The Military Governor in Dream of the Red Chamber

"News from the capital?" After pondering for a moment, Chen Tai wanted to confirm it again.

"It is said that His Majesty was furious upon hearing that some people had falsely reported military achievements and concealed the losses of soldiers and civilians. He has issued an edict to thoroughly investigate the authenticity of military achievements and to ensure that rewards and punishments are clearly defined. This time, it is by no means a mere show of force, and we cannot afford to be complacent. His Majesty has probably already secretly dispatched troops to investigate and verify the authenticity of the military achievements, unlike his previous lenient approach," Liu Tianwang said with a solemn expression.

Upon hearing this, Chen Tai sat up straight, his expression becoming serious.

The fact that Liu Tianwang was telling me all this suggests that he must have received reliable information.

But is this time really not as lenient as in the past?

That's what they always say: they'll strictly investigate the authenticity of military merits, but in reality, it's just a formality in the end.

Will this be an exception?

"Lord Chen, I understand your concerns. I'm afraid this time will be the same as before." Liu Tianwang could easily tell what Chen Tai was thinking when he saw him deep in thought.

Chen Tai sighed and said, "That's indeed an idea."

"Actually, before Lord Chen arrived, I had the same doubts," Liu Tianwang sighed. "But after hearing Lord Chen mention the heads and achievements reported by other factions, I made this decision. Is this too blatant? Has His Majesty noticed?"

Chen Tai shook his head and said, "Everyone has been doing this for years. This time, the Chahar tribe suffered too many losses in their southward campaign. If they can't capitalize on their military achievements, how can they explain it to the court? But I also think they've gone too far. Do they think the officials in the capital are all fools?"

"Lord Chen, the Beijing Garrison will report the facts truthfully, but only regarding the military achievements made by the Beijing Garrison," Liu Tianwang said.

Chen Tai understood Liu Tianwang's meaning: even if he made a false report, Liu Tianwang wouldn't expose him, and everyone would just mind their own business.

"Alright, the military merits earned by the Beijing garrison should also be added to the merits earned by the Beidong Road garrison, and added according to actual merits." Chen Tai nodded and said.

Since Liu Tianwang used the actual head count, there was nothing more he could say.

Chen Tai did not linger; he quickly returned to the military commander's residence.

In his study, Chen Tai sat for about half an hour before summoning his advisors after confirming the matter.

Chen Tai ultimately exaggerated the number of heads captured, with a total of 110 Northern enemy heads captured in the Northeast Route.

He essentially doubled the actual head count.

If he hadn't gone to Liu Tianwang and reported to the General's Office, he would probably have been in a similar situation to the others, increasing to at least five or six hundred levels.

Those guys didn't have as many heads as I actually had, yet they dared to exaggerate like that. I, on the other hand, had a real 55 heads.

He ultimately compromised between believing Liu Tianwang's information from the capital and not believing it, deciding that less exaggeration might be the safest course of action.

After all, he still felt it was too risky to use the actual head count like Liu Tianwang did.

The gap between us and other roads is too big. Wouldn't that make us, the North East Road, look incompetent?

If the imperial court really needs to find a scapegoat, and I have the lowest military merit, I might very well be dragged out to take the blame.

He dared not gamble.

On the Qianshandun side, everyone was beaming with joy, digging ditches and building stone walls, full of energy and spirit.

Besides being able to eat their fill and enjoy good food, everyone also received a considerable amount of silver.

Omubu kept his promise and returned three days after he left, which was yesterday.

He brought two thousand taels of silver.

The items included 1500 taels of silver and some gold and jade jewelry.

Emubu simply couldn't come up with any more cash at the moment, so he used these gold and jade jewelry pieces to offset 500 taels.

According to Emubu, if sold normally, these jewelry pieces would be worth a thousand taels of silver.

Jia Chen had no objection. Although he wasn't quite sure of the value of these pieces of jewelry, they looked exquisitely crafted and must have been quite expensive.

I don't know if it's worth a thousand taels, but it should be worth 500 taels.

The transaction was completed smoothly and efficiently.

You could say this is a division of spoils, and everyone's happy.

The money has already been allocated.

Including the previous raid on the camp and this defense against Abuna's attack, a total of 11 people were killed.

Everyone decided that each of the fallen soldiers would receive thirty taels of silver, which would be given to their families after Jia Chen returned to Desheng Fort.

Thirty taels of silver is a huge sum for the family of a low-ranking soldier. If used wisely and sparingly, it could improve their lives.

Of the 22 survivors, Jia Chen alone received 600 taels of silver.

Liu Cheng, Jia Mao, Liu Baisheng, and Zhao Zheng each received 80 taels.

Sun Tiechong, Zhou Shitou, Wu Jiangsheng, and Liu Daniu each received 60 taels.

Ding Heihu was awarded 60 taels of silver for his bravery in battle, making him a special case among the captured soldiers.

The remaining 450 taels were distributed among the other 12 soldiers.

Based on their performance in killing enemies at the time, the highest reward was 40 taels, and the lowest was 35 taels.

According to Wang Baisheng and his group, Jia Chen should at least take one thousand taels first.

These are some of the unspoken rules in the military.

Actually, it's considered fair for the boss to take half; often, they take 70-80%, or even more.

What could the soldiers below say?

Jia Chen wasn't that greedy; in the end, he got all the jewelry, plus one hundred taels.

Wang Baisheng and his group preferred hard-earned cash.

Sun Tiechong was right. If these soldiers were to pawn these gold and jade ornaments, it would be too conspicuous and might cause trouble.

Jia Chen is different; it will be easier to handle him once he returns to Beijing.

Moreover, these gold and jade jewelry pieces are easy to carry and won't attract attention.

When he returns to Beijing and disposes of these jewelry pieces, Jia Chen believes their value will definitely exceed 500 taels. So, if he has already received 600 taels, their actual value in the future will probably be around 1,000 taels.

With a thousand taels of silver, as long as you live a good life, even in the capital, you can live a relatively comfortable life.

"Sigh, this wine has no flavor." Wang Baisheng put down his bowl and sighed.

"Brother Baisheng, are you still missing those liquors?" Liu Daniu asked with a smile as he leaned over.

Wang Baisheng glared at him but didn't say anything.

The remaining liquor was eventually taken away by Omubu.

Jia Chen's meaning was clear: these liquors could not be left behind, lest they give away their secret.

Wang Baisheng is now drinking the yellow wine that Chen Tai brought as a treat for everyone.

Compared to spirits, rice wine is milder and less potent.

Wang Baisheng wasn't really dissatisfied; he was just saying it for the sake of saying it.

Now there's hope for the future.

With the silver I received this time, plus the rewards from the imperial court for future merits, even if I die here, my family's life will surely be much better.

Ten days later, Hu Youcai sent people to Qianshandun to pick up Jia Chen and the other two and take them to Deshengbao.

It can be said that Hu Youcai valued Jia Chen very much.

Amidst everyone's reluctance, Jia Chen and his two companions took their clothes, weapons, and the silver they had hidden on their person and left Qian Shandun.

These days, Jia Chen has indeed led everyone to reinforce the defensive fortifications of Qian Shan Dun.

With the addition of firearms and thunderclaps, the Qianshandun should be relatively safe against ordinary northern barbarians marching south.

Unless the Northern barbarians are willing to suffer heavy casualties.