Chapter 58 Emotional Investment

  Eat the lord's salary, bear the lord's worries. In simpler terms, if you eat someone else's food, you should do their work. This saying is also very applicable to people like Yuan San. Although Lu Haoshan and the others had a gentleman's agreement, usually just helping out with some chores, Yuan San felt uneasy about it and insisted on having Lu Haoshan inspect them and give orders.

  Lu Haoshan can pretend not to be in Yuan San's mind, but people like Yuan San, who are upright and honest, would not be those who take advantage of small benefits. In the past, following Director Yuan, not only a small seventh-grade county magistrate, but also prefects and governors were not taken seriously. However, today is different from the past. Today, Director Yuan has become a prisoner under the emperor's eyes, and his own group has changed from being admired as the governor's private guard to becoming a wanted criminal of the imperial court.

  If it were just these elite private guards, no matter how bitter and exhausting it was, they could still laugh it off. However, with their wives and children in tow, watching them suffer, the hearts of these iron-willed men broke. The greatest fear of a real man is to implicate his family; yet those brocade-clad palace guards were unreasonable demons who would not listen to reason. If they were caught, they would be beaten into submission, and not only would their own lives be imperiled, but also their families would suffer. Now, however, things have improved: not only do they have a place to settle down, but County Magistrate Lu personally oversees every detail, from the large to the small, considering everything for everyone, from housing to firewood, rice, and salt. Every month, he even distributes salaries to everyone, and in order to let them properly settle down, he gave a generous sum of settlement money and paid two months' salary in advance. How could they not be grateful?

  What moved Yuan San the most was that this Magistrate Lu, upon hearing that there were still a few bachelors in the group, patted his chest and said he would introduce them to virtuous women from good families. He said something about how having no descendants is one of the three unfilial acts, and having no posterity is the greatest of all, and that they should take the opportunity to leave a root for their clan. Those few old bachelors now felt that Magistrate Lu was even more intimate with them than their own elder brother.

  Good man, with a grateful heart, Yuan San decided that before returning to his old master, he must repay the county magistrate who had risked his life and future to help him. So, without waiting for Lu Haoshan to speak, Yuan San took the initiative to show goodwill to this temporary new master of his.

  What's this? You give me a peach and I repay you with a plum. Every day, eating and drinking for free, not doing anything, my conscience won't be at peace.

  "Everyone is here, brothers have all arrived, just say a few words." In the suburbs of Jiangyou City, Yuan San, who had assembled his troops, said to Lu Haoshan with a serious face.

  They stood like pines, unmoving as mountains. Although they were only a dozen people, the aura they gave off was one of unshakeable conviction. The twelve of them were like twelve sharp blades unsheathed, and even if there were thousands or tens of thousands of soldiers in front of them, they would charge forward without hesitation. Yuan San wore a majestic mountain-patterned armor, while the other eleven wore light and flexible cotton armor, highlighting Yuan San's prominent position. Their physiques were so robust, their armor was so exquisite, their warhorses were so spirited, and their eyes were so resolute. As the saying goes, "a master's hand is evident at a glance." This very spirit had already left those disorganized mobs far behind, as distant as nine streets away.

  It's a great deal! Lu Haoshan was secretly rejoicing, thinking that he had made a huge profit from just doing a little something. Now Yuan San could be said to have come with sincerity, and it's often said that talented people are hard to find, but someone like this who has gone through multiple life-and-death struggles is even harder to find. Just the twelve sets of exquisite cavalry equipment were already a huge gain.

  Looking at these extremely well-equipped private guards, Lu Haoshan felt as if he was looking at twelve beautiful girls, and his saliva almost flowed out.

  However, Lu Haoshan understood that Yuan San and the others were so polite now because he had lent a helping hand when they needed it most, giving their family's women and children a place to settle down, providing them with the grain rations they desperately needed. They were willing to be driven by him, but if he wanted them to truly admire him and devote themselves wholeheartedly to his cause, there was still a long way to go.

  "Yuan San-ge, what do you mean by this?" Lu Haoshan was already over the moon with joy inside, being able to recruit this elite squad was a dream come true, but on the surface he still maintained his composure, so as not to give people the impression that he was arrogant.

  "Adult" Yuan San gave Lu Haoshan a salute, with a serious expression to show his attitude: "No rules, no square circle. When we need help most, the adults do not count personal life and future, extend a helping hand, put themselves in our shoes, think for us, we are grateful, before returning to the old master's side, we are the adult's personal guard, what does the adult have, just order."

  Lu Haoshan understood the implication of Yuan San's words, he expressed himself very clearly. For now, replacing themselves was just a temporary measure. Once the former master returned or had needs, they would leave immediately. This was obviously a case of burning bridges and being ungrateful, but Lu Haoshan not only didn't express opposition, but also praised their noble behavior, to the point where they reached an agreement with one slap.

  This is the benefit of being a second-generation person. In order to gain the first important power, Lu Haoshan decided to follow his heart and buy people's hearts, because he knew that their former master would not be able to survive in prison. Those who achieve great things do not bother with trivial matters. Although it cannot be said that one should sacrifice their conscience for success, sometimes taking certain measures is also acceptable. For example, in later generations, many people think that Europe's economy is developed, welfare is perfect, social development, human culture, and human freedom have all developed harmoniously. However, how many people know that this was built on the wealth accumulated through centuries of colonial rule, brutal exploitation, and plundering of Asian and African countries?

  History is always written by the victors.

  "Yuan San-ge, this, this isn't right, is it?"

  "Sir, Yuan San is now a personal guard under your command. Just call out 'Yuan San' and he'll come. Don't disrupt the rules." Yuan San didn't have as many tricks up his sleeve as Lu Haishan did. What he said was what he meant, and he clearly distinguished between public and private matters, proactively protecting Lu Haishan.

  The agreement between gentlemen has been made clear, that is, if you feel uncomfortable or unaccustomed to it, you can leave at any time. Lu Haoshan will not stop you. In fact, even if Yuan San and others want to leave, Lu Haoshan cannot stop them anyway.

  Upon seeing Yuan San speaking in such a manner, Lu Haoshan no longer hesitated. These soldiers couldn't bear the twisting and turning of words. With a serious expression, he said: "Brothers, you are all trusted aides by General Yuan's side, the crème de la crème among the elite troops. To be under my command is truly an honor that I am unworthy of. However, since General Yuan has spoken, I will take a step forward and ask you to train diligently with your hearts. Don't let training fall behind. General Yuan needs you, the Emperor needs you, and the people of Great Ming need you. Perhaps it's temporarily difficult, but rest assured that there will be a day when everything is revealed. Just focus on training, and leave everything else to me. I guarantee that you and your families will have enough food and clothing, without any worries."

  "Then there's nothing for us to do, right?" Yuan San asked in surprise.

  "No, your mission is to train on one side and wait quietly for the news of the commander-in-chief. No matter what happens, you cannot act rashly."

  Yuan San suddenly gave a military salute and said excitedly: "Your great kindness is as boundless as the sky, Yuan San speaks on behalf of his brothers to thank you, sir!"

  No matter what, the current Magistrate Lu is really doing his best, only paying out without taking in. How many people can do this in the world? It's said that adversity reveals true intentions, and at this moment, Yuan San finally believes it.

  "Thank you, sir." The eleven private guards followed with a bow, thanking in unison.

  The house where the family lives is so spacious, the silver in their pockets, and the meat in their mouths are all so real. Even the smiling face in front of them is so familiar. The private guards are also human beings with emotions, and they were all moved by the generosity of County Magistrate Lu.

  "Everyone get up quickly, Lu can't bear it." Lu Haoshan hurriedly helped everyone up one by one and said a few more soothing words, instantly pulling closer to the crowd.

  Liu Jinzhu, who was standing aside, watched for a while before finding an opportunity to step forward and report: "Young Master, several respected village heads from Jiangyou County, along with over ten students, have come to request an audience. Those village heads came in, didn't say a word, and knelt down in front of the county government office. No matter how they were persuaded, they refused to get up, insisting on seeing you."

  Here is the translation:

  "Really? Finally arrived? Lu Haoshan sneered in his heart: Not bad, the speed isn't slow either."

  There were important things to do, and Lu Haoshan bid farewell to Yuan San and others who could only train in the wild with a smile. Only then did he take Liu Jinzhu back to the county government office. In Lu Haoshan's eyes, life had many battlefields that required fighting all the way. Successfully winning over Yuan San and his party could be said to have won a major victory. The county government office was also an important battlefield when facing those officials and clerks.

  "Shan Ge, we've given them a lot of benefits, but they don't have to do anything in return. Isn't that too easy for them?" Liu Jinzhu said with some regret.

  Lu Haoshan smiled faintly: "There's no such thing as a free lunch. Da Shan, have you heard of Qian Zhuang?"

  "I heard that you can deposit silver and even earn interest on it."

  Lu Haoshan said calmly, "Actually, the relationship between people is like the silver in a bank. No matter how much silver you have, there's always a limit. Every time you take some out, it decreases by that amount. If you keep taking and not storing, soon the silver will be gone. For example, if you have a good friend and your relationship is very close, when you first go to his house as a guest, he'll definitely welcome you warmly. But after a while, if you're still staying at his house, his enthusiasm will fade away. If you linger and don't leave, it's likely that you'll become enemies. So, having more stored up isn't necessarily a bad thing, because when there's a need, you can take out more."

  Liu Jinchu nodded seemingly understanding and said: "Although I don't quite understand, it sounds reasonable. Shan Ge, are there any exceptions?"

  "There are, for example, feelings between parents and children that cannot be measured. Of course, there are also people who have gone bankrupt in terms of credit, only taking advantage without doing anything, and he will also be abandoned by others."

  "I get it, so the better Mountain Brother is to Yuan San and them, the more they'll work hard for Mountain Brother in the future, right?"

  "A child can be taught." Lu Haoshan patted Liu Jinzhu's forehead and said, "Alright, let's hurry up and get going. There's still a big battle waiting for us to fight."

  P.S. Recently, the background has been a bit off, I thought it was uploaded successfully, but unexpectedly at midnight, a book friend said that there were no updates yet, which gave me a fright, turns out I made a mistake, feeling depressed.