Zhutian: Starting from the Space-Time Merchant

Chapter 350 Complaint

"This head is too short."

In the military camp, a merchant from Jiangnan used a ruler to measure the young woman that Jin Da had sent.

"This can't be priced high."

Kim Dae, who was watching anxiously, became a little anxious after hearing what the interpreter said: "I didn't even have the heart to lay a hand on him after finally catching him."

He had already experienced extreme poverty in Korea.

The whole family worked for the landlord, and whoever got sick had to endure it and wait to die.

The family only had one set of tattered clothes and had never had a full meal.

It was only after he was selected to serve in the garrison that he ate rice bran for the first time and had a set of tattered clothes of his own for the first time.

Before the surrender of Kaijing, when the generals came to reward them, they ate real rice for the first time!

He arrived in Japan, distinguished himself in the military, and received real wealth for the first time!
In this cruel, cannibalistic era, the fate of the poor is actually quite similar in any country.

However, in the Central Plains, there is still the saying "Are kings and nobles born with a special destiny?" as a safety net.

In other places, people usually endure until they die.

"At most three strings of cash."

The merchant waved his hand, "That's no more."

For Jin Da, three strings of cash was an enormous sum, something he had never even seen before.

But now, he wants more.

After an unsuccessful attempt to communicate with the interpreter, Kim Dae led his prisoners to other merchants to inquire about prices.

Inside the vast military merchant camp, the prices were all about the same, some even less than three strings of cash.

There was no other way but to sell it at this price.

In addition, there were two girls who were about half a year old, so together they only made three bets.

As for the old woman, no one wanted her, which made Jin Da very regretful.

He had previously given the old woman a rice ball, which was a waste.

This is not ridiculous. In years of famine, a rice ball can be the difference between life and death!
Kim Dae sold off what he had seized, or rather, stolen.

The most expensive item was a pair of deerskin boots; merchants wouldn't accept anything else, like needles, thread, or scraps of cloth.

Besides buying and selling goods, the merchants also sold them.

It offers everything from fine silks and satins from Jiangnan, to various handicrafts, gourmet food, and fine wine.

The merchants of ancient China were actually quite capable.

Their business spans the globe.

Don't assume that the Silk Road was full of merchants from Central Asia; there were far more merchants from China.

It was precisely because merchants were so capable that successive dynasties continuously suppressed them.

Such people who do business with the army are not mentioned in historical records, but they are present in almost every battle.

Jin Da, who had plenty of money, gritted his teeth and spent a huge sum of money to buy a beautifully crafted gold hairpin.

"Dian Shun~"

"When I get back, I'll go to your house to propose marriage."

Upon returning to the military camp, Kim Dae thought of his beloved hometown, and his eyes were filled with light.

What he didn't know was that the beloved from his hometown had already fallen into the arms of the immigrant landlord.

The immigrants who owned 300 acres of land were undoubtedly landlords.

Jin Da is still longing for his beloved.

The filling had already burst open.

'Snapped! '

A slap landed on the back of his head, making him stagger and nearly fall to the ground.

He instinctively drew his sword, but behind him came the sergeant's angry curses.

"You lowly thing, only now do you come back."

The squad leader stepped forward and kicked him several times, knocking him to the ground. He stepped on the man's back and scolded, "I heard you got a head as a reward. Hand over ten strings of cash."

The surrendered Goryeo soldiers were not Ming soldiers.

The soldiers made a fortune, and the surrendered soldiers' officers at all levels were to take a cut.

"You guys are lucky."

The squad leader spoke dismissively, "His Majesty the Emperor is almost here."

“My lords and commanders, I have left you some money for your own use.”

Since it was Lin Dao who was coming, these surrendered Goryeo soldiers and generals dared not behave too badly in front of him, so this time they only accepted half of the heads as a reward.

Otherwise, not a single penny would be left for these soldiers.

Despite his reluctance, Kim Dae finally handed over ten strings of cash.

After all, they had long been so oppressed that they had become accustomed to it.

The squad leader took the silver and the banknotes and left.

As a deliveryman, he could only earn a hundred or two hundred coins at most.

But at least they get to share in the profits, instead of being exploited.

This difference in status gave the centurion, who was essentially no different from a beast of burden, a proud and superior mentality.

"Jinda."

A fellow villager ran over and helped Jin Da up.

Looking at the centurion walking away, he cursed, "That damned bastard (whose children inherit lowly status, often referring to yamen runners, servants, etc.) I'll find a chance to chop him up next time we're on the battlefield!"

Undoubtedly, his fellow villagers were also extorted for half of their reward.

They risked their lives for this.

For these people, whose ancestors were poor farmers, these possessions were even more important than their lives.

"I intend to go and lodge a complaint with the Emperor!"

The words of a fellow villager who had attended a private school for two years made Jin scream, "Are you crazy?!"

To file a complaint with the emperor?
Should we still sue the authorities?!

He could understand each word individually, but when put together, they filled him with utter terror.

Generations of indoctrination have instilled in these people a deep-seated fear of even entertaining such thoughts of rebelling against the Heavenly Gang.

To sue the authorities is tantamount to suicide.
When someone dares to challenge injustice, the slaves do not follow suit, but instead cower in fear.

Jin Da did not dare to participate in his fellow townsman's grand plan.

A few days later, when he was selected to be part of the security force and responsible for perimeter security, he was somewhat dazed.

The Emperor's entourage landed on Kyushu Island and arrived at Dazaifu. Yi Seong-gye, a hero of the conquest of Dazaifu, ingeniously arranged for a group of local people to greet him with shouts of "Long live the Emperor!"

As for paving roads with loess and cleaning streets with clean water, these are all standard operating procedures.

The reason for this was that the roads in ancient times were rugged and uneven, and the carriages did not have shock absorption or steering devices, so riding in a carriage was not enjoyable but painful.

The purpose of paving roads with loess is to smooth the road surface and reduce the feeling of bumps.

Cleaning the streets with water is to prevent dust from rising.

The surrendered generals did a good job, but unfortunately Lin Dao came on horseback.

Jin Da, who was in charge of the perimeter, could only watch the large contingent of Ming cavalry pass by from afar.

He only saw the banner; as for the emperor, he was not qualified to see him.

I was worried that my fellow townsmen would file a complaint against me, but I never did.

After the emperor's entourage entered the Dazaifu, Kim Dae finished his work and returned to the military camp.

There was some chaos inside the camp.

Only after inquiring did I learn that my fellow villager had actually gone to appeal to the emperor!

"See for yourself."

Inside the Dazaifu Palace, Lin Dao casually tossed a poorly written petition at the surrendered Goryeo generals.

Lin Dao was in a good mood when he personally led his army to Japan.

After all, this is something that countless passionate men in the modern world dream of.

But the sudden arrival of a lawsuit affected his mood.

Of course, it couldn't be like in movies and TV dramas, where the petition is handed directly to the emperor.

If that were the case, the general in charge of the emperor's security would have to have his entire family killed.

Jin Da's fellow townsman was captured before he even got close to the forest road.

The petition in his hand had also been examined layer by layer before falling into Lin Dao's hands.

Lee Seong-gye and the others looked extremely grim as they gazed at the illegible handwriting on the petition.

They thought they were being kind, even leaving half of the reward for the slaves.

Unexpectedly, these slaves were so greedy that they even dared to file a complaint!
Some people instinctively tried to argue, but were stopped by Li Chenggui.

"We deserve to die!"

Yi Seong-gye kowtowed and said, "I deserve to die!"

All the surrendered Goryeo generals glared angrily.

According to Goryeo tradition, after explanations, arguments, comparisons of family background, and finally a compromise, the matter is considered closed.

But Yi Seong-gye confessed directly, and all the tricks he used before were no longer needed.

"This matter has caused a huge uproar."

Lin Dao glanced at Li Chenggui with slight surprise. Instead of killing all the guys, he offered to help come up with ideas.

"This matter has caused a great uproar, and the soldiers all know about it. We must give an explanation, otherwise it will affect morale."

"How about this."

“One of you must take the blame.”

"The lower-ranking officers, including captains, lieutenants, and centurions, should also be dealt with in proportion to appease public opinion."

After saying that, he waved his hand, signaling everyone to get lost.

"You can discuss the specific candidates yourselves."

If this had happened within the Ming army, Lin Dao would have undoubtedly triggered a major case during the Hongwu era.

Those involved will face a brutal purge.

After all, with the national policy of emphasizing military strength over civil service being established, such an incident in the army was equivalent to a major case of cheating in the imperial examinations.

If this isn't dealt with decisively, forget about sweeping the world; the army's fighting capacity will soon crumble.

If you replace them with cannon fodder surrendered soldiers, Lin Dao's operations become much more flexible.

He still needed Yi Seong-gye and others to risk their lives, so naturally he couldn't bring himself to kill them.

It would be enough to casually plant a seed of discord among these surrendered generals.

Choosing someone to take the blame will inevitably lead to discord, and may even create hostility between them.

Having resolved this matter, Lin Dao set off to visit the Dazaifu Palace.

In the modern world, those who travel to Japan are just tourists who spend money.

But Lin Dao was different this time; he came to his mortal enemy's house as a conqueror.

The feeling of comfort is truly indescribable.

On Yi Seong-gye's side, however, he was enduring a fierce storm.

The surrendered generals all accused him of taking the initiative to confess his crimes without authorization.

Even more extreme, some suggested making Yi Seong-gye a scapegoat and taking the blame.

"Shut up, everyone!"

With a furious roar, Yi Seong-gye finally silenced the generals for the time being.

"Goryeo no longer exists."

"This is now the North Korean province!"

With reddened eyes, Lee Seong-gye gritted his teeth and swept his gaze over the crowd, saying, "You are no longer the nobles of the Goryeo Yangban, let alone any glory of your ancestors!"

"The tactics we used in Goryeo are useless in front of the Great Emperor!"

"If we really anger the Emperor, everyone will die."

"The Great Emperor is an emperor who rose from the ashes; he knows everything."

"Pleading guilty and accepting punishment is the best option."

"If you keep trying to defend yourself, more people will die."

Taking a breath, Lee Seong-gye's words became increasingly confident: "You want me to take the blame?"

"Think about it carefully."

"When has the Emperor ever mentioned your names separately, apart from mine?"

"Even if I wanted to take the blame, the list would be rejected by the Emperor!"

"Now everyone will follow my instructions."

"Everyone except me will have their fate decided by drawing lots."

"Whoever is chosen is destined to be chosen!"

(End of this chapter)