County Magistrate Chen picked up the tea cup and took a sip, but his face became more serious than ever.
He took a deep look at Yang Dong and slowly said:
"The two distinguished guests seem to have come well prepared. In this case, I will not hide them. To be honest, these so-called bandits are from Xiong County."
Having said this, he sighed deeply, and no longer looked at Yang Dong, but stared at the tea cup in his hand in a daze.
After a while, he continued to speak:
"When the Great Zhou Dynasty was first established, our Xiong County was a strategic military location. The previous emperors paid great attention to Xiong County, which once made it a small capital city in the north."
"But later, with the recovery of Youzhou and Hepingzhou, the position of Xiong County became increasingly insignificant. But there were a lot of soldiers stationed here, and these soldiers gave birth to children in Xiong County and have multiplied to this day."
"I don't know since when, the population of Xiong County has been declining, which has become a concern for His Majesty in the capital. Therefore, a large number of young people from Xiong County were recruited into various armies to serve as vanguards."
"I think the two distinguished guests should understand what Pioneer represents."
Yang Dongshen agreed and nodded slightly.
"Indeed, I think the reason for the sparse young population in Xiong County today is due to this."
At this moment, County Magistrate Chen seemed to have fallen into memories. He ignored Yang Dong's words and continued his statement.
"We in Xiong County are suffering. We shed blood and tears for Dazhou back then, but in the end, we still suffered from the fear of the capital. Nowadays, there are more and more extinct households in Xiong County, alas..."
County Magistrate Chen sighed again, then he seemed to come to his senses, patted his forehead lightly and said:
"I'm going to make you two distinguished guests laugh. I'm getting older and I always like to talk nonsense. To be honest, if you want to do the warehousing business, you need to talk to those bandits."
"Actually... they are also poor people. If you two can share some profits, I can make a guarantee from them."
Hearing this, a strange look flashed across Shu Mouse's cheeks.
Among the people present, he was the only one who knew in his heart that Yang Dong planned to mobilize a brave army.
In front of those horrifyingly powerful firecrackers, these so-called bandits are not worth mentioning at all.
But now it seems that Mr. Yang has other plans... Could it be that he has a crush on Liu Sanniang? If so...
I have to say that Mr. Yang’s knowledge is indeed beyond the understanding of a shallow person like me.
This mature woman really has a different flavor...
No, I have to find a chance tonight to visit a brothel in Xiong County...
"Sharing profits is a trivial matter."
At this moment, Yang Dong spoke.
His expression was still calm, but there was a hint of confidence.
"To be honest, I am not short of money!"
As soon as these words came out, County Magistrate Chen and Liu Sanniang's eyes lit up slightly.
After all these years, it’s not easy to find someone to take advantage of!
"But... I don't like cooperative relationships."
Yang Dong said, taking out a handful of banknotes from his arms.
The moment she saw the banknote, Liu Sanniang's eyes straightened.
When she looked at Yang Dong again, her eyes even became moist.
Not only is he handsome, but he is also rich.
Such a rich man is indeed a good match! Even if you can't become a royal palace, you can still be a concubine. At least you won't have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of your life.
Thinking of this, Liu Sanniang even took the initiative to pour wine for Yang Dong.
"Sir, does this wine taste good to you? This is brewed by my own family!"
Yang Dong picked up the wine glass and drank it all in one gulp, but his eyes stayed on County Magistrate Chen and said word by word:
"If they can be used by me with peace of mind, not only will they live a lifetime of glory and wealth, but they will also be able to live without worries about food and clothing. But I have a prerequisite, and that is to enforce orders and prohibitions."
When County Magistrate Chen heard this, he was happy at first, but after hearing the second half of the sentence, he frowned slightly.
This time, he was silent for a long time. It was not until the hot tea in the cup became lukewarm that he stared at Yang Dong and said seriously:
"This young master, it is the rule of the military to enforce orders and prohibitions. Could it be that... you are a member of the military?"
Yang Dong shook his head gently and said:
"County Magistrate Chen has misunderstood. What I want is not an army. Of course, you can also understand it as an army. But... I prefer to call them mercenaries."
"Mercenary?"
County Magistrate Chen's frown deepened upon hearing this.
As the name suggests, he already had a rough idea of the meaning of mercenary.
But it was precisely because of this that he hesitated. Because if this kind of thing is not handled well, the emperor may be offended.
After all, Xiong County is still under the jurisdiction of the Emperor of the Zhou Dynasty. If this incident comes to the ears of the Emperor of the Zhou Dynasty, it will be treason, not only beheading, but also the nine tribes may be killed!
Thinking of this, Magistrate Chen smiled bitterly and shook his head.
"This matter...I'm afraid I can't make the decision. If your Majesty finds out about this mercenary, I'm afraid he will kill the nine tribes."
"What if we add this?"
Yang Dong said, slowly taking out a token from his pocket and placing it in front of County Magistrate Chen.
County Magistrate Chen just glanced at it, and his face instantly turned extremely pale.
He jumped up from the table almost subconsciously, and then kneeled down respectfully in the direction of the token.
"Your Majesty, Chen Yu, has met the special envoy."
"Get up, County Magistrate Chen doesn't have to be so scared."
Yang Dong's tone was still calm, but his calmness only added to his detached temperament.
At the same time, the children in the other corner of the dining hall suddenly exclaimed when they saw Magistrate Chen kneeling down.
"Look, County Magistrate Chen actually knelt down towards a sign. Tell me, what is the background of this young man from the capital?"
"Let me tell you, he must be a great man!"
"Aren't you talking nonsense? Everyone can see it! But Er Xiong, your Liu Sanniang may have a change of heart~"
"Have you noticed that Sanniang's eyes are starting to get wet when she looks at that little brother..."
"Oh~ It would be great if she were as big as Sanniang, but she is still too young now. I'm afraid I won't like it!"
"Oh! That's not necessarily the case! Don't you all want to leave Xiong County?"
As soon as these words came out, the children's eyes suddenly brightened.
"Maybe this little brother is our chance to leave Xiong County!"
"Brothers and sisters, hold him!"
"How about... how about we just tie him up? Then we will stun Sanniang and send him to his bed. He will definitely be grateful to us. Maybe he will take us all with him when he returns to Beijing!"
A group of children gathered together and chatted, looking in the direction of Yang Dong and Liu Sanniang from time to time and whispering.
Naturally, Yang Dong didn't know the children's plans.
He stared at County Magistrate Chen and asked again:
"How about it? Does the magistrate have any other concerns?"
