dognovel Chapter 547 Be a Good Official
Chapter 547 Be a Good Official
Qing Si glanced at the menacing archers around her, remaining noncommittal. "I don't believe it!"
"Believe it or not! These are all grown men, and you can't even carry them on your backs. What makes you think you can use them to threaten me?" Zhang Biao said with a sarcastic smile.
"Then what do you want to do?" Qing Si raised her eyebrows and nodded at him with her chin.
"Alright, I'll let one of you go and report the news. The rest of you stay put. Our general also wants to do some business with your Lord He. If your lord truly cares about you, he will surely come to redeem you!"
Zhang Biao smiled meaningfully. He had heard from Brother Nie that they should learn from the general and find ways to make money. With money, they could make armor and weapons, and then they could defeat others. Zhang Biao agreed wholeheartedly. In all his years in the army, no one had been as rich as General Wang. Anyway, he lived a very comfortable life and had everything he wanted.
Qing Si and the others exchanged glances and nodded in agreement. "We trust General Wang's character, and we ask that you keep your word. How about this: we'll let them leave, and you'll confine us in this courtyard. That way, we can feel at ease."
“Of course.” Zhang Biao nodded, and with a wave of his hand, he made way for someone.
Qing Si chose a woman to leave, and everyone waited quietly. About an incense stick later, a blue flame rose in the northern sky, which was the unique symbol of the Qinglan Sect.
Qing Si dropped her sword, and the other women obediently moved aside.
Zhang Biao finally breathed a sigh of relief and let the military doctor come out to bandage the wound.
"What did that wounded Qi-character battalion brother say to you? You rushed in without thinking of anything. Do you know that because of you, nearly twenty of our brothers have died or been wounded!"
“It’s my fault,” Song Qing said somewhat sadly. “He said that the male assassins inside are picking out women they find attractive to take away, and these are the ones they rejected after looking at them. I suppose they are…”
He turned his face away, looking somewhat uncomfortable.
This must be reminding him of his poor, unfortunate daughter! Zhang Biao sighed, "It's not your fault. You were right to intervene. Some of those women had already lost their chastity, but fortunately, most of the women we rescued were still virgins!"
"Then it's worth it." A broken smile appeared on Song Qing's aged face. "It can be considered as giving Hong'er an explanation. As for those brothers, I will take care of their families. Don't worry."
“Brother Song, you are overthinking it. General Wang has his own arrangements. Their families are all military households, so we provide them with pensions and tax exemptions. Young children will be raised to adulthood, and the elderly can receive a monthly allowance until their death. This is the reason for General Wang’s efforts. With them around, no soldier will die in vain.”
"General Wang is actually like this... like this..." Song Qing's mouth moved. This was too convincing. He had been an official for many years and never thought he would encounter such a general. No wonder people like Lin Er followed him so fervently.
"Lord Song is a good official. We need people like you. We hope that you can bring benefits to the region in the future. We will see you off. We hope that you will stay true to your original aspirations and be able to embrace the helpless and struggling people who are like weeds!" Zhang Biao smiled, took a step back, and solemnly bowed.
"I, Song, will certainly live up to your expectations!" Song Qing, with tears in his eyes, stood up, supporting his arm, and forced himself to return the greeting. An endless sense of pride seemed to rise in his chest. This was how his life was going to be. Since he had no children, he would use his broken body to shield himself from the wind and rain.
The two looked at each other and smiled. This night raid had rescued about two hundred women and killed nearly six hundred enemies. Among them, nearly four hundred women from the Qinglan Sect were killed or wounded. As for the few they captured, Lin Er did not imprison them in the garden as they had said. Instead, he took them back to the military camp and put them directly into prison.
Qing Si and the others were indignant, but were met with the response that they were already heinous criminals and there were no conditions to negotiate. If it weren't for Lord Song's sake, they would all have lost their heads.
Not to mention that they had already sent out the letter and were waiting for He Tian to come and redeem the people, as soon as Wang Erniu received the news of the fire in Wangjiazhuang and the deaths and injuries at Chenji Restaurant, he immediately took Wang Feng out to train troops and vent his anger. The Qinglan Sect was dealt with by Lin Er, whose enemy was the Liao Kingdom.
We recently bought a batch of horses from Liao merchants at a high price, and they need to be broken in right now. Don't the Liao people like to come to Song territory to plunder?
Wang Erniu followed suit. We had money, weapons, and manpower. Every day, we went to the border in different ways, driving away the Liao people whenever we saw them, or fighting them if necessary. We wanted to completely eliminate the Liao people's invincible influence. It has to be said that Wang Erniu's method was particularly good. Batch after batch of soldiers grew rapidly in the border battles.
Just as he had imagined, Zhao Yizhi followed Li Changbai, serving the people in the streets, registering information, distributing rice and oil, and doing a decent job. Most importantly, he was rich, so no one worried that he would embezzle. In addition, he was fair in his dealings, which made him even more respected.
Time flew by, and the weather grew colder and colder. Lin Er eliminated two more Qinglan Sect hideouts in Youzhou City, and Qing Bi and Qing Rou both died at his hands. He Tianxia finally replied to Wang Erniu's letter, but instead of ransoming them, he gave him a letter.
Wang Erniu led his troops outside the city, and Lin Er dared not make a decision, so he waited for him to return before making a decision.
Snowflakes were already falling from the sky. Chen Wenfang tightened her padded jacket. Winter had come earlier than she had imagined, but she didn't need to worry. The 500,000 taels of silver she had spent over the past few months was now bearing fruit.
On Xifang Street, a huge two-story brick building stands there, with a total of five shops and warehouses at the back, stocked with plenty of coal, rice, flour, oil, charcoal, salt, tea, and sugar. The first floor mainly sells oil, salt, rice, and flour, while the side sells coal and sugar, and the second floor sells tea, sugar, and pastries.
Everything is rationed per person, and you must bring your household registration book. There is no limit on the purchase of charcoal and tea sugar, but they are very expensive. You can also exchange work hours for goods, or temporarily use work hours after the start of spring to offset the cost. However, work hours can only be exchanged for coal, salt, and other items.
Besides, since the work included meals, countless poor people came here to exchange their goods. Some even had the idea of exchanging goods first and then secretly running away. However, the village head came to warn them that he had a responsibility to act as a guarantor. If a person ran away, even if he went to the south, he would not be able to find work there.
When Chen Wenfang arrived, there was a long queue in front of Wang's shop, with many ragged refugees shivering in the cold wind.
Chen Wenfang sighed; the road ahead is long and arduous...
Seeing her worried expression, Sister-in-law Nie explained, "Fang'er, don't worry. These are all people with families. They just live a hard life, but it's much better than in previous years! The refugees have shared beds to live in, and they all have stoves burning. As for them, they must have kang beds in their houses. You see, although their clothes are tattered, their undergarments are not thin."
Chen Wenfang looked closely and saw that it was indeed the case, so she felt relieved.