being invited by your Chu Kingdom to be a Pillar of the State and a great noble.

Back then, I begged and pleaded to act like a grandson in front of you Chu people, and under the pressure of the Yan people, I finally put together the alliance between our Savages and the Chu Kingdom.

But even so, you Chu people still looked down on us, and we understood that.

But what about now?

I occupy Fancheng, acting as a dagger stuck in the heart of your Chu Kingdom.

How does it feel,

Uncomfortable, right?"

In fact, Gou Moli's military talent was more than a notch above Fan Zhengwen, or even Qu Peiluo.

With all sorts of methods combined, he directly brought the situation in Fancheng to a new level.

Internal rectification and external infiltration, although no major battles had been launched, were enough to plunge a large piece of land nominally belonging to the Chu Kingdom, with Fancheng as the center of influence, into decay.

In addition, because the Jindong troops hadn't been dispatched during the previous Three Kingdoms War, the Chu people didn't dare to attack Fancheng at all.

They didn't dare to attack forcefully, so they came to appease him.

Faced with such ridicule,

The Xie family's envoy in front of him raised his head and said;

"My young master asked me to bring you a message."

Gou Moli heard this, reached out and scratched his ear, and preemptively said:

"Is he going to say that I was a hero in my time, so how can I be willing to be subservient to others now? To be a dog for others, and directly ignore the Savage's century-long plan for the snowfields?

Is your Xie young master still calling for justice for me?

Save it.

I, Gou Moli, have been a dog more often than not in my life, but I really don't like being a dog;

But then again, how many people in this world can truly be human, right?

Qian Kingdom's Shangjing was captured by my master, and the Qian-Chu alliance, ha, an alliance between two great powers, was forced to go from offensive to defensive.

Five years,

At most five years,

After five years,

One of Qian and Chu will be destroyed!

I'd have to have snow in my brain to defect at this time.

You don't know my master's temper.

What he hates the most is someone betraying him;

But my master is also someone who doesn't like to talk about the big picture. Whoever talks to him about the big picture, he'll flip the table on them.

If I defected,

He would mobilize the troops from Jindong and even Yan at all costs, and rush over in one go, at all costs to take my dog's head back.

Of course I can slip away,

But without Fancheng, without the troops under my command,

I'd be less than a stray dog in your Chu Kingdom.

What am I trying to get?

Am I hoping that your Chu Kingdom has good feng shui and kind people, so that even as a dog, I'll have half a bowl of swill to eat?"

Gou Moli waved his hand,

And said;

"Come, cut this guy down for me. Accept the gift, pickle the head, and send it to Fengxin City."

"Yes, sir!"

"No, no, don't..."

The Xie family's envoy shouted for mercy, but still couldn't change Gou Moli's determination.

The current days weren't easy to come by, and Gou Moli cherished them very much.

After his subordinates reported that the man had been killed,

Gou Moli sat back in his chair and nodded,

Smiling:

"Did you think it was easy for me to get from the cellar to where I am today?"

"That's right. Following the Prince, our future days will be even better. Who knows, you might even be ennobled as a marquis in the future."

The one who spoke was Gou Moli's personal guard, also a Savage, with a good brain and quick wit. He was one of his own, so he could be more casual.

Gou Moli glared at him unhappily,

And scolded:

"Worthless."

"Yes, yes, yes, this subordinate's vision is shallow, shallow."

"What's being a marquis."

Gou Moli smiled:

"I'm going to be the man who feeds horses in the inn stable in the future."