New and dark light years

Chapter 526 Li Lin Wants to 'Open a Course'

The business atmosphere in Jin County has been very strong lately.

It was exceptionally bustling.

The most important reason was the distribution of a large amount of compensation and rewards.

Even the lowest-ranking soldiers received large sums of silver, not to mention many mid-level officials.

These people are the main consumers.

The first thing the soldiers did after receiving the money was to buy land, houses, furniture, and so on.

It is also accompanied by behaviors such as eating, drinking, gambling, and prostitution.

The rewards Li Lin distributed were quite generous—just how generous?

So much so that many soldiers subconsciously thought this was their life-risking money, a resettlement allowance, and that they were about to do something that would guarantee their survival.

But to my surprise, it was just a simple post-war reward.

On the third floor of Fugui Building, Jiang Jili was hosting a banquet for more than a dozen of his trusted subordinates.

In terms of food and drink culture, Jin County is not as good as the Central Plains region, and naturally it is even less so than the capital city.

Overall, the dishes tasted alright, and it was nice to have something new to eat.

The group ate and chatted about romantic and trivial matters.

When people drink too much, they become more outspoken.

Finally, a young official, his face flushed from drinking, suddenly said, "Secretary Zhang, don't you think this is unfair?"

All eyes turned to the young official.

Jiang Jili asked with a smile, "Chief Song, what are your thoughts?"

This young official, named Song Jing, was from a minor aristocratic family affiliated with the Jiang family. His family sent him to Jin County to serve as an official.

This is essentially a form of speculation.

Now, many powerful families across the land have begun to place their bets on Li Lin.

Of course, it's not the kind of all-in betting; rather, they send one or two promising members from different families, who aren't the absolute best.

Because he was considered one of their own, Chiang Chi-li took good care of the young man.

Song Jing put down his wine glass and hiccuped: "Secretary, why are we only rewarded half as much as the military officers? I'm not satisfied!"

As soon as he said that, everyone looked at him.

In fact, this is already an open secret among civil servants.

A difference of half the reward is a very large number.

Jiang Jili's smile faded slightly: "You mean, you want to get the same credit as your colleagues who are fighting on the front lines without doing anything?"

"The secretary should not worry about scarcity, but about inequality," the young man said, clasping his hands in a fist salute.

The others remained silent, but often, silence itself is a form of support.

“This is not something I can decide.” Jiang Jili’s smile disappeared: “If you feel it’s unfair, then starting tomorrow, you will report to the government army camp and start as a captain.”

Song Jing was startled. He stood up abruptly, his face flushed red. "Secretary, I'm not a martial artist... I..."

"No need to say anything more. When you have this idea, you should go and stay in the government army camp for a few years."

Song Jing's drunkenness was quickly subsiding, and then his face gradually turned pale.

Jiang Jili ignored him and looked at the people around him, asking, "Does everyone share this view?"

"No, I am very satisfied."

"This humble official was drunk and does not know what Inspector Song said just now!"

"I would never have such a thought."

A group of people quickly distanced themselves from the situation.

Song Jing looked at them, his face trembling with anger.

As previously agreed, he would start by advising the chief secretary, and then leverage the relationship between the chief secretary and the military governor to achieve their goals.

Unexpectedly, he was the only one who stood up, while the others were all cowards.

Looking at this group of people, Jiang Jili sighed and said, "The matter hasn't even been accomplished yet, and you're already vying for credit and rewards. No wonder the military governor always says in private that civil officials can't accomplish anything. Looking at you now, even I feel ashamed."

At this point, he shook his head helplessly.

The group's expressions turned even uglier.

At this point, the atmosphere in the room had become very cold.

Jiang Jili poured himself a glass of wine, looked at the lively night scene outside, and said, "Let's stop drinking here, everyone, go home."

The officials immediately stood up, bowed, and took their leave.

Song Jing was the last to get up. He looked at Jiang Jili, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

Jiang Jili didn't even glance at him.

Left with no other choice, Song Jing could only leave in a sorry state.

The door closed again, and Jiang Jili poured himself a glass of wine and placed it opposite him.

Not long after, the door was reopened and Li Lin walked in.

"Is this what you wanted me to see?" Li Lin sat down, took a sip of wine, and asked with a smile.

Looking at Li Lin's relaxed expression, Jiang Jili asked, "Governor, don't you feel... resentful?"

Li Lin chuckled softly and said, "I expected this to happen, so it's not surprising."

Jiang Jili looked at him, frowning deeply: "The military governor knew all along that these people would..."

“That’s normal. All the officials come from aristocratic families. There are very few who rose from poverty. If I had to name one, Wen Tongpan would be an exception.” Li Lin chuckled. “Although Wen Tongpan isn’t as good at his job as you, once he makes up his mind, he will do his job well. Most aristocratic scions are only concerned with their own small interests. It’s not surprising.”

"But if things continue like this, they won't get things done..."

Li Lin waved his hand: "I plan to recruit officials in Tianjin, Guangxi and Hunan, and set up certain assessments."

"You're going to...start a course?" Jiang Jili looked somewhat surprised, then lowered his voice.

Simply appointing subordinates was indeed a privilege of the military governor.

But those are usually... selected from scholars who have already achieved official rank.

If Li Lin were to conduct another 'assessment,' it would be tantamount to holding an imperial examination, a power reserved only for the central government.

Li Lin laughed and said, "Many poor scholars who failed the imperial examinations are waiting for such an opportunity. The disciples of aristocratic families are too arrogant. It's time to give them some competition."

"Won't this discourage the powerful families of the world?"

Li Lin smiled and said, "So what if you're disheartened? Families... rise and fall. Every family with a name has ancestors who were once prominent!"

"When does the military governor plan to take care of this matter?"

"The sooner the better, I'll leave it to you to handle." Li Lin smiled and said, "Just give me a report if you need any assistance."

Jiang Jili took a deep breath: "Sir, you're putting me on the hot seat."

“This is inevitable,” Li Lin said with a smile. “The powerful families are ultimately too dominant, which is not good.”

Jiang Jili couldn't help but laugh and said, "But you, sir, also come from a distinguished family."

"I'm not!"

“The Li family is not from a poor family.”

Li Lin shook his head helplessly; he couldn't escape the fact that he was a descendant of the Li family of Jin County.

……

Meanwhile, on an island in the East China Sea.

A huge training ground.

A girl in white is practicing martial arts.

Several streaks of azure light swirled around her, then merged into a single stream of light.

As the sound of something cutting through the air ceased, the streak of light transformed into a pale blue longsword. Seeing that she had stopped practicing martial arts, a maid immediately brought her a towel.

The girl was quite pretty. After casually wiping her face with a towel, she asked, "What are we having for dinner today?"

"Small yellow croaker, cuttlefish porridge, and oysters."

"Isn't there any chicken?" the girl asked with a look of disgust.

"No..." the maid said with a smile, "Those old hens are still needed to lay eggs."

The girl said unhappily, "Eating too much seafood makes me smell fishy all over, and I have to drink bitter medicine every day to get rid of it... I want to eat chicken, or pork if there's no lamb."

"Pork has a gamey smell."

"I heard that being castrated makes you less slutty."

The maid chuckled, "Miss, our place is small. If we raise black pigs for meat, it will make the island stink. I've heard that the droppings of those black pigs are particularly smelly."

"Okay..." the girl said helplessly.

Just then, another maid ran over, panting, and said, "Second Miss, the Madam wants you to go to the council room immediately; it's urgent."

"What's the emergency...?"

Despite her complaints, the girl quickly left the training ground.

The council chamber wasn't far from here, and a group of men in black robes stood outside.

“Black Guard…” the girl was quite surprised.

She walked past the man in black robes without looking to the side, then pushed open the door and went in. She saw her mother sitting in the main seat, with her uncles and elders sitting in two rows around her.

And standing in the middle was someone she knew very well.

Lianxin, the elder brother's close attendant.

The door closed, and the room immediately darkened, creating a sinister atmosphere.

"Hong'er, come stand next to your mother."

The girl nodded, walked past Lianxin, and stood behind the woman.

"Alright, everyone's here now." The woman spoke gently, with an air of nobility: "Lianxin, you can speak frankly about what you need to say."

Lianxin bowed slightly and said, "Madam, the young master sent me here to conduct a thorough investigation of everyone in the family, from top to bottom."

"What do you mean?" the woman frowned.

Lianxin's beautiful face showed a hint of helplessness: "The Zhu family's dogs have already arrived at the seaside. The young master suspects that there is a traitor among us."

These words caused an uproar among the surrounding crowd.

After they argued for a while, the woman raised her voice: "Quiet down... There's a traitor? Then the investigation should start from the bottom up. What do you mean by 'from top to bottom'? Do you mean I have to be investigated too?"

Lianxin said coldly, "That's what the young master ordered."

The woman's eyes revealed helplessness: "There's nothing wrong with investigating me, a mere woman, but Hong'er has never stepped out of the island, and you want to investigate her too?"

Lianxin nodded: "Young Master said that not a single person can be spared."

At this moment, a middle-aged man stood up and pointed at Lianxin, cursing, "Does he want to investigate us uncles and elders too?"

“Everyone!” Lianxin repeated once more.

“We’ve watched Xiao Feng grow up. He would never be so unreasonable as to suspect us uncles.” The middle-aged man pointed at Lianxin and said, “It must be you, you wretched servant, who falsely claimed to be Xiao Feng’s message and came here specifically to target us.”

Lianxin looked at the middle-aged man and said, "Second Uncle, why are you so agitated? Are you a traitor?"

"You dare to slander me? I'll beat you to death!"

The middle-aged man was immediately enraged and was about to rush over, but was quickly pulled back by someone next to him.

Lianxin snorted: "The Black Guards are outside. They only listen to the young master. Second Uncle, if you keep making a scene like this, you'll become a prime suspect."

Upon hearing the word 'Black Guard,' fear flashed in the middle-aged man's eyes. He then snorted and sat down.

The woman sitting in the main seat rubbed her temples and said, "Alright, let's investigate then. How should we investigate?"

“The Black Guards have their own methods.” Lianxin looked at the woman and said, “Please, Madam, go to the Wenxin Room first.”

Upon hearing this, everyone's expression changed.

The girl named 'Hong'er' finally couldn't hold back any longer and jumped out, saying, "Lianxin, have you lost your mind? Anyone could be a traitor, but my mother could never be one."

Lianxin pursed her lips and said, "This is what the young master requested."

The woman looked somewhat hurt: "Feng'er doesn't even trust his own mother!"

"Please, madam, go first..."

"I'll treat you to a beating first, then we'll talk."

The girl standing behind the woman finally couldn't hold back any longer. She drew her long sword and rushed over in a blur.

Lianxin also carried a sword, and the two immediately engaged in combat.

The two swordsmen used almost identical techniques, transforming into two streaks of light that moved with incredible speed.

After a series of clashing swords, the girl let out a muffled groan and staggered back more than ten steps.

She received a slap on the shoulder from Lianxin.

"Second Miss, please don't make things difficult for me."

"You still know you're a slave!" the girl shouted.

“Lianxin has always known.”

"Then why do you still dare to devour your master!"

"I am merely the young master's servant."

Upon hearing this, the girl stomped her foot angrily.

"Hong'er, step back. Even if it's Feng'er's order, I will go."

Having said that, the woman stood up.

The men standing nearby all had grim expressions.

Several people had their eyes gleaming with desire, but seeing Lianxin standing in the middle radiating coldness, no one dared to make a move.

The woman left the room and was taken away by several women dressed in black robes, while Lianxin stood at the door holding a long sword.

He has an aura that says "keep away."

The girl rubbed her shoulder. She knew that Lianxin had gone easy on her, but... she was still unhappy.

Not long after, the woman returned, her face pale and her steps unsteady.

The girl quickly helped her to a chair and asked, "Mother, did those Black Guards use mind-searching on you?"

The woman bit her lip and nodded gently. Although she was a woman, she still gave people a feeling of being lovable.

The girl was so angry that her lips were trembling.

"Lianxin, you've gone too far. Mother isn't a martial artist, and she's in poor health, yet you had someone use mind-searching techniques on her!"

"The young master's order."

"You!" the girl couldn't help but shout angrily, "How could you do this, brother!"

“Hong’er, don’t blame your elder brother.” The woman took a deep breath and said, “He’s doing this because things must have become very urgent.”

"No matter how urgent it is, you shouldn't be subjected to a heart search..."

Lianxin interrupted the girl at this moment: "Second Miss, it's your turn."

The girl's eyes widened: "I've never even left the island, and you want me too!"

Lianxin nodded: "Since Madam is in such a state, there's no reason for you to avoid it."

"Fine, fine, fine!" The girl's face turned red with anger. "When my brother comes back, I'm going to ask him what exactly made him so heartless, distrustful of his family, and willing to harm Mother's health just to do this!"

The girl spoke words of hatred as she prepared to go out for a heart search.

But at this moment, a middle-aged man suddenly said coldly, "Sister-in-law, you don't need to put on an act anymore. It seems that we, your brothers, uncles, and patriarchs, have become an eyesore to you, haven't we? If you want to kick us out of the house, just say so. There's no need for this pretense."

(End of this chapter)