Chapter 30: Selling official positions and titles, dog-headed military advisor

Jin Shengtan, a critic in the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, commented on Wu Yong:
He is as cunning as Song Jiang, but he is more cunning than Song Jiang, but he has a righteous heart.

Wu Yong clearly mobilized the forces of the people and acted like a military strategist. The difference between Wu Yong and Song Jiang was that Wu Yong was willing to say that he was a wise man, while Song Jiang insisted on saying that he was sincere and honest.

Song Jiang only thought that he was overshadowing Wu Yong, but Wu Yong was actually overshadowing Song Jiang, and both of them knew it in their hearts.

Simply put, Song Jiang is too hypocritical.

Wu Yong's schemes were vicious and harmful. For example, when Lu Junyi was doing well in Daming Prefecture, he pretended to be a fortune teller to get Lu Junyi to come to the mountain, and drew a circle for him to fall into. Also, in order to get Zhu Tong to come to the mountain, he sent Li Kui to kill the youngest son of the prefect of Cangzhou.

However vicious or damaging he was, he only showed it in public and never acted as both a role and a villain. He was truly concerned about the development of the village.

In the end, he was hanged on Liangshan Mountain, and he lived up to his reputation of loyalty and righteousness.

After getting drunk, Cao Jie sobered up the next day. He made two cups of tea and invited Wu Yong to stay in the study alone.

"Sir, I know you are a man of great talent and wisdom, so I won't beat around the bush with you."

Seeing Cao Jie's cautious tone and knowing that they were in a private place like the study, Wu Yong also became serious, knowing that he had something important to say next:
"Second brother, since I am here to be your military advisor, I will plan for you no matter what happens."

For an ambitious person who wants to make progress, Cao Jie, from a God's perspective, does not need to test him and directly says:

"The first one is Liangshan. Although the white-clothed scholar Wang Lun is the leader of the stronghold and sits in the top position, he has actually been sidelined by me. Among the six leaders, four are my own people, and the remaining one, Du Qian, is useless and not worth worrying about..."

Wu Yong pinched the three-inch short beard on his chin, rolled his eyes, and asked, "The 800-li Liangshan Lake is easy to defend and difficult to attack, it's a good place. Second brother, are you going to get rid of him and truly control Liangshan?"

Killing Wang Lun is not difficult, but it is too rough and not advisable.

What is the most important thing in starting a business? Talent is the most important.

Even though Wang Lun has many shortcomings, his ability to build a stronghold is unquestionable.

This is an extremely rare talent with farming attributes!

Build walls high, accumulate grain widely, and become king slowly!
This nine-word mantra is Cao Jie's entrepreneurial policy. By the time the Jin army is about to march south, the success rate of his business will be much higher.

If you start a business now, you will be surrounded and suppressed by the Western Army!

The old General Zhong and the young General Zhong were not people who got their reputation for nothing. There was also a rumor that he was Han Shizhong, the reincarnation of a giant python.

Historically, Fang La was captured by Han Shizhong himself.

Since you can play a favorable game, why bother to fight against the last iron army?

Cao Jie shook his head: "There is no need to get rid of him. The last time I went to Liangshan, I saw that Wang Lun had some talent for managing the world. Now unless you and I go up the mountain, no one can replace him to build the stronghold. Besides, Wang Lun's backer is Mr. Chai after all..."

"Then... Second Brother is using the strategy of borrowing chickens and laying eggs, and when the time is right, he will take over Liangshan."

Cao Jie took a sip of tea, moistened his throat, and said:

"The Jianghu is not about fighting and killing, but about human relationships and worldly wisdom. The best strategy is to seize Liangshan peacefully.

Liangshan is our last resort, so we need to manage it well. Brother Zhu Gui, who runs a hotel at Lijiadaokou, needs you to go there and get acquainted with him. I hope you will take care of Liangshan in the future."

Wu Yong was overjoyed to have such secrets passed down to him. He knew that Cao Jie truly regarded him as a business partner, so he nodded immediately and said:

"I know that my second brother is busy with important matters, so leave the Liangshan line to me. I will make sure that Liangshan will be run prosperously and we are just waiting for that day to come."

"The three Ruan brothers and the brothers on the mountain are all rough men. I feel relieved with the guidance of the master. The second one is Wu Song."

"Oh!"

Wu Yong had never met Wu Erlang, but only Wu Dalang, and he thought to himself, what kind of brothers would such a brother have? But when he heard San Ruan's description while drinking last night, he realized that he was a rare hero.

So I became more and more curious and looked forward to meeting him.

"My brother Wu Song is brave and resourceful, and can be of great use. I have attached myself to the current county magistrate and recommended him to be the head of the county government. However, I want him to go a step further, such as becoming the deputy general of Jeju Prefecture, or the chief of a mountain stronghold, and find him a real official position."

"Buy an official position?"

Wu Yong raised his head suddenly: "Second brother, this requires a lot of money! You also need connections, otherwise the money will be useless."

At the end of the dynasty, evildoers were rampant. In the reign of Emperor Huizong, there were six evildoers, with Cai Jing at the top.

This man, under the banner of introducing new laws, committed all kinds of evil, including bribing officials, selling official positions, imposing various new taxes, and constantly plundering people's wealth.

When officials force the people to rebel, the people suffer.

This gave an opportunity to ambitious people like Cao Jie.

As the saying goes, when the Song Dynasty lost its power, the whole world chased it.

It's a pity that such a beautiful country is wasted on the orcs from the vast land.

Cao Jie stood up and paced a few steps: "Although I don't have much money now, everything depends on human efforts! Those who don't plan for the present are not qualified to plan for the whole world, and those who don't plan for a region are not qualified to plan for the whole situation. I am not worried about the underworld, but I need a few brothers to stand firm on the white side. Only by using both black and white can we be infallible."

"By the way, sir, do you have any way to make money?"

Wu Yong smiled bitterly. If he had the ability to earn money, he would not have fallen to the point of being a private school teacher in the countryside.

But when he heard Cao Jie's ambition, he also became ambitious for a moment.

Are there any kings, princes, generals or ministers of different species? If you cannot eat from five tripods while alive, you will have to be cooked in five tripods after death. It is better to live a life of glory than to be a teacher in the countryside for a lifetime and die alone.

He is really afraid of being poor.

Now I just want to make progress!

Step by step, step by step to the peak!
Even if you lose your head in the end, there is no need to be afraid. One should live a wonderful life.

"Sir, I will find a way to get the money. I will also try my best to make friends in the official circles, but I may not have so much time to socialize, so you will need to spend time and effort on my behalf."

What Wu Yong lacked was an opportunity. In terms of how he dealt with people and how he schemed, he was absolutely perfect.

With such a person acting as Cao Jie's spokesperson, the work of the black and white collusion in Jeju Prefecture can be carried out. In fact, Song Jiang is more suitable for this job, but Song Jiang is a person who cannot be controlled and was excluded early.

"As long as there is enough money and my second brother's panacea paves the way, I don't think it will be a problem."

After many twists and turns, the root of the problem still lies in money.

If you have 100,000 or 1 million strings of cash now, you won't have to worry about not being able to buy an official position.

After thinking for a moment, Cao Jie smiled and said, "It's actually quite simple to make money."

Cao Jie's attitude, as if everything was under control, immediately made Wu Yong curious.

"Second brother, what's your secret to making money?"

"You know, the father-in-law of Liang Zhongshu of Daming Prefecture is Cai Jing. He has plundered the people's blood and sweat, and has accumulated a lot of money. Every year, he gives Cai Jing a lot of birthday gifts. If we can find out the time when he delivers the birthday gifts, will we still worry about not having money to spend?"

Wu Yong's pupils slightly dilated, and he opened his mouth and took a deep breath: "Great! This birthday gift can only be taken by wits. Let me think about it, let me think about it carefully..."

"Sir, don't be anxious. There is still a lot of time! Please remember what I told you today, keep it in mind, and be extremely careful. We will take our time and wait for the day when the world will change drastically."

Wu Yong straightened his clothes and bowed to Cao Jie: "Second brother's plan is brilliant!"

Cao Jie gave a thumbs up: "Sir, your ability is great!"

The two smiled at each other and finalized the plan accumulated before the rebellion.

Of course, more detailed operations still need to be studied. Cao Jie trusts Wu Yong's ability, so there is no need to worry too much about handing it over to him, as long as he grasps the general direction.

At this time, Song Jiang was still dreaming of getting promoted and contributing to Dasong's development.

In Liangshan, Li Kui is against the Song Dynasty, Lu Zhishen is suspicious of the Song Dynasty, and most of the heroes do not have a clear concept of the country.

Song Jiang was different, he put the country in the most important position, so when he became the leader, the ending of Liangshan could only be to recruit amnesty, conquer Liao, flatten Tian Hu, fight Wang Qing, and fight Fang La.

His own end could only be death from drinking poisoned wine!
When Song Jiang is in power, he will only lead a group of heroes into the ditch. This is determined by his outlook on life, world view, and moral values, and cannot be changed...

(End of this chapter)