We have fought to the Arctic Circle, and you want me to inherit the throne?

Seeing that the female worker didn't dare to speak out, Huo Duanxiao looked at Lu several times and had a plan in mind.

He took a step forward and whispered soothingly, "His Highness is here. If you have any questions, just tell me. His Highness will definitely take care of it for you."

The female worker gritted her teeth and spoke with difficulty, "I dare not question Your Highness. My husband said before he left that Your Highness has had a hard time too. Feng State is surrounded by enemies on all sides, and there must be shortages everywhere."

After saying that, the female worker paused, her eyes actually reddened: "It's just that I have three children to support at home, and four elderly people, so I have asked many times..."

After saying that, she looked at Lu who was standing beside her.

Li Che immediately understood something and looked at Lu with an expressionless face.

At this moment, Mrs. Lu had already mustered up her courage and said solemnly, "Your Highness, I have asked various departments several times, and they all said that the Ministry of War has not yet issued it."

"When I asked further, they said it was a military matter and told me not to say anything more."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone's eyes turned to Huo Duanxiao.

Among the civil officials, only Huo Duanxiao was proficient in both civil and military affairs, so he always commanded the Ministry of War.

Now that there is a problem in the Ministry of War, Huo Duanxiao is naturally the first person responsible.

But even in this situation, Huo Duanxiao remained calm and said seriously, "Your Highness, every time the pension is distributed, I personally distribute the money and food to various departments and record the names of the meritorious soldiers in the register."

"There are records of this, and there are witnesses from many colleagues in the Ministry of War. Your Highness can send someone to verify it."

Li Che also believed that Huo Duanxiao had absolutely no problem with his character and that he would never do something like drinking the blood of his soldiers.

Moreover, Huo Duanxiao is also an old man who has followed him, and he knows very well what is his Achilles' heel.

The female worker also spoke up, "The gentleman is right. Someone did send money and food to my family, but only once: ten taels of silver and three dou of millet."

Li Che felt blood rushing to his head when he heard this.

The Fengtian Army pensions have always been generous, ranging from thirty to one hundred taels depending on the position.

Even for the lowest-ranking soldiers, ten taels of pension was far from enough, and they actually swallowed up 60 to 70 percent of it.

What's more, the pension cannot be paid out in one lump sum. The widow and her family can receive subsidies every year.

Those bastards, I don’t know how much blood of soldiers they drank!

"Investigate!" Li Che was furious. "Investigate thoroughly for me!"

Seeing Li Che's rage, all the important officials lowered their heads and dared not speak.

Li Che looked at the female worker again and asked in a deep voice, "Which unit is responsible for distributing your man's pension?"

The female worker replied, "My husband was originally a member of the Chaoyang Army. After the military reform, he was in the Central Military Region, serving as a platoon leader in the Third Division of the Second Army. His pension was paid by the Third Division."

"Good!" Li Che's face turned even colder, and he laughed in anger, "How dare you! You're corrupt right under my nose!"

"Qiu Bai!"

Qiu Bai immediately stepped out: "Your Highness."

"Call the Royal Guard Battalion and go to the Third Division Headquarters now!"

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone fell silent.

I couldn't help but be secretly shocked. A good visit led to such a big case. This might be the first corruption case in Fengguo.

Now everyone just hopes that only the Third Division is in trouble and not too many others are implicated.

Otherwise, the entire Fengtian Army would tremble under your highness's wrath.

. . . . . .

Outside Fengtian City, the 3rd Division of the Central Military Region is stationed.

The sound of horse hooves was like thunder, breaking the silence outside the military camp.

Li Che took the lead, followed by Huo Duanxiao, Chang Pan, Xue Zhen and others, as well as hundreds of murderous elite guards.

Outside the military camp gate, the guards on the watchtower had already discovered this aggressive team and the warning horn sounded.

The gate was closed and a team of armed guards quickly lined up at the door.

Although he saw that the leader had an extraordinary demeanor, the leading sentry still had to step forward out of duty.

Pointing his spear sideways, he shouted sternly, "This is a strategic military location! Who are you? Stop immediately!"

Li Che reined in his horse and swept his cold eyes over the soldiers.

Qiu Bai and Ying Bu rode forward simultaneously, their swords unsheathed half a foot with a clang, their cold light intimidating. "How dare you! His Highness has come in person, and you still refuse to greet him?!"

"His Royal Highness?!"

The guards' faces changed drastically.

But after the shock wore off, the leading sentry suppressed the turmoil in his heart and tried to straighten his back:

"We have never seen His Highness's true appearance, but military regulations are strict. Without solid evidence, we dare not let him go!"

"Please show me your credentials, otherwise I will be unable to comply with your orders!"

Although the guards behind him were so nervous that their palms were sweating, they subconsciously gripped their spears tightly and were ready for battle.

This unexpected scene made everyone behind Li Che feel nervous.

His Highness was so furious that he dared to stop the carriage and ask for proof. These three masters are probably in even greater trouble.

However, to everyone's surprise.

After the sergeant said this, the anger on Li Che's face eased a little.

Military law is as strict as a mountain and orders must be obeyed!

The wind of corruption has already eroded into the army, and these grassroots guards can still stick to their posts, which shows that the foundation of the Third Division is not yet rotten.

"Okay!" Li Che raised his hand to stop Qiu Bai and Ying Bu from further intimidation.

Then, he took out a black iron token engraved with a coiled dragon pattern from his arms and threw it to the sentry leader.

The sentry hurriedly caught the token. It felt heavy and cold in his hand, but the unique material and pattern were obviously extraordinary, and he no longer had any doubts.

He immediately stood at attention and saluted, then held the token high in his hands:

"I am blind and have offended Your Majesty! I deserve death!"

The guards behind him also stood at attention and saluted.

"What's wrong with being loyal to your duty?!" Li Che looked at the man, "You did the right thing. Not only do I not blame you, I will also reward you!"

"Qiubai, all the soldiers present here, remember this: each of you will be rewarded with ten taels of silver."

"Yes." Qiu Bai bowed in response.

The guards looked up in shock, hardly able to believe their ears.

Qiu Bai said, "Why don't you open the door and lead the way? His Highness wants to go to your division headquarters."

"Yes! Yes! Open the gate!" The sergeant woke up as if from a dream and gave orders loudly and excitedly.

The heavy gate slowly opened with the creaking sound of the winch.

Li Che kicked his horse's belly and rushed into the military camp first, followed by Huo Duanxiao and others.

The Royal Guard Battalion surged into the military camp like a black tide.

Inside the military camp, the sound of drills was deafening.

On the vast parade ground, thousands of soldiers were practicing marching and stabbing in the cold wind, and the shouts of killing were deafening.

The officers' voices of shouting orders were clear and powerful. At least on the surface, the soldiers of the Third Division were in good order and had a neat appearance.

Li Che nodded slightly, without stopping for too long, and under the guidance of the sentry leader, rode his horse straight to the division headquarters compound in the center of the military camp.

Zhao Kang, commander of the 3rd Division, was currently conducting simulations with several staff officers in front of the division headquarters sand table.

Hearing the thundering sound of horse hooves outside and the faint shouts of "Your Highness has arrived", he was stunned at first, and then his face changed drastically.

"Your Highness? Why did Your Highness suddenly come to me?"

Zhao Kang was filled with fear and confusion, and an ominous premonition instantly enveloped his whole body.

He did not dare to delay and immediately rushed out of the division headquarters with several core generals.

As soon as I walked out of the door, I saw Li Che had dismounted from his horse and was walking towards me with big strides, surrounded by a group of important officials and murderous guards.

Seeing Li Che's cold face, Zhao Kang's heart sank to the bottom in an instant.

"General Zhao Kang pays homage to His Highness! Your Highness has come in person, and I was unable to greet you from afar..."

Zhao Kang hurriedly saluted with his fists, and the generals behind him also hurriedly saluted.

Li Che stopped in front of Zhao Kang, his voice as cold as the wind: "Zhao Kang, I have a question for you."

"Do you still remember Zhang Laosan, a former member of the Chaoyang Army who later served as a platoon leader in the Third Company, Second Battalion, Third Division, and who died during the campaign against the Khitans after falling off his horse while trying to save his comrades?"

Zhao Kang trembled all over.

Zhang Laosan?

That honest and brave veteran?

Why would His Highness suddenly ask about a young platoon leader who died in action?

Countless thoughts flashed through his mind instantly, and cold sweat instantly soaked his lining.

"I...I will remember!" Zhao Kang didn't dare to look up, his voice was dry.

"Very good!" Li Che's voice suddenly turned stern, "Then tell this king."

"Where the hell did the imperial court send the pension to Zhang Laosan's widow, as well as the annual subsidies for corn, cloth, meat, and vegetables, go?!"

"Why is it that his widow, a twenty-four-year-old woman, is working in this king's clothing factory, wearing only thin clothes, starving to the point of paleness and thinness, with half her hair white, and has only received ten taels of silver and three dou of aged rice once?!"

"The rest of the money! The rest of the food! Who the hell did you feed it to?!"

"boom--"

Zhao Kang only felt a loud noise in his head, his vision went black, and he almost collapsed to the ground.

He instantly understood why His Highness was so angry and why he came to the division headquarters in person.

There were people under his command who drank the blood of soldiers and embezzled the pensions of the families of the fallen soldiers!

"Your Majesty... Your Highness! The last general... the last general..."

Zhao Kang's lips trembled. He wanted to say something, but found that he couldn't utter a word. The huge fear and shame almost swallowed him.

As a division commander, he had such an appalling case of embezzlement of pensions under his jurisdiction, and it was discovered by His Highness himself. He deserves to die without redemption!

Li Che stopped looking at him and glanced at the trembling generals behind Zhao Kang.

"Where's the quartermaster?"

None of the generals said a word, but Li Che's gaze finally fixed on a fat officer.

The officer was now shaking like a fallen leaf in the autumn wind, his face as pale as paper.

"You! Wang Degui, right?!" Li Che called out his name accurately, "Raise your head!"

Wang Degui's whole body was stiff. He raised his head tremblingly, the fat on his face trembling, and his eyes were full of fear.

"You were the one who distributed Zhang Laosan's pension, weren't you?" Li Che's voice was eerily calm. "Tell me, who pocketed all that money, and the annual subsidy?"

"How much did you take? Who's above you, and how much did they take?!"

thump--

Wang Degui could no longer hold on and collapsed completely to the ground. His crotch was instantly soaked and a foul smell filled the air.

Tears streamed down his face as he kowtowed: "Your Highness, please spare my life! Your Highness, please spare my life!"

"I was... I was confused for a moment... It was... It was the military's transportation department... They said... They said it was customary... They would take 30%."

"I only took five taels... the rest... the rest are all... all..."