Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 184 Conquest
It's the end of the ninth month of the lunar calendar, a little over two months before the Lunar New Year.

Arctic Martial Arts held a meeting in the hall, looking down at the hundreds of people below.

"No need for formalities. After thinking it over, there's nothing important. Everyone should focus on preparing for the New Year. Don't bother me this year unless it's absolutely necessary."

Arctic Martial actually really dislikes having meetings with these people, having to wait for them to arrive, which wastes half a day.

Rong Dingwen immediately said, "Your Majesty! I humbly request Your Majesty to reclaim the autonomy of various regions. If this continues, it will be detrimental to the country and will surely lead to trouble!"

"No way." Bei Jiwu immediately rejected the idea, his attitude quite unpleasant. "Does the rest of you have anything else to say?"

As a member of a foreign tribe, Rong Dingwen was in a very awkward position at this moment.

"Your subject requests to resign!"

"allow."

Without the slightest hesitation, Bei Jiwu said, "Go home and retire. After you die, you can be buried with the same rites as a prime minister and pay for it yourself. The Three Dukes and Six Ministries can choose another prime minister after they return to the city."

"From now on, no prime minister will receive severance pay if he has not served a full ten years. How can matters of state be treated so lightly?"

Li Chengren and the others shouted in unison, "Your subject obeys the decree!"

Rong Dingwen's position became even more awkward, and he knelt down and kowtowed, saying, "Thank you for your permission, Your Majesty!"

Beijiwu ignored him and looked among the nearby military officers.

“Wang Daoji, your father has been imprisoned in the prison for nearly a hundred days. This man is greedy for life and afraid of death. He led my Shan Nong tribe soldiers out to their deaths. Everyone else died in battle, but he surrendered in order to survive. He even led the Khitans to attack and persuade the soldiers defending the city to surrender.”

“The people in eastern Liaoning have already told me about his performance there. Now the evidence is conclusive, and he will be executed after 100 days. Go to the Ministry of Justice to pay ten taels of silver for cremation. We won’t give you his ashes. Your family doesn’t need to build a grave or erect a monument, so as to avoid the awkwardness of not having to pay respects.”

Wang Daoji quickly rose from his chair and knelt on the ground, saying, "Your Majesty's decree is my solemn command! From now on, I will serve Your Majesty with unwavering courage and determination!"

Suddenly, Minister of War Duan Lingdong had a flash of inspiration and immediately stood up and said, "Your Majesty, I have heard that the Lin-yi Kingdom in the southwest is rich in treasures. It happens to be located in the southwest of Lingnan Road. Moreover, it has invaded our territory many times over the past hundred years, plundering our people into slavery, and has not established diplomatic relations with our country. Why not send troops to destroy it and eliminate future troubles?"

Beijiwu didn't know how many treasures the Linyi Kingdom had, but he knew it probably referred to the Southeast Asian region.

“There’s really nothing going on lately.” Beiji Wu crossed his legs and shifted to a more comfortable sitting position. “Then let’s do something for the benefit of future generations. Send 20,000 troops from Lingnan and the Jiangnan region of Huguang to wipe them out.”

Since they didn't have to fight the war themselves, everyone shouted in unison, "Your Majesty is wise! Long live the Emperor!"

A few idle people in the court casually devised a strategy to conquer the Kingdom of Linyi.

***
Throughout the territories ruled by successive Han Chinese dynasties, there was always a remote and impoverished prefecture called Jiaozhou.

In the southwest of Jiaozhou, there is a place called Jiaozhi. The men there are fierce and warlike, accustomed to climbing mountains and swimming, but not used to walking on flat ground.

The women here have a slightly dark, waxy yellow complexion, soft and beautiful hair, delicate skin, and gentle personalities.

Both men and women were naked, and they had no concept of chastity. When an older brother died, the younger brother would marry his sister-in-law. When a man entered a woman's room, the woman would serve him, and she would not light a lamp to watch people at night.

This is not considered shameful here; it is a social custom. Local officials treat these people like wild beasts and let them do as they please, without any prohibition or restriction.

Unrelenting, these people multiplied and began to plunder the wealthy Guilin County, killing local officials, children, and stealing livestock and property.

King Wu was furious and began to conscript soldiers from all over the country to attack the barbarians of the Lin-yi Kingdom.

Liu Jingshun, who was twenty years old, had no parents and his family had died long ago. He grew up alone in the mountains. When he used the game he hunted to exchange for food in the city, he learned that joining the army and fighting in wars could get him money, food and women.

I didn't believe it at first.

Later, Liu Jingshun discovered that the country boys who had been away for half a year had returned on horseback, carrying iron bows, new shoes and clothes, as well as silver and iron knives.

Liu Jingshun didn't care who he was; others called him a wild man from the mountains.

Upon hearing that these men had received rewards for fighting for the mountain farmers, Liu Jingshun mingled with them when the prefect of Guilin was conscripting soldiers. Because of the chaotic household registration system, as long as someone was present, the conscripts didn't care where they were from.

Young Liu Jingshun joined the army voluntarily, so no one was wary of him or afraid that he would run away.

There were a few other people in Liu Jingshun's team. They all lived in the same room in the military camp and got to know each other briefly.

Because he spent his childhood hunting in the mountains and rarely spoke to people, Liu Jingshun mainly listened to people talk.

Their squad had over a hundred people, while the entire army had over ten thousand.

The day before the expedition, the imperial court distributed money, with each person receiving five taels of silver.

Some people took it to find women, some used it to treat others to meals and drinks, and some took it home to keep for their parents, wives, and children.

Liu Jingshun was an orphan. After leaving, he hid the money in a quiet place, thinking he would retrieve it when he returned.

At this time, Liu Jingshun was unaware that he was the chosen one, and the others were unaware that they were the price to pay.

Sun Kun is one of the victims, a young man with an elderly mother, wife, and children at home.

Sun Kun was literate and had been paying close attention to news from the North since childhood.

At first, I had a strong aversion to the mountain farmers in the north, thinking they were a bunch of barbarians, and like many others in the county, I thought they were beasts.

However, as news was relayed year after year, people's attitudes toward the Mountain Farming Kingdom gradually began to change.

His attitude towards King Wu changed from that of a bloodthirsty maniac to that of a benevolent ruler and hegemon!
After the country was unified, in order to benefit future generations, to expand the territory, and to retaliate against the Linyi people who invaded the border, the people of the county began to enthusiastically join the army.

Sun Kun lived with his mother since childhood. Although they were not a wealthy family, they were well-off. His mother saved money to help him get married, and his wife gave birth to a son.

When someone came to the door, his mother always told him to stay inside and not go out.

Sun Kun never understood why they did this, until five or six men barged into his house and slammed a conscription newspaper on his table.

Upon learning that King Wu was conscripting soldiers to attack the Lin-yi Kingdom, Sun Kun excitedly agreed to join the army.

After a month of simple training, Sun Kun left all his wages to his family. Amidst his mother's weeping and the watchful eyes of his wife and children, he turned and left home, striding towards the military camp.

"I will definitely come back!"

***
There are few roads leading to Lin Yi Kingdom, only continuous jungles and intermittent, murky rivers.

Mosquitoes are a curse, and the sweltering heat is suffocating.

Everywhere you look, there are jungles taller than humans, damp fog, and endless mud. Beware of enemies hiding in the vines.

The sunset is red, but the river is always murky.

No one cares about those who fall in the jungle, and it has become a habit to see their companions bent over and sinking into the filthy river.

Before the battle even officially began, the army had already lost several hundred men.

After many people died, the survivors gradually learned what it meant to die.

By the time you see a mosquito land on you, it seems too late.

Here, everyone lost their minds; the murky river absorbed even more filth, becoming even more deadly.

War is not a fairy tale; those who are full of hope will be the first to die.

(End of this chapter)