It was a rest day, and Second Young Master Xu had originally come to visit his fiancée.

However, since they weren’t yet married, they couldn’t be alone together for more than two-quarters of an hour. Any longer and they would have to move their conversation to the main hall.

Even their “alone time” wasn’t truly private—a maid had to accompany them.

After all, what young couples feared most was losing control of their emotions and eagerly “reducing each other’s swelling and relieving the itch.”

After marriage, the husband’s family would typically check the new bride’s red wedding sheet. If there was no evidence of virginity, it would bring great shame.

Though the Wang family trusted Second Young Master Xu’s character completely, they wouldn’t bend the proper rules even slightly.

So after two-quarters of an hour, Wang Simu reluctantly bid farewell to her fiancé and watched him head to her father’s study for business.

“Prime Minister, you’re putting me in a difficult position!” Xu Xinnian said with a bitter smile but didn’t leave. If it had been any other elder speaking this way, he would have certainly excused himself, but Prime Minister Wang was his future father-in-law, so Second Young Master Xu could be more casual in his manner.

In truth, dealing with bandits was simple in theory. The court’s traditional approach to refugees and mountain bandits had always been a combination of suppression and amnesty—the carrot and the stick.

The current situation was that bandit problems had become a disaster, making suppression extremely difficult. The court also lacked the finances and resources to continue disaster relief.

So this had become an unsolvable problem.

“‘Fortune favors the bold’ might not be entirely accurate here, but the principle is similar. Only by achieving what others cannot can you attain positions others cannot reach,” Prime Minister Wang didn’t force him to leave, instead pushing the memorial toward him. “Take a look. After His Majesty called for donations, the situation improved significantly. Otherwise, things would be much worse.”

After a pause, he continued in a conversational tone: “I hear you’ve been spending time with the Princess Royal lately?”

Second Young Master Xu picked up the memorial and began reading, casually responding, “I occasionally discuss scholarly matters with Her Highness.”

Prime Minister Wang nodded, saying expressionlessly, “The Princess Royal is exceptionally talented and naturally brilliant, surpassing most men. If she were male, she would surely devise a solution to such difficult problems.”

He’s hinting that I should consult with the Princess Royal… Xu Xinnian smiled and said, “The Princess Royal’s talents are indeed admirable.”

Since the topic had been broached, Prime Minister Wang poured himself another cup of tea and blew on the hot liquid: “Have you heard about the martial arts alliance matter in Jian Province?”

“I’ve heard some mention of it,” Second Young Master Xu nodded.

“Detailed intelligence should arrive in the coming days. Whether to make this public depends on its magnitude. If it’s strong medicine, we should hold it back for now.”

Prime Minister Wang meant that if the military achievements were substantial, they shouldn’t announce them publicly yet. Wait until a time when strong medicine is needed.

“Xu Ning’yan is at his zenith—that’s good, but perhaps too good.” Prime Minister Wang glanced at his future son-in-law and sighed: “When an elder brother’s radiance is too dazzling, it makes the younger appear dim. Others won’t allow you to shine either.”

Second Young Master Xu was proud and initially wanted to say that his brother was his brother—his achievements and abilities had never needed his brother’s validation, nor would he feel inferior because of him.

But Second Young Master Xu was also clever, immediately realizing that Prime Minister Wang wasn’t trying to sow discord but had a deeper meaning.

“Prime Minister, do you mean that my elder brother cannot return to court?” Second Young Master Xu pondered.

“Letting him hold the empty title of Night Watchman Commander is the limit that His Majesty and the ministers will accept. If he wants to return to court, then you should prepare to sit on the cold bench for life.”

Prime Minister Wang sipped his tea and continued slowly: “You brothers need to coordinate well.”

The art of kingship always came down to checks and balances.

If Xu Qi’an truly controlled the Night Watchman Bureau, then Xu Xinnian could never take over the Wang faction—neither the emperor nor the ministers would allow it.

Xu Xinnian gave a sound of acknowledgment but offered no opinion.

With his Buddhist Enlightened Realm’s perfect recall ability, he quickly finished reading the memorial, gaining a detailed understanding of the severely affected areas.

“Student has finished reading and will take his leave now.”

Second Young Master Xu stood and bowed. At the door, he suddenly turned back and said:

“There’s no conflict—elder brother is the present, I am the future!”

Then he pushed open the door and left.

…

“Second Son, why are you so distracted?”

At the dinner table, Aunt ladled a bowl of chicken soup for her son and complained:

“At least drink some! Mother had the kitchen make this soup for you, but it all went into Ling’yin and Lina’s stomachs. All the good things go to these bottomless pits—doesn’t that pain you?”

“Mother, what’s a bottomless pit?” Xu Ling’yin asked while gulping down chicken soup.

“You are!” Aunt turned and scolded.

“Huh? Aren’t I Xu Ling’yin?” the little bean was shocked.

“Another Spring Festival is coming, and you haven’t improved at all this past year. Have you been reading books for nothing? Have you only grown flesh and not brains this year?”

Aunt was incredulous and deeply distressed.

She’d need to study the books first… Second Uncle and the others thought to themselves, but being used to this, they continued eating their meals.

After scolding her daughter, Aunt turned to Second Uncle and said:

“Yesterday, Princess Lin’an sent quite a few pieces of jewelry and fabrics. My lord, do you think her treating our family so well means she might marry Ning’yan in the future?”

Aunt had previously thought the two princesses favored the Xu family because they were taken with her divinely beautiful son.

Later, after her husband’s explanation, she learned they were interested in her martially talented nephew.

Second Uncle said contentedly:

“With Ning’yan’s current status and position, marrying a princess would be easy. When she enters the Xu household, she’ll still have to serve you tea—you can discipline her as you like.”

Second Young Master Xu glanced at his father’s wine pot, noting he hadn’t drunk much…

Aunt worried aloud:

“Though I’m not afraid of household politics, she is a princess after all, delicate and noble-born. How could I discipline her freely?”

When it came to household political skills in the Xu mansion, no one dared claim a second place to Aunt—she remained undefeated.

Xu Lingyue said softly:

“Mother, the elder brother has an unrestrained nature. He’s not suited to marry a princess—it would be better not to become a prince consort. I’ve met both princesses, and neither matches well with elder brother.”

Lina looked up, speaking through a mouthful of rice:

“I think Xu Ning’yan and the princesses would match well.”

Xu Lingyue fell silent for a moment, then looked at the little bean and said gently:

“Mother, Ling’yin is fine as she is, practicing martial arts with Lina every day. Master and disciple are happy and carefree.”

Lina smiled proudly, then noticed the wariness and hostility in the Xu family matriarch’s gaze.

Yes, it’s this foolish girl who’s corrupted my Ling’yin… Aunt ground her teeth.

Lina: “???”

Xu Xinnian put down his chopsticks, picked up the chicken soup and took a sip, then said:

“Recently, jianghu martial artists have been gathering refugees and becoming bandits. This has led to severe bandit problems in various regions, with mountain bandits in some areas even threatening county towns.”

“Prime Minister Wang asked me what good strategies I had, and I’ve been troubled by this matter.”

Aunt wore a completely confident expression: “Just let Ning’yan suppress them!”

“Central Plains is so vast—do you want to work Ning’yan to death?” Second Uncle said irritably. “Besides, he… he is still watching like a tiger eyeing its prey.”

“He” referred to elder brother Xu Pingfeng.

“Could they be granted amnesty?” Xu Lingyue was well-educated, and her cultural knowledge was always quite good.

“Amnesty only works in normal times. The bandit problems are mostly composed of refugees—you can recruit some, but not all. In the end, it comes down to insufficient money and grain. If we had enough resources, the disaster would already be under control.”

Second Young Master Xu shook his head.

The problems left by Former Emperor Yuanjing’s time had all erupted during this cold disaster.

The second Uncle was a military man who knew the situation well. He looked at Aunt and said:

“Fine then, you might as well stop having Ling’yin learn to read and write—let her join the army instead. Perhaps in three to five years, she’ll return as a Marquis of Ten Thousand Households, bringing glory to the ancestors and making you a noble lady by imperial decree.”

Aunt was so angry she nearly fought her husband to the death, feeling that in this family, only her child-rearing principles were normal.

Only she never gave up on Ling’yin.

Seeing his wife’s dissatisfaction, Second Uncle asked the little bean:

“Ling’yin, what would you do if someone tried to bully you?”

“Fight back!” the little bean declared righteously.

“What if you can’t win?” Second Uncle asked.

Xu Ling’yin thought for a moment: “Then I’ll become friends with them, and they won’t bully me anymore.”

Child, your ideological awareness is lacking. If you lose a battle, you’ll likely become a traitor eight times out of ten… Second Uncle thought to himself.

After dinner, Second Young Master Xu returned to his study, lost in thought.

Lighting a candle, he leaned back in his chair and began to contemplate.

As a scholar, whenever encountering difficulties, his first instinct was to consult historical records.

Learn from history, and study the experiences of those who came before.

“In historical records, various dynasties dealt with end-period chaos through either suppression or amnesty. More often they chose suppression because, by a dynasty’s end, the conflict between court and people had reached a point where only war could resolve it.”

“Amnesty requires money and grain, plus yielding some benefits. The court can use amnesty to solve some bandit problems, but can’t possibly resolve all of them through amnesty.”

“If we could achieve that much, we wouldn’t have the current chaos.”

With his powerful memory, Second Young Master Xu analyzed and recalled the historical texts, first concluding that:

The current Great Feng hadn’t yet reached the point of complete exhaustion, different from the corruption of most dynasties in their final periods.

The rot wasn’t thorough enough yet.

This was good news.

“At this time, if Yun Province rebels launch their rebellion, it would be the final straw that breaks the camel’s back. How to solve the bandit problems?”

The more Xu Xinnian thought about it, the more unsolvable it seemed, and the more his head ached.

He finally understood why Prime Minister Wang’s health kept deteriorating, to the point where medicine had no effect.

Ultimately, it was exhaustion of mind and body, illness from accumulated toil.

At this moment, Ling’yin’s words suddenly flashed through his mind.

Like a bolt of lightning illuminating his thoughts.

“Become friends, become friends…”

Xu Xinnian opened his eyes, which were bloodshot but filled with excitement. He laid out paper, ground ink, picked up his brush, and began to write:

“With current disasters severe and bandits rising everywhere to plague the regions, the court can employ three strategies. First is amnesty—for large-scale mountain bandits, adopt an amnesty strategy and have surrendered bandits suppress other bandits…”

“Second is military suppression—for smaller, disorganized groups, resolutely eliminate them to prevent future troubles…”

“Third, emulate the jianghu method—send experts to infiltrate among the people, gather refugees, and establish mountain strongholds.”

This point was inspired by Ling’yin’s words.

Make the court and refugees become “friends.” Of course, they couldn’t gather all refugees, but at least this could reduce the court’s current burden and greatly lessen the bandits’ harm to common people.

Second Young Master Xu continued writing:

“Must appoint loyal and righteous individuals for this task, avoid those with poor reputations and bad names; must closely monitor their family members as hostages.”

After finishing, Second Young Master Xu began to ponder, feeling something was still lacking, but after that burst of inspiration faded, mental fatigue set in. He felt somewhat powerless.

He turned to look at the water clock and discovered it was already two quarters past the Rat Hour (1:30 AM)—he had been at his desk for a full two hours.

…

Early morning.

Xu Qi’an rose early to wash up, then spread a map on the table. The merchant vessel’s destination was Yu Province.

Once they reached Yu Province, they would need to change to other transportation.

“After reaching Yu Province, let’s fly using the Pagoda Tower. As a flying fortress, the Pagoda Tower’s defense is no problem, though its endurance is somewhat lacking.”

Magical treasures drew power from either their masters or their accumulation.

Magical treasures that lost their masters’ control usually had poor endurance.

Like the Taiping Sword—it could accumulate sword energy daily, but this could only be used temporarily. Once used up, it needed to accumulate again.

This was the same principle as martial artists being unable to fight after depleting their energy.

Therefore, Xu Qi’an didn’t normally deploy the Pagoda Tower for travel, only bringing it out as a shelter when encountering danger, using it to escape.

Suddenly, he felt his heart flutter.

He naturally reached for the Earth Book fragment to check the messages.

[One: There’s something I’d like to consult everyone about, regarding the bandit problems in various regions.]

[Two: Suppressing bandits? That’s my specialty—organize troops, defeat them one by one, eliminate them. Simple matter.]

Li Miaozhen quickly responded.

It seems the court has also noticed this hidden danger. Every dynasty’s final period faces both internal and external troubles, and sometimes internal troubles are far more frightening than external ones… Xu Qi’an, who was also troubled by the bandit problem, replied to the Heaven Sect Holy Maiden:

[Three: Miaozhen, it’s not that simple. Though force can solve everything, force also needs sufficient silver as backing. If the court could eliminate all bandits, refugees wouldn’t have become such a disaster.]

[Two: Then what should be done? Tell us!]

The Holy Maiden’s emotional message appeared on all Heaven and Earth Society members’ Earth Books.

[One: Everyone, I have three strategies. Please let me finish.]

After a while, Huaiqing’s messages came in segments, totaling three strategies of about two hundred characters.

[Three: These are Your Highness’s strategies? Brilliant!]

Xu Qi’an immediately offered flattery.

[One: These are Second Young Master Xu’s three strategies. He visited me in the palace this morning to seek advice and identify any oversights.]

Second Brother’s strategies? Xu Qi’an was stunned.

When did Second Brother get so close to Huaiqing? he thought sourly.

[Two: These three strategies are excellent. Though they may not completely solve the bandit problems, they can greatly curb the trend of refugee disasters.]

While Li Miaozhen wasn’t good at coming up with ideas, her judgment was sound.

[Four: The third strategy won’t work!]

At this point, Chu Yuanzhen jumped in with his opinion.

[One: Please elaborate, Brother Chu.]

The others fell silent, not interrupting. As the top Imperial Examination graduate, Chu Yuanzhen was brilliant and experienced, one of the Heaven and Earth Society’s intellectual pillars.

[Four: What does gathering refugees rely on? First, military force; second, money and grain. Neither can be lacking. Without sufficient force, you can’t establish authority. Without sufficient resources, no one will be willing to follow.

[So where will the money and grain come from? Nothing but “robbery” fits. The court surely can’t provide money and grain to the high-level experts they send to gather refugees—if they had such resources, wouldn’t direct disaster relief be more appropriate?

[You can’t make bricks without straw—they would have to resort to robbery, which would only worsen the disaster and make the situation more terrible.]

[One: What are your thoughts, Brother Chu?]

Second Young Master Xu had sought her out precisely because of this problem.

She hadn’t been able to provide an answer, so she decided to consult the Heaven and Earth Society members—except for Lina, who were all clever people.

Chu Yuanzhen hadn’t disappointed her, immediately spotting the flaw in the third strategy.

And the third strategy was crucial to solving the bandit problem.

[Four: Your Highness, this has me stumped.]

In the short term, even Chu Yuanzhen couldn’t think of a solution.

[Two: How about using war to feed war?]

Li Miaozhen offered a strategy based on her experience.

[Seven: Foolish Li Miaozhen, for refugees, robbing common people’s money and grain is far easier than traveling long distances to fight another armed refugee group.

[No one is stupid—avoiding harm and seeking benefit is human nature. If you force the refugees under your command to do this, they’ll all rebel and leave within two attempts.]

Li Lingsu had emerged.

Though he had died in reality, he could still strike hard in the “network.”

Li Miaozhen became furious: [Two: Then you say it—what method do you have?]

The Holy Son went quiet—he had no solution either.

[One: Actually, Li Miaozhen’s idea has some merit. We could have the court’s people suppress other mountain bandit forces under the pretext of seizing money and grain. But this can’t be done often and can’t sustain livelihoods.

[How should court-supported forces establish themselves? How can they maintain their livelihood? They can only rob the common people, but as Brother Chu said, this would only make the situation worse. Xu Ning’yan, what are your thoughts?]

Xu Qi’an had remained silent for so long that Huaiqing was forced to actively “@” him.

What solution could I have? I’ve already donated the chicken essence profits for disaster relief. I’m good at fighting and solving cases—don’t look to me for matters of governing the state… While Xu Qi’an complained internally, he actively engaged his mind.

His greatest advantage was his knowledge from his previous life.

For instance, work relief programs—but this strategy wouldn’t suit the current Great Feng.

It could work on a small scale unless the Great Feng court wanted to build roads to every village…

Wait, there might be a way… Xu Qi’an’s mind stirred as he thought of a bold idea.

But he didn’t speak, his expression showing complexity and hesitation.

[One: Xu Ning’yan?]

Huaiqing urged again.

[Three: Robbery is the only way out, but the targets shouldn’t be common people. They should be landlords, gentry, heartless wealthy merchants, and the scholar-official class.]

The Heaven and Earth Society fell suddenly silent.

Has he gone mad?! This thought flashed through everyone’s minds.

Even Li Miaozhen, who robbed the rich to help the poor, felt that Xu Qi’an had given up and offered a terrible suggestion.

[Four: Without the gentry maintaining order, this will only make chaos worse.]

In this era, imperial power didn’t reach the countryside—the local gentry and clan families played a crucial role in maintaining stability at the bottom levels of society.

[Three: No, Brother Chu, you’re wrong. The interests of a group outweigh the interests of an individual. The interests of the majority outweigh the interests of the minority. As long as you can satisfy the vast majority’s interests, you’ll gain support and never fail.

[The Great Feng’s current predicament is caused by refugees. If we can fill the people’s stomachs, chaos will ease, not worsen. Moreover, for the gentry and landlords, the court’s survival is irrelevant. In disaster years, they increasingly exploit poor commoners. With their control of land, they are enemies of both the court and the common people.

[The key is, all this would be done by refugee bandits—what does it have to do with the court? It won’t intensify conflicts between the court and the scholar-official class. Instead, it will make those who hold vast resources participate in suppressing bandits.

[Or they’ll donate money and organize militia for resistance. Either way, they’ll provide silver and grain, which can ease the current grain shortage. Someone will always benefit, earning silver and grain from this.]

Mobilize the proletariat!

The Heaven and Earth Society fell silent, no one speaking for a long time.

After quite a while, Chu Yuanzhen messaged:

[But don’t forget, most people in court are from the scholar-official class you speak of, and retired officials become local gentry.]

[Three: That’s why this matter must remain secret—even the court ministers can’t know. The experts sent out must be of common birth and loyal to the royal family.

[Or righteous warriors like Li Miaozhen. Additionally, these appointed experts must have guaranteed moral character. They can’t kill innocents indiscriminately—best to rob without killing.]

As much as possible… he added mentally.

Xu Qi’an knew that once his strategy was adopted, even with utmost caution and care, innocents would still be affected.

This was why he had hesitated earlier.

But his experience from his previous life told him that once you elevate your perspective to the level of the entire country and society, you can’t judge problems by simple good and evil.

Currently, disasters are raging, refugees are everywhere, and people are dying daily.

More would die in the future.

Those in power needed to focus on stabilizing social order quickly, and not hesitate because some innocents might be sacrificed.

The merciful cannot command armies, and likewise, the merciful cannot hold power.

The Earth Book chat group fell silent again. Though separated by thousands of mountains and rivers, Xu Qi’an seemed to hear their heavy breathing.

Or perhaps their trembling hands.

[Four: Xu Ning’yan, you’ve truly gone mad!]

As a traditional scholar, Chu Yuanzhen found this somewhat unacceptable.

The others remained silent. After quite a while, Chu Yuanzhen messaged again: [But I must admit, this is a feasible method, though it carries enormous hidden dangers.]

Li Miaozhen suddenly messaged: [If we must do this, I hope I can be the one robbing the gentry.]

Because this way, they could minimize indiscriminate killing.

[Four: I’ll try to gather some refugees, though plundering the gentry won’t be easy—they usually live in cities.]

[One: With Earth Book fragments and the ability to fly on swords, these aren’t problems.]

Huaiqing’s heart was harder than theirs—she had already accepted and embraced Xu Qi’an’s suggestion.

[Six: Amitabha, this poor monk doesn’t know how to choose.]

[Seven: Count me in.]

Li Lingsu spoke up.

[Two: You? Li Lingsu, this doesn’t match your style. Shouldn’t you be thinking “Heaven is vast, earth is vast, but sleeping with women is the vastest”?]

Li Lingsu angrily messaged: [Am I that terrible in your eyes? Li Miaozhen, we’re fellow disciples—can’t you wish me well for once?]

[Two: No, sorry!]

“…”

Li Lingsu took a deep breath and messaged:

[This is Supreme Emotionlessness—not being troubled by emotions, not being disturbed by feelings. When something benefits the greater situation and the common people, one isn’t swayed by momentary pity and sympathy, perfectly mastering emotions. Isn’t this the state Master wanted us to achieve?]

This time, Li Miaozhen didn’t argue.

After this, no one spoke further.

…

That day, Emperor Yongxing received a secret memorial submitted to the palace by Xu Xinnian, Editorial Reviewer of the Hanlin Academy.

A secret memorial was one submitted directly to the emperor without going through the cabinet.

Emperor Yongxing sat behind his grand desk, staring at the opened memorial on the table, silent for a long time.