I'm the only player

Chapter 458 [Luxury]

The dragon robe is the most advanced gift above the Qilin robe. Since the founding of the Ancient Fish Kingdom by Emperor Wu Taizu, only nine people have been given the dragon robe, which shows how precious it is.

Now, including He Sheng, there is exactly the tenth person. And the people in the Ancient Fish Kingdom who have been granted the dragon robe, including the first-rank official of this dynasty, the former prince's teacher and the current cabinet chief, are only two.

When Wu Ming mentioned the dragon robe, he completely understood what the emperor was thinking. Considering his contribution in "annihilating" the ancient village branch of the Tianli Sect, a Qilin robe was the best he could do.

Giving a dragon robe obviously means he has a bigger plan!

Obviously, the higher-ups regarded him as a [divine weapon against Tianlijiao], planning to let him practice Tianlijiao's skills when he had nothing to do, then seduce the guardians to reincarnate, and then make the guardians return to the arms of the Ghost Mother one by one.

If everything goes well, basically, he won't have to worry about the Tianli Sect while he's alive. One person can deal with the Tianli Sect that pops up from time to time to cause trouble, which saves a lot of manpower and material resources.

In comparison, a mere python robe is such a bargain.

Of course, don't take the dragon robe lightly. Basically, he is safe. As long as he doesn't commit treason and rebellion, which are among the ten unforgivable crimes, he can only punish himself with three cups of wine for the other eight crimes. Or, a minor punishment and a major warning.

Killing is definitely not allowed. Torture is also not allowed.

As for plotting treason and disrespect, destroying the royal temples and mausoleums, offending the royal dignity, stealing imperial treasures, and colliding with ceremonial guards, that's no big deal!
As an emperor, you have to be tolerant sometimes.

"He Qianhu, put it on."

As Wu Ming spoke, four eunuchs, who were obviously dressed in palace attire, began to undress him. Don't get me wrong, all those who received the dragon robe had to wear it, and then have a portrait painted by a court painter and sent to the palace at full speed.

On the one hand, it was to allow the emperor to see the true appearance of the person who had made great contributions. On the other hand, it would be placed in a special room for future successors to admire and show the royal grace.

This dragon robe is mainly red, with a dragon pattern embroidered on it. The so-called dragon pattern is actually similar to a dragon. The only difference is that the dragon pattern on the dragon robe has five claws, while the python pattern has only four claws. Secondly, the python pattern is matched with cloud patterns and wave patterns, symbolizing the eternal stability of the country.

There are four colors of dragon robes in the Ancient Fish Kingdom: bright yellow, red, green, and blue. Red is the highest grade of dragon robes.

Bright yellow?

Sorry, that thing is worn by princes.

If you are not a prince, red is the best dragon robe.

As for whether there are any more cruel ones?

Some brothers, yes.

It's not like no one has ever had a five-clawed python or a bright yellow python robe. The owner was a founding duke who saved Emperor Wu Taizu from danger several times.

As we all know, the greatest achievement is to save the emperor. In the past, Taizu wanted to confer the title of king on a person of a different surname. Unfortunately, he was dissuaded by countless people. The one who was conferred the title resisted most fiercely.

Anyone who understands knows what it means to be named a king of a different surname. If the current emperor likes him, then everything will be fine. But what if the next emperor doesn't like him?

If one thing goes wrong, the whole family will get together.

Therefore, Emperor Wu Taizu thought of a compromise. He gave him a five-clawed python and a bright yellow python robe. Since he couldn't give the king of a different surname a fiefdom or title, it wouldn't be too much to give him something to wear, right?

If all goes well, Old He will have a chance to try it on.

"Captain He, please don't move." One of the four eunuchs called him back to reality. He also signaled the painter who came with him to hurry up and paint.

When He Sheng came out of his thoughts, he had already put on a red dragon robe, which made him look extraordinary and heroic. The court painter was busy painting, and he would look up from time to time.

Wu Ming, who was in charge of reading out the rewards, sighed as he watched from his horse. As expected, some people's luck is unstoppable.

If the He family didn't have a naturally strong soul that could deal with the reincarnation of the Tianli Sect, how could they be granted the dragon robe? The leaders of their old Wu family, the Shanzhou Yingsi, could only get the dragon robe as a fixed reward from the emperor when they took office as a thousand households.

After about half an hour, the court painter nodded to indicate that the portrait was ready.

"He Qianhu, please do as you please."

After saying this, the four eunuchs walked up to the painter and carefully began to seal the painting.

“Captain He, do you want to explain everything in Songlin County before coming with us? Or…” Wu Ming didn’t finish his words, and paused after saying the word “or”.

"There's nothing to explain. I've already reported the people who should be taken away. The things that need to be packed have already been packed." He Sheng shook his head. What was there to explain?

"Okay!" Wu Ming nodded, and then said, "Then let's go together. By the way, the appointment of Zhang Yue as a trial centurion should still be on the way. When he is promoted to the internal organs realm, the word "trial" can be removed."

That’s right, the man named He kept Zhang Yue.

Songlin County is his base camp, and it almost monopolizes all industries. It is a golden goose that lays golden eggs. Leaving it to someone else? It is definitely impossible. Leaving Zhang Yue to manage it for him is the most reassuring thing.

Afterwards, a group of people who had packed up early headed for Taiyue Mansion. Among them were Liu Long, Xiao Ma, and Li San. The father and son of the Green Wolf Gang stayed to continue managing the gang and assist Zhang Yue. He was not confident that Zhang Yue, who was previously the General Flag Officer and is now a Trial Hundred Householder, would be strong enough to fight without high-end combat power.

On the way, He Sheng studied other rewards. First, the imperial flag erected in front of the door was a rectangular vertical flag in red. There was a word "Order" on it, made of silk, embroidered with gold thread and decorated with tassels.

This thing is erected in front of the door, and horses are not allowed to run. Even if a high-ranking official passes by, he must dismount from his horse or sedan chair. If you pass by without proper appearance, you will be sent to prison and stay there to reflect on your actions.

Next is the qualification to enter and exit the Taiyue Mansion Library, and concurrently serve as the supervisor of the Taiyue Mansion Fire Wing Institute. Needless to say, the former, you can enter the library at will and choose any martial arts method inside, no one will care.

As for the latter, what does Huo Ling do?

Forging weapons, refining pills, etc.

The Supervisor was a technical official position. He would occasionally conduct random inspections to see how the weapons were forged and the quality of the elixirs they were refining were.

It was like the higher-ups were telling him what they liked in Huoling. You're welcome, please take it home, and no one dared to object. In short, it gave him the right to embezzle money openly.

The last 100 special family soldiers, their salaries and weapons were all provided by the Shadow Department, which was incredible. 100 private soldiers, and they were also supported by the royal family. In the history of the Ancient Fish Country, there were not many military officers who could receive such an honor.

Don't think that one hundred family soldiers are not enough, just look at the 150 elite cavalrymen of the Wu brothers. The old Wu family has been rooted in Shanzhou since the founding of the country. It's nonsense to say that they can only afford 150 elite cavalrymen.

It was a bit exaggerated to say that we could support 1,500 elite cavalrymen, but if we doubled it, it would not be a problem to support 300 elite cavalrymen.

Then why only maintain 150 cavalry?
Because his ancestors followed the great grandfather through life and death, in exchange for which he was awarded the hereditary title of a thousand households in the Shanzhou Yingsi and the qualification of having only 150 family soldiers.

That’s right, the one hundred and fifty elite cavalrymen are their family soldiers.

There are many rules in the Ancient Fish Country, one of which is that you cannot mobilize soldiers without military orders. Violators are considered treason. If you wander around with a group of soldiers without military orders, what else can you do but rebel?
Of course, emergencies are another matter.

The only ones who were allowed to travel around with their soldiers were the emperor's special permission household soldiers.

This is not just a simple family soldier, it also represents identity, status, honor, power, and the emperor's appreciation. If someone knows a little bit, seeing you with family soldiers, they will know that you are not someone who can be easily offended.

The cavalry was extremely fast, and since they were not ordinary people, they arrived at Taiyue Mansion in almost half a day. As for the eunuchs, painters and others from the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Wu Ming assigned a hundred elite cavalrymen to escort them to the next Qianhu Suo via the fastest route back to Kyoto. Taiyue Mansion was indeed the largest city in Shanzhou.

Apart from anything else, the city wall alone gave off a sense of solidity that even a huge army could not take down. According to Wu Ping's information letter, the population of Taiyue Prefecture alone was more than nine million.

Is it too much?

not much!

Because it is located in the north, the population of Shanzhou is relatively small. It cannot be compared with those large cities with a population of tens of millions.

A Qianhu Suo is not just a group of ten hundred households. It is similar to the gangs in each city, with a headquarters and many branches in different regions to manage their respective areas.

The Qianhu Suo was the headquarters, and there were many Baihu Suo in various areas of Taiyue Prefecture. According to the letter from my good brother, the detailed number was fifty Baihu Suo.

Including the ten centurions of the Qianhu Division, there are six thousand captains in the entire city!

The number is not large, at least not comparable to the more than 30,000 soldiers under the prefect.

The crowd entered the city and arrived at Qianhu Suo without any obstruction. It is worth mentioning that they took a special passage. Otherwise, it would not be unusual to take an hour or two to get there.

The road in Taiyuefu is very wide, four times wider than the widest road in Songlin County. A road that is four times wider is actually four roads.

One road is for people in the city to walk on, one is for transporting goods, one is for dignitaries to ride in carriages and sedan chairs, and the last road is for the thousand households to walk on.

Butt in?

Try inserting one!
If you walk on the road where goods are being transported, perhaps no one will bother you. But if you walk on the road where dignitaries or soldiers march, you will be arrested and thrown into prison in a matter of minutes.

If you have money, you can give it and still save your life.

If you have no money, just wait for death. There is no hope.

"Have a good rest tonight. Tomorrow all the people from the Qianhu Office will be here. Then, I will personally introduce them to you one by one. By the way, the mansion granted by the emperor is in District 3. I will ask someone to take you there to receive it."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wu Ming called the strong men from the Qianhu Suo and ordered them to take them to the palace bestowed by the emperor.

On the way, the group took a carriage with the logo of Qianhusuo and headed to the mansion in District 3.

"Master Qianhu, our Taiyue Prefecture is divided into fifty administrative areas. Among them, District 3 is the residence of the dignitaries in the city. For example, Qianhu Wu's home is in District 3, adjacent to your residence."

The wagon driver was talking nonstop about everything about Taiyue Prefecture. On the way to District 3, we occasionally ran into patrolling officers.

When they saw the carriage, they consciously made way and stood by the road respectfully watching the carriage leave. In Taiyue City, it seemed that the four words "strict hierarchy" were engraved in their bones.

"Sir, the carriages of our Qianhu Office are only for centurions. And the carriages that Qianhu Office rides are pulled by three horses. When you see a carriage with a single horse, you will know that the centurion is sitting inside. In such a huge Taiyue Mansion, only three people are qualified to ride a carriage pulled by three horses."

This refers to the Qianhusuo of Taiyue Prefecture. If we remove the word Qianhusuo, there are four people. The fourth person is the prefect.

Half an hour later, the carriage arrived at District 3.

"Master Qianhu, please."

The strong man respectfully lifted the curtain of the car and made a gesture of invitation.

A wealthy family!

When He Sheng got off the car and saw the mansion for the first time, the above four words flashed through his mind.

The front door alone is the highest-level Guangliang gate of the Ancient Fish Kingdom. The door panels are installed on the golden pillars, the door opening is deep and wide, and the base is higher than the street, which looks very majestic. There are four door pins on it, engraved with auspicious words and carvings. There are also seven door nails, which is second only to the nine door nails of the emperor's specifications!

There are prominent brick carvings on both sides of the gate, decorated with auspicious symbols such as Qilin and Peony. In front of the gate is a bluestone horse-mounting stone, and a horse tie post with carved monkeys and lions to protect the house.

"Squeak~~~"

It seemed that the sound of the carriage stopping was heard from inside the mansion, and the door slowly opened to both sides, revealing a brick-carved screen wall engraved with patterns of fortune, wealth and longevity.

Then, a group of men, women, old and young came out. At the front, an old man, whose clothes were obviously more luxurious than the others, knelt down respectfully and kowtowed, shouting: "Welcome the master back to the mansion, may the blessings and prosperity last for generations!"

The maids and servants behind shouted again.

"."

It must be said that even He, who had seen a lot of storms, felt a little embarrassed and picked his feet. He always felt that there was a feeling like the return of the Dragon King.

Next, the old man stood up and introduced himself as the chief steward of the mansion. He also introduced the identities of the servants kneeling on the ground one by one.

After most of the day, the introduction was finally completed, and Mr. He had a clearer understanding of the servants in the mansion.

Well, the higher-ups really didn't treat him unfairly.

There were hundreds of servants in the mansion alone, and they were divided into high and low ranks. Let's start with the high-ranking servants - the chief steward (who was in charge of all the affairs of the mansion, supervising the account office and the warehouse), and the housekeeper (in charge of the internal affairs of the female family members).

Let’s talk about the middle-level managers - the account office/warehouse manager (managing silver, money, land deeds, and treasures), the gatehouse/outer courtyard manager (receiving guests, delivering messages), and the kitchen/purchasing manager (responsible for food and banquet preparation).

Finally, there are the grassroots servants - there are three types of personal attendants: the head maid who is responsible for washing and changing clothes; the maid who is responsible for taking care of the couple's daily life at night and may be promoted to a concubine at any time; and the boy who runs errands and delivers messages.

There were also wet nurses, nannies (who taught etiquette and rules), servants (who did manual labor such as sweeping, chopping wood, and washing), ordinary maids/servants, and skilled servants (cooks and embroiderers).

It's not that he is ignorant. If the chief steward hadn't explained the duties of each servant, he would never have imagined that the servants were divided so complicatedly, and some servants even represented different masters.

For example, the position of kitchen/purchasing manager is usually held by the mistress's confidant. Moreover, the position of teaching nanny is also not simple, and is basically held by retired palace servants.

Damn, is this the decadent aristocratic life?
Gan!
It’s no wonder that the feudal monarchy was eventually replaced; it was too damn extravagant.

Even this, according to the general manager, is still considered too little.

Some powerful top families have between 300 and 1,000 servants, and some even have thousands. The Wu family next door has more than 500 servants. His mansion only has 100 people, which is already very frugal.

In addition, there is no need to worry about the expenses, as all the expenses of the mansion are covered by the Yundu Palace. Especially some of the more beautiful maids, all of them are palace maids in the palace, and some of the maids have served many queens and princesses.

After getting familiar with the place, He Sheng took out the imperial flag and told the butler to hang it in front of the door.

From now on, the road in front of his gate was considered a restricted area in Zone 3. The dignitaries around him would avoid it no matter what happened or how anxious they were.

After all, no one wants to be inferior to others!
(End of this chapter)