“Thank you, Your Highness!”
Jin Feng put away the box and smiled at the Ninth Princess.
He knew that assisting her in completely annihilating the invading enemy was certainly a merit.
However, matters involving such interests had always been a hotbed of court factional struggles. Without the pro-war and pro-peace factions arguing for a month or two, no result could be expected.
Yet in just a few days, he had obtained the tiger tally, which meant the Ninth Princess must have utilised her remaining connections in the capital.
“Sir has fulfilled everything promised to Wuyang, so naturally Wuyang will fulfil what was promised to sir!”
The Ninth Princess said, “It’s just that other rewards are still under discussion in the court. It will probably take some time before they are finalised.”
Jin Feng had guessed correctly. To secure this quota, she had gone to considerable effort.
Although she had long obtained the second-class army designation, when it became known that the Ninth Princess intended to give this army to Jin Feng, it naturally provoked unanimous opposition from the pro-peace faction.
Joking aside, Jin Feng currently only had an escort agency, yet he had already caused such a huge stir. If he were given a second-class army, would he not soar to the heavens?
The Ninth Princess and the Qing family had sacrificed many interests, and coupled with Chen Ji recently being somewhat carried away by the Ninth Princess’s battle report, the matter was finally accomplished.
As for other rewards, such as fiefdoms, titles, or monetary grants, the Ninth Princess knew Jin Feng did not care about them, so she did not push for them. They could wait until the court had argued enough.
The permission to build a commemorative monument, however, involved no major conflicts of interest for the courtiers, so it was obtained easily.
“What name does sir plan to give this force?”
The Ninth Princess asked with a smile. “Once the name is decided, the seals can be engraved.”
“Let it be called the Zhenyuan Army,” Jin Feng thought for a moment and replied.
“Zhenyuan, to awe distant lands. Very good.”
The Ninth Princess nodded slightly. “By the way, sir, there is one more thing I forgot to mention.”
“What is it?” Jin Feng asked.
“It’s just that…”
The Ninth Princess said somewhat embarrassedly, “Although the Ministry of War has approved the quota, they say the Ministry of Revenue has not allocated funds and provisions for the Zhenyuan Army. So… for the first few months, you may need to advance the military pay yourself.”
“I…”
Jin Feng almost wanted to curse at that moment.
Other generals profited from embezzling military pay and provisions, growing fat and wealthy.
When it came to him, not only could he not embezzle, he had to put in his own money to cover the pay.
This was the difference between having deep roots and having none.
Other spoiled young generals all had entrenched family backgrounds. Even if no one in their family held office in the court, they had relatives who did.
The only people Jin Feng could rely on were the Ninth Princess and the Duke of Qing.
The Ninth Princess could only operate behind the scenes, and he was not close with the Duke of Qing. Their relationship was purely transactional, so the Duke naturally would not exert himself fully for him.
“This matter was not handled well by Wuyang. This palace will find a way to urge the Ministries of Revenue and War to allocate the funds and provisions as soon as possible.”
The Ninth Princess also felt a bit ashamed.
“No need. It’s just one army. If worse comes to worst, I can have them suppress bandits or work part-time as escorts. Somehow we will manage to feed them.”
Jin Feng shook his head.
The connections the Ninth Princess had left in the capital were, frankly, the people she had cultivated during her time there, or favours owed, or handles she held over certain ministers.
Favours and leverage diminished with use. Good steel should be saved for the blade.
For a bit of money, Jin Feng felt it would be a pity to use them up.
Jiangnan had always been prosperous and was also the region with the most pleasure quarters.
Soap was extremely popular in Jiangnan. Many shops could not keep up with demand. Goods delivered today would sell out without waiting until tomorrow.
Some branches had even started accepting advance payments. Customers had to pay upfront to secure soap.
Even after spending vast sums on grain, Jin Feng still had large amounts of silver flowing in daily.
Jin Feng wanted the army designation only to legitimise equipping weapons, not to embezzle provisions.
That was too low-class. He really looked down on it.
“Your Highness, now that the fighting is over, what are your plans?”
Jin Feng handed the box to Da Liu and looked at the Ninth Princess.
“This palace would like to go to Xihe Bay. Does sir agree?” the Ninth Princess asked with a smile.
“Of course I welcome it, but is Your Highness allowed to go?” Jin Feng glanced at her sideways.
“As expected, sir has seen through it,” the Ninth Princess said in a low voice. “Although this battle is over, who knows if Gada will bring men for revenge? Moreover, the pro-peace faction in the court has not given up and is still making trouble. So I expect I will need to stay in Xichuan a while longer.”
“Isn’t it that we have already won? What more do the pro-peace faction want to make trouble about? What are they after!”
Da Liu grumbled.
Actually, when Jin Feng and the Ninth Princess spoke, a guard like him had no right to interject.
But he really could not hold back.
After speaking, he realised he had overstepped and quickly lowered his head. “Your Highness, sir, forgive me. I spoke out of turn!”
Jin Feng had no strong sense of hierarchy and replied with a smile, “It is good to ask when you do not understand.”
“Then what are they after?” Da Liu scratched his head and asked. “Great Kang is being bullied. What benefit do they get from that?”
“In the end, it is still about interests.”
Jin Feng said, “A while ago, two merchant caravans passed along the official road. You should have seen them, right?”
“I saw them,” Da Liu nodded.
“In fact, there has always been trade between Great Kang and the Dangxiang, Khitan, and Tubo. Our ironware, salt, porcelain, cloth, liquor, tea, and such are extremely popular on the grasslands and plateaus.
Caravans taking these goods there can exchange them for large quantities of cattle and sheep, turning a profit several times over upon resale.
The silver that Great Kang caravans earn annually from the Dangxiang and Khitan should far exceed the tribute paid to the court!”
Jin Feng said, “Which of these caravans does not have the backing of a great family? If war breaks out, their source of wealth would be cut off, would it not?”
“So that’s how it is!”
Da Liu suddenly understood, then gnashed his teeth. “Sir said that the rise and fall of the realm is every man’s responsibility. Even if they want to make money, they should not do it this way, right?”
Jin Feng was about to continue speaking when he suddenly glanced at the Ninth Princess and waved his hand. “Your Highness, I am about to say something treasonous. Please step aside for a moment.”
“Sir has already pointed at this palace and scolded me, saying he would give no face even if Father Emperor were here. What treasonous words are there that this palace cannot hear?”
The Ninth Princess rolled her eyes at Jin Feng in annoyance. “In sir’s eyes, am I really such a petty person?”
That day when Jin Feng had pointed at her nose and scolded her, the impression was far too deep.
At the time, the Ninth Princess had felt terribly wronged. From childhood to adulthood, no one had ever scolded her like that.
But later, thinking about it, she felt that perhaps only then had Jin Feng truly treated her as one of his own.
“Then I will say it?” Jin Feng asked tentatively.
“Go ahead. This palace also wants to hear how sir views this matter,” the Ninth Princess teased. “Even if you call my father a fatuous ruler, this palace will accept it.”
