Chapter 85: Scandal (Second Update, Seeking Monthly Votes!)

As the rebellion led by Nong Zhigao and the defeat of the Song army in the Lingnan region inflicted a pain on the Song people no less severe than the Western Xia invasion, everyone was asking why. Why did the Guangnan East and West Roads, with an army of two hundred thousand, fall so easily?

Especially when people learned that at the beginning of Nong Zhigao's uprising, his forces, including the elderly, sick, and disabled, numbered no more than five thousand, yet he dared to attack the strategically important Hengshan Fort and the city of Yongzhou, which had a garrison of twenty thousand, and conquered both in a single battle. Was it that Nong Zhigao's troops were divine soldiers? Or was there a problem with the military system in Lingnan? Everyone was eager to know the answer, and Chen Xiliang was no exception.

Moreover, as the magistrate of Hengyang, he had an advantage that others could not match—most of the military pay and supplies sent to the two Guang regions had to pass through here, either heading southwest to Guilin and Yongzhou in Guangxi, or southeast to Guangzhou and Huizhou. The defeated troops also regrouped here, awaiting orders.

In the process of being tasked with resettling the defeated troops from the two Guang regions, Chen Xiliang naturally had to ask the parties involved, and the answers he received were varied and shocking...

The defeated soldiers said that the armies in the two Guang regions had long been rotten to the core. The garrison troops were less than half of the required number, and most of them were elderly, sick, or disabled. Only about twenty percent were young and strong, and they had almost no training.

Chen Xiliang, incredulous, asked, "No training, what do they do in peacetime?"

"Not idle," the soldiers said with a self-deprecating smile. "We all have to do business for the generals."

"Doing business..." Chen Xiliang drew a sharp breath. The Northern Song Dynasty implemented a recruitment system, which, in simple terms, meant that during times of drought or flood, when farmers had no means of living, the state would recruit them into the army, providing them with food and pay, turning potential social destabilizers into stabilizers.

This policy indeed prevented large-scale peasant uprisings in the Zhao Song dynasty, but it was a slow-acting poison... The recruited soldiers, who had received some military training and were no longer suited for farming, could not be released back to society, so the state had to support them until they reached the age of sixty before allowing them to retire. This led to a continuous increase in the size of the army, which grew year by year.

Moreover, the recruited soldiers had to be paid. The latest statistics showed that the total number of troops had reached 1.4 million, exceeding the number during the Tianbao period of the Tang Dynasty. However, the population of the Song Dynasty was only half of that during the Tianbao period.

With a smaller population and a larger army, rulers of other dynasties would have reduced the military pay, but the Song rulers dared not cut it by a single penny. The state not only generously supported the scholars but also treated the army well, providing monthly pay, military clothing, and rations as much as possible... Otherwise, the soldiers would immediately rebel.

Later, when the finances could no longer support the army, they had to prioritize the payment of the imperial guards, and the local garrison troops could only receive half pay. The remaining half was allowed to be earned through commerce. This practice led to the neglect of military training, and the local troops focused on various businesses, such as transportation, tea, and alcohol... They made a lot of money, but when the enemy attacked, they found that few could use a bow and arrow.

Wealth made people envious, and the possession of wealth made them timid. Seeing the generals pack their belongings and flee faster than rabbits, the soldiers naturally scattered. So it wasn't that Nong Zhigao was too powerful, but that the cities he conquered were almost defenseless.

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Chen Xiliang was furious. He asked, "Although the court only pays half the salary, according to what you said, the number of soldiers is less than half, which should be enough for you to receive full pay. Why do you still engage in commerce?!"

"To let this magistrate know, I have been receiving half pay for forty years," the soldiers shook their heads. "As for the salaries of the vacant positions, they never reach us."

"Not only that, but the extra grain and military equipment provided by the court have also been sold by the higher-ups."

"The huge profits from commerce have also been embezzled by them. What can we get?"

"..."

Each accusation made Chen Xiliang feel as if his insides were burning. He couldn't sleep for several nights. He couldn't believe that the Song Dynasty, known for its integrity, could have such shocking corruption.

'Whether this trend is limited to Lingnan or has spread throughout the country, it must be exposed! The emperor and the ministers must know the truth!' The scholars of the Northern Song Dynasty, at least before they encountered setbacks, generally had the sentiment of 'taking the world as their responsibility.' Chen Xiliang firmly decided: 'Otherwise, once it rots to the core, the Song Dynasty will surely fall!'

Thinking is doing, and in this regard, the Chen family father and son were highly consistent. Just as the war broke out, the Hunan South Road Transport Office moved to the Hengyang County Office, and he, known for his administrative skills, was temporarily given an important task, which facilitated his secret investigation of the accounts.

After more than a month of secret investigation, he found that for every 100 guan of military pay sent to the two Guang regions, after deducting the 4 liang of 'short silver' that the Ministry of Revenue had already reduced, another 4 liang would be withheld. In addition, the several high-ranking officials of the Transport Office would privately deduct another 2 liang. After these deductions, only 90 liang would reach the two Guang regions.

Don't underestimate these 2-3 liang. The two Guang regions had an army of 200,000, and each soldier received 35 guan of pay annually. This alone would result in a deduction of 700,000 guan.

These openly deducted amounts were just the tip of the iceberg. If half of the military pay was embezzled, then 3.1 million guan would be unaccounted for...

There were also the annual allocations of grain, military equipment, armor, and vehicles, which, if sold at half price, would yield at least 2 million guan...

In addition, the army operated foot shops, lent money at high interest rates, traded private tea, sold private salt, brewed and sold alcohol, and even used military ships for maritime trade... They almost monopolized the most profitable industries in the two Guang regions. The most conservative estimate was that they earned more than 5 million guan annually.

A full 10 million guan! Equivalent to one-sixth of the Song Dynasty's fiscal revenue, but it never appeared in the accounts, and its whereabouts were unknown. The amount of black幕 (black curtain) hidden in this and the number of people involved were terrifying to think about...

If he had only made such speculations and conducted investigations within his authority, no one would have noticed his actions, and he would not have encountered danger. But he knew that his words carried little weight, and such a level of investigation would not cause any waves. To move the higher-ups, he needed solid evidence!

Chen Xiliang had a plan. He took on the task that others avoided—collecting and burying the dead bodies in the city. In this era, the Lingnan region was plagued by miasma, and many of the defeated soldiers were injured. Due to the limited medical conditions, some died every day. In such hot weather, the bodies had to be collected and buried immediately to prevent an epidemic.

When checking the deceased's belongings, Chen Xiliang did not miss a single piece of paper. Anything with writing would be carefully read, and if valuable, it would be kept and registered. This method, though tedious, was correct... Because many soldiers were involved in commerce, some of them were actual handlers in the profit chain. To keep track or as a precaution, much information was recorded and, with the death of the owners, presented to him.

Rosters, account books, receipts for the actual receipt of soldiers' pay by camp officers, information revealed in letters... Small pieces of evidence were discovered one by one, gradually forming a black gold map involving the military of Hunan and the two Guang regions. Although fragmented, it formed a complete chain of evidence, and any discerning person could see the bigger picture.

He worked efficiently and quietly, and at first, no one noticed. But half a month ago, while collecting the body of a clerk, Chen Xiliang found a crucial ledger in the lining of his clothes—recording the flow of every embezzled salary from the Yongzhou garrison since the second year of Qingli!

Chen Xiliang's heart raced, and his blood surged. He knew that this item would bring him deadly danger, but it was the ironclad evidence he had been searching for!

Without much hesitation, he decided to keep it. After making records overnight, he buried the ledger and the evidence he had previously obtained.

Just as he finished, a military officer from Yongzhou came to his door, asking about the clerk's belongings.

Chen Xiliang led them to the duty room and handed a bundle to the officer, saying, "There are valuables and personal items inside. Check carefully and sign for them."

The officer opened it and, not finding what he was looking for, asked sternly, "Is there anything else?"

"Clothes and other items of little value were burned by the laborers," Chen Xiliang said coolly. "Who knows if they were diseased?"

"Burned?" The officer became agitated, growling, "There were important documents of our army!"

"About that..." Chen Xiliang said indifferently, "You didn't want to touch the dead bodies, and you expect us to check every piece of clothing? There's no such logic in the world!" Not to mention that the officer was just a military officer; even a commander would not get a different response from him.

Because this was the Song Dynasty, where scholars were valued over military men...

The officer left, frustrated. Later, the inspector-general personally talked to Chen Xiliang, indirectly asking about the important 'document,' but Chen Xiliang insisted that it had been burned and did not reveal anything.

But when he returned, he found that his residence had been searched again.

A few days later, just as he thought the other side had believed him, Chen Xiliang was assigned by the Transport Officer to escort supplies to Shaoguan. On the way, he encountered bandits...

To say that every action has a cause, Chen Xiliang, due to his long-term work in collecting the bodies of the sick and dead, had a weakened immune system. When he encountered the miasma, he fell ill and, by luck, escaped the bandits.

Even in prison, no one treated his illness, but he was tough and managed to survive. When Song Duanping appeared...

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Second update of the day, I'll go write the third update. Let's see how many I can do today! The story will definitely be exciting! At the beginning of the month, I'm seeking monthly votes to keep the new book in first place!

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