The Empress’ Livestream
chapter-485

Chapter 485: Spring Ploughing (III)

The matter could easily have loopholes, and it needed to be carefully implemented; only those strong in heart could withstand it. But if done well, it would generate lots of profit.

At the beginning, the workload wasn’t so heavy. Even Wei Ci, with his present body constitution, could cope with it. When the workload increased significantly later, he would have regained his health.

More importantly, she believed Wei Ci could be trusted. He aspired to govern the realm such that he wouldn’t be blinded by wealth.

Wei Ci did not hesitate to take it on. In his heart, he decided on a perfect process to implement this compensatory money. “Ci will not let the lord down.”

Combining his experiences and that year’s analysis of how to improve, he felt it was the best thing to do at present.

“Eh, 20,000 strings of coins. Remember to get Xiaoyu to write a short note.”

“Yes.”

She didn’t value wealth. Her private warehouse was often used as her official one and she passed it to her accountant to manage it.

With regards to her attitude, Xu Ke didn’t know how to react.

Since ancient times, all who ascended the throne used the official treasury as their personal one. Only their lord was stubborn and deviated from that habit.

It was reasonable that Jiang Pengji didn’t care about these silvers, because they were all brought by the wind. Why would she feel attached to it?

Speaking of which, four batches of glassware had already been sold at the northern border, and Jiang Pengji felt they could slow down their sales to whet the appetite of the rich there.

After the first month of the Lunar calendar passed, the weather was still so cold, and the entire Xiangyang district had an impending sense of war approaching.

The people were vaguely able to sense the changing atmosphere, and the government office continued to be busy.

As the saying goes, the army provisions travel before the soldiers. A war does not involve military strength, war strategies, or a battle of wits, but it was more so a competition of who had more money in reserve.

The rations, horses, weapons and machines for attacking, armor and weapons… each of these items demanded a hefty amount of money.

Especially the armor for defense and weapons for war, their cost was exorbitant.

It was impossible for her to let her generals wear simple, plain cotton clothing and hold wooden spears to go to war.

That wasn’t fighting a war on the battlefield. That was a queue to talk to the King of Hell by presenting yourself to the enemies!

Jiang Pengji heard Xu Ke give a rundown of the accounts, and she discreetly said “poor”.

If only they could customize and create their armor there, on site.

Jiang Pengji narrowed her eyes. She recalled the time when she did her first planning at Xiangyang district.

However, whether the iron ore mine truly existed, this was only her own opinion, and she wasn’t completely certain.

When the workload during that period briefly slowed down, she intended to bring men to survey. If the iron ore mine existed, it would save them a lot of money.

The winter training felt like it lasted forever, and the new soldiers had adjusted to the intense training. With enough food provided, the soldiers didn’t become skinnier, but instead became stronger. Once they could wear their old clothes comfortably, but now it appeared rather tight.

Previously, they couldn’t carry weights for three to five miles; now they could carry a log and run from the start to the end.

That’s why a person’s potential was like a sponge. You were sure to squeeze something out.

There was no need to go soft on these boorish male soldiers during training. So long as they didn’t die, they would undergo devil training.

All new and experienced troops were required to undergo all kinds of physical training and military drills.

The means to relay information was arcane in time past, especially at the war zone where things changed so rapidly. The battle formation could play a critical role for the troops to work together to achieve victory, for example: to mess up the enemy’s formation, surround and kill them, to envelope them, or strategically retreat…

This required strong enforcement. She would never allow her army to have any escapees.

If she asks them to charge forward, they must go forth with all their might.

If asked to retreat, even if the enemy’s head was delivered to your hands, one could not be greedy about the fruits of war.

They must observe complete obedience to the rules given.

Time after time, even if it was dry and dull it still trudged on. Until they developed a habit of listening to commands, they could immediately respond and be on the move.

After the first month of the Lunar calendar passed, everyone in the male troops camp could obviously sense the heavy atmosphere compared to before.

As the training got more intense, their meals got better.

The sky was dark, once it sounded at the military camp, the soldiers must quickly get up, change and assemble at the military drill ground.

At the start, most of the troops could not achieve it.

As time went on, those who couldn’t do it at the beginning slowly improved.

Of course, they would exert their strength during training. But another important reason was that they were provoked by the hundreds of women soldiers.

Since the last incident at the new soldiers’ camp where they were humiliated, she published an official explanation notice every other day.

The people of Xiangyang district were suspicions from the start until their half-doubts were eventually assuaged later. Some families felt these ladies would impede the execution of important affairs. They determined in their hearts cruelly that they would send their burdensome daughters to the women’s camp. Gradually the numbers in the women’s camp increased to close to 600, and finally reached the target headcount.

She didn’t let someone else take over the training for the women’s camp. She took it on personally.

Xu Ke noticed this, and he secretly had pitiful tears for the young ladies in the female camp.

He was one of the few who knew about the lord’s abilities to implement “devastating training methods”.

Without doubt, the outside world frowned upon this. Even the women’s camp, who bore a despised attitude formally, welcomed a hell-like life.

Their training intensity was only 20 percent less than those of the male troops. This was surely cruelty to these skinny and weak young ladies!

On regular days, it was easy to talk to Jiang Pengji. Yet once she entered coach mode, unless the female soldiers fainted from exhaustion or other circumstances where they could not withstand the intensity of training, she would not give them an ounce of pity.

So long as they were awake, and if they could breathe, even if they must crawl, they must crawl to the very end.

To love someone is to send her to a training that is deadly. This had always been Jiang Pengji’s teaching philosophy.

Laosiji Lianmeng: “The streamer’s love is hard to comprehend for a child. When they are older, they will understand.”

Qianzai Buyaopoba: “My heart aches but what the streamer said is true. Amid the chaos, no one can protect another. If you don’t wish to be treated as a baby making machine, commodity item or grain reserves, these young ladies must depend on themselves to work hard and make a name for themselves. Seeing the contents in the livestream, almost all of them were crying as they were dragged by their family members. They are obviously the outcasts of their family, if they didn’t suffer under the streamer, they will also be abused at home.”

Jintian Sangengo: “I hope they can learn something from the streamer, no matter how weak the grass is, it is able to avoid being suppressed by the rock.”

Carrying weights when running was acceptable. They could still procrastinate and laze around along the way.

The weapon training sessions were terrible. If their posture was incorrect, Jiang Pengji would use her whip to correct them. She was strict beyond measure.

As the days passed, their slender arms began to show two swellings, and their arm muscles had hardened.