Reclaiming Wasteland: Carefree Mountain Farmer

Chapter 101 Recruitment
Inside the Great Hall of All Nations, Emperor Wanye was enraged like a thunder god, his eyes bloodshot.

Opposite Emperor Wanye were not civil and military officials, but Wanye's fellow townsmen from Luoyang, all brothers and confidants who had fought to conquer the country.

Just as they were about to start a meeting to discuss how to deploy border defenses, the Crown Prince quickly walked in.

"Father! A letter has arrived from the Arctic Warrior of the Mountain Farmer Clan."

Wan Ye looked at the forty-year-old Crown Prince Wan Di and said forcefully, "Read it!"

"Yes!" Wan Dai opened the ordinary letter made of plain paper, which contained a message written by someone from the Arctic.

“I am Beijiwu, the chieftain of the Mountain Farmers. I originally intended to farm the land and herd sheep, living a leisurely life. However, you are cruel and tyrannical, corrupt and untrustworthy. I have tried to make peace many times and tolerated you repeatedly, but what I have received in return is sneak attacks and slander.”

“I said before that once we start, we shouldn’t expect peace, but when I captured the prisoners, I said that this time it was Marquis Zhang Jian of Dingxi who gave the order without my consent.”

"In this letter to Emperor Wenchao, if peace is desired, all the women, maids, singers, and dancers in Zhang Jian's household should be sent here. Trade routes should be reopened, and salt, tea, rice, and other goods should be sold at inland prices. Yanmen Pass should be the boundary, and no one should be disturbed."

"If we must fight, then let us fight. The 100,000-strong army of Nongzhou will march south to Yanmen Pass in fifteen days to contend for the world."

Wan Dai raised his head and looked nervously at his bloodthirsty father.

The emperor was indeed bloodthirsty, frequently killing corrupt officials, incompetent officials, and even his confidants.

Wan Ye understands the principle of using both kindness and severity, but most of the time he doesn't need to use so much.

Now, facing a new force that poses a threat to his regime, Wan Ye, having lost two or three thousand cavalry and tens of thousands of elite troops, no longer has the strength to suppress it.

Wanye pondered how to handle the matter.

The previous peace negotiations went smoothly; the problem arose with Zhang Jian.

If Zhang Jian hadn't insisted on taking such a desperate gamble, things wouldn't have escalated to this point in such a short time.

Now that the country has just been established, it is beset by internal and external troubles. In addition to the rebellion in the south, the foreign tribes in the west and north have not been quelled.

After a five-minute silence, the crown prince took the initiative to make the suggestion.

“Father, the Northern Army has occupied the area behind the Taihang Mountains in the western part of the northern end. This area is strategically important with many passes. For the past hundred years, it has been a place where Han and non-Han peoples live together. The people are fierce and unruly.”

"Now that there are many unrests on the border, and I have heard that this Arctic warrior is going to wage war against the Mongols beyond the Great Wall and plunder Mongol tribes, it would be better to negotiate peace with him first, and then we can deal with this place after we have quelled the rebellions in the west and south."

The nine provinces behind the mountains are all mountainous basins with poor agriculture, while the seven provinces in front of the mountains are all fertile plains, which are good places that must be controlled.

Wanye plans to suspend the conflict with the Shannong tribe and focus all his efforts on resolving the wars in other areas. At the same time, he will use the national treasury's reserves of money and grain to train more elite soldiers as soon as possible.

Now that the Crown Prince had made a suggestion, Wanye looked at the others.

What do you think of the Crown Prince's proposal?

Several dukes and prime ministers said in unison, "His Highness the Crown Prince is right! We second that opinion!"

The world originally belonged to all families. The fact that so many places in Jinzhou surrendered so quickly this time is partly related to the fact that the King of Jin was not a decent human being.

After arriving in their fiefdoms, the princes from various regions levied exorbitant taxes and committed many appalling and immoral acts.

These humanoid beasts are a hundred times worse than the Arctic warriors, and they act recklessly because they have an emperor as their father.

The emperor did indeed tolerate these mischievous children. The imperial authority was inviolable, and anyone who dared to harm his son would be killed.

The founding heroes all knew that the country belonged to the emperor.

Especially now that Li Laiyong, the recognized top military officer, has died at the hands of the Shan Nong tribe, the Shan Nong tribe has achieved an astonishing feat of marching two hundred li in three days and capturing more than ninety cities.

Anyone who goes there at this point will be committing suicide.

The emperor was probably afraid they would bring their troops and surrender...

Looking at the group of old men in front of him, Wan Ye suddenly realized that he himself was getting old.

"That Beiji Wu is only eighteen years old. He will surely become a scourge to our civil dynasty! Disorder in civil affairs will inevitably lead to violence!"

Wan Ye was heartbroken and wanted to continue the war, but there was no one available for the time being.

"Alright, alright, send Zhang Jian's female relatives over there, write a letter, and bestow upon him the title of Duke of Shan, in charge of Shan Nong County."

"Regarding the trade, the Ministry of Rites will send people to discuss the matter in detail and see if some prisoners can be brought back. This time, priority will be given to ransoming those soldiers!"

Wan Ye was well aware that he had to consolidate his current power, otherwise, if his strength was weakened, some people would harbor rebellious intentions.

In particular, several of the generals were not very loyal; they only knew how to enjoy themselves and were unwilling to go through fire and water for the royal family.

Several rebellions were resolved by the soldiers surrendering without hesitation. One or two such instances were to be tolerated, but now the Northern Army has easily occupied the Nine Provinces beyond the mountains, with a military force exceeding 100,000 and a population approaching 500,000.

Fortunately, agriculture in the area behind the mountains is underdeveloped, the climate is arid, and grain production is poor, so there is no potential for them to dominate the world.

The only problem is Arctic Warrior; he's too young. Perhaps a marriage alliance could be possible?

Wanye returned to his study alone, looking at the frontier map and then at the number of troops and weapons in the conquered mountainous regions.

There are many reasons for not pursuing a marriage alliance, but besides saving face, the primary reason is that they believe they are strong enough.

Wanye is well aware that they cannot defeat the Shannong tribe.

During the century of chaos, Wan family rose to power through military force, seized a portion of the country from the former rulers of the Southern Dynasty, and then used their military prowess to destroy several remaining regimes in the vicinity, first in the south and then in the north.

Although he had just become emperor, he had been in power for three or four years. When he first raised his army, he was just an ordinary officer. Later, he befriended various officers and scholars and gradually gained their approval. He killed the original prince and became emperor.

If we don't stabilize the situation now, decades of hard work will be in vain!
Another reason is that all the warriors in the world are unwilling to fight, and they are tired of fighting.

More and more people want peace and world stability.

The reason why Arctic Wu was able to conquer so many places is not only because he is good at fighting, but also because he does not fight or kill indiscriminately.

The army that attacked Beiyuan was the Beiyuan Army, the army that attacked Hukoubao was the Hukoubao garrison, the army that attacked Gaoliu was the surrendered Gaoliu Guard, and the army that attacked Tongzhou Guard was also the surrendered Tongzhou Guard.

Once inside, everyone felt at home, greeting the surrendered soldiers and cleaning up the corpses on the ground together.

They lived the same way they did before, and once inside, they reunited with their families, quickly stabilized the situation, and rapidly won over the others to fight together, distributing land, money, and wives to the wealthy.

The idea that "if you don't resist, you won't die" spread rapidly, and naturally, more people surrendered.

***
Tongzhou Guard

Former General Cen Tianrui and Ma Weiming led the city's main generals to kneel before Beijiwu.

"Chieftain! Now, except for Yanmen County, all the other garrisons have surrendered. After the gates are opened, the original guards will continue to garrison the garrisons. The chieftain's order has also been conveyed: anyone who harasses the people or takes the opportunity to plunder will be executed! Their family members will be enslaved!"

Tongzhou Guard had many more commanders than Beiyuan Guard, and at this time, all eight commanders were under the rule of Beijiwu.

Beijiwu sat on the mahogany chair, feeling very uncomfortable in the broken chair, and his mood soured.

"Alright." Beijiwu was too lazy to say anything more. "Send people to inform all the garrisons that the Southern Dynasty has broken its promise and doesn't treat us, the people suffering on the frontier, as human beings, nor the people here."

"They have endless wealth, while we have endless suffering. Those who are willing to fight and protect their families can continue to serve in the army. Those who are unwilling to fight will receive two taels of silver as severance pay and can go home. Even if they desert, don't worry about them."

"Keep a close eye on those landlords, nobles, and officials, and arrest them all and lock them up in jail."

"Wherever my mountain peasant tribe rules, all debts of the people, both inside and outside the city, will be forgiven! Let them start anew!"

“Any land acquired during their previous military service, as long as it does not exceed fifty mu, will be registered as their own land. Mountain farmers will not take away the land of poor farmers.”

"Any officer who surrenders will at most retain the position of a thousand-household commander. Those who exceed this position will be demoted to a thousand-household commander and enjoy the same hereditary treatment as the mountain farmers. They must also follow the rules of the mountain farmers and protect the lives of their subordinates."

"Go ask the people who joined before you for the specifics. Now, everyone, you can leave."

Beijiwu felt there was nothing more to say. Even if the imperial court attacked and took back all the places they had just occupied, it wouldn't matter to Beijiwu.

These recently surrendered subordinates are not trustworthy; Arctic Wu can run away whenever he wants.

Even if his entire family is killed, Beijiwu can settle down anywhere and he will never lack women.

Arctic Warriors are not afraid of base raiding tactics; they can gather a group of people to fight for wealth wherever they go.

After their positions were saved, the officers kowtowed and expressed their gratitude: "Thank you for your great kindness, Chief!"

Just as everyone was about to take their leave, Ma Weiming cautiously said, "Master, Niu Zhifu is not dead yet. His family is still in the city. This servant would like to go and persuade Niu Zhifu to serve you again."

Beiji Wu raised an eyebrow. "Is he that important? It only took me a blink of an eye to knock him off his horse, but I spent at least half an hour arguing with him, and this guy is still not dead?"

Ma Weiming quickly replied, "When I went to Hukou Fort, he was still alive, so I asked a doctor to take care of him. He is still lying in the prison cell. He and I are sworn brothers. He is skilled in martial arts and can also train soldiers and fight battles. He is a rare and brave general."

Beijiwu said angrily, "Take all the men in his family over there. If they refuse to surrender, kill them all. You must kill them all. Then send this loyal minister to the south. The emperor of the Wen Dynasty will surely give this loyal and unyielding commander a grand funeral, and maybe even bestow upon him a title like Duke of Qin or Marquis of Dingxi."

"Send the women there to be prostitutes! Let's see if the city folks and soldiers will patronize his mother, wife, and daughter!"

“Yes! Your servant obeys!” Ma Weiming and the others knew that Beijiwu was very angry.

After cursing, Beijiwu calmed down and said, "Forget it, the mountain farmers still have some dignity. I won't make things difficult for those women. Those who are of suitable age will be married off to unmarried commanders. Those who are beautiful and willing to live a life of servitude will be sent to the General's Mansion to serve me."

Just as Ma Weiming was about to speak, Commander Qin Hefu immediately said, "Reporting to Master, Niu Zhifu's father married six concubines, and Niu Zhifu himself has eight wives and concubines, and more than twenty children."

Arctic Martial Arts: "I won't interfere in your private lives. In short, this is his last chance. Go over there together and try to persuade him to surrender. If he refuses or doesn't speak after three breaths, kill him immediately!"

The crowd replied in unison, "Yes, sir!"

(End of this chapter)