Under the sapphire-like deep sky.
Lin’an City was covered in artillery fire and gunshots. To stop the imperial soldiers’ advance, Sima Hao had committed most of his forces to the trenches. Now, with the trenches captured and the soldiers routed, Lin’an City was like meat on a chopping block.
“Kill!”
Tens of thousands of imperial soldiers swarmed into Lin’an City from all directions. The powerful families within the city, clinging to their last stand, had no time to escape and could only tremble in fear before the imperial army’s might.
Lu Fei and Luo Xin successfully rendezvoused at this point. The two, protected by soldiers, entered Lin’an City together.
“It’s been almost two months. Lin’an City is finally taken.” Luo Xin looked relaxed.
“Lin’an is taken, but the merchants’ council is growing more active in the south. This fight still has some way to go,” Lu Fei frowned.
Luo Xin said calmly, “If we soldiers don’t fight, do we go home and sell sweet potatoes? I don’t want a day to come when there’s no war to fight, and I can only hunt birds.”
“Heh, you can forget that. His Majesty has grand ambitions. There will be many more battles in the future. This time, the merchants’ council has the support of Western countries. With our Emperor’s temperament, do you think he would let them off?” Lu Fei sneered.
The two studied at the Army Academy every year. They now understood the current world situation very well and were also aware that many of the feudal states surrounding the Great Yu Empire had been colonized by the West.
Even countries that had not been colonized posed a significant threat to the Great Yu Empire. In the eyes of the two, the Great Yu Empire faced a very complex surrounding environment.
“So, we need to deal with the merchants’ council as soon as possible. If the country is unstable, how can we fight foreign wars?” A cold glint flashed in Luo Xin’s eyes.
Lu Fei nodded. In fact, after the northern expedition began, they started expanding their army. However, the newly expanded army now faced an awkward problem: equipment.
Currently, the production of Conqueror Muskets had basically stopped, and the production of Falcon Rifles could not yet meet the demands of so many troops.
Now, the only way was to wait for equipment to be in place. This way, their current number of soldiers could at least double.
Although they greatly wished to expand the army further, unlike the rough armies of the cold weapon era, training a soldier equipped with a Falcon Rifle now required spending more silver.
After all, now, whether it was food, rifles, steel helmets, uniforms, or training, all cost more silver than before. And sometimes, it wasn’t just a matter of silver; it also depended on the military machinery department’s production capacity.
Precisely because of so many limiting factors, the current expansion of the army could not adopt previous methods. They could only gradually increase the number of troops. When the military machinery department was more fully developed, they might be able to expand the army even further in one go.
“Let’s first deal with the immediate problem. I hope we can have a big harvest in Lin’an City this time. Northern industry is now developing rapidly and urgently needs financial support. This southern expedition, His Majesty is counting on us to confiscate their wealth and concentrate our efforts on industrial development.”
Lu Fei mused to Luo Xin.
“Oh dear, I almost forgot about that! This time, we need to see how much silver is in the State of Chu’s treasury!” Luo Xin laughed heartily.
While the two were speaking, imperial soldiers quickly occupied the various strategic points of Lin’an City. At the same time, they swiftly eliminated the remaining forces of the powerful families within the city and completely surrounded the Prince of Chu’s residence.
Luo Xin and Lu Fei, upon receiving this news, rose and headed to the Prince of Chu’s residence.
“Army Commander Luo, Army Commander Lu, they are still putting up a desperate resistance,” a regimental commander came to report upon seeing the two arrive.
At this time, gunshots continuously echoed from within the Prince of Chu’s residence. Imperial soldiers were fighting fiercely with them inside it.
“They won’t shed tears until they see the coffin.” For the two of them, Sima Hao was merely a minor figure, completely insignificant, so there were no qualms. “You are to immediately fetch three hundred hand grenades and blow up the Prince of Chu’s residence.”
“Yes.” The regimental commander took the order and left.
A quarter of an hour later, the regimental commander leading the assault brought the hand grenades. After a brief familiarization, they distributed the hand grenades to their subordinate soldiers.
Soon after, continuous explosions echoed from within the Prince of Chu’s residence. The gunfire gradually ceased.
Then, the regimental commander responsible for attacking the Prince of Chu’s residence came out to report, “Army Commander, the Prince of Chu’s residence has been taken by us. We killed a total of five hundred and seven powerful family members and captured two hundred and thirteen. Sima Hao drank poisoned wine and committed suicide.”
Lu Fei gently nodded. “Dead is dead. It saves us wasting bullets. Pick one from inside who knows a lot and can lead the way. Everyone else is to be executed on the spot.”
“Yes.”
The order was relayed. Soon after, continuous gunshots echoed from within the Prince of Chu’s residence. At the same time, a powerful family member, his legs weak with fear, was brought out.
“Army Commander, his name is Sima Ying. He is Sima Hao’s youngest son. He says he knows the location of Lin’an City’s national treasury and other powerful families’ wealth.”
Luo Xin and Lu Fei were overjoyed. This was what they wanted. The profits from this southern expedition were far greater than those from the northern expedition.
It could be said that the northern expedition basically operated at a loss. Operating at a loss in the south too would be unacceptable.
“Lead the way. If you can bring us enough wealth, we can spare your life,” Lu Fei said coldly.
Sima Ying was already terrified out of his wits and dared not refute. He struggled to stand up and pointed to the Prince of Chu’s residence, saying, “The national treasury is inside the Prince of Chu’s residence. You can enter through the Prince’s secret passage.”
Lu Fei and Luo Xin, hearing this, immediately entered the Prince of Chu’s residence with Sima Ying.
While observing the Prince of Chu’s residence, Lu Fei said, “This Prince of Chu was truly extravagant. This residence is even larger and more luxurious than His Majesty’s imperial palace. Truly rebellious!”
“Heh heh, this truly shows the wealth of the State of Chu! Now that the State of Chu’s wealth has all fallen into our hands, it’s truly gratifying!”
The two continued speaking until they reached a lake within the royal residence. This lake was about three hundred meters long and wide. Rockeries surrounded the lake.
Sima Ying led the group to the highest rockery. This rockery was covered in vines and appeared to have nothing special about it. “This is where the national treasury is located.” Sima Ying lifted the vines, revealing a stone door.
“Go in!” To prevent any trickery, Lu Fei had Sima Ying enter first.
Trembling at Lu Fei’s command, Sima Ying pushed open the stone door and walked inside.
Everyone followed Sima Ying. After passing through a descending tunnel, they quickly reached the bottom. At this point, they saw a huge space illuminated by torchlight.
“My goodness! We’re rich now!”
Before Lu Fei and Luo Xin could speak, the leading regimental commander exclaimed.
“Don’t be surprised. Don’t embarrass me!” Lu Fei raised his foot and kicked his subordinate regimental commander. This was his soldier; he knew him.
“Li Chuyuan himself doesn’t know how much is here. After the old Prince of Chu died, this place has always been under our control. In fact, this is only a part of it. This secret chamber is connected to other secret chambers. Gentlemen, please follow me.”
Sima Ying dared not lie. He wished he could pour out everything he knew to save his life.
The novel has already been fully translated up to the final chapter. You can access it on my Patreon at https://www.patreon.com/caleredhair