Tale of Xu Province (2)
The fastest way to win the hearts of the people is simple.
Money.
Nothing is as efficient and direct as money.
The taxes collected from Chen Kingdom, Jiujiang Prefecture, and Lujiang Prefecture were mostly allocated for military expenses, so they couldn't be diverted. Moreover, to provide massive amounts of Relief Grain to the Five Prefectures of Xu Province and implement an active Appeasement Policy like building embankments, we needed to draw in the Local Gentry.
"I heard General Guan Yu has been taking in orphans from across the land. Her character is as benevolent as her appearance, and she is as beautiful as a goddess descended from heaven."
"Ho ho, caring for pitiful orphans... A virtuous deed worthy of praise."
She established a childcare facility to look after young boys and girls who had lost their parents at a tender age. The orphanage, named the Benevolent Care Home, drew explosive attention from the moment it opened its doors.
The public's reaction was only natural.
Occasionally, there were cases of taking in and caring for orphans,
but a childcare facility that conducted a nationwide recruitment of orphans to train and educate them was unprecedented.
The courage and Martial Power of a Foe of Ten Thousand.
A dignified grace that boasts an elegance like a goddess.
And a warm character that sincerely cherishes and loves children.
She had always maintained a cold and blunt demeanor, but perhaps that was just a shy personality she couldn't express outwardly? As word spread that the heroine with the icy impression had strongly advocated for the facility's construction, countless commoners were taken by surprise.
"Everyone thinks it's some grandiose reason... but it's actually ridiculously trivial."
"A trivial reason?"
The beauty with long, pale-purple hair spoke with an indifferent expression. She even added that people might feel disillusioned if they learned the hidden truth about the second sister.
What on earth did she mean?
I shrugged my shoulders as I walked side by side with Zhang Fei.
"It's true that Sister Yunchang likes children. She always acts as rigid and blunt as a block of ice, but... she's uniquely soft on little kids. So whenever we passed through a town, she'd always care for the starving orphans."
"A fine character."
"Mm... That's because you don't know Sister Yunchang's hidden side, Your Highness the Crown Prince."
"...?"
Cherishing and loving children is a wonderful act of virtue.
Deserving of praise.
But Zhang Fei, continuing the conversation, wore a distinctly sour expression.
Was there a serious disqualifying flaw?
The second sister, the sole conscience and only sane person in Liu Bei's army, couldn't possibly have such a blemish...
"You don't have to be scared. No one can torment you. If any ruffians invade... I, your big sister, will defeat them all for you."
When I arrived at the childcare facility,
I witnessed the black-haired beauty soothing the children.
As if proving they had suffered severe discrimination and injustice, the children who entered the home were highly guarded. Their pitifully trembling eyes betrayed the suspicion and fear coiling in their hearts.
"I desire only one thing. To watch those little sprouts, with their various shapes and colors, grow into splendid and beautiful adults."
A faint smile appeared on her face, which was usually as cold and blunt as a block of ice. It was a smile born from sincerity, without a shred of pretense or hypocrisy.
A saint.
I could feel a benevolent maternal love reminiscent of a holy mother.
Admirable.
Just as expected of Liu Bei's last conscience.
A disqualifying flaw?
Given such maternal love, a flaw couldn't possibly exist.
Even if one did exist, it would be nothing more than a tiny stain compared to her loving nature.
The black-haired beauty in an apron stroked the heads of the extremely tense children, consoling them. Slowly, their fears and tension, once as sharp as thorns, began to soften.
"Hehe... hehehe...!"
Now that's a perfect bride candidate.
Just as I thought that and looked at Guan Yu,
I heard rough breathing.
It was the sound of breathing born from a twisted affection that should never be revealed to the world.
"..."
The black-haired beauty scooped the children into her arms and burst into a doting, silly laugh. At the same time, she took repeated deep breaths, even taking in the scent of the children.
Unbelievable.
A wave of shock and embarrassment washed over me.
I never imagined the cold, dedicated beauty would let out such an easy, foolish laugh. Embracing the children, Guan Yu radiated an extreme satisfaction as if she held the whole world in her hands.
"Big sis, you're so pretty! You really are like a goddess!"
"Your hair is so long! I'll braid it for you!"
Cute girls clung to her with their tiny, delicate hands.
Guan Yu then lifted the girls up high, showering them with affection.
"She seems to believe that the only remaining purity in this chaotic world, rotted by countless corruptions, is the innocent hearts of children. That's why Sister Yunchang is infinitely kind to kids while being blunt about everything else."
"So when those kids grow up and become adults, does she instantly revert to a block of ice?"
"I dunno. I'm still a maiden, how would I know about raising kids properly?"
"..."
Dizzying.
It might not be a flaw, but it's a bit difficult to process.
If she only liked little boys, I'd just treat her as a crazy woman. But Guan Yu was displaying a broad range of affection, also doting on cute girls as if they were adorable dolls.
"Well... putting aside her obsessive love for children, Sister Yunchang is a great person. Though that time she was playing house with the neighborhood kids and actually ate a mud dumpling. When I first saw her gobbling dirt... I thought I'd fallen headfirst off my horse."
"Good heavens."
They say birds of a feather flock together.
And indeed, like attracts like.
As a reader of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, I had truly admired the Oath of the Peach Garden, the ultimate romance... but I let out a deep sigh as I watched these sisters who had strayed far, far beyond the bounds of normalcy.
* * *
The Donghai Mi Clan, the great merchant house representing Xu Province, began to fully support Liu Chong's army. The scholar-officials and Local Gentry who had been probing the situation flocked in, racing to join the moment they heard the rumors about the Donghai Mi Clan.
Hm.
I've seen this sight somewhere before.
It looked like the hordes of retail investors who rush in the moment a new stock is listed.
What will they do if it gets delisted...?
- Yeah, just crash! Suicide is always an option!
- If you don't unify the realm, you're all going into the Yellow River to drown.
If they succeed, they're meritorious subjects;
if they fail, they're traitors.
They had wagered the lives, fortunes, and fates of their clans and families.
The gamble of a lifetime.
They had joined a rebellion to usurp the Imperial House.
The scholar-officials and Local Gentry, who had hesitated with half-belief until now, had made a resolute decision. Through this, I learned that Senior Assistant Officer Mi Zhu, the head and eldest daughter of the Donghai Mi Clan, held absolute trust among the scholar-officials and Local Gentry of Xu Province.
"The scholar-officials and Local Gentry of Xu Province were originally salt smugglers who amassed their wealth. As the discipline and laws of the Han Dynasty crumbled, and a culture prioritizing wealth and connections spread, these rich merchants grew into the scholar-official and gentry classes."
"With offices and ranks being openly sold... it's no wonder the merchants came to dominate."
Merchants don't engage in business that results in a loss.
They must recover their principal and its value under any circumstances.
And hadn't these merchant-turned-scholar-officials and Local Gentry wagered not just their family fortunes, but the safety of their clans and households? From now on, they would long for Liu Chong's unification more desperately than anyone.
"I am no different. Having involved countless scholar-officials and Local Gentry of Xu Province... I shall serve with utmost devotion, day and night, so that Your Highness the Crown Prince may pacify this chaotic world and achieve the great task of unifying the realm. Only when Your Highness achieves this great task, can I receive back an immense fortune, tens of times this wealth, in the years to come."
"Of course. I shall repay it tens of times... no, hundreds of times over."
The beauty with flowing dark-brown hair spoke in a mischievous tone, her eyes curving into a smile. It was a reply that sounded like a lighthearted joke, yet also felt like a sincere piece of advice.
Thorough, just as you'd expect from a merchant's daughter.
The other scholar-officials and Local Gentry must be thinking the exact same thing.
Tens of times.
Or hundreds of times. I would repay them.
I made this promise to the precocious young lady of the Donghai Mi Clan.
"I heard from my younger brother... that you have a task for me?"
"Please prepare ships in consultation with the Local Gentry. As many as possible. An army of tens of thousands must cross the Yangtze River. The merchant ships Chen Kingdom currently possesses are hopelessly insufficient."
Merchant ships.
No,
they don't have to be merchant ships.
As long as they could cross the Yangtze, I didn't care if they were fishing village skiffs.
Xu Province is a region that faces the vast sea for maritime trade. For this reason, most of the Local Gentry and wealthy families running large merchant companies in Xu Province owned dozens of merchant ships.
"Next is Jiangdong."
"We'll press our momentum and swiftly subjugate Inspector of Yang Province Chen Wen and the Jiangdong warlords."
"You've just subjugated Xu Province... are you not rushing things a bit?"
"We must secure our rear to face the enemies pressing down from the front with our full strength. Even if it's a strain, we have to hurry as much as possible right now."
I have no intention of leisurely planting flags as if I'm playing a game of territory capture.
I planned to seize the south as quickly as possible and declare the emergence of a new emperor.