You can't only love the Qing Dynasty when you're eating the fruits of others' labor.

Chapter 72 Cultivating Mutual Trust!

Zhou Shao, Wu Yong, and Jiang Qingyun chatted happily, exchanging their opinions on the current situation, and the food and wine on the table were heated up several times.

At 8:00 AM, the conversation was still ongoing.

"Eldest brother, second brother, what do you think of the merger between Zhu Youlang and the Great Western Army?"

“I am not optimistic at all,” Zhou Shao said bluntly. “There is no foundation of mutual trust between the two sides, and Zhu Youlang is even less capable of managing people; he is mediocre.”

"To be honest, I don't care much about what's happening outside; I'm more concerned about what's happening inside the Forbidden City," Wu Yong said with a smile.

"Come on, a toast."

The plum wine tasted so good that I couldn't help but drink more.

……

Zhou Shao suddenly whispered:

"Third brother, second brother, how will the political situation change after the Plain Blue Banner incident?"

Jiang Qingyun grinned mischievously: "The Eight Banners have become the Seven Banners, one banner is missing."

"Seriously."

“It’s a bad thing for the Manchus, it’s a bad thing for the court, but it’s a good thing for the three of us brothers, and it’s a good thing for all Han officials.”

"Agree."

"I agree too."

Jiang Qingyun continued:
"This noon, I've already secured the position with the Minister of Personnel. All my brothers are on the right track now. My eldest brother has also been promoted to the position of Commissioner of the Imperial Treasury, a lucrative post indeed."

Wu Yong asked wistfully, "And what about me?"

"You are already the Imperial Physician, there is no way to be promoted unless you abandon medicine and go into politics."

"No, no, the imperial physician is the safest option."

How many sons do you have?

"There are four, the oldest is 16 years old and the youngest is only 2 years old."

Wu Yong was smug.

"I have a knack for having sons."

"If you two need to have a son, feel free to come to me. Having a son seems simple, but it is actually very difficult. We need to take into account the time of birth, the eight characters of birth, yin and yang, the solar terms, and the direction. If either of you is not endowed with the necessary qualities, we will need to prescribe a remedy first."

Wu Yong immediately perked up and began to speak fluently.

Talking about this will keep me awake.

……

Jiang Qingyun decisively interrupted him.

"Where is Dorgon?"

Wu Yong immediately fell silent.

"Second brother, you know what I'm going to ask~"

“In the second year of the Shunzhi reign, I examined Dorgon’s pulse. According to his pulse, his health had been severely damaged. He could be treated, but I could not treat him.”

The atmosphere inside the room suddenly became eerie.

"So, this is the Empress Dowager's intention?"

"Correct."

"Second brother, aren't you afraid?"

"Afraid of being silenced?"

"Correct."

"Will not."

Wu Yong smiled confidently.

He knew very well that as long as he didn't deliberately take the wrong path, no emperor would silence him.

……

Jiang Qingyun suddenly dipped his finger in the wine and wrote on the table: "Wang died, was it poison?"

After a moment's hesitation, Wu Yong also dipped his finger in wine and wrote down: "Take advantage of the situation."

The atmosphere became even more eerie.

Zhou Shao refilled the wine glass in front of him.

"Second brother, third brother, the world is vast, but brothers are the greatest."

"I am a few years older and thus the elder brother. Let me state my position first: since we are sworn brothers, we do not ask to be born on the same day, month, and year, but we ask to die on the same day, month, and year."

Wu Yong: "Working together with one heart and one mind, never abandoning each other."

Jiang Qingyun: "Heaven and Earth bear witness to this heart."

Zhou Shao: "What if I break this oath?"

Wu Yong and Jiang Qingyun said in unison, "May they die a horrible death."

……

The covenant between spirits and deities is of unfathomable power and cannot be ignored. Today's oath will help increase mutual trust among the three. In the dim candlelight, the three solemnly bowed to each other.

Then the alcoholic beverages were removed and replaced with tea.

Wu Yong cautiously reminded them: "My identity is special. If you encounter me outside in the future, please do not address me as your brother to avoid trouble."

Jiang Qingyun smiled and asked, "Does your Wu family have any nephews or relatives you wish to arrange?"

"There are a few good-for-nothings, though."

"Leave the bold ones to me, they'll get promoted through military merit. Leave the timid and honest ones to the eldest brother, the Baoquan Bureau is lucrative."

"it is good."

Wu Yong was not being hypocritically polite. This is how brothers should be—intertwined, each with their own presence.

"Third brother, my eldest son has mediocre medical talent. Can you get him into the Ministry of Rites or the Court of State Ceremonial?"

"Have achieved official rank?"

"He has never achieved the rank of Xiucai (a scholar who passed the county-level imperial examination) or Juren (another scholar who passed the provincial-level imperial examination)."

"No problem, I won't bother two people with this. I'll go find Minister Feng to make the arrangements."

……

The event ends at Hai hour (9-11 PM).

There's no way to return to the inner city; all nine gates are closed. Any temporary opening of the gates requires an imperial decree.

There is also a curfew in the south of the city, but that applies to ordinary people.

Jiang Qingyun, who was now in charge of the Five Cities Garrison, was also in charge of the curfew. He arranged for a carriage to take the two of them to one of his villas.

The city of Nancheng is a place where the sky is held up by itself, the rules are set by itself, and the officials are chosen by itself.

Jiang Qingyun had been drinking all day and had also drunk a lot of tea. He couldn't sleep and was wandering around.

"Stop, who is it?"

A group of soldiers in black patrolling the city passed by and shouted loudly.

"This official is Jiang Qingyun."

"Greetings, Your Excellency."

"Get up. Today is an unscheduled inspection. I will accompany you on your patrol of the city."

……

The patrol team led the way, followed by Jiang Qingyun on horseback, and then Zhou Cang and Jiang Bei. They remained silent the entire way, with only the clatter of their boots breaking the silence.

The sound of the night watchman's clapper could be faintly heard.

The night was quiet and orderly; there wasn't even a bark from a dog.

Since Jiang Qingyun disliked dogs running rampant in the streets, and it was certainly impossible to achieve orderly dog ​​ownership in this era, he simply adopted a blanket ban.

The people of the southern city had no objections to this, because they could see the patrol teams of the Five Cities Garrison day and night, and thieves disappeared, making them feel very safe, so there was no point in keeping dogs.

Under the influence of an invisible hand, all the gang members, beggars, dogs, and human and animal excrement in the entire southern city vanished without a trace.
Order is paramount.

This is just the first step; we'll take it one step at a time and realize our dreams.

……

Half an hour later.

The general knelt on one knee.

"Reporting to Your Excellency, the 5th Temporary Patrol Team of the South City Garrison has completed its second patrol of the night. According to regulations, they will return via the same route in half an hour to continue their next patrol."

"Brothers, you've worked hard. Dismissed, everyone take a rest."

"As ordered."

The 5th temporary patrol team consisted of 2 regular soldiers, 8 miscellaneous soldiers, and 2 horses. The regular soldiers were equipped with swords, while the miscellaneous soldiers were equipped with long staffs.

The soldiers were ordinary craftsmen and members of various guilds.

For these people, patrolling the city was a legitimate job, a job that allowed them to earn a small salary by patrolling the streets part-time.

This is not considered taboo; it is considered "courageous."

There are dozens of such temporary patrol teams throughout the entire military command.

They patrolled day and night, taking turns, and frequently appeared in the sight of everyone in the southern city.

Jiang Qingyun stipulated:
During the patrol, if no theft, robbery, kidnapping, fraud, water, fire, or disputes occur, the patrol team is absolutely not allowed to stop and have any contact with ordinary people.

During patrols, chatting and laughing are prohibited.

Some people ignored this.

However, after seven people were imprisoned, military discipline was completely transformed.

The patrol teams come from the people and go back to the people, maintaining order for the people, with the ultimate goal of cultivating "mutual trust between soldiers and civilians".

Jiang Qingyun's method can be described as subtle and pervasive.

Since ancient times, ordinary people have feared encountering soldiers.

In the southern part of the city, the people were no longer afraid of these patrolmen in black clothes and red ribbons; in fact, they felt a sense of kinship when they encountered them.

(End of this chapter)