Wei School's Three Good Students

Chapter 95 Selecting the Wise and Returning to the South
The battle in Zhenzhou was over, but a whole host of follow-up matters were just beginning. The imperial court commended the Wu family army for their success in pacifying the Prince of Lelang within six months, but made no mention of the "garrison commander" title previously promised to Wu Hanluan.

The young men from the Zhenshui family who had come to serve were anxious. They offered suggestions, urging Wu Hanluan to request official recognition from the imperial court. After all, without proper recognition, these young men feared they would become outcasts of their families. In those days, not everyone had the confidence of Zhuge Liang, able to ascertain a man's potential at first glance.

Wu Hanluan dismissed these young men. Compared to outsiders, he trusted Wu Fei, his own clever son, more. However, Wu Fei and these northern scholars didn't get along and were unwilling to mingle.

…Contradiction dividing line…

Wu Fei was checking the household registrations of each family in Zhenzhou in the treasury; he understood very well that the court's previous promises had a condition: the aristocratic families of Zhenzhou would survive the calamity and return to Da Yao, while the Wu family army would suffer heavy losses.

At that time, the imperial court will allow the Wu family army to disband its main camp and grant official positions to the Wu family and other local aristocratic families in tandem. Only then can the Wu family be granted the title of Garrison Commander in Zhenzhou.

But after this battle, Wu Fei had torn Yongzhou in half and confronted the puppet regime. The court had no reason to allow the Wu family to disband their camp.

Then, the local powerful families were also severely weakened after being harassed by King Lelang.

Under such circumstances, the imperial court would not dare to bestow any prestigious weapon upon the military family.

Of course, the Wu family army also suffered from the aftereffects of expansion after this great victory. The "Wu family faction" and the "outsiders" in the northern route army of the Wu family army, as well as the "commoner faction" that had joined earlier and the "aristocratic faction" that had now come from Zhenzhou and Yongzhou, all began to engage in factionalism.

Furthermore, "Gua Di Que" did not want to get involved in the affairs of the Northern Route Army and only wanted to return to his hometown. Therefore, he used some rather crude methods when he left, which intensified the local conflicts in Zhenzhou and slightly affected the communication between the Wu Family Army's Northern Route Army and the local aristocratic families.

After the King of Lelang lost power, the ruthless officials who had served him were filled with anxiety, and Wu Fei offered them a powerful patron. Of course, Wu Fei didn't support useless people; he required them to cooperate in scouting local talent resources.

In the spring of the 33rd year of the Tianli reign, Wu Fei, a self-proclaimed "refined scholar," held a poetry gathering in Zhenzhou. He used special means (kidnapping and threats) to invite 135 famous scholars from Zhenzhou. Also invited were families who had once curried favor with the Prince of Lelang but had now fallen from power.

Undoubtedly, the scholars of Zhenzhou were men of high moral character. When Wu Fei asked them to compose poems to describe the "Zhenzhou rain turning into sunshine" event, one poem after another was displayed.

Under the automatic translation of those ruthless officials who were trying to protect themselves, Wu Fei reviewed these poems and articles: some contained hidden characters to curse people, and some used the metaphor of a toad stepping on a lotus leaf to describe the current power of the Wu family army!
Wu Fei reassured the enthusiastic officials: But who am I? Am I so petty as to instigate literary inquisitions?
Among these poems, Wu Fei still saw some that expressed the hope that the Wu family would support the people and manage agriculture in Zhenzhou. There were twenty-one authors in total, and Wu Fei included them on the green list of collaborators who could remain in Zhenzhou for Wu Hengyu.

Wu Fei instructed the security personnel: "Make sure to arrange carriages for the people on the green list, send them back, tell them to close their doors to visitors, and not to concern themselves with anything that happens outside in the next few days. Also, let them know that the official positions that become vacant this year will be given to them."

As a modern person, Wu Fei had a falling out with the aristocratic family, but as a good student, he wouldn't simply copy the answers from the later Liberation era.

If Wu Fei were to rigidly copy the answers from his previous life, he should call out to the current group of ruthless officials who are more upright and fit the image of a poor family, and who are actively siding with him: "Comrades."

Without the right to investigate, there is no right to speak. After confirming that the cruel officials were being fiercely criticized by the public, Wu Fei investigated their criminal records. What he discovered was their impressive record of misdeeds.

When the members of the security department of the military aircraft passed through villages, they asked many people about the relevant situation, and one of them was a representative case.

When security personnel encountered a centenarian in a village, they discovered that he originally had many children (without them, he wouldn't have lived to such an old age; without modern medical care, coupled with the hardships of life, he would have died of an illness in his forties or fifties).
But this old man is now all alone, his family destroyed, because he has been taxed round after round by cruel officials.

If Wu Xiaoque's exploitation of the land was a form of forced buying and selling, bypassing the poor who could never afford anything, then the cruel officials directly exploited the weakest among them, regardless of their lives.

Xuan Chong was somewhat averse to those from small, insignificant families who claimed to have been "recognized for their talents and quickly promoted" after entering officialdom. What kind of "recognized talents" was that? There were no evaluation criteria; wasn't it just about flattery?

Anyone who looks down on others is still just a mortal, and it's impossible to see through someone in a short time. If someone can be seen through in a short time, it means they are quite cunning.

When these "outstanding" individuals rise to prominence, they only have eyes for the heavens and the heavens. But when they are imprisoned, they immediately pick up the "baby bumpkin" buff and repeatedly lament that they have forgotten their roots and have lost their minds, or make various excuses such as "the temptations are too great." Xuan Chong got tired of hearing this and for a period of time began to despise such people and thought they were not suitable for officialdom.

Most of the cruel officials in Zhenzhou that Xuan Chong has captured so far are like this. They are shackled by the soldiers, and one by one they cry and plead for mercy, saying that they have elderly mothers and young children to support, and that they are paragons of benevolence and filial piety.

These cruel officials, after the aggrieved people cried out their grievances, were able to bend and stretch, and without any sense of incongruity, they kowtowed and admitted their mistakes in all directions, which made everyone feel compassion for them.

Like a frog that successfully leaps from a small pond onto a lotus leaf in a large pond, but never truly enters the large pond, using it merely as a stepping stone to further its goals, the ruthless officials, after gaining immense power, lack understanding of when to advance and retreat, and have no sense of proportion in their choices. Unable to control their greed, they endlessly overdraw on the loopholes in the rules tacitly accepted by the "masses."

Xuan Chong: In the countryside during the era of oxen farming, there were no more than ten people who would lend a helping hand to each other while working diligently. Interactions among hundreds of people were often superficial and did not involve practical matters, and this happened every day. Therefore, the talented people who emerged from this era had their own "management" mindset limited to a small circle, while those in larger circles would subtly "squeeze" and "maneuver".

Xuan Chong's patch: If one has experienced the collective test of "carrying guns together" and the reshaping of public values ​​such as "factory collaboration", then one cannot judge a hero by his background.

Xuan Chong recalled his past life. Between the Blood and Fire Generation and the Only Child Generation, the world had changed drastically since the displaced people of decades ago (the test was over). Ninety percent of the people were engaged in agriculture, and the general mobilization of industry was still in its infancy (the reshaping of values ​​had not yet begun). The "talent" who came up at that time perfectly matched his stereotypical views.

…Good governance depends on both the law and the people…

These days, even poor families typically have more than twenty members, including oxen and four or five men. Even if they were given the opportunity to take exams and acquire knowledge, they wouldn't have had the chance to interact with a significant number of equally knowledgeable peers in their daily lives. Stuffing them into the current administrative system, which requires a high threshold for "rule by man," would make them incapable of managing more than a hundred people. Ultimately, their behavior would become short-sighted and driven by self-interest, relentlessly pursuing targets without any moral compass.

Any progressive policy requires people to implement it, and a person's personality is strongly related to their family and social environment. This is why Wu Fei, as a modern person, instinctively dislikes the direct descendants of aristocratic families and clans, but is forced to cooperate with aristocratic groups.

Wu Fei was certain that if he were to adopt the correct experiences from his previous life's education and apply them to the small households of this era, all his policies aimed at benefiting the people would turn into oppressive policies.

Currently, the Lingnan region is developing a large-scale workshop system, which will create a generation born from industrial collaboration groups—good candidates for future cadres. But that's a long way off. Wu Fei can't wait; the world is in chaos, and he needs to quickly establish a talent system.

After investigation, Wu Fei calculated that, given the current level of productivity, even if a five-person family were to adopt iron tools and oxen for plowing, it would only last for five consecutive years of good harvests, enough to support a child aged seven to ten to learn to read from a teacher for the next three years.

Wu Fei: In this agricultural era, the size of one's clan, the breadth of one's network, whether one's uncles and elders are engaged in various industries, and the significance of the stories told at year-end gatherings can determine whether the younger generation will have a broad perspective in the future.

Only historically rich regions can nurture diverse industries and generate a group of talented individuals with a broad perspective, thus creating a place known as "a land of outstanding people and abundant resources."

Why is the East Ou-U region so abstract? Faced with the false promises of the Ou-U alliance allowing its tertiary industry to connect, it cut off the money-making hand of the secondary industry (the eastern industrial zone).

Tracing back to pre-industrial societies, most of their people were serfs. Serfs only cared about what was in their own bowls and didn't care whether others' bowls were broken or not. "Every man has a responsibility for the prosperity of the nation"? They didn't.

This mindset is prevalent among many small, sparsely populated countries in Europe and China: they don't care at all about the misery elsewhere, thinking, "As long as I have a chance to live a better life, even if that chance is fake, what do I care about the lives of others?" And this extends further to: [the individual's perspective is...]

That's how cruel officials think. In an overly closed environment, their minds are only on the people around them. Once they suddenly seize power, they treat those outside their circle like straw dogs.

…If you favor the virtuous and keep away from the wicked, what if the virtuous and talented don't want to come? Then…

In the military, Wu Fei was already a standardized assessment and selection team leader, but in the selection of officials and personnel, productivity was insufficient, so they could still only examine background.

Of course, Wu Fei avoided direct hereditary succession of power, choosing instead collateral relatives and testing the sons born of slaves and concubines—people who had participated in collective production and life but had not left the fields.

At the poetry gathering, Wu Fei bluntly divided these scholars into two groups. Those who dared to ridicule him and were considered "extraordinary" by Wu Fei were forcibly taken out of the pass. As for those who could speak politely, Wu Fei felt they should play a positive role in their hometowns.

Meanwhile, the talented young men from the various prominent families of Zhenzhou, who had been expressing their sentiments at the poetry gathering, were still unaware of their fate. These scions of noble families had already learned from Wu Hengyu's subordinates that the army was to be handed over to Wu Hengyu, and Wu Fei was to be dismissed. So they mocked the ruthless officials who had aligned themselves with Wu Fei, saying, "When the winter wind blows, the crickets can no longer chirp." At the same time, they showed no respect for Wu Fei.

A day later, the young people from various aristocratic families turned pale when they saw the soldiers who came to arrest them. Wu Fei was forcibly conscripting them.

Wu Fei extended a very sincere invitation: "I really admire talent. The southern border lacks education and needs your literary talents to nourish it."

At Wu Hanluan's residence, Wu Fei ignored the complaining looks from the clan heads, greeted his eldest uncle, and then, holding a list, began to tell the locals: "It is really against human nature to arrest one person. The whole family must be included. We must arrest them according to the principle of exterminating three clans."

Wu Hanluan helplessly explained to the various clan leaders who came to visit that his brother was his only son, and he simply couldn't refuse Wu Fei. An hour later, Wu Fei's residence in the area was bustling with activity, as servants carrying gift packages came to request an audience.

These powerful families who had previously been cultivating good relations with Wu Hengyu suddenly realized they had forgotten about the next generation of military leaders in the Wu family, and they all rushed over.

Wu Xiaoque firmly refused the sudden enthusiasm of the visitors, saying, "Do I lack that little gift?"

He returned the gifts directly and said to the visiting representatives of the noble families, "I want to share weal and woe with you all." Wearing a peacock tail crown, Wu Fei did not have the air of a young master. Instead, he had the demeanor of a petty person who thought, "With a bird in hand, I have the world."

Amidst everyone's helplessness, a member of a prominent family said, "You kidnapped me, Xiang Nan. Aren't you afraid I'll resent you?"

Wu Fei looked at him without getting angry and said loudly, "Don't worry, forced melons aren't sweet, but they quench your thirst." This answer left the scholar who asked the question speechless and then shook his head helplessly: "General, you are quite frank." However, they did not know that Wu Fei was holding back a sentence in his heart: "At worst, I'll feed you some millet wine."

At this moment, Wu Fei felt as if he were the manager of the "High-tech Electronics Industrial Park" outside the Southern Border in his previous life. Whether you like it or not, as long as I kidnap people, I can make you play a role.

The next few days

With the help of the cruel officials, Wu Fei's soldiers went door to door to arrest people one by one. Moreover, the cruel officials made full use of their "shortcomings" that they would do things without restraint once they gained power. Wu Fei only needed ten people, but they were able to arrest twenty for themselves.

If Wu Fei hadn't insisted on not accepting any women, they might have sent him a whole batch of beauties. Oh, and the aristocratic families also sent Wu Fei a group of fourteen-year-old girls.

Wu Fei hesitated for a moment, after all, it was quite pleasing to the eye to have it by his side.

Finally sensing that the system was recording something, Wu Fei said, "I think this is still too heinous, they're not even eighteen years old yet."

So Wu Fei sent all the women back, and gave each of them a red envelope.

During January of the 33rd year of the Tianli calendar, various aristocratic families experienced for the first time the scene of cruel officials conscripting men from the countryside. These cruel officials, supported by soldiers, broke down doors and dragged men away, then, initially arrogant but later obsequious, introduced the virtuous names and deeds of those conscripted to the centurions of the Wu family army.

…What goes around comes around, but who will escape the wrath of Heaven…?

Just as Wu Fei was happily leading his men back to his fiefdom of Fenxing City, an imperial envoy arrived in Zhenzhou to announce the imperial decree to Wu Hanluan.

Wu Fei led a group of "talented individuals" back to Fenxing City, but before they could even settle in, Wu Hanluan rode back on his winged tiger.

Wu Hanluan feigned an attack, first inquiring about the arrangements for the Southern Frontier six months later, and then mentioning "Miss Li's marriage."

Wu Fei was taken aback, thinking to himself, "Isn't this an arranged marriage? We'll just go through the motions and then go to the bridal chamber. Everything will proceed according to procedure." However, on the surface, Wu Fei told Wu Hanluan: "It's all up to Uncle."

Wu Hanluan smiled and said, "This matter may have changed." Wu Fei was taken aback, thinking to himself, "Could it be that my mistreatment of scholars has led to my bad reputation, and the Li family has broken off the engagement?"

In this turbulent period of the dynasty, Wu Fei, as a "reorganizer," was well aware of his position and was prepared to be subjected to a barrage of criticism.

Wu Fei looked at Wu Hanluan and asked, "Is the royal family keeping an eye on me?"

Wu Hanluan: "Yes, I tried to recommend other outstanding members of the clan, but it seems that someone in the imperial court is watching our family and has specifically named you. As for the Li family, they can make you their equal wife."

After saying that, Wu Hanluan looked at Wu Fei. Regardless of whether Wu Fei was willing or not, the Wu family still had to rely on this image of "loyalty".

Just as Wu Fei was making excuses—

…System: New mission, Journey to the North. Three credits awarded upon completion…

Wu Fei: "Let me take a break. I still have some things to take care of in the southern border region."

Wu Hanluan nodded: "That's natural. You need to make arrangements for things in the Southern Frontier before you can go. Yaodu isn't some dangerous place. After you get married in Yaodu, it won't take two years. I'll use my connections in the court to get His Majesty to let you return."

Wu Fei nodded and breathed a sigh of relief.

Wu Hanluan added, "However, the key to your return from Yaodu lies in whether you and the woman betrothed by the royal family can have a child within this year. (That is, the hostage given to Emperor Xu by the Wu family will be converted from Wu Fei himself into his legitimate son.)"
At this moment, Wu Hanluan reprimanded Wu Fei with a serious expression: "You're not a child anymore, don't toil in the camp every day, you have to leave an heir for my family."

Speaking of offspring, Wu Fei thought of something. That Aunt Yao had been "pregnant" since June of last year, and it had been a year now. Why was there no news? Could it be that she had "miscarried"?
Meanwhile, Wu Fei said to Wu Hanluan, "Uncle, why don't you mention Hengyu?"

Little did they know, Wu Hanluan confidently replied, "Hengyu's concubine has already given birth to Lin'er, don't try to evade the question!"

Wu Fei was taken aback and immediately asked, "I have a nephew, why didn't anyone tell me?"

Wu Hanluan said calmly, "My concubine (Yu Li) is born out of wedlock. She will still enter the sect to cultivate in the future, so there's no need to make a fuss."

Wu Fei nodded silently, "A son's status depends on his mother's," so it was naturally impossible to hold a banquet for the birth of a son born out of wedlock.

Regarding the matter of going north, after consulting relevant materials, Wu Fei first looked for the worst-case scenario: going north meant becoming a hostage, which was a risky endeavor.

In the final years of the Cheng Dynasty, a tyrannical ruler detained the feudal lords and even chopped up the hostages who brought gold and jewels to beg for mercy, serving them as mincemeat. As a result, the original "master-servant" relationship between this self-proclaimed divinely ordained ruler and the feudal lords became incredibly fragile. Emperor Da Yaoxu, who reigned for decades, maintained a relatively high level of credibility. The Wu family also had no intention of rebelling under Emperor Da Yaoxu.

Wu Fei gathered the information and said to Wu Hanluan, "Approximately when should we go? I don't want to delay the spring planting in the south this year."

Wu Hanluan glanced at Wu Fei and nodded, saying, "If you're willing, that's fine. The imperial court will send someone; you can decide how to respond to the imperial envoy then. As for the departure time? We'll discuss that after you've finished your business."

Wu Fei muttered, "How could this possibly be finished?"

Wu Hanluan's tone suddenly became confident: "Then let them wait! As long as you stay at the border, the people of the court will have to wait."

Wu Fei listened to Wu Hanluan's emphasized explanation, paused for a moment, and suddenly realized that he had been too focused on appearances. Having worked in the military for many years, he was accustomed to the "fixed time and fixed location" handover and was not used to the political intrigue and deception.

This "marriage alliance" initiated by Da Yao was based on conditions proposed by Emperor Xu, and the Wu family was also entitled to set their own conditions.

…The Vermilion Bird constellation begins its return to the south…

In the thirty-third year of the Tianli era, Wu Fei and his party arrived at Yongji Pass.

The scholars from Zhenzhou, along with three thousand farmers, musicians, and other workers who depended on them, happened to see the strange rocks and exotic plants south of Jinji Mountain, which were unfamiliar to their hometown. At the same time, they heard the folk songs in a dialect that were difficult to distinguish. For a moment, the whole group was filled with sobs.

Wu Fei stopped and ordered the soldiers to bring over a huge rock so that he could begin carving an inscription on it. The inscription recorded the surnames of the various families brought from the Central Plains and the illustrious names of the scholars who spread their teachings.

Wu Fei's inscription was carved with exceptional care. The scholars who had originally intended to lament their exile to the ends of the earth were now distracted, their cries forgotten, and they began arguing with Wu Fei about the order in which their names were inscribed on the stele.

This stele is called the "Welcoming the Worthy Stele".

(End of this chapter)