Chapter Eight: Taking in the People and Expanding Influence

Fang Han felt a surge of joy upon seeing the chest of jewelry. At the same time, he learned a piece of vital information: the Li family of Qingzhou Prefecture was actually the maternal clan of Lin Qingwei.

In the Great Zhou imperial court, everyone knew of an ill-omened little princess, yet no one knew which family she hailed from. Now, Lin Qingwei had voluntarily revealed it was the Li family of Qingzhou. The Li family was a prominent and powerful clan, with their head, Li Wuling, serving as a Minister. They were arguably the greatest family across the four prefectures of the Eastern Frontier. The Eastern Frontier bordered the sea; even during the most war-torn years of the Great Zhou, it had remained largely untouched and was now the most prosperous region within the empire. With Lin Qingwei’s support, they could first procure necessary supplies, especially grain seeds and tools, from the east.

Fang Han took out a few gold ingots and closed the chest again. "These are enough. Gold and silver can be earned back, but I cannot guarantee the safety of rare treasures," Fang Han said with a smile.

Lin Qingwei felt a warmth in her heart upon hearing this. These jewels were her only security, and she had decided to use them only after much deliberation. By doing this, she was effectively pinning all her hopes on Fang Han; if he failed, they would have no chance of recovery. She had been prepared to lose the jewelry entirely, yet Fang Han had only taken the less valuable items.

"With this money, I can buy grain seeds and tools. In less than two years, we will be able to stand firm in the Southern Frontier."

Lin Qingwei cautioned him, "You may befriend the Li family, but do not trust them. Because of my illness..."

Seeing the look of desolation on Lin Qingwei’s face, Fang Han understood her meaning. The Li family likely also viewed her as a harbinger of misfortune. Even if they helped Fang Han, it would only be out of regard for her status as a princess.

"Don't worry, I won't go to Qingzhou. I don't want Lin Qingxue and Fang Li to know we are still alive. When the time is right, we shall return to the capital," Fang Han said, a glint in his eyes. If they were exposed now, let alone receiving help from the Li family, they would be lucky not to be captured for a bounty.

The night passed without incident. The next morning, a crowd gathered outside the Governor's Mansion. In addition to able-bodied men looking to enlist in the army, others had come hoping to find a way to survive. The new governor had issued a recruitment notice immediately upon arrival, which clearly implied there was plenty of food; as long as one could join the city defense battalion, one would no longer have to endure daily hunger.

As soon as Liu San opened the gates, the crowd erupted.

"Sir, I eat very little; I only need one steamed bun per meal!"

"Sir, I am a blacksmith; I can forge weapons for the defense battalion."

"Sir, I am a hunter; let me join the army."

Fang Han yawned. Having spent the night in deep thought, he had slept late and felt lethargic. Hearing the shouting at the gate, he walked over, brow furrowed. The moment the crowd saw him, they fell silent, followed immediately by whispers of suspicion.

"Is this the new governor? He looks younger than my third son."

"The new lord is so young? Is the imperial court truly out of men?"

"So, are the rumors true? Are the Southern Barbarians about to take over the court? If so, why shouldn't we just defect to them?"

The various suspicions were displeasing to Fang Han, but he also felt a sense of relief. If even the common people did not believe a young man could govern the Southern Frontier, the local warlords would certainly share that sentiment. As long as he could deceive them for a while and get the administration of the Governor's Mansion on track, things would be much easier in the future.

"Quiet!" Liu San shouted. The crowd settled down, waiting for the old man to speak.

"This is our new governor, Lord Fang. Lady Fang is a princess of our Great Zhou. The imperial court has not abandoned the Southern Frontier; they have sent the prince consort to govern it."

Upon hearing that the man before them was the prince consort and that the princess was present, everyone was stunned and began to murmur.

"It is truly the Princess. It seems the court has finally remembered the Southern Frontier."

"With the Princess here in person, we are saved."

The common people did not know of Lin Qingwei’s "Rakshasa" illness; they only knew the imperial court had taken over. Perhaps before long, the imperial army would arrive to quell the rebellion, and the Southern Frontier would return to its former state. Some in the crowd exchanged glances and took advantage of the commotion to slip away from the Governor's Mansion.

Fang Han had coached Liu San on what to say. The most important thing now was to stabilize morale; even with recruitment, they would inevitably face unrest if they couldn't provide food in the short term. But if he could sow seeds of hope, he believed they could hold out for a while.

Fang Han cleared his throat and said, "The world is in a state of transition, and the imperial court is most concerned about the war-torn Southern Frontier. Therefore, we have been sent to help the region flourish."

"Although the court's supplies have yet to arrive, I believe that as soon as the rebellion is quelled and the trade routes reopened, the Southern Frontier will once again trade with the Central Plains. When that happens, our lives will only get better."

"Now, those who wish to enlist in the city defense battalion, stand to the left of the gate. Those who wish to perform other tasks, stand to the right."

As soon as Fang Han finished, the crowd quickly split into two lines. The elderly, women, and children stood on the right, while the able-bodied men stood on the left. However, the number of men was small—only eight, while there were forty or fifty on the right.

Fang Han felt a heavy burden; forty or fifty people would cause his expenses to skyrocket instantly. But he could not turn them away, so he had to settle them. Fortunately, nine out of ten houses in the capital were empty, and many could be used with just a little cleaning and repair.

By the end of the morning, they had taken in nearly two hundred people. Fang Han ordered Fang Da to lead them into the mountains to hunt. By evening, the hunting party returned. With the addition of local hunters and the cooperation of trained soldiers, they had brought back five hundred pounds of game. Furthermore, work on repairing the city gates was underway and would be finished soon.

As darkness fell, Fang Da dragged a man before Fang Han and shoved him to the ground. Behind him followed a young woman.

"What is the meaning of this?" Fang Han asked.

Seeing someone in authority, the man began to wail. "My Lord, didn't you say we could live in the city? I found an empty house and was just about to move in when this woman brought the commander here to stop me. My Lord, you must uphold justice for me!"

Fang Da turned red with anger and snapped, "You liar! You were clearly trying to seize a private residence by force!"

The woman then spoke up, "My Lord, that is my family's home. We were previously attacked by bandits, and I was the only one to escape by hiding in a secret chamber. Hearing that a new governor had arrived, I came out to see."

From the woman, it was learned that she had been on her way home when she saw the man breaking the door lock, just as Fang Da, who was on patrol, happened upon them. These trivial matters gave Fang Han a headache. Suddenly, a good idea occurred to him.

"Fang Da, go tell Liu San to settle everyone in the houses of the locals, using families as the units. As for those vacant manors, we will distribute them later based on merit."

Fang Da asked nervously, "My Lord, then... what about Yue Lan?"