Chapter 223: Changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system, using Xia to transform the Yi

The Tian and Yang of Sibo, the Cen and Huang of Liangguang.

Roughly similar to the folk nickname for the Anyuan Earl lineage as "a willow in Guangdong," these types of slang are all metaphors for forces that cover the sky with one hand in the local area.

The sentence in Personnel Wen Chun's mouth refers to the four surnames Tian, Yang, Cen, and Huang, all of which have been hereditary native chieftains from the Sui and Tang dynasties to the Ming, with deep roots.

Zhu Yijun leisurely swallowed the tea in his mouth, signaling Personnel Wen Chun to be calm.

Seeing this, Yin Zhengmao was the first to be unable to sit still and asked Personnel Wen Chun: "Does this proposal of the Chief Hai Yushi mean that the Yang of Bozhou and the Cen of Shanglin have recently caused some trouble?"

Matters that can be brought to the imperial annual meeting will not be without signs.

Moreover, if they were honest, there wouldn't be a suitable reason to change the native chieftain system to the flow official system, right?

As for why Yin Zhengmao was certain it was the Yang of Bozhou and the Cen of Shanglin as soon as he opened his mouth, it was because the saying of the four surnames was also an old calendar.

For example, the Tian clan was wiped out because they fought over mineral veins and killed each other.

Tian Chen, in collusion with Huang Xi, led troops to attack the Sainan Pacification Commissioner Tian Zongding; both sides were arrested and brought to the capital, and after a self-defense before the Emperor, they were all beheaded by Emperor Chengzu, and the native chieftain system was changed to the flow official system.

It was not that Emperor Chengzu was narrow-minded or looking for an excuse; rather, when both sides were defending themselves, they exposed each other's secrets, offending the monarch and ministers at court—Huang Xi, the Prefect of Chenzhou, had committed adultery with his grandmother; Tian Zongding, the Pacification Commissioner of Sinan, had strangled his own mother.

At that time, the court officials couldn't sit still; to be savage to this extent, did it still look like the world of Confucianism?

Whether it was rebellion or incestuous matricide, all were sentenced to death, so the Tian clan and others were all wiped out, and Sizhou and Sainan took the opportunity to change the native chieftain system to the flow official system, re-educating, and the establishment of Guizhou Province also came from this.

The Huang clan was slightly more troublesome; they made a big fuss in the Tang dynasty, and after being suppressed time and again, they scattered like stars in Liangguang.

Although their power was wide, no one could lead them.

Added to the fact that since the Ming dynasty, the Liangguang Provincial Governors and Viceroys had repeatedly combed and dismantled them, they had at least been tamed—Yin Zhengmao, Ling Yunyi, and others had helped these native chieftain cities urbanize quite a bit.

So, only the Yang clan of Bozhou and the Cen clan of Shanglin remained, and the remaining two surnames were also the number one native chieftains of Guizhou and Guangxi today.

Personnel Wen Chun heard Yin Zhengmao's question and reacted, realizing that this newly appointed Minister of War had only been in office for more than ten days, and I fear the case files hadn't been finished reading.

He looked at the Emperor and just perfunctorily said: "It is good to tell the Minister of Justice that it is not that they have caused any trouble, but that the national dynasty has tolerated the native chieftains for two hundred years, and it is time to deal with them."

Yin Zhengmao frowned at Personnel Wen Chun's nonsense that couldn't be more correct.

It was Shen Shixing who casually pointed out: "The Minister of War can return to the Ministry of War to flip through the case files of October 17th; there is a military situation jointly memorialized by the Yunnan Regional Commander of the Marquis Qian Guo, Mu Changzuo, and the Right Hai Yushi-in-Chief of the Yunnan Provincial Governor, Chen Wensui, last month."

"The Eastern Wu Kingdom has gathered troops again to invade Yunnan, attacking cities and seizing land, killing people and setting fires, and has even penetrated into the area of Shunning Prefecture!"

Yin Zhengmao was stunned when he heard this.

Recently, the Ministry of War and the Five Chief Military Commissions had divided the power, and he truly hadn't had time to pay attention to this matter.

Especially since Yunnan was ten thousand miles away from the capital, no matter how urgent the military situation was, it was a matter of several months' delay, and he couldn't be urgent even if he wanted to.

Before he could think carefully, Yin Zhengmao frowned and asked: "In the battle of Shidian in the fifth year of Wanli, wasn't Mang Yinglong already forced to sign a covenant and bow his head to pay tribute? Why is he coming back now!?"

In the first year of Wanli, the young Emperor, in order to rectify the Beijing Camp and establish prestige among the nobles, beheaded the Marquis Qian Guo Duke and, on the pretext that the Marquis Qian Guo Duke's mansion was "far from the heart," forced the newly appointed Duke Mu Changzuo to come to the capital to face the Emperor several times to remotely control Yunnan.

At the same time, out of distrust of the Marquis Qian Guo Duke's mansion, which forged fire talismans to mobilize troops and killed local officials, the Emperor ordered Chen Wensui to go to Yunnan as Provincial Governor, recruit 20,000 troops, suppress Yunnan, and clear out the remaining poison.

As luck would have it.

In the fifth year of Wanli, when the court and the public were saying that this move was too wasteful and should be appropriately reduced, the Yunnan local area encountered the invasion of the Eastern Wu Dynasty of Burma.

Since the thirty-fifth year of Jiajing, Mang Yinglong colluded with the Franks and frequently caused trouble in the Three Pacifications, killing the Pacification Commissioner, but actively invading the Ming border was still beyond the Ming court's expectations.

Fortunately, the Yunnan local area, which was still under the high pressure of Provincial Governor Chen, erupted with extraordinary strength, directly wiping out the invading enemy of the Eastern Wu Dynasty in one fell swoop, and even "led troops to pursue them, pursuing and killing them, the Burmese army was defeated, and those who survived were not one in ten."

The city-under-the-wall covenant signed by the Eastern Wu Dynasty under such circumstances was actually violated again in less than two years, which was truly unexpected.

"Mang Yinglong died at the beginning of the year; after his son Mang Yingli succeeded to the throne, he claimed that his father had left behind a hidden illness, and on the pretext of avenging his father, he gathered tens of thousands of troops and invaded the border again."

Wang Zongyi explained, his expression somewhat unlucky.

Invading after a covenant, and constructing troops after paying tribute; truly the savages among savages!

Personnel Wen Chun saw that his colleague had explained enough to the newly appointed Minister of War, and then continued: "This time the Burmese side invaded, the Longchuan rebel fugitive Yueyang, and the Mubang Hanqian, colluded to spy."

"The Yunnan native chieftains were summoned but did not arrive, treating neighbors as ditches, able to share rewards but not share hatred."

"Guangxi native chieftains took advantage of the fire to rob, threatened to invite rewards, and stirred up chaos."

"At the same time, Wang Ning, the Provincial Governor of Guizhou, submitted a memorial stating that the Yang clan of Bozhou was restless and in close contact with the rebel fugitive Yueyang of Longchuan, fearing they had ulterior motives."

"Just like Chen Wensui's memorial in the fifth year of Wanli, the native chieftains of the Three Pacifications and Six Comforts have almost completely rotted; if we don't manage the southwest with determination, we will inevitably cause a great disaster!"

When Personnel Wen Chun said this, Yin Zhengmao realized afterwards what kind of situation this Hai Yushi-in-Chief was in.

Personnel Wen Chun was different from Shen Shixing, Wang Xijue, and others.

The Grand Secretariat led the major policies; as long as the national dynasty revived, there would always be a share of the credit, but the Censorate had the power to check and balance the Grand Secretariat, and it was impossible for the Hai Yushi-in-Chief to enter the Grand Secretariat.

Therefore, if Personnel Wen Chun wanted to leave his name in history, he had to find things to do himself; just like Hai Rui clearing the atmosphere of officialdom, Li Zaiting presiding over the opening of the sea, and Li Zhi deducing the classics, Personnel Wen Chun also had to find his own "great strategy."

Looking at it now, I fear it was in the southwest.

Personnel Wen Chun didn't care what his colleagues were thinking and continued on his own: "Whether to fight or make peace with the Eastern Wu Dynasty, there is still research and judgment by the Five Chief Military Commissions."

"But the internal affairs of managing the southwest are already a matter of urgency!"

He turned to face the Emperor: "Your Majesty, I request to manage the southwest with determination, starting from Guizhou and Guangxi, changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system, and using Xia to transform the Yi!"

The southwest generally refers to Guizhou, Guangxi, and Yunnan provinces; Sichuan is also counted, but the barbarians and native chieftains are not the same breed, so they are often skipped.

Since the former Song dynasty, local areas have been managed through the loose-rein system, and the former Yuan dynasty established native chieftains. For several hundred years until now, there has been little development.

Even in this dynasty, the national policy for the southwest was just to suppress it with stillness—taxes and people's livelihood were not important, just don't cause trouble.

But now the situation in the court is clearly different.

Personnel Wen Chun's words, with his chest heaving and unable to control himself, had their own causes.

In the sixth year of Wanli, Yunnan Provincial Governor Chen Wensui entered the capital to receive an award for his usefulness in resisting the enemy; in the Wenhua Hall, he described the picture of governing the southwest to a group of monarchs and ministers.

In Chen Wensui's conception, use the "Three Pacifications" to build an outer defense line, and use Yunnan as an inner defense line, "summoning the barbarians, pacifying the Three Pacifications, building city walls, and suppressing Yunnan."

At the same time, for the native chieftains of Guang and Gui, "change to prefectures and counties, divide land, set up schools, use Xia to transform the Yi," through accelerating Sinicization, using Xia to transform the Yi, to advance to the heartland of the southwest, turning native chieftain prefectures and counties into prefectures and counties, and turning the Three Pacifications into native chieftain areas, finally achieving the effect of "great governance in the southwest."

However, under the consensus that the southwest was a tax depression, even with the Burmese invasion, the picture described by Chen Wensui still didn't move many court officials, and instead, because it was too radical, "it was at odds with the times."

Finally, only Personnel Wen Chun was moved.

After reading the case files for several days, meeting with the students and old subordinates in the southwest, and understanding the geography and humanities, Personnel Wen Chun met with Chen Wensui in private.

Whether Personnel Wen Chun was doing it for the country or because he liked the big pie of "great governance in the southwest, a famous minister of a generation" to leave his name in history.

In short, the one standing up for Yunnan Provincial Governor Chen Wensui and the national policy of governing the southwest now was Personnel Wen Chun.

After Personnel Wen Chun's generous speech.

The Emperor still didn't say a word, noncommittal.

The officials were also not surprised; in these two years, the Emperor had become increasingly unfathomable, and during meetings, apart from the opening outline, he rarely interjected, letting the ministers speak freely.

The Emperor didn't speak, so Shen Shixing could only start from work experience and put pressure on Personnel Wen Chun: "After setting up flow officials in various prefectures, often within a dozen years, there are five or six rebellions, and the successive suppressions have never had a rest."

"Chief Hai Yushi Wen, if we forcibly change the native chieftain system to the flow official system in the southwest, I fear the matter will not succeed, and there will be repeated tug-of-war, pointlessly causing the national treasury to lose blood."

"At that time, the infamy of 'draining the blue blood of good people to paint useless land' will also fear to return."

This last sentence looked like something a scholar-official of the former Song would say; in fact, this was Wang Yangming's political view on the southwest.

To speak arrogantly, our dynasty was founded against the background of the fall of the world, and we valued the use of Xia to transform the Yi much more than any previous dynasty.

Compared to the former Han, which arbitrarily moved northern barbarians to counties to live together, the former Tang, which was too lenient and caused local areas to be barbarianized, and the former Song, which left the northwest to be integrated by foreign races, only the two ancestors of the Ming dynasty dreamed of Sinicizing all thirteen provinces of the two capitals into descendants of Huaxia.

But even so, once the determination of the founding was lost, the descendants naturally became conservative.

Facing the rebellion of the Tian clan, Emperor Chengzu immediately sent 50,000 troops to suppress it and established Guizhou Province; but facing the native barbarians in Guangxi who rebelled to invite official titles, Emperor Yingzong immediately said "save our border expenses, why cherish an official title?", and then greatly increased the number of native officials.

Even Wang Yangming, this "expert on barbarian affairs," held the attitude that "the uselessness of flow officials is also clearly visible."

Getting to the root of the matter, it was just too difficult!

Changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system is not just talk; it involves the struggle for power between native officials and flow officials, concerns the differences in customs between Han and Yi, and geography also limits the extension of the court's governance area.

In the dozen years after establishing prefectures and counties, it is often a cycle of gathering crowds to rebel, suppressing rebellions, pacifying, governing, killing officials and rebelling...

It can be said to be protracted and wasteful of manpower and money.

After eating this kind of loss a few times, the willingness of court officials to change the native chieftain system to the flow official system naturally decreased greatly, and they even preferred to learn from the former Song and refuse to Sinicize the territory within their borders.

Now that Personnel Wen Chun wanted to push the southwest policy under such extremely conservative circumstances, the people he most needed to convince were his colleagues in the hall.

Not only Shen Shixing and the colleagues of the Six Ministries, but even the Emperor looked sideways.

For a time, everyone gathered their eyes on Personnel Wen Chun.

Personnel Wen Chun naturally understood that this was a hurdle that couldn't be passed; it was not easy to elevate the will of the Yunnan Provincial Governor and his Left Hai Yushi-in-Chief to the national will.

He cheered up and responded calmly: "Those feudal lords, even the ancient sage kings Yao, Shun, Yu, Tang, Wen, and Wu could not remove them. It is not that they didn't want to remove them, but the situation didn't allow it. Feudalism was not the intention of the sages."

As soon as the words fell, the colleagues of the Six Ministries looked at Shen Shixing in unison.

Shen Shixing pondered without speaking.

Zhu Yijun also became increasingly interested.

Personnel Wen Chun's words seemed to be answering something completely unrelated, but in fact, they were responding quite fiercely to Shen Shixing. This was quoting Liu Zongyuan's "On Feudalism"—a political essay recognized throughout history as transcending political techniques and reaching the realm of political theory.

In order to argue that the prefecture and county system replacing the feudal system was an inevitable historical development, Liu Zongyuan stated his purpose at the beginning, which was also the sentence Personnel Wen Chun quoted; the sages were certainly not wrong, but feudalism was not the original intention of the sages; it was just that the era the sages were in only had those conditions.

Feudalism was just a choice of the era under the environment at that time, but one must look at problems with a developmental perspective; once the "situation allows," the sages would also choose prefectures and counties, not feudalism.

Therefore, when Shen Shixing quoted the political views of the sage of Mind Learning to refute Personnel Wen Chun's southwest strategy, the latter responded with this.

Wang Yangming was certainly right at that time, but that was a conclusion drawn based on the customs of that time; now the times are different, and it is very different.

Personnel Wen Chun looked around at his colleagues and said solemnly: "The national dynasty has been here for two hundred years; in these two hundred years, the geography of the southwest has been opened up, the population of Huaxia has doubled, and the Han and Yi have merged for several generations; the changes can be said to be earth-shaking."

"Starting to use Xia to transform the Yi at this time, compared to the early dynasty, is half the effort for twice the result, and absolutely cannot be mentioned in the same breath!"

Geography, population, and culture have evolved over two hundred years; the foundation for changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system is definitely getting better day by day.

Whether it is efficiency, cost, or the frequency of native chieftains changing and rebelling, one cannot be rigid.

After speaking, Personnel Wen Chun took another volume of case files from his sleeve, signaling his colleagues to circulate it.

Not a single mistake, not a single omission, look at it all!

Wang Zongyi took it first and scanned it roughly; it was mostly the geography and humanities of the southwest.

Especially the origins of the major native chieftains, which were listed in detail.

For example, the Yang clan of Bozhou, initially Lu Yi, that is, the ancestors of the Yi people, opportunistically memorialized to the Tang court, claiming they resisted the Lu Yi in the third year of Qianfu and stayed in Bozhou; by the Song dynasty, they climbed to Yang Siquan as their ancestor, and then climbed all the way to Yang Ye, and finally evolved into inheriting the descendants of the Yang family generals, etc., telling the process of their leaning towards Huaxia literature and education, and how to prescribe the right medicine.

In addition, there was the current situation of Sinicization of native chieftains, the speed of the spread of Buddhism in Yunnan and Guizhou, the comparison of literature and education with the former Song and the early dynasty, and so on.

Clearly, Personnel Wen Chun came prepared.

When it was circulated to Wang Guoguang, Old Wang didn't even look at it and passed it to Zhu Heng.

The former touched his hair and sighed: "Although that is the case, Chief Hai Yushi Wen must know that doing things always costs money."

The golden rule of the Ministry of Revenue: no matter how beautifully someone describes a policy, they must answer one question—where does the money come from, and where does it go?

No matter how different the times are, the southwest is barren, and expenses exceed income; this is a fact that cannot be changed in a short time.

To put it bluntly, the security war is a bottomless pit; even if the southwest provinces successfully change the native chieftain system to the flow official system, they may not be able to get their money back afterwards.

Calculating the economic account, it is truly a loss.

Personnel Wen Chun didn't avoid Wang Guoguang's questioning and nodded calmly: "This matter is indeed quite wasteful."

Before Wang Guoguang could speak again, Personnel Wen Chun said loudly: "The Rongdi are jackals and wolves, and cannot be satisfied; the various Xia are close, and cannot be abandoned."

"The southwest provinces were originally Han land; since Emperor Taizu rebuilt Huaxia, how can we be at ease treating them as foreign relatives who levy resources and mobilize people?"

"Minister of Revenue, this is the mandate of heaven for our dynasty; if we don't spend this money now, I fear we will spend even more later."

As soon as these words came out, Wang Zongyi was shocked.

He subconsciously slapped the table and stood up, clapping his hands in praise: "Chief Hai Yushi's words are reasonable!"

After speaking, he realized he was impolite and was about to turn to apologize to the Emperor.

Zhu Yijun didn't care about these details and just looked Personnel Wen Chun up and down.

After a few years of new policies, the spirit of these ministers had truly been honed.

Personnel Wen Chun's words were quite subtle, but they hit the nail on the head.

The so-called "mandate of heaven for our dynasty" was not random boasting.

Later generations often jokingly said that the empire's borders are always refreshing barbarians.

It can only be said that Huaxia has been powerful for too long, so everything seems to be taken for granted.

But the land doesn't care about this; whoever conquers this land is the territory of whoever, every dynasty, every generation, is "crossing the mountain pass again, starting from the beginning."

This process is even unavoidable; if Huaxia doesn't do it, the barbarians will do it.

When the former Song refused to digest new land, it lost its status as a "lighthouse of civilization" in the eyes of the slave-like Dangxiang people, who would rather create their own language and customs and establish another country.

When the Mongol Yuan dominated the world for a hundred years, the Confucian clothing system completely collapsed, the pulse of Huaxia's literature and education was cut off, the people wore the clothes of the Semu people, and the noble families were proud of their Mongol names—if it hadn't reached the point of "half are Han traitors," and they had to pacify the majority of the world, Emperor Taizu would have been full and bored to recognize the legitimacy of the Mongol Yuan.

Changing customs is not something Zhu Chongba can do by waving his arms, and the people of the world will pick up their clothes again.

Restricting Han-Yi intermarriage, forcing them to wear Confucian clothing, using Han language, is an extremely arduous process; it wasn't until the Jiajing reign that the Han traitors completely lost their value for unification, and Emperor Shizong could take the opportunity to abolish the sacrifices of the former Yuan.

This is not a result taken for granted; this is the mandate of heaven that the Ming dynasty obtained step by step from expelling the Tatars, saving the nation, using Xia to transform the Yi, and changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system.

This road must continue to be walked; there is no room for stopping.

Once we are content with the status quo, the native chieftains will not die out naturally; at that time, An Lushan of the former Tang, the Dangxiang people of the former Song, there are plenty of stories to pick for the Ming dynasty.

If it hadn't been for slowing down the pace in these hundred years, Bozhou wouldn't have had folk songs like "The Emperor has ten thousand armies, I have ten thousand mountains" in these two years, which clearly had the heart of separatism.

Talking about saving money at this time? I fear we won't be able to stop even if we spend ten times more later!

Personnel Wen Chun's words were the proper path, so much so that an old Confucian like Wang Zongyi slapped the table and stood up as soon as he heard it.

Shen Shixing, Wang Xijue, and Shen Li were silent for a moment, and also defeated: "Chief Hai Yushi's correct argument!"

Seeing Personnel Wen Chun maneuver and convince his colleagues in the hall one by one, the Emperor finally made a move.

Zhu Yijun put down the teacup in his hand, making a slight sound against the table.

Waiting for the officials' attention to turn to him, Zhu Yijun spoke slowly: "Chief Hai Yushi Wen's words truly move me."

"Changing customs, using Xia to transform the Yi, must never be left to future generations!"

Personnel Wen Chun saw that the major policy was settled, and then breathed a long sigh of relief.

However, the necessity was discussed, but the methodology still needed to be discussed.

Zhu Yijun nodded to Personnel Wen Chun: "The matter of changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system in the southwest will be left to Chief Hai Yushi Wen; after the specific regulations come out, we will discuss them in the court deliberation."

"I only have one point to instruct you."

Personnel Wen Chun listened attentively.

Zhu Yijun pondered for a moment and spoke slowly: "Since I ascended the throne, the matter of changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system has been but one case."

"That is in the Lin'an area of Yunnan, where the native official Pu Chongzheng colluded with the Nong thieves and rebelled; after suppression, we took the opportunity to change the native chieftain system to the flow official system."

"The rest, whether it was the Sizhou of the Yongle reign or the Si'en Prefecture of Guangxi in the Hongzhi reign, and even the Yangli Prefecture and Zuozhou, etc., all had people like Tian Chen, Cen Jun, Wang Shou, etc., rebelling first, and then we took the opportunity to act."

"Now, without reason, rashly changing the native chieftain system to the flow official system, I fear it will add groundless disasters."

"Which ones to win over, which ones to destroy, which ones to allow to recognize their ancestors and return to their clans and move to the interior, and which ones to handle specially, the scale of this must be grasped well!"

Don't think these native chieftains won't collude.

The saying of smoke and fire rising everywhere at the end of a dynasty is not a rhetorical device.

The Mongols in the north, the Jurchens in Liaodong, the Japanese pirates in the southeast, the White Lotus evil cult in the Central Plains, the righteous armies in Shaanxi... apart from these, the southwest has never been peaceful.

Not to mention the Ming-Burma War that lasted for fifty years, just the She-An Rebellion that killed and injured more than a million people cannot be ignored.

Native chieftains with land, money, and soldiers are always reserves for deer-hunting in the world.

Wanting to move against them in advance is not a simple matter; if it were truly an achievement that could be obtained easily, the late Emperors would have done it long ago; how could they have been loosely reined for two hundred years?

What I fear is that the native chieftains in Yunnan, Guangxi, Guizhou, and Sichuan will fear that if the lips are gone, the teeth will be cold, and they will simply strike first and rebel together!

Personnel Wen Chun is a capable minister, but after all, he is remotely controlling remote areas, so this matter must be handled with extreme caution.

Fortunately, winning over, pacifying the neutral, and slaughtering dissidents are the basic skills of court officials; Chief Hai Yushi Wen nodded repeatedly, echoing: "Your Majesty's words are very true; regarding the matter of division, I intend to start with the Cen and Yang clans..."

Zhu Yijun stood high and looked far, busy with ten thousand things, and always felt at ease delegating power for such specific operational matters.

He waved his hand: "Present the detailed regulations to the Wenhua Hall after the new year."

Personnel Wen Chun followed the trend.

The annual meeting discussed to this point, and it was almost coming to an end.

Several matters were discussed roughly.

After setting the general direction, it had to be handed over to the Grand Secretariat and the ministries and courts for court deliberation, detailed rules, and specific implementation.

Of course, apart from major policies like maritime trade and the southwest, the most indisputable major policy of the eighth year of Wanli was still the land survey.

Zhu Yijun's gaze swept over Wang Xijue, Wang Guoguang, Shen Li, and others.

"Let's talk about the land survey."

He said softly.

Zhang Hong on the side tacitly stepped forward and handed over the case files prepared for the land survey.

The Emperor paused for a while, giving the officials time to flip through.

"The land survey has only been underway for half a year, yet officials, imperial clansmen, and wealthy families in various regions have taken turns obstructing it. From the Prince of Dai, who gathered crowds to beat and kill the minor officials conducting the survey, to Guo Siwei, the Prefect of Chizhou, who feigned compliance while acting in opposition, and even the wealthy local families who destroyed dikes to flood fields—you finish your act, and I take the stage."

"Don't give these people another chance to turn back; in a few days it will be the eighth year of Wanli..."

Zhu Yijun looked around at the officials, his expression filled with disgust: "After the new year, start killing."

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 224 =====