Travel through troubled times and escape famine with the system

Chapter 402 The Art of Checks and Balances

Forty thousand silver-armored soldiers marched out of the city, returning in triumph, their clothes stained with blood.

Peace and tranquility were restored in Qingping and other counties, and there was no more smoke from cooking fires or cries at night.

A flawed sword can save a life, and the laws of martial arts leave no stone unturned.

Who dares to provoke the wrath of heaven and earth? The heroes defending the city have decided to kill them all.

This doggerel, whose author is unknown, has been circulating in Qingzhou for over a hundred years.

Of course, that's all in the future, and Wen Chengjie was unaware of it at the time.

Standing atop the city wall at the west gate, Wen Chengjie, wounded, watched the Pingzhou army march out of the city, his eyes bloodshot.

Beside him, the hand of the deputy general Xu Heng gripping the hilt of his sword had turned white from the force he had used.

"Young Master, are we just going to watch the people of Qingning and Pingchang counties die?"

"Otherwise what?" Wen Chengjie said calmly.

"Those are all citizens of our Wu Kingdom!" Xu Heng said through gritted teeth, each word seemingly squeezed out of his throat: "We join the army to protect them, not to slaughter them!"

Wen Chengjie turned to look at Xu Heng: "But the law clearly states that they must die."

Xu Heng growled in frustration, "Martial law can't be wrong..."

Snapped! ! !

With a crisp slap, Xu Heng flew out and crashed hard into the female wall.

Wen Chengjie slowly withdrew his hand: "Don't say things you shouldn't say!"

The slap brought Xu Heng back to his senses. He looked around dejectedly. There were many soldiers busy on the city wall, and some people were also attracted by the commotion and were peeking in this direction.

There might be hidden agents from the Hidden Dragon Guard or several princes involved, so some things really can't be said carelessly.

Xu Heng leaned against the wall, rubbing his cheeks, but his eyes were full of grievance.

Wen Chengjie looked westward. The Pingzhou army, numbering over 40,000, had already disappeared at the end of the official road ahead, while others were still just walking out of the city gates.

Wen Chengjie was a smart man; even before he opened the letter, he had already guessed most of what would happen next.

Act according to the law...

These four simple words contain so much.

The Martial Law, revised when the Wu Kingdom was founded, established the procedures for handling intercepted military reports.

But the scenario envisioned at that time was being intercepted by bandits and outlaws.

After all, within the territory of the Wu Kingdom, anyone who dares to intercept battle reports means that the region has completely lost control, or that they intend to betray the country.

In order to nip such a trend in the bud, it was decided that if military reports were intercepted, the local area would be purged as a deterrent.

This time, however, it was not a rebellion by villains under the rule of Qingning and Pingchang, but rather the Jurchens who had infiltrated the two counties over several decades and seized power.

The people are innocent, yet they must die.

When Wen Xiuyuan was alive, he worked hard to improve the lives of the people of Qingzhou, hoping to make them prosperous and healthy.

He had only been acting as prefect for a few days, yet he was ordered to have the Pingzhou army act in accordance with the law.

Wen Chengjie's heart was bleeding, but he couldn't say it...

Why did the Emperor give him a written edict?

Military law is the foundation of the nation and must never be violated.

Since the founding of the nation, has anyone ever issued an order to slaughter their own people?

This enormous blame must not be borne by His Majesty, but someone has to take the fall.

Who did it?

The princes and ministers of Wudu?

Whoever issued this order will have it become a stain on their life.

If they gain power in the future, it will be fine, but if someone seizes the opportunity to make a big fuss about it, they can easily be trampled into oblivion and never be able to recover.

And the most important point.

After he issues this order, the Wen family will completely lose all its foundation in Qingzhou Prefecture.

The common people are not that smart; they do not understand the struggles of Chaoyang. They can only see that it was Wen Chengjie who issued a proclamation requesting the Pingzhou army to pacify the two counties.

This debt will be attributed to the Wen family, and they will suffer endless scorn.

This would completely sever the Wen family's connection with Qingzhou, leaving him with no way out but to flee to Wudu and join the ranks of the Third Prince, Wu Quanwen.

Your Majesty is truly shrewd.

Wu Quanwen fought his way from Ningguan in Xijiang Prefecture all the way to Qingzhou, where he made outstanding military achievements and his reputation among the people of Qingzhou had reached its peak.

If the Wen family's support is added, then Qingzhou will become the cornerstone for supporting Wu Quanwen's bid for the throne.

Imperial power emphasizes checks and balances; he wanted to see the three princes compete for the throne on equal footing, rather than one prince dominating.

This edict did not erase any of the Third Prince's achievements, but it easily wiped out the advantages he had accumulated through risking his life.

Not issuing the order to massacre the county would be considered disobeying the imperial decree.

Once an order is issued, it will lose the support of the people.

If the Third Prince doesn't accept him, he will be breaking his promise and be seen as discarding him after he has served his purpose. Who among his retainers will still be willing to serve him wholeheartedly?

However, accepting her would give the other two princes ammunition to criticize her.

The waters of Wudu run too deep...

"Xu Heng, send someone back to the manor to tell the second young master to organize the entire household to pack their belongings."

Xu Heng stood up and looked at Wen Chengjie: "Why are you packing your things?"

"Let's go to Wudu." Wen Chengjie reached out and stroked the parapet, his eyes filled with reluctance.

"Go to Wudu?" Xu Heng looked at Wen Chengjie in confusion: "If you go to Wudu, who will be the prefect of Qingzhou Prefecture?"

“If I don’t give the order, my replacement won’t arrive.”

"Now that I have given the order, the new prefect will arrive immediately."

Wen Chengjie turned his head to look at the south wall, the place where his father, Wen Xiuyuan, died in battle.

Within two or three days at most, news of the massacre in the two counties would reach the prefectural city, at which point the newly appointed prefect by the emperor would surely rush to Wudu day and night to take over the position.

Before that, he had to let his younger brother take their mother away first.

He can bear this infamy alone.

........................

Inside the west gate of Yanzhou Prefecture, Lu You and others were eating wontons with gusto.

Throughout the journey, everyone was on edge, not daring to relax for a moment, until they entered Yanzhou City and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Everyone, relax. They won't dare to make a move directly within the city. As long as we don't leave the city, we're safe."

Duanmu Rong held up the porcelain bowl and spoke to her subordinates beside her, then turned to look at Lu You and Zuo Yunfeng, who had transformed into gaunt young men.

"We've been traveling day and night, and we've only covered half of Yanzhou. To get through Yanzhou and reach Pingzhou, we still have at least 300 li to go."

"I will arrange new identities for you. You will disguise yourselves and leave with a merchant caravan, while we will split up and secretly protect you. This way it will be safer."

"I'm fine with anything, but the food here is a bit bland. Could you find some roast chicken or roast duck or something like that..."

Lu You was only halfway through her sentence when she froze on the spot.

[Trigger a sub-quest: Perform a song and dance to boost morale for those protecting you.]

[Song and dance tracks are being randomly selected...]

[Draw complete. The song and dance number is: Twist Your Hips...]

[The song and dance techniques have all been successfully distributed...]

[Please complete the song and dance performance within five minutes. Timer begins.]