Chapter 81: Inspector Wang's Decision

Jiang Jiang Mingyu, having heard Wang Zhe's question, was slightly stunned; he instinctively touched his forehead and replied in a calm, polite tone: "My lord, please speak. What instruction do you have?"

Wang Zhe fell silent for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth and said: "The military situation at the border is known to both of us as clearly as the lines on our palms. When spring arrives next year, the enemy will inevitably return with renewed force; at that time, it will surely be a bloody and fierce battle."

"Currently, the magistrate and the Commandant of Shangmu are both temporarily under your acting charge. What sound strategy do you have to deal with the enemy's invasion?"

"This official understands that for a scholar of your gentle and refined background, shouldering such a heavy responsibility is indeed very difficult. But for now, we can only ask you to endure this hardship; after all, no one dares to take on the mess that is Shangmu." Wang Zhe's tone revealed helplessness.

After hearing this, Jiang Jiang Mingyu pressed his lips together and smiled: "Your words are too heavy, my lord. Protecting our homes and defending our country is the sacred duty of us officials of Great Feng. This matter poses no great difficulty for this official."

"However, I believe that the reason the foreign tribes are so arrogant lies in the court's overly weak attitude. If this problem is not solved at its root, the warfare will only grow more and more intense." Jiang Jiang Mingyu's face was serious, his tone firm.

Wang Zhe frowned slightly, a hint of severity emerging in his tone: "What do you mean?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu sighed lightly and continued to explain: "In every past battle, our army has been in a situation of passive defense, or even a situation of being beaten. This has invisibly further emboldened the arrogance of the foreign enemies, making them believe that Great Feng's military strength is empty and that Great Feng's territory can be seized and claimed as their own."

"What is even more terrifying is that this passive situation has caused the army's morale to scatter and its spirit to vanish completely. During the last enemy incursion, merely a few dozen cavalrymen frightened away the several hundred soldiers of the Shangmu City Defense Camp."

Jiang Jiang Mingyu's tone was calm but every word was firm: "Forgive me for speaking bluntly, but to solve this problem at its root, we must abandon defense and take the offensive. Only by letting the foreign enemies personally experience our army's iron will and dignity, by having them beaten until corpses lie scattered everywhere, will they feel fear, know the difficulty, and retreat. Only then can our border remain stable for the long term."

After hearing Jiang Jiang Mingyu's words, Wang Zhe pondered for a moment, then slammed his hand heavily on the table: "Good! Lord Jiang speaks reason."

"If the previous magistrates had possessed such boldness, how could Shangmu have fallen to this state today?" Wang Zhe's tone was overflowing with praise.

"Come, come, tell me your strategy; how do you plan to do it?" Wang Zhe's eyes showed interest as he looked at Jiang Jiang Mingyu with full expectation.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu hesitated not at all, speaking directly to the point: "Recruit soldiers; without a crowd of people, there is no way to repel the foreign enemies."

"May I ask the Inspector, my lord, to the best of your knowledge, how many troops came during the largest-scale attack by the foreign tribes?"

Hearing this, Wang Zhe slowly recalled: "During the largest-scale incursion by the foreign tribes back then, there were about five thousand cavalrymen, covering the mountains and fields, extremely magnificent. When Shangmu City fell, both the magistrate and the Commandant died in battle. The enemy looted and plundered wildly before leaving, as if entering a land with no people."

Bringing up this painful past, a look of vigilance and sorrow flashed in Wang Zhe's eyes; the corners of his mouth also drooped slightly, as if he had experienced great trauma.

After hearing this, Jiang Jiang Mingyu pondered for a moment, then slowly opened his mouth: "Judging by this, our side needs to conscript at least ten thousand soldiers to barely resist the enemy's attack." His tone was steady and certain.

Wang Zhe nodded upon hearing this: "Indeed so. To utterly crush the foreign enemies, an army of fifty thousand is necessary."

"But Shangmu's finances are tight; how can we recruit and train such a huge army? The military expenditure will also be an astronomical number." Wang Zhe's eyebrows were tightly furrowed, and a clear anxiety and worry flashed in his eyes.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu proposed without hesitation: "The situation has become this critical; why does my lord not directly request reinforcements from the court and ask the Ministry of Revenue for special allocation of military funds?"

Wang Zhe smiled helplessly, a dim expression appearing on his face: "If the court could provide aid, how could Shangmu have fallen to today's state?"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu was completely confused and looked at Wang Zhe in puzzlement: "What does this mean?"

After hearing this, Wang Zhe sighed deeply, and the muscles on his face seemed to collapse with it: "You should know that the Ministry of Revenue, which holds the great power of the court's finances, is now firmly controlled by the Tu Yu Dian faction."

"The Tu Yu Dian faction and the Hezhi Sect have always been incompatible like water and fire; this is already an open secret in the court. Unfortunately, this official is a disciple of the Hezhi Sect."

"The Hezhi Sect has already lost power in the court; it is good enough that they are not striking while the iron is hot at this moment; hoping for aid is a foolish dream."

Having said this, he sighed again: "So, relying on the Ministry of Revenue is simply impossible."

Speaking to this point, Wang Zhe's eyebrows were tightly furrowed, the corners of his mouth drooped slightly, and the whole person was shrouded in a gloomy atmosphere.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu did not expect that Shangmu had become in this state; besides the merit of the foreign tribes, there were so many twists and turns involved.

And what he did not expect even more was that this Wang Zhe actually had an extraordinary relationship with the Hezhi Sect, just like him.

In that case, he and Wang Zhe could be considered comrades in the same trench.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu could not help but feel a bit happy; with the help of this Inspector, my lord, he would save himself much trouble, though he did not yet understand why the Hezhi Sect had lost power.

So he quickly said: "What exactly happened to the Hezhi Sect?"

Wang Zhe still wore a bitter expression: "Lord Jiang may not know, after all, the border is remote; I only learned of it after receiving a secret letter from the Hezhi Sect in the capital..."

He then told Jiang Jiang Mingyu the news he had received, item by item.

After hearing this, Jiang Jiang Mingyu was a bit stunned, but quickly came to his senses; human calculations are not as good as heaven's calculations. He thought to himself that fortunately the Emperor had long known of his relationship with the Hezhi Sect and entrusted him with a heavy responsibility; otherwise, he truly would not know what to do.

The two stood like this for a long time; Jiang Jiang Mingyu felt his legs going a bit numb, so he gently moved them a few times. Then he opened his mouth again.

After a moment, Jiang Jiang Mingyu opened his mouth again: "Inspector, my lord, do not worry. Since the Hezhi Sect's trouble has become a certainty, and the court is powerless to support us, we can only rely on our own strength."

Wang Zhe pressed further: "What does this mean?" He frowned slightly, looking completely puzzled.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu paused briefly, then continued to explain: "The Shangmu territory possesses very rich coal resources; this, my lord, you already know. If we start mining this coal and sell it to various places, we can obtain ample military funds."

"If my lord is willing to cooperate, we can surely reach coal trade agreements with the Inspectors of the neighboring prefectures. At that time, military supplies will not be lacking; training strong soldiers will naturally follow. The external troubles will surely be resolved, and Shangmu can also regain its vitality."

"As long as the two Inspectors nod in agreement, this business deal can be concluded. At that time, with military supplies not lacking, how could there be any worry about expelling the foreign enemies?" Jiang Jiang Mingyu's eyes showed certainty.

Speaking to this point, he turned to Liu Liu Yifei, who was standing aside, and said: "Miss Liu, you go first to find Tu Tu Kesiluo and the others; this official will come shortly."

Liu Liu Yifei, knowing that Jiang Jiang Mingyu intended to send her away, did not say much; she performed a bow and quickly walked out.

After Liu Liu Yifei withdrew, Jiang Jiang Mingyu continued to speak: "If the business deal is concluded, Inspector, my lord, you too can have a share. At that time, with military strength enhanced, your lordship's fame will surely spread far and wide. Advancing one rank is within reach. Such a two-birds-with-one-stone good thing; I hope my lord will give your full support to achieve a great undertaking."

After hearing this, Wang Zhe's expression showed slight hesitation; he asked in a low voice: "The foreign tribes are strong in soldiers and horses; do you truly have confidence to utterly crush them?" There was still some worry on his face.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu's eyes emitted a fervent light, his tone certain: "As long as we obtain sufficient military fund support and train an army of fifty thousand, this official can swear a military pledge, swearing to annihilate all the foreign enemies and beat them into a mess."

Seeing his confident appearance, Wang Zhe finally slammed the table heavily and decided: "Good! Lord Jiang is indeed bold; this official admires you! Since that is the case, I will fully support your lordship's plan!"

Upon hearing this, Jiang Jiang Mingyu secretly rejoiced greatly and thanked Wang Zhe for his support once more.

Wang Zhe nodded and said: "This official will immediately submit a memorial to the court to issue an imperial decree granting your lordship the direct authority to recruit an army of fifty thousand. As for the coal trade matter, arrangements will be made immediately."

"But I hope Lord Jiang will fulfill his words; otherwise, even with this official's help, the military law will show no mercy." Wang Zhe's tone was calm yet firm.

Wang Zhe calculated secretly in his heart: If he could indeed obtain huge profits from the coal trade and also use this opportunity to advance his official rank, this business deal was truly too profitable.

Even if Jiang Jiang Mingyu failed on the battlefield in the future, there would be no substantial loss for himself; not a single silver coin that should be received would be missing.

Overall, this plan was very safe for himself, but the returns were very considerable.

Jiang Jiang Mingyu bowed respectfully to Wang Zhe and said sincerely: "Thank you, Inspector, my lord, for your trust; this one will definitely go all out and will never disgrace your trust!" Having obtained the authority to recruit soldiers, he was so happy he almost floated to the sky.

Having obtained the power to recruit soldiers, he was secretly infinitely delighted, as if he could already see the scene of an army of fifty thousand waving long swords with high morale.

Imagining the scene of personally holding the imperial decree and truly gathering an army of fifty thousand mighty soldiers, Jiang Jiang Mingyu was so excited he could hardly contain himself, his two eyes shining.

When the imperial decree for recruiting soldiers was finally handed into his hands, Jiang Jiang Mingyu trembled all over with excitement, simply overjoyed to the point of sorrow.

As long as this piece of paper turned into fifty thousand elite troops, even if the Prince of Qi wanted to trouble him, he would have to think thrice. Jiang Jiang Mingyu smiled secretly in his heart: "Prince of Qi, just grind your neck and wait and see; Jiang Mou will be here soon to deal with you!"

Jiang Jiang Mingyu touched the imperial decree in his hand, his eyes firm, his tone full of confidence. He had already sketched out in his mind the various details of training the army, swearing to build an iron-willed army that would shake the four directions, making the enemies tremble at the mere sound of its approach.