Chapter 121: Only Money Earned through Greed Can Be Used with Confidence!
Ziyue gazed at Lin Beifan resentfully.
He deliberately aroused her curiosity, but stubbornly refused to speak. You scoundrel!
“Now, let’s talk about the methods. Your methods of uprising are also incorrect!”
“What’s wrong with them?”
Ziyue immediately retorted, “The common people are ignorant. By spreading our teachings and giving them hope for a better life, we can quickly gather a massive force! Wasn’t the previous Tianyi Sect a testament to that?”
Lin Beifan smirked, “Indeed, the speed was quite fast, and the collapse was also swift!”
Ziyue opened her mouth but found no words to say.
“These deceptive tricks of yours might deceive people for a while, but they can’t deceive them forever! Look, I have already exposed it, haven’t I? Even without me, someone else would have done it! There are plenty of smart people in the world, and they will always see through your schemes! Don’t underestimate others. If you can think of something, why can’t others?”
Ziyue felt frustrated and grunted, unable to respond.
“Furthermore, do you really think you can conquer the world with a group of hungry, untrained people? Frankly speaking, even if your numbers reach a million, it’s not enough to be feared!”
Lin Beifan sneered, “As long as the court is determined, they can send tens of thousands of troops for a fierce charge and annihilate your million-strong army completely! In the end, it’s just the common people who will suffer!”
“Alright, Lin Beifan, what do you suggest then?” Ziyue asked in a sulky tone.
Lin Beifan spoke confidently, “To build a competent combat force, several key points must be considered!”
“First, they must have unwavering faith!”
Ziyue interjected, “The previous Tianyi Sect teaching…”
Lin Beifan waved his hand, “Not those tricks of yours! This faith should make them know who they are fighting for and why they are fighting! They should know what they can gain after their efforts!”
“That is true belief, not some elusive divine favor!”
“Secondly, having faith alone is not enough. They must be trained to become qualified soldiers!”
“How to quickly train a large number of excellent soldiers while preserving our own strength is crucial and determines the success or failure of the uprising! However, if we can master guerrilla warfare and tunnel warfare as mentioned earlier, then these problems won’t be a problem!”
Ziyue opened her mouth, “Sir Lin, these two battle tactics…”
“That can be discussed another time!”
Ziyue remained silent.
“Thirdly, an effective system of rewards and punishments!”
“Rewards for merits and punishments for mistakes. The rewards and punishments must be clear and gain the acceptance of the people!” Lin Beifan glanced at Ziyue and said, “As a princess, you should have received a relatively systematic royal training, so I won’t say much about it!”
“Well, actually, I can talk about it…” Ziyue lowered her head in embarrassment.
Lin Beifan sighed.
Then, Lin Beifan briefly explained.
“Fourthly, timing must be emphasized!”
“When your strength is insufficient, you must develop sneakily! Seize the opportunity when it arises!”
Lin Beifan couldn’t help but glance at Ziyue again, “Like the Tianyi Sect you established before, the timing was completely off! You formed a force without any real strength, becoming an easy target. If I didn’t deal with you, then who do you think you’ll be dealing with?”
Ziyue once again lowered her head in shame.
“Fifthly, emphasis should be placed on tactics, or rather, military strategy!”
“There are many intricacies to warfare! However, when your initial strength is lacking, it’s best to employ guerrilla warfare and tunnel warfare. They can play a remarkable role!”
“Sir Lin, these two battle tactics…”
“Later, we’ll talk about it!”
Ziyue remained silent.
“Sixthly, raising an army requires money!”
“As the saying goes, when the cannons roar, gold is plentiful! It takes a lot of money to fight a war—food, horses, armor, bows and arrows, and so on. Without sufficient funds and provisions, it’s impossible to succeed in warfare!”
“Sir Lin, rest assured, we won’t suffer in terms of finances!”
Lin Beifan couldn’t help but ask, “You’re so confident, how much do you have?”
“I don’t know the exact amount! However, since the founding of the Slanted Moon Dynasty, we have been allocating half of the annual national treasury income to a hidden treasure location for future needs! It has remained untouched for so many years. Can you imagine how much there is?”
Lin Beifan gasped for breath.
The Slanted Moon Dynasty had been established for over 200 years!
Their annual national treasury income was approximately 30 million taels, so half of that would be 1.5 million taels!
Accumulated over more than 200 years, there would be…
300 million taels!!!
Equivalent to the national treasury income of the Great Martial Dynasty for three years!!!
This woman was undoubtedly the richest woman in the world!
Suddenly, Lin Beifan had the urge to resign from his official position!
What future did a corrupt official have?
Despite all the effort and corruption, he would only amass a few million taels at most!
It would be better to be a freeloader!
Sister, I don’t want to work anymore!
Seeing Lin Beifan’s shocked expression, Ziyue felt extremely proud in her heart, as if she had finally turned the tide!
“Do you not fear that I will rob you after you’ve told me about this?” Lin Beifan asked.
Ziyue shook her head, “I’m not afraid!”
“Why are you not afraid?” Lin Beifan asked.
“For one, it’s not a secret. Many major forces know about it!”
“Secondly, nobody knows the location of the treasure, not even members of our royal family! We contact the guardian of the treasure through a special method. Once they receive the information, they will deliver the required amount of money and provisions to the designated location, and then they will die without fail. No immortal can save them! So, robbing me would be useless. I truly don’t know!”
“If I get into trouble and my royal identity is revoked, I won’t be able to contact the guardian anymore!”
Lin Beifan was greatly shocked by this revelation.
This method of hiding treasure was truly extraordinary!
For over 200 years, nobody had found the location of the treasure, and nobody knew about it!
Those who knew would die after transporting the money!
“However, Lin Beifan, you have truly impressed me!” Ziyue looked at Lin Beifan admiringly. “Even after I revealed the amount of treasure, your eyes remained clear without a trace of greed!”
Lin Beifan exuded righteousness, “Of course, a gentleman loves money but also has principles!”
Ziyue looked at him with even higher regard, “You are noble, indeed!”
Lin Beifan continued with righteousness, “Only money acquired through corrupt means (someone else’s money) can I use it with peace of mind!”
Ziyue exclaimed, “Tsk!”
I almost misunderstood you just now!
You’re still that money-grubbing young man, not a bit changed!
Corrupt official!
You made me waste my emotions for nothing!
“So, getting back to the main point, your uprising will never succeed! There are too many flaws. It will either be destroyed by my hand, someone else’s hand, or even your own!”
Ziyue stood up and gave a slight bow, saying with heartfelt gratitude, “Thank you, Sir Lin, for your guidance. I have greatly benefited from it!”
Lin Beifan waved his hand nonchalantly and said, “It’s nothing. I was just bored, so I thought I’d chat with you all. After some small talk, let’s discuss the main matter at hand!”
“The main matter?” Ziyue was a bit confused. Wasn’t this the main matter?
Lin Beifan smiled and said, “Miss Ziyue, your identity has been exposed. You are the mastermind behind the Tianyi Sect, the princess on the run from the Slanted Moon Dynasty! If I were to report this to the court, what would you do?”
Ziyue was completely dumbfounded!
She never expected that he would use her own identity against her!
To be honest, if her identity were exposed, she would have to run for her life!
Ziyue was somewhat angry and asked, “Sir Lin, what do you want?”
“It’s simple. As long as you provide me with enough silver taels as hush money, I can pretend this never happened!” Lin Beifan opened his hand, speaking in a very understanding manner…
“Sir Lin, didn’t you say that a gentleman loves money but also has principles?”
“Yes, and this is my way of obtaining money!” Lin Beifan proudly smiled. “Seizing wealth through cunning and force, isn’t that what corrupt officials do? I don’t think I’ve done anything wrong, have I?”
Ziyue: “Damn it!”
Suppressing her anger, Ziyue asked, “Lin Beifan, how much do you want?”
He didn’t even call him “Sir” anymore; it was evident how angry she was!
“It depends on how much you have. Whatever you have, that’s how much I want!” Lin Beifan extended his palm for a handshake.
Ziyue took a sharp breath, saying, “You have quite the appetite!”
“Think it over quickly! Once we step out of this door, I might not be able to control what comes out of my mouth!” Lin Beifan pointed towards the door.
Ziyue’s eyes were filled with anger as she said, “Luoxia, give him all the money we have on us!”
The maid was startled, “Princess, this…”
“Do as you’re told!”
“Yes, Princess!”
The maid handed over all the money they had. Apart from some silver and gold, all they had left were silver bills, totaling a value of one million taels.
Lin Beifan was extremely delighted. Attending a poetry gathering and making some profit!
That appearance fee was worth it!
“Now that you’ve received the money, you know what to do, right?” Ziyue said angrily.
“Rest assured, although I’m greedy, I do have principles!” Lin Beifan chuckled and stuffed the money into his pocket. “For the next three days, I absolutely won’t utter a word! As for after three days, well, it’s hard to say!”
“Hmph! I hope you keep your promise!” Ziyue said resentfully.
Afterward, they walked out of the room together and returned to the poetry gathering venue.
In fact, half an hour had already passed, and everyone was anxiously waiting.
“The top scholar and Miss Ziyue have come out!”
“They finally emerged! I’ve been waiting for ages!”
“If they don’t come out soon, I’m leaving!”
…
“Top scholar, Miss Ziyue, why did you two take so long?” someone curiously asked.
Everyone perked up their ears to listen.
Lin Beifan patted his slightly bulging pocket and smiled happily, “Miss Ziyue is talented in both appearance and intelligence, so we had a delightful conversation in the room! We talked about life, ideals, and gained a lot. Time flew by without us realizing it!”
“Master Lin’s words are absolutely true! I deeply regret not meeting him sooner. We got carried away in the conversation and lost track of time. Please forgive us!” After saying this, Ziyue even gave Lin Beifan an angry stare, hinting at some playful banter.
Everyone’s hearts shattered!
So they indeed have an affair!
What’s there to talk about when it comes to life and ideals?
Isn’t it just a matter of a few words?
Who would want to watch you indulge in love affairs if they don’t desire you?
Leaving us outside, feeding on dog food, while you two have your romantic talks, with sweet nothings, expressing love for each other…
Have you considered our feelings?
A pair of scoundrels!
