Changes in the Jiang Kingdom

Fang Weiyan sat in the imperial study.

Looking at the reports sent back from various places by his spies, he frowned slightly.

Previously, Cheng Feng was sent to lead a group of spies down into the area. These spies had just arrived and were unfamiliar with the place and its people, so they knew very little about it.

But after staying there for a while, I gradually discovered some things.

For example, a county magistrate in Huaixi Commandery forcibly took several women as his own. Later, fearing that the matter would be exposed, he killed several families who knew about it and then lied that they had been captured and eaten by demons.

Besides this, there were also frequent occurrences of other powerful figures forcibly seizing other people's land.

If a wicked servant were to kill someone, he would bribe some yamen runners and then declare the case as being caused by demons.

Looking at the booklets brought back from various places, Fang Weiyan's forehead veins throbbed.

After a moment's thought, Fang Weiyan said, "Summon Lan Mengke from the Ministry of Punishments."

Lan Mengke was one of the students recruited into officialdom three months ago.

After checking the hometowns and names of this group of scholars who entered officialdom, Fang Weiyan sent the information directly to spies in various places.

After carefully having his spies interview the neighbors to learn about the students' character, he made a note of it.

Right now, in his imperial study, the names of this group of students are all recorded.

Fang Weiyan would try to elevate the official rank of anyone who excelled in both character and academics.

However, we still need to see how capable they are.

"Your humble servant pays his respects to Your Majesty..."

Lan Mengke didn't know why he was summoned by the Emperor. After rushing to the palace, he was led by a guard to the Imperial Study.

The moment Lan Mengke saw Fang Weiyan, he immediately knelt down.

Fang Weiyan raised his eyelids and glanced at Lan Mengke below.

Lan Mengke is now in his thirties. He studied very hard in his early years, but he never passed the imperial examinations and is still only a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations).

However, to reach the level of a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial-level imperial examinations) at this age is actually quite remarkable.

According to the information his scouts sent back to him, Lan Mengke was the type of person who hated evil as if it were his enemy.

Years ago, he saw some scoundrels harassing respectable women on the street and couldn't stand by and watch, so he stepped forward to stop them.

He was retaliated against afterward and was hit on the head with a club at night, nearly losing his life.

Later, because some local gentry had seized other people's land, he personally helped write a petition to sue the gentry.

Unfortunately, due to being outnumbered and outgunned, he was defeated, which offended the local gentry, and he was subsequently harassed by people everywhere.

Fang Weiyan briefly recalled some of the things he had just seen about Lan Mengke, and gained a slight understanding of the situation.

"I have a task for you to handle. Are you willing?"

After pondering for a moment, Fang Weiyan spoke.

Lan Mengke was curious upon hearing this. He had been serving in the court for quite some time, but had never been received by the emperor.

Now that the Emperor has suddenly granted me an audience and asked me to do something, I have no idea what that task is.

A momentary doubt flashed through his mind, but Lan Mengke quickly replied, "I am willing to share Your Majesty's burdens!"

"Yes, very good."

Fang Weiyan nodded, placed the booklets he had just separated into a plate, and glanced at them.

The maidservant immediately understood, stepped forward obediently to pick up the plate, and then gracefully walked over to Lan Mengke.

"Open it and take a look."

At Fang Weiyan's instruction, Lan Mengke looked at the stack of books on the plate in front of him, immediately reached out and picked one up, then opened it to read.

Upon seeing this, Lan Mengke's expression immediately changed.

The booklet contained nothing but accounts of evil deeds committed by wicked people or local gentry.

Many people committed heinous acts, yet blamed them on demons.

"Emperor..."

Lan Mengke raised his head, vaguely guessing what the Emperor wanted him to do.

"I hereby appoint you as the Inspector General to thoroughly investigate everything concerning this matter. If the investigation reveals any truth, execute them without mercy. Are you willing?"

"Your humble servant obeys the decree!"

Upon hearing these words, Lan Mengke kowtowed repeatedly in gratitude.

He couldn't stand these kinds of things, and now that the Emperor was backing him up, Lan Mengke's face flushed red, and he was extremely excited.

He had witnessed many dirty things in the past, but he had no choice at the time.

Now that he has the ability, he is naturally willing to investigate all those guys thoroughly and kill all those who have done evil!

Seeing Lan Mengke's expression, Fang Weiyan immediately nodded.

The main reason we didn't do this before was because we were worried that if we killed all the officials in the various counties, there would be no one left to use.

But things are different now. Recently, many scholars have been sent down to the countryside, giving them ample time to learn the ways of officialdom.

The internship wasn't particularly long, but it was about right.

With these students as a foundation, even if all the officials were killed, the local areas would still be able to remain stable.

As for the spies sent to these places, Fang Weiyan had no intention of touching them.

These spies are only responsible for gathering intelligence; if they are allowed to take action, it will be difficult for them to continue gathering intelligence later.

Other colleagues would also remain somewhat wary of these spies.

When it comes to taking drastic measures, he can simply send someone down from his side.

The inspector, a fifth-rank official, can be considered as giving Lan Mengke a chance.

If he does a good job, he'll become a fifth-rank official.

If you don't perform well, you'll still be removed from your position.

Even a fifth-rank official could earn eighty or ninety taels of silver, which wasn't a low salary.

"Furthermore, give instructions to others that any local bullies or scoundrels who repeatedly refuse to mend their ways should be killed as well."

Fang Weiyan thought for a moment, then said something else.

He has only recently ascended the throne, and generally speaking, there is not much killing among new emperors in the short term.

But the situation is different now. Jiang Kingdom has just experienced various upheavals, and it is also plagued by demons.

Many people in various places took the opportunity to commit crimes, basically putting the country in a situation of internal and external troubles.

However, now, many places in the Jiang Kingdom have seen a bumper harvest, and the people's pockets are fuller, but this has also attracted the covetous eyes of many.

If this is not stopped in time, many petty thugs will start to idle away their days, thinking only of causing trouble for the common people.

Fang Weiyan didn't want to tolerate these guys, and after thinking about it, he decided that killing them would be easier.

Only by killing more people can we deter the others.

While we don't expect to achieve a level of security where doors are left unlocked at night and nothing is lost, we must at least ensure basic safety.

"Yes, Your Majesty, I obey!"

Upon hearing this, Lan Mengke immediately responded and then hurriedly left.

With so many charges against him, when he arrives in the various counties, he will surely unleash a reign of terror.

However, Fang Weiyan didn't care about this matter.

He had already given the order to have Lin Liyun send a team to accompany Lan Mengke to ensure his safety.

Suppress those guys with force.

After instructing someone to do this, Fang Weiyan picked up another booklet from the side.

It seems that recently, due to a temporary boost in national strength, there have been fewer demonic incidents.

Of course, it's also possible that Yunxi went there before and killed all the demons.

It's possible that this had some deterrent effect.

However, in any case, it's a good thing that there are no demons to bother us.

"Your Majesty, are you tired?"

Just as Fang Weiyan was flipping through the booklet in his hand, Yunxi waved and led a group of maids in.

The maids were carrying trays filled with pastries and similar items.

On the plate of the head maid was a small jade bowl, which should have contained some kind of soup.

Fang Weiyan could smell a faint fragrance even from a distance.

When these things arrived, Fang Weiyan actually felt a bit hungry.

"I've never seen these things before, how come there are these snacks today?"

Fang Weiyan casually picked up a pastry from the side, took a small bite, and the soft, glutinous texture and the aroma of rice spread in his mouth.

The food prepared in the imperial kitchen might not be as good as what you get on Earth, but the pastries and desserts were definitely much better than anything Fang Weiyan had ever eaten before.

After taking a bite of the pastry, Fang Weiyan opened the soup bowl next to him. Inside was a soup that looked like it contained white fungus, but upon closer inspection, it didn't seem to be white fungus soup.

Fang Weiyan took a small sip and found it to be slightly sweet, not cloying, and slid down her throat.

Extremely comfortable.

"This soup is good."

Fang Weiyan glanced at the soup with some surprise. Indeed, the soup tasted extremely good, with a refreshing sensation when drunk.

"Then I'll have the imperial kitchen prepare more."

Upon hearing this, Yunxi's eyes immediately curved into a slight smile, clearly delighted that Fang Weiyan liked the soup.

Fang Weiyan nodded in agreement and continued with the previous question, "I remember that these things weren't served at noon before. Why are they here today? Is there something special about today?"

"No, this is the standard for the palace; it's just that the national treasury was empty before..."

oh...

Upon hearing this, Fang Weiyan immediately realized what was happening.

This was because the national treasury was already empty, so the palace naturally cut back on expenses wherever possible.

But things are different now. In the past few months, the national treasury has become much fuller, so some of the previous standards have been restored.

"It seems there have been fewer demonic incursions in the Underworld Administration lately?"

Fang Weiyan has already entrusted Yunxi with the control of the Underworld Administration in various regions.

Therefore, Yunxi should be the one who knows the most about things in the Underworld Administration.

Yunxi nodded upon hearing this, "Yes, it must be because the Jiang Kingdom has recovered quite a bit recently, which has made those demons somewhat wary."

Recently, counties and prefectures across the country have begun to gather the local people together. After the country's strength has recovered somewhat, the Incense Offerings offerings have mostly turned yellow.

This amount of Incense Offerings is enough for the Yin God in the Underworld Administration to cultivate to the point of Transformation.

With the offerings of Incense Offerings, the spiritual cultivation of the local Yin God is gradually recovering.

As the situation gradually improved, these demons naturally had to think twice before committing any crimes.

"That's good. If we give them a little more time, the Jiang Kingdom strength can recover to its former glory. At that time, those demons will be even less likely to invade."

Fang Weiyan nodded upon hearing this, his expression somewhat excited.

Upon hearing this, Yunxi's pretty face softened considerably.

The Jiang Kingdom was truly on the verge of destruction, but fortunately, Fang Weiyan stepped in.

After Fang Weiyan took action, the strength of the Jiang Kingdom began to gradually recover.

Following the original trajectory of the Jiang Kingdom, its national strength had already declined to this point, and no Yin God could protect its people.

The people of the Jiang Kingdom were living in dire straits, with no Incense Offerings to offer to the Yin God.

As the power of the Yin God gradually declined, the people suffered even more from the pain of the dynasty's twilight years.

Under such constant and repeated torment, Jiang Kingdom seemed to be beyond saving.

However, it was under these circumstances that Fang Weiyan Fang Weiyan, turned the tide.

After forcefully defeating the centipede demon, they used various methods to continuously restore the Jiang Kingdom, making the fields full of crops.

People now have money in their pockets and can afford to eat.

When she returned from her trip to Anyou Commandery, she noticed something noticeably different along the way.

Before she went there, the people she saw along the way were all sallow-faced from hunger.

In many places, it can be described as a barren wasteland.

However, on her way back, she could see fields full of grain, with huge, plump ears of corn.

There were also some cucumbers that would have fallen to the ground if they hadn't been supported by a trellis.

At first glance, the fields are full of grain, and the working people all have hope for a better life on their faces.

This was completely different from what she had seen before.

When she arrived, the people's faces were numb, their eyes empty, and some children were lying on the ground, as if they would starve to death at any moment.

Everything that could be seen on the way there looked as if the Jiang Kingdom was about to collapse.

However, when she returned after resolving everything, everything had changed.

The people's situation has changed drastically compared to before.

The reason the people were behaving this way was entirely because of the man in front of them.

The other party used countless methods that left her completely bewildered, managing to save Jiang Kingdom.

In just a few months, the Jiang Kingdom underwent such a dramatic transformation.

Now, listening to Fang Weiyan say that given some more time, he can restore the Jiang Kingdom's national strength to the cyan level.

She naturally believed that.

She even believed that under the other party's control, the Jiang Kingdom could definitely reach the stage of a prosperous dynasty.

I imagine the emperors of the Jiang Kingdom throughout history would be very pleased to know what the future of the Jiang Kingdom would be like.

Thinking about everything that had happened recently, Yunxi looked at Fang Weiyan with even more gentle eyes.

Standing there, Zhang seemed to Fang Weiyan.

At this moment, Yunxi was beginning to wonder what would become of the Jiang Kingdom once it fell into Fang Weiyan's hands.