The mountains meander like a giant dragon, magnificent and grand, spanning the world, disappearing into the distant horizon.

Looking at the mountains from afar, the peaks are connected, resembling a majestic natural painting.

Chen Mo came to a hillside, gazing at the sea of clouds in the distance, beneath which lay Linzhou.

Following the words Geng Songfu had told him at the time, if we want to grow, after occupying Yu State, we should advance towards Linzhou. If the situation changes by then, we could govern by drawing the line at the river, occupying a corner of the land. We could then cross the river to attack Huai State or retreat to Jiangdong, and then march along the river to annex the entire Jiangnan.

But when Chen Mo occupied the whole territory of Yu State and reported to the Court instead of the Celestial Master Army, he decided at that moment to part ways with the Celestial Master Army and no longer follow Luo Guang's orders to advance westward to Longyou Region, attacking the Western River Land.

From now on, his Three Guards... no, the Four Guards Army can be collectively called the "Chen Army" or "Mo Army."

Sun Meng, Cui Shuang, and others stepped forward, among them Cui Shuang looked at the magnificent territory and couldn't help but say, "Marshal Chen, now that we possess the lands of Qing and Yu States, we can establish ourselves as a king without heeding the whims of the Celestial Master Army or the Court."

Upon hearing this, even Sun Meng beside him couldn't help but get excited.

As a man, who hasn't dreamed of becoming a marquis or a king?

The Prince Huai and King Chong only occupy one state each, and now Marshal Chen holds two states, surely enough to claim kingship.

"Claiming kingship, what are you thinking?" Xia Zhining sternly said, "Back then, the Celestial Master Army swept through Northern Land with a million soldiers, and Luo Guang didn't declare himself king.

Xu Guozhong held the reins of the court, acting single-handedly, wielding the Emperor to command the Dukes, yet he didn't crown himself a king. If Marshal Chen dared to declare himself king now, it would definitely attract attacks from multiple forces."

"Zhi Ning is right." Chen Mo turned to glance at Cui Shuang: "This time, Captain Cui's efforts in recapturing Yu State were significant, so I won't hold it against you, but let's not mention this again in the future."

Looking at the gaze from Chen Mo.

He felt that at this moment, Chen Mo's gaze was like the gaze of the County Magistrate when he first saw him as a common villager.

Full of the aura of a superior.

In fact, Chen Mo's gaze was even stronger.

After all, Chen Mo's current status was earned by fighting through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.

"Yes." Cui Shuang lowered his gaze, cupped his hands, and responded.

"Bring the map." Chen Mo reached out to Xia Zhining.

Xia Zhining brought the map and spread it on the ground, handing a charcoal pen to Chen Mo.

The longer Xia Zhining stayed by Chen Mo's side, the more seamlessly they cooperated.

Chen Mo circled a city named "Sanyuan" with the charcoal pen.

This city lies at the border of Yu State, closest to Linzhou.

Chen Mo said, "Sun Meng."

"I am here."

"Bring the Xianzhen Guard and all defectors to Sanyuan for training." Chen Mo pointed to Sanyuan on the map and said.

He planned to build a barracks in Sanyuan, construct a training ground, and also build a granary there.

So once the soldiers are trained, they can directly march to Linzhou.

"Wei Qing, Wen Heng."

"I am here."

"Transport all the confiscated properties from the counties to Longmen County, and distribute rewards later."

"Yes."

After complying, Wei Qing and Wen Heng turned to leave.

"Wait."

Chen Mo called them back, instructing, "Also, take all the detained officials and influential families from the counties to Longmen County, and announce statewide that on June 10th, executions will be held at Longmen County's execution ground to assuage public grievances."

In recent days, while recapturing these dozens of cities, Chen Mo also had Xia Zhining investigate the major wrongdoers in these cities, such as the officials and influential families who oppressed the people, making the people wish they could flay them alive.

Then Chen Mo captured these people.

For the people of Yu State, Chen Mo's army was a group of strangers, and they feared the Chen Army.

Therefore, to establish a good rapport with the people of Yu State and win public favor, the first thing to do was to eliminate the "enemies" in the people's hearts and stand united with the people.

As long as their enemies are eliminated, they will begin to have a favorable impression of you.

Based on this good impression, you need to maintain local order, especially stopping subordinates from oppressing the common people or committing outrages.

With time, the people's guard against the Chen Army will drop, and only when the guard is relaxed can the relationship be drawn closer.

Subsequently, the most important thing is to distribute money and food, especially compensating those whose farmland has been trampled or houses damaged due to war.

Chen Mo had just earned a fortune, handling these costs with ease.

...

Soon, the news of executing corrupt officials and evil landlords on June 10th in Longmen County spread among the surrounding counties during Chen Mo and his group's return to Longmen County.

Chen Mo even invited representatives from each county, providing transportation, money, and food to invite them to Longmen County to witness.

Yu State is mountainous, mountains everywhere.

Chen Mo arrived at Longmen County on June 8th.

This was even after he and the Personal Guard Battalion arrived first; Wei Qing and Wen Heng were still on their way.

Upon returning to Longmen County, Zhang He, who stayed behind, came to report that Geng Songfu had replied.

Geng Songfu dispatched one hundred clerks, two hundred clerks, escorted by five hundred Xianzhen Guard led by Lu Yuan and Su Wen, on the way to Longmen County.

Regarding Chen Mo's proposal on governing Yu State, Geng Songfu also offered a solution.

Gather a group, suppress a group.

For example, a government office has a County Magistrate and a Deputy Magistrate, and although the Deputy Magistrate's position is lower, the two are meant to check each other, except for those magistrates who can command soldiers.

Therefore, according to Geng Songfu's suggestion, if either the County Magistrate or Deputy Magistrate is beneficial to the people, then that one should be drawn in, and the one who is not beneficial should be killed.

For example, if the County Magistrate is a corrupt official who exploits the villagers, but the Deputy Magistrate is well-regarded, then the Magistrate can be killed, and the Deputy promoted to Magistrate.

If both the County Magistrate and Deputy Magistrate are unpopular, then both should be killed, and a reputable Chief Clerk or clerk should be promoted in their place.

If the officials and clerks in the County Government Office are all alike, then promote the most influential person locally and assign a confidant as his deputy to keep him in check.

Geng Songfu's suggestion brightly illuminated Chen Mo's eyes, and he continually praised him internally as a truly wise talent.

Besides governance strategies, Geng Songfu also provided suggestions on upcoming actions.

For instance, Geng Songfu found out that Yu State had hundreds of years of mulberry growing and silkworm breeding history, so the local people could be encouraged to farm and rear silkworms, arrange for the army to cultivate land, build roads, and develop water conservancy to ensure the supply of military provisions when attacking Linzhou.

Chen Mo arranged everything accordingly.

At this moment, Zhi Ning came over excitedly, holding a pile of scrolls, and said, "Bastard, look what I found!"

"What?" Chen Mo was taken aback.

"Look at this." Zhi Ning opened a scroll and showed it to Chen Mo.

Chen Mo glanced at it and found it was a blueprint of a crossbow, very detailed. When his eyes moved to the line of red text at the bottom of the blueprint, he immediately stood up in surprise and shouted, "Divine Arm Crossbow!"

"That's right, it's the blueprint for the Divine Arm Crossbow, found in the document library of Longmen County." Zhi Ning said, handing another scroll to Chen Mo.

Chen Mo quickly took it and looked; it was not a blueprint, but a document.

The document instructed the County Magistrate of Jiapin County to build a Divine Arm Crossbow workshop in Jiapin County to manufacture Divine Arm Crossbows.

After reading it, Chen Mo was dumbfounded.

From this information, he learned that Liang Song had ordered the County Magistrate of Jiapin County to build a workshop capable of producing Divine Arm Crossbows in Jiapin County.

The Profound Leopard Cavalry, as Liang Song's private army, was strong precisely because everyone was equipped with a Divine Arm Crossbow.

The cost of the Divine Arm Crossbow was extremely high, and its manufacturing method was a closely guarded secret.

However, this secret was now in his possession.

"But why didn't we find any Divine Arm Crossbow workshop when we previously occupied Jiapin County? The local County Magistrate didn't mention it to us either." Chen Mo said in puzzlement.

Zhi Ning handed another scroll to Chen Mo and explained while he looked, "After Liang Song had armed all the Profound Leopard Cavalry with Divine Arm Crossbows, he ordered the workshop in Jiapin County to be destroyed. The workshop was built in secret, known only to the former County Magistrate of Jiapin County who is already gone—it's been two years since the current County Magistrate took office."

"I see." Chen Mo nodded, then said, "Liang Song has certainly given me plenty of surprises. Now that we have the blueprints, we can entirely rebuild a Divine Arm Crossbow workshop."

Zhi Ning nodded and gave the remaining two scrolls to Chen Mo.

One scroll recorded the time and cost to make a single Divine Arm Crossbow.

According to the project, seven people in eight days can make five crossbows... three people in two days can make one hundred and ten arrows.

The cost of a crossbow is two strings and three hundred cents.

The other scroll detailed methods for organizing cavalry, embossed with Liang Song's official seal.

After reading, Chen Mo exclaimed in awe.

He truly found the exact solution he needed.

...

On June 10th.

Under the widespread promotion by the Chen Army, the people of Longmen County exited their homes and gathered at the execution grounds, eager to witness the beheading of corrupt officials and tyrannical landlords.

Since Chen Mo publicly exposed these individuals' crimes, the people were enraged upon learning of it.

As time passed, more and more people gathered near the execution ground, ultimately forming a vast sea of people.

Nearing noon, a loud cheer erupted from the crowd.

"Here they come."

Immediately, the dense crowd cleared a path.

A group of soldiers from the Chen Army Personal Guard Battalion, clad in red and gold battle armor, exuding an intimidating aura, led the way.

Next, Chen Mo, riding the Snow Dragon Steed, followed by a cavalry unit.

Behind, over a hundred prisoners were escorted in by infantry.

As soon as the prisoners appeared, the gathered people became agitated, throwing stones and rotten vegetables in large numbers.

The prisoners were pelted, their heads bloodied, grimacing in pain.

At this scene, the people cheered enthusiastically.

Seeing this, a smile appeared on Chen Mo's face.

Before the execution, Chen Mo deliberately recited their crimes once more to further incite public anger.

As the prisoners were beheaded one by one, the surrounding people erupted in applause and cheers.

"Good."

"Well-killed!"

"Marshal Chen is a good official."

"Justice!"

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