Clan Rise: Starting as a Grandfather

Looking at these silver notes, Yang Zhenshan’s eyelids slightly sank as he said, “Take the silver back. I give you one month’s time to get your garrison in order. After a month, I will inspect each garrison in turn. If I feel dissatisfied, I will take your heads!”

At this moment, he finally understood Zhou Lan’s feelings back then.

Zhou Lan had once swept through the entire Jianning Guard. Now, he also wanted to thoroughly clean up all the garrisons under An Yuan State City.

If it weren’t for the fact that he was presently unable to step away from his duties, he would have wanted to take down all these corrupt officials right now.

Hearing his words, Tian Gui and the others shuddered.

“Great, great Master~~” Tian Gui, incredulous, looked up at Yang Zhenshan.

He was asking for their heads!

Wasn’t this too horrifying?

Yang Zhenshan tossed the wooden box in his hand to the ground, scattering the silver notes all over.

“If you have any complaints, you can report me, or you can give these silvers to General Wang or send them to Chongshan Pass!”

“Perhaps someone would be willing to take me down on your behalf!”

His gaze grew even colder. “Five thousand taels of silver, quite the generous gesture!”

“If it was not for the lack of available people at my disposal, I would have beheaded you all right now!”

“Scram!”

Yang Zhenshan was not the least bit polite and did not care whether these people would cause trouble.

Creating trouble requires backing.

After all, Xu Wanfu managed to control the garrison and had mysterious forces supporting him.

But what about this group of people?

At most, they were just a bunch of greedy rodents.

Yang Zhenshan felt that saying even a single extra word to them was a waste of his breath.

As for whether they might bribe other officials to cause trouble for Yang Zhenshan?

Yang Zhenshan wasn’t worried at all.

Don’t forget, he had the Secret Martial Guards by his side.

At this time, anyone who dares to cause trouble for him wouldn’t have to wait for Yang Zhenshan to act; the Secret Martial Guards would take care of them first.

Tian Gui was completely panicked, shakily picking up the silver notes from the ground.

“We take our leave!”

One by one, they ran out of the hall as if fleeing.

Yang Zhenshan watched their retreating figures, snorting disdainfully.

Having chased away these greedy rodents, Yang Zhenshan got up and went to his study.

At this time, his desk was piled with documents, all related to the internal affairs of the garrison office.

Yang Zhenshan flipped through the documents one by one.

But soon, he stopped and frowned at one of the documents.

“The Armaments Bureau’s archivist is Yang Zhenjiang, right?”

“Yes, Master.” Zhou Ren by his side hastily replied.

“Call him over!” ordered Yang Zhenshan.

The Armaments Bureau of the garrison office had more than thirty craftsmen in charge of many tasks, such as forging and repairing armaments, fixing the defensive devices on the city walls, and dealing with odds and ends like horseshoes and saddles.

Simply put, the Armaments Bureau was like a small military factory, responsible for all the military equipment used by the army.

Soon, Zhou Ren brought in a man in his fifties, short and sturdily built, to the study.

“This humble elder greets the garrison Master!” Yang Zhenjiang bowed.

“Stand down!” said Yang Zhenshan casually.

Yang Zhenjiang straightened up, his head bowed and eyes following, seemingly very nervous.

Yang Zhenshan raised the document in his hand and said, “You’re requesting a batch of cotton-padded clothes? What, haven’t the craftsmen been issued cotton-padded clothes by the government office before?”

“Responding to the Master, the last time the Armaments Bureau distributed cotton-padded clothes was four years ago,” replied Yang Zhenjiang in a low tone.

“…”

Yang Zhenshan sighed lightly with resignation.

In the border towns, military households suffered, but craftsmen households suffered even more.

At least the military households had their own land to farm. Unless there was a natural disaster, they could usually scrape by with enough to eat.

But these craftsmen had to rely on the government office for sustenance. If the government office gave them a little more, they could eat a little more; if the government didn’t provide for them, they had no choice but to endure the cold and hunger.

This situation was commonplace in Chongshan Town, but previously, Yinghe Castle did not have an Armaments Bureau. Even if there were blacksmiths and carpenters, they originated from military households, so Yang Zhenshan never paid attention to the craftsmen’s plight.

Yang Zhenshan took out a large stack of ledger books and checked the remaining cotton-padded clothes in the storage.

Actually, the garrison office was not lacking in supplies. After Lu Chongde and Liang Chu took office, they distributed plenty of supplies, from food, military equipment, armaments, to cotton-padded clothes, everything was well-stocked.

“Zhou Ren, take him to the storeroom to get the cotton clothes. Two sets for each person in the Armaments Bureau!”

“Actually, forget just the Armaments Bureau. Every person serving in the government office should be given two sets.”

The craftsmen of the Armaments Bureau hadn’t been issued cotton clothes, and neither had the other civil servants and constables in the office. It was best to take this opportunity to distribute them all at once to save trouble.

As for such items as cotton clothes, Yang Zhenshan believed in the principle that what could be used should not be wasted. Rather than letting them gather dust in the storeroom, it was better to distribute them all.

When Yang Zhenjiang heard Yang Zhenshan’s words, he immediately beamed with joy and thanked him, “Thank you, Master. You are benevolent!”

Zhou Ren also felt a peculiar emotion arising within him.

He had been a civil servant for twelve years and had experienced numerous garrison officers and seen all sorts of officials, large and small, over a hundred in total. Yet which of them truly cared for their civil servants, constables, or craftsmen.

Although his interactions with Yang Zhenshan were brief, he knew that the Master Yang in front of him was different from all previous officials.

Yang Zhenshan paid no heed to Yang Zhenjiang’s gratitude, gesturing with his hand that they could leave.

Bowing, Yang Zhenjiang exited the study, and soon the government office was filled with sounds of surprise and joy.

Distributing cotton-padded clothes, and even two sets at a time, was a happy event for every constable and craftsman.

There’s no need to elaborate on the craftsmen, but the constables are also a group of people at the bottom suffering hardships.

The garrison office is not the county government; the constables at the county government still hold some power in their hands, whereas most of the constables at the garrison office are more like a group of menial servants. In comparison, the civil servants have a slightly better status, wielding some authority.

Hearing the excited voices outside, the corners of Yang Zhenshan’s mouth slightly curled up.

Winning people’s hearts starts from now.

Two sets of cotton-padded clothes were enough to greatly increase goodwill for him among most in the office.

As for whether he could make these people hold him in high regard, Yang Zhenshan was not worried at all.

What he managed to achieve at Yinghe Castle, he could do here as well, even better.

“Dad, Liang Rong is here again!”

At this moment, Yang Minghao suddenly ran in to report.

Yang Zhenshan’s eyebrows raised, “Liang Rong? Where is he?”

“Housekeeper Wu has already invited him to the Guest Hall!” Yang Minghao said.

Yang Zhenshan’s eyes slightly narrowed. Liang Rong had come again?

This was within his expectations, but he didn’t expect Liang Rong to come so soon; he thought Liang Rong would wait a couple more days.

“Go ask Wei Cen to come over!”

After instructing his son, Yang Zhenshan got up and walked towards the back yard.

Upon arriving at the Guest Hall, he saw Liang Rong leisurely sipping tea. This fellow was really comfortable, showing no sign of reverence upon visiting the garrison office.

“Master Yang! I’ve come to bother you again!” Seeing Yang Zhenshan, Liang Rong immediately stood up with a full-faced smile to greet him.

Yang Zhenshan also showed a smile and said, “Please take a seat, Brother Liang!”

When the two met again, they inevitably engaged in insincere pleasantries.

Soon, Wu Hai brought tea for Yang Zhenshan, while Wei Cen stood behind him, silent like an attendant.

After the pleasantries ended, Liang Rong steered the conversation to the main topic.

“Master Yang, there is something I’d like to discuss with you!”

“Oh? What’s that?” Yang Zhenshan kept a smile on his face.

“This~~” Liang Rong glanced at Wei Cen without changing his demeanor.

Yang Zhenshan obviously understood his meaning, “Don’t worry, he is my house servant!”

Liang Rong wanted Wei Cen to step out so that he could have a private word with Yang Zhenshan.

But how could Yang Zhenshan let Wei Cen leave?

He couldn’t afford to talk to Liang Rong alone now; it would be too risky if it aroused suspicions from Lv Hua and the Secret Martial Guards.

To avoid future complications, Yang Zhenshan had decided that anything related to the smuggling case should involve Wei Cen.

To avoid future discrepancies or being unable to explain clear.

Wei Cen, the house servant, glanced at Yang Zhenshan; I, a hundred households of the Secret Martial Guards, have to act like a house servant!

Although he disliked the title of house servant, Wei Cen did not speak up, continuing to stand cold-faced behind Yang Zhenshan like a wooden stake.

So I’m a house servant, but not a real one.

Hearing Yang Zhenshan’s response, Liang Rong did not dwell on Wei Cen’s presence and whispered, “I want your authorization.”

“Authorization? How could that be possible?” Yang Zhenshan promptly refused.

An authorization is essentially a pass with an official seal. The garrison office does not have the power to deploy troops; at most, it can only dispatch soldiers back and forth between the outposts outside the city.

Yang Zhenshan’s authorization could spare them from inspections by the nearby garrisons, and the purpose of Liang Rong wanting the authorization was simple: to transport their goods out of the border.

Previously, Cao Han operated this way, handing the authorization to Liang Rong, who could then openly transport his goods beyond the border.

Liang Rong was not angered by Yang Zhenshan’s refusal; instead, he said with a smile brimming with intent, “300 taels for one authorization!”

An authorization is also time-sensitive; it needs to specify the exact time and purpose.

This time, Yang Zhenshan didn’t refuse and instead asked, “What do you want to do?”

“Cough cough, I have some business beyond the pass,” Liang Rong spoke vaguely but made his point clear.

Having business beyond the pass means dealing with the East Sea Hu Clan, who else could it be? Certainly not trading with the cattle and sheep beyond the pass.

Yang Zhenshan looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze.

Is this a probe?

The last visit was a probe, and this visit is still a probe.

But this time, the probing is deeper, bolder.

Of course, this also means they want to recruit Yang Zhenshan.

“I need to think over this matter carefully!”

“Master, our business is not a one-time deal, it will happen three to five times every month, and each time Master will get 300 taels of silver!” Liang Rong continued to tempt.

taels each time, three to five times a month, that’s over a thousand taels a month, more than ten thousand a year.

Indeed very tempting!

It’s no wonder even a noble like Cao Han got dragged down.

This also indirectly indicates how lucrative smuggling beyond the borders is.

Just issuing an authorization nets him 300 taels, what about others?