Three Kingdoms: Jiangdong is no longer a rat

Chapter 69 Attachment
Yan Yi's gaze swept across every face, but those who made contact with him all lowered their heads in panic, adopting a submissive attitude. Only a few beautiful women kneeling in the front row had the courage to look him in the eye. They looked so supplicant and pitiful, which was quite attractive. However, these gestures made out of fear were hard to conceal their deliberateness and a little vulgar.

At this moment, the fate of these two or three hundred people depended on his decision, and a single word could determine their life or death.

According to Yan's custom, these people would be rewarded as goods to meritorious people, and both men and women would be slaves.

Some of them would suffer a fate worse than that of slaves. For example, some women would be sent to military camps and become objects of sexual gratification for soldiers.

Yan Yi's mind flashed with thoughts as he pondered how to deal with these people.

Qian Tong was not a scholar, he was just a bandit. No matter how he dealt with his family and servants, as long as he did not do anything too immoral and inhumane, no one would criticize him.

But Yan Yi considered more. Although Qian Tong was just a bandit, there were still more than a dozen bandits of his size in the whole Jiangdong, and there were countless bandits whose size was smaller than Qian Tong. How to deal with Qian Tong was no longer an isolated decision, but had a certain symbolic significance.

While Yan Yi was thinking, his gaze suddenly stopped on a graceful woman.

The woman was kneeling in the middle of the first row. She was dressed in gorgeous clothes, with a high bun like clouds, a thin waist and plump hips. A piece of silk cloth was wrapped around her left arm, with faint blood stains. However, she had been keeping her head down since he entered the courtyard, so his face could not be seen clearly. Only a white and slender neck was exposed.

Seeing that she had the air of being the leader of the Qian family, Yan Yi had some suspicions in his mind and asked, "Who are you? Lift your head."

The woman slowly raised her head, her pretty face, which was seven parts elegant and three parts mature and charming, and looked at Yan Yi with a little uneasiness: "My humble concubine Zhou is Qian Tong's wife. I pay my respects to the young master."

After saying this, she stood up and bowed to Yan Yi. Her posture was as light as willow catkins. The hairpins on her bun, the pearls on her earlobes, and the thin hem of her skirt swayed slightly as she bowed. She was so charming that people couldn't take their eyes off her.

As she stood up, a body fragrance like orchid and musk faintly entered Yan Yi's nose.

A hint of obsession flashed in Wan Bing's eyes, and his gaze lingered on Zhou, as if he wanted to engrave every inch of her body into his mind.

When Qian Tong was alive, he hid Zhou in seclusion, and it was extremely difficult for him to see her. When he occasionally met her, he only dared to take a few secret glances at her. Now that Qian Tong was in trouble and the fate of the people in the Qian Mansion was uncertain, he suddenly became bolder and wished he could get back the pleasure of seeing her that he had not been able to see in the past.

Fan Yan and his generals were also amazed, and Chen Gan was even more fascinated by the sight.

There are indeed very few women in this world who seem to be blessed by the Creator and are born beautiful. When you meet them for the first time, they can give people a strong visual impact and spiritual shock.

Zhou is obviously such a person.

Yan Yi's heartbeat quickened a bit. His gaze lingered on Zhou's face for a moment, startled by the fact that she had lost her composure. Seeing that she was quite bold and had dared to stand up under the pretext of saluting, he found it amusing. He turned his gaze to the people in the Qian Mansion and raised his voice a bit: "Everyone, stand up!"

The people in the Qian Mansion stood up timidly one after another.

Yan Yi turned his gaze to Zhou's left arm and asked, "Who injured this?"

Zhou's eyes dimmed: "It was pierced by Qian Tong."

When Yan Yi asked about the reason, Zhou told him the whole story and then asked, "I wonder how the young master plans to deal with me and others?" The people in the Qian Mansion immediately became nervous, and their eyes were full of anxiety and pleading when they looked at Yan Yi.

Yan Yi pondered in silence.

Zhou exchanged a glance with the beautiful women beside her, then mustered up her courage and said, "Qian Tong and the Young Master were fighting each other, each holding their own position. Now that they've been defeated, I hope the Young Master will be merciful and spare our lives. Momo will send us to the laundry house. If we are fortunate enough to be yours, even if I have to become your slave, I will repay your kindness."

The laundry house was a place that provided some kind of service to the soldiers. If a woman went there, her life would be worse than death.

Yan Yi smiled and pointed at the generals behind him, saying, "How can I be considered a cruel person? When Qian Tong occupied Yuncheng, I didn't even take him seriously, let alone when he has already fled. The generals behind me are all brave and courageous. If you wish to join us, you can choose one of them. I will protect you well. If you don't wish, you can receive some money, food, and clothing and live together in the village. However, you are not allowed to leave Yuncheng for five years. After five years, you can decide whether to stay or leave."

Zhou and the others were stunned for a moment before they came to their senses. They all cast grateful glances at Yan Yi, then knelt on the ground and performed a profound kowtow.

After a while, the departure and stay of the people in Qian Mansion was decided. Most of them stayed and sought shelter from the generals, and only a few left.

Yan Yi wasn't surprised by this outcome. These were chaotic times, with war, disasters, and epidemics all threatening lives. These people had relied on money and copper for years, long since withdrawing from production. Even if they left, how many would be able to enjoy a good life? It would be better to find a patron to rely on. In this world, many people sought a strong man to rely on, but couldn't find one.

Among all the people in the Qian Mansion, the most sought-after ones were the beautiful women left behind by Qian Tong. They were beautiful in appearance and figure. Even Fan Yan couldn't help but take one away, and Chen Gan was so excited that he took three away at once.

As for Xu Sheng and Zhao Cuo who were not present, Yan Yi personally selected two women for each of them to serve as slaves or maids, wives or concubines, which was no longer his business.

As for Zhou, the generals were all perceptive and no one took her away, so Yan Yi kept her for himself.

After the Qian Mansion's affairs were initially dealt with, a notice to reassure the people was also drafted. Yan Yi ordered people to quickly post it throughout the city to calm the people's hearts.

The importance of reputation was evident at this time. Since the news of him prohibiting looting, killing corrupt officials, and reducing taxes for the people had already spread to Yuncheng, the people and refugees of Yuncheng were not sad but happy about the change of ownership of Yuncheng. Not only did very few people leave, but a steady stream of refugees gathered from the surrounding areas. This was actually a happy event.

Just as Yan Yi was busy with the aftermath of Yuncheng, the news of Qian Gonglei and the change of ownership of Yuncheng also reached Yan Yu's ears.

On the night when Qian Gonglei fell, the scouts sent by Yan Yu's troops learned the news from the refugees, and then rushed to Jiuxi to report to Yan Yu.

Yan Yu was shocked and led his army to Qian Gonglei for support the next morning. However, when he was halfway there, he received news that Yuncheng had also been captured by Yan Yi's army.

When Yan Yu received the military report, he was completely stunned. He had always thought that Yan Yi was still ill and had been waiting for him to meet up with him in Jiuxi. Who knew that this guy had quietly killed Qian Tong, the old enemy of the Yan family.

One thousand five hundred newly recruited soldiers defeated the five thousand soldiers defending the city and captured two cities in two days!

Jiangdong hasn't had such a brilliant military record for many years. It won't be long before this matter spreads throughout Jiangdong.

(End of this chapter)