Who would have thought that the imperial courts rear had ignited the flames of war? The Taizu Emperor fled from the capital to Yangzhou, and in his shock and anger, he fell ill. He had three sons, and as he lay gravely ill, two of his elder princes began to vie for the throne.
It was the year of Gengwu, so it is historically known as the Gengwu coup or the Gengwu disaster. The two princes thought they could control Lins clan to threaten Lin Yu in the front line to obey them, but during the scramble, Lin Yus eldest son Lin Tao was accidentally injured.
Lin Tao did not govern himself and died. His younger brother Lin Zhi, who was also the father of Lin Jiang, hated him extremely, closed the big gate of the Lin family, and sent someone to ask for help from his father in the north.
Who would have thought that this move enraged the two princes, they were flustered and feared that Lin Yu would know the truth and turn against them, so they decided to take drastic measures to eliminate the Lin family and then find an excuse to cover it up.
In this chaotic world, the loyalty between monarch and minister has been infinitely compressed. Having military power in ones hands is the only way to rule. Wasnt Shi Qian the one who killed his own superior and rebelled with a wave of his arm back then?
Now Lin Ying still has 200,000 troops in his hands and is quite close to the generals of the other three routes. He wants to rebel, but its just a thought away.
So the two princes were frightened and Lins clan was almost destroyed because of this.
Yang Yuan, who was still serving as the Minister of the Imperial Secretariat, sensed that something was amiss and risked his life to enter the palace and request an audience with Emperor Gaozu.
But when the Forbidden Army arrived at Lins residence in Suzhou, it was too late. The main branch of the Lin family had almost been annihilated, and only Lin Zhi managed to escape with the help of a few loyal servants, but he was also seriously injured.
The great ancestor emperor ordered the execution of two princes in order to appease Lin Yu, and even their descendants were not spared.
Later, Lin Zhi, who survived, was granted the title of Zhonguo Gong, and his brother Lin Tao was posthumously granted the title of Huguo Gong.
The throne was succeeded by the then still young third prince, Lin Yu monitored the country. At that time, Emperor Gaozu, in order to appease Lin Yus anger, rewarded him generously.
Many of the good fields and lands in Jiangnan that were abandoned due to war were awarded to the Lin family, and with the gold, silver, and treasures in the national treasury, it can be said that the Lin family was richer than the national treasury.
Lin Qingyan closed the genealogy and suppressed the turmoil in her chest. The two-hundred-year history of the Lin family was simply a war record.
Lin Qingyan asked in a low voice, "Is it the Third Prince now?"
"Yes," Lin Jiang lowered his eyes and said, "My grandfather was the regent, but after suffering this blow, he fell ill and passed away in just two years. My father was seriously injured and although he also served as an official in the imperial court, due to his poor health, he worked in a relatively relaxed position in the Ministry of Works, using his spare energy to manage the family business."
The Lin family had nothing in excess except for money, grain and silk fabrics. His fathers business acumen was renowned.
"Emperor..."
Lin Jiang knew what Lin Qingwan was worried about, and shook his head slightly: "In those years, the two princes were killed because of the Lin familys affairs, but Your Majesty has no prejudice against the Lin family. Moreover, my grandfather passed away early, and before he died, he handed over the 200,000-strong army under his command to Your Majesty. My father only expressed his opinions on matters related to the Ministry of Works, so he still had some affection for me, the Lin family. However, this is a chaotic world, and he is a ruler in a chaotic world. After all, my Lin family is just one of the millions of households, how could he remember so much?"
Lin Yuhongs tragedy had nothing to do with the Emperor, which made Lin Qingyu breathe a sigh of relief.
Otherwise, if the countrys top leader cant get along with them, shes afraid that even her own life wont be spared.
"But the end of my Lin family is indeed related to this matter," said Lin Jia. "In those years, my grandfather stood too high and drove the Liao people across the Yellow River, but he also seized a lot of spoils of war, so they thought that the Lin family was hiding mountains of gold and silver. Even if I donated all my property in the end, they wouldnt believe it. They thought I was still secretly keeping some for Yuhai, so..."
The most critical thing is that during the Gengwu coup, the Lin familys main branch was almost completely destroyed, and the remaining Lin family members were all collateral branches, who were not close to them. Therefore, they did not unite with the main branch, and on the contrary, they united with outsiders to bully Yuhai when there was enough benefit.
In those years, there were many luxuriant branches, but in the end, only his father was left, and he too was left with only one, Yu Bin.
Lin Jiang felt infinite regret, he didnt know if it was because of him, because Bai Weng had said that the Lin family was cursed because of him.
The merits of the Lin family for several decades should have been prosperous, but now this branch is sparse and few people...
Lin Jiang had already decided that the first thing he would do after becoming an immortal was to find out who had cursed him.
"What about those spoils of war?" Lin Qingwan asked.
"What?" Lin Jiang was still thinking about the person who had cursed him.
"Am I referring to those spoils of war that Grandfather swept up?"
"Most of the gold, silver and jewelry were used to support the troops and reward subordinates, while some hard-to-sell books and antiques were kept in storage as family heirlooms."
"Does the emperor know about these things?"
Lin Jiang murmured, "Its probably well-known that back then the Great Liang Kingdoms treasury was looted by the Liao army and couldnt afford to pay military salaries or provide food for the troops. The entire army relied on their commanders own pockets. My grandfather was famous for treating his subordinates well and wouldnt let his soldiers starve, so all the money was spent."
Apart from various collections, the silver in the Lin family was accumulated after his father took over the household, because at that time the Lin family no longer needed to maintain troops.
This is also one of the reasons why Lin Jiang was able to take charge of a region at the age of 40, he certainly had talent, but it would have been difficult for him to reach such a high position at such a young age even if he had enough experience.
But it was the emperor who cherished the affection of the Lin family.
At that time, Lin Xiang was seriously ill and did not hand over the 200,000-strong army to his son Lin Zhi, but instead handed it over to the emperor.
To know that the 200,000-strong army was the largest and strongest military force in Daliang, the emperor could take control of this 200,000-strong army at the age of 16.
So even though Lin Zhi was always lukewarm to the Emperor, and even when the Emperor summoned him he didnt want to enter the palace to see him, the Emperor wasnt angry, but instead let him return to Jiangnan to take office after Lin Jiang started his official career.
It is also because of this that Lin Jiang felt that the Emperor had treated him with kindness and therefore was always a supporter of the monarchy, and was one of the Emperors trusted advisors.
The situation was complicated after his death, and only Yu Bin, a young daughter, remained. The emperor could take care of her to some extent, but the girl was too young to understand anything, and even later when she realized that there were tigers and wolves around her, she couldnt contact the outside world.
There is no way out at all.
Lin Qingwan turned around twice and said, "Your consideration is not wrong, I really cant guarantee the Lin familys industry, but we cant just give away so much money either. Now is not the time to give it away, wait for me to make a decision, first go and prepare the grain and fodder."
Lin Jiang looked at her deeply for two seconds before nodding in agreement.
He believed in Lin Qingwan, or rather, he believed in Bai Wengs divination that Lin Qingwan would be the breakthrough for the Lin family.
The war between Dai Liang and Da Chu broke out again, shocking the whole country.
Two years ago, in the war of Liang Chu, Da Liang lost his eldest son. Last year, the Yellow River basin in Guangjin had a big flood, and the courts relief efforts emptied the national treasury. Now it is the time when green and yellow are not connected, and the national treasury cannot afford to pay for the grain and military salaries for war.
But if it doesnt fight, it wont work either. To the north of Daliang there is Liao, to the west there are Tubo and Later Shu, to the southwest there is Great Chu, Jiangling Prefecture is still independent, in the south there is Southern Han, and to the east there is Min State. As soon as Daliang shows weakness, these countries and regions will all bare their teeth and take a bite of flesh from Daliangs body.
So this battle must be fought, and it cannot be avoided even if we want to.
Lin Jiang knew this and made every effort to prepare enough food and grass, even if it meant being scolded.
Its now, even if he knows that doing so will leave a hidden danger for Yubin later, he still has to do it. Because only by holding down the edge of the beam and calming down the tigers and wolves around can Lin Qingyu have the conditions to make her move, and protect Yubins foundation.
Otherwise, Daliang would fall into war and chaos, and in such a chaotic world, even if Lin Qingyuan was clever, it would be difficult to keep the two of them safe.
Because they were just two helpless girls, only in a safe environment did they have the opportunity to strive, otherwise, no matter how clever Lin Qingyan was, encountering rioting soldiers would be either death or worse than death.
Lin Jiang did not wish for such a thing to happen.
So Lin Jiang started going to work normally, and the whole of Jiangnan was mobilized by him.
Yangzhou Prefecture is the secondary capital of Daliang, and he is also the surveillance commissioner of Jiangnan Road, so he has the power to deploy. In less than half a month, the whole of Jiangnan knew that Linjiang, who was said to be dying from illness in the previous period, had recovered.
Originally somewhat lax Jiangnan officials tightened up and dared not slack off in executing the orders from above.
Suzhou, which is only three days away from Yangzhou, was one of the first to receive the news. The Lin family clan was overjoyed when they heard that Lin Jiang had turned danger into safety. The elder who was originally planning to set out on a journey decided not to leave after all.
In Suzhou city, the Shang family was also in a good mood. Old Mrs. Shang happily said: "Its great that Brother-in-law is better, tell the housekeeper to reward each person with an extra months salary."
The second lady smiled and nodded: "The daughter-in-law will go to instruct, do you want to call someone to collect some medicinal materials and send them to Yangzhou to see the uncle?"
The old lady thought for a moment and nodded: "Alright, Ill take a look at Yuhin. If the young master is fully recovered from his illness and hes too busy with official duties to care about Yuhin, then Ill bring Yuhin back and keep an eye on him."
The second ladys smile slightly paused, and she nodded her head in agreement with a gentle laugh.
The joy of the two families was different, and the big households in Yangzhou City felt heartbroken because Lin Xiaomian had talked to them about contributing a force to the countrys border defense and donating more property and food.
Lin Jiang moved them with emotion and enlightened them with reason. The wealthy families understood the reasoning he presented, after all, in these uncertain times, they knew how terrifying war could be.
But this does not mean that they are willing to donate so much money at home, which is more painful than cutting their flesh.
Someone suggested levying a military tax on the common people, after all, there are many ordinary people, and everyone can afford to pay a little.
When the time comes for them to pay military taxes, they will all pay.
Lin Jiang said that the military tax must be collected, but now is a time of scarcity and shortage. The common people have limited ability, he cant just squeeze them to death for the sake of border wars, so the wealthy households must also contribute more. Of course, they wont get nothing in return, the imperial court will give them some preferential policies.
Lin Jiang was haggling with the wealthy families, while Lin Qingwan sat on a reclining chair in the courtyard sunbathing, and Lin Yubin read poetry to her from a collection.
Lin Yuhu finished reciting a poem and saw that his younger sister was already half asleep with her eyes closed, so he gently took the blanket from Lichuns hand and covered it over her.
Lin Qingwan slightly opened her eyes and looked at her.
Lin Yuhongs hand stiffened, and his face turned slightly red as he said, "Little sister, did I wake you up?"
"I wasnt asleep anyway," she glanced at the poetry book, "Finished reading?"
Lin Yuhu nodded slightly, "What book does little sister want to hear? Ill read it for you."
"Bring me the account book from the outer courtyard and read it out loud for me."
Lin Yuhong was surprised, "Why does little sister want to listen to that?"
"Its the end of the month and the hospital needs to settle accounts. I have to take a look, but arent you guys not letting me read books? Then you can help me read it."
"Isnt it the Lin familys affair outside?"
"We masters should also have a conscience."
Lin Yuhong was apparently hearing this for the first time, and she was momentarily stunned. After a while, she tilted her head in confusion and said, "But before, my younger sister-in-law didnt care about these things either. Why is it that now that shes sick, she suddenly wants to take charge?"
The young lady is so ill, her body not well taken care of, shouldnt she be resting quietly and being happy every day? Why has she suddenly become busy? These past few days, hasnt she been either in the study discussing official business with Father or having someone check over the account books?