xymnovel Chapter 102 Extortion of Yunzhou
Chapter 102 Extortion of Yunzhou
Apart from Chao Gai guarding Yuncheng, all the other armies intensified their training, following the original training methods of Liangshan, and the results were remarkable.
Wang Lun and his advisor Shi Wenbin discussed the matter carefully and established a firearms battalion, selecting 500 soldiers to be led by Ling Zhen, who was specifically responsible for the manufacture and use of firearms by the Liangshan Flying Tiger Army.
Ling Zhenxin had just received the gunpowder formula from Wang Lun and was thinking of devoting himself to researching and manufacturing firearms when he heard about Wang Lun's arrangements. He was overjoyed.
The other newly joined leaders of Liangshan, such as Yang Xiong, Shi Qian, Hu Cheng, and Hu Sanniang, were also assigned to their respective factions.
Today, the Liangshan Flying Tiger Army has expanded into six armies, boasting a wealth of talent and a strong and well-equipped force.
As the 20,000 soldiers drilled, Wang Lun's heart pounded. More than a year had passed since he transmigrated, and he never imagined that he would achieve such a feat. Who could suppress such pride and joy?
Jeju Island is divided into four counties: Juye, Yuncheng, Rencheng, and Jinxiang. The seat of Jeju Island is located in Juye County.
Originally, Liangshan only conquered Yuncheng and Jizhou, which are Yuncheng and Juye counties. Rencheng and Jinxiang counties were too far away, so Wang Lun didn't bother with them.
Now that our army is strong, we cannot let it run rampant.
He then discussed with Shi Wenbin, Lin Chong and others, and sent Li Ying and Du Xing to take over Rencheng and station them there, and sent Luan Tingyu to lead troops to take over Jinxiang County.
Most of the leaders of Liangshan were bandits and had no real ability to govern a county.
Li Ying was capable of governing Li Family Village well, and Luan Tingyu was able to turn Zhu Family Village into an impregnable fortress. With Wang Lun's guidance, the two were sent to lead their troops to their posts.
The two were overjoyed to be highly valued by Wang Lun as soon as they arrived at Liangshan. They each led their troops and went to take up their posts with great pride.
Upon hearing that the Liangshan army had arrived, the two counties dared not resist and fled, only to be captured by the Flying Tiger Army.
Following Wang Lun's instructions, the two held a trial in the county government office, trying the county magistrate and other officials. The people had been eagerly anticipating the arrival of the Liangshan army, and countless people cried out for justice and filed complaints.
Li Ying and Luan Tingyu were both furious. According to the charges, they beheaded a group of officials and displayed their heads in public. They also seized the property of the county government and the evil merchants in the city. Except for a small amount left for military supplies, the rest were escorted to Jizhou.
By this time, Liangshan had occupied the entire territory of Jeju.
On this day, Wang Lun was training with Wu Song and his personal guards when Shi Wenbin rushed over.
Wang Lun stopped, and saw Shi Wenbin holding a thick stack of account books. He said, "Chief, I didn't expect that Zhu Chaofeng would send tribute money to the prefects of Yunzhou and Jizhou every year. Jizhou was taken by us, so it goes without saying, but the amount he sent to the prefect of Yunzhou was not small either."
Wang Lun took the account book and quickly glanced through it, saying, "No wonder the Zhu Family Manor is the strongest of the three manors, and the imperial court doesn't care. It turns out they send a sum of money every year."
Shi Wenbin said, "Chief, in my opinion, there's no need to fight with Yunzhou. Our Liangshan strength is now formidable, and the government has twice sent troops but failed to take us down. The surrounding prefectures are naturally panicking. Now that we have irrefutable evidence of the Yunzhou prefect's corruption, why not write him a letter and extort some money?"
Wang Lun was overjoyed and laughed, "Old Shi, I didn't expect that after spending so much time with us, you've become like a bandit."
Shi Wenbin blushed and said, "I am only thinking of the people. Now, under the leadership of the chieftain, the people of Jizhou live in peace and prosperity, and there are no thieves. It is much better than before. Since the prefect of Yunzhou is corrupt, the people of Yunzhou must also be suffering. If we can squeeze some money out of them, we will have more security."
Wang Lun immediately decided: "Alright, I'll leave this matter to you. You have three days to deliver 100,000 strings of cash and 5,000 shi of grain to us, or we'll send troops to Yunzhou."
Shi Wenbin laughed and said, "Ten thousand strings of cash and five thousand bushels of grain, although not a small amount, are not a big deal for Yunzhou, which has been embezzling for a long time."
"That's easy. We'll extort this much from him first, and then extort him again after the autumn harvest. Yunzhou will then become our inexhaustible granary." Wang Lun laughed heartily, delighted with Shi Wenbin's change of heart.
The matter was settled, and Shi Wenbin immediately went back to write a letter and sent it to Yunzhou.
Wang Lun began to arrange Wu Song's wedding, and it was several days later when everything was ready.
Gongsun Sheng carefully selected an auspicious date for Wu Song and Hu Sanniang's wedding, setting it for half a month later, on April 20th.
Wu Song and Hu Sanniang had become like husband and wife, strolling side by side through the city. The handsome man and beautiful woman, both leaders of the Liangshan Flying Tiger Army, drew praise from the people.
After sending a letter to Yunzhou, Shi Wenbin was eagerly awaiting the arrival of money and provisions, but three days later there was still no news.
Shi Wenbin then came to discuss the matter with Wang Lun.
Wang Lun pondered for a moment and said, "Now that Wu Song's wedding is imminent, it is not advisable to fight. I do have a plan."
Shi Wenbin quickly inquired.
Wang Lun summoned Wu Yong and instructed him, "Military Advisor Wu, please immediately send someone to print two issues of the 'Jianghu Daily.' In the first issue, write about the Zhu Family Manor sending gifts to Yunzhou, and attach a list of the gifts, the more detailed the better."
Wu Yong and Shi Wenbin were overjoyed. This plan was brilliant. In this way, without Wang Lun lifting a finger, the prefect of Yunzhou would come begging for mercy. Once this newspaper reached Tokyo, the Song emperor would know about the prefect's corruption, and he would be in deep trouble.
"Send another letter to Yunzhou, along with this newspaper. In the letter, state that our newspaper will only be distributed in Yunzhou and Jizhou and will not be sent to Tokyo. Also, double the amount of money and grain we are demanding."
After Wang Lun finished giving his instructions, Wu Yong and Shi Wenbin were overjoyed. They had clearly distributed the newspapers nationwide, but they had tricked the prefect of Yunzhou. In this way, they not only obtained his money and grain, but also used the imperial court to deal with him, killing two birds with one stone.
The second newspaper carried the news of Wu Song and Hu Sanniang's wedding and invited heroes from all walks of life to attend.
Wu Yong immediately accepted the order.
It is now 1117, the seventh year of the Zhenghe reign of the Song Dynasty. In this year, Fang La, Tian Hu, and Wang Qing had not yet grown in strength.
After giving his instructions, Wang Lun thought for a moment, then picked up his pen and wrote two letters, one to Zhao Yupan and the other to Zhang Shuye.
The letter to Zhang Shuye mainly consisted of greetings, inquiring whether he had encountered any difficulties with treacherous officials in the court after returning to Tokyo, and whether he needed any assistance.
Zhang Shuye was a rare good minister in the late Northern Song Dynasty. He was very capable, and Wang Lun wanted to win him over gradually.
As for Zhao Yupan, Wang Lun's letter was more than ten pages long. It described how he once again subdued Huyan Zhuo and won over Guan Sheng, Ling Zhen and others. It also described how he attacked Zhu Family Village and, with his superb wisdom, conquered the village with almost no casualties, completely annihilating the three villages of Zhu, Li and Hu.
In the letter, he praised himself as a modern-day Zhuge Liang.
Besides recounting these events, Wang Lun expressed his longing for Zhao Yupan and composed another poem:
"Rain beats against the pear blossoms, the door is tightly shut, youth is wasted, youth is squandered."
"With whom can I share these delightful pleasures? Enchanting beneath the flowers, enchanting beneath the moon."
"Sorrow gathers on her brows, she frowns all day long, a thousand tear stains, ten thousand tear stains."
"I think of you whether I'm walking or sitting, I gaze at the sky at dawn and the clouds at dusk."