Damn it, I'm in the garbage book I wrote

Chapter 663 Encirclement by Allied Forces
Xia Lin led his troops directly to the outside of Shanhaiguan, but without any communication, he set up camp immediately, and no one was allowed to enter or leave the pass.

Meanwhile, all the cannons on this side were raised and aimed at the pass, their posture more like that of the enemy than the enemy itself. Xia Lin put his hands in his sleeves, turned around and said to the adjutant general accompanying the army, "When have the elite troops of the Shanhai Pass ever been bullied like this? If Li Jing were still alive, they would have come out to intercept and question us even when we were still a hundred miles outside the pass. But now our army is surrounded outside the pass, and they are still able to remain calm."

The adjutant also laughed out loud: "Not everyone is a military genius."

Looking out over Shanhaiguan, Xia Lin felt that although the pass was magnificent, it was dilapidated. Many places had been smoothed out by the sea wind, and the erosion and mottled walls seemed to tell everyone that it had not been repaired for many years.

Although it is called the main pass, it is obviously inferior to Huangya Pass in terms of the strength and integrity of the pass. Even the city wall is a head shorter, but their annual allocation is five times that of Huangya Pass.

Moreover, they had an important policy compared to Huangyaguan: permanent tax exemption, a benefit that Li Jing earned through his military achievements.

Therefore, their actual annual revenue is much higher than that of Huangyaguan, and can even reach seven to eight times.

But seeing the soldiers on the city wall, who were sparse and mostly old soldiers with graying temples, they were nowhere to be seen as the elite troops of the mountain and sea.

Xia Lin had seen Li Jing and the heroic figures of the Shan Hai Elite Cavalry. At that time, the Shan Hai Elite Cavalry, along with the Po Lu Cavalry and the Xuan Jia Cavalry, were known as the Three Heroes of the World, and were the sharpest spear of the Great Wei.

But now, it's like an elderly person who's terminally ill, whose body has long been hollowed out by disease.

"General, according to intelligence from Huangyaguan, the reported troop strength in Shanhaiguan is 58,000, but the actual number is less than 5,000."

"Where's the horse?"

"The reported number is 13,000, but the actual number is less than 300."

Xia Lin turned to look at the person speaking beside him: "Are they drawing so many salaries without working?"

"There may be more, because I once served under Wang Shichong. After he fled Luoyang, he left behind a force in Xinxiang County. I served in Xinxiang County at that time. Initially, there were 8,000 men, but in just two years, there were only 300 men and 50 horses. Those horses were not horses, but donkeys used for pulling millstones. But the number reported to the court remained unchanged."

"Goodness," Xia Lin laughed at the comment, "That's some serious malice."

"General, look at Shanhaiguan. The walls are full of old men. I'm afraid the five thousand men inside the pass are not enough. Most of them are old and disabled. They are mainly cheap. The young and strong soldiers can't even get three taels of silver a month, while these old men probably can't even get one tael of silver."

Xia Lin laughed at what was said, thinking it was truly absurd. He wondered if Li Jing's spirit in heaven could accept this scene. It was one thing for his son to be incompetent, but the key issue was that his son-in-law really didn't take his business seriously. He was afraid that all these losses had already been transferred to the Pei family's account, and the people of Shanhaiguan would have no chance of benefiting.

"You mean they're not afraid of people knocking on their gates?" Xia Lin asked, turning his head with a smile.

"Don't worry, General. Back then, Shanhaiguan held the area outside the pass in check, so naturally we had to guard against it day and night. But now, the area outside the pass is peaceful and prosperous. Ever since General Ye started letting those natives grow grain there, their lives have improved. Now, when winter comes, they just stay at home eating and drinking. Who would want to come out and risk the wind and snow to plunder? Shanhaiguan has naturally become useless, and over time they have become like this."

The words of the adjutant made Xia Lin fall silent. The decline of Shanhaiguan to this point was probably indeed related to his policies outside the pass, but that was not a reason for them to just keep receiving salaries without working.

It's a pity about the Mountain and Sea Elite Cavalry. Even if they are still officially organized, their military spirit has been shattered. It will take at least five years to rebuild them, and even if they do start over, the Mountain and Sea Elite Cavalry will be gone.

Not long after they set up camp, the gates of Shanhaiguan opened, and Li Jing's son-in-law led a group of people out quickly.

Since they were allies, they felt no pressure opening the door and happily came out to greet Xia Lin.

"Lord Xia, it's been a long time. You're still as dashing as ever."

The son-in-law immediately greeted Xia Lin with a smile and a cupped-hand salute, saying, "It's freezing cold here, why don't you come inside and catch up with us, Lord Xia?"

Xia Lin took a long time to process what he had seen before, but couldn't recall where he had seen this guy before. Could it be that he had seen him when the Great Wei Loli Island was burned down?
However, one shouldn't hit a smiling face, so Xia Lin forced a smile and cupped his hands, saying, "I've not come here to reminisce about old times."

Lord Pei forced a smile that looked more like a grimace and sighed softly, "How could I not know? But I have my own difficulties at the moment. Please, Lord Xia, go through the gate first. Alas... it's not that I'm unwilling, but that I can't."

Xia Lin rolled his eyes, then casually flicked his sleeve: "Please lead the way, Lord Pei."

In truth, Xia Lin wasn't worried that Pei Jun would pull a trap. With the current fighting strength of Shanhaiguan, they couldn't possibly withstand even three thousand peasants, let alone the training regiment. The saying "Born in hardship, die in comfort" was embodied at this moment at Shanhaiguan.

The massive new army marched into Shanhaiguan. It must be said that as an old pass, it was indeed a case of a lean camel being bigger than a horse. Although the facilities inside were old, they were indeed more complete than those at Huangyaguan. The number of goods and inns alone was far beyond what Huangyaguan could match.

However, the common people did not seem to be doing very well. You could clearly see the sorrow on their faces, but those who held official positions were all radiant and full of energy.

Xia Lin saw it all and remembered it all.

No matter how you look at it, the reason why Xia Lin has fought against others for ten years without anyone being able to defeat him is not only because he has troops and supplies, but also because no one can find even the slightest incriminating evidence against him.

What? You're going to frame him with a completely fabricated charge?
Stop joking. Don't you know what era we live in? Whether it's a powerful family, a cultural management group, or the royal family, if they use such an outrageous charge against him, someone will follow the will of Heaven to punish the traitor, and then heroes from all sides will rise up to attack him.

Perhaps no one outside the grasslands truly likes Xia Lin, but he is not only a powerful minister but also an upright minister and a leader of the righteous faction.

This "pure stream" is not the same concept as the "pure stream" of the future Ming Dynasty. The current "pure stream" is not composed of scholars, but heroes like Xu Shiji and his brother-in-law. Some of these people are truly not seeking fame or fortune, but only to be remembered for eternity, and they will help those in need when they see injustice.

The reason why Xia Lin didn't investigate the Jianghu heroes who assassinated him, but instead turned around and went back to deal with the Central Plains forces, was because you could say these people were stupid, but you could never say they were bad.

They may not be the smartest, but they are the last conscience of the nation.

Although these people were divided into different factions and information could not be shared between factions, Xia Lin truly enjoyed an extremely high reputation among the elites.

After all, he was so famous that people already knew exactly how much property he owned. Although his second wife was indeed very wealthy, she was already the head of a top business in Luoyang before marrying Xia Lin. After marrying him, she not only didn't benefit from his wealth but was also constantly restricted. Many of her businesses could only be sold to the government at bargain prices.

Xia Lin himself clearly didn't have a single penny. He neither accepted bribes nor hoarded land, nor owned shops, businesses, private residences, or mines. The only thing that could be considered property was two pairs of high-quality black sheep for breeding that his friends from the grasslands had brought him when they visited him some time ago.

If this is used to attack him, even the attacker himself will be laughed at.

That's the Night Emperor! He's raising two pairs of goats at home and people are accusing him of corruption? Especially since those goats were a gift from a friend.

Therefore, it is extremely difficult to bring down Xia Lin. Being free from desires makes one invincible, and he naturally does not need to bow to anyone. Even after all these years, he is still a powerful fifth-rank official, but even third-rank officials in the court and the public have to bow and call him Lord Xia.

Why is he called that? As long as he doesn't rebel, it's only a matter of time before he becomes one of the Three Dukes.

Pei Jun naturally knew this as well. He was now a fourth-rank military officer in charge of the imperial guards, but when he saw Xia Lin, he could only bow his head politely and call him Lord Xia.

After settling into the camp, Xia Lin followed Pei Jun to the welcoming banquet prepared for him with a cold face. Xia Lin frowned as he looked at the table full of delicacies.

This slight frown was nothing, but it terrified the person next to him who had been watching his expression. Before he could even remind Pei Jun, he stood up and explained, "Lord Xia, please calm down... This is a welcome banquet specially prepared by my young master for Lord Xia. There is no other meaning behind it. The chicken, duck, fish and meat are all raised by our own family. There is no waste of manpower or resources."

Xia Lin snorted and sat down. His aura was so strong that no one dared to breathe loudly, including Pei Jun.

Good heavens, this man is the one who just a few days ago wiped out Yang Ying's 200,000-strong army at Huangya Pass and even cut off Yang Ying's dog head to be the top official in the capital, the one with the apple in his mouth.

The current Shanhaiguan is not to be trifled with; ultimately, we must wait for good news from our own backers in the capital.

The message by carrier pigeon should have arrived by now. Emperor Jingtai is currently on his way back to the capital. If we can stall him for at most twenty days and let him eat, drink, and have fun for twenty days, then everything will be resolved once the imperial edict arrives.

This man defied the imperial decree. It might not be a serious matter for him, but the current situation and struggle in the capital are so intense, with everyone going up and down. This matter is insignificant if it's not weighed out, but if it is, it's a matter of great importance.

"Lord Xia, please calm down. Let me tell you about the hardships I've endured over the years."
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I went to see my son today, but I missed my afternoon train. I didn't get home until after 9 pm. I quickly wrote a chapter, but I'm exhausted. That's all for today.

(End of this chapter)