nucmednet Chapter 731 Man proposes, God disposes
Chapter 731 Man proposes, God disposes
The South Garden Council Hall was bustling with activity, filled with people.
Besides Xu Yifan, who was far away in Tainan, and Su Hongtu, who was in Shandong, the leaders of the army and factories put aside their work and rushed over from all directions—Li Ergou, who was in charge of resettling immigrants, rushed back from Wanxian; Li Fei, who had finished his trip to southern Liaoning, also returned to Lingao; Shi Ying, who was inspecting the reclamation and training of the villagers at the foot of Wuzhi Mountain, also rushed back...
Everyone chatted excitedly about their respective assignments, speculating about the future development of the Qionghai Army, and wondering what kind of merit they could gain in supporting the emperor. Liu Ye had already made his goal clear: small Qiongzhou or even Guangdong was no longer enough for them; the Forbidden City was the ultimate objective. To realize this grand plan, everyone was full of enthusiasm.
Amidst the murmurs, Liu Ye appeared, immediately silencing the buzzing noise, which then subsided completely after a moment, with everyone watching him expectantly.
Liu Ye glanced around and noticed that Duan Mengrou, the newly appointed Director of the Finance and Accounting Department, was also among the crowd, looking serious. Even with precedents like Liu Ru, it was still eye-catching for a woman to step forward and take on such an important role. Duan Mengrou stood out among the group of men.
At the beginning, many people were skeptical about whether a seemingly frail woman could handle the role of head steward for the Qionghai Army. However, after taking office, she quickly dispelled everyone's doubts with her professionalism and meticulousness. She managed the accounts of income and expenditure meticulously, and the calculation and allocation of funds required by various factories and bureaus were also handled properly, cutting some redundant expenses and avoiding unnecessary waste. Her outstanding performance, coupled with her status as Liu Ye's wife, allowed Duan Mengrou to quickly establish herself and secure a place at the top of the entire system.
In an environment where gender discrimination is negligible in Lingao, the sense of accomplishment from this job made Duan Mengrou feel very fulfilled. This was precisely her long-cherished wish to prove that she was no less capable than men, and now she had finally achieved her goal. If there was anything she felt was lacking since coming to Lingao from Guangzhou, it was her social status and official position.
She was the concubine personally chosen by Lin Shiyue, the principal wife. Her status was considerably higher than that of Tang Yusuwen and the other maids. She even formally underwent the traditional concubine-taking ceremony, serving tea to Lin Shiyue. Aside from not being allowed to enter the South Garden through the main gate, she received all the expected treatment and respect. Logically, she shouldn't have been dissatisfied. As the adopted daughter of a down-on-his-luck merchant, her background was incomparable to that of Lin Shiyue, a daughter of a high-ranking official. This outcome was already quite good. However, what embarrassed Duan Mengrou was that Liu Ye hadn't yet consummated their marriage. Appearing in public as a concubine made her feel guilty and embarrassed, and also a little resentful: although she wasn't as beautiful or talented as Dong Xiaowan from Jiangnan, or as elegant and poised as Ling Xi'er, she was still far superior to Tang Yusuwen and the others. Was she really so unworthy of the master's attention?
Although in Liu Ye's mind, the two had already slept together in Guangzhou, and Duan Mengrou was already his woman after being officially recognized, he was too busy inspecting Tainan, planting spies, and analyzing the situation based on intelligence to have time to visit her again. To be honest, after a long day, he needed to find someone like Suwen who was knowledgeable and understanding and could give him whatever he wanted, or someone like Dong Xiaowan who had received professional training. Compared to them, Duan Mengrou had no advantage in bed.
But only she knew the truth of her own situation. Duan Mengrou was still a young girl, and she knew very well that nothing had happened between her and the master. Now that the master was delaying in consummating their marriage, she couldn't help but feel uneasy. But she couldn't confide in anyone about this, and she couldn't bring herself to seduce the master. She could only keep her bitterness to herself and endure it.
Liu Ye was unaware of what the young girl was thinking; his mind was preoccupied with reorganizing the army and heading north.
After organizing his thoughts, he cleared his throat and began, “Gentlemen, our plan to nurture a bandit to enhance our own power and divert trouble eastward has been very successful. Li Zicheng was originally a bandit leader who almost met his end. In terms of strength, he was inferior to Zhang Xianzhong and others. If it weren’t for our intervention, he would likely have been utterly defeated by Hong Chengchou in Shaanxi and would have been hiding in some corner, barely clinging to life. Now, with our guidance and support, he has avoided Hong Chengchou’s encirclement, become the sole ruler in Henan, successfully captured Luoyang, killed the Prince of Fu, and successfully angered Emperor Chongzhen, cutting off his own path to being recruited. He has now led hundreds of thousands of troops northward to attack the capital and is currently in the Daming Prefecture area of Beizhili…”
The news had only been in Lingao for a short time, and many people were still unaware of it. Li Ergou and the others were overjoyed upon hearing this and asked, "General, does this mean that once Li Zicheng captures the capital, we can reap the rewards?"
"That's roughly the idea," Liu Ye said with a smile. "After all, we're disguised as government troops. If we openly rebel, we'll lose the support of the people. We need to be strategic. Li Zicheng is a heinous bandit who captured the capital and overthrew the court. He committed such heinous crimes that everyone has the right to kill him. The Qionghai Army can act on behalf of Heaven, turn the tide, drive out the rebels, and protect the Ming Dynasty..."
The crowd laughed knowingly. It was unethical to make Li Zicheng play the villain, and then descend from the sky as a savior to plunder the enemy and seize the fruits of victory. But it was also very satisfying.
Li Ergou asked, puzzled, "General, why don't we establish a separate banner and insist on protecting the Ming Dynasty?"
"Occupying the capital might seem glorious, but in reality, we're surrounded by enemies. To the north, Huang Taiji is eyeing us covetously, and to the west, bandits are wreaking havoc. If I were to establish my own power now, wouldn't I become a target for both sides?" Liu Ye shook his head. "Besides, the Ming Dynasty has lasted for hundreds of years, and the Zhu family's legitimacy is deeply ingrained in people's hearts. It's difficult to replace them in a short time. Hastily taking over would only alienate the people, plunging the Central Plains into chaos and giving figures like Huang Taiji and Zhang Xianzhong an opportunity. The best approach is to maintain the legitimacy of the Ming Dynasty, use the Zhu family's name to win over the hearts of the people, and then proceed slowly..."
Yan Guang agreed, saying, "General, your considerations are very thorough. We can keep the banner of the Ming Dynasty for the time being, and the emperor can continue to sit on his throne. It's not too late to make further plans after we have completely wiped out the bandits and eliminated the threat from the Tartars."
Sun Yuanhua asked with some worry, "But the current emperor is of a fierce temperament. How could he be willing to let us manipulate him? I'm afraid he'll try to fight to the death..."
Liu Ye smiled mysteriously and said, "Who can guarantee that the bandits won't harm Chongzhen after entering the city? We are willing to protect the emperor, but if we miss the opportunity and Li Zicheng succeeds, there's nothing we can do. Man proposes, God disposes!"