Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 336 An Old Friend Visits in the Capital
"The Puppet Emperor~"

"You fucking deserve to die!"

Walking on the land of Yanyun, Lin Dao's eyes were filled with anger.

On this land, one can no longer see any figures dressed in Han clothing.

As far as the eye could see, all the people there were dressed as barbarians, their bodies reeking of mutton.

Since setting off from Juyong Pass towards Dadu, many Mongols have been captured along the way.

They were supposed to be disposed of, but these people started speaking in the Mongolian language, saying they were all Han Chinese.

After repeated confirmations, some even found their family genealogies, which were in terrible condition, in their dilapidated homes.

"They've been forced to wear their robes with the left side overlapping the right, and they can't even properly say they've become Sinicized; they've become completely nomadic."

"How is this any different from those Han Chinese children who were captured and enslaved on the plateau?"

"Your Majesty, if I ever have the chance to go to your time, I will skin you alive!"

Such things also happen in the Hexi Corridor, but they are definitely not as serious as they are in Youzhou.

Four hundred years, a full four hundred years~
This period of time is long enough for the world to change drastically. Generations of men and women from Yan and Zhao who lived under the brutal rule of the barbarians suffered terribly.

After being ruled by the barbarians for four hundred years, these Han Chinese have been reduced to their current state, and Lin Dao feels nothing but sorrow.

The land of Yan and Zhao, home to heroes of great courage and tragic heroism, and fierce generals like Zhang Fei, has unexpectedly become...
A raging fire burned within Lin Dao's heart.

"No wonder Zhu Di wanted to move the capital."

"If we don't move the capital, how can we change things!"

"They've become two different species!"

"And you're giving them preferential treatment?!"

In the days that followed, verifying identities became an extremely important matter.

Features include inner canthus, shovel-shaped teeth, high cheekbones and low nasal root, single eyelids and mild body odor.

We used every available method to carefully distinguish between them.

Of course, some of these are difficult to confirm.

Lin Dao chose to let it go temporarily rather than cause any harm.

Arrange for the Han Chinese youths in the Yan-Yun region to carry out sanitation and cleanup first.

The barbers, wielding razors, shaved the heads of all the Han Chinese men.

This is true for both men and women.

Not far away, a large number of stoves were boiling water.

A large pot of water was boiling, and the rescue team, wearing masks, added chlorhexidine gluconate solution, potassium permanganate solution, and other ingredients to the pot according to the specified ratio.

Then the curtain was drawn, and the men and women who had shaved their heads were called to line up separately to take a bath.

Use a brush to scrub off clumps of dirt.

As for their tattered clothes, they piled them up and burned them along with the shaved hair.

As the flames burned, crackling sounds emanated from within.

These are fleas in the hair and on the clothes, which were burned by the flames.

These days, there aren't many rats anymore.

After all, even rats have meat during a famine.

But fleas won't work, they don't have meat.

Although small, this thing is an important channel for the spread of plague.

At this time, the spread of the plague in the capital city was largely due to fleas.

Next, the person who had changed into new clothes began taking deworming medication.

“So sweet~”

"Is this candy?"

Those pagoda-shaped candies tasted quite good.

This is just the beginning. In the days to come, they will carry out more disease prevention and control measures, including administering smallpox vaccines.

When eating, we still follow the principle of nourishing the stomach first, and mainly drink porridge.

After a period of time, the amount of food will be gradually increased.

And it ranged from thin porridge to dry porridge, and even to dishes with oil and meat.

After that, they were registered as households and given land.

The standards are all the same; each household can be allocated 100 mu of land.

If it is a large family, it will be divided as much as possible, and the families will be settled in places at least a hundred miles apart.

It wasn't that Lin Dao was heartless; it was purely to prevent local clans from becoming too powerful and oppressing the good people.

This is just the beginning.

As they continue to expand outwards and conquer land after land, they will carry out large-scale immigration.

Those with larger families are the top choices for immigration.

Having finished these initial tasks, Lin Dao finally turned his attention to the capital city.

At this time, the capital city was experiencing a terrible internal strife.

The struggle between the parties is no longer simply a power struggle within the imperial court; it has become a fight for survival.

Soldiers were fighting each other on the streets of the city, even in broad daylight.

Because the "Iron Pot Emperor" hesitated to make a decision, his escape route was blocked.

Empress Qi and the Crown Prince's faction seized the opportunity to try to remove him from power.

Richard Khan, having misjudged the Red Turban Army's actions and missed the opportunity to leave the pass, led his army in several breakout attempts, only to be repelled each time. As a result, his prestige plummeted, and he found it increasingly difficult to maintain complete control over his troops.

In order to seize grain, the Han army, led by local landlords, gradually began to turn into beasts.

The Kheshig troops and imperial guards within the city also followed suit.

Han Chinese, Mongol, Semu people, Tibetans, and even Indians, etc.

Hundreds of thousands of soldiers, along with the main noble forces of the Yuan court, were concentrated in this small city, which was short of food and even plagued by an outbreak of disease.

An incompetent emperor, an ambitious empress, and a general who has lost his prestige.

While the Red Turban Army outside the city had not yet attacked, the city itself was already in complete chaos.

That night, Lin Dao was reviewing a plan regarding the conversion of several pastures in the Yan Yun region back to farmland.

Lan Yu went inside to report.

“My Lord, someone in the city dropped a basket, saying that he is an old friend of Your Lordship and has come to request an audience.”

"Old friend?"

Lin Dao stroked his chin. "I have some old friends in Dadu." "Bring him in."

Before long, after a thorough search, Hassansha was brought into the main tent.

"Oh it's you."

Upon seeing this person, Lin Dao chuckled, "Indeed, it's an old friend."

When Jia Lu was in charge of river management, he contracted the logistics supply, but he embezzled a large amount of money, which aroused public anger and indirectly promoted the Red Turban Rebellion.

"Greetings, Your Highness, the King of Light!"

Hassansa is very intelligent and speaks multiple languages.

They immediately showered him with praise and flattery, throwing it all out like it was free.

They even claimed that Lin Dao was the reincarnation of King David.

Lin Dao put down his pen and nodded, saying, "Get to the point."

"Your Highness, the King of Light~"

Hassansa bowed and said, "Hassansa is willing to help you seize this city made of gold."

“You only need to pay a small fee,” he gestured with his hand, “to obtain this golden city described by Marco Polo.”

"Oh?"

Lin Dao raised his eyelids. "So confident?"

"Your Highness, the King of Light~"

Hassansa bent her waist deeply, yet still refused to kneel. "I have bribed a general guarding the city gate with a large sum of money."

"Once the agreed time is set, he will open the city gates and let your brave and invincible army into the city, then this golden city will be yours."

Lin Dao smiled silently, "But the city is so lively right now, I don't want to go in yet."

Hassansa stood up in surprise, "How did you know?"

"You're not the only one who wants to place bets with me."

Lin Dao shook his head. "Besides, they won't ask me for any payment."

Hassansa showed no shame whatsoever.

He reiterated sincerely, "Your generosity is known to all."

“I offered you a city of gold in exchange for a meager reward; this is your generosity.”

He then changed the subject, saying, "Although the city is in chaos, there will always be a time when a victor emerges."

"By then, it will be very troublesome and you will suffer considerable losses if you want to attack the city again."

“You now have an opportunity to obtain the City of Gold without shedding the blood and lives of warriors.”

"Even if it's just for the sake of your warriors, you shouldn't refuse my kindness."

Lin Dao was still smiling, but his smile was somewhat cold.

This guy is indeed smart, but he's also incredibly stupid.

Even at this point, they still haven't forgotten to ask for benefits. Do they still think they're on a river control construction site?
"I spent all my savings to bribe the general guarding the city."

Hassan continued babbling on, "I've done so much for you, you can't just ignore it!"

"Okay."

Lin Dao gestured for him to stop talking such meaningless nonsense.

Lin Dao tapped the table and instructed, "In that case, let's agree to open the city gates and enter the city three days from now."

"As for the benefits you want."

Lin Dao looked at him meaningfully and said, "As long as you can hold on until dawn, you will definitely not be shortchanged."

Hassansa was overjoyed. "Your Highness, I will go back and make preparations immediately."

After this last job, I'll take my fortune back to my distant hometown and live a wonderful life.

"Wait a minute." Staring at the little hat on his head, Lin Dao asked, "Are you a land squid person?"

Hassansa seemed a little confused. "Yes~"

"do not have much left."

Lin Dao waved his hand. "Go."

As Hassansa reached the entrance of the main tent, Lin Dao's voice drifted over.

The golden city described by Marco Polo was Shangdu, not Dadu.

"idiot!"

After the news spread, generals from all sides came forward to volunteer for the battle.

The generals argued fiercely over who would be the first to enter the city, and almost came to blows.

"When did I ever issue a military order to attack the city?"

Lin Dao's words stunned everyone.

Then Li Shanchang took the initiative to play the straight man, saying, "That inside man~"

"Bullshit inside man."

Lin Dao replied with a composed expression, "He's just a greedy fool."

"I was just messing with him."

"Now, the capital city is filled with Mongol royals, imperial relatives, Semu lackeys, Han nobles, landlords and powerful families, northern clans, tribal nobles, imperial guards, Kheshig troops, and so on."

"It can be said that all our enemies are concentrated in the capital city."

At this point, Lin Dao couldn't help but laugh.

"Moreover, they are killing each other, and they are having a great time killing each other."

"If that's the case, why rush into the city and force them to unite against a common enemy?"

"Let them keep killing, until the sky darkens and everyone dies."

"Now is not the time to attack the city."

His conversation changed.

"As for that land squid, we can use it to incite even more brutal and fierce infighting within the city."

"Luo Guanzhong," Lin Dao instructed, "write a letter, the kind that sows discord."

"Three days later, on the night of the next day, go to another city gate and shoot into the city."

"Write something that will incite conflict, so that the city's factions will distrust each other and engage in mass killings!"

He added in his mind, 'I've read Romance of the Three Kingdoms.'

"I know you can write well!"

(End of this chapter)