Chapter 145 Lin Huaiwu's Thoughts (Thanks to book friend Liao Jiazidi, 8103 monthly tickets!)

Before returning to the Great Zhou, when he was still in the palace capital of Liujing, Ye Mingsheng had tried to recruit Lin Huaiwu once. However, at that time, because he was greedy for the prosperity of Luoan and did not want to live in the bitter cold of Liaoyang, he declined under the pretext of considerations. Although it was called considerations, both he and Ye Mingsheng knew that it was just an excuse for him to save Ye Mingsheng's face.

For Lin Huaiwu, although he declined Ye Mingsheng's invitation, to be honest, Ye Mingsheng's words were still very tempting to him. Those words were like weeds, growing wildly in his heart, tempting him all the time.

But when he learned the other day that Ye Mingsheng had not only been successfully transferred to the Zhenwu Army, but also became a fifth-rank General Huwei and the fourth military officer of the Zhenwu Army, it was like the last straw that broke the camel's back and completely overwhelmed him.

As a trusted subordinate of Ye Mingsheng, Lin Huaiwu certainly understood that Ye Mingsheng did not have many available people under his command. If he went to join him, Ye Mingsheng would undoubtedly use him, both because of his ability and his relationship with Ye Mingsheng. At that time, it would be a matter of course for him to be promoted from a sentry leader to a seventh-rank commander.

It was with this idea in mind that Lin Huaiwu took the initiative to come to Ye Mingsheng's house today, carrying gifts and expressing his intention to join him.

However, Ye Mingsheng's cold reaction made Lin Huaiwu a little disappointed. He began to worry that his last refusal had offended Ye Mingsheng.

Just when Lin Huaiwu was feeling uneasy and didn't know what to do, Ye Mingsheng, who was leaning on the armchair and seemed to be in deep thought, was secretly looking at him out of the corner of his eye.

Ye Mingsheng could probably guess what Lin Huaiwu was thinking. Although he was disappointed and indignant at Lin Huaiwu’s refusal last time...
But from a rational point of view, Ye Mingsheng had to admit that he should give Lin Huaiwu a chance to reform and absorb him into his own team. Lin Huaiwu's joining would definitely be a significant boost to his current power.

Although he was willing to follow his reason, Ye Mingsheng was not willing to accept him back so easily. He wanted to take this opportunity to give Lin Huaiwu a good beating and let him know his own worth!
Looking at Lin Huaiwu's expression and seeing that he was gradually becoming anxious, Ye Mingsheng knew that the time had come, and immediately spoke calmly and without any emotion:
"Why do you want to go to Liaoyang again?"

Hearing the question asked by Ye Mingsheng, Lin Huaiwu, who was a little flustered, was speechless for a moment. The answer to this question, of course, was that he saw that Ye Mingsheng was a high-ranking official in the Zhenwu Army, so he came to join him.

But it was obvious that he couldn't say that, otherwise, wouldn't he, Lin Huaiwu, be a sycophantic, profit-seeking villain? Would Ye Mingsheng still be able to entrust him with important tasks?
Under Ye Mingsheng's gaze, Lin Huaiwu, who couldn't come up with any good excuse, said vaguely:
"Ever since you taught me that, I have always thought of it and couldn't sleep at night. Yesterday, I finally figured it out. A real man should make achievements in this world. I am willing to follow you and go to Liaoyang to serve the country!"

Upon hearing this, Ye Mingsheng looked normal on the surface, but he felt amused in his heart.

You, Lin Huaiwu, have been thinking about it for more than a month from Liujing to Luoan, but you still haven't figured it out. How come you suddenly figured it out when you heard that you had become General Huwei?
Although he knew what Lin Huaiwu was thinking, Ye Mingsheng still gave him some face and did not directly expose his thoughts.

Glancing at Lin Huaiwu, Ye Mingsheng continued to preach without emotion: "It's a good thing that you are willing to serve the country, but unfortunately there is no position left in the Zhenwu Army. You should think carefully about whether you want to stay in Luoan. Liaoyang is a bitter and cold place, but in terms of prosperity, it is not even one-tenth of Luoan..."

Upon hearing Ye Mingsheng's words, although Lin Huaiwu tried his best to conceal his disappointment, his actions were ultimately in vain. Ye Mingsheng could still clearly feel the frustration emanating from his emotions.

For Lin Huaiwu, the reason why he changed his mind and wanted to follow Ye Mingsheng and transfer to Zhenwu Army to Liaoyang was not only because Ye Mingsheng became a high-ranking official, but there were also some other reasons.

Lin Huaiwu, the sentry captain, was promoted by Ye Mingsheng. Therefore, compared with veteran sentry captains of the eighth rank who have rich experience and qualifications in the army, such as Chen Yannian and Wang Xian, he is far inferior. His official rank is only the ninth rank. The difference in official rank directly affects his annual salary.

In Luoan, a place with extremely high prices, Lin Huaiwu, who received a meager salary, did not dare to rent a house like Ye Mingsheng. He could only eat and live in the barracks all day long, and occasionally go out to a restaurant to improve his food. Even so, and doing some small things in the army to make some extra money, he could not save much money throughout the year.

And because of the recent unrest in the Great Zhou, prices in Luoan have risen sharply again. Although the court acted quickly, on the one hand opening the treasury to stabilize prices, on the other hand strictly investigating hoarding and speculation, thus pushing prices down a lot, prices are still much higher than before.

Although Lin Huaiwu had the five hundred taels of silver that Ye Mingsheng had given him, Lin Huaiwu, who was determined to climb up, saw this silver as a stepping stone to the eighth rank, so he dared not spend it easily and continued to eat steamed buns and pickles in the military camp...

Although he was so frugal, the overall environment was really bad. A few days ago, Lin Huaiwu's hometown sent someone to send a message saying that there was a severe drought in the northwest this year, and the grain output was only half of that in previous years. A family of more than ten people had a very hard life and could hardly eat.

Therefore, the letter asked Lin Huaiwu, who was an official in the capital, to take the money back. Although Lin Huaiwu was reluctant, he had no choice but to take out 100 taels of silver from the 500 taels and have someone take it back.

Although he got through this difficult time thanks to the money Ye Mingsheng gave him, facing the high prices in Luoan and the plight of his original family, Lin Huaiwu could clearly feel that he was becoming increasingly unable to cope...

Lin Huaiwu was very aware that even if he successfully got promoted to the eighth rank with the silver Ye Mingsheng gave him, then continuing to stay in Luoan with the salary of an eighth rank sentry leader would still be a drop in the bucket for improving his life and there would not be any qualitative change.

(End of this chapter)