Chapter 78

The capital has been bustling these days, with unprecedented great victories. The carts full of ears are the best proof of this. Information from Cai State further confirms the authenticity of this news. ... It is said that in the two counties to the southeast of Cai State, there is a chorus of weeping, with almost every household in mourning.

The Li family has become incredibly prominent. Li Yulong is the Grand Tutor, a first-rank official; the eldest son, Li Liang, is a second-rank local official; and the third son, Li Xian, is even more dazzling.

Only the Wang family is extremely upset, as they have been left empty-handed. In recent days, Wang Chuan has already beaten several maids and servants to death, causing the entire Wang family to live in constant fear, not even daring to breathe heavily.

In the southern part of Wuyang City, on a major road leading south, Kong Xiang quietly waited at a crossroads.

"Why isn't Master moving on?" the steward was puzzled.

"Waiting for someone!" Kong Xiang's tone was not very pleasant, and the steward did not dare to ask further. Soon, the creaking sound of a carriage came from the distance, and a convoy of carriages slowly approached.

Beichen Yuxing jumped down from the carriage, "Lord Kong, all 500 bodies are here. I will take my leave now."

With that, he immediately left with his people.

Kong Xiang lifted the curtain of the carriage and saw that the bodies had been preserved with magic. He sighed, "Let's go."

Kong family's guards drove the carriages again, swaying as they headed south, the atmosphere extremely oppressive.

——

In Anyang, Li Xian's face was green. His elder brother had left so gracefully, waving goodbye without taking any trouble, leaving all the problems to Li Xian.

Li Liang had taken 5,000 personal troops, including Zou Hui and his wife, and nearly 6,000 people in total, leaving the rest to Li Xian.

This included 30,000 elite soldiers, undistributed rewards, post-war pacification, the damaged city walls, and ... all the troubles!

The only consolation was that when Li Liang wanted to take the ten Zhang Hongtao, they firmly refused. Helpless, Li Liang had to take 10 guns and several thousand bullets and leave.

"Master, the statistics are in. All the rewards, pacification, and other expenses add up to 27,600 taels of gold!" Fang Shijing placed the detailed report in front of Li Xian.

"How can it be so much! If we add other expenses, it will be 30,000 taels of gold!"

Fang Shijing said calmly, "The eldest son's military salary and other payments for this month have not been made."

"I..." Li Xian was speechless, "When will the emperor's reward arrive?"

"The emperor's reward has already arrived," Fang Shijing said helplessly.

"Arrived? Why haven't I seen it?"

"Tax exemption for Anyang County for fifty years."

"I $%^&..." Li Xian was so angry that he trembled.

Xu Ren sighed slightly, "Master, don't you know that the various regions of Daxia have long been self-governing? It is said that some counties have been tax-exempt for over a hundred years. For example, the Nanyang County where the Kong family is located. Now, out of the 12 counties of Daxia, only four are directly under the emperor's control."

Li Xian was stunned for a long time, finally sighing, "Sir, Daxia cannot last many more years. Even if the emperor now emphasizes industry, it can at most support us for three to five years."

"Five years is not a problem," Xu Ren smiled confidently, "This war has given Daxia at least three years of breathing room."

"Um." Li Xian looked at the tasks at hand and finally pointed to a crucial item, "Sir, we can start the negotiations with various places to purchase refugees and grain. Now that Anyang is ours, and the population is relatively small, we estimate we can accommodate 300,000 to 500,000 people."

"Agreed." Xu Ren nodded.

Then, the task was handed over to Fang Shijing. This time, it was Fang Shijing's turn to look troubled: the post-war work had not been completed, and another task was added. Fang Shijing looked at Li Xian and Xu Ren with a resentful gaze.

Xu Ren smiled smugly, "Old Fang, I am the strategist, and you are the scholar. This task is for you. If you can't handle it, you can find others to help, just like I found you. If there is anyone you can't persuade, Master can personally intervene. Also, all the refugees should be categorized according to their skills. When purchasing refugees, try to keep families intact."

Fang Shijing looked distressed, "Master, we only have 14,000 taels of gold. Not to mention buying refugees and grain, even the rewards for the soldiers are not enough."

"How can it not be enough? Didn't Wei Zhe send 200,000 taels of gold?" Li Xian was really surprised. There is no shortage of gold in the sea, and Wei Zhe had almost immediately sent 200,000 taels of gold.

Fang Shijing took out a small notebook, "The cement factory expansion cost 20,000 taels of gold. The locomotive factory expansion cost 20,000 taels of gold. The research department and internal rewards amounted to 20,000 taels. The black iron smelting cost 40,000 taels. The chemical and explosives factory, as well as the armory, cost 30,000 taels. The remaining funds were used to expand the smelting plant and build tridents. The 14,000 taels of gold we have left are from past savings. Master, according to the generous reward rules you set, the 14,000 taels of gold are only enough to cover next month's factory rewards and salaries. Now, whether it's textiles or electricity, almost every factory is seeing a large number of new inventions every day. We are in a period of explosive growth."

"Oh..." Li Xian rubbed his temples, feeling a headache.

This immortal realm is not short of intelligent people or skilled craftsmen. Every cultivator is a talent. Under Li Xian's guidance, after the initial stage, everything in the group has entered a surge; naturally, the rewards have flowed like water.

For a moment, everyone was silent, pondering how to manage the group and how to acquire wealth, which depended on Li Xian's attitude.

"Bang!" Li Xian slapped the table and looked at Xu Ren, "Sir, we need to demand war reparations from Cai State!"

Xu Ren carefully considered it and finally nodded, "It's feasible. However, we need to get the emperor's approval, negotiate on our behalf, and ensure that the compensation stays in Anyang."

"Leave it to my father!" Li Xian immediately wrote a letter.

The following days were a mess, and Li Xian and his people were busy non-stop. They had to comfort the injured soldiers and bury the dead. With insufficient funds, Li Xian had to prioritize the dead and injured soldiers; as for the rewards for the other soldiers, they could only be postponed. Fortunately, Li Xian had already gained some prestige, and the soldiers could forgive him, though they were inevitably a bit dissatisfied.

To compensate for the soldiers' dissatisfaction, Li Xian ordered that each soldier be given a stainless steel saber, which somewhat alleviated their discontent.

Additionally, the damaged border wall needed to be repaired, and the blood-soaked ground needed to be cleaned to prevent epidemics.

Li Xian also attended the funeral, which involved burying seven to eight thousand people, making him look solemn and heavy-hearted. This funeral made Li Xian determined to seek justice from Cai State; of course, the Kong family could not be let off easily either.

After six days of hard work, the situation was finally temporarily under control. Li Xian's first order was to separate the textile factory and move it from Qingyun Valley to near Anyang.

Page AD starts

Page AD ends