New and dark light years

Chapter 398 The World is Full of Rebels

Li Lin didn't want anyone else to know about the Spirit Pearl.

He could ensure that he would not deliberately create Gu people because of spiritual energy, and that the Gu people would not absorb the blood and energy of living people.

I wouldn't consider raising them.

But he couldn't guarantee that others wouldn't think the same way.

After all... the pursuit of power is paramount and the sole objective for many.

They'll do anything for power.

An Xin nodded and said, "Since Brother Li doesn't intend to destroy Tianyi Sect, then I'll rebuild it."

"Remember to hand over half of Tianyi Sect's property to the government army camp; this is already a preferential treatment for you."

“I understand,” An Xin nodded.

Li Lin nodded slightly, then turned and left.

The dozen or so people who survived here were all looking at him with fear and resentment.

Li Lin led his troops to retreat.

He instructed the captain to treat the wounded first, and then returned to the government army camp on his own.

He then rode his horse to the government office to hand over the duties.

Sitting in the courtroom, Huang Yan listened to Li Lin recount the events. He stroked his beard and sighed softly, saying, "Tianyi Sect is, after all, a righteous martial arts sect that has been operating in this county for a hundred years. I never expected that it would be tainted with evil intentions at this time, and that all the higher-ups would be like this. It is truly pitiful and lamentable."

“The Gu people coming from Yue County are indeed quite troublesome. Should we seal off the border between the two counties and prohibit people from traveling between the two places?” Li Lin asked.

“That works.” Huang Yan nodded. “I’ll leave this to you…”

"no problem."

As the garrison commander of Jin County, Li Lin was qualified to put forward his political views on military matters.

After leaving the government office, Li Lin rode his horse to Green Mountain Pass.

Now he finally has time to come and take a look.

At this time, Green Mountain Pass was guarded by nearly two thousand soldiers.

The person in charge is Su Bei.

I spend most of my time in the Green Mountain Valley in northern Jiangsu, but I do go home for four days each month to reunite with my mother and wife.

Upon seeing Li Lin, Su Bei's eyes lit up immediately. He trotted over to help Li Lin take the horse, and said with a smile, "Godfather, you've come!"

Li Lin nodded, and upon arriving at the mountain gate, he dismounted and asked, "How is the situation?"

"Very good, the rice ears are all very full. I estimate that the rice will be ripe in about ten days."

Li Lin quickly went into the mountains to investigate.

Just as Su Bei had said, the rice in this acre of spiritual field grew heavy ears of rice, some of which even had a slight yellow tinge.

Upon seeing Li Lin, an old soldier jogged over and bowed, saying, "This humble one greets Your Excellency."

Li Lin asked, "I remember you're from the same hometown who's in charge of the spirit fields here. How's the situation?"

"Please rest assured, sir. We may not be very good at fighting, but we are definitely experts at farming," the old man said confidently. "Besides, we have two hundred people here. With so many people tending to one acre of land, there is absolutely no problem."

Generally speaking, one farmer can take care of one acre of land. Having two hundred people watching over it at the same time is indeed meticulous care.

Li Lin smiled and said, "I will come again after the rice is ripe. Everyone will be rewarded then."

The old soldier said happily, "Thank you, sir, thank you, sir."

Li Lin walked around the vicinity of Lingtian for a while, and then left.

He returned home and began cultivating while quietly waiting for the spiritual field to mature.

On the fifth day, he heard some shocking news.

Another rebellion has broken out in Xiang County.

When Li Lin received the official gazette from the post station, his first reaction was surprise, but then he felt it was quite normal.

The world is in chaos now, especially after the red mist appeared. The dark side of this world feels even darker. It would be strange if those ambitious people didn't take the opportunity to start a rebellion.

However, after reading the official gazette, his expression became somewhat indescribable.

Because he had even 'seen' the rebels; it was Zhang Zouzhi.

That was the rebel leader who fled from Rong County. He actually succeeded in rebelling in Xiang County. After killing the county magistrate, he gathered a thousand followers and captured seven counties in succession. Moreover, he shouted the slogan: Join the righteous army and you will have plenty of food. Kill the gentry and distribute the land and grain.

Because of this slogan, followers flocked to him, and now he has an army of seventy to eighty thousand.

Although they were all peasant soldiers, their numbers should not be underestimated.

Moreover, he is still on the offensive, and it is estimated that it will be only a matter of time before he completely takes over Xiangcheng.

After reading it, Li Lin chuckled to himself, speechless: "What are these officials in Xiang County good for?!"

He tossed the official gazette aside and then said to Hongluan, "I'm going to the county government office to change my clothes."

Hongluan immediately went inside to find official robes and helped Li Lin change into them.

Every time she saw Li Lin in his official robes, her eyes would light up with longing.

When Li Lin arrived at the county government office, Jiang Jili and Wen Bi were already waiting there.

"County Commandant, I suppose you've already seen the official gazette sent by the imperial court?" Jiang Jili asked.

Li Lin nodded slightly.

Wen Bi sighed, "This world is in chaos... There are already three rebellions in the surrounding counties."

Jiang Jili remained silent; in his view, this was only a matter of time.

In other words, under Huang Yan's governance, Jin County was relatively clean and honest, and the people of Jin County lived relatively well, which is why there was not so much resentment.

"What are your thoughts?" Li Lin asked.

Jiang Jili snorted: "What ideas could they possibly have... Let them rebel if they want, anyway the court won't have the time to suppress them. That's all."

Li Lin shook his head and said, "Not necessarily... The current emperor can tolerate two counties rebelling, but now that a third county has rebelled, he probably won't be able to bear it any longer. With three of the four largest grain-producing counties in the country rebelling, it will be very difficult for the court to collect grain taxes this year. The people in the court will be anxious." Wen Bi nodded.

Jiang Jili thought for a moment and said, "You're right."

"So what can we gain from this?"

Li Lin sighed, "I estimate that at that time, our Jin County will be ordered to send troops."

Are you willing to send troops?

"Give me the title of military governor of Cangwu Road, give me enough money and provisions, and give me the power to recruit soldiers, and I will dare to send troops." Li Lin smiled.

Wen Bi said admiringly, "The county magistrate is truly righteous."

Jiang Jili smiled, his eyes showing understanding... and a strange sense of agreement.

He vaguely understood what Li Lin wanted.

Li Lin's guess was correct.

The imperial court is now in an uproar over the rebellion in Xiang County.

Emperor Zhu Jing's face was gloomy. He slammed his left hand heavily on the armrest of the dragon throne, making a muffled sound: "First Yue County rebelled, then the border troops rebelled, and after the border troops rebelled, it was Xiang County's turn... What are the local officials doing? Are they waiting for Xiang County to be followed by Yu County, then Shan County, and finally the capital... Is there no one left to rebel against?"

None of the ministers dared to speak.

Privy Councilor Liu Song stepped forward, holding a jade tablet, and said, “Your Majesty, Xiangjun is an important grain-producing area. We must reclaim it as soon as possible, otherwise next year… we will not be able to gather enough provisions for our troops.”

Zhu Jing angrily said, "Take it back, take it back... Is it that I don't want to take it back? It's that you don't want to take it back."

The ministers remained silent.

Liu Song said, "Your Majesty has misunderstood us. Your subject is willing to lead troops to punish the rebels in Xiang County."

"Why not go and deal with the Qin rebels in Yue County?" Zhu Jing questioned.

"Your humble servant does not possess such ambition," Liu Song said, lowering his eyes.

"You are the Privy Councilor!" Zhu Jing pointed at Liu Song and cursed.

"Your humble servant may resign from this post."

Zhu Jing was so angry that the veins on his forehead bulged. Then he pressed his chest and gasped for breath.

At this moment, an old eunuch rushed over and said, "Your Majesty, take your medicine..."

He took a pill from the porcelain bottle and put it into the emperor's mouth.

Zhu Jing swallowed it, and after a while, his complexion gradually returned to normal.

He then waved his hand and said, "Court is adjourned... You can discuss this privately and come up with a solution. I need to hear a concrete solution tomorrow, otherwise... some of you can expect to retire and return to your hometowns."

His gaze swept over several ministers.

Then he got up and returned to the inner palace.

Arriving at the familiar Empress's quarters, but not seeing Empress Mu Wan'er, they asked a palace maid, "Where has the Empress gone?"

"Her Majesty the Empress is admiring the lotus flowers at Qinghua Pond."

Zhu Jing was immediately displeased. With the world in such chaos, it was truly inappropriate for the Empress to indulge in such leisurely pursuits.

He was displeased and extremely annoyed. Unconsciously, he thought of a certain confidante and said, "Prepare the carriage for the Cold Palace. I want to visit Consort Yourong."

When Zhu Jing arrived at the Cold Palace, he did not see Consort Rong enjoying herself, but instead saw her sweeping the courtyard with a broom, with several palace maids standing beside her.

"emperor!"

When Consort You Rong saw Zhu Jing, she put down the broom she was holding and immediately ran over, asking happily, "Have you come to visit me?"

Zhu Jing glanced at the palace maids around her and asked with displeasure, "Are these servants bullying you? How dare they make a noble concubine like you sweep the floor?"

The palace maids were so frightened that they knelt down on the ground and dared not refute.

Consort You Rong nestled against Zhu Jing and gently explained, "No, it's just that I'm quite idle in the Cold Palace, so I'm sweeping the courtyard to pass the time."

"Wouldn't that hurt my beloved concubine's hand?" Zhu Jing said with great concern.

"Your Majesty is joking. I come from a poor family and have been doing this since I was a child. How could I hurt my hands?"

"Let me see."

Zhu Jing examined Consort You Rong's palm and found that there were no calluses, which put his mind at ease.

He then carefully examined the woman before him and found that she had straight, beautiful hair and even her complexion was much better than before, with skin as smooth as jade. He then asked, "My beloved concubine seems to have grown a little younger recently."

Consort Yourong smiled and said, "I recently obtained some youth-preserving pills, and they are quite effective."

Zhu Jing knew about the Youth-Preserving Pill...

There were few things happening in the palace that he didn't know about; many concubines, including the Empress, were eating there.

He just felt that only women needed the anti-aging pill, not men.

"It seems to have some effect." Zhu Jing nodded and said, "My dear consort, let's go to our room and rest."

Consort Yourong blushed slightly and nodded shyly.

Then, in less than half an incense stick's time... Zhu Jing surrendered.

He sat on the edge of the bed, somewhat dejected, and fell silent.

At this moment, Consort Rong looked at him and whispered, "I have another rare medicine here that can restore a man's virility. It is extremely powerful."

"Really? What's your name?"

"Strengthening Pills."

Zhu Jing had heard of this name before, and hesitated for a moment upon hearing it... He didn't really believe in elixirs from outside sources, only in the immortal pills refined by the highly accomplished masters he had invited.

But looking at Consort Rong's beautiful and fair body, he nodded: "Then let's give it a try."

Such a stunning beauty... he was willing to believe that she wouldn't harm him.

(End of this chapter)