Chapter 1102 – In This Land of Nine Provinces, I Want One Hundred Percent (Part One)
“Cheng Shixiong—”
Yang Si knew a tough battle was ahead, so he filled up on a meal to boost his morale and marched onto the “battlefield” with great confidence.
Cheng Jing’s lips twitched slightly, unsure if he should reciprocate Yang Si’s “buddy-up” attempts.
Nie Xun beside him looked at Cheng Jing in surprise, his eyes clearly showing a question mark—
When did Cheng Jing become Yang Si’s senior brother?
Wait, why are there so many tangled relationships under Liu Xi and Huang Song? It’s like everyone is either siblings or sworn brothers or uncle and nephew!
This is toxic!
Cheng Jing’s gaze darkened as he obligingly accepted.
Compared to Yang Si’s warm attitude, Cheng Jing’s response seemed a bit cold.
Yang Si wasn’t upset; he still wore a smile, determined to stick his warm face against Cheng Jing’s cold behind.
“Teacher often speaks of you, Shixiong. It’s been years since we last met, and you truly possess the grace of someone extraordinary! I took a liking to you at first sight.”
Yang Si was an orphan taken in by Mr. Yuanjing in his youth. Although not raised in Langya County, his background was no secret.
Cheng Jing was Mr. Yuanjing’s top disciple, so it wasn’t strange for Yang Si to call him “Shixiong” in context.
“Yang Shidi is no less impressive, living up to the teachings of our master for many years.”
Cheng Jing smiled dryly.
Nie Xun was in a pitfall, and Cheng Jing didn’t dare get too close to Jiang Pengji’s group.
Alas, Yang Si had thick skin and single-handedly performed a two-person act.
Cheng Jing: “…”
So much drama.
Though they hailed from the same master, no mercy was shown when it came to power struggles.
Cheng Jing worked hard to fight for Huang Song’s interests, not just the territory of Chenzhou, but also numerous gentry, courtiers’ families, captured generals and soldiers, and the supply depots and arsenals at each key pass… he considered nearly every loophole.
Yang Si’s side was somewhat similar; he wanted to extract profits from Huang Song while ensuring what he’d already consumed wasn’t wasted.
With the Dongqing royal family relocating to Chenzhou, they took many gentry with them.
Although Changshou Wang took some, the remaining gentry were still considerable enough to support nearly half a court.
These were invaluable treasures, worth far more than land.
If it weren’t for Jiang Pengji’s different approach, this part of the interest would be non-negotiable.
Gentry, officials, and their families, along with captured soldiers… these could be sacrificed selectively, but the supplies and weapons were far more sensitive.
Yang Si thought of inflating the numbers to secretly swallow a portion, but since Chenzhou was already occupied by Huang Song, they had detailed records.
Just a quick check on the records, and Cheng Jing would know how much Yang Si inflated the figures.
Even if Yang Si tried to pull a fast one, Cheng Jing could protect most of the interests.
Conversely, Jiang Pengji had not meddled in Cangzhou and the other two counties, so she lacked insider knowledge about the situation there.
Even though Meng Heng had already joined her side, he wasn’t aware of the circumstances throughout Cangzhou, so he couldn’t be of much help.
Thus, Yang Si found it difficult to estimate how much Cheng Jing was hiding or inflating.
In this situation, Yang Si could only rely on his skills and instincts to draw the line.
After some wrangling, Yang Si seemed lively but was actually starving, his stomach pressing against his back, his mind foggy.
“Huang Baigao is really cunning; sending just Cheng Jing would be enough, and now he adds Nie Xun—”
In a disadvantageous position, Yang Si was still fighting against two.
If it weren’t for Yang Si being a cunning strategist himself, he would’ve been chewed to bits by the duo!
“Thank you for your hard work.”
Wei Ci smiled as he served Yang Si food, the table laden with his favorite dishes.
As long as there was good food, Yang Si’s sour mood would brighten.
After barely eating to three parts full, Yang Si finally had the energy to care about other matters.
“What does the Lord mean by this? Are we seriously leaving behind all the talents among the gentry?”
Yang Si looked around to ensure no one else was present before whispering to Wei Ci.
The two shared an excellent relationship and could speak freely, even about some “subversive” topics, with Yang Si willing to take the blame if need be.
The Lord had long coveted Wei Ci, making him a “get-out-of-jail-free card”!
Jiang Pengji secretly hinted to Yang Si; if Huang Song wanted to take away the local talent of Cangzhou, he could take them if he wanted.
Of course, Huang Song wanting to take away these talents would clearly require equivalent benefits in exchange.
Wei Ci picked the bones out of the braised fish and said, “The Lord has Golden Scales Pavilion, where they pick usable talents almost every month or so. Though they aren’t top-tier, they are practical and reliable. Moreover, the students from Golden Scales Academy aren’t bad, so there’s no need to cling to the gentry.”
Before Wei Ci could even lift his chopsticks, Yang Si had the audacity to snatch the plate away, looking possessive.
“Sounds like the Lord has quite the ambition,” Yang Si said with a grin.
He came from humble beginnings and didn’t want a bunch of high-born gentry who did nothing but boss him around.
The Lord’s actions appealed to him deeply.
“Say it quietly; don’t blurt it out,” Wei Ci advised.
It was a fact that the Lord seldom employed gentry, but they couldn’t let the outside world know of her disdain for them to avoid provoking resistance.
Yang Si chuckled, “I’m not a three-year-old; I know when to keep my mouth shut!”
Wei Ci sighed lightly to himself.
Abandoning the gentry and sacrificing their support would undoubtedly make the road to power much more difficult.
Who could blame them when the gentry held nearly sixty percent of the world’s wealth?
The remaining thirty went to the imperial family, leaving just one percent for the common people.
Thanks to Cheng Jing and Nie Xun preserving half the interests, Huang Song’s expression had improved significantly.
Next, they just needed both factions to transfer smoothly, and they could put a perfect ending to this battle for Cangzhou.
Yang Si brought the accounts to Jiang Pengji, who was busy preparing a sand table.
The sand table included undulating mountains, hills, cities, and even obvious rivers and borders.
Yang Si noticed that the areas representing Beijiang, Chongzhou, Wanzhou, Cangzhou, and Hujun all had little flags planted.
Each flag had a peculiar animal head drawn on it.
With two black ears and two black eye sockets, it looked like someone had smothered it for a couple of rounds; the big round face was completely white…
It looked… so much like the Iron-Eating Beast that Wei Ci carried around!
“Jingrong has arrived?” Jiang Pengji looked up, putting down her tools and brushing the sand off her palms, “How did things go?”
“Fortunately, I didn’t disgrace myself.”
Saying that out loud, he felt a bit nervous inside.
Yang Si had no concrete idea about the wealth of the two counties in Cangzhou, so he could only make a rough judgement based on past tax revenues.
Though unaware of how much to claim, it was definitely enough to be four tenths!
Jiang Pengji flipped through the accounts, and the figures were all above her bottom line.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
Jiang Pengji smiled with satisfaction.
After getting the job done, of course, there was a reward.
But apart from delicacies, Jiang Pengji had no idea what else Yang Si liked.
After thinking it over, she concluded that rewarding him with food was probably the safest bet.
Besides money, Jiang Pengji also offered up her household’s cook to Yang Si, promising to make whatever he desired, with unlimited reimbursement for ingredients.
Yang Si looked at the sand table; the one Jiang Pengji made was stunning, appearing to shrink the entire landscape down for display on the table.
