Reincarnation in the Three Kingdoms Era with a System

"My lord, today Sun Yi is marrying Xu Sheng's sister, Xu Yan.

I suspect Xu Sheng has a scheme to use one enemy to devour another."

Shi Qian knelt and said, his suspicion, stemming from the mindset of a spy, was correct.

Shi Qian, a hero of Liangshan.

Nicknamed "Egg on a Drum," he was from Gaotang Prefecture, born a bandit. On his way to join Liangshan with Yang Xiong and Shi Xiu, he was captured by the Zhu Family Village for stealing chickens, leading to Liangshan's three attacks on the Zhu Family Village.

He once stole the Goose Feather Gold Ring Armor from Dongjing (Kaifeng), luring Xu Ning to Liangshan, and made great contributions in the battles of Liangshan's conquest of Daming Prefecture and Zengtou City.

At the Liangshan Grand Assembly, he was one of the 108 heroes, ranking 107th, corresponding to the "Earthly Thief Star," and serving as the leader of the infantry responsible for intelligence gathering.

Now, he serves as the Commander of the Embroidered Uniform Guard, wielding considerable power, practically responsible for monitoring the Jiangnan region.

This includes Jiangdong, Jingzhou, Jingnan, and Jiaozhou.

The more remote the area, the more crucial monitoring and safeguards are.

Where the army cannot reach, evil spirits will appear; they must be deterred.

A thousand-mile dike can be breached by an anthill; the county magistrate is the most basic structure and must be guarded against.

"What does Xu Yan look like?"

Lu Ming's interest was piqued again, almost undisguisedly displaying his lust.

Lust was a facade; others could use their beauty to seduce, so why couldn't he do the opposite?

Appropriately exposing some weaknesses was a good thing, especially since it was a facade.

"Beautiful inside and out, pure and refined.

I haven't paid much attention, but I know she's skilled in divination."

Shi Qian lowered his head; he dared not say more. If she became a concubine, wouldn't he incur resentment for speaking out?

Don't think that concubines in the harem can't harm people.

Their wives frequented the women's guild halls daily to play mahjong and chat. Almost everyone with an official position or a prominent literary figure's wife or daughter could go. Dealing with people there was easy.

There's a saying: "Women and petty people are hard to deal with." If they got difficult or held grudges, no one else could stand a chance.

"Send word to Bao Zheng about this, contact Zhuge Liang, and have him summon Sun Yi."

"Isn't he in charge of Jiangdong and Yangzhou affairs?

Let him see what's happening right under his nose!"

Lu Ming snorted. He didn't intend to act personally.

He wanted to use Sun Yi as an example, issuing a public notice to every prefecture and county, telling everyone that anyone who abused their power, held a position without merit, or sold public land, regardless of who they were, would die! By slow slicing!

They had to be executed by slow slicing!

Moreover, the execution was carried out in Jianye, summoning all the people to witness the brutal torture before their eyes, only then could the people's anger be appeased.

If Sun Yi were merely incompetent, it wouldn't matter; a different person or a different method could be used.

But such tyrannical behavior was repeatedly forbidden.

Did he really think he could act recklessly just because he was an outsider?

"Yes, my lord."

Shi Qian pressed his head to the floor; he too felt a murderous aura, a murderous aura that made him sweat profusely!

After handling the matter, Lu Ming went out to meet Xu Sheng.

He planned to see what abilities and audacity Sun Yi truly possessed.

In fact, the matter was already largely settled, not only because of loyalty, but also because of his own observation and judgment.

Sun Yi was indeed an incompetent official, a beast who tarnished the reputation of the royal family!

Soon, after sending a message by carrier pigeon...

Working in Shouchun City, Zhuge Liang was planning how to govern the region, examining officials, and considering replacements.

Some were graduates of the academy, some were former landlords, and others carried external labels.

He knew how to handle them, but lacked the right opportunity.

The way of officialdom is nothing more than maneuvering between superiors and subordinates.

To get things done, one cannot let oneself get involved.

Zhuge Liang admired Bao Zheng, but he couldn't be as incorruptible as Bao Zheng; he could only do his best.

He happened to have a list of officials from the Jiangdong region, some highlighted—those with problems who needed to be dealt with.

Sun Yi's name was prominently displayed on it; he was unaware that the Emperor had already embarked on a southern tour, traveling incognito.

While Zhuge Liang was still pondering the problem, his brother Zhuge Jin and Zhang Zhao, the governor of Wuyue, arrived one after the other.

"I was just wondering whether I should look for you, and here you are.

Come, please sit down, someone bring tea!"

Zhuge Liang chuckled, still not quite understanding what was going on.

He and Zhuge Jin were half-brothers, so while Zhuge Jin couldn't get the position, he could.

It was because his mother was Lu Ming's woman, frequently served him in bed, and had even given birth to a princess—that was a merit!

To produce offspring for the royal family—that was a merit!

Anyway, the crown prince had already been chosen, the empress's son, so the other princesses had no chance of vying for it.

Therefore, the court was relatively stable; more sons meant more factional struggles in the future.

Some things, even if you don't fight for them, those below you will encourage you to.

After all, the merit of supporting the emperor is an immense one!

Zhuge Jin frowned and handed over the letter. "Falcon delivery, extremely urgent."

"Oh?" Zhuge Liang's hand trembled slightly. He was familiar with hot air balloons for delivering messages and supplies.

Those were inventions of His Majesty and the Empress; no one dared call them mere clever tricks, they were all considered masterpieces.

Falcon delivery was much more rare, because warplanes were only used by the royal family and the military, which meant something important!

Taking the letter and glancing at it, Zhuge Liang's hand trembled again. The severity of the wording was beyond his expectations!

Although the handwriting was delicate and beautiful, clearly written by a woman, Zhuge Liang didn't find anything wrong with it.

It was common knowledge that the Emperor couldn't write with a brush; his calligraphy was always done by his concubines, demonstrating the high level of trust placed in him.

"Something happened to Sister Sun.

He sold off the government-allocated military farmland and exploited the people; one of them was arrested and sent ahead.

Zhang Gong, let's go to Jianye together to apologize to His Majesty.

I was originally planning to start reforming the bureaucracy after the situation stabilized, but His Majesty has taken the lead."

Zhuge Liang explained that to address the officials' inaction, the military farmland needed to be managed smoothly first, ensuring that there was always grain in hand and no panic should anything happen.

But now things are different; plans can't keep up with changes.

Zhang Zhao was also greatly alarmed upon hearing this. As the official in charge of the Wu-Yue region, he was also responsible for the incident. "Alright, let's set off first, we'll talk on the way!"