amaotonovel Chapter 139: Night Talk in the Study (Part )
Chapter 139: Night Talk in the Study (Part )
Liu Shihao took a sip of the tea his wife handed him and continued to say to Liu Feiyun:
"In martial arts sects, especially those with a long history, there are many earth-level masters. Even the earth-level masters in the imperial court and the big families mostly come from the sects."
"In the imperial court, most martial artists exist in the military. They are numerous, but there are not many masters. They are mostly disciples!"
"Among the big clans, there are a large number of core warriors, including many elite warriors at the cultivator level and human-level masters at the master level."
"Take the Yuanyan family that you keep saying you want to seek revenge on. The Yuanyan family is a landed noble family that was granted fiefdom when our Taizu founded the country. It is one of the ten great royal families represented by aristocratic families. The Yuanyan family controls an entire county, and there are more than 100,000 registered households. In addition, they have continuously absorbed refugees over the years, so the population they actually control is at least no less than one million."
"As for the martial artists of the Yuanyan family, it is conservatively estimated that there are at least a thousand of them who are at the entry level or above. There are nearly a hundred masters at the master level alone, plus tens of thousands of private soldiers! Tell me! Can I rashly go to war with them just for a family slave?"
Liu Feiyun didn't dare to refute and could only nod in agreement.
Liu Shihao changed the subject and said, "Actually, I'm not afraid of the Yuan Yan family. Besides, our Liu family and the Yuan Yan family will have a battle sooner or later, it's just that the time has not come yet!"
Liu Feiyun was puzzled again and asked, "A battle sooner or later? Could it be that their Yuanyan family and our Liu family also have an old grudge?"
"There is no old grudge, and the matter of your personal maid is not a new grudge for me. But their Yuanyan family is always thinking about restoring the country. Once the chaotic times come, they will definitely raise an army to revolt. After they gain a foothold in Jinzhou, they will definitely attack the heartland of the empire. Before that, the first thing to open is naturally Anya County, the northeastern gateway to the heartland of the empire! My Liu family has been blessed by the court for generations, so how can we let them pass easily? At that time, we will inevitably fight them to the death!"
Liu Feiyun suddenly realized that the Yuan Yan family and he were not just having a personal grudge. But he immediately became a little worried and asked, "But! Can our Liu family stop them alone?"
"We have to stop them even if we can't. What's more, our Liu family is not vulnerable to the Yuanyan family! Next, I will tell you about the wealth I have accumulated for you over the years, so that you can have an idea and know what to do next."
Liu Feiyun was shocked when he heard this: After so many years, he still didn't know what his family's financial situation was!
"There are currently 3,000 registered civilian households in the territory, but in reality there are no less than 5,000 households, and several thousand slave households, totaling about 50,000 people!"
"More than 50,000 people! This is almost as big as a small county! There are so many people in our Liu family's territory! Isn't it said that according to the imperial law, the number of households in the territory cannot exceed the limit of the number of households granted, and the average number of people per household cannot exceed six? Especially the slave households, they cannot exceed half of the number of granted households?" Liu Feiyun said in surprise again.
"What's so surprising about this? Nowadays, which lord doesn't privately accumulate population in preparation for chaos? Well, let's not talk about the population first. Let's talk about the private army, the Tiger Power Iron Guard. On the surface, there are only 500 people, but in fact there are 800 people. They are all martial artists who have entered the entry level. Among them, there are more than 500 people in the entry level, more than 200 people in the apprentice level, nearly 100 people in the cultivator level, and 10 people in the master level. In addition, among the Green Willow Guards, the local soldiers and brave men of Anping County, and the county government, there are nearly 200 martial artists above the entry level who have been trained by us. These martial artists together account for half of the Yuanyan family, but there are fewer human-level masters!"
"Oh my god! So many martial artists! How much money would it cost to train them all?"
"When it comes to money, let your mother talk!" Liu Shihao looked at Chu Bihe.
Chu Bihe nodded and said, "If we had to rely on your father's salary and the tax revenue from the territory to make a living, our family would have been so poor that we couldn't even afford to eat! We would have to rely on me to make money to support the family! I can't really say how much our family earns each year, because we won't know until the end of the year! You just need to know that our Green Willow Chamber of Commerce is now operating dozens of businesses, with nearly a hundred workshops of all sizes, hundreds of shops and stores, employing tens of thousands of people, and a monthly net profit of no less than hundreds of thousands of taels of silver! Oh, right! The Green Willow Guards also employ hundreds of foreign martial artists! You can learn about this slowly in the future!"
Liu Shihao concluded, "I told you all this today so that you can be mentally prepared before you go to the imperial capital. You said you want to pursue both civil and military careers, which is fine! Your uncle entered the official career as a scholar, but you must learn and master the military affairs! In troubled times, only when you have soldiers in your hands and know how to use them can you have the capital to stand firm! There is nothing you can do about it. Who made you born in my Liu family and become the son of me, the butcher Liu! Starting tomorrow, you must spend at least half of your time every month in the barracks to study military affairs! Do you understand?"
Liu Feiyun quickly replied, "Son, that's exactly what I'm thinking! I plan to enter the military camp for a month starting tomorrow, during which I will stay in the camp and interact with the soldiers, so that I can get to know the military affairs of the empire from the bottom up! Then I will start recruiting and training people while continuing to practice and learn all kinds of civil and military matters."
"Stay in the barracks for a month! Although the time is a little short, it will at least give you a preliminary understanding of the ordinary low-level soldiers in the army. Then you should go to the village barracks first! The village soldiers in Anping County are different from those in other places who only train and serve for a few months each year. They are stationed in the barracks all year round, just like the state divisions and county brigades in other places. Their combat power is only slightly weaker than the imperial guards directly under the court and some powerful divisions in some states! As for the Iron Guard Battalion, it is a special type of soldier, unique to our family, and not representative. You will learn more about it later!"
"Yes!"
"In that case, I will have someone arrange for you to enter the rural military camp tomorrow. It's getting late now, so you should go back and rest early!"
"Yes! Father! Then your son will go back first!"
After Liu Feiyun finished speaking, he turned around and was about to leave. However, just as he walked out of the door, he heard Liu Shihao say again: "Remember not to act on your emotions in the future. You can avenge your maid, but that depends on your own ability! Your mother and I will not intervene to help! You have to do it according to your ability!"
"Yes! Father!"
After the couple watched Liu Feiyun leave the yard, they looked at each other in silence for a long time before Chu Bihe said, "I don't know if it would be good or bad for Yun'er to tell him all this now?"
Liu Shihao said softly, "Whether good or bad, he will have to face these things sooner or later! Even if you feel sorry for him, you can't protect him from all the storms for the rest of his life! Besides! Wasn't it you who first asked me to tell him about these things? Why! Do you regret it?"
"Regret? A little indeed! But so what! Who made you, a butcher, make so many enemies! He is destined to not be able to live a peaceful life! Let him face these things earlier now. Although he may misjudge the situation, make many mistakes, or even fall into danger, at least you and I are there to remedy the situation! Let him grow up slowly! But it makes him suffer! Alas! My poor child!" As she spoke, Chu Bihe could not help crying softly again.