jdhmnovel Chapter 693 Escape from the Sea of Suffering
Chapter 693 Escape from the Sea of Suffering
Chapter 693 Escaping the Sea of Suffering
The Pig-Slaughtering Prince's Mansion.
Wang Wenzhou held his baby and drank alone. Ever since all his beloved babies went to the Bridge of Helplessness, Wang Wenzhou felt as if he had depression. He drank heavily every day, and only when he was drunk could he feel a little better.
"Sigh..." Gao Guiying sighed and said with heartache, "Boxin, don't drink anymore, drinking is bad for your health!"
"Sister! I've had enough of living!" Wang Wenzhou said, his voice trembling with tears, as he took a sip of wine while hugging Wang Lin.
Gao Guiying shook her head with a bitter smile. This troublesome woman is at it again! She cries and shouts every day that she's had enough of living, so why doesn't she just die?
Gao Guiying rolled her eyes at Wang Wenzhou and looked at Wang Lin. As if on the same wavelength, the two children immediately knelt down on either side of Wang Wenzhou's thighs; only in this way would their nemesis shut up.
"Knock knock!" Sheng Lan knocked on the door and said, "My lord, He Renlong, Lord He, requests an audience."
Wang Wenzhou said irritably, "This is so annoying! Tell him to wait a bit, I'm busy!"
"Yes!" Sheng Lan was a little unhappy; her nemesis was definitely up to no good again.
Sheng Lan turned around, cupped his hands in greeting to He Renlong, and said, "Lord He, please wait a moment."
"Brother Jian, you're too kind!" He Renlong put his hand on Sheng Lan's shoulder and said with a smile, "We both serve the Lord. If you would do me the honor, Brother Jian, I would like to invite you to a gathering at Chunfeng Pavilion later."
"Hmph!" Sheng Lan snorted coldly and said irritably, "Lord Jian, please go by yourself. I have other matters to attend to."
After Sheng Lan finished speaking, she turned away, too lazy to pay any attention to He Renlong. "You lecher! Why are you acting like our nemesis?"
He Renlong was quite frustrated. How did his attempt to flatter her backfire? Did Jian Fengyu not appreciate women? Men like that are truly rare!
Half an hour later, Wang Wenzhou called He Renlong into the house.
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou burst out laughing, pointing at He Renlong's face and asking with a smile, "Little He, what happened to your face? Did Little Sun beat you up? You're such a coward! In terms of official rank, you're at least a Vice Minister of War. In terms of troops, you have 4 to 5 elite soldiers under your command. How can you tolerate being bullied like this by Little Sun?"
He Renlong said with a wry smile, "Sir, these were all caused by the people of Hanshan!"
"Huh?" Wang Wenzhou said in surprise, "No way! The common people would dare to hit you?"
He Renlong curled his lip. "Lord Wang, you're joking. Your so-called charitable toll road, once completed, has been used to rob people on the road. Are you people of Hanshan ordinary people? You're all more ruthless than bandits, charging each person five taels of silver just to cross the road!"
If they don't give it to us, the people will take action. If our soldiers dare to fight back, fully armed "people" will immediately come to our aid. Lord Sun doesn't want to cause trouble, so his soldiers can only suffer in silence!
He Renlong said helplessly, "Lord Sun ordered that no one is allowed to leave the camp without his permission. I sneaked out, but unfortunately I forgot to bring any money. Those people who were collecting fees not only beat me up, but also chased me all the way to the Pig Slaughter King's Mansion. They only dispersed after I entered the mansion."
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou burst out laughing. He thought for a moment and said, "Jian Fengyu, prepare a waist tag for Xiao He. I know that Xiao He can't stay in the military camp. He has to go out to brothels to have fun. We're all on the same side, so we won't take his money."
"Yes!" Sheng Lan rolled her eyes at Wang Wenzhou. You two are really birds of a feather.
"I am grateful for your understanding, sir!" He Renlong quickly thanked him.
Wang Wenzhou asked, "Xiao He, what brings you here this time?"
He Renlong thought for a moment and then said, "My lord, I have seen that the soldiers of the South Camp are working on the construction site under the orders of Lord Zhang Chengze. I would also like to send my soldiers to work there as well."
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou laughed and cursed, "I knew it, you were definitely eyeing those silver coins! Don't learn from that bastard Zhang Chengze, that guy is too ruthless. I pay everyone five taels of silver a month."
He pocketed four taels of silver for himself, giving only one tael to his men. Like a goose plucking feathers from a passing goose, he skimmed off the top layer by layer, leaving each soldier with only one qian (a unit of weight) of silver!
Thankfully, the food at the construction site was good; otherwise, these soldiers wouldn't have worked at all!
He Renlong quickly said, "Sir, I don't need your money, I just want you to make sure the brothers have enough to eat."
Wang Wenzhou waved his hand and laughed, "Alright! Xiao He, you don't need to be like this! I've always believed that if there's money to be made, we should all share it. I won't treat you unfairly!"
"Sir, it's like this!" He Renlong said with a wry smile, "Ever since you finished building the toll roads around Beidaying, the brothers haven't had a proper meal. Forget meat, we can't even get vegetables. We've been eating dry rations every day!"
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly, "No way! Little Sun has been drinking soldiers' blood so much?"
He Renlong smiled bitterly to himself. "Lord Wang, please stop joking. What does this have to do with Lord Sun? Vegetables can't be kept for long, so we have to send someone out to buy them almost every day. You've been sending people to rob so ruthlessly; each time you go out to buy vegetables, it costs at least a hundred taels of silver."
The imperial court hadn't even paid the military pay yet, and now Lord Sun is selling everything he owns and spending his own money. But where would he get so much money to be robbed by you?
Moreover, you people of Hanshan are too wicked. As long as you know we're from Beidaying, no matter how much money you offer, you won't sell us vegetables. Brothers, we secretly hire locals from Hanshan to buy our vegetables at exorbitant prices.
"Sir, please give our brothers a way out!" He Renlong said with a bitter smile.
"Don't be so polite with me, Xiao He. Even close brothers keep clear accounts. I won't skimp on the money for your men's work. You'd better not be like Zhang Chengze, so ruthless. In a pinch, no one will be there to fight for you!" Wang Wenzhou said with a smile.
"Your words are wise, sir. I would never do such a thing!" He Renlong thought for a moment and said, "However, Lord Sun has ordered that no one is allowed to leave the camp. My men cannot be mobilized. I have come up with a plan, but I need your cooperation, sir."
"How do we cooperate?" Wang Wenzhou asked.
He Renlong replied, "The soldiers in Beidaying are currently demoralized, and many have deserted and secretly slipped away. I'd like to break them up into smaller groups, let the brothers slip away, and then regroup to work on the construction site. However, I simply can't afford the toll fees!"
He Renlong had nearly 5 men under his command, and the toll alone would amount to more than 20 taels of silver, which was almost all of He Renlong's wealth. He was really reluctant to part with it.
"Haha!" Wang Wenzhou laughed loudly, "I thought it was a big deal! Jian Fengyu, I'm leaving this to you. You'll cooperate with Xiao He."
"Your subordinate obeys!" Sheng Lan quickly accepted the order.
Wang Wenzhou thought for a moment and then said, "Xiao He, hurry back and take care of this matter. The sooner your men are out of this predicament, the more silver you will have in your pocket."
"Thank you, Your Highness. I'll take my leave now!" He Renlong left happily.
Wang Wenzhou smiled slightly and said happily, "Sister, isn't my strategy of subduing the enemy without fighting quite good? Even if I raise an army now, these two large camps in the north and south, with more than 30 troops, are just for show! It's just that the time is not right yet. By the way, sister, you should make preparations. In a few days, we will go to Sichuan."