Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 141 Province

Luoyang Imperial Palace
The palace maids and eunuchs each performed their duties, cleaning and maintaining this magnificent palace of exceptional quality.

Besides the fallen leaves, grass, trees, ponds, and flowers in the harem and back garden that need to be cleaned, there are also rare birds and animals, as well as flowers, birds, fish, and insects in the animal garden that need to be fed.

Each large building has dedicated personnel in charge.

It has a library with hundreds of thousands of books, as well as a spacious palace for song, dance and banquet.

Many emperors believed in Buddhism during chaotic times. The Wan family had always been Buddhists, so they spent more than ten years building a Buddhist temple in the palace, which was renamed the Wanxiang Temple after they usurped the throne.

Erecting statues of gods to worship Heaven was a common Buddhist superstition of that era. Emperors and ministers, especially military generals, believed that the ability to erect golden statues proved that Heaven agreed to their worship as the Son of Heaven.

Beijiwu stood in the Wanxiang Temple, looking at the golden statues in front of him, which were filled with incense and worship. Inside the nine-story hall was a Buddha statue that was a hundred meters tall.

The temple has nine floors inside and five floors outside. Entering from the outside is like climbing a mountain, leading to a pavilion-like palace in the middle of a square tower.

Once you enter, you'll be on the first floor. Standing here, you can see the upper body of the statue. If you walk over the railing and look down, you can see the lower body of the golden statue, which is seated in meditation.

The main hall is constructed of wood. The wood was made into pillars and stacked layer by layer using mortise and tenon joints to create this giant building.

"Are these made of gold or copper?"

Bei Jiwu inquired about Wan Yong, Wan Ye's nephew, from the Wan family members around him.

Wan Yong bowed and replied, "Reporting to my master, these are all gilded on the outside but made of copper on the inside; they are not the same thing inside."

I never expected that Arctic Weapon was made of gold!
There are thousands of Buddha statues, large and small, in front of him. Of course, they can't all be made of gold. Beijiwu thought the outer layer was copper, but he didn't expect it to be gold!

"From now on, just answer questions directly. Don't waste time reporting back and forth. How many years did it take to build these?"

Wan Yong said cautiously, "It took a total of forty-three years and spanned eleven emperors."

Besides the largest statue, each floor contains many statues of varying sizes, with the lower floors being larger and the higher floors being smaller.

Beijiwu walked up to a six-meter-tall statue, reached out and touched it. It felt quite heavy, and he couldn't push it down even with both hands.

"Never mind, just leave it here."

Beijiwu did not change the rules here; those who should offer incense did so, and those who should clean and wipe did so.

After leaving the Temple of All Things, the two walked along the flower bed near the private imperial road. This was the usual passageway for the concubines in the harem. In the past, the Empress and Empress Dowager would come in from here to worship Buddha and rest when they got tired.

The clean and tidy courtyard in autumn gives Beijiwu the feeling of returning to a modern upscale park, but it is even more exquisite and tranquil. The design is just right, which makes people feel much better.

The lotus leaves in the pond are in full bloom, and there are no withered leaves or weeds, nor any unsightly flowers or lotus leaves.

“The garden is well-maintained.” Beijiwu said to the eunuch beside him, “Give the workers a tael of silver as a reward, and the one in charge of management ten taels.”

The kind-faced chief eunuch, Gu Mifu, replied, "This servant thanks Your Majesty for your kindness on behalf of all the servants!"

Beijiwu continued walking forward and led Wan Yong to sit down in the pavilion.

"Sit down and talk," Bei Jiwu gestured for Wan Yong to sit down.

"Thank you, Master!" Wan Yong also acted like a servant, carefully sitting on the other side of the jade table.

Seeing Wan Yong's nervous expression, Bei Jiwu smiled and said, "I have no grudge against your family. We agreed not to interfere with each other, but you kept pressing me, forcing me step by step from the mountain village to the county town, from one prefecture behind the mountains to nine prefectures behind the mountains."

Wan Yong knelt down on the ground with a thud, pleading, "This servant deserves to die! It was all done by my family members; I was just following orders!"

Arctic Martial commanded, "Get up and sit down to talk. I don't mean to blame you. I just want you to be quiet, do things properly, and don't provoke me. I won't take your lives."

Wan Yong cried and said, "Thank you, Master! Master is kind and benevolent. This servant swears to serve you to the death! I would gladly give my life for you!"

Arctic Martial doesn't believe such things; he just takes them as an interesting joke.

"Get up."

"Yes! Master!"

Wan Yong sat very carefully opposite Bei Jiwu, so careful that he dared not breathe, yet he had to breathe very small and lightly. As a result, he became more and more nervous and could not breathe.

Beijiwu said, "Now the King of Shu and the Emperor of the Southern Dynasty are in normal contact with me and have established a peace treaty. Your uncle, Emperor Wanye, died in Lin'an Prefecture. After that, the Crown Prince and the Prince of Qin fought for the throne. I had no choice but to come out to save the people."

"I have a clear conscience. If I took it, I took it. I'm not embarrassed."

Wan Yong hurriedly replied, "Yes, it is the will of Heaven that our master was able to obtain the world. Luoyang City should have belonged to our master. After the civil dynasty comes the military dynasty. This is the destiny of the civil and military dynasties."

Beijiwu continued, "Wanye captured many emperors and killed them all within two or three years, leaving no descendants. There are also hundreds of beauties in the palace who were originally empresses and concubines."

"I have no intention of poisoning and killing the Wan family. When you become powerful enough, you will also become more magnanimous."

Wan Yong breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly praised, "With our master here, it is a blessing for all people, and also a blessing for us servants!"

Whether it was the Wan family or the court officials, they all believed that it would be easy for Beiji Wu to conquer the world.

A person with strength as great as Beijiwu would naturally have a broad mind, and Wan Yong and his family all believed this.

Beijiwu said, "Except for the crown prince, Wanye's sons are all spoiled. They are lawless, disregard human life, and always treat everyone in the world as slaves of the Wan family."

“There’s nothing wrong with being a servant.” Beijiwu offered Wan Yong a way out, and continued, “But a master who kills his servants at the drop of a hat is definitely not a benevolent ruler.”

“I have enacted a law that requires a 100-day waiting period for any crime, to prevent people from killing in a fit of rage and then regretting it.”

Wan Yong bowed his head and said, "Yes! Everyone in the court praises the benevolence and righteousness of our master. He opened the granaries to distribute grain to relieve the people, and built houses and communities in various places so that the people could live, work, rest, and enjoy the happiness of family reunion. He is truly a wise ruler!"

Beijiwu laughed and said, "I didn't call you here to flatter me or to scare you. I want you to find a few people to fight in the Western Regions. There are quite a few people gathered outside Chang'an now, and I don't know how the trade route connecting to Dunhuang is doing."

"I was too busy farming to pay attention to these places. Find some capable men to lead 5,000 troops to the Western Regions. If you need help, send someone to deliver a message. I will also have provisions transported there."

"Now we have no shortage of warhorses, weapons and armor, and the warehouses are overflowing with grain. It's time to get rid of the Turks, Uyghurs and Tibetans."

“Go do something. If you’re idle all day, you’ll become a useless person. Also, tell your Wan family to stop drinking, womanizing, acting crazy, and self-harming. I can tolerate them. If they’re meant to be officials, then they should be officials. Whether they become civil officials or military generals depends on their abilities.”

"Anyway, their civil and military achievements can't possibly surpass mine. I need people right now. A new emperor brings a new court. They're not emperors or princes, so just do your job with peace of mind."

Wan Yong exclaimed excitedly, "This servant thanks Master for his great kindness!"

The people of Yamagoku Kyushu were considered a training base for the mountain farmers, while the people of Tobu Province were a training base for the surrendered army.

The Huanghuai Province was a training ground for civil officials and scholars, with a large number of artisans and farmers also present.

Once the number of mountain farmers reaches a certain level, local governors will no longer mingle with the Wan family.

During the previous meeting, the more than 9,000 households and commanders had already demonstrated the military capabilities of the mountain farmers. These households and commanders were not only officers but also executive officers, and they were distributed in various production teams and urban construction teams.

Without the support of the local farmers, it would be impossible to keep this massive machine of Luoyang running.

In order to deal with the trouble, Bei Jiwu summoned the editor of the mountain farmer tribe's newspaper after Wan Yong left and wrote about the mountain farmer tribe's order.

***
At five or six in the morning, 498 people were already at work.

"Mountain Farmers' Daily! Mountain Farmers' Daily! King Wu has established a national policy to prevent rebellion!"

Lin Luming, the prefect of Luoyang, who was riding in a sedan chair to work nearby, immediately shouted, "Stop! Go buy a newspaper!"

"Yes, sir."

The servants following beside the sedan chair quickly went to buy newspapers.

The servant skillfully took out five coins to buy a newspaper.

Everyone knows this year that you have to pay to buy a newspaper.

I only learned this year that I have to pay for things.

The newspaper sellers were from the Wanhu Production Team directly under King Wu's jurisdiction, as were the vegetable sellers in the city.

Just like before, they would take things without paying. Soon after these seemingly easy-to-bully little girls ran away, they would bring their mountain farmer uncles and elders to attack.

If someone takes money but doesn't deliver the goods, or treats the customer poorly, the supervisory team will record it and hand it over to the team leader. If it's not handled properly, it will be reported to the higher-level centurion. If the centurion doesn't handle it well, it will be reported to the thousand-household commander. If the thousand-household commander doesn't handle it well, it will usually go directly to the Arctic Army commander. There's no need to go to the ten-thousand-household commander.

Both sides are trying to make a living within the rules and are exercising restraint towards each other.

Lin Luming took the newspaper, hung the curtains of the sedan chair aside, and read the newspaper in the morning light of autumn.

Throughout history, many great rulers have died young. Although I am not afraid of death, I must make arrangements in advance for the sake of the current peaceful and prosperous world, to prevent chaos in the court from causing disorder and ruining the livelihoods of thousands of families because of the affairs of one family.

I have more than ten children in the nine provinces behind the mountains, but they are all too young to assume great responsibilities. Their mothers are all rural women who do not understand politics.

In the future, if I am not present, all departments shall perform their duties diligently and keep to their responsibilities. Supplies and military pay must not be delayed, with agriculture as the primary focus. Those found guilty within the court shall be imprisoned; no one shall be allowed to carry out private executions or killings, under penalty of death.

The affairs of the court were jointly governed by the mountain farmers and the Han people. The appointment and removal of high-ranking officials had to be decided jointly by the Three Dukes, the Six Ministries, and the seven commanders of ten thousand households who took turns guarding Luoyang. If more than half of them disagreed, the matter could not be carried out.

Factional strife should not result in death, nor should it involve or escalate the conflict.

Taking agriculture as the foundation means firmly controlling public land. Anyone who dares to interfere with the production of public land or disrupt order must be taken down, and the problem of having enough to eat must be solved.

There's no need to suppress commerce; taxes should be collected on businesses as they are due. Merchants should also pay taxes legally. If the court faces difficulties, they should contribute money and effort to resist foreign enemies, and not be greedy for money or afraid to risk their lives.

The prime minister's term of office is limited to a maximum of ten years, and the position is not hereditary; the prime minister must be recommended from among the Three Dukes and Six Ministries.

Among the Three Dukes, the Minister of Agriculture was in charge of agricultural affairs and was selected from the Department of Mountain Agriculture. The Minister of Works was in charge of water conservancy and was selected from the Department of Huaihai. The Minister of War was in charge of military affairs and was selected from the Department of Northern Plains.

Normally, one should handle matters independently and report to the Prime Minister. In case of major issues, a meeting should be held to make decisions, and decisions regarding border wars can be made independently.

My sons will be in charge of the palace and the sealing of the imperial seal; whoever claims the throne, the mountain farmer may kill him.

Lin Luming was shocked when he saw the follow-up measures arranged by Arctic Martial Arts.

Today's newspaper is tomorrow's imperial edict; if anyone breaks the rules in the future, this newspaper will be the most powerful evidence.

Today is not a day for court, so Lin Luming went to work at the government office.

As soon as he arrived at the yamen, the registrar ran over and said, "Sir! Have you read today's newspaper?"

Lin Luming nodded. "I've read it. Why do you think His Majesty established this rule at this time? There's no war now, and His Majesty's health has always been excellent."

The clerk replied, "We established a rule before to prevent the mountain farmers from losing their leader if something unexpected happens during a war."

“Now that Luoyang is stable, if we continue to hand over the matter to the Nine Provinces behind the mountains as previously instructed, we will definitely not be able to react in time. Our emperor is used to planning ahead.”

Lin Luming was relieved. "Bring me the previous newspapers, let me take a look."

The registrar looked troubled. "I'll go check, but I don't know if there's any left."

Fortunately, Luoyang had not experienced a rebellion, and most of the official documents were well preserved. They also found the newspaper from that day.

Originally, in order to prevent the Wen Dynasty from harming people through underhanded means, not only were rules established that the deputy general would take over after the death of the main general, and the personal guard would take over after the death of the deputy general, but Beiji Wu also made arrangements for what would happen to him after his death.

Now that there are more ministers, and the previous ministers and their advisors have all performed differently, a new arrangement has been made to suit the current situation.

The more than ten offspring of Beiji Wu have been secretly raised. If Beiji Wu encounters any misfortune, the Shan Nong tribe will bring those people over from the Shan Nong Kingdom.

The emergence of newspapers allowed the Arctic military's plans to be widely disseminated to millions of people, bringing everyone into the political arena.

In particular, the hundreds and thousands of households hidden in various places could quickly find organizations and mobilize large numbers of people to resist the irregular orders of the imperial court.

If you want to usurp the throne like the Wan family did before, you should first ask if the one million mountain farmers agree.

Although the Arctic Wu currently has less than ten million people under its command, the number of Han Chinese and Hu people who consider themselves mountain farmers is no less than one million.

Anyway, the Mountain Farmers don't have any bloodline tests. As long as you have short hair and write the character "山农" (Shan Nong), you are a Mountain Farmer.

In particular, the million migrants who fled famine to Jinzhou were all trying to pretend to be mountain farmers.

As for the history of the Shan Nong people, even the historians do not know it to this day.

Beiji Wu remained in Luoyang, meeting with people from various departments to inquire about matters, coordinating the transportation of grain and military rations, remelting copper coins, and producing machinery for harvesting wheat.

A few days later, everyone forgot about the incident, but all the officials kept the newspaper from that day, buying many more at ten times the price to store.

Several households were rotated, with Xue Chonghu going to Youzhou and the rest being dispersed to various places to oversee the resettlement of refugees and the assimilation of new cities.

Beiji Wu also went home and saw his pregnant wife and young child.

He spends his afternoons and evenings with his family, while during the day he goes out to handle matters. He also invites several Wanhu households to his home to watch him eat and get to know people.

"This servant greets master!"

Nine high-ranking commanders knelt together in the courtyard and kowtowed to Beijiwu.

Li Hong and the others certainly wouldn't think that guests had come to their home and come out to entertain them. Since they joined Beijiwu, the concept of guests has become obsolete.

When they saw several strangers kneeling before Arctic Martial Arts, no one was surprised at all.

Li Hong and her sister quietly served the food, bringing out delicacies they usually couldn't bear to eat, such as stir-fried chicken, stewed fish soup, beef slices, and lamb leg, for Bei Jiwu to eat.

In Beijiwu, eating leftovers has always been a family rule.

Beijiwu said to Li Hong and the others, "Go back and eat, don't disturb our conversation."

"Yes!" A group of women walked into the house, not disturbing the men eating in the courtyard.

A little child was drooling as he looked at the table, but was quickly picked up and taken away by the older girl next to him.

The women in the family only knew their status within the Arctic Army, but they were unaware of the Arctic Army's status outside.

Beijiwu ate his meal alone, asking questions of the people kneeling on the ground.

"Has everything been taken care of?"

"Reporting to Master, everything has been taken care of. The surplus grain from this year has been used to brew and distill liquor."

Since last year, the mountains and nine provinces have had more grain than they could eat, and Beiji Wu had people brewing and distilling wine early on.

Beijiwu was eating chicken. He had called them over to get to know the people and the children, and to discuss business, not to have his men eat at the table with him.

"Alright, sell it at 500 coins per catty. Send 1,000 catties to the Youzhou garrison and another 1,000 catties to the Gui Nong and Gui Hua departments."

“Ma Gui, you will be in charge of selling the wine. Set aside a thousand-household team to brew the wine, and let the Shanxi merchants sell it to the Khitans and Jurchens. They should like this kind of wine.”

"If you don't have money, you can owe it, or exchange it for cattle, sheep, or slaves."

"If they dare to rob us, let a few thousand or ten thousand households from Youzhou reason with them."

Ma Gui immediately replied, "This servant obeys the decree!"

After chatting for another half hour and finishing their discussion, everyone left respectfully.

After Bei Jiwu had finished eating, Li Hong led the woman and child out to pack up their things.

Li Hong asked, "Master, why don't you let Ma Gui and Tu Chai meet? They've come all this way."

Beijiwu said directly, "It's good that he's alright. How could a man like him stay here any longer? Alright, let's eat. Someone sent me gifts these past few days, so you can eat meat every day!"

Beijiwu's one-year-old son was so hungry that he drooled as he looked at the leftover food on the table.

Ma Tuchai ate with her other sisters, laughing and forgetting about her brother.

Just as Beiji Wu said, it's good that his younger brother seems to be alright. Besides, kneeling down and becoming Beiji Wu's servant will definitely bring him benefits. As long as he has money and status, he won't have any worries.

As everyone ate together, Qiuyue held the baby in her arms and breastfed. The baby lay on Qiuyue's chest with both hands, eyes open, nursing. Qiuyue held the baby with one arm to prevent him from falling, and with the other hand, she used chopsticks to pick up food.

"Master, has the plague outside not subsided yet?"

Beijiwu casually said, "There are many things to do outside. It's good enough that you've eaten and drunk your fill. Just stay home and take good care of the children. I'll buy ten bolts of cloth tomorrow, and you can make some new clothes for the New Year."

Jiang Cao exclaimed happily, "I have new clothes to wear!"

Beijiwu said, "I'll buy you some clothes with flowers. Our family is rich now. The cloth I buy for you isn't just plain white cloth; it's pretty floral patterned clothes. Tomorrow I'll go ask a merchant for some hairpins to help you dress up."

The women and children, who hadn't had new clothes for over half a year, were all beaming with joy.

"Thank you, Master!"

Most of the young women and wives were used to being poor. Apart from wealthy families like Gao Qiuyue and Ma Tuchai, the rest of them hadn't had a new piece of clothing for several years.

Ma Tuchai and Gao Qiuyue never had the luxury of eating meat every few days. Even though she was the young mistress of a rice shop and the daughter-in-law of a landlord, she still had to work in the fields.

The landlords in the south are different from those in the frontier. Ma Tuchai and Gao Qiuyue's actual standard of living was not high.

The work here in Beijiwu is not heavy, the food is good, the yard is big, and you can chat with your son and daughter. All you have to do every day is some work.

The family was enjoying a happy time together, and they felt that life was full of hope!

(End of this chapter)