Chapter 661: Discord

Chapter 661: Chapter 661: Discord

The southern front was surging with turmoil, the war entering a new phase, relatively smooth; yet, just as the Barbarian Race’s internal stability remained elusive, the inner workings of the Jingjiu Dynasty were swept by a "tacit turbulence" that blew in gusts of strange, crooked winds.

Those officials who sided with the Emperor kept their mouths tightly shut, ignoring the current winds within the Dynasty, shrinking their heads like turtles—deaf and dumb, one after another.

Even the Advisors, who liked to flaunt "everyone is drunk but I alone am sober," now mostly kept their eyes fixed on the southern front, seemingly fixated on military strategy. Only a rare few, unclear about right and wrong, jumped out to stir up those amorphous winds, fanning the flames.

Of course, aside from these bizarre crooked winds, other matters demanding scrutiny and deep thought occurred. For example, Xuanqing Guard launched another massive internal purge with no warning, and this time struck directly at the throats of the Xuanqing Guard’s upper echelons.

On the twenty-eighth of November, under Commander Pang Ban’s command, Xuanqing Guard Jingxi Town Governor’s Office seized Liao Chengfeng, Jingnan Governor, and one hundred fifty-two of his immediate family members and threw them all in prison overnight. Simultaneously, they launched a comprehensive rectification of all Xuanqing Guard units within Jingnan Governor’s jurisdiction.

In just three days, seventy-five members were imprisoned from the three Xuanqing Guard Thousand Households Stations within Jingnan Governor’s jurisdiction; seven resisting were executed, and collateral impact reached over six hundred family members.

This was another grand move following the previous massive purge after the establishment of the Black Banner Battalion. Yet, among the four Governor’s Offices, only Jingnan Garrison Commander’s Office was targeted, while the Eastern and Northern Governor’s Offices were barely affected.

Many wondered why the Xuanqing Guard chose this moment for such an internal purge, and so blatantly aimed at Jingnan Governor Liao Chengfeng. Moreover, the main force executing the cross-regional operation this time came from Jiang Cheng, the Jingxi Governor, who had recently clashed with Liao Chengfeng and was publicly belittled by him.

Could this be using official power for personal revenge? Had the Xuanqing Guard rotted to this extent internally? Many thought so. The notion stemmed from their deep-seated fear of Xuanqing Guard—seeing their nemesis cannibalize itself brought applause; hence, this view had much traction.

Of course, most only dared discuss it in private. Ever since the Qin Family affair, who still risked talking about Xuanqing Guard? Very few.

But the real movers and shakers whose connections and energy resided at the top tiers of the Jingjiu Dynasty did not simply gloat at the Xuanqing Guard’s so-called "internal reform." In fact, they refused to call it "internal reform"—"purge" was far more accurate.

Who did not know that behind Liao Chengfeng stood the Third Prince, King Wu, Yang Yong? Not only him, but Liao Chengfeng also had ties by marriage with two Cultivation Race families, with complex roots below; he was, without exaggeration, a genuine boss inside Xuanqing Guard. Like the last Xuanqing Guard purge—Liao Chengfeng had issues, but who dared touch him? They simply transferred him from Jingxi to Jingnan Governor’s Office; the common interpretation then was that Pang Ban was giving Jiang Cheng a platform to advance.

Past facts proved that even a hardliner like Pang Ban feared the powers behind Liao Chengfeng. Perhaps the earlier adjustment was Pang Ban’s warning shot to Liao Chengfeng’s faction.

Now, choosing to strike Liao Chengfeng just as the Royal Family’s Major Examination loomed, forced people to ponder its deeper intent. Especially the Princes, none dared overlook any matter harboring hidden intrigue.

Yang Shu was not in the Imperial City; in mid-November, he first went to Jingdong, touring seven or eight major cities, then moved on to Jingbei.

Yang Shu now resided in "Festival of Abundance," the largest central city in Jingbei.

As Jingjiu Dynasty’s largest grain-producing region, Jingbei has always been the absolute core and strategic site. While war clouds shrouded the South, Jingbei surged with bustling activity; half of the Southern Border Army’s supplies came from this region.

Thus, after Yang Shu was assigned to execute the nationwide resource-tightening policy, his focus naturally centered on Jingbei.

His earlier visit to Jingdong served two purposes: first, to familiarize himself with the administrative processes and key nodes, and second, to ensure his own staff and Guest Elders gained practical experience in these affairs.

When Yang Shu thoroughly grasped all aspects of the resource-tightening initiative, earning his staff and Guest Elders’ agreement that the time was right, he finally headed to Jingbei on the twenty-seventh of November.

With accumulated experience from Jingdong, Yang Shu in Jingbei was unsurprisingly more adept. Moreover, Bai Changqing from the Ministry of Revenue was now, reluctantly, on Yang Shu’s side, which made his tasks smoother—be it the Silver Vault or the granaries, the Ministry of Revenue maintained detailed ledgers for every transaction, traceable to individuals.

Thus, for the local officials hoping to choke off information from Yang Shu, only dreaming would suffice; only cooperating with him to execute the tightening policies was the wise choice to preserve themselves.

So, as of the third of December, Yang Shu’s mission had proceeded quite smoothly. With the Ministry of Revenue backing him, local officials abandoned all fantasies, hoping only that Yang Shu would show mercy and leave them as much surplus as possible, so their territories would not suffer an impoverished tightening effect.

If livelihoods declined because of the tightening policy, it would stain the local bureaucratic structure—a blemish for anyone’s record. Even in wartime, who wanted "people unable to live, complaints everywhere" as a blot in their resume?

Thus, since arriving in Jingbei, Yang Shu had been coddled—everyone worrying their flattery might fall short. To ease his affairs, the Chief Officer at the Local Government Office even offered up his own mansion, tidied it up for Yang Shu’s stay.

Yang Shu accepted every blatant gesture of goodwill and flattery without fuss. As for bribes, forget it—he duly recorded them in his little notebook. Such brainless people who would bribe a Prince he did not intend to keep around.

Moreover, Yang Shu wielded his authority to draw local officials to his side with almost no concealment—nakedly. Side with him, and gain favors on the tightening policy, regardless of future changes; that always counted. If one already sided elsewhere, refused Yang Shu, or tried playing fence-sitting—then stricter requirements awaited them.

This crude and direct method aroused much dissatisfaction. Officialdom always valued "haggling" and saving "face" and "maneuvering." Who had ever seen someone as blunt and rough as Yang Shu?

But Yang Shu’s thinking was simple: the Major Examination was here, and for him, it was a matter of life and death. Where did he have time to play guessing games with you?