Chapter 513 – Attack on Fengyi County (Twenty-One)
Jiang Pengji looked around and her gaze landed on Qi Guanrang, who was sitting in the corner, still clutching his ever-present feather fan. His eyes were slightly squinted, as if he were intently listening or maybe just lost in thought, drifting away. Jiang Pengji called him out directly.
She asked, “What does Wen Zheng think of this method?”
Since the day Jiang Pengji met Qi Guanrang, she had known his bad habit of never wanting to stand out unless absolutely necessary; he often deliberately lowered his presence… Tsk tsk, is this guy too afraid of dying? Worried that if he performs too well, it’ll lead to his downfall?
Qi Guanrang, however, was not zoning out. On the contrary, he was listening intently, carefully weighing the pros and cons of the land reclamation policy.
It was evident that, at present, implementing this policy would yield far more benefits than drawbacks.
But after a long time, who could say for sure?
The land belonged to the government, and the tax rate was completely under Jiang Pengji’s control.
To say something outrageous, if she were no longer in this world, and the successor had a bad temperament, would they not arbitrarily raise the tax rate?
That was one point; the other was the aristocratic families.
They had absolute financial power and influence. Even if the common people managed to buy their own land, could they protect their estates?
Let’s not even talk about the past—now in Dongqing, land consolidation was rampant. How many common people had sold their land due to someone else’s cunning or coercion, ending up as tenants?
Bloody lessons were right in front of them!
Yet, thinking about all this, Qi Guanrang didn’t want to bring it up at this moment.
Because even if he did, it wouldn’t bear much significance. The Lord needed to grow stronger in a short time, and the common people needed to quickly recover from overwhelming blows, leading stable and prosperous lives. Any drawbacks of the land reclamation policy would only surface later.
It’s premature to think about running when you haven’t even learned to crawl!
But Jiang Pengji didn’t give him the chance, saying, “If you have something to say, just say it. I won’t laugh at you. You don’t need to hide it from me. Whatever you have to say, just say it. If you can’t come up with anything substantial, don’t think about relaxing when you go back.”
The corner of Qi Guanrang’s mouth twitched slightly, and after a while, he finally expressed his earlier thoughts.
A moment later, he sheepishly admitted, “I was being overly cautious. Currently, the Lord’s land reclamation policy is the best option.”
Jiang Pengji relaxed her eyebrows and said, “What you consider overly cautious isn’t really so. The difference between being preventive and being overly cautious is this—one can potentially happen in the near term, while the other refers to a distant or even impossible future.”
In just a decade or two, she would turn the whole era upside down, so Qi Guanrang’s worries weren’t unfounded.
“I’ll remember what you said,” Jiang Pengji finished, turning to Wei Ci and Xu Ke, “For now, let’s leave it here. You two go back and organize things. Once this battle is over, we’ll make adjustments based on actual circumstances…”
The best is not always the most suitable, and Jiang Pengji understood this principle very well.
Only what caters to this era is truly the most appropriate.
Wei Ci and Xu Ke bowed and said, “Yes.”
After a while, a guard reported that the female camp’s Captain, Nong Qin, requested an audience.
The vanguard was clearing out the remaining forces of the Green Garment Army under Meng Hunyun and Li Yun’s leadership. What was Nong Qin doing here now?
Jiang Pengji furrowed her brow and permitted her to enter.
“This subordinate, Nong Qin, greets the Lord.”
Once Nong Qin entered, she paid her respects formally and only took a seat after receiving permission.
Jiang Pengji asked, “Nong Qin, what’s happened?”
With a calm voice, she reported, “I have enforced military discipline and apprehended thirty-two violators, one of whom is a serious offender.”
Jiang Pengji was very strict about military discipline. Considering physiological needs, she didn’t restrict male soldiers from marrying, nor did she limit their leisure activities during downtime. She did this so that if the soldiers made any serious mistakes during warfare, she would not take it lightly.
Hearing Nong Qin say this, her tone grew cold.
“The other thirty-one can be dealt with according to military regulations. But what of this serious offender?”
Nong Qin replied, “The crime of extorting silver. The Lord once stated that soldiers who extort the common people will receive severe punishment.”
Jiang Pengji’s good mood dissipated instantly, and a cold smile filled with murderous intent appeared on her lips.
“Extorting silver?” she said, “Such a grave offense deserves to be executed in front of the entire army, beat to death, no less.”
Listening to the conversation between the two, the three strategists present furrowed their brows inwardly.
Extorting silver?
Based on the severity of the crime, the minimum penalty was death—a clean and straightforward death, or the worst, a fate worse than death, which constituted a cruel form of torture.
What soldier was so blind as to commit such an act under scrutiny?
Nong Qin said, “I firmly agree, but the individual harmed is somewhat special, so I’m unsure how to assess the crime.”
Jiang Pengji frowned in confusion, “A special identity?”
Could it be that the soldier has wronged a difficult character?
Nong Qin continued, “The individual was a man.”
Everyone was taken aback; indeed, the soldier was male, but wait… Could it be that the offender was from the female camp?
Forgive them for being a bunch of country bumpkins; mention extorting silver, and the first thought was always male and female.
If the victim was male, then logically the attacker would be from the female camp… but that didn’t add up either…
Nong Qin didn’t realize the massive misunderstanding she had caused and repeated herself, “The soldier was from the third camp, and the individual he harmed was a man captured by the Green Garment Army and taken to the brothel camp, who had a pretty face, almost indistinguishable from a woman. The Lord once stated that soldiers must not extort silver from the common people. That man certainly counts as one of the ‘common people,’ so I believe the crime of extorting silver can indeed stand.”
Worldviews shattered!
Wei Ci, Qi Guanrang, and Xu Ke stared wide-eyed at Nong Qin, as if looking at a monster.
It felt like they had opened a door to a new world.
So this is how it could be played!
Xu Ke awkwardly remarked, “My Lord, this… this is a bit too absurd…”
Jiang Pengji shot a glance at Xu Ke, then subtly scanned Wei Ci.
Speaking of which, Wei Ci’s looks are quite dangerous too; sending a capable and loyal person to protect seems much more reassuring.
As a caring leader for her subordinates, she gave herself a thumbs up.
Jiang Pengji lowered her gaze and said, “What Nong Qin says is correct; a common person is simply a common person, where is the distinction of gender?”
Xu Ke fell silent.
Although a bit horrified, the Lord’s reasoning was sound.
Just because the victim was male doesn’t mean that being forced into relations should be excused; the soldier indeed committed a serious crime.
He realized this was an opportunity to set an example, a warning to those who would play word games and exploit loopholes in language.
Men are also “common people.” If the Lord doesn’t enforce this precedent, things could get lively in the future.
Nowadays, male favoritism is rampant; sworn brothers can still be considered a beautiful story, after all!
If soldiers believed that violating men wasn’t a crime, what would happen when they set their sights on men in future conquests?
