Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 180 Unparalleled Loyalty and Courage (Bonus Chapter by Silver Alliance Leader Nuanyang1314)

Mu Guiying and Hua Mulan are fictional characters, not recorded in historical records.

Most of the famous women in history are recorded in "Biographies of Exemplary Women".

The only female hero recorded in official history as a famous general, in the biographies of generals and ministers, is Qin Liangyu.

In film and television dramas, Qin Liangyu is portrayed as heroic, beautiful, and agile.

But as you can imagine, such an image is only suitable for the stage, how could it possibly appear on the battlefield?

He was so frail that he probably wouldn't even be able to put on armor if he went to the battlefield.

The Korean envoy Hwang Jung-yoon witnessed Qin Liangyu's elegance in the capital.

His diary entry reads, "Headband, boots, robe, and belt; a man's attire."

"He's about thirty-five or thirty-six years old, wielding two eighty-pound swords, and his imposing presence is quite impressive!"

Qin Liangyu was very tall, even taller than the average man.

He was also very robust and powerful.

After all, someone who can wield an 80-pound weapon while riding a horse must have extremely strong arms.

In the Ming Dynasty, one jin (斤) was 20 percent more expensive than the market jin (斤).

According to the Ming dynasty system, eighty catties is close to one hundred catties, or fifty kilograms.

His imposing stature needs no further explanation.

At this moment, the female general, who was almost the same height as Lin Dao, came to Lin Dao and bowed to express her gratitude.

"I will never forget the kindness of returning my son's ashes."

Qin Liangyu's son, Ma Xianglin, previously guarded Xiangyang City, but was killed by Zhang Xianzhong, the Eighth King, after the city fell.

After Lin Dao defeated Zhang Xianzhong and captured Xiangyang, he found Ma Xianglin, who had been hastily buried, burned his ashes, and sent them to Shizhu.

If too much time passes, the only thing that can be done is to burn it to ashes.

"Because he is your son."

Lin Dao bluntly stated, "He benefited from your influence; otherwise, I wouldn't have bothered to look for him."

"General, there's no need for that." Although she was getting on in years, Qin Liangyu still exuded an extraordinary aura. "I will certainly repay the kindness of my son."

"But I, Qin, am a subject of the Ming Dynasty, and I will never surrender!"

In her view, Lin Daoshi'en was nothing more than an attempt to recruit her.

But she was utterly loyal to the Ming Dynasty and would never serve under anyone else.

"You think too much."

Lin Dao shook his head. "I know your character. I never thought of recruiting you."

"If you were to surrender to someone else, you wouldn't be the unparalleled Qin Liangyu, known for her loyalty and courage!"

Such praise greatly surprised Qin Liangyu. "What is the purpose of the meeting, General?"

"Haha~~~"

Lin Daofang laughed and said, "I just wanted to meet you, this heroine."

He took out a Polaroid camera and gestured, "If you don't mind, could we take a picture?"

"What is this? Could it be some kind of magical artifact?"

Qin Liangyu was somewhat wary.

There are too many strange and unusual things among the local chieftains.

"If I really wanted to harm General Qin, I would have already led a large army to attack and kill him."

Lin Dao twitched his eye. "The soldiers of Shizhu are brave, but they cannot stop my troops' offensive."

"Consider it repayment for the kindness of returning your son's ashes."

Qin Liangyu valued integrity and loyalty, and ultimately agreed.

‘Crack! ’

The photos came out, and Lin Dao looked them over and nodded in satisfaction.

In the Chongzhen era, there were truly very few people that Lin Dao could take seriously.

In his eyes, those so-called celebrities were nothing but clowns.

This world is actually a world where everyone is trying to outdo each other in terms of how bad they are.

There are too many bad people.

Qin Liangyu is one of the few people that Lin Dao takes seriously.

After packing his things, Lin Dao got up and left.

"Commander Lin!" Qin Liangyu exclaimed, utterly bewildered, "He's gone already?"

She came to discuss the future fate of the Shizhu Pacification Commissioner's Office, and that's it?

"All local pacification commissions were abolished, and all were replaced by direct administration."

Lin Dao stopped in his tracks, turned to look at her, and said, "Only your Shizhu Pacification Office can be put on hold for now."

“When you die, the Shizhu Pacification Commission will be abolished and replaced by direct administration.”

Lin Dao walked away, waving goodbye as he did so.

With so many Pacification Commissions, the Tusi (local chieftains) were transferred to the jurisdiction of appointed officials, and each one had to be dealt with individually.

By the time it's the turn of the Shizhu Pacification Commissioner's Office, Qin Liangyu will likely be nearing the end of her life.

Watching Lin Dao leave surrounded by numerous guards, Qin Liangyu frowned.

"What a weirdo."

A moment later, his brow furrowed even more. "Reform the native chieftain system and reinstate the central government."

"Oh~~~"

Under such circumstances, even Qin Liangyu was powerless to resist.

At this time, Lin Dao was far more powerful than the Tartars who entered the pass in history.

Backed by the terrifying production capacity of Industrial Cthulhu, coupled with the Ming Dynasty's incredible population base.

Not to mention the Pacification Commission, even if all the countries in the world were united, they would not be a match for him.

Lin Dao traveled down the river from Chongqing Prefecture to the Jingxiang region.

After a brief stop and inspection, he traveled down the river, passing through Wuchang Prefecture and Jiujiang Prefecture, before finally returning to his loyal city of Jinling.

The Jiangnan region at this time was completely different from the one before Lin Daolai.

The unruly spoiled brats, the corrupt officials, and the wicked scoundrels of the city have all vanished.

The land that was once used to grow large quantities of cash crops has been replanted with grain.

Prices remained stable, and people's living standards improved significantly.

Now only the clan forces that have taken over the villages remain, still hindering progress and development.

Lin Dao wasn't in a hurry. He knew that once the wave of overseas colonization broke out and large-scale emigration began, that would be the time when the clan's power would crumble. If every household went overseas, only a bunch of old men would be left, and what kind of influence could they possibly have?

The troops returned to their respective camps, and they will now take turns getting leave.

They will then take turns replacing Liu Sandao's various battalions in the western expedition to recover the Western Regions.

Upon returning to the mansion, Dong Xiaowan and others, dressed in their finest attire, greeted them.

Lin Dao looked at Dong Xiaowan and said with a smile, "When I'm away fighting, what I miss most is the food you cook."

All the women laughed, and Gu Hengbo, who was the most popular, immediately spoke up, "Wanjun has also been looking forward to the master's return day and night."

"I've been busy preparing in the kitchen these past few days, and I haven't even played mahjong."

Bian Sai added, "In order to research new dishes for the master to try, he injured his fingers several times."

"Oh~~~"

Lin Dao nodded and stepped forward, taking Dong Xiaowan's hand to examine it. Sure enough, there were several scars on her slender, fair fingers.

"Sir, it's alright."

With a shy expression between her brows, Dong Xiaowan took Lin Dao's hand in return and said, "I have prepared some new dishes for you to enjoy, my lord."

"Okay, let's go take a look."

Since Lin Dao didn't live in the palace, he naturally didn't have as many rules.

After he took his seat in the main seat, the women took their seats and sat around him.

Dong Xiaowan gestured to a dish on the table, "My lord, this is a dish I recently made, called Tiger Skin Meat."

"Cut pork with a good balance of fat and lean into chunks, simmer in water until 70% cooked, then fry in oil, and finally braise with soy sauce and sugar."

Lin Dao smiled and said, "The main ingredient is three-layered pork belly."

Upon closer inspection, it resembles braised pork belly, with wrinkled skin that does indeed look somewhat like tiger skin.

Pick up your chopsticks, take a piece, and put it in your mouth.

All the women stared at his mouth.

After a moment, Lin Daoshou, who had swallowed the piece of meat, nodded and said, "It's fatty but not greasy, delicious and fragrant, very good."

"Thanks a lot."

Dong Xiaowan, who had received the praise, was absolutely radiant with beauty.

The other women mostly looked on with envy.

That's just how women are; no matter how good the relationship is, they can't help but feel envious and jealous.

In other words, because Lin Dao was away from home for a long time, the women had nothing to fight over, which is why there was no big commotion.

However, with his return, there will likely be no shortage of open and covert struggles.

As expected.

After rewarding Dong Xiaowan with several meals that evening, the women each displayed their unique charms in front of Lin Dao.

Playing the zither, singing Southern opera, acting, painting, writing, playing chess, having heart-to-heart talks, traveling, and so on.

Without a doubt, Gu Hengbo was the most skilled.

Lin Dao was working on official documents in her study when she brought her some white fungus porridge that she had cooked herself.

This is nothing, of course.

But Gu Hengbo donned her battle armor and began performing a squatting dance in front of Lin Dao~~~
This squatting motion completely took away the time Lin Dao had to process official documents.

Gu Hengbo didn't touch the white fungus porridge, but she left with her eyes as clear as autumn water, having eaten and drunk her fill.

The women all had their own maids to gather information.

What happened in the study quickly spread among the women.

Almost simultaneously, Chen Yuanyuan and the others began sewing their own battle robes.

At the same time, he sought out Gu Hengbo and begged her to teach him the squatting dance.

Gu Hengbo was generous and chivalrous, and he taught without reservation.

In the days that followed, Lin Dao was able to enjoy different versions of the squatting dance every day.

They were living a very comfortable life.

But Lin Dao did not become obsessed with it.

It's fine to use it occasionally for a change of pace, but if you become addicted and can't extricate yourself, then you're doing a disservice to your time-traveling abilities.

"General, more and more people from Fujian, Guangdong, Guangxi and Yunnan are heading north."

“The remnants of the Ming dynasty blocked roads in various places, and there were frequent incidents of killing and persecuting civilians.”

The Ming Dynasty has perished, but there are still places in the south that still use the Ming Dynasty's name.

They supported the royal family members who had fled south and continued to be hostile to Lin Dao.

These remaining forces continued the traditions of the Ming Dynasty.

They ruthlessly exploit the people; even the heavens themselves cannot fully describe their greed.

The lives of people in various places were filled with unspeakable suffering.

In contrast, the standard of living under Lin Dao's rule steadily improved, making it a veritable paradise.

The people chose to vote with their feet, trying every means to flee north to Lin Dao's jurisdiction.

The Ming government, naturally unwilling to let these pigs and sheep escape, blocked the roads and arrested the escapees.

Following the customs of the Ming Dynasty officials, they plundered the wealth of the fleeing people and sold the captured people to obtain money.

Many people even made a fortune from it.

"I originally planned to wait until all the battalions had finished their rest and reorganization before heading south."

Lin Dao rubbed his temples and instructed, "In that case, order the garrison battalions of the Southern Zhili and Huguang prefectures to each select a captain to reorganize the battalion commanders and divide the troops into two routes to march south."

"The troops from various prefectures in Huguang went down to Guangxi, entered Yunnan, and finally went to Burma."

Lin Dao deeply resented the historical tragedy of the cursed waters.

How the people of the Central Plains kill each other is their own business.

How dare this tiny, insignificant country resort to underhanded tactics!
What a courage!
"Order them to go to Myanmar and clean it up!"

Lin Dao took a breath and continued to give instructions.

"The troops from various prefectures in Southern Zhili assembled in Nanjing."

"I personally led the team down to Fujian and then to Lingnan."

After thinking for a moment, Lin Dao instructed again, "Arrange for Zhao Zhilong to be the envoy to go to Fujian to find Zheng Zhilong."

"Have him inform Zheng Zhilong."

"XiXi Wu Zhe, Wei Junjie~"

(End of this chapter)