Yes, Madam Prime Minister

Page 345

More than two hundred years ago, during a period of war, the Central Plains were completely devastated, with nine out of ten houses empty. The remaining people were either bandits or landlords who had formed strongholds to protect themselves. At that time, David's great-grandfather, who had not yet unified Seres, carried out a resettlement and land distribution program in this area. However, the land was not distributed to individuals, but to a village community. In order to facilitate the implementation and to suppress bandits and landlords, the community leaders were all junior military officers.

More than two hundred years have passed, and the village chief of that time has developed into a family. However, unlike many places in the south, where a village simply has one surname and a large clan is divided into several branches, in these collective villages in the Central Plains, the village chief's family is just more numerous.

Because it is not far from the capital, the area is mainly engaged in agriculture. The land in the village community does not belong to the village head but to the village community itself. The upper limit of the scale is restricted and cannot be expanded. Villagers and community members can also move around. Therefore, even today, the village head's family is not as harsh as the landlords of the past. In some ways, the villagers in these communities live better than many farmers and laborers in the south.

Most of David's army officers come from the president's family, including Lu Jianling.

It would be outrageous if someone from such a background didn't engage in nepotism or bring their entire family in. It would be good enough if they didn't bring their own cat in to collect military pay. Why do we say cat and not dog? Because the dog has already been brought in to collect military pay.

However, their military skills and fighting spirit are beyond doubt.

After all, they've been learning about warfare since elementary school, so how could their military skills be lacking? And as a small shareholder of the country, how could they lack the will to fight?

It's just that this group of people generally feel that they can't do politics well when they're with the southern insects.

Of course, if the southerners are willing to offer grain and the purchase price of minimally processed agricultural products, it is not impossible to restore their citizenship.

Two days before departure.

The heavily pregnant Madam Zhao, protected by Zhao Yingqi, arrived at Lu Jianling's residence.

Lu Jianling is a general. For non-border towns, this official position is not permanent. Once he leaves the local garrison, he must return to his original position and go through a series of procedures.

After spending a month running through the procedures in Guangdong, Lu Jianling settled down in Foshan. Since the journey was arranged by the imperial court, he had to travel with other officials, and he stayed there for two months.

Lu Jianling was not a sociable person. As the daughter of a fisherman from Jiaodong, she didn't have much to do with the people here.

However, since they lived nearby and would be traveling together later, she still provided some light for Liu Menglong's family. She naturally recognized this Madam Zhao and this Miss Zhao, who was said to be Luo Nan's concubine but looked almost exactly like Madam Zhao.

Madam Zhao came to deliver gifts, hoping that Lu Jianling would take good care of her husband once they arrived in the capital.

Ronan only reminded Liu Menglong once and then said nothing more, but Zhao Yingqi was different; she kept repeating it to Madam Zhao.

Zhao Yingqi had accidentally stumbled into a cataclysmic event, and due to her own unique abilities, she came to this time and space from another dimension. She had witnessed the “zombie siege” in Egypt and had also entered another dimension with Ronan, experiencing adventures along the way. She knew very well that if anything happened in the other dimension in Luoyang, the consequences would be extremely serious.

All signs indicate that something bad is about to happen in Luoyang.

She looked down on Liu Menglong, but she was also worried that her other self would lose her husband.

Upon learning that it was Madam Zhao who had come to visit, Lu Jianling hurriedly put on a long robe and slipped on hemp slippers to prepare to go out and greet her.

Why wear a long robe on such a hot day? Because it's too hot here. Besides her niece, there is only one female guard in the residence. She is dressed very lightly, just a Western-style silk corset. She wears Western style because her breasts are too big. Wearing a Seres-style bra would cause them to bounce, and if she moves vigorously, it would feel like they would rub against her. In the past, she would wrap her breasts tightly with a breast wrap and soft padding.

Actually, what she was wearing wasn't Western style, but Ronan's. It was a gift from Ronan to Dinia, created by Ronan in collaboration with some designers from his original timeline, using the superb craftsmanship of this timeline. Later, it was popularized and, over the decades, spread to Seris, solving the problems of many busty female superhumans.

Wearing this underneath isn't the problem; the problem is that Lu Jianling only has a transparent silk gauze dress on the outside. Yes, transparent, because Guangdong is such a hot place. In June, it's already over 30 degrees Celsius, even hotter than the hottest time in Jiaodong.

Lu Jianling rushed out. She was tall and had large feet, and the dark purple silk stockings she wore somehow looked like short stockings. The stockings at the toes and ankles had a semi-transparent silky texture.

After a few words, Lu Jianling learned the purpose of Madam Zhao's visit.

She was somewhat puzzled. Of course, she sensed something was amiss, but she figured this grand ceremony was just going to cause some political turmoil. Liu Menglong was a civil official, not part of her system, so there was nothing she could do. As for the talk of security, that was laughable. The capital was full of experts, and some of them were going to participate in the ceremony. Who could possibly cause trouble? Besides, Liu Menglong was a renowned figure. With him around, how could anything happen to Liu Menglong?

Lu Jianling thought Madam Zhao was overthinking things, but she could understand since she was pregnant. So, she accepted the gift and promised to bring her husband back safe and sound.

She will have to return, unless the court promotes or transfers her. Otherwise, after the grand ceremony, she will have to return to Guangxi to serve as the General of Guangxi.

"Then thank you, Lord Lu," Madam Zhao said.

"Madam Zhao, you're too kind." Lu Jianling was also embarrassed; she had clearly accepted the gift for nothing.

Afterwards, Lu Jianling said a few more words of blessing to the children and then saw them to the door.

Once outside, Madam Zhao smiled at Zhao Yingqi, "Are you satisfied now, sister?" Madam Zhao was indeed worried about her husband, but she also felt that asking Lu Jianling for help was completely unnecessary.

"Okay, okay," Zhao Yingqi replied.

She prepared and packed half of the gift, and inside was a secret letter containing only a formula for an antidote to zombification. Lu Jianling would probably assume it was from Liu Menglong.

Ronan also gave Old Zhuo a copy of the same thing.

The reasons for doing this were twofold: first, Ronan himself was only estimating the worst-case scenario; and second, because he was a foreigner with an unusual status, he was not trusted at all.

Chapter 799 Soldiers are all simple-minded; a storm is brewing; an incomprehensible prescription.

September arrived, and after more than two months of travel, Liu Menglong, Lu Jianling, and their group finally reached the capital.

In fact, if they had gone directly to sea, or first headed north and then east along the Yangtze River, and then north along the Grand Canal, it wouldn't have taken this long. But they were all officials, so they had to take a fixed route and rest at fixed post stations. Moreover, they didn't travel all the way, but rather stopped and went, which is why it took them more than two months.

Upon arriving in the capital, Lu Jianling did not immediately enter the city with Liu Menglong and several other officials. Instead, she waited until nightfall, when the city gates were about to close, before entering.

Because she is so strikingly beautiful, it would be one thing if she were ugly and secretly mocked, but she is both beautiful and ugly. She has a pretty face, but she is too tall and has a large frame, which makes her ugly in the eyes of many people.

Some people looked at her strangely and pointed at her. As an official, she didn't want to cause trouble, so every time she returned to the capital, she would enter the city at night.

In fact, when she was young, she always dressed as a man and wore a mask. At first glance, no one would think she was a woman. It was only because her deceased husband disliked her and felt that she had lost face that she stopped wearing men's clothes and a mask.

After arriving in the city at night and returning home, Lu Jianling chatted with her three sons, took a good shower, and went to bed. The next day was a day off, and early in the morning, she went to the residence of Liu Yixin, the Minister of War.

Liu Yixin was her father-in-law.

After the gatekeeper announced the arrival, a middle-aged man of short stature with a mustache, thin eyebrows and eyes, and a somewhat effeminate appearance came to greet Lu Jianling.

"Greetings, sister-in-law," the middle-aged man said respectfully.

"Second Uncle is always so polite." Lu Jianling smiled and handed the gift box she was carrying in her left hand to the other person. "This is a gift for your wife."

After saying that, Lu Jianling left.

Upon arriving at the main hall and meeting her father-in-law, Lu Jianling put down the gift box and performed a deep bow, saying, "Daughter greets Father."

Liu Yixin was also short in stature, with thin eyebrows and beady eyes, a slightly hooked nose, three long whiskers, and a protruding mouth. He did not look like a man in charge of military affairs at all, but rather like an old fox who was used to playing tricks and had become cunning.

Liu Yixin beckoned his daughter-in-law to get up quickly, "Jianling, the magistrate of Jiangzhou County is the son of an old friend of mine, is he alright?"

"Father, it's all good." Lu Jianling's tone was somewhat stiff.

Liu Yixin sighed, "You know that's not what I meant."

Lu Jianling understood, of course, that her father-in-law had used his power to deliberately change her route back to the capital and arrange a blind date for her.

"My daughter will never remarry," Lu Jianling stated firmly.

Liu Yixin sighed, "Alas, although what I'm saying is rather impolite, please forgive this old man's rudeness. You are still young and should not remain a widow."

"If I remarry, how will the three of them cope?" Lu Jianling asked rhetorically.

Liu Yixin slammed his hand on the table. The table was fine, but the entire mansion shook three times. "My three good grandsons hate having a scoundrel as their father the most in their lives."

Lu Jianling remained silent.

Liu Yixin's anger subsided slightly. "Back in Annam, I was arrogant and thought I was an unparalleled general. I went deep behind enemy lines and was surrounded by the southern barbarians and Western invaders. Unfortunately, I was defeated and seriously wounded. It was your father who risked his life to protect me and break through the encirclement. Later, when we organized a counterattack, your father also bravely took the lead, but he died young."

“But I have wronged your father and I have wronged you, for making you marry my good-for-nothing son.”

Speaking of his son, Liu Yixin's anger flared up again.

His eldest son was utterly incompetent and immoral, yet he was the eldest legitimate son and possessed talent. Despite being given such a good match, he didn't cherish her and continued his philandering after marriage. In the end, he even got into a fight over a woman and was beaten to death.

Lu Jianling kept her head down and remained silent. It was a painful memory, and coincidentally, the person who beat her husband to death back then was Madam Zhao's father.

Although Liu Yixin disliked his eldest son intensely and often said things like "Why don't you just die?", years ago, when Lady Zhao's father was defeated in battle, Liu Yixin, who was already in a high position even though he was not yet a minister, still took a small revenge by exiling Lady Zhao's father to the Northeast.

“Without Father’s guidance, I would not be where I am today,” Lu Jianling said. “Please calm down, Father, and just consider it my willfulness.”

"Enough, let's not talk about this anymore." Liu Yixin was getting angrier and angrier, and he didn't want to say anything more. "The grand sacrificial ceremony to Heaven on the winter solstice is in a few months, and I'm afraid something will happen."

When the conversation turned to business, Lu Jianling relaxed immediately. "How about we feign illness?"

“If I’m claiming to be sick, then I really am sick,” Liu Yixin said with a helpless smile.

David's Ministry of War had no military power; it could only manage logistics and armed forces.

Military power was not in the emperor's hands either.

The Imperial Guards were under the control of the Military Governor's Office, officially known as the Military Governor's Office for the Inner and Outer Imperial Guards. This was the institution used by Emperor Taizu when he was still the Duke of Wei and called for the defense of the capital. The previous emperors of the Taizu Emperor were able to completely control this office, but the current emperor could only rely on its support.

The border troops were under the control of the Imperial Military Administration, while the navy and overseas forces were subordinate to the Maritime Affairs Administration. Neither of these administrations was entirely under the emperor's command.

“What can a daughter do?” Lu Jianling asked. “We soldiers are simple-minded and loyal to His Majesty.”

Simplicity and loyalty actually mean doing anything in the name of righteousness.

Her lack of social interaction and strict adherence to etiquette do not mean she is a heartless person who would sit idly by and wait for death.

"Don't overthink it. It's not going to escalate to the point of fighting. It's just that His Majesty is young and impetuous, and has gained some unknown support. He's eager to take back some things and is ready to choose sides. The ones who should be anxious are not powerless old men like me, but the two groups who are eager to overpower each other but can't do so yet."

When Liu Yixin spoke about serious matters, he remained calm and composed, and even when faced with an impending storm, he maintained a nonchalant demeanor.

The two factions he referred to were actually the pro-war faction in the south and the pro-peace faction in the north.

That's right. The South, which didn't have much control over the army, was the pro-war faction, while the North, which formed the core of the army, was the pro-peace faction.

With factories springing up in the south and capitalism just emerging, they advocated for the court to decentralize power, abolish the equal-field system, reform the imperial guards, and also for external expansion.

Meanwhile, the North, or rather the Central Plains, desired peace, reduced national spending, maintained stability, centralized financial and military power, and resolutely cracked down on those scoundrels who acted arbitrarily and provoked border conflicts.

"By the way, before I left..." Lu Jianling told her father-in-law that Madam Zhao had included a medicine formula in her gift that could help resolve a certain abnormal condition in the body.

Madam Zhao had no idea that her father had killed Lu Jianling's husband, and Liu Menglong naturally didn't know either. If he didn't know, then Luo Nan knew even less.

But Lu Jianling didn't know whether Madam Zhao was pretending not to know or genuinely didn't know.

Liu Yixin couldn't figure out what this meant either, so he said, "Let's leave it for now."

Lu Jianling nodded, "I will do as Father says. I will take my leave now."

She said that, but in her heart she planned to have her eldest son, who was good at this, figure out what the prescription was.

Chapter 800 The Past Is Too Painful to Recall, Troubling Sons, and an Extremely Bizarre Prescription

Lu Jianling lost her mother at birth and her father at the age of nine. With the help of Liu Yixin, her father's former superior, she entered the best school. At the age of twelve, she entered the first level of the Zhengwei rank, which can be called genius. After that, she entered a martial arts school to study, and her cultivation never stopped improving. At the age of eighteen, she broke into the third level. At the age of nineteen, she married Liu Yixin's eldest son, Liu Daolin, at the age of twenty-four.

In the same year, Lu Jianling entered the Ministry of War's Proofreading Office, a purely clerical position responsible for managing archives.

With her achievements and abilities, she could naturally be appointed as a military officer. However, although she was very interested in military affairs and did not want to be a housewife, she also hoped to have more time to be a wife and mother. Therefore, she asked her father-in-law to find her such a leisurely position.

Looking at some archives and outdated military reports, and engaging in armchair strategizing with colleagues to satisfy one's cravings, is enough.

Compared to her, Liu Daolin can only be described as having mediocre talent. He barely entered the first rank at the age of twenty-four. He can't be said to have no military talent at all, but it's just that it's really not visible.

However, for those who possess talent but are not born into privilege, if they want to become officials, the first rank can only mean that they can directly become officials without having to start from the bottom.

For Liu Daolin, it was enough. With this rank, he could access his father's resources and rise to the rank of mid-level officer without lifting a finger.

There's nothing we can do; Liu Daolin was just lucky to be reincarnated into such a powerful family.

For the powerful and wealthy, being an extraordinary person is proof of identity, and holding a high position is enough to cross the threshold.

After all, Seris's current emperor is only a Tier 1.

Lu Jianling's feelings towards her deceased husband were complex. Initially, she didn't particularly like him, but she didn't dislike him either. Liu Daolin's appearance and lack of talent were completely indifferent to her. His somewhat frivolous personality, coupled with a touch of lechery, wasn't unacceptable to her, given her firm belief that women should be dutiful and docile at home.

There was only one thing Lu Jianling knew very well: Liu Daolin didn't like her.

He was very cold to her, and would scold her for the smallest things. She never talked back, but Liu Daolin would only get angrier and scold her more harshly, and then slam the door and leave after a while.

In terms of sex, Liu Daolin was very enthusiastic at first and liked to show off. He even took the opportunity to hit her, but she didn't care. Liu Daolin's strength was not enough to hurt her. After the first few times, he started to say some lewd words and asked her to answer, but she had no idea how to respond.

It wasn't until later, when she specifically sought advice from others, that she understood some things and began to respond to her husband's calls, but the results were not ideal.

She gave birth to her eldest child the year after she got married, when she was twenty years old.

The second and third children were conceived after Liu Daolin vented his frustrations on her while he was half-drunk. She was so sure of this because it only happened on those two occasions.

After their third child was born, the two never had sex again.

When she was twenty-eight, Liu Daolin, who was thirty-three, died. He died from a fight with someone in that kind of place, and was then beaten to death by Zhao Yingqi's father, who was still a teenager at the time.

She talked for a long time with the woman who indirectly caused her husband's death—a girl who was actually only sixteen years old. She learned some of her husband's thoughts, then gave her some money and sent her away. If the girl hadn't left, she would have died a terrible death.

In the same year, she transferred to a military post, starting as a battalion commander leading a thousand soldiers.

Twenty years have passed in the blink of an eye.

Currently, Lu Jianling is the Assistant Commander of the Left Vanguard Battalion of the Imperial Guards, concurrently serving as the Commander-in-Chief of Guangxi, and holding the additional title of Vice Minister of War. He is a military officer of the third rank.

Going back to reality.

When Lu Jianling returned home, he was about to tell his three sons to behave themselves for a while, but he found that his second son was not at home. He was immediately displeased and asked his eldest son, "Where did he go?"

The eldest son, who was nearly thirty, smiled and used a high-EQ approach, saying, "Reporting to Mother, I'm doing my morning lessons with my husband."

The youngest son, barely in his early twenties, blurted out two words with very low emotional intelligence: "Soliciting prostitutes."

Lu Jianling clenched his fist, and the entire courtyard was filled with a low-pressure atmosphere. "Boss, come with me."

The eldest son could only follow reluctantly, while trying to make excuses for his younger brother, "Mother, the second son is doing quite well now. He's practically the leader of a group of young officers. Young people are full of vigor, so it's just a necessary social obligation."