Chapter 499: Rectifying Names

Yang Tiejiang finished speaking, Chen Wuji had nothing more to say, nodded, and urged the soldiers not far away to hurry up and stew the mutton; once it was done, he first gave him a bowl to warm his stomach.

But this gesture seemed to make Yang Tiejiang think more; he fell silent for a moment and asked, "Commandant, do you think my method is not good?"

"Good, how could it be not good? You are a seasoned veteran; your advice on these matters is more reliable than my opinion. I've only been commanding troops for a short time, while you've been doing it for much longer—there's no comparison between us, so what you say must be right." Chen Wuji said.

Yang Tiejiang shook his head, "But the troops I led were defeated."

"Hold on, don't think I don't know about your past affairs; your defeats aren't because you can't command troops—that's a problem from above, possibly related to you but not necessarily." Chen Wuji waved his hand, saying, "Don't overthink it—hey, are you really overthinking?"

Yang Tiejiang stared, "I…"

Chen Wuji helplessly chuckled, "Old Yang, you this, I don't think you're the type to overthink such a small matter! I stayed silent because what you said made sense—how could you…? Fortunately I reacted quickly enough; otherwise this rift between us would already have existed."

This really left Chen Wuji feeling a bit dazed.

He didn't remain silent because he had objections; he simply felt Yang Tiejiang's words were reasonable, so he had no objections.

But when he came to Yang Tiejiang's place, the other party had a different idea.

Where, where can one even reason about this?

Clearly burly and fierce-looking, yet he possesses such a delicate mind.

Yang Tiejiang gave a low chuckle, "Back then I was single‑minded; whatever I wanted to do, even if a crowd pulled at my legs, I would find a way to get it done, stubborn to the point of not caring how others viewed or thought about it."

"Now that I'm older, I can't help but think more."

Chen Wuji waved his hand, "Why do you swing to two extremes? It would be better to compromise a little."

Just that simple sentence makes Yang Tiejiang have to think twice; this matter is actually rather frightening.

When everyone's status is low, these things don't matter; but if the position rises a bit, even minor misunderstandings could trigger a chain reaction.

Yang Tiejiang nodded seriously.

Chen Wuji stopped there, didn't continue, and turned to ask, "Is everything still secure inside the Zhuangzi?"

"All matters are settled, there's no further trouble," Yang Tiejiang said.

Chen Wuji nodded, "Just now on my way here I saw that Jia Family Fortress has many farmer households, densely settled; these people must be the Jia family's tenant or hired farmers, right?"

"Yes, the land within a thirty‑li radius all belongs to the Jia family; their luxury is no less than that of true aristocratic clans. They have their own academy and market, and even the Jia family maintains a tradition of selecting concubines." Yang Tiejiang said.

"Selecting concubines?"

"It's much the same as selecting an imperial consort, just with a different name."

Chen Wuji clicked his tongue, "They really treat themselves like local emperors—no wonder I and Gu Wenjie are looked down upon by them. They live like emperors, so they indeed have reason to look down on us country bumpkins from the backwaters."

"Just a bunch of arrogant, reckless fools—actually frogs in a well, utterly ignorant and decayed!" Yang Tiejiang cursed.

"They've managed to get this far; logically the clan's upper and lower ranks should have some sense, but I see they're nothing but stupid pigs."

"They indeed have some stupidity, but the reason isn't complicated." Chen Wuji shook his head, "In Hezhou they have always held an aloof posture and long since grown accustomed to it."

"Such high‑and‑mighty people, when facing anyone who comes to rule Hezhou, consider only how to win them over and rely on them; any other possibility seems impossible to them."

Yang Tiejiang gave a cold snort, "So they're still stupid."

"The commoners of Jia Family Fortress need proper settlement; I've already had Cheng Zhiheng and Zhang Xun work out how to arrange it, and there should be a result soon." Chen Wuji said, "Before that, Old Yang, you must send people to keep them steady—these folks are now like startled birds, don't let any other trouble arise."

"Yes."

Chen Wuji rose, "I'll go inside to have a look; if there's nothing else, I'll return."

"Aren't you drinking the mutton soup?" Yang Tiejiang rose and asked.

"It's still early, I can't wait—I still need to go check the Zhu family, then quickly decide on the next steps, there's a pile of troublesome matters!" Chen Wuji sighed helplessly, waved his hand, and said, "Everyone likes being an official, but once you hold power, how to describe that feeling? Anyway, I don't really like it."

Yang Tiejiang laughed and said, "You handle everything yourself, so you're surely busy; let subordinates do what they should—why must you personally oversee everything?"

"Moreover, Hezhou also lacks truly capable talent. The officials in Hezhou's bureaucracy are idiots; letting them handle routine small tasks is okay, but they certainly can't be relied on for major affairs."

Chen Wuji deeply agreed, nodded, and said, "That's exactly why, lacking talent, I have no choice but to do everything myself; if I don't personally oversee things, I can't rest easy. Look at when I was in Yunan—when did I ever do this? I was too lazy even to ask about Yunan's governmental affairs."

Yang Tiejiang suddenly stopped his steps, solemnly said, "Commandant, there's something I've thought about for a long time, unable to decide whether I should tell you."

"Just say what it is; does our relationship have to become strictly divided just because you now address me as Commandant?" Chen Wuji said.

As a modern person, he sometimes truly cannot understand Yang Tiejiang, Chen Li and others' near‑obsessive fixation on hierarchical superiority and inferiority.

No matter what their previous relationship was, once a superior‑inferior distinction exists, the difference in rank and hierarchy seems etched into their bones; even forms of address and positioning, these minor matters, they enforce strictly.

Yang Tiejiang said seriously, "Commandant, should you consider taking autonomous charge of the prefecture of Hezhou?"

"I've also been considering this, but nominally we are still subjects of the court; declaring autonomy would amount to rebellion, and afterward we would lose many conveniences." Chen Wuji said solemnly.

"I recently submitted a memorial to the Emperor; now we'll see how His Majesty the Emperor deals with me. Once the imperial edict arrives, I should be able to make a decision."

Yang Tiejiang said, "That's fine as well."

"Commandant now controls five counties of Hezhou, but his title remains unsettled, which is not a good thing. However, His Majesty the Emperor is unlikely to easily grant the prefecture to the Commandant; the court's current attitude toward the Lingnan Six Commanderies is somewhat unfathomable." Chen Wuji laughed, "I hope our Emperor's vision is not so narrow."

"If nothing unexpected happens, he should give it; I made a deal with His Majesty the Emperor." Chen Wuji laughed, "I hope our His Majesty the Emperor's vision isn't so narrow."