Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 100: Trains, Centralization, Factions

The 33rd year of the Xu Tian calendar was not a great year for Da Yao, but it was a good era for the Southern Frontier.

Peace had returned to the main roads north of Lingjiang. Under the order established by military strategists, the various tribes in the north, led by chieftains appointed by the general's office, began to integrate with the regional culture of Dayao. With the introduction of productive iron tools, these tribes began agricultural production.

The original gathering industry has now begun to transition into planting. The mountains are rich in resources, so we are now entering a stage of "great restoration".

Just as Wu Fei was once again stationing his troops south of the Lingjiang River, new inventions and creations began to emerge in the workshops.
At Yongji Pass, Gongshu Wang sat atop a massive wooden ox and flowing horse system, gazing at the distant mountains. He turned a steering wheel-like object, and the interconnected jade stones began to output energy, powerfully driving the large iron wheels and mechanical legs to work in unison.

This train is made up of twenty wooden oxen and horses strung together. The frame structure is still made of wood with mortise and tenon joints, but its key transmission structure has been replaced with high-quality steel components regardless of cost.

Currently, the Wu family army has discovered iron sand belts on the main stream of the Lingjiang River in the south. Once the iron sand reserves are confirmed, they will plan the iron smelting industry in the four counties of Lingjiang. At that time, Wu Fei will have the trains wrapped in steel, and the internal spiritual wood material will only be used for the "energy" conduction structure.

Nowadays, if you look at this wooden ox and flowing horse train from a distance, it looks like a caterpillar traversing mountains and valleys! It's just that it doesn't emit smoke and doesn't have rails. The iron wheels on the chassis are traversing mountain roads for the first time, and stones have to be laid on the road surface from time to time. But even so, it is still a very big innovation.

This train, with a total of twenty-eight carriages, is powered entirely by jade and draws power from the gathering formations set up in the surrounding mountains!

What is this "Gathering Formation"? First, we need to look at the marching route of this wooden ox and flowing horse train. It starts from Yongji Pass and then heads south. The overall terrain structure follows the mountains from high to low.

Sixty percent of the route is downhill, requiring no external power. The remaining forty percent involves crossing mountain peaks.

The gathering array is an energy storage device on the mountain, which solves the problem of the 40% uphill journey.

Taking stock of these uphill routes, after crossing the mountain peaks, the calculated potential difference between the peaks is also from high to low.

That is, point A is at an altitude of 500 meters, rises to 800 meters, and finally descends to 450 meters. Although it crosses a mountain, there is still a 50-meter elevation difference.

In order to make it easier for the train to cross the mountains, the feng shui engineers in southern Xinjiang set up a "gathering formation". This formation is actually derived from a side sect. There is a method in southern Xinjiang called "corpse driving". In order to make the corpse walk on its own, inscriptions are placed in some rugged places and some stones are buried to ensure that the corpse can be pulled.

However, Gongshu Wang's gathering formation was much larger in scale; each hilltop was buried with jade stones of a quantity almost equivalent to those used in the tombs of kings and nobles. Wu Fei's expenses on transportation in the southern border region were considerable.

This long train, like a stream of water, moved automatically along a depression in the mountainside.

The train traveled south for eight hundred miles, winding its way to a transfer point on the upper reaches of the Lingjiang River. After unloading three thousand shi of goods, it began loading more cargo. Once loading was complete, it unfurled its sails and entered the starting station in the valley further west. Under the influence of the special valley winds, it accumulated energy, climbed to a high point, and then returned along another road.

The opening of the train line brought about a qualitative change in land reclamation and development.

In the middle of the 33rd year, the garrison troops stationed in the four fortresses of Lingjiang were originally self-reliant. In the camp, they slept on straw mats, patched up their tattered clothes, and their meals consisted of three parts millet, six parts wild vegetables, and the rest of freshly caught fish and shrimp.

After the train arrived, the supply level suddenly improved from meager to comfortable; previously, southern Xinjiang lacked everything, making even ordinary daily activities in other parts of the country extremely difficult. For example, pickling vegetables.

Now, at the fortress, with the arrival of large quantities of pottery jars and salt, the legion can pickle the excess fish meat into fish chunks.

The conditions at the Lingjiang encampment are now seven-tenths similar to those in the interior of Dayao, so it is no longer entirely a frontier area.

…The perspective shifts to a southward tributary of the Lingjiang River, where Wu Fei's work area continues to extend southward…

Wu Fei stood in the temporary pavilion built on the high ground, observing with Gong Qian through a long telescope with a crystal lens, as they advanced south to a new position.

The reason for choosing this location is that Wu Fei's exploration team discovered very high-quality iron sand here.

A pontoon bridge was being constructed along the riverbank, and ships were anchored in the river, their iron anchors lowered, and then linked together with iron chains. Laborers were laying decks on the ships, and in three days, two thousand troops would enter the southern part of Lingnan. Accompanying them on the march were four thousand guides and auxiliary troops.

The materials for these pontoon bridges were stockpiled on the riverbank beforehand and can only be deployed when there is no rain or flood peak. Furthermore, they can only be deployed at this moment when there is sufficient manpower, as this fortified village previously relied on boats to cross the river.

Gong Qian: Following the general all the way south, I realized that the general's benevolence and power have penetrated every feather of the southern border. —A local allusion to Da Yao: Bird feathers are very difficult to wet; when a bird's feathers are wet, it means that they have been soaked by rain and dew for a long time.

Wu Fei: Your Majesty flatters me. It is all thanks to Your Majesty's benevolence and the soldiers' hard work! The tribes in the southern border are fickle and unpredictable. Only through continuous education and reform can we achieve lasting peace and stability.

Along the way, Gong Qian witnessed the various tribes of Jiangnan showing deference to Wu Fei, and interpreted Wu Fei's words as mere humility. He reasoned that their current deference did not necessarily mean the people of this region were without rebellious intentions.

Gong Qian silently thought to himself, "Rebellious thoughts." There are such thoughts among the various tribes of the Southern Frontier, but what about the Wu family? It would be hard to believe that they don't harbor even the slightest bit of "disloyalty."

Gong Qian then continued: "Oh, General, after all these years, I'm sure the barbarians here will remember your kindness and power."

Wu Fei shook his head and said, "Your Excellency is mistaken. My small favor is far from being as valuable as the teachings of the sage."

Gong Qian stared at Wu Fei: "General, your intention is to establish the kingly way here."

Wu Fei nodded: "Yes, I invited you here, Imperial Envoy, to trouble you to petition His Majesty to grant the titles of Tusi (chieftains) to the tribes that have submitted to the Southern Frontier. Only when the tribal leaders of the Southern Frontier receive the tacit approval of His Majesty can this place truly be free from worry."

Gong Qian was slightly taken aback, impressed by Wu Fei's loyalty to Da Yao, and at the same time secretly praised Wu Fei's scheming.

If "Tusi" were granted to the various tribes in the southern border, then what about Wu Fei, who was in charge of restraining these Tusi? Shouldn't he be granted the title of Duke or even King? —Only titles and positions should not be given away lightly.

Gong Qian had no intention of continuing the conversation. Instead, he looked towards the riverbank, changing his direction.

Gong Qian: "General, your military tactics are fluid and skillful; it's a waste of your talents to have come to the southern frontier."

Wu Fei paused slightly: "Oh, it's all thanks to the efforts of our predecessors. Without our fathers' pioneering work, we would have been unable to move an inch here."

Gong Qian: "Oh, in my opinion, if the general had been born in the north, he would surely have been highly valued by His Majesty."

Wu Fei understood that this was an attempt to persuade him to go north as soon as possible.

Wu Fei pretended to be unclear and said, "Not at all. In this holy dynasty, there are so many outstanding people. How could it be my turn to take a seat?"

Gong Qian: "Military affairs are ominous. No general in the northern border dares to claim victory before the battle, yet you, General, seem to never discuss defeat. This shows that you have the talent to be 'victorious in every battle'."

Wu Fei said, "It's not that I have the talent to win every battle, but that there is no strategy to defeat me here." However, after seeing Gong Qian's "recorded" expression, he immediately said, "Please wait a few days, Imperial Envoy, and after I have settled my affairs at home, I will go to see His Majesty."

Three days later, before venturing deeper into the south, Wu Fei persuaded Gong Qian to remain on the north bank, arguing that it was still a wild and uncivilized land.

The ten auxiliary armies south of Lingjiang began to respond to the general's order to assemble.

At the assembly point in Cloudcut Valley, ordinary servants were enjoying their meal on the drill ground, their bowls and ladles clattering.

Meanwhile, the captains of the auxiliary troops, already donned their high-ranking captain armor, knelt before Wu Fei in his camp.

This was a "whipping" of memories for the chieftains of various tribes in southern Lingnan who came to participate in the alliance meeting.

While spreading the Great Yao King's teachings might be feasible north of the Lingjiang River, the Great Yao language doesn't even circulate in the south. Therefore, there's no need for Gong Qian, the Great Yao Imperial Envoy, to roam the south. Furthermore, Wu Fei has some personal matters to attend to, which might be somewhat "overstepping the bounds." If some hothead suddenly appears to offer advice, it could create an awkward situation.

Wu Fei donned magnificent armor and wore a red feather in his hair as he arrived at Yunqie Valley, a sacred site in southern Lingjiang, to preside over the "sacred fire" collection ceremony.

Standing in the crater-like sinkhole, Wu Fei lowered the three-meter square basket by turning the pulley as if drawing water. Sensing the "fire energy," he unleashed a ball of sacred fire from the bottom of the sinkhole. Then, like pouring water, he poured this "strange fire," which originated from the earth's core and was amplified by the Vermilion Bird's attributes, into a giant fire jade container.

At this moment, all the tribal chiefs kneeling at the foot of the mountain felt a suffocating heat. To avoid the burning sensation caused by the heat entering their nostrils, they had to bury their heads even lower and dare not look up directly.

This was carved out of the sinkhole, and only Wu Fei can access it. — Thus, the mysterious system of "no one else can access it" has been formed.

The Vermilion Bird, deep within this sinkhole, bestows a gift every year. As long as Wu Fei frequently returns home (to provide calibration), it will assimilate the Earth's core energy into the energy that Wu Fei loves to consume.

According to Cang Meng's story, this energy was a creation from the large-scale refining of "Holy Ash Pills" in ancient times, which could assimilate the hundred tribes of the Southern Frontier on a large scale, reducing their abnormalities. After consuming the Spirit Awakening Pill, the Horned People could raise their hair in a topknot, and the Clawed People could retract their claws.

As for the specific scale, the batch that Wu Fei retrieved was enough to make tens of thousands of copies. After retrieving the sacred flame, Wu Fei sealed it in sixty prepared lead boxes.

These lead boxes, containing ashes from the flames, will be used to refine the Spirit Awakening Pill and will be prioritized for distribution to the auxiliary army.

At the foot of the mountain, Wu Qing, now the matriarch of the Serpent People, knelt before Wu Fei, dressed in the clothes she had worn as a maid. She had returned from the south with Jiamude twenty days earlier, just in time for Wu Fei's southern expedition.

After the ceremony, moved by Wu Fei's arrangements for his departure, Wu Qing asked, "My lord, I heard that the northern court wants you to leave the southern border?"

Wu Fei stared at her, realizing that the news of his impending journey north had spread unexpectedly quickly. —Wu Fei suspected someone was deliberately spreading it.

Wu Fei remained noncommittal: "Yes, I've been looking for an opportunity to go up north all these years." (He was also observing her to determine her true intentions.)

Wu Qing raised his head, his snake-like eyes revealing concern: "My lord, could you please have the 'Li Huo Sect' gather some followers to accompany you?"

Under Wu Fei's watchful gaze, Wu Qing hurriedly explained, "The Li Huo Sect no longer harbors any ill intentions towards Da Yao. I simply believe that you are currently responsible for the entire Southern Territory, and it would be extremely risky for you to go to Yao Capital alone."

If Zhao Tu's previous persuasion made Wu Fei feel that "his subordinates were worried that many conflicts would be uncontrollable after his departure, but he still felt that the current situation was certain."

Now that Wu Qing has also come to persuade him, Wu Fei has come to realize that there are quite a few undercurrents in the area where he left his farming district.

…To deal with the undercurrents, we need to find a force that hasn't been affected by them to stand on…

On the newly constructed southern bastion, the newly arrived garrison, full of complaints, were cleaning their beds and putting away their luggage in the mushroom-grown barracks.

They were the meritorious members of the "exoneration" faction. They were pale-faced upon arrival, because compared to Lingjiang Fortress, this brand-new fortress was surrounded by jungle, making it incredibly cramped.

However, these meritorious factions also realized that Lingjiang was showing signs of becoming a "mini-Jiangnan" due to the opening of the train line, so they could only pray that the train station plan for the General's Mansion to the south could be implemented as soon as possible.

High above this fortress, as Wu Fei gazed out over the vast jungle to the south and planned his future expedition, he suddenly murmured, "A son of a wealthy family should not sit under a dangerous roof." Before his offspring had grown up, he was seen as a fragile commodity by the various factions in the Southern Frontier. But considering the bigger picture, he had to step out and find a way to break free from the predicament of being "merely a king of the Southern Frontier."

Wu Fei knew his own charm points and had no belief in "destiny's will." He also didn't adopt the role of Tang Sanzang, who was secretly protected by the "Six Ding and Six Jia." When one person advised him not to go to the north, he didn't care. However, when a second person from a different faction advised him not to leave the main base, Wu Fei couldn't help but wonder if he was like the overconfident "General He Jin" in history.

Factions have already existed within the Southern Route Wu Family Army; this is an objective reality.

Whether to continue south or head north was the strategic choice facing Wu Fei.

At this point, the system is pretty useless. Because my current assignments also include two major questions: "Continue the southward expedition" and "Head north to compete."

Wu Fei asked, "What is the order of these two questions?"

System: "There are only so many questions on the test paper. You can choose the order in which you answer them."

…Dry season in October of the 33rd year of the reign of Emperor Xu Tian…

Wu Fei returned from Cloud Cutting Valley and reviewed the files inside the fortress. He secretly mobilized the Security Bureau to conduct a thorough investigation, which included Wu Qing, the merchant group, and the business faction within the Wu family.

This is the drawback of not having completed a "Constitutional Assembly".

After centralization of power reached a certain level, although all power was concentrated in the supreme ruler, under the powerful deterrent of the monarch's "life and death authority," the various sub-groups were like a dark forest, not daring to openly confront Wu Fei.

When monarchs make crucial decisions about interests, they are severely lacking in information and are unable to grasp the points of conflict between different factions in a timely manner through normal means.

To understand what the people below are thinking, we must use unconventional methods. Constitutionalism is the legislation that protects the right of various factions to express their own interests.

Currently, in this new bastion, these local meritorious officials, who have been exiled here, are precisely the ones who can hold their heads high and tell Wu Fei about their own interests, as well as the interests of other relevant parties.

Of course, constitutionalism also has its flaws. If various interest groups unscrupulously emphasize their own interests, it will lead to bottom-up division. Therefore, Wu Fei dares not directly delegate such power to the core factions within the Great Wall, because once it is delegated, they will indeed engage in factional strife.

In this southern fortress, Wu Fei spent twenty days finally figuring out the situation from the intelligence gathered from all sides, and also discovered a troublemaker.

Wu Fei scribbled and drew on rough paper to clarify all the relationships: "Adventuring north" is in the interest of the northern route, or rather, the aristocratic family faction led by the martial arts group inside the pass, but it is not in the interest of the faction outside the pass to the south. In fact, in the matter of marrying "a noble lady from the Central Plains" and "the princess of the Great Yao", it actually harms the interests of the southern route.

With the entire South Road region already convinced that Wu Fei is the current core leader, they hope that Wu Fei will marry a woman from a local powerful family to protect the interests of the local group.

Wu Fei folded the paper and burned it. His papermaking skills were still lacking, and the paper he made was just like straw paper, but it was easy to destroy. As the flames licked at it, Wu Fei's thoughts turned into smoke, known only to heaven, earth, and himself.

As for that troublemaker! Wu Fei has his eye on him—

…Lightning flashed in the dark clouds, followed by a clap of thunder…

At Lingjiang Railway Station, Gongshu Wang was watching his newly accepted apprentices, who were using tweezers to connect the spiritual silk threads between jade stones. These disciples were all his students.

To his left were pieces of jade. Before coming south, he never imagined that "mechanism" could be like this, no longer a self-contained mechanism, but drawing upon the essence of heaven and earth to assist mechanisms in traveling thousands of miles.

Just as Gongshu Wang was putting the new stack of name cards into the drawer, a group of people wearing peaked caps walked in from outside the station.

Gongshu Wang's heart skipped a beat, but he still went to meet him.

The security personnel approached Gongshu Wang, shook hands, and invited him for tea to discuss the Lingjiang South Project.

Gongshu Wang nodded. However, after the wooden ox train pulled out of the station and headed north, he paused, then asked, "Gentlemen, what's going on? We don't seem to be heading to Fenxing City?"
At this moment, the security bureau personnel flashed a golden sycamore leaf in front of him and told him, "The chief engineer should return to Yongji Pass first; the general will come to find you." Gongshu Wang's smile froze—it was all over.

However, Gongshu Wang was unaware that a wisp of blue on his body was burned into smoke after touching the golden sycamore leaf.

(End of this chapter)