POV: PRINCE LIU XIE
LOCATION: THE CRANNIES
TIME: EARLY AFTERNOON
After your actions at the palace that morning, you quickly flee to a private conner because you felt the that bitch's dragon burning through your hand. On getting to the private conner, you take out the red letter and you were not surprised by what you saw.
Congratulations on acquiring your first land professor.
Do you still believe that the issues of china can be solved sharing rice?
You put down the letter and respond with a fury that you're did not know you could muster.
"Yes but only if it is served on human heads"
You pick up the letter again and began to read the rest of it.
"Now as you know it is not enough to simply own information and the money needed to finance that information. You must also possess a strong army that will not only protect the people who bring you information but also be strong enough to act against any who dares to go against your interest. So in a nutshell your new mission is create a small army and to find a way to make your new land make money for you.
As a reward not only will you get the equipment to arm your new army but you will also get a fierce tiger general and two powerful generals who in later years will shake all of china and beyond. Who are they? That is for me to know and for you to find out. As always professor if you fail in this mission you will die a painful death and I will personally see to it that you will suffer for all eternity. GOOD LUCK PROFESSOR.
You close the letter with a sigh
Dose she always have to threaten you with eternal pain anytime she you want you to do something? Dose she not realize that if you do not do what she says then you are already in a world of pain? There is only two years before the yellow rebellion and all you have done is to acquire a farming district, dose she think you will be sleeping with your roof on fire?
"Are you alright my prince?"
You turn to see Su Min watching you intently
"I am going to the crannies today. Prepare for me a royal escort of five guards."
"You wish to go there with an escort today?" Her tone was skeptical
"Of course." You reply
"I am not going as a wandering scholar anymore, I am going there as their new overlord and their prince. I must look the part."
"In that case, I will prepare five guards in addition to myself."
"You are coming along lady Su?" You ask in a voice dripping with doubt
"All due respect how much of a protector can you be?"
Rather than answer your question Su Min brought out a hidden dagger you had not noticed and threw it at a nearby thick paper wall. When you went to examine it you see three daggers in the wall rather than the one you saw her throw.
"You were saying my prince?" She ask in a smug voice
"Get dressed."
A few hours later you and your escort got to the crannies and what you saw shocked you to the core.
It was a total celebration at the crannies as the breastfeeding mothers who had been gone for who knows how long were being reunited with their husbands and in some cases their children.
"Lord You zo suddenly decided to release the women he refused to sell?" You ask Su Min
"I refuse to believe he did it out of good will"
"He either must have taken your threat seriously or Zhang Rang must told him that it would not be good for his political career to be enemies with an imperial prince." Came her reply.
Meanwhile while you were yet speaking a woman who was recently released ran up to you and Kow-tow.
"Are you prince Liu XIE?" She asks
"Yes." You reply without much thought
She then begin to kow-tow repeatedly with tears in her eyes.
"When I asked my captors who I have to thank for my freedom, they told me that prince Liu XIE was the one who demanded for my release." She says with her tears flowing like a river
"So prince Liu XIE, I thank you from the bottom of my heart for bringing back to my home. Thank you for bringing me back to my husband, and thank you most especially for taking care of my child when I could not."
She then begin to kow-tow and thank you in a loud voice. This triggered a chain reaction and soon the entire crannies was kow-towing and thanking you. Well all except two children your age who were just stareing at you. Shang was staring at you with utmost surprise but his sister was staring at you with unbridled suspicion.
"My prince if you have anything to tell them, this is the perfect time." Su Min tells you.
You stand on a high position to command their attention.
"For the safe return of wives to their husbands and good women to their homes, I am more than happy to be cause. However I have a few announcement to make and I would appreciate it if you could listen."
This made the crowd to decend into a pin drop silence.
"First announcement is that I have lawfully aquired the crannies from lord You zo. That means from here on out you do not owe anyone any tax, service or oath except me and should any one dare to give you orders aside me, kill him and let me bear the consequences. (This brought devious smiles into the faces of everyone standing there)
The second of these announcements is that from here on out, the grain tax of these district is 80-20 with twenty percent belonging to me. This is because.....
Before you could even finish your statement, the crannies burst into a thunderous cheers that forced you to pause your speech.
"What was the tax rate here?" You ask Su Min
"90-10 with the lord keeping ninety percent." She reply
"You see why they are so happy? If you aim to gain their loyalty I dare say you are on way."
You turn to the people and yell
"But that does not mean I will give you this concession for free."
This brought back silence to the gathering
"The one thing I will ask from you is that from you is that from now on I will train everyone both men and women who volunteer in martial arts. This will be to train your spirit and your body to protect yourselves and your families and eventually to join in fighting my battles. Do you agree to this?"
The people looked at themselves for a while then all eyes turned to the ant master. The ant master thought deeply for a while and then walked up to you and says
"You are asking for our lives in exchange for full belly and protection? That is a small price to pay."
He then turned to the people and says
"From here on out we will work in our farms in the morning to fill our bellies and by the evening we will train on the prince's martial arts. Dose anyone disagrees?"
You watch with pleasure as no one disagrees. You then turn to the ant master and gives him the infantry and personal training manual you spent the previous night drawing. Unlike what you had told Su Min, you had personally seen to it that the manual was a combination of japanese Muay Thai, choi Kwan do, Karate, Roman testudo and Spanish tercio formation combat.
"Can you please see to it that they train constantly?"
"Is that not a given?" He replies
"Rest assured my prince,I will turn these worthless bunch of men and women into the finest warriors you will ever see."
You nod with approval
"What is your name?" You ask
"I cannot keep calling you the ant master can I?"
"This lowly one is called Xu Chu your highness." He replies
Xu Chu? As in the great tiger general Xu Chu? How on earth did he end up in louyang?
THAT DEVIOUS CUNNING BITCH