https://novelcool.info/chapter/Chapter-722-The-Decision-of-the-Xun-Clan/13042192/
Chapter 721: Four Months Later (2)
Chapter 721: Four Months Later (2)
September 25, 2017
For Zhang Xiaobai, the ups and downs of life seemed to happen at an astonishing pace, leaving him feeling overwhelmed.
One moment he was worrying about his life and complaining about the questionable safety of Lu HaiKong's trading market, and the next, the bandits surrounding him were swiftly slain.
What's more, they were taken down by a beautiful woman dressed in white, with an icy demeanor and a delicate appearance. As Zhang Xiaobai looked at the bodies that had instantly fallen, he couldn't shake the feeling that this was all too surreal.
"I've been wondering why this trading market has been getting quieter lately. It turns out there are some reckless fellows around. Yue Ying, for the next few days, keep a close eye on this market for me."
"Yes, sir!"
After Lu HaiKong and Yue Ying's conversation, their gazes fell upon Zhang Xiaobai.
"Young man, I apologize for the scare. Here's a token for you. You can choose any Superior-grade equipment from our store as compensation."
Lu HaiKong approached Zhang Xiaobai and casually took out a token engraved with the character 'Lu.' Upon seeing the token, Zhang Xiaobai was startled, and his face flushed with excitement. "You're Lu HaiKong, sir!"
Lu HaiKong smiled and Zhang Xiaobai smiled and nodded, handing the token to Zhang Xiaobai and patting the young man's shoulder before turning to leave.
"Sir, please wait!" Zhang Xiaobai hesitated for a moment and took out the Enhanced System Building Upgrade Token from his embrace.
Lu HaiKong, who had been casually glancing around, froze when he saw the item Zhang Xiaobai presented. He couldn't believe that this lone warrior with a strength value of only 70 could possess such a valuable item.
When Zhang Xiaobai saw Lu HaiKong's expression, he understood the worth of the item in his hand.
A few minutes later, Lu HaiKong and Zhang Xiaobai successfully completed their trade.
Zhang Xiaobai was a man of discretion. He didn't demand an exorbitant price for the item in his possession, especially after his recent brush with death. He understood that more wasn't always better, and even the most precious things couldn't compare to the stability of a peaceful life.
So, in their trade, Zhang Xiaobai only exchanged the token for a set of martial arts manuals and a long-term residence permit for Northern Sealed City, not because he couldn't ask for more or Lu HaiKong was unwilling to give more, but because he himself didn't want more.
Or, to be precise, he found a clever way to obtain more.
Zhang Xiaobai had left a good impression on Lu HaiKong, so Lu HaiKong didn't mind him trying to keep a favor by showing off his wit.
After completing the trade with Zhang Xiaobai, Lu HaiKong returned home.
This trip to the trading market was primarily to deal with the individuals who had captured Zhang Xiaobai earlier. The Enhanced System Building Upgrade Token that Zhang Xiaobai had was an unexpected surprise for Lu HaiKong.
Lu HaiKong hadn't seen this item in months. The last time he saw it was four months ago, just after he left Wind Spirit Valley.
Indeed, it had been four months since Lu HaiKong returned from Wind Spirit Valley. During these four months, Lu HaiKong had mostly kept a low profile externally. Initially, he had planned to build the Beyond the Border City within this timeframe, but the construction turned out to be far more complicated than he had anticipated.
After Wind Spirit Valley was destroyed, Li Xiong had selected another suitable location for Lu HaiKong to build a city. Although it wasn't as ideal as Wind Spirit Valley, it was still a good choice. However, when Lu HaiKong attempted to start construction, he triggered the building mission for Beyond the Border City.
The mission itself wasn't particularly challenging; it required Lu HaiKong to eliminate all major powers near Beyond the Border City outside of Bing Province.
In other words, unless Lu HaiKong could wipe out the large tribes of the Xianbei and Wuhuan clans outside of Bing Province, he wouldn't be able to construct Beyond the Border City.
Lu HaiKong had never imagined that building Beyond the Border City would be this troublesome.
Fortunately, eliminating the Xianbei and Wuhuan clans was already part of Lu HaiKong's plan, and there were no conflicts in their actions. It merely required postponing the construction timeline.
Since Beyond the Border City couldn't be built in a short time, Lu HaiKong focused all his attention on Bing Province during the following months, devoting his efforts to developing the province.
Now, four months had passed, and although Bing Province hadn't undergone a complete transformation, there had been changes on various fronts.
Firstly, the clans in Bing Province had mostly come under Lu HaiKong's command within these four months, thanks to the efforts of Changsun Hong.
Originally, those who were not close to Lu HaiKong, and even leaned towards the aristocratic families of He Jin, were either eliminated or left Bing Province, and many more changed their flags.
Under these circumstances, among the nine prefectures of Bing Province, aside from the Wuyuan Prefecture that was previously destroyed by the Xianbei and Wuhuan tribes and is currently being rebuilt, the remaining five prefectures, excluding the Yunzhong, Dingxiang, and Yanmen Prefectures under Lu HaiKong's control, would send a fixed amount of tax revenue to Lu HaiKong every month, ranging from several million to tens of millions.
Every month, the tax revenue they sent amounted to over four to five million, but Lu HaiKong couldn't keep this money in his hands. He basically sent this tax revenue directly to Luoyang.
It's not that Lu HaiKong didn't want to keep this tax revenue in his hands; the key point was that he couldn't keep it. At least while Emperor Ling of Han was still around, Lu HaiKong couldn't possibly keep this money in his hands. After all, although he was the governor, he still had to pay the required taxes.
In the past few months since returning from Luoyang, Lu HaiKong not only paid taxes but also frequently sent various treasures to Emperor Ling of Han to increase his presence in front of the emperor and prevent him from forgetting about him. To please the emperor, Lu HaiKong even had Xing Muli spend a month and consume a large amount of resources to create an automaton cart and send it to Emperor Ling of Han.
This item, which was both convenient for daily life and had a military atmosphere, greatly pleased Emperor Ling of Han. After Lu HaiKong sent it, Emperor Ling of Han even sent someone to reward Lu HaiKong, thinking that Lu HaiKong was both sensible and considerate.
In the 1619 book, there is no mistake!
Emperor Ling of Han knew that, in fact, among the things Lu HaiKong sent to Luoyang in the past few months, the truly precious ones were not for him. This guy hadn't even taken a wife yet, but he kept sending gifts to Yue'er. The gifts to Yue'er basically never stopped, and whenever he saw something good, he would send it to her.
The gifts for her were far more precious than those for Emperor Ling of Han.
However, during these four months, Lu HaiKong wasn't just busy pleasing his father-in-law and wife. In these four months, Lu HaiKong mainly focused on two things.
One was reorganizing the army, and the other was the previous Lone Warrior Trading Market.
As for the latter, there's not much to say about creating a money basket. In this matter, although Lu HaiKong was the main decision-maker, the planners were some Lone Warriors who had recently pledged allegiance to him. Lu HaiKong only controlled the overall situation and gradually built up this trading market.
Lu HaiKong did indeed put in a lot of effort, but those who contributed more were Zhang Daoyi and others who had pledged allegiance not long ago. Lu HaiKong's main focus was actually on reorganizing the army.
This wasn't the first time Lu HaiKong had reorganized the army. As his military strength continued to increase, the original framework became unsuitable for the present. After careful discussions with the military's high-ranking officials in the past few months, Lu HaiKong reorganized the army once again.
After the reorganization, there were four large legions. The first legion was the Wuyuan Legion, the second legion was primarily composed of cavalry, the third legion integrated the forces of the three prefectures, and the fourth was the [Iron Blood Legion], a completely elite force!
The first legion was the original Wuyuan Legion. This army, which had experienced the Yellow Turban Rebellion, was also considered an elite force under Lu HaiKong's command.
The commander of the first legion was Wen U, and the main combat force was supplemented to 30,000 men after the war. Zhang Niujiao served as his deputy, and Zhao Hong and Han Zhong, two historical generals, were under his command.
The second legion was the cavalry legion, which was currently the largest force. There were over 50,000 Elite Horse Bandits and 10,000 Superior Horse Bandits, with a total strength of 60,000.
The current commander of the second legion was Wang Ti, with Gao Lan, Meng Qu, Cheng Lian, Chen Yi, Cheng Yi, Cheng Jin, Zhang Yi, Wang Yi, Yu Dian, and Zhao Nanli as deputies. Strictly speaking, Zhao Nanli was also a member of this legion.
This legion was the most magnificent force under Lu HaiKong's command, and the reason was simple. After all, there was a major war ahead that required their participation, so it was normal for the camp to be more magnificent.
The third legion, in terms of numbers, should have been the largest force. After integrating the soldiers of the three prefectures, 50,000 elite troops remained. Lu HaiKong appointed Meng Chao to manage this army, and although there weren't any outstanding generals under his command, there were more members from the Fire Battalion. This legion was the weakest among all the legions.
As for the remaining [Iron Blood Legion], instead of being a single legion, it was more like a collective term for all the elite legions under Lu HaiKong's command. This legion included the [Siege Camp], [Royal Guard Legion], [Blood Bath Legion], [Black Wind Legion], the newly promoted [Golden Flame Cavalry], and some special legions. This legion was led by Lu HaiKong himself!
These four legions formed the basic framework of Lu HaiKong's forces...
(End of Chapter)
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