roccoschili Chapter 5463 Good Princess
Chapter 5463 Good Princess
Chapter 5463 Good Princess
Princess Linchuan first launched into a scathing rebuke, standing on her moral high ground to utterly humiliate Zhou Daowu. Then, she wept and recounted the years of loving and devoted marriage, how he had now betrayed her and sold her for personal gain, leaving Zhou Daowu sweating profusely and at a loss for words.
These words sound reasonable, but they clearly ignore the facts, which is that Zhou Daowu never had such thoughts.
He said in bewilderment, "I have never had any thoughts of selling my wife for personal gain, nor have I put them into practice. Your Highness's harsh criticism of me is truly baffling."
Princess Linchuan sobbed, "If you have no such intention, then why are you hesitating?"
Zhou Daowu felt wronged: "It was Your Highness who brought it up suddenly, and I didn't react in time."
Princess Linchuan turned her head away: "Since you are hesitant, it means you have this intention. You should consider the pros and cons and weigh the pros and cons."
Zhou Daowu: "...How could I, Zhou Daowu, a descendant of a distinguished family and a proud man, do such a shameless and despicable thing? Your Highness's attempt to frame me is simply unreasonable!"
After saying this, he stood up, angrily turned and left.
Princess Linchuan wiped away her tears, rubbed her forehead, and sighed softly when she saw him leave in anger.
It seems that Zhou Daowu has no chance of accepting this, and her idea of using this to salvage his official position, title, and future prospects has to be abandoned.
Otherwise, even if her wish were fulfilled, Zhou Daowu might not be grateful, and the couple would become enemies, severing all ties—something she definitely did not want to see…
Zhou Daowu walked out of the hall, looked up at the gray, overcast sky, and couldn't help but let out a long sigh.
He may not have understood Princess Linchuan's probing at first, but how could he not understand it at all?
To say that I wasn't even slightly moved would be a lie.
Fang Jun's reputation as a "good princess" is known throughout the land and among the people. If Princess Linchuan were truly willing to offer herself up, the chances of success would be very high.
But in this way, can he really enjoy the official position, title, and even future that his wife obtained by exchanging her physical dignity without any shame or guilt?
After weighing the options, Zhou Daowu felt he couldn't do it.
Whether you say he hasn't reached the end of his rope or that he still has a moral bottom line, I just feel that if this happens, he will never be able to hold his head up again and will become a laughing stock.
What was his wife thinking when she brought this up?
Is this to confirm whether he would sell his wife for personal gain?
Or was she deliberately testing him to see if he would agree?
If it is the latter, is he truly willing to give everything for Zhou Daowu's official position, title, and future, or is he going with the flow and has other motives?
Consider Fang Junwen's refined and accomplished talent, his support for the Crown Prince and his immense power in the court, coupled with his superhuman strength and unparalleled bravery in the army...
Zhou Daowu was in a very bad mood.
……
Fang Jun was stationed in the front hall of the Liuzhou Governor's Mansion, and his personal guards controlled all the gates of the mansion. Naturally, what happened in the inner quarters could not escape his notice.
When news of the argument between Zhou Daowu and Princess Linchuan arrived, Fang Jun listened carefully, paused for a moment, then realized what was happening and shook his head with a smile.
Even though he controlled the entire governor's mansion, it was still Zhou Daowu's territory, and most of the people here were his. If the couple's dispute was truly kept secret, how could an outsider like Fang Jun have heard about it?
It must have been a deliberate leak, or one of Zhou Daowu and Princess Linchuan deliberately let him know.
His intention was quite clear—if he harbored even the slightest interest in Princess Linchuan, then this was the time to take the initiative…
Fang Jun wasn't sure if this was a hint from Zhou Daowu and his wife or a honey trap to lure him in, but he certainly wasn't interested.
Although Princess Xu of Linchuan was middle-aged and still charming, Fang Jun considered himself not to be a lustful person.
While he had numerous ambiguous relationships with several princesses, he was not truly a "good princess"...
The original furnishings inside the main hall have all been cleared out and replaced with a hall resembling a military shrine. Soldiers carrying messages come and go, and several maps of the entire Liaodong region and parts of it are hung on the walls. Small flags of various colors representing different forces and arrows indicating marching routes are drawn on them, displaying the entire situation in Liaodong in an unobstructed manner.
A tall, heavily armored general strode in, knelt on one knee behind Fang Jun, who was looking up at the map, and saluted.
"This humble general, Li Jinxing, pays his respects to the Commander-in-Chief!"
"Be flat!"
Fang Jun turned around, reached out to help Li Jinxing up, looked him up and down, patted him heavily on the shoulder, and praised, "Well done!"
Li Jinxing respectfully replied, "I am fortunate to have received your guidance, Commander-in-Chief. I will dedicate myself to your cause until my dying breath!"
"Come, come, sit down and let's talk."
Pulling Li Jinxing to sit down in a chair, and having his personal guards serve him fragrant tea, Fang Jun asked with a smile, "Was the trip smooth?"
Li Jinxing replied, "After returning to Luzon from Xinjin, I received orders from the commander-in-chief to immediately return to Huating Town, select three thousand elite troops, and then sail to Ruluo to land. After that, I traveled through the mountains to report back... The journey was smooth, and I have successfully completed my mission."
Fang Jun then said gently, "General, you have traveled tens of thousands of miles between the north and south. You must be very tired."
From the newly established kingdom on the southern island to Liuzhou city in the northern frontier, the journey spanned tens of thousands of miles by land and water. Not only was the travel arduous and physically demanding, but the changing climate and latitude placed extremely high demands on the body and willpower.
Li Jinxing smiled, revealing a set of white teeth, patted his chest, and said with high spirits, "General, rest assured, I may not have any other skills, but I do have a decent physique. As long as you give the order, I can charge into battle immediately!"
Fang Jun waved his hand: "No rush. Let the troops set up camp outside the city and rest well. When the time is right, we will launch a surprise attack and win a decisive victory!"
"Here!"
Fang Jun gestured for Li Jinxing to drink tea and asked, "What's the situation in the newly formed kingdom?"
Li Jinxing took a sip of tea, put down the teacup, and straightened his back: "The situation is excellent!"
Fang Jun smiled and said, "Tell me about it."
"His Highness Prince Jin began large-scale construction as soon as he arrived in the new Jin Kingdom. The fleet was loaded with many craftsmen and tools. The land was not short of materials, but it lacked manpower. His Highness Prince Jin ordered us to go out and capture native prisoners everywhere... At present, the docks, cities, land reclamation and other matters are progressing smoothly and in full swing."
He paused for a moment, then continued, “The King of Jin divided the population of his country into classes. All the Tang people who traveled to the new Jin Kingdom with him were classified as first class, those who followed were classified as second class, the natives who voluntarily attached themselves to the new Jin Kingdom were classified as third class, and the prisoners he captured were classified as fourth class… This move caused strong dissatisfaction among Doulu Qinwang, Wang Liben and others, who believed that it was not in accordance with Confucian principles and lacked compassion and love, and could not last long. Liu Yizhi, Xing Wenwei and others strongly supported it.”
Fang Jun was truly amazed. Emperor Li Zhi, who was more criticized than praised in historical records, was most criticized for his poor political ability. Perhaps he was overshadowed by Emperor Taizong and Empress Wu Zetian, but he did not make any achievements in politics.
Now that we've arrived in the newly established state, they actually know how to classify people into different classes?
Clearly, Li Zhi prioritized practical benefits over benevolence and virtue, abandoning the traditional approach of a "land of propriety" and instead focusing all his efforts on developing the country.
Although the islands of Tiannan are desolate and uninhabited, there are actually quite a few indigenous people, but they are not very noticeable due to their scattered distribution across the vast territory. In any case, the Tang people are a minority. And for a minority of people to rule over a territory dominated by indigenous people, classifying people into different classes is the most practical and convenient method.
This approach ensured the privileges of the ruling class by concentrating the most intelligent and capable Tang people in one place, while also dividing the natives by placing "natives who actively submitted" and "natives who were captured" at different levels. This was intended to split their internal unity and prevent the formation of a unified resistance force.
Although long-term unequal treatment has exacerbated ethnic and social conflicts, it can unleash the greatest potential in the short term, enabling large-scale development and construction while maintaining social stability.
The newly established state had the most difficult start, the weakest resources, and received the least support from the central government among all the vassal states. However, it might just become the fastest-growing one under this system...
The two chatted for a while, and Fang Jun, having gained some understanding of the situation in the newly established state, said, "Originally, I planned to transfer you to Taixi Fengcheng to replace Xi Junmai, but now the development of Liaodong is imminent and time is of the essence. So after this internal strife in the Khitan, you should go to the Liaodong Governor's Office to take up a post. Cui Dunli will arrange for you to be selected as the governor of a governor's office."
Li Jinxing was extremely excited. He suddenly stood up and knelt on one knee: "Thank you for your guidance, Commander!"
The Tang Dynasty's administrative system divided "military governorates" into three levels: "upper, middle, and lower," based on geographical size and administrative rank. The Liaodong Military Governorate belonged to the "middle level," and its Grand Governor, Cui Dunli, was a second-rank official, equivalent to the Prefect of Jingzhao, the Prefect of Henan, and the Prefect of Taiyuan. Other governorates that would soon be established under the Liaodong Military Governorate, such as the Andong Military Governorate, the Songmo Military Governorate, and the Heishui Military Governorate, were all under the control of the Liaodong Military Governorate and were third-rank officials, equivalent to the "Ministers of the Nine Temples" and the "Prefects of Upper Prefectures."
For Li Jinxing, this was nothing short of a meteoric rise to power.
Of course, Li Jinxing also understood that the reason he was able to get such an opportunity was not only because of Wu Niangzi's recommendation and Fang Jun's trust, but also because of his own identity as a Sumo Mohe.
Clearly, the commander-in-chief's target was not only the Khitan and Xi people in the Liao River basin, but also the Mohe people in the Sumo River basin...
But in any case, who else but Fang Jun would dare to promote a general from a different ethnic group with such force?
This kindness and gratitude are truly rare.
You treated me as a national hero, and I will repay you as a national hero in return. That's all.
Soldiers rushed in and handed Fang Jun a battle report.
Fang Jun unfolded the battle report and read it quickly, then handed it to Li Jinxing for him to look at. He then got up and went back to the map. Based on the information conveyed in the battle report, he moved the flags representing the Dahe, Fenwen, Tubian, and Ruixi tribes from the west bank of the Huangshui River to the east bank. Meanwhile, in Tanhan Prefecture, Qiaoluo Prefecture, and Wufeng Prefecture, which are seventy miles away from the Huangshui River, the arrows representing these three tribes were divided into three columns and advanced towards Raozhou City on the west bank of the Huangshui River.
Is Li Jinzhong planning to concentrate his forces and defeat them one by one?