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Chapter 654: Unifying Wanzhou (VII)

In Jiang Pengji’s view, those die-hard believers were like time bombs. They certainly could not be allowed to stay.

What about those people who did not have a firm determination, who only went along with the flow?

Could she kill all of them?

That would be impossible.

Since they were the type to go along with the flow, why not redirect and gather them to her side?

“I plan to let the beggars in all three counties sing this nursery rhyme everywhere. Let’s see if the Red Lotus Group can still create more waves with their crazy ways.”

In reality, this nursery rhyme was the result of a discussion between Jiang Pengji and her 150,000 viewers.

It was simple, easy to understand, and catchy. Besides, with Jiang Pengji’s manipulating things from behind the scenes, there was no need to worry that this rhyme would not be sung far and wide.

Even an illiterate old woman would be able to easily understand the meaning of the rhyme once she heard it.

Yang Si thought about this carefully. It was indeed feasible.

Most commoners were foolish and could not judge for themselves.

If his lord employed harsh tactics and killed all the die-hard believers of the Red Lotus Group, it would inevitably lead to a violent backlash from the outside. People would say that his lord was cruel and inhumane.

In this way, the Red Lotus Group would be absolved of all sins, becoming a “white lotus” that was being bullied by evil forces. On the other hand, the real do-gooders would face a violent backlash by the common people.

Compared to that, why not take the moral high ground?

Jiang Pengji could not construct herself as the weaker party, but she could construct herself as a “savior” of noble character and unquestionable integrity.

Yang Si’s eyes flickered slightly. He thought for a while, then borrowed a pen and ink to write another nursery rhyme on the bamboo slips.

The nursery rhyme written by Jiang Pengji exposed the Red Lotus Group, and the nursery rhyme written by Yang Si eulogized Fengyi County.

In Yang Si’s view, it was not nearly enough to criticize and expose the evil deeds of the Red Lotus Group in Chengde County. The common people needed to see the true nature of the Group. They had to add fuel to the fire. Would the people choose to follow the Red Lotus Group to be exploited and bullied by them, or would they choose to follow Liu Xi and enjoy a good life?

Even a brainless person would know which option to choose.

In just two or three days, the two nursery rhymes had spread from Fenghu County to Red Lotus County and Jinmen County. The rhymes could be heard everywhere on the streets.

At first, only beggars and playful urchins sang the rhymes, but they were later joined by some of the common people who had been exploited by the Red Lotus Group and had led a hard life.

Although the nursery rhyme had not been in circulation for long, the situation in the city had improved a lot. The most significant point was that the number of moronic believers with their trouble-making ways had decreased.

The Qiguan Rang breathed a long sigh of relief. Without the frustrating fools, he could put his extra mental and physical efforts toward other areas.

Currently, the main forces of the Red Lotus Group were gathered in Qiuyu County. This was a pig-headed bunch. It would not be as easy to take down Qiuyu County as the previous three counties.

They needed to concentrate their forces if they wanted to capture Qiuyu County. Otherwise, the battle would be a difficult one.

With their rapport, Qiguan Rang, Wei Ci, and Yang Si unanimously selected the captives that could be used, packed them up, and sent them back to Fengyi County in batches.

Most of the captive people were put to mining, reclaiming wasteland for agriculture, and building roads or houses. They were free human resources, so it would be a waste if they went unused.

According to Jiang Pengji’s previous plan, these captives would be put on a six-month “probation period.” If they performed well, they might be able to enter the Mintun District administered by Wei Ci and be assigned to the fields to become militia soldiers. They could claim up to 60 or 70 percent of the crops they cultivated!

Of course, during the “examination period” of this half-year, Jiang Pengji would also take care of their food and accommodations. But she was only responsible for keeping their bellies full. Whether or not they led a comfortable life was not her concern. They would not receive any remuneration either.

To placate the escorted captives and prevent them from stirring up any trouble on the way, these “welfare” conditions were stated in advance.

However, the captives were still terrified. They felt that Jiang Pengji’s words were only meant to deceive them.

As a victor in war, it was good enough that she hadn’t killed the captives to reduce the expenses of rations. But to be so kind as to give them food and accommodation?

Trembling with fear and terrified of the future, these captives were sent to Fengyi County in batches.

Xu Ke and others worked around the clock, but before they could finish the tasks at hand, another pile of office duties dropped into their laps with the arrival of the captives.

They were at their wits’ ends and had to grab any able-bodied man they could to share the office duties.

Otherwise, when Jiang Pengji returned, they would probably be staring at the lush weeds over their graves.

The women’s department of the Government Office had the most intense and memorable experience.

There was a girl among them who had a well-rounded figure. Over the past few days, her waistline had reduced by two-thirds. She went from having cute baby fat to being a skinny beauty.

Not only that, but Shangguan Wan, the supervisor of the women’s department in the Government Office, had also snagged Feng Jin’s wife, Wei Jingxian, to become one of the able-bodied working men.

“Since Mr. Feng has permitted you to go out and gain some experiences, I will not hold you back.”

Wei Jingxian didn’t want to relinquish the lively and energetic Changsheng, but she was no match for Shangguan Wan who wore her down with her persistence.

Fortunately, Changsheng was clever and charming. He would sit next to her seriously during the day without crying or making trouble.

He looked for a maid for food when he got hungry. When he was bored, he would gnaw on his feet or chubby hands. He entertained himself happily.

Even Wei Jingxian had been put to work as one of the “able-bodied men.” Did others have any excuses for not working hard?

Feng Zhen, who always loved to have fun, was so tired that he had even lost the addiction that would occasionally rear up, nevermind the energy to drink wine and find beautiful women.

Sure enough, their busy period lasted one year. Things like seven days of rest where the lord would write off the expenses of all pleasurable activities... they were all lies!

Even on the night of the New Year’s Eve, he had fallen asleep hugging a stack of official documents instead of a warm, fragrant woman.

To prevent the captives from making trouble, they were not concentrated in one place. Instead, they were scattered to different places.

30,000 plus captives sounded like a lot of people, but after they were broken up into smaller portions, the numbers that were sent to each place were not very large. There was no fear that they would cause trouble.

Upon hearing the news, the influential land-owning families of Shangyang County clammed up out of fear, a strong sense of crisis spreading into their hearts.

They became much less troublesome. Naturally, Feng Jin and Feng Zhen felt much more relaxed.

On the other side of things, while Jiang Pengji was secretly promoting the nursery rhymes, she was also assembling an army. At the same time, she was valiantly commanding the soldiers to march for Qiuyu County.

Excluding the troops stationed in the three counties, there were only 8,000 elite troops available to Jiang Pengji.

She had 8,000 troops, while the Red Lotus Group in Qiuyu County had 40,000 to 50,000 troops.

It was okay if the Red Lotus Group was still in a civil war, but if they worked together to resist the “foreign enemy,” Jiang Pengji would have a miserable time.

The army of the Red Lotus Group was five or six times larger than hers. They also had the advantage of being in the defending position. As the attacking party, she was in a very disadvantageous position.

If the Red Lotus Group defended the city without emerging from it, she could only retreat in defeat when everything was said and done.

It was not because she could not win with a fewer number of troops, but because she had too little time. There was a looming deadline to respond to the imperial decree to rescue the Emperor in the capital.

However, if the Red Lotus Group was still caught in a civil war, Jiang Pengji could pick up the little advantages that were readily available.

The military counselor of the Red Lotus Group had been thoroughly duped by An Cui. He had finally awakened from his fury with much effort. He immediately dispatched an emissary to try to negotiate with the Deputy Chief. Right now, the most important thing was to unite the forces of the Red Lotus Group and fight against Liu Xi. They should not fight amongst themselves, which would let the outsiders seize an advantage.

The Deputy Chief hesitated and did not agree immediately.

Meanwhile, Jiang Pengji was frowning inside her tent.

If the Red Lotus Group united and became determined to guard the city, refusing to emerge from the city at all costs, things would become very difficult.

A guard arrived and relayed a message. Wei Ci was outside and sought a meeting with her.

Jiang Pengji said calmly, “Please come in.”

Wei Ci came bearing a solution for Jiang Pengji.

“I hope that my lord will consent to this. Allow me to persuade the Red Lotus rebels to surrender and submit to you.”

The space between her brows twitched fiercely.

Did he want to campaign and promote a political idea in a foreign land at this time? Was he looking to shorten his life?

Although she did not object immediately, her expression was disapproving.

Wei Ci pursed his lips and kept silent, looking straight into her eyes.

For a long time, the two of them silently confronted each other in a stalemate.