Chapter 666 – The Alliance at Huangshui (III)
After capturing Chengde County, Jiang Pengji didn’t rush to rally the troops; instead, she took an extra half month to consolidate her forces.
She generously handed over the eight thousand captives and ten percent of the wealth to An Huan, leaving him a bit too flustered.
An Huan was no slouch; he combined intimidation with grace, rewards with punishments, and managed to organize the eight thousand captives quite efficiently.
He stayed in Chengde County for two days before taking his men and money and setting off towards Huangshui.
Meanwhile, Jiang Pengji was as busy as a bee, hardly having a moment to consider personal matters, while Wei Ci breathed a sigh of relief.
The biggest gain from the attack on Chengde County wasn’t just expanding the map of Wanzhou, but rather, taking control of personnel from the Red Lotus Sect.
Tens of thousands of captives might not seem like much in other large-scale battles, but for Jiang Pengji, it was incredibly beneficial.
After a year of rest and development, Fengyi County had become the most affluent and developed place in Wanzhou, followed by Shangyang County, with Chengde County at the bottom. The Red Lotus Sect had exploited Chengde County repeatedly, causing a significant loss of population. To attract more refugees and develop the local economy, revitalization and construction became priorities. Jiang Pengji spent sleepless nights pondering how to distribute her people.
“…Still too few hands… I hope this rally for the king can uncover some hidden talents…”
Even though Jiang Pengji was high-spirited and full of energy, the weight of her responsibilities left her with bloodshot eyes.
Fortunately, she had experience starting from scratch and had accumulated plenty of knowledge in county construction and development, which could be slightly modified and replicated in other areas. Fengyi County had iron mines, and Chengde County had natural advantages with its rich coal production, which could be utilized.
However, the most pressing issue was still selecting new recruits, assigning captives to cultivate barren lands, build roads, and construct houses…
Even though she managed to take Chengde County, the workload was far from light; the army had hardly paused, and the soldiers were utterly exhausted.
Now that she had conquered Chengde County, there were still many things demanding her attention.
Settling the captives and squeezing their labor was just the tip of the iceberg. Jiang Pengji had even more headaches to deal with, like arranging for the families of soldiers who died in battle, providing compensation for their relatives, and organizing injured soldiers. Spring would arrive in a month or two; she could delay other matters but couldn’t afford to postpone spring farming arrangements, nor the selection and training of new recruits, and the allocation of personnel across various counties…
Even though she had become the de facto governor of Wanzhou and appeared flamboyant, inside she felt like walking a tightrope, on a razor’s edge.
When it came down to it, her troop strength was insufficient; if anything went awry, she would be in a pickle.
A force of twenty to thirty thousand could secure a county, but it hardly threatened an entire state.
So recruiting new soldiers and expanding her military forces was her top priority.
With all this heavy responsibility weighing down on her, the strategists were worn out, wishing they could move their homes to the administration office. Jiang Pengji also found little time for leisure.
On top of all this, she needed to coordinate various military units and mobilize forces for the king’s rally.
“…Heaven help me… just give me a magic shovel…”
Jiang Pengji was most impatient with administrative duties; dealing with paperwork was far less thrilling than a good fight.
“Why does the lord want a shovel?” Yang Si asked, bewildered.
Ever since Yang Si learned Jiang Pengji’s true gender, he thought he would feel uncomfortable, but it turned out he had overthought it.
As long as there was no intentional reminder, he subconsciously regarded her as a man.
Occasionally, he’d reflect on it feeling surreal.
Such a martial powerhouse, taking on a hundred enemies and leading the charge… how could such an impressive lord be a woman?
Whenever that doubt crept in, he couldn’t help but sneak a glance at Jiang Pengji’s front, clearly devoid of any curves.
Then he would look at her face: the features were straight, her brows and eyes filled with heroism, lacking any masculine vigor. However, given that contemporary men wore flowers in their hair and bright clothing, by those standards, Jiang Pengji was quite manly.
So, this girl must be fake, right?
Jiang Pengji said, “I need a shovel to dig at the foundation, Jingrong… don’t you think we’re short on manpower? It’s just not scientific… I mean, your lord controls an entire state. Let’s not even talk about becoming significant, but surely it’s better than being average; why is it that no talents have come to join us?”
She wasn’t expecting top-tier strategists among those who defected; surely there must be at least some third-rate talents?
But what was the outcome?
While other places desired outstanding individuals, she wasn’t even getting double digits of prospects, and none of the mid-level talents.
Yang Si wasn’t sure what “scientific” meant, but he could still grasp the context with some effort.
He said, “Isn’t the lord forgetting that the Old Patriarch hasn’t retired yet?”
Jiang Pengji fell silent.
Liu Zhi was the governor of Chongzhou and in his prime. By the standards of the audience in the live stream, this guy had it all—car, house, a successful career, mature and affectionate personality—he was the quintessential catch. Jiang Pengji was undoubtedly talented, a promising prospect, but what pull could she have compared to a successful figure like Liu Zhi? If anyone wanted to defect to the Liu Clan, Liu Zhi would be their first choice.
Yang Si thought he had managed to hit a sore spot and softened his tone.
“Don’t worry, my lord; we need to think this through.”
Yang Si was more worried about the lack of time than about talent.
If only they had enough time to relax and develop, leveraging Wei Ci’s connections and their own cultivated talents, would they really have to worry about manpower?
Jiang Pengji nodded, furrowing her brows slightly.
“That’s also true.”
Patience is key; she had plenty of time to cultivate her ambitions slowly.
As the situation in the world grew more dire, only by solidifying her foundations could she stand undefeated.
After conferring with everyone, Jiang Pengji planned to set out for the king’s rally in half a month, spending her days buzzing around Wanzhou, busy nonstop.
At that moment, an unexpected visitor was slowly making their way into Wanzhou, approaching Xiangyang County.
“Father, I just heard news that the battle in Chengde County has ended, and Liu Xi is truly impressive; it only took half a month…” A young man in his twenties crouched into the carriage, a hint of surprise and admiration on his face. “Had I known it would wrap up this quickly, we should’ve just stuck to our original route.”
They had fled as a family and had to change their path upon hearing of the battles in Chengde County. The two sides were clashing fiercely, and to avoid getting caught in the crossfire, they had to take a detour. Now, they were only half a day’s journey away from Xiangyang County, and the battle was already over.
Sitting in the carriage was a middle-aged man who looked to be in his late thirties, accompanied by a woman who appeared to be in excellent condition. She looked quite younger than her actual age, perhaps in her early thirties at most, implying she had led a pampered life.
The woman, with an air of grace and elegance, raised her hand to brush away the snow from the young man’s head and shoulders.
The middle-aged man stroked his beard and chuckled lightly, “Heh, a son ought to be like this; Liu Zhongqing is quite fortunate.”
The young man felt a twinge of embarrassment; it was not easy to hear his father praise someone else’s child right in front of him.
