Chapter 56: Does he resemble my brother-in-law?

Chapter 56: Does he resemble my brother-in-law?

The soldiers of these powerful clans, though seemingly under their own control, were actually all commanded by Lu Xusheng. Lu Xusheng had firmly controlled them all. For the first time in his life, Shen Yi felt like a puppet, manipulated at will.

No, perhaps even before sowing discord between the Zhang and Shen families, or even earlier, when he had just arrived in Jiangnan, when he dared to replace Cheng Mingyu and head south, he had already laid out a comprehensive plan.

The court had only sent one Lu Xusheng, and he had completely pacified Jiangnan.

Such an achievement was enough to be celebrated for centuries.

And yet, Shen Yi was merely the stepping stone for Lu Xusheng's immortal fame.

Shen Yi gave a self-deprecating smile and once again studied the young man before him.

Lu Xusheng was clad in a black robe as dark as ink, his features deep and calm. Amidst a picturesque bamboo grove, he seemed to have appeared out of thin air.

Shen Yi bowed slightly to him,

"If there is any way the general can use me, just say the word."

Like Zhang Huntian, he was looking to negotiate terms.

Lu Xusheng narrowed his eyes, the green of the bamboo reflecting in his eyes, turning into a cold glint. He coldly uttered two words,

"Take him away."

Instantly, a dozen shadowy figures leaped out from the depths of the bamboo grove, binding Shen Yi and his companions, dragging them to the front courtyard.

The soldiers brought by Lu Xusheng had already rounded up all the Shen family members within the villa. The spacious front courtyard was crowded with kneeling figures.

Shen Yi, the family head of the Wang family, and the family head of the Cui family were thrown to the front. Even as prisoners, they maintained their dignity, unwilling to lose face, their expressions barely holding composure—until they saw Lu Xusheng take a bow and arrow from a guard behind him.

Shen Yi's expression finally changed,

"General Lu, are you really going to execute me right here? Do you know the secrets I hold? I believe you would be very interested."

Unfortunately, Lu Xusheng ignored his words.

The arrow was nocked on the longbow, slowly pulled back. Shen Yi's eyes tensed as the bowstring was pulled taut.

His throat tightened as the red arrow seemed to grow larger in his vision. Beads of sweat formed on Shen Yi's forehead, his face pale and terrifying,

"Lord Lu, I will tell you everything I know, without holding anything back!"

Hearing this, Lu Xusheng hesitated for a moment. The arrow suddenly shifted to the left, aiming at the forehead of the Cui family head. Seeing this, the Cui family head's back stiffened,

"Lord Lu, Duke Lu, Immortal Lu, we were all deceived by Shen Yi. Please show mercy, we can talk about anything, we'll give you whatever you want..." The Cui family head was already babbling, his teeth chattering in fear.

Lu Xusheng let out a soft scoff, then adjusted his stance, gradually moving the arrow to the right, this time aiming at the Wang family head.

The Wang family head's eyelids twitched, and he suddenly raised his voice,

"General Lu, my family is related to your maternal grandfather's Wang family. We connected our lineages thirty years ago. A few years ago, I personally went to Langya to celebrate your grandfather's sixtieth birthday. He was in high spirits, his demeanor outstanding, and he spoke of you, his grandson, with pride at every turn..."

Perhaps these words stirred a hint of compassion in Lu Xusheng. He seemed troubled, staring at Shen Yi as he asked,

"Family Head Shen, who do you think I should kill first?"

Lu Xusheng let out a short laugh, his deep, narrow eyes as if resting in a pool of spring light. Even his posture as he drew the bow was exceptionally upright and handsome, resembling a hunter choosing his prey.

Shen Yi had already clearly grasped Lu Xusheng's intentions. Without uttering a word, he raised his head and shut his eyes tightly.

At the moment he closed his eyes, a sharp "whoosh" split the air, and an arrow passed through Shen Yi's neck, spraying a stream of blood that splattered on the ground before him. Shen Yi's eyes glazed over, and his body fell like a withered leaf.

Lu Xusheng lowered his bow and lifted his eyes, his gaze falling on the family heads of the Cui and Wang families, only to see them trembling uncontrollably, their pants soaked with urine.

"Is it really that bad? Haven't you killed plenty of people yourselves?" Lu Xusheng said casually.

The two collapsed to the ground, bursting into loud sobs,

"Please spare our lives, General! We are willing to serve as your frontline soldiers, at your command."

Lu Xusheng ignored them, handed the bow to a guard, and instructed one of his lieutenants,

"Cut off Shen Yi's head and display it to the troops!"

Shen Yi's head was far more valuable than the secrets he held.

Simply by sending his head across the land, the private soldiers of the powerful clans and the hidden commoners would mostly surrender.

The lieutenant complied.

As for the other two,

"Lock them in a room, interrogate them on the spot, and carry out their execution."

Upon hearing this, the Cui family head immediately cried out, "Lord Lu, interrogation is not your jurisdiction. By law, we should be taken to Jinling and tried by the judicial authorities."

Lu Xusheng chuckled, already holding the reins of his horse and about to leave, but then slowly turned back, smiling,

"Oh, since when have you powerful clans ever cared about imperial laws? Now that you're facing death, you're lecturing me about the law?"

He nodded, and the guards took the two away to a side courtyard for interrogation.

Lu Xusheng had no intention of taking these people to Jinling. How many officials in Jinling were not in cahoots with the powerful clans?

Leaving the mopping-up operations of Yanzhou Prefecture to a lieutenant, Lu Xusheng galloped westward again to deal with the remaining powerful clans. With Shen Yi and Zhang Huntian dead, the powerful clans in Jiangnan were left without leadership, a disorganized mob with little fighting strength.

Even so, it took Lu Xusheng a full half-month to quell most of the remaining powerful clans, leaving only a few stubborn remnants for his lieutenants to handle.

On April 15th, Lu Xusheng returned to Jinling.

Jiang Chengbin, the Governor-General of Liangjiang, personally rode out to the outskirts of the city to welcome him. Standing in the evening breeze, he bowed deeply to Lu Xusheng as he rode in,

"Lord Lu, your extraordinary prowess has truly opened my eyes!"

Could Jiang Chengbin truly have been unable to send troops to aid Lu Xusheng?

It was Lu Xusheng who had stopped him from deploying troops. Jiang Chengbin's ostensible blockade of the sea and river exits was actually to cut off the retreat of the powerful clans and to confuse them about Lu Xusheng's possible movements.

Lu Xusheng was not here to engage in battle.

His true goal was to free the population and miners hidden by the powerful clans, using the miners and commoners to rebel and destroy the foundation upon which the powerful clans in Jiangnan relied. From now on, there would be no more powerful clans in Jiangnan. All the people, mines, and shipping would belong to the imperial court. One could imagine how abundant the imperial taxes would be next year.

The cancer that had plagued the Jiangnan officialdom for centuries had been mercilessly uprooted by Lu Xusheng.

It was truly a cause for nationwide rejoicing.

What was even more remarkable was that the imperial court had gained control of the entire Jiangnan without deploying a single soldier. This was the real brilliance of Lu Xusheng's achievement.

He couldn’t imagine anyone else who could pull this off, not even Cheng Mingyu.

Jiang Chengbin was so moved that he nearly teared up.

“Shen Zhi, my friend, you have no idea. Every time I needed supplies for pirate operations, I had to sweet-talk these powerful factions, always at their mercy. If I pushed too hard, collecting taxes would be a nightmare. Shen Zhi, in the past, Cheng Mingyu often said I was like a middleman, caught between the court and the powerful factions, struggling to maintain my position.”

Lu Xusheng politely returned the gesture, “Thank you, Governor Jiang.”

“Oh, it was nothing,” Jiang Chengbin said, then took Lu Xusheng by the arm, and they boarded the carriage together, heading towards Princess Minglan’s residence.

“On my way here, I studied the map and retraced your movements over the past two months in the south. Your operations covered every town and county controlled by the factions. You’ve uncovered all the people they were hiding. The next step will be to register them and allocate land, which will be a huge undertaking.”

Lu Xusheng nodded, “That’s exactly why I’ve returned to Jinling. I’ve already written to the capital, asking the Ministry of Revenue and Personnel to send officials down. Additionally, we’ll need a large number of officials from Jinling to join me in the mountains.”

“Just let me know how I can help, Shen Zhi.”

Though older, Jiang Chengbin treated Lu Xusheng as an equal.

Inside the carriage, they first sketched out a plan, then hurried to Princess Minglan’s residence to report in detail.

When Princess Minglan saw Lu Xusheng, she gave him a once-over, “Are you hurt?”

Lu Xusheng smiled, “No, I’m all right.”

Princess Minglan, for once, gave him a favorable look, “For your selfless service to the court this time, I’ll put aside my plans to find suitors for An An.”

Lu Xusheng’s smile faded, “Please, don’t bring that up.”

With Jiang Chengbin there, they had to be mindful.

Jiang Chengbin, being sharp, immediately covered his ears, “I didn’t hear anything. I know our General Lu is not under the thumb.”

Lu Xusheng sighed, “...”

His dignity was completely shattered.

After a round of laughter, the three of them turned serious, starting to plan the land survey, population registration, and taking over the mines.

As dinner approached, a steward announced the arrival of several carts of gifts.

Princess Minglan frowned, “Who sent these?”

At this moment, Jiang Chengbin stood up and bowed to Princess Minglan, “It was I who sent them.”

Princess Minglan and Lu Xusheng exchanged glances but remained silent.

Jiang Chengbin spoke frankly to Princess Minglan, “Your Highness, you know that when His Majesty first appointed me to the south, I struggled to make any progress. It wasn’t until I started accepting their gifts that I gained their trust and was able to establish myself in the south. Today, I am returning all these gifts to Your Highness, asking you to forward them to the court. As for the annual gift lists, I have reported them to His Majesty.”

It must be said, this Governor of the south is a shrewd operator.

Lu Xusheng had killed the heads of those powerful factions, and it was likely that he had extracted many secrets from them.

And these secrets could shake the entire court.

As the Governor of Liangjiang, Jiang Chengbin wasn't entirely innocent. His cleverness was in reporting everything to the emperor from the start, thereby keeping himself out of trouble.

Princess Minglan figured Jiang Chengbin had no reason to lie to her. "Alright, since you've already reported to my brother, I'll send these to the capital exactly as they are."

Jiang Chengbin was shrewd and knew how to protect himself, but what about others?

Princess Minglan glanced at Lu Xusheng, whose expression didn't change, showing he had no intention of revealing anything.

Basically, the fates of many court officials were now in Lu Xusheng's hands. No one knew how much dirt he had on them, but it was imaginable that once he returned to the capital, it would be a nightmare for the officials there.

After seeing Jiang Chengbin off, Princess Minglan looked at Lu Xusheng with mixed emotions and said, "Be careful."

Lu Xusheng nodded, "I've got it under control."

The sharpshooter he was waiting for hadn't shown up yet, but it was probably going to happen soon.

After three days in Jinling, Lu Xusheng led a hundred officials into the mountains in a grand procession.

Each county got a chief official from the court, along with several local officials from the civil and financial departments, and a group of soldiers, all starting the big job of land surveying.

Lu Xusheng was in charge of patrolling the area. The situation in Jiangnan was still shaky, and his presence was crucial to keep things in order.

The miners only obeyed him, and the militia only followed him. The businesses controlled by the powerful local factions had to be gradually taken over and returned to the court. With him in charge, the process could be made as smooth and stable as possible.

In the past, the border countries would retreat a hundred miles at the mere mention of Lu Xusheng's name. Now, Lu Xusheng's name echoed throughout Jiangnan.

Wherever Lu Xusheng went, the locals would offer chickens, ducks, eggs, and rice, treating him like a god.

When is someone most likely to let their guard down? Probably when they're at the height of their glory and success.

That person thought so, waiting for the day when the summer light was bright, and Lu Xusheng was surrounded by a crowd on a mountain, looking out over the azaleas covering the hills. A poisoned arrow was hidden in the forest shadows, aimed at his neck.

With a "whoosh," it looked like a spray of blood exploded.

Cheng Yian shuddered and suddenly opened her eyes.

She stared at the dark canopy in shock, soaked in cold sweat, realizing it was just a bad dream.

She sat up for a bit, found a towel to wipe the sweat off her back, and faintly heard footsteps outside. Cheng Yian asked, "What time is it?"

Ru Hui, who was on night duty, usually woke up early and was about to go to the bathroom. Hearing Cheng Yian's call, she quickly went into the inner room, "Miss, it's just past mao hour, still early. You should get some more sleep."

Cheng Yian felt uneasy and shook her head, "I won't sleep anymore. I need to go to Ping'an Temple today."

The dream was not good, and she wanted to get a peace charm for Lu Xusheng.

Ru Hui came in to help her dress, "Getting up so early, you might feel tired later."

Cheng Yian said wearily, "Just prepare some cooling oil to apply. By the way, have there been any letters delivered to the front yard these past two days?"

Princess Minglan sent her a letter every five days to report her safety.

Cheng Mingyu also sent messages from time to time, and there had been no news of Lu Xusheng being injured.

At this moment, she truly did not wish for Lu Xusheng to achieve great feats and build a career; she only hoped for his safe return.

Ru Hui chuckled, "You asked this yesterday, didn’t you? I already told you, we won’t get any news until tomorrow."

No news is good news.

"Young lady, you really have your husband in your heart."

Cheng Yian smiled without denying it.

Lu Xusheng was her man—how could she not wish him well?

After washing and dressing, she hastily ate some vegetarian food, prepared incense oil and offerings, and then set off with her maids and matrons to Ping’an Temple.

The Lu residence wasn’t far from Ping’an Temple, located near the West Market. They headed north across two streets, then turned west, and arrived shortly.

A matron went ahead to prepare the way, and upon learning that Your Grace was coming to worship, the temple prepared a hall for her. Cheng Yian copied a scripture inside and burned it before the Buddha, then asked the abbot to bless Lu Xusheng’s birth details, placing them before the Buddha to pray. Finally, she made a donation of incense oil and offerings before leaving.

Remembering that there was a spot outside the side gate of Ping’an Temple known for its excellent vegetarian buns, Cheng Yian planned to take a few baskets back. Passing by the Thousand-Hand Guanyin Hall and walking along the corridor towards the side gate, she suddenly caught a glimpse of a familiar figure in her peripheral vision.

Cheng Yian stopped in her tracks and couldn’t help but look in that direction.

"Hey, Ru Lan, doesn’t that look like brother-in-law?"

She saw He Qingyun dressed in a white robe, holding a scroll of painting, moving against the crowd towards the back temple of the monastery.