12dz Chapter 97 Rebellious Officials of the Former Dynasty 29
Chapter 97 Rebellious Officials of the Former Dynasty 29
Affairs in the court are not simply black and white.
When an official takes office, his subordinates always pool their money to prepare gifts or people.
This bad habit persists despite repeated prohibitions.
If the gifts these people sent were a result of everyone pooling their money to curry favor with him, the prince, Xiao Yao wouldn't be so angry.
However, the news that he had been sent to the northern desert by his father had only reached this place two months after it traveled from the capital.
In such a short time, there was simply not enough time for these people to send people to Jiangnan to buy women and bring them back, so these were all for their daily use.
A Yangzhou slender horse is worth more than a thousand pieces of gold.
These officials, residing in the north and receiving an annual salary of only three to five hundred taels of silver, actually enjoyed this kind of lifestyle on a daily basis.
Where did this money come from? Was it the hard-earned money of the people, or the blood and sweat of the soldiers?
Thinking that Ling Yi was traveling day and night across the grasslands because of their corruption and greed, Xiao Yao had the idea of killing all those guys.
Closing his eyes to suppress his anger, Xiao Yao said, "Continue the investigation. I want to find a few people to add to the glory of the Princess's triumphant return!"
"Yes!" Lu An's expression hardened; this master who had suddenly grown up was about to kill someone.
While the master and servant were filled with murderous intent, the mansions of the Tongcheng officials were brightly lit.
"Lord Gao, what exactly is that prince's plan?" A minor official asked, taking a sip of fine wine and squinting his eyes.
When the prince's entourage arrived in Tongcheng, they waited at the city gate early in the morning, but they didn't even get to see the prince's face.
The eunuchs around the prince said he was ill, but how could they know if it was true or not?
The high-ranking official, served by a maid, took a sip of wine, then pinched the beauty's shoulder before saying, "How could ordinary people like us possibly know what princes and noblemen are thinking?"
“However…” He changed the subject, looking at the expectant eyes of the people below, and smiled: “It seems he really is sick.”
Among the people he planted were those who worked in the kitchen.
I heard that as soon as Prince Rui arrived, the imperial physician prescribed medicine for him, and he has been eating easily digestible food for the past two days.
The officials, both high and low, who had not yet been summoned by the prince, breathed a sigh of relief and, with the help of their maids, drank their cups to the brim.
"That's good. We thought this prince had some kind of problem with us," a minor official said drunkenly. "We're already in this godforsaken place. If we get punished by the prince again, we'll probably have to go home and eat our own food!"
This wretched place is so bad, there's nowhere to be exiled to!
He studied diligently for ten years, only to be assigned to this place. He has truly failed the sages!
A few drunken guys glanced disdainfully at the fat, dark-skinned man: "Someone like you who can't lift a finger or do anything else, you'd starve to death if you went home and farmed!"
The official didn't mind, and smiled as he touched the maid's hand: "I have twelve beautiful concubines at home. If I ever lose my livelihood, they can be used as family assets!"
Laughter erupted in the hall, and even the head of the table, Lord Gao, was amused, his eyes crinkling with laughter. He gently comforted the officials who had suddenly welcomed their new mothers-in-law, saying, "Don't worry, if His Highness Prince Rui really had any complaints about us, the maids in the mansion would have been kicked out long ago."
"Moreover," the old man narrowed his eyes, a glint of shrewdness flashing in them, "don't think that young upstart has any great abilities. According to the news from the capital, he was enfeoffed in the northern desert after Mother removed her hairpin to apologize in front of His Majesty's bedchamber."
Thinking of the treacherous situation in the capital, the old man, who remained detached from the matter, leisurely took a sip of wine: "No matter how favored a prince is, he is worthless in the face of the throne!"
"If our Emperor didn't despise him so much, why would he send him to this desolate place? As far as I know, His Majesty had prepared a fertile land in Jiangnan for Prince Rui!"
At this moment, the sarcasm in his use of the word "Your Highness" was obvious to everyone.
The crowd laughed and joked, sharing news from the capital and mocking Prince Rui for his foolishness.
The maternal family had little power, yet they married a woman from the martial arts world who was not respectable enough to stand up to the law. As a result, when they were attacked, they were exiled to this place without any ability to resist.
Indeed, the glory that comes from being favored by the emperor without any real power is as unreliable as a castle in the air.
Then they began to fantasize that with this man in the northern desert, would the emperor, considering their past father-son relationship, give him an extra half-percent of his military pay?
If that's the case, then that would be wonderful!
The family can have a few more beautiful concubines, and the house can be expanded!
As for overstepping the bounds? They've come all this way to such a desolate place, what's wrong with enjoying themselves?
The greedy fellows were having their final revelry, while the festivities in the steppe people's camp had just come to an end.
Lingyi distributed the spoils of war to the soldiers, and then put the tribespeople on trial.
The slaves were led to an open space. When the Central Plains people saw the familiar armor, they burst into tears, while the slaves, who were also barbarians, watched this scene numbly.
Even if people from the Central Plains come, their lives won't be any better.
Seeing this, Ling Yi gave Zhang Qiran a few instructions.
Zhang Qi scratched his head, and after a long while, he managed to utter a sentence: "How about you do it?"
Although he had read almost all the books under the supervision of his family, he was still not very proficient in these intricate matters.
Ling Yi sneered and kicked him in the butt: "Go now!"
Zhang Qiran stumbled from the kick, but stood opposite the crowd and spoke loudly:
"We are the imperial army, here to rescue you from your suffering. Before you leave, you can tell us about the hardships you have endured, and we will stand up for you!"
The slaves, cowering in the distance, remained silent, staring at his menacing appearance without daring to utter a word.
Zhang Qiran waited for a while but they didn't speak. He turned around and glanced at Ling Yi, only to be glared at coldly by her.
So he had no choice but to continue to patiently persuade these stubborn slaves with a nagging style that even he and his wife had never used before.
He talked himself hoarse, but still received no response.
Finally, he gritted his teeth and stamped his foot: "Whoever comes out to talk, give them a piece of jerky and a bowl of hot water!"
In an instant, light appeared in the slaves' numb eyes.
Seeing this, Zhang Qiran's eyes lit up: "The first ten to come out will get an extra pancake!"
With a generous reward, someone finally stepped forward and cautiously recounted their suffering.
Ling Yi watched this scene, her expression gradually becoming distant.
A grievance session.
This was a little trick she learned in her previous life. Those clever people really came up with many good ideas to save that land.
They used this method to ignite the passion and empathy in ordinary people, reminding them of the ugly faces of those who had oppressed them in the past, and inspiring them to feel closeness and respect for those who saved them.