Chapter 589

Chapter 589: The Emperor Guards the Nation’s Gate

In the year 3888 of the Xia calendar, winter

In the vast expanse of snow, hundreds of sleds were struggling to move forward. These sleds carried young officials.

Not long ago, news of the Datong Country Emperor conquering Qianzhou State had spread to various southern provinces. The whole country was stirred up by this news. Many remnants of the old enemy who had been hiding in the mountains surrendered voluntarily. Even those who still cherished the memories of the previous dynasty were silenced by this significant event.

Lin Jiang also mentioned in the letter that Datong Country’s Jingdu City would be established in Qianzhou State. Therefore, Tian Xiong and others immediately started preparations. Despite the heavy snow blocking the mountain passes, some capable young officials were sent to help in Qianzhou State. The older officials could take care of things after the snow melted in spring.

When the courtiers hurried to Qianzhou State, Lin Jiang had already cleared all the Demon Humans in Jingdu City. Just like before, he left behind a large number of human women who had given birth to Demon Humans, numbering no less than fifty to sixty thousand. There were also some women who were already quite old. Lin Jiang was puzzled about what to do with these people.

What really gave Lin Jiang a headache was the logistics supply problem of the army. Two million soldiers, plus at least twice the number of support troops, even if a large number of soldiers died in battle, there were still millions of people left.

The Demon Human captured a lot of loot, mostly cattle and sheep. The humans couldn’t handle eating only meat for half a month. They were getting nosebleeds and feeling unwell. It didn’t seem right to exploit the remaining humans in the north, as they had already suffered enough.

For the ordinary people, they didn’t have the opportunity to escape to the south back then. They didn’t do anything wrong. As for the nobles who stayed behind, they had contributed a lot to the Datong Army during the war. It would be awkward to take action against them now.

Fortunately, young officials from Feng State started arriving. Lin Jiang assigned these matters to them. If they couldn’t handle these issues, there was no point in them being officials.

·······

In the spring of the three thousand, eight hundred and eighty-first year of the Xia calendar, after months of winter purification, most of the remaining Demon Humans in the eighteen northern provinces were eliminated.

According to the battle reports, the Datong Army had wiped out nearly two million Demon Humans, including about four to five hundred thousand young and strong Demon Humans. The rest were elderly, weak, women, and children. Additionally, the results from the Demon Slaying Order, especially during the previous winter, when the Demon Humans were defeated, the common people in the north launched a fierce counterattack. Many Demon Humans were killed, and the exact numbers were still being tallied.

The former Demon Human servants were disbanded, but Lin Jiang turned them into laborers to repair Jingdu City, the imperial palace, and the dilapidated infrastructure of the eighteen northern provinces. Of course, Lin Jiang treated them well and provided all the necessary protections.

After the spring began, officials and supplies from the southern provinces started arriving one after another, especially the supplies that had been accumulating around Mizhou and Deng States. The heavy snow had blocked transportation, but now they were desperately trying to transport the goods because no one knew if the Demon Humans would counterattack.

By the end of April, news from various sources kept coming to Jingdu City. After consolidating the information, Lin Jiang summoned his senior officials for a meeting and said. Last year, our Datong Army swept through the eighteen northern provinces, killing millions of Demon Humans. Now, we have mostly cleared the Demon Humans from these provinces, but we have also suffered greatly ourselves. We have lost nearly eighty thousand troops and are no longer in a position to advance further.

The injured soldiers included those who died in battle, those who were too hurt to fight again, those who went missing, and those who left for reasons other than war. Almost half of the two million troops were injured, not counting the losses of auxiliary forces.

This is the strength of the Demon Humans, and these are just a small part of them. There are even more powerful Demon Humans in the Immortal Kingdom. It can be said that even if all the people in Lin Jiang’s hands were sent to fight, it wouldn’t be enough.

"On the side of the Great Wall Legion, with our support, they have reopened the Great Wall line and reconnected several cut-off sections. However, their counterattack failed, and they retreated back into the mountains."

"The Qing River Legion was divided into two parts, one part acted with our Datong Army, and the other part acted alone. They didn’t establish a firm presence in the Immortal Kingdom."

"The battlefield of the Zhou Dynasty was divided into two parts. One part sailed upstream along the Qing River for a naval battle. The Zhou Dynasty navy successfully destroyed the Demon Human navy but was soon destroyed by the Demon Humans. The other part advanced west along Lingyun Mountain. The Zhou Dynasty mobilized a million troops, but after initially winning, they were defeated and retreated to Lingyun Mountain."

Lin Jiang continued, saying that the remnants of the Immortal Kingdom were too weak to be of much use. Surprisingly, the Zhou Dynasty’s resistance against Lin Jiang was unexpected.

Both battlefields experienced victories followed by defeats. It was unclear what they were trying to achieve, and it didn’t seem like they were acting. After all, many people had truly died.

"So, Your Majesty means we won’t march north anymore?"

Yes, but this is only temporary. The two million troops were the result of ten years of effort by Datong Country. Now that almost half of them are injured, Datong Country needs to rest and recover.

And they continued to head north, the journey for supplies was too long. It was necessary to develop the eighteen provinces in the north. I have asked the locals who stayed behind, and it is estimated that there are only about forty to fifty million ordinary people in the eighteen provinces in the north, which is less than the population of two bustling provinces in the south. So, the task for the next few years is to rest and recover.

Lin Jiang said that the advantage of Datong Country over the Demon Human should be their national strength. So, it was correct for Lin Jiang to make full use of this advantage, and there was no need to fight to the death.

Lin Jiang set a plan for everyone to follow. Those who need to migrate will migrate, and policies to encourage childbirth will be implemented. Lin Jiang doesn’t need to worry about these matters.

Lin Jiang personally comforted General Yun from the Qing River Legion and gave him very generous treatment, including allocating a fertile land in the eighteen provinces in the north for them, approximately the size of a prefecture, to rest and recover without paying taxes, although it was considered temporary.

General Yun was eager to return to the Immortal Kingdom. Lin Jiang provided strong support by giving them weapons and supplies, and even helped in training soldiers. However, no large army would be sent north again, as they could not afford it.

General Yun didn’t have many troops in hand and could not afford a major battle. He could only send a small number of elite troops north to gather information.

Datong Country was very efficient. In the summer, they started to migrate to the eighteen provinces in the north, especially in regions that surrendered to the Datong Army earlier. These areas had not experienced much war and had a large population, which had led to conflicts between the people and the land. This migration helped alleviate those conflicts.

During this process, Lin Jiang completely dismantled the old nobility led by the five major noble families. He didn’t harm them much, and many even got promotions. However, the positions they were assigned to were scattered all over, at least thousands of miles apart, and they would not be promoted further. No matter how well they performed, Lin Jiang would keep them in their current positions, essentially breaking them up.

After another two years, the north became more prosperous, especially with the large military logistics no longer needing to transport all supplies from the south. This revitalized the entire Datong Country.

The army that was lost before has been replaced. In the Datong Country, which has at least seven to eight hundred million people, the loss of hundreds of thousands of soldiers is nothing much. The new recruits that were added may not have as much battle experience as before, but they are not lacking in anything else.

The Martial Arts Academy continues to produce many skilled individuals. Every year, hundreds of Innate Martial Artists graduate from the academy, along with even more Innate Martial Artists from other sources. Datong Country sees over a thousand Innate Martial Artists emerging every year.

While Datong Country is becoming more prosperous, the ministers in the court are growing increasingly anxious. Up until now, Lin Jiang has not established his harem. These ministers have sent many women to Lin Jiang, of all shapes and sizes, even sending delicate-looking men. Many people believe that Lin Jiang is preparing to select a male successor, which leaves Lin Jiang rolling his eyes in exasperation.

It’s not entirely accurate to say that Lin Jiang is completely chaste. Occasionally satisfying his physical needs is necessary, but Lin Jiang has no intention of leaving descendants here, not even wanting a harem. Most of the harem is used to balance the power among the courtiers. Lin Jiang knows he must return to his slumber, leaving this opportunity for others.

The ministers’ advice has become more intense, to the point where they are even considering drastic measures. Finally, Lin Jiang comes up with a big idea, calling all the ministers together and declaring, "Within a year, all the marquises and high-ranking officials in the court must send a boy between the ages of five and ten to the imperial palace."

"Your Majesty, what is the meaning of this?"

"To find a successor."

"Oh."

As soon as Lin Jiang said this, the ministers were dumbfounded. They never imagined that Lin Jiang would do such a thing. To find a successor – could this mean that the throne would pass to a chosen successor in the future?

"Your Majesty, there is something I haven’t told you yet, and I would like to tell you now."

"What does the Prime Minister have to say? Speak up."

Lin Jiang looked at the Prime Minister and said. He used to be a military adviser, but now he’s been given an official title as the Prime Minister.

"Your Majesty, please come closer."

"Alright, what is it?"

"Your Majesty, when I was young, I worked as a traveling doctor for a few years and I acquired a special remedy that can cure infertility. It also has a high chance of helping to conceive a son. Your Majesty, would you be interested?"

"Go away!"

Without letting him finish, Lin Jiang got angry and started shouting, "What does this old man mean? Calling me infertile? What is he trying to imply? I feel like becoming a tyrant and getting rid of him."